Chapter 47: Territory Development – 2

The livestock barns were running smoothly, and the fields were thriving too. Father seemed to have taken a real liking to farming from home, and ever since acquiring the Farming skill, he'd been tending to the crops nonstop—except when he went out hunting. On top of that, he was managing the chicken coop and the barns. He'd even unlocked the Livestock Management skill, and his Farming was already at level 4.

"Once you plant these, they shoot up like crazy. Farming's got some real satisfaction to it."

I nodded at Father's words. I'd never farmed myself, but even I could see the appeal. For him, it must have been even better.

"Dad, what's this one?"

"Can't you tell? It's ginseng."

"Did you bring back ginseng seeds this time?"

"Nah, someone gave me a ginseng root as a gift at home, and I ended up packing it when we left on impulse."

"So you just planted it like that?"

"Yeah, and look—it's sprouting babies."

So Father was saying he'd planted a gifted ginseng root straight ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠into the ground.

"Who gave it to you?"

"The Village Head. He gave it to me last time as thanks for the wild boar."

Ginseng from the Village Head. Father called it ginseng, and sure enough, it looked the part. But when I used Observation on it...

"Jackpot."

"Huh? Why? Is ginseng that great?"

"Dad, we should send some good stuff to the Village Head."

"What're you talking about?"

"That's not regular ginseng. It's wild ginseng."

"What?"

"What you first brought back was wild ginseng—about 30 years old. And the ones growing from it here are wild ginseng too. Super nutrient-rich, cures diseases, and gives +10 Stamina on first eat. Consistent use adds +2 Stamina."

"Holy crap."

Father dropping internet slang. Kids these days don't even say that anymore... Well, he is from the old generation. And so am I, honestly. Half the time, I can't understand what Si-yeon says nowadays.

"Anyway, jackpot, right?"

"These things are growing in such numbers?"

Father seemed shocked by the quantity. The wild ginseng patch was about 200 pyeong—roughly 660 square meters—and it was packed full. I knew wild ginseng wasn't supposed to grow like this. Sure, I wasn't an expert, but ginseng fields had shade nets and pampered plants under them. This? It looked like a regular field of radishes or cabbages. And yet, the wild ginseng was thriving.

"If we sell this, the world's gonna go nuts."

Stamina was a super intuitive stat. How huge a role did physical endurance play in the human body? Low stamina brought all sorts of side effects— that "running on fumes" feeling. Boost it, and pretty much all physical abilities improved. Strength and Agility were straightforward too, but Stamina felt the most real. For an average person with 10 Stamina, +10 was insane.

"For now, let's keep it to family ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and gifts for close folks."

"Got it, Dad."

Father showed me other crops too—most were super useful, but none boosted stats.

That was when—

"Si-woo!"

Seon-woo, who'd been playing with the orcs, came running and called me.

"What?"

"Check this out—honeybees."

He showed me a beehive, carrying it barehanded. Didn't that sting?

"Dude, aren't the bees gonna sting you...?"

Bees sting with the stinger on their tail. But these ones? They were nuzzling his hand with their mouths, not tails.

I took a closer look at the honeybees.

So that's why they were swarming Seon-woo. He must give off some pheromone vibe.

I checked Seon-woo out too, and there was something new.

A Title? First time seeing that. I didn't have one, but this guy did. Made him perfect for beekeeping.

"Whoa, I just found your hidden talent."

"What? My talent?"

"Yeah, you should do beekeeping."

"Beekeeping? Outta nowhere?"

"Why do you think those bees are all over you and not stinging?"

"Huh... yeah?"

"I hereby appoint you our territory's official beekeeper."

"What kinda bullshit is that?"

"You wanna just mooch off us? Can't you see Si-yeon over there hammering away, all delicate and shit?"

Yeah, he'd see it. She'd been banging away for hours, loud as hell.

"R-Right."

"So, will you accept the role of beekeeper, Mr. Kim Seon-woo?"

"Fine. But does that just... work?"

"Hold on. I already prepped for this, thinking we'd try beekeeping eventually."

I'd considered beekeeping before. I'd even made beehives from YouTube tutorials for folks who do it. The issue was no queen bee to settle them. But now we had a natural talent—couldn't waste that. I had ten hives ready. My ambition for mass natural honey had backfired gloriously. Luckily, Seon-woo took one look and started hauling them with the orcs. They set up not far from the woods, fussing around. With his Friend of Honeybees title, he'd handle it.

Shaking that off, I surveyed the territory again. What did the orcs need first? Like I'd told Seon-woo, better housing for them.

"Karak."

Krong?

"Round up the idle orcs. Time to build houses."

Krak!

Karak perked up. He was the boss for jobs like this. He ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠rounded up the excited orcs—minus the ones at the apiary. About ten strong adult males, including one with great craftsmanship I'd eyed before.

We started on a big brick kiln, taught them the right clay, and had them haul it. Carts made it easy, and we had oxen galore. Hitching three per cart, they flew like Lamborghinis.

Once the kiln was huge and stocked, they fired the bricks. No need for me to babysit—they were smart enough once taught, especially with clever Karak.

"Fill this whole clearing with bricks—stack 'em sky-high, got it?"

Krong!

I nodded, satisfied, and left it to Karak. Once bricks piled up, we'd build everything. Bricks were way more versatile than I'd thought.

Another week flew by. Bricks formed actual mountains, and we used idle orcs to start houses. Two stories were possible, but we went single-story. No heating needed—Hoya said the weather stayed constant. AC would be nice, but impossible, so we designed for ventilation. Gained Design skill out of it. I grinded it to level 4 over days, then used that to plan orc houses. Once they got comfy, we'd do ours and Seon-woo's.

"This is your home, so make it good. Got it?"

Krak!

The orcs shouted back energetically, erecting wooden pillars and stacking bricks.

Orcs lived communally but not crammed—each family got a hut. We planned one house per family. Our orc families had grown to 20 households. Total orcs neared 80. Pregnancy and birth times were nuts. Soon, territory pop would top 100.

Orc village—clustering their houses. Not jammed together, though. More like American country homes, spaced out for decent living. Weird part: even as I built the village, the territory size didn't change. Space expansion applied inside it too. Houses kept filling the fixed space without visible shift. Island rule, felt like. I'd sensed the space expansion before, but this confirmed it.

Meanwhile, family and Seon-woo hunted hard, leveling up. Orc warriors hit ten now. Kids grew like weeds. Five were still apprentices, but stronger than old Karak. Not current Karak, though.

Family and Seon-woo leveled while working roles. Soon they'd push past forest entrance like me.

I wasn't slacking—steady troll hunts got me to level 45. One level a day was tough now. Without Hoya, harder. Did Hoya fight with me? Hell no. She was toughening me up. But having her nearby boosted my morale. Worst case? We'd survive.

Orc village done, skilled orc crew started our houses. Log cabin stayed as memento—now Seon-woo's storage.

We spent five fruitful weeks inside the gate. Family and Seon-woo all hit level 40. Funny thing: no more levels after. Some limit, probably.

Time for our super family to head back out. Si-yeon got intense mental training first—no misuse of power.

"Let's go."

"Yeah."

We crossed the gate. And in those five days, the world had gone seriously sideways.