Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: A Sow Sow?
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A sow that's a sow?
What kind of nonsense is this, telling me to have pigs fight?
Truth be told, when people think of pigs, they often imagine wild boars, so they assume farm-raised pigs must be incredibly fierce. But in reality, that's not the case at all.
Farm pigs are raised entirely by human hands from piglethood onward. During that process, they're given shots, have their tails docked, their teeth clipped, and the males are castrated, among other things.
Just like how humans can develop a lifelong trauma from a single botched tooth extraction at the dentist as a kid, pigs go through even harsher ordeals right from birth, one after another.
As a result, by the time they've piled up enough traumatic experiences with humans from a young age, they naturally flee at the mere approach of a person. And if you manage to catch one, it just squeals like a pig at slaughter—nothing more.
They don't put up any resistance whatsoever. Truly, they're creatures with massive bodies but utterly powerless.
That said, they're not completely dumb animals. There are exceptions, like how they'll gather on their own at the smell of food. Excluding the uncastrated boars kept for breeding—which our farm doesn't have—the reasons I mentioned earlier mean my combat skills are worthless, so telling me to fight with pigs is basically just saying to stand by like an idiot and watch the farm burn.
"What, you want me to form a legion with these guys? The Tang army is the poster child for a ragtag mob, but if we fought with these, we'd become the new synonym for it overnight—me and the pig farm!"
After my words, the message window fell silent for a moment, as if pondering, before resuming right in front of me.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [How utterly pathetic you are! Did you really think I'd tell you that without having prepared for it?!] "Urk..."
To be honest, if someone suddenly told you to fight with pigs out of nowhere, who would just go, "Oh, right, the pigs will protect me, so I can sleep soundly with my legs stretched out tonight"?
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [No excuses! I hadn't even finished speaking, and you jumped ahead and interrupted me!] I had nothing to say to that. But still, my freakout over fighting with pigs was because their explanation was lacking, so let's call it even.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ahem! Then I'll continue!] The moment the message window finished, a new one appeared before me—not the usual transparent kind, but one with a deep blue background.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [First, to link the Awakener with the farm, please grasp the handle in front of you.] It felt like reading a product manual.
But this sudden window, and without even hearing a proper explanation...
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Please grasp it.] The blue message window floated right up to my nose, pressing in aggressively as if it might shove me aside. Of course I felt uneasy.
Ten years ago, it popped up alone, offered no help—not even a greeting—while the world changed, and now, because your farm's about to go up in flames if we don't, hold my hand?
On the very first day I'm standing on my own, no less?
But suspicious as it was, holding meant total destruction, not holding meant total destruction—so at least I needed to know why it was happening. I had no real choice. They called it a tutorial, but it was basically a forced quest.
So, following the message's instructions, the moment I grabbed the pigsty door handle...
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Starting tutorial!] "Suddenly?! No, you need to explain properly first—"
It didn't even let me stammer in confusion before a brilliant light began pouring from the door handle I was gripping.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Linking Awakener and farm—do not let go under any circumstances!] It felt like my hand was sticking to a glue trap, the handle increasingly pulling me in. I was scared, but I didn't pull away.
Since I'd inherited this farm from my father, everything that happened here was my responsibility.
Not because I was some unprecedented filial son holding a three-year mourning period or anything like that—just that I wanted to at least leave him with the words that I'd worked hard.
Above all, now that I'd realized someone—wherever they were—was trying to touch what was mine, I couldn't just sit back and watch. So I clung to the handle despite the unpleasant sensation.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Link... 27% complete... 28% complete...] The light radiating from the handle began spreading outward from me and the door, enveloping everything in a transparent yet deep blue glow like the message windows.
Starting from the pigsty door I held, it covered the ground I stood on, the feed storage, the manure pit, even the farm's watchdog, the manure spreader, and its shed.
Like applying a coating, the blue light wrapped around every item, building, and even beast on the farm property. With a "100% complete" message, it slowly faded away.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Link between Awakener and their owned farm completed.] Suddenly, an enormous glow emanated from beyond the door handle—bright enough to peek through the crack—and the pigs inside began squealing in panic.
"What the hell was that?! What did you do to the farm?!"
Whatever it was, something had definitely happened inside the pigsty beyond this door. The pigs' uproar wasn't ending, and it was too much for just a flash of light.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Part of the preparations I mentioned.] I remembered it saying something about preparations when I was ranting that brawling with pigs was impossible...
"What kind of preparations?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [After scanning your farm thoroughly—and even all pigs inhabiting this land, this dimension—no pigs with sufficient power to defend your farm were found.] "I... see?"
There were plenty of cases where goblins emerging from newly spawned natural dungeons got run over and massacred by wild boar herds during foraging. So purely in terms of combat power, goblins were inferior even to wild boars.
Yet even including those, it phrased it that way—which meant the threat heading for this farm was something more than just pathetic goblins, at least for now.
"But what's that got to do with the commotion in the pigsty just now?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Simple solution! If no suitable pigs exist in this dimension, summon them from another! The commotion in the pigsty just now—and still happening—is due to pigs summoned from another dimension!] "You bastard, why didn't you say that sooner?!"
Not just any pigs, but ones from who-knows-where, tossed into the pens overnight?
Pigs are smarter than you think.
They live in herds but don't just pee anywhere when nature calls—they have designated spots, showing strong social instincts.
So they're subtly sensitive about their territory.
The moment a pig from outside their herd—our pigs that didn't grow up with them—is added, they see it as a challenge, and territory fights break out immediately.
No exceptions. Assume they'll fight every time.
It's not just tussling that ends quickly, either—fights often go until one side dies. That's why my father avoided mixing pigs unless absolutely necessary.
And now you're dumping strange pigs into the pigsty out of nowhere?!
I was about to rush in to see if it was trying to help or what, at least to clean up the mess this troublemaker had caused—
"...Wait a second."
Cracking the door open, the pigs' squeals hit me.
Squeal-squeal-eeeek, the usual noisy racket from the pigs. But this uproar, this cry—it wasn't a territory dispute.
They were terrified.
Just like when they spot me approaching with a needle.
They were all freaking out in unison at the arrival of some existence they couldn't resist.
At least it wasn't a death screech like at the slaughterhouse, so probably not a beast or anything. But I couldn't waste more time.
"Whatever it is, stress is bad for them, so I'll go check it out."
[...] I flung open the pigsty door and charged toward the pen where the commotion was coming from. The tension filling my chest gradually turned to doubt, and that doubt soon became shock.
"Hey! What the hell is that?!"
"Mmmph!! Mmmph!!"
Beyond the transparent blue screen, amid the pigs, stood a platinum blonde woman.
To be precise, judging by the armor she wore, she was a Female Knight.
"Don't tell me that's..."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Tutorial: First task! Tame the pig before your eyes!]