Got a Gallery in the Wild

Making someone who had just recovered, and who also had an injured leg, do heavy labor.

If someone who didn’t know the situation only heard that, they would probably say it was too cruel and ask whether I was even human.

But I wasn’t doing it for no reason.

Even with an injured leg, that man was still much stronger than I was.

He was simply someone with an inconvenient leg, and even that leg was gradually getting used to it.

Wasn’t it more efficient to do everything you could instead of just sitting around doing nothing?

‘Volunteering is for when you have plenty of free time.’

As long as we were in a place where survival depended on work, even someone who was injured had to contribute.

Besides, summer was already coming to an end.

And after summer.

Winter would arrive.

I had personally experienced what happened during that season, so I had to prepare much more carefully.

Especially now that Lackey and the giraffe had joined the shelter.

I couldn’t afford to sit around doing nothing.

‘Building the giraffe’s house is turning out to be much more complicated than I imagined.’

The giraffe.

The animal with such an absurdly long neck that it seemed destined to suffer because of it.

And unfortunately, she was enormous as well.

Even her legs were incredibly long.

Because of that, designing her stable was turning into a nightmare.

The height alone was roughly equivalent to a two-story building.

I had no choice but to build something even larger than the cave I lived in.

‘I also have to think about insulation against the cold. Since she’s going to live together with Lackey, the space also needs to be spacious.’

It was practically like building another cave.

That’s why I had even put Ludwig to work.

First, we had to cut down trees to clear more land.

Then level the ground.

Then lay the bricks.

And it wasn’t enough just to cover the floor.

We also had to keep the cold from getting in.

‘The mats will work for the floor, but a fireplace will be absolutely essential.’

I’d also have to build a ventilation outlet.

And an emergency exit in case the snow blocked the entrance.

Nothing was simple.

But everything was necessary.

‘I’ll also have to make an emergency exit for the cave.’

If I had been alone, it would’ve been an endless task.

But now I had excellent workers.

There was no need to mention Lackey.

And Ludwig, after all, was a person.

“Put it there. Not that spot, that’s already covered.”

“%^^#?”

“Yes, right there.”

Communication problems came up from time to time.

But once he understood what I wanted, working with him was surprisingly easy.

Thanks to that, we quickly finished the entire foundation.

Things would be much more convenient now.

Although we were still short on sand.

Tomorrow I’d have to head downstream to gather more.

“Kuuu.”

It seemed the giraffe had also realized that this would be her home, because she slowly began walking over.

I asked her to wait a moment before opening the Gallery.

All that was left was to get some soft, comfortable mats.

“Alright. You’ll sleep here. Lackey, you’ll have one too.”

“Hmmmm.”

“Oooh!”

Both Lackey and the giraffe walked over to the mats I had assigned to them.

The two of them began testing their softness with their hands and paws before lying down on them.

“……”

“Ooooh…!”

Both of them looked completely satisfied.

After spending their entire lives sleeping on hard ground, the softness of those mats must have felt like an entirely new world.

No matter how many leaves you piled together to make a makeshift mattress, it would never be the same.

‘Now that I think about it, what’s that giraffe’s name?’

Since Ludwig was her owner, he would surely know.

I walked over while finishing putting away the tools.

“Sir, what’s her name?”

“?”

Ludwig looked at me as if asking what was wrong.

So that he could understand me, I first pointed at myself.

“Grills.”

Then I pointed at him.

“Ludwig.”

And finally, I pointed at the giraffe.

Ludwig immediately understood what I meant.

He nodded.

“Largo.”

“Largo?”

So that was her name.

He even carefully wrote it down on a piece of paper.

I knew how it was pronounced, but I wondered whether it had any particular meaning.

So I uploaded it to the Gallery.

ㄴIt means “neck.”

ㄴWildGrills) Neck? Like a person’s neck?

ㄴYes. A person’s neck. I suppose he named her that because she has a ridiculously long neck.

