WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Got a Gallery in the Wild ◈
Chapter 9: Forest of Four Seasons (4)
──────
I had no thoughts.
Because I had no thoughts.
Ever since returning to the cave, I'd just been sitting there blankly, without a thought in my head.
The reality I found myself in was too unbelievable. I desperately wished it was a dream.
Yet nothing changed as time passed. This goddamn place was the Forest of Four Seasons, and I had woken up here.
There was no way my mental state could stay intact. So I spent the whole day posting despair-filled shitposts on the gallery.
[Post title] The Five Stages of Death in Real Time
[Post] [Don't fuck with me. I'll look around some more.]
[Post] Denial
[Post] [Why me? Fuck, what did I do wrong?]
[Post] Anger
[Post] [I'll be your slave for life, so can someone come get me?]
[Post] Bargaining
[Post] [Send me home. I want to eat the leftover kimchi stew from yesterday.]
[Post] Depression
[Post] Those are the posts Grylls has been making in real time lol
[Post] Only acceptance left now
└ LMAOOOO
└ LMAOOOO
└ Science checks out lol
└ What's kimchi stew?
└ No clue
└ [Starlight Princess]: This is so sad... You're terminally ill like me...
└ Not terminally ill, though
└ [Starlight Princess]: Then what?
└ A mayfly life?
└ LMAOOOO
└ True lol
└ [Starlight Princess]: You're really mean
One user had even kindly documented the timeline. It made me snort.
Honestly, I was thinking it might be time to move on to acceptance. Sitting around doing nothing wasn't going to help.
I didn't know why I had to suffer here, but I couldn't keep running from reality forever.
‘There has to be a way out... right? There has to be.’
The gallery had told me that the entire Forest of Four Seasons was a barrier.
Even if someone broke through one barrier, another would appear. And after a while, the barrier they had broken through would restore itself in a different pattern.
That applied not only to the ground, but underground and in the sky as well. That was why anyone who entered could never leave.
‘First, I need to figure out how big this forest is.’
In case I had to settle here, I should properly inspect the area around me.
It would be a complete farce if I got lost with the cave right in front of me.
The problem was that this kind of farce happened all the time. I needed to be careful.
‘Let's go to the river first. I need to see if the water's drinkable.’
I'd been too mentally wrecked yesterday to check. I was too upset and just wanted to cry.
The forest water was probably drinkable. What I wanted to know was what lived in it.
This was a place crawling with bizarre creatures, like snakes the size of anacondas and bears as big as houses. Why would the water's edge be safe?
It wouldn't even be strange if there were man-eating fish. I could die while trying to get a drink.
‘If I can drink from it, I could use this cave as my home.’
Two days had passed, yet aside from the Mad Dog that had originally lived here, nothing else had shown up.
An Owlbear had come nearby, but let's not dwell on that. I got away fast.
Besides, it was a good place to defend, so I would probably stay here unless something major happened.
‘Should I try to hold out by eating Fasting Pills?’
That needed some thought. After thinking it over, I got up.
For now, I was heading to the river. I'd think about it after I came back.
Or maybe I'd hold a vote on the gallery. Only registered users would be allowed to vote, of course.
There were too many people who went, “Not my problem, why should I care?” It wasn't collective intelligence. It was collective stupidity.
Whoooosh-
“Wow. What the hell is this?”
The moment I reached the stream I'd noticed yesterday, I couldn't help but marvel.
Was there a dangerous beast?
No.
Were there man-eating fish?
That wasn't it either.
It was the sight beyond the stream.
It had definitely been a desert until yesterday.
[Post title] Guys, look at this.
[Author] Wild Grylls
[Post] (Photo of snow-covered mountains beyond the stream)
[Post] It was a desert yesterday, but today it's snowy mountains.
[Post] What'll it be tomorrow? Hehe
└ Forest of Four Seasons confirmed! Stamp!
└ No, seriously... what the hell is that?
