The Gardener in a Hunter World - Chapter 31

Disclaimer: This is an edited MTL. Thus, I can’t guarantee that my editing to be proficient. But I hope you enjoy this story with me. If there are any corrections, it is highly encourage to leave a comment.

“…..”

HwaYeon shakily looked at Ji-Ha’s face.

You can’t spit on a smiling face1smiling is contagious, that’s exactly what she was feeling in this situation.

No matter how feisty a person is, he or she cannot be mean to someone who treats them kindly.

The pitiful rumble created an atmosphere that was difficult to describe.

“…Thank you for the invitation.”

If you are invited to a meal, you should have the least courtesy.

HwaYeon cooled her anger by pressing her temple tightly.

She didn’t mean to be sarcastic to this young man in the first place.

Chijijik- 

Trimmed crab legs and large clams were placed on the grill one after another.

It is as big as the shrimp that went up first.

HwaYeon asked in dazed.

“Where did you get this from?”

“In the beach dungeon. There are no monsters, and it is very peaceful.”

“That’s a really nice trait. All sorts of rare things pop out of it. There’s no scroll, right?”

The words fell like thunder.

But Yoo Ji-Ha changed the topic casually.

“You just talked about scrolls, but what happened?”

“…Haha, what happened was…”

She sat close to the table and complained.

It was the event of entering the dungeon of an Outer giant with the Five Star Alliance.

It was good until they found and she got a buff from a weird insect monster.

Yoo Ji-Ha was startled at that sentence.

‘The Theradrone seems to have given you a buff.’

Also, Mirwiki and he must be connected in some way.

Theradrone is kind of like an errand boy.

He liked that it moved on its own without his instructions.

‘They are smarter than me, so they’ll do well on their own.’

“They’re all cowards, I heard that they didn’t want to carry a shield to reflect the beam of that outer giant!”

“It must have been quite dangerous.”

“It’s not just quite, it’s a lot dangerous. Even just touching, the human body evaporates regardless of resistance.”

The reason she went out was because of her greed for First kill, but she didn’t mention it.

Ji-Ha nodded.

“It is said that even in China, they barely melted it by mobilizing the army. But seeing that you have come all the way here is probably……”

“It failed. Yes, it ended up a spectacular failure. You know what’s funny? When it looks like we’re going to fail, the insect jumps out and quickly reflects the beam with its shield, eats it and bounces off. I mean, how can we comprehend that?”

“It seems that insect took the ether stone and essence. But, strictly speaking, isn’t that ‘eat and run’? And if it had the final blow.”

“No. We did all the hard work. What are you talking about? I’ve poured out all my firepower into it and I’m just about to kill him. One more shot and the giant would be dead.”

‘You didn’t have enough firepower.’

HwaYeon, who has strong pride, would not admit it, but there were widespread reviews of her failing to attack due to her lack of attack power.

It’s okay to attack low-level monsters roughly, but it’s not easy because the defense of monsters becomes much stronger from a certain level or higher.

Therefore, the main strategy is to identify the pattern of the monster, attack the weakness, and pour out firepower.

This time, facing the outer giant, she had tried all these methods, but it was unsuccessful.

“That’s where the need for scrolls comes from.”

“Yes! The scroll you made me rip. If I had that, I would have succeeded in First kill. If you hadn’t let anyone rip it, I would have been able to live. If that was the case, by now…”

“Someone else must also use it.”

Without objecting, she turned her gaze to the empty jar.

She looked like she would take it right away if a scroll was inside.

Ji-Ha cut some crab legs with scissors and offered it to her.

“Eat first and calm down. You can catch the monster next time.”

“A catastrophe is about to happen, catastrophe. How can you be so carefree?”

“If I go to Busan, nothing will change.”

“But……”

HwaYeon was about to say something but had no choice but to take a crab leg and take a bite.

“Hmmm.”

It was so delicious!

It’s chewy and salty, which was perfect for her taste.

Besides, how much is this meat? When she took one bite and pulled it out, a large lump of flesh slipped out.

Slurping.

She indulged in crab meat, forgetting her problem.

