Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 152

“Meow meow meow! My birthday is in a week, meow!”

Theo was heading down to the 40th floor of the Tower. He met some interns who were going down to trade cherry tomatoes and get sturdy scallions. Walking with them, he boasted about the birthday gift he would get from Sejun. Theo’s tail swished back and forth as he walked, his voice a little louder than usual.

“Birthday?”

“That’s right, meow! Because it’s my birthday, I can get a present from Chairman Park, meow!”

Birthdays were originally for getting congratulations, but in the Tower, it had become a day for getting gifts from Sejun.

“Congratulations, Vice Chairman Theo!”

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you, meow!”

While Theo was getting congratulations from the interns, his whiskers began to twitch.

‘Something ominous, meow!’ Theo thought.

Something must have happened to Chairman Park. ‘As expected, Chairman Park can’t do without me, meow! How could he neglect his knee management like this!’

“Shall we run?” An intern, who was used to this, asked.

“Yes, meow! At full speed, meow!”

“Yes!”

Theo and the interns started to run quickly.

[Arrived at the farm on the 83rd floor of the Tower.]

[Moved from the top floor, the 99th floor of the Tower, to the 83rd floor.]

[Descended 16 floors.]

[Due to the effect of the title >Reverse Voyager<, all stats increase by 16.] "Huh?!" Sejun had forgotten about the title because it wasn't shown in the status window. It seemed the title 'Reverse Voyager' increased stats when going down floors. "Nice! But is this all chestnuts?" Sejun looked around and exclaimed. There were chestnut burs on almost 1000 chestnut trees. The air on the 83rd floor smelled earthy and sweet, like ripe nuts. Sejun looked around at the farm, his eyes wide. Chestnut trees stretched as far as he could see, each one heavy with spiky chestnut burs. "Dragon Tooth Soldier - Helmet Summon." Sejun summoned a bone helmet and put it on. If he was unlucky, a falling chestnut bur could hit him and make a hole in his head. 'Full Body Armor Transformation.' Clatter. Sejun valued safety, so he protected other parts too. He couldn't relax just because his stats increased by 16. A steel thorn could still cause a penetrating wound. So, Sejun put on his bone armor. Clang. "Hey, come out." Sejun summoned Kkuengi and the Golden Bat from his subspace warehouse. However, (Yes!) Flap. Flap. Only the Golden Bat came out. "Huh?! Where's Kkuengi?" (Kkuengi is sleeping! Should I wake him up?) Kkulorong. Sejun glanced inside and saw Kkuengi sleeping with his belly bulging out, and empty boxes scattered around him. He must have eaten the crops in the warehouse and fallen asleep. "No, it's okay. Can you call some of the Black Wolf tribe nearby?" (Yes!) Sejun sent the Golden Bat away and went to the nearest chestnut tree. And then, "Yap!" He used Miller's hoe to knock down a nearby chestnut bur. 'Hehehe. First, I'll roast them and make roasted chestnuts, and then I'll make chestnut makgeolli that Kaiser will like, and then I'll simmer them in honey to make honeyed chestnuts...' While Sejun was thinking about the dishes he would make with chestnuts, "Oh! That one's bigger?!" He saw a chestnut bur that was about 1.5 times larger than the normal ones. "Jackpot!" Sejun swung his hoe at the chestnut bur. At that moment, Thud. Kosit. "Huh?" A strange sound was heard as the chestnut bur fell. "Did I hear wrong?" Thwack. Sejun knocked down another chestnut bur with his hoe. Thud. Kosit. "Huh?!" He definitely heard it this time. "What is it?" Feeling something was strange, Sejun gently touched the chestnut bur that made the first sound with his hoe. Kosit! Kosit! The chestnut bur began to unfold itself, making strange noises. Spiky brown quills poked out, and then a small, pointed face with beady eyes appeared. It was a hedgehog, but disguised perfectly as a chestnut bur! Then, the name appeared above its head. [Chestnut Bur Hedgehog Godori] "Huh?! A hedgehog?" It wasn't a chestnut bur, but a hedgehog disguised as one. "Cute. But its name is Godori?" While Sejun was talking to Godori, Thump. Thump. Chestnut burs hit Sejun's head. Ratatat. Chestnut burs began to fall from the chestnut tree towards Sejun in a rolling attack. About half of the chestnut burs hanging on the chestnut tree were hedgehogs. And then, Kosit! Kosit! Godori was commanding the hedgehogs. Godori was the leader of the chestnut bur hedgehogs. Thud. Thud. The hedgehog's quills pierced the bone armor. At that moment, [A quest has been generated.] [Quest: Eliminate the hedgehogs hiding in the farm disguised as chestnut burs, or reclaim the rights to the land through peaceful agreement.] Reward: Recognition as the rightful owner of the land title A quest message appeared in front of Sejun. "You said there were no monsters!" Sejun hurriedly ran away from the hedgehogs. Chestnut burs rained down on Sejun's head. *Thump. Thump.