Chapter 15

Mandrake (2)

└ An adult?
└ You mean a fully grown mandrake?
_ Allfather: Yes. Once a mandrake finishes growing, its body turns red. I even wrote a paper on the subject.
_ Then what are the mandrakes we’ve known until now? Are you saying they were immature?

_ Allfather: According to my past research, yes. Did it pause before roaring?
└ Wild Grylls: Yes. When I pulled it out, it was standing there with its arms crossed. Then it roared afterward.
└ Allfather: That makes it even more certain. Just as human infants do little more than cry, mandrakes are the same. Their grotesque appearance is likely because they have not finished growing.

Allfather’s explanation was roughly as follows.

For a mandrake to mature, it needed soil so rich in mana that it practically overflowed, as well as an environment free from outside threats.

However, lands rich in mana were extremely rare, and the mandrake was highly likely to lose out to other competing organisms.

If the conditions were any less ideal, humans, monsters, or wild beasts would inevitably chew, eat, or tear it apart before it could grow.

In other words, a mandrake could only reach adulthood if every condition was perfectly met.

Artificially raising one was practically impossible as well, because it had to be continuously supplied with an enormous amount of mana.

└ I get that it’s a fully grown mandrake, but is it more effective than an ordinary one?
└ Allfather: Yes. A single adult specimen can be used to create a highest-grade elixir. Considering that a normal highest-grade elixir requires ten mandrakes, that is remarkable.
└ He struck medicinal gold.
└ Grylls is about to make a fortune again.
└ Are you planning to sell it?

I wasn’t sure.

At the question of whether I intended to sell it, I looked at the mandrake.

It had made such a racket that I had slammed it against the wall several times, after which it became quiet.

Though “quiet” was probably less accurate than “unconscious.”

I wasn’t sure whether it was even appropriate to sell something like this.

‘Maybe it would be easier to think of it as hundred-year-old wild ginseng.’

I researched mandrakes a little more to find out exactly what they were.

From what I learned, they were one of the main ingredients used in elixirs and countless types of potions.

Their roots, leaves, and stems could all be used as medicinal herbs, so practically no part went to waste.

They were plants seemingly born for the sole purpose of becoming potion ingredients.

Alchemy was essential, however, if one wanted to draw out their full effectiveness.

‘Should I give it to SwordMaster?’

He had given me an elixir before, so this seemed like an appropriate way to repay him.

If I harvested more later, I could give some to the Heavenly Demon and the other regular users.

It would be especially good for the Heavenly Demon, since she was an elderly woman.

Hadn’t she even given me a valuable medicinal herb when my body was in terrible condition?

PraiseTheSun had also given me a shield for free, so I intended to return the favor without asking for payment.

First, though, I would repay SwordMaster.

I could always harvest another mandrake later.

└ Wild Grylls: I’m not selling it. I’m going to give it to SwordMaster. He gave me an elixir before, so I want to repay him.
└ SwordMaster: I don’t need it.
└ Wild Grylls: Think of it as a health supplement.
└ SwordMaster: I’m already healthy.
└ Wild Grylls: There’s nothing wrong with becoming even healthier, is there?

└ SwordMaster: I don’t want to become any healthier than I already am. ;;
_ Wild Grylls: Why not? Why wouldn’t you want to become healthier...?

└ Someone who doesn’t want to be healthy, LOL.
└ Why doesn’t he want it? LMAO.
└ Ah, whatever. He just doesn’t want to be healthier, LOL.
└ I really don’t understand, LMAO.
└ Allfather: Even if an adult mandrake were simply decocted and consumed, it would greatly increase one’s mana.
└ SwordMaster: Hearing that makes me want it even less.
└ Wild Grylls: Why in the world...?

_ Starlight Princess: Excuse me, but could you give that mandrake to me? I will compensate you generously.

It was Starlight Princess.

She was the person who posted every day praying for a complete recovery.

Come to think of it, there was someone who needed it far more than SwordMaster did.

I replied to her comment.

I still couldn’t understand it.

Were there really people in this world who didn’t want to become healthier?

SwordMaster might not have been as old as the Heavenly Demon, but he still seemed close to adulthood.

Despite having the occasional eccentricity typical of a Gallery user, he was generally quite composed.

‘If he refuses that firmly, I can’t force it on him.’

That left the Heavenly Demon.

She had promised to give me both an antidote and medicine effective against tinnitus, so I could trade it to her in exchange.

