Chapter 123

Sidegrade (3)

It was a completely unexpected sidegrade—not only for me, but even for the Heavenly Demon and SwordMaster.

It wasn’t necessarily bad, but it had evolved in such a strange direction that I wasn’t sure what to make of it.

‘Would it be better if I could condense it?’

Ultimately, I had no choice but to change the direction of my training.

Before attempting to reach the Aura Blade stage, I would first focus on compressing my aura.

I would develop a feel for it by forcibly compressing it, then try to imbue it with cutting power.

When I asked the gallery about this, everyone told me that even the compression process would be difficult.

As they had repeatedly mentioned, everything from Aura Blade onward depended upon talent. There was no helping it.

‘It won’t explode, will it?’

Even if I compressed it, the situation remained unsettling. This was a phenomenon that not even SwordMaster had ever witnessed.

What kind of aura would my future self manifest?

Would I swing around an aura that towered all the way into the heavens, or would I wield a normal(?) Aura Blade?

‘...There’s nothing wrong with becoming stupidly strong.’

At least I had grown stronger.

I wasn’t in a position to be picky.

Moreover, I planned to continue consuming inner cores.

Even though Clever Demon had given me a storage container, that didn’t mean the inner cores would never deteriorate.

Ultimately, my only choice was to continue training consistently.

I had to become stronger somehow.

“Kyuuh...”

“Wonmo, are you awake?”

After some time had passed, Wonmo stumbled sleepily out of the cave. His drowsy eyes were adorable.

Namu-Ppareumbo was riding on his back, wearing the same expression as always.

We then enjoyed breakfast together.

Three fish had been caught in the trap.

After finishing our meal, I intended to train, but there was something I needed to do first.

I had to send Passing Dwarf a message.

I asked whether he had figured out why Mithricon—the alloy of mithril and orichalcum—glowed.

Before mana was infused into it, the material was merely a dull silver. Its beauty when infused with mana was a separate matter.

I could have simply accepted it as a good thing, but this was an entirely new material that had never existed before. It needed to be handled carefully.

[Wild Grylls: So, have you figured out why it glows?]

[Passing Dwarf: How would I know after just one day? Research doesn’t magically finish overnight;;]

[Wild Grylls: It’s not dangerous, right?]

[Passing Dwarf: I haven’t found anything particularly dangerous. The only problem is that it’s too good.]

It wasn’t dangerous. It was simply too good.

That was the dwarf’s conclusion.

After thinking for a moment, I asked his opinion about something else. It was related to the warning he had previously given me.

[Wild Grylls: You told me to be careful about who I give Mithricon to, right?]

[Passing Dwarf: Yeah. Because the moment the world learns about this alloy, all hell will break loose.]

[Wild Grylls: Then what if we make it extremely common? We could just hand it out everywhere.]

[Passing Dwarf: Wow. You really know how to start a war, you bastard. You said you were a soldier, but you’re fucking terrifying.]

[Wild Grylls: It was a joke. Seriously.]

I had only been joking, but the dwarf apparently took me seriously.

That demonstrated just how valuable and powerful this alloy was.

After barely clearing up the dwarf’s misunderstanding, I brought up what I had actually wanted to say.

[Wild Grylls: I want to give the alloy to someone besides you. Do you know Allfather?]

[Passing Dwarf: Ah, I know that mage. According to some registered user, the Immortal King is trapped inside his refrigerator.]

[Wild Grylls: I think I know who said that. Anyway, I want to give Allfather some of the alloy and ask him to study it. Is that okay?]

[Passing Dwarf: Yeah, not a bad idea. Hurry up and give it to him so I can go drink.]

[Wild Grylls: You really couldn’t be fucked to research it, could you?]

[Passing Dwarf: I love alcohol more than minerals, kek.]

[Wild Grylls: Good grief;;]

At this rate, he really might die of liver cancer.

In any case, I had received the dwarf’s opinion.

I wanted to give some of the alloy not only to Allfather, but also to some of the other registered users.

‘Would it be weird if I gave some to Cheonggu Princess to use as a glow stick...?’

Even I thought it was a ridiculous idea.

But glow sticks were irresistible.

For now, it would be best to gift an ingot to Allfather. I intended to give it to him for research purposes.

[Allfather: Oh! An alloy of mithril and orichalcum? This time, rather than discovering it, you created it yourself...!]

