Chapter 75: The Pleasure of Living (1)
vWaXSince the vote regarding the trade cooldown was underway, I decided to start with work.bgr
2o7First, I reinstalled the fish traps in the river and then focused on maintaining my tools.ODKEMw
32LEspecially the Heavenly Demon sword. Whether or not I had that sword directly influenced my chances of survival.QhO9J
1RxwRBut honestly, how many times in life does someone actually have to maintain a sword?v2f
rTBIvTAt most, sharpening kitchen knives.iQFzJD
L7WDIThat was why I paid even more attention.FYly
j7M3xTitle) Dwarf, helpqlvtIvz
EJ2TWildGrillsesP0en
2g51ZoI want to do maintenance on my sword, so give me some advice.t2sl
fqDrWㄴDwarfPassingBy) Just like that?ODW
uazsㄴWildGrills) Bastard.k9gzz
rYeBrMIㄴDwarfPassingBy) Bring me crabs and then we’ll talk hahaha.H2MuTk6
CLiㄴWildGrills) Ah, right. If I give you crabs, you’ll give me advice?gjsYJF
9IRe2aqㄴDwarfPassingBy) Just advice? I’ll also give you oiled paper and a whetstone.DXpL0R5
d1FYSㄴWildGrills) Oh;;49RKXB9
5GUWqㄴDwarfPassingBy) But if there are no crabs, don’t even dream about it.R6bvZ
JeaN9EqㄴWildGrills) I fought a guardian and then otters, can’t you have some compassion?7lZ
HtVㄴDwarfPassingBy) If you’re really tired, you can bring them tomorrow. But it’ll be 3.r3YgeKI
THqdyEㄴWildGrills) Ok;;uLWh66
6XQkLooks like I’ll have to go.TG40C5w
TxGBEven though I’m somewhat tired, getting crabs isn’t difficult.7K6NYsj
Ei1dEs4The mana the guardian had absorbed from me had already fully recovered after using the breathing technique.htl
0s4zwMaybe it was because the Forest of Four Seasons had an absurd amount of mana, but just a few breaths were enough to recover it.rDoUyR
ysozIj‘I haven’t maintained the sword even once.’kVV5lU
1JVj4I’d better start doing it regularly from now on.ULCL
mHQsIf I neglect it and it breaks right at an important moment, it would be a disaster.H6aL8
vqSGAfter finishing some preparations, I looked toward the cave.EWG
9Y3D7eWonmo was taking a nap after quietly devouring an entire fish.GC0
4fAThe sloth, as always, only looked at me with a relaxed expression.7iX
Z4wcZ“I’m going out for a moment. Take good care of Wonmo.”9RNX
LAH8v“……”YtQyNy
aTuK5ZI entrusted that to the sloth and blocked the entrance with the metal fence.zOkFT
gtFi1NoThat way, even if Wonmo woke up while I was gone, he wouldn’t be able to escape outside.OBjEY
yBS7‘Elixir, fasting pills, smoked food, crossbow yes, I brought everything.’FN0zex6
bTuAlso the World Tree gloves that LetsPlantTrees gave me and a backpack to carry the crabs.e01pC
zbY2umWEverything was perfect.EaNZPx
StpF6bAlthough I had already fought twice today, so I planned to avoid combat if possible.4t0qkbL
EhrKrAMBesides, there were still some lingering effects from the wounds the guardian gave me.mcsC5
ernXnTXBut if some beast cornered me, I’d have no choice but to fight.OZUHI3
7mS‘If things get ugly, I’ll use the smoked food to distract them.’UGlUX
BqiEven if it was salty as hell, it was still meat.ViSr15t
ubMI could use it as bait and escape while they were distracted.JH4pyJ
C5FVUCv‘And if they spit it out because it’s too salty…’tgbKih
S8iMUbyNo idea.QUXuu8
OCwI guess it’ll still be better than fasting pills.dFltM77
9DRbDI checked my equipment one more time and drank a sip of elixir.NB4
ONq37tSThe faint pain I still felt in my abdomen lessened a little.BS9I68
Ygp7It was time to leave.fuSl8or
a6arThis wasn’t an exploration. I just had to get crabs and come back.0GOEzv6
BNfThough.rqJMuU
xNJXZx‘If I follow the river downstream, it’ll be easy.’hZX
Xp5hThe problem was not knowing what might appear in the river.SkAsghO
HaNJyAIAfter all, a completely unknown group of otters had appeared just a while ago.YqmDYj
QA8Maybe there were even crocodiles, so I walked while keeping some distance from the water.iZ4
