As I emerged from the dungeon, I checked my phone for updates on the results of the experiments with Mark2’s fluid, Poispois’s poison, and the carrots, which Young-seong had sent. Suddenly, all the missed notifications popped up.
“What’s this?”
The only people who usually contact me are my family, and Young-seong from Yongsan doesn’t get in touch unless there’s something urgent, so I was puzzled.
“Whoa!”
The first contact I noticed was Predator Kang Hanul. He seemed to have called several times, and there were numerous messages waiting.
“What? Why did he contact me so much? Didn’t we just part ways yesterday?”
Another noticeable contact was Young-seong.
I assumed it would be about the analysis results, but it wasn’t.
“Can I get some tomatoes personally?”
Were they that delicious?
I knew they were tasty from my own experience, but Young-seong’s reaction at the time had been ambiguous, making this unexpected.
Next, I checked Kang Hanul’s messages.
-Brother, are you busy?
-If you have time, maybe we can have a meal together later?
-Do you have any extra tomatoes or carrots?
-I would like to buy some if possible.
He also sent some dad-like jokes, mentioned the events of the previous day, and even a recipe for braised short ribs.
“Why this?”
Glancing through the somewhat confusing messages, the underlying message was clear.
Bring more crops imbued with magic power.
“Hmm.”
I had just finished harvesting tomatoes, and it would soon be time to harvest the Laylas.
Since they weren’t asking for freebies and were willing to buy, I was somewhat tempted.
“Getting close to Kang Hanul is definitely not a loss.”
His personality might be a bit quirky, but he didn’t seem like a bad person. Besides, the number of people wanting to connect with him in the Awakener community could fill a truck, given Kang Hanul’s renown.
“First, I’ll send a message to Young-seong…”
It seems Young-seong has also fallen hard for the tomatoes.
Not that I couldn’t understand. Having tasted them myself, the tomatoes were indeed a whole different level…
I responded that I had more tomatoes and would bring some, then also left a message for Kang Hanul.
“Sorry for the late reply. By any chance, would you be interested in Laylas? No carrots, but I do have some tomatoes. Sending.”
I used to be quite proficient at texting, but three years of dungeon life had somewhat distanced me from modern conveniences.
After sending the messages, I started web surfing to catch up on outside news while waiting for a reply.
“Oh? Ara Hongryeon.”
There was news about Ara Hongryeon Guild, to which Kang Hanul belongs. I clicked it immediately, but the content wasn’t good.
-Ara Hongryeon Guild in crisis! Failed to clear just a Level 4 dungeon?
“Hmm!”
It’s common knowledge that as dungeon levels increase, so does the risk. When dungeons first appeared in this world, Level 4 was considered one of the highest, but now it’s seen as mid-tier.
“This is unexpected. Ara Hongryeon failing a Level 4 raid.”
Delving deeper into the article, it mentioned the emergence of a new type of monster.
Specific details were not released, but the fact that Jeong So-yeon, a leading Awakener of Ara Hongryeon, had led the raid and still failed was significant.
-LOL Ara Hongryeon is washed up.
-They say it’s one of the top five guilds, but it was the first guild formed, so it’s included more out of respect. Now its true nature is beginning to show.
-Ah, Jeong So-yeon should just move to another guild.
Lately, the Terror Guild has been showing off its Awakeners on variety shows, why doesn’t she transfer there?
└Wow, transferring to the Terror Guild would be amazing!
The comments were mostly negative.
“Hmm…”
Recently, guilds that were more accessible to civilians had sprouted up, and Awakeners began to appear more frequently in various media.
However, guilds like Ara Hongryeon still focused on dungeon raids, and the opinions seemed to reflect that situation.
‘Ara Hongryeon especially. It has the symbolism of being South Korea’s first guild.’
Honestly, I couldn’t know the inner thoughts of Han Seok-jun, the guild master of Ara Hongryeon. However, it seemed he might be sticking to his position more out of a desire to preserve tradition than out of fear of change.
“It’s hard to say what the right answer is, but I hope this situation resolves well.”
I murmured to myself and then looked at other articles, most of which were related to Awakeners.
“Park Suho is dating Kim Hyerin? Wow, that’s big news.”
Gossip was always entertaining.
I once dreamed of being a star Awakener myself, so these articles always gave me a strange sense of vicarious satisfaction.
Of course, there were bitter feelings, but now these celebrity-like Awakeners felt far too distant.
Ding!
Just then, a reply came in amidst browsing various news items.
It was from Young-seong.
-Can we meet now? This time I’ll come to you.
He must be in quite a hurry.
With such a reaction, I could tell that it wasn’t just the taste of the tomatoes that was the issue—it was something else.
“Because it’s an item? Or because of its effects?”
Whatever the reason, I had agreed to meet at a café near the entrance to Obongsan, so I headed back into the dungeon. Observing the diminished supply of tomatoes, I really felt the impact of these gluttons.
