I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 470

Maengkkongi almost froze to death, but I managed to revive him in the nick of time.

Singing steadfastly with such unexpected professionalism was truly surprising.

In human terms, it was like standing naked in the dead of winter singing until getting frostbite.

"Lackey. See that? Maengkkongi is a true professional."

"What is a professional?"

"Someone who silently does their job in a hopeless environment. Someone who gives their all to the work they get paid for."

Sometimes there are professionals who can’t even do that, but let’s gloss over them.

Also, one must keep in mind to distinguish between people who lack professionalism and those who are simply lacking in skill.

Sometimes while watching sports, people curse, ’If you’re gonna play like that, go get a trade license!’

At least that’s cursing them for their skill level, not for a lack of professionalism.

If they truly lacked professional spirit, people wouldn’t even curse—they’d just glare with eyes full of utter contempt.

Seuk-seuk—

"Ppi-yung."

When I patted his head, he let out a cute cry. I always thought his cry was quite unique.

What was funnier was that when he sang, his pronunciation was clearer than anyone else’s.

Even a parrot couldn’t imitate sounds better than this.

’It’s even more admirable seeing how he tries to help out in any way he can.’

Pushing himself to haul twigs to make the fireplace burn brighter.

Singing outside so noise wouldn’t be a problem, gathering animals around.

And finally, demonstrating his professional spirit by singing until the very end even while freezing to death.

First impressions are usually the most important, and Maengkkongi had provided nothing but good memories.

Even though it hadn’t been long—only about 3 or 4 days.

’Considering how long it took for my impression of Lackey to change...’

I looked out at Lackey, who was outside prepping the sunfish.

That guy was a pain in the neck from his first impression, not to mention doing all kinds of obnoxious stuff afterward.

But now, he has become an indispensable sla—... no, companion at the shelter.

"Master. Finished butchering."

"Good work. What about the Inner Core?"

"Here it is."

The sunfish butchering was complete, and the Inner Core was extracted.

Perhaps because it was a creature that had to be caught using a Golden Earthworm, the size of its Inner Core was quite formidable.

I wondered if yokai originally possessed Inner Cores, but since this was the Forest of the Four Seasons, I glossed over it.

’The Inner Core is much bigger than that of other fish.’

Swallowing it whole in one bite would be tricky. I should choose a method of absorbing it slowly.

If it proved too difficult, I could just ask the Dwarf to turn it into infused liquor.

After that, most of the fully prepped sunfish meat was stored in the warehouse.

Since the skin part was tricky to store, we decided to eat it immediately. Asking the gallery, they said to put it in a steamer and eat it like jelly.

"...But why does this taste so strange?"

"Master. It has zero flavor. It feels like my tongue is paralyzed."

Turns out, it literally had no taste. Not a metaphorical expression, but genuinely at the level of zero flavor.

I was half-doubting when I saw it on the gallery, but I never expected it to be like this.

Furthermore, since this fellow inhabited the Forest of the Four Seasons, it was even more baffling.

’Even ordinary fish taste like meat.’

Maybe this creature was a particularly unique specimen. In the end, I made a separate dipping sauce.

The texture itself was quite chewy, so tossing it in dipping sauce made it pretty edible.

Sipping the booze given by the Dwarf alongside it, there was no delicacy quite like this.

’No matter how much I drink, I don’t get drunk, but oh well...’

I was eating it for the taste anyway. Besides alcohol, we also had Vending Machine Crab.

Thus, another day passed, and another day went by.

During winter, there wasn’t much to do, and nothing special happened on the gallery either.

Occasionally, there were talks about an ominous energy looming over Zhongyuan, but I glossed over it.

A civil war breaking out in Zhongyuan was a predetermined course of events anyway. I just hoped casualties would be low.

’The Heavenly Demon isn’t such a malicious person either.’

Whether on the gallery or in reality, she had a somewhat arrogant personality. Still, I liked that she repaid goodwill with goodwill.

Above all, didn’t her true nature indirectly show when wiping out the remnants of the Blood Cult?

