The Vote (1)
After sorting out that core issue—which had been turning into a real pain in the ass—I finally got around to prepping lunch. Not that "lunch" was anything fancy; it just meant heading upriver to check the fish trap. No fish? Smoked meat it is. Fish? Fish for lunch. No clue how many we'd snagged while I was locked in that brutal fight with the guardian.
Lucky if it's two, right?
Wonmo had woken up right on cue, so we all headed to the river together. Ppareumbo aside, this was the first time bringing Wonmo along. As long as she stuck close and didn't cause trouble, we'd be fine.
Splash! Splash!
“Kyuu! Kyu-kyu!”
“Yeah, yeah. Just a sec.”
Luck was on our side—the trap held two fish. Those red ones were always a sight, huge and insanely tasty no matter how many times I saw them. I kept a sharp eye on Wonmo as I hauled up the trap, just in case she tried jumping in. The golden frog family would swarm the second she did.
Rustle—
I'd almost fully retrieved it when I heard bushes shaking nearby. Thought maybe Wonmo at first, but she was right by my side. Meaning something else was out there. I played it cool, pretending not to notice, and kept pulling.
Soon the trap was fully up, fish thrashing wildly inside. Then—
Rustle! Rustle!
Louder this time, impossible to ignore. I grabbed my sword and shield, spinning toward the sound. Wonmo sensed it too, fur bristling as she went on high alert.
“Kee-ing. Kee-ik.”
“Kki-ing. Nang.”
The creature that emerged from the bushes was all too familiar. Soaked through, its body a deep gray. Cute face masking raw beastliness, long body, viciously overgrown claws.
“...Otter?”
Otters. Not one, but a pack. They had that sharp, almost adorable look that nearly dropped my guard—but this was the Four Seasons Forest. Even frogs were deadly here. I steeled myself, eyeing the group. Five or six, by my count.
And why the hell are they so damn big?
Nothing like the otters I knew. They stood taller than my waist even hunched, claws nasty, and they were a pack. Tension ratcheted up.
Flop! Flop!
The fish kept splashing amid the standoff. The otters' eyes flicked to them, gleaming with hunger. Looked like thieves come to steal my catch.
Like hell.
No way was I handing these over. I activated my mana—fully recharged after the guardian sucked it dry. The forest's mana density made recovery a breeze.
“Kkieak? Kkak?”
“Kiiing.”
As I ramped up my presence, the otters shifted into formation. Two hung back; the front three crouched low.
“Kyaaaa!”
The presumed leader bared its teeth in a snarl. Otters usually screamed "cute," but this one? Straight-up vicious, like some American mutant. Fangs out, it radiated carnivore menace. Well, otters did eat fish, so fair enough.
Everything so far's been solo, but these are a pack. Gotta be extra careful.
One wrong move, and it'd be a coordinated assault. A claw or bite could end me.
“Ppareumbo, you guard Wonmo. I'll be fine.”
“...”
Ppareumbo was the most reliable here. It slunk off my back at my request and hopped onto Wonmo. My shield covered me, but Wonmo was still green—needed backup.
“Kyaaaa!”
The biggest one—the leader—charged, fangs flashing. Straight at me. Huge for an otter, but shockingly fast. It slashed with those killer claws.
Slash!
No chance. I had the shield from SunForever. The second its attack glanced off, I swung my sword without hesitation.
Whoosh!
“?!”
An uneasy whistle by my ear—I snapped the shield up on instinct.
Clang! Thunk!
Something solid hit the shield. Not heavy, but the fact it flew mattered. I peeked under: a rock. Fist-sized chunk.
Who threw it? No time—the leader leaped high, diving at my face, claws out to shred.
Too slow.
Thud!
I raised the shield overhead, blocking effortlessly. Before it could recover, I bashed hard. Even a big otter goes flying from that.
“Kieeeng!”
It sailed off squealing, mismatched with its ferocity. Plan: clean up the others first.
Glanced at Wonmo and Ppareumbo—wild scene. One otter bisected, spraying blood. Another pinned by Wonmo, pecked and clawed every time it struggled. Total domination. Ppareumbo must've shone.
Slash! Snick!
It even snatched flying rocks midair or sliced them with claws. Impressive as hell.
Wonder if otters actually throw rocks.
“Kee-eeng! Keeng!”
“Kyaaang!”
Yup, the two in back were hurling stones. Some otter habit? Whatever—opportunity.
I charged as the "artillery" wound up. They panicked, chucking rocks that all pinged off my shield. Up close, I slashed inward-to-out with aura-surging sword.
Slash! Slice!
No meaty sound—just clean wind. Cheonma's sword plus aura cut damn near anything.
Plop! Thud!
Straight spines made for neat upper-lower splits. Rock-throwers down. Wonmo shredded her pin.
Left: the leader, flung far. Not back yet.
Rustle!
