WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Got a Gallery in the Wild ◈

Chapter 126: This Hellish (3)

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It was the Mislicon sword Passing Dwarf had told me to be cautious about giving away.

Originally, I was going to hand it over only after they proved they had reached the entrance to the Forest of Four Seasons.

But some old guy had verified it in a strange way.

Apparently, he was fairly well known too, because some people recognized him.

The Hero's teacher, currently branded a traitor and on the run.

The gallery was thrown into an uproar by the news that someone like him had been dispatched with the investigation group.

'Looks like the Head Mod knew him too.'

More than anything, I couldn't get over how shocked the Head Mod seemed.

They were shocked enough that even the exclamation marks they usually put at the end of every sentence had disappeared.

That wasn't all. They even made a separate request of me.

[Chat participant] DontAbandonTheHero

[You]: Um... Grylls!

[You]: Could I ask you a favor?!

[You]: What kind of favor?

[DontAbandonTheHero]: That gift you said you'd give once someone verified they were part of the investigation group!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: Could you give it to Ludwig, who just made that post?!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: I can vouch for him!

[You]: Do you know him?

[DontAbandonTheHero]: Yes! I know him well!

[You]: If the Head Mod is asking...

[DontAbandonTheHero]: Thank you!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: The next time you do something worth banning, I'll give you a free pass!

That was how a trade that wasn't really a trade took place.

It wasn't a bad deal for me. I could always make another sword.

What mattered most was that the investigation group survived after entering the forest and made it to where I was.

You could ask whether I should give them an Elixir too, but that was different.

Starlight Princess had worked hard to make that Elixir. I got it through a trade, but it still carried her goodwill.

If I casually handed that goodwill over to someone else, Starlight Princess might feel uncomfortable. That's just how people are.

'They said they were an investigation group, so they must have all kinds of medicine prepared.'

They probably had excellent medicine ready, even if it wasn't on the level of an Elixir.

That meant all that remained was waiting for them to come.

Nobody knew how long it would take. Space shifted unpredictably in this place.

The forest was as large as a small country, so if they were unlucky, we might never meet.

'They could settle down somewhere decent, like I did.'

If they could use the gallery, figuring out their location would be dozens of times easier.

But it was common knowledge that the gallery couldn't be used inside the Forest of Four Seasons.

El Dorado was certain they could use the gallery, but who knew? Maybe I was special.

'Have they entered by now?'

I checked the post written by the old guy who had introduced himself as Ludwig.

There had been no new posts since I gave him the sword. It was like he had taken it and run.

It would've been nice if he'd made a post saying he was going into the Forest of Four Seasons, but there was nothing.

Maybe he really was an old man and had gone inside right after receiving the gift.

'If he could use the gallery, he would've made a post... What a shame.'

A whole hour had passed, not just five minutes. Even so, no post had gone up.

The gallery seemed curious about Ludwig's whereabouts too, but there was no good way to find out.

There was one indirect way, though. Ask the Head Mod.

The Head Mod could check the real-time locations of not only registered users, but Anonymous Users as well.

It was a privilege and authority only the Head Mod possessed. They could use it to get a rough idea.

'I should ask.'

The Head Mod seemed to know him, and it mattered to me too.

I immediately sent the Head Mod a message, hoping they were in the gallery.

[You]: Head Mod.

[You]: Do you know where the registered user Ludwig van Errold is?

[You]: Is he still outside the Forest of Four Seasons?

[DontAbandonTheHero]: He's still in front of the entrance to the Forest of Four Seasons!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: I sent him a message, but he isn't replying!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: What could be happening?

[DontAbandonTheHero]: I don't know either!

[DontAbandonTheHero]: I think we'll have to wait and see!

What was going on? Hearing the Head Mod's explanation made me wonder.

People in the gallery said it was called an investigation group, but it was practically a purge.

After all, if they were sent into the Forest of Four Seasons, there was an extremely high chance they would be listed as "missing."

'Or maybe he's an old man who doesn't know how to send messages?'

