Chapter 49

Shoes (1)

The leech incident caused quite a commotion, so I hurriedly made a post on the Gallery.

I asked what I was supposed to do after getting bitten by a leech. I explained that I'd accidentally grabbed the one on the back of my neck and ripped it off.

The ever-so-kind veteran adventurers promptly told me what to do.

_What the fuck? Why would you remove a leech like that? Are you fucking desperate to get an infection?
└ Wild Grylls) I didn't know anything about leeches...
_Whatever. If you have a potion, apply it to the bite. You might've gotten infected with a parasite, so take a deworming medicine too.
└ Wild Grylls) It's not a potion, it's an elixir. Is that okay? Does an elixir disinfect wounds too? I know it regenerates them.
_Just fucking put it on ;; Why are you asking such a weird question ;;
└ An elixir is literally a higher-tier item than a potion kekeke
└ Feels like watching a rich newbie kekeke
└ The fact that he ripped a leech off with his bare hand proves he's got guts, at least.
_The teeth might still be stuck in there, so remove those before applying it.

Only after receiving their affectionate(?) advice was I able to treat the wound properly.

Normally, I would've needed to take deworming medicine too, but apparently the elixir alone was enough.

Next time I came here, I'd probably have to wrap something around my neck.

'Why the hell am I going through all this?'

I sighed. Still, it was some consolation that the trip hadn't been completely fruitless.

Once I got back to the cave, I'd have to dry my damp clothes and shoes, make something to eat, and take care of a bunch of other things.

I'd wanted to install the fish trap too if possible, but with my shoes soaked through, that seemed unlikely.

'I absolutely need to get some shoes.'

The shoes I was currently wearing were sneakers. The same sneakers I'd been wearing before I fell into this place.

You might wonder why I'd been wearing shoes when I'd been at home before ending up here.

I didn't really know either. The last thing I remembered was drinking.

'I don't know if I should call that lucky or not.'

Still, at least I had sneakers.

I trudged along with the unpleasant dampness clinging to my feet.

The farther back I went, the narrower the river became and the stronger the current grew.

It wasn't until I reached the section of the river where I'd installed the hose that it finally sank in that I was almost back.

'I really did go pretty far this time.'

I accessed the Gallery to check the time.

It was currently 12:20 p.m. It hadn't taken as long as I'd expected.

I'd spent more time walking along the river than actually exploring the lakeshore.

'Wonmo's probably going to be demanding food.'

Or maybe he'd gotten anxious because I'd disappeared.

The thought made me quicken my pace slightly.

Eventually, I arrived at the cave that had now begun to feel strangely familiar, and there I saw it with my own two eyes.

"Kuu..."

"..."

Wonmo was sprawled out asleep with his belly completely exposed.

He was even scratching his own stomach with his claws.

Apparently, he couldn't care less whether I disappeared or not. He was perfectly content taking a nap.

"...What, punk? What are you looking at?"

The tree sloth was just sitting there stupidly too.

A sigh escaped me as I realized I'd worried for nothing.

Anyway, I still had to clean everything up.

I took off the backpack containing the crabs.

When I looked inside, the crabs were barely moving, just twitching their legs every now and then.

'First, let's get a fire going.'

I had a mountain of things to do.

I stripped off the clothes that had partially dried.

Laundry could wait. Washing the grime off my body came first.

I also made sure to inspect myself thoroughly in case there were any other leeches hiding somewhere I couldn't see.

'So there really was only one on my neck.'

It was honestly impressive that the thing had managed to latch onto me during the brief instant when I'd fallen.

I turned on the water from the hose and thoroughly washed every part of my body.

Soap was a must.

Following the advice of Gallery users—or, more specifically, the adventurers—I used unscented soap.

"Phew."

After giving myself a quick wash, I used a towel to remove as much moisture as possible.

Then I approached the campfire I'd prepared beforehand and thoroughly dried myself by the heat.

'First, I should buy some shoes I can use temporarily.'

My sneakers were completely soaked, so I needed something to wear until they dried.

I entered the Auction House and bought a decent pair of leather shoes.

I didn't bother worrying about the size. I was basically going to use them as slippers, so as long as they roughly fit, they'd be fine.

"I'll leave the laundry here, and now that I'm dry, I should change into something else."

I still had plenty of the uniforms Princess Cheonggu had given me.

The problem was that the pants were shorts.

Long pants were essential for exploring, so I planned to wash and dry mine today.

I also had plenty of charcoal for doing laundry. The veteran adventurers had told me I absolutely had to collect it.

'Now, all that's left is...'

Grilling the crabs.

I took the crabs out of the backpack and put them into the metal container.

Then I filled it with water to keep them as fresh as possible.

