Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 104

Squeak!

Kkueng…

The Black Rabbit was cooking food for Kkueng-i, who had caused trouble earlier. The smell of grilling meat filled the air, making everyone’s stomachs rumble.

“Theo, where did you get that amberjack?” Sejun asked. He saw Theo preparing a big fish and putting it in a bundle.

“Ah. You mean this, Meow? This is…” Theo said. He looked a little nervous.

Just then, a voice echoed in Sejun’s mind.

[Master! What brings you here?] Fire Spirit called Sejun quickly, trying to change the subject.

“Ah, it’s because of Kkueng-i. Are they being noisy while you’re resting? I’ll take them away quickly.”

[Yes. Thank you, Master. It is a little… noisy.] Fire Spirit replied.

Suddenly, *swish*.

One of Fire Spirit’s roots grabbed Theo’s leg!

And then, in Theo’s mind, Fire Spirit’s voice whispered: [Please keep it a secret that I caught the amberjack. My size is still too big. Master might be surprised.]

“No way, Meow! There are no secrets between me and Chairman Park, Meow!”

[Instead, I’ll catch you a big fish like this every month. Big Brother.]

“Pfft. Did you just call me Big Brother, Meow?” Theo felt happy hearing that word for the first time.

[Yes. Big Brother.]

“Alright, Meow! I’ll keep it a secret, Meow! Chairman Park! I caught this amberjack!” Theo really liked being called Big Brother and forgot all about keeping secrets.

[Phew.] Fire Spirit sighed in relief.

However,

“Theo, you did? You hate going into the water, don’t you?”

“Meow? That’s…” Theo stammered.

“Are you hiding something from me?”

“It’s a secret, Meow!”

Theo ran outside at Sejun’s questioning.

“Why is he like that?”

Sejun said, looking at Theo acting strangely.

And

“Black Rabbit, forgive Kkueng-i now. Kkueng-i must have reflected a lot. Right, Kkueng-i?”

Sejun reconciled the Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i.

Kkueng! Kkueng!

Kkueng-i nodded diligently at Sejun’s words.

Squeak.

The Black Rabbit said, ‘Only this once,’ and forgave Kkueng-i.

Kkueng!

Kkueng-i, thrilled that the Black Rabbit had forgiven him, put the Black Rabbit on his neck and gave him a piggyback ride around the area.

At that moment

Thwack.

“What is it?”

Theo, who had returned to Sejun’s lap in the meantime. Theo ran away because he couldn’t tell the secret, but his paws carried him right back to Sejun. He couldn’t stay away from his favorite human for long! In the end, running away only led him back to Sejun’s lap.

“Theo, how dare you keep a secret from me?!”

Grasp.

Sejun grabbed Theo’s cheeks and punished the runaway cat.

“Ba Kejan, I zam zo zorry, Meow! Ba-amberjack was zabbed by Bire Zpirit, Meow!”

In the end, Theo confessed everything obediently, but all the pronunciation was garbled.

“Hehe.”

Sejun squeezed Theo’s soft cheeks. They felt like dough! He was having so much fun that he forgot to listen to Theo’s answer.

Thanks to that, Fire Spirit’s secret was kept.

The morning of the Harvest Festival was bright and sunny. Birds sang, and a gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the giant tree.

“I wonder if there will be another competition today?”

Sejun said, drinking his morning coffee.

Based on the pattern so far, the Carrot Harvesting Competition was held on the second day of the Harvest Festival, and the Carrot Eating Competition was held on the fourth day.

“We’ve had harvesting and eating, so next time will it be something like carrot cooking or carrot carving?”

While Sejun was thinking about the next competition event,

Squeak! Squeak!

Kkueng! Kkueng!

The Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i, who had become friends again, came to Sejun singing together.

Thud.

Thud!

Sejun noticed Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i acting strangely. They were looking at him with big eyes. The Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i suddenly bowed to Sejun, hitting their foreheads on the ground.

And

Squeak!

Kkueng!

They put their palms together politely but confidently and held them out to Sejun.

“Do you want food?”

Squeak!

The Black Rabbit shook his head, and

Kkueng! Kkuengeeeeng!

Kkueng-i nodded, then quickly shook his head when he saw the Black Rabbit.

“Then what is it?”

Squeak?

[Uncle, don’t you know about New Year’s money?]