It wasn't completely impossible. But that wasn't certain either.

The investigation group had to enter the Forest of Four Seasons before I could make a proper plan.

'No. What plan?'

This was a place where space changed however it pleased. What was there to rely on besides luck?

If they were lucky, they might be dropped into the part of the forest where I was. If they were unlucky, they might end up on the other side.

Besides, according to the Head Mod, I was currently in the center of the Forest of Four Seasons.

The odds of running into them were terrible, but all I could do was hope.

'For now, let's make charcoal.'

There was almost nothing I could do unless they entered the Forest of Four Seasons.

I had my own work to do, so I decided to focus on that for now.

'Let's see. The charcoal kiln...'

The charcoal I'd gotten from campfires so far was a tiny amount. I couldn't even fill a small container, which said it all.

Every time I made swords or other tools, I used a large amount of charcoal.

I needed to find a way to get charcoal in bulk.

I knew nothing about this stuff, but there was someone who knew it well.

[Starlight Princess]: Blocking oxygen is the most important part of making charcoal.

[You]: Blocking oxygen?

[Starlight Princess]: Yes.

[Starlight Princess]: Charcoal is made through incomplete combustion, and cutting off the oxygen is necessary for that.

[Starlight Princess]: Would you like me to explain it in detail?

[You]: No.

[You]: It's okay.

[You]: Anyway, thank you so much.

[Starlight Princess]: It's nothing.

[Starlight Princess]: Feel free to ask me anything related to alchemy.

That person was Starlight Princess, a genius in alchemy. She was the registered user who had taught me about smoking food before.

You could say I should ask Allfather too, but their specialty seemed different, so I asked Starlight Princess.

Passing Dwarf specialized in metallurgy, meaning metal-related work, so I didn't even consider asking.

'Cut off the oxygen...'

By cutting off the oxygen, I could create incomplete combustion and make charcoal.

As I slowly thought it over, the oven caught my eye.

More specifically, the clay spread between the oven's gaps. It had hardened and was now serving as adhesive.

'That's it!'

An idea struck me. I immediately gathered some wood.

This was the path Chief Gorilla had made with a single punch.

Fallen trees lay across it, forming a path, so gathering materials wasn't difficult.

'I should check out that path later.'

I gathered the fallen trees and stood them up like a campfire.

Now I would light them... except I didn't. I needed to cover them with clay to block out oxygen.

If I simply stuck clay onto the wood, it wouldn't adhere well and would probably slide off.

'I'll roughly shape it with branches.'

So I wrapped branches around it, especially branches with dry leaves still attached.

Once I had attached them all, I slathered on clay until it formed the shape of a kiln.

That wasn't the end. It needed to burn fiercely at first, so I made holes here and there.

The top was the same. I planned to put the fire in through there.

Fwoosh!

Finally, I put a burning branch in through the top and checked whether it was burning well.

Naturally, the top burned well, but the bottom was what mattered. That was why I had made separate holes.

Once it seemed to be burning properly all the way to the bottom, I sealed every vent to cut off the oxygen.

"Cough! Cough! Ugh, that stings. I shouldn't have checked."

I opened a hole to check whether it was burning properly and only ended up inhaling smoke.

Anyway, I'd confirmed it was burning well, so I could get back to other things.

'What's the situation like now?'

I logged into the gallery and checked for any changes.

But Ludwig hadn't made a post. Instead, only rumors about the investigation group were spreading.

There was internal conflict within the investigation group, the gift Grylls gave them was too powerful and had caused a problem, and so on.

All sorts of speculation ran wild, but its reliability was close to zero.

'Why would there be internal conflict? It's already a place with a low survival rate.'

Please don't fight. Come in peacefully and meet me.

Well, honestly, there was no guarantee they could come in.

It would be better to keep my expectations low.

I looked through the gallery, then quickly logged out. Nothing stood out.

'Wait. Come to think of it, even if they enter the forest, can they make it all the way to me?'

Smoke occasionally drifted upward and rose high into the sky, but that wouldn't be nearly enough.

