I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 825

About a year had passed since I woke up in the Forest of the Four Seasons.

It was only after I started unpacking my stories that I realized just how much had happened in that single year.

Even though I was recounting events I’d lived through myself, there were occasional plot holes here and there—parts that had slipped my mind.

"What happened to that crossbow you said you got from the dwarf?"

"Pretty sure I gave that to Lackey. Hey, Lackey, where’d you put it?"

"Traded it for taffy."

Like that early crossbow, forgotten entirely after a few test shots when I moved on to bows.

Or the mole that swore it would visit every winter, only to never show up.

So I strained to dredge up those memories, and whenever that failed, I checked the Gallery.

Posts on the Gallery weren’t deleted unless the author died or an administrator scrubbed them.

Thanks to that, I was reminded all over again of just what a fucking nightmare surviving in the Forest of the Four Seasons had been.

"Come to think of it, didn’t you say cats have nine lives?"

"Is Grylls-ssi actually a cat?"

"Didn’t you mention a race called beastfolk out there? But on the outside, he looks just like a normal person."

The more the residents heard of my tales, the more of an oddity they treated me as.

Not that I could blame them, considering my life had hung in the balance not once, but countless times.

Just as Baldus had once noted, it was more than enough to look like the exploits of a hero.

"Isn’t that just reckless?"

"Sounds less like recklessness and more like desperate scrambling, wouldn’t you say?"

"It’s impressive how he always found a way out, right on the brink of death."

The longer the story went on, the more the consensus shifted toward him just making his own life difficult.

It was inevitable, really, since they didn’t know my actual objective.

Why I wandered through the living hell of the Forest of the Four Seasons, or what on earth I was searching for.

Because that could be deeply tangled up with the Elders, I had no choice but to self-censor.

’Directing their interest toward the outside is enough.’

The people of Large Field were plagued by a tangible threat: the monsters in the fog.

Many ventured into the fog—scouring every corner of the city—just to be of some help to the Elders.

They might discover useful salvage out there, but they could just as easily fall into traps laid by monsters and end up in mortal peril.

"Grylls-ssi. You said the nation called the Holy Kingdom worships Aris, right?"

"Yeah. That’s right."

This was after I’d unpacked yet another long string of stories today.

My very first listener, Miren, approached me with an intensely curious look on his face.

Now that a full week had passed since I started staying in Large Field, his curiosity had only grown sharper.

"And our ancestors regarded Aris as an evil god... so if a descendant like me went to the Holy Kingdom, how would they treat me?"

"They wouldn’t say a word. If anything, you’d probably become a celebrity."

"Why? Didn’t they fight tooth and nail?"

Don’t Abandon the Hero) Because Lady Aris has a merciful heart!

Allfather) Is that why she killed all the gods?

Smart Demon) Oof;;; The truth hurts;;

Starlight Lady) There’s still a lot to look into, but wiping them all out was a bit much, wasn’t it?

Don’t Abandon the Hero) Quiet, before I ban you!

Heavenly Demon) The God of War is merciful, yet her subordinate is anything but.

Sword Matstar) As expected, the Heavenly Demon spitting straight facts, haha.

Don’t Abandon the Hero) I hate you all!

Asella pouting was so cute I almost let out a laugh.

Holding it back with effort, I answered Miren’s question.

"It happened too long ago, and it’s not like all dragons were hostile to the gods."

If it were up to me, I would’ve loved to introduce Miren to Gerdi.

A dragon who spent his life leisurely farming to evade pursuit.

I wondered how he’d react if he learned about the existence of Large Field and folks like Miren.

’I don’t know exactly who Miren’s ancestor was, but...’

There was a high chance they were originally friendly toward the gods.

Even their Dragon Heart was lost now, leaving them truly dead, but by that same token, finding it would mean a chance to glimpse their memories.

Of course, that was something that required Vanir’s help, not mine.

"So if I go outside, I can roam around freely?"

"If you can actually make it out. Just so you know, leaving the Forest of the Four Seasons is tough even for me, got it?"

"The harder it is, the more satisfying it is to break through."

Miren flicked his reptilian tongue, smacking his lips.

I’d noticed it before, but he was exceptionally adventurous.

He was on the younger side by Large Field standards, and he was practically built to be an adventurer.

"Grylls-ssi. If it wouldn’t be too rude, could you test my skills sometime?"

"You mean spar?"

"Yes! Exactly! Take me on just like you did when you went to the Central Plains."