When the Blood Cult tried to sacrifice people dragged there by force, she saved those people even if a few enemies escaped.

Furthermore, contrary to the perception of her being ruthless, she wasn’t someone who enjoyed slaughter.

’Though it seems she had quite a temper back in the day.’

Heavenly Demon, Yoo So-wol’s other martial alias was Yaksha Blood Flower. Just hearing the name sounded terrifying.

Well, according to her, she was a bit immature back then or something. I glossed over it.Follow the newest chapters on novelping dot com.

What was more important was future plans. Soon, I intended to head out for exploration.

’Now, the World Tree is truly the only answer.’

I clenched my fist tightly. The destination now was the World Tree.

There was no telling what creatures we’d meet on the way, but I planned to push through.

I had obtained powerful recovery, and Ludwig’s baseline skill had risen distinctly. Now was the right time.

However, it wasn’t as if there were no worries. Our new companion and pet, Maengkkongi.

The creature that was practically the weakest in our party. In a way, he was the true ocean sunfish.

’I can’t leave him somewhere safe... but I can’t just leave him behind either...’

Leave him with the Hobgoblin Village, you ask? That has its own set of problems.

Wonmo would definitely throw a fit asking where the Rain Frog went. Taking him along as our bard while traveling would work out.

’How can I keep this little guy safe...?’

It’s way too dangerous for this steam-bun-like fellow to move around in the Forest of the Four Seasons.

Honestly, surviving up until now is a miracle in itself. Singing like a parrot is mind-boggling too.

I poked around playfully at the steam-bun frog—no, Maengkkongi.

"Ppi-yung!"

Then he whipped his body around as if telling me to stop. A chuckle slipped out automatically.

Should I say he was cute in a different sense than Wonmo? Even standing in front of the fireplace looked tough for him.

"Master. What are you doing?"

"Making a chair."

"Looks super tiny for a chair."

"It’s for Maengkkongi."

So I crafted a chair for Maengkkongi. Since I couldn’t get one from the gallery, I had no choice but to make it by hand.

Since his butt was unusually plump compared to his size, I made the seat area extra wide.

Once the chair was complete, I gently brought it over to Maengkkongi.

"Ppi-yung?"

"Sit, sit."

Maengkkongi showed confusion for a second, then softly sat down on the chair I made.

Seeing this steam-bun-like creature sitting on a chair, nothing could be cuter.

A mood that bewitched people, so to speak. Well, if not for that, he wouldn’t have been able to draw animals together with just a song.

Title: Check out this cute Maengkkongi before you go

Wild Grylls

(Photo 1 of Maengkkongi sitting on a chair)

(Photo 2 of Maengkkongi sitting on a chair)

(Photo 1 of Maengkkongi relaxing leisurely in front of the fireplace)

(Video examining Maengkkongi from various angles)

He was having a tough time standing in front of the fireplace, so I made him a chair.

I realized all over again that even frogs can be this cute.

Re: Heavenly Demon) Cute indeed. I shall instruct my close aides to inquire if any similar creatures exist.

Re: Wild Grylls) Are you going to raise one?

Re: Heavenly Demon) Did thee not say he even sings? If I had even one such creature, life would not feel so lonely.

Re: Sword Matstar) No matter where you search in the entire world, that kind of frog only exists in the Forest of the Four Seasons;;

Re: I really feel bad for her aides LOL

Re: Why aren’t you raising Wonmo, but trying to raise Maengkkongi instead?

Re: Heavenly Demon) ’Tis because the elder dislikes it. He stated he would throw away any furred animal.

Re: Smart Demon) It might not be that he dislikes it, but rather because of an allergic reaction.

Re: Heavenly Demon) What is an allergy?

Re: Smart Demon) Go look it up yourself;;

Re: Praise the Sun) If you’re gonna raise one, it’s better to get eggs. Eggs aren’t classified as living creatures, right?

Re: Passing Dwarf) Hand him a guitar like that. I bet he’d play it well haha

Re: Wild Grylls) Do you wanna make one for him?

Re: Passing Dwarf) I can’t do miniaturization. Should I ask another guy?

