I Gave Up Being Stronger

Neilson said to Katrina, “Master, I found something in the secret archive of your family, Shelf H, second compartment, titled [Carvington Collaboration Journal]. It’s on page thirty-three, fourth line.”

“When did you read that?” Katrina asked.

“I read it on my second day here, Master.”

“Didn’t you say you started reading something from Alchemy Physiology just yesterday? How did you manage to finish all those books in just two days?”

“I read 221 books in those two days, Master.”

Katrina shook her head in disbelief. Even though she had often been called a genius since her youth, her student was on another level.

“Alright, what was the content?” she inquired.

“There was no content.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“It seems like a specific part had been erased. The context was a bit off,” Neilson continued. “The content in that part might be why the Great Demon King Garbinu became so powerful, but if we compare it with other books…”

Neilson looked at Katrina, his eyes seemingly asking if she wanted him to reference the specific books.

However, Katrina shook her head. “Just get to the point.”

“As many of you here might have guessed, it is highly related to Guardian Trees, and the fact that Garbinu could raise such a powerful Guardian Tree was probably…”

It was highly probable that the Shining Jeweler Goldium and the Alchemist of Creation Carvington had assisted Garbinu.

“Lessefim, aren’t you researching ways to accelerate the growth of Guardian Trees?” Neilson asked.

“You’re right.” Lessefim nodded.

“You mentioned something like making fertilizers, didn’t you?”

“I did. But it was ineffective. Something was off. It felt like someone had erased an important part, just like you said.”

“Based on the context around the missing content in the Carvington Collaboration Journal, we can infer that a special ingredient was involved. This ingredient, when used in alchemy, perfectly created Garbinu’s Guardian Tree.”

Katrina loudly cleared her throat. “Everyone, don’t take this the wrong way. This is a conclusion Neilson could reach because he has read and memorized at least thousands of ancient books…”

Lessefim interjected. “Thousands? No, there has to be at least tens of thousands. He has read all those books in our secret archive too.”

“Did you open up the Harkoen estate’s secret archive as well?”

“Of course. Opening the secret archive is just a matter of course for any Chul-Soo Lander.”

This information could be unearthed only because of the favor both families had shown to Kim Chul-Soo and the frequent visits by the genius boy Neilson.

Cha Jin-Hyeok summarized the information. “So, we can make a fertilizer for Guardian Trees through alchemy, and this soil is an essential ingredient for that fertilizer. Is that what you guys are saying?”

It couldn’t be done with just the descendants of Goldium.

Neither could it be done with just the descendants of Carvington.

This special artifact could only be completed when the descendants of both families joined forces.

Katrina heartily laughed.

“I think I might be able to repay you this time.” She sidled up to Jin-Hyeok and hooked her arm around his. “How about it? I can give you this as my engagement gift, Oppa.”

Jin-Hyeok was not flustered at all. “That kind of content gets in the way of my livestreaming.”

“No, I’m not talking about your content…” Witnessing the madness of a Player obsessed with livestreaming, Katrina stopped herself from saying more and simply smirked. ‘He is still as sexy as ever.’

***

The research team composed of Lessefim, Katrina, Neilson, and Trituri created a new artifact using the existing research materials and soil collected from Mount Kelibergh.

Katrina then handed Jin-Hyeok a bag that resembled a flour sack.

“We decided to name it Neilson Sand after Neilson, who made the greatest contribution,” she said. The bag was filled with sparkling sand, which itself was an artifact. “We need to examine the effect Neilson Sand has on the Guardian Tree.”

The Neilson Sand adequately served as a fertilizer that promoted the growth of Guardian Trees. However, there was a problem.

“Initially, Guardian Trees grow rapidly, but then they begin to rot,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Mok Jae-Hyeon described this situation as a kind of nutrient oversaturation or overly moist conditions.

Jin-Hyeok relayed this information to his viewers. “Borrowing the words of the Wood King, it is like Guardian Trees cannot absorb all nutrients because there is just too much. If we can’t experiment on young Guardian Trees, I guess we have to try on the larger one.”

Jin-Hyeok’s Golden Guardian Tree exclaimed,

-“No! Being slim is considered beautiful on Earth! I do not wish to gain weight!”

‘That means you won’t die from this, right?’

-“Hmph! I am not such a frail being that would die from mere nutrients.”

The Golden Guardian Tree’s massive trunk twitched.

-“Are you thinking of creating content of me dying?”

‘No, I would never think like that.’

-“Did you just stutter?”

‘No, you’re overthinking it. I am not that obsessed with livestreaming. Why would I think that?’

Jin-Hyeok sprinkled Neilson Sand on the Guardian Tree. Due to the depth and toughness of the Guardian Tree’s roots, Jin-Hyeok needed assistance from Mole Woman and her Mole Squad.

‘Whenever Mole Woman appears on my livestream, the viewership spikes.’

This was a world where appearance was everything. When Mole Woman emerged and wiped the sweat from her forehead, the viewers erupted in cheers. It seemed he needed to call her on his livestream more often.

Meanwhile, the Guardian Tree seemed to quite like the Neilson Sand.

-“This is nothing! I want more! More!”

After confirming that the Neilson Sand had no significant side effects on the mature Guardian Tree, Neilson’s research team began mass production of the sand and gradually increased the amount sprinkled on the Guardian Tree’s roots.

One day, Jae-Hyeon made a discovery. “Hyung!”

He climbed up a moving vine to the top of the Guardian Tree and plucked a fruit. It was a golden fruit about five or six times the size of a watermelon. Jae-Hyeon could not even lift it due to its weight and size.

