Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 609

“Wow! Did you see that fight?” Battler exclaimed, leaning forward. “The Ox King just blew Balrog away!”

Battle Merchant Headquarters.

“So, the Ox King and Balrog were fighting, and as soon as it started, the Ox King blew Balrog’s head off.”

“It was a virtual battle, so thank goodness. Otherwise, Balrog would be in the afterlife right now.”

“Exactly. I had no idea, Battler, that you had such amazing powers. I’ve got a new respect for you!”

“Haha. It was nothing, really.”

The God of Battle, Battler, and the God of Hunting, Hunt, were discussing what had happened on the Sejun Company’s internal network.

“Balrog is quite brave. I, the God of Valor, should have witnessed such a scene…”

“Seriously? I missed it? I always miss the best fights!” Beb, the God of Valor, complained, shaking his head. Thunder, the God of Storms, nodded eagerly beside him.

“Well,” Battler said with a sly smile, “Theo can ‘stamp’ you in. Then you’d be part of the company and see everything.”

Beb hesitated. “Hey, come on. I’m still a god, you know?” He didn’t want to seem too eager.

However, he was thinking, ‘Well… becoming a full-time employee isn’t that bad, is it? Maybe I could become friends with Sejun…’

Inside, he was struggling immensely.

The reason was the divine artifacts that Battler and Hunt had received from Santa Sejun.

Though it was forced, Battler and Hunt, who had cooperated with Theo, received a spear that folds space to stab enemies and a bow that tracks enemies beyond dimensions as Christmas presents, and they became the envy of the battle gods at the Battle Merchant Headquarters.

Of course, Beb and Thunder were among those envious battle gods.

In contrast, Beb received the right to converse with Sejun, and Thunder received the right to converse with Kkuengi as Christmas presents.

They were coupons that could only unblock the conversation once, and it was useless if they were blocked again.

‘I want to receive a divine artifact, but I don’t want to be stamped… Ah. This is troubling.’

While Beb was still struggling,

“I’ll do it. I’ll get stamped by Theo!” Thunder was the first to step forward, declaring that he would become a full-time employee of Sejun Company.

“I… I’ll join Sejun Company too!” Beb shouted, caught up in the moment.

“Hehe. Good choice. Isn’t that right? Hunt?”

“Hehe. Indeed. Both of you have made excellent decisions.”

Battler and Hunt smiled brightly as they watched them.

‘Beb, now you’re under me.’

‘Thunder, now you’re my subordinate.’

In Sejun Company, who joined first was more important if everyone was about the same strength.

“Battler, you’re not going to pull any seniority nonsense and order me to do weird things just because you joined first, are you?”

“Of course not! We don’t have anything like that in Sejun Company! Hunt, right?”

“Indeed! There’s absolutely nothing like that!”

Of course, they didn’t show it at all since they hadn’t been stamped yet.

Meanwhile, far away in the Blue Tower…

[Arrived at the 77th floor of the Blue Tower.]

“Huh?” Why does it smell so salty?

A strong smell of salt entered his nose.

At the same time, he saw the moon in the night sky and the moon’s reflection shimmering in the water.

Splash. Whoosh.

He also heard the sound of gentle waves.

As Sejun slowly looked around,

“Huh?!” Sejun was located on one of the many islands in a rias coastline. He could see the waves crashing and slowly receding.

The entire 77th floor of the tower was the sea.

“Lucky me.” He could have fallen into the water if he had moved to a slightly different location. Well, it wouldn’t have mattered since he could dry his clothes quickly.

Then,

Clang.

“Chairman Park, I missed you, meow!” The door to the subspace warehouse opened, and Theo jumped at Sejun’s face.

Kkueng!

Squeak!

Following Theo, Kkuengi and the Blackie family also jumped and clung to Sejun’s body.

“Let’s sleep for now and move tomorrow.”

“Puhu! Understood, meow!”

Kkueng!

Squeak!

The group, happy to hear Sejun’s words, agreed joyfully.

“Raise land.”

Sejun used Miller’s hoe to build a house.

“Crop Gigantification.”

He used his power to make the mushroom grow huge.

Scritch.

He made a mushroom mattress, put it in the bedroom, and took out a blanket.

“I’ve taken care of Batbat’s meal too, so let’s sleep now.”

Sejun, who had prepared fruit for Batbat to eat next to the mattress, hugged the group and jumped to the center of the mushroom mattress.

The mushroom mattress initially sank as Sejun’s body was buried in it, but gradually regained its cushioning.

Cooore.

Grolong.

Kkirorong.

In the meantime, Sejun and the group fell asleep.

And

(Batbat. Good night, everyone!)

