I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 128

Upon entering the Forest of the Four Seasons, one does not start at the same location.

Unless holding hands, everyone was bound to spawn in completely different locations.

Even if holding hands, there was no guarantee they would arrive in the exact same spot.

For though many had been seen going in, not a single person had ever come back out.

Only with miraculous luck would someone land near a person who had entered beforehand.

"Ugh..."

A certain paladin groaned as he picked himself up from the ground.

Wearing a full helmet, his face was unidentifiable, but his attire clearly indicated his affiliation.

He was a senior surveillance guard who had been kicked in the back by Ludwig and forcefully sent into the Forest of the Four Seasons.

While typical paladins wore pure white armor, surveillance guards wore armor closer to solid black.

Armor originally reserved for ’Inquisitors,’ though they had now effectively transformed into the Pope’s private militia.

"Dammit. Where the hell am I now?"

The guard looked around and spat out curses.

Deep down, he knew where he was, but every fiber of his being wanted to deny it.

He clearly remembered Ludwig kicking him in the back into the Forest of the Four Seasons.

’Dammit....’

He observed an environment entirely different from what the Forest of the Four Seasons looked like from the outside.

Instead of a lush green forest, it was filled with withered, scrawny trees.

Whether covered in volcanic ash or scorched by a wildfire, the entire landscape was a field of grey.

That wasn’t all. What about the ground?

Solid ground existed where the guard had collapsed, but everywhere else was a vast swamp.

’Am I lucky?’

If he had dropped directly into the swamp from the start, he would have died the moment he entered. Not that he was safe now, either.

Where was this place? It was the Forest of the Four Seasons, dubbed a living hell on earth.

A demonic realm where not a single survivor was said to exist. The guard swallowed hard.

’It’s too early to give up. That Grylls guy was living just fine.’

Even if one couldn’t escape, there was a survivor. That fact instilled a ray of hope in the guard.

He proceeded to check if he had any injuries and whether his weapons were intact.

Aside from his kicked back, no particular area throbbed with pain.

[You are in a region where accessing the Gallery is not supported.]

However, accessing the Gallery was impossible. He was also one of the users of the Gallery.

Having seen its contents, he knew full well how useful the Gallery could be in an environment like this. When the message popped up informing him that Gallery access was unavailable, he could only click his tongue.

’Available, my ass.’

Using Wild Grylls as proof, the Pope had incited the public by claiming that the Gallery could now be accessed even inside the Forest of the Four Seasons.

That agitation had worked brilliantly, serving as the driving force to dispatch the investigation team.

Only after stepping into the forest did he realize that the Pope had told a blatant lie.

There was a saying that everything coming out of the Pope’s mouth—except carbon dioxide—was a lie.

The guard thoroughly agreed with that saying. It was his own mistake for falling for those sweet-talking words.

’I will definitely escape. I’m way stronger than that guy—there’s no way I can’t get out!’

The guard gnashed his teeth. He would escape within a few days and sever Ludwig’s head.

The ultimate perpetrator of all this was the Pope, but the Pope was too powerful. Thus, he directed his hatred toward the relatively weaker target, Ludwig.

A classic textbook display of bowing to the strong while lashing out at the weak, born of pure selfishness.

’First, let’s check my mana.’

Before setting out, the guard checked the mana inside his body.

Having engaged in a fierce fight with Ludwig, a substantial amount of mana had been depleted.

Since it was just a quick check, he didn’t need to perform the Mana Cultivation Method.

"...Hmm?"

Just then, he noticed something abnormal. The guard’s eyes widened slightly.

Normally, it should circulate at least a tiny bit, but it wasn’t circulating at all.

No. It was circulating, but at an absurdly, ridiculously slow pace.

Wondering what on earth was happening, he hastily tried to activate his mana.

’W-Why is my mana...?’

Yet it remained unmoving. Only by forcing it with sheer effort could he barely feel a flicker.

Thinking ’no way,’ he tried manifesting his aura, but... it was useless. Not even a spark of aura emerged.

It was practically no different from being dropped bare-handed. His survival rate would plunge far lower than anticipated.

Wondering if it was due to an injury he hadn’t noticed, the guard inspected himself thoroughly.

