19 hens and 1 rooster.
No matter how useless a rooster is for laying eggs, having only one seemed a bit too few…
But then again, what does it matter?
Come to think of it, I could just get a new rooster.
After all, it’s hard to tell them apart when they’re still young chicks.
The Gold Chick, who had been gazing drowsily with half-closed eyes, suddenly burrowed into my palm.
Carefully holding one chick in each hand, I tried to stand up, but the other chicks all woke up.
Bwak~! Bwak~!
The chicks were chirping excitedly.
In the end, I put both chicks down and stood up, carrying feed as I headed for the front door.
They trailed behind me, following eagerly.
It was incredibly cute.
I propped the door stopper and went outside; they followed me all the way out.
Seizing the moment, like the Pied Piper, I led all the chicks into the Poultry House.
They followed obediently.
When I poured the feed into the wide clearing, the chicks seemed to shout “food” in their own way.
Of course, I could feel their affection for me as well.
If I left now, they might even leave the food and follow me.
“If they get too absorbed in eating, I’ll leave then.”
After some time, I saw they were focused on eating, heads buried deep in the feed.
Carefully, I got up and backed away, then closed the newly installed swinging gate the moment I stepped out of the fence.
They would only realize I was gone after they finished eating.
Turning away from the Poultry House, someone called out from behind.
“Where are you going, bwak!”
“I’m going home to rest.”
“Then we are bwak!”
“‘We’?”
I answered naturally but was startled and turned around.
There stood the Gold Chick—the only male chick—who had snuck out somehow.
The conversation felt so natural I almost thought a person was there.
“You all have to stay inside now.”
“The owner’s a good one, bwak!”
“I’ll come see you every day.”
“Understood, bwak!”
The little one nodded immediately in agreement, utterly adorable.
I opened the fence gate to let them in, then closed it again.
When the gate opened, the other chicks’ attention briefly shifted, but the Gold Chick’s commanding “Feed, I eat first, bwak!” reassured me.
“Well, I didn’t really do much, but I’ve been busy all day.”
Unlike the day before, it was quiet and I was tired, so I quickly fell asleep.
As soon as morning came and I opened my eyes, I checked around.
I was worried the chicks might have slept together and gotten crushed like the day before.
“Oh?”
Ah, right.
I had separated the chicks into the Poultry House the day before.
“Ahhh~! Feeling refreshed. Time to wash up and go check on the chicks.”
I stretched deeply, twisting my body left and right.
Getting up in the morning was no trouble at all.
In fact, thinking about the chicks waiting for me made me hurry.
“Hey guys, breakfast is here~”
I grabbed the Poultry House door, then carefully let go.
“Hey, where are you? Why are you all…?”
The cute chicks were nowhere to be seen.
Inside were fully grown adult hens who had shed all their chick-like cuteness.
Each proudly showing off their mature looks, they were all asleep.
The first to wake at my approach was, of course, the Goldie.
“Owner, you’re here? Why aren’t you coming in? What are you doing out there?”
“Your tone… more importantly, why did you all grow so much?”
“It’s the prime growing age, bwak. Come in and give us some feed, bwak.”
Hearing the chatter, the other hens woke up and started talking too.
“Oh, you’re here?”
“Is it the usual feed today?”
“Can I go out after eating, bwak?”
With the hens transformed so drastically overnight, I seriously wondered if it was safe to just walk in unarmed.
But since these were the hens I had connected with, I figured it would be fine and opened the door.
I poured the feed, but it seemed insufficient for the twenty hearty hens, so I quickly went out to fetch a new sack.
“The way they focus on the feed isn’t any different from the chicks yesterday… Rapid Growth really is amazing. It’s almost frightening.”
The ‘Communication-Chicken’ ability, which I had thought was insignificant, might actually be quite useful…?
Looking at the hens, excitement welled up inside me.
“I was running out of money and felt hopeless, but at this growth rate, maybe I can start getting eggs by tomorrow?”
The only concern was having just one rooster.
After all, for fertile eggs, the hens would have to be in sync to mate.
“Guys, you need to lay a lot of eggs.”
I threw out the words without much thought and stepped outside the Poultry House.
Looking at the hens who had grown so quickly, I felt something had to be done.
I thought it might be best to seriously study to keep up with their growth and future needs, so I called Kim.
“Hello? Kim! It’s Minho. You need to have a drink with me! Are you free today? Great~ Could I also learn some poultry farm management from you? Perfect! I’ll come by later!”
He accepted without hesitation, as if he’d been waiting.
Actually, Kim would welcome me warmly no matter what, but when you’re receiving something, it’s only fair to offer something in return.
‘I have something carefully stored in the Feed Storage for just such an occasion.’
That was…
Sanchamju!
One year ago.
Had I lost consciousness?
When I opened my eyes, dawn had broken, and the world was bright.
“Ah… my back… did a wild boar step on me?”
I remembered going up the mountain to gather herbs as usual, but being chased by a wild boar.
That day, I couldn’t find anything worth collecting, so I had ventured deeper into the mountain.
Then—
Grrr!