“I won’t be able to bring much.”
I realized I hadn’t asked how much he wanted. If it’s not enough, I can always bring more later.
With that, I grabbed about 2kg of cherry tomatoes and headed to the café. The distance from my location wasn’t far, but considering the time to descend from the middle of a mountain without proper paths, I figured we would arrive around the same time.
“Wow, you’re already here?”
I thought I might arrive a bit earlier, but there was Young-seong, already settled and waiting inside the café.
“Sorry for calling you out suddenly, Kyu-seong.”
“No, it’s okay. I drop in unexpectedly, too.”
As soon as I sat down, I took the tomatoes out of my bag. Young-seong’s gaze hardly left my hands.
“I’ve got about 2kg here. I wish I could bring more, but that’s all I have for now…”
“Kyu-seong, are you growing these yourself?”
Young-seong whispered to me, almost inaudibly. It was a quiet café with no one else around, yet he was cautious.
“Sort of.”
“Sort of?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
He seemed to catch my intentionally vague response and quietly nodded.
“Ah! Here are the documents and items you left with me last time, including the carrots you wanted me to keep.”
“Thank you.”
“And the Ara Hongryeon Guild asked if I could get more of this poison, but I’ve delayed responding. Can you get more of this poison?”
“From the Ara Hongryeon Guild?”
Why was Ara Hongryeon Guild coming up here?
Ah, thinking about it, Young-seong seemed to know Kang Hanul from Ara Hongryeon. Maybe he was the one who commissioned the analysis of the items I sent?
“Ah, didn’t I tell you? I used to work as a researcher for Ara Hongryeon Guild.”
“Wow, really? This is the first I’ve heard of it!”
“I assumed you knew, but seems like I never mentioned it.”
I couldn’t have imagined he worked for Ara Hongryeon while running a small shop in Yongsan.
‘I should have recognized the extensive network he always bragged about.’
“I can get more of the poison. I’m not sure how much, though.”
“You’ve really become one with nature.”
“…Indeed. I’ve become a dungeon natural.”
It was a new realization when Young-seong mentioned being a natural. It truly felt like I was one with nature, from crops to poison.
Might other things also emerge?
‘If it’s a random ability from a slime, it might be possible…’
Lost in thought, Young-seong nodded and said he would talk to the guild.
“Ah, Young-seong. I was checking your message and saw that Kang Hanul also contacted me.”
“That guy always meddles too much. Just deal with him casually.”
They must be really close.
Curiosity piqued since receiving the messages, I asked,
“Kang Hanul seemed to be looking for these because they’re tasty, but did you like them too? It didn’t seem like it that day…”
“Hmm.”
Young-seong paused for a moment, then quietly said.
“My wife is ill.”
“Your wife is ill?”
“Do you know Kim Si-young?”
“Of course, Awakener Kim Si-young from the Ara Hongryeon Guild…”
I stopped mid-sentence, suddenly looking at Young-seong with suspicion.
“The wife you just mentioned, is she…?”
“Yes, Si-young is my wife. And she’s very sick right now.”
“Ah…”
I couldn’t have been unaware. It had been a major incident, well-known even among non-Awakeners.
The monster called one of the Seven Deadly Sins.
Even the dungeon was named after that sin, ‘Avarice.’
It was a formidable Level 9 dungeon.
It was one of the highest-level dungeons known to date.
And it was the dungeon that had led many Awakeners to their deaths.
“Many Awakeners, flushed with confidence from having conquered several Level 9 dungeons, were plunged into despair in an instant.”
There was talk among the public that the dungeon should be upgraded to Level 10, considering its difficulty.
“I had no idea you were Awakener Kim Si-young’s husband. Was your request for the tomatoes because of your wife?”
“That’s right.”
I hadn’t realized there was such a story behind his urgency.
“It makes sense why you came here so urgently.”
“Was she poisoned?”
“Yes, but we still haven’t been able to detoxify her. We’ve tried all sorts of research over the past few years…”
Young-seong’s expression grew somber, and seeing him so helpless, I felt a pang of sympathy.
“Detoxification…”
Suddenly, I thought of the fruit juice.
One of its effects was detoxification.
‘It was called Ambiguous Fruit Juice, but…’
Could it possibly help?
But to offer help, I would need to reveal my liquid synthesis ability.
He must already have some suspicions, though…
“Young-seong.”
“Yes?”
“You’ve guessed my ability, haven’t you?”
Taken aback by my sudden question, Young-seong flinched, then carefully nodded.
“It was inevitable. You’ve always been bringing potions.”
“I think I might be able to help you with my ability.”
“What?”
There was still half a carrot left.
Enough to make more juice if needed.
And in the dungeon, crops were still growing. Since the key to detoxification was the tomatoes, I could harvest more and make various preparations.
“Young-seong, I think it’s my turn to help you now.”
“Kyu-seong…”
Young-seong’s wife?
I must try to cure her.
Cliche Novel 