Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 360

“So, the Wolf of Destruction must be incredibly strong…” Sejun said, after reading about the Jewel.

‘To eat a god and trap its soul… I hope I never meet this wolf. If I do, I’m running away fast!’

Little did Sejun know, the Wolf of Destruction was actually sleeping soundly in his room!

“The god will thank me if I free it?” Sejun continued reading. “Not bad! A god who gives rewards. I like that.”

“Typical Vice-Chairman Tae,” Sejun thought. “Always finding interesting things, even jewels with gods inside!”

“Vice-Chairman Tae, you did great work! You get extra helpings of dinner for a week!” Sejun said happily.

“Heh heh heh. Heh heh heh. Heh heh heh.” Theo laughed, very pleased with Sejun’s praise.

Sejun, with Theo still happily clinging to his leg, went outside. He held the Jewel of the Earth in his hand. It felt cool and smooth. He looked around his garden and chose a good spot near his crops.

“This feels like the right place,” he murmured. He carefully dug a small hole and gently placed the Jewel halfway into the earth, letting the soil hug it. “It needs earth power, right? This should work.”

After waiting for a few minutes, Sejun checked the Jewel again.

[Jewel of the Earth – 5% Seal Breaking]

Words appeared in front of him. “It’s working!” Sejun exclaimed. The seal was indeed breaking. “Releasing a god isn’t as hard as I thought.”

“It will be done soon,” Sejun said, feeling pleased. “Aileen, can you purify Fenrir’s core fragment now too, please?”

[The Tower Administrator says to trust her.]

Sejun nodded and turned to go back inside. “I should check on the mugwort,” he thought, remembering the Golden Box of Abundance. “Time to switch it with the black beans.”

He went to his kitchen and opened the door to his subspace warehouse.

Click.

Inside, he opened the Golden Box. He took out the five mugworts, carefully placing them aside. Then, he put in the Black Beans of Transcendence and closed the box.

“Four more mugworts in one day!” Sejun grinned. Feeling brave, he decided to try one. He popped a mugwort into his mouth.

And then…

“···!!!”

His eyes widened. This was not like coffee bitterness. This was a whole new level of awful. “Oh no,” he thought, his face twisting. “I really underestimated this…”

[You have eaten mugwort.]

[All stats increase by 20.]

[Lifespan increases by 3 months.]

[You have eaten bitter medicine.]

[Talent: Good medicine is bitter for health, activated.]

[Health increases by 9.]

Messages flashed before his eyes, but his mind was spinning.

‘Nine health points?!’ he thought dimly. ‘This bitterness… it’s… too much…’

Mugwort was supposed to be taken before bed… It was the last thing he remembered.

Plop!

Sejun collapsed onto the floor, completely overcome by the extreme bitterness.

“Chairman Park fainted again, nya?” Theo said, tilting his head. He trotted over to Sejun, grabbed his arm, and dragged him to a sunny spot on the rug. He started gently patting Sejun’s face. “Wake up, Chairman Park, wake up!”

While Theo was trying to wake Sejun, a small, black wolf with bright eyes suddenly appeared outside the subspace warehouse door.

Whine?! Whine!

‘Huh?!’ Fenrir thought, sniffing the air. ‘I can’t feel my core fragment’s energy anymore!’ He had been sleeping peacefully when he suddenly felt something strange. He rushed outside to investigate.

Then, his nose twitched.

Whine!

‘Wait… is that… tasty smells?! There’s a place with lots of yummy things open!’

He spotted the open door of the subspace warehouse. Theo, in his worry about Sejun, had forgotten to close it properly.

Hee hee hee. Whine!

‘Hee hee! This is exciting!’ Fenrir, forgetting all about his core fragment, eagerly slipped into the subspace warehouse, ready for a delicious adventure.

“Umm…” Sejun groaned, slowly opening his eyes.

“Chairman Park, you’re awake, nya?” Theo asked, still gently patting his face. “Are you feeling better?”

Peep? [Uncle, are you okay?]

Black Rabbit’s voice popped into his head.

Kooeng? [Daddy’s awake!]

Kooeng chirped happily.

“Hyung, are you alright?” Ajax asked, looking concerned.

“Mr. Sejun, are you feeling better now?” Veronica added. They were all gathered around him, plates of breakfast in hand.

“Yeah, I’m awake,” Sejun said, sitting up slowly. “How long was I out this time?”

“Not long, nya! Just under an hour, nya!” Theo replied.

“Really? That’s not too bad,” Sejun said, surprised. “Where’s Blackie?” he asked, noticing the black wolf was missing.

“Oh, I saw him go into the subspace warehouse earlier, nya!” Theo answered. “Probably eating sweet potato jerky again.”