Even so, he couldn’t find any notable anomaly. In the end, taking a risk, he initiated the Mana Cultivation Method.

’W-What is this...!’

And the moment he began cultivating, he realized the cause. It was because of the mana.

To be precise, not the mana inside his body, but the external mana. The concentration of mana outside was far too dense.

The external mana was completely suppressing the internal mana.

It worked on the same principle as deep-sea water pressure crushing an object.

’This makes no sense! That bastard Grylls clearly...!’

The guard couldn’t believe it. This was an outcome he hadn’t anticipated in the slightest.

Grylls blasted mana left and right whenever he pleased, yet he himself couldn’t? It was hard to accept.

’No. As long as I have time...’This story is hosted at novеlping.com.

It was too early to despair. The guard composed his wavering mind.

If he couldn’t use his internal mana because of the external mana, he just needed to fill himself with the external mana instead.

He didn’t know how long that process would take, but it wasn’t impossible.

’I need to find a safe spot.’

The guard quickly made a judgment. This swamp area was dangerous.

There was no telling what kind of monster might pop out of it.

The forest where Grylls stayed would be far safer.

Reaching his decision, he began walking to get out of the swamp region.

Seureung-

He unsheathed his sword so he could react at any moment.

Even though he couldn’t use mana, he possessed basic martial capability, so he should be able to hold out.

’Archbishop Odon must have entered first... Where is he?’

The guard recalled Odon, who had been tossed into the Forest of the Four Seasons before him.

A priest who, like himself, had been forcefully sent in by Ludwig.

Unlike the surveillance guard, Odon specialized in support, meaning his combat prowess was practically non-existent.

On top of that, this region had just been confirmed as a mana-suppressed zone. As time passed, his chances of survival would only plummet.

’Even if the Archbishop can’t be helped, I should prioritize finding the others.’

Thus, unless something unexpected happened, the guard decided to cleanly abandon the priest. His own combat strength was cut in half; he didn’t have the spare capacity to protect someone who was powerless.

Priests typically exercised healing abilities through divine power, but that was only true when they possessed divine power in the first place.

Archbishop Odon’s divine power was practically non-existent, so he expected nothing from him anyway.

He was a man who had climbed to the rank of Archbishop purely by riding the right political coat-tails.

To escape this hellish forest, one had to join forces with the strong, not drag along those who were a dead weight.

’Still... if I bump into him, I can’t completely pretend not to see him....’

Just as the guard finished sorting out his thoughts—

[...lp me.]

Right then, a voice caught the guard’s ear.

At first, he thought he misheard. The guard halted his steps and focused on the sound.

[...Save me.]

He heard it faintly once again. The guard hurriedly scanned his surroundings.

To pin down where the voice was coming from.

"Is anyone there?! Speak up if you’re there!"

Shouting in a swamp was a foolish move.

Beasts might hear the sound and draw near. However, given the circumstances, he had no choice.

The guard shouted loudly, praying that his voice would reach whoever it was.

[Over here! Over here! I’m over here!]

This time, he heard it loud and clear. The guard turned his head toward the direction of the voice.

The voice sounded slightly echoed, but he didn’t care. Because of the language spoken by that voice.

That language was not from another nation; it was none other than the language of El Dorado!

’Besides, this voice... Archbishop Odon?’

The guard rushed hastily toward the source of the voice.

Lucky as he was, it seemed the Archbishop had regained consciousness where he fell.

Though he had considered him useless moments ago, he was still a fellow human.

’If push comes to shove, I can use him as a human shield.’

It was a truly cunning mindset, laying bare just how desperate a person could become.

[I am here! Is anyone there!]

The voice grew closer and closer. Both of the guard’s feet submerged in the murky water.

It was only ankle-deep for now, so he paid it no mind. Verification was the priority.

And when he finally reached the spot where the voice originated—

"A-Archbishop?! You’re alive?"

[Oh, oh! You have come...!]

The guard reunited with the Archbishop. Surprisingly, he looked completely unharmed.

The slight oddity in his voice raised suspicion, but his physical state was suspiciously pristine.

[Come this way. It appears this spot is the exit.]

"Pardon? The... exit?"

[Indeed. Another person helped me as well.]

