I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 145

By subcontracting the work to the father raccoon, my workload decreased, and I was able to save a lot of time.

To me right now, time was gold—no, more precious than diamonds.

Therefore, I planned to manage the raccoon flexibly so that he wouldn’t harbor any complaints.

’By the way, how should I build the house?’

Since they were neighbors I would be interacting with frequently in the future, I thought about building a small shelter in the yard for them.

But I was a bit worried about how to build it so that the raccoon would like it.

Since the raccoon had already made his nest so neat, I had no intention of making them move again.

I was only planning a ’shelter’ after all. A place where they could rest comfortably in front of a campfire during the cold winter.

’A whole house would be tough, so a simple shelter would be just right.’

A structure where they could fully feel the warmth of the campfire would be enough.

However, I had my own hands full, so I couldn’t build it right away.

The urgent things were the furnace and the oven, not a shelter for the raccoon family.

As I said earlier, since the raccoon family already had a nest, it would be perfectly fine to build it when I had some spare time.

’I should at least lay down a mat for them.’

I checked the wind direction. Relative to the cave entrance, the wind was blowing from behind.

If nothing else, the wind blew consistently, which made designing easier.

’More important than that is making sure Wonmo doesn’t perceive them as prey.’

Before going into hibernation, the plump Wonmo had suddenly lost a lot of weight.

In less than ten days, he had rapidly gained weight and then lost it again.

On the other hand, Speed Sloth didn’t seem to have changed at all, perhaps because he had some resistance to the cold.

’It’s already been three weeks since I started living here.’

As of today, it is exactly the 21st day—in other words, the 3rd week.

If another week passes, it will be four weeks, which means a month.

At first, it felt like time was passing incredibly slowly, but recently it’s been the opposite.

Since it was winter, the sun set early, and because I only stayed in the Shelter, it felt like time flew by.

’That’s not necessarily a good thing.’

Gaining experience is good. But apart from that, I haven’t obtained any information that would help me escape.

Adapting and escaping are two entirely different things. Still, it wasn’t like I had gained absolutely nothing.

I had gained the highly valuable information that one should never think about escaping when winter arrives.

The moment I got swept away by an avalanche, my life would be in danger.

Tadak! Tadak!

"Kiing."

"Kking."

It was while I was designing the overall layout of the shelter. The mother raccoon and the baby raccoon gathered in front of the campfire.

Even if the father raccoon was away working, why did these two come over?

’But what is that skewered on the stick?’

Specifically, the stick held in the baby raccoon’s hands caught my eye. Something was skewered on it.

While questions piled upon questions, the baby raccoon carefully held the stick with both hands.

Then, after glancing at me, he cautiously approached.

"Kkiing."

The baby raccoon held out the stick he had been carefully holding with both hands toward me.

I wondered if this little guy could manipulate fire like the father raccoon, but that wasn’t it.

I could clearly see a golden-brown, roasted grub skewered on the stick.

Most creatures living in the Forest of the Four Seasons boasted a substantial size, even if they were young.

After all, the baby raccoon alone was about the size of a small dog.

And likewise, the grub skewered on the stick was of an extraordinary size.

"...Is this for me to eat?"

"Kking."

When I pointed to myself and asked, the baby raccoon gave an affirmative response.

Wondering what was going on, I looked at the mother raccoon, who was tightly clasping her hands together.

Her gaze practically screamed, Please accept my child’s goodwill. What kind of raccoon makes a face like that?

’A bug is a bit much, but...’

I couldn’t just reject the goodwill they were showing me.

If I just close my eyes and eat it once, it should be fine.

"Thank you. I’ll eat it well."

"...."

As soon as I expressed my gratitude, the baby raccoon scurried away. The place he hid was behind the mother raccoon’s back.

It seemed he was a bit shy. However, seeing him peek his head out from behind the mother raccoon, he seemed to be filled with anticipation.

I couldn’t crush a child’s (?) expectations like this. It was a gift from a neighbor, after all.

I examined the surprisingly well-cooked grub from this angle and that, then popped it into my mouth in one bite.

Since it was cooked, at least, I figured it would taste like protein...

Pujijik!

"...."

...or so I thought, but a highly ominous sound echoed. And it came from inside my mouth.

At the same time, something wet and sticky began to ooze and run down my mouth.

Was the problem that I applied human standards to a beast, or did the baby raccoon unknowingly undercook it because he was young?

I forced down the disgust and nausea rising from deep within, I doggedly chewed the grub.

’...Right. In an emergency, you have to eat things raw anyway.’

Since I couldn’t disappoint the baby raccoon, I steadfastly ate it.

The moment of swallowing was the biggest crisis; the texture and taste were so awful that describing them as the worst in history wouldn’t even do it justice.

