Barely had I landed on the ground outside when a message appeared in my vision. I was surprised, for it was from the sage.

It’s me. Your bearded fellow who lives in solitude. This is to inform you that the game world has decided that you should now receive side quest messages very much like players. You might have noticed the lack of quest messages ever since you accepted the original quest from the game world. This is being tweaked. Previously, you could only receive abilities when you achieved something in line with the original quest. All side quests were blocked. This has been lifted.

Side quests could potentially be a source of new skills for you, that would aid you in achieving the objectives of the main quest. Dharti cares for you, and is observing you. But you must play well.

P. S. I might be sending you more messages in the future. My messages are read-only, and you can’t reply to them. Have a pleasant day!

The message vanished. I rubbed my face.

“You look dazed,” Bono the stone head said to me. He was still on the ground in the same position that I had left him yesterday.

“I got a message,” I said.

“What kind of message?” Bono asked me. But before I could reply, another blue prompt appeared in my sight.

You have received a new quest!

There is a stone of power near you inside someone’s head. If you can retrieve the stone then you will be able to go to a place where all the loot in the world of Dharti awaits you.

Would you like to accept this quest?

Yes/No

Note: This is a tricky quest. The reward promised might not be the same as the reward you receive. It is advised to proceed with caution.

Killerguy had talked about a similar quest. I frowned at Bono. Did he really have some magic stone inside his cranium?

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Bono asked suspiciously.

“I received the same quest that those two received the other night,” I said, pointing with my thumb at the corpses of Killerguy and Roxy. There was a light putrid stench in the air. It would be a good idea for Bono and me to move away before the bodies began to stink really bad.

Bono’s granite eyes popped.

“Look, trust me, there is no magic stone inside my head, all right?” he said.

“How do you know?” I asked him. But Bono had such a fearful expression that I let out a laugh. Of course I was not going to split open his head. Ultimately his present condition was because of saving me.

“Do not worry my friend,” I said, sitting down next to him. I stroked his head with friendly fingers. “Let’s take you to Bui, isn’t that what you want me to do?—”

Yet another message dropped in front of my eyes.

Oops! Looks like the head possessing the stone of power belongs to a friend of yours! But no need to worry! Be assured that breaking the head will not kill him, thanks to the magic in the stone.

Would you like to accept the quest?

Yes/No?

Doubt crept up in my mind. This was rather persuasive.

“What now?” Bono asked me, noticing that I was looking fixedly at blank space reading the internal message.

“Well, I got this new message that says breaking open your head will not kill you,” I said to Bono.

“Do you really trust that message?” Bono asked me, looking betrayed.

“Well, usually these messages don’t lie,” I reasoned.

Another notification.

Note that going into this quest would be an enlightening experience for Bono. His family history plays a role in this quest.

Would you like to accept this quest?

Yes/No

This was a very stubborn quest, wasn’t it?

“You look like you got another one of those messages,” Bono said.

“I did,” I replied.

“What does this one say?”

“Says your family history plays a role in the quest,” I said to him. There was a twinkle in Bono’s eyes at the mention of that. “You know what, I am going to let you decide what to do with this particular quest. It’s your head at risk after all.”

“My family history?” Bono said. “I do not recall much about my family to be honest. We stone giants are kicked out of the family a few months after we are born, and we have to survive on our own. Hmmm… the worst that can happen is that I would die, right?”

“Well, the messages promise that you won’t,” I pointed out.

Bono pondered in silence killing a couple of minutes.

“You know what? Do it.”

“You want me to crack open your head?” I asked.

“Yes, I want you to crack open my head,” Bono replied. “Even saying that feels odd but, yes, do it.”

“You are sure, right?” I asked to confirm.

“Do it quick, before I change my mind,” Bono said.

“As you please.”

I quickly transformed into my Skhite form. I lifted Bono’s head. It was heavy and I remembered how Roxy had so easily picked it up. Sometimes the strong died and the weak lived on.

Bono screamed as I flung him at the boulder covering the sage’s abode. Bono was instantly silenced as his head became three separate pieces that bounced back towards me. One of the pieces missed hitting me by just a foot.

The three pieces came to rest meters away from each other. I prayed everything would work out well. I did not want to go to Bui and tell her that I had found Bono, but killed him.

I saw a dazzling stone attached to one of the pieces. The gem was a golden diamond, shining brightly in the sunlight. The absence of blood upon breaking Bono’s head gave me some hope.