Re: Wild Grylls) If you make it, I’ll give you a World Tree Fruit lol

Re: Passing Dwarf) OK wait

Re: Now we’re getting a guitar-playing frog too?

Re: Lackey loses his job HAHAHA

Re: He was unemployed to begin with lol

As expected, an explosive response poured in. A satisfied smile formed on my face.

The Dwarf said he’d procure a guitar for Maengkkongi, but I wasn’t so sure.Enjoying the story? Read on at novеlping.com.

After all, making things small is much harder than making them big.

Even for a Dwarf, crafting a guitar for Maengkkongi would take time.

’Things will turn out fine as we explore.’

Time passed aimlessly like that, and before I knew it, the weather grew warm.

It meant spring had arrived. The heavily accumulated snow melted away in an instant, and temperatures turned mild.

Hwi-i-i-ing!

The yellow dust pollen storm hitting the moment spring arrived was an extra. I meticulously blocked the doors so yellow dust couldn’t enter.

"Gkyuu! Gkyu!"

"Ppi-yung."

Wonmo also ended his hibernation and reunited with Maengkkongi. Placing Maengkkongi on his head the second they met was a bonus.

The fellow who swore he’d take responsibility ended up sleeping through winter, so I had to take care of everything.

Well, he’s cute, so let’s let it slide. Maengkkongi got his own role, so it’s fine.

’Time to start preparing.’

The pollen yellow dust will be over in a day. Right after that, we’ll start exploring.

During winter, I steadily received Elixirs from Starlight Lady. What’s left is the route.

’I need to check the location of the World Tree periodically along the way.’

One wrong move and we might end up somewhere completely wrong. The Forest of the Four Seasons is a place where compasses don’t work at all.

Going in a straight line is practically impossible. There’s no knowing what terrain features lie in between.

Also, ruins like the library might pop up. Inspecting those will take a fair amount of time.

"Alright, Maengkkongi. If it feels really dangerous, hop in here. Got it?"

"Ppi-yung."

"Wonmo, you come here too."

"Gkyuu?"

I fitted the Subspace Backpack onto Wonmo. It was where Maengkkongi could take shelter in an emergency.

Being inside the Subspace Backpack wasn’t completely risk-free, but it was better than nothing.

’I didn’t expect to use the backpack obtained last time like this.’

Anyway, preparations are done, so it’s time to head out. It feels like it’s been a really long time since we last explored.

And no wonder, since the recovery period overlapped with winter, meaning we rested for nearly half a month.

But during that time, we thoroughly prepared, so we can be confident.

"Let’s go."

Re: Heavenly Demon) Take care of thyself.

Re: Sword Matstar) If it feels dangerous, run away immediately. Don’t try to sacrifice yourself like last time.

Re: Don’t Abandon the Hero) Hang in there! You must never die!

Re: Passing Dwarf) Finally here. My drinking snacks.

I also started real-time video streaming. Numerous regular users poured in.

From their perspective, they had waited a pretty long time. I was also a bit excited.

"Hmm?"

While walking down the path, something caught my eye. It wasn’t a beast.

Nor was it a monster-looking plant. It was just a very normal-looking patch of grass.

I stared blankly at the plant, then carefully plucked a stem.

Next, I handed it to Maengkkongi, who was perched on top of Wonmo’s head.

"Maengkkongi. Here."

"Ppi-yung?"

What I handed to Maengkkongi was none other than a four-leaf clover.

It’s a plant that matches surprisingly well with frogs. Maengkkongi accepted the four-leaf clover and blinked.

At first, he wore a bewildered expression, but...

"Ppi-yung!"

Soon after, feeling great, he laughed brightly. A short while later...

"Nashi sapetske sayuz ppagarat~"

"..."

"Byes mir gakke agromnyi na basdokeu!"

[...Is that by any chance a military song?]

Perhaps feeling overjoyed, he even sang a song that seemed ready to turn everything dyed in red.

The surprising thing was that the song was hugely helpful. My footsteps became lighter.

’...I don’t know anymore.’

Let’s just give up thinking.