Batbat woke up and started his activities.

Chomp. Chomp. Chomp.

After eating the fruit Sejun had prepared,

Flap. Flap.

He patrolled the surroundings and took a look around. Most of the islands were rocky, so there wasn’t much to see.

Batbat returned after looking around.

Splash. Whoosh.

He sat by the window where he could hear the sound of waves and see the moon’s reflection in the water, looking down at the group sleeping on the mattress when

…!

An inspiration struck him.

(Alone in this night while everyone is asleep…)

Batbat improvised a lullaby, and everyone had pleasant dreams. The lullaby was soft, gentle, and rhythmic.

(If I rest my head on your lap…)

“Puhu!” Theo, in particular, seemed to like Batbat’s song, as he hugged Sejun’s knee tightly with his front paws and fell into an even deeper sleep.

Thus, the blue night deepened on the 77th floor of the Blue Tower. The islands were small and rocky, covered in dark stones. The sea was a deep, dark blue, reflecting the bright silver light of the full moon. Stars twinkled in the clear night sky above.

The next morning.

“Ugh-cha.”

Sejun stretched vigorously and got up.

And

“Meow…”

Kkueng…

Squeak…

He took care of the sleepyheads, went outside, and walked around the island to wake up.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything special…” The island was peaceful.

‘I wonder if there are many fish in the sea that Vice Chairman Theo likes?’

Sejun strained his eyes and looked at the blue sea, but he couldn’t see any swimming fish.

“I’ll have to go in and check after we eat.”

Sejun decided to fill his stomach before going into the water.

Snap.

He snapped his fingers to make a fire and started cooking.

Then,

“Puhu! Chairman Park, are you grilling my fish too, meow?!”

“Of course. Vice Chairman Theo gets an extra-large grilled fish.”

“Puhu! Very good, meow!”

Kkueng?

The morning sun peeked over the horizon, painting the sea with soft pink and gold. A cheerful voice, full of morning energy, broke the quiet.

“Daddy, what are we having for breakfast?”

Sejun chuckled, a warm, happy sound that filled the small kitchen.

“Hee hee hee. Today’s breakfast is special! Soybean paste stew, and we’re going to eat it while watching the sea!”

Kooeng, a small, furry creature, bounced up and down with excitement, his tail wagging furiously.

“Kooeng! Kooeng! Yay! Kooeng will mix lots of rice with the soybean paste stew and eat it all up!”

A soft, questioning squeak came from the corner.

“Kking?!” Blackie, a small black rabbit with intelligent eyes, tilted his head, looking expectantly at Sejun.

“Butler! What about the Great Blackie’s dried sweet potato snacks?!”

Sejun smiled warmly at Blackie.

“Of course, Great Blackie. Your snacks are right here.” He pointed to a small jar on the counter. “If you are a very good boy until breakfast, you can have two.”

Blackie’s nose twitched with delight.

“Kkihihit. Kking! Kking!” He hopped excitedly.

“Hehe. Okay! The Great Blackie will be the best behaved rabbit ever!”

Theo, a small, fluffy cat with water-blue eyes, stretched languidly, then padded over to Sejun, purring softly. All three companions, just woken from their peaceful sleep, looked at Sejun, their eyes bright with anticipation, eager to see if their breakfast was indeed being prepared perfectly.

A short while later, after a satisfying breakfast, Sejun leaned back on the sunbed, a happy sigh escaping his lips. Iced coffee, made perfectly by Kooeng, was in his hand. He savored the cool drink after the delicious breakfast.

“Now, let’s see what’s in the sea!” he exclaimed, ready for his water activities.

Splash.

As Sejun entered the water with his companions, air bubbles automatically formed around their heads, an air bubble helmet created by Theo’s water-attribute talent. Thanks to that, Sejun explored the sea without worrying about suffocating.

Sejun swam deeper into the clear water, exploring for what felt like hours. He frowned slightly.

“Hmm, what’s going on? Why is there nothing here?” he wondered. No matter how much he wandered, he couldn’t find anything other than rocks and water. There were no living creatures other than his companions and himself.

“I need to meet something to get the land document quest… Is this just a salt field?”

Sejun was about to turn back, thinking about exploring other islands, when he stopped.

“Huh?” Something big and dark moved slowly in the water nearby.

At that moment, the dark mass spread out like thin threads, scattering around.

“What is this?” As Sejun touched it, a notification appeared.

[A quest has been generated.]

[Quest: Sea creatures are trembling in fear due to mutant seaweed that has become carnivorous after being contaminated by the aura of destruction. Please eliminate the mutant seaweed.]