This damned forest made compasses useless, and it was hard to judge the terrain, so it was easy to get lost.

I was fine because I had some experience and only went to places I knew, but there was no way someone entering for the first time would have that kind of know-how.

'I should at least make signposts.'

I should set up signposts so they could find where I was.

It was a bit of a dumbass idea, but effective. I immediately prepared my tools.

There were no signposts listed on the Auction House, so I had no choice but to make them myself.

Scrape! Scrape! Scrape!

Trees were everywhere nearby. I made signposts out of dry wood of a suitable size.

I made a grooved plank and a post separately, then fitted them together.

'It'd be better to paint it white so it's easy to see, right?'

I bought paint from the Auction House. That was expensive too.

In the middle of the arrow-shaped plank, I drew a house.

A trapezoid sitting on top of a square. I even drew windows inside the square.

So it could serve as a sign that someone lived here.

It looked decent enough. It reached somewhere between my chest and neck. It should stand out right away.

[Post title] Made a Signpost.

[Author] Wild Grylls

[Post] Just in case the investigation group passes by, I made a signpost. I'm going to plant it now.

[Post] Investigation group! If you see this, follow the arrow! It leads to where I am!

└ [Heavenly Demon]: You made it neatly. Just like with swords, you're very skillful with your hands.

└ [Wild Grylls]: Thanks, hehe.

└ Aren't you getting your hopes up a little too much? LOL

└ I thought this bastard was joking, but he was serious LOL

└ What are you gonna do if nobody comes to the Forest of Four Seasons?

└ [Wild Grylls]: I'm gonna grab Wonmo and sob.

└ LOL

└ LOL

└ That's kind of cute LOL

└ What did Wonmo ever do? LOL

└ [Wild Grylls]: He's my only source of healing.

└ Are you that lonely? Want me to come over?

└ [Wild Grylls]: Really?

└ Of course I'm lying LOL

└ [Wild Grylls]: You bastard LOL

└ [DontAbandonTheHero]: If you truly meet them, please give them a warm welcome! Ludwig is a genuinely kind person!

└ [Wild Grylls]: They have to enter the forest before I can do anything, don't they? There's still no news that they've entered...

└ [DontAbandonTheHero]: That's true! Honestly, I hope they don't go in!

└ [Wild Grylls]: You're crushing my hopes.

└ [DontAbandonTheHero]: I'm sorry, but I think crushed hopes are better than someone sacrificing their life for nothing!

└ [Wild Grylls]: Fuck... I have nothing to say to that.

└ That's sad, Grylls... But the Head Mod is right.

└ You're the weird one. Normally, people die within days of entering the Forest of Four Seasons...

└ [Wild Grylls]: If they're skilled enough, their chances of survival are high. My senior was there too.

└ Senior? You mean that skeleton?

└ So you finally acknowledged him as your senior LOL

Even the Head Mod was indirectly telling me to give up hope, but I didn't give up!

Of course, that didn't mean I wanted them to enter while throwing away their lives.

I was just preparing for the possibility that the investigation group might become "lost."

'Are they still waiting outside the entrance?'

With that thought in mind, I made even more signposts.

I planned to install them along every route I had traveled so far.

'I want to talk to another person too.'

After two weeks, loneliness was starting to creep in.

* * *

While Grylls was kindly making and installing signposts...

Boom!

"Ahhhhh!"

A holy knight flew toward the entrance to the Forest of Four Seasons.

The holy knight flailed their arms as if they truly didn't want to go in.

The holy knight remained visible only briefly.

The moment they passed through the "entrance" to the Forest of Four Seasons, they vanished without a trace.

"Whew..."

Ludwig, the other holy knight who had kicked them in the back, caught his breath.

Then he slowly turned and faced the monitoring group, whose hostility was on full display.

Shing-

Ludwig leveled a sword that looked as though a green Milky Way flowed through it.

Then, radiating brilliant aura, he said,

"Anyone else want to go in?"

Just as Grylls had hoped, Ludwig was kindly procuring survivors.

Footnotes:

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