Gallery 11 - Dumpster

I Gained a Gallery in the Wild - Eps 11 Golden Poison Frog (1)

There's a slang term ‘shit exploded’. In other words, it means complete chaos.

What started as a simple thank-you post quickly turned into a gopchang situation as several users jumped in.

Starting from the ChaengguPrincess, the sudden intrusion of KingLeore, and countless other anonymous users.

Everyone hurling profanities or throwing fight bait and such. The comment notifications kept ringing endlessly.

‘Doesn’t the mods usually step in for stuff like this?’

I thought the mods intervened when things got too heated. The rules in the pinned post said something similar.

Even if it's sports fans fighting, once personal attacks are involved, the topic can no longer be centered on sports.

ㄴ DontAbandonTheHero) Stop it! If you continue spamming, I'll ban you!

ㄴ ChaengguPrincess) But that bastard picked a fight first~

ㄴ KingLeore) That bastard’s the one talking nonsense.

ㄴ DontAbandonTheHero) Even so, don't fight in someone else's post! I'll open a fighting arena for you to duke it out!

ㄴ ChaengguPrincess) Okey~

ㄴ KingLeore) lolol

Right as I thought that, the mod appeared The moderator ordered them to stop fighting on my post and take it to the arena.

Everyone complied and disappeared. Finally, I was freed from notification hell.

Soon after, a post appeared on the gallery from the mods.

[Debate Arena: Which team has more tradition?]

I refreshed the screen for a moment and tons of replies poured in. There would be no point joining that mess.

I heard that posts instigating conflict between nations get banned, but apparently this is sports, so they're letting it slide.

Of course, if it gets too heated, the mod will directly intervene. They handle things pretty well.

'I should just focus on my own thing.'

I’ve returned all the compasses, so now I need to figure out how to deal with the Golden Poison Frog.

First of all, that river where the frog lives is practically a natural fortress.

The water is so clear it's hard to gauge depth, and the current is quite strong

If I go in there, I'll die from one spit. Therefore, a ranged attack is essential.

'A bow is... difficult, so is a crossbow the best option?'

I don’t know how to use a bow. A crossbow might be easier for me.

Currently, I have about 650 gold in my gallery account from selling the Iron Scaled Snake.

I'm not sure if this is enough to buy a crossbow, especially the type I want. Let's post first.

---

Title: Crossbow Question

Author: WildGrills

Thinking of hunting a frog, any harpoon-style crossbows available?

Looking for one where the bolt stays connected to the crossbow so I can reel it in after hitting.

---

ㄴ SwordMaster) Why do you need a crossbow?

ㄴ WildGrills) Need it to catch a frog. The river's too deep to approach carelessly

ㄴ SwordMaster) Why not just fire sword energy?

ㄴ WildGrills) (ᵕ—ᴗ—)

ㄴ SwordMaster) Or just walk on water?

ㄴ WildGrills) Master?

Is this guy joking or what? I could only let out a bitter laugh at the absurdity.

But looking at the sword technique know-how they posted, from their perspective, thety might actually be serious.

It took me repeatedly emphasizing that I'm just an ordinary person before SwordMaster finally backed off.

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) How about mastering the internal energy technique This One imparts, then catching it?

ㄴ WildGrills) I need to drink water to live too, Master

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) If it's water, This One can provide plenty.

ㄴ WildGrills) Then I wouldn't be able to get help when I really need it.

As I said before, I want to save help for when it's truly necessary. It's a sort of trump card.

Until then, I need to be self-sufficient. Or earn money and buy from the auction house.

Besides, a crossbow would be incredibly useful in many situations here.

ㄴ PassingDwarf) I can modify what you mentioned.

ㄴ WildGrills) How much roughly?

ㄴ PassingDwarf) dwarf-made, so about 500 gold. That okay?

"What the hell...?"

Why is it so expensive? Did they embed diamonds in it or something? It’s way beyond what I expected.

I heard 300 gold is about a month’s living expenses for a commoner, so this is way beyond that.

Maybe it's because it's ‘dwarf-made’ like in fantasy novels, but I'm not sure if that applies in this world too.

ㄴ WildGrills) Why is it so expensive ;; Is it gold-plated or something?

