Translator: Nox
Chapter: Chapter 37
Cheon Dowoon landed in front of the Mandragora's path.
Startled, the Rootlets retreated, going on alert.
Leaf Shield. They lowered their heads, spreading their leaves with all their might in a defensive posture.
As the roots lined up horizontally, a Leaf Shield over 20 centimeters high was formed.
-Hoo...
The dry roots, not yet recovered, couldn't withstand the formation, and their leaves trembled.
The Mandragora next to them subtly supported them with Rootlets.
-Hoo, hoo-ooo!
Gaining confidence, the dry roots roared with all their might. As if that was the signal, the Mandragoras advanced.
Step, step, step. The roots marched valiantly. The 20-centimeter Leaf Shield pressed towards Cheon Dowoon.
"It's me."
Cheon Dowoon sat down in front of the Mandragora and spoke. At the familiar voice, the roots raised their heads.
-Hoo-oong, hoo-oong!
-Hoo-ooong!
The Mandragoras, recognizing Cheon Dowoon, quickly gathered around.
Their leaves shook as if they were trying to say something, but communication was impossible.
"Aren't you here to find the Silver Root you brought?"
Yoo-beom, who had approached from behind, said.
As if to prove it, the Silver Root peeked out from Cheon Dowoon's pants pocket.
-Hoo...
At the faint sound, the Mandragoras gathered near the pocket.
An hour after starting the search, believing it had been taken by a monster, they finally found their kin.
-Hoo-oong, hoo-oong!
-Hoo-ooong!
The large Mandragora had found their comrade before them. They had brought back their kin safely. The small roots began to circle around Cheon Dowoon as if to support him.
"Huh, what? I just said it, but it seems to be true. You really came to find your comrade?"
Yoo-beom looked amazed. He had felt it before, but he had never seen a monster with such strong kinship.
"Maybe it's because there are so few of them."
"What do you mean?"
"Mandragoras originally live in clusters of dozens to hundreds of roots. But there are only five roots in my garden, including this Metal Root."
Six roots if you include Cheon Dowoon, who is considered a giant Mandragora.
Cheon Dowoon took the Silver Mandragora out of his pocket.
"Since there are so few of them, they must stick together even more."
They are originally a species with strong kinship. When they form small groups, that kinship noticeably soars.
"I brought it so they could watch the end of the Hunters. I guess it was a pointless act."
Cheon Dowoon hugged all the Mandragoras at once.
"I'll put them back in the garden. Yoo Ji-ah is at the waterfall now, right?"
"Yeah. I should go back too. But about the Yellow Ore. Even an A-Class Hunter won't be able to cut it cleanly. Aren't you just wasting the ore?"
"It's okay. I'll do the detailed cutting later. I'm planning to shape it round without any edges."
The Hunters were doing the groundwork for that. It was a simple task of cutting the materials into similar sizes.
At that, Yoo-beom nodded as if convinced.
"If that's the case, it doesn't matter if it's cut crookedly for now. Tell me if you need any help later. My sister and I are experts at building houses, even if we look like this."
Having lived self-sufficiently for decades, they knew how to build a decent house.
Unlike the house of terror that Cheon Dowoon made, a normal log cabin.
If they helped, it would be possible to build such a house.
Of course, he had no intention of suggesting that they build a new house right now.
Cheon Dowoon was enjoying building up his territory itself.
To tell such a person what to do would only be meddling.
"Okay. I'll tell you if I need help later."
That answer was enough for now.
As you live, there comes a time when you get tired of it and want to change your house. Then, he and his sister could roll up their sleeves and help.
'It would be fun to build a house together.'
Yoo-beom smiled and returned to the waterfall.
* * *
Cheon Dowoon arrived home with the Mandragora.
Kim Nari was picking the feathers of the sleeping Parrot Poison Bird in front of the house.
Bird feathers were scattered haphazardly around her.
"Did it go on a rampage?"
"Yes. This bird tried to destroy the house. So I stopped it."
