WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Got a Gallery in the Wild ◈

Chapter 61: Strange Adventure (3)

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Thwack! Wham! Wham!

“Kuek! Kueeek! Keek!”

I’d gotten so used to harvesting Adult Mandrakes that I was practically an expert.

Pull up the root, beat the hell out of it, then stuff its mouth full of dirt. Done.

It looked deceptively easy... but it really was easy. Just beat it up, and that was it.

It’d be a waste to leave them here anyway. They would make good nourishment for someone.

‘I should try eating one soon, too.’

Chewing one raw would be insane, so I planned to process or cook it somehow.

Allfather said simply simmering it in water would be enough, so there were plenty of options.

The best choice would be asking Starlight Princess.

She was well versed in alchemy, after all.

‘The supply will dry up someday.’

I looked around the Adult Mandrake colony. The clearing was still filled with Mandrakes.

It was about the size of a basketball court. Adult Mandrakes grew densely across the entire clearing.

There were a lot of them, but if I kept pulling them out at this rate, their numbers would gradually shrink.

I needed to get as much use out of them as possible while they were here. That would raise my odds of survival.

‘What kind of shield will I get this time?’

With an Adult Mandrake in one hand, I returned to the cave. Nothing particularly dangerous happened on the way back.

The moment I got inside, I checked the smoked meat first. The smoke had seeped in nicely, turning it golden brown.

It was a little salty, but salt-curing definitely extended its shelf life, so there was no point complaining. I could put up with that.

‘Let’s get a trade going with AllHailTheSun.’

I poked at the campfire to adjust the heat, then made a post on the Gallery.

It was a post asking AllHailTheSun to request a trade if they saw it.

[System] AllHailTheSun has requested a trade. Would you like to accept?

The request came in less than a minute later. The timing must have worked out well.

Or maybe AllHailTheSun had seen my post and prepared a shield. I accepted immediately.

[You]: Hello!

[You]: I brought an Adult Mandrake!

[AllHailTheSun]: I brought a shield too.

[AllHailTheSun]: Oh, and can you return the Golden Shield?

[You]: Of course.

[You]: Are you going to repair it?

[AllHailTheSun]: I’m going to melt it down.

[You]: ;;;

I always got the feeling that AllHailTheSun was some kind of Middle Eastern oil magnate.

The confidence money could buy seemed unbeatable. I envied them in more ways than one.

[AllHailTheSun]: It’s a shield made with adamantium mixed in, so it should hold up under almost anything.

[AllHailTheSun]: If that thing breaks, you’ll break too.

[You]: That means it’s insanely tough, right?

[AllHailTheSun]: That’s right.

[AllHailTheSun]: Do you even know what adamantium is?

[You]: I know vibranium tho...

[AllHailTheSun]: What’s that? Anyway, think of it as an incredibly rare mineral. It’s tougher than steel.

[AllHailTheSun]: Its durability should be ridiculous.

Hearing about exceptional durability reminded me of the slippers I wore in the military, the Ministry of National Defense’s last shred of conscience that people praised as vibranium.

They were one of the things you absolutely had to take with you when you were discharged. The other was a razor and replacement blades.

‘Come to think of it, I haven’t thought about shaving at all.’

I rubbed my stubbly chin.

Normally, I shaved every two or three days, but given the circumstances, I’d kept putting it off.

Still, I had no idea whether this world had razors. Maybe they had the sort of straight razors used in barbershops.

[You]: Sir, do you shave?

[AllHailTheSun]: My attendants do it for me. Why?

[AllHailTheSun]: Want a straight razor?

[You]: You don’t have one that isn’t shaped like a knife, do you?

[AllHailTheSun]: What else would you shave with besides a knife?

Unfortunately, it looked like they didn’t have the kind of razor I had in mind.

Using a straight razor would come with plenty of problems, too.

‘Making lather would be a pain.’

What about soap or shaving foam? And what if I cut myself?

Rather than worry about all that, living like a hairy beast sounded more comfortable.

After thinking that far, I put the idea of shaving neatly aside. If it got too long, I’d just trim it roughly.

Another step closer to becoming a true wild man.

[You]: Never mind. I think I’ll just grow it out. You registered the shield, right?

[AllHailTheSun]: I did. Is there anything else you need?

[You]: Not right now.

[AllHailTheSun]: All right. If you need anything, ask anytime.

[AllHailTheSun]: And give me a Mandrake every time.

[You]: I’m lonely, though. How about coming here...?

[AllHailTheSun]: My wife’s calling me.

[AllHailTheSun]: I’m off.

[You]: Yep...

After my conversation with AllHailTheSun ended, I checked the shield.

It was round overall, about the same size as the Golden Shield I used before.

‘There aren’t any patterns on it?’

Instead, it had an appearance far removed from anything flashy. Calling it plain didn’t even cover it.

