Chapter 172
Chapter 172
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: Expanding the Garden
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A few days had passed since receiving the gold bars from the baron.
While strolling through the streets with Luna, I noticed many people wearing masks on their heads, robes, or ridiculous costumes.
“Luna, why are all these people dressed up like that?”
“There’s a mask festival coming up soon.”
“What’s a mask festival?”
“I don’t know the details. But it seems like a festival where people wear masks and do all sorts of weird stuff!”
A festival where people wear masks and do weird things? Luna’s explanation was vague and hard to follow in places.
In short, a big event was coming to the city soon, and that’s why everyone was in such bizarre getups.
I’d enjoyed a few city-wide festivals back when I lived in Calcuta, the city before the labyrinth, so I just shrugged it off.
Carnivals, harvest festivals, thanksgivings, whatever-fests, Gettoda Festival, and so on.
They threw festivals for every reason under the sun. It felt less like they had a reason and more like they made up excuses just to party.
With so little entertainment around, they probably held grand events seasonally or annually to make noise, drink, and let loose.
A mask festival, huh.
Was it like a city-wide masquerade ball? A Halloween cosplay day?
I’d always been a bit of a loner, so back on Earth or here, festivals and I never really clicked. Still, this year felt different with soft and squishy Luna by my side—I was actually looking forward to enjoying one for once.
Festival.
Booze.
A steamy night.
It was practically a formula.
“Luna-nim, it’s heavy…”
Right then, Paranoya grumbled from behind us as she waddled along. We’d been shopping at the market, and she was carrying all the bags.
Making this little girl haul everything made us look like we were bullying her.
But it was the strict result of a game of rock-paper-scissors—no backing out.
“Hurry up, Paranoya. We’ve gotta build the fence before sundown!”
“Ugh… ugh…”
Even in the cold world of competition, it looked like too much for little Paranoya to handle.
“Want me to take some?”
“N-No, I can’t let Hassan-nim carry bags…! I’ll get them back to the cabin just fine…!”
Lately, Paranoya had been acting like a devoted bread shuttle.
Probably because she firmly believed I was Pluto’s son. Me, in the position of power? It was so rare that the feeling was all kinds of weird and mixed.
In the end, Paranoya collapsed from the heat and dropped everything, so Luna and I split the load evenly and headed back to the cabin.
“Front yard, front yard makeover. Front yard makeover voodoo—”
Even loaded up, Luna’s steps were light as air. Her pink hair, split into twin tails, swayed prettily.
The reason? She’d finally gotten the front yard she’d dreamed of. It was more of a modest patch of dirt than a proper garden, though.
Luna had been over the moon about that tiny plot, like it was a gold mine or something.
Whoosh—.
Soon, Luna dumped the wood and supplies onto the wide plot.
“First, let’s make the fence!”
And so, using lumber, nails, paint, and sap, we enclosed the yard with a fence.
It was simple: just drive flat wooden planks deep into the ground and stand them upright in a line.
Anyway, we now had a little yard.
Selling the two gold bars from the baron got us about 30 gold. I invested 20 of it to expand Luna’s cabin.
Luna kept asking guiltily, “Hassan, you sure it’s okay to spend so much?” as I shelled out the cash. But I had no qualms about big spends.
Part of it was that holding onto the baron’s gold bars felt shady—I wanted to blow through it quick.
Plus, this cabin was Luna’s, so I’d always felt like a freeloader.
Buying the surrounding land with my money made it feel like *our* cabin now. Pretty satisfying.
We spent the whole day digging up the yard, tilling fields, and lost track of time.
Scrape, scrape—.
Luna kept at it with her tiny hoe. 20 gold was a hefty sum, so we’d gotten a nice big vegetable patch—plenty of work to do.
“Veggy patch. Hm-hmm, veggy patch. Gotta plant potatoes. Round round potatoes. Cannonball potatoes.”
Luna’s words had no consistent tune or rhythm—it was more chant than song.
Guess she wasn’t much of a singer.
“Hassan, look! Ants! There are ants in our yard!”
“Yeah, you’re bound to find ants when you dig up dirt.”
