Translator: Nox
Chapter: Chapter 34
The Capture of a Large Bird
Yoo-beom and his sister knocked the Hunters unconscious and tied them up.
There was only one reason they didn't kill them: this wasn't their home.
They only knocked them out and hung them on trees to hand over the right of disposal to Cheon Dowoon when he returned.
"By the way, is this the plot of land Cheon Dowoon chose?"
Yoo-beom looked around with an interested expression. Yoo Ji-ah also looked like she was feeling nostalgic.
It was her first time coming to the Forest Zone since she was a child.
Back then, she was too busy trying to avoid monsters to have the leisure to enjoy the scenery like this.
"The Forest Zone is definitely good. The freshness of the air is different."
"I agree. The beach is nice too, but nothing beats the refreshing feeling of the Forest Zone. It feels different from the sea breeze..."
The siblings' voices, which had been full of admiration, gradually faded. Their gazes, which had been looking around, discovered Cheon Dowoon's house and became fixed.
The bizarreness, the dampness, the eeriness that they hadn't noticed when they saw it from far away in the sky.
"House...? Is that a house?"
The log house, with its drooping white threads, looked like something out of a horror movie.
The walls, where Green cobweb liquid had flowed down and hardened, added to the eerie atmosphere.
In contrast, a subtle lavender scent emanated from the house.
The effect of the warmly shining sunlight added to it, calming the mind and body.
The sounds of insects and the fresh smell of soil. The sound of a valley stream somewhere in the distance.
Those things calmed the mind and body, but the moment they saw the house of horror in front of them, they were filled with an eerie feeling again. The lavender scent calmed that feeling down again.
Yoo-beom became dazed by the endless cycle.
What kind of house would it be if they installed a fence made of jewels that shone like gems?
"This is quite... um. It's Cheon Dowoon's house."
There were no other words to express it. Yoo Ji-ah was also speechless at the sight of the house that was beyond her imagination.
What broke the awkwardness was a sound from the vegetable garden.
-Hoo-eung, hoo-eung!
-Hoo-eueung!
The Rootlets that had been spinning around their feet. They were now surrounding the Hunters' luggage.
-Hoo-eueung!
Come out, invaders. I know you're hiding in there. The largest Mandragora stepped forward and roared. As if responding, there was a rustling sound from behind the bag.
Peek. A silver Rootlet of metal poked its face out. Trembling, it stretched out its Rootlets and waved them around.
Pat-pat. Clods of dirt flew. The Mandragoras stepped back at the ferocity.
As if gaining confidence from that, the silver Rootlet completely revealed itself from behind the bag.
-Hoo-eueu...! Hoo-eu!
Don't come. Go away. You'll get hurt if you come near me. I'm very ferocious.
The Mechanical Mandragora waved its Rootlets in a threatening gesture.
Rootlet Tornado Attack. A violent technique that adds 360-degree rotational force by spinning the body around.
But its momentum didn't last long.
-Hoo-eu... Hoo-eu....
Thump. The Mechanical Mandragora, panting, collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
It was dizzy. It didn't have the stamina to use this advanced technique yet.
It was too harsh a technique for a young Rootlet that had been grown artificially and had undergone Chimera experiments.
-Hoo, hoo-eung!
When the silver Rootlet collapsed, the Mandragoras rushed over in surprise.
They didn't know what it was. But they didn't hesitate because they had detected a faint aura of a fellow creature.
The Mandragoras tried to take the silver Rootlet to the vegetable garden and bury it. But they faced difficulties from the start.
-Hoo, hoo-eung?
It's heavy. Why is it so heavy when it's smaller than us? The Mandragoras were flustered by the weight of the Rootlet mixed with Liquid metal. But they couldn't leave their fellow creature like this.
Formation D. Mandragora solidarity. The four Rootlets each grabbed the silver leaves and Rootlets and began to push.
One centimeter was pushed. Another centimeter was pushed.
-Hoo-eueung!
When they saw progress, the four Rootlets let out roars full of enthusiasm.
"It'll take about a year."