2pv‘Last time I ran into an iguana around here, right?’Nu3QA
8AmFAnd a huge one.RI4cp
kLrIt was almost as big as a crocodile.w4vZa
tG1WFortunately, it was cowardly and ran away as soon as it saw me.3TL7
SKWlThough later we ran into each other again.iQkB
Pc8tOn8It ran off carrying the mosquito I had killed.AXg
XIcrPAs I followed the path alongside the river, I headed toward the lake where the crabs lived.Qykcn
kKfhSwoooosh—6bWnBR2
OJNyAs I got closer to the lake, the width of the river also increased enormously.D15
DpxNmK5It wasn’t at the level of the Han River, but it was still a massive shallow current.hKZ
ldJThere were probably many more fish living there than in the upper areas where the current was strong.ql3
ezWsKwaaaah!05a30
N6o56PSplash!q81
HnnAnd whales that you would normally only expect to find in the ocean could also be seen there.dmiDpN
30pMcmI had already seen them before, but I still couldn’t believe it.I40TL
GMroAt this rate, even sharks probably lived in the river.aCPi9b
Md1Well, being the Forest of Four Seasons, it wasn’t that impossible either.0a2gR
KBZhX“Hmm?”PHiD
n8n6While walking downstream with a blank expression, I saw a deer drinking water beside the river.58Ucsc
jWpOCMIt wasn’t the spirit deer I saw this morning, but a normal one.2S7S3
6mZHcvyJudging by its antlers, it seemed to be male.brKYB
8KsuE2And those antlers were enormous too.qTDYg
cXl‘I’d better make noise on purpose.’lfjA
0vSqTq2Who was it that said herbivores in nature are more dangerous than carnivores?aW0RPP
znGpOR2People usually stay alert around carnivores, but herbivores are the ones that end up killing you when you let your guard down.7ZJbH0G
RxDckofSo I decided not to provoke it and made my presence clear.Uk6yp
Sc9vTap— tap— tap—61Gq6
OZ51Even though I made quite a bit of noise while walking, the deer didn’t react at all.fV8oAzR
zgcRather, it glanced at me sideways and calmly continued drinking water.gvj
mFWwrsOJust as I raised an eyebrow thinking “is this bastard ignoring me?”, something happened.Ts2Bqi
0oeiKwaaaaaah!!b7MhhzY
AeEJqzmSomething gigantic shot out from the river.i0Va
Mr6dInside its enormous jaws were teeth the size of my fist.3zRn
bg9And it was much larger than the deer.MSBI
toyZyI was startled because I hadn’t sensed any presence, but I immediately understood what it was.YdyB
KxIGw3U‘Shit! Were there really sharks?!’0nxCv4x
DMY5UHJIt was a shark.tqRk
7GbeqTjAnd an absurdly huge one.RCE
Cz84Large enough to swallow the deer in a single bite.Oko
NbczTXBut this was the Forest of Four Seasons.ggi1ey
aky3UNsA place where even a sloth was strong.N9Fc
rIPuwiWhoosh—Pr2
rg8The deer, as if it had predicted this situation, immediately stopped drinking.DsiB
6WXIt turned half its body and launched a rear kick directly at the shark charging with its jaws open.c1bi
2DJDqiCrack!GfVy8p
2i68K4wThe kick landed directly on the shark’s nose.A5X9
CfhqAnd a shark’s nose is one of its most famous weak points.ndcJMU
zKb9But getting kicked there by a deer?10yj
6IePnSplash!eyqBxiB
gQErlrOThe shark was sent flying toward the shore and collapsed there after receiving the counterattack.lj7
iznIpIt didn’t seem to move at all.TRW2YF
nisxIt was probably unconscious.IpIjv
ED5Meanwhile, the deer calmly continued drinking water as if nothing had happened.7Vsk
5yd5SLn“…….”6pTZm1d
4PzBehThe deer was drinking water next to the unconscious shark. What kind of combination was that?e7Ti
W1jn3vI slowly walked forward while watching the deer from the corner of my eye.DeFAc
7V3FiFortunately, it seemed to have no interest in me because it didn’t even look at me.S1rdHrw
l3L‘…First I’ll upload this to the gallery. Maybe the deer in this world are just strong.’ktpdKtg
JsL4After all, creatures like spirit deer already existed. It wasn’t completely impossible.ym3eQ