ㄴ It's dwarf-made. Of course it's pricey. yeye

ㄴ Isn't that actually cheap? Considering it's a crossbow

ㄴ Crossbow prices vary wildly by craftsman

ㄴ Probably second to swords in how extreme the price can get?

ㄴ PassingDwarf) And consider the custom work. This is super cheap. I feel bad about it

ㄴ WildGrills) What are you sorry about?

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Telling you to become fertilizer. I didn't realize it was that serious

ㄴ WildGrills) Huh. How much is a normal crossbow?

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Don't know much about human-made

ㄴ Probably around 30 gold?

ㄴ yeye, a normal bow is about 10 gold

ㄴ WildGrills) What the hell kind of premium is this

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Don't buy it if you don't like it

ㄴ WildGrills) Whoa, I never said I wasn’t buying

ㄴ lmao Look at that quick change of attitude

Anyway, this is an opportunity. PassingDwarf is the only one who can give me the exact type of crossbow I want.

Though expensive, if it's reliable dwarf craftsmanship, it might be worth the cost.

Even if it's a scam, I simply won't buy from them again. If worst comes to worst, I'll get a crossbow from someone else.

ㄴ LetsGrowTrees) Bows are better than crossbows. This is proven fact in the World Tree Watermelon Path

ㄴ What’s with this Kanpf again

ㄴ Here we go again with the World Tree Watermelon Path bullshit

ㄴ Historically speaking, it's true....

ㄴ Doesn't everything exist in the World Tree Watermelon Path? lol

ㄴ WildGrills) I'm using a crossbow because I'm in a hurry. I can't use a bow

ㄴ LetsGrowTrees) I see. Maybe you should learn the greatness of us elves by practicing archery?

ㄴ Greatness my ass lolol

ㄴ How many people are better archers than Kanpfs lol

ㄴ Here come Kanpf supremacists again ;;

ㄴ LetsGrowTrees) But generally speaking, the bow is the symbol of Elf. Let me ask you in reverse. Which race comes to mind if I say ‘bow’?

ㄴ fuck, can't argue with that even though it's frustrating

ㄴ Yeah those Kampf bastards do shoot well lolol

ㄴ So what? They still get crushed without frontliners lol

Unlike their steep imperialism tendencies, it seems common knowledge that the bow is the symbol of Elf.

This somewhat aligns with my existing knowledge. I posted a comment on the increasingly boisterous thread.

ㄴ WildGrills) My country was also really good at archery

ㄴ LetsGrowTrees) Were your ancestors elves?

ㄴ WildGrills) Nah;;

ㄴ lmaooo Look at that complete lack of prejudice

ㄴ Not sure if that's good or bad lmao

ㄴ WildGrills) And the world I lived in had only humans

ㄴ LetsGrowTrees) A world with only humans? That's impossible!

ㄴ They said they came from another world. cut them some slack

ㄴ Let's give the poor kid a break

ㄴ It's a concept lolol

It’s not just a concept, it’s true, but they don’t believe me. Well, it doesn't really matter.

Whether they believe me or not, all I need to do is survive here.

ㄴ But they really were good at archery, right?

ㄴ WildGrills) yeye, really good. Just not me

ㄴ Why though? Like racial traits or something?

ㄴ WildGrills) Because there were many countries we wanted to shoot at, above and below lol

ㄴ lmfao

ㄴ Are you crazy? lololololol

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Hey. Finished the modifications. Request a trade

It seems PassingDwarf finished the modifications while I was waiting. I immediately initiated a trade.

A dwarf-made crossbow, huh. How good could it be? I hope it's worth the high price.

[PassingDwarf has registered an item for trade.]

[PassingDwarf: I added the harpoon-like bolts you mentioned plus some regular bolts. Just know the harpoon bolts have shitty range.]

[WildGrills: How shitty?]

[PassingDwarf: Max range is about 50m.]

Fifty meters. I thought about the width of the stream where the Golden Frog lived.

It wasn't very wide, just wide enough to be called a stream rather than a river. It was just really deep.

But considering that frog’s spit, that range might be cutting it close.

The best approach would be to ambush while keeping my body hidden.