[Wild Grylls: Yes. I gave some to another registered user too, but he seems too busy drinking. Could you investigate whether it poses any risks?]

[Allfather: Of course. Is there anything you would like in return?]

[Wild Grylls: Not particularly. I’m giving it to you for research purposes too.]

[Allfather: Thank you. Goodness, my lower half has been growing stiff quite often lately.]

[Wild Grylls: Would you like a mature Mandrake?;;]

[Allfather: That will not be necessary. I am still hale and hearty.]

[Wild Grylls: Ah, and you don’t need to upload a verification post if possible. The alloy is so distinctive that someone might identify you in real life if you upload it.]

[Allfather: I shall keep that in mind.]

I gifted some of the alloy to Allfather as well.

Naturally, I sent it in ingot form.

As for the glow stick I had considered making for Cheonggu Princess... I left that idea alone. No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed too absurd, so I put it on hold.

If possible, I should make only the tools I intended to use myself.

That would be enough.

‘Time to consume another inner core.’

Afterward, I consumed another inner core while training.

As I mentioned before, it was advantageous to consume the inner cores as quickly as possible.

I was worried that I might abruptly lose consciousness and fall asleep again like yesterday, but my concern proved unfounded.

I consumed the inner core and recited the chant.

Then it simply ended.

Nothing unusual happened.

‘Aside from feeling more energetic, everything seems the same.’

Had my body already adapted to the inner cores?

I hoped so.

My morning training passed in this manner, and lunchtime rapidly approached.

As I headed upriver to catch more fish, I suddenly remembered the dream I had experienced yesterday.

‘Come to think of it, there was a gigantic tree yesterday, wasn’t there?’

According to Necromancy Is Love, it might not have been a dream but an out-of-body experience.

If that phenomenon had been real, there was a high probability that the gigantic tree I had seen also existed.

However, it had been extremely far away, so reaching it wouldn’t be easy.

It was far enough away that I would need to walk continuously for at least six hours.

Given the peculiar nature of the Forest of Four Seasons, my sense of direction would become distorted. It might take even longer than that.

‘Considering how high in the sky I was... I might need to set aside more than an entire day.’

I contemplated the matter while collecting the fish caught in the trap.

If so, it would be far too dangerous.

The reality was that even my shelter wasn’t completely safe.

Moreover, I might encounter monsters like the leader gorilla along the way.

It would be better to master Aura Blade before setting out to explore.

I had no idea how long that would take, but safety came first.

I had already decided to remain here for a long time, so there was no need to rush.

‘I just need to suppress my curiosity.’

Curiosity killed the cat, and in this forest, indulging one’s curiosity was the same as gambling with one’s life.

I hadn’t even secured the safety of my shelter yet.

Although the gorilla troop was unlikely to invade again, I had no idea when they might suddenly change their minds.

Perhaps because I had been thinking about that gigantic tree, I looked toward the corner as soon as I returned to the shelter.

The sapling gifted to me by Let’s Grow Trees was thriving.

“The problem is that it’s growing too well.”

Originally, it had barely reached my knees. Now it already came up to my chest.

It hadn’t even been a week, yet it had grown that much.

How large would it become after a month?

Curious whether this was normal, I uploaded a post to the gallery. I didn’t send a private message.

Unlike the other registered users, I wasn’t particularly close to Let’s Grow Trees.

Things were slightly awkward between us.

Title: Let’s Grow Trees, Please Look at This
Wild Grylls

(Photo of a thriving sapling)

It hasn’t even been that many days, but it’s already grown this much. Is this normal?

└ Heavenly Demon: It is growing well. This lady would like to raise one too.

└ Don’t accept saplings gifted by the knife-ears. Those things are seriously bad news.

　└ Wild Grylls: Why are they bad?

└ Alvenheim is a country naturally abundant in mana. That’s especially true for plants growing near the World Tree.

　└ Because of that trait, they drain far too many nutrients from the soil. It’s so severe that planting their trees can actually cause desertification.

└ Grow Tall and Strong: An elf once came to our village and planted a tree. Our entire harvest failed that year. That was the first time I ever saw my father cry.

└ Let’s Grow Trees: Hmm! It is growing far better than I anticipated! It would normally take about half a year to grow that much!

　└ Wild Grylls: I see. But are the comments above true?

