I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 460

Surviving in the Forest of the Four Seasons taught me many things, and one of them was this:

Just like the matches held in the Kangaroo Cave, quite a few beasts understood the concept of ’trade’.

You might ask, "What’s the big deal about that?" but it’s actually incredibly astonishing.

The wild is a world where the strong eat the weak. A place where it’s taken for granted that the powerful take everything.

The weak have their own weapons to survive in their own way.

Naturally, everyone is cautious of one another, and treating others rationally is practically non-existent.

But the Forest of the Four Seasons is different. Not to mention the kangaroos, even the rude gorilla pack understands the concept of ’trade’.

Unless their intelligence is remarkably high, this would be impossible. The mere fact that they can treat others rationally is thoroughly amazing.

"So what you’re saying is..."

I looked down dubiously at the mole that had suddenly popped out of the ground.

I was working to prepare for winter when this fellow burst out from the dirt.

Even with the jammer, it doesn’t mean beasts never trespass. The hedgehog and bear family were prime examples.

Thus, a mole popping out from underground could be written off as a coincidence upon coincidence.

Except for the fact that this particular mole was special.

"You want to trade the stuff you have for the stuff I have. Right?"

"Kkawuu!"

I stared at the creature, which possessed a massive physique unlike an ordinary mole.

The moles I knew were bastards that devoured crops indiscriminately.

Didn’t one snatch my crops right out of the ground when I first made my garden plot? It was an experience that truly made me understand the phrase ’getting robbed with my eyes open’.

But this mole was completely different from those bastards. First of all, its appearance was night and day.

’I thought moles lived underground and didn’t have functional eyes....’

This fellow was different. Its eyes were very clear, far removed from an ordinary mole.

Above all, the most unique thing was the ’hard hat’ worn on its head.

Let me repeat: a hard hat. A bright yellow construction hard hat.

The green cross emblem slapped right in the center of the hard hat was also incredibly familiar.

’Alex got his baseball cap because the previous librarian put it on him, but....’

Where on earth did this fellow get a hard hat? I was extremely curious.

But I decided to put my curiosity on hold for a moment and ask in detail about the ’trade’.

Even though it had shown up out of nowhere, since this was the Forest of the Four Seasons, I could just brush it off and roll with it.

Most importantly, the fact that it proudly revealed itself meant it had absolute confidence in its own abilities.

"Isn’t this too dangerous? What if I were a bad guy?"

"Kkawuu."

When I asked with genuine sincerity, the mole rummaged through the bundle slung over its back.

Just as I began to wonder if that tiny bundle was a Subspace bag—

Cheolkeok!

The creature pulled a big, beautiful weapon out of the bundle. It wasn’t an ordinary gun.

A rocket launcher with a warhead prominently attached at the tip—the kind that looked right at home in the Middle East.

What was even more terrifying was the drawing painted on that warhead.

[That is the exact same drawing we saw in the warehouse earlier.]

"...So it is."

There was a reason it traveled alone. Still, that didn’t solve all my questions.

That thing felt threatening to me because I knew what it was; to other beasts, it would probably just look like a stick.

"I know what this is. But do the other animals know too?"

"Kkawuu."

"The predators know. Some have even been hit by it."

Predators. That was the term Lackey had mentioned before.

Cases of creatures that, even if not off-the-charts like dragons or Nidhogg, had built up a reputation of their own.

It must have taken a considerable amount of time to reach that level, and it must have encountered all sorts of beasts along the way.

’Even if not beasts, there are living, breathing machines here too.’

I turned my head. The vending machine hermit crab was fast asleep.

Recently, there was even a sheep with a cannon popping out of its body. Firearms were popping up quite frequently lately.

"First off, could you put that heinous thing away? I really don’t want my house blowing up."

"Kkawu."

At my request, the mole put the rocket back into its bundle. It definitely seemed to incorporate Subspace technology.

Now, all that remained was what this mole was selling. I had a mountain of questions, but I decided to put them on the back burner.

"Alright. Let’s trade. What are you selling? And what do I need to give you?"

"Kkawuu. Kkawu. Kkakkawu."

"Anything that helps me is fine. I can also sell you items that are helpful to you."

Helpful items. That was pretty vague. Did it mean food, or did it mean tools?

Since this was the wild, it was probably food—more specifically, related to healthy medicinal herbs.

’It’s not like it has no tools at all. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have pulled out that rocket earlier.’

It wasn’t much different from the Gallery. Except that this side was a bit more picky.

By my standards, Orichalcum and Mithril were like random stones rolling around on the ground, but by outside standards, they possessed absurdly high value.

"How about this? Is this useful?"

"Kkawu?"

"Why are you giving me a worthless rock like this?"

Not to this mole. It was no different from a pebble lying on the ground.

Still, I didn’t panic. After taking the rock back, I showed it my Mythricon sword just in case.

"How about this?"

"Kkawu!"

"This is super useful. Some predators love this."

As expected. For tools, it preferred finished products, specifically weapons.

I felt like mass-producing them like a printer to trade over, but I decided against it.

’It’ll definitely come back to bite me like a boomerang later.’

