I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 757

The story of the ruins said to have been discovered in Mountain and Alvenheim was increasingly drawing attention.

There were rumors that Asella would visit Mountain, and even talk of Mephisto subtly slipping himself into the mix.

However, from my perspective, the only thing I could do was just watch.

Since Passing Dwarf hadn’t been dragged away by force this time, there was no particular reason for me to step in.

Title: A Common Recruitment Ad

(A roughly written recruitment notice for Mountain brewing masters)

A dangerous journey, low wages, hardships, the possibility of being cut off from the outside world for several months, unpredictable dangers, uncertain safe return, and upon success, a glass of beer at God’s Brewery.

And currently, because of this notice, brewing masters from all over Mountain are gathering.

Wow, the state is really pushing passion pay way too hard;;

For Dwarves, that’s not passion pay, it’s an honor.

A glass of beer at God’s Brewery? How could anyone resist that? haha

Even my dad is making a fuss about participating;;

But if that’s the case, who does the screening? Surely they don’t check everyone one by one?

If they did that, the country would paralyze, so they’ll have to show some restraint;;

It’s a chance to perfectly please God, who could resist this?

Even though such an advertisement was put out, the entirety of Mountain was in an uproar.

Roughly speaking, if it were the Republic of Korea, it would be like selecting the most delicious kimchi in the entire country.

And to top it off, the person tasting that kimchi is a royal guard protecting the tomb of King Sejong or General Yi Sun-sin.

To hell with family honor or whatever, it was a situation worth trying at least once out of sheer curiosity.

[If they just took the Holy Sword and showed it, they’d pass immediately. Why do they bother with such tedious things?]

Lucas, who had been informed of the general situation, spoke as he gulped down (kkulkkok-kkulkkok) a new beer.

I was slightly dumbfounded by his behavior, which clearly treated it as someone else’s business, but it was also true that it wasn’t something he could step in and solve.

"You’re saying they can just take the Holy Sword?"

[It’s a sort of master key. If you just show it, they’ll step aside immediately.]

Still, he hadn’t completely washed his hands of it, and even offered some helpful words.

I immediately informed Asella of this fact.

Asella was also surprised by the information I relayed, but after a brief moment, she expressed a somewhat skeptical stance.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero: If we try to pass using the Holy Sword, I don’t think Mountain will just stand by and let it happen!]

[Wild Grylls: You think so too, Asella-nim?]

It is an opportunity to feed our home’s kimchi to an ancestor who achieved mythical feats.

How could they throw away this opportunity? The people would absolutely never forgive such a shortcut (?).

In the end, passing with the Holy Sword was decided as a last resort, and Asella plans to go strictly for the purpose of escorting and investigation.

Thus, the general planning was finished, and instead of Mountain, it was time for me to wrap up my own affairs as well.

[There. The sword repair you mentioned is finished. It was just a matter of melting and joining it back together, so no reward is necessary.]

"Thank you."

First of all, it was the sword to be handed over to Ash.

During her battle with me, her sword had snapped in half, and I had taken it, saying I would repair it myself.

It wasn’t just a simple repair; it was fixed directly on Lucas’s flagship, so it would perform much better than before.

After carefully checking every part of the sword, I immediately sent a message to Ash.

[Wild Grylls: Sword Matstar-nim. Are you free to talk right now?]

[Sword Matstar: Yes~ What’s going on?]

In reality, we speak informally without hesitation, but it’s difficult to do so in the Gallery.

Since our jealous Orange Badge, Asella, was watching with her eyes wide open, I couldn’t do that.

Moreover, Asella has a rigid side, so if we acted close here, it would be no different from having a ’real-life meetup,’ which is a taboo.

Therefore, at least in the Gallery, I had no choice but to maintain my manners as before.

’Since Ash also plays along tactfully.’

I chatted about this and that with Ash, then naturally moved on to the gift.

No matter how much of an Orange Badge she was, she couldn’t see the contents of the gift, so it was fine to just gloss over it.

’It kind of feels like I’m cheating...’

Shaking off the useless thoughts, I handed the repaired sword over to Ash.

Ash also expressed her gratitude, and I thought the conversation would end there.

[Sword Matstar: As a token of my gratitude, I’ll give you a picture of me~]

[Wild Grylls: What kind of picture?]

[Sword Matstar: (A picture of firm, defined abs) Something like this? hehehe]

At the suggestive photo Ash sent, I flinched without realizing it. I even looked around my surroundings afterward.

Although the Gallery can only be seen by the individual, it was a reaction born out of my old habit of using a cell phone.

Fortunately, the others were busy with their own tasks, so they didn’t pay any attention to me.

[Wild Grylls: Ahem. Ahem. You don’t have to send such explicit photos. The Orange Badge might get angry if she sees it.]

[Sword Matstar: But I’m sending it because I want to?]

