Chapter 140: Star Festival.

Before we knew it, the start of autumn had passed, and the Star Festival arrived.

Even though it’s a holiday that has lost its significance in Korea, the folklore tied to the Star Festival is very well-known.

Once upon a time, there were Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo.

Having fallen in love and neglected their duties, the Jade Emperor punished them by separating them with the Milky Way, allowing them to see each other only once a year across it.

Moved by their sorrowful tears, magpies and crows built a bridge over the Milky Way to let them meet, or so the story goes.

It’s a story of love.

An event based on this story naturally had to be related to couples.

A Star Festival event was held inside Slime Land.

Though it wasn’t exclusively for couples, it was an event that encouraged couple participation for the sake of mental health.

One couple came to Slime Land to take part in this Star Festival event.

Transported to the event location, the two found themselves on top of the clouds.

Between them flowed a black river that sparkled as if it held stars within.

Above it, large Slimes in the shape of magpies and crows floated arm in arm.

They were at a distance reachable by jumping, but for those lacking confidence in their athleticism, their speed made one hesitate.

A Magpie Slime held up a sign. [Champon].

A Crow Slime held up a sign. [Jjajangmyeon].

And together, they held up signs with their interlocked wings.

[3] [2] [1].

The couple shouted at the same time.

“Champon!” “Champon!”

Then the Slimes stopped in place and extended tentacles toward the clouds to form a bridge.

[Hot] [Ahh]

“Ahh!” “Ahh!”

[Summer] [Winter]

“Summer!” “Summer!”

The couple kept choosing the same options in turn, gradually getting closer to each other.

[Sea] [Mountain]

“Mountain!” “Sea!”

The magpies and crows kept moving without stopping.

“Sorry. I knew you liked mountains.”

“It’s okay! Sometimes we can disagree. I like the sea too.”

Though they stumbled slightly at times, the two continued to grow closer.

Now, if they got just one more question right, they could meet on the central island.

[<Cotton Candy Slime>] [<Popcorn Slime>]

Crackle. Lightning sparked between the couple.

“<Cotton Candy Slime>!” “<Popcorn Slime>!”

[Pack Slime] [Gargle Slime]

“<Pack Slime>!” “<Gargle Slime>!”

[[My Own Story]] [[Scream Course]]

“[Scream Course]!” “[My Own Story]!”

“Shouldn’t you match my choice on this one?”

“I can’t compromise on this! I don’t want to give a hint here and end up eaten by a whale again!”

After this, they kept getting it wrong.

“Ugh!”

Finally, the woman couldn’t hold back and jumped toward the central island. Without stopping, she ran again, tackled her boyfriend, and they both fell into the Milky Way together.

It seemed like their fight might continue, but this couple usually bickered anyway. The argument didn’t last long. Holding hands while embracing, they started to fully enjoy the event.

The main focus of this Star Festival event was crafting.

Riding an ox and wandering around to gather materials to create a commemorative item for themselves.

That was the format of this Star Festival event.

It was fine even if you lacked craftsmanship skills.

If you weren’t confident, you could get assistance from the Slimes.

You could make quite an impressive item.

You just had to gather the materials yourself.

Even so, it wasn’t a cruel event where you had to hunt and butcher animals yourself.

Nor was it a tedious event where you had to draw silk from silkworms and weave fabric.

There were Slimes carrying the materials around.

Riding an ox and wandering around, you just had to catch them with a long dragonfly net.

The slow-moving Slimes were easy to catch, but there were also Slimes that moved faster than the ox.

Unless you got close enough, you couldn’t capture the Slimes.

Depending on the quality of the materials they carried, the level of caution shown by the Slimes varied.

Slimes carrying cool, pretty, or high-quality materials immediately distanced themselves when the ox approached.

How to lure them in?

“Aww~.”

“Aww~.”

“Isn’t it delicious?”

“Mmm. It’s delicious.”

It was by acting like a couple overflowing with love.

Then the Slimes would come closer to watch, as if saying, ‘Oh my, oh my, look at those kids,’ like aunties enjoying a drama.

At that moment, you could quickly swing the dragonfly net to catch them.

“Honey, are you okay?”

In exchange for easily obtaining Slimes, a sense of self-loathing came as a bonus.

“I’m fine.”

Far from being distressed, the woman glared at her boyfriend, who seemed a bit pleased.

“Instead, I’m going to make a bag so cringe-worthy it’ll drive you crazy.”

“Uh, okay…”

The two continued their affectionate display while collecting Slimes.

Around the time they thought they could wrap things up.

They encountered a formidable foe.

It was a tiny Slime carrying a heart-shaped jewel.

The woman mustered her courage and put on a deadly cute act.

That Slime, as if finding it laughable, went on its way.

“Honey, I’m definitely going to catch that thing.”

Even cringe-inducing cute behavior.

Even slightly more intense affectionate displays.

