Negotiation with the Monster
Today, the place we were exploring was somewhere people rarely set foot in. The reason was simple.
"Ugh... ugh... ugh..."
Even Kim Chaerin, whose bright smile was her best feature, couldn't stop grimacing at our opponent. They were colloquially known as Dog Flies. Their official name in the Monster Encyclopedia was Dog Fly.
They had the face and body of a dog with wings attached, and their appearance was so grotesquely hideous it made you furrow your brow just looking at them.
"Th-this thing doesn't fly, right?"
"Nah! Those are just for show."
Thankfully, having wings didn't mean they could fly. No feathers or muscles—just bones sticking out. As if they could fly with that. Honestly, their faces were all wrinkly like a wrung-out towel, so you absolutely shouldn't picture a regular puppy. And on top of that, the smell...
Anyway, these guys were today's sacrificial lambs to boost the Saintess's stamina stat. I called them sacrificial lambs, but we weren't hunting them. Come to think of it, the real sacrificial lamb might be the Saintess.
What she had to do today was simple: play with the Dog Flies.
Dog Flies were docile monsters that never attacked humans. In fact, they loved people so much that if you got close, they'd wag their bone wings all around to express their joy. That's why hunting them was outright banned—they were just pitiful creatures shunned for their looks.
Still, people sought them out because playing with the energetic Dog Flies for a set time would raise your stamina. Think of it like the Lust Slimes. Of course, it was just +1 to your stat, but for the Saintess, even a single stat point meant something special.
Honestly, if you framed it as just playing, it wasn't a big deal. But watching them flap their bone wings, with their tongues stretched comically long to the ground, drool dripping everywhere... well, even regular awakeners wouldn't bother for a measly +1 stamina.
"Ugh... urk... ack... ugh... ugh! Blech!"
In the end, Kim Chaerin was the first to hurl.
If it were just their appearance, she might've endured, but the stench wafting off the Dog Flies was enough to induce vomiting. That rotten sewer-like body odor was so overpowering, even an S-rank awakener would struggle—it packed incredible attack power.
I'd come prepared for that, but I waited a bit longer to let Choi Eunji adjust.
"There, there... urp... good boy... ugh... oh man... y-you're... so pretty... uuugh... urk... blech—"
After Choi Eunji finally puked once,
"Here, put this on!"
"...!!! What the hell! Why didn't you give it to me sooner!!!"
I handed her a small gas mask, savoring her outburst. I'd bought it from the Dungeon Shop ahead of time, but she needed to build tolerance to monsters, so I didn't pull it out right away. It definitely wasn't because I wanted to see her suffer... nope.
It was a leather-strap type that covered just the nose and mouth, easy to snag from the Dungeon Shop. No real effects, same as off-the-shelf stuff, but cheap.
"I'll charge you for that later!"
Nothing was free for Saintess Choi Eunji. I'd bill her for Kim Chaerin's too.
With the gas mask on, things improved dramatically. Breathing was a tad uncomfortable, but without the stench, it was just playing with ugly monsters—nothing tough.
I'd already raised my stamina here before, so no gains left for me. I planned to stay way back and generate farmland.
I was scouting for decent soil when—
"Kyarr— So cuuuute!!!"
Kim Chaerin's delighted voice rang out suddenly.
★
'Jam Tiger?'
This was pretty far from the Jam Tiger habitat, but there stood a grinning Jam Tiger.
I definitely hadn't left any crops in my inventory. I'd put this morning's carrot harvest up for sale at a premium, and right now, only seeds were in there.
'Can it even smell seeds?!'
The Jam Tiger seemed to be eyeing me suspiciously. But the real issue was,
"Urk! Wh-what... why are you... s-so scary all of a sudden!"
The few Dog Flies playing with Choi Eunji started twisting their bone wings and growling.
I'd never seen Dog Flies act like that—they were so docile. Their bone wings warped into long spears.
Kim Chaerin sensed the weirdness too and tossed snacks from her pocket to lure it away, but
'Is it glaring at me?'
The Jam Tiger's gaze stayed locked on me. Then, with a low growl, the Dog Flies crouched into attack position, snarling.
Suddenly—
Grurr— grurr— grurr—
The Jam Tiger rolled onto its back and started purring out of nowhere. At the same time, Kim Chaerin turned to me.
"It says it has something to tell you—!"
"Me?"
"It wants to talk somewhere quiet since it's important."
"Huh... A Jam Tiger? With me?"
I couldn't wrap my head around it, but I knew Iris—the old elf sharing Kim Chaerin's body—could talk to Jam Tigers.
"Iris, come out."
Kim Chaerin nodded vigorously, her eyes shifting slightly as Iris spoke.
"It brought a gift."
"A gift?"
"This is Dog Fly territory, so it says we can't stay long—let's move first?"
"Mm..."
I glanced at Choi Eunji. Dog Flies weren't aggressive, but their reaction to the Jam Tiger worried me a bit.
"I-I'm fine... I... wore protective gear today too..."
"...?!"
"U-underneath..."
"For real?"
"R-really!"
"Lemme see!"
"Wh-what?!"
"Gotta confirm to leave with peace of mind."
