[Confirming the dungeon master, Ara (Gluttony).]
[Entry is granted.]
“The air is nice.”
I was greeted by a now somewhat familiar landscape.
Following behind me, my family entered.
“Wow.”
“Huh, huhuhu…”
My parents couldn’t close their mouths at the astonishing scenery.
Seon-ah, eyes wide open, stood blankly with Ara and Gomgom in her arms.
“Welcome. This is our real home.”
“No wonder you were so confident.”
My father nodded, brushing his hand over the grass on the ground. Then he looked up at the sky.
“Is this world real? I still can’t believe it.”
“It’s not some VR thing, right? What’s that device you wear like glasses? It’s not like that, is it?”
I couldn’t help but laugh at my mother’s words. Then I led my still-busy-looking family to our first destination.
“Follow me. There’s still a lot to see.”
The Dungeon of Gluttony was a place with many locations even I didn’t know.
From what I heard from the Alfheims, there were cliffs, numerous waterfalls, and small floating islands.
‘I can’t even guess how vast this place is.’
I need to tour the dungeon someday. I should bring something like a bicycle.
We walked for about 10 minutes, admiring the surrounding scenery.
My parents quietly took it all in, while Seon-ah snapped photos with her phone, exclaiming in awe non-stop.
“Brother, brother. This is amazing! I can’t believe there’s a dungeon like this! I’ve never heard of anything like it. You know I’m in a dungeon studies program, right? I’ve studied many types of dungeons, but this place….”
As expected of an awakened being otaku, Seon-ah listed various pieces of knowledge. But I let her words go in one ear and out the other as we finally reached our intended destination.
“I have arrived!”
Ara ran over to greet the slimes. In just a few days, the field had turned green, and the slimes, including Mark2, welcomed us.
“These are like the slimes we saw before.”
“Oh, they have cute hats on.”
Seon-ah and my mother touched the soft bodies of the slimes, including Mark2.
“You said there was some work left. Will it take long?”
“No. It will be done soon. I just need to plant these seeds.”
“Let me help.”
“No, it’s really simple. I can do it alone.”
The field was already plowed by Ara, so we only needed to plant the seeds. This time, we were planting beans requested by Hanul.
‘Meju beans, baektae.’
Just as I was about to plant the seeds, everyone came over to see what I was doing.
“Beans?”
“Yes. I’m planning to make meju (fermented soybean blocks).”
“Wow, I’m curious. What will doenjang (fermented soybean paste) made from our beans taste like?”
“Won’t it taste too unique? I’m a bit worried.”
My father’s concern was valid. The meju beans I grew might taste different from ordinary ones. While they would still taste good, would they still taste good after fermentation?
“If it doesn’t work out, we’ll try something else. There are many types of meju beans. Although this is the most common one.”
“That’s the right attitude.”
As we started planting the beans, despite saying it was okay, the whole family helped. It wasn’t a difficult task, so I gratefully accepted their help, but Seon-ah kept her distance, taking pictures of us.
No, to be exact, she was taking pictures of Ara and Gomgom planting beans.
-Grrr.
Gomgom still clumsily planted beans in the ground, which seemed to strike Seon-ah’s heart as her eyes looked unusual.
“Hehehe! All done!”
“Oh, well done.”
“Brother, shh. For now, only Ara’s voice will be recorded.”
“…”
Instead of helping, she just stood there!
Anyway, with the help of several people, it ended much earlier than I expected.
Ara, with soil smudged all over her face and body, approached me with a bright smile, and I gently brushed off the dirt from her as I spoke.
“Shall we have a snack?”
“Sure.”
“Let’s spread Mom’s strawberry jam on the bread.”
“Ooh! Strawberry jam! Delicious!”
Seon-ah, who hadn’t done any work, quickly set up the mat. Even as she did this, she held her phone in one hand, genuinely taking pictures of Ara and Gomgom.
“Should we just give our little bear some jam?”
-Grr?
Mother discreetly scooped some jam and handed it to Gomgom. Gomgom sniffed the strawberry jam for the first time and then took it with his adorable paw.
Slurp.
Gomgom’s eyes widened as he tasted the strawberry jam. He then quickly licked it all up.
-Roar!
“Delicious! It’s like honey!”
Ara, who had eaten the bread with strawberry jam, shouted out something that was either a translation of Gomgom’s words or her own opinion.
Meanwhile, we also received bread with jam and immediately took a bite.
“Mmm! As expected.”
It was just as I thought.
Indeed, spreading jam on the bread made it taste better than eating it plain. Though the bread got a bit messy, the soft texture was satisfying enough.
“Kyu-seong.”
“Yes.”
“Is that the place you were planning to turn into a rice paddy?”
Father, who had been eating bread, pointed to a place that had turned into a small pond.
“Oh, yes. It’s a bit ambiguous because we originally planned to dig the ground and then use the water from the nearby river.”
“And then?”
“As Ara and I were digging, water suddenly burst out from below.”
“Oh, really? Could it be hot spring water?”
“I’m not sure. We just left it as is, but we should check it out since we’re here. And Father.”
“Yes?”
“We have a hot spring here. Look forward to it.”
“A hot spring? Here?”
