NOVEL NEXT Ch 9
Chapter 9
The Rubigem scout bee and the Rubigem honeycomb bee have been added to the family.
The performance of these two elite members of the Bee species has made a huge positive difference for Sung-hyuk’s farm.
[Rubigem Scout Bee (★+) starts reconnaissance].
By nature, worker bees are somewhat inefficient at traveling and collecting nectar from the flowers they find.
But thanks to the systematic reconnaissance of scout bees, this is no longer the case.
[I found a flower!]
[Spotted a flower!]
[I found a cluster of flowers!]
.
.
.
The notification chimes from all over the place where they scouted.
At the same time, the location is imprinted in Sung-hyuk’s mind.
What happens next is simple.
“I’m sure she’s busy laying eggs, so do your best, little queen.”
[Bee Guardian class specialization triggers Bee Link].
[Communicates your thoughts to the Rubigem Queen Bee (★★)].
Sung-hyuk relays the information sent by the scout bees to the queen via Bee Link,
*Buzz!* *Bzzzzzzz!*
[Rubigem Queen Bee (★★) uses the skill, Queen’s Pheromone (Lv.2)].
[Consumes 20 Mana].
[Command is transmitted to a swarm of bees located within an area of effect].
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[Queen’s Pheromone (Lv.2)]
* Category: Skill
* Mana Consumption: 20
* Effect (Active): Sends commands to the bees in the swarm within a 2 KM radius around you (cooldown 10 minutes).
* Description: Emits a pheromone characteristic of the queen bee to command the bees in the swarm. As you level up, you can issue commands to a larger radius.
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The queen then passes it on to all the bees in the colony to make sure they’re in the right place.
It’s like a military chain of command.
What’s more, unlike humans, bees are selfless and rational creatures who are willing to die for the good of the group.
They are second to ants when it comes to loyalty, and without the slightest grumble or laziness, they fly off with the rest of the swarm to the location marked by the scout bee.
“They sure have a round bottom.”
The honeycomb bee and tens of thousands of worker bees were flying away, squirming their rounded bodies in a steady beat as if they were dancing.
If he wanted to, he could have lied and stared at it all day, but unfortunately, Sung-hyuk didn’t have that kind of time.
[The honey status of the Guardian’s Oversized Acorn Beehive (★+) has reached 80%].
[The honey status of the Guardian’s Oversized Fir Tree Beehive (★+) has reached 83%].
[The honey status of the Guardian’s Oversized Thornwood Log Beehive (★★) has reached 90%].
…..
[Honey is ready to be harvested!]
As the number of bees increases and the number of beehives grows, he finds himself running around with little time to rest and his forehead covered in sweat.
But despite this, the smile on Sung-hyuk’s face never leaves his face.
“Yes, let’s go before it overflows, yay!”
No matter what, Sung-hyuk has always been a man dedicated to bees.
For him, it’s all about harvesting honey and the opportunity to meet more diverse and varied species of bees.
[Harvesting Success!]
[Collected 143 Rubigem Honey (★)].
[Beeswax Candle Crafting Success! The Bee Guardian’s sigil is inscribed on the beeswax candle].
[Guardian’s Rubigem Beeswax Candle (★+) has been crafted].
….
[You have leveled up, gaining 5 stat points].
“It tastes delicious~”
And most of all, the sense of accomplishment and the various processed products made from what he had been working on.
It made Sung-hyuk happy, as the rewards of his labor were so immediate, despite the labor’s toll.
* * * * *
Gaining knowledge of the location of the flower cluster.
Once they were able to do that, the rate at which honey was collected in the hive became a more efficient process than usual.
“At this rate, there should be flowers around here soon.”
Bees were never pillagers, plundering nectar from flowers.
In exchange for a small portion of the flower’s pollen and nectar, they create a virtuous cycle of pollination in the surrounding area.
In the long run, it’s a symbiotic relationship that works in harmony with nature itself.
With such a large number of bees constantly flitting back and forth, scattering pollen, what better guardians of nature could there be?
[Rubigem Worker Bee (★) has collected Honey. Current Honey Status 14.366%]
[Rubigem Worker Bee (★) has collected Honey. Current Honey Status 14.392%]
[Rubigem Honeycomb Bee (★+) has collected Honey. Current Honey Status 14.854%]
.
