Chapter 46: Lakeshore (1)

It seems that the internal energy method really has an effect in relieving fatigue.

Even if I replace sleep with the method, the next day I’m full of energy.

Well, even so, it’s not perfect, so it’s hard to eliminate mental fatigue.

Physical fatigue is manageable, but mental fatigue can only be resolved by sleeping.

[User XXX has requested a transaction. Do you wish to accept?]

[User @@@ has requested a transaction. Do you wish to accept?]

[User IWillBeaDuke has requested a transaction. Do you wish to accept?]

“What is all this now?”

As soon as I entered the gallery, a large number of trade requests were floating everywhere.

Did something happen again while I was away?

Just in case, I searched my name, but there was nothing particularly striking.

Only that my credibility had increased a lot after what happened yesterday.

It seems that, because of that, registered users who had doubts about trust are now sending requests.

‘No, but these people say that knowing I’m as weak as a sunfish.’

Or are they trying to squeeze out every last bone before I actually become one?

From what I heard, even an adult mandrake already has enormous value.

It seems they think that one adult mandrake is enough, without needing an internal core.

‘Let them bring something that really interests me.’

I searched the names of the registered users who sent me requests.

There were newly created accounts, and others that had been active for a long time.

Especially that one, IWillBeaDuke.

I remember that last time he also sent me a request.

You could say he’s persistent, but right now it was just annoying.

‘And he didn’t even post anything.’

As I said before, if they show an object that interests me, I will initiate the trade.

But it seems they’ve already forgotten.

I had no choice but to write it again.

Title) I’ll say it again

WildGrills

I woke up and had a bunch of… idi, I mean, trade requests.

As I said before, I have no intention of trading if they are not objects that are useful to me.

If you want, post the object first along with a post.

I’ll review it and decide.

ㄴHeavenlyDemon) You’ve woken up. Do you have any discomfort?

ㄴWildGrills) I sleep while using the internal energy method and I feel much more rested

ㄴHeavenlyDemon) It’s normal after going through the regulation of energy flow. Even if you lack foundation, when you reach mastery, you will be fine without needing to sleep

ㄴWildGrills) Wow

ㄴStarlightPrincess [1]) You woke up! Is today the fifth day?

ㄴWildGrills) Yes. I’d like to get out of here as soon as possible

ㄴStarlightPrincess) They say the more in a hurry you are, the more you should go slowly. Today I made another elixir, I’ll send you the request in a bit

ㄴWildGrills) Huh? Didn’t you already give me all the elixirs?

ㄴStarlightPrincess) It’s an elixir for animals. Use it with Wonmo and the sloth. As a reward, a photo of Wonmo is enough, so accept it!

ㄴWildGrills) Thank you. Are you in good health?

ㄴStarlightPrincess) As I said before, I feel like I’ve been reborn. Although my parents are still worried

ㄴWildGrills) Parents are always like that. Just in case, start rehabilitation little by little

ㄴStarlightPrincess) Thank you. I’ll keep supporting you always! Stay strong!

ㄴWildGrills) Thanks haha

ㄴDwarfPassingBy) Hey. I’ve finished the fishing trap. Hurry up and offer me something to go with the drink

ㄴWildGrills) Before the side dish, there’s something I want to ask you

ㄴDwarfPassingBy) What thing? I won’t do it for free

ㄴWildGrills) I’m not shameless either. I need a sheath, but a really sturdy one

ㄴDwarfPassingBy) A sheath? Buy any

ㄴWildGrills) It’s just that the sword HeavenlyDemon gave me is too good. It cuts wood like tofu

ㄴDwarfPassingBy) Ah, that happens sometimes haha. I’ll give you a temporary one along with the trap. If you want a good one, you’ll have to give something in return

ㄴWildGrills) Thanks thanks. First I’ll do the trade with StarlightPrincess and then I’ll give you yours

ㄴDemonPrincess) Hello! The pants I talked about yesterday are ready!

ㄴWildGrills) Thank you very much. When does Chayu fight?

ㄴDemonPrincess) Soon! Since it’s Boxing Day, she fights about every three days

ㄴWildGrills) I hope she wins. Go Chayu!

ㄴDemonPrincess) Thanks haha

Definitely, it’s better to live as a good person.

There are people who respond to you as soon as you wake up.

