Thanks to a 'Korean patch' of sorts, this game featured modern bathrooms. My cabin included one as well.
However, it didn't have a bathtub yet. I pointed at the well.
"Wash up over there at the well."
I had been waiting for this moment. I handed him a large towel and soap I had prepared, along with a decent set of clothes to change into. They were the basic lightweight shirt and pants provided in the starter pack. It was a good thing I claimed them in Belsus's size instead of mine.
Belsus didn't take them immediately. He stood frozen. When I looked up, his eyes were shaking violently.
Now what?
"With what money did you buy all this?"
Ah, so that's what this is about? I immediately frowned. Belsus's eyelashes trembled, his eyes seemingly asking how I could afford all this when I clearly had nothing.
Over just a towel, soap, and some clothes!
I seriously needed to upgrade this farm fast, if only to clear my name. I'll turn it into a damn palace, just you wait.
"What about yours?"
"I can take care of myself. Don't worry, I always live more luxuriously than whatever I give you. A landlord can't exactly live worse off than his boarder, right?"
Belsus turned his head and glanced at the wooden house I lived in. It looked like the wind would easily blow right through the loosely woven wooden planks, and the wood grain was dead and blackened with mold.
"Understood."
Did this guy really understand?
Just then, that same hair-raising sensation from earlier tingled at the tips of my fingers and toes, and a chill ran down my spine. My body even gave an involuntary shudder.
Again...
Belsus had read my mind.
When Belsus used his Reading ability, he became like a completely different person for a fleeting moment. It was as if his pale, wild-beast-like appearance suddenly radiated a fierce and intimidating aura.
He might be a pushover, but his outward appearance was damn impressive.
In the game, when did Belsus usually let his eyes burn with the desire to read someone's inner thoughts?
First, to figure out if his opponent was a bounty hunter after his head.
And second, to check if the other person hated him.
It was the latter.
"......"
Even I didn't know which of my thoughts had been stolen and slipped into his mind.
Belsus wore a silent expression. When our eyes met, he simply gave a slight bow of his head and moved toward the well.
Only then did I let out the breath I had been holding. That strangely tingling sensation down my spine and back finally faded away.
This feels weird...
Not just the physical sensation, but psychologically, it felt strange too. The feeling of having my inner self read. It brought a subtle sense of shame.
Then, conversely, Belsus must feel this too when I read him.
I quickly shook my head, brushing off the lingering sensation.
"By the way..."
Belsus, who had reached the well, spoke up. I turned to look at him.
"How much water am I allowed to use?"
"...It's infinite, so use as much as you want."
"But if it causes you any damage..."
Feeling my patience being slightly tested, I crossed my arms and let out a crooked scoff.
"If you don't wash up thoroughly, I'll come over and wash you myself."
At that, Belsus immediately stripped off his clothes and began pulling the rope to haul up buckets full of water.
Oh, right. I finally snapped back to reality and looked at the chat window again. I hurriedly scrolled up and read all the conversations that had taken place while I was away.
Phew.
There wasn't anything particularly important.
As expected from the crazy veterans of Tower of Collapse, they were thoroughly familiar with the previous version's lore and story. Since they all knew the scenarios of the characters they had picked, there wasn't much to ask.
It was still far too early in the game to glare at each other like fierce competitors; only a single day out of the entire year had passed.
However, they didn't lay all their cards on the table either. They didn't share exactly how they were currently following their game routes. They just exchanged idle chatter, talking about their shock over transmigrating, or reminiscing about their old gaming days.
As a result, the one-hour time limit passed.
[Thief]: Let's all prep for the dungeon from wherever we are~
Roughly once a month, we faced a major dungeon.
To the people of this world, it might seem like a sudden, unannounced natural disaster, but from the perspective of us players, it was clearly a recurring monthly dungeon.
'Since it's a dungeon manipulated by the game system, only the Origin Characters and transmigrators will be able to enter.'
Even transmigrators who were far away and hard to meet would have to come to that dungeon. It was basically a 'regular meetup'.
How much and in what way they built their strength by then was entirely up to them.
[Bard]: Still, we can't just let fellow Koreans die in a strange foreign land...