The Black Rabbit climbed onto Sejun’s shoulder and asked quietly. It was consideration for Sejun, who might not know about New Year’s money.

“Ah, that’s what it was? Of course, I know. Here you go.”

Sejun gave New Year’s money to the Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i. It was a tradition for the rabbits to bow and receive New Year’s money on the 6th day of the Harvest Festival.

Squeak!

Kkueng!

The Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i were happy with the New Year’s money they received from Sejun.

“I want some too, Meow!”

Theo hurriedly bowed to Sejun. It seemed like a very good deal to be able to bow and receive money.

“Here. Theo is the oldest, so I’ll give you a little more.”

Sejun gave him twice the amount he gave to the Black Rabbit and Kkueng-i.

“Thank you, Meow! Take some more, Meow!”

Theo thought he would receive New Year’s money every time he bowed, like a vending machine.

However,

“Do you want me to take back what you received?”

“No, Meow.”

At Sejun’s words, Theo quietly put the New Year’s money in his bundle and took out Churu.

“Peel it, Meow!”

“Okay.”

Rip.

While Sejun was peeling the Churu and feeding it to Theo,

Chirp!

Pyaa!

Peep!

The rabbits lined up in front of Sejun, bowed, and received New Year’s money.

“Okay. Stay healthy in the future too.”

Before he knew it, Sejun was even giving blessings.

And

Scritch. Scritch.

(A, B, C, D…)

Golden Bat scratched letters into the soft earth floor of the cave. Dust flew up with each stroke of his claw. Behind Sejun, the Golden Bat was diligently writing Korean on the floor and reviewing. It was almost time to move back to Earth.

(Noodles, Coffee, Cola…)

He continued to review the words that Sejun had emphasized he should bring no matter what if he saw them.

After a while, he had a feeling.

‘This time, I’ll definitely bring what Sejun likes!’

The Golden Bat practiced writing Korean letters with his claw. He really wanted to bring Sejun the right gifts this time. He would not fail! The Golden Bat imprinted Sejun’s back view in his eyes and disappeared.

Flap. Flap.

(What should I choose?)

The Golden Bat hurriedly looked around and searched for letters he could read.

Office Pantry

He saw the words “00 Myeon, 00 Coffee” on the package.

(Ah! That’s it!) thought the Golden Bat.

The Golden Bat quickly grabbed the ramen and coffee and flew away.

Just a minute later, a shout came from the pantry.

“Hey! What the…? Who took my ramen?!” a man yelled, looking at the empty space on the shelf. “It was right here before I went to the restroom…”

A man who came to the pantry to eat ramen grumbled as he looked at the food display.

“No one could have taken ramen and coffee so quickly…”

And it looked like someone also took the instant coffee.

“Even if it’s just a little thing that makes me happy, this is too much!”

The boss, who always tried to save money by eating in the office, was furious that the last ramen had disappeared.

“Here. This is your New Year’s money. Live happily.”

While Sejun was giving New Year’s money to the rabbits who were bowing to him,

Flap. Flap.

The black dragon statue approached.

-Ahem. Park Sejun! Why aren’t you bowing to me?

Kaiser was sulking at Sejun for not coming to bow to him.

“Ah! I was going to visit you after receiving bows from the rabbits. I’m sorry for making you wait.”

He hadn’t even thought about visiting Kaiser, but he couldn’t tell the truth if he didn’t want to die.

-It’s not like I was waiting… Ahem. I, in my generosity, will make an exception. Hurry and bow.

“Yes. Kaiser, may you live a long and healthy life.”

Sejun bowed politely.

-What?! Park Sejun! Are you telling me to die?!?

“Pardon?”

-I’m 10,000 years old now, so if you wish me a long life, you’re telling me to die soon!

He hadn’t considered the long lifespan of a dragon.

“Ah. That’s not it!”

Sejun hurriedly explained himself.

“Oh, no, Kaiser! For humans, living to 100 is a very long time! Wishing you a long and healthy life means wishing you live a very, very long time.”

-Hahaha. I see. I didn’t consider the frailty of humans. Here, this is your New Year’s money!

Ptooey.

A scale as black as night, shimmering like polished obsidian, fell into Sejun’s hand.

-Consider it an honor, as I have given you something of mine.

“Thank you!”

He didn’t know what it was, but he expressed his gratitude for now.

Flap. Flap.

Kaiser returned to the fountain, and Sejun checked the item Kaiser had given him.

