Chapter 12
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: The Miracle of Royal Jelly
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[Guardian's Extra-Large Gillight Plywood Beehive (★★+)]
* Classification: Etc
* 'Guardian's Blessing of the Light Spirit' is applied to all allied entities and objects within a 10km radius.
※ Guardian's Blessing of the Light Spirit: Relieves fatigue and grants 11(+1)% immunity to vision-blocking effects. For objects that are growable natural vegetation, the growth rate is accelerated by 33(+3)%.
* As an additional effect from the disappearance of the 'Steadfast' keyword, the beehive's durability and defense are further increased.
* Currently empty.
* Capacity: 0 / 185,000(+27,000)
* Current Honey Status: 0%
* Health: 7,680(+3,150)
* Defense: 87(+41) Magic Resistance: 53(+29)
* Durability: 665 / 665(+95)
* Description: A ★★+ grade extra-large Gillight plywood beehive engraved with the 'Guardian's' keyword. It spreads a wide light of life in its surroundings due to the Blessing of the Light Spirit.
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“Whew. This isn't half bad.”
If the Thornwood Log Beehive felt like a dream house that mixed defense and offense, the one made from Gillight plywood possessed a buff-type effect.
Moreover, the effects of the 'Steadfast' keyword, which had already been applied to the Gillight plywood, were also incorporated, significantly boosting its durability and defense stats.
“This thing really won't break easily.”
Considering Seong-hyeok's current health was 350, there was no need to argue how high the beehive's 7,680 health was.
Furthermore, what Seong-hyeok gained from crafting this beehive wasn't just a single, amazing dream house.
[You have leveled up. You gain 5 stat points.]
Crafting the beehive had been so difficult that it required a considerable amount of focused work.
High risk, high reward is a common trait of games.
Thanks to that, Seong-hyeok received a substantial amount of experience and leveled up, reaching 14.
“Finally…”
For a player, leveling up was one of the most fundamental joys.
But there was another reason for Seong-hyeok's delight.
[You have met the conditions for skill acquisition. -> Level 14, experience creating or consuming Royal Jelly powder and pills.]
[You have learned the skill, Guardian's Royal Jelly Concentration.]
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[Guardian's Royal Jelly Concentration (Lv.1)]
* Classification: Skill
* Mana Cost: 15
* Required Material: Royal Jelly
* Effect (Active): Use Royal Jelly to craft Royal Jelly-related processed goods. (No cooldown)
* Description: Consumes Royal Jelly and the caster's mana to craft Royal Jelly-related processed goods. As the level increases, you can obtain a wider variety of higher-grade finished products.
※ There is a chance to obtain a processed good engraved with the 'Guardian's' keyword.
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[Ruby Gem Royal Jelly (★+)] x 216
The royal jelly he had been steadily collecting and setting aside due to the lack of a skill.
He finally had a way to process and use it.
* * * * *
The byproducts obtainable from bees were mostly beneficial to humans, but if asked to pick the best of them all, Seong-hyeok would choose royal jelly without a doubt.
Why?
The answer was obvious.
First off, as the main food of the long-lived queen bee, it was naturally rich in nutrients and resolved health issues like fatigue and anemia.
On top of that, it had proven effects on skin care and anti-aging, essential elements in a lookist society.
Moreover, the true power of royal jelly didn't end there.
“It’s the ultimate essential for a man.”
Virility.
That which every man, regardless of age, desires to have in abundance.
Royal jelly was one of the foremost health foods for boosting that very virility.
“…Ahem. Well, there’s no harm in being vigorous.”
And Seong-hyeok, the eccentric who had walked the path of a beekeeper his whole life, was no exception in wanting to improve his stamina.
After all, he was still a man with XY chromosomes.
He had no reason whatsoever to refuse a path that could enhance his vigor.
“Tsk. If I could get a propolis-related skill, I could use it in more diverse ways. That part’s a bit of a shame.”
The best way to maximize bee byproducts was to extract the essence of each ingredient's strengths and mix them.
For example, when making cosmetics with propolis, adding some honey and royal jelly could produce a better result than using propolis alone.
Even more so in this world that had turned into a game, where one could see the item's effects immediately, and with the caster's mana, there was no need for the complicated and time-consuming processes of production and refinement.
But ironically, because of this game-like convenience, without the skill, no matter how much knowledge Seong-hyeok mobilized or how much care he took, the result would be a 'crude success,' and he wouldn't be able to attach the 'Guardian's' keyword, which was most important for a Honeybee Guardian.
“Can't be helped. I have to be satisfied with what I have now.”
What good would it do to lament what he lacked?
If he kept steadily accumulating it, just like with the royal jelly, a day would come when he could use the propolis.
Erasing negative thoughts and arming oneself with a positive mindset was the greatest virtue in life.