[Wild Grylls: It’s embarrassing;]

Of course, regardless of the embarrassment, I secretly saved it.

Moreover, the impact was on a different level compared to last time, as we had gone beyond just meeting at the Heavenly God Martial Festival and had actually kissed.

Knowing that Ash’s face was above those abs, just imagining it made my face turn red.

’Ah, seriously. I shouldn’t be like this.’

How long has it even been since we parted, and already the feeling of missing her was creeping in.

It felt like returning from a long military leave and suffering from severe reverse culture shock.

I had to suppress these emotions to escape from these idle thoughts in the future.

[Wild Grylls: By the way, you don’t have any work lately, right?]

[Sword Matstar: My superior called me, so I might be busy for a while.]

When it came to Ash’s superior, only one person came to mind.Read the latest chapters at NovelPing.

The Emperor of the Messiah Empire, Arnold.

If he gave a direct order, it would be difficult to refuse, even for Ash.

[Wild Grylls: What is it? Is it something I can help with?]

[Sword Matstar: He asked me to put effort into conquering the Forest of the Four Seasons. It seems they are slowly planning to move on to the advanced stage.]

Exploring the Forest of the Four Seasons... that was a much heavier topic than expected.

Since a permanent raid team had been formed, the exploration of the Forest of the Four Seasons was being carried out steadily.

I was also supporting them through World Tree branches, but if Ash was participating, that changed things.

It didn’t mean I wouldn’t provide support in the future. Rather, it was quite the opposite.

Since Ash might get hurt, I planned to provide her with more generous support than anyone else.

’After all, the Forest of the Four Seasons is a place where even my own life would hang by a thread the moment I let my guard down.’

’Especially in places where no one has even set foot, the danger level becomes extremely high.’

When I didn’t bring it up for a while, did Ash understand my feelings?

[Sword Matstar: Don’t worry too much. If worst comes to worst, I can just run away immediately.]

[Wild Grylls: Still, please take care of yourself.]

[Sword Matstar: If you’re worried, you know what to do, right? haha]

How can a person be so consistent?

I chuckled (pisik) and closed the message.

Still, with Ash’s level of skill, she should be more than capable of surviving in the Forest of the Four Seasons.

"Well, we should get going back now."

[Why don’t you have a drink before you go?]

"I’ll pass. I’m not really the type to seek out alcohol to drink."

[You sound exactly like the Sovereign.]

Leaving the drink with Lucas behind, I returned to our cozy home.

Unlike before, this time I was able to return quickly with the help of Cheongseol.

After returning like that, I planned for the future, and the ultimate goal was the World Tree.

Searching for the World Trees scattered throughout the Forest of the Four Seasons to gather the fragments of my memories.

’The problem is that the number of people has grown too large...’

I looked around the noisy house and pondered.

First of all, just the children alone numbered five. Wonmo, Tyranno, Cheongseol, Maengkkongi, Heukgu, and finally Gureumi, who recently joined.

While Heukgu could at least fend for himself, the other children could not.

In particular, since Gureumi was a newborn calf, his combat ability was practically nonexistent.

Although his parents would take him back at certain times, the fact that we had to protect him at our house remained unchanged.

’Let’s see, the combat-capable personnel are...’

Me, Lackey, Dolsoe, Bbareumbo, Cain, and finally Elia—six in total.

Bringing all of them along would not be efficient.

Furthermore, since the search for the World Tree is expected to take a long time...

’If I were to distribute them, would it be me, Lackey, Elia, and Cain—the four of us?’

I absolutely had to be included, and Lackey was for various driving and translation duties.

Cain also had plenty of potential to be used (?) in places like laboratories or bases.

And finally, Elia... I was taking her because she knew the most about the World Tree among us.

Besides, she would probably be deeply heartbroken if I didn’t take her along.

’She listens to me well, so if I told her not to follow, she wouldn’t, but...’

Since she had put in so much effort to be recognized in such a short time, I felt this much was only fair.

Moreover, Elia’s magic skills were on par with or even superior to Lackey’s.

In particular, she possessed a versatility that was hard to find in Lackey, making her competent in a different sense.

"...So, I’ve put together the team like this. What do you think?"

"I want to rest at home. Can’t you take my brother instead of me?"

"Hearing you say that makes me want to take you even more."

I lightly dismissed Lackey’s complaint.

Since Lackey was the best driver here, it would be strange not to take him.

"I love it! Since Grylls-nim assigned it himself, there’s no way I could complain!"

"Speak honestly, Mistress. You’re only saying that because you can find trees, aren’t you?"

"Oh, come on. Do I look like someone whose intentions are that transparent?"

"Put your hand on your chest and think about it."

At Dolsoe’s remark, Elia placed her hand on her chest and thought.

"I only feel softness, though? Am I feeling soft emotions?"

"...."

