Chapter 17
Chapter 17
"Wait a second... I think I misheard you... Could you say that again?"
No, you heard me correctly...
I brought my face close to her ear and
"My inventory has 84 slots."
I delivered the message clearly.
Ha-rang stared intently at my face in the darkness.
Is this person pretending not to see when they can actually see everything...?
I felt burdened by her overly direct gaze, so I said,
"Ha-rang-ssi...?"
"Did the maximum inventory slots increase when the Ruined Game situation started?"
"Uh... probably not?"
"Probably not?!?!
Then what's up with your inventory slots!!!"
"Well... they gave me double because of the Initial Perk... Ahaha."
When I laughed awkwardly, she aimed for my shin, and
[The attack target is a member of the party.]
[Cannot attack.]
The attack failed.
"You think this is funny!!!
Did you hoard it all for yourself?!"
"W-well... I guess so? Since I got everything first."
"Phew... Right, so you're saying you're the first person to unlock the inventory...?"
"I suppose so...?"
At my vague answer, Ha-rang raised her fist, and
I was terrified even though I was under the System's protection.
"Ugh... when did you unlock it?"
"Uh... the first slot was on the first night, and the rest were all unlocked around the evening of the second day."
Ha-rang hung her head low.
"The first one was just 1, so I'll give you that, you were lucky...
But from the second one, it's 10!? The third one is 20!!"
"I know... because I unlocked them all too."
"Hey!!"
Her shout echoed through the dark basement, and
"Argh... what are you going to do if there are people around?"
"Is that what's important right now?!"
"It is important, my life is on the line."
A fist flew toward me, as I wouldn't yield an inch, but
[The attack target is a member of the party.]
[Cannot attack.]
Thank you, System-nim.
"Damn it!! You!! What the hell is that ability!! How do you make so much money!!!"
I pondered how to answer her rage, and
"Uh... garbage disposal worker?"
"This bastard really!!"
She started attacking me using her hands and feet, and
Countless System windows appeared and disappeared before my eyes repeatedly.
2 minutes later
"Huff... huff... You sneaky bastard... You narrow-minded bastard! You big-dicked bastard!!!"
Uh... well, at least my dick is big, so that's a relief.
Ha-rang collapsed to the floor, exhausted from exercising by herself, and
I took out a Lock & Lock container from my inventory.
"Here, say 'ah', Ha-rang-ssi."
"What?!"
"Ah~"
"Ah my ass, ah... ugh?!"
The moment she opened her mouth, I covered her mouth with the piece of cloth I was holding,
Then I shoved in a piece of Mom's Cucumber Salad,
Crunch.
She chewed the cucumber that had entered her mouth.
"Here, it's a Vitality Regeneration buff.
Let's take a break for a moment."
"Fucking bastard..."
Please say that after you finish eating what's in your mouth.
Nom nom... gulp.
"Hey, but how do you know this is Vitality Regeneration?
Buffs only show the mark, you can't read the effect."
Ah... right, that was the case...
I had been able to read all the effects thanks to the Blessing of All Things, so I had been certain.
In reality, in the Ruined Game, except for potions sold in shops,
There was no way to know what effect a buff obtained by chance had.
"Ah... I just thought so because my fatigue went away after eating it, ahaha..."
At my awkward laughter, Ha-rang started to get suspicious, and
"... Really?"
"Alright, alright~ Let's go shopping again.
At this rate, we're going to end up sleeping here."
I took her hand and pulled her up.
"...."
She was still looking at me strangely, and
I just turned my body and walked toward another place.
"Alright, alright~ Oh! There's a massage chair over there!"
"Hey, walk with me!!"
Ha-rang hurriedly linked her arm with mine again, and we started shopping again.
--
Ha-rang and I finished shopping in the basement and went back up to the 1st floor via the escalator.
"Ugh... the decay gas is truly the worst...
I'm exhausted just from shopping."
"That's true... Phew... I'm really tired..."
When we went up to the 2nd floor, it was full of sections selling plants, fish, and daily necessities.
"Poor things..."
Ha-rang felt sad looking at the fish that were floating dead because they hadn't been cared for.
"Do you like animals or fish, Ha-rang-ssi?"
Ha-rang, who had been looking at the fish tank, turned her head to look at me.
"Fish?! I mean, they're fish!"
Aren't fish and fish all the same...?
"Yes... do you like... fish?"
