Well, no time to waste. Like the saying goes, "No time like the present." I grabbed a handful of grass stalks and pulled. Well, tried to. Have you ever tried to pull a handful of those thick grass stems? I can't. Guess I'll resort to picking them a few at a time. Well, here goes the grass-eating spree.
[+.000000001 Energy]
[+.000000001 Energy]
...
...
"I'm really going to turn into a cow. Hopefully, no one comes wandering by or they'll think I've got a few screws loose and lost my marbles."
...
[+.000000001 Energy]
Okay, it's only been about five minutes, but these popups are getting super annoying.
"Hey Kitty, can you please move this notification to the bottom of my field of view?"
[Certainly. I'm not a kitty.]
"How would I be able to tell? I'm just a human. Maybe you actually look like a cute little kitty. Maybe you want to snuggle up on me and sleep?"
[If I took a form, it would be humanoid.]
"Male or Female?"
[Female]
"Sure, you don't want to snuggle up and sleep?" I teased.
[Congratulations! You've obtained your first occupation (temporary). To see it, please say "Status Window." To view only one stat, say "Status" followed by the stat. For example, "Status Occupation."]
'What's this? I don't have a job, though.'
"Status Occupation."
Occupation: Pervert (temporary job)
"Hey Kitty, I was teasing you. Please remove it. It's so embarrassing and not true. Who would want to snuggle with you."
[I am unable to remove a job. Either quit your job or wait for it to expire.]
[+.000000001 Energy]
...
...
...
[+.000000001 Energy]
It's been a few hours now. I've no idea how much grass I've eaten. The bitterness and astringency are really too much. I just want to eat something else. Come to think of it, why aren't I hungry? I've been mowing down and chewing on so much grass; I should be ravenous by now.
"Hey Kitty, am I not hungry because of you?"
[What is food made of? At least stop saying "Hey" like I'm some third-rate virtual assistant.]
"Um... Okay. Is it water, proteins, and enzymes?"
[And what is all that?]
"Stuff?"
[What is all the stuff in the world made of? I already told you.]
Like a lightbulb coming on, it clicked. Everything is energy, and if I can convert matter into energy, then I can probably use that energy.
"Energy. I'm using the energy I'm getting from the grass as fuel to live."
[Congrats! You figured something out.]
"Thanks. Couldn't have done it without you."
[Thank you.]
'So I have to eat the grass; I need to get to 1 Energy as well as more stay alive. I wonder if I can recover it.'
"So where is the energy I'm using to live going?"
[It's complicated to explain since you can't feel it yet, but essentially nowhere. You're not actually expending it. More like circulating it. You'll learn exactly in the future when you're stronger.]
'Well, that's good at least.' I go pick some more grass. Unsure of how long this whole thing will take, but I'll find out. If only the taste was better. I completely take back what I said about it being somewhat flavorless. It's too bitter and dries the mouth.
---
Just under a month later, I picked and consumed about 1 acre of grass. I even broke a stick off a tree and did the math on a patch of ground where I took it down to bare dirt. I stepped off about an acre. I don't have a tape measure, so give me a break on having to step it off if it's a little inaccurate.
An acre is about 208 ft x 208 ft. I counted the grass in that area, and there's about 4 million. One hundred into four parts equals 25. Since it took me just under a month, I should be done in only 2 years!
I'll have to confirm it by clearing more acres, though.
---
Eight months later, I must have arrived in the spring since the days are starting to get a little cooler. Far from cold, though. This place must be like Florida, never getting cold. The tree leaves have turned the most captivating colors of bright yellow at the base of each leaf, as it gets further changing to a fiery red and finally hot pink and magenta at the tip.
The original gentle breeze is a little stronger now, carrying the cooler air from the soaring mountains in the north. It rained a few times over these months. Only once was it pretty bad, with gusting winds and heavy rain. I took shelter under the overhanging canopy of a tree, but that didn't help much. Thankfully, the sun came out and dried off my clothes immediately after.
The grass has browned a little, making it harder to chew, but nothing can stop me. Only 15 months to go, and I'll be on top of the world.
"Hey Kitty, I mean Kitty, it's only going to take 2 years! I thought it would be at least 10."
[Heaven rewards hard work.]
'Heaven rewards hard work.'
'Hard work is eating grass.'
'Therefore, Heaven rewards eating grass!'
Haha, heaven rewards eating grass!