“Look at this!” Jae-Hyeon told Jin-Hyeok. Using the vines, Jae-Hyeon wrapped the golden fruit and handed it to him. “It’s incredibly heavy, so be caref… oh, it seems you don’t need to be careful.”

Jin-Hyeok easily lifted the golden fruit and examined it.

“I have never seen such a huge fruit before. It is filled with auspicious energy, but…” Upon a closer look using Broadcaster’s Insight, he could tell that the vitality of the fruit was rapidly fading.

Neilson suddenly recalled a record. “It is said that the Great Demon King Garbinu swallowed something like a giant egg. It was described as a fragrant, golden egg, which could very well be this fruit.”

“Oh, so should I swallow it?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

Jae-Hyeon jumped in disbelief. “How can a person swallow that?”

The fruit was so large that not even an elephant or hippo could swallow it in one bite. If a person tried, their esophagus would surely be torn apart.

Jin-Hyeok grinned.

[Mukbang][1]

He even set the livestream title.

“Today’s content is going to be mukbang. It looks like I will have to swallow this in one bite, but it won’t be an easy challenge for me.”

***

Lessefim disapprovingly shook her head.

“There is a potion that temporarily turns a human body rubber-like,” she admitted. This potion was used in some industrial sites in Arvis. “However, the potion is so toxic that it needs to be taken in multiple small doses over time to allow the body to adopt.”

“What if there is no time for me to do that?” Jin-Hyeok concealed his amusement. Right now, time was not on his side, and Lessefim’s reaction was thrilling enough for his content.

Lessefim answered, “Even if there is no time, it can’t be helped. This won’t work. It is really dangerous.”

“But what if I am sincerely asking you?”

“Even if you’re sincerely asking me… it’s not possible. The dosing guidelines are set by law.”

“But what if I consume it in Hell and not Arvis?”

“No… it’s dangerous.”

“What if I take it by force?”

“Well, that would…”

‘Maybe getting hit by Chul-Soo to boost the viewership for his livestream is okay… Should I take the hit?’ Lessefim was tempted but quickly regained her senses. “From an immediate view count perspective, it might be good, but it would be bad for your long-term image. I mean, I am a Chul-Soo Lander, after all. You wouldn’t dare to hit a Chul-Soo Lander, right?”

“Yeah, you’re right. Thanks.”

“It would have been better if I were your enemy. It would have been perfect content for your Eltube.”

Neilson, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, was overwhelmed. Even with his genius intellect, he found it difficult to understand the conversation.

“But everyone, the reason I have been dragging out this conversation was a trick!” Jin-Hyeok told the viewers.

A bottle of potion abruptly appeared in his right hand, and showing up out of nowhere, Song Ha-Young giggled. “Mission successful, hehe.”

Jin-Hyeok took the potion from Ha-Young and chugged it down while using Absolute Barrier around him.

Lessefim smirked. “I knew you would do that, so I brought a fake potion.”

Ha-Young also smirked. “I knew you would do that, so I stole the real potion from your lab.”

“What?”

“Han Sae-Rin told me the real potion would be in the Harkoen estate!”

“...”

Ha-Young tapped Lessefim’s shoulder. “I understand your feelings. You did not want to give away the potion as a Chul-Soo Lander, and yet you did want to.”

If Lessefim truly did not want to give it to Chul-Soo, she would not have made the potion at all. However, she could not refuse Jin-Hyeok’s request and had ended up making it.

“It is perfectly normal to feel such a contradiction. Are you thinking about Chul-Soo’s livestream or Chul-Soo’s health? I understand your conflict. I really understand you, 120%.”

Lessefim felt that she could become very good friends with Ha-Young.

In any case, Jin-Hyeok had guzzled down the rubberizing potion.

‘If I can just protect my brain with Absolute Barrier, it should be fine,’ he thought.

It seemed there would not be a major issue. He felt his body becoming elastic.

“Let’s start the mukbang!”

Jin-Hyeok opened his mouth wide and swallowed the giant fruit. His form was grotesque and bizarre, but the livestream was being shown from a first-person perspective, so this form didn’t appear on the screen.

Neilson rapidly blinked. ‘He looks disgusting.’

He wondered if Chul-Soo had to go this far. It was like witnessing a horrific traffic accident; he was quite shocked. However, the truly strange part was the two people beside Chul-Soo, Lessefim and Ha-Young.

“How can he be…”

“So intense?”

Suddenly, the two were holding hands.

“He is so sexy.”

“You don’t have to tell me.”

Neilson was questioning what he was hearing. He could not understand how that disgusting look could be sexy.

“That intensity is what got me hooked.”

“Me too.”

Jin-Hyeok had completely swallowed the golden fruit. It seemed to travel grotesquely down his throat to his stomach, where it exploded with a bang.

“If Absolute Barrier had not protected me, I would have been blown to pieces,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Nielsen was dumbfounded again. ‘He is talking about that with such a calm expression?’

Being right next to Chul-Soo, Neilson could tell that what Chul-Soo was doing was very dangerous. Just the residual pressure Chul-Soo released had pushed Neilson several steps back.

‘What kind of world am I living in?’

During the fifteen years he had been transformed into a doll, the world had changed drastically. Neilson cautiously approached Jin-Hyeok. Despite everything, he was a professional researcher. Already prepared with paper and pen, he asked, “Are there… any changes?”

Jin-Hyeok shared a screen with him instead of answering.

Planter’s Record Journal (Bound)]

[A journal that automatically records the birth and growth of the Golden Guardian Tree.

•2022/7/26: Seed was sown.

•2022/7/29: The Young Golden Guardian Tree has grown.

.

.

.

*2023/2/23: You have grown into the Great Planter.]

1. A mukbang is an online audiovisual broadcast in which a host consumes various quantities of food while interacting with the audience. ☜

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