.
At the same time, they’re adorable little bees who look out for their own brood.
“Certainly this indicates that the evolutionary path was a great one!”
In hindsight, it’s safe to say that the evolution of wings and pollinator organs was a major breakthrough.
Not only are they able to prepare for threats in advance, but they are also able to fly faster than before, making the hive more efficient.
What’s more, it’s not just enemies and flowers that scouting bees find.
[Found a Natural Vegetation, Fold Stones (★-)!]
[Found a Natural Vegetation, Wales Cotyledon (★-)!]
[Found a Natural vegetation, Batch of Sirbon Potatoes (★-)!]
[Found a group of Natural Vegetation, Feldaran Natural Moss (★+)!]
.
.
.
A notification that he now hears whenever he is out doing his spare time beekeeping.
It’s the natural vegetation, one of the items added with the Chapter #1 update.
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[Fold Stone (★-)] X 22
* Category: Material
* Description: A ★- ranked folded stone commonly found in the dimension ‘Megalithic Zidran’. It is very lightweight, but its hardness makes it quite useful as a stone pelting tool.
[Wales Cotyledon (★-)] X 14
* Category: Consumables, Ingredient
* Restores satiety when consumed. However, there is a high probability of stomach pain when consumed raw.
* Description: A ★- ranked Wales Cotyledon native to the dimension ‘Deltarian’. It is always covered in cool dew, which restores a great deal of satiety when consumed. However, due to its unique toxin content, it causes stomach pain if not steamed or baked.
[Sirbon Potato(★-)] X 22
* Category: Consumables, Ingredients
* Consumption restores 20 Health along with a feeling of satiety.
* Description: A ★- ranked Sirbon Potato native to the dimension ‘Pepperis’. It tastes terrible but provides a significant amount of satiety when consumed.
※ When consumed or used, there is a 10% chance of obtaining fully usable sirbon seed potatoes (★-).
[Feldaran Natural Moss (★+)] x 8
* Category: Consumables, Materials
* When consumed, reduces Health by 30 over 10 seconds. Causes extreme thirst cravings for 10 minutes.
* Description: ★+-ranked Feldaran Natural Moss native to the dimension ‘Grandel’. It contains a low-effect toxic ingredient that, when consumed, causes a burning sensation in the user’s stomach and an intense thirst.
…
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Although there were a number of plants with rather nasty effects, did he mention passive income?
These items could be obtained for free while collecting honey.
There were even some plants that were suitable for use as ingredients for beehives, and even if Sung-hyuk didn’t need them at all, he could sell them through the exchange.
[Wales Cotyledon (★-) registered on the marketplace has been sold].
[Obtained 2 coins with a 20% commission fee] X 14
[The ‘Feldaran Natural Moss (★+)’ you registered on the marketplace has been sold].
[Obtained 5 coins with a 20% commission fee] X 8
“Huh? These got sold.”
After all, it’s a big world and different players have different uses for different things.
Oddballs who buy anything, even if it’s a plant with an unusual effect.
Through his honey processing business, Sung-hyuk has become a tycoon in his own right, with nearly 40,000 coins, but the amount of money he has doesn’t make it any less valuable.
“I must have made some extra money. I should do some shopping.”
Sung-hyuk’s shopping choices are not food, weapons, or consumables.
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[Geratus Hardwood (★+)] X 232 – minimum price 13 coins to 25 coins
[Cast Ironite Hardwood (★+)] X 322 – minimum price 13 coins to 22 coins
…
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A dream house exclusively for bees, created for bees, designed solely for them.
Useful woods to construct the main frame of a beehive.
Sung-hyuk had already built a hive once before with ‘thorny wood (★+)’ since there were natural vegetation.
“Sincerity and hard work are important, but good materials are equally important.”
He doesn’t want to use cheap materials when it’s a home for his cute children.
It’s not like Sung-hyuk didn’t have coins, and if he really wanted to, he could get them through beekeeping and processed goods.
“Hmmm. The two-star wood isn’t bad, but I’m sure there’s something better out there.”
It is true that the best thing to do when shopping is to find the best.
After much deliberation, Sung-hyuk clicked on the marketplace’s search function.
[Do you want to use the exchange search function? YES / NO].
※ Each search will cost 1 coin as a fee.
“Ugh. I guess it’s my choice.”
