After confirming Lin Ge’s identity, the person behind the door hesitated for a few seconds before opening it fully. Upon seeing Lin Ge, he couldn’t help but be a bit surprised.

This new sage looked completely harmless—too thin and weak. His hand was so thin that the veins on the back of it stood out sharply, and his delicate wrists seemed like they could break with a slight touch. His clothes were tattered, and his pale face and hollow cheeks gave off a pitiful impression at first glance.

The man behind the door quickly concluded: this guy posed zero threat.

As the door opened, Lin Ge got his first clear look at the man. His appearance could only be described as stunningly handsome. His skin was smooth and white, reminding Lin Ge of sweet milk. He had a head of radiant blond hair, and his eyes were a striking emerald green, like the finest gemstones. A pristine white cloak draped over his shoulders, slightly covering his tousled hair.

He looked like an angel. Too dreamy.

A foreigner?

Lin Ge’s throat moved as he swallowed, pressing a hand to his grumbling stomach, which made his already pale face even whiter. In all his years as a living person, Lin Ge had never starved like this. His stomach felt like it was burning with hunger.

Wait a minute, does he even have a “stomach”?

“I am Yamanbagiri Kunihiro,” the man finally introduced himself.

Seeing Lin Ge staring at him, Yamanbagiri Kunihiro’s eyes darkened slightly, but he didn’t seem bothered. His expression remained as neutral as before.

Hearing his eerie, cold tone, Lin Ge clenched his hand at his side, nervously trying to stay composed and not reveal any clues about his confusion. He repeated the man’s name in his mind—Yamanbagiri Kunihiro. It was a bit of a mouthful and definitely not a name he was familiar with.

“Did Fox Helper explain the details of your job to you?” Yamanbagiri asked when he noticed Lin Ge was still staring blankly.

Lin Ge snapped back to reality and shook his head. “It only gave me this,” he said, holding up the heavy Work Manual.

Yamanbagiri Kunihiro glanced at the book for a moment before looking away. “Come in,” he said, not mentioning the manual again.

Following Yamanbagiri inside, Lin Ge saw two old-style houses standing at the back of the courtyard. The yard was very clean, and a small flower garden had been created in one corner, filled with flowers Lin Ge couldn’t name. The contrast between this peaceful, pastoral scene and the imposing torii gate and long stone steps outside was stark.

Yamanbagiri Kunihiro walked ahead, his back straight, with his white cloak draped over one shoulder and his hood softly resting against his neck, exposing the back of his pale neck.

Is he one of the staff here? Perhaps a contractor, or something like that. A coworker? Lin Ge silently speculated.

His gaze drifted down to the sword hanging at Yamanbagiri’s waist, deepening his confusion.

“This is your room,” Yamanbagiri suddenly announced, stopping abruptly.

Lin Ge, still preoccupied with his thoughts about Yamanbagiri’s identity, didn’t react in time and bumped into him.

Stumbling slightly, Yamanbagiri leaned forward a little but quickly regained his balance. His emerald eyes flickered with some unreadable emotion as he turned to look at the clumsy sage.

Lin Ge hurriedly stepped back, bowing in apology, “I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention…”

Yamanbagiri Kunihiro remained silent for a moment before lowering his eyes. “It’s fine,” he said softly. His voice was much gentler than before, no longer carrying the strange, cold tone.

“In this room, you’ll find the resources and currency the messenger delivered earlier. You can use the currency to buy the daily necessities and tools you need from the marketplace,” Yamanbagiri explained. “For now, you should rest. Tomorrow, we’ll head to the backyard to plant the vegetable seeds.”

After speaking, Yamanbagiri handed Lin Ge a brown cotton sack. Lin Ge took it, though his mind was still somewhat puzzled by what Yamanbagiri had just said.

Go to the backyard and plant seeds… Does that mean I’ll be farming with him? Lin Ge’s lips twitched. He couldn’t imagine this elegant-looking person working in the fields.

Is this what people mean by hidden pressure in the workplace?

“Wait, you mean… we’ll be planting the fields together?” Lin Ge asked, his feelings mixed. He wanted to confirm.

After a moment, Yamanbagiri seemed to chuckle quietly.

The laugh was so faint that Lin Ge wondered if he’d imagined it.

“If you don’t need to eat, you can skip planting,” Yamanbagiri replied, tilting his head slightly. “Rest well.”

With that, he turned and left. His figure quickly disappeared around the corner.

Holding the cloth bag Yamanbagiri had given him, Lin Ge stood at the door for a long time, only entering the room when his legs began to feel numb.