Because I had seen monsters in dungeons never retaliate when their allies were killed, I had assumed the same about the wild boar, which was a grave mistake.
If the behavior changes depending on the situation, they should have at least explained that!
Dodging the boar’s snorts as it charged at me, I ran here and there but misstepped and fell off a cliff.
That’s when I discovered something.
A plant that looked very familiar.
“Th-this is it!!”
It was Sancham!
And not one, but two roots!
‘Maybe the boar was actually leading me to the Sancham? Perhaps a mountain spirit…’
Anyway, I had made liquor from the Sancham I harvested back then.
I planned to bring out one bottle this time.
‘He loves liquor, so this should be perfect to ask him about a lot without him noticing.’
With that, I took the Sanchamju and headed straight to Kim’s place.
“Oh, Minho, you’re here! What’s that in your hand?”
“Haha, I harvested and brewed this Sanchamju myself.”
“Whoa—so dazzling I can’t even look! You’re going to drink this precious thing? You don’t have to bow! But what’s this sudden urge to drink? You always say ‘next time, next time.’”
“It’s for the poultry farm. I’m lost on what to do next, so I came with a bribe for some help!”
“What? Trying to bribe me with this? You came prepared. About chickens…”
Kim, delighted by the bribe or maybe the company, launched into a nonstop stream of advice.
His A to Z on poultry farming was incredibly helpful.
“But you’re still a rookie, right? You just got the chicks a few days ago.”
“Ah! Yes, but I want to learn ahead of time so I can handle things smoothly when they start laying eggs.”
“That’s right. That’s very wise.”
We talked not only about chickens but also about the villagers and life in general until evening slipped by.
“Wow! It’s already that late… Sir, I should get home to feed the chicks.”
“Sure, sure. They’re at the prime growing age, so feed them well.”
“Yes, I will. I’m off now!”
“Alright. Come again~”
Back home, I prepared the evening feed for the hens and made sure to give them a gentle pat.
Since raising chickens, my morning routine had changed.
Before, I would laze around after waking, then only eat when my stomach started rumbling.
Not anymore.
At the natural alarm of their “cock-a-doodle-doo,” I jumped up and grabbed the feed sack to go outside.
Because some were waiting for me.
“Hey guys, did you sleep well? Time for breakfast~”
I entered the fence and poured out the feed.
But the hens’ chatter felt a bit odd.
“Yesterday was really great!”
“Hey! You too? Me too!”
Come to think of it, the golden hen was missing.
The only rooster.
“Hey, where’s the rooster? The Goldie.”
“He’s resting!”
“‘He’?”
“He spent a cozy time with us yesterday!”
“Yeah!”
“It was amazing!”
‘No way…?’
Embarrassed by the conversation, I hurried deeper inside.
There, unlike the robust bird from the day before, was the Goldie looking a little pale.
Even his feathers seemed a bit darker.
“You okay? You look terrible. What happened yesterday?”
“What do you think, bwak… I’m the only rooster here… I was just doing my duty, bwak…”
“…I’m sorry. I’ll find another rooster soon.”
The Goldie, who moved his head to follow my hand as I comforted him, continued in a tired voice.
“If you’re sorry, how about giving me a name, bwak.”
“A name? Well, since you’re special and the boss, it’s right to give you one. But what should it be…”
I thought hard but couldn’t come up with a good name.
Golden hen, golden hen…
“Goldie. Goldie it is. The only rooster and the only golden chick. How about that? Like it?”
“Because you named me, I love it, bwak.”
“You’re definitely smarter than the others.”
At that moment, a notification blinked in a corner of my vision.
[You have named the leader of the chickens you have communicated with.
The effect of ‘Communication-Chicken’ is upgraded to ‘Communication-Chicken(＋)’.]
[Communication-Chicken(+)]
Allows conversation with animals belonging to the order Galliformes.
- Active Skill: Inactive
- Passive Skills: (1) I Am The Boss Rooster!, (2) Inactive
-I Am The Boss Rooster!
: When mating successfully with the chief rooster, the quality of eggs improves. (Chief Rooster – Goldie)
- Rapid Growth was applied as an initial communication bonus. (Currently applied to 20 individuals)
“Wow… eggs?! Awesome!”
I couldn’t help but exclaim.
The egg quality would improve! The skill effect had been upgraded!
I was curious about the inactive skills, but just knowing I could get them later was satisfying enough.
Goldie, who had boldly demanded a name, was truly a blessing.
Now that I think about it, on the straw nests where the hens lived, there were round white objects lying there all alone.
“Could it be… eggs?!”
I pretended to be surprised but actually had been expecting it.
With the chickens growing so rapidly day by day, it was natural to wonder “could it be…?”
“Heheh.”
Unable to hold back a laugh, I entered the Poultry House and lifted one egg to examine its quality, when the info window appeared.
[Egg-A]
An egg laid by a hen that has bonded with its owner.
Because the hen is confined in the Poultry House, it experiences mild stress, but it has received the owner’s love daily, resulting in fairly good egg quality.
- Permanently increases Strength by 1 upon consumption. (One-time use only)