WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Got a Gallery in the Wild ◈

Chapter 118: Alloy (1)

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Even the phrase "I've seen it all" was getting old. The Forest of Four Seasons was one giant mass of unsolved mysteries.

The best thing to do was probably accept it and move on. I had met a talking gorilla just recently, after all.

I should just... just go with the flow. While keeping thorough records.

‘Why is every single thing here useless?’

What I needed were survival supplies. Not resources like this.

Of course, I could make all kinds of tools, including armor, from these resources.

But it would take too long, and I didn't even have a blast furnace.

It was the very definition of something more trouble than it was worth. I was no good at making chipped stone tools like some Paleolithic caveman, either.

‘And I can't sell it, either.’

I let out a sigh. It looked like mining this Mithril was impossible.

Unless I carved out the entire floor, I had no choice but to leave it alone.

Well, looking on the bright side, I had an unlimited supply of resources.

If I could make a blast furnace and build up some skill as a blacksmith, it would be perfect.

‘The problem is that it'll take years at minimum.’

I sighed again and turned around. Either way, I had work to do.

My now-familiar morning routine began with heading up to the river, catching fish, and feasting to my heart's content.

For some reason, I only caught one fish today, which left me feeling a little bitter.

‘Good thing I've caught plenty so far.’

I still had some breathing room. But if I kept catching only one fish a day, it would become a problem.

After breakfast with my animal friends, I got to work.

First, I needed to send GonnaBeADuke an Adult Mandrake.

After that, I would visit the Orichalcum cave and collect some Orichalcum.

I had originally planned to use the Orichalcum to make a door, but that plan had been scrapped, so I no longer needed it.

Still, there was no harm in keeping a few pieces in reserve.

‘I’ll make the blast furnace after lunch.’

It looked like I would need to use both my brain and my strength, so it was better to take my time.

Passing Dwarf said molten iron was nearly as hot as lava.

Mithril had an even higher melting point, so it would need to get even hotter.

‘They said I’d need charcoal too...’

Charcoal was essential for reaching higher temperatures.

Since I needed to melt metal, I would need a hotter fire.

The road ahead already looked grim, but there was one fortunate thing.

The size of the blast furnace. Passing Dwarf said it didn't need to be large, since all I had to do was melt the ore.

That didn't mean I could relax. I had to handle fire, a true double-edged sword.

‘Good thing I've been steadily collecting charcoal.’

I had only used it for laundry and deodorizing before. Who knew I would use it in a blast furnace?

Charcoal was god-tier. It could do anything. I should work on making more of it from now on.

Once I finished preparing, I headed out to get the Adult Mandrake and Orichalcum.

As always, the Fast Sloth was strapped to my back, and I brought Wonmo, my adorable bodyguard, with me.

Thud! Smack! Wham!

“Kueek! Kueeek! Kkuek!”

First came the Adult Mandrake. I was used to catching them by now.

Calling it a capture method was a stretch. All I did was beat the crap out of them, but whatever.

After catching an Adult Mandrake, I headed for the Orichalcum cave.

Thankfully, I didn't encounter any dangerous animals along the way.

It was a path I had traveled often, and I kept a careful watch.

‘Got the Orichalcum too. But does this stuff not need refining either?’

That thought crossed my mind as I picked up several chunks of Orichalcum from the ground.

PrincessChaenggu and KingLeor had used theirs as soon as they received it, so maybe it didn't need processing.

Or perhaps that was just a trait of Orichalcum. I should ask Passing Dwarf.

[System] Wild Grylls has registered trade items.

[System] Here you go.

[System] I hope it brings you good fortune.

[GonnaBeADuke]: Thank you so much!

[GonnaBeADuke]: May the goddess's blessing be upon you!

After returning to the cave, I traded with GonnaBeADuke.

Since they mentioned the goddess's blessing, were they from the Holy Kingdom?

‘Come to think of it, Adult Mandrakes trade just fine?’

Were Adult Mandrakes judged to have no sense of self?

They not only screamed terrifying battle cries, but even acted as a colony.

It was bizarre, but a good thing was a good thing. Thinking too hard about it would only give me a headache.

‘Not bad. They're sturdy.’

Just as in the video, the shoes I got from GonnaBeADuke stood out for their durability.

They were so tough that they seemed better than the shoes made by Passing Dwarf's friend.

The trade-off was that they were less convenient.

‘Still, they’re perfect for me.’