└ Let’s Grow Trees: I suppose you could say they are. It was something even we failed to anticipate. That is why we are now focusing on planting them in places abundant in mana!

　└ You fucking elf bastard. Just stop planting them.

└ Your knife-eared nonsense is destroying nature;;

　└ Can’t anyone do something about these bastards? What are the governments doing?

└ They’ve already issued statements, but the Elf Queen is ignoring all of them. That’s why people are saying she’s trying to start a war.

└ Let’s Grow Trees: As I have repeatedly explained, Alvenheim does not desire war! We merely wish to plant trees throughout the world!

　└ That’s practically a declaration of war, you lunatic;;

└ Would it be okay if I punched you in the face and then claimed I was merely applying makeup to cover the bruise?

　└ Let’s Grow Trees: That would be violence!

└ That’s exactly what you people are doing;;

　└ These elves completely lost their minds after their queen took the throne, kekeke.

└ Didn’t she say that Alvenheim was the greatest nation in the world and that elves, as its heart, stood at the center of the world?

　└ Yeah. Apparently, when the queen said that during her speech, the elves all became drunk on national pride, kekeke.

└ Honestly, she really does give one hell of a speech, kekeke.

I couldn’t tell whether Let’s Grow Trees was trolling or genuinely serious.

Judging from the comments alone, the sapling was essentially an invasive species.

However, watching it grow so vigorously made the danger difficult to appreciate.

‘Is it growing like this because the soil contains so much mana?’

I touched the soil with my hand.

It looked like ordinary dirt.

However, it must contain the dense mana unique to the Forest of Four Seasons.

That raised another question.

What would happen if I planted crops in this soil?

‘If even a sapling grows this quickly, would ordinary crops grow even faster?’

Most trees grew slowly. Their development was normally measured in years.

Yet judging by this sapling’s growth, its development was clearly abnormal.

‘I wasn’t planning to start farming...’

But after seeing how quickly the sapling had grown, it seemed worth considering at least once.

However, rather than scattering seeds indiscriminately, I would first need to select a suitable location.

The shelter was already beginning to feel cramped. Finding enough space for farmland would only make matters more complicated.

‘So this is why people in the past cut down forests to create farmland.’

I nodded, suddenly understanding the intentions of those who had lived in ancient times.

I could either find land suitable for farming or send some of this soil outside the forest.

One of those two options should work.

As it happened, a registered user who appeared to be a farmer had just left a comment.

I planned to upload a question and use it to naturally strike up a conversation, but then—

[Breaking News: Holy Nation of Eldorado Urgently Dispatches Paladin Order to the Forest of Four Seasons, Kekeke] [34]

A title I couldn’t casually ignore caught my eye.

If it had merely been clickbait, I might have overlooked it. But despite having been uploaded only moments ago, comments were pouring in.

‘Isn’t that country currently being torn apart by public opinion?’

I couldn’t understand it.

Making another terrible move in this situation would be unwise.

After staring blankly for a moment, utterly baffled, I opened the post.

Title: Breaking News: Holy Nation of Eldorado Urgently Dispatches Paladin Order to the Forest of Four Seasons, Kekeke

The ‘Pope’ himself personally gave the order. Apparently, he intends to bring down God’s hammer upon whoever has been spreading wicked lies, kekekeke.

So the Paladin Order is currently forming an investigative team and heading toward the Forest of Four Seasons, kekekeke.

└ Has he gone senile? No matter how I look at it, this seems like another massive blunder.

　└ Maybe they’re taking a hard line because they feel falsely accused?

└ It’s a distraction. Kadir issued a public statement last time, remember? They saw that and decided they could use this to stall for time.

　└ What gave these people the confidence to send a Paladin Order into the Forest of Four Seasons?

└ According to the Pope, if Grylls can access the gallery from inside the forest, then they should be able to do it too.

　└ What an idiot;; But surely it won’t actually work, right?

└ If they really can access the gallery, then all of Grylls’s suffering until now was pointless, kekeke.

Who was it that said the young suffer for the sake of the old?

I had thought that saying applied only to the world I came from, but apparently not.

Everyone was the same.

‘Will they really be able to access the gallery?’

For me, however, their expedition represented a kind of hope.

The Pope’s actions were still unquestionably wrong, but regardless of his motives, he had sent people into the forest.

‘I hope they make it as far as my area.’

People truly were self-serving creatures.