The Gardener in a Hunter World - Chapter 7

Your Own Beach
Is this a dream or real?

‘Was the sea always this close?’

Was the terrain he thought to be a forest, actually a sea?

It didn’t even smell like the sea, so he didn’t notice it.

‘Or maybe there’s something like a portal somewhere in the cave.’

At the narrowest point, he felt a strange sensation as if his whole body was shaking.

At first, he thought it was vertigo, but after a while, it didn’t seem to go away.

‘Maybe the entrance to the back is blocked…’

It was only by hurriedly returning to the cave and seeing the forest that Yoo Ji-Ha was reassured.

He came back to the sea and took off his shoes.

Because it felt like a crime to leave shoeprints on the white sand where nothing existed.

The soft sand tickled the soles of his feet, and the subtle scent of the sea brushed the tip of his nose.

It’s a really nice view, but it was a bit hot, so he took off his jacket and put it in the backpack.

‘If the weather is this hot, it’s probably not the same terrain…’

The forest and the sea here are in different dimensions. He thought it would be better to interpret it that way.

Yoo Ji-Ha walked along the white sandy beach and approached the sea.

‘I’m walking on the white sand…’

The sea was the object of fear for modern people, including him.

There were so many monsters that it was difficult to sail a ship and trying to escort it with a warship was not excessive.

So, most of the imports and exports these days are done by plane.

‘I thought there was nothing, but…’

The palm tongs hanging from the palm trees and the hundreds of sand crabs busily roaming the white sand caught his attention.

What is even more surprising is that palm tongs have a special effect, just like the solar apple and winter strawberry.

 

[Palm tongs: Acquire Pain Resistance LV1 for 30 minutes.]

 

‘Pain resistance? It’s the first time I’ve seen it.’

First of all, there is no pain resistance part in the stats.

If that’s the case, then it should be considered a characteristic. Among the hunters, there were those who were exceptionally patient with those who were active as tanks.

Wouldn’t it be the same as the characteristics of those people?

‘If that’s true, that’s great.’

If you can use someone else’s characteristic, they’ll come rushing to you with money.

However, Yoo Ji-Ha was not very greedy for this kind of buff.

Most of all, he was scared of the palm tongs which is as big as a human.

‘It’s like a monster.’

If Yoo Ji-Ha tried to catch that, he might be the one caught instead.

He turned his gaze away from the palm tongs and looked around further.

The quick sand crab did not have a special buff and the large one looked delicious.

‘It’s been almost 10 years since I ate crab.’

Seafood became extremely difficult to eat because the seas and beaches were seized by monsters.

Importing from overseas is done by air, so the unit price is extremely high.

If you’re rich, you could simply spend some money to eat.

As a result, countries with low self-sufficiency food are said to be on the verge of collapse.

‘It’s unfortunate.’

For some reason, the sand crabs didn’t run away from Yoo Ji-Ha.

Perhaps it is the effect of animal-friendly skills.

It didn’t struggle too much when he picked one up and opened the tongs.

Yoo Ji-Ha unconsciously gulped.

“I’m sorry, please be my food.”

Shortly, a bonfire was lit on the border between the white sand beach and the palm grove.

It was made by collecting dried palm leaves and branches and finally, kindling it with an igniting stone.

“It catches well.”

The branches had a lot of fiber, so they caught fire very easily.

Yoo Ji-Ha’s knife was put in the mouth of the sand crab, and it was threaded through a thin wooden skewer and put on the fire.

Tatatak.

The smell of grilled crab meat was no joke.

And as the sand crabs became roughly red, Yoo Ji-Ha took it from the fire and began to eat.

“It’s hot.”

Although it was hot, he was able to see the red flesh using a branch as chopsticks and cutting the carapace with a camping knife.

Slurping.

“Ah, so delicious.”

The chewy texture and the rich umami flavor filled with the smell of the sea were mouthwatering.

Yoo Ji-Ha indulged in crab meat without hesitation.

Until now, the only thing similar to crab meat was the meat sold in the supermarket.

Even then, fish meat was expensive, so he didn’t eat it often.

After gulping the flesh, crab shells piled up on the floor.

‘I have to take what I ate.’

He wrapped it in plastic, put it in the backpack and cleaned it up.

There was barely any trace of fire.

He wanted to eat one more sand crab but decided not to.

In the first place, he didn’t eat much.

‘By the way, that guy…’

His gaze reached the palm tongs hanging from the palm tree.