It looked like someone had cut a solid chunk of steel to an appropriate size. Nothing but the basic shape of a shield.

The shield gleamed silver. That made it feel even more reliable.

‘The weight’s similar, too.’

Its weight was similar. I liked it even more because of that.

Its defensive power was supposedly better than the Golden Shield’s too, so it was an upgrade in every way.

‘Now I’m invincible.’

With Heavenly Demon’s Sword and an adamant-whatever shield, I had nothing to fear.

...Yeah, that was bullshit. Things like tigers still scared the hell out of me.

Invincible my ass. Without Fast Sloth, I would’ve died several times already.

‘Now that I have a shield, I should go catch crabs.’

Before going crab hunting, I decided to check on Fast Sloth and Wonmo first.

Wonmo should be peacefully taking a nap by now, with Fast Sloth guarding him beside...

“...?”

...Where had they gone? Blinking, I looked around the cave.

A Mad Dog pack had once lived here, so the cave was fairly spacious.

Not enormous, though. It was just large enough to feel cozy.

“Wonmo? Answer if you’re there. You too, Fast Sloth.”

I looked everywhere and called their names, but neither was there.

For a moment, I wondered whether an animal had snatched them away in the short time I was gone, but that wasn’t it.

If that had happened, there should’ve been signs of a struggle. The cave was spotless.

I didn’t know exactly what had happened, but one thing was certain.

Wonmo and Fast Sloth had run out of the cave.

The thought that both of them had gone out, not just one, made me dizzy already.

‘Why the hell... No, when did they leave?’

It was completely unexpected. My mind felt blank.

Wonmo only knew how to eat, sleep, and shit. He was still at the age where he needed constant care.

I never thought a kid like that would go outside. Why had he gone out?

‘If I search blindly, it might take even longer. I need to find their trail first.’

Before that, I made a post on the Gallery.

It looked like I would have to postpone my trade with Passing Dwarf.

[Post title] Wonmo and Fast Sloth ran away from home

[Author] Wild Grylls

[Post] (Photo of the empty cave interior)

[Post] I need to find them, so I can’t answer questions.

[Post] And Passing Dwarf, I’m really sorry. I’ll deal with this emergency first, then I’ll give it to you.

I didn’t check the comments. There was a more urgent problem.

I packed my sword and shield, along with an Elixir and Fasting Pills for emergencies.

‘Let’s catch up quickly. They couldn’t have gone far.’

I worried that something might have happened to Wonmo or Fast Sloth.

Fortunately, they had left tracks behind.

All I could do was follow them as far as possible.

“Wonmo!”

I shouted Wonmo’s name as I followed the footprints.

It could attract the attention of animals, but I had no choice.

More importantly, Wonmo recognized his own name.

Maybe he would stop short if he heard it.

“Wonmo! No! Stop!”

Someone once shared a tip for when a pet disappeared.

Even if you had no idea where it was, you had to start yelling, “No!”

You had to scold it no matter what, because you didn’t know what it might be doing. That was how you got it to come back.

“This is...”

While following the tracks, I found a marking.

Fast Sloth’s claw marks. They were clearly carved into a tree. I’d seen that shape often enough to recognize it.

Judging by how they appeared regularly, Fast Sloth must have worried the footprints would disappear and left markings everywhere.

I carved marks with my sword here and there too, in case I needed to find my way back.

‘As long as they didn’t go anywhere weird.’

Especially somewhere like the other side of the river, where the space changed every moment.

If they had crossed into a place like that, it would be the worst-case scenario.

Praying that hadn’t happened, I followed the trail.

‘They didn’t go toward the brush.’

Wonmo was fairly large, so they hadn’t gone where the undergrowth was thick.

That made tracking easier. Fast Sloth’s markings did the heavy lifting, especially.

Maybe because Fast Sloth was clever, the markings were large and carved in obvious places.

When I found them, I’d give Fast Sloth a Fasting Pill. Wonmo would get a scolding.

‘From now on, I should take Wonmo with me.’

I could leave him behind when he was napping, but if he was awake, I should bring him along.

I also needed to think about guarding the cave entrance.

‘The problem is figuring out how to block it... Forget that for now.’

The kids had to come back before I could set up an entrance barrier anyway.

I searched for a long time, repeatedly calling Wonmo’s name.

Contrary to my expectation that they couldn’t have gone far, I followed the tracks but couldn’t find them anywhere.

Rustle-

I froze the moment I heard something moving in the brush.

The brush wouldn’t shake for no reason.

Would this be good news or bad news?

Keeping my guard up, I stared at the brush that had moved.

“Wonmo...?”

I quietly called Wonmo’s name. No answer came back.

That made it more likely that whatever was in the brush wasn’t Wonmo.

I didn’t take my eyes off it.