2Oc8kAI took a photo making sure the deer drinking water and the unconscious shark beside it were clearly visible.twXceH
iqlVdTitle) A deer defeated a shark.LAHaB
qjp2WildGrillsznJ5e
P8q(Photo of the deer drinking water beside the unconscious shark)MpFgxM8
JutA shark came out of the river and attacked a deer, but the deer knocked it unconscious with a rear kick.yMErUt
0UpX8uCan the deer in this world also beat sharks?nyH
UqUqvNDㄴHeavenlyDemon) It seems to be a deer with deep internal mastery. Be careful.w6lT
3HbㄴWildGrills) Can you tell something like that just from looking at the photo? Just like with the slothbpz0tM
GvXwㄴHeavenlyDemon) Are you going to ignore the shark lying beside it?4QrjvPV
9FmllHFㄴWildGrills) Ah, I see.ZyriB
XMSSTSSㄴSwordmaster) Wow. I’ve never hunted a shark either, so this is amazing. Don’t sharks normally live in the sea?Cb8g
IygㄴWildGrills) In this river there are not only sharks, there are whales too.kD5
xeGNㄴSwordmaster) That forest is truly insane.3bssJi
5WN4N5MㄴAllFather) It’s a bull shark. They are sharks capable of moving between freshwater and saltwater. A similar animal would be the saltwater crocodile.TgP4
7m5NㄴWildGrills) Then what about that deer?4E6BGm
Duf8ㄴAllFather) It’s just a deer. An absurdly strong one, apparently.6u80R
XcGkㄴWildGrills) ;;;neFWzXX
8MEzODㄴRight now my common sense is collapsing. Is that real?6jU0xi
OcraNhㄴWell, sharks in the river are acceptable, but a deer? Hahaha.BJ4EX
91cAㄴBetween the sloth and this, why are herbivores so strong? What the hell is going on?2qR
XE9ㄴIt really is a crazy forest hahaha.8C6L3
mhvJust as I thought, the deer was the abnormal one. My common sense wasn’t broken.au95lS
wOKM7I1I closed the gallery and glanced back, wondering what the deer might be doing.x1JT3l9
tuI1s“Pfrff.”Q4l03bW
WwM6“……”UVl
FizeCtpGood lord. When the hell did this bastard get behind me?1aQfD
JYuaI completely froze upon seeing the deer silently approach without making any presence whatsoever.VR8
uuuRKpnIts size was right at eye level with me, but those antlers gave off absurd pressure.CwwwoOV
i10d‘…Am I screwed?’ZaDIBt
7rZI slowly stepped back while taking a defensive stance. The deer simply stared at me silently.ptYm
LFPqYvThen it snorted and turned its body around.iHHMETb
jqoIf7Without even making noise with its hooves, it calmly walked deeper into the forest.ODjdY
YARqSaShortly afterward, it completely disappeared among the trees.Izk7laq
JChI“Haa…”NjYtEOB
G03I let out a long sigh. I seriously felt like my heart was about to burst out of my chest.0Q4Ea
9pUbTw8How could a mere deer give off that much pressure?cPxpryR
0D5If we had fought, I think I would’ve lost.GgMiaw
pDJffPiSure, the shark got hit in a weak point, but it still got knocked unconscious with a single kick.8TpUln
NDENo, before that, reacting to an ambush from a shark leaping out of the river was already insane.LfCBZkC
dFn5‘When will I be able to react to something like that?’XYkbnXq
OVmNItRight now I can’t even properly respond to the sloth’s attacks.5YZlWc
H6mQ9WHThe only thing I can do is block them with the shield, and even then I’m still nowhere near his level.gJGlER
boRykI sighed while continuing to walk through a Forest of Four Seasons that kept getting stranger and stranger.YyFN
igHKkBooom! Boom!aCPMtLk
AyImmWJust as I was almost reaching the lakeshore, a massive roar reached my ears.dxTu
vwKHVlzIt was coming exactly from the lake area.vvuA
ywfIjIt sounded like buildings were being demolished.gES8
mm3‘What is that?’jOEKUF
jym65dIt was a sound I had never heard in the forest before, so I couldn’t help but feel confused.cYriS
533iAnd when I finally reached the shore, I understood where the sound was coming from.Fv864C
uJ7DohaCrack! Boom! Baaaang!wBFIY
5WB4ggYou know those giant monster movies?0CE8
