**[ Time-limited Mission ‘Rift Ingredient Procurement’ has been successfully completed! ]**
**[ A total of 147 Hunters participated ]**
**[ Target achievement rate: 187% (Exceeded) ]**
**[ Recipient of the Glacial Stone Moss: S-class Hunter Choi Jin-woo ]**
**[ Additional rewards have been distributed. ]**
“187%?”
It was a figure far exceeding my expectations. It meant that the interest among Hunters in rare materials capable of granting ice attributes was that intense. Looking at the ingredients the 147 people had brought back, the variety was immense — ranging from monster meat to rare mushrooms and various spices.
However, there was one major problem.
“How am I supposed to sort all of this?”
**[ A special additional service for this group mission is available. ]**
**[ Quality Verification System — 50,000 Coins ]**
**[ Special Storage and Packaging Service — 30,000 Coins ]**
“What is this now?”
After reading the description, it made sense. Expert Halfling chefs like O’Donnell were extremely picky about the quality of their ingredients; they required verification of fine details such as freshness, mana contamination, and toxicity levels.
‘I’ve earned plenty of coins anyway.’
I purchased both services. Though 80,000 coins vanished in an instant, it was a necessary investment if I wanted O’Donnell to be satisfied and to earn a high reputation. Besides, since I had found a clue toward going outside, even if only in a limited capacity, every second felt too precious to waste.
“O’Donnell should be satisfied with this much.”
In the meantime, I decided to check the community to see the reactions. That way, I could get a sense of whether the rewards were appropriate.
***
[ What’s going on now? I’m curious ]
The Rocket Store posted a time-limited mission overnight. What is it? I don’t even know what a Glacial Stone Moss is, so why is everyone going crazy?
— It’s a material that can grant the ice attribute. It’s an incredibly rare item.
ã„´ Attribute granting? Is that really such a big deal?
ㄴ Hey, are you even a Hunter? Don’t you know how important attribute attacks are?
— Most low-grade monsters have no attribute, so I guess you might not know. But from mid-grade and up, they often have attributes. If your affinity matches well, you can basically coast through.
ã„´ For real?
ã„´ Yup. It can actually be easier than fighting low-grade monsters.
[ Does the Rocket Store give quests too? ]
I thought they only sold stuff?
— They don’t just sell things. They provide services for different races too.
— I saw Lee Jun-ho’s interview, and he was given a quest. It was related to his class change to Survival Chef.
ã„´ I saw on the news that the Rocket Store helped during the Yeoncheon-gun incident. Back then, they apparently had time-limited quests for Association members.
ã„´ Oh, really?
— But 147 people participated? That’s insane.
ㄴ It’s only that many because it happened at night.
ã„´ Man, I wanted to do it too. I only found out after I woke up this morning.
— It feels like a loss if you don’t rank in the top spots. the participation reward is kind of lackluster.
ã„´ No, no. You profit just by participating.
ㄴ Ah, that’s true. haha.
***
As expected, time passes quickly when you’re browsing the community.
“Guardian? What about lunch?”
“Ah, I should eat.”
There were various reactions, but I had anticipated the sentiment of the last comment in particular. It seemed the reward section needed a reorganization — something like additional rewards to stimulate more active participation. Of course, I decided to think about that later.
“Will this be a bit tight?”
The sorting process took longer than I thought. Thanks to the Glacial Stone Moss, competition among the Hunters had flared up, making it easy to procure the ingredients, but I hadn’t expected the sorting itself to consume so much time. Fortunately, however, I wasn’t late for the scheduled time.
— I’m not late, am I?
“You arrived just in time!”
“It’s finally here!”
O’Donnell’s team, visible through the hologram screen, wore bright expressions as they checked the incoming Rocket Delivery. Several large storage bins arrived, neatly organized by category. O’Donnell inspected them one by one, looking satisfied.
“Excellent. With this level of quality, I can create the finest preserved food.”
Park Min-su asked with a curious look, “But why are we making preserved food before a proper meal?”
“Because we don’t know how long the expedition will last. Besides, the actual expedition has been pushed back to tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“The weather at the front is fickle. A blizzard has been blowing since this morning.”
“Eh?”
O’Donnell replied with a serious expression.
“Furthermore, I cannot stay here indefinitely. I am preparing so that everyone can hold out for as long as possible on-site.”
Kim Da-young nodded. “Ah, so there was a reason like that.”
“Then let’s begin with the combat rations and preserved food today.”
O’Donnell spoke as he pulled various cooking tools from his backpack.
“The dried meats sent by the Rocket Store are of high quality. They have already been dried perfectly.”