"I-It’s delicious!"Visit novelping . com for the full chapter.

"Kkiing! Kking!"

"Kiing."

When I gave a big thumbs-up and spoke, the baby raccoon jumped up and down in joy.

The mother raccoon patted her baby’s head but kept casting cautious glances at me.

It seemed certain that the baby raccoon had indeed given me something undercooked.

Title) The baby raccoon gave me a gift

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the baby raccoon holding out a stick)

(Photo of a stick with a thick grub skewered on it)

This wasn’t the only neighborly gift. The baby raccoon roasted it over the fire himself and gave it to me haha.

It was a bit undercooked, but I endured and ate it anyway.

ㄴHeavenly Demon) Every time I see them, I think they are creatures that know their manners.

ㄴSword Matstar) Ugh. Why is that grub so huge? Is that also because of the Forest of the Four Seasons?

ㄴWild Grylls) Probably, right? Since everything is huge there.

ㄴWas the bug delicious?

ㄴIt looks plump, so it actually does look kind of tasty.

ㄴUgh;; is there actually anyone who likes eating bugs?

ㄴDon’t the Kanfs eat them? They have that nature-friendly image. So they probably eat bugs too.

ㄴLet’s Grow Trees) Eh! We don’t eat bugs! Elves are a race that loves meat too!

ㄴElves eat meat? I can’t even picture it?

ㄴThat’s probably just a prejudice. The Kanfs are incredibly good at politics, which is why they got that nature-friendly image.

ㄴYeah, since they stand in opposition to the Demon Race, I heard they used that image to their advantage. Plus, they have the World Tree.

ㄴEven now, they get a lot of flak for planting trees, so they do have that image. But they still don’t eat bugs haha.

ㄴWhat do Dark Elves eat? Since they live in the desert, there probably isn’t much meat?

ㄴPraise the Sun) Why do you need meat when there are sweet dates haha

ㄴThere are sooooo many Dark Elves who got diabetes from eating those lololol

ㄴSeriously, those are really sweet. It’s one of their top exports.

ㄴSo Grylls. Was it tasty? It looks so plump and delicious?

ㄴWild Grylls) The moment I took a bite, all the guts burst and spilled out of my mouth.

ㄴGyaaaaaak!!!

ㄴKuaaaaa;;

ㄴUgh;; just imagining it makes me want to throw up.

ㄴSo did you eat it all?

ㄴWild Grylls) The baby raccoon was watching with anticipation, so how could I not eat it;;; I forced myself to swallow it all.

ㄴThe baby raccoon did that to screw with you lolol

ㄴPure evil lololol

ㄴIt was a Devil Raccoon lololol

ㄴDevil-coon lol

ㄴStarlight Lady) How strange. As far as I know, raccoons originally wash their food in water before eating. But why did it roast it over the fire?

ㄴThere’s still someone who doesn’t know the Forest of the Four Seasons. There’s a reason for all of that.

ㄴStarlight Lady) What is it? If you’re going to talk nonsense again, just leave.

ㄴBecause all the raccoons that washed their food in water are already dead. Didn’t you see the river in front of Grylls’s house? A frog spitting deadly poison popped out of there haha

ㄴThat is... actually convincing!

ㄴThe Forest of the Four Seasons, making them defy even their instincts shudder

ㄴStarlight Lady) For once, that wasn’t an idiotic remark.

I had heard of that too. That raccoons wash their food in water.

The raccoon that despaired after washing cotton candy in water only for it to completely dissolve was really funny.

Still, perhaps because they have excellent learning abilities, I recall that after losing cotton candy two or three times, they stopped washing it.

Perhaps the raccoons of the Forest of the Four Seasons had learned something similar. That water was a far more dangerous place than fire.

’Is their ability to manipulate fire also because of this?’

As someone said, it was strangely convincing. It wasn’t entirely nonsensical.

Afterward, I took a bite of smoked meat to wash away the lingering disgust in my mouth.

Since it was literally just to cleanse my palate, it was closer to a snack than a meal.

’Bananas are the best for snacks, though.’

Speaking of snacks, the banana that the gorilla had given me came to mind.

The banana he had thrown at me, telling me to take this and get lost instead of a Fasting Pill.

It was a truly unconscionable trade, but the banana itself was delicious.

However, that banana was a specialty (?) that only came from the jungle.

Since I didn’t want to go to the gorillas’ territory, I had no choice but to endure even if I wanted to eat it.

’Are there no fruits or anything like that in this forest?’

There are plenty of mushrooms, but barely any fruits. Even if there are, they’re only things I really wouldn’t want to eat.

After indulging in such useless thoughts for a brief moment, I closed my eyes and circulated my Mental Cultivation Method.