└ Wow... What are you even supposed to say to this?
└ [Starlight Princess]: You can just cheer him on.
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Excuse me, but you're not a criminal, are you?
└ [Wild Grylls]: I stole money from my mom's wallet when I was little?
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Didn't you say you were an orphan?
└ [Wild Grylls]: I had a mom back then...
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: ;;; Sorry.
└ [Wild Grylls]: It's fine, it's fine. I'm used to it.
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: I've stolen money from a wallet too, hehe...
└ [Wild Grylls]: What are you doing? Hurry up and come get me.
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: I'm busy with work.
└ [Wild Grylls]: What work?
└ [SwordTasteMaster]: Home security, hehe.
└ You're just unemployed lol
└ LMAOOOO
└ What are we supposed to do with Grylls, seriously?
└ I don't even know anymore lol
└ Let him survive on his own.
└ Shouldn't we give him disaster relief funds? lol
└ [Heavenly Demon]: The mountain is beautiful.
└ [PrincessChaenggu]: Right? Just like my face, hehe.
└ [Heavenly Demon]: ?
└ ?
└ ?
└ ?
└ [PrincessChaenggu]: What the fuck? Fight me if you've got a problem.
└ [Heavenly Demon]: Where do you live?
Now they were even stamping it as fact. I let out a hollow laugh.
Yesterday, the other side of the stream had been a desert. Today, it was snow-covered mountains blanketed in pure white snow.
For a moment, I wondered if I'd come to the wrong place, but that made no sense either. Snowy mountains near a desert?
The boundary was completely clear, too. It hadn't gradually changed. The environment itself was different past the stream.
‘Is someone screwing with me?’
With a sigh, I walked up to the stream. There were lots of minnows, so the water quality seemed good.
At least that was something. I should bring the water bottle Heavenly Demon gave me later.
Still, I had to check first. I started by checking the depth.
Splash-
The moment I put my hand in, confusion came before the coolness. For a moment, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.
But my arm kept going deeper and deeper as I pushed it in. I couldn't touch the bottom.
The water was so clear that it must have been much deeper than it looked.
‘This should be enough.’
It wasn't incredibly deep, though. It was shallow enough to cross if I wanted to.
Of course, there was no reason to cross when there were snowy mountains on the other side. Not unless I wanted to kill myself.
“Ribbit.”
“Huh?”
I had just pulled my arm out of the river when I heard a strange sound by my ear.
It sounded close, so it had to be nearby. I turned toward the sound.
“Ribbit.”
“...A frog?”
A frog. A golden frog, at that.
It was sitting atop a rock in the middle of the river.
I didn't know about anything else, but its whole body was a shining gold, which made it feel even more dangerous.
Creatures with colors that vivid usually had poison.
I should probably get away from it. More than anything, poison was something I had to avoid.
Even without poison, it was the size of a small dog. Creepy as hell.
“Kraaaak!”
“Huh? Uh?”
Just as I turned to leave, the Golden Frog made a sudden move.
It stood proudly on its long hind legs, then tilted its head back.
Still in that position, it made a sound like a person gathering phlegm in their throat. Then its tilted head snapped forward.
“Ptooey!”
Fwoosh!
Sticky liquid shot from the frog's mouth like a bullet.
Straight at my face.
I flinched and barely moved out of the way. The sticky golden liquid grazed past me by a hair.
A moment later, it struck the middle of the tree behind me.
Sssssizzle!!
“Holy shit.”
I couldn't help but stare as the tree melted. Was it acid rather than venom?
There was no time to marvel, though. The frog was tilting its head back to reload.
Getting out of there came first. Before it could spit again, I bolted.
“Ptooey!”
“Gah!”
That one missed by a hair, too. If I hadn't ducked, it would've hit the back of my head.
Fortunately, the frog didn't chase me. It seemed to consider the river its territory.
“Huff... Huff...”
After running for my life back to the cave, I panted heavily. What the hell kind of hardship was this?
