Chapter 8

Chapter 1 Oh, Happy Day! (8)

***

Trading refers to the act of buying and selling. Generally, it involves adjusting the value of what each party wants until they are roughly equal, then exchanging goods. In my current situation, the problem is that what the trading partner wants is not in my possession. Or rather, it is, but I absolutely cannot give it. The troll wants fresh, tender meat from my body, but I can't give that, can I?

[Left Shin - Fractured: Recovering (Contaminated Bandage + Splint 90%)]

‘My leg... is it still far from recovery?’

90% means a slight crack in the bone? I might be able to run, but if I push off the ground with all my might, it will break again, I bet. I’ll stake my life on it. If I try to run and fall, I’ll be a piece of meat. This troll wouldn’t even spare the reincarnation of Buddha or Jesus.

In the end, it means I have to somehow lead the negotiation.

“Grrr... Give me meat! Give me meat!!!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Angry that there was no response to his words, Notum pounded the ground with his large hands.

‘What should I do? How can I get out of this troll’s territory, where I’ve been starving for four days, without giving him a single bite of my blood-dripping body?’

There must be a way. There must be a way, or it wouldn’t be a quest. The troll is hungry and excited by the smell of blood. He hasn’t eaten for four days, so his ferocity is beyond description—

‘Wait a moment. Four days? Four whole days without eating? A troll?’

Something flashed through the professor’s mind as he desperately thought.

‘Trolls have immense strength and an incredible regenerative ability. High regeneration means a high metabolism, which means they burn energy quickly. A typical troll goes berserk after half a day of hunger, venturing outside their territory to hunt. Four days without eating? That’s impossible, even for a rational troll like Notum!’

A human can’t think of anything but food after three days of hunger. A troll, which becomes ferocious the moment it’s hungry, going four days without eating? Physically impossible.

‘The premise is wrong. Notum hasn’t been hungry for the past four days. He’s eaten, but it didn’t satisfy him!’

The outline of the quest began to form in his mind, along with the thought that he might actually survive this!

‘If my theory is correct, I need to persuade him.’

The professor gathered his thoughts and spoke.

“Hey... Notum?”

“Meat, give me meat, small big human.”

“Whoa, whoa, calm down! You’re right! Of course, I’ll give it to you! We’re sorry, Notum. Have you been very hungry all this time?”

Speaking soothingly, Notum nodded in agreement.

“Notum is strong. Finding food isn’t hard. I’ve eaten wolves, bears, squirrels, and deer. I let tasty humans pass by. I ate tasteless wolves, bears, squirrels, and deer. I keep my promises. Notum’s stomach is full. Notum’s tongue is hungry.”

Indeed. Notum’s desires were more in the realm of preference than instinct. He gave up on tasty human meat for his favorite horse meat and filled his stomach with wild animals he didn’t prefer.

‘There was a reason I didn’t encounter a single wolf while walking defenselessly through the forest for two hours in this cruel game.’

“Good, Notum! I’ll give you the meat!”

The professor stood up from his crouched position, brushing the dirt off his clothes with his good hand. He needed to look as normal as possible to appear as a conversation partner rather than prey to Notum.

“Ooo! Meat! One, two, three, four, five! Where are they?”

“Over... there! Not five, but ten! No, a hundred are prepared!”

“Ten? A hundred????”

“Hmm... You don’t know that yet? I mean, we have enough horses to fill this forest! Think about it! The forest filled with horses neighing!”

“The forest... filled with horses!”

“Yes! The forest filled with horses! Enough to fill your fingers and toes!”

“Uuuu! Grrr!”

Notum pretended to count on his fingers and then trembled with a broad smile.

‘This gourmet troll didn’t touch anyone passing through his territory for four days because of anticipation. The belief that patience now will lead to greater rewards and tastier food in the future. This belief was supporting his rationality in a corner of his mind.’

If that’s the case, my job is clear. I need to inflate that anticipation and firmly anchor his rationality so that I can slip away. Fortunately, I won’t have to meet Notum again, so I can issue as many blank checks as I want.

The troll, drooling and eyes sparkling with imagination, said:

“Notum is ready! Where is the meat?”

“It’s... over there, beyond that hill...”

“Grr?”