Leaving my surprised father behind, I finished my bread and went to the rice paddy. Just as I felt before, a pleasant scent emanated from the paddy.
‘It’s a bit much to call this a rice paddy now.’
Steam was rising, and bubbles were gushing out from the center, with water flowing towards the river through a channel that had been dug out.
Did the slimes do this?
“Could it really be hot spring water?”
But who knows.
Given that we had already discovered hot springs here, I couldn’t rule out the possibility.
And all those hot springs had appeared with a system window. Shouldn’t I check this one too?
“No way, it can’t be… right?”
[Honey-Flavored Hot Spring]
Honey-flavored?
…?
Why do I feel Ara’s way of speaking in the system window? And what kind of hot spring is a honey-flavored hot spring?
“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong! The bread is delicious! Eat more!”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. Keep eating.”
I waved at Ara, who was looking out for me, and then I lightly touched the hot spring.
‘Hot.’
It was slightly hot, but I got used to it quickly. It seemed just right for soaking in.
‘I’m already thinking of soaking in the hot spring.’
Fortunately, since the system recognized it as an official hot spring, I knew it wasn’t dangerous.
It seemed we would have to grow rice somewhere else.
“Should I taste it?”
Since it had the peculiar name of “honey-flavored hot spring,” I had to try it. Although it felt a bit odd to drink hot spring water meant for soaking, no one had used it yet, so it should be fine.
Just a sip.
I suddenly wondered if the slimes had already used it as a hot spring.
Huh?
Mark2, who was enjoying his bread with jam, tilted his head as he saw me.
Well, it doesn’t matter.
Just a little…
Gulp.
I scooped some of the hot spring water into my hand and tasted it. As its name suggested, it had a subtle honey flavor.
“Amazing.”
It was delicious.
Though it wasn’t as strong as the honey made by the fairies, it had a subtle honey aroma that could be compared to green or black tea.
“Mom, do we have a thermos?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Just a moment.”
I emptied the tea in the thermos and filled it with the honey-flavored hot spring water.
Then I poured it into a cup.
“Is this water from over there?”
“Yes. It’s called the honey-flavored hot spring.”
“Honey-flavored hot spring?”
My family looked at me with skeptical expressions, but only Ara seemed excited.
“Honey flavor!!!?”
Ara looked at the cup in my hand with anticipation. I handed it to her, and she drank it immediately.
“Oh! It’s the water I drank last time!”
“That’s right. Ara tasted it before, didn’t you?”
“It tastes like honey!”
I couldn’t help but laugh as Ara repeated the system’s description. I then offered it to the others.
“Try it.”
“Alright. Give me some.”
My father extended his cup.
I filled it, and he gestured for me to stop when it was full.
“It has a nice aroma.”
“Let me try…”
I poured the hot spring water for my mother and Seon-ah as well, and gave the rest to Gomgom and Ara.
Gomgom, who had been stopped by me from tasting the hot spring water before, finally got to try it.
“Ah, it’s nice.”
“Hmm, good tea.”
“There’s really nothing missing here, brother?”
Everyone seemed satisfied.
But it wasn’t over yet.
“This is my workplace, and we have a separate place for camping.”
“Isn’t this the end?”
“As I said, there’s also a hot spring and a lake. You even prepared fishing gear.”
“Haha. I forgot for a moment because this place feels like a paradise.”
I haven’t experienced winter here yet, but the usual weather is just clear and cool.
It seems to rain occasionally, given the growing plants and the rivers and lakes, but I haven’t seen it rain myself.
“Shall we move to a different spot now?”
“Let’s do that.”
We packed up and left it to Bokkeum again.
My parents asked if the slimes, including Mark2, weren’t coming with us, but they had work to do here.
“Our son has become quite ruthless while we weren’t looking.”
“Haha.”
Since the topic came up, I cautiously brought it up to my father.
“Father.”
“Yes?”
“Do you think it would be difficult to build a structure here?”
“Oh!”
Hearing my idea, my father stood on a hill and looked around the field.
Then, after examining the nearby trees, he spoke.
“The building materials are a bit tricky. It seems difficult to bring in materials from outside…”
“That’s true.”
“Well, let’s try drafting a plan first.”
“But you said it would be difficult.”
“Still, I can’t give up the romance of building something in a place like this. Is it for a house where you’ll live?”
“A place for me would be nice, but it’s primarily for the slimes.”
“I’ll think about it. If we rack our brains, we might come up with a way.”
Building materials were indeed a problem.
We’d have to source them locally, which isn’t as easy as it sounds…
‘Even with Ara’s help, it’s tricky.’
I’ll think about it slowly. It’s not an urgent issue for now.
After finishing up, we headed to the lakeside.
Although it was a bit far from the field, my family seemed to enjoy the walk, smiling all the way.
“How about building a house and living here?”
“I’d like that too.”
“While we’re at it, let’s build a house for us to live in as well.”
“That was your main point, wasn’t it!”
“Hahaha.”
Finally, we arrived at the lakeside, and everyone was in awe.
“Wow.”
“This is another spectacular sight.”
“It’s like a painting.”
The lake reflected the dreamy sky perfectly.
This created a mystical scene that greeted us.
Cliche Novel 