Between the fish and now the crabs, that metal container was proving incredibly useful.

All that remained was asking the Gallery how to prepare them.

Apparently, I just had to pry open the mouth(?) or something, but I wasn't exactly sure what that meant.

Title) Anyone know how to prepare crabs?

(Photo of crabs inside a metal container)

I'm planning to grill them instead of steaming them. Anyone know how I should prepare them?

└ Passing Dwarf) Wow. Those look fucking delicious. Can't you give me just one?
└ Wild Grylls) I told you I'll give you one tomorrow. We can't even trade today anyway.
_ Passing Dwarf) Ha, seriously ;; If I'd known this would happen, I wouldn't have used up my trade.
└ Wild Grylls) Just wait one day. You seriously can't even manage that?
└ Passing Dwarf) Yeah yeah. The hand holding my beer is literally trembling right now.
└ Wild Grylls) Dude, those are symptoms of alcoholism. Lay off the booze.
└ Telling a dwarf to stop drinking kekeke
_ Might as well tell him to quit drugs lol
└ Wait, don't tell me you actually do drugs?
└└└ It was just an example kekeke
└ This bastard's suspicious, isn't he?
└ Preparing crabs is actually pretty easy. There's a part around the mouth that's slightly open, right? Stick a knife in there and twist it to drain the blood and water.
_ If you're grilling it instead of steaming it, don't put it back in the water afterward. Just grill it as is.
└ Don't worry about the body burning all the way through.
└ It's best to drain as much moisture as possible. Otherwise, you might end up boiling it instead of grilling it.

So I had to twist open the mouth first.

I nodded and pulled out my dagger.

Then I took one of the crabs from the metal container and turned it around, examining it from different angles.

Just as the Gallery had explained, its mouth had a structure that opened toward both sides.

'If I stick the dagger in here and twist it sideways...'

Riiip!

With a satisfyingly sharp sound, the crab's mouth was forcibly pried open.

The moment its mouth opened, I flipped it upside down.

Clear blood mixed with water dripped steadily from its mouth.

"Kkyuu."

"Ah. You're awake?"

While I was preparing the crab, Wonmo woke up from his nap.

The tree sloth also began inching closer, apparently asking for food.

"Just wait a little. I'll give you something really delicious."
"Kkyuu!"
"..."

Wonmo's eyes sparkled at the mention of something delicious.

The tree sloth didn't show much of a reaction, but it was probably looking forward to it too.

'Now that all the blood's drained...'

Straight onto the campfire!

The crab was so large that it more than covered the entire campfire.

I added more firewood so that not only the body but the legs would cook evenly.

At the same time, I didn't want it completely charred, so I positioned it slightly away from the flames.

'They said to wait twenty to thirty minutes, right?'

In the meantime, I entered the Auction House and searched for shoes.

The shoes I wanted had to meet some fairly demanding requirements.

Since I'd be walking for long periods, they needed ventilation and comfort, as well as waterproofing.

Most importantly, they had to be durable. The moment I injured my feet, my chances of survival would plummet.

Like I'd told the dwarf, what I basically wanted was something close to combat boots, with "durability" as the foundation.

'Thinking about combat boots reminds me of the military.'

Back when I'd just become a recruit, I thought I was going to die during my first march.

Actually, the march itself wasn't the worst part. The real mess came afterward.

Everyone else had blisters or patches of skin rubbed raw, but I was perfectly fine.

To me, combat boots were just slightly heavy shoes. I'd never found them particularly uncomfortable.

'No matter how much I search, there's nothing.'

Even the expensive shoes didn't meet the conditions I wanted.

Besides, most of those expensive ones were related to sports. Soccer cleats, basketball shoes, things like that.

In the end, it seemed I'd have no choice but to make a post.

Before doing that, I bought a measuring tape from the Auction House.

Since I wasn't familiar with the units of measurement here, I planned to put the tape next to my foot for reference.

Title) Commissioning a Pair of Shoes

Wild Grylls

(Photo of a measuring tape placed beside my foot)
(Photo of a measuring tape placed over my foot)

Just like the title says, I'm looking for shoes suitable for exploration. However, the requirements are pretty demanding.

(Most important) They must be durable. An injury to my feet would be disastrous, so this is the highest priority.Waterproofing. I'll often be in situations where my shoes could get wet.Ventilation and comfort. Honestly, comfort matters more than ventilation. I may have to travel through high-altitude areas.Slip resistance. I nearly died after slipping while trying to stand up.Preferably made of leather. Same reason as number three.

If someone can make shoes that roughly meet the conditions above, I'll give them a mature Mandrake as payment.

I'd also appreciate it if you could upload videos and photos demonstrating their performance. I hope plenty of people see this.