The Heart Jewel Slime went on its way as if it wasn’t worth watching.

“That little…!”

Unable to hold back, the woman stepped on the ox’s head and leaped.

Seeing this, a certain name rose to the tip of the man’s tongue.

Putting anything in her mouth.

Jumping into anything.

Grabbing anything.

Always causing so much trouble that whenever something sudden happened, it reflexively came out.

The name of a mischievous younger sibling with an age gap of more than a decade.

Because of calling out the wrong name, he had fought with his girlfriend several times.

He mustn’t let that name slip out of his mouth anymore.

‘She’s going to get hurt, so she needs to be careful!’

This sentence got mixed up with his younger sibling’s name.

“Dahee!”

His girlfriend’s steps came to a sudden halt.

“Honey.”

“That was a mistake just now. My head got all mixed up, and the words came out wrong.”

“Yeah. It must be a mistake. It better be a mistake. So, shall we hear an explanation about how that mistake happened?”

The man immediately got off the cow.

And he became a sinner kneeling, waiting for judgment.

“Minhee, you’ll get hurt, so be careful! I tried to stop myself from saying something like this, but my words got tangled.”

“Yeah~. I see. But why did it turn into Dahee?”

“Well, I’m not really sure myself….”

“If you don’t know, does that mean there’s no guilt?”

“Maybe because I was speaking too fast, I skipped the middle part, and as I tried to say ‘Da’ and ‘be careful,’ with Minhee’s name stuck in my head, it came out as ‘Dahee’? Haven’t I spoken weirdly like this at other times too? Even before, I-“

The man desperately continued with his excuses.

Then suddenly, he pointed to the side of the woman and shouted.

“Babe, over there!”

The woman reflexively swung her dragonfly net.

A <Heart Jewel Slime> that had approached the exciting situation was caught.

“Honey!”

“Nice catch!”

“Yeah!”

As his girlfriend’s expression brightened, the man tried to stand up.

“But, Honey. That’s that, and this is this.”

The man knelt down again.

***

Once upon a time, there was Jiknyeo, whose job was weaving cloth, and Gyeonwoo, whose job was herding cows.

They really lived up to their names, didn’t they?

The two workaholics lived only for their work.

Feeling pity for them, the Jade Emperor arranged for Jiknyeo and Gyeonwoo to be together.

It was a somewhat forced blind date, but luckily, the two fell deeply for each other.

What a happy thing.

But every matter has its good and bad sides.

They say when you’re blinded by love, you can’t see anything else.

Weaving cloth? Herding cows?

Who cares?

Completely immersed in love, the two abandoned their work and indulged in their romance.

Even up to this point, one might frown a bit but let it pass with a ‘They’re in their happy days.’

That is, if they hadn’t driven the cows and charged into the Jade Emperor’s cherished flower garden.

An astronomical invoice was sent to them.

Those were very expensive flowers, you see.

Unable to handle the overwhelming invoice, Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo couldn’t pay and were sentenced to long hours of labor.

Visitation was allowed only once a year.

And even then, it was merely visitation. They could only see each other’s faces across the grand barrier of the Milky Way.

Was their love so deep, or did the fact that they could only meet once a year add fuel to their passion?

Whenever they met, they shed endless tears.

[Those tears have become a downpour falling from the sky.

Find a way to stop these tears.]

“Screw this.”

The FPS gamer rejected the large-scale quest with a curse.

‘Why should I help out a couple?’

Since they’re newlyweds, maybe they can’t be called just a couple.

But he also hated newlyweds who were as lovey-dovey as couples in the early stages of dating.

The reason he hated it?

He just hated it.

It’s definitely not because he’s lived his whole life without any romantic ties.

‘Heating things up with a gun is more than enough for me.’

The FPS gamer was showing off impressive feats in the unrealistic mode of [Battle Royale], one of the facilities in Slime Land.

Especially confident in underwater battlefields, he participated with confidence this time as well.

Since he’s the type to avoid grouping with others, he chose an exploration route where he could roam and fight alone.

Quickly clearing various quests, he was the first to reach under the sea.

Under the sea, the technology was even more advanced than on the ground.

He was able to obtain firearms.

With his main weapon in hand, the FPS gamer racked up achievements even faster.

‘And right now, I’m busy.’

Not long ago, the gamer had obtained some incredible information.

-A long time ago. In the era when gods breathed. Humanity fought monsters riding machines that resembled humans.

There’s no way such information would be given without meaning.

As a result of gathering information by clearing various quests, the outline gradually became clearer.

Though he’s now used to fighting while moving his body, the FPS gamer still found a keyboard and mouse more convenient.

He could perform much better when fighting while sitting.

Moreover, the main weapon of the humanoid robot said to be here was a gun.

He had no choice but to go find it.

He didn’t care about newlyweds.

Like this FPS gamer, many people ignored the quest.