* He yelped and started to run. 'Hey! Wait a minute!' he shouted, but the spiky balls kept coming. He felt a prickling sensation as quills poked through his bone armor. 'This is not good!' The rolling attack of the chestnut bur hedgehogs wasn't strong enough to penetrate the bone armor, but there were too many of them. So, Sejun ran hard with dozens of hedgehogs stuck to his bone armor, struggling to remove the quills. But this was the middle of the farm. Sejun was soon surrounded by over 10,000 hedgehogs. "Hey, let's solve this with a conversation." Surrounded, Sejun requested a conversation with the hedgehogs. However, Kosit! Kosit! The hedgehogs were very aggressive. They bared their teeth at Sejun and then curled up again, preparing to attack. They didn't seem to have any intention of talking. "Should I fight?" Since the bone armor was blocking the enemy's attacks, he thought he could fight with the Thunder Throw and Ground Movement skills. 'Let's give it a try!' Sejun put strength into the hand holding Miller's hoe and was about to use the skill when Kkuenge! Kkuengi, who had gotten enough sleep, woke up with a long yawn. And then, Kkuenge! [Wow! Chestnuts!] Kkuengi came out of the subspace warehouse and picked up a hedgehog disguised as a chestnut bur. Then, Kosi! Kosi! Suddenly, the hedgehog unfolded its body and started acting cute towards Kkuengi. A completely different cry and posture than when it faced Sejun. The aggressive attitude from just before was gone, and it showed a posture of surrender, exposing its belly. Kkuenge? [Not a chestnut?] Kosi! Kosi! When Kkuengi was disappointed that what he was holding wasn't a chestnut, the hedgehogs hurriedly climbed up the chestnut tree and dropped chestnut burs. Thump. Thump. Kkuenge! Kkuengi diligently picked up the chestnut burs that the hedgehogs dropped and took out the chestnuts from inside. And Sejun, who was watching this, felt very unpleasant. 'These guys are ignoring me because I'm weak!' Even if the Tower is ruled by the law of the jungle! "You guys are being very unfamiliar? Are you discriminating against me now?" Kosit! Kosit! The hedgehogs curled up even tighter at Sejun's words. It was a reaction as if to say, 'How dare a weakling act up?' "Oh ho! So you're looking down on me now?! Kkuengi!" Sejun, provoked by the hedgehog's attitude, called Kkuengi. Kkuenge?! Kkuenge! [Did you call me?! Here are chestnuts!] Kkuengi, who came to Sejun's call, handed Sejun the chestnuts. Kosit? Kosi? The hedgehogs were confused. They couldn't understand why the strong were offering food to the weak. At that moment, "Who told you to eat in the warehouse? Punishment! Belly farts! Pfffft." Kkuhehehe. Kkuengi laughed hysterically at Sejun's belly fart, and …… The hedgehogs received an unspeakable shock. And then, Thud. Eventually, Godori, the leader of the hedgehogs, came forward and lay down, showing his belly. It was a sign of surrender. They had now grasped the hierarchy. Kosi! Kosi! Following their leader, the hedgehogs lay down, showing their bellies. In an instant, their attitude towards Sejun changed. [The chestnut bur hedgehogs completely surrender, willing to follow your disposal.] [The quest has been completed.] [As a reward for completing the quest, you have been recognized as the rightful owner of the land title.] [The skill of the land title: Farmland Information Lv. Max is activated.] At the same time, the quest was completed. "Shall we take a look?" Sejun checked the land title. [Tower 83rd Floor Farm Land Title] This is a land title that proves ownership of the farm on the 83rd floor of the Tower. Owner: Tower Farmer Park Sejun Grade: B+ Skill: [Farm Information Lv. Max] "Farm Information." [Farm Information Lv. Max] Size: 10,000 Pyeong Crops: 1043 Chestnut Trees Workers: 1 (Land Owner) Special Notes: Thanks to the chestnut bur hedgehogs disguising themselves as chestnut burs and protecting the chestnut trees, the condition of the chestnut trees is good. There are 12,65 chestnut bur hedgehogs available as workers. 