“Shoo… ants… ants…! Get off our land!”
Luna grabbed her hoe and started hacking wildly at the anthill.
She was the ants’ nightmare—the ruler and destroyer of this tiny garden.
Scrape, scrape.
The primitive little ants could only tremble before her hoe.
Luna, the goddess of the yard, raised her hands high, bared her sharp little fangs, and grinned.
“Heehee, ants can’t beat me!”
After thoroughly wrecking the anthill with her hoe for ages, Luna finally smiled in satisfaction once it looked like all the ants had fled next door.
“I win!”
“Good job.”
Honestly, ever since we bought the land, Luna’s energy had been off the charts—worryingly so. She must’ve been *that* happy.
“Luna-nim, here too, here too—there’s an anthill!! How dare they occupy Hassan-nim’s territory without permission. This unforgivable act…!! I’m really mad…!!”
Paranoya joined in, digging up the yard with her own hands.
A deep, round anthill emerged, swarming with fingernail-sized ants.
Luna piped up at the sight.
“Whoa, what’s this? Horned ants! Our yard was an ant battlefield! They must’ve been fighting a Trojan War or something…!”
“Luna-nim, then is this giant soldier ant the ants’ Achilles? It looks super strong….”
“Achilles needs an opponent. Hold on. Lemme find a good one.”
Luna and Paranoya started grabbing tough-looking ants and pitting them against each other.
Watching their carefree antics from the shade, I felt like laughing and a chill at the same time.
I looked up. The sky, with its sun and slow-drifting clouds.
Maybe.
Maybe we’re ants too.
Maybe to someone else, we scrambling on this land look just like ants.
“Having quite the fun chat, I see. Someone was talking about Achilles and Hector’s duel. Discussing war history?”
Right then, a familiar voice came from beyond the fence.
Turning, I saw Hippolyte peering over in her usual stiff armor.
“I heard you expanded the yard. Looks like you really bought the land. It actually looks lived-in now. Mind if I come in?”
“No!”
“Then I’m coming in.”
Ignoring Luna entirely, Hippolyte stepped into the yard. She frowned at the ants Luna and Paranoya were messing with.
“I wondered what the talk was about—ants, huh. Naming ants after heroes. You’re no kids—what’s this nonsense?”
“This one’s Hippolyte Ant.”
Luna scooped up an ant from the ground and held it up. Hippolyte scowled, clearly annoyed.
“The real Hippolyte Ant is bigger and tougher. If anything, this one’s closer.”
Hippolyte knelt, picked up an ant of her own.
Sure enough, with its fierce mandibles, it suited the name. Thick, sturdy head too.
Definitely top-tier among soldier ants—an elite caste. Gold-tier ant, you could say.
“And this scrawny little one’s the Noxdoty Ant.”
Hippolyte grabbed a tiny worker ant with her other hand. She dropped both into a sand stadium and made them fight.
Surprisingly, the little worker beat the soldier ant.
“…What the hell?”
“Yay, I beat Hippolyte again!”
Luna cheered wildly, hands in the air, overjoyed.
“This doesn’t count—it’s invalid. Hmph. Ahem.”
“No, Hippolyte-nim, you didn’t come here to pit ants against each other, right? What brings you all the way out here amid your busy schedule?”
I cut in to help the flustered, rambling Hippolyte. She shook sand off her hands.
“Right, yeah. Actually, Hassan, I have business with you. I always forget when I get swept up in Noxdoty’s vibe.”
“Business with me?”
“Two enforcers from the Temple Knight Order are being dispatched to Sodomora from the King’s City.”
King’s City. Temple Knight Order.
The unfamiliar terms furrowed my brow.
“What’s that got to do with me…?”
“One of them holds a seat in the Order’s Eight. He’s deeply tied to Grand Swordmaster Skizo—unfortunately, so am I.”
“I see.”
As I tried to brush it off, Hippolyte added,
“Just a heads-up—he might come see you soon.”
Come see me?
I recalled what I knew of the Temple Knight Order.
Ten warriors gathered from across the kingdom.