The interior was like a model home: bare and basic. Luckily, it had been cleaned well, and there was no musty smell or strange items lying around, though the white paint on the walls was chipped and worn from age.

There was a bed, two built-in wardrobes, and a square desk—those were the only pieces of furniture in the room.

Lin Ge sat on the bed. The moment his body hit the mattress, he felt like he was sitting on a hard wooden board. Lifting the sheet, he confirmed that, indeed, there was no mattress.

Great, he thought. If I sleep on this, with how weak I am, I might not be able to get up tomorrow.

He could already foresee his bleak future.

Why is it that even after dying, I still have to be a laborer?!

Sighing, Lin Ge quickly opened the cloth bag. Inside, he was surprised to find more than he expected.

Feeling the items inside, Lin Ge’s mood lifted slightly. The cloth bag was like one of those storage bags from a cultivation novel—it looked small, but it held a lot.

There were a bunch of shiny golden coins and a set of sharp weapons, including bows and knives. Remembering Yamanbagiri’s mention of a marketplace, Lin Ge grinned and started to read the Work Manual carefully.

After about half an hour, Lin Ge finally figured out how to access the marketplace.

Excited, the first thing he did was buy a Simmons mattress for 399 kobans (those shiny golden coins). There were 10,000 kobans in the bag, which was plenty for daily necessities.

After purchasing an item from the marketplace, it appeared instantly in a warehouse-like space, and with just a thought, Lin Ge could retrieve it.

Seeing this kind of futuristic technology for the first time, Lin Ge felt most of his previous tension melt away. He excitedly browsed the marketplace, like a player in a simulation game, gradually adding small comforts to his barren life.

The next day.

Yamanbagiri knocked on Lin Ge’s door and was shocked by what he saw when it opened.

His pupils dilated slightly, and for a moment, he was speechless.

The model room from yesterday had undergone a complete transformation overnight. Even the cracked, worn-out white walls had been covered with beige wallpaper.

Then he looked at the new sage, who was now wearing a black tracksuit, with his previous outfit discarded in the trash bin.

He had to admit, new clothes made a big difference. Yamanbagiri Kunihiro suddenly thought that the sage seemed much more energetic than before.

“…Good morning,” Lin Ge greeted the blond beauty with a smile.

After staring at the ugly face in the mirror all night, Lin Ge had finally come to terms with his horrendous appearance. He had consoled himself countless times, accepting the harsh reality that he was, in fact, extremely ugly.

Ugly or not, life goes on. You’ve got to keep living, right?

But Lin Ge’s sense of aesthetics was still intact. Seeing someone as good-looking as Yamanbagiri improved his mood immensely.

It would be even better if this handsome blond didn’t drag him off to do farm work.

The ugly sage managed to pull a hideous smile.

Yamanbagiri Kunihiro was stunned for a second before snapping back to reality. He lowered his gaze. “The seeds we’re planting are special government-issued rapid-growth crops. Today, we’ll plant sweet potatoes and radishes,” he explained. “The sweet potatoes will take four hours to harvest, and the radishes will take four and a half hours.”

Lin Ge was astonished. “That’s amazing!”

The times have changed! Even farming is fast-tracked now.

Seeing the genuine surprise on Lin Ge’s face, Yamanbagiri hesitated for a moment, then swallowed the questions he had. Instead, he continued explaining, “After harvesting the sweet potatoes and radishes, you can purchase other seeds from the marketplace.”

“Got it,” Lin Ge nodded sincerely. “Thank you.”

Yamanbagiri Kunihiro: “……”

Despite having an unappealing face, this sage had an earnest and innocent expression that somehow made people relax.

Yamanbagiri continued his explanations, like a helpful guide, using his pleasant voice to teach Lin Ge the basics.

By the time he realized it, Yamanbagiri had said far more than he’d intended. His new sage was looking at him with such trust and gratitude that Yamanbagiri felt like the guy wanted to give him a big hug.

Feeling a bit awkward under Lin Ge’s gaze, Yamanbagiri pressed down on the white hood of his cloak.

“Do we live here alone?” Lin Ge asked curiously as they walked to the backyard to plant—or rather, observe the magical crops.

Yamanbagiri glanced at him, slightly surprised.

“…No, there are others as well,” he answered after a brief hesitation.

“Oh,” Lin Ge said, surprisingly not asking any follow-up questions.

“Three days from now, there will be a sortie mission,” Yamanbagiri added, his emerald eyes gazing deeply at the seemingly harmless sage. “You’ll meet them then.”