Gallery 52 - Dumpster

I Gained a Gallery in the Wild - Eps 52 Night Raid (1)

The crabs I brought were deliciously devoured with my animal friends.

Maybe because they were grilled and not steamed, they tasted good even with the shells on.

Especially thanks to Round Fluff acting as a cleaner, there was almost nothing to throw away.

Even if there were, I would have just ground them finely and thrown them in the river.

"Ugh. I'm so full."

“Kyuu.”

“...”

Perhaps because our bellies were satisfyingly full, the kids, including me, were endlessly lounging around.

Round Fluff lay flat on his back, rubbing his bloated belly, and DizSpeed lay face down.

Since the meal had been properly divided between one human and two animals, none of us were too full to move.

‘Round Fluff ate a lot.’

I looked at Round Fluff lying on the floor. His bloated belly is cute.

When I poke poke pressed his belly, his body wriggled. How could every action be cute?

"Round Fluff. Don't sleep here. Go inside the cave."

"Kyuu..."

He says he can't move because he's ful. Well, since he even ate the shell, that makes sense.

I lightly picked up the belly-stuffed Round Fluff and carried him into the cave.

Soon, he sprawled out on the mat and started napping.

What a truly carefree appearance.

‘He’s not gonna turn into a pig, is he?’

He's in a growth spurt, so everything he eats will probably go to his growth, but I'm still anxious.

Even if it’s not proper exploration, going around the area with him might not be bad.

I need to let him know that outside the cave is dangerous.

'No, wait. Wouldn't he learn that it's dangerous by following his mom around?'

It’s ironic that I was the one who sent that mom to America.

Later when Round Fluff finds out about this, how will he look at me? Mom's enemy! He won't stab me while saying that, will he?

That silly worry passed quickly, and I went back to cleaning up.

I was planning to do laundry with the charcoal from the firewood.

‘Charcoal is low-key amazing.’

You can use it as soap. You can use it as a deodorizer. You can even add flavor with it when cooking.

It is perfect without flaw. If I had to pick a flaw, it would be that snakes might be attracted because of the temperature.

Even those snakes weren't a concern since I was consistently applying repellent.

Thwack! Thwack!

I turned on the hose and started doing laundry. Maybe because I’d rolled around a lot, muddy water flowed out.

I purchased the laundry paddle from the auction house. It's convenient for beating things.

After I finished doing the laundry, I hung it on a makeshift drying rack.

The makeshift drying rack was also simple, just stick two branches in the ground and connect a rope between them.

‘Feels like I’ve already adapted.’

I have absolutely no intention of living in the wild, but somehow I'm living well.

I’m not bored with the gallery, and Round Fluff and DizSpeed keep me from feeling lonely.

In my spare time, I consistently trained my internal strength heart method, so it's a surprisingly busy life.

'I was very full.'

But the desire to escape from this place didn't disappear.

Because this place is too dangerous. You never know when or where a dangerous beast might appear.

Especially the building-sized crab I saw at the lakeside. Even seeing it from a distance made me feel powerless.

‘Let’s not go near the lake for a while. Even if I do, I’ll just grab a crab and leave.’

It's a place where even giant crabs are swarming busily.

The best plan is to take only what I need for the dwarf and get out.

If a swarm of giant crabs shows up midway... well, I’ll just have to run like hell.

'Let's check here and there along the way. Like where the river’s downstream begins, that sort of place.’

It's best to always use the river as a reference point. It's a signpost in a forest where even a compass doesn't work.

Or I could make signposts myself. It will be hard work, but it is necessary to prevent getting lost.

Getting lost here? Survival rates wouldn’t just hit rock bottom, they’d plunge straight into the abyss.

This cave was pure luck to begin with, and it originally had an owner.

It only became mine after I beat up that original owner, so finding another cave would be hard.

'First, I should mark it on the map.'

I marked the river and drew the lakeside at its end.

I don't know how big the lake is, but I drew it as small as possible.

The Forest of Four Seasons was said to be about the size of a small country just in terms of its size.

'Now that the map is marked, time for the internal energy cultivation.'

Before practicing the internal energy cultivation, I checked HeavenlyDemon's message.

It's not asking about well-being greetings. But the message higher up than that.

The knowledge that forms the foundation and roots of internal energy cultivation methods. I read it carefully every time I practiced the technique.

‘Even if this knowledge has spread widely across the gallery, I should still learn from someone trustworthy.’

The basics themselves are spread across the gallery. As HeavenlyDemon mentioned, this was the basis of the basics.

But it wasn't objective. Most people added their own personal know-how.