At the answer that could easily be taken as quite shameless, Dolsoe eventually shook his head.

It meant Elia’s resolve was strong enough to make even the highly rigid Dolsoe give up.

’Calling it resolve is putting it nicely; that’s just sheer madness.’

Anyway, now that the team was formed, the future plans were roughly established.

The journey to find the World Tree would fundamentally take a long time.

Until we found it, we would have no choice but to explore various parts of the Forest of the Four Seasons.

Moreover, since there was a high probability it would be in a completely different space, there was no point in bringing Cheongseol along.

’Though, in the first place, I’ll be leaving all the kids at home anyway.’

With Bbareumbo, Dolsoe, and the personnel we planned to bring from the Hobgoblin Village...

With just them, the safety of the house would be guaranteed, so we could leave with peace of mind.

Although the kids would throw tantrums, they would be able to endure...This story is hosted at novеlping.com.

Kkwaak!

"...Bbareumbo?"

"...."

"It’s different now compared to back then. I won’t be playing around like I did then."

Just then, Bbareumbo, who was clinging to my back, tightly gripped my shoulder.

His menacingly grown claws were scary enough as it was, but today they felt particularly threatening.

"...."

"I’m serious, you know?"

At my persuasion, Bbareumbo barely let go of my shoulder.

It seemed he was reluctant about my departure because of the trouble he had suffered from the kids.

But I couldn’t delay the task, and since it wasn’t easy to find someone as reliable as Bbareumbo, there was no other choice.

"Master. Then I shall make one proposal."

"What is it?"

"We need a grace period until that Mistress perfectly adapts to the forest."

It was Dolsoe, not Lackey, who made the proposal to me.

It was a proposal that I didn’t quite understand, so I couldn’t help but look puzzled.

Because from what I saw, Elia already seemed to have perfectly adapted to the forest.

"What do you mean? Elia has already adapted to the forest."

"That’s right! I can even use magic now!"

Elia, also not understanding, refuted as well.

Dolsoe glanced at her and then spoke in a serious voice.

"What I am talking about is autonomy. Mistress is still only following Master’s orders."

"So you’re saying that if she only follows orders in the forest, it will eventually become dangerous?"

[That is a very reasonable point.]

Cain also nodded, seemingly agreeing with Dolsoe’s opinion.

Indeed, Elia had only followed my instructions so far, and rarely moved autonomously like the others.

This meant she hadn’t completely adapted to the forest yet, and there was a high probability she would be in danger if an unexpected situation arose.

’Since she only stayed in the safe house even when I was outside.’

Therefore, it meant she needed to wander around various parts of this forest to adapt more.

Since this was the opinion of Dolsoe, who had lived in this forest longer than me, it was highly reliable.

"Well... if you say so. We can also build some teamwork while we’re at it."

We would just need to figure out to what extent Elia can use her magic.

After forming the team like that, we explored the nearby forest for the first time in a while.

Although this vicinity is our territory, there were still many places we hadn’t explored thoroughly.

Kkumul-kkumul—

"Grylls-nim! There’s a snail over there! A super huge snail!"

"Indeed. I saw that one a long time ago."

Upon entering the jungle, we encountered a snail the size of a human for the first time in a while.

As long as we didn’t touch it first, it wouldn’t attack.

"How did it survive when it’s so incredibly slow?"

"If you’re curious, try touching it."

"Aren’t we not supposed to touch it?"

"It’s up to you."

But I slowly stimulated Elia’s curiosity.

Unable to resist her characteristic curiosity, she cautiously approached the large snail.

First, she checked if there was poison or any acidic substance.

Ttok-ttok! Then, as she tapped on the hard snail shell,

Cheolpeok! Cheolpeok!

A change occurred in the stimulated snail.

Instead of hiding inside its shell like a turtle, limbs suddenly sprouted out of nowhere.

Soon, it slowly raised its body, and an aberration well over 3 meters tall revealed itself before us.

Kwaang!!!

Furthermore, the snail shell fell from its back, and the vibration caused as it hit the ground was extraordinary.

As if showing that the reason it had moved so slowly until now was the snail shell, the snail-man’s appearance was close to a rugged gym rat.

It was an imposing figure, capable of bursting Elia’s small head in an instant if a fight broke out.

"Kkuru-ruk."

Get lost already.

It seemed as if the snail was murmuring that while twitching its antennae.

With a pale complexion, Elia faltered backward and then hid right behind me with a ssok!

Even for Elia, who had witnessed all sorts of things, the gym-rat snail was quite unsettling.

"See? You shouldn’t mess with guys who look weak."

"N-No, that’s not it...!"

But Elia’s reaction was far from my expectations.

"H-He’s naked! He’s a d-dirty sexual harasser!"

"...."

"A-Are there only perverts like that in the Forest of the Four Seasons?!"

She was truly an unpredictable human—no, elf.