'Oh! They were protecting the chestnut trees.' Thinking about it, if someone like himself, who didn't know anything, came here and received a rolling attack from the hedgehogs, they would never come near again. At that moment, Kosi! Kosi! [Please don't kick us out! We have nowhere else to go!] Godori, the leader hedgehog, uncurled and rushed to Sejun's leg. He stood on his hind legs, tiny paws reaching up, and made pleading noises. 'Kosi! Kosi! *Please* don't kick us out! We have nowhere else to go!' "Why would I kick you out? But what do you guys eat?" Sejun investigated the hedgehogs' information before the wage negotiations. Kosi? Kosi! [Are you hungry? Everyone, bring the food!] Kosi! Kosi! At Godori's command, the hedgehogs moved somewhere in a rush. Kkuenge! [If I collect a lot of these, Dad will make something delicious later!] Meanwhile, Kkuengi diligently peeled chestnut burs and put the chestnuts in his snack pouch. Theo arrived back at the market on the 40th floor of the Tower. The market was buzzing with activity. Hunters crowded around stalls selling goods, the air filled with shouts and the smell of cooking food. Bright lights shone around the auction area, making it feel like a stage. "Meow?! Chairman Park is safe, meow!" He was relieved when the crisis signal sensitivity of Sejun's knee detector decreased. And then, "I have returned, meow!" He shouted to the hunters that he had arrived. "Oh! It's Theo!" The hunters who were waiting for cherry tomatoes hurriedly picked up their hunter phones and called the hunters who had gone out hunting when Theo arrived. Meanwhile, the interns sold the magic cherry tomatoes. "Give me 100." "150 Tower Coins, please." Cherry tomatoes were now traded at a stable price of about 1.5 Tower Coins as supply and demand balanced. "Sold out!" When the interns sold all 10,000 cherry tomatoes, "I will start the auction, meow!" "Sell the exploding stamina corn first!" "Yeah! I've got the money ready!" The hunters wanted to buy the exploding stamina corn as soon as possible, so the area around the auction house lit up. After Theo's last auction, the news that Ethan, the guild leader of the Royal Knights Guild, was bald and had instantly cured his baldness with the exploding stamina corn he obtained from the Tower was a hot topic among the hunters. News had spread like wildfire among the hunters, especially the ones who were starting to lose their hair. The idea of instantly curing baldness, and even getting stronger, made them desperate. Some bald hunters, who usually stayed on lower floors, had bravely climbed all the way to the 40th floor, hoping for a miracle. However, "Meow!!" Theo was too dazzled by the hunters' enthusiasm. Bright magical lights shone from all directions, making the auction area sparkle. Theo blinked, his eyes struggling with the sudden brightness. He was so dazzled by the lights and the excited faces of the hunters that he almost forgot what he was doing. "Theo, use this." A hunter handed Theo sunglasses, who was struggling with the glare. 'Kyaa! I've finally fulfilled my wish!' A female hunter who had been wanting to put sunglasses on Theo and had been waiting for an opportunity cheered at Theo's cute appearance with sunglasses on. "Oh! It doesn't dazzle me anymore, meow! Then I will sell the exploding stamina corn first, meow!" Theo, who was amazed by the sunglasses, proceeded with the auction again. "I will sell a total of 10, one at a time, meow!" Last time, he brought a little too much to see the reaction. Sejun had planted most of the remaining exploding stamina corn in the field, so the remaining quantity was not sufficient. So, Theo chose a strategy of selling little by little for a long time to maintain the high price. "5500 Tower Coins!" "Sold out, meow!" Thanks to that, he was able to sell the exploding stamina corn at a higher price than last time. 'Puhuhut. As expected, I'm smart, meow!' Theo, who was so drunk on his own brilliance, sold out the remaining crops and earned a lot of Tower Coins, then went up to the upper floor. Of course, it was towards Sejun's knees. However, Sejun looked up as Theo approached, a small smile playing on his lips. "Back already, Theo? What brings you all the way up here again?" "Of course, I came to draw lots, meow!" Sejun's knees Sejun's knees