Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Auctioning Off the Newbie
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I lit a fire and grilled the loaches until they were golden brown.
Bingbing was so excited about something that it had been quacking loudly and waddling in circles in front of the warehouse since morning.
"Quaaack!"
"Ugh! What! What's wrong! Why are you doing this!"
"Quaack..."
Bingbing, who had been spinning in circles in one spot, suddenly let out a shout and laid something.
No way, is that Bingbing's egg?
"Wow. Bingbing! You finally laid an egg!"
"Quack."
Bingbing pecked at the egg a few times as if it were no big deal, then quickly lost interest and waddled back into the reservoir.
Cool little guy.
It laid the egg for me, and I'm so proud and grateful.
The egg Bingbing laid was about the size of an ostrich egg.
And since it was freshly laid, it was still quite warm.
Of course, this egg was an unfertilized one that wouldn't hatch.
Bingbing knew that too.
"Man, it's been forever since I had an egg."
An egg big enough for twelve servings, plus earthy grilled loach.
The ultimate feast you could enjoy in the Ice Age.
Especially since I was so proud of the egg Bingbing gave me, I had to brag about it before cooking.
Bingbing's been a huge help to me.
It gives me eggs, carries me to the tent when I collapse, and cuddling up at night heals my soul.
Way better than grinding away alone, full of spite and venom.
Living with Bingbing has definitely made my mindset healthier.
Everyone started debating their preferred ways to eat eggs.
Elf Hunter insisted on raw, while Cursed Princess swore by scrambled, and they began arguing.
So peaceful.
This is the Sage Time Gallery.
Deep discussions on trivial topics (like how to eat eggs).
And whenever there's an opening, they hurl hate and speciesist remarks without hesitation—a heartwarming space.
At first, seeing sages from various worlds bickering felt alien.
But watching more, I realized they're just bored.
That's how they get their dopamine fix.
Just as I was about to crack the shell to eat the egg, Cosmic Dust offered a deal for garlic.
And not just garlic—seeds I could grow myself?
Of course, the garlic Cosmic Dust meant might not be exactly what I know.
But if it's similar, it'd be a spicy seasoning, which is gold.
Wouldn't it make the fishy loach taste even better?
Bingbing's egg for twelve servings, traded for seeds that could give me garlic forever.
No need to agonize over this one.
I could get another egg from Bingbing someday.
But miss this chance, and no garlic seeds.
Getting spices in the Ice Age is insanely lucky.
I'm so excited.
I immediately put Bingbing's egg into the black box.
After a short wait, the egg inside had turned into mysterious seeds.
"Oh... it really looks like garlic."
I now had cosmic garlic in hand.
Since it's seeds this time, I can keep growing more.
Nature Lover taught me a crop cultivation incantation to grow the garlic-like thing better.
As expected, it required fresh blood to cast, and the chant was a bit different.
"Like this..."
I planted the cosmic garlic seeds in revived soil, chanted Nature Lover's spell, and the garlic-like plant shot up huge!
Not exactly the same, but tasting it, the pungent aroma was pretty close.
Huh.
Already used it?
What if the earth really gets mad?
Just in case, I listened to the earth's voice.
The Lehman School basics start with hearing the earth's voice.
Tune in, and you can know what the earth thinks.
-You little punk... yanked so much yesterday... and again...
"Hello?"
-Urgh...
"..."
For some reason, it sounded like a pleased whimper.
Pretend I didn't hear the earth's voice.
Seems fine to harvest more for now.
"It really tastes like garlic."
"Quack."
"Wanna try some?"
"Quaaack!?"
Out of curiosity, Bingbing took a bite and started hopping mad, like "What is this crap?!"
I think it tastes great. Guess Bingbing doesn't like it.
After eating, I ducked into the tent to escape the blizzard and revised my future plans.
I have three major goals now.
First: Build an underground bunker/workshop just for me.
Second: Improve the reservoir fish—increase numbers and size.
And third: Learn more magic.
The more magic I learn, the more techniques I can use, and synergies between spells lead to a richer life.
The difference between just alchemy and adding druid rituals was night and day.
I'm the only mage in this world.
So I need to learn as much magic as possible to boost my quality of life.
Title: Looking for Someone to Take the Newbie
Writer: Apprentice Mage
I've got some free time now,
anyone want to be my sixth master?
Basic magic is a bit much, even for me.
But the reactions are way hotter than expected.
It was like a slave auction—everyone fighting over who gets to teach me.
Latest magitech for convenience, instant spell scrolls, and grimoire-making blending both schools.
All super useful, so tough choice.
But each requires building infrastructure from scratch.
Swamp rituals with demons seem risky—pass.
Could backfire if I summon wrong.
Species Minority mentioned bugs?
Bug magic triggers my PTSD, so no thanks.
Dimensional Chef's cooking class sounds good once I have more food.
Pureblood Supremacist, drowning in human hate every time.
Cook that elf and I bet I'd learn holy magic.
Honestly, holy magic's what I need most right now, so extra disappointing.
Without Phlogiston School, I wouldn't have made it this far.
But Phlogiston alone won't take me higher.
Various gallery folks promoted their schools.
Didn't expect this much impact.
Everyone desperate to teach me.
This isn't a newbie auction house.
Making my underground bunker/workshop a full dungeon isn't bad.
Great for intruders, and super safe.
Though it'd need tons of materials.
Immortality curse? Smells dangerous.
And no decent corpses around for necromancy.
If I had bodies for necro, better as summons anyway.
What to pick?
So many options, agonizing, when Northern Duchess messaged.
What could Northern Duchess's special service be?
Super curious now.