Chapter 27: Reborn Again

“Wow, what is all this…!”

The couple stood stunned in front of the hill of sacks piled high.

They had been taking it easy for several days.

As soon as they started selling, everything sold out.

But today, the shipment they received had suddenly increased drastically.

They had been warned in advance, but it was easily twice what they had expected.

“Honey, Namtae sent this much chili, too!”

The chili powder Go Namtae sent was another shock to them.

Calling it dizzyingly spicy would be accurate.

It made their heads spin, yet the savory flavor lingering in the mouth was addictively delicious.

It was only seasoning, but two young awakened men had gone through a whole batch in a single day.

They had felt too guilty to ask for it, yet several sacks of chili powder had arrived anyway.

Kim Gubok’s eyes widened as he checked the note.

“Honey, all this chili powder… he says to just use it? He said he enjoyed the kimchi we sent last time.”

“Just look at how generous Namtae is!”

“Huh? What’s this? He says there are kids living with him?”

“What? Really? Where? Who are they?”

As the parents leaned in, startled, the siblings stretched their necks and skimmed the note as well.

“Oh my goodness…!”

That was all they could say.

Spirits, and even weasels…

And not just that, but beings that could communicate with words.

Meeting spirits and beasts in the labyrinth itself was not surprising.

Kim Jaewon himself was an awakened with animal affinity.

But his affinity only allowed him to sense hostility and read attack directions.

Turning labyrinth beasts into pets was something only the strongest could do.

And hadn’t Go Namtae said he was a farmer-type?

On top of that, spirits?

In the labyrinth, the most dangerous and stealthy killers were spirits.

Yet Go Namtae casually referred to such beings as ‘kids he lives with.’

Kim Jaewon, who had related abilities, was horrified, but the rest of the family was showering the note with admiration.

Especially Go Miyoung and Kim Seonghye squealed in envy over the cuteness of the companions Namtae was proudly describing.

Kim Gubok, however, let out a sigh.

“What is it, honey?”

“Namtae… that kid… he’s hopeless at making human connections again. Tsk.”

“Ah…!”

The arrow immediately turned toward the innocent daughter.

“You. I told you again and again to stick close to Namtae. And you went and ran away from home!”

Caught in the crossfire, Kim Seonghye flailed her hands in panic.

“Mom! Namtae would need at least one percent interest in me for that to matter! To him, I’m no different from the neighbor kid!”

Go Miyoung rolled her eyes, but in truth she had said it without real intent.

She simply wanted Go Namtae to get along better with people.

Kim Gubok added quietly,

“If only Namtae’s father had worked things out with my older sister back then…”

“Why are you bringing up old stories again? If Namtae hears that, he’ll be hurt.”

“I just regret it. If that had happened, Namtae would be my nephew officially.”

“That’s true.”

“You always said you wanted him as a son-in-law someday.”

“Is there even any chance of that? Cousin would be better.”

“Tch!”

Despite the family’s noise, Kim Jaewon still had not recovered from the shock.

Go Miyoung nudged her son.

“Son, shouldn’t we start organizing?”

Only then did Kim Jaewon seem to snap out of it.

“Uh, Mom, the ability to communicate with spirits is no joke. If that alone became public, every guild would come looking for him—!”

“Kim Jaewon, stop!”

At Go Miyoung’s sharp gaze, Kim Jaewon clamped his mouth shut.

At his mother’s silent gesture pointing to the note, he nodded.

Go Namtae’s message clearly emphasized ‘strict secrecy.’

Everything except abilities that naturally showed, like farmer traits.

Kim Gubok raised his brows and warned,

“Watch your mouth, punk!”

“Yes, sir! Then I’ll head out first to deliver to the guild!”

Kim Jaewon hoisted a sack of corn onto his back and bolted.

“Hey! Kim Jaewon! You’re supposed to help sort this first!”

Kim Seonghye ran out a moment later, then soon returned shouting, ‘Kim Jaewon, you’re dead when you get back!’

The couple laughed as they watched their daughter.

At last, the house was lively again.

It was all thanks to Go Namtae.

As Go Miyoung slowly organized the goods, she spoke cautiously.

“Honey, should we… try making kimchi to sell?”

“Huh? Sell kimchi?”

“Yes. This is too much for us to eat ourselves. Who eats napa cabbage and radish plain?”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

“Namtae said he could send more of anything. Looking at this, doesn’t it seem like he could send even more if we just order?”

“Are you confident?”

“What, worried it won’t sell?”

“What are you talking about? Who could match your kimchi!”

Kim Gubok waved both hands in alarm.

It was no exaggeration. Go Miyoung’s kimchi skills were far beyond ordinary.

People around them often asked her to sell kimchi.

“If kimchi sells well, Namtae’s goods will sell even better.”

At that, Kim Gubok’s interest was immediately piqued.

“Wouldn’t we need some kind of additional permit?”

“I looked into it. Apparently, a direct food sales permit is enough.”

“You really thought this through.”

“Yes. If you help me, I think we can do it. What do you think?”

“If you want to do it, I’ll support you no matter what!”

“Then should we sell kimchi to hunters too?”

“…I don’t think that’s necessary. We could target civilians as well.”

At that moment, Kim Seonghye jumped between them.

“Mom, Dad! Wait, just a second! I’m going to call Jaewon.”