Just as I was about to send her a trade request, another comment caught my eye.

└ Wild Grylls: You gave me a compass before, so you don’t need to compensate me. But can a mandrake actually treat your illness?
└ Starlight Princess: It should improve my condition to some extent. Mandrakes contain yang energy.

I remembered.

When I had found the New Moon Spirit Herb, Starlight Princess had said that she needed yang energy.

Considering that her posts praying for a full recovery had continued for so long, there was a high chance that her illness was quite severe.

The Heavenly Demon seemed to have reached the same conclusion.

└ Heavenly Demon: If your illness requires yang energy, do you suffer from the Nine Yin Severed Meridians?
└ Starlight Princess: According to the physician, yes. Are you familiar with it as well, Heavenly Demon?
_ Heavenly Demon: Of course I am. It is the most famous of all severed-meridian conditions. How could I not know of it?

└ Starlight Princess: Then you must know its symptoms as well.
└ Heavenly Demon: How unfortunate. Stay strong.

└ Wild Grylls: Is it a serious disease?
└ Heavenly Demon: It is an illness that exchanges a heaven-reaching talent for one’s lifespan. Even those who survive for a long time rarely live past twenty.
└ Starlight Princess: You know it well. Recently, my body has grown so weak that I can no longer leave my bed. I suppose I am beginning to enter the dangerous stage.
└ Wild Grylls: ;;;

└ Is she suggesting they die together? LOL.
└ Talk about dragging someone down with you, LMAO.
└ I’m actually curious which of them will die first.
└ You really are an awful person. ;;

I felt like I needed to give it to her immediately.

Her illness was far more serious than I had expected.

Perhaps because a cure was difficult to find, her posts praying for complete recovery had continued without end.

She had said she needed a medicinal herb on the level of the New Moon Spirit Herb to be fully cured, so finding one must have been like plucking a star from the sky.

I was a little taken aback, but then realized that she was joking and gave a bitter smile.

She had probably made the remark to break the uncomfortable atmosphere.

It was a kind of self-deprecating joke.

Whenever I saw situations like this, I was reminded that good health truly was the most important thing.

Health was an asset that could not be exchanged for anything else.

└ Wild Grylls: I didn’t realize it was that serious. I’m sorry.
_ Starlight Princess: It’s all right. You’re also someone who could die at any moment, Mr. Grylls.
└ Wild Grylls: Ma’am?
└ Starlight Princess: I’m joking.

└ That didn’t sound like a joke, LOL.

└ Wild Grylls: In any case, would an adult mandrake be effective against the Nine Yin Severed Meridians?
_ Allfather: I cannot say for an ordinary mandrake, but an adult specimen should have some effect.
└ Starlight Princess: Even some effect would be valuable. Mandrakes are already rare plants to begin with.
└ Heavenly Demon: It seems it is not potent enough to cure the Nine Yin Severed Meridians completely.

└ Is there no cure for it?
└ There is. Usually, there are three methods. One is to take medicine, another is for a physician to open each meridian individually, and the last is for a man to directly transfer his energy into her.
└ The first two sound fine, but what’s with the last one? Is it what I think it is?
└ Yeah. But the man also has to be sufficiently powerful.

└ Oh. I’m strong. Could I do it?
└ How strong are you?
_ I beat everyone in my village at arm wrestling. LOL.

└ LMAOOOOO.

This lunatic had just sexually harassed a patient.

I stared at the comments with a thoroughly unimpressed expression.

Because the Gallery guaranteed anonymity, people often threw around obscene remarks like that.

It might have been tolerable in a lighter atmosphere, but doing it at a moment like this made me feel genuinely uncomfortable.

└ Starlight Princess: Come if you are confident. However, if you fail to meet the requirements, I will cut it off. Keep that in mind.
└ Cut it off? You mean his johnson?
└ Starlight Princess: What else did you think I meant? If you dislike that option, shall I cut off your head instead?

_ I’m sorry. I will never act cocky again.

Apparently, she was used to dealing with this sort of thing, because Starlight Princess struck back even harder.

The third method could be discarded for obvious reasons, while the second was closer to surgery.

And an exceptionally difficult surgery at that.

Even Earth’s medicine, with all its advanced science, would struggle with such a procedure. How much harder would it be here?

In practice, the first method was the only realistic answer.

But that method was also incredibly difficult.