‘He probably is,’ Sejun thought with a sigh. He decided to let Fenrir enjoy his snack. “He can’t eat too much,” Sejun mumbled to himself. “Three pieces is his limit.”

Sejun, feeling much better after his short faint, ate a quick breakfast with his friends. Then, he got to work.

“Transport,” he said, bringing in the mugwort Ophelia had collected.

[23,817 Fresh Life Mugworts and 21,183 Verdant Magic Mugworts have arrived.]

“Okay, Kooeng, time to squeeze!” Sejun said, pointing to the piles of mugwort.

Kooeng! [Understood!]

Kooeng puffed out his chest, ready for the task.

While Sejun and Kooeng were busy making juice, Ajax was sent to the White Tower to look after the cherry tomatoes. Suddenly, a message appeared in front of Sejun.

[It has been confirmed that Veronica, the tower farmer of the Purple Tower, is planting poisonous potatoes without permission.]

…

..

. [According to the Tower Law, Park Sejun, the tower farmer of the Black Tower, will oversee Veronica, the tower farmer of the Purple Tower, for the next 100 years.]

[You are already overseeing Veronica, the tower farmer of the Purple Tower, so the slavery period is not extended.]

Sejun chuckled, looking at the message. “Looks like she got back safely,” he said.

He had asked Veronica to plant poisonous potatoes in the Purple Tower. Even though they had a contract where Veronica worked for Sejun, she needed to be officially registered as his “slave” in the Tower system to be able to go to the Purple Tower and come back to the Black Tower when needed.

Sejun didn’t want the Purple Tower’s land to be wasted. It was perfect for growing detoxifying green onions and, of course, poisonous potatoes. Tier, the Purple Tower administrator, had agreed, so everything was set. The poison of the Purple Tower wasn’t a problem as long as you ate plenty of detoxifying green onions.

A little while later, Kooeng! [All done!]

Kooeng announced proudly. He had squeezed all the mugwort juice. Well, mostly Kooeng. Sejun had mostly clapped and cheered him on. But they worked as a team!

Thanks to Kooeng’s strong paws and Sejun’s encouraging words, they had made 2.3 liters of Life Mugwort Juice and 2.1 liters of Magic Mugwort Juice. As they worked, Kooeng’s juice-making skills had even improved, making the juice slightly stronger – from 50% to 55% medicinal effect!

Kooeng! [Kooeng will check the herbs now and then go train with Uncle Uma King!]

Kooeng said, eager to start his next tasks. Black Rabbit had already gone to train with Uma King after breakfast, and Kooeng was excited to join them.

“Did you pack your snacks?” Sejun asked, smiling.

Kooeng! [Yes! Snack bag is full!]

Kooeng showed him his bag, bulging with treats.

“Okay, have a great time!” Sejun waved goodbye as Kooeng headed towards the western forest.

‘Now, to make mugwort juice potion,’ Sejun thought. He mixed the Life Mugwort Juice with water, diluting it to make it last longer. He poured the potion into small water bottles.

Then, he went to his cornfield. “Become abundant,” he whispered, holding his hand over a corn stalk.

[>Authority: Become Abundant!> is applied to the corn.]

[The amount of corn from this stalk will be doubled.]

A soft golden light flowed from Sejun’s hand into the corn. He moved to the next stalk. Normally, using his authority so much would make him very tired. But…

Glug.

He took a swig of the diluted Life Mugwort Juice.

[You have consumed water-diluted Life Mugwort Juice.]

[Vitality is restored by 1%.]

The potion worked! He could now regain vitality quickly, like getting a constant energy boost. Thanks to this, he could use his authority on every single corn stalk in the field without collapsing.

“Become abundant.”

[>Authority: Become Abundant!> is applied to the cornfield.]

[The cornfield becomes twice as fertile.]

Finally, he used a larger amount of the potion to double the fertility of the entire cornfield and replenish his magic power. He used about one-eighth of the potion for the crops and another eighth to boost his own magic.

Sejun’s field was already very fertile, so making it even better took a lot of energy.

Of course, there was one small downside.

“Ugh, I need to pee again,” Sejun sighed. Drinking so much water meant frequent bathroom trips. But it was a small price to pay for doubling his harvest.

As Sejun headed to the bathroom, he glanced at the Jewel of the Earth, still buried in the ground.

[Jewel of the Earth – 98% Seal Release in Progress]

Almost there! The seal was nearly broken.

“Heh heh heh. What kind of amazing gift will the god give me?” Sejun rubbed his hands together, excited.

“Heh heh heh. Chairman Park, we should ask for something really expensive, nya!” Theo chimed in, equally excited.

Just as they were imagining incredible rewards, a message appeared.

[The seal of the Jewel of the Earth has been released.]

