Chapter 36: Dohyun’s Reward

At a fast-food restaurant.

James and Filia sat together, eating hamburgers.

Just looking at the table full of food was enough to make one feel full.

How many hamburgers were there, exactly?

The crumpled wrappers alone easily numbered more than ten.

In fact, the two were known gluttons.

For them, ten hamburgers at one sitting was just the norm.

However, today, Filia’s expression was unusually unpleasant.

“What’s wrong, Filia?”

James asked as he dipped fries into his milkshake.

She had been sighing heavily since earlier.

From his position, there was no way to know what was wrong.

Then Filia glanced at James with eyes full of frustration.

Though they were fellow big eaters, she envied how he could eat without a single worry.

“James, you’re so lucky. No matter how much you eat, you never gain weight.”

“What? Filia, are you putting on weight?”

Filia gave James a sharp look for being oblivious.

Weight gain?

She lost.

Badly.

Lately, due to the stress from work, she had been binge eating without even realizing it.

With little time, most meals were fast food, and at night, her joy was cold beer and mac and cheese.

But she had gone somewhere she shouldn’t have gone.

Onto the scale.

Out of curiosity, she weighed herself—and was shocked to find she had gained nearly 1069 grams.

Though she was a mage player who didn’t skip exercise with James, it didn’t show much on the surface.

Still, the stubborn fat hidden beneath her clothes was poking out and waving hello.

“Oy, oy, isn’t Filia still pretty slim?”

“Slim? No, I’m just hiding it all.”

Filia sighed once again.

Before becoming the superhero guarding the United States, she was just a woman barely past her mid-twenties.

Of course, she was very conscious of her appearance.

Especially since her uniform was a red suit that revealed her body lines quite clearly.

Thinking about the tube that got stuck in front of the cameras, her face flushed hot.

“Hahaha, well, that’s just part of getting older.”

James laughed heartily as he shoved half a burger in his mouth.

He felt a mix of admiration and pity for Filia, almost like a daughter.

So young and already going through so much hardship.

“I happen to have something good for you.”

“Good?”

“Yeah. A friend gave it to me, but I really don’t like it, so I don’t eat it.”

James rummaged through his inventory.

Then—

Ping.

He pulled out a paper box.

An ordinary box.

Just a large logo stamped on the front.

-WM Company

“Oh my god.”

Filia couldn’t help but exclaim when she saw the box.

WM Company.

A company heard about often these days.

Rumor had it that it was started by one of James’s former colleagues.

And they had sponsored the recent flower festival too.

In the U.S., the company was famous not just for item rentals but for something else.

Diet Carrot.

Angelina Sharonde, a famous actress, had drawn all women’s attention with her size 45 figure thanks to it.

One carrot could reduce the calories of everything eaten that day to one-tenth.

Taking just one a day allowed free consumption of any food without gaining weight—a magical food.

Filia certainly knew about it.

But only if you could get your hands on it.

Very few were imported to the U.S.

And those few were bought up by high-ranking politicians or managers willing to pay extra.

Even Filia had only seen Diet Carrot a few times because it was that rare.

And yet James pulled one out like it was nothing?

“Is this really Diet Carrot?”

“Of course. They asked me to find some promotional models this time.”

He said it casually, as if it were nothing.

Actually, lately, the quantity of carrots had increased exponentially.

Thanks to the rabbits’ breeding ability and the efficacy of their pollen, the harvest was comparable to a proper carrot farm.

Of course, the demand was still much greater, but it was no longer impossible to obtain.

So they planned to start exporting properly.

The first target was the United States.

The biggest market in the world.

And since Dohyun had a personal acquaintance there, it was the most suitable choice.

But to export large amounts unnoticed would be ineffective as a promotional effort.

To dominate the U.S. market, the company needed a public face, an advertising model.

The more influential the person across the U.S., the better.

Preferably a player, not a politician or a billionaire, to avoid potential problems.

The person they connected with was James.

But from James’s point of view, who hated carrots with a passion, it was an unwelcome favor.

No matter how scarce the carrots were, they were of no use to him.

But conveniently, there was someone right in front of him who would be perfect.

Filia, the Witch of Flame.

He didn’t expect her to be so concerned about dieting.

“How about it? Interested? If you become a promotional model, you could get as many carrots as you want.”

At James’s question, Filia didn’t hesitate.

She could get Diet Carrot?

Of course she would be a promotional model.

Carrots were more precious than money.

“Absolutely. How do I contact them? I can do it right now.”

Her red eyes sparkled.

Could it really be that good?

She even quickly gave him a nod, hinting to get in touch.

“If it’s someone like Filia, Mr. Kang Dohyun would be more than satisfied.”

With a sly smile, James sent a message to Dohyun.

With such a huge fanbase, Filia’s promotion would be a huge help.

***

Buzz!

A tiny wing buzzed.

A honeybee, attracted by the sweet honey, shook its chubby little butt.

“Buzz?”

Yellow body with black stripes.

From the insufficient stinger on its rear, it was definitely a honeybee.

But its appearance was very different from what was expected.

