Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 61

A nervous voice whispered, “Did you… did you actually come?”

Theo spun around, a wide grin spreading across his face, even though his heart jumped. “Theo never forgets!” he announced loudly. “Surely *you* haven’t forgotten *me*?”

Inside his head, Theo was panicking. *Oh no! I completely forgot about them!* But he hoped his smile looked convincing.

*Phew! He doesn’t even look embarrassed,* one of the hunters thought, exchanging a look with his friend.

However,

‘He had forgotten.’

‘I should have just stayed hidden out of sight.’

‘I should have kept quiet.’

The hunters, who had come seeking him out of fear of future repercussions, were regretting their decision as they watched Theo’s clumsy acting.

“So, have you earned any money? Hand it over!” Theo, feeling a bit guilty, quickly changed the subject.

“Yes. Here are 715 Top Coins.”

The hunters handed over all the money they had diligently earned to Theo, wearing proud expressions. It had been a long time since they had hunted so earnestly.

However, it was far too little to satisfy Theo, who had just made a huge sale.

“What? 715 Top Coins? Were you just playing around instead of working?!”

“What?! What are you talking about?! We hunted really hard!”

“That’s right! We really worked hard, we did!”

Grrrr.

The wolves bared their teeth and growled as the aggrieved hunters raised their voices at Theo.

“Ugh!” The hunters shut their mouths, intimidated by the wolves’ murderous aura. The air seemed to grow heavy, and the hunters felt a chill despite the warm air.

“So, you’re incompetent? You’re more useless than my pet beetle, Kkuengee!” Theo scolded the hunters.

‘Who’s Kkuengee?’

Kkuengee scored an unexpected victory against the hunters.

“If you continue like this, it won’t be fun!” Theo made a fearsome expression and gave a signal to the wolves with his front paws behind his back.

Grrrr.

The wolves once again emitted a strong murderous aura.

“Eek! We understand! We’ll earn more!”

Having browbeaten the hunters, Theo set off again towards the 99th floor of the tower.

Moo!

As the attack of the Ent scouts was almost completely dealt with, the Bull Demon King hurriedly returned to the waypoint.

About two hours after the Bull Demon King returned, the Ent scouts could be completely eliminated.

“But why did they come here?” They were puzzled by the sudden attack of the Ents, but no one knew the reason.

[The Tower Administrator says that the corrupted Ents want to corrupt any uncorrupted trees around them.] Eileen could only speculate based on her knowledge of corrupted Ents.

“Trees?”

The only trees around were the cherry tomato plants and the corn plants.

But the Ent scouts showed no interest in them at all. They were only interested in the cave.

Eileen thought for a moment. “Corrupted Ents want to corrupt living things, especially trees,” she explained. “Maybe there’s something special in that cave that they want to corrupt.”

“What is it?” While Sejun was thinking about why the corrupted Ents had attacked this place,

Grumble.

His body, having used too much energy during the early morning, requested a fuel refill.

“Hey guys, let’s eat!” Sejun treated the Mama Crimson Giant Bear and the Minotaurs who had helped him as a token of his gratitude.

First, he gave finely chopped carrots to his wife rabbit, who had suffered from giving birth, and filled a sack made of green onion leaves with sweet potatoes for the Mama Crimson Giant Bear, along with 200 glistening squids.

He allowed the Black Minotaurs to eat as many green onion leaves as they wanted. He also cut the stems of the harvested carrots and gave them together. He also sent 3 bundles of green onion leaves and a sack of cherry tomato branches to the Bull Demon King, who had returned to the waypoint earlier due to the time limit.

After preparing their meals, Sejun and the rabbits prepared what they would eat.

However,

“It’s too hard. Shall we just eat something simple?”

Pyaa!

Pyak!

The rabbits strongly agreed with Sejun’s words. They were too tired from preparing food for the others.

Crunch.

The rabbits took out carrots from the storage and ate them, holding them in their arms one by one,

Munch munch.

Sejun ate dried sweet potatoes.

While they were eating,

Crunch crunch.

200 squids in one bite, a sack of sweet potatoes in one bite. The Mama Crimson Giant Bear finished that large amount in just two bites, and, not feeling full, began to eat the bodies of the dead Ent scouts.

“Kkuengee, does Mom usually eat trees like that?” Sejun, seeing the Mama Crimson Giant Bear eating trees for the first time, stroked Kkuengee’s head as he diligently licked honey and asked.

Kkuengee! Kkuengee!

[Mom is always hungry! So she eats trees while patrolling!]

Sejun had thought that the Mama Crimson Giant Bear was eating monster meat while patrolling. He had never imagined that she was eating tree monsters.

At that moment,

“Sejun, we’re back!” Six wolves arrived, pulling three carts full of Red Locust carcasses.

“Put one cart over there, and two in front of the brick house.”

“Yes!” The wolves, following Sejun’s instructions, placed one in front of the Mama Crimson Giant Bear and the other two in front of the brick house.

“Eat this.” Sejun pointed to the Red Locusts and said to the Mama Crimson Giant Bear.