Sand crabs are so delicious, what about that guy?

He wanted to check out the pain tolerance buff and taste it.

Yoo Ji-Ha stared at it intensely.

tuk.

Suddenly, the palm tongs fell.

“Great!”

 

Some dungeons have a long-time limit.

There are places that last for more than a few days, and in cases that they enter such place, hunters bring food.

When it comes to food, the mainstream is high-calorie and easy-to-eat.

It’s not like they’re going to be luxurious in the dungeon.

Anyway, hunters don’t spare money on supplies for hunting.

Therefore, each company gave the canned food a special name: Survival Wheat or Special Food.

Yoo Ji-Ha has tried to make it a few times, but this market is not easy and he couldn’t beat the ready-made ones.

‘Well.’

Yoo Ji-Ha was now staring at the flesh of the palm tongs.

Perhaps due to its weight, the palm tongs that fell to the floor, died on the spot so Yoo Ji-Ha succeeded in disassembling and separating the flesh.

Due to its size, the carapace was extremely thick, so he had to bring a pickaxe and break it.

The amount of meat it contain was no joke, it seemed like it would be enough for 4 or 5 people.

“How do I make this?”

After experimenting around, he found that the pain tolerance buff of Palm tongs had to be cooked to be applied.

‘It would be better to make it similar to a Pemicon.’

Pemicon is a preserved food made by mixing animal meat, fat, flour, fruits, and nuts.

Making it in the form of a bar is convenient to carry and has a lot of calories per piece, so it was a preferred food for hunters.

However, he was worried about whether it could be replaced with the flesh of palm tongs as the original’s main ingredient is beef.

‘Let’s try it first.’

Yoo Ji-Ha brought the flesh of palm tongs to the store and started cooking in the kitchen.

The well-roasted flesh was pounded with a meat hammer, dried, and ground until it turned into fine flour.

Pemican is completed by adding fruits and nuts and adding fat, which is used to solidify.

‘How about the taste?’

He took a bite, and it was edible even before it was done.

At the same time, Yoo Ji-Ha’s status window was updated.

 

[Characteristics: XXX blessing LV1. Pain Resistance LV1.]

 

“It’s real.”

And as a result of searching for Pain Resistance on Hunternet, it is stated that it is a characteristic of some hunters focused on melee combat.

Yoo Ji-Ha read the comments of some Hunters curiously.

 

└ Lee Myeongjong: Ha… An article about me… I’m a loser who is not resistant to pain…

└ Park Chang-soo: Haha, can you say that you are not resistant to pain?

└ Lee Myeongiong: It doesn’t matter… Everyone knows anyway…

└ Han Chae-rim: Ah… Where can I get the Pain Resistance Potion from?

└ Lee Myeongjong: You are dreaming. When a characteristic comes out as a potion, what do hunters with it do?

└ Park Chang-soo: That’s right. When it comes out, it will become a complete mess.

└ Han Chae-rim: I also want to not get sick while I’m defending against monsters! My god…

 

Since then, there have been a lot of comments from Hunters expressing their sympathy for him and her.

Yoo Ji-Ha was able to feel the pain of those hunters by just reading it.

‘It’s great to reduce pain.’

Wounds can be healed with healing skills or potions, but pain is difficult to reduce.

The reason why warrior-type hunters receive a lot of distribution is probably because their job is so dangerous and troublesome.

According to the experiences of the hunters, even if the pain resistance is LV1, the pain of being beaten with a hammer is lessened to the amount of like being hit by a fist.

Yoo Ji-Ha was planning to give this to SeongHo Hyung tomorrow.

‘Monsters appear even in polar dungeons.’

Even if SeongHo notices the pain tolerance trait, no one will suspect that it was Yoo Ji-Ha.

Not everything in the dungeon has been identified, so some strange things happen.

In particular, no one would doubt that they developed characteristic by eating something like a Pemican.

But you might eventually get caught if it repeats often.

‘It doesn’t really matter if I get caught.’

Yoo Ji-Ha cleaned up the kitchen in case he was caught.

He was picking winter strawberries and packing for the polar dungeon to go tomorrow when a sports car stopped in front of the store.

Seo HyeJin is here.

“Welcome.”

As always, Yoo Ji-Ha greeted her as usual.

 

Seo HyeJin came to this general store for one reason.

She felt uncomfortable with the service of the existing Hunter supply stores.