Ha-rang turned her head back to the fish tank.
"I wanted to raise a pet when I was young, but the maintenance costs are high, right...?
My family was poor... so my mom bought me guppies..."
"Ah... I see..."
It's a bit uncomfortable when family history like this comes up...
As expected, perhaps intoxicated by the melancholy, Ha-rang
tapped on the fish tank for a long time, watching the dead fish.
Fortunately, she was a strong woman, and
"Ugh, I wasted time getting sentimental for no reason...
Thanks for waiting."
"It's nothing. Come on, let's go somewhere else."
"Yeah."
I pulled my arm out so it would be easier for Ha-rang to grab, and she linked her arm with mine habitually.
--
As we walked a little to the side, this time we saw a large quantity of flowerpots.
"Oh! Ha-rang-ssi, can I look at some flowerpots to give to your mom?"
"Yeah, let's grab plenty of pretty and easy-to-grow flowers or seeds."
I saw a wooden flowerpot that looked interesting and scanned it.
[Bengal Rubber Tree]
Vitality: 64/100
Info 1: Grants detoxification upon consumption.
Crazy!? Detoxification?!
Back in the Ruined Game days, veteran players enjoyed various experiments.
Useless experiments like whether a character could return to human form if they were blessed or dispelled immediately after being bitten and turning into a zombie.
One of the results discovered that way was that if you drank an antidote or received a high-level blessing immediately after being bitten, the zombie transformation would stop.
From then on, the value of detoxification in the game skyrocketed, and one of the essential skills for veterans was Detoxification Max.
'So all these overflowing leaves are antidotes...?'
Just in case, I plucked a leaf and put it in my mouth,
Crinkle...
Ugh... it's bitter...
[There is no poison to detoxify.]
The performance was killer.
I immediately put the wooden flowerpot into my inventory.
I searched hard to see if there were any other good ones, but there was no effect as good as detoxification.
I was satisfied with having gained at least one thing, and I grabbed carrot, pumpkin, onion, and zucchini seeds, etc., and left the plant section.
When we went to the corner, there was a bakery, and I saw moldy bread.
"Oh? Can I take the flour?"
"To make bread? That's annoying..."
Ha-rang, who was talking, looked at my face, and
"Does your mother know how to bake bread?"
"Wouldn't anything taste good if the Cooking skill is Max?"
At my words, she smiled brightly and hugged my arm even tighter.
"Honey~ I wanna eat bread~"
Ugh...
"Ah... yes..."
When I stiffened and nodded, Ha-rang must have been overcome with shyness because she pinched my arm, and
Ouch!! System-nim!?
The attack was successful.
"Ah... it hurts, Ha-rang-ssi..."
Ha-rang said in a low voice, completely different from just a moment ago.
"Take the flour... quickly..."
"Yes..."
I crab-walked into the narrow bakery and
put the flour piled up in the corner into my inventory.
'Hmm... I should take the baking tools too, right?'
Since there were no proper baking tools at home, I put various things like the oven, hand mixer, bowls, yeast, etc., into my inventory.
Crash!! Bang!! Clatter!!
"Kyaaak!!"
In the darkness where I couldn't see well in front of me,
At the sound of glass breaking and miscellaneous tools falling that suddenly rang out,
She was startled, and
She crouched down on the floor, hugging her head.
"Uh... Ha-rang-ssi...? It's me, it's me."
"Damn it.... You scared me!!!"
"Ah... I'm sorry."
I scratched my head, wondering if it was something to apologize for, and
She quickly linked her arm with mine.
"Th... then what were those sounds!!"
"Ah, I didn't have baking tools at home, so I was putting the oven and things like that into my inventory to take them, and the tools that were on top fell, making noise."
"I... I see... You really scared me!"
From next time, she should either get night vision or not come to dark places...
"I'm sorry.
Alright, then let's go to the furniture section, the main event."
I slowly headed to the 3rd floor with her, who was still trembling.
On the 3rd floor, since some people had entered, items like blankets were scattered on the floor.
Hmm... since it's a new house, I should take everything new.
"Ha-rang-ssi, you know the house I bought?"
"Hmm? Oh, that old house? Why?"
"I leveled up Advanced Construction yesterday and used points, so it was Max.
And I built a new house, and it's huge."
Ha-rang was surprised.
"Wow~ You said you were doing manual labor yesterday, and you already leveled it up to Advanced? That's amazing."