[Peblos, the God of Gravel, who was sealed in the Jewel of the Earth, is released from the seal.]

The soul of the god was finally free.

“Huh? God of Gravel?” Sejun blinked, a little confused.

“Chairman Park, what’s gravel, nya?! Is it good? Is it valuable, nya?!” Theo asked, bouncing with anticipation.

[Peblos, the God of Gravel, thanks the one who released his seal.]

[Peblos, the God of Gravel, repays the favor by laying gravel on a one-pyeong path.]

Right. Just because he was the God of *Gravel* didn’t mean his reward would be bad. It couldn’t be… could it? Sejun tried to stay positive, focusing on the message.

But then…

“Gravel?” Sejun repeated blankly. “He gave me… gravel?”

A small path of gravel, about the size of a small rug, appeared in front of them. It was… gravel.

“Who decided to put gravel here without asking?!” Sejun exclaimed, his excitement turning to annoyance. “If you’re going to lay gravel, lay it everywhere! One pyeong… He should have just given me money!”

[Peblos, the God of Gravel, having repaid the favor, has left.]

As if sensing Sejun’s rising anger, Peblos vanished quickly, leaving only the gravel path behind.

Meanwhile, far away in a bright, bustling place…

“Am I… back?” Peblos mumbled, looking around. He felt strange, weak, but… free. He was in a place filled with light and the scent of growing things.

“Oh… Peblos?!” A voice called out. “Could it really be Peblos, the God of Gravel?!”

Peblos turned and saw another god approaching. It was Silas, the God of Fine Sand.

“Oh! Silas, good to see you,” Peblos said, greeting him as if they had just seen each other yesterday. He had been unconscious for so long during his sealing, time felt strange to him now.

But Silas was overjoyed. “Peblos! It’s really you! It’s so good to see you!” Silas grabbed Peblos’s hand and shook it enthusiastically, tears welling up in his eyes. “Thousands of years! It’s been thousands of years!”

“Thousands of years?” Peblos blinked, surprised. “Where are the other gods?”

“Ah! Silly me, of course, you’d want to see them!” Silas said, wiping his eyes. “Come on, let’s go! I’ll take you to the others!”

Silas, eager to introduce Peblos back into god society, quickly led him away. He decided to take Peblos to Rhea, the God of Abundance, the kind leader of the non-combat gods. Meeting the combat gods first would just be too much pressure, and they’d only ask for food anyway.

And so, Silas brought Peblos to Rhea.

“Rhea, look who I found!” Silas announced proudly. “It’s Peblos!”

Rhea, a warm and gentle goddess, smiled kindly at Peblos. “Welcome back, Peblos. We are so glad to see you.”

Peblos bowed his head in greeting. “Park Sejun, the tower farmer of the Black Tower, released me from my seal,” Peblos explained. “He is a good farmer. He knows how to make the land fertile.”

When Peblos told them about Sejun, the other non-combat gods were immediately impressed.

“As expected of Park Sejun…” Rhea murmured, smiling.

“Park Sejun, fighting!” one of the gods cheered.

“Park Sejun, fighting!” others echoed.

“Park Sejun, fighting!” Peblos joined in, feeling a little awkward but also happy to be included.

‘I wonder if the gravel was enough of a reward?’ Peblos thought, suddenly feeling a little worried. ‘Maybe I was too… practical. I hope he’s not too disappointed.’

“Huh… gravel…” Sejun stared at the small path, still looking dazed.

“What’s this, nya?” Theo tilted his head, examining the gravel. It wasn’t ordinary gravel. It shimmered with light, sparkling in three different colors. Ruby red, sapphire blue, and emerald green. The colors were amazing.

“Heh heh heh,” Theo chuckled, picking up a piece. “Chairman Park, look! This gravel is… shiny, nya!”

Sejun finally looked closer at the path. He bent down and picked up a piece of the red gravel.

[Ruby Ore]

His eyes widened. He picked up a blue piece.

[Sapphire Ore]

And then a green one.

[Emerald Ore]

It wasn’t just gravel. It was gravel made of gemstone ore! Ruby, sapphire, emerald!

“Peblos, the God of Gravel…” Sejun’s frown turned into a wide, beaming smile. “May you go to a good place,” he said sincerely, his earlier anger completely forgotten.

“Heh heh heh. Chairman Park, the god gave us a *very* expensive reward, nya!” Theo exclaimed, dancing with joy. “This gravel is amazing, nya!”

And then, a message appeared.

[Park Sejun, the tower farmer of the Black Tower, has prayed for you.]

[Divinity increases by 10.]

Somewhere far away, Peblos suddenly felt a warm glow. Thanks to Sejun wishing him well (even if it was a bit… unexpected), his divinity had increased. Maybe, just maybe, he had chosen the right reward after all.