Speak of the devil. Leader burst from bushes, fashionably late.
Too bad—its pack was diced or torn.
“Kkieeeeeek!!!”
It roared at the carnage, bloodshot eyes locking on me before charging.
Fast for its size, disorienting—but a raging beast's strike is predictable. No need to block.
Slash!
Leader lunged, claws raking wildly, emotion-fueled. I twisted to dodge, but first positioned my upside-down sword in its path. Legs airborne, no escape.
Shwick!
As predicted, it impaled itself straight down. Crashed flat, vertically bisected. Speed backfired into suicide.
Serves you right for trying to steal.
I snorted, starting cleanup. Couldn't leave bodies—scent would draw more. Dumped them in the river, buried the blood. Most were pre-chopped, easy work.
“Let's go.”
“Kyuu!”
“Gotta clean those claws first thing.”
Wonmo and Ppareumbo both had bloody talons. River right there, but frogs meant head back. Grabbed the still-flopping fish and returned to the shelter.
Now for the fun part: lunch. Gave Wonmo one, gutting out the inner core first, of course.
“Eat this, and I'll give you honey later. Got it?”
“Nom nom nom.”
Too busy chowing to hear. I petted her head, then prepped mine.
Wonder when I'll burn through these inner cores.
They were piling up in the elixir jar. Doubt I'd use 'em all. Starting one a day in two days, but overkill worry.
Gallery post first.
Needed to report the otter raid—and those rock-throwers. Snapped pics, censored the gore.
Disciplined some river bandits. YasaengGrill (Photos of sprawled otter corpses) These bastards tried stealing my fish. Gave 'em a hands-on lesson. But do otters normally throw rocks? Frontline and rearguard split caught me off guard;;
└Cheonma This lady's never seen otters like that. First time spotting such ferocious ones.
└YasaengGrill Thought they were cute at first. Nope.
└SwordTasteStar Those otters? What kind even are they?;;
└YasaengGrill Four Seasons Forest effect, probably.
└PassingDwarf Didn't Ppareumbo try stealing fish last time and get away with it? Why let that slide?
└YasaengGrill Ppareumbo just stole. These tried robbing.
└PassingDwarf Honestly, if each was Ppareumbo-strong?
└YasaengGrill Hand over fish and bolt lmao
└PassingDwarf No pride?
└YasaengGrill (Calm Ppareumbo face pic) This guy's stronger than me. Pride's been crumpled forever.
└PassingDwarf lmaoooo
└lolololol
└Pride worth crushing lolol
└Weaker than a sloth lol
└Olfather Otters do have a pebble-throwing habit. But fighting with rocks? First I've heard.
└YasaengGrill Forest's the weirdo, right? They don't normally?
└Olfather River thugs for sure. Cute looks hide alligator-killers.
└YasaengGrill Otters?;;
└Olfather Super cuddly with humans, but terrifying otherwise.
└Wonmo Think again. That cutie could eat you.
└Don't underestimate the wild.
└Humans die from deer kicks lolol
Got it. Otters are just that badass. Solo trip? Lose fish or die. Wonmo and Ppareumbo saved the day—sketchy situation.
Nothing's easy here.
Wilds are brutal, forest or not. I sighed inwardly, firing up the fish.
Huge iron pan sizzling golden. Fish so big, pan's massive too.
Tasty lunch YasaengGrill (Video of fish crisping up) My lunch today. Never gets old.
└Cheonma Mouth watering already. That good?
└YasaengGrill Just salt, but insanely good. Pro chef? Heaven.
└Cheonma Chance arises, one for this lady? If okay?
└YasaengGrill Anytime you want. But trades lock 24h, so next Wall Valley Pill swap.
└Cheonma Isn't that your food stock?
└YasaengGrill Yeah, but your request.
└Cheonma Nah. Can't risk your survival. Take it back.
└SwordTasteStar Auction a piece maybe?
└YasaengGrill Catch more later, send yours;;
└SwordTasteStar Trades suck when needed. One piece pls.
└YasaengGrill Feels too scummy. Later freebie.
└PassingDwarf Tried it last time—insanely good. Then fever hit.
└Ain't that bad?
└PassingDwarf Nah, next day power surge. Still overflowing lol
└Want it more every sec. No auction?
└Live ones no. Grills ain't cooking.
└Kill and post fresh?
└Time ticks in auction;;
Jealous vibes all around. I got it—those wild-caught cooking vids on YouTube that suck you in.
Mine's just grilled, but size helps.
Still bummed. Sharing bites? Near impossible. 24h trade lock sucked.
Time to ask Judaek.
Posted right away.
└Don'tAbandonHero No way! Not full free-for-all, but special favors unfair!
└YasaengGrill What about Cheonma?
└Don'tAbandonHero She's got the band! You want one too?
└YasaengGrill ;; Confirmed: Judaek's a young fogey.