Chapter 46: The Territory's Development - Part 1
Hoya's shocked face practically begged for a kiss. So I grabbed her cheeks and planted one on each. Pow!
"Hey! That can happen."
Hoya was resolute. Truth be told, she wasn't the type to hate kisses that much, but I couldn't shake the feeling that the time she'd spent inside the gate had changed our little Hoya somehow.
Cats have all sorts of reactions to physical affection from humans. The most common is that they hate being picked up. It'd be more accurate to say the ones who like it are the rare exceptions. But their responses vary wildly. You can roughly divide them into three categories. First, the ones who hate it with a passion. These cats just despise being held. They'll thrash around, and if you don't let go, they might even get aggressive. Next, the tolerant ones. They'll put up with it for about thirty seconds to a minute. After that, they react like the first group. Finally, the ones who love it. These cats might even fall asleep in your arms.
Hoya falls somewhere between the second and third categories. In simple terms, she accepts skinship when she's in the mood and swats when she's not.
"Today's not my day, huh? Okay. I'm cool with that, no hard feelings."
Meow!Meow meow!Meeeow meow!
"Got it, I won't let my guard down. No need to make such a fuss."
Meow!
"Yes, Master! I'll keep that in mind."
Hoya was mad because I'd taken a hit from the troll. She saw it as my fault for being careless. And honestly, she wasn't wrong—I had let my guard down.
"I promise it won't happen again. So cool off already."
Meow!
With that, Hoya hopped onto my shoulder and started rubbing her head against my face. That was the sign her anger had subsided.
"Time to collect the blood."
"So you're saying it's that legendary troll blood?"
It was Seon-woo who'd identified the troll blood. Having worked as a hunter, he knew about it too.
"Yeah, troll blood. I collected it myself. But how'd you know?"
"It's like an urban legend among hunters, y'know? Honestly, I'd never even seen a troll in any gates I cleared. And even if one showed up, who could take it down? Most hunters top out around level 20 or so—that's elite level for them."
Fair point. Given a troll's level, any ordinary hunter would bolt at the sight of one. So obtaining troll blood should be damn near impossible.
"Then how do you know about it if no one's ever killed one?"
"Dude, it's all over novels. Everyone loses their minds saying it'd be a game-changer if you could just snag one."
"Here, this one's especially for you."
I handed the troll blood over to Seon-woo. Simple reason.
"What, am I your fridge now?"
"We don't even have a fridge here—what, you gonna dump the troll blood?"
Seon-woo had the incredible Preservation skill, making him handy in all sorts of ways. What a great friend.
"Fine, yeah, I am a fridge. Let's do it."
He didn't seem too bothered. No point wasting it anyway.
"There's an orc who knows how to use it properly."
I called for Uwing right away. When I showed her the blood and let her taste it, her eyes went wide.
Korok!Ko-kok, ko-kokol!
"You can make a potion with it?"
Uwing nodded vigorously. So I entrusted the troll blood to her.
Then Seon-woo and I decided to take a slow tour of the territory.
"A whole territory? In the 21st century? This real?"
"You think I made it up? Oh, and you might not realize, but you're one of my territory folk now."
"Eek! My lord, is that so?"
"Shut it and follow quietly, or go do your own thing."
"Yes, my lord! This way!"
"Ahem, guide well, Kim Butler."
"Nyow nyow."
The chicken farm was running smoothly. Turns out orcs were naturals at this—aside from the males selected as warriors, pretty much all of them pitched in. A few specialized, of course. The ones handling the chickens were diligent: managing the birds, stacking eggs neatly, the works. Chick care was meticulous too. Since ours was a free-range setup, the chicks scampered about, and the hens scratched happily. No wonder the operation was expanding daily.
Lucky thing: orcs loved meat.
"Chicken farm's good."
"Yes, my lord."
"Cut it out."
"Yes, my lord."
Sometimes I got why Hoya swatted me. She just felt like it.