[WildGrills: ok then. I've sent the money.]

[PassingDwarf: I also threw in some gloves just in case.]

[WildGrills: How much for those? I'll send more.]

[PassingDwarf: Stop being a sucker and just take them ;;]

I feel bad taking more from someone who even gave me toilet paper, but I ended up with the gloves too.

Considering that mishandling the frog could lead to disaster, they've provided quite an appropriate item.

I should give them some good herbs if I find any later. Or leather.

They're a blacksmith, so leather would probably be more helpful than herbs anyway.

'Let's see. They sent it in a box.'

After the trade, a box appeared. I opened the neatly squared container.

As soon as I opened it, the crossbow and gloves were the first things that caught my eye.

Next, there was an unexpected bottle that puzzled me.

'What's this?'

A brown bottle with a cork at the top. The cork made me realize.

I remembered the dwarf saying they would give me a drink so I wouldn't commit suicide.

Didn't think they would actually send it. Surprisingly soft-hearted for someone so gruff.

'I'll save this for later.'

I can use it someday as a makeshift anesthetic or painkiller. Being drunk helps you ignore pain to a degree.

I carefully placed the liquor bottle against the wall so it wouldn’t break, then checked out the crossbow.

The crossbow had an overall black base, and as expected of dwarf craftsmanship, the design was quite impressive.

'It's connected to the bolt.'

The harpoon-like bolt and crossbow were connected by a thin rope. I could roughly understand how to use it.

I'll give it a test. I know making a crossbow is difficult, but the usage itself shouldn't be complicated.

I placed my foot on the stirrup-like part at the front of the crossbow. That's how I heard it's done.

I set the crossbow on the ground, held it in place with my foot, and pulled the string to load it.

Clunk—

"Huh?"

...It wasn't working. I was slightly baffled.

I pulled the string, but it wouldn't budge. When I yanked harder, my whole body jerked forward.

At first, I wondered if it was stuck on something. But when I applied even more force, the string gradually came up.

“Gyaahhh!”

Only by letting out a battle cry could I barely manage to load it. I panted heavily, unable to contain my astonishment.

What kind of crossbow is this that even loading is this difficult? Could this possibly be normal?

This world’s got superhumans who can demolish mountains with their bare hands, so maybe it’s not surprising.

I sighed and loaded my bolts. First up is the harpoon bolt.

I planned to use the reusable harpoon first since I needed to conserve the other bolts.

'There's even a stock for aiming. That should make it easier.'

It's also quite light compared to its size. This made aiming convenient.

I went outside the cave and aimed at a tree at some distance.

Firing at the hard cave wall might damage the harpoon, so a tree was a safer target.

'Hold my breath...'

Thwack!

The moment I pulled the trigger, the sound of air being torn reached my ears.

The tension must’ve been massive, because I felt a breeze strong enough to ruffle my hair.

Thwack!

The harpoon shot straight forward, cleanly piercing through the center of the upright tree.

I'll say it again. Not stuck, but pierced through. Truly a terrifying power.

With this, even that Golden Poison Frog wouldn't stand a chance. It wouldn't even know what hit it.

'There's a reason it was so expensive.'

Stunned by the far-exceeding firepower, I clicked my tongue and retrieved the harpoon.

Retrieving it wasn't difficult thanks to the attached rope.

'Still, I need to practice.'

I feel like rushing off to hunt that Golden Frog right away. But as the saying goes, ‘The more you rush, the slower you go.’

Because loading it is such a damn ordeal, I’ll only get one shot. Just one opportunity to cut off the frog's breath.

If I miss, I’ll have to run like hell. One splatter of that poison and I’m done for.

I must prepare thoroughly to be able to drink water freely in the future. It's absolutely not because I'm tempted by AllFather's 20,000 gold.

'I must shower, if only to get rid of this grimy feeling.'

Not washing for two days is driving me crazy. It's fortunate that the weather is moderately warm; if it had been hot and humid, it would have been the worst.

After that, I trained steadily until daw. I've gotten a little used to pulling the rope.

As time passed and dusk began to fall, I returned inside the cave.

'With the money I have left...'

The most urgent items were snake/insect repellent. I've been lucky so far, but I could get bitten by a venomous snake or insect while sleeping.

