I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 352

The keyboard battle on the Gallery between Necromancy is Love and Starlight Lady.

Since this world doesn’t have keyboards, I’ll just refer to it more casually and comfortably as a Clash of Two Strong Fools.

Anyway, the fight between the two fixed-handle users spread like wildfire, capturing the interest of the whole Gallery.

To be fair, keyboard battles in the Gallery are a dime a dozen. That’s just how online communities are, isn’t it?

Usually, when things get to this point, it divides into two outcomes: do you become a victorious dumbass, or a defeated dumbass?

Most people choose to become a victorious dumbass. But these two were different.

’The fact that they’re fiercely debating purely for my sake is actually kind of moving.’

The two fixed-handles were desperately debating for my benefit.

Doing whatever they could to help me. Their directions might be different, but their ultimate goal was the same.

So I wanted to say "Please don’t fight~", but I knew better.

The moment I chimed in, I’d be forced to choose a side.

’I don’t want my back crushed in a fight between whales.’

That’s why I chose to watch quietly. Irresponsible, you say?

’So what if I’m irresponsible?’

Besides, I didn’t even have the standing or expertise to butt into that conversation in the first place.

With all those dizzying theories and high-level logic flying back and forth, how could a high school graduate like me possibly butt in?

Above all, there was someone else meant to mediate between the two.

└ Don’t Abandon the Hero) Mm! This is a very splendid discussion! But please refrain from insulting each other! Since you both need to cool off a bit, I’m going to ban you for 5 minutes!

└ Banning them for 5 minutes to cool down lol

└ Holy shit, are they gladiators or something lmao

└ How long is each round?

Our Gomoku scrub, Asella, mediated between the two.

Although she prescribed a somewhat extreme measure of a 5-minute ban, it was effective.

The atmosphere had indeed been overheating, with other fixed-handles and users jumping in periodically.

This was a problem for those two to resolve between themselves. If they reached an agreement, they’d contact me separately.

[Necromancy is Love: I have given up on persuading that impudent brat. It feels like she listens, yet she doesn’t.]

[Starlight Lady: What do they call it these days? A boomer? He’s so rigid that I’m messaging you separately.]

Agreement my ass; both geniuses possessed immense pride.

It’s common sense that geniuses are full of pride, but to make matters worse, this was the Gallery.

A place where already bloated egos become even more bloated, so neither of them stopped.

There was no winner, nor a loser. Only people who had given up.

They probably assumed it was like preaching to a deaf ear. Honestly, it couldn’t be helped.

’When two lines run parallel, there is no solution.’

Even more so because both of their opinions had their pros and cons.

So I decided to adopt both of their opinions.

You say doing that might end up accomplishing nothing? Don’t worry about that.

"Master. There are more books."

"They’re books for you to read. Nice to have so many, right?"

"Do I get to rest in the morning?"

"What are you talking about? You have to work. Haven’t you heard of Day Farming, Night Studying?"

"I know that expression isn’t meant to be used like this."

This bastard is unnecessarily smart. By the way, I didn’t know gorillas could make such contemptuous expressions.

Well, animals are quite expressive by nature anyway. You can tell just by looking at a dog.

Anxious looks, looks of utter contempt, angry faces, and so on.

Just because they can’t speak doesn’t mean their expressions don’t change—every beast changes their face. Bbareumbo was the same.

"What are you going to read first?"

"I will read this first."

What Lackey picked was the theoretical book given by Starlight Lady.

If Starlight Lady had seen this scene, she probably would have clapped.

"Are the grimoires not interesting?"

"It is not that they are uninteresting. But most of it is nothing but memorization."

"Were you trying to memorize all of that?"

"Is it not good to memorize it?"

"I mean, yeah, but..."

Hearing Lackey say he was memorizing it, I thought, ’No way.’

Soon, I brought over the book Starlight Lady had sent earlier. Naturally, since it was written in Central Plains language, I couldn’t read it.

Instead, I could at least check the page numbers.

"What theory is written on page 56?"

