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eroock
Since: Sep, 2012
NURJIN915
Since: Sep, 2020

Is there a trope in which a character tries to do something that they eventually manage to do, only to have their efforts prove useless for the task they originally set out to accomplish, but the process/difficulties they have endured in the meantime cause them to later accomplish something more important? Examples might be the tale of the lazy son whose father, on his deathbed, tells him of a treasure in the field opposite the house, so the lazy son starts digging in the field, only to find out that there was never any treasure, or that it was only a few coins that were not worth the effort; however, by digging, the son learned the importance of hard work, and by digging in the field, he also grew plants with which to support himself. And this also means that the son will be able to move on with his life without wasting it as would have happened if he had simply found a treasure that he was not ready to handle.