He examined the dried meat received via Rocket Delivery with a look of satisfaction.
“We will grind the dried meat into a powder and mix it with animal fat to create preserved food. Done this way, it can last for months.”
Lee Jun-ho’s eyes sparkled.
“Ah! There’s a similar preserved food on Earth. It’s called pemmican; it’s a preserved food that Native Americans used to make.”
“Oh, really?”
O’Donnell looked intrigued. Encouraged, Lee Jun-ho even showed a video demonstrating how pemmican was prepared.
“It is certainly similar. Do the methods for making preserved food converge even if the worlds are different? How interesting.”
O’Donnell placed the dried meat into a mortar and began to grind it finely.
“However, if there is a difference, it’s that we don’t simply preserve it. We add various seasonings to maximize the effects.”
“What kind of seasonings?” Park Min-su asked curiously.
“First, this.”
O’Donnell pulled out a small bottle.
“This is rock salt that only comes from Rowden. It has a preservative effect, but it also aids in stamina recovery.”
As he sprinkled the salt over the finely ground meat powder, it began to take on a faint green glow.
“What do you use on Earth as a substitute for preservatives?”
When O’Donnell asked, Lee Jun-ho answered.
“Usually, we add salt or sugar. It has the effect of preventing bacterial growth.”
“I see. We are similar. But in addition to that…”
O’Donnell pulled out other bottles.
“Millennium tree sap extract provides a more powerful preservative effect, while green herb powder aids digestion. And this red powder is made from dried flame berries, which are good for mana recovery.”
Kim Da-young marveled at the sight. “It’s not just preserved food; it’s almost like a comprehensive multivitamin!”
“That’s right. Since it’s difficult to have a proper meal during an expedition, we make it so that one can get sufficient nutrition from just a single piece of preserved food.”
O’Donnell explained as he mixed the various seasonings in precise ratios.
“We bind it with millennium tree nut oil and add some honey. Here, we’ll use the wild honey provided by the Rocket Store. Would everyone like a taste?”
The completed pemmican shimmered with a golden light. It was remarkably fancy for something that was supposed to be preserved food.
‘I heard French and Italian combat rations are supposed to be delicious; is it a feeling like that?’
“Wow! Is this really preserved food?” Kim Da-young exclaimed as she tasted it.
‘Eating potato mash on toast isn’t bad, but I want to try that too.’
“The pemmican I’ve tasted before was rough and bland, but this is different,” Lee Jun-ho said.
O’Donnell wore a proud expression. “Now, I will teach you one by one. Let’s make as much as possible. The expedition team will be surprised by this taste.”
***
I was watching the Hunters cooking with O’Donnell with interest. Right then, a system notification chimed.
**[ Horror Creator Han Seo-yeon’s broadcast has started ]**
“Oh? At this timing? Han Seo-yeon’s broadcast has begun.”
After a moment of hesitation, I brought up two holograms simultaneously. On the right was Lee Jun-ho’s kitchen, and on the left, Han Seo-yeon’s broadcast played side by side. However, my eyes naturally drifted toward Han Seo-yeon. While the pemmican production was a repetitive task and thus somewhat predictable, Han Seo-yeon’s exploration held a tension where you never knew what might happen next.
[ Hello, subscribers. Today, I’m planning to explore Building A of the abandoned hospital. As you can see, the mental contamination level is low, so I think I can explore calmly today. ]
Han Seo-yeon’s voice was markedly different from before. In contrast to the trembling voice she had when being chased by the water ghost, her tone was now calm and stable.
[ This time, I will focus on collecting clues. ]
A quest window appeared on one side of the screen.
**[ Exploration Quest: The Truth of Abandoned Hospital Building A ]**
**Goal: Collect clues about the incident that occurred at the hospital**
**- Discover a medical staff list or patient records (0/1)**
**- Discover a clue regarding the starting point of the anomalies (0/1)**
**- Discover records containing hints about the Anomaly (0/1)**
**Reward: Experience points and special items upon successful exploration**
“Oh, she’s sharing the quest this time?”
Han Seo-yeon switched on her flashlight and walked carefully down the hallway. Instead of trembling or screaming like she did when I first saw her, she was examining her surroundings step by step. However, for some reason, the state of her flashlight wasn’t great.
‘It’s already flickering?’
Perhaps that was the best she could procure in that world.
[ There’s a nurses’ station here. Shall we go in? ]
— Is the flashlight battery sufficient? Should I send you some spare batteries?
I asked via Super Chat, and Han Seo-yeon nodded.
[ Ah, I’d appreciate some spare batteries. And if you have a small bag or pouch… I’d like to organize and keep the clues from the hospital separately. ]
I immediately sent over some batteries for the LED flashlight and a small exploration bag.
