Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 287

Let’s watch the battle from here for a bit.

Understood.

At Fenrir’s word, the piece of Jormungandr, camouflaged itself as it approached the Black Tower and hid.

Boom!

Hydra, the nine-headed serpent, also known as the tenth Apostle of Destruction – a very strong monster – attacked the Black Tower, following Fenrir’s orders.

Defend it!

The black dragons on guard quickly moved to block Hydra.

However, even though Hydra wasn’t using its full power yet, the black dragons could barely hold it off. They began to be pushed back.

Just then,

How dare you push your heads in here?!

A black dragon, twice the size of the others, appeared.

It’s Kaiser!

Fenrir focused his attention, observing Kaiser closely. Halphas had clearly stated that Kaiser had swallowed something and suddenly become stronger.

A moment later.

Can you block this power as well?

Hydra released the seal up to the third stage at once, growing immensely.

Kahaha! With that much power, you cannot defeat me!

Kaiser stepped forward. He quickly swallowed the four colored fruits, then the black one. A dark energy pulsed around him. Then, with a mighty roar, *Wham! Wham! Wham!* In just three earth-shattering blows, Kaiser destroyed Hydra. He turned and soared into the sky, rushing to help defend another tower.

Found it.

Fenrir had been carefully observing Kaiser.

Kaiser first swallowed four round, oval-shaped fruits—red, yellow, green, and blue—simultaneously.

Then, he swallowed a black, round, oval-shaped fruit, and his energy amplified tremendously.

I need to find that black fruit.

Thus, Fenrir knew exactly what he needed to find.

Let’s go.

Understood.

At Fenrir’s words, the piece of Jormungandr moved towards the Black Tower once more.

Thanks to the other Apostles of Destruction drawing attention, none of the dragons noticed Fenrir’s approach.

Here you go. Take two each. You know the price, right?

Sejun showed six black beans in his left hand and extended his right hand.

Khahaha! Of course!

Naturally, I know!

Puhaha! Don’t worry!

Clink. Clink. Clink.

The dragons placed money pouches on Sejun’s right hand and took two black beans each.

The dragon blood received from the other dragons hadn’t been used to create containers yet, so he couldn’t give it out.

The three dragons planned to use the received scales as the main ingredient to create containers for each dragon race’s blood.

Okay, let me just quickly check the money to be sure.

Sejun began to count the money in the pouches. He trusted them, but it was good to be thorough.

Huh?! A lot of money here! There’s more money here than there should be?!

Even dragons made mistakes sometimes. As Sejun spoke after checking the money in the first pouch,

Puhahaha. Sejun, I added a bit more.

Ramter said boastfully in a hearty voice.

Oh! Really?! Thank you.

As Sejun expressed his gratitude to Ramter,

Khahaha. Ramter, you’re so stingy!

Indeed!

Kaiser and Kellion mocked Ramter.

Hey! Then how much did you two put in?!

Ramter, provoked by their teasing, raised his voice and asked.

Oh…

Oh…

Kaiser and Kellion exchanged glances, only stating the first digit and failing to answer.

They feared being mocked if they put in a lower amount than the other.

Eish! Sejun, hurry up and check.

Yes.

Eventually, Ramter grew frustrated and urged Sejun, and Sejun checked the remaining pouches.

Kaiser frowned silently.

Huhahaha! You stingy fellows!

Kellion became arrogant and began to mock Kaiser and Ramter in earnest.

And then,

Sejun, since they are stingy, let’s only trade black beans with me from now on.

You, get out!

Yeah! Kaiser, kick him out!

Having needlessly provoked the two, Kellion was almost kicked out of the Black Tower.

Hahaha. Of course, I was just joking. Shall we have a drink?

Ahem. Shall we?

Let’s do it!

Kellion had no choice but to appease the two with his treasured liquor. In the end, Kellion lost both money and liquor.

As the dragons went to drink,

Chairman Park, I want to burn money, meow!

Theo, with sparkling eyes, looked at Sejun’s money pouch, coveting it, meow!

Alright. Should I give you some money?

Puhu! No, meow! I can burn more money now, meow!

Talent: Energy Drain. Theo had become stronger by absorbing a lot of surrounding energy. Thanks to that, the amount of money he could burn at once had increased.

Here.

Because he had a lot of money, Sejun readily gave Theo the money.

Thank you, meow!

Theo held the money and flames erupted, turning the paper notes into golden sparks that danced in the air. A warm, sweet smell filled the air as the energy flowed into Theo.

“Meow-ha-ha! I am the great Golden Cat, Theo Park!” Theo was really enjoying spending money. He hadn’t been able to buy anything fun in a long time, and now he was making up for it.

“Theo,” Sejun said, a small smile on his face as he watched the golden cat admire a shiny toy. “Theo, could you do something for me? It’s been almost a year since we got stuck in this Tower together, you know?” Theo looked up, ears twitching. Sejun continued, “I thought it would be nice to have a little party with everyone who helped start our farm here, to celebrate making it through the first year.”