[Bard]: If your life is in danger, let us know in the chat. Whoever can help, will help.
The only slight disappointment was that I couldn't get the Archer to spill what Calain was doing now that he'd lost Belsus.
The chat closed, and for a moment, I was alone beneath the night sky.
Soon, the sound of water splashing against a body completely stopped.
I turned around and strode over to the well. Belsus, who was standing there stark naked, flinched in surprise.
My customized character also had a somewhat muscular build. After all, I had to do farm work.
But Belsus was on an entirely different level. If my build was about 1.5 times that of an average adult woman, Belsus was three times. Did this even make sense?
Even though he was practically skin and bones right now... his skeletal frame alone looked about three times larger.
But when there's only skin stretched over those bones, it changes the story a bit.
Thump. I placed both my palms right below Belsus's chest.
I then swept them down, assessing his serratus anterior down to his sides. Belsus panicked. However, he just stood there with his arms awkwardly raised, not dodging my touch.
'His ribs are showing. Phew.'
What am I going to do about this massive muscle loss?
Well, it wasn't my job to put him through muscle training. Belsus was a survivor who had lived on the streets for a long time; he had built his own strength to avoid dying.
As long as he could eat proper meals, and as long as I provided him a safe space like this, Belsus would train on his own and return his body to its original state. Just like he did in the game.
As long as he ate properly, very properly...
"Hey."
"...Yes?"
"Don't do anything for a while. Landlord's orders. Eat four meals a day and put on some weight. You can do that, right?"
Belsus looked confused, but when I glared at him and urged him for an answer, he slowly nodded. When I shooed him away, he hurriedly threw on his clothes and headed into the shed, carrying the scent of soap with him.
'By the way... I think I saw something strange earlier.'
I tilted my head, desperately trying to deny the reality of what I had just witnessed. Because between Belsus's legs was a weapon the likes of which even I, as a fellow man, had never seen in my life.
So even if a person loses a ton of weight, that doesn't shrink, huh. Wait, no. What if that was the shrunken size?
And what about my mental health after seeing it?
I shook my head vigorously to clear my mind. If I get shocked by every little thing like this, I'll never achieve my grand plan. I had a mission.
Alright. Then.
'Let's start by making dinner...'
What the hell am I doing? I thought to myself, yet I still started this uncharacteristic chore for the second time today.
I opened the underground storage chest and took out some of the still-abundant potatoes, along with a few eggs that had a rough texture to their shells. I also grabbed some fresh spinach for dietary fiber.
I went into the cabin and lit the fireplace. Just as I had tested earlier, the smoke rose nicely up the chimney.
Working my butt off to unclog the chimney while Belsus was sleeping, getting myself completely covered in soot in the process, had totally paid off.
More importantly, I was just glad Belsus hadn't seen me in such a disgraceful state. A landlord must maintain his dignity, after all.
'I should go gather some firewood soon, too.'
I cracked all the eggs into a pot and chopped up the spinach to add in. After stirring and beating the mixture with a ladle, I placed a large iron pot over the fire. I poured a little water into the iron pot and placed the smaller pot with the egg mixture inside it.
While the steamed egg was cooking, I set a pan next to the fire and sautéed thinly sliced potatoes with salt, pepper, and oil. Carefully tearing off a chunk of the leftover pork from lunch, I rolled it around next to the potatoes until it was cooked through.
Once the pork was somewhat cooked, I chopped it up finely. It was then placed in front of Belsus, who looked slightly more human than when I fed him potato soup for lunch, though his eyelids were still twitching uncontrollably.
"Are you not eating?"
"I already ate inside."
He eats well.
Cooking had been quite a hassle, but watching Belsus diligently and systematically shovel food into his stomach brought an involuntary, satisfied smile to my face.
It was strange to feel this kind of sentiment while watching a man who, despite being emaciated, was twice my size and had the flawless, striking appearance of a bird of prey.
Then, my eyes locked with his as he stared blankly at me.
I quickly composed my expression.
"What are you looking at? Hurry up and eat."
Despite my sharp retort, Belsus's gaze didn't leave me. Had I stared too much? Left with no other choice, I simply lowered my head a bit.
Comments Box