I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 320

The adult Nidhogg’s eye revealed between the torn space.

Just the size of its eye alone equaled or exceeded Tyranno’s mother, Vanir.

There was no way to know how large its overall size was, but it was certain that the personnel at the Shelter were far from capable of dealing with it.

Even if Bbareumbo was there, he could only save himself; he wouldn’t be able to cover us too.

Haljjak- haljjak-

Whether the Shelter fell into a heavy silence or not, the Nidhogg hatchling only earnestly licked my cheek.

I poked it to give a hint, but it didn’t budge at all.

Pajijik!

"Uheok?!"

On top of that, it ended up upsetting its mother(?).

Powerful lightning shot out like a laser from its crimson eyes. A blue-glowing lightning bolt.

An attack strong enough to scorch the ground black. This was likely closer to a warning threat.

Light came out of my eyes too, but Nidhogg launched straight-up lightning.

’What is this, a railgun?’

Tense to the bone, I waited for Nidhogg’s next move.

I hoped the fellow licking me like unmelting candy would take the hint soon.

"Bbeaek?"

Fortunately, it seemed it wasn’t completely oblivious.

Sensing the aura of the laser, the Nidhogg hatchling turned its head.

Subsequently, its gaze met the adult revealed through the torn midair.

"Bbeaeaeek! Bbeaek!"

Tyranno squeaks bbiik, but this one shrieks bbeaek.

Inside the World Tree roots it roared like a giant beast, but now it sounded crisp and lively.

"Keureureuk."

"Bbeaeaeek. Bbeaek."

"..."

The adult Nidhogg seemed to converse with its hatchling, then shifted its gaze.

The direction it shifted its gaze to was precisely toward the World Tree. Come to think of it, I heard they had a symbiotic relationship with the World Tree.

Seueuk-

After the World Tree, Nidhogg scanned every corner of the Shelter.

Only its eyeballs rolled around through the torn space, but its pressure was terrifying.

As Allfather mentioned before, inside the roots of the World Tree, it was practically invincible.

Frankly, if we offended that Nidhogg, this Shelter would be instantly annihilated.

"Excuse me..."

Pajijik!

It was when I brought out a single word.

As if refusing to converse, Nidhogg glared fiercely and fired a laser.

With Vanir, at least ’conversation’ was possible, but Nidhogg didn’t even seem capable of that.

’...Seriously, Tyranno’s mom was an angel.’

Lamenting internally, I slid a glance at the comments.

Perhaps because I kept the stream running steadily, everyone was exchanging a word or two.

ㄴLet’s Grow Trees) I heard Nidhogg has a ferocious temper!

ㄴAllfather) To be precise, that is when the roots of the World Tree are disturbed.

ㄴStarlight Lady) Instead of analyzing, shouldn’t you find a way to help Grylls-nim first? It’s a very dangerous situation right now.

ㄴPraise the Sun) What can we even do? Just pray.

ㄴPassing Dwarf) If you die, I will personally pour out some beer for you.

ㄴHeavenly Demon) If you die to that monster, I shall put aside all matters and personally go avenge you.

ㄴSmart Demon) Stop talking nonsense and get to work lol

ㄴHeavenly Demon) Where do you reside? You are insolent beyond measure.

ㄴSmart Demon) Try looking for me then lol

Unhelpful people. I sighed inwardly.

At least Heavenly Demon was the most comforting. At least she seemed sincere.

’But how long are you just going to glare at me...’

Standing still like this was torture too. But if I flinched even a little, it threatened me, driving me insane.

I could only pray that the Nidhogg hatchling spoke up on my behalf.

"Bbeaek. Bbeaeaeek."

"..."

"Bbeaek!"

Fortunately, whether it was being persuaded well, the adult Nidhogg’s bloodthirsty aura subsided.

But its bright red eyes and vertical pupils remained the same, so I couldn’t help but be scared.

Jjwaaak!

Meanwhile, the space Nidhogg had torn split open even wider.

Widening bit by bit, soon Nidhogg’s head was fully revealed.

’Woah. Damn. It’s really fucking big.’

Just because it looked like a lizard with only front legs, its head size was far larger than Vanir’s.

It even felt like a boss monster appearing as it revealed its head from midair.

While I involuntarily flinched backward, Nidhogg stared intent, slowly creeping closer.

Seueuk- seuk-

From the widened space, its front legs emerged after its head.

Just its front legs were much thicker than ordinary pillars. Being crushed under those front legs alone would mean the end.

What was even more wondrous was that it made zero sound and was dead silent. Compared to its mountain-like size, its movements were remarkably stealthy.

"Keureureuk."