Kkuong!

The Mama Crimson Giant Bear was delighted at Sejun’s words and began to eat the Red Locusts. Red Locust meat was very popular among carnivorous monsters like wolves and Kkuengee.

Sejun and the rabbits had once tasted it out of curiosity, but it was too chewy for them. It felt like their teeth would break first.

[You have consumed Red Locust meat.]

[A trace amount of poison remains in the Red Locust meat.]

[You are poisoned with Class E neurotoxin.]

[You have been detoxified.]

There was also poison in it. If other animals had eaten it without eating the detoxifying green onion, thinking it was okay, they might have died.

So, Sejun was developing a Red Locust dish that he could also eat. He also had the desire to raise the level of his cooking skill by achieving achievements.

The dish he had made a few days ago was Red Locust Baeksuk (Korean chicken soup). A very simple dish that ends with putting water and Red Locust meat in a large pot, seasoning with salt and pepper, and covering it with a lid.

It was a very simple dish that ended with placing bricks on the lid and boiling it under high pressure for several hours, but he achieved the achievement of creating the first Red Locust Baeksuk dish in the tower, and his cooking skill rose to level 3.

And the cooking result was half successful.

Pyaak!

[The texture is soft!]

The Red Locust meat became soft, allowing the rabbits to eat it. However, the meat of the Red Locust Baeksuk was still so tough that Sejun’s teeth could not penetrate it.

“Hey guys, first, cut the Red Locust very thinly.”

When Sejun asked the wolves to thinly slice the Red Locust,

Whoosh. Whoosh.

The wolves began to create wind blades with their sharp claws and cut the Red Locust thinly at 1mm intervals. The wolves actively helped because Sejun had given them the failed dish.

Sejun looked at the sliced Red Locust meat, ready to try his new recipe. He hoped this time, it would taste like chicken, and not just to the rabbits.

The red locust meat was very tough. Sejun tried to chew a piece, but it was like rubber! So, he decided to chop it into tiny pieces to make soup instead. This time, he also chopped in green onions and potatoes.

He used three big pots and filled them with the chopped meat, green onions, and potatoes. He put lids on the pots. To make sure the lids stayed on tight while the soup boiled, he placed heavy bricks on top of each one. Then, he started a fire under the pots to cook the soup.

Sejun looked at the pots and rubbed his hands together. “Right then,” he said, to the rabbits and wolves watching him, “let’s get to work while the soup cooks!”

He knew the red locust meat needed to cook slowly for many hours to become soft. So, he led the rabbits and wolves to the farm to do their daily tasks.

Sejun told the black minotaurs to pile the wooden body of the tree branch scout to the west side of the farm. If the bad Ent tree branch scout attacked again, they could burn this wood to make a wall of fire to protect the farm.

While everyone worked on the farm, the red locust meat cooked slowly in the pots, filling the air with a rich smell.

Floor 52 of the Tower. The air was hot and smelled of burning wood.

“Ha! This time, you’re finished, pig!” Han Taejun shouted. He stood in the middle of the dusty floor, his strong muscles ready. He wore only simple pants, his chest bare and sweaty from the heat. He was facing the Burning Wild Boar again – the boss monster of this 52nd floor.

*Oink!* The Wild Boar roared, its tusks sharp and glowing red.

*Thud! Thud!* It stomped its heavy front hooves on the ground.

*Whoosh!* Suddenly, red flames burst out from the boar, spreading in a circle around it. The flames were bright and danced in the air.

Han Taejun smirked. “Not this time!” he yelled over the roar of the fire. Before, these flames would burn him badly, cursing him with fire. But now, after eating the Sun Sweet Potato, he felt much stronger against fire.

“Here I come!” Han Taejun ran straight towards the flames, not afraid. He tightened all the muscles in his body, getting ready to attack.

And then, with a powerful shout, “Magic Missile!” he unleashed his magic. One hundred bright blue magic missiles shot out from his hands and flew towards the Burning Wild Boar. Han Taejun was a mage, a magic user, even though he looked more like a fighter with his big muscles.

*Wham! Wham! Wham!* The magic missiles slammed into the boar.

*Oink oink!* The Burning Wild Boar squealed in pain as the magic hit it again and again.

“Again! Magic Missile!” Han Taejun shouted, flexing his arm muscles as he cast more magic. It was strange to see someone so muscular use magic, but that was just how Han Taejun fought.

[You have defeated the Burning Wild Boar, boss of the 52nd floor of the Tower.]

[The Burning Wild Boar’s fire curse is lifted.]

Han Taejun breathed out, feeling the fire curse lift from him. He decided to go down to the 50th floor right away. He had one Sun Sweet Potato left, and he wanted to give it to his first student, Cha Si Hyuk. Cha Si Hyuk was having a hard time fighting the fire monsters on that floor.

When Han Taejun arrived on the 50th floor, he saw a small black cat standing there.

“Meow?!” The cat, Theo, had just come up to the 50th floor using the path for merchants. Theo’s bright green eyes quickly spotted the Sun Sweet Potato in Han Taejun’s hand.