It’s the smell of the sea she hasn’t felt in a long time.

After eating crab meat like that, she felt a little dejected.

‘But with this person, she can have a conversation unexpectedly.’

HwaYeon never thought that there would be anyone who could talk to her.

At least except Choi CheolHeon…..

The guild members think they are being scolded and put up with it, but there was no reason for others to do so, so she often got annoyed and walked away.

Ji-Ha doesn’t respond to her sarcastic tone, but gently let it slip.

“Beom, what do you want to eat? Shrimp?”

Wow.

Watching the cat chewing on the large shrimp and the owner smiling happily, HwaYeon came to a point where she couldn’t understand why she was angry.

Why was the First kill so important?

She suddenly felt frustrated and wanted to let go of her feelings.

“Oh, HwaYeon-ssi, please eat this too. The shellfish eggs are very large.”

HwaYeon grabbed his wrist and put it down.

“Listen, I’m doing this because…”

No one asked but she started rambling on about her past.

Guild members would have been frightened if they were listening.

She talked about her memories of Han SeungHyuk.

A person who she wanted to win against but could never catch up.

All records including the shortest dungeon clear and first kill, were his own.

Even though she mobilized the whole guild, she was barely able to keep up.

Inferiority turned into respect and respect into favor.

But he accepted Seo HyeJin, not her.

It was a good match.

Anyone would have thought that HyeJin fits SeungHyuk’s lover rather than HwaYeon, who was easily angered.

It has been since then.

She started following in SeungHyuk’s footsteps.

After breaking the record, she could eventually win mentally by saying she won.

Even though he’s been missing for a long time.

“…maybe I still can’t forget that person. Now that I think about it, I’d say I wanted to stand next to him rather than liking him… Well, that’s it.”

She felt relieved after opening her mouth.

After hearing everything, Ji-Ha said-

“SeungHyuk, whom many people remember, must be a good person. I hope to see him next time.”

“If you met…”

Well, she doesn’t know.

Wouldn’t it be like a relationship between an easy-going older brother and a lazy younger brother?

But he doesn’t exist.

“That’s not going to happen I guess.”

“There is a possibility. Traces were also found, so the probability is not zero.”

“You’re very positive. I’m sure he’s dead.”

HwaYeon stared intently at Ji-Ha’s face.

How can a person be so positive?

Indeed, otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to establish a minimal conversation with him.

She remembered what CheolHeon, an alchemist, had said.

 

—If you meet someone you can talk to with, guild leader, consider yourself lucky and hold on to it.

 

She chuckled inwardly.

‘Funny.’

Meanwhile, Yoo Ji-Ha was thinking about the scroll while feeding Beom.

‘I can’t make scrolls anymore.’

The ink almost ran out, and the Theradrones did not bring any herb extracts after that.

Instead, they brought herb leaves by type, but that wasn’t enough.

‘Let’s get people to find the ingredients.’

Green herbs, which are used as ingredients, are not so easily seen, but he has confirmed testimony that they are sometimes sold for ornamental purposes at wholesale centers.

It’s hard to find it on his own, but what if they mobilize people?

‘It’s not bad to live the way the world does, but…’

When he saw HwaYeon’s attitude, he thought that such a life exists.

Yoo Ji-Ha lives as he is without it, but she strives to achieve things to the end.

‘It’s not about being right or wrong, it’s about admitting that there is something to learn.’

The reason the World Tree gave him the power may also include his intention to help people widely.

It doesn’t matter which one is more efficient.

As he pleases, he can do whatever he wants.

Yoo Ji-Ha asked HwaYeon.

“If you have time tomorrow, can you stop by during a break?”

“Here?”

“I want to get paid for the meal.”

“…price of food? Are you talking about the price of food? Can’t I pay it now?”

It’s strange that a person like this scholar wants to get paid, and it’s stranger to appoint it for tomorrow again.

“It’s because I want to receive it tomorrow.”

It wasn’t the price of the meal; it was something else.

Hwayeon nodded her head gently.

“Okay. My schedule is empty tomorrow anyway.”

She went back and Ji-Ha finished eating.

Sunday came and she came to visit.