“I suppose making it as efficiently as possible is the best way.”
The most efficient way to consume royal jelly.
It was, as he had experienced once before when processing it without a skill, to freeze-dry it, turn it into powder, and put it into an ingestible capsule to create a single-dose pill.
Carrying it around as a pill would be easier to store and simpler to take in an urgent situation than having it as powder.
“Besides, it’s a bit much for me to use it all myself.”
Also, one of Seong-hyeok's goals in beekeeping, besides simply leveling up, was to sell the processed goods he made.
Thanks to the queen bee, who was still working hard laying eggs, his swarm was continuously growing.
As a result, hundreds of units of honey were being collected daily, and a corresponding amount of processed goods were being completed.
It went without saying that Seong-hyeok wasn't a pig; he couldn't possibly consume all of it.
“Coins are always useful, so I should milk this for all it’s worth while I can.”
From the materials for beehives like Gillight plywood, people who had lived through a capitalist society never took the value of a currency called 'Coin' lightly.
And that was also true for Seong-hyeok, who had become famous on the exchange under the nickname Honeybee.
No, in fact, having tasted the sweetness of the currency called Coin the most, Seong-hyeok wanted to earn even more.
The unique class, Honeybee Guardian.
Something ordinary beekeepers couldn't even dream of.
Seong-hyeok's exclusive processed goods, marked with the 'Guardian's' keyword that only his class could create.
Honey tea, honey wine, honey soap, beeswax candles, and so on.
Following numerous exclusive items, Seong-hyeok created one more exclusive product of his own.
[Royal Jelly Concentration Great Success! The Honeybee Guardian's blessing is engraved on the Royal Jelly Pill.]
[Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill (★★) has been crafted.]
The first 2-star item he had created among processed goods, excluding beehives.
Perhaps because it was royal jelly produced by the 'Ruby Gem' bee, the capsule pill was filled with a bright red powder, as if it had been dyed.
An unsuspecting person might mistake it for a strawberry-flavored snack or jelly.
“Now then, let's see the effects.”
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[Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill (★★)]
* Classification: Consumable
* Upon consumption, along with effects such as fatigue recovery, virility enhancement, and skin care, the 'Hardy Health of the Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill' is applied to the entity, and Durability is permanently increased by 1 one time. Current consumption 0 / 1
※ Hardy Health of the Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill: Strength and Durability increase by 13(+3) for 60 minutes.
* Description: A ★★-grade Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill engraved with the 'Guardian's' keyword. Simply consuming it relieves fatigue and brings various beneficial effects to the body. Additionally, it permanently increases a stat once per player.
※ Caution! Buffs from the same series of royal jelly pills do not stack.
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“Oh yeah. The 'Guardian's' keyword really is something else.”
The 100% application of the 'Guardian's' keyword due to the great success.
The resulting additional effects of the pill were astounding.
Unlike before, when it increased Strength and Durability by 5 for 25 minutes, this time the duration was a full 60 minutes, and the effect was more than double, an increase of 13.
Besides that, the most important thing was, of course, the permanent stat increase.
“Jackpot…”
A permanent application.
Literally, not a consumable stat that lasts for a few minutes and then disappears, but a power that becomes the player's flesh and blood, just like the stat points gained by leveling up.
Well, technically, it was only a 1-point increase in the Durability stat, and there was a limit of one pill per player, but considering how much harder it gets to level up, it was nothing to scoff at.
If a means to strengthen one's character—that is, oneself—appeared, how many Coins would people be willing to spend on it?
Following the honey products, the royal jelly products were on a level that could rake in Coins from the exchange!
But the miracle of royal jelly didn't end there.
[Class Specialization, Bee Product Aficionado, has been unlocked. -> Crafted a bee-related product with a permanent stat increase effect.]
* Bee Product Aficionado: You are freed from the limit on permanent stat increases for bee products. (6-hour cooldown per product type)
Bee Product Aficionado, the Honeybee Guardian's new class specialization gained through this experience.
As soon as he read the text, Seong-hyeok unhesitatingly brought the Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill in his hand to his mouth.
Gulp.
[First consumption experience. Durability permanently increases by 1. 1 / 1]
[Hardy Health of the Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill is applied.]
Along with the sour and bitter taste, the effect was delivered as described in the options.
But the notifications reaching Seong-hyeok didn't end there.
[The Honeybee Guardian's Class Specialization, Bee Product Aficionado, is activated.]
[You are freed from the limit on permanent stat increases for the Guardian's Ruby Gem Royal Jelly Pill (★★). 0 / 1 Time remaining: 6 hours]
“Ha, hahaha…”
Literally, a discovery of a way to permanently increase stats outside of leveling up, with only a cooldown as a restriction.
On this day, Seong-hyeok wanted to sincerely praise himself for having run the single-minded path of a beekeeper.