Ch.208208. Mom, Please Retire

I handed the armless Dark Site scout over to the Black Monkeys as a snack.

“Kiki. Chief! Where are the arms? Kiki!”

“Arms? I cut them off, why?”

“Kik… Arms are the tastiest part… kiki…”

“Ah. Sorry. I should have brought them.”

“It’s okay!! Kikikik!”

I feel like I just heard something strange.

Anyway, after disposing of the scout and logging out, I fell into deep thought.

How should I prepare?

The best scenario would be if the Dark Site guys watched my Q&A video and thought, “This person might be dangerous to mess with,” then returned the commission fee and canceled the request.

If we don’t interfere with each other and go our separate ways, nothing would happen.

But that seemed unlikely.

I’ve already killed two of Dark Site’s key assassin resources—both SS-rank and S-rank—and even killed the scout sent to find them.

I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had ignored the scout.

If I had just left him alone and he returned with only traces of our presence, thinking we had fled…

Could it have ended there?

Unless Dark Site is a group of idiots, they’d probably assume I killed their people rather than thinking that.

Anyway, I need to assume the worst.

What’s the worst case for me right now?

Dark Site collectively coming to Korea to carry out terrorism?

That’s impossible.

No matter how famous Dark Site is as an underground terrorist organization, Korea is a sovereign nation with extremely tight security protocols for entry.

Especially these days, with SS-rank hunters and VVIP members of Farming Company regularly visiting Korea twice a month, security measures are even more stringent to prevent any unfortunate incidents.

Not just Korea, but countries that have these hunters also keep a close eye on Korea and sometimes even provide defensive support.

Not to mention the United States.

So that’s impossible.

But partially.

They might send hunters like assassins to target me.

The probability is low, but I should prepare for annoying situations.

Directly targeting me would be difficult, so targeting my family might be the highest probability.

Terrorist groups don’t discriminate in their methods.

If they have something to gain from me, they might just kidnap; if not, they wouldn’t hesitate to assassinate.

Blood for blood.

That’s probably some motto they picked up somewhere.

“Hmm. I guess I just need to be careful about Mom.”

Fortunately, even that isn’t much of a concern for me.

I have a safe space—the Rift Dimension.

Most of the employees who run my farm are there.

There are some employees who occasionally come out to buy necessities or walk around, but I don’t need to worry too much about them.

If I were to worry about every little thing, I might as well never leave the farm.

The best solution would be to settle things directly with Dark Site.

Go to their headquarters and wipe them out completely. Then, even if some remnants try to seek revenge, it won’t be easy, and I’d only need to worry about a few remaining ones.

But is it right to go and wipe them out just because they sent assassins, when I haven’t actually suffered any harm?

“That’s what I should do.”

At first, I thought it might be too extreme, but then I realized that to establish the principle that messing with me means trouble, I probably need to go that far.

Whatever choice I make, I first asked my mom.

“Mom. Remember when I was young, I said I wanted to retire to the countryside someday and live quietly farming?”

“Hm? Did you say that?”

“Do you still think about that?”

“Well, your dad and I bought some land in the countryside to farm after retirement.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Mom, would you like to retire now and live as a farmer?”

“Huh?”

It wasn’t that long ago that I heard something like this from Mom.

She likes spending time peacefully in the quiet countryside.

She occasionally meets friends, but most days she spends at home, having a cup of coffee, finishing housework, and then quietly reading books.

Watching her, I thought it was time to be a filial son.

And coincidentally, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to send Mom to the farm until I deal with Dark Site, keeping her away from dangerous Earth.

Anyway, both Dad and Mom are ordinary people without abilities, so they’re vulnerable.

Dad needs to work, so I can’t just tell him to stay at the farm indefinitely, but Mom spends a lot of time alone at home, and I can’t always ask the Dungeon Association people to watch over her.

If she likes the daily life at the farm, she could rest there and occasionally come back to Earth for some fresh air.

That’s why I asked.

If Mom doesn’t like it, there’s nothing I can do.

