I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 587

A day that felt like a sweet dream.

That single day to me was beyond precious—it was no different from a one-of-a-kind treasure.

Seeing not only the people I was close with, but even the happy laughter of children with my own eyes.

That’s why it was all the sadder. It felt like drinking seawater when extremely thirsty.

’Even the military gives recruits a three-night, four-day leave.’

It felt less like a full leave and more like a day trip. An outing that did nothing but tease my appetite.

That was why after returning, I spent the whole day busy soothing my troubled mind by puffing on cigars.

Since cigars were something I only smoked when things were tough, they tasted especially sweet today.

’If I had known, I should have... with Asella... No. No. There wouldn’t have been enough time anyway.’

Wicked thoughts crept in, but I quickly shook them off.

Leaving myself aside, this could inflict a deep wound on Asella as well.

Above all, I needed to consider my relationships with others, especially Ash.

Claiming no romantic interest in someone I’d even kissed? That genuinely made no sense.

’Besides, now that I know Sword Matstar is Ash...’

Setting aside the complicated relationships to ponder later, I first informed the others of the fact that Ludwig hadn’t just gone on a simple outing like me, but had ’escaped.’

"Is that true, Master? Does that mean we won’t see Walker anymore?"

"Yeah. Unless the Forest of the Four Seasons opens up completely, it’ll be hard to meet him."

Ludwig had a beloved family.

Didn’t he even have a granddaughter born recently? For that reason alone, Ludwig absolutely had to stay behind.

[Then what will you do about Largo?]

"Mmm..."

Just in time, Cain brought up the most important topic: Largo, the giraffe Ludwig used to ride.

Largo was currently staying quietly in the guest room.

In a situation where it was impossible to tell how he would react once he realized Ludwig was gone.

’I heard giraffes have nasty tempers, but Ludwig managed to tame him.’

As a beast of the Forest of the Four Seasons, he had high intelligence and might stay, but the opposite possibility was also high.

Now that Ludwig, whom he recognized as his master, was gone, wouldn’t he think he didn’t need to listen to anyone’s orders?

Subduing Largo wasn’t difficult, of course, but I worried about unnecessarily souring our feelings toward each other.

’Then I’ll have no choice but to let him go.’

For now, I planned to ask Largo’s opinion before deciding.

As it happened to be lunchtime, I was able to ask Largo.

"Pfrrrk."

"He says he doesn’t mind. He said he’ll stay here."

"Even though your master is gone?"

"Pfrrrk. Pfrrk."

"The master vanished, but the nest didn’t vanish, did it? If he stays here, he doesn’t have to worry about getting eaten by anyone."

Largo stated his intention to stay for reasons similar to Lackey.

Though a bit ridiculous, it was a completely sensible reason. Indeed, there was probably no place warmer and more filling than this Shelter.

If so, what role should I give Largo from now on? I had thought about this beforehand as well.

"From now on, you can carry the heavy luggage."

Since he was a strong giraffe, he could carry plenty of goods, and his combat power was nothing to sneeze at either.

Up until now, whenever traveling long distances, there were times when we couldn’t bring back various materials, but with Largo around, it would be fine.

Like the Adamantium Lizard that was slowly starting to breed maggots, or the dragon bones we only brought back a portion of, and so on.

"Then Master. Am I liberated from being the porter?"

It was right when I was reconsidering Largo’s new role.

Dolsoe, who usually handled porter duties, asked cautiously.

"You’ll have to take over Ludwig’s role..."

I cut my words mid-sentence and stared intently at Dolsoe. A well-baked sweet potato was held in his hand.

Not just Dolsoe, but Lackey was also holding a roasted sweet potato in one hand. Word had it someone gifted them a whole bundle of sweet potatoes.

Santa must have left them. Was that why?

"Hey, but don’t you look like you gained weight?"

"I did not."

"What do you mean ’did not’? Your face got plump."

Only a single day had passed, but his fat had plumped up noticeably. Lackey was the exact same.

Perhaps because their bodies absorbed energy so well, the speed of gaining weight was frightening.

’They say every winter many people go to the vet because they feed their pets too many sweet potatoes, right?’

That exact feeling. On top of that, sweet potatoes were piled high in the food storehouse too.

Usually I told them not to eat sweet potatoes to preserve food stockpiles, but since Santa gave a mountain of them, they no longer felt the need to hold back.

Because they recently evolved into appearances closer to humans, their weight gain stood out even more.

"Eat those in moderation, and anyway, you’ll have to take over Ahjussi Ludwig’s role from now on."

"Taking the front lines alongside Master?"

"Right. You’ll be taking off that cumbersome Mana Suppressor from now on, too."

Dolsoe had long since proven his worth.

There would be no problem at all operating alongside us without the suppressor in the future.

Dolsoe nodded as well, accepting it indifferently. He didn’t seem to mind either.

[It will be lonely without my junior around.]

"It couldn’t be helped. Ludwig has a family, after all. I desperately persuaded him."

[It was quite fun whenever we talked behind your back in the language of the Holy Kingdom.]

