Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 178

“Is Ajax doing his job?” Sejun wondered aloud, finishing his breakfast. He opened his task list to check on Ajax, the tower farmer in the White Tower.

**[Tasks for Ajax Mambrev, White Tower Farmer]**

* Elixir Cherry Tomatoes: Planting seeds with magic (50,000 of 100,000)

* Elixir Cherry Tomatoes: Harvesting with magic (3,920 of 28,000)

Sejun nodded, seeing the list. Ajax was planting the new seeds he had sent. Sejun had realized that eating the amazing cherry tomatoes himself wasn’t helping him much anymore. So, he had saved some of the best ones and taken out the seeds from 3,000 of them. This gave him 100,000 seeds!

He sent these seeds to Ajax using the tower’s transport system, like sending mail between towers, but set it to ‘collect’. This meant Ajax had to pay for the delivery when he received them, costing Ajax 1 million tower coins.

*It would be simpler if Ajax just planted them himself,* Sejun thought. Ajax had already harvested the last batch. *But no, rules are rules.* Sejun had to officially give Ajax the seeds to protect his special right to grow elixir-grade crops. It was a bit annoying, this process, but it kept his rights safe, and that was important.

“He’s doing okay,” Sejun said to himself, a small smile appearing. Ajax was working, not slacking off. Looking at the harvest numbers, Sejun knew he’d be sending transport again soon. *Still, he’s slow as a snail,* Sejun grumbled inwardly. He wished Ajax was faster. But Ajax was following instructions, so Sejun couldn’t complain officially. Hmm, maybe Aileen can have a ‘friendly chat’ with him later,* Sejun thought with a mischievous glint in his eye.

After checking on Ajax’s work, Sejun headed to the brewery. He was going to make the new alcohol he had promised Kaiser and give him 10 bottles. The air was warm and smelled sweet from the makgeolli. The monkeys were already there, ready to work.

Ook! Ook!

Ook! Ook!

The monkeys greeted Sejun.

“You have the completed makgeolli stored, right?” Sejun asked.

Ook!

At Sejun’s question, the monkeys pointed to the giant glass bottles containing the finished makgeolli.

“Good. Pour it in here.”

Ook!

With the help of the monkeys, Sejun took out a huge pot, filled it with makgeolli, and covered it with a lid.

Nom.

[You have consumed Power-Boosting Yellow Beans.]

[Strength stat increases by 100% for 1 minute.]

[Strength stat increased by 33.]

Squeeze. Squeeze.

Sejun ate the yellow beans and used his enhanced strength to tightly press the connection between the pot and the lid, sealing it to prevent steam from escaping.

And then,

Poke.

He made a hole in the center of the lid and connected a U-shaped tube. Kkuengi carefully took a fire ant and stretched its back skin. He rolled it very thin, like paper, to make a tube. It was delicate work.

Sejun had demanded a lot of detail when making this, so 10 bottles of honey went into Kkuengi’s snack pouch in the process of making Kkuengi happy who was annoyed.

After inserting the tube into the pot lid and sealing the gaps with rice dough, Sejun placed the pot on the brazier and began to boil it. He initially used a strong flame, but after hearing the boiling sound, he reduced it to a weak flame.

After some time passed,

Drip. Drip.

Slowly, drop by drop, clear liquid began to *plink* from the end of the tube, like tears of alcohol. The brewery filled with a new smell, sharp and clean, like strong alcohol but with a hint of sweetness from the makgeolli. It was the smell of soju, and it was powerful. Sejun was distilling the alcohol to make soju.

Sniff sniff.

Kkueng!

[Big brother smells like an adult!]

Kkuengi, who was playing with Theo at the entrance of the brewery, strongly inhaled the scent. Theo was playing with Kkuengi because Kkuengi couldn’t enter the brewery. Of course, it wasn’t Theo’s choice; Sejun had put Theo down at the entrance and gone inside.

“Smell of alcohol? You mean *this* smell, nya?” Theo asked, licking his paw.

Kkueng! Kkueng!

[Yes! Kkuengi wants to try it too!]

Kkuengi answered, licking his own body like his big brother. He lost his balance and fell over once in a while, though.