ㄴWildGrills) ;;

ㄴHe really didn’t put much effort into that name. LOL.

ㄴWell, there’s no feature more distinctive than her neck. LOL.

Although the meaning was strange, the pronunciation sounded nice, so I decided to let it slide.

What mattered was whether the giraffe responded to the name or not.

I called out to the giraffe, who was still sitting absentmindedly on the mat.

“Largo?”

“?”

The giraffe turned her head toward me, as if asking whether I needed something.

I didn’t know whether it was because we had already formed a bond in such a short time or because she was especially intelligent.

But at least she clearly recognized her own name.

‘It’s about time for dinner.’

The sun was slowly beginning to set.

It was still summer, so it wasn’t completely dark yet.

But judging by the time, it was already dinner time.

I would eat the same thing as always.

Ludwig, on the other hand, wouldn’t.

At least until tomorrow morning, I would keep feeding him fish porridge.

Even though he had almost completely recovered thanks to the honey and the elixir, I couldn’t just give him the food from this place right away.

First, I had to let his body adapt little by little.

I had to carefully control both the amount and the type of food.

His body needed to adjust to the food from this place.

That was the priority.

Otherwise, he could end up like me.

Spending the entire day running in and out of the bathroom.

“By the way, do you know how to cook?”

“$%&^#”

When I gestured to ask whether he knew how to cook, Ludwig nodded.

Although he didn’t seem particularly confident.

Well, he was a soldier specialized in combat.

That was only natural.

In the end, I was the one who cooked.

Until he adapted, that job would fall to me.

“Let’s eat.”

“Kyuu!”

“It’s time to eat. Come on.”

“…….”

One more person and one more animal had joined the group, and mealtime had suddenly become much livelier.

Fortunately, the giraffe could survive entirely on tree leaves, so she ate separately.

I would’ve liked to give her a Fasting Pill, but I had a feeling Sloth would glare at me if I did, so I let it go.

Though now that she was part of the family, sooner or later I’d have to give her one.

I’d just have to do it tactfully.

Now that I thought about it, ever since I started giving Dad Raccoon Fasting Pills, he had also begun bringing me medicinal herbs as thanks.

‘Speaking of which, what was that yellow herb he gave me the other day?’

After finishing dinner, I took out the yellow herb to examine it.

By now it should normally have withered and wilted, yet it was still standing perfectly upright.

I had no idea what kind of herb it was, but it was obvious that it wasn’t ordinary.

‘I’d better send it to HeavenlyDemon immediately.’

If it was her, she’d identify the herb right away.

After all, her knowledge of medicinal plants rivaled that of AllFather and StarlightPrincess.

Not long after I sent it, I received a reply.

[HeavenlyDemon: After the Snow Ginseng, you’ve managed to find yet another extraordinary herb. The one you sent me is called the Suyang Herb.]

[WildGrills: Suyang Herb?]

[HeavenlyDemon: It is a herb ranked just below the Solar Herb. It is famous for containing an enormous amount of Yang energy. In fact, I would recommend that you consume it yourself.]

[WildGrills: It’s fine. For me, getting Fasting Pills is more important than eating it. Besides, I have more mouths to feed now.]

[HeavenlyDemon: I understand. Even so, just like the Snow Ginseng, it would be better to sell it. It is simply too valuable a herb.]

[WildGrills: As you say.]

As long as I could keep receiving Fasting Pills, I didn’t mind.

In fact, that was probably the highest priority.

After all, the main reason I had managed to survive until now was thanks to my tributes.

[HeavenlyDemon: By the way, according to the rumors, the Blood Cult is planning to enter the Forest of the Four Seasons.]

[WildGrills: What? All of a sudden?]

While chatting with HeavenlyDemon, I received unexpected news.

At the moment, the Gallery was completely flooded with political discussions caused by Ludwig’s revelations.

And since all the attention was focused on Eldorado, no one was paying attention to the Blood Cult.

[HeavenlyDemon: One of my trusted subordinates informed me. However, it seems that the testimony of that Holy Knight has made them hesitate somewhat.]

