I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 569

Suddenly, my childhood unfolded right before my eyes. What was more, it was shown not from my own perspective, but from a third-person view.

I was flustered, wondering if such a thing was even truly possible, but that was not what was important right now.

ㄴHeavenly Demon) Could that child perchance be your childhood, sir?

ㄴSword Matstar) Just what on earth is happening right now?

ㄴDon’t Abandon the Hero) Herald-nim’s childhood...!

ㄴAllfather) More than that, I am astonished by that place itself. Could it be the homeland of the gods?

ㄴStarlight Lady) It seems even gods were no different when playing around in their childhood. So cute haha

As could be seen from the fixed-handles’ reactions, my childhood had been laid bare in vivid detail.

It was not a blurry newborn memory, but a childhood from a time when my memories were relatively clear.

It seemed to only be showing the parts I remembered clearly. I wasn’t really sure what this meant.

"He copied something he saw in a cartoon? Is that even possible?"

"He caught it, so obviously it worked!"

The children chatted among themselves while looking at the pigeon the young me had caught.

I had merrily caught a ’hunted’ pigeon. The reason I phrased it as hunting was simple.

[Could that be a knife stuck in that pigeon’s body?]

"Uh... yes. To be precise, it’s probably a paring knife for peeling fruit."

[Do the gods receive military training from childhood?]

After all, more than half of the paring knife was embedded in the pigeon’s body. It was a scene easily misunderstood by someone who didn’t know—especially those who revered ancient humanity as gods.

However, that was strictly something done back in my reckless childhood days. I pondered where I should even begin explaining.

For now, clearing up the misunderstanding seemed like it would make future explanations easier.

"It’s not that... I watched a cartoon long ago. It was a ninja cartoon, and I was deeply impressed after watching them throw shuriken."

[What is a ninja? And what is a cartoon?]

"It’s convenient to think of it as roughly another word for assassin. Though they’re assassins in name only, and are practically martial artists using martial arts. And a cartoon is..."

My childhood was in the mid-2000s.

Back then, televisions broadcasted all sorts of animated series. Pirate cartoons and ninja cartoons were prime examples.

And having been so impressed by a scene in a ninja cartoon, I committed that bizarre act.

"Master showed extraordinary potential right from childhood."

"I agree. To strike a flying pigeon with a hidden weapon just by copying what he saw... Astonishing."

"...."

Feeling embarrassed, I scratched my head. In my memory, I had hit it purely by luck.

Yet, even if it was luck, hitting a bird in mid-flight was an impressive feat in itself.

Because back then, pigeons weren’t grounded ’chicken-pigeons’, but birds that actually flew around.

ㄴSmart Demon) Even a child raised in the Sichuan Tang Clan couldn’t pull off that stunt at that age LOL

ㄴHeavenly Demon) I agree. Constant practice would hardly be enough. Yet you accomplished it in a single try, sir.

ㄴAllfather) Talent truly befitting a God’s Herald.

The fixed-handles showed reactions of admiration for my hidden weapon throwing (?) skill.

A hollow laugh escaped me, but since it was just a past from my immature days, I could let it pass.

"Mom! Mom! Look at this! I caught a pigeon!"

"What? What did you catch... Kyaaaaah!!"

Of course, as soon as I showed my mom, I got scolded within an inch of my life.

Catching a pigeon was shocking enough, but with a paring knife embedded in its body, my mom had no choice but to be terrified.

She probably worried if I would turn into a murderer. After all, murderers usually start with animal cruelty.

To offer a slight excuse, I only committed such an act because I was in my innocent childhood.

Correcting that innocence so it didn’t twist was a parent’s duty. My parents faithfully fulfilled that duty as well.

"What is this? Why is our son standing in punishment?"

"Honey, listen to me. Our son actually caught a flying pigeon with a paring knife!"

"...Does that even make sense? Isn’t he lying?"

"I asked the other kids, and they said it really happened."

Um....

It was nice seeing Mom and Dad’s faces after a long time, but I felt strange.