“Puhuhu. Kkuengi can’t yet, nya! Alcohol is only for adults, nya!” Theo replied smugly.

Kkueng…

[I’m jealous….]

Kkuengi looked at Theo enviously, and

“Puhuhu. Shall I have a drink, nya!”

Theo, feeling the envious gaze of Kkuengi, went into the brewery and brought out a bottle of alcohol that he usually didn’t even touch because it was too bitter, and started chugging it. He only intended to show off how cool he was while drinking it…

Kkueng!

[Big brother is so cool! Adults are awesome!]

Glug. Glug.

Excited by Kkuengi’s admiring gaze, he ended up drinking the whole bottle. It was the high-proof soju that Sejun had just finished distilling.

“Burp nya! How is it, nya? Puhuhu. Am I cool, nya?! But the ground is moving, nya! Stay still, nya!”

Theo, heavily drunk, staggered towards Kkuengi, scolding the ground.

Kkueng?

[Big brother, are you okay?]

Kkuengi asked with a worried voice, looking at the staggering Theo.

“Puhuhu. Of course, I’m oka…”

Theo didn’t usually drink alcohol, and he couldn’t handle it well either. But there was no way he would be okay after drinking a whole bottle of distilled soju in one shot.

Thud.

Theo collapsed to the floor.

Kkueeeeeng!

[Dad, big brother is dead!]

Kkuengi urgently called for Sejun from the entrance of the brewery.

Flap. Flap.

The white dragon statue flew towards the black dragon statue.

“- So, Kellion, mission report? What did you find?”

“- You won’t believe it, Kaiser. Five fragments! Five!”

It was possible that the Apostles of Destruction had already infiltrated every tower.

– I think it would be good to inform the other dragons as well. Violet said their goal is to destroy the towers.

– Destroy the towers? Why bother?

Kaiser was puzzled. The existence of the towers had no impact on the battle against the Apostles of Destruction. Only the dragons could fight the Apostles of Destruction.

Even if the towers were destroyed, it would be a blow to their pride for failing to protect them, but it wouldn’t harm the dragons at all.

Yet, the Apostles of Destruction, though with a small amount of energy, were willing to sacrifice their own energy and send fragments to the towers, which would have no impact on the battle during the Black Moon.

– There must be another reason…

Just then,

– Huh?! What’s this smell?

Kellion suddenly followed the scent and turned his gaze.

– Smell?

Kaiser’s black dragon statue supported sight and hearing, but not other senses.

– It smells strongly of alcohol. It’s a brewery.

In contrast, the dragon statue that Kellion created was a vessel for his soul, so he paid great attention to it and could feel all five senses.

– Alcohol smell?!

Flap. Flap.

Kaiser quickly flew to the brewery, and

– Kaiser, wait for me!

Kellion followed behind him.

“Ugh. How can you drink it all when you can’t even handle alcohol?” Sejun took Theo, who had fallen asleep after drinking, to the bedroom and laid him on the bed.

“Kkuengi, keep an eye on him and call me if anything happens.”

Kkueng! Kkueng?

[Okay! Big brother isn’t going to die, is he?]

Kkuengi asked with anxious eyes.

“Yeah. He’ll be fine. He’ll get better with time.”

Sejun answered and headed back to the brewery.

– Oh! Sejun!

– What kind of alcohol is this?

When he went to the brewery, Kaiser and Kellion were opening bottles of soju and drinking it.

“That was the soju I was going to give to Kaiser…”

– What?!

At Sejun’s words, Kaiser snatched the bottle Kellion was holding.

– Hey! That’s not fair!

– What’s not fair?! Didn’t you hear our Sejun?! It’s my soju!

Kaiser hugged the bottle of soju tightly. His determination not to give it up was firm.

– Sejun, make soju for me too!

In the end, Kellion asked Sejun to make soju. If he hadn’t tasted it at all, it might have been different, but after drinking a few shots of soju, Kellion had fallen completely in love with the taste. Kellion took a sip of soju. His eyes widened. It was unlike anything he had tasted before. It was strong, yes, but also smooth and clean, leaving a warm feeling inside. ‘This is amazing!’ he exclaimed.

Soju had a completely different taste from makgeolli. It was clean, rich, and deep. If the alcohol content was just a little higher, it seemed like it could compete with the Fire Radish Wine in the future.