[WildGrills: Because they can’t use mana there?]

[HeavenlyDemon: Exactly. It’s even possible they’ll try to ask you for a weapon.]

[WildGrills: Who told them I owed them one?]

If they actually came asking, I planned to ignore them without hesitation.

The Blood Cult members would probably fly into a rage, but…

Why would I care?

Unlike Ludwig, I had never wanted anything to do with those people.

Even if they were as lucky as I was and managed to survive, they’d most likely end up becoming my enemies.

[HeavenlyDemon: An excellent attitude. Those Blood Cult people deserve to be exterminated.]

[WildGrills: Did they do something to you as well, HeavenlyDemon?]

[HeavenlyDemon: Not exactly. I simply dislike them.]

For some reason, I remembered that real-life fight incident from before.

Thanks to that, all the attention that should have been focused on the Blood Cult ended up being directed at HeavenlyDemon instead.

I didn’t know whether the HeavenlyDemon in real life and the HeavenlyDemon in the Gallery were the same person, but I didn’t really care.

After all, she was still someone who had helped me tremendously.

And above all, matters of the outside world should stay in the outside world.

The story would be different if the Blood Cult entered the Forest of the Four Seasons.

[WildGrills: Thanks for the warning. Now I can prepare.]

[HeavenlyDemon: It’s nothing. If you ever need help, don’t hesitate to tell me.]

[WildGrills: Thank you very much.]

I could ignore everything related to Eldorado.

After all, it was their problem.

But the Blood Cult was different.

There was a possibility they would enter the Forest of the Four Seasons.

And based on the testimony of the only survivor, Ludwig, they would surely prepare thoroughly.

‘They also said the entrance was a problem, right?’

According to what I’d been told, every person who entered appeared in a completely random location.

Ludwig had started in the grasslands.

But no one knew where the others would appear.

If they were unlucky, they could end up somewhere like the volcanic region, where survival was practically impossible.

‘Though the most important thing is still that they won’t be able to use mana.’

I wondered how the Blood Cult would deal with that situation.

Even so, what truly mattered was still my own survival.

And the role Ludwig would play.

“Sir, what would you like to do now?”

“…….”

Even though I was using him as labor, it would be a waste to limit him to just that.

It would also be better to avoid having him fight whenever possible.

After all, every creature in this place was a monster.

‘Should I teach him my language as well?’

Trying to communicate only through gestures was frustrating.

Fortunately, Ludwig was very perceptive.

Otherwise, I would’ve already lost my patience.

“#%%”

Ludwig seemed to have more or less understood my question, because he answered with gestures.

He mimed plowing a field with a plow and then scattering seeds.

Thanks to that, I immediately understood what he meant.

“You mean this?”

“#%#”

I even drew a picture to make sure we were talking about farming.

Ludwig looked at the drawing and nodded.

It was a little unexpected, but thinking about it, it wasn’t a bad idea.

‘After all, he has an injured leg.’

Unlike me, traveling long distances would be difficult for him unless it was absolutely necessary.

And riding the giraffe wasn’t a realistic option either.

Unlike the grasslands, where everything was open space, the forest was packed with trees.

With such a large body, the giraffe could only enter very limited areas.

‘It might not be a bad idea though we’ll have to wait until winter passes.’

Winter was just around the corner.

So farming would have to wait until afterward.

I tried to explain it to Ludwig as best I could.

And it wasn’t easy.

How was anyone supposed to believe winter would arrive soon when the sun was shining so brightly?

Besides, he had come from living in the grasslands.

Naturally, it was hard for him to believe.

“If you don’t believe me, you can always see it for yourself.”

“#%%#”

“I’ll get the tools and the seeds. In the meantime, let’s decide where we’ll cultivate.”

If Ludwig took charge of farming, our food problem would be greatly reduced.

After all, humanity had managed to alleviate much of its food shortage once it began farming.

It wasn’t that I disliked the idea.