"Is a formula not written there? The quadratic formula, used when..."

"..."

Even I know the quadratic formula. And this wasn’t Central Plains language—it was analyzed mathematically.

Although I lost all math-related abilities upon graduating high school, I knew this damned formula.

’He memorized this? Is this crazy guy insane?’

No matter how I thought about it, it was clear he had been allocating his stat points wrong all along.

No, wait. Since his eyesight was originally terrible, he probably never had the chance to learn anything.

On the contrary, despite suffering from a congenital disability, he had mastered Central Plains language and martial arts.

Lackey was a talent suited not for the wild, but for civilization.

"You’re pretty smart."Visit novel​ping.com for the full chapter.

"You may praise me more."

"Go chop more firewood."

"Can I chop the Master with the axe instead?"

Grumbling, Lackey headed off to chop firewood.

At the same time, he called the hobgoblins and began working hard.

One way or another, he was an indispensable existence in our Shelter. Especially crucial for communication.

Although Cain also possessed translation capabilities, he couldn’t decipher the speech of beasts.

"Kkyuu! Kkyu!"

"Ppeeeek!"

"Yeah. Let’s get you guys fed too."

"Pppaek!"

"Cheongseol. You have to eat your roots."

"Pppaaaek..."

I fed breakfast to the little ones as well. As for things to do today, there wasn’t much.

If anything, just exploring and clearing out the surrounding area. I plan to do the exploration next time.

Part of it was also because of Lackey’s newly acquired ability. Depending on how well he adapts, the party structure will change.

’The difference between having a mage and not having one is massive.’

Even outside of combat, a mage’s capabilities are endless.

There are mages specialized in utility and support, and mages who dedicate themselves solely to academic study.

In other words, no one knew which direction Lackey would specialize in.

He’ll probably do fine on his own, but there’s a chance he might grow in a weird direction.

’I wouldn’t go as far as to stop him, but...’

Honestly, I’m a bit anxious. No matter how smart the guy is, a gorilla is still a gorilla.

He might be a fast learner, but his way of thinking is bound to be rigid. In fact, that’s why he lost to me.

Furthermore, Ludwig had never seen a case like this either, making it tricky to offer advice.

"Ludwig-ssi. And Cain-ssi. Have you never seen a case like Lackey before?"

[I, too, am seeing a beast that uses magic for the first time?]

"I don’t mean as a beast, but as a person. Like someone misapplying their talent or major."

[In my time, magic was a discipline that only the chosen ones could practice.]

Cain’s era was understandable. As he said, magic back then was described as the power of the gods.

At least Ludwig’s known cases would be the closest, but even he expressed ambiguity.

"A unique case. Similar to you."

"Similar to me? Is that a compliment?"

"It means abnormal. Uncertain."

"Mmm..."

Then it can’t be helped. He’ll just have to carve out his own path.

"Hey, Lackey. Stop working for now and read the books. For the time being, let’s focus on raising your skills."

"Master is like a reed."

"Do you want to get beaten with a reed?"

His use of metaphors has increased lately.

Still, feeling inwardly pleased, Lackey scratched his butt vigorously and headed back to the house.

He’ll probably study the books hard in there. Meanwhile, I carried out my manual labor.

After laboring like that all day, evening soon arrived.

"Phew. I’m exhausted. Vending Machine."

"Ggurook?"

"I’ll give you something delicious, so give me one Coke."

"Ggureurook!"

The reward for working hard was a cold glass of Coke. The Vending Machine Crab was remarkably useful.

While I was at it, I shared some Cokes with other fixed-handles as well, wrapping up the day.

[Starlight Lady: How is Lackey’s progress coming along right now?]

[Necromancy is Love: How far has he progressed?]

Checking the Gallery for a moment, I saw messages sent by the two familiar fixed-handles.

As soon as I saw those messages, I looked for Lackey.

"Lackey. Did you finish reading the book?"

"I finished it. But there is something I do not understand."

"Which book did you read first?"

"I read the theory book first."

Theory—meaning he read the book given by Starlight Lady first.