It is a franchise of a large corporation and quick service was the basics.

When Seo HyeJin visits the store, two employees follow her.

She felt an indescribable discomfort, when she just wants to take a leisure look at what’s new.

In the past, there were no options, but now there is a general store.

Obviously, the owner of the general store was just lucky and she thought he would never be able to recreate a potion that would open her wallet again.

But it’s okay to just look around.

‘Maybe I can eat it a solar apple.’

Seo HyeJin, who was driving the car, felt a little excitement at the thought of the fruit.

If she asks her manager to buy one, she will receive a box of imported fruits within a few days.

However, the solar apple she ate was different from the sold fruits of the earth.

She will never forget its crispy flesh and sweet and sour taste.

So Seo HyeJin drove to the general store.

‘As expected.’

This young owner welcomed her just as then.

He gave her one glance, but when she looked at the display, he started looking at the book again.

It was a pleasant thing for Seo HyeJin, who has difficulties in interpersonal relationships, and it was nice to be able to slowly browse the shelves.

‘There are some basic things, but…’

This general store had basic potions such as health potions, etheric potions, and poison resistance, but minor ones were rare.

For example, a paralysis resistance potion.

It’s small, so you won’t be able to stock up on a variety of things.

HyeJin looked through the shelves and found the solar apple.

And next to it was an unidentified raspberry-like thing in a basket.

“What is this?”

“Oh, that is. I was lucky enough to find it in a dungeon. First of all, I named it Winter Strawberry.”

She rolled her eyes.

Category 0 dungeon appeared twice for one person?

‘Well, it’s possible.’

HyeJin was a person who values results.

As long as the result is right in front of her, she doesn’t ask too much.

She wondered what effect these strawberries had.

“Have you tried it? Like that solar apple?”

“Yes. It is delicious to eat as it is, but when I make a potion by concentrating it, the resistance to cold increases.”

“You didn’t know about the ether potion, did you?”

“I tried it, but nothing changed.”

Well, this young man has neither skills nor characteristics.

Skill is needed to consume ether.

The cold resistance was different, so he could tell right away.

When HyeJin touched a bottle of blue liquid, she was informed by Yoo Ji-Ha that it was 32%.

Her hand stopped.

“32%? really?”

“Yes. I don’t lie. An increase over 40 minutes.”

If that’s true, HyeJin can run through the Polar Dungeon alone.

She pointed to the potion rack with a trembling gesture.

“From here to here.”

“Well… There is one problem, I haven’t decided on a price yet.”

“You can search for it in Hunter Mania.”

It’s strange to have a conversation with this young man.

HyeJin, who has never talked to anyone other than her manager, couldn’t stand it because she is awkward.

She has been living in a house, shop, and dungeon for three years, all her friends and colleagues are gone.

Her manager doesn’t have many conversations with her because she takes care of things so that she feel comfortable in her life.

Sometimes they didn’t talk all day.

However, when she comes here, it is strange that she talks a lot.

The two put their heads together and searched for a price.

The result was beyond imagination.

“It’s too expensive.”

“It’s worth it. Call the total amount.”

“Well… I’ll give you a little more at this price.”

HyeJin couldn’t understand the young man who dared to sell products at a discount, but she tried to.

After the deposit was completed, Yoo Ji-Ha brought some winter strawberries on a plate.

“This is delicious, try it.”

“It’s precious, is it okay to eat it?”

“It’s okay to treat guests like this.”

She has felt it before, but it seems that money is a good thing for this person, whether he has it or not.

HyeJin picked up a dark red strawberry and brought it to her mouth.

Munch. Munch.

Where does this little flesh come from with such a rich aroma and refreshing taste?

It was a really delicious fruit that made her cry.

Without noticing, she ate the strawberry in a hurry.

In the blink of an eye, the plate emptied, and Seo HyeJin felt embarrassed.

“I’m sorry, but this is all I got.”

“That, no… it’s okay. I shouldn’t have been greedy.”

After taking the bottle, she nodded and asked.

“Mr. can come back?”

That’s a weird question.

If there’s something to buy in the store, just come.

Yoo Ji-Ha answered without hesitation. “Of course.”

Coming here makes her feel at ease and good things happen.

HyeJin left the store with a light heart.

‘When I visited before, I thought I would never come back…’

She was wrong.

Without realizing it, HyeJin drove the car with a smile on her lips.

Yoo Ji-Ha saw her off from behind.