Felt embarrassing, like my dark history was being laid bare. I really hoped this scene would pass quickly.

[This place is....]

"It’s my parents’ funeral."

Except it passed by too quickly, leaving me feeling gloomy.

Passing my immature childhood, I reached a turning point in my life.

The day my parents passed away in an accident. The day my outlook on life was upended entirely.

A situation where I began to resent God in earnest, and nearly strayed down a bad path.

"Hey, come on, let’s just go to an internet cafe instead."

"I don’t have money."This story is hosted at novelрing.com.

"Pay me back later. Simple as that, right?"

Fortunately, because I had good friends, I didn’t end up straying off course.

On the contrary, I worked even harder to repay my friends’ kindness. It felt like there was nothing I didn’t do to earn money.

Furthermore, though I claimed to resent God, ironically, the person who stepped up as my guardian was a religious figure.

It was probably around this time that I genuinely became curious about religion itself. Which led to me developing faith later on.

Enduring silently day after day, before I knew it, I had graduated from high school.

"What are you gonna do? You should at least get a driver’s license."

"I’m going to the military first."

"...Are you crazy?"

Since going to college was something I couldn’t even dream of, I just enlisted right away.

Orphans were originally exempt from military service, but at the time, our country was suffering from a chronic military manpower shortage.

Thus, enlisting in the military due to a ’mistake’ by the Military Manpower Administration was not particularly difficult.

"They are soldiers, yet something is different. The helmets look strange as well."

"They were bound to be different. There was no energy like mana at all."

"Did they have to fight relying purely on physical abilities?"

"That, along with fighting wars through pure science."

My military life was ordinary. No, saying I worked hard suited it better.

Perhaps because I had done all sorts of odd jobs since my school days, I was confident in manual labor tasks.

Thanks to that, I recall my seniors, as well as the First Sergeant, liking me.

"Hey. When I was little, I hit a flying pigeon with a paring knife."

"Aw, come on. What kind of story is that? No matter how much I respect Sergeant Park Jong-hyuk, I can’t buy that."

"It’s for real! Want me to show you?"

Of course, apart from that, I couldn’t escape the military’s trademark drop-in-IQ phenomenon.

The military was famous for dropping the IQ of even prestigious university students, so I was no different.

What was more, when on guard duty, it was so painfully boring that you couldn’t help but shoot the breeze.

The only problem was that the process escalated into a pride battle.

"Coo coo coo."

"Perfect timing. Watch that bird carefully."

Right on cue, I spotted a bird perched on a nearby branch.

The me back then immediately drew a bayonet. The kind of bayonet anyone who completed military service would know—completely dull and unsharpened.

Thinking that it wouldn’t penetrate the body anyway and that hitting it was all that mattered, I threw it without hesitation.

Thwack!

And it stuck right into the bird’s body.

Seeing this, my first reaction was panic.

Flap-flap!

"Huh?"

Then came the second panic as the bird flew away with the bayonet still lodged in its torso.

My junior and I fell silent as we watched the bird fly off into the distant sky.

It was such a baffling incident, an unbelievable sight even if you rubbed your eyes and looked again.

"...Hey."

"Please don’t tell me to go retrieve it."

"Quick-witted bastard."

Afterwards, I confessed everything. Trying to evade it with a lie seemed like it would only bring bigger trouble.

Naturally, even after hearing my testimony, the Company Commander and First Sergeant looked like they couldn’t believe it.

"Hey, you rascal. You’d be better off telling me you threw it at a water deer. You threw it at a bird, hit it, and it stuck? What are you, a ninja?"

"I’m really not lying, sir."

"Jong-hyuk. I’ve been in the military for over 20 years. I’ve truly met every kind of person imaginable, but a ninja is a first for me."

"...."

Not only was my vacation revoked, but from that day on, my nickname within the unit became Ninja.

It sounds like a lie, but in the military, most unbelievable stories are actually true.

[You were clearly born in the wrong era. With throwing skills and marksmanship like that, you would have made a fine general.]