The most urgent thing is snake or bug repellent. I've been lucky so far, but I might get bitten by a poisonous snake or insect while I'm sleeping.

I also need antidotes and various medical supplies. Especially an antidote, which is a must for that frog.

'While nearly everything is available at the auction house... everything's so expensive.'

The insane fees are dragging me down. While bypassing distribution channels was convenient, the prices were brutal.

Still, not buying is out of the question. I bought a vial of antidote with tears in my eyes.

Since I could be scammed, I read the reviews meticulously just in case.

'The repellent... I'll buy this.'

By the time I bought everything, I was left with about 20 gold. I don’t really regret it.

Especially when I think it's extending my life. I sprayed the repellent around the cave entrance and near my sleeping area.

No clue if it’ll really work. I can only hope it does. I read the reviews thoroughly too.

Chomp— Chomp—

"Ugh. This tastes fucking awful."

Of course, I didn’t forget to eat some byeokgokdan for dinner. The bitter taste of the herb spread in my mouth.

I'll have to survive on wall grain pills for the time being, so I have no choice but to endure. Better to have this than nothing at all.

"Nnngh..."

After eating the grain balls, I tried the full lotus position again. It’s not bedtime yet.

The moment I twisted myself into full lotus, my joints felt like they were snapping, but I held strong.

Didn’t they say to do mana cultivation methods or internal energy methods in this state?

Since HeavenlyDemon said they would teach me, I guess I just have to practice the lotus.

‘Will a week be enough to get used to this?'

Flexibility doesn't improve overnight. This would take days of persistent effort.

Still, with nothing much to do until bedtime, I have plenty of time. If I were at home, I'd just be gaming endlessly.

'Thank goodness I have the gallery.'

I explored the gallery while practicing my full lotus position. In fact, the gallery plays a very significant role.

Humans struggle to endure loneliness. This is why we're called social creatures.

Was it Robinson Crusoe? I've read a novel about a person trapped on an uninhabited island treating a ball like a person.

Communication is essential for humans. Right now, the gallery is filling that need.

'I should go to sleep soon."

Time flew by as I browsed the gallery. I released the lotus position.

Absorbed in the gallery while in lotus position, I had forgotten the pain.

Of course, the moment I remembered it, that crazy joint pain came surging back.

I endured the pain that felt like my joints were being torn and prepared my sleeping area.

It was warm during the day, but the temperature dropped at night, so a fire was essential.

Crackle! Crackle!

I made a fire using the ignition stone Heavenly Demon gave me and wood from outside. Thanks to this, the cave's interior felt slightly warmer.

On the first day, I was so exhausted I didn't even notice the cold. I’d nearly died from the Mad Dog bite, after all.

I tossed in a few more firewoods and wrote a post on the Gallery.

---

Title: Survival Day 1 Complete

Author: WildGrills

(Photo of a tally mark on the wall)

(Photo of a blazing campfire)

End of survival day 1, time to sleeeep~.

---

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) You've worked hard. Rest well.

ㄴ SwordMaster) Rest well.

ㄴ Is it day 1 starting from today?

ㄴ Seems so. If it cuts off...

ㄴ Ugh ;; that’s unsettling

ㄴ StarlightPrincess) Let’s stay strong with me. I’m waiting for Day 2

ㄴ Mayfly's lifespan vs. Terminal illness

ㄴ My heart swells with grandeur wow

ㄴ Thank you for supporting WildGrills thus far

ㄴ StarlightPrincess) You’re all so mean

Yeah, why did I expect anything else from these clowns?

Ah, just to clarify, I'm referring to the anonymous users, not the fixed nicknames.

Most fixed-nickname people cheer me on, but the anonymous… no explanation needed.

'This is better than nothing.'

I chuckled softly and closed the gallery. Then I lay down on the hard stone floor.

If I catch the Golden Poison Frog tomorrow, should I buy a blanket first? Or maybe a pillow would be nice too.

Perhaps because of today's extreme hardships, such thoughts quickly faded as sleep began to cover me.

As my eyes began to close and the insects sounds faded,

'I want to go home.'

With this desperate wish, my consciousness completely shut down.