In contrast, the HeavenlyDemon's teachings are plain and honest. Though there are difficult terms, they are orthodox.

'What's important when practicing internal energy cultivation techniques is whether you can feel the mana, that is, internal energy, flowing through the conception and governing vessels.'

You shouldn't just circulate it blindly. I slowly circulated the internal energy cultivation techniques.

Understanding the profound principles of internal energy cultivation techniques and naturally accepting them.

To breathe, but to perform the circulation without being conscious of it.

Finally, making even ordinary breathing have the same effect as practicing Finally, making even ordinary breathing have the same effect as operating mental techniques.

HeavenlyDemon recommended taking these three steps little by little. When you listen to her, it all makes sense.

'Even the second stage is overwhelming.'

I still feel like my breathing and circulation are separate.

HeavenlyDemon taught to breathe and circulate at the same time, and to train so that they can be done unconsciously.

Listening to her, it did sound like a goal even someone like me could reach with enough effort.

So that she wouldn't be disappointed, I devoted concentration upon concentration each time I practiced the internal energy cultivation techniques.

"Huu."

But I'm not a genius. I'm not even a person of this world.

No matter how many times I controlled my breathing, I made no progress at all.

'Breathing... I wonder if increasing my lung capacity would improve efficiency?'

Since breathing is the basic foundation, it should be quite closely related to lung capacity.

But the only thing I can do here is bodyweight exercises, and strength training at that.

Cardio exercises? Running around here and there would be perfect for getting lost.

For now, I have no choice but to substitute it by inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly.

‘Or so what SwordMaster-nim told me.’

These honey tips were mostly given by SwordMaster.

Longer breathing intervals rather than shorter ones, and about aura, etc.

Through the joint work of HeavenlyDemon and SwordMaster, I am making progress little by little.

It's at a turtle's pace, but there's no need to rush.

'I should go set up the fish trap. And catch some golden frogs, too.'

Since I had finished my breathing exercises, it was time to get to work.

I slung the crossbow on my back and called for DizSpeed.

“Hey. Don’t just lie there, get on.”

“...”

DizSpeed slowly climbed onto my back at my instruction.

He hung on comfortably so the crossbow wouldn't get in the way.

The last thing to bring is the fish trap, but...

"Why is this so big?"

I think about it every time I see it, but the fish trap is quite big.

It was big enough to easily hold the two or three fish I caught before.

Just thinking about setting this up already made me dizzy, but there’s no other choice.

This way, I could move around without worrying about food.

From now on, the Byeokgokdan pills would become food exclusively for DizSpeed.

Swoooosh!

A sense of hopelessness came over me as I arrived at the river. When would I ever be able to set all of this up?

Not to mention, there was the threat of the golden frogs. I had to eliminate that threat.

“Hey. Get down. Let’s start getting ready.”

“...”

DizSpeed slowly came down at my instruction.

Then I put my hand in the river to lure out the golden frogs.

Splash! Splash!

"Ribbit."

“Ribbit. Ribbit.”

As expected, a group of golden frogs leaped out of the river.

Only one thing remained.

Thwack!

While DizSpeed drew aggro, I shot the crossbow.

The first time is difficult, but from the second time it's not hard, so it was an easy hunt.

'Really amazing.'

DizSpeed's evasion is truly amazing.

A single hit from the Golden Frog’s poison would be fatal, yet he stands his ground and evades effortlessly.

I’m too much of a coward for that. Only DizSpeed can pull off something like this.

Splash! Splash!

Before long, the Golden Frogs went back into the river.

Unlike before, they didn't consistently shoot poison even when their comrades were hit.

It seems their poison isn't infinitely generated but is more of a rechargeable type.

'I heard creatures like that consume other toxins to synthesize their own.'

It means that if they don't eat poisonous plants or animals, they're just ordinary frogs.

Anyway, with the Golden Frogs gone, all that was left was to set up the fish traps.

I could widen the area where the hose is installed a bit more and put in the fish trap.

The reason I hunted the golden frogs beforehand was that I had no choice but to put my feet in the river.

Since my shoes were slipper-type, I could dip my feet in without worry.

‘Surely a giant fish won’t swallow me whole, right?’

I kept looking around anxiously.

It’s such a terrifying place that it’s absolutely forbidden to let my guard down.

Still, there was no incident of a giant fish devouring me in one bite.

With the trap set, I immediately sent a trade request to AllFather.

AllFather happened logged into the gallery at that moment, so he immediately agreed to the trade.

[WildGrills: Hello. AllFather-nim. I caught frogs, should I give it to you? The poison sacs didn't burst.]