Of course, it’s not like I don’t have concerns.

If the moderator sees this, he might consider it favoritism.

In the announcement it says that excessive favoritism is prohibited.

It’s quite an ambiguous line.

‘He must know that HeavenlyDemon is giving me advantages.’

It seems he’s letting this slide.

Or maybe it’s because of my special situation.

[StarlightPrincess has requested a transaction. Do you wish to accept?]

That’s how the day began, and StarlightPrincess was the first to send a request.

Before accepting it, I looked at Wonmo.

He was still sleeping completely sprawled out.

The curious thing is that he was stretched out like a human.

They say that if an animal sleeps like that, it’s because it feels safe.

It feels strange.

[StarlightPrincess has registered the trade items.]

[StarlightPrincess: Here’s the animal elixir and also another gift!]

[WildGrills: Huh? Another gift?]

[StarlightPrincess: You’ll like it, Grills. And the photo?]

[WildGrills: (photo of Wonmo sleeping completely stretched out) Is this enough?]

[StarlightPrincess: It’s too cute! How can he sleep like that?]

[WildGrills: I find it incredible too.]

[StarlightPrincess: I’ll keep wishing for you to be well! Stay strong!]

The conversation with StarlightPrincess ended there. I checked the items she gave me.

She said it was an elixir for animals, but seeing that it shone in a golden color, no matter how you look at it, it’s a normal elixir.

To begin with, I don’t even know if something like an elixir for animals exists. Better to consider it a gift.

And the other one. The object she assured I would like was a bit surprising.

‘Cake?’

A piece of cake placed on a glass plate with an elegant design.

Whipped cream spread over what looked like a soft sponge cake. On top, a small strawberry.

She even had the detail of including a fork to make it easy to eat.

I swallowed and picked up the fork.

“Crr…”

As soon as I put a small piece of cake in my mouth, a sigh escaped on its own.

This sweetness spreading throughout my mouth. The characteristic sweetness of sugar stimulated my tongue.

Every time I ate fish, I added salt, so I hadn’t forgotten the salty taste.

But a sweetness so intense it almost numbs the tongue—I hadn’t felt that in a long time.

‘She has good taste.’

I set the cake aside for a moment and entered the gallery. There were still users left to trade with.

The next person after StarlightPrincess was DwarfPassingBy. He seems like the type who just does his thing and that’s it.

[DwarfPassingBy has registered items for the trade.]

[DwarfPassingBy: I put in the fish trap and a temporary sword sheath. You know how to install the trap, right?]

[WildGrills: Yes. I’m going to expand the place where I set the hose a bit.]

[DwarfPassingBy: Then it’s fine. Figure out the sheath yourself, and you better give me the snack no matter what. OK?]

[WildGrills: Do you like sashimi?]

[DwarfPassingBy: My mouth is already watering haha]

[WildGrills: But I’m not good at cutting it haha]

[DwarfPassingBy: You bastard.]

[WildGrills: I’ll try anyway. Thanks for the items.]

After the trade, I checked the items I received from the dwarf.

‘Why is this fish trap so big?’

The size of the trap was quite large. Almost the size of my body.

It surprised me a bit, but it might even be better.

Considering the size of the fish I’ve caught so far, it’s appropriate.

‘It’s going to take time to install. Better do it after exploring.’

I left the installation for later. It feels like it would take all my time just doing that.

Next to check was the sword sheath. The temporary sheath was inside the trap.

‘At first glance, it looks like a normal sheath.’

It was a black sheath. More or less the same size as HeavenlyDemon’s sword.

I took HeavenlyDemon’s sword that was leaning against the wall and inserted it into the sheath.

Shhk— Thak!

It went in smoothly, without catching anywhere.

He said it was temporary, but I’m quite satisfied. It even has a belt, so it has multiple ways of use.

‘That dwarf has a good personality too, deep down.’

I smiled slightly and contacted the next trade target. The next was DemonPrincess.

[WildGrills: Good luck with Chayu! Even if the losing streak lasts long, don’t get discouraged! There’s no one strong forever.]

[DemonPrincess: Thanks! I’ll give you another special uniform!]

[WildGrills: Whose is it this time?]

[DemonPrincess: It’s Sun’s, a legendary midfielder! Interestingly, she’s also from the central continent!]