“Making soju isn’t difficult, but… the price…”

– 1 Dragon Tooth Bottle for 10 bottles of soju!

1 Dragon Tooth Bottle was traded for 1000 bottles of makgeolli. But with 1000 bottles of makgeolli, you could make 300 bottles of distilled liquor. It was a good price. No, it was an enormous profit.

But,

“Hmm… I’ll think about it if you give me 2 Dragon Tooth Bottles for 10 bottles of soju. But I’ll give you the 10 bottles of soju today!”

Sejun wasn’t satisfied and doubled the price.

– Good!

Kellion, eager to drink the soju quickly, immediately paid 2 Dragon Tooth Bottles.

“Just a moment.”

Sejun filled a new pot with makgeolli.

“Kellion, please seal this once.”

This time, he didn’t eat the Power-Boosting Yellow Beans and asked Kellion instead.

– Seal.

Kellion simply sealed the pot, and Sejun inserted the U-shaped tube he had made as a backup into the pot sealed by Kellion, repeating the same process to start making soju.

“Please take care of this for a bit.”

Ook!

Ook!

Having confirmed that the alcohol was being properly distilled, Sejun entrusted the brewery to the monkeys and moved to the kitchen.

And then,

“Open the storage.”

Clang.

Sejun secretly took out the tuna porridge from the large pot he had stored in the subspace warehouse, poured it into a small pot, and started heating it on the brazier.

Tap tap tap.

Sejun also finely chopped detoxifying green onions and elixir-grade cherry tomatoes and added them to the tuna porridge. This was to prevent Theo, who only ate grilled fish and Churu, from noticing.

The detoxifying green onions were added to detoxify the alcohol, and the elixir-grade cherry tomatoes were added for nourishment.

“Done.”

Sejun took the finished tuna porridge to the bedroom, and

“Ugh nya! My head hurts so much nya… Am I… going to die, nya?”

Theo, holding his head, said weakly with a pale face.

Kkueeeeeng!

[Big brother, you can’t die!]

Kkuengi cried and grabbed Theo’s paw.

“Kkuengi, I’m sorry, nya. I think this is the end for me, nya… If I die, please take care of Chairman Park’s lap, nya…”

The two were acting out a melodrama.

“It’s just a hangover.”

Sejun said, sitting next to Theo.

“I knew it was a deadly disease, nya!”

It’s just a hangover, you fool… Theo seemed convinced that he was going to die.

“Here. Eat this quickly! You’ll get better if you do.”

Sejun quickly scooped up the tuna porridge with a spoon and brought it to Theo’s mouth to prevent him from having unnecessary thoughts.

“I don’t have an appetite… nya?”

Chomp chomp chomp.

The aroma that stimulated his appetite made Theo’s tongue move on its own, and he diligently licked the tuna porridge. Fortunately, thanks to the finely chopped green onions and elixir-grade cherry tomatoes, Theo ate it deliciously.

A little while later,

“Puhuhu! I’m cured, nya! Chairman Park is amazing, nya!”

Theo, who had detoxified the alcohol thanks to the detoxifying green onions, got up with a lively expression and clung to Sejun’s lap again.

Kkueng!

[I’m so glad big brother is okay!]

Kkuengi was happy to see the healthy Theo. And Kkuengi vowed never to drink alcohol, even when he became an adult. Drinking alcohol gives you a deadly disease called a hangover! Theo was a good example for Kkuengi.

After curing Theo’s hangover, Sejun made soju again.

The next morning.

“Chairman Park, I’ll be back soon, nya!”

Sejun quickly sent Theo down to prevent him from causing any more trouble.

And then,

“Taru, long time no see, nya!”

Theo headed to the Lost and Found Warehouse on the 75th floor of the tower as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Why are you here again?” Taru said as transparently as possible, but he couldn’t completely hide his delight. It was less boring when Theo came.

“Are you stupid, nya?! Of course, I came to draw lots, nya! Here’s 1000 tower coins, nya!”

Theo confidently handed over the money. Puhuhu. I’m going to bring something great to Chairman Park and get praised, nya!

Theo smiled and entered the Lost and Found Warehouse.