I'd finally found clean water, and now I had to watch out for a freaking frog. It was ridiculous.
‘The river's too deep to get close to, too...’
It would be nice if I had a bow, but no chance. I didn't even know how to use one.
It definitely hadn't been there yesterday. Did it attack because I put my hand in the water today?
I wasn't even sure if I could safely drink from the river. At worst, the frog might spit into it.
[Post title] Guys, I found a Golden Frog.
[Author] Wild Grylls
[Post] No photo because I was busy running away.
[Post] This bastard spits acid. Does anyone know what it is?
└ A frog that spits acid? What kind of frog even is that? LOL
└ Sure, it's the Forest of Four Seasons, but that's a ridiculous lie lol
└ No photo means it's 99% bullshit lol
└ [Allfather]: Did you find it in the river, by any chance?
While useless questions kept coming in, one registered user left a comment. It was Allfather.
Allfather was a registered user who only commented once in a while before vanishing again. There weren't many posts from them, either.
If there were any, they were about magic or alchemy. Most were filled with technical terms, so I ignored them.
They were sort of like a professor. They usually spoke formally, so I answered formally too.
└ [Wild Grylls]: Yes. I found it in the river. It spat at me the moment I put my hand in the water.
└ [Allfather]: How big was it?
└ [Wild Grylls]: About the size of a dog.
└ [Allfather]: It must have grown larger because it's in the Forest of Four Seasons. Normally, they're about the size of a finger joint.
└ [Wild Grylls]: Do you know what it is?
└ [Allfather]: Yes. Its official scientific name is the Golden Poison Frog. It is a rare species found only in clear water, and its venom is so powerful that many people have died trying to capture one. Be careful.
└ [Wild Grylls]: That wasn't acid spit, it was venom?;;
└ [Allfather]: Its venom is simply that potent.
This place really had every kind of animal imaginable. A frog that spat venom powerful enough to rival acid.
And with the entire river for itself, it practically had a natural fortress.
It was like an archer firing arrows from atop a castle wall.
‘At the very least, I want to drink water safely...’
If I showed my face too often, that thing might start waiting for me openly. That would be a serious problem.
Even while I thought it over, notifications kept going off nonstop. These days, every time I posted, it felt like every kind of comment came pouring in.
└ [Allfather]: If you capture the Golden Poison Frog, I will give you 20,000 gold. I would like to research it.
└ Isn't that a roundabout way of telling him to die?
└ For real lol
└ I'll give you 50,000 gold if you catch it lol
└ [Wild Grylls]: I do need to catch it... Otherwise, I can't drink water... Do you have any other advice?
└ [Allfather]: I'm sorry, but it is such a rare species that little is known to scholars. I only know that it is mainly active in the morning. You may need an antidote.
└ Then just go drink water in the evening lol
└ [Wild Grylls]: Evenings are more dangerous;;
└ What shows up?
└ [Wild Grylls]: It's dangerous because I don't know what might show up.
There was no obvious strategy. In the end, I'd have to solve it myself.
This was the obstacle I had to overcome to secure drinking water. To do that, I needed to prepare thoroughly.
‘Before that, I should return the compasses.’
I planned to return them to their original owners, except for the compass Heavenly Demon had given me.
First, I made a post so everyone could see it, then requested trades five minutes later.
The first person I requested a trade with was the registered user named Starlight Princess.
Maybe because she spent all day on the gallery, she accepted immediately.
[You]: Hello.
[You]: I requested a trade to return your compass.
[Starlight Princess]: Ah. Okay!
[Starlight Princess]: You really don't have to return it...
[Starlight Princess]: The one Heavenly Demon gave you is enough.
[Starlight Princess]: I can't carry all the others around.
[Starlight Princess]: I understand. Let's both hang in there.
[You]: Thank you. I hope you recover soon.
She really did seem to be sick. She was nice, too.
Next was AllHailTheSun, the registered user I suspected was a Dark Elf.