“Meow?” Theo asked. Hearing about the errand, his golden fur seemed to dim a little, and his ears drooped. The proud glow he had vanished. He looked at Sejun with the saddest eyes he could possibly make. “Please, can’t I skip it this time, meow?” Sejun chuckled softly. “No, Theo, you can’t skip it. Eat your breakfast first, and then go right away.” “Humph,” Theo grumbled, but he knew Sejun meant what he said. “Alright, meow!”

When his sad act didn’t work on Sejun, Theo changed his plan. *Flop!* He rolled onto his back. “Chairman Park, please rub my belly and give me some Churu treats, meow!” Theo decided if he had to go, he would at least get some cuddles and treats first. A little while later, feeling much better, Theo announced, “Chairman Park, I’m leaving now, meow!” “Alright, be careful out there,” Sejun replied. Then, a small, chirping sound came from beside Theo. “Peep! [Sejun, I’ll be back soon!]” “Alright, you be careful too, Peep,” Sejun said, smiling at the little bird, Peep, perched on Theo’s head. Sejun watched as Theo and Peep left the Tower.

Sejun had imagined a quiet little party. But then, Theo’s voice echoed back up from below, “Meow-ha-ha! Did you hear that, Peep? It’s a party, meow!” *Peep! Peep!* chirped Peep excitedly. *[Hee hee! A party!]* If Sejun had known what would happen, he might not have sent Theo and Peep downstairs. News of the party for Sejun had already spread very quickly among the Silver Wolves who lived on the lower floors of the Tower. Because of this, everyone on those floors was now busy getting ready for a big celebration. “Meow-ha-ha! A party for Chairman Park has to be amazing and huge, meow!” Theo declared, joining in the preparations. With Theo involved, the small, quiet party Sejun had planned was already ruined.

“Well, while they are busy with the party,” Sejun thought to himself, “I should work on my quest.” Not knowing anything about the party preparations downstairs, Sejun, who had just waved goodbye to Theo and Peep, opened his magical storage space – his subspace warehouse. *Rumble.* He pulled out a large pile of corn. *Pop. Pop.* He started to break the corn cobs, taking out the kernels one by one. Suddenly, a message appeared in front of him: *[You have obtained a corn seed.]* *[Your farming job experience has slightly increased.]* *[Your Seed Harvesting skill is now a little better (Level 7).]* *[You need to use the Seed Harvesting skill 999,999 more times to complete your job quest.]* Sejun sighed. It was going to take a very long time. *Pop. Pop.* He continued to silently harvest corn, kernel after kernel.”

Suddenly, another message popped up: *[Your Seed Harvesting skill is now at Level 8!]* “Heh heh heh,” Sejun chuckled, feeling a little proud. Before he even realized it, his Seed Harvesting skill had gone up a level! It felt good to make progress. *Pop. Pop.* As Sejun got lost in his work again, another message appeared, different this time: *[You have obtained a sticky corn seed! This is a special seed because of your Seed Harvesting skill at Level 8!]* *[Your farming job experience has slightly increased.]* *[Your Seed Harvesting skill is now a little better (Level 8).]* *[You need to use the Seed Harvesting skill 991,281 more times to complete your job quest.]* “Huh?!” Sejun exclaimed, looking at the new seed in his hand. “Sticky corn seed?” Then, another message explained: *-You can sometimes find new kinds of seeds when you harvest, but it’s very rare. This is more likely to happen now that your Seed Harvesting skill is Level 8.* No special announcement appeared yet. It seemed he would only get a bigger reward when he actually grew and harvested the sticky corn. “Alright!” Sejun said, feeling excited about this new discovery.

Smiling, Sejun carefully carried the sticky corn seed over to his special golden tree stump pot. This was the “Pot of Abundance,” a magical pot that made anything planted in it grow ten times faster! He wanted to grow the sticky corn quickly to see what it was like. But then, “Huh?!” Sejun stopped. The golden tree stump pot, where he had planted his rice, was almost dim now. The bright gold glow was fading. It looked like it had used up all its magical power. Sejun thought for a moment about using his own special power, *[Authority: Become Abundant!]* to recharge the pot. But then he decided, “No… let’s just wait.” He would let the pot recharge on its own time. It was a very powerful, almost holy object, and he felt his own normal energy might not be right for it. “Still,” Sejun said, looking at the golden rice plants in the pot, now fully grown and ripe, “it’s good that the rice is ready.” He spoke gently to the new seed in his hand, “Sticky, we’ll have to plant you over here for now.” He carefully planted the sticky corn seed in a corner of his regular cornfield, a place that was still filled with natural magic. *[You have planted the sticky corn seed in magical soil.]* *[Your farming job experience has slightly increased.]* *[Because the rice plants nearby can sense the farmer’s care, your Magic Seed Sowing skill is even stronger (Level 8 effect enhanced)!]* *[The rice plants will now grow twice as fast for the next 24 hours because of your Magic Seed Sowing skill (Level 8 effect).]* *[Your Magic Seed Sowing skill is now a little better (Level 8).]* Sejun finished planting the sticky corn seed in the corner of the cornfield.