The design for the entire shelter was more or less complete, and all that was left was to wait for the next season to arrive.

Since there wasn’t much else to do until then, training was the only answer.

’The cold energy is condensing, albeit very slowly....’

The process of separating the cold energy from mana was also proceeding smoothly.

Everything is difficult at first, but once you gain proper momentum, it becomes easy.This chapter is updated first at nоvelping.com.

That didn’t mean I was neglecting my swordsmanship training. I knew the importance of balance all too well.

"Huu."

By the time I finished a decent amount of training, it was already lunchtime.

It was just when I was thinking about grabbing some lunch.

-Keeeeeng!!! Keeng!!!

A raccoon’s cry echoed from outside. Rather than a cry, it was closer to a scream.

Judging by the voice (?), it seemed to be the father raccoon screaming.

The moment I heard that scream, a surge of anxiety rushed through me, and I hurriedly went outside.

There was no one in the yard, but the place where the scream came from was the raccoon’s nest.

Armed and ready, I headed toward the raccoon’s nest.

"Seuseuseuseuk—"

"Keeng!! Keng!!"

As expected, the neighbors were in danger. A large serpent was slithering up the tree.

The father raccoon was resisting fiercely at the entrance of the nest, holding a torch in one hand.

The mother raccoon and the baby raccoon were probably inside.

"Hey, you bastard!"

I immediately lunged at the serpent. But did the serpent sense my presence as well?

Teong!

Surprisingly, it seemed to coil its body slightly before springing backward like a coil.

It was truly remarkable elasticity, a movement worthy of a creature inhabiting the Forest of the Four Seasons.

"Shaaaaa!!!"

The serpent, which had briefly moved to another tree, sprang once again and lunged at me.

Inside its massive maw, fangs dripping with venom caught my eye.

In the past, I would have panicked. But my body had become somewhat accustomed to the Forest of the Four Seasons.

I lightly twisted my body to dodge the serpent’s charge, then swung my sword downward.

Seogeok!

Since it was an attack imbued with aura along with the Sword of the Heavenly Demon, the serpent’s body was cleanly severed.

Not only was it severed, but starting from the wound, its entire body gradually began to freeze.

Since I had fought a Steel-Scale Serpent before, I didn’t bother holding back, just in case.

Badung! Badung! Jjeojeojeok!

At first, the serpent thrashed around frantically, but before long, its entire body froze solid.

I didn’t stop there and cleanly cut off the serpent’s head. This should ensure it was dead.

’Seeing how a serpent that should be in hibernation has woken up....’

This confirmed it. It seemed winter was indeed coming to an end.

I kicked the frozen serpent’s head far away and turned my head.

The father raccoon, holding a torch in one hand, finally looked like he could breathe a sigh of relief.

"Are you okay?"

"Keeng."

The father raccoon bowed his head deeply as if expressing his sincere gratitude.

Before I knew it, the rest of the family, peeking their heads out of the hole, also expressed their thanks.

’If it weren’t for the torch, he would have been eaten right then and there. What a relief.’

Most beasts are afraid of fire. The same goes for serpents.

Moreover, since the father raccoon could spit flames from his mouth, the serpent must have found him troublesome to deal with.

Since it was a hidden card of sorts, they must have just been warily sizing each other up.

While I was thinking that I should spray some snake repellent near the tree soon, the raccoon family climbed down.

"Keng!"

And then, they tapped the frozen serpent’s body. Are they suggesting we eat this?

"Eat this?"

"Keeng."

"Hmm..."

I looked down at the serpent. It was quite large, so there was more than enough for us to share.

Though I’ve never eaten a snake before... still, it was prey we managed to get, so we couldn’t just throw it away.

Even if there were leftovers, it wouldn’t be a problem since I now had a refrigerator, making storage easy.

"Sure. Let’s eat."

"Keng."

At my approval, the father raccoon headed back to his nest as if telling me to wait a moment.

Shortly after, he returned with something in his hand.

"Keeng!"

What the father raccoon brought back was a mushroom. On the surface, it looked like an ordinary brown mushroom.

I preferred not to eat mushrooms if possible, but there had to be a reason why he brought it.

Perhaps he even knew about its effects. The thought suddenly occurred to me.

"What kind of effect does this have? I’m a bit hesitant about mushrooms..."

"Keeng."

Did he understand my words? Instead of words (?), the father raccoon showed me through his actions.

Huung— huung—

By vigorously thrusting his hips back and forth. He was even enthusiastically swinging his arms back and forth.

I didn’t even need him to spell out what that meant.

Whether human or beast, it seems all males are the same.

’...But even if I eat it, I don’t even have a place to use it?’

Is he teasing me because he has a mate?