It wasn’t just behavior stemming from jealousy of not wanting to help those with partners.

They were under the sea, after all.

Many thought it didn’t matter whether it rained a lot or not on the surface.

Many also thought that once the Star Festival passed, the rain would stop.

Even after the Star Festival passed, the rain kept falling without stopping.

“Wait! This isn’t the acceleration sea zone! Argh!”

As the rain poured heavily, the waters began to mix chaotically.

“It’s gone?”

“The facility is locked, so we can’t produce anymore.”

The village facility was submerged in water and became unusable.

“Wait! Why is the price like this!”

“If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. Though it’ll probably be sold out by the time you come back.”

Prices skyrocketed.

Even if they were active under the sea, most people had their base on land.

Except for the very few who had set up a base in an undersea city, everyone suffered from the endless rain.

That didn’t mean those who could handle everything under the sea were unaffected.

“Why is that thing here! It wasn’t supposed to appear in this place!”

“And what’s that now!”

The areas of activity for Giant Monsters expanded.

On top of that, new formidable foes began to awaken and become active.

***

The Water Land event has entered its final chapter.

The rain that started with the Star Festival event.

That rain won’t stop until Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo meet.

Those who thought it would stop in a day are out of luck.

Just because it’s based on a legend doesn’t mean it has to follow that exact plot.

Methods to make Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo meet have been prepared for each route.

The combat route has a low success rate and a high chance of causing future problems.

The exploration route has a moderate success rate and a moderate chance of future issues.

The trade route has a high success rate and little chance of future issues.

Someone might solve it in a way I haven’t thought of, but that possibility seems unlikely.

Since the combat and exploration routes don’t seem likely to succeed, let me explain only the trade route.

You go to the Jade Emperor, who separated Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo, win his favor with local specialties, and get permission for their meeting.

Since it’s officially permitted, there’s little chance of future trouble.

Of course, if you insult the Jade Emperor, it’s game over.

Hell mode begins.

Judging by the character of the person running the tower on the trade route, the rain will stop soon.

There are no issues with the event.

There’s no part for me to intervene in.

Currently, at the Alchemy Center, Gongdori and Gongsooni are churning out Slime 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Considering that my children’s size directly correlates with production volume, this is an extremely inefficient method.

If Gongsooni or Gongdori grew as large as Mother, they could produce a volume of Slime on a completely different level from now.

The reason I haven’t retrieved them and left them there.

It’s because there’s no need to dramatically increase production volume right now.

Mother’s production volume, digging over 2 km underground, is enough to supply Slime to the entire world.

Another reason is to maintain a friendly relationship with the Korean government.

You could also think of it as holding hostages.

The people stationed as supposed bodyguards are, in reality, jailers keeping the two of them confined.

Korea’s economy revolves around Slime and Slime Land.

I’ve completely taken over the underground of Korea.

The Korean government has no choice but to tremble at my every move.

I gave Gongdori and Gongsooni into their hands to offer some reassurance.

Gongdori and Gongsooni didn’t feel any particular complaints about this situation.

Without jealousy toward Mother, they spent their time dealing with what they could do at the moment.

And even if they are hostages, it holds no real meaning.

They could break out of that prison anytime they wanted.

They just don’t do it because there’s no need to.

I think it’s about time to end that, though.

I need to increase the workforce a bit.

Well, I’m not saying I’ll bring both of them.

Gongdori and Gongsooni. Which one of you wants to come?

Gongsooni says she wants to come?

Alright.

I immediately notified the Korean government and the Alchemy Center that I would be taking Gongsooni.

The Korean government and the Alchemy Center had no say and handed Gongsooni over.

I’m an S-rank Alchemist and the rightful owner, so what are they going to do about me taking her?

Gongdori will handle the work the two of them were doing on his own, so they should be satisfied with that.

The reason I brought Gongsooni like this.

The sea is vast, and it’s difficult for the new child Deps to handle it alone.

Deps doesn’t have enough stored mass to fill Road’s vacancy.

That’s why I called Gongsooni.

If I work with Gongsooni, we should be able to fill the tunnel Road dug out soon.

And Road needs to ascend to the sky.

The reason Deps insists on sending Road to the sky is simple.

Mass.

The expression of launching toward the sky is only half correct.

Because it’ll leave a path connected to the ground, like a balloon string.

It would be more accurate to say it’s building a path connecting the sky and the ground.

To extend tens of thousands of kilometers into the upper atmosphere, that much mass is needed.

It would take quite a long time for Deps to accumulate that much mass.

Rather than waiting for that, I decided to send up Road, who has already amassed a vast amount of mass while exploring under the sea.

And the phrase ‘Road to Space’ sounds cool, doesn’t it?

I don’t plan to send it up right now.

I’ll send it up once the issues related to the Undersea Dungeon are resolved to some extent.

I don’t know how other countries will react to my decision.

But this is a necessary task, so I’m going to do it.