Yoo-beom, unable to watch any longer, picked up the silver Rootlet. The surprised Mandragoras chased after him as he walked to the vegetable garden.
-Hoo-eung, hoo-eung!
-Hoo-eueung!
You cruel sparrow. Put down our fellow creature. Four Rootlets chased after Yoo-beom, waving their Rootlets.
Pat-pat. Yoo-beom, ignoring the tickling on his ankles, put the silver Rootlet down in the vegetable garden.
When it was placed in the center of the vegetable garden, plump Mandragoras surrounded it.
-Hoo-eueung!
That giant monster couldn't withstand our attack. We've recovered our fellow creature! The Mandragoras let out a roar of victory.
The four Rootlets began to bury the silver Mandragora in the vegetable garden.
Even though it was mixed with Liquid metal, the base was Mandragora.
As the Magical energy-filled ground enveloped its entire body, the silver leaves fluttered. It was still limp because it hadn't regained consciousness, but the progress was good.
-Hoo-eung.
-Hoo-eung, hoo-eung.
The Mandragoras looked at each other and nodded.
This place is a land of mystery where high-density Magical energy fills up when a large Mandragora comes and goes. It will definitely get better if we bury it here.
With that conviction, they burrowed into the vegetable garden themselves.
Yoo-beom and his sister, who had been squatting in front of the vegetable garden and watching the series of events, smiled without realizing it.
"Big Bro, these guys are kind of nice."
"Yeah."
"Their camaraderie is amazing. It makes my heart feel grand."
"You too?"
The siblings looked at the Mandragoras and touched their leaves.
Invader, don't touch me carelessly. The light green leaves coldly brushed away the siblings' fingers.
Pat. The siblings clutched their chests at the cold attack. They were rejected. They didn't know why, but it hurt here.
"They looked gentle, but they're cold."
"Yeah. I guess they're just for show."
"Well, they're monsters after all. They wouldn't follow people."
The two stood up with regret. At that moment, a Gate opened near the house.
What came out was a bald man with a large camping bag.
"I'm back, Big Bro! I'm back... Oh, right. Everyone went to the sea. I came too early... Euhup!"
Nam Ki-seok turned around and stepped back in horror.
A muscular man with a bird's head. A woman with a horned skull helmet.
Both of them had wings on their backs. One had pterodactyl wings. The other had feathered wings like a bird.
It was obvious that they weren't human. Not only their appearance but also the aura they gave off.
'Oh my god, what is that! Why is such a monster here...!'
Nam Ki-seok wasn't foolish enough to not know the difference in their capabilities.
I'll die if I stay here. Let's open a Gate and run away. Nam Ki-seok immediately took out a Return Stone.
He prepared to break the Return Stone after buying time by throwing a fireball.
But Yoo Ji-ah was faster. With one flap of her wings, the fire split to both sides and disappeared. Before he could break the Return Stone, she grabbed his arm.
Nam Ki-seok dropped the Return Stone he was holding in pain as if his arm would break.
"Where are you going?"
The grip strength that even a B+-Class Awakened like himself couldn't resist.
Nam Ki-seok felt goosebumps all over his body. Now that he had lost his Return Stone, there was no way he could escape no matter what he did.
He felt a chill when he met the bright yellow eyes beyond the skull helmet.
'Is this the end?'
Hunters live a life where they could die at any time. Nam Ki-seok sensed that his head would be cut off here.
If there was one thing he wished for, it was to be sent off without pain. He squeezed his eyes shut, but there was no approaching pain. Nam Ki-seok slyly opened his eyes when he was let go, let alone pain.
The horned woman looked Nam Ki-seok up and down. The bird-headed man, who had approached at some point, also had an interesting expression.
"That bald guy... are you Nam Ki-seok?"
The modifier in front was annoying, but he nodded for now.
The fact that the monster was talking, knew his name, and was wearing clothes like a human.
All of those things came as a shock and he couldn't come to his senses.
"Well, he opened a Gate in front of Cheon Dowoon's house. That means he's been here before."
Cheon Dowoon. Nam Ki-seok rolled his eyes at the familiar name.