Heavenly Demon) He will be struck down in an instant.

Sword Matstar) Is this what people call a frog in a well?

Princess Chaenggu) He should’ve competed in the Heavenly God Martial Festival, what a shame~

I looked at Miren at his offer to spar.

Thanks to his steady explorations into the fog, his combat prowess was pretty solid.

He’d only fallen victim to Manatology because he didn’t know the countermeasure, not because he lacked skill.This chapter is updated first at nоvelping.com.

Had he been given Holy Water, he likely would have subdued Manatology without breaking a sweat.

"Well... all right. But is there a sparring hall or something around here?"

"Of course there is. Even if Large Field is peaceful, we often have to venture outside."

"How do you usually fight? I’ve seen you use magic."

"Usually with magic, and if push comes to shove, we throw down in close quarters."

Much like elves or the demon race, the residents of Large Field possessed a natural depth in magic.

Furthermore, as dragon descendants, their mana affinity was exceptionally high, giving them immense physical capability.

On top of that, most outsiders who wound up here were top-tier experts in their own right.

Even if there were types like thrill-seeking serial killers among them, simply reaching this place proved they had survived the Forest of the Four Seasons.

"Didn’t the Elders teach you anything?"

"The Elders didn’t teach us anything specific. Instead, they use their own weapons."

"Ah. You mean guns?"

The Security Force guards I occasionally spotted carried guns as well.

Considering the Security Force was essentially an extension of the Elders, they practically held a monopoly on them.

Gas Mask, whom I ran into last time, was carrying a massive sniper rifle, so it wasn’t hard to guess their primary weaponry.

’Do they use guns because they were mostly researchers?’

Or maybe becoming Manatology had tangled up their memories so badly that they couldn’t use martial arts.

Either way, now that I knew their primary strength lay in their weapons,

I pondered how to handle the Elders as I followed behind Miren.

"Here’s the dojo."

"A dojo? Did someone from the Central Plains build this?"

"No. It was already here from the start."

"...Is that so?"

From the outside, it looked like a taekwondo dojo—was I just seeing things?

Pushing aside the strange feeling, I stepped inside after Miren.

Fortunately, it was a dojo in name and function rather than a place dedicated to any single martial art.

"Is it all right to spar here?"

"Yes. The place has been specially reinforced, so we can go all out."

"Well, then..."

Allfather) A battle involving a Dragonian—how very exciting. It should serve as splendid research data.

Starlight Lady) You’ve already named them Dragonians?

Allfather) A report was already submitted to academia, and approval has been granted.

Starlight Lady) Academia is notoriously picky, and they approved it right away?

Allfather) Apparently someone named Kadir pushed it through, though I cannot say for certain.

Necromancy is Love) Shameless. You rushed straight over the moment you saw the Dragonian.

Heavenly Demon) Why bother giving it such a long-winded name? Calling them the Dragon Race is far simpler.

Starlight Lady) That would be more convenient. Making the academic name Dragonian and using Dragon Race for the species sounds better.

Allfather) It is already settled.

The comment section had spiraled into chaos all of a sudden, but I brushed it off.

Leaving external matters to sort themselves out, I prepared to spar with Miren.

Quite a few people had already gathered inside the dojo, some of them practicing martial arts.

It was probably martial arts passed down by outsiders.

"Here I come, then!"

With all preparations complete, our match began, and—

Thwack!

"Ugh!"

Just as the Heavenly Demon, Yoo So-wol, had predicted, I took him out the instant the match began.

Of course, you had to consider that he’d relied purely on martial arts without magic.

"Hiss...! Martial arts alone won’t cut it after all! I’m using magic too!"

"Go ahead."

Even with magic thrown in, he ended up flat on his back within two moves.

Miren’s fighting style was close to Lackey’s: a warrior utilizing various spells.

Fitting for a dragon descendant, he possessed a sturdy physique and a sharp mind.

He fought while making proper use of both, but his entire approach was flawed.

"You weren’t fighting me like I was a monster, were you?"

"How did you know?"

"..."

He’d fought assuming I was a Manatology monster.

As anyone knew, dealing with a person and dealing with a monster required completely different tactics.

In the Western Region, where every manner of monster roamed, they went as far as creating units dedicated specifically to slaying them.

"Fighting a human is pretty damn different from fighting a monster."

"You’re as strong as a monster, Grylls-ssi, and it’s still different?"

Passing Dwarf) Hey, congrats. You got treated like a monster again.