_ Heavenly Demon) May this lady participate as well?
└ Wild Grylls) Huh? Why would you, Heavenly Demon?
└ Heavenly Demon) This lady is bored.
└ Wild Grylls) Teacher;;;
└ SwordMaster) If you're bored, want to have a debate on swordsmanship with me? I'll wipe the floor with you.
_ Heavenly Demon) Foolish one. Very well. This lady shall message you.

└ Passing Dwarf) Can I have someone else make these for me? I know a guy who's damn good at making armor.
└ Wild Grylls) Yeah, do whatever you want. But do you even need a mature Mandrake? Planning to make more booze with it?
└ Passing Dwarf) That's part of it, but my friend keeps pestering me for a drink. Wouldn't it be easier to just give him one?
└ Wild Grylls) Do whatever you want. I'm fine as long as I get the shoes.
└ Passing Dwarf) Okay. By when do you need them?
└ Wild Grylls) The sooner, the better. I think I'll need at least two pairs for now?
└ Passing Dwarf) Okay, got it.

└ I'llBeADuke) Are you truly offering a mature Mandrake as the prize?
└ Wild Grylls) I don't really have anything else to offer. Or would you rather have some of the crab I'm grilling right now?
└ I'llBeADuke) No. I will procure them for you as quickly as possible.
└ Wild Grylls) Thank you.
_ I'llBeADuke) If I acquire shoes that outperform the winning pair, would you be willing to accept them as well?
└ Wild Grylls) Honestly, this is basically a trade anyway, so as long as I like them, I don't mind.
└ I'llBeADuke) Understood.

There was something strangely refined about the way he spoke.

Even his username sounded ambitious.

You could call this an event of sorts, but in reality, it was closer to a trade. A straightforward exchange where both sides gave and received something.

It wasn't as though I planned to stop exploring just because I didn't have proper shoes.

There were still plenty of places left to investigate.

Still, I intended to avoid unnecessary exploration whenever possible.

After nearly dying yesterday, I needed to be careful.

Crackle! Pop!

"Is it done... Hot, hot, hot, hot!"

The moment I pressed it with my finger to check whether it was cooked, an incredible wave of heat hit me.

Thankfully, I pulled my hand away immediately. Otherwise, I would've burned myself.

I put on my gloves and lifted out the deliciously cooked crab.

It was supposedly an ordinary crab, yet it was even larger than a king crab. There had to be plenty of meat inside.

'Let's start with a leg.'

One of the tastiest parts—the legs.

I cut through one of the crab's legs with my knife.

Crack!

The crab leg came away with a satisfyingly crisp sound.

I cut along the side with my knife and slowly pried the shell apart, sending wisps of steam curling into the air.

"Wow."

Just look at that plump meat.

My mouth watered just from looking at it.

Now, how would it taste?

I'd sprinkled some salt on it, but hadn't added any other seasoning.

Since it was still hot enough to burn me, I blew on it several times.

"Munch. Munch. Haa."

This was seriously delicious.

Even with nothing but salt, it was packed with savory flavor.

There wasn't even a hint of fishiness, making it incredibly easy to eat.

For a moment, all the crabs I'd seen scattered around the lake flashed through my mind.

Crack!

"Kiya!"

Of course. You couldn't eat crab without taking off the top shell.

I exclaimed in delight when I removed the shell and saw the innards underneath.

For a moment, I regretted grilling it instead of steaming it.

Then I immediately started eating.

'I thought the innards would taste fishy, but they don't?'

Even the innards were delicious.

There wasn't a single disappointing part of it. Everything tasted fantastic.

After finishing the innards, I tore off another leg.

This one was for Wonmo.

"Wonmo. I'll give you more later, so eat this for now."
"Kkyuu!"
"Speedy, want some too?"

The tree sloth gestured for me to hand some over.

I cut off a leg and gave it to him too.

The tree sloth accepted it without the slightest suspicion, only to immediately start flailing its arms.

Even its normally drowsy eyes shot wide open. It must have been seriously startled.

'Yeah. It's pretty damn hot.'

I was wearing gloves, but the tree sloth had grabbed it barehanded.

Considering how much the bastard had messed with me until now, this much revenge was nothing.

I snickered.

Smack!

Except the bastard threw it straight back at me.

It hit me square in the face.

A collaboration between a sloth's powerful shoulder and a scorching-hot crab leg.

Right after the pain came an intense blast of heat.

"Aaaaaagh!"

Just you wait, you bastard.

**

While Grylls was happily enjoying his crab feast—

"I assume you saw the post uploaded to the Gallery as well."
"You mean..."
"Bring the craftsman here immediately. As quickly as possible."
"Yes!"

A subtle undercurrent began to ripple through the world.