Chapter 32 of 100

Chapter 32: Harvesting Corn

8 min read1,883 words

When the Blue Moon ended, the monsters on the 99th floor, which had been running rampant, returned to their respective territories. The King Uma, who guards the waypoint on the 99th floor, began checking the number of his subordinates. This was because sometimes subordinates would enter other monsters' territories and not return.

Uma, Umatwo, Umathree...

While the King Uma was checking his subordinates,

Ding, ding.

Something was hanging from Umathree's horn.

Hmm?

The King Uma asked his subordinate, "Umahree, what's that?"

However,

Hmm?

The subordinate, unaware of what was hanging from his horn, instead asked the King Uma, "Chief, what?"

Hmm!

The warrior didn't even realize something was attached to his body! Frustrated by the subordinate's reaction, the King Uma personally removed what was stuck to the horn.

It was a plant with green leaves and an orange root. Umathree must have dug the ground with his horn during the Blue Moon.

The King Uma, passing by Umathree, continued to check the number of his subordinates.

...Umathreeeight.

Fortunately, no subordinates were missing.

Thud, thud.

The King Uma returned to his position in front of the waypoint on the 99th floor. While he was passing the time,

Sniff, sniff.

A fragrant smell wafted through the air.

Hmm?

The King Uma turned his gaze toward the source of the smell. In his hand was the plant he had removed from his subordinate's horn. Why didn't I throw this away?

That wasn't important. The King Uma put the plant in his mouth and chewed it.

Crunch, crunch.

Munch, munch.

The orange root provided a good texture and sweetness, while the stem was soft and easy to swallow.

Hmm?!

The King Uma urgently called out to Umathree. "Where did you get this?!"

***

As soon as the Blue Moon ended, Sejun called out Theo, who was in his backpack, and sent him to scout outside.

"No one's around, meow."

"Good job. Thanks."

After reporting to Sejun, Theo went back into Sejun's blanket and fell asleep, while Sejun started moving busily.

The first place Sejun went to was the cornfield.

Snap.

He picked a blue ear of corn covered in green leaves.

[You have harvested a Corn of Vitality infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.]

[Your profession experience has increased.]

[Your Harvesting skill at level 4 has improved.]

[The effect of Skill Level 1 has increased your Harvesting skill at level 4 by 5%.]

[You have gained 100 experience points.]

"Corn of Vitality?"

The corn was a crop that increased Vitality stats.

[Corn of Vitality infused with the energy of the Blue Moon]

A corn grown inside the tower, rich in nutrients and delicious.

Infused with the energy of the Blue Moon, it tastes even better.

Consuming it permanently increases Vitality by 0.1.

Cultivator: Tower Farmer Park Sejun

Expiry Date: 60 days

Grade: D

Since it was a D-grade crop, the stat increase was twice as high as an E-grade crop.

But

"So what?"

To Sejun, it wasn't important at all. Taste is what matters.

"Hmm, hmm, hmm."

Sejun hummed a tune as he first pulled out the corn silk and then

Rip, rip.

boldly peeled off the corn husk. The blue corn kernels, which would pop when gently pressed, were revealed.

"Wow, look at the shine."

The corn, gleaming with a blue luster, seemed to be saying, "I'm delicious, taste me." He felt an urge to eat it right away!

"Whoa?!"

Without realizing it, Sejun almost put the raw corn in his mouth. He almost had a major accident by eating the corn before boiling it.

"Phew."

Sejun took a deep breath to calm his excited heart and

Thud, thud.

carefully laid the corn husks in the pot, added the right amount of water, put in the corn, and covered it.

Then

Sizzle.

He started boiling it. As the water reduced, the corn husks would create space between the pot and the corn, allowing it to steam properly.

Now, all he needed to do was wait for the corn to steam nicely.

But

[The tower manager says to keep the promise soon.]

There was still work to be done.

"Got it. I was about to give it."

Sejun went to the cherry tomato field and harvested the cherry tomatoes infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.

Ping.

[You have harvested a Magic Cherry Tomato infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.]

[Your profession experience has increased.]

[Your Harvesting skill at level 4 has improved.]

[The effect of Skill Level 1 has increased your Harvesting skill at level 4 by 5%.]

[You have gained 100 experience points.]

Ping.

[You have harvested a Magic Cherry Tomato infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.]

...

In total, Sejun harvested 13 cherry tomatoes infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.

"Really a bountiful harvest. Hehehe."

Sejun smiled, looking at the handful of blue cherry tomatoes.

"Here, take them."

Sejun gave 5 blue cherry tomatoes to the tower manager.

[The tower manager thanks you.]

[The tower manager says he will definitely repay you later.]

"Sure."

He didn't really expect it. How could he wait 300 years?

"Must be delicious."

Sejun looked at the cherry tomato in his hand. Being a D-grade crop infused with the energy of the Blue Moon, it would be even more delicious.

But

"Let's wait."

He decided to wait to fully enjoy the taste of the corn.

Sejun, while up, spread the corn silk on his designated spot where the sun shone well. Drying the corn silk properly would allow him to make corn silk tea.

"With this, I have one more drink to enjoy."