On the contrary.

I thought it was excellent.

I had simply never been able to carry it out because I lacked the manpower.

But now I had Ludwig.

An outstanding worker.

“Do you know how to farm?”

“%^^”

I didn’t understand his words.

But one thing was perfectly clear.

‘No.’

He was simply someone who wanted to become a farmer.

It left me a little bewildered, but I decided not to think too much about it.

After all, he was already getting old.

It was fairly common for elderly people to dream of retiring to the countryside.

‘I’d better start by gathering what we need.’

At the very least, I had to figure out how to do it before winter arrived.

***

The succession ceremony of the Messiah Empire.

Ludwig’s survival and his revelations.

The chaos that had engulfed Eldorado.

When one country fell into crisis, it was common for others to be affected as well.

Especially if they still had unresolved matters of their own.

It was the same as in Zhongyuan, where they still had not completely eradicated the Blood Cult.

Originally, the Blood Cult had been preparing an operation to enter the Forest of the Four Seasons.

But the situation had changed.

All because of Ludwig’s testimony.

Above all, the fact that mana couldn’t be used there—

Or, in their case, internal energy.

That had become an unexpected variable.

No matter how powerful the Blood Cult members were.

If they couldn’t use their internal energy, much of that strength lost its value.

So they had no choice but to discuss the matter.

And unlike last time, hardly anyone voiced any absurd opinions.

“Our martial arts won’t have any problems! We possess an enormous amount of internal energy! We’ll be able to withstand even the pressure of the environment!”

Though, of course.

There were always people whose heads weren’t merely stubborn, but completely rotten.

Those individuals quietly shrank back under the reproachful stares of the others.

After lengthy deliberations.

They arrived at a surprisingly simple solution.

And quite a reasonable one.

“What do you think about shifting our focus away from internal energy and strengthening the body instead?”

“The body?”

At first glance, the idea sounded fairly convincing.

What was physical training?

Muscles.

Skin.

Bones.

In other words, strengthening one’s basic physical endurance.

It didn’t mean reinforcing the body through internal energy.

That was still, in the end, an application of internal energy.

He was talking only about the physical body.

Simply put.

Raw physique.

“Exactly. If we can’t use internal energy, then let’s strengthen our bodies.”

“And do you really think that’s possible? If achieving an indestructible body were that easy, everyone would be invincible.”

The old man was right.

There was a reason martial artists prioritized internal energy over physical training.

Not only because the potential of internal energy was greater.

But also because developing the body was far more difficult.

Furthermore, most of the surviving Blood Cult members were already elderly.

Their muscle mass was long past its prime.

But the man who had proposed the idea answered in an unexpected way.

“I’m not talking about achieving an indestructible body. Just training until we obtain sufficient physical strength.”

“Do you really think such a simple method will work?”

“Or would you rather we all go in together just to die without accomplishing anything? If you have a better idea, say it.”

“……”

No one raised a hand.

Because no one had a better solution.

If they couldn’t use internal energy.

Then the only option left was to strengthen the body.

It was a method as simple as it was effective.

“What if we ask that man? According to what we heard, the new survivor also received a weapon.”

“Do you think he’ll give us one? Besides, what if HeavenlyDemon finds out? We’ll have to enter in secret.”

In truth, they wanted to ask Grills for help.

Even if it was just for a single sword.

But if HeavenlyDemon became suspicious.

She was still a figure who inspired deep fear within the Blood Cult.

They had to act without her finding out.

That was their decision.

“Very well. Then we’ll focus on strengthening the body.”

“I think it’s a good idea. Any other opinions?”

“None.”

“Neither do I.”

In the end, everyone agreed.

Only after entering the Forest of the Four Seasons would they discover whether that strategy worked.

Or whether it was completely useless.

But.

Were they aware that, even at that very moment, all of their information was being leaked?

“…That’s what they’ve decided.”

“How interesting.”

Everything that happened there.

Was reaching HeavenlyDemon’s ears, one report after another.