The dwarf cackled and poked fun, but I ignored him too.

To think that I, who used to take lessons from Yoo So-wol and Ash, would be teaching someone else.

Life really has a funny way of turning out.

"Grylls-ssi. By outside standards, how strong am I?"

"In the Forest of the Four Seasons? Or in civilization?"

"By civilization standards."

"Strong enough not to get beaten to death wherever you go."This chapter was taken from novelping . com without permission.

As I’d mentioned, Miren’s baseline physique was remarkably formidable.

Even among the residents, his Dragonian—that is, Dragon Race—traits were particularly prominent.

The scales covering his body were as hard as steel, and even if pierced, his regenerative ability was formidable.

On top of that, his stamina was extraordinary and his mana affinity was through the roof, making his potential hard to fathom.

Under the steady guidance of a good teacher, his potential could erupt and lead to leaps and bounds of growth.

People called him a frog in a well, but that was only because he usually fought the fog monsters. With a little correction, he’d be quite a sight.

"Then what about compared to the Heavenly Demon or Sword Masters in civilization outside?"

"Come on, don’t get ahead of yourself. Even I barel—"

I almost blurted out that even I barely won, but swallowed the words just in time.

My spar with Yoo So-wol had been purely for show, and the fight with Ash had been off the record.

There was no telling what trouble a slip of the tongue might cause here, so I managed to hold back.

"Those people are ridiculously strong. They’re counted among the very strongest in the world."

"Stronger than you, Grylls-ssi?"

"Yeah."

"You’re not lying, right?"

"I’m not."

Heavenly Demon) You lie.

Sword Matstar) Why not proudly say you’re stronger than Ash? Hehe.

Princess Chaenggu) Honestly, wouldn’t you just beat everyone and then some right now?

Don’t Abandon the Hero) Most definitely!

Even after the fight with Ash, I had been steadily growing.

My physical stats were climbing steadily, and my archery in particular was improving by leaps and bounds.

Still, to instill a little humility in Miren, I had to keep up the lie.

"I can’t even fathom how strong that is."

"They’re the kind of people who can tear down the sky and overturn the earth."

Heavenly Demon) While this seat can cleave the sky, overturning the earth would prove difficult even for me.

Smart Demon) What about pulling down a floating island anchored by chains?

Heavenly Demon) Severing the floating island seems plausible enough, however.

After that, I continued chatting with Miren about this and that.

A steady stream of questions followed, and I answered them with patience.

"I heard there’s this cultural thing called sports on the outside. What’s that like?"

"It’s easiest to think of it as games everyone plays together. For instance..."

Princess Chaenggu) I’ll send you a Recording Orb~

King Reor) Don’t take hers, I’ll send one instead.

In this manner, I gradually stoked his longing for the outside world.

Just when I figured enough bait had been scattered for a bite—

"Outsider. By order of the Elders, I am taking you in."

The fruit of all the bait I’d diligently laid out finally surfaced.

Provoking them by constantly toeing the line had pushed them to snap first.

"And Miren. The Elders summoned you as well."

"Huh? Why me?"

"The Elders wish to hold a consultation."

A consultation, huh. Was it really just that?

For all I knew, they might subject him to a pseudo-brainwashing under the guise of counseling.

Cheering internally, I feigned confusion on the outside and asked:

"Why are you taking me? All I did was talk about the outside world. I haven’t broken any taboos."

"The problem isn’t you. It’s your companion."

"Excuse me?"

Wait, what the hell?

They were saying the issue wasn’t me, but someone in my party.

Just as I was thrown off balance by this completely unexpected turn—

"Wh-Why are you taking me?! All I did was tell them how wonderful planting trees is!"

"Which is precisely why I am bringing you to your representative. We will decide whether you are dragged away or your leader is."

"If Grylls-ssi finds out, he’ll scold me! Please, just take me instead!"

From the distance came the all-too-familiar shout of an elf.

Apparently, she’d been caught red-handed secretly campaigning among the locals to plant trees.

’Good grief, that idiot...’

Of course, being dragged off simply for encouraging people to plant trees was bizarre,

"Why take her to the Elders over that...?"

"Does that mean we aren’t even allowed to plant trees?"

"Planting trees was a taboo? That’s news to me."

and it was more than enough to sow seeds of doubt among the residents.

Reading the mood, I had a sudden change of heart.

’Well done, idiot.’

Of course,

"This is totally unfair!"

Elia truly had reason to feel wronged.