TcaVThe ones where abnormally huge animals or giant kaiju destroy everything while fighting.CMFSa
CdKTWell, I was watching exactly that in real life and in real time.WPTjMXg
eM2‘…What the hell is that? A crayfish?’pWHk
rNxA7oI had already seen crabs the size of buildings.4tQbJ7
yrQRdhmBut this was the first time I had seen a crayfish as large as an apartment complex.Dmy
YYb7And on top of that, both of them were fighting while exchanging blows with their claws.VIN
dMnV7Watching a giant monster battle in reality instead of in a movie was completely absurd.MWJdf
4WEdc0ZBoom!SSEx
88ZGJust as I stared blankly at the scene, the giant crayfish’s claw smashed into the giant crab’s face.RxEtxc0
b5q2cnAnd a piece of shell flew directly toward me.NY1EPo
SdS9zKI widened my eyes as I watched the shell getting closer and closer and hurriedly raised my shield.AC84pI
pIABoooooom!!NwAnlFn
zPJzIRq“Guek?!”KG3ryl
r2RePQI felt an impossible impact while a bell-like sound exploded beside me.WbWLAt
YQ6DTA8My body was launched backward.drqo
OKYCAFortunately, I managed to block properly and cushion the fall, so the damage wasn’t too severe.QGbN
Dud43u9I staggered back to my feet while letting out a groan.gVX37X
jkZ9z0“What the hell…”2K5
xTDlThat chunk of shell was practically the same as a piece of concrete.Mio
Za1TdTzDid I really have to go into the middle of those monsters to get crabs?3To
y3QyWith something like this, even the dwarf should understand and forgive me.9Elxt
h6n7VtBut well, I had already come all the way here. I couldn’t return empty-handed.AGrm
QUXWjHcThat said, I’m definitely squeezing everything I can out of that dwarf afterward.h3G
QKlsQI took several photos and recorded some videos.l2cLk
NigTHObviously, they were for uploading to the gallery later.kjmSVkj
vPhOI wanted to see the dwarf’s reaction.g7P1WdY
AfB‘I’d better grab the crabs and get the hell out fast.’0Kcf
fnrbAWhile the giant crab and the enormous crayfish fought, the smaller crabs continued minding their own business.vjd
nJEvjIn other words, they were eating something off the ground.6B1NgA
qFuJePieces of shell were scattered everywhere around them.xBS
pgAThey were probably feeding on the fragments falling during the fight.6kr
MSuYSome crabs could also be seen crushed beneath the fallen shells.iEOrKZ
GiKBaaang!ThOSlX
b542anK“Ueek!”44S
ZaLJust as I was collecting crabs, a shell landed right beside me.3ADw
aXoI grabbed several crabs with both hands and desperately ran away.91Y5A
U3Od5m3I wanted to collect more, but it was too dangerous.XESBU
Zh2IhI had no idea when another shell might come crashing down on me.T8D
9uQy8Damn hellish forest.pyfgpya
Lw1u6“Huff… huff…”c9bgnj
rDSI couldn’t feel safe until I was very far away from the area where the shells were falling.pnp1C
8WgThe crabs in my hands struggled, trying to escape.yei3My
kzpu2I shoved them into the backpack and stabilized my breathing.Wb9
4Ff‘Now all that’s left is going back.’GXnYV
9pJXbBoooom! Boooom!JToVMR
h8IqEI could still hear explosions behind me, but I tried to ignore them.G9RD
N52obeKNo, honestly, it was impossible to ignore them.1dUjva
TVb2A shell could still fly all the way to where I was.EUQ
GTnSo I returned to the shelter constantly checking behind me every time I heard a roar.Y0fuG
XTwI had already fought twice today and on top of that ended up trapped in a natural disaster movie. It felt like all my energy had drained away.EQb
hXst6“Uaaaa…”l5zJEn
qhtVH“……”AGj4I
a4lYSsAs soon as I returned to the cave and collapsed from exhaustion, the sloth started patting me.WTnbZ
oFOYou really are the only one comforting me here. Thanks.hrU
5Ix8vLI gave the sloth a fasting pill and then entered the gallery.IgBU
1sUoI planned to tell them everything that happened.gvn1Rb7