She could just go there temporarily as a refuge when Dark Site’s movements seem suspicious.

Fortunately, Mom’s reaction wasn’t bad.

“Can I go there too?”

I never kept the Rift Dimension a secret from Mom or Dad.

They’re not the type to go around blabbing about it.

Kim Sujeong had talked a lot about the farm with Mom, and Mom seemed very interested.

“If you’d like to. You can come back to Earth once or twice a month if you want. We’ll bring you anything you need when we come and go.”

“Oh my. I’d love that. Can I really farm there?”

“You want to farm?”

“Of course. Farming was my childhood dream.”

“Then you can farm with Sujeong.”

I had some spare lifestyle skill selection rights, so I was glad I asked.

“When are we going?”

“Whenever you’re ready, Mom?”

“I’m always ready to retire. You kids are all grown up now. I’ve been thinking about retiring quietly with your father, but he doesn’t seem interested. It’s time for me to retire.”

Dad would cry if he heard this.

With Mom at the farm, and when Sujeong and I are also there, Dad would have to cook and eat alone in an empty house.

Well, it can’t be helped.

As Mom said, Dad was busy enjoying growing the company that had become Farming Distribution.

The two of them will figure out their own issues.

I had a detailed consultation with Mom and made migration plans.

“There’s a cabin there. You can live with us, or we can build a small house just for you next to the farm.”

“I want to live alone. Will it be nearby?”

“It’s right in front through the portal. Sujeong will cook, but you can take ingredients and cook for yourself if you want.”

“That sounds wonderful.”

Mom seemed to like the idea of a new beginning and started shopping that day, filling suitcases to the brim.

After about three days, there were six suitcases in the living room.

“Mom, are you emigrating? Well, I guess you are…”

Even Kim Sujeong clicked her tongue.

The suitcases were packed with just Mom’s things, and there were more items to be stored in the subspace.

We decided to log in once.

Kim Solyi, who had been out on business, returned.

“Oh, hello, ma’am.”

“Hello. You’re that designer I met before.”

“Yes. I heard the news. Let’s get along well. I’ll build you a beautiful house. Just tell me your design preferences when we get there.”

“Thank you.”

When Dad came home from work, the house was empty.

—————-

[Day 63]

Autumn has arrived.

The World Tree had grown as big as the quite large tree in the front yard, and around it stretched Kim Sujeong’s planted crops like a wide field.

We planned to build Mom’s cabin near the World Tree.

Since there was already a temporary base near the World Tree and a base-specific portal, expanding the base to build a house wasn’t difficult.

A view where the World Tree is visible up close.

Kim Solyi would handle the design separately, so for now, Mom would stay in the cabin for a few days, and once the house was completed, she would move to her own cabin and help with farming sub-skills along with Kim Sujeong.

“Oh my. How cute. You must be Lulu.”

“Hello! Master’s mother!”

“Hello, ma’am.”

“Oh, Jihyun is here too.”

Everyone was somewhat familiar with each other, so it wasn’t awkward.

We all had dinner together, and while Kim Sujeong showed Mom around the farm, I prepared to start the war with Dark Site.

– ‘Black Monkey’ Fraud Buff Level 1: Strength +1 level

I hadn’t checked before logging out last time, but the Strength +1 rank buff was automatically applied.

A permanent buff that lasts forever as long as I don’t lose my position as chief of the Black Monkey tribe.

Thanks to this, my strength had become SS- rank.

The reason I’m looking at this again isn’t to figure out why my strength increased.

I had already guessed my strength had increased when I noticed the slight change in my stats back then.

Rather, I thought of a trick for this.

“From now on, everyone here is a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.”

[‘Kim Sujeong’ has been registered as a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.]

[‘Lee Jihyun’ has been registered as a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.]

[‘Kim Solyi’ has been registered as a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.]

[‘Lee Misook’ has been registered as a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.]

[‘Lulu’ has been registered as a member of the ‘Black Monkey’ tribe.]

“Sweet.”

The free Strength +1 rank was applied to everyone at the farm.