Could they be acquaintances? There was no hostility in their voice. That meant they had a friendly relationship. Nam Ki-seok, activating his social skills, opened his mouth.
"A-are you Big Bro's acquaintances?"
Even after saying it, he wondered what this was. Was it right that he was acquainted with a monster? He had those questions, but this wasn't the time to argue.
Nam Ki-seok flinched and froze when both of their gazes turned to him at the same time.
"You."
"Y-yes!"
"I heard you have a chef's license?"
That's not true. He almost answered that, but Nam Ki-seok nodded, sensing the situation.
"So you're the skilled person Cheon Dowoon is trying to raise to A-Class."
Nam Ki-seok's eyes widened at Yoo-beom's words. Did Big Bro say that? Something welled up in Nam Ki-seok's heart.
His potential that no one believed in. The only teacher who firmly believed in it.
'Big Bro... I'll follow you to the end!'
Nam Ki-seok clenched his fists and swallowed his tears.
Yoo-beom and his sister tilted their heads at the reaction. They went back over what they had heard from Cheon Dowoon.
[He does his job really well. He has the qualities to become an A-Class worker. He's a motivated guy, so he'll be home before me. If you see him, work him hard so he can build up his stamina.]
Where was the touching part in those words?
'Well, it doesn't matter.'
The siblings looked at each other and nodded. Their benefactor Cheon Dowoon told them to work him hard.
Then they would train him with a firm grip.
'Huh, what's this? Why am I getting the chills?'
Nam Ki-seok shivered at the unknown chill.
* * *
On the rocks of the North Sea. There, yellow ore was piled up.
It was the ore that Cheon Dowoon and Kim Nari had mined from the deep sea.
"Is this enough? It'll be more than enough to build a pretty wide fence."
When Cheon Dowoon smiled proudly, Kim Nari poked her head out of the sea.
"Uncle, I found more ore. I mined this."
Kim Nari was hugging a piece of ore the size of an adult's torso.
Normally, she would sink under the weight of the ore, but not Kim Nari.
Kim Nari's feet were paddling at super speed in the water. As a result, the surface of the water rippled like waves.
"Come out of the water now. Just take that and let's go home."
"Okay. Mining ore is over now."
Kim Nari carried the ore on her back and climbed up the rock wall.
Kim Nari, who had put down the ore, turned around with an excited expression.
"We're going home now. But Uncle. There's too much ore. How are we going to move it?"
"That's definitely a problem."
There was too much to carry on their backs.
Moreover, this was in the middle of the sea. It was impossible to carry all of this to the Forest Zone where their house was.
"It's too much of a hassle to go back and forth several times."
Was there a way to move it quickly and easily?
As he was thinking, a loud noise rang out from the sky. When he looked up, he saw a familiar large monster flying in the sky.
The 8-meter bird that he had once asked Nam Ki-seok if he could make chicken from. Those large monsters were flying in groups.
"That'll do."
Cheon Dowoon grinned. He had found a good means of transportation.
He looked at the flying birds and took a stance to jump.
"Kim Nari, you wait here."
At the same time as those words, Cheon Dowoon leaped. He grabbed the feet of a bird tens of meters in the air, and using the momentum, he turned his body and landed on its back.
-Bbieeeeek!
The bird, feeling something on its back, began to fly at high speed. It tried to shake off what was on its back by flipping its body.
When it still didn't fall off, it charged towards the cliff. It was planning to kill the opponent on its back by hitting its back against the cliff.
"Are you going to?"
The quiet voice he heard at that moment. The monster's feathers stood on end.
Even though it didn't understand human words, it felt that it would regret it if it did what it was about to do.
-Bbieeeeek!
But it was too late to change direction now. Now that it had come to this, it would go at full speed and crash.
The bird accelerated and headed towards the cliff. It prepared to turn its body at the perfect timing and hit its back.
"Okay. Go ahead and try. You have a lot of work to do in the future. I'll let you off easy this time."
The monster realized that something was wrong at the relaxed voice.
Just before hitting the cliff, he heard a quiet voice.
"What should I name you?"