As soon as Cheon Dowoon left, the Parrot Poison Bird revealed its ferocity. It was going to destroy Cheon Dowoon's nest and fly away triumphantly.
It rushed in with that intention, but was stopped by Kim Nari, who came out of the house.
The result was this. No matter how much it attacked, it couldn't cross the defense line that was Kim Nari, and the Parrot Poison Bird collapsed from exhaustion and fell asleep.
This was the second time it had been defeated by a creature much smaller than itself. The sleeping bird's face was filled with anguish about itself.
"Mister. Are you going to punish this bird?"
"No. Just leave it alone. It must have been hard to move the ore."
Cheon Dowoon put the Mandragora down in the garden.
The five roots that arrived in the garden stretched themselves.
-Hoo-oong!
We have come home. After making that sound once, they each dug into the ground.
One of them. Only the Silver Mandragora stopped digging.
-Hoo-ooo...?
The Silver Root looked back. Kim Nari was squatting there.
Kim Nari couldn't take her eyes off the small Metal Root.
This is like her. She can tell without touching it. It's probably a creature from the same place as her.
-Hoo...?
The Silver Root also looked at Kim Nari and tilted its leaves.
What is that? It's not the same species. But there's something that feels like the same species.
In the resonance between Mechanical Creatures, the two couldn't take their eyes off each other.
Kim Nari reached out her hand. Although hesitant, the Silver Root also stretched out its leaves.
Tap. Finger and leaf touched each other.
"Mister. This child seems to be like me."
"Really? That root must have come from the Coconut Tribe too."
"That's... th-that's right. This child seems to have come from there too. This child will have nowhere to go like me. It would be good to let it stay in this garden."
"Do that. The Mandragoras here seem to have accepted it as part of the family too."
The Silver Root finished its communication with Kim Nari and went into the ground.
Kim Nari's expression as she watched it looked somewhat uneasy.
Even if she's young, there are things she can intuitively know. This root was created to find her. Similar things may happen in the future.
'If I stay here, Mister will be in danger too.'
She was safe today. What about next time?
Now might be the right time to leave. Kim Nari shook off the dirt on her hands and stood up.
"Mister. I have something to tell you-."
"Do you know the location of the Coconut Tribe?"
Kim Nari paused at the question that came in suddenly.
"Besides across the waterfall. Something characteristic of the place you lived. Buildings are good, streets are good, anything is fine, tell me."
"Uh... I don't know well either. I lost my way and came here."
Kim Nari said, recalling the day she escaped from the lab.
On the day she escaped, Kim Nari saw a group of Hunters opening a Gate and crossing over on the street.
She jumped in before the Gate closed.
The coordinates had been designated as a forest zone due to the Hunters who had entered first. Kim Nari's arrival here was purely coincidental.
"Okay. It's okay if you don't know. Go and set up the table in the yard. If you look at the luggage that Nam Ki-seok brought, there will be a simple table and chairs."
"Table...?"
"You got a lot to eat from the sea. We have to treat them to a meal before they leave."
"Ah...! Treat. I understand. I ate a lot. I have to give back a lot."
Kim Nari ran into the house. She took out a large camping bag and started unpacking in the yard.
Cheon Dowoon watched her and stood up.
'She won't leave right away since she has something to do.'
Kim Nari doesn't know the location of the lab she was in. But finding it was easy.
The fact that she asked the guild to find a Mechanical Creature. That means it's not an illegal lab.
If it's not a hidden organization, tracking it is easy.
"I have to step on it."
Let's go after the meal. Cheon Dowoon muttered with a clear face.
* * *
Late at night, Nam Ki-seok and the siblings returned home.
"Big Bro, the ore cutting is all done. I sent those Hunters back with the Return Stone I had."
Nam Ki-seok said with a relieved face.
"Those guys, at the last minute, couldn't even remember their own names properly and cried. It's all karma. If the rumors spread in the industry, there will be truckloads of people who will feel relieved."