"On to the next, Kim Butler."
"Yes, my lord!"
This guy was getting into it. No harm done, though—might as well play lord and butler a bit longer.
Next stop: the cattle barn. The cows had grown like weeds.
"Whoa, how'd they multiply to nearly a hundred already?"
There were two main types: sturdy ones like black angus and milkers like Holsteins. Obviously different purposes. The beef cattle worked fields and built muscle; the dairy ones produced milk. The raw milk was collected separately—of course, under Seon-woo's ownership. Guy was a walking fridge.
Still, we needed a way to process milk for when he wasn't around.
"How about making cheese?"
Mom had snuck up on us.
"Cheese... yeah, that could work. Let's try a few varieties. Mom, teach the orcs too—they'll get even stronger."
"Ho ho ho, aren't they tough enough already?"
Orcs looked plenty sturdy to anyone. Tougher? They'd be unstoppable. If they were monsters, it'd be trouble—but they were my people. Stronger subjects benefited their lord.
"Let's make some, then. We'll need a few tools first..."
Mom ordered the essentials for cheesemaking. I headed to the forge with Seon-woo to craft them. Sure, we could buy tools outside, but stuff made here felt more special.
As we melted metal, Si-yeon came bounding over—literally hopping like a rabbit.
"What? Something up?"
"Oppa!"
"How dare you! Such insolence toward the lord!"
"Oh dear, forgive my rudeness, Butler. Mercy, please."
"Mind yourself next time."
"Yes, grateful for your leniency. And, my lord?"
They were both hamming it up.
"What're you two clowns doing?"
"What? I didn't say anything wrong."
Seon-woo stood tall. Technically true—I was the lord.
"But I'm the lord, Si-yeon's my sister. Doesn't that rank me above Kim Butler?"
"Gasp!"
"Huh. Yeah, fair."
One-track minds, these friend and sister of mine.
"So, what'd you want?"
"Oppa."
"Yeah?"
"Make me Excalibur."
"You know what Excalibur is?"
"Duh. Stuck in a rock— yank!—then whoosh!"
"Go find that rock first?"
"Ha, knew you'd say that! Just make it!"
"Think a noob blacksmith like you can handle a holy sword?"
"Ugh... forgot you're a scrub too. Fine, make me a bamboo sword then."
"Fetch the bamboo?"
"Forest's gotta have some."
"Probably."
"So make one?"
"Say I do. What then?"
"I'll be a righteous swordsman upholding justice!"
"Prosecutors carry swords these days?"
"Not that prosecutor—sword-bearing swordsman!"
"Become a college-grad prosecutor."
"Pfft, college."
"Wanna die?"
I was dumbfounded by Si-yeon's words. Dead serious.
"Oppa, the world's changed. I've changed. I can't forgive evil anymore!"
"You forgave it before?"
"Forgive? I just looked away."
"Pretty bold for ignoring it. Fine, say you did. Why?"
"I had no power."
"And now?"
"Obviously! Look at my level! Heh heh."
"So, no power before, power now—so justice time?"
"Duh!"
Seon-woo was doubled over, laughing silently beside us.
"Our Si-yeon's such a pure soul. Little Si-yeon dreamed of being Batman?"
"Superman. But he had money."
"Batman too."
"Right. Anyway, I'm becoming a hero."
"College-grad hero."
"You're such a sellout, oppa!"
"Guilty. But you're mooching off this sellout—my territory, after all."
"My hero dreams, crushed like this? No way!"
"Learn to forge it yourself."
"Think I can't? Watch me."
Si-yeon rolled up her sleeves and started learning right there. Shockingly, she had a knack for it. Before long, she'd unlocked the same skill as me. Incredible—I never knew her talent lay here.
Felt like the family was finding their callings. Heartwarming.
Now, if only I could ditch this useless lump...
"What? Me, useless?"
Seon-woo bristled, looking guilty.