Each rivaled a gold-tier adventurer. They were the frontline bulwark, protecting the faith and kingdom from Pluto cultists, monsters, beasts, heretics, and more.
Two of them dispatched to Sodomora?
If they found out about my necromancer antics…
Straight to prison city.
And in a place packed with vicious criminals, a soft fake Samaritan like me? Lunchmeat.
“Why send two from the Temple Knight Order to Sodomora?”
“That’s—”
Hippolyte started to speak, but someone else beat her to it.
“It’s like squashing ants in the yard. When you see one digging up the garden, you just stomp it, right?”
Someone stood beyond the fence.
Brown skin like Hippolyte’s, barely covered by a skimpy white cloth over vital spots.
Straight, deep navy bangs framing a bold face. Thick lashes. Overall, like a beauty carved into an Egyptian mural.
But no hint of lewdness.
Her body was covered top to bottom in dense tattoos and drawings, like swarming ants. She even puffed smoke from the pipe in her mouth.
Tanned smoking tattooed woman.
She had every symbol of a powerhouse female—I was so intimidated I wanted to shut my eyes. The intensity was overwhelming.
“Antiope… I didn’t think you’d reach Sodomora this soon.”
“Sis, isn’t that a cold welcome for your long-lost sister?”
Antiope—that must be the tattooed woman’s name.
She pushed open the gate and stepped into the cramped yard. With so many people, it felt stuffy.
The tattooed woman said,
“Cultists are like ants—if you don’t squash or burn them quick, they multiply out of control.”
She even stomped some ants flat with her foot. Hippolyte Ant and Luna Ant went splat instantly.
“Torturing that Anxius guy revealed there’s a cult leader in this city. Won’t see your face till we catch him, sis.”
“L-Leader…”
Paranoya started trembling.
Antiope’s brow furrowed as she eyed her with the pipe in her mouth.
“Huh, all the nymphs are here. You, why’re you shaking like that? You a cultist? Only cultists fear me.”
“N-No… I’m not a cultist…”
“Then why so scared? Think I’ll eat you?”
“N-Not scared…”
Paranoya tried acting tough, but anyone could see her sweating bullets.
“You’re different from the nymphs I know. Cute. Reminds me of my raccoon dog.”
The tattooed woman hoisted Paranoya up and hugged her tight. It looked sweet, like a woman doting on a doll.
“T-Temple Knight Order raid…!”
Seeing Paranoya freak out, I sensed doom.
Temple Knights were elite of the elite.
Interrogating a sloppy cultist like Paranoya? She’d crack with, “Hassan, that bastard’s Pluto’s son…!” Off to prison city I go.
As Paranoya and I tensed up,
Luna said,
“You’ve got a lot of drawings on you. Like spells?”
Fearless, Luna even poked at the tattoos with her finger.
“These drawings tell stories? Like Ideope murals!”
The tattooed woman’s reaction was surprisingly normal.
“Yeah, you’ve got a good eye. I tattoo the beasts I’ve slain and karma I’ve cleared. This one’s from taking down Pontos’s twin-headed serpent.”
She pointed to her left forearm. Sure enough, it showed a woman battling a two-headed snake.
Her hand moved to her navel.
“And here’s when I killed Titan spawn ogre Gagara.”
“Cool drawings!”
“The fun ones are on my chest. Can’t show with a man around.”
Antiope’s navy eyes turned to me. Tension shot through me like lightning down my spine.
This was Hippolyte’s sister.
One of the kingdom’s ten Temple Knights. Her outfit, attitude, poise—all screamed veteran.
“So.”
The Order’s enforcer, Antiope, said.
“So you’re the guy who took down the Skizo Grand Swordmaster? I’d left space for him deep below my navel.”
Antiope slid her hand down, lifting the cloth over her lower belly slightly.
Rustle.
Sure enough, below her navel, around her dantian, was a blank spot waiting for a tattoo.
“Or would you like to fill it? Samaritan warrior.”
[Author's Note]
Originally, I planned a novel with steamy scenes once every 10-20 chapters... Like, conquer and corrupt women through massages...!! That was the vibe I wanted...
But justifying sex scenes is so damn hard....