I would wear Passing Dwarf's shoes when exploring places I already knew, and GonnaBeADuke's shoes when exploring new places.

That seemed like the best way to split them up. I would wear sneakers inside the cave.

‘I’ll get just one more pair of shoes.’

Since the two pairs had different uses, I needed a backup pair as well.

I immediately made a post in the gallery. People might think I was already done looking for shoes.

[Post title] Looking for One More Pair of Shoes

[Author] Wild Grylls

[Post] I received the shoes given to me by Passing Dwarf and GonnaBeADuke.

[Post] But I think I'll use them for different purposes, so I need one more pair as a backup.

[Post] Anyone who gives me shoes suitable as a backup will also receive an Adult Mandrake.

└ [Heavenly Demon]: When do you plan to give this lady her sword?

└ [Wild Grylls]: I-I'll give it to you soon!

└ [Heavenly Demon]: I am joking. There is no need to rush, so take your time.

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: What are you giving her?

└ [Heavenly Demon]: Apparently Wild Grylls is going to give this lady a sword personally made from true silver.

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Ah, fuck. I'm jealous. I couldn't even use a sword made of Mithril;;

└ [Heavenly Demon]: Hmph. You should have been more generous, then.

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: I gave Wild Grylls an Elixir too, you know;;

└ [Wild Grylls]: Heavenly Demon gave me her own sword, so I'm giving her something in return. Do you want one too, SwordTasteMaster?

└ [Heavenly Demon]: That fool. So they said that knowing this would happen.

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Honestly, I'm tempted, but it's fine. Unlike some people, I'm plenty strong even with a cheap sword lol

└ [Heavenly Demon]: This lady has a mace in her hand.

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Hey, you bitch.

└ But is Grylls making it personally? Didn't they ask Passing Dwarf?

└ [Passing Dwarf]: I was going to, but the mana concentration in the Mithril was too high, so I gave it back. It'll explode the moment it melts.

└ Is Orichalcum okay?

└ [Passing Dwarf]: Yeah. Orichalcum is fine because it absorbs mana. But only Orichalcum is okay.

└ Grylls was handing out bombs?

└ Looks like Wild Grylls was determined to assassinate someone.

└ [Wild Grylls]: I didn't know either;; So I have to make it myself.

└ [PrincessChaenggu]: The Orichalcum you gave me is working great. The Security Recording Orb I mentioned yesterday is ready, so just let me know whenever you want it.

└ [Wild Grylls]: Got it.

The moment I saw PrincessChaenggu's comment, I sent them a message.

I planned to give them Orichalcum in return. The more they had, the better.

[PrincessChaenggu]: If you tap the orb twice, it'll open like an eye.

[PrincessChaenggu]: It's easiest to think of it as watching whatever direction it's facing.

[You]: Thank you.

[You]: How do I watch the recorded footage?

[PrincessChaenggu]: Tap it twice again to close the eye, then tap it three times.

[PrincessChaenggu]: Press and hold it to watch the recording.

[PrincessChaenggu]: Be careful, though! Once you watch a recording, it'll automatically be deleted!

[You]: I'll be careful.

[You]: And thank you.

[PrincessChaenggu]: And what do you say when you're thankful?

[You]: May Chaeyu win next season!

[PrincessChaenggu]: Hehe, very good.

I looked over the CCTV orb I received from PrincessChaenggu.

It was blackish purple overall, and about as large as my face.

‘Do I hang it up like a block of fermented soybean?’

Installing it would be a job in itself. Still, I would be stuck inside the cave all day, so I had no immediate use for it.

After looking it over, I tapped the CCTV orb twice.

Flash!

“Oh.”

Just as PrincessChaenggu had explained, it opened like an eye. It looked like a reptile's eye.

It was scary just to look at. I immediately got the feeling that it was watching me closely.

Tap, tap, tap.

When I tapped it three times, the eye quietly closed. Then I pressed and held it with my finger.

With a whoosh, some kind of holographic window appeared.

The hologram showed my face. My face viewed from above.

“Wow.”

No matter how I looked at it, my skin had improved. I couldn't find a single blemish.

I stared at the hologram for a while before closing it.

Now that I knew how the CCTV worked, it was time to train. I couldn't skip training for even one day.

‘I’ll start eating the Inner Core today too.’

I was going to hear the second set of mnemonic verses from Heavenly Demon.

The general idea of the verses was to read the flow rather than entrust myself to the sky.