Before I knew it, Nidhogg shoved its head right up to my nose. A posture as if scanning me.

I quietly waited until the fellow made its next move.

It was certain that it wasn’t a particularly hostile atmosphere.

"Bbiik...?"

It was when we were staring at each other. A cute sound came from behind.The source of this chapter is novel‌ping.com.

Surprised, I looked behind me to see Tyranno coming out with a half-asleep face.

It seemed he had woken up due to Nidhogg’s powerful presence.

"L-Lackey! Quickly take Tyranno inside!"

"U-Understood!"

There was no way to know whether the relationship between dragons and Nidhoggs was good or bad.

But because an unnecessary variable could arise, I hurriedly commanded Lackey.

Fortunately, since Tyranno hadn’t been awake for long, he meekly let himself be held by Lackey.

"Keureuk."

After the slight commotion passed, Nidhogg stared at me intently.

An expression with curiosity even stronger than before. Whether this was in a good sense or a bad sense was unknown.

"Bbeaeaeek. Bbeaek."

Whether that happened or not, the Nidhogg hatchling climbed onto me.

Subsequently, it began eagerly licking my cheek like candy.

In my mind, I wanted to say, ’See? Your baby likes me too, right? So please spare me.’

But because the opponent’s temper was so filthy, I couldn’t even open my mouth.

Nidhogg, who observed me like that for a long while.

"Keueung."

The fellow snorted, then slowly retreated back into the torn space.

Whether it was a sign of ’I’ll spare you just this once’ or held another meaning, I didn’t know.

Still, with Tyranno’s untimely appearance, Nidhogg seemed reassured as well.

’It probably meant... "If he’s raising a hatchling, surely he can take care of my baby too"?’

Please let it be so. Otherwise, my life would be threatened every single day.

Nidhogg pulled its head back into the torn space, showing signs of departing.

Just when I thought I could breathe a sigh of relief, an unusual incident occurred next to the torn space.

Jjwaaak!

Another space tore open.

From that torn space, a long tail slipped out.

It was Nidhogg’s signature two-pronged tail.

Utilizing it like pincers, it brought out an object.

Tuk- tinggeureureureu-

It was a tree branch. And quite a handsome-looking branch at that.

The kind of tree branch where, if you picked it up off the ground while walking down the street, you’d feel compelled to declare, "You are my weapon."

I didn’t know what it meant for me to use this for, but I should probably take it for now.

"Keureuk."

Syuuk!

Nidhogg tossed the branch over and retreated.

Even as it departed, it didn’t leave immediately, retreating slowly in a manner that said, ’I’ll be watching you until the end.’

Soon, as the torn space fully restored itself, I too was able to sigh in relief.

"Phew..."

"Haljjak. Haljjak."

Now that its mom had returned, the Nidhogg hatchling licked my cheek again.

Thinking Must be nice to be so carefree, I first checked the tree branch I’d been handed.

’It just looks like an ordinary tree branch...’

On the outside, it was a tree branch that looked like a proper club.

I had no idea what it wanted me to use this for. Surely it wasn’t meant to be used as a whipping rod.

ㄴLet’s Grow Trees) C-Could that be Mistilteinn?! Said to be so strong it even ignores dragon scales...!

ㄴAllfather) High possibility. Nidhogg was one of the pets of the gods, after all.

ㄴPassing Dwarf) Mistilteinn my ass. That’s just a fucking awesome tree branch lol

ㄴInternal Cultivation Master Robert) I recently acquired something similar as well. Quite a magnificent fella.

ㄴPraise the Sun) Envious. Our area doesn’t have many trees.

Whether it was Mistilteinn or whatever, let’s move past it for now.

To test the efficacy of this branch, I swung it roughly.

Huung!

The feel wasn’t bad. More important than that would be its power.

I looked around, then approached a suitable tree.

Subsequently, putting a bit of strength into it, I swung the branch hard.

Kwajijik!

"Oh."

It’s a max-level tree branch. Even though I swung it lightly, the tree snapped easily.

It seemed like it would display great effectiveness against creatures with hard outer hides.

’I even gained a blunt weapon.’

I wondered if I’d end up becoming a Weapon Master at this rate.

Or I could just keep it as a switch. Of course, I won’t whip anyone with it.

’Though I don’t know what Vanir would think if she saw this, oh well...’

Anyway, since the crisis had passed, it was time to return to daily life.

I detached the Nidhogg hatchling that kept licking my cheek.

When I held it with both hands, the fellow looked at me with bright, clear eyes.

"I need to give this guy a name..."

ㄴHeavenly Demon) How about Cheong-myeong? Since it glows blue, it seems quite fitting.