Rustle- Rustle-

The rustling grew louder. I tensed up.

This was an unfamiliar place. I had no idea what might leap out.

Even the rabbits were strong in this forest. One careless moment, and I’d be done for.

Just as the shaking of the brush grew more frantic, what emerged was...

“Peep?”

Black down, a tiny beak, and even a cute little cry.

A creature that was unmistakably a chick came out of the brush.

My tension vanished at the sudden appearance of a chick, but only for a moment. Then I grew suspicious.

‘Wait. Why the hell is it so big?’

Chicks were normally about the size of a fist.

Even after evolving, no, growing into a chicken, they barely reached a person’s knees.

But the chick in front of me rose past my knees and chest, nearly reaching eye level.

‘If the chick is that big, then the chicken...’

How big would it be? My spine tingled at the thought.

Swoosh-

A shadow suddenly fell over my head. It wasn’t a cloud passing in front of the sun.

Only the area around me had gone dark. With a sinking feeling, I slowly turned around.

Come to think of it, chickens were creatures that took their young, their chicks, with them.

They didn’t leave their nests often, either.

Except for one situation: when they had to retrieve a chick that had wandered from the nest.

“...”

“...”

I looked up and came face-to-face with a magnificent “chicken.”

Its red comb stood out against its black feathers.

What kind of messed-up forest was this, where even chickens grew this huge?

In terms of height, it was about as big as a Saber-Toothed Tiger.

“Peep.”

The chick behind me cried for its mother.

I glanced at the chick and quietly stepped aside.

The little thing waddled toward the chicken.

After checking its chick’s condition, the chicken silently stared at me.

It looked ready to fight at any moment if it decided I was a threat.

‘What kind of eyes does a chicken have...?’

It wasn’t even a fighting chicken, but its glare was vicious.

There were also large and small scars across its body.

Feathers didn’t grow where the scars were, making them stand out even more.

“Cluck.”

“Peep. Peep.”

Fortunately, it didn’t seem to want to fight. The chicken turned around.

The chick followed close behind as they disappeared into the brush.

“Phew...”

I let out a breath of relief. That had almost gone badly.

Maybe its intelligence had increased with its size, because the chicken had avoided a fight.

The chick was right beside it, so it was probably sizing me up.

‘...I hope Wonmo is okay.’

My worry grew and grew.

* * *

Around the same time. Wonmo and Fast Sloth.

“...”

Wonmo stared straight ahead with wide eyes.

They weren’t his usual adorably round eyes. His gaze was completely focused.

“Hiss. Hiss.”

The reason was simple. A snake was flicking its tongue in front of Wonmo.

It was a fairly large snake. The sharp venomous fangs visible whenever it opened its mouth looked especially threatening.

If it bit Wonmo even once, Wonmo’s life could be in danger.

“...”

There was one onlooker watching it all. Or rather, one animal.

Fast Sloth was perched on Wonmo’s back, ready to respond at any moment.

If the venomous snake tried to bite Wonmo, Fast Sloth planned to rip it apart immediately with its claws.

Swoosh-

Wonmo’s forepaw slowly rose. At the same time, the venomous snake raised its head.

The victor would be decided by who struck first. Reaction speed was life itself.

For Fast Sloth, it was a good show. Of course, Fast Sloth planned to step in if it became dangerous.

As the two watched each other in a standoff, the venomous snake moved first.

“Hissss!”

The snake bared its sharp fangs and lunged at Wonmo.

It moved incredibly fast, fast enough that even Grylls would have struggled to react.

Just as Fast Sloth prepared to respond, Wonmo reacted first.

Thwack!

Wonmo’s thick forepaw smashed into the venomous snake’s head.

It looked like a cat batting with its paw, but the force behind it was much stronger.

A single strike had completely crushed the snake’s head.

The headless body writhed grotesquely, but it was pointless.

Crunch!

Wonmo stomped on the writhing snake and stood proudly atop it.

The snake’s body writhed even harder beneath his weight, but what could a snake without a head do?

Wonmo soon held his head high.

“Kyuuuuu!”

The triumphant roar of a predator that had claimed victory. It was an unbearably cute roar.

Only one thing remained.

“Nom nom nom nom.”

Eating the defeated animal to his heart’s content.

Wonmo chewed, tore, savored, and enjoyed it, no matter how much the snake writhed.

Maybe he felt bad about enjoying it alone.

Wonmo stopped eating, raised his head, and looked at Fast Sloth.

“Kyuu?”

It sounded like Wonmo was asking whether Fast Sloth wanted a bite.

Fast Sloth looked slowly between Wonmo and the venomous snake, then answered by slowly shaking its head in that distinctive way.

Shake shake-

Their strange adventure had not ended.

“Wonmo! Where are you? Answer if you’re there!”

Neither had someone else’s nerve-racking adventure.

Footnotes:

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