The Lawyer was thinking about this since the day before, how the first quest of the "System" should feel functional, relevant, and trustworthy to Liam. The Lawyer knew first impressions were vital. If the first quest appeared strange and dangerous, Liam might be wary or even refuse to follow instructions in the future. Nevertheless, Lawyer did not want to select something usual, like hauling water to filling tanks, splitting wood or helping with chores; those tasks were part of Liam's daily routine and would not provide the satisfaction of accomplishment.
That's why he decided to choose something that rarely came to the attention of medieval people: sports. Not strenuous exercise, of course, as Liam's thin and malnourished body would not be able to withstand the burden of excessive physical activity. The lawyer chose something safe, beneficial, yet still felt like a "special duty"; a series of warm-ups before starting daily activities, and stretching afterwards. It was a small step, but he knew if done regularly it would become an important foundation; the goal is to build Liam's physical health while instilling the habit of following the system's instructions without suspicion.
The warm-up he designed started from the upper body all the way down. First, Liam would be asked to turn his head slowly clockwise and counterclockwise; a few times each, to loosen up the neck muscles. Then, it's up-and-down shoulder movements and forward and backward twists to reduce tension in the shoulders. Next, stretch the hands forwards and upwards with a deep breath; before ending with rotating the wrists. Then, the body is moved left and right in turn to relax the waist area. Light movements like these are enough to warm up the body without draining energy.
As for post-activity stretches, Lawyer structures them with a focus on relaxing the muscles that have just been worked. Starting with pulling one leg back while standing on the other, to stretch the quadriceps muscles. Then, sitting with your legs straightened and trying to touch your toes helps your leg muscles relax. Finally, gently wiggle the ankles to prevent stiffness after walking or carrying weights. All of this was designed with Liam's frail body in mind.
Lawyer was also mindful of sustainability, as he recognized that Liam's body needed to adapt. As a result, he established a longer-term plan; once Liam was used to this quest and his muscles began to develop, the next challenge would be to work out with more weight, for example short-distance running or moderate strength. These are future stages still, but the groundwork needs to be laid.
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That morning, before Liam began his routine of fetching water from the river, something suddenly appeared before him. A vertical light shape hovered in the air, light blue like a clear sky; the color reflected faintly like a thin, glowing mist. Liam, of course, immediately stopped and looked at it in shock. He turned his head left and right, confirming where the light came from; there was no one around, just the quiet of the morning and the sound of the river gurgling in the distance.
Since the Lawyer had not mastered the local language, he could not write down the instructions directly. He chose to use illustrations; a universal visual language. In his mind, this was the best solution for now, although he realized that in the future this would have its limitations; the complexity of quests or important information could not be explained with just pictures, sooner or later he would have to master the local language to get the message across properly.
The first hologram that appeared was Liam's figure with a slightly cartoonish style, but it was clear enough to depict him; the hologram showed the warm-up movements that Lawyer had prepared. Liam had turned his head slowly, Liam raised his arms up and high, Liam rolled his shoulders, Liam moved his body side to side. Each movement was repeated in fluid animation, like a short training guide.
Underneath the warm-up hologram, there is a second depiction; one of Liam lifting a bucket of water from the river, he is carrying a wooden bundle on his shoulders, and there are several other activities. This was showing the laborious task he did every day, and inferred that the warm-up is preparation for that.
Then, just below that is a third hologram that shows Liam stretching after an activity. He is depicted standing while pulling one leg back, sitting down and touching the toe, and slowly rotating the foot. The movements are gentle, suggesting that this is the end of a physical labor session.
The last hologram is perhaps the most striking; Liam is depicted with a muscular body and a strapping posture, as if his thin body has transformed into a healthy and strong figure. Of course, this was just an imaginative image, a visual motivation implanted by the Lawyer to form positive associations in Liam's mind.
Young Liam, although confused by all this, was not inclined to be suspicious. From a child's eyes, odd things are sometimes part of the mysterious world. Besides, this was not anything harmful nor unwieldy.
So, before carrying the water, Liam followed the instructions in the hologram and did a simple warm-up. He turned his head, raised his arms, rotated his shoulders, and stretched his waist; although it felt awkward at first because he was not used to it. After doing strenuous activities such as carrying water or wood, he returned to stretching as shown in the third hologram; this movement felt strange at first, but it was enough to relax his body.
As the sun began to lean and all the day's activities were completed, a new pop-up suddenly appeared in front of him. A shorter blue glowing box with foreign writing that he couldn't read, Liam could guess this was a congratulatory message; some sort of acknowledgment that he had completed today's task.
He smiled a little, either because he felt accomplished or just because this made his day a little different than usual. In the corner of his mind, the lawyer knew this was step one: no blood, no danger, just basic orders.
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*liam hologram warmings
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*liam's daily activity
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*liam hologram stretching
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*thin liam -> muscular liam
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