Chapter 185: Milk Master

Rino and the earth gnomes surveyed the new build site for the blacksmithing hut powered by water wheels for a week. At the same time, some trolls were asked to help dig trenches to redivert water from the river closer inland to the barn. A new building was added to the barn building project, and everyone tried to guess what Rino was up to this time.

Compared to the windmill, Rino found the water wheels easier to use and control because they moved at a constant rate. All he had to do was construct a dam and a gate that would release water if he needed more water to power the wheels. The plan was very detailed, and the pygmy dwarves travelled over to have a look. Kragami wanted a copy of the dam's design once it was finalised to see if he could build something similar in Cypress County, although Rino wondered how he would get flowing water in a swamp.

There was some manpower reshuffling as Rino was busy designing the new spot for the watermill. A new farming division now that Rino's agricultural domain was expanding. 

He left Zerg's villagers solely in charge of Town Zera's rice, taro, corn, and wheat fields. The spies were in charge of the soybeans, and the trolls were now left in charge of carrying the harvest to the underground storage. They were also tasked with building new infrastructures under the drow's management.

Rino left some of the weaker trolls in charge of the animals. The new building beside the barn was going to be a milking station. It was why Rino was spying on the animal caretakers, searching for a suitable milkmaid.

However, after observing them for three hours, Rino still found none of the female trolls good enough. They were too rough on the animals and somewhat clumsy. He hated to sound like a bigot or racist, but these female trolls were too buff for the role of a milkmaid.

Yet, not all was lost. Even with so many heavy-handed female trolls in the barn who were better at building than nurturing, Rino saw several suitable candidates if he overlooked their gender. If this world could have womanticores, why cannot he appoint a milkman?

Oh, that's right. Rino remembered now. Milkman was a term used to describe the milk delivery person instead of the one massaging animal teats. He had to change the name a little, and Rino settled for Milk Master instead.

He had several ideal milk master candidates after observing for three hours. However, Rino had no idea if the nanny goats would be comfortable enough around them.

Scratch that, the farm animals looked like they were constantly bullying one of his milk master candidates. Maybe the female trolls had a reason why they were not gentle with the animals. The rabbits were an exception to the farm animal bullying case. The worst had to be from the hogs. Even if they were pygmy hogs, their little pointy tusks could still stab rather deeply. It wasn't fatal, but if any of his subordinates were alive, they would be bandaged in several places after that attack.

To stop the giant quails from making new babies, the breeders have been collecting their eggs daily. It might explain the birds' hostility towards their caretakers. Then again, after observing how differently the large birds acted around the milk master candidates, Rino concluded that they liked the milk master candidates better, even if they also came by to collect eggs.

Was it that gentle head bob that they gave each large quail before they left? Or could it be the freshly caught worms from the farm that these milk master candidates snuck in as snacks for the large birds that made them friendlier?

It was a small gesture, but it probably meant a lot to the encaged livestock. Rino also noticed how the goats were given lumps of salt to lick on and how the pigs were given roasted taro by the milk master candidates. The milk master candidate respected the animal's personal space, and Rino ranked them according to their abilities to manage the barn and milking station.

Firstly, Rino needed a barn master. The barn manager must be capable of understanding every animal's temperament. They need not tend to every livestock personally, but if the need arose, they should be able to cope accordingly.

Secondly, the milking station needed a milk master who was in charge of attending to the tender teats of his mountain goats. Rino had an idea who the perfect candidate was, and there was only one person in the entire Town Zera, who was friendly enough to pat the goats without risking a headbutt from them.

Lastly, Rino wanted a sheepdog or someone good at gathering animals who needed to graze or run free in vast fields. He originally thought about leaving Mutt here to fill that role, but if his sabre tooth wolf knew about his intentions, there would be a river of tears in the shadow realm.

"Follow me," Rino called to the sneaky animal tamers after the female trolls left.

All three candidates hung their heads in shame when Rino caught them red-handed trying to sneak food into the cages. The rock salt, earthworms and roasted taro laid around, and Rino paused.

"Finish feeding them and follow me."

Quickly, they finished their chores, and Rino teleported them back to his study. Here, he scrutinised his candidates.

The first candidate who was friendly with the pygmy hogs and stole roasted taro for them was a stunted troll. He was the troll with the hunchback that others mocked him for. His warty skin and overly large nose made him repulsive to the eye, but beyond the off-putting external appearance, the troll had a heart of gold.

Rino knew him. The troll often shared his food with the earth gnomes and cleaned up after others at parties. If he put this troll in charge of his barn, Rino could feel a little more reassured. There was no reason for anyone to doubt this troll's authority after he gave the hunchback a name to solidify the authority bestowed. More importantly, this stunted troll's empathy was so high that if any animal went berserk, he could handle the situation without having to harm the precious livestock.

"From tomorrow onwards, you will be the barn manager. Your role is to check on the livestock's situation and maintain the overall quality of our animal produce. I shall bestow upon you a name befitting your status."

Shock reflected itself on the hunchback troll's face, but Rino gave him no time to process, naming him Quasimodo.

"You," Rino looked over to a killer bunny with an unusual fur pattern.

Rino did not think that a spy would come to dig earthworms and feed the giant quails. Their sizes were not very different, but Rino recognised this particular calico cat fur coloured killer rabbit. He worked in the soybean fields and was probably the only killer rabbit who did not steal any soybeans that he farmed. Every bean went to the storage, and he only ate what he was paid in wages for work done at the end of the week when Sheila distributed the soybeans to the rabbit clan.

Integrity was a very rare trait, and Rino appreciated it. The rabbit's thoughtfulness of others earned him a name and a role as the 'sheepdog' or animal herder. The killer rabbit's impressive speed and keen eye made him perfect for the role on top of how much chemistry he shared with the livestock.

"You will be known as Schäfer."

That simply translated to sheepherder in his previous world, but the name sounded cool enough, so nobody questioned Rino's naming sense. Instead, the killer rabbit evolved into a humanoid creature similar to Kamiya when he received a name. The bunny boy wasn't any slower than he was in his monster form. Instead, Rino liked just how he had heterochromatic eyes with one red and one green. He would fit right in.

Last but not least, Rino wondered how the milk master candidate he settled for ended up in this position. Mining rocks from the mountains to treat the goats and playfully butting heads with them wasn't something Rino expected from a tannery worker.

"Zes, was it?" Rino asked the shadow spectre, who looked ashamed of what he did.

The lich grinned. "You're in charge of taking care of the milking station and dairy requirements. I'll teach you more about it once the butter churn and milk bath are ready. For now, you'll help out at the tannery and familiarise yourself with the goats. They're previous livestock, so I'm holding you accountable for the best butter and cheese."

Puzzled but thrilled to be assigned a more exciting role in this kingdom, Zes bowed low and thanked Rino for not punishing him. 

The dark lord said nothing and dismissed them after assigning them new roles and names. Honestly, he could not blame Zes for skiving. If RIno was honest, most of the developmental work was on Deezer and Bink now. His part of introducing the idea was done, and now that things were moving smoothly, Rino took a look at his sleep wallet.

Smiling, Rino relished in the reward he gave himself as he rested in the dark, waiting for sleep to commence.

At long last, he could have his well-deserved rest. Nobody could tell him what to do for the next sixteen hours, and Rino was determined to maximise his laziness to the fullest.