Sejun, with a satisfied look, returned to the fire.

While waiting for the corn to be ready, the sweet and savory smell of corn started to spread through the gaps in the pot lid.

One, two, three...

Sejun counted 30 seconds in his head, took the pot off the fire, and opened the lid. Too much is as bad as too little. He had to be careful not to overcook the corn, or the kernels would burst.

Whoosh.

As soon as he opened the lid, steam and the smell of corn filled the air.

"Wow!"

Sejun carefully picked up the corn with tongs and placed it in his bowl.

Then

Puff, puff.

Eager to eat, Sejun blew on the corn to cool it down.

"Is it cool enough?"

Sejun touched the corn to check if it was still hot. The corn was hot enough to hold for 1-2 seconds.

"Good."

Sejun held the corn by the cooled husk at both ends and

Snap.

cut it in half. One half was for the rabbits.

Sejun took a bite of the corn.

Crunch, crunch.

Sejun's teeth scooped up the corn kernels like a forklift.

"Mmm."

As the kernels fell, Sejun quickly sucked up the sweet juice flowing from the cob. Ah, so sweet!

Crunch, crunch.

After sucking up the juice, Sejun started chewing the corn kernels.

Each kernel was alive, and when chewed, they resisted a bit before popping.

Munch, munch.

The more he chewed, the more the sweet and savory taste rose. Sejun, entranced, ate the corn enthusiastically, as if playing a corn harmonica.

Then

[You have consumed a Corn of Vitality infused with the energy of the Blue Moon.]

[Your Vitality has permanently increased by 0.1.]

Before he knew it, Sejun had eaten all the corn, including the part he had set aside for the rabbits.

"I ate it all..."

Sejun, looking at the message in front of him, sucked the remaining juice from the cob with a look of disbelief.

But since Sejun had already sucked the juice out, no more juice came out.

"Such a waste."

Sejun quickly burned the cob and leaves in the fire to destroy the evidence.

Then, adding a mark to the wall, as he started the morning,

Grrr...

the baby bear quietly announced its arrival to avoid waking the baby rabbits.

Sejun went up to the surface. The baby bear's arrival meant the mother Crimson Giant Bear had come, which meant the surroundings were 100% safe.

When he went up,

"Sure enough."

As expected, the fields on the surface were a mess due to the monsters that came during the Blue Moon.

Sejun quickly looked for the mother Crimson Giant Bear, worried about any injuries.

In the distance, Sejun saw the mother Crimson Giant Bear moving steadily. Her gait suggested she wasn't injured.

After confirming the mother Crimson Giant Bear's safety, Sejun carefully returned the queen venom bee's cocoon, which he had entrusted to Theo, to its original place.

Then

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

Sejun checked the baby bear's body for any injuries.

Grrr!

When Sejun checked his body, the baby bear thought Sejun was going to pet him and lay down.

"Good, good."

Sejun pet the baby bear's body and checked it thoroughly. Fortunately, there were no injuries.

"Here, have some honey."

Sejun gave the baby bear 3 jars of honey for enduring the Blue Moon. After that, when Sejun returned to the cave,

Squeak!

The rabbit couple and their grown children came out of the burrow, ready to start the morning farming.

Crunch, crunch.

"Here, eat this."

Sejun gave each of the rabbits eating carrots one of the 8 blue cherry tomatoes.

After distributing them, Sejun had no cherry tomatoes left for himself, but since he had eaten the corn, he decided to share today.

Squeak!

The rabbits, grateful to Sejun, started sucking on the cherry tomatoes.

Squeak!

In the afternoon, the rabbit couple brought out their 5 baby rabbits from the burrow to show them the world. The curious baby rabbits started exploring their surroundings actively.

Then

Squeak!

There was something that particularly caught the baby rabbits' attention.

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

The baby rabbits approached Theo, who was eating churr, and started climbing on his body to play.

"Why are you doing this to me, meow?"

To avoid the annoying baby rabbits, Theo got up and moved to another spot.

But

Squeak!

The baby rabbits persistently followed Theo.

"President, the babies keep following me, meow. What should I do, meow?"

Since the baby rabbits kept following him, Theo approached Sejun for help. He could have escaped to the surface, but the baby bear was there, eyeing Theo's churr.

"The baby rabbits recognize you as a cool uncle. That's why they're following you, Mr. Theo."

"Am I a cool uncle, meow?"

"Sure."

Although it seemed they were following him because he was easy to handle, he didn't say the truth. Someone had to watch the babies.

Squeak!

Meanwhile, the baby rabbits followed Theo again.

"Is that it, meow?"

This time, Theo didn't run away from the babies.

"Come on, follow the cool uncle, Mr. Theo, meow."

Toeo started taking the baby rabbits around.

"That's it, meow! Don't eat that, meow."

"Come here, meow! Fire is dangerous, meow!"

Surprisingly, Theo took good care of the 5 baby rabbits. Babysitting was added to Mr. Theo's duties.

And on the 183rd day of the ordeal.

"I'll earn a lot of money, meow!"

Squeak!

Toeo, with the baby rabbits' farewell, went back down the tower.