Protective gear worked inversely: less coverage meant higher defense. No idea why, but that's how it was. And I wouldn't budge without verifying Choi Eunji's safety!
"...There! Happy now?"
Choi Eunji unzipped her hoodie to show inside. Her cheeky grin threw me for a sec, but
"Ooh... nice pick..."
It looked like zero protection. But clearly top-quality.
"Y-you told me to buy it..."
She listened well—probably just valued her own life. Anyway, seeing her in that pricey, bikini-style protective gear that screamed high defense put me at ease. Wanted to check below too, but I'd hold off.
"Tell it to lead the way."
I relayed via auto-translator Iris.
"It says there's good land by a stream just a short walk away."
"Let's go there."
So we followed the waddling, two-legged Jam Tiger—adorably cute as it led.
"Whoa... didn't know this spot existed."
We arrived at a lush green meadow and I marveled.
The Dungeon Entrance was said to span three times Seoul's area. No vehicles inside, just walking, so it felt vast. Scout teams had mapped it all, free maps at the gate—no getting lost. Guard posts with awakener hunters everywhere too.
Just a short detour from the Dog Fly Habitat I'd visited tons, and boom—vast emerald plains. Stunning.
(P.S. The Dog Fly spot was a slightly squelchy marsh.)
"So, what's it wanna say?"
"Take this first."
"Mm... what's this...?"
Looked like an acorn-pinecone hybrid.
Stamina Orb!
Permanently +3 Stamina
I jolted at Iris's translation.
"What's that?"
"Permanently raises stamina by 3."
"...!!!"
Permanent stat boost?! By 3...?
Even my idol, Farmer Master, never grew a crop with permanent +1 or more.
So this was
"BS?"
"It's real. I checked."
"Wh-whoa?! You can do that?"
"How long do you think I've lived? I didn't count my years by shoving 'em up my ass!"
I wasn't doubting her abilities, but she got super defensive anyway.
Anyway, permanent +3 stamina floored me.
As a farmer awakener, stamina was my strong suit. Guiding dungeons had bumped it up quick too.
High-rankers' stats were secret, but my 27 stamina wasn't low. Average E-rank hunter was ~10, so I outdid C-ranks in stamina.
Meaning I wouldn't tire easily even after all-night sex.
(Saintess was at 7, btw. S-rank averages meant nothing to her.)
Eating this would hit 30 stamina? That round number tempted me.
But no way it'd give away something this huge for free. And why me?
"In exchange..."
There it was. I tensed, waiting for Iris.
Please say trade for something I have.
"It wants to buy your crops."
"Huh?"
"All of them."
"Huuuh?"
"That's what it says."
"Got money?"
My crops, permanent boost or not?! All of them?!
Sure, no effects, but... yesterday's sucker netted profit!
"Paying with items instead of money?"
"Items? This one's a gift—separate from payment!"
Yeah, gift was outside negotiations. Gotta clarify.
"No top-tier ones, but lower-grade stuff's plentiful in its secret vault?"
"Secret... vault?"
Sounded huge, but my goal was cash, not stats.
Still... trade my crops for items, sell those in shop?!
"Tell it to wait. Need to think."
I dipped into the shop window pronto.
Wh-what the—?!
My big, tasty, nutrient-packed carrots at 50k each sold out again. Insane.
No more "god-tier deals" gripes, but plenty questioning my sellouts. Whatever—I wanted to leap and clap soles in joy, but held back.
They ignored my question, treating it as more agro. In my haste, I figured listing it would test waters. Price at 100 mil? High-rankers or stat-capped growth-stopped folks might bite. Permanent stats weren't cheap to them.
But as I tried listing—
Listing Impossible
...?!
Tried again—same error.
Goddammit... useless junk.
★
I'd accidentally agro'd hard, but compared to my letdown, it was nothing.
"Can't sell this. No money? Points, I mean!"
Iris relayed blankly, shaking her head.
"None now, but it says it can gather points."
"Then collect and come back."
Iris told the Jam Tiger. It slumped shoulders but kept grinning.
"Its name's Jelly. Says it'll bring money next time for sure..."
Iris paused mid-sentence, whispering with Jelly.
"Huh?! It won't go for that..."
Iris conferred, looking troubled, then turned to me.
"It... wants just one of your crops?"
"For free?"
"Hey! Why're you so obsessed with money?!"
"What's better than money?!"
"Tch! You got an item gift already! Jelly needs one for the meeting to convince the others—not people, other Jam Tigers."
"Oh, that's it? Shoulda said so sooner."
Like supermarket samples! Who ya calling money-grub? ...Fair point tho.
"Got none now. Come back in 12 hours—no, 6. Oh, carrots? Tomatoes? Whatcha want?"
Iris relayed; Jelly bowed deeply—head to ground.
Grinning wider? Hard to tell with the perpetual smile.
"Knows tomatoes from last time, asks if carrots ok too?"
Ah, the one that scarfed my tossed tomato. Lucky punk.
"Tomatoes and carrots, 3 each. Convince the crew, report back ASAP."
Jelly headbutted the dirt one last time and vanished.
"By the way, Iris. Gotta pee?"
To farm in 6 hours, needed crop time reduction.