“Hey human!” Theo called out, walking towards Han Taejun. “Where did you get that Sun Sweet Potato, meow? Don’t tell me you hurt Dongsik to take it!” Theo looked ready to jump and scratch if needed, to get revenge for Kim Dongsik.

“No,” Han Taejun said calmly. “I didn’t hurt Dongsik.”

“Then where did you get it, meow?!” Theo asked again, still suspicious.

“Dongsik gave it to me,” Han Taejun explained. “Anyway, thanks to you selling the Sun Sweet Potato to me, I got rid of the fire curse. I owe you one. Thank you.”

Theo’s ears perked up. “Then pay me back, meow.”

“Okay,” Han Taejun agreed. “How do you want me to pay you back?”

“First,” Theo said, holding out a piece of paper, “sign this contract, meow.” It was a blank contract, completely empty.

Han Taejun looked at the blank paper and then back at Theo. “I don’t think so,” he said slowly.

Han Taejun knew Theo was not just any cat. He knew Theo was connected to powerful people. He knew dealing with Theo could be tricky.

As lunchtime got closer, the air around Sejun’s brick house began to fill with a wonderful smell. It was a rich, warm, and meaty aroma that made everyone’s stomachs rumble.

*Sniff sniff.* The rabbits twitched their noses, their long ears turning towards the smell. They hopped closer to Sejun’s brick house and settled down nearby, waiting patiently.

*Wag wag.* The wolves arrived next, their tails wagging happily. They sat in front of the brick house, their tongues lolling out, also waiting for the source of the amazing smell.

*Smack. Smack.* Mom Crimson Giant Bear lumbered back from her morning walk around the farm. She smacked her lips loudly, clearly enjoying the delicious smell already.

Sejun smiled, seeing all the animals gathered around. “Let’s see if the soup is ready,” he said to them. He carefully removed the heavy bricks from the pot lids, one by one. Then, he lifted the lid of the first pot.

[You have achieved a first in the Tower! – You made Combat Ration – Red Locust Soup.]

[The recipe for Combat Ration – Red Locust Soup is now saved at Cooking Level 3.]

[Your Cooking Level 3 skill has greatly improved!]

Sejun was surprised by the messages that appeared in front of his eyes. “Combat Ration?” he wondered. “Special food for fighting?” He realized that no one had ever cooked red locusts before, making this another first for him in the Tower.

Before Sejun could look at the soup properly, *Boom! Grrrr! Squeak! Screech!* The animals suddenly became very noisy. They were even more excited by the smell now that the pot was open. Their eyes were wide and eager, and drool dripped from their mouths. Sejun knew he had to give them food quickly or they might get too wild.

“Okay, okay, calm down!” Sejun chuckled. “I’ll give you some soup, just be patient.” He decided to check the soup later. First, he needed to feed the hungry animals. He picked up one of the large pots and gave it to Mom Crimson Giant Bear completely. She was the biggest and needed the most food.

While the animals happily ate their soup, making slurping and happy noises, Sejun finally looked at the soup in the pot he had kept for himself. Words appeared in front of his eyes, describing the dish.

[Combat Ration – Red Locust Soup]

*This soup is made with thinly sliced red locust meat, green onions that remove poison, and power potatoes. These ingredients are cooked slowly together for a long time, mixing all the flavors perfectly and making all the good effects stronger.*

*The green onions remove any poison from the red locust meat and make the meat softer.*

*The green onions also help the soup stay fresh for longer, so it won’t spoil easily.*

*The taste is even better than before.*

*Eating this soup will increase your Strength by 5.1 for 30 minutes. (Your Cooking Level 2 skill also adds a little extra Strength, increasing it by 0.1)*

*Because it’s a Combat Ration, this soup will keep you feeling full for 3 hours.*

*Cooked by: Tower Farmer Park Sejun*

*Good until: 30 days*

*Grade: C+*

“Softer meat?” Sejun wondered, reading the description. He took a spoonful of the Red Locust Soup and carefully put it in his mouth.

He chewed slowly. The finely chopped meat was indeed very soft, melting in his mouth.

And then…

*Wait… what is this?!* Sejun’s eyes widened in surprise. The taste and the way the meat felt in his mouth were so familiar. It reminded him of something he had missed so much.

*It tastes like chicken!*

Sejun quickly slurped down the whole bowl of Red Locust Soup without even realizing it. It was so delicious and comforting.

[You have eaten one serving of Combat Ration – Red Locust Soup.]

[Strength increased by 5.1 for 30 minutes.]

[You will feel full for 3 hours.]

The messages told him about the standard serving size and its effects.

But Sejun didn’t care about serving sizes right now.

*Slurp.* He filled his bowl again, his hands moving quickly. He started eating again, lost in the taste. It was the taste of chicken, the taste he had longed for every day for almost eight months since he had been trapped in the Tower.

Day 235 in the Tower. Sejun had finally found meat that tasted like chicken. A wave of warmth and happiness washed over him with each spoonful.