[Great Black Dragon Kaiser’s Scale]

The Great Black Dragon Kaiser Frita has directly cast magic on his scale.

If attached to the desired area, it will become a tattoo on the skin.

If life is in danger, the dragon skill – Dragon Skin will be automatically activated once to save the owner’s life and be destroyed.

Usage Restriction: Park Sejun, who has been recognized by Kaiser Frita

Creator: Kaiser Frita

Grade: Cannot be measured

“Wow.”

It was an amazing item.

“Can I just put it here like this?”

When Sejun placed Kaiser’s scale on his left arm,

Whoosh.

The scale sank into his skin, and a powerful black dragon tattoo, coiling around his left shoulder like living ink, appeared.

“But will there ever be a time to use this?”

He already had >Authority: Unbreakable Body>.

Sejun thought there would never be a time to use Kaiser’s scale, but the time to use the scale came sooner than he thought.

Sejun, unaware that a moment of life-threatening danger was coming, received New Year’s bows from the remaining rabbits and gave them New Year’s money.

“Did everyone get it now?”

When Sejun looked around to see if there were any rabbits who hadn’t received New Year’s money,

Flap. Flap.

The Golden Bat flew in quickly.

(Sejun! I think I’ve finally found what you wanted!)

The Golden Bat flew in, tightly gripping the items in its two feet.

“Huh?! That’s?!!!”

Sejun was shocked by the amazing item the Golden Bat had brought.

“Poo Ramen? Maxim Coffee?”

This time, the Golden Bat had really brought the right items.

“First, pour 550mL of water.”

There was only one pack of ramen, so failure was not an option. Sejun cooked the ramen according to the instructions on the package.

To match the exact amount of water, Sejun used the bottled water he had brought during the shipwreck to match the water volume and boiled the water.

“Hehe. Good job. Good job.”

While boiling the ramen water, Sejun hugged the Golden Bat, who was the top contributor of the day, and continued to stroke its head.

Bat bat.

The Golden Bat cried happily in Sejun’s arms. But there was a being who was displeased with that.

“I don’t like it, nya!”

Theo glared at the Golden Bat. Bringing what Sejun needed was his role, but the youngest was daring to covet the work that the eldest brother should be doing.

‘How should I punish that one?’

While Theo was licking his front paws and thinking about how to punish the Golden Bat,

“Now is the time!”

Sejun put the ramen, soup, and flakes into the boiling water.

“1, 2…269, 270!”

After boiling it for 4 minutes and 30 seconds as stated in the instructions, he took the pot off the heat and transferred the ramen to a bowl.

“Kuh. This is the smell.”

Just smelling it brought a wave of emotion.

“Hoo! Hoo!”

Sejun picked up a chopstick of ramen and blew on the steaming noodles.

‘It must be cool enough now, right? Oh well.’

Thinking it was cool enough, Sejun put it in his mouth.

Slurp.

“Mmm!”

The taste of ramen after almost 9 months. Sejun’s brow furrowed involuntarily.

Slurp. Slurp.

This time, Sejun scooped up the ramen broth with a spoon and drank it several times.

“Kuh!”

No other words were needed. It was just touching.

While he was eating ramen,

Squeak!

Kooeng!

The black rabbit and Kooeng approaching Sejun. Just one bite!

“Uh…”

Sejun’s eyes shook violently at the words ‘just one bite’.

“Here.”

Sejun gave the black rabbit one strand of noodles and five spoonfuls of broth. That was enough for the black rabbit.

“Here. Slurp.”

Sejun pretended to give some to Kooeng, but suddenly buried his face in the bowl and started inhaling the ramen. He couldn’t let this be taken away.

Kooeng!

Kooeng quickly approached and buried its mouth in Sejun’s bowl, and as it began to suck, the ramen was sucked into Kooeng’s mouth as if it were being vacuumed up.

Chomp.

With the last noodle connected to Sejun’s mouth being sucked into Kooeng’s mouth, the ramen disappeared cleanly.

“My…ramen…”

(Um…Big Brother, I brought this for you.)

The Golden Bat carefully handed Theo a bag with a cat picture on it. It was Churu.

At that moment

[The third competition of the Harvest Festival, the Carrot Juice Drinking Competition, will begin shortly.]

[Participants who wish to participate in the competition, please gather in front of the giant carrot altar with the red ribbon.]

The final competition of the Harvest Festival began.