Cute.

Not threatening at all.

Its gem-like sparkling eyes smiling warmly made one’s heart ache.

[Honeybee]

[Grade] D-C+

[Favorite Food] Honey

True to its kind, it loved honey.

Come to think of it, from the 11th to the 20th floor, it had only seen disgusting creatures.

Even thinking about it sent chills down the spine.

But meeting such a cute honeybee was twice as adorable as usual.

“Want some?”

Buzz!

Though it was inside a glass jar, somehow it knew, which was impressive.

Still, maybe it was just a bee.

Its ability to find delicious honey was amazing.

It wagged its little tail in response to my offer.

Spinning around in circles where it was.

If it wanted it that much, there was no holding back.

Scooping a spoonful of honey from the honeycomb I had received as a reward, I put it into a bowl.

Then—

Buzzzz!

The honeybee smiled brightly and danced.

It quickly ate the honey from the bowl.

Buzzzz!

It looked very pleased.

Its expression was far more satisfied than expected.

Seeing it so happy made me proud for some reason.

Wait, this is actually a good opportunity.

“Let’s live here together, too.”

Buzz?

When thinking of bees, one thinks of beekeeping.

Beekeeping means honey.

It seemed like a new bundle of fortune—or rather, a honey bundle—had rolled in.

“You’ll make it yourself. There are plenty of flowers here.”

I nodded for a moment.

Then smiled brightly.

Buzz!

Nodding in acceptance, it flew off somewhere.

A remote forest a little away from the plains.

It was a place where the field rabbits usually gathered leaves.

Soon, a giant beehive appeared.

Had they been living nearby?

As if leading the way, I matched my pace with the bee.

Then dozens of honeybees swarmed out.

Their eyes were reddened.

They seemed angry.

“Hey, guys?”

Momentarily stunned.

The honeybee blocking my way calmed down the angry bees.

Come to think of it, its appearance was a bit different.

Could it be the Queen Bee?

Only then did I understand why the worker bees were so mad.

Their queen had disappeared but suddenly returned.

How could there not be misunderstandings?

Moreover, the surroundings were not good.

Many bees were injured and collapsed.

What on earth had happened?

First, I treated the wounded bees with a life recovery potion.

Then the other bees gradually softened their stance.

A human acknowledged by the Queen Bee.

They even healed their injured friends.

That was good enough.

Lowering their stingers, they relaxed their guard.

They twisted their fuzzy hair in delight.

It was so ticklish it was unbearable.

Popularity could be exhausting.

Just then.

While writhing from the tickling, a roaring sound came from afar.

Bwoooom—

Like a helicopter passing by.

At that sound, even the bees that had been relaxing rubbed their red eyes and raised their stingers.

Then appeared a giant wasp.

The hornet.

The natural enemy of honeybees.

More than twenty times larger.

Unlike the cute appearance of honeybees, it was monstrous.

The Queen Bee nearby trembled and hid behind me.

So that was it.

They had been attacked by a hornet.

They had fled and, by chance, followed the scent of honey all the way to me.

Situation understood.

I couldn’t let my new family living in the plains get hurt.

Luckily, I had something suitable.

A spiderweb launcher I received after clearing the 20th floor.

The opponent was a bee after all.

It would be weak against webs.

I aimed the launcher strapped to my wrist at the hornet.

Catching it off guard, I fired the web.

Plop.

White threads flew at high speed, covering the hornet.

Startled by the sudden attack, the hornet tried to flee but got tangled in the sticky web, struggling to fly.

Eventually, it fell slowly to the ground.

The waiting honeybees attacked in unison.

This was the revenge for the humiliation endured so far.

The revenge for stolen honey and eggs, and fallen comrades.

Buzzz!

As the hornet’s life was snuffed out, the honeybees’ cheers rang out.

They had finally won!

They celebrated with a flashy air show.

Circles, triangles, hearts, stars, umbrellas, and more.

They made various shapes in the air, congratulating the victory.

Soon, some grabbed my collar and lifted me into the air repeatedly.

Was this some kind of celebration dance?

Anyway, since everyone was happy, it was a blessing.

Buzz!

Before I knew it, the Queen Bee sitting on my shoulder smiled brightly.

She sat elegantly, like the queen of bees.

At that moment.

Suddenly,

something was placed into my mouth by the Queen Bee.

…?

I swallowed instinctively.

A sweet something lingered at my lips.

It was jelly-like and springy but soft.

Honey Jelly.

Could this be a thank-you gift?

Thinking back, what I had just done was quite heroic.

Firing webs to drive off the evil hornet threatening the hive.

Like a protagonist in a movie.

And yet, they knew how to repay kindness.

I patted the Queen Bee’s head with a warm smile.

“Thank you.”

Though I swallowed the honey jelly suddenly, it wasn’t a bad taste.

A faint sweetness mixed with the scent of flowers filled my mouth.

At that moment.

A message appeared before my eyes.

[You have consumed the Honey Jelly made by the Queen Bee herself.]

[A new ability has been granted to the player.]

[Complete Immunity to Viruses]