_ Heavenly Demon: The Nine Yin Severed Meridians can only be cured by consuming spiritual treasures such as a Solar Fire Carp, a Ten-Thousand-Year Fire Carp, or a Solar Flame Herb.
└ Wild Grylls: I’ve never heard of any of those. Are they rare?
└ Heavenly Demon: They are comparable to the New Moon Spirit Herb you gave me.
└ Wild Grylls: So they’re incredibly rare.
_ Heavenly Demon: This lady was exceedingly fortunate. That is why you are both my fateful opportunity and my benefactor.

└ Wild Grylls: I was lucky too, though. Anyway, would even an adult mandrake be unable to cure her completely?
_ Allfather: It may not be entirely impossible. The problem is the quantity.
└ Wild Grylls: The quantity?
└ Allfather: Yes. An adult mandrake may not quite qualify as a true spiritual treasure, but it belongs to the tier immediately below one. Therefore, if six or seven adult mandrakes were refined into a single elixir, she should recover.

Six or seven?

That sounded manageable.

I thought back to the place where the adult mandrakes lived.

I had been fleeing in such a panic that I hadn’t counted them carefully, but there had been far more than ten.

No.

Forget ten.

There had been at least several dozen of them.

In any case, there were a lot.

‘And once I pull them out, I can just beat them until they quiet down.’

I turned my head and looked at the adult mandrake.

It was still hanging limply, unconscious.

I had heard that even if it looked dead, it would become fresh and lively again once planted in soil.

Of course, I had no intention of planting it. I was going to give it to someone else.

Pulling it out again would only cause more trouble.

For now, I should tell them.

While I was at it, I might also be able to get something I wanted from Starlight Princess.

└ Starlight Princess: Huh?

Apparently not.

It seemed she had been too stunned to leave a proper comment.

_ Starlight Princess: To think I would need that many... It would be difficult to obtain all of them, wouldn’t it?
_ Allfather: I have only seen three in my entire life. Even if one were found, someone would probably have consumed it already.
_ Starlight Princess: That’s unfortunate. Ah, you never even said you would give one to me, Mr. Grylls. I suppose I became too greedy.
└ Wild Grylls: There are tons of them here, though.

└ Starlight Princess: You’re lying, aren’t you? If you’re trying to tease me, it won’t work.
└ Wild Grylls: I’m serious. I told you earlier that a whole group of mandrakes screamed at once.
└ Starlight Princess: You mean all of them were adults?
└ Wild Grylls: Every single one was red.
└ Starlight Princess: I won’t believe you until you show me a picture.
└ Wild Grylls: Give me a moment.

Adult mandrakes were practically scattered everywhere around here.

That was what I meant by my comment.

After that, she didn’t respond for quite some time.

I wondered whether she had temporarily closed the Gallery to do something else.

Taking a picture was easy enough.

I roughly packed my equipment and headed toward the mandrake colony.

It wasn’t far away, but I remained cautious in case a wild beast suddenly appeared.

“Huh?”

When I arrived at the colony, I stared at the changed landscape in confusion.

Its location hadn’t shifted.

However, several adult mandrakes had climbed out of the ground even though no one had pulled them up.

They were looking around as though standing guard.

Apparently, reaching adulthood had also granted them intelligence.

‘This makes things a little difficult.’

The moment they noticed me, the sentries would roar.

Then I would be struck by the same Lion’s Roar as before.

I had no choice but to wait until they returned underground.

Still, this was enough proof.

Title: Adult Mandrakes Standing Guard

(Video of adult mandrakes standing guard)

I wasn’t lying. Starlight Princess, please watch the video and respond.

└ Why is this actually real? LMAO.
└ Why the hell is it real? LOL.
└ Do mandrakes normally act like that?
_ Of course they don’t, LMAO.

└ Allfather: Oh! Adult mandrakes standing guard...! This is worthy of an academic paper! Are all those plants mandrakes?
└ Wild Grylls: Yes. I took one of their friends earlier, so it looks like they’re standing guard now.

└ Allfather: Would you be willing to observe them continuously?
└ Wild Grylls: I’m sorry, but I don’t have that kind of free time.
└ Allfather: What a shame.

While I was speaking with the academically passionate Allfather, Starlight Princess finally left a comment.

└ Starlight Princess: Those are all adult mandrakes... correct?
└ Wild Grylls: Yes.
└ Starlight Princess: It looks as though there are dozens of them buried in the ground.
└ Wild Grylls: Yes.
└ Starlight Princess: What exactly are you?