"As an ancestor, don’t slander your junior. Besides, you talked trash right to my face plenty of times."

It was trash-talking to my face rather than behind my back, but whatever, let’s move on. Cain’s bitterness was genuine.

Being a distant, far-off junior, Cain cherished him greatly.

"By the way, you don’t happen to know Santa’s true identity, do you?"

[Is that important? What matters is that Santa exists.]This chapter was copied from nove‌lping.com without permission.

"Don’t say weird things; it’s because Santa was a mage."

Not an ordinary mage, but an Archmage who easily wielded even gravity magic.

Of course, since he was likely close to an AI like Cain, casting magic would have been easier for him.

I was merely curious if he was based on a real person, like Cain’s case.

[A mage... Then there is a high possibility he is a creation of Aragon-nim.]

"You mean the God of Magic?"

[Indeed. Ah, speaking of which, what did you say Santa’s real name was?]

"Didn’t they call him Saint Nicholas?"

Translated into our language, Saint Nicholas.

Upon hearing that, Cain pondered deeply before speaking to me.

[The Christian name Nicholas appeared often even in my era. My close friend possessed that very Christian name.]

"Then who was the first to have that Christian name?"

[It was the first Pope.]

At the words ’first Pope,’ I tilted my head.

Who was Cain? Wasn’t he a historical figure as the first holy knight?

And Santa had existed since Cain’s childhood.

I wondered if the concept of paladins appeared late, or if the Pope appeared early.

"Cain-ssi, you’re the first holy knight. Then how much of a gap is there between your generation and the first Pope’s?"

[He was an ancestor even by my standards.]

An ancestor even by Cain’s standards. Hearing that made me instantly convinced.

Which meant the first Pope was an Archmage, but that was something I could find out step by step on the Gallery.

What mattered now wasn’t Santa, but plans for the future. Honestly, there wasn’t much of a plan to speak of.

’At most, going to the grassland is it...’

Christmas was over, but winter wasn’t.

What’s more, with the New Year approaching soon, I had things to prepare as well.

Preparing for the New Year in the Forest of the Four Seasons—one could sneer that it was excessively peaceful.

’Still, I have to do at least this. What choice do I have?’

It was to erase the feeling of being completely severed from the outside world as much as possible.

Clearing my complex feelings little by little, I suddenly discovered a sword.

The Mythricon sword Ludwig usually favored. A sword recently reinforced with Adamantium.

’It’s better to give him this, right?’

A final gift, and a sword symbolizing our bond.

Of course, the outside world would turn upside down... but it didn’t really matter.

Title) Ludwig’s ankle

How much would it be worth?

Honestly, you could probably buy a few houses with that.

ㄴ Not a few houses, it’s a whole national budget keke

ㄴ That’s the Holy Kingdom’s emergency fund. If push comes to shove, just rip it off keke

ㄴ Will a few people actually go to rip it off?

ㄴ Because of that, the Hero’s head is probably hurting keke

Ludwig was already being treated like a golden goblin.

It wasn’t just because of his Mithril ankle; various complex reasons were mixed together.

Surviving in the Forest of the Four Seasons for several months alone held immense value.

Decisively, he was the sole person directly ’connected’ to me. This single merit was huge.

’Meaning it’s fine even if I support him openly.’

Therefore, he would face pressure incomparable to before.

To relieve that even a little, it was good for me to provide proper support.

One might ask if this wouldn’t make the outside world even more chaotic, but it couldn’t be helped.

’Just the fact that he’s talking with me will guarantee Ludwig’s safety.’

This was the most important thing: maintaining Ludwig’s value.

Though countless troublesome events would occur, for his sake and his family’s, it was unavoidable.

Turning my back and cutting ties without looking behind could bring about a much more dangerous situation.

Most probably spoke jokingly, but there were truly many insane people in the world.

There would actually be people committing all sorts of bizarre acts just to steal Ludwig’s ankle.

’Indeed, this world has famous thieves, like master burglars or divine larcenists.’

In that sense, I sent a message to Ludwig. My chat history with him still remained.

To begin with, even his handle was his real name, so I could never forget it.

[Wild Grylls: Ahjussi. Are you there?]

Five minutes passed, ten minutes passed, but no reply came back.

Come to think of it, this guy had no interest in the Gallery until he entered the Forest of the Four Seasons.

In the end, I had no choice but to request message confirmation through Asella. Luckily, Asella received the message right away.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: I can forward it for you, but there’s a condition!]

[Wild Grylls: What condition?]

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: I’ll give you a Video Recording Orb, so please say these words into it!]

[Wild Grylls: What words...?]

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: Hello, Asella? You did a great job today too. Let me cheer you on tomorrow as well. $#!...]

That was the end. There were definitely words after that, but the very end was cut off, so I couldn’t tell.

Gallery translation wasn’t all-powerful, so when it cut off like that in the middle, it was hard to translate.

I wondered if she might resend it, but nothing like that happened. She just requested that I say those words.

