The Gardener in a Hunter World - Chapter 5

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The landscape of the forest has changed again.

About 20 pyeong1 wide was added, and it was full of trees and bushes that he had never seen before.

Above all, Yoo Ji-Ha’s newly planted branch grew quite like a tree, adding a sense of pride.

‘That’s a cave…’

The entrance to the cave was located near the edge of the fog.

He doesn’t want to go inside so he looks around.

‘The Etheric herb and the Solar apple are new.’

New fruits have appeared on the solar apple tree.

He couldn’t harvest it because it was small, but he thought it wouldn’t take too long.

Yoo Ji-Ha was stunned by its growth rate.

Could it be that there is some kind of magic here that speeds up the growth of crops?

‘That’s a strawberry.’

A new strawberry tree that did not exist before.

 

[Winter Strawberry LV1: Increases cold resistance by 20% for 30 minutes.]

 

It’s a simple explanation, but the effect was great.

Resistance stats are options that is rare, and even if it was attached to an artifact, it was only about 5% or 10%.

Advanced hunters wore all kinds of artifacts acquired from dungeons on their bodies, but it rarely exceeds 20%.

Cold resistance potions came out very rare and were often sold by hunters.

‘This number is higher than any other cold resistance potion.’

Yoo Ji-Ha remembered that there are hunters failing to capture a polar dungeon.

It was said that they all ran away because it was too cold and could not withstand the cold attacks of monsters.

Even in Korea, where the attack success rate is high, it is at that point, so other countries could not even dare to attack.

It is troublesome because you cannot bring various cold protection items made with cutting-edge science into the dungeon.

‘Is it possible to attack such dungeon with this winter strawberries?’

Although it is only a possibility, there will be no monsters breaking out.

Yoo Ji-Ha focused on the figure of LV1 in the winter strawberries.

Does that mean he’ll see LV2 someday?

‘Maybe I can change this garden to look nice.’

With that in mind, he rolled up his sleeves and started cleaning the area.

It would have been convenient if he had brought all sorts of cleaning tools in his dimensional pocket.

‘I’ll be sure to bring it next time.’

As he was trying to clear the messy bushes and spread the soil evenly, sweat was forming on his forehead.

While working in Yoo Ji-Ha found small insects.

 

[Theradrone]

 

Earth worms also had a grand name, Earthworm, but this little insect was called Theradrone.

‘Look at this.’

The little guys were carrying something under the winter strawberry tree.

‘It’s a strawberry that fell to the ground.’

It was quite impressive to see a group of small insects gathering and carrying strawberries and digging the ground.

Are they building a house?

‘Let me help you a little.’

When he used his fingers, the insects retreated in amazement.

But it didn’t run away at all, they were amazing.

Usually, insects run away when they see something big.

After digging an appropriate hole, they started digging up the soil inside.

‘Working hard.’

When he looked into the hole, he could see a big ass and hind legs scooping up the dirt.

They demonstrated technique of digging holes by clumping the soil and passing it back.

It’s no different with a person carrying a load backward.

‘It’s pretty cute.’

He never knew insects could be so cute.

Yoo Ji-Ha remove his attention from the guys and continued to work.

He moved carefully to avoid destroying the insect’s nest, then he looked into the entrance of the cave.

‘What’s inside?’

Strange wind noises were heard from the entrance, large enough to fit two people.

It seems to be connected somewhere.

But he was too scared to go into the dark space.

‘If there are monsters inside, it’s a big deal.’

He was awakened, but he was a hunter with no skills or attributes, so if he encounters a monster, he has no other choice but to die.

Besides, there’s nowhere to run.

But suddenly, it started to rain.

The raindrops fell with a plock-plock, and it soon turned into a heavy downpour that seemed to sweep the forest away.

Yoo Ji-Ha confirmed that insects had entered and taken refuge in a cave.

‘It’s like asking me to go into the cave.’

It seemed like someone was teasing him, but he couldn’t help it.

He squatted at the entrance of the cave, waiting for the rain to stop.

Alas-

The rain seems that it will not stop right away.

Bored, he thought about sleeping on the floor, but he soon changed his mind.

After entering the cave, he thought it would be better to explore the inside.

If there’s something inside, you’re bound to die in one way or another, so it’s better to do something.

“Whoooh, nothing will come out.”

Carefully following the walls of the cave and going inside.

It wasn’t as dark as he expected because of some light.

‘It’s because of this.’

A light shone from the stones scattered on the walls and floor.

 

[Glow stone]

 

‘Is it just a shining stone?’