Archbishop Odon, pointing toward the exit with a benevolent face. The guard’s suspicion deepened even further.

Because the direction he pointed at was a bottomless, pitch-black swamp.

Even here, it barely crested his ankles, but anyone could tell that area over there was far deeper.

’Before that...’

Above all, there was an even stranger detail—one he had noticed a moment too late.

Archbishop Odon was short in stature. And the water depth here was ankle-deep.

So why on earth was Archbishop Odon standing on top of the water?

The mighty could walk on water, but Odon certainly could not.

Strange. Beyond strange—ominous.

"W-Who the hell are you!"This chapter is updated first at novelping(.)com.

[Pardon? What are you saying...]

"You treacherous monster! Reveal yourself!"

The guard retreated, pointing his sword forward, his voice trembling with terror.

Sensing the terror in that voice, Odon—or rather, the entity mimicking Odon—stopped hiding its act.

Seuseuseuk-

The illusion of Odon blurred like a mirage. Revealed in its wake was, shockingly, a corpse.

A desiccated, shriveled corpse. Tentacles were wrapped tightly around its neck as if it had been strangled to death.

The guard instantly recognized the identity of the corpse. Anyone could tell it was Odon.

’W-What is this...!’

Deudeudeudeudeu!

Whether he panicked or not, an ominous disturbance erupted across the swamp.

The ground shook violently as if an earthquake had struck.

Had it been Grylls, he would have bolted from the area without looking back.

But the guard was a complete newcomer to the Forest of the Four Seasons.

He could only stammer helplessly until the monster made its move.

Cheombeong

A hand burst forth from the deep waterhole.

Shaped like a human hand, but boasting smooth, amphibious skin.

A hand featuring a murky, decaying wood color as camouflage.

Chwaaaaak!!!

The monster exerted force on its grounded hand, fully revealing its hideous form.

The guard stood frozen in sheer horror, staring at a beast several times larger than himself.

Hideous fangs, a long body, and an antenna sprouting from its head.

And hanging from that very antenna was Odon’s corpse!

Huuung!

The hand-bearing anglerfish emerging from the deep swamp—the Swamp Anglerfish stretched its hand toward the guard.

Seeing the attack coming, the guard frantically scrambled backward to escape.

But that movement led straight to his death. To repeat: this was a swamp.

Cheolpeok!

"Gah!"

Standing still or moving recklessly in a swamp meant sinking immediately.

The guard lost his balance and fell, and the Swamp Anglerfish did not miss its chance.

Gwaak!

"Gwaaaaah!"

The Swamp Anglerfish seized the guard roughly with its human-like hand.

The guard thrashed desperately against the crushing pressure, but it was futile.

Unable to use mana, he was destined to be devoured right then and there.

Ujeok- ujeok-

Meanwhile, the Swamp Anglerfish shoved Odon’s corpse—which had been dangling from its antenna—into its mouth.

Munching and crunching it with razor-sharp teeth.

Next, the anglerfish used its tentacle-like antenna to strangle the guard’s neck.

Gwaaaak!

"Guhhhhh..."

With a wheezing gasp, strength drained from the guard’s body before long.

Tuuk!

From his violent thrashing, his loose helmet slipped off and clattered down.

Inside the helmet was nothing but a desiccated mummy, just like Odon’s corpse.

Chuuk-

As the Swamp Anglerfish released its grip, the guard dangled limply from the antenna.

Having drained all his life force, the anglerfish submerged back into the deep water.

Leaving only the antenna holding the dangling guard above the water’s surface.

[A-Archbishop?!]

Astonishingly, the mouth of the dried-up mummy-like guard moved, uttering words!

As if the antenna was puppeteering the guard’s body, a sight eerie beyond belief.

[You treacherous monster! Reveal yourself!]

Far beyond merely mimicking voices.

[Is anyone there?! There is a person here! I need help!]

A mimicry that extracted entire memories.

[Anyone, please help me!]

The Forest of the Four Seasons was truly a hellish place.

Ttak! Ttak! Ttak!

"Phew. This should be enough, right?"

I hammered the signpost into the ground and muttered with satisfaction.

Man, how much time did I spend crafting this signpost?

Still, seeing it hammered in brought a swell of pride.

’I really hope they survive.’