Fulfilling a request of that level wasn’t hard, so I gladly accepted.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: Please say it in a warm tone of voice...!]

[Wild Grylls: Yes. Got it. By the way, are you not going to ask why I’m sending a message to Ahjussi Ludwig?]

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: It’s something Grylls-nim is doing, so I must trust it!]

[Wild Grylls: That’s a bit scary;;]Enjoying the story? Read on at NovelPing.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: I still remember the hug with Grylls-nim! When you come outside, you’ll do it again, right!?]

[Wild Grylls: If I manage to get outside, keke;;]

Hitting right where it hurts. Anyway, I let Asella know my intentions.

Since she was deeply involved in politics, she would understand.

Before long, Asella, who had been silent for a moment, sent a message.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: Thank you so much...! I want to repay you with something...!]

[Wild Grylls: It’s okay. Please take good care of me in the future as well.]

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: I will wait no matter how long it takes!]

What was she waiting for? I let out a bitter smile and sent the Mythricon sword.

She would deliver the news to Ludwig and hand over the sword at the same time.

And I received the Recording Orb from her.

I just needed to record the video she wanted on this.

’It’s kind of embarrassing.’

Still, since Asella wanted it, I recorded it right away and sent it over.

Since showing it to others was somewhat embarrassing, I recorded it alone while everyone else was working.

[Wild Grylls: I’ll send it to you.]

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: Thank you so very much...!]

With my conversation with Asella wrapped up, I waited for Ludwig’s message to arrive.

I thought it would probably take a bit of time. Since Ludwig had become busy in his own right.

I felt I should chat with other fixed-handles in the meantime.

First of all, I sent a message to Heavenly Demon.

[Wild Grylls: Heavenly Demon-nim. Are you there?]

[Heavenly Demon: I was waiting for your message, noble sir. Did you return safely?]

[Wild Grylls: Yes. I’m resting right now.]

[Heavenly Demon: Though it was a single night’s dream, I hope that dream remains in your heart forever.]

[Wild Grylls: Are you feeling the same way, Heavenly Demon-nim?]

[Heavenly Demon: I feel as if I am still dreaming. Had I not entered the Profound Realm, I would have fallen into bewitchment.]

After Heavenly Demon came Sword Matstar, Ash.

[Wild Grylls: Sword Matstar-nim. Did you spend Christmas well?]

[Sword Matstar: Santa came and gave me a big gift, so of course I spent it well ^^]

[Wild Grylls: What do you want to get next Christmas?]

[Sword Matstar: A marriage registration form?]

[Wild Grylls: Uh... you’re joking, right?]

[Sword Matstar: hehehe]

Afterwards, I asked after the well-being of other fixed-handles I was usually acquainted with.

Most asked if it was really me, expressed pity that I returned, and so on.

[Passing Dwarf: I couldn’t enjoy Christmas.]

[Wild Grylls: Why you?]

[Passing Dwarf: My body barely gets drunk as it is, but because of a certain someone I couldn’t get drunk even more, shibal. Better off not coming out.]

[Wild Grylls: This bastard?]

[Passing Dwarf: Therefore, next time you come out, bring booze. An extremely strong one.]

I also chatted with a dwarf genuinely insane about liquor.

This guy was consistent no matter what he did, which left me dumbfounded.

Thus, right around the time I was about to end the day today, a message arrived from a fixed-handle I hadn’t seen recently.

[Ludwig van Erolt: Grylls. Is that you?]

[Ludwig van Erolt: I send this message as requested by Asella.]

[Wild Grylls: Hello, Ahjussi. Are you enjoying life outside?]

[Ludwig van Erolt: I am.]

It was a relief to hear he enjoyed it. Especially holding his granddaughter in his arms, he must be even happier.

I had no intention of shattering his happiness. He had probably heard detailed stories from Asella.

[Wild Grylls: You heard the story from Asella, right?]

[Ludwig van Erolt: There was no need to go this far for me. I feel a bit sorry.]

[Wild Grylls: Please think of it as payment for all the hardship you suffered.]

[Ludwig van Erolt: Shouldn’t you be the one receiving the payment? I was merely piggybacking on you.]

His characteristic rigid personality was laid bare. That was why I liked him.

After exchanging small talk with him, we wished each other blessings. He would remain busy from now on.

It was right when I finished talking with most of the fixed-handles.

"Master. I have a favor."

"What is it?"

"Make me a new gauntlet. My fingers don’t fit."

Lackey asked for a gauntlet modification. He had asked before as well.

Having evolved into Sun Wukong, his previously short fingers had grown very long.

There was a need to forge a new gauntlet for Lackey.

"Got it. But since Ahjussi Ludwig isn’t here, you stand by my side and assist me."

"Brother. Master is calling you."

"..."

This bastard is passing off tasks to subordinates now. The utterly flabbergasted expression on Dolsoe’s face was a masterclass.

"Shut it and pick up a hammer. Ah, and there’s remaining forest, right?"

"What should I do?"

"First measure your finger length... Ah, should I ask Dwarf about this?"

Truly, I was back to daily life.