When he touched it with his hand, the crumbs fell.

The material is weak, so he thinks he can dig it out with a pickaxe.

He decided to bring tools next time when going inside.

Two glowing stones appeared next in the dark wall space.

 

[Ignition Stone]

 

‘After the glow stone, it is the ignition stone… Can I light a fire with it?’

Should he hit two stones like flint?

The inside was getting narrower.

The thought of going into that dark cave took his breath away.

Yoo Ji-Ha gave up further exploration and came out to the entrance.

He felt like he had to go to the store and get some tools.

He fell asleep listening to the rain.

 

The rain has stopped.

After he bought various tools in reality and put them in a leather pocket, he began to clean up the forest after the rain with great care.

The fallen trees were cut and removed with a saw, the floor was leveled, and even the bushes were cleared.

After removing all the grass and branches that had fallen on the floor, he was sweating profusely.

“Whooh.”

After washing his neck and face with cool water, he felt better.

Yoo Ji-Ha sat under the solar apple tree for a while, ate the chocolate bar he brought with him, and cooled his sweat.

‘Let’s take the glow stone, the ignition stone, and the winter berries.’

What he can do in this forest is limited, so there is nothing he can do but just stay and sightseeing.

The best thing to do is to do what you need and then go to sleep.

Taking a breath, he took a pickaxe and entered the cave.

Kang, Kang.

When he hit around the glow stone with a pickaxe, it was dug deep as expected.

It’s definitely a soft rock.

After 30 minutes of pickaxing, Yoo Ji-Ha was able to obtain a glow stone with a size of a fist.

“It’s pretty.”

A glow stone with a soft glow.

With this, he will be able to move in the dark.

He decided to take only two out of the five and continue to dig up the rock with a pickaxe.

‘I can’t help it because I need two ignition stones.’

He took the ignition stone and went out and started collecting winter strawberries.

Not all, but only half.

‘Let’s not be greedy.’

Up until now, Yoo Ji-Ha has lived without much greed.

If there’s one thing he has learned while living alone after losing his parents, it’s that if he doesn’t get too greedy, it’s okay to live.

He was not pessimistic about his situation compared to other Hunters.

It must have been fate, so he accepted and was satisfied with his life.

‘So, you gave me a present?’

There must be a huge number of people who conform to a fate as he does, but no way.

Carrying his leather bag on his back, he contemplated how to use the glow stone.

He thought it would be better to use it like a torch by attaching a handle.

Tying a few long pieces of wood together and insert a glow stone at the end to make a suitable torch.

‘If I convert the leather pouch into a backpack and put a torch in it, I will be able to use both hands.’

As the fog grows wider, the space he can explore also grows.

Maybe one day he will be able to roam the forest like a real adventurer?

‘I have to go inside the cave once.’

All of this may be thanks to the branch planted in the middle of the forest.

It was growing rapidly at a speed different from that of other trees.

After saying thank you to the guy, he lay down on the floor of the cave.

As he fell asleep, the trees in the middle of the forest were dyed golden and radiating light in all directions.

 

On the Korean intranet, there is a community, Hunternet, that only hunters can use.

One of the most viewed places on Hunternet was none other than the review board.

Many hunters challenge the dungeon, clear it, and sometimes share their experiences.

Because it was a real-name system, it was rare to see nonsense.

Although the occasional irregulars scratch the hunters’ hearts, it is said that they cannot be systematically blocked.

A post was posted on the review board today.

But it wasn’t an ordinary review.

 

└Bae KangMin: It’s surprising that Seo HyeJin destroyed about a dozen Manstalkers, isn’t it?

└Hyun SeungAh: Who did?

└Bae KangMin: When I saw the battle reports of the juniors, it said so.

└Ashley: That information is interesting. I’d like to hear in detail if possible.

└Hyun SeungAh: Wait, when did that happen?

└Bae KangMin: It was just yesterday. There’s an open dungeon in the 11th area of the district 7, right? It was originally Category 2, but suddenly it was changed to Category 4.

└Cha HwaYeon : Is that true?

└Bae KangMin: Yes, I’m not deceiving you. For real.

└Park SeongHo: I’ve heard that rumor. The official battle report hasn’t been released yet, so I’m not sure.

└Cha HwaYeon : That makes no sense. In our guild’s first guild mobilization, we only managed to catch four of them. You can’t kill them all at once, you know how fast they regenerate, right? Not enough firepower.

└Ashley: Manstalker’s regeneration ability is known to be superior even among hate-class monsters.