"Kitty! Heaven rewards eating grass!"
---
Since the revelation that heaven rewards eating grass 13 months ago, I've been chowing down a little faster. I can't even remember what other food tastes like now. I've noticed the insect life also. Little ants dutifully marching over the dirt and under the cover of the little broken grass stems. I've seen them hauling little bits of leaf matter, grass, and other insects.
"Good job, guys! Remember to eat the grass. Heaven rewards eating grass!" I gave the little ant line a double thumbs up.
Mostly, my friends are the ants and the lurking little spiders, but once in a while, there are some rolly-pollies, ladybugs, crickets, and other various insects. My favorite is the large butterfly with wings that look like they hold galaxies. There was also a little bunny, but it got scared when I tried to say hello.
I've been able to feel myself getting stronger continually from all the grass pulling and chewing and standing up and sitting then standing. It's quite the workout.
Two more months until heaven rewards me.
---
[Congratulations! You have completed your first task. The reward has been delivered to the system inventory.]
Hehehe. "Heaven rewards eating grass!" I shouted in joy.
"Kitty, I'm done!"
[Obviously.]
"Status Stats"
Stats (Average Human stat is 1):
Combat power: 1.2
Energy: 1.83
Strength: 2.3
Agility: 2
Stamina: 3
Intelligence: 0.9
Wisdom: 0.1
Luck: 2
Charisma: 0.5
"Heaven rewards eating grass!"
"Kitty, why did some of my stats go down?"
[You're a little crazy and need a bath. It's not "Heaven rewards eating grass," but "Heaven rewards hard work."]
[Quest: Go take a bath and wash your clothing in the lake to the southeast. Reward: Stat increase, mental clarity pill created with a little energy.]
I sprinted to the lake as fast as I could run. I could feel the tall grass brushing past my legs and the wind blowing my long hair into and out of my face. When I got to the edge of the lake, I took a leap and jumped in, only to find the warm water was only about a foot deep as my butt hit the bottom. Groaning, I held my tailbone and stood back up, splashing as I ran deeper into the lake. No little pain was going to stop me from getting my rewards!
Quickly finishing with my bath and washing my clothing, I noticed how the water close to shore was warm, and the water farther out was downright bone-chilling. To warm up, I continually splashed the shallow warm water all over me until I was warm.
[Congratulations! You have completed your task. The reward has been delivered to the system inventory.]
"Kitty, how do I use my rewards?"
[Say "Inventory" to open the inventory. I recommend eating the mental clarity pill right now.]
"Inventory."
I took out the pill and popped it in my mouth. It melted like a spoonful of sugar powder, and I felt a sensation in my mind.
"Status Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma."
Intelligence: 1.7
Wisdom: 1.2
Charisma: 2.5
Wow, those are some nice increases.
"Kitty, what's next?"
[You should probably change your clothing style, go to town, and familiarize yourself with this place.]
"Judging from the weather, am I in a place like Florida? Can I go to Miami?" After all that grass, I want to reward myself with observing all the beauties on the beach!
[There are 2 moons in the sky. How do you think you're still on Earth after 2 years' worth of nights here? You're not even in the same multiverse as Earth.]
So I wasn't reincarnated; more like transmigrated, no I have my body not a someone else's so technically isekai'd. Hopefully, I can find a beach here and have a little reward.
"Please explain everything I need to know."
[There are countless sets of multiverses. A multiverse is a set of universes, the same universe just with a different timeline on each. Each decision anyone makes creates a new one where they made a different decision.
Your decisions do not create new timelines, as there cannot be multiple versions of you.
Picture a sphere. That sphere contains many multiverses, and that sphere is inside another sphere. Between these spheres are many multiverses, but less powerful than the ones in the inner sphere. There are ten spheres in total. Each outer sphere's multiverses are far, far less powerful than the inner ones, though the power level of the multiverses in the same sphere does still vary a little.]
"So it's like a Russian nesting doll containing multiverses."
[Yes. The current one you are in is the very outer sphere. This multiverse's laws have the inhabitants using astral power from the stars. The sun does not produce any for whatever reason.]
"So how powerful am I compared to the inhabitants? I must be really strong."
[If the inhabitants' power scale is 0-100, you're about 2.]
With one sentence, my reality was shattered, as if it were glass, completely broken. Like an arrow to the heart, I realized all my hard work was wasted. Two years of eating grass just to get 2 on the scale.
_____
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