They are people who have accumulated a lot of resentment. Nam Ki-seok was sure that no one would reach out to help them.
"But what is all this?"
Nam Ki-seok asked, looking at the simple table and chairs set up in front of the house.
They were things he had packed one by one, but he had never used them before.
"I'm going to feed those friends something before they leave."
"Us?"
The siblings asked in surprise. They didn't treat them with the intention of getting something in return, but there was no reason to refuse when they were being taken care of.
It was the first time they had been treated to a meal by someone, so they were secretly excited.
Dozens of years of living inside the Gate. No one had ever treated them like this.
"I wonder what will come out. Is it a specialty of the forest area?"
"No. I haven't settled here for long, so I don't know the specialties well. But I have something to satisfy you, so look forward to it."
Cheon Dowoon looked at Nam Ki-seok.
It was now his turn. At the look that said that, Nam Ki-seok nodded.
The time had finally come. It was time to show off what he had learned in the crash course at the cooking academy.
"Leave it to me, Big Bro. Come on, New Big Bro and New Sis, sit down here too. I'll cook for you right away."
With his good sociability, he was already calling the siblings Big Bro and Sis and offering them seats.
"Let's see. Something is 2% missing... That's it!"
Nam Ki-seok brought the Glowstone placed in the corner of the garden. It was a Glowstone that he had left to use when making the fence.
-Hoo-oong!
When Nam Ki-seok took the Glowstone, the Mandragoras protested, showing their faces.
Glowstone is a stone that emits Magical energy. For the roots that enjoyed that Magical energy, it was like having their midnight snack taken away.
"Sorry. I'll borrow it for a moment!"
-Hoo-oong, hoo-oong!
The Mandragoras protested by tapping the floor with their Rootlets, but Nam Ki-seok stubbornly moved the Glowstone.
"I'll put this here for a moment as lighting."
He put the Glowstone near the table. The gloomy night of the Demon Realm instantly turned into a camping atmosphere.
"It's perfect. I said I would make Egg-Drop Soup before, but the timing wasn't right, so it fizzled out."
Nam Ki-seok opened the luggage he had packed.
He put a gas burner on the table and installed a pot. He put a cutting board and knife on it and took out the ingredients from the preservation box.
He finished by taking out a white apron and putting it on.
"It's quite serious."
"I know. As expected, someone with a chef's license is different."
The Yoo-beom siblings looked expectant as they watched.
Cheon Dowoon also watched with eyes that seemed to say, 'When did you pack all that?'
He knew that Nam Ki-seok brought a bundle of luggage every time he came, but he didn't know it was this much.
'Look. I prepared for this day!'
Nam Ki-seok took out his secret cooking ingredients from his bag.
Curry in his left hand. Ramen in his right hand.
If he chose curry, he was going to chop up the topping ingredients he had put in the preservation box.
If he chose ramen, the green onions and eggs in the preservation box would appear.
He had memorized the internet recipes for both.
'I'm Nam Ki-seok. A man who does what he says. I even prepared cheese.'
Even the cheese to put in according to taste was perfect. Nam Ki-seok looked at Cheon Dowoon and the siblings with a serious face.
"I'll make what you choose. Curry and Egg-Drop Soup. Which one do you like better?"
A dazzling choice was placed before Cheon Dowoon and the siblings.
"Egg-Drop Soup... The sound is unusual."
"Big Bro, I think I've heard of that. I was too young, so I can't remember it well."
"If we heard it when we were young, it's quite old. It might be a traditional food."
The siblings discussed with serious faces. Cheon Dowoon also couldn't hide his interest.
He couldn't give up Egg-Drop Soup since Nam Ki-seok had been foreshadowing it for a while.
He was also drawn to curry. He had only heard of it, but he had never eaten it. Curry was a luxury food that was hard to taste in the slums 70 years ago.
What should he choose?
They were agonizing with serious faces as if they were facing the most important event of their lives.