I was worried they would use more difficult expressions than the first verses, but it was fine.

If I didn't understand, I could keep at it until I did. I never thought it would be easy.

‘I’ll eat the Inner Core after lunch, once my food has digested.’

Fish had effects similar to an elixir.

If I ate the Inner Core right after lunch, I might overdose.

I needed to avoid dangerous things as much as possible, so it was better to wait until my food had settled.

‘And I need to catch crabs for Passing Dwarf.’

It was a busy day in every way. I couldn't put anything off.

In that case, I should get to work now. After lunch, I would immediately start making the blast furnace.

The blast furnace didn't need to be large. I only needed to turn the Mithril into molten metal.

Still, I would have to get all kinds of materials from Passing Dwarf.

Most importantly, I needed stone that could withstand the heat. It had to endure temperatures over one thousand degrees.

‘Passing Dwarf said they'd give me that.’

They also said they would give me bellows to pump air into the blast furnace. They were really giving me all the materials.

When I asked if that was okay, Passing Dwarf said grinding the Mithril sword was enough payment.

Every time I saw something like that, I thought how dwarven they were.

Flop! Flop!

When I went up to the river, there were two fish caught in the Fish Trap. That was a relief, at least.

Afterward, I put them in the oven, ate, and got ready.

Before that, though, there was something I needed to check. The Mithril behind the cave.

It was nice that the Mithril regenerated infinitely, but there was something I was curious about.

‘Just what principle does it use to repair itself?’

Its recovery ability was incredible, like a planarian's.

On top of that, only the exact portion I had mined yesterday had regenerated.

I was curious where its heart was, too. I was scared it might wake up like the Guardian.

‘Don't let your guard down.’

There were quite a few chunks of Mithril that I had mined yesterday.

Now I just had to melt them and pour them into a mold.

Once I decided everything was ready, I sent Passing Dwarf a message.

[You]: Hey. You there?

[Passing Dwarf]: I'm here.

[Passing Dwarf]: Did you catch the crabs?

[You]: I'll make the blast furnace first, then go catch them.

[You]: And I want some advice.

[Passing Dwarf]: What advice?

[You]: Mithril is an incredibly rare mineral, right?

[Passing Dwarf]: Calling it rare doesn't even cover it.

[Passing Dwarf]: There are countless mines in the world. If someone found Mithril, you think it wouldn't make the newspaper?

[You]: What about Orichalcum?

[Passing Dwarf]: Yeah. Most of it ends up flowing into the Mage Tower, but it's on the same level as Mithril.

[Passing Dwarf]: For reference, the newspaper went crazy when you found the Orichalcum cave.

So it was that big of a deal. Since I was stuck here, I had no idea what was happening outside.

People occasionally said something had appeared in the newspaper, but I never paid attention. I thought they were just shitposts.

[Passing Dwarf]: So why are you asking?

[Passing Dwarf]: Trying to make fun of me?

[You]: No, I want an expert opinion.

[Passing Dwarf]: Hm. You know a thing or two.

[Passing Dwarf]: What do you wish to ask, foolish mortal?

[You]: Fuck;;

[You]: Should I just find another dwarf?

[Passing Dwarf]: There probably aren't many dwarves specializing in metallurgy hanging around this gallery lol

[You]: Sigh.

[You]: You know I have Mithril and Orichalcum right now, right?

[You]: Passing Dwarf

[Chat participant] Are you bragging?

[Passing Dwarf]: Will you let me finish?

[You]: What do you think would happen if I melted them together and made a sword?

An alloy of two rare minerals. That was what I wanted.

There was enough of both around me to trip over, so I didn't think much of them.

But people outside, especially dwarves, would react differently.

[Passing Dwarf]: An alloy?

[Passing Dwarf]: You're combining Mithril and Orichalcum?

[You]: Yeah. Doesn't it sound good?

[Passing Dwarf]: Fuck, that’s like making fried rice with caviar, lol.

Passing Dwarf laughed as if the idea were ridiculous, but...

[Passing Dwarf]: Let's do it right now.

[Passing Dwarf]: What do you need?

[Passing Dwarf]: Tell me what you need.

[Passing Dwarf]: I'll get it all for you.

[Passing Dwarf]: Sounds good, right?

[Passing Dwarf]: Passing Dwarf

[Chat participant] My balls are trembling right now.

[Passing Dwarf]: That's fucking gross;;

[You]: They really were a dwarf after all.

Footnotes:

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