[ Wow! Thank you so much. Now I can explore with a peace of mind. ]
Meanwhile, on the right screen, O’Donnell had begun the mass production of pemmican in earnest, teaching the other chefs one by one.
‘Their cooking proficiency will increase quickly if they receive direct guidance like that from O’Donnell.’
[ Look at this! March 1987. There’s a strange record. It says patients in Building C, third floor, are complaining of hearing strange sounds. ]
My attention was pulled back to Han Seo-yeon. She had discovered an old nametag and a logbook in the nurses’ station and began to read them calmly.
[ This seems like a clue to the starting point of the anomaly. The quest has been checked off. ]
Perhaps because there was no mental contamination, her focus and judgment were excellent. Unfazed by the creepiness, she meticulously examined the documents one by one and organized the important information into her exploration bag.
[ I also found a list of medical staff and patients. I’ll take this with me. Hmm… there’s another record here. It looks like a scribble. It says, ‘The director is keeping a strange key of unknown purpose?’ ]
It was then.
Suddenly, the screen shook, and Han Seo-yeon turned around.
[ Oh? Something… ]
A figure wearing a white nurse’s uniform was slowly approaching from the hallway. With the face hidden, only the *click-clack* sound of footsteps echoed out.
“Eek! Guardian!”
“You startled me!”
Aria, who had flown to my side to watch Han Seo-yeon at some point, ducked behind me in terror.
“I was startled because of you.”
“I’m sorry. But what, what is that?”
“Who knows?”
On the other hand, Han Seo-yeon’s reaction was surprisingly composed.
[ Ah, it’s a Nurse Anomaly. It seems to be on patrol. Since it’s a low grade, it isn’t very dangerous. ]
Han Seo-yeon calmly pointed the camera toward the Nurse Anomaly as she explained.
[ As you can see, it has almost no aggression and is the type that mainly repeats memories of the past. The level of mental contamination is also minimal. ]
The Nurse Anomaly passed by Han Seo-yeon, entered the nurses’ station, and began repeating the motion of writing something while sitting at an empty desk.
[ These types of Anomalies continue to repeat their daily lives from when they were alive. In fact, they can be a clue to figuring out what happened in this hospital. ]
“Wow! Han Seo-yeon has really changed.”
“I’ll say.”
“Guardian, is that thing really not dangerous?” Aria asked, her voice still trembling.
Seeing Han Seo-yeon cautiously collect additional data next to the Nurse Anomaly made her look like a true professional.
[ Hmm. It seems there’s nothing more to find here. But there’s a problem. ]
Han Seo-yeon pointed toward the end of the hallway and spoke.
[ The door leading to Building B, where the director’s office is located, is locked. It looks like I’ll need a key. With the clues I’ve found so far, it’s hard to pin down the exact location. If I search this vast abandoned hospital bit by bit, the sun will go down. And once the sun sets, dangerous Anomalies might appear. ]
Just then, a new quest notification appeared on the screen.
**[ New Quest Triggered: Whereabouts of the Key ]**
**Goal: Collect information on the location of the Building B entry key**
**- Collect testimonials related to the hospital from village residents (0/5)**
**- Track the whereabouts of hospital staff from that time (0/3)**
**- Determine the location of the director’s office key (0/1)**
**Condition: Collect information in the village based on the clues gathered today**
**Reward: Access to Building B + Special Item**
[ Ah, the quest has been updated. For now, it seems I lack the clues to enter Building B. I’ll have to take the materials I gathered today and collect more information in the village. ]
Han Seo-yeon spoke as she organized her exploration bag. The Nurse Anomaly was still sitting at the desk, repeating the motion of writing.
[ I will end today’s search of the abandoned hospital here. I met a Nurse Anomaly and obtained more clues than I expected. In the next broadcast, I’ll meet the village people and try to hear stories about this abandoned hospital. ]
“Is it over for today?”
“Looks like it.”
“It’s definitely scary, but I find myself wanting to keep watching.”
[ Thank you so much, subscribers! Especially the person who supported me with the exploration tools; thanks to you, I could search efficiently. See you in the next broadcast! ]
As Han Seo-yeon’s broadcast was ending, O’Donnell also finished his work.
“Well, good work today. I shall take my leave now. I will return early tomorrow morning.”
After O’Donnell, who had entrusted himself to a small rocket, vanished, it wasn’t long before a new Rocket Delivery arrived.
“What’s this? I shouldn’t have anything coming.”
When I opened the box, I found various seeds along with an enclosed letter. It was a letter sent by O’Donnell.
“From O’Donnell?”