[You]: Hello.
[You]: I requested a trade to return your compass.
[AllHailTheSun]: Keep it.
[You]: I have a conscience, so I should return it.
[AllHailTheSun]: I don't take pocket change.
[You]: Wild Grylls: ;;;
They were so cool about it that it was almost embarrassing. Still, they'd helped me, and favors had to be repaid.
When I said I'd pay them back after finding something good later, a strange reply came back.
[AllHailTheSun]: I like you.
[AllHailTheSun]: Need anything else?
[AllHailTheSun]: Looks like you need a shield.
[You]: I do need one, but I'll buy it with money.
[You]: I sold something called a Steel-Scale Snake.
[AllHailTheSun]: I don't take pocket change.
[You]: Wait;; You're a Dark Elf, right?
[AllHailTheSun]: Yeah.
[You]: Are all Dark Elves rich?
The Dark Elves I knew were a race positioned opposite to elves. They had the same roots, but completely different dispositions.
Unlike peace-loving elves, they didn't shy away from dirty tricks, though they didn't cross the line.
They were closer to believing that strength was necessary to preserve peace. That might have been why they lacked social skills a little.
Of course, that was only what I knew. I couldn't apply my own standards to this world.
Even the elves here were far from peaceful. They were steeped in imperialism.
[AllHailTheSun]: There are a lot of rich ones.
[AllHailTheSun]: Setan produces tons of gold and resources.
[AllHailTheSun]: Isn't that common knowledge?
[You]: I'm from another world, so I don't know much.
[AllHailTheSun]: Wasn't that a bit?
[You]: I'm serious, though, teehee...
Whether they believed me or not didn't matter. I was trapped in a forest and couldn't meet anyone anyway, so where I came from was meaningless.
AllHailTheSun must have realized that too, because they let it go without a fuss.
[AllHailTheSun]: Anyway, Dark Elves are a gentler and kinder race than those crazy old elf fossils.
[AllHailTheSun]: Okay?
[You]: It sounded like they were emphasizing something. Were things different in the past?
[AllHailTheSun]: It was the opposite in the past.
[AllHailTheSun]: But after settling in the desert and getting rich, people became more generous.
[AllHailTheSun]: We had bad tempers because we were only ever discriminated against.
[You]: That sounds realistic.
[AllHailTheSun]: Still, don't take us lightly.
[AllHailTheSun]: Surviving in the desert made us damn good at fighting.
[You]: I have no intention of doing that.
[You]: Is there anything else I should be careful about?
[AllHailTheSun]: Call us darkies and you're dead.
[AllHailTheSun]: No, I'll curse you to die.
Was that about the same as how Black people were treated on Earth? People who were fun most of the time, but terrifying when you hit a nerve.
This was racial discrimination taken beyond race and into species. I needed to be careful.
‘I'll have to learn things slowly.’
It might have been anonymous, but blatantly discriminatory remarks didn't suit me.
Besides, I needed to build goodwill. If I only made people dislike me, I would be the one losing out.
[System] AllHailTheSun has registered trade items.
[AllHailTheSun]: I'll give you this, so give me something good for the body if you find it.
[AllHailTheSun]: There's no time, so hurry and accept it.
[You]: Thank you. I won't forget this favor.
[AllHailTheSun]: Sure. Take care of yourself.
Were there only good people on this gallery? Or were registered users just good people?
I disconnected from AllHailTheSun. The moment the connection ended, I checked the item they'd sent.
“...?”
And I couldn't help but freeze.
The item was dazzlingly bright.
It looked roughly like a shield, but its entire surface was covered in gold.
A literal Golden Shield. How overflowing with money did someone have to be to send something like this?
‘...I wonder if it's any good?’
I looked the gleaming gold shield over from every angle, then equipped it.
It was lighter than expected, which was convenient, but I should probably test how durable it was.
That didn't mean I was going to test it with Heavenly Demon’s Sword. I had a feeling I would only damage the sword.