[Reward: Recognition as the rightful owner of the seaweed farm on the 77th floor of the Blue Tower, restoration of the marine ecosystem.]

Finally, the land document quest appeared. Sejun was excited to see the quest. His New Year’s goal of obtaining seaweed was achieved much earlier than he thought. The mutant seaweed, however, was just as excited, wrapping around Sejun’s body, trying to tear off pieces of his flesh.

“Hehe. It’s no use,” Sejun chuckled. His body was protected by >Authority: Strong Body<, so the seaweed's attempts were futile. "But how do I get rid of this?" It seemed like it would take too much effort to deal with them one by one. Sejun thought quickly. "Seaweed is a plant from the sea... so it should die on land, right?" He dragged the seaweed wrapped around his body, swam to the land, and a notification popped up. [You have eliminated the mutant carnivorous seaweed.] [You have gained 10 experience points.] The seaweed died as soon as it reached the land. "Too easy." Sejun, who had even considered burning the seaweed for fun, felt a little disappointed at how easy it was. After figuring out how to get rid of the seaweed, he called out. "Go. Inkpu Pal!" Ppoo! Ppoo! [Yes! Ink Eightfold Clone!] Sejun had Inkpu Pal lure the seaweed, and then his companions scooped up the lured seaweed with nets and eliminated it. After scooping out seaweed for about 5 hours, notifications appeared. [All mutant seaweed has been eliminated.] [The quest has been completed.] [As a reward for completing the quest, the marine ecosystem begins to recover.] [As a reward for completing the quest, you have been recognized as the rightful owner of the seaweed farm on the 77th floor of the Blue Tower.] The quest was completed. While the others worked, Sejun started preparing the seaweed. He carefully washed the dead seaweed in the clear water, then spread it out thinly on a warm, flat rock to dry in the sun. The seaweed, dark and slimy when alive, now lay spread out, a faint salty smell wafting in the air. While Sejun was engrossed in making seaweed, Theo was clinging to Sejun’s knee, purring contentedly and rubbing against his leg, spending a happy time. Kooeng barked happily. "Kooeng caught it, Daddy!" Blackie squeaked excitedly. "Brother, the Great Blackie also caught it!" Kooeng and the Blackie family played, catching clams that had been hiding in the sand after the seaweed disappeared. At that moment, a grumble came from Kooeng’s stomach. The lunchtime alarm rang from Kooeng’s stomach. "It’s already lunchtime?" Sejun, hearing Kooeng’s belly alarm, headed to the kitchen. Kooeng barked. "Daddy, Kooeng and Blackie caught this! We want to eat this too!" Kooeng brought the clams he had caught to Sejun. "Oh?! These are Manila clams?" Sejun decided on the lunch menu the moment he saw the clams: Cool clam kalguksu (noodle soup) while enjoying the atmosphere of the sea, and seafood pancake with a glass of Samyangju. "Keeuh. Perfect," he thought. Sejun hurriedly soaked the clams in saltwater to remove sand, made kalguksu noodle dough, prepared the broth, made kimchi, and grilled the seafood pancake with squid and other ingredients. Soon, the savory, rich smell of the stew and the crispy scent of the pancake filled the air. A short while later, Sejun called his companions for the meal. "Everyone, let’s eat lunch!" "Okay. Cheers!" Sejun raised his glass filled with Samyangju. "Puhuhut. Cheersnyaang!" Theo raised his glass filled with Churu. Kooeng giggled. "Hehehe. Cheers!" Kooeng raised his glass filled with honey water. Blackie squeaked. "Hehe. Cheers!" Blackie raised his glass filled with roasted sweet potato milk and clinked glasses with Sejun. And Sejun drank the Samyangju and then took a spoonful of the kalguksu broth. "Keeuh." The cool and spicy broth went down his esophagus, completely relieving his stomach. Slurp. Sejun then slurped a chopstick full of kalguksu noodles and ate a piece of seafood pancake. The scent of scallions and the chewy texture of squid filled his mouth. Glug. Another glass of Samyangju here. "Keeuh. This is it." Maybe it was the fresh sea air, but Sejun felt happy and light, not drunk at all, even after a few glasses. Glug. Sejun, caught up in the excitement, drank five glasses of strong Samyangju in quick succession. Eventually, he exceeded his limit and fell asleep. "Puhuhut." Kkuhehehe. Kkihihit. His companions also settled on Sejun’s body and took a nap. While Sejun and his companions were sleeping, the hot sunlight and sea breeze thoroughly dried the seaweed. And Battler visited Theo’s mental world, who was taking a nap, bringing Beb and Thunder. "Vice President Theo, I’ve brought the new full-time employees!"