Of course, searching through the marketplace manually is one way, but 1 coin is rather cheap if he wants to save time.
After selecting YES without any hesitation, Sung-hyuk tried to search for wood.
[The search is complete, with a total of 1,523 listings. Do you want to move on to the detailed search function by star? YES / NO]
※ Each time you use the detailed search function, 2 coins will be consumed.
“It’s really jingling.”
He has felt it since the exchange and community boards were created, but the administration of this system.
Regardless of anything else, the ability to reclaim coins is just plain evil.
“Let’s check the highest tier first, just in case.”
A 5-star rating, is said to be the highest rating for something that appears as natural vegetation.
[Detailed search completed, no listings found for 5-star wood].
“Well, there’s no way that 5-star is on the exchange at this time.”
This is 5-star natural vegetation.
Even if they were, it would be more beneficial to hold onto them and use them in some way than to put them on the exchange.
It was a shame that the coins were wasted, but Sung-hyuk continued his search.
[Detailed search completed, no listings found for 4-stars lumber].
[Detailed search completed, no listings found for 3-star lumber].
No matches at all for 5 stars, followed by 4 stars, or even 3 stars.
“Tsk. I just wasted a bunch of coins for nothing.”
Six coins are about the same price as a cup of Guardian’s Rubigem Honey Tea.
Despite the fact that he was happy to earn coins from natural vegetation, it seems that coins earned without much effort are quickly lost.
“At the very least, there will be two stars.”
A whopping 1,523 listings.
Knowing that they wouldn’t all be 1-star, Sung-hyuk paid an additional 2 coins to perform a detailed search for 2 stars.
[The detailed search is complete, with a total of 34 listings for 2-star wood].
“I guess the difference of 1 star is huge after all.”
He can’t imagine that there are only about 34 2-stars out of 1,523.
Sticking his tongue out in surprise, Sung-hyuk checked the contents of the listings.
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[Steel Rurium Wood (★★-)] x 16 – Lowest price 120 coins ~ 175 coins
*Seller: LOTT, bellybutton——.
*Category: Material
* Description : This is a ★★- grade Steel Rurium Wood commonly found in the dimension ‘Megalithic Zidran’. It is extremely heavy and hard, so it is unlikely to be easy to process unless you are quite skilled.
[Bloodstone Hardwood (★★)] x 11 – Lowest price 200 coins to 330 coins
*Seller: Where are you going, Just a bite——.
*Category: Material
* Description: A ★★-grade Bloodstone Hardwood that exists in the Blood Realm. It is not easy to process, as just touching it causes a blood curse to fall.
[Sturdy Gilite Plywood (★★+)] x 7 – 550 coins
*Seller: Wood Hunter
*Category: Materials
* Description: This ★★+ grade Gilite plywood is engraved with the keyword Sturdy, as it has been processed by skilled woodworker from Gilite wood that is imbued with the spirit of light. It always provides a bright light to enliven your surroundings, and can even aid in photosynthesis if plants are present nearby.
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“Wow. This is awesome for a 2-star, huh?”
Although the processing of all two-star woods seems to be quite difficult, the loss of health is not a big deal for Sung-hyuk, who has plenty of health-restoring items like honey.
Since there are only a few pieces on sale, it doesn’t matter whether prices are relatively high or low.
And there was one particular piece of two-star wood that caught Sung-hyuk’s eye.
“A 2-star+ plywood——, this is a must-buy!”
An item called Gilite Plywood, has already been processed once and has the keyword “sturdy” engraved on it.
Sung-hyuk, who was now possessed by the God of Speed, didn’t hesitate to sweep up all the 2-star lumber.
[You have purchased 16 pieces of ‘Steel Rurium Wood (★★-)’].
[2,457 Coins consumed].
[You have purchased ‘Bloodstone Hardwood (★★)’ X 11].
[3,133 Coins consumed].
[You have purchased ‘Sturdy Gilite Plywood (★★+)’ X 7].
[3,850 Coins consumed].
It’s a considerable amount of money just to buy the materials.
However, there is no regret for Sung-hyuk.
After all, it’s just coins, and you’ll earn them quickly while beekeeping.
“Just wait. I’ll make you a great house!”
For now, Sung-hyuk’s head is filled with thoughts of building the queen’s dream house out of these charged woods.