 

***

 

“You’re looking for the same thing as this herb leaves as payment for the meal?”

Yoo Ji-Ha placed a small leaf of herb on HwaYeon’s palm.

He doesn’t know how to make ink for the scroll.

However, he remembered that the work in the garden was usually simplified.

Like cleaning up the contaminated land that should need scrolls with just a shovel.

Replanting the World Tree was just described as simply planting one branch.

‘It will be similar to that.’

As long as there is a green herb, a runeword can be completed even if it is roughly made similar to ink.

His guess is that.

‘Actually, I’m not really sure.’

So, without telling HwaYeon what the ingredients for the scroll were, he expressed it in the price of the meal.

“…that’s an unusual herb. I just have to find this? How much?”

“It won’t be that easy to find. I’ll pay for it, so I’d appreciate it if you could bring what you find.”

HwaYeon chuckled.

“So, it was good to receive that donation. What if herbs are expensive?”

“I have to find another way.”

The expression of Ji-Ha is saying that his mind remained unchanged.

After all, he’s like a tree.

HwaYeon grabbed the leaf of the herb.

“All right. It’s the price of food, so I can only save you. But you didn’t have to call me. I have a mountain of people to run errands for.”

She went back grumbling to the end.

Yoo Ji-Ha got the ancient book he was reading while holding Beom.

‘It seems that runewords are inside this ancient book……’

The runewords taught by the World Tree are only a small part of the runewords spread around the world.

Yoo Ji-Ha quickly fell into the contents of the ancient book.

 

***

 

It was two days later that HwaYeon brought the herb leaves.

It is said she searched wholesale centers, retail stores, and botanist labs.

“That’s what I scraped, so don’t say that I have to pay more for the meal, okay?”

“You didn’t have to bring it yourself.”

“I’m just curious what the hell you’re going to do with this.”

She reacted bluntly, and Yoo Ji-Ha laughed.

“It will take some time.”

“I have a lot of time today.”

She crossed her arms and sat in a chair and waited.

Soon, a good scent spread from the studio.

What, is he making a potion?

But she never heard of a potion with that green herb.

It’s not often found iGehenna, so it’s hard to find it even for ornamental purposes.

After a while, Yoo Ji-Ha came out with a satisfied face.

In his hand was a small green ink bottle.

The amount was disappointingly small.

“Ink? What do you do with it?”

“It’s my first time but I think it’s well made.”

Yoo Ji-Ha tore a page from the Infinite magic book.

When he tied it with the stem of the herb, it became a perfect scroll.

HwaYeons’s eyes grew bigger and bigger.

“You’re calling people to make scrolls? You’re kidding, right?”

“It’s not a joke.”

Yoo Ji-Ha made a serious expression and ripped the Infinite Magic Book into pieces and drawn with a feather pen dipped in the ink.

Crunch.

The pleasant sound of the nib passing through the paper tickled Hwayeon’s ear.

Familiar runes were written on the paper, but she was reluctant.

‘Well, he writes well.’

Yoo Ji-Ha’s writing was neat enough to resemble a printing press.

But it was just a decoration, not the scroll she wanted.

She read aloud the rune written by Ji-Ha.

“Your flames will burn everything… What? It’s like the scroll you got from the dungeon before. Do you think you can replicate it?”

“The scroll of change, destruction. It’s the same thing I gave Hwayeon as a good luck message before.”

“Wait, what?”

“Originally, I was going to reveal it later… but I changed my mind.”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. This scroll is the one I ripped before?”

“Check it out for yourself.”

Ji-Ha crossed the scroll and HwaYeon tore it in doubt.

In an instant, the runeword turned bright, but nothing changed.

“What has changed?”

“If you use a little magic, won’t you feel it for yourself?”

Unknowingly, she lit fire magic from her hand.

Whoosh!

Originally, the flame was small enough to be placed on the palm of the hand, but it had grown several times.

She opened her mouth wide and Beom yawned.

“Wow.”

The tremendous firepower she felt in the dungeon blossomed again.

What Yoo Ji-Ha said then appalled her.

“As a reminder, this is not free.”

“Th-then?”