Notum stared in the direction I pointed, beyond the horizon of the wheat field swaying like a golden sea.

“It’s... something bad happened to the iron humans.”

“Bad... thing?”

“Yes, a bad thing. A very, very bad thing. Some bad guys stole Notum’s horses!”

“Grr? Notum’s food, stolen?”

“Yes! The reason the iron humans can’t come here is that the bad guys are guarding to prevent more horses from being stolen!”

Notum’s face, which had been thinking about what I said, suddenly twisted grotesquely.

“So, no meat?”

‘If I say the wrong thing here, I’m dead!’

Gulp!

“Not now! There’s no meat now! But I can bring them all by tomorrow! I promise! I promise, Notum! By this time tomorrow, no matter what, you’ll have your horses!”

‘I’ve built up the anticipation enough, now I’m taking a risk. If Notum’s anticipation of eating a mountain of horse meat supports his rationality, it will succeed. If the desire for the immediate meat overpowers his rationality... fuck, after all this, it can’t fail!’

I’ve done all I can. If Notum’s intelligence was a bit higher, I wouldn’t have even tried this method. This is my best shot. If Notum reveals his ferocity again... I don’t know. I’ll just quit the game. I’d rather do menial work for a week and earn 700,000 silvers than be chewed alive and feel the pain.

Still, I think the chances of success are very high. After all, this guy flinches every time he hears the word ‘iron humans.’ No matter how intelligent, educating a wild, carnivorous monster must involve some degree of coercion. He probably recognizes the difference between knights and himself. And since I’m related to those ‘iron humans,’ he might have some reluctance about attacking me.

Notum, who had shown a very avant-garde scene of a troll struggling between reason and instinct, took a deep, earth-shaking sigh and stood up.

“Notum? Where are you going?”

“Grr. Notum is hungry. Going hunting.”

“So, you’re not going to eat me?”

Swoosh—

‘For a troll, he has quite expressive features.’

Notum, with his back turned, had a look of lingering attachment.

“Notum is wise. A mountain of horse meat, neigh! Living horses. The iron humans listened to my request. So, Notum will wait.”

“Living horses? Request?”

“Grr. Living horses. Until now, I’ve only been given dead horses. Torn, cut, bloated, mixed with strange things. Notum can eat anything, but living horses are the tastiest. So, I asked the iron humans for living horses. Grr.”

It seems the group managing this troll gave him various dead horses.

‘Very efficient. The price difference between living and dead horses is huge. Using a few cheap horse carcasses to clear the forest of dangerous wild animals is a smart move.’

Trolls value their territory. As long as Notum stays here, the chances of orcs or other trolls settling nearby are significantly reduced. And by letting him go hungry occasionally, he’ll take care of the wild animals in the forest on his own. No matter how you look at it, it’s a much better deal than the cost of horse meat.

‘The iron humans are probably knights from the Turan lord’s side.’

Given this, I’m actually relieved that I couldn’t attack Notum due to my lack of strength. In this situation, Notum can be considered the lord’s property.

If I had come here as a normally grown character and met a hungry Notum, I would have sliced him up without thinking, and then been beaten and hung at the city gates by the lord’s angry knights.

Well, whatever. Now that the dangerous part is completely over.

Seeing Notum sniffing, still bothered by the smell of blood, it’s best to leave quickly for both our sakes.

“Then, I’ll take that as a yes, Notum! Wait until tomorrow! I’m leaving!”

The professor said this and quickly stood up.

***

Notum watched the professor, who was gathering his cane and loosened splint. His obviously injured arm and leg, still fresh with the smell of blood, made Notum feel an indescribable discomfort.

“...Grr.”

The professor, who was about to leave, suddenly turned his shoulder. Notum had grabbed his shoulder.

‘Shit! Caught! Maybe the mountain of horses was too much! I should have been more detailed and realistic!’

The professor, ruminating on the wave of regret that suddenly washed over him. Notum, who had been quietly watching him, spoke.

“Small big human. Injured.”

“Eh, eh! This? It’s nothing!”

The professor, desperately denying.

Notum shook his head. Iron humans are strong. Strong enough to cut a tree with a small spear. The bad guys stole the horses, and if even the strong iron humans couldn’t leave, the bad guys must be strong. The small big human was injured protecting Notum’s horses.