ㄴSword Matstar) In that case, naming it Sapphire would be better.

ㄴPrincess Chaenggu) How about Lopard, symbolizing a blue heart!

ㄴPraise the Sun) Whether it’s male or female is what’s most important, isn’t it?

All sorts of names popped up. Overall, they were names that evoked the color blue.

Contemplating which among them would be best, I put it off for later.

Names can be given slowly, so there’s no need to rush.

Haljjak- haljjak-Read this novel at novelрing.com for the best experience.

"...Should I just name it Licky?"

Since it keeps licking my face, ’Licky’ didn’t seem too bad either.

One might think it lacks effort, but is there anything as distinctive as ’Licky’?

In the first place, Wonmo’s name means ’round fur’.

Heck, Lackey even had his real name changed.

"Ludwig ahjussi. Use this."

I gifted the tree branch given by Nidhogg to Ludwig.

Naturally, Ludwig wore a face asking why I was giving this to him.

"It’s a walking stick."

"..."

Ludwig chuckled dryly at the word ’walking stick’.

Still, it would be far more useful than having nothing at all.

No matter how accustomed he had become, the load leaning on his mithril leg must be burdensome.

Using it just during daily life and while moving around would be plenty.

"Alright. See you guys later."

I ended the stream. I was starting to feel strain in my eyes.

Originally, I had resolved to explore starting today, but because an unexpected incident erupted, I had no choice but to postpone it.

What was important right now was what the Nidhogg hatchling liked, how it ate, and so on.

’How is it that I feel like I’m becoming a babysitter?’

Above all, the key was whether it could get along well with the existing guests—namely, the children.

Since Tyranno woke up earlier, introducing them first wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Soon, I put the Nidhogg hatchling down and had it face Tyranno. And...

"Haljjak-"

"Bbiik?"

"Haljjak. Haljjak."

It eagerly licked Tyranno too. So much so that Tyranno was flustered.

Well, a dragon’s embedded mana must be formidable as well.

Knowing that the Nidhogg hatchling was expressing ’goodwill’, Tyranno passed it off nonchalantly.

’That’s a relief.’

However, licking too much would be burdensome, so I took it back.

Soon, as time flowed and the weather gradually warmed up...

Lunchtime was approaching, and I was contemplating how to feed this fellow.

’They said it gnaws on the World Tree roots, right?’

Just when I was thinking, Then I can just send it back to the cave,

Tudadadada!

"Uh, wait! Where are you going!"

The Nidhogg hatchling detached from me and sprinted off somewhere with speed.

Panicking, I chased after it, and before long I realized what the fellow wanted.

"Am-nyam-nyam!"

It was a giant pumpkin. The pumpkin that had been a pain to deal with all this time.

The Nidhogg hatchling began eating that pumpkin with great relish.

At first, I let it slide, but as time passed, I grew anxious.

"Uh... Kiddo?"

"Am-nyam-nyam. Nyam-nyam-nyam."

"You’re eating... way too much..."

It ate the large pumpkin without stopping.

As time passed, the amount of pumpkin visibly shrank.

’Come to think of it, its original size was huge, wasn’t it?’

Just as I was having that thought, in less than 30 minutes, it devoured the whole thing.

"Ggeoeok."

"..."

Seeing this, I realized.

A food shortage was coming.

That I’d have to work my bone off to satisfy the appetite of this gluttonous Licky.

’Wait, no. It can just eat the roots of the World Tree...’

Why on earth did it polish off the pumpkin so deliciously?

Were the roots of the World Tree really that unpalatable? Just as I was agonizing over this deeply...

Jjwaaak!

The sound of space tearing echoed. I was gradually getting used to it now.

Turning my head at this, as expected, the adult Nidhogg appeared.

The adult was poking its head out from the torn space, holding something in its mouth.

It looked like a log of wood, but seeing its subtle blue glow, I deduced it was a root of the World Tree.

"Keureuk?"

Holding the World Tree root in its mouth, Nidhogg looked at us and raised one eye.

Soon, it noticed its hatchling with a stuffed, round belly and the scattered pumpkin scraps around it.

Normally, feeding its hatchling until full should be something to be happy about, but...

"..."

For some reason, Nidhogg wore an extremely displeased expression.

Before I could even wonder Why on earth?, Nidhogg set down the World Tree root it held in its mouth.

Then it glared fiercely at me. It wasn’t a threat to eat me.

It was akin to a parent’s glare asking: "You fed junk food to my child?!"

Feeling a bit wronged, I quietly opened my mouth.

"...Isn’t the child’s happiness the most important thing?"

Pajijik!

I brought up one line and almost got hit by a laser.