[AllFather: Oh. Thank you very much. I think I can give you the medicine tomorrow.]

[WildGrills: Thank you. By the way, is it okay if I ask you something?]

[AllFather: Ask me anytime. What are you curious about?]

[WildGrills: The Golden Frog shoots poison and then retreats. Is their poison a rechargeable type?]

[AllFather: Yes. That is correct. When the poison in their sacs runs out, their means of attack disappears. To recharge it, they must eat something poisonous.]

Just as I thought.

Which means there must be some kind of fearsome poisonous creature around here. Probably a venomous insect.

'I need to keep applying repellent.'

I finished the deal with AllFather and returned to the cave. Nothing else happened.

After returning, I logged into the gallery to check the time.

It was past 3 o'clock, probably because I spent a lot of time setting up the trap.

'I'll practice my swordsmanship until dinner... and dinner will be Byeokgokdan.'

Had I known, I would’ve grabbed one more crab.

It's a bit regrettable, but what’s done is done. I don't want to go to the lakeside just for that.

I plan to visit the lakeshore only after receiving the new shoes. That way accidents can be prevented.

[Please save me. I opened my eyes and it's the Forest of Four Seasons.]

"Huh?"

While browsing through the gallery, I saw a title I couldn't easily pass by.

A post saying they fell into the Forest of Four Seasons. I hurriedly clicked on it.

---

Title: Please save me. I opened my eyes and I'm in the Forest of Four Seasons.

Danos Duchy, Menesil Street, public restroom, 3rd stall on the men's side. Please. There's no toilet paper.

---

ㄴ Lmaoo the bait is unreal. I rushed here the second I saw it.

ㄴ Me too lololol Thought a second Grylls was appearing

ㄴ Normally I'd pass by, but I came in because of Grills lolol

ㄴ Ah. Right. Usually the gallery doesn’t work in the Forest of Four Seasons lolololol

ㄴ Unknown benefactor, thank you so much. Thanks to you I lived. For me, the restroom was the Forest of Four Seasons.

ㄴ I acknowledge that Forest of Four Seasons lolol

ㄴ Can't help but acknowledge it ;;

ㄴ Even Grills would probably go, ‘Ah… yeah, I get this one’

Right. As long as they got out of the Forest of Four Seasons.

*****

The forest night is quiet.

Aside from the chirping of insects and the distant howling of a wolf, it's a perfect time to close one's eyes.

At the same time, the forest at night is extremely dangerous. The pitch-black darkness where you can't see an inch ahead and beasts that might jump out from anywhere.

Herbivores in the wild can't even sleep properly, constantly struggling to evade impending death.

Crunch—

The sound of a branch being stepped on. With it, the chorus of insects came to an abrupt halt.

Soon the place that predator was heading toward was a cave where the campfire was about to go out.

The beast soon headed to the cave where the campfire was about to go out.

Even a small campfire is no different from sunlight in a pitch-black place.

That it caught the predator’s attention might have been inevitable.

"Kreung...."

The growl of a beast on high alert.

It was a very low growl, but there is an animal that reacts sensitively even to that sound.

It was neither a human in a deep sleep nor a baby Owlbear that needed to be protected.

“...”

A sloth that didn't know when or where it might be eaten. The sloth slowly opened his eyes.

Because the presence he felt from outside was unusual. The sloth, no, DizSpeed, slowly raised its body.

Crunch!

“...”

He heard it clearly this time. The sound of a tree branch breaking.

DizSpeed turned his head quickly.

The human was still lost in dreamland. Showing not even a hint of caution.

DizSpeed found the human Grills to be quite pathetic, but a comrade is a comrade.

Therefore, DizSpeed raised his arm to wake Grills.

Thwack!

"Keok!"

Grills woke up with a start at the sudden hit in the face.

Even in deep sleep, pain is still felt. He got up with a half-asleep face.

“Wha- What? What’s going on?”

"...."

DizSpeed silently pointed outside the cave with his arm.

Grills turned his head with a still bewildered expression.

“Grrrr…”

"....!"

What did he just hear? Grills looked dumbfounded.

But it didn't take long for him to realize that the sound belonged to a beast, and a dangerous predator at that.

'This crazy...!'

He cursed internally and hastily equipped his gear.

Dangerous. This is really dangerous. That was Grills' inner thought.

Soon, having roughly equipped himself, he slowly stepped outside the cave.

DizSpeed climbed onto his back, ready to fight at any moment.

Finally, a single light was captured in Grills' vision.

Flash!

Within the deep curtain of darkness, a pair of ominously gleaming lights.

---

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