Notum looked down at the small big human, who barely reached his waist. A weak, injured creature. Yet, this injured body remembered the promise to Notum and came from the stone nest to Notum’s territory.

“Small big human. Injured badly. Weak.”

“No, no! I’m fine! Look at these muscles! They won’t even be tasty!”

A new, unfamiliar emotion suddenly rose in Notum’s chest. The feeling of a small creature struggling in front of him, too weak to even stand. The sight of this fragile being trying hard for him tickled his heart.

“Grrr...”

Scratch, scratch, scratch!

Notum, scratching his chest in the strange feeling, spoke to the professor, who was almost in a panic.

“Small big human.”

“No, no! Think of the mountain of horse meat! Please!”

“Path, dangerous. Go with me.”

Notum didn’t know it, but this was what humans call ‘maternal love.’

“...What?”

Notum was female.

***

Bang! Boom!

Autumn. The golden wheat fields laugh at the whisper of the wind, and the clear sky spreads like a lake. A landscape that anyone who has only seen the desolate scenery of the wasteland for years would be unable to take their eyes off, but the professor had no time for such beautiful scenery.

“Hey... Notum? Do you really have to bring me like this...”

“Small big human, weak. Notum, strong. Notum will crush the bad guys and get the horses.”

The professor’s forehead deepened with a frown as he listened to Notum.

Well, damn. Perfect to the end! I thought I had wrapped it up beautifully, worthy of a super player!

“Small big human, eat more meat. Notum will give you a horse.”

“T-thank you, h-haha...”

Damn. How did it come to this?

- Professor: Hey, viewers. Anyone know anything about this situation?

- SoySauceGaybar: Oh, I’m dying lol

- TakeALook: Man, this is hilarious lol

- DeerDrug: Well, if he did this much, he should have cut the chat lol

- SoySauceGaybar: Professor, the man of charm!

- HungAnDumplings: Even a monster that eats humans is safe in front of him! How far does his defensive range extend?

- Professor: Notum is female?

- SoySauceGaybar: Can’t you tell? She has breasts and long eyelashes.

- Professor: How could you see that when I couldn’t? And how are those breasts? They’re pectoral muscles.

- Holy: lol

Of course.

I closed the chat window for a moment because the occasional messages during my mental breakdown in the forest were driving me crazy, but now they’re all acting like I didn’t help them.

Bang, bang!

The professor, feeling seasick from the up-and-down motion on Notum’s shoulder, squeezed his eyes shut.

‘What will happen if we go all the way to the city?’

First, Notum is a troll. A perfect monster in appearance and behavior. Just getting near the city will trigger the alarm, and the guards and knights will rush out. And I, on Notum’s shoulder...

‘Definitely a black mage.’

Black mages are the main enemy group in World 3. World 3 can be divided into three major parts:

The era of the great war that began with the three countries of Seppalin ignoring the peace treaty signed around the end of World 2 and declaring war, known as the Warring States period in the community, from 121 to 124 AD.

The era of the black mages, who started their activities during a period of chaos in law and order, when the enmity between nations and cities reached its peak after three years of endless war, from 124 to 127 AD.

The era when the black mages’ influence could not be stopped, and the large-scale invasion by the creatures they created, known as Mutated Blood or Mutes, led to the beginning of the end of World 3, from 127 to 130 AD.

World 3 can be summarized this way. I haven’t figured out which era it is now, but given the peaceful state of the road, it’s probably not the era of the great war. So, it’s likely the era of the black mages.

‘The time when the movements of the black mages, thought to have been eradicated 70 years ago by the leaders of various countries, began to be detected.’

In such a time, entering the city looking like a black mage? Oh, just killing myself would be 100 times better. The knights of this era are trained in torture as part of their education.

For that reason, Notum should be left outside the city’s territory.

But...

“Grr. Small big human, there’s a soft swamp in my territory. I’ve seen many injured animals there. When I get the horses, you’ll go there too. Eat meat and soak in the water, and you’ll recover quickly. Grr.”

‘But why are you doing so much for me?!’

No matter how I look at it, this troll doesn’t seem to have any intention of letting me go.

***