[WildGrills: Thanks! Can’t Chayu’s matches be watched in the gallery?]

[DemonPrincess: Broadcast magic has to be purchased, so only highlights will be uploaded!]

[WildGrills: What a shame. I would’ve liked to watch it.]

[DemonPrincess: I’d like to give it to you too, but since you’re in the Forest of Four Seasons, it can’t be transmitted. But why do you want to watch it?]

[WildGrills: I feel like I’m only receiving things. I wanted to show you that I truly support you.]

[DemonPrincess: Crr…! What an admirable attitude! You have an excellent mindset! I hope you escape soon!]

[WildGrills: Thanks. If I find something good, I’ll give it to you right away.]

What kind of item would DemonPrincess like? I’ll have to think about it.

Anyway, first I need to check what she gave me. Just as she said, they were long pants and the upper part of the uniform.

The pants were also made of an elastic material, just like the uniform.

And not just one, but two.

I smiled in satisfaction and put on the pants. The feeling was clearly different.

‘I could live just with this.’

It reminded me of when I lived at home wearing only sportswear.

I threw the pants I had been wearing until now into a corner of the cave. From now on, they’ll be for emergencies.

‘I’m done with trades, now the cake… huh?’

My joy at eating the cake didn’t last long.

I clearly only ate one piece so why is the plate empty?

I blinked, confused, and looked around.

Wonmo was sleeping peacefully on the blanket.

The only one left was the sloth.

“……”

“…Hey.”

When I called him, the sloth tilted his head.

Seeing that shameless attitude, I couldn’t help but get angry.

“Why don’t you wipe the cream around your mouth?”

“……”

Only then did the guy feel around his mouth.

He had whipped cream stuck there—not a little, but quite a lot.

The sloth looked at the cream on his claws and, very slowly, brought it to his mouth.

“Yum.”

“……”

“Mmm…”

Can someone this irritating even exist in the world?

The most frustrating thing is that there’s no way to beat this guy.

In the end, there’s only one thing I can do.

“Hey, you bastard!!!”

Let out a roar.

It seems it worked quite well, because the sloth covered his ears.

“Kkyuak?!”

Ah, right. Wonmo was there.

When Wonmo woke up startled, I felt really guilty.

‘It’s all this sloth’s fault.’

I thought that while carefully calming Wonmo down.

Luckily, Wonmo only had a confused expression, as if he didn’t understand the situation.

“Wonmo, shall we eat?”

“Kkyuu!”

Even if he had understood the situation, everything would’ve been solved by giving him breakfast.

I gave meat to Wonmo and went outside.

Then I opened the hose and water came out strongly. Unfortunately, it seems there are no fish.

‘Better get ready.’

Today’s breakfast was also solved with fasting pills.

Maybe because I tasted something sweet earlier, today the bitter taste felt even stronger.

‘…Should I ask for another one?’

I dropped it. That would be too shameless.

The day has barely begun and I already feel exhausted.

‘I hope I find a place with abundant food.’

That was my small wish. I sighed and got ready.

Even though the sloth annoys me, he’s the only one who can protect Wonmo.

Better to think of it as a reward for taking care of the house all this time.

That makes it easier.

“Hey, sloth.”

“?”

When I called him, he tilted his head.

“I’m going out, so take good care of the house. Got it? At least pay for the cake.”

“……”

He moved his arms as if saying yes.

Seeing that reaction, I let out a small laugh and finished getting ready.

At my waist, the sheath with HeavenlyDemon’s sword and a small pouch.

In my left hand, the golden shield just in case.

I left my right hand free so I could maintain balance in any unexpected situation.

‘Before leaving, I’ll also use the breathing technique.’

After fully executing the technique, all that remained was to depart.

With some tension, I began walking toward the river.

When I get there, I plan to follow the current downstream.

‘I hope I find some clue to escape.’

I don’t know if the world hears my thoughts or is simply mocking me.

Or maybe the god of this world is doing it on purpose?

“Ha… damn.”

As I moved along the river, I couldn’t help but curse upon seeing the “environment” in front of me.

It’s not that the space changes in real time like on the other side of the river.

It’s definitely connected to the river.

It’s just that the environment is a mess.

“Is this a sea or a lake?”

A massive lake stretched out before my eyes.