I pondered her question.

Would she tell me to stop joking if I said I was from the Miryang Park clan?

But I didn’t have any proper answer to give her.

I had no idea why I had ended up here either.

While I hesitated, comments began pouring in.

└ Correct answer! A man with the lifespan of a fly!
_ Correct answer! A castaway in the Forest of Four Seasons!

└ Correct answer! A beggar!
└ Correct answer! A motherless bastard!
└ DontAbandontheHero: Correct answer! A strange person!
└ Wild Grylls: F—, forget the others. What’s with the head mod?
└ DontAbandontheHero: I was bored! By the way, the person who insulted your parents has been banned for one hour!

└ But Grylls really doesn’t have a mother. Why ban him?
_ DontAbandontheHero: It sounds wrong! And even if someone has no parents, telling them that can still hurt deeply!
└ Wild Grylls: You’re even worse.
└ DontAbandontheHero: Ah! I’m sorry!
└ LMAOOOOOOOO.

The money Allfather had given me was enough.

I would only ask for food in an emergency.

There was only one thing I currently needed.

Perhaps it was second only to food in importance.

└ Wild Grylls: Starlight Princess, your family is wealthy, right?
└ Starlight Princess: You could say that.
└ Wild Grylls: Then if I send you mandrakes, can you immediately turn them into an elixir?
└ Starlight Princess: It would take some time, but yes. I am highly knowledgeable in alchemy.
└ Wild Grylls: Then I have one request.

This worked out perfectly.

Starlight Princess could provide exactly what I needed most.

The fact that she was also skilled in alchemy was the icing on the cake.

As expected, these people were ruthless.

I chuckled, then asked Starlight Princess again.

└ Wild Grylls: So, do you want them? I can give you the first one for free, but the next ones won’t be free.
└ Starlight Princess: What do you want? I’ll give you anything I can obtain. Do you need money?
└ Wild Grylls: No. I don’t urgently need money right now.

└ Wild Grylls: Once you recover completely, could you supply me with elixirs? I never know when I might get injured. It would feel wrong to only receive things, so I’ll give you mandrakes from time to time.
└ Starlight Princess: I will give you an elixir every time we trade mandrakes. If I can recover completely, I would give you my position, my wealth, or even my body.
_ Wild Grylls: Would you like to come to where I am? LOL.
└ Starlight Princess: Ah. That would be a little...

└ Wild Grylls: You’re a bad person.

└ Even she’d rather die than enter the Forest of Four Seasons, LOL.
└ Imagine finally curing yourself only to commit suicide by going there, LMAO.
_ Judging by the fact that she can offer elixirs, she must genuinely be rich.
└ Not potions but elixirs? She’s definitely a noble.

This was enough.

All that remained was to give her the mandrakes.

To do that, I first had to capture them.

I stared at the mandrakes standing guard.

‘They call it guarding, but the security isn’t that strict.’

Even if they were monsters, they were still plants.

Moreover, their vigilance had already decreased compared to earlier.

As plants, they had no choice but to return underground eventually.

I waited until only one remained.

Pop! Pop!

Several mandrakes burrowed back into the ground.

When the last one began preparing to descend as well, I saw my chance and sprinted forward.

The mandrake noticed me, flinched in surprise, and opened its mouth wide.

I had to catch it before it roared.

But the distance between us was too great.

Fortunately, I had prepared for this.

I picked up the fist-sized rock I had found earlier.

“Uwo...!”

Whoosh!

Just before it could scream, I threw the rock.

I had played baseball in the past, so my aim was accurate.

Thud!

“Guehk!”

The rock struck the mandrake directly in the head, forcing a strange cry from its mouth.

Now all I had to do was grab it.

Before long, I caught the mandrake with both hands.

And then—

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Holding the stem attached to its root, I punched it repeatedly.

I couldn’t allow it to make another sound.

I also forcibly stuffed dirt into its mouth.

If its mouth was packed full, it wouldn’t be able to scream.

Thanks to my efforts, the mandrake soon went limp.

It had lost consciousness.

‘Is this really the proper way to catch one?’

Well, all’s well that ends well.

A perfectly executed improvised method wasn’t much different from the orthodox approach.

‘I should give some to Starlight Princess and one each to the others.’

With this, I should be able to repay at least some of the favors I owed.