I didn’t know the full extent of this fellow’s operating range, but it was definitely within this forest.

In other words, a weapon I crafted could end up threatening my own life instead.

As various cases had shown, there were creatures here capable of using tools.

It was tools that placed frail human beings at the very top of the food chain.The source of this chapter is n⁠ovelping.com.

Since there were many beasts that acted like humans, it was best to avoid handing over tools whenever possible.

"Hmm... Then how about this?"

Keeping an eye on Bbareumbo’s reaction, I quietly pulled out a Fasting Pill to show it.

I felt Bbareumbo cling to my back and knead my shoulders warningly, but I brushed it off.

"Keung-keung. Keung."

The mole sniffed the Fasting Pill and tilted its head, looking confused.

Other animals had shown the same unfamiliar reaction at first too.

What was needed right now was a sample. I held out my hand, gesturing for it to eat.

The mole seemed to understand my intention, popping the pill into its mouth and chewing.

"How is it?"

"Kkuo-o! Kkuo!"

The mole’s eyes sparkled as it reacted fiercely. I didn’t even need Lackey to translate to know what it meant.

At least for herbivores, Fasting Pills were more than just delicious food—even if they were bitter little pellets to carnivores.

"Kkawuu. Kkawu."

"It asks if you have any more of these."

"Mmm...."

I pondered what else I had and showed more of my current stock.

First up was World Tree Honey. The honeybees were currently working hard producing it.

I was confident that this mole would definitely love it.

"Kkawu?"

But the mole’s reaction was unexpected. The moment it dabbed a finger in the honey and tasted it, it tilted its head.

Its reaction was quite different from the Fasting Pill, leaving me puzzled.

"Huh? You don’t like it?"

"Kkawuu."

"It trades this elsewhere, so the value isn’t that high."

"...."

Here I thought it was incredibly rare, but there’s another supplier out there? I let out a dry laugh in disbelief.

Still, considering the colossal World Tree standing far in the distance, it wasn’t particularly strange.

In the end, I put the World Tree Honey aside and showed something else: the Inner Cores I had gathered over time.

"How about this? Eating this makes you stronger."

"Kkawu."

"This is worth trading for."

Fortunately, the Inner Cores had trade value. A smirk escaped my lips.

Inner Cores were insanely precious in the outside world, yet here they were treated like pocket change.

Still, trading them for decent goods was better than letting them rot in storage.

"Alright, now show me your stuff. What you’re dealing is what matters most."

"Kkawu. Kkakkawu."

"It says it can give you that big heavy stick from earlier. It has other things besides that too."

"...."

Was this bastard an arms dealer instead of a peddler? I refused immediately.

It was hard to handle, and if it misfired by accident, it would be a huge headache.

Besides, there were creatures around here that easily shrugged off bullets, so I put that option on hold.

"Do you have anything good for the body, like this Inner Core?"

"Kkawu."

At my question, the mole rummaged through its bundle. I just hoped it wasn’t something weird.

What it pulled out next was a bright red plant. It looked like red ginseng.

Not humanoid like a Mature Mandrake, but pure ginseng.

"What is this good for?"

"Kkawuu."

"It’s good for the body."

"I get that it’s good for the body... Actually, never mind. Even if it’s good for me, it’ll probably just bloat my mana endlessly anyway. Want to trade that for Fasting Pills?"

I held up 2 Fasting Pills. It was an unconscionably low offer, but the creature had already sampled one.

However, perhaps because it had honed its bargaining skills while visiting countless predators—

The mole shook its head side to side and spoke firmly.

"Kkawuu."

"5 pills."

"...."

This little guy actually knows how to haggle. I chuckled dryly.

But throwing away 5 Fasting Pills just to eat a single piece of red ginseng felt wasteful.

The mole had likely anchored high to begin with. So I chipped away at the price.

"3 pills. No more than that."

"Kkawu."

"It says 4."

"You even got a free sample earlier. Isn’t 3 enough?"

Reminding it of the free sample seemed to be the clincher; the mole pondered for a moment before nodding.

And so the deal was struck. I inspected the red ginseng from various angles as I accepted it.

I wasn’t sure what effect it had, but I’d find out once I ate it.

"Got anything else?"

"Kkawuu."

At my question, the mole pulled something else out of its bundle.

It wasn’t red ginseng, an herb, or a weapon.

Ggumul-ggumul—

It was an earthworm. And a giant earthworm glowing golden, no less.

I flinched in shock as the huge worm emerged from the bundle. That wasn’t an earthworm; it was practically a giant grub.

"Whoa, startled me! What’s that? An earthworm?"

"Kkawuu."

"Throw it in the water, and something incredible will come up."

How on earth do you know that? And who gave you this worm in the first place?This chapter is updated first at novelping(.)com.

I had a lot of questions, but I brushed them aside. I’d probably figure it out eventually.

Either way, the golden earthworm would come in handy for the upcoming winter—specifically for ice fishing.

However, as the mole warned, something insane was bound to get hooked, so I’d have to be careful.

The chances of hooking something worse than a Water Dragon or a Hydra were high. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to buy it.

"Alright. This one... let’s trade for this one Inner Core."

"Kkawu."

