Chapter 37
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: One of the Few Pleasures
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"Good. Great. We've got results. Now we can reap the first harvest."
Ju Gonghyeok clapped as he encouraged the hunters sweating their hearts out.
Nearly two hundred hunters had each summoned their avatars and were working like mad.
Water-attribute and earth-attribute avatars drew up groundwater and river water to carve out irrigation channels, while plant-attribute and light-attribute avatars aided the growth of a riot of colorful tropical fruits.
A vast orchard developed in a portion of the dungeon.
It had started with just a few thousand saplings, but now massive trees were laden with ripe, mouthwatering fruit.
A harvest after a mere three days since planting.
[You have developed 'Forest of Each Dragon' and farmed there.]
[Hidden quest 'Deserted Island Farming' cleared. Clear rate: 91%.]
[Reward: 10 indigo coins granted.]
[Title 'Dungeon Farmer' acquired.]
[When title equipped: Deal extra damage to plant-type monsters when attacking with metal weapons. Gain resistance to plant-attribute attacks.]
The tiny Nathaniel perched on Ju Gonghyeok's shoulder spoke in a grumpy tone.
- You didn't do a thing but show up now and then to shout, and yet you get to share the achievement.
'It's always the head supervisor who matters most. Look at Babel. The angels as head supervisors screwed everything up, so the humans all died and everyone's suffering now. What counts isn't how hard you worked—it's the results.'
- Whoever that is, they've got some seriously rotten character.
"Yeah. Spirit Possession."
[Spirit Possession (A) activated. Target: 'Spoon']
Ju Gonghyeok pulled a spoon from his inventory and possessed it with Nathaniel.
He scooped up a spoonful of sweet, honey-like fruit and plunged it into a rotting log tumbling around.
'Kyaaah! Bugs! Larvae! Ladybugs! Beetles! A Hercules beetle on my body!'
All sorts of bugs wriggled up and ravaged Nathaniel's entire form.
Savoring the vivid screams of Nathaniel—who hadn't yet been worn down—Ju Gonghyeok resolved once more to cherish him step by step.
Just then, a group of hunters approached the orchard.
It was Soma Sangai, now leading a strike force of three hundred, along with his squad leaders.
"As expected of Gonghyeok. I never imagined you'd solve the food issue this way. Farming with plant-type avatars..."
"Well. It takes two, three hundred people tending it for days, so small groups couldn't pull it off. Don't underestimate the hunters' potential. If they set their minds to it, they can do anything."
Killing the Demon King. Dooming the Earth.
Ju Gonghyeok swallowed the last part.
"Found any of those western murderers?"
"We caught about two, but failed to capture them alive. Their tracks are elusive. Even reconnaissance avatars can't detect them."
"Yeah, I see..."
To the hunters, the western murderers were practically public enemy number one.
In deserted island life, they were the biggest long-term threat.
Of course, there were only twenty or thirty of them. If Ju Gonghyeok's force—now nearly fifteen hundred strong—decided to go all out at once, they could catch them easily. But if the murderers really tried to escape, who knew how long it'd take on this vast deserted island.
Naturally, the murderers avoided clashing with Ju Gonghyeok's group too.
Their main tactic was ambushing lone hunters straggling from the pack, but they never touched anyone from Ju Gonghyeok's faction.
And Ju Gonghyeok, for his part, hadn't gone out of his way to hunt them down.
Their existence was essential for steering the deserted island toward the state he desired.
'From now on, those guys are untouchable.'
They'd collected five floatstone shards by the end of the first week since the deserted island mission began.
By day twelve, they'd easily completed at least two floatstones.
'Two arks decked out with rare materials? Even tracking them would be tough.'
"Any worries on your mind?"
"Worries? I don't do worries. Get back to work."
Anticipating facts the other hunters didn't yet know, Ju Gonghyeok turned on his heel.
"Hold on, Gonghyeok."
"Yeah?"
"I have a question I'd like to ask."
"Sure? Then follow me to my quarters. And you, Nathaniel—stop crying and come along."
'I hate you... I really hate you...'
For something the size of a hand, it wept so pitifully that if anyone else could see it, they'd condemn Ju Gonghyeok as a failed savior.
The problem was that only Ju Gonghyeok—the epitome of callous inhumanity—could see or hear Nathaniel's voice.
Ju Gonghyeok brought Soma back to his quarters. His place was a large chalet, rare on the island, finished nicely with stone and high-quality timber.
As the leader of the island's largest faction, his subordinates had used their avatars to build this luxurious lodge to display his prestige.
Of course, luxurious or not, it was crude compared to a modern pension, and to Ju Gonghyeok, chalet or shack made no difference—it was just a place to sleep.
As the two entered the grand residence, a single hunter cut in front of them.
"Gonghyeok! I'm Rajiv Mukesh from Punjab, who joined recently! Thank you for putting my weak plant-type avatar to such great use..."
The more people under him, the more folks like this tried to catch his eye.
Some might be genuinely grateful.