I nodded and replied to Necromancy is Love.

[Wild Grylls: He just finished his work, so he’s reading now.]

[Necromancy is Love: Unfortunate. Understood.]

I felt sorry, but this was for the best.

Next was Starlight Lady. I took a video of Lackey showing what he didn’t understand.

After recording that video, I immediately sent a message to Starlight Lady.

[Starlight Lady: Mmm! What a commendable student! Most people tend to gloss over that part, so this is wonderful!]New chapters come out on novelping dot com first.

[Wild Grylls: You sound proud.]

[Starlight Lady: I hope the day comes soon when we can fully analyze the Forest of the Four Seasons. That way, we can get Grylls-nim out quickly.]

Feels like she’s dodging the subject, or is it just my imagination?

I explained the theory I heard from Starlight Lady directly to Lackey.

"Master."

"Speak."

"Just ask her to write it down."

"Holy shit."

Sorry I’m bad at explaining.

I made the request to Starlight Lady once more. Then a somewhat reluctant reply came back.

At this, Lackey glanced at the paper provided by Starlight Lady before refocusing on the book.

"Come to think of it, Master. Did all of these come from the outside?"

"Huh? Why do you ask?"

"I asked out of curiosity."

"Yeah, they came from the outside. These books came all the way here just for your sake."

"Mmm..."

Hearing that, Lackey seemed to ponder something as he stared intently at me.

I recall that whenever he makes that kind of face, something unpleasant comes out of his mouth.

Just as I was about to quietly slip away, his mouth opened first.

"Master. There is a plant called the dandelion."

"Dandelion? Why bring that up?"

"It spreads everywhere, and sometimes when floating around, it enters your nose and triggers a sneeze. Furthermore, it spreads so far that when I was wandering, it bloomed even in distant places."

"..."

Judging by how long winded he was getting, it was certain something bad was coming.

But at the same time, I was curious. What wordplay would spring from his mouth?

Since he’s a guy with an incredible tongue, I was strangely drawn in.

"Seeing how you leave traces and sprout seeds everywhere, Master’s influence can truly be described as dandelion-like."

"...That’s a compliment, right?"

"No. It means stop being a nuisance. Making others suffer like this—what is all this?"

"Head to the floor, now."

I had nothing to say. All I could resort to was physical punishment.

Lackey was grumbling, but satisfied with landing a blow on me, the smirk never left his face.

His build-up is practically on par with a master director. That signature silver tongue of his must be a unique talent.

’Since he really can’t beat me with martial power, he beats me with words.’

Somehow, it felt like the roles were reversed.

Normally, the gorilla guy should be the one with overwhelming martial strength, but I felt like I was stronger.

In fact, consistently training my External Arts lately made me feel like my body had gotten much tougher.

"Phew... Get up. Moderate yourself from now on."

"Understood."

"It’s almost bedtime, so don’t read too much. You know you were slacking off during nap time today, right?"

"I will try."

Saying such things, Lackey’s Day Farming, Night Studying continued steadily.

And so, the next day dawned.

"Master! I will show you a new magic!"

"What is it?"

Lackey pestered me, saying he wanted to demonstrate a new magic spell.

Seeing his excitement, it seemed to be a magic spell he thought was absolutely magnificent.

"Hup!"

Lackey let out a light shout and took a stance. A ordinary straight punch stance.

Up to here, it was normal. What came next was the problem.

Fwoosh!

"...Huh?"

A pretty intense fireball condensed on Lackey’s fist, and then—

"Flame Fist!!!"

Roaaar!

He launched a ’Fire Fist’ straight into the sky.

"How is it! Is it not magnificent!"

"..."

"Fire shoots from my fist! Master is cold, and I am fire!"

You’re going to get a hole punched in your stomach later at this rate.

’Wait a second. Then will my leg get chopped off?’

Pretty soon, I might end up with a prosthetic leg like Ludwig.

Just a joke, though.

’I’d better not go anywhere near the Land of Fire.’

Still, just in case, I needed to take precautions.