"An Inner Core plus 3 Fasting Pills."

"This little bastard?"

Did it sense my complaint?

Cheolkeok!

It whipped out the huge rocket launcher from its bundle to threaten me.

If I had threatened it instead of just complaining, it probably would have pulled the trigger.

I begged it to put that vicious thing away. Sensing the mood, the mole quietly tucked it back in.

"Only 1 Fasting Pill. No more. That’s our food supply!"

"Kkawu."

When I said it was our food supply, the mole seemed to understand and knocked it down to 1 pill. I placed the golden earthworm I received into a glass jar.

Since it was such a massive creature, the empty jar was nearly packed full.

"You’ve got more, right?"

When I asked slyly, the mole pulled something else out of its bundle.

This time it was a medicinal herb. But perhaps because it inhabited the Forest of the Four Seasons...

"Kkwa-ak! Kkwak! Kkwa-a-ak!"

"...."

It pulled out some kind of carnivorous plant. Not only did it have razor-sharp teeth, but eye-like bumps were even sprouting from its writhing tentacles.

Beyond a carnivorous plant, it looked like it had gorged on massive amounts of radiation. It was hideous beyond belief.

Even though its roots were completely uprooted, it was still alive and kicking. What on earth was the internal structure of that bundle?

"Kkawuu. Kkawu!"

"10 Fasting Pills. This is super rare, so no discount."

The price was outrageously steep too. At the mention of 10 Fasting Pills, even Bbareumbo grabbed my shoulder tightly.

A threat that wasn’t quite a threat: watch your mouth. I turned my head and asked Ludwig.

"...Do you know what this is?"

"I do not."

"What about you, Cain-ssi?"

[I have slain something similar before, but...]

Is it a monster instead of an herb? In the end, I had no choice but to ask the Gallery.

Title) What is this?

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the carnivorous plant held by the mole)

(Video of the carnivorous plant held by the mole)

A mole came to my house wanting to trade with me.

You might not understand what I mean by that, but let’s skip past it. Does anyone know what this thing it pulled out is?

I feel like eating it would give me severe food poisoning, but it’s asking a high price, so I’m hesitant.

Re: Heavenly Demon) What a hideous-looking plant. Eating it recklessly would surely bring disaster upon your belly.

Re: Sword Matstar) Forget food poisoning! It looks like it’ll gnaw on your organs from the inside out if you eat it;;

Re: Isn’t that a monster rather than an herb?

Re: I’ve seen things like that a lot. Was it a Nepenthes?

Re: That’s a poison-spewing monster. Isn’t it an Alraune?

Re: At least an Alraune looks humanoid;;; That thing is just a monster with teeth.

Re: Isn’t it an Immortal Herb?

Re: Even an Immortal Herb doesn’t look like that.

Re: Let’s Grow Trees) All plants are precious. Therefore, plant it and grow it!

Re: Look who’s talking. Would you grow it if you received it?

Re: Let’s Grow Trees) Isn’t that obvious? For all plants are precious!

Re: She’s seriously crazy;;

Re: Hey, Grylls. Just give it to her.

Re: Wild Grylls) I’m buying it with my own money, why should I give it away?

Just when no one could figure out the identity of the plant—

Re: Allfather) Good heavens of Aragon. That looks like the Life Herb I have only seen in ancient texts...!

Re: Wild Grylls) Is it similar to an Immortal Herb?

Re: Allfather) Completely different. To put it simply, it is best understood as a plant that has evolved into a spiritual entity.

Re: Aren’t Nepenthes and Alraunes spiritual entities too?

Re: Allfather) Entirely different. Those are simply monsters by birth; they did not evolve like the Life Herb.

Re: Wild Grylls) So what effect does it have if eaten?

The most important thing was the effect. What benefits would come from consuming this Life Herb?

Allfather seemed to contemplate for a moment, remaining silent before speaking.

Re: Allfather) It can raise the innate mana one is born with—the energy known in the Central Plains as Innate Primordial Qi. It is virtually the only known method.

Re: Heavenly Demon) Nonsense. Innate Primordial Qi is determined at birth. That which is acquired later is referred to as Acquired Qi.

Re: Allfather) That is precisely why I said it is the only way. Furthermore, as it is only recorded in literature, even I cannot be certain.

The Heavenly Demon and Allfather engaged in a heated debate. I could tell this transcended common logic.

More importantly, one crucial question remained: What was so good about increasing Innate Primordial Qi?

Re: Wild Grylls) What’s good about increasing Innate Primordial Qi?

Re: Heavenly Demon) Your chances of surviving extreme conditions increase dramatically. Have you ever heard of Huiguang Banzhao?

Re: Wild Grylls) Yeah, I’ve heard of it.

Re: Heavenly Demon) When even all your Internal Energy is exhausted, what is drawn upon at the absolute brink of death is Innate Primordial Qi.

I kind of got the picture. But something else bothered me.

Re: Wild Grylls) If I’ve used up all my Internal Energy, that means I’m seriously fucked though?

Re: Heavenly Demon) Indeed, it would be of little use to you, noble sir.

I really wasn’t sure if this was of any use to me.

Who should I give it to?