But Ju Gonghyeok, more experienced in this than anyone in the world, opened his mouth carelessly.
"Yeah. Got it, so beat..."
"Yes?"
"...Let's check the fire again. Haha. Anyway, Soma and I have business inside."
"Yes, sir! As you say, Gonghyeok—I'll always double-check the fire to stay prepared for anything..."
"Haha, yeah. That's it. Go get 'em, Rajiv!"
Ju Gonghyeok flashed neat teeth and a friendly smile.
Once he'd brushed off Rajiv and entered his quarters, the smile vanished, replaced by a haggard expression as he muttered.
"Almost let my real personality slip. If he were Korean, he'd have noticed."
"Hm? What do you mean, Gonghyeok?"
"Nothing. Better if you don't know."
The tent was pointlessly spacious, but it had one good point.
It could fit massive boss corpses with room to spare. Thanks to that, the walls his hunters had so carefully built were all smashed.
Even in the humid tropics, the corpses showed no sign of decay or odor.
Thanks to the holy beast crafting skill included in the Spirit Summoning Scroll skill book.
Ju Gonghyeok approached the sprawled corpse.
[Holly Beast Crafting (B+) in progress]
[Terror Bird Diart current completion: 78%. Title 'Holy']
[Black Panther Hamillodon current completion: 59%. Title 'Holy']
[Giant Crocodile Kamphus current completion: 43%. Title...]
[Progress accelerates with additional mana input or purification skill use.]
Ju Gonghyeok sprinkled more purification skill on it, then pulled out a nearby folding chair and sat.
A small table beside him held jars sorted by tobacco varieties.
"Your tobacco collection's grown again."
"Eating the same damn food every day gets old. The really good stuff only alchemists can make."
He put a pipe in his mouth and eyed Soma with drowsy gaze.
"So? What is it?"
Soma closed his eyes briefly, then opened them.
"If we really tried, could we take down that Tyrannosaurus?"
"Of course. If we all rushed it, we'd win easy."
"I'm not talking about the other hunters."
Soma met Ju Gonghyeok's eyes squarely.
"I'm asking if the two of us could do it."
Ju Gonghyeok's lip curled in a mocking smirk.
"Weren't you set on becoming the Vajra Guardian to shatter Babel?"
"Better to walk into hell with two than a thousand."
Soma spoke calmly, then flinched.
The pipe's odd smoke had reached his nose.
"Gonghyeok. This smell..."
"Oh. This? Mixed in some feel-good stuff from around here."
"Ah... Does it help?"
Among real-world hunters, it wasn't rare to see ones casually puffing marijuana before dungeons or injecting combat stimulants for the battlefield.
The closest thing to drugs for Soma, who'd lived in Tibet, was the cheap opium his comrades smoked.
Ju Gonghyeok mumbled on with his languid face.
"Not exactly—it's this dungeon plant that's similar. Don't make that face. My SS-rank mental perks keep my mind crystal clear."
"It harms your body."
"Harm my body? Raise my endurance a bit and I could chug dozens of lethal doses no problem. Gotta play the nice guy these days, fully immersed. Means I need to feel good, right? So I smoke it as a real last resort. Really?"
- The human trash's excuses are out again.
Nathaniel, sulkily perched on the tobacco jar, piped up.
"Nathaniel. Can you imagine the stench from a hunter's panties after three days in a dungeon?"
- Sorry. My bad. I was wrong. Wrong...
After tormenting the innocent little angel and feeling better, Ju Gonghyeok chuckled.
"Two of us against the Tyranno. Hmm. That thing's designed for raids of fifty-plus. It's not just counterattack one-shotting heads—needs sustained group DPS."
"I see. Its massive frame does feel like it'd take hundreds piling on at once. But..."
Soma held his tongue for a moment.
Just days ago, hadn't the man before him nearly soloed the thing?
The words circled his mouth, but Soma couldn't voice them.
This man didn't move for small justices—he did anything without hesitation for a greater one.
"I... won't blame you for not hunting it deliberately. Someone has to walk into hell."
I get it all. Soma seemed to say.
'Heh.'
Ju Gonghyeok couldn't hold back the laugh. He set aside the pipe and stood.
"Thanks for understanding. Makes the road to hell less awkward. Anyway, time for my patrol with the recon team. Head back and rest easy."
"Yes. Understood, Gonghyeok."
Before Soma could rise, Ju Gonghyeok opened the chalet door and stepped out.
"Pfft, puhaha. Hahaha—"
"The boss is laughing. Something good happen?"
"What do you expect? He's always such a good guy. He's off patrolling with three recon hunters for those murderer hunters around here lately. Isn't that amazing?"
"Gonghyeok! We're always grateful you took us in!"
Ju Gonghyeok greeted the approaching well-wishers with smiles all around.
'Soma. Think you really wouldn't condemn me? It's still ringing in my ears.'
The words you spat while vomiting blood, cursing me.
Seeing your great hypocrisy and iron will at your heart's end shatter against reality—that's one of my regression's few pleasures.