└Park SeongHo: Still, those hunters wouldn’t have lied…

└Hyun SeungAh: It could be just a rumor. It wasn’t a Manstalker, it was a blue scorpion or something, they may have exaggerated it.

└Bae KangMin: I can’t get over that. Are you saying the juniors lied to me?

└Hyun SeungAh: I’m not saying it’s a lie, but it doesn’t make sense. Dungeon quests change abruptly from time to time, that’s true, but thirteen Manstalkers?

└Bae KangMin: Oh, I forgot something, but only one was an adult. The rest are babies.

└Cha HwaYeon : No, why are you saying that now? So, it’s dumb.

└Bae KangMin: I forgot for a moment. So, is it convincing if there are thirteen including the young?

└Hyun SeungAh: Still, it’s difficult alone… It’s no joke that they sting. Even if you pour out your skills at first, it won’t last long, so you’ll have to avoid the sting poison.

└Park SeongHo: Then, how did HyeJin kill them?

 

At this point, several hunters interfered, and each shared their experiences.

The suspicions that they could not believe pushed Bae KangMin, but he did not back down saying that he trusted his juniors until the end.

At that time, a hunter implicitly asked a question.

 

└Kim ChulSoo: What would it be like if it was Han SeungHyuk?

└Hyun SeungAh: Why is that oppa suddenly?

└Kim ChulSoo: It’s nothing special, I’m just curious. Because he was the immovable ranking number 1.

└Cha HwaYeon : If it were that person, he would have killed the Manstalkers alone. He is in a different league.

└Bae KangMin: Acknowledged. SeungHyuk had his damage amplification characteristics, didn’t he? If you use an ether blade and charge, most monsters will be cut.

└Hyun SeungAh: I remember when we had a fight with a disaster-grade monster before. He was the person who fought alone in the end even after shouting to run away like that.

└Park SeongHo: Let’s stop talking about the missing person.

 

After that, everyone turned around and suggested the possibility that HyeJin used an ether consumption potion.

 

└Bae KangMin: This is the most probable one, but among the ether consumption potions on Hunter Mania, how much was the longest?

└Hyun SeungAh: I check all the special potions, but the 4 second one was sold 3 days ago. Of course, it’s not likely that HyeJin bought it.

└Cha HwaYeon : 4 seconds, including her ether, 7 seconds… Still, it’s a little lacking.

└Bae KangMin: I’m really frustrated. Does anyone have HyeJin’s number?

└Cha HwaYeon : Even if I have, she won’t answer. I’d like to talk a little bit more about the Manstalker than that.

 

Long fingers tapped the keyboard.

Cha HwaYeon , the head of the Eternal Flame Guild, chatted for a while and gathered information about Seo HyeJin and the Manstalker.

She then contacted the guild’s chief alchemist, Choi CheolHeon.

 

—What do you think of Seo HyeJin?

—Well… I don’t know with this kind of information. What is certain is that HyeJin cannot catch a bunch of Manstalkers alone.

Actually, it’s not just HyeJin, but anyone can’t catch it alone.

—She has a helper or received some help.

—The number of people entering the dungeon cannot be hidden. And it’s hard to believe that HyeJin hunted with anyone. You’re probably right that she got help from Artifacts. I’ll checked HyeJin’s movement for the past month.

 

The movements of the top rankers were always almost revealed.

Because so many people know about it.

HwaYeon opened the file and checked the movement.

 

—She’s so out of her mind. Does it make sense to just go back and forth between the house, the shop, and the dungeon? She’s a girl, a girl.

—Well, since her lover is missing, isn’t it obvious? She went to the hospital yesterday.

—It has been three years; how long will she be like that? Sometimes it’s good to just forget about it.

—Tell me directly.

—That’s okay. But where is he going? A general store? Why is HyeJin going to this corner? There doesn’t seem to be anything here.

—She stopped by the day before entering the Manstalker dungeon. And she went there after clearing the dungeon. Do you smell something?

 

HwaYeon twisted her red hair in her hands.

It was a habit she did when she had something to think about.

Her finger tapped the keyboard again.

 

—Check it out.

—I will go by myself.

 

So, the conversation ended.

HwaYeon turned on the map and checked the general view of the general store.

“It’s okay.”

It was a shabby shop.

With only one rating, she thought it would be like this if there were no customers.

She sighed and closed her laptop.

While conversations took place in the high-rise building, Yoo Ji-Ha was concentrating on making potions in the shabby workshop.

And an amazing thing happened when the alchemy skill level rose to 2.

166 square meter