"Still, isn’t he demonstrating those abilities without holding back right now?"

"Hey, now."

I would’ve preferred if they just cursed at me. The way those two were speaking made it sound like they were mocking me.

At any rate, after finishing a thoroughly ordinary military service, my next move was drastic.

Having nothing else to do, I relied solely on my own body and re-enlisted in the special forces.

The expressions my friends wore when they heard this came back vividly to mind.

’Their faces were saying there was no crazy bastard quite like this one, wasn’t it?’

But something was slightly strange. This definitely wasn’t in my memory.

To be precise, while I had gained memories through dreams, it meant I hadn’t regained them completely.Read this novel at NovelPing for the best experience.

While I was questioning what on earth was happening, Ludwig spoke up.

"Are special forces something like a knight order?"

"Yes."

"As expected. So it was because you were a knight, not a mere soldier."

I didn’t know what kind of misunderstanding he was having, but I brushed it off and moved on.

Because what was more important was the very next scene. War.

Rat-tat-tat-tat! Kaboom!

It was a gruesome scene. Gunfire echoed from all directions, and bombs shook the earth.

In the midst of that chaos, my comrades and I struggled desperately to complete our mission at all costs.

Fortunately, after countless sacrifices, the mission was accomplished, and the war even came to an end.

"...."

Even though the war had ended, the aftermath did not cease. It showed me standing before graves in the National Cemetery.

My back looked lonely, transmitting countless emotions.

Ludwig and Cain in particular would feel it deeply. They too were soldiers who had sent off many comrades.

’This wasn’t something I saw in my dreams either....’

Why did I feel a sense of déjà vu? Questions lingered.

After that, it showed me being scouted by the NIS to operate as an agent. That was the end of the dreams I had experienced.

I wondered if there were more scenes I didn’t know about, but that wasn’t it.

[Authentication completed.]

A voice suddenly echoed in my ears. The voice of a woman.

Although I couldn’t identify her exact identity, I knew for certain that it was a somewhat familiar voice.

’...Aris?’

That thought was fleeting, as the scenes reflected in my eyes slowly began to fade.

The sights shredded into pieces, like photos being chopped into tiny fragments.

Because it didn’t affect us, I didn’t think much of it. However.

Rustle—

As soon as every scene cleared like a curtain drawing back, what came into sight was—

"Huh?"

It was the World Tree, shedding countless leaves as if the time had come.

The spectacle of golden-glowing leaves falling all at once was nothing short of a magnificent view.

I had no idea what on earth was happening, nor why such a thing was taking place.

Even so, one thing was absolutely certain.

Rumble-umble-umble—

A cataclysm was coming soon.

The trembling of the earth was proving just that.

Geographically speaking, calling the Forest of the Four Seasons the center of the world was no exaggeration.

Most countries bordered the Forest of the Four Seasons. Consequently, quite a few nations had no choice but to trade via the sea.

However, that didn’t mean no one researched the Forest of the Four Seasons. Many people loitered near the forest, attempting to grasp even a fraction of it.

It was simply that Selena and Kadir were making remarkably fast progress.

’It’s beautiful...!’

Asella marvelled while watching Grylls’s stream.

Though she had witnessed many sights in her life, the spectacle of World Tree leaves raining down evoked pure awe.

Had she missed this scene, she might have regretted it for a long, long time.

’But why is the World Tree acting like that?’

Her questioning was short-lived, as Asella soon received a report.

"Hero-nim! Hero-nim! Disaster has struck!"

A rather urgent report.

Normally, reports came up as paperwork, so for them to be in such a rush meant a major problem.

She worried if perhaps an issue had arisen in Selena’s group’s laboratory.

"What happened?"

"Th-That is...!"

The attendant panted for breath before barely opening their mouth.

"The, the Forest of the Four Seasons...!"

The Forest of the Four Seasons.

"The barrier blocking the Forest of the Four Seasons has partially lifted!"

"...Pardon?"

Partial opening.