BKBiwjTitle) Dwarf. I got the crabs.c7kk
KktjLuWildGrillsSwiE
01T41Rn(Photo of the giant crab fighting the enormous crayfish)MChJqKa
fez(Photo of the shells that flew away during the fight)amH7Qd
45Fg3(Video of the battle between both monsters)aWFc
8ivOI went through that hellish battle to get these, so I hope you appreciate my effort…1vnU
qZfJ7ㄴHeavenlyDemon) You truly live through extraordinary experiences that even I have never had. But what the hell is that fighting the crab?vsn
Gg4vYxZㄴSwordmaster) Isn’t that a crayfish? Judging by the appearance, it looks like one.G2Hqt
ey3ㄴHeavenlyDemon) I’ve never seen one that large.lMXi
0JV1sㄴSwordmaster) Not just you, moderator. This is the first time all of us have seen something like this;;wFC6v
1uRbXㄴDwarfPassingBy) Wow;; What the hell are those? Is this the same lake you went to before?Pak1ZL
pPvSDㄴWildGrills) Yeah. When I arrived they were already fighting, probably over territory.WXRLO
NBUvㄴDwarfPassingBy) That’s insane. And the crabs?KAXV
B7QbXgRㄴWildGrills) (Photo of the crabs inside the backpack) Here. Aren’t you even going to worry about me?u8Gcx
KvJ1dㄴDwarfPassingBy) You want me to worry?r9cUlk
617iJ7ㄴWildGrills) Forget it.TbvjE
uHVIㄴDo monsters or animals bigger than those exist?Znwd
TWyyLㄴYeah, they’re right there.BH7imHx
ChYbMㄴI mean outside the Forest of Four Seasons, idiot.sWpXDj
ownㄴI guess they do exist, but almost all of them are treated as legendary creatures, right?OAp
KdU3GㄴThough the closest thing would be dragons, but those are even bigger.j2T4
R41ㄴThere are deer beating sharks, crabs and lobsters the size of buildings hahaha. What the hell is this place? Lol.6o7
zOvvpIkㄴLiterally this place is like an onion. The more you explore it, the more weird things appear HAHAHA.xOrwLg
XilBAs always, the gallery was full of praise(?).fxONxE
sjw0MhThey said that thanks to me they had been able to see extraordinary things and so on.3VgV
MVmBut the reality was that I had barely survived today, so I couldn’t share that relaxed atmosphere.LW27qI
TmrIa3‘Feels like all my strength is gone.’j5pcl
fimLI didn’t feel like doing anything, though now I felt even less like doing anything.2ucwxDU
2A2pExploration ends here for today.FoV
sxBEpI’m never going outside again.9nq4Jx
LmS3epu‘…There were those cigarettes, right?’7Ia
IkrSuddenly I remembered the World Tree cigarettes LetsPlantTrees gave me.8eSNYCR
Z3BbI was so tired that I wanted to put something in my mouth.lyhW
kHZt5aThough I also couldn’t waste food.iIq
7TjeFeA cigarette was just right.dzSzy
MVe‘Never thought I’d end up smoking in my life…’xKNPIv8
QHgvIs this how smokers feel?wOf
2IJeX8BEven in the military I never smoked, and now I ended up doing it here.fOCL
O4RI took one of the cigarettes out of the box and examined it carefully.1GSEu
tlz165mFrom the outside, it looked like a normal cigarette.3EOx
gF8sThe leaves were probably made from World Tree leaves.pzRD
kaV5EFThey said it was extremely expensive tobacco.hgtuoX
uABoSuddenly I became curious about how good it actually was.wWXY
u9e2vr‘I’ll light it with the light stone.’ulf
EPeQTap! Tap!qxvzH
QQk5ihNWhen I brought the light stone close to the tip of the cigarette, smoke slowly began to rise.DRt
POJ9jAs soon as the smoke appeared, I hesitated for a moment before slowly inhaling it.2Sv
gc8TNormally tobacco smoke is harsh, and cigars are even harsher.SW0
i7nWBut the World Tree cigarette wasn’t harsh at all.2XJ
jqrduRather, it felt refreshing.xP3bkQK
CkDPjZIt definitely had a mint-like scent, though several times fresher, to the point where all I could feel was that freshness.3mR1VR
VEXEAnd on top of that, my exhausted body started filling with energy again.BwSTi0
eIhWZzr‘…It’s delicious.’cEB1
r3jIt was seriously delicious.bI70ooE
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