*Scritch. Scritch.* Sejun started to cut the ripe rice stalks with his sickle. *Ke-ack. Ke-ack.* Suddenly, he heard the familiar clicking sounds of his mushroom ants. These were special ants that helped him on the farm, and they loved to help with the rice harvest. The mushroom ants hurried over and began to clean the rice grains. Using their mandibles, they carefully removed the outer husks from each grain of rice, making it into white rice, ready to cook. *Scritch. Scritch.* They worked quickly and efficiently.

“Heh heh heh,” Sejun smiled, thinking about his dinner. “Tonight, I’ll make soy sauce egg rice! It will be delicious. *Slurp.*” The *scritch. scritch.* sound of the mushroom ants working continued steadily as Sejun imagined his tasty meal.

Theo’s mouth watered as he imagined white rice with soy sauce and a fresh egg yolk. He worked even faster to collect the rice.

“Meow, meow, meow.”

Peep! Peep peep!

Theo and Peep, humming, descended the tower.

Just then,

“Nya?!”

Peep!

“Theo, we’ve reached a crossroads!” Peep chirped.

Just like before, a crossroads appeared in front of them.

“Puhuhut. This way, meow!”

Theo confidently headed down the right path, guessing since he knew agonizing over it wouldn’t help.

As Theo and Peep passed,

Thud.

The snake’s face on the path snapped shut with a loud *thud*, like a giant mouth closing.

Theo thought about Fenrir. *’It’ll be alright, right?’* he worried. *’Well… he’ll manage somehow,’* he told himself, trying to feel better.

Crack.

The Jormungandr fragment opened its mouth again, waiting for its next prey.

Thus, Theo and Peep entered the belly of Jormungandr once more. It was dark and smelled strange inside.

Hiss. Hiss.

White snakes appeared before them.

Wham!

“Peep, pick up the coins, meow!”

Theo defeated the white snakes, and

Peep!

“[Yes!]”

Tap. Tap.

Peep followed behind Theo, picking up the white coins.

“Meow, meow, meow.”

Theo continued to run forward, only dealing with the white snakes blocking his path.

Peep?

“[Theo, why aren’t we leaving right away?]”

Peep asked, watching Theo continue to walk even though he knew it wasn’t the right way. Peep tilted his head, watching Theo walk the wrong way. But then, with a chirp, Peep followed faithfully behind.

“Puhuhut. There’s something here, meow,” Theo answered with a smile.

As soon as the white snakes appeared, Theo tried to use One-Meow Island to get out.

However,

“Nya?!”

Theo felt a tug on his paw. So, he decided to follow the path.

As Theo and Peep followed the path,

Just then,

Squeak!

Suddenly, Peep tilted his head, listening. Then, a faint scream echoed from further down the path.

“Nya?! That sound? Peep, let’s go, meow!”

Theo hurriedly ran towards the source of the sound.

And,

“Theo, please save me! I’ve been stuck here for days! It’s awful!”

Yuren, who had taken the wrong path again, was in mortal danger, trapped inside the Jormungandr fragment’s body for days. He was covered in dust and cobwebs, showing he had been suffering.

Theo’s eyes widened. *Money!* was the first thing he thought. He confidently held out his paw and demanded money. “Puhuhut. Yuren, if you want to get out of here, you need money, meow! Hand over the money, meow!”

“‘Anything! Take it all! Just get me out of here!'”

Yuren was known for his bad luck and for being too kind to others. He took out all the money pouches in his possession and handed them to Theo.

20 money pouches received in that way. 2 billion Tower Coins.

“Puhuhut. Then let’s get out of here, meow!”

Theo burned all the money in the money pouches.

Flash.

Theo emitted a dazzling golden light that filled the whole space. Puhuhut. As expected, burning money is the best, meow!

And,

Snap.

He pulled out the dragon claw on his right front paw and

Whoosh!

He swung it greatly, filled with overflowing energy. One-Meow Island, meow!

······

There was no sound, but even the white snakes seemed to freeze, trembling with fear at the magic.

A few seconds later.

Crack crack.

Five lines were drawn on the Jormungandr fragment, splitting it into six pieces, and

Sss sss.

It turned into dust and disappeared.

Clink.

“Peep, collect the coins, meow!”

Peep!

“[Yes!]”

Peep flew around quickly, collecting the white coins.

Just then,

Peep?

Peep saw an animal with navy blue fur falling.

Yelp!

A young animal struggling with its short four legs. Puh-hut. You are now my subordinate!

Whoosh!

Peep snatched the navy blue animal in a cool manner, and

Peep!

Diligently flew and brought it to Theo.

Yelp!

“What is this dog, meow?”

Theo grabbed the front paw of the dog (?) that was sending him hostile glares, and

Press.

He stamped the contract with his paw print. He felt a strong pull from this dog.

“‘Puhuhut. If I stamp it for now, it will all be useful, meow!'”

Theo smiled and looked at Fenrir.