‘Next is PrincessChaenggu?’
What a unique name. Judging by the username, she seemed like a woman.
Still, ninety percent of the gallery regulars were insane. What kind of person would this one be?
[You]: Hello.
[You]: I requested a trade to return your compass.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Hello thereee.
[PrincessChaenggu]: You should just keep ittt.
Her reply was similar to AllHailTheSun's. She said she didn't need the compass.
For a moment, I wondered if there were really only nice people here, but after thinking about it, maybe it was natural.
They were the people who had willingly given me their compasses as soon as I made a post. That made it even more important to strengthen these relationships.
[You]: I have a conscience, so I should return it.
[You]: I don't have anything to give you right now.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Then cheer for our Chaeyu.
[PrincessChaenggu]: That'll be enoughy.
[You]: I don't know this world well. What kind of team is Chaeyu?
I knew this world had things like sports, but I didn't know the specific events.
It was an entirely different world, with all sorts of species. It was bound to be completely different from what I knew.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Oh my gosh! You don't know Chames United, the most famous and storied club in Mephisto?!
[PrincessChaenggu]: You've missed out on half your lifey!
[You]: The rest of my life is hanging by a thread.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Ah! Sorry! You're living a mayfly lifey!
It was true that I had a mayfly life, but hearing it so bluntly made me sad. Why had my life turned out like this?
I was feeling a little down from PrincessChaenggu's bluntness when a notification appeared.
[System] PrincessChaenggu has registered trade items.
[PrincessChaenggu]: I'll give you this, so you're a Chaeyu fan from now ony.
[You]: What did you send me?
[PrincessChaenggu]: The most famous Neves and Vanir jerseys!
[PrincessChaenggu]: The material is nice, so wear them aroundy. I'll send two home and two away kits eachy.
[You]: Ah. Okay...
I felt a little awkward. I did need clothes right now, so that was fortunate.
I would buy soap with money, but I'd need something else to wear while my laundry dried.
I could bear it for now, but as time passed, I would need more clothes.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Chames United is a club with a proud 200-year history.
[PrincessChaenggu]: I guarantee you'll become completely hooked before long, Mr. Grylls.
[You]: First, I'll check if it's a sport I know.
[You]: It might be different from what I know.
[You]: Either way, thank you very much for the clothes.
[PrincessChaenggu]: Don't mention it.
[PrincessChaenggu]: But there's something I need to ask of youy.
[You]: What is it?
[PrincessChaenggu]: There's a fake called Chames City. Ignore them!
[PrincessChaenggu]: They're a team kept alive by Setan's filthy Gold Money.
[PrincessChaenggu]: They have no roots. No roots at ally.
“...”
Why did this stranger feel so familiar? A hollow laugh slipped out.
PrincessChaenggu ended the conversation by saying she would upload a special video soon, and that I should watch it to calm my body and mind.
Once the conversation ended, I checked the clothes she had sent. They were jerseys with names boldly printed across them.
‘I don't know what language this is.’
Unfortunately, I couldn't recognize the names. Hadn't they said the gallery had automatic translation?
The emblem on the chest was pretty cool, though. Just as she said, it had the look of a club with deep roots.
The design was nice, and the white and blue colors blended beautifully.
They weren't colors that suited the wilderness much, but what I needed most was clothes, so it wasn't a problem.
‘The material's good too?’
It was very stretchy as well. They seemed useful in many ways.
I only smiled for a moment before immediately opening the gallery to check its posts.
PrincessChaenggu said she would make a post soon, so I was going to leave a thank-you comment there.
[Post title] Chames United Special Collection
The moment I saw the post, I clicked it without hesitation.
“Huh?”
I couldn't help but widen my eyes as I watched the video she had posted.
‘This is soccer?’
Why was there soccer here?
‘Then do they have baseball too?’
There were idiots popping up on the gallery sometimes, so could that be why?
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