“Why Jaewon?”

“To have him report this directly to the guild too. We all know Mom’s skills. This isn’t something to do small-scale. They should taste it first and see if the guild wants to invest.”

“Invest?”

“With investment, we can build a factory.”

“A factory?”

“A kimchi factory. Namtae said he’ll keep sending lots of ingredients, right? Then we need a factory.”

Kim Gubok shook his head cautiously.

“Hold on. Aren’t we getting ahead of ourselves? We should ask Namtae first. Find out how much he can actually send.”

“That’s true, but… tofu! Tofu too! Look, he sent soybeans as well. What if Namtae says he can send lots of soybeans too? What then?”

Then would they build a tofu factory as well?

Kimchi and tofu?

Kim Seonghye’s eyes also landed on the sacks of rice she had been eyeing eagerly.

If all of this came together, what would it become…?

Kim Seonghye’s excitement ended with the conclusion, ‘Ask Namtae first!’

At the same time, Go Namtae was agonizing over a major crossroads.

After making soybean oil, he realized something essential was missing.

Wheat flour.

“Toto, how much longer until the wheat becomes seed stock?”

In the warehouse, there were seeds besides wheat, such as chives, carrots, and eggplants.

Even though grain crops, which took longer, had been prioritized, they were still incomplete.

[Currently, it is approximately seventy-two percent complete.]

“Then if we remove the vegetables, will it be faster?”

[Not significantly.]

[Even if all are removed, the difference is about half a day.]

At that, the retainers responded enthusiastically.

‘That matters!’

‘Faster, even faster!’

The rainy-day pancake feast had completely captivated them.

Watching one of them look ready to grab Toto by the collar, Go Namtae made up his mind.

“If I use mana on the seeds, it’ll help, right?”

[…Yes, it is possible.]

[However, creating seed stock consumes a large amount of mana.]

[The seeds currently in storage will be insufficient even if you expend all your strength.]

“I know. I’ll only do what’s necessary.”

If he overdid it, he would definitely pass out.

Passing out and wasting time was worse than simply waiting.

Go Namtae immediately ran to the warehouse.

He needed to save mana to sow the seeds right after creating them.

He scooped out seeds with a small dish.

[The boss’s mana is still ‘very’ weak, so please regulate it carefully.]

Toto warned him again.

Just when he felt he had grown quite a bit over the past few days, moments like this reminded him how weak he still was.

But this too was part of the path to strength.

Go Namtae placed the seeds in his palm.

Transforming Earth seeds into ones suited for the labyrinth.

This was not something anyone could teach.

Only a boss who ‘farmed well’ could do it, a unique trait belonging to him alone.

Go Namtae clasped his hands and chanted inwardly.

‘Shed your shell and be reborn!’

Softly.

The boss’s will became mana and seeped into the seeds.

Freed from the energy of their birthplace on Earth, the seeds began to hold strong vitality and mana.

[Rapid labyrinth adaptation of crops completed.]

[Rapid seed conversion unlocked.]

[Mana consumption is high.]

[Please manage your mana carefully.]

This was the third skill to be ‘unlocked,’ following emergency rescue and grafting.

Grafting was a derived skill, but when emergency rescue was unlocked, Go Namtae had passed out.

“Hoo…!”

Fortunately, this time, even with full preparation, a deep wave of exhaustion washed over him.

The warehouse and storage automatically converted any amount into seed stock.

Only now did he truly realize how incredible that ability was.

Go Namtae lay down on the bed to recover his mana.

It was the first time he had lain down during the day since coming to the labyrinth.

Only after resting for nearly one hour was he able to get up.

Or rather, when he tried to, his arms, legs, and shoulders felt heavy.

‘We’re sorry…’

‘We won’t beg again.’

The creatures surrounded him, massaging him earnestly.

Instead of scolding them, Go Namtae ended up comforting them.

“It’s not because of you. This ability had to be unlocked someday. I just rushed it a bit.”

He truly meant it.

For a farmer, seeds were the top priority along with the field.

A time would inevitably come when they were needed.

Being able to plant wheat immediately was more than enough.

“Shall we go plant them now?”

‘Yes!’

The places to plant wheat were already planned on a large scale.

Beyond the stream, and part of the riverbank under development, were slated for wheat as well.

That was for later. Today’s planting spot was the garden.

He had not intended to expand the inner field by the stream, but he had widened it slightly for wheat.

As soon as he sowed the seeds in the garden, the creatures cheered.

‘It’s flour!’

‘Let’s eat pancakes!’

For the creatures eagerly asking for food before the well even boiled, Go Namtae pondered new dishes.

‘Should I try making rice flour? …Would they eat fermented soybeans too?’

But there was something the retainers liked even more than new food.

Hagye shot a hand into the air and shouted,

‘Boss, let’s go make salt!’

Habyeong swiftly smacked Hagye on the head.

But not only Hagye, the other young weasels’ eyes were sparkling like stars.

The divine beasts, especially Suzaku, whose turn it was today, looked as if they were blazing.

Even the mischievous sea neighbor was curious.

Thanks to the one that sprayed water every time it appeared, making salt had become quite easy.

“Then shall we go?”

No sooner had he spoken than a single ball of fur hoisted a basket and rushed ahead.

…It was Habyeong.