I spoke, thinking it would be convenient if she were nearby.
"Yes, so...
Would you like to move into my house?"
At my question, Ha-rang stared intently at my face, and
"Is this a proposal?"
How does this become a proposal?
I was afraid I'd get hit again if I said something else for no reason, so
"Uh... I guess so? Since it means living together..."
She suddenly hung her head low.
"...kay..."
"Yes? What was that?"
"I said okay!! Let's live together!!!"
Ugh, why is she so irritable...
"It must have been a difficult choice, thank you.
Then shall we look at beds first?"
At my words, she linked her arm even tighter, and
"Hehe~ Are we buying a king size~?"
This woman... isn't she misunderstanding something...?
Well, I don't mind, hehe.
"Uh... of course."
Like that, we sat on and laid on the displayed beds like newlyweds,
picked out 2 beds we liked, and put them in my inventory.
"Next, let's go look at sofas."
"Yeah!"
Ha-rang started shopping even more passionately because it was now our house's furniture, not someone else's.
Before long, we picked out a 5-seater sofa with a recliner and put it in my inventory.
What is this, is my inventory invincible?
I was worried about the inventory that kept taking things in no matter how much I put in, so I checked, and
67/84
Relieved that there was still plenty of room, I focused on shopping again.
After that, we were able to finish the long shopping trip only after grabbing everything we needed, such as desks, chairs, tables, kitchen cupboards, sinks, bathroom toilets, etc.
--
"Ugh... it's blinding..."
"That's true... but fortunately, there was no one inside, so we enjoyed shopping quietly."
"That's right, that's right~"
Groan...
"Take good care of my babies, okay?"
During the shopping, my and Ha-rang's inventories became full of items, and eventually, we had to mobilize even her zombies to move the luggage.
"Now all that's left is to go back home."
"Yeah, first let's go to my house, take what we need, and then go to your house."
"It's our house now, isn't it?"
At my embarrassing words, her face turned red, and
[The attack target is a member of the party.]
[Cannot attack.]
The attack failed.
She laughed awkwardly and clung to my arm, and
"My honey... are you really becoming my honey now?"
"If only Ha-rang-ssi allows it, I'm always welcome."
"Hehe."
We had been sticking together for the short time we were shopping, so we seemed to have become a little closer for some reason.
Smooch.
She kissed my cheek and smiled brightly.
"My honey,
You have to feed me well, okay?"
Ah... it feels like I've been caught in a trap...
"Ahaha... let's manage our assets separately..."
[The attack target is a member of the party.]
[Cannot attack.]
Thank you, System-nim.
"Hey!! Where does that happen!!"
I ignored her shouting and popped the head of an approaching zombie, and
"Anyway, Ha-rang-ssi, you don't have any use for money, right?"
"Still, that's not it!!"
She made the strongest of her zombies her escort and followed behind me.
--
By the time the sun was setting, we were able to arrive home.
Beep-beep-beep.
I opened the front gate with fingerprint recognition.
"Wow, the house really got amazing..."
Ha-rang admired the house that had become much wider as she entered the yard.
I felt good that my effort was praised, and I opened the door of the original house and went in.
"Mom!! I'm home!!"
Mom was reading a book related to farming in the living room, and
"Oh? Ah, son, welcome back~
Oh my! Ha-rang-ssi came too~ Welcome~"
Ha-rang greeted Mom with her usual gentle smile.
"I'll be in your care, Mother~"
I put down the flowerpots and said to Mom,
"Ah, Mom,
Ha-rang-ssi and I decided to live together in the house next door."
Mom clapped her hands happily.
"Oh my!? Is that true, Ha-rang-ssi!?"
"Yes... Geumseul-ssi proposed to me..."
Uh... proposed...?
"Oh my, oh my!!!"
"We decided to live together, Mother... I'll be in your care from now on."
"Oh my goodness!! Welcome, Ha-rang-ssi!!
Son!! You did well!!"
I did well... right?
Mom was holding both of Ha-rang's hands and jumping up and down happily, and Ha-rang was cosplaying as a gentle cat.
I shook my head, opened the refrigerator, and started taking out side dishes.
"Mom, let's eat!"
"Yeah!! I'll prepare the meal quickly, ho ho ho~"
Well... I like Ha-rang-ssi, and Mom likes her too, so I guess I did well~
==