episode_0021

“…It’s unbelievable how messed up the samples are even after following the instructions.”

Night fell after surviving a crisis that wasn’t really a crisis.

Following the assignment notice, an additional instruction was posted stating that the samples wrapped in newspapers needed to be replaced every few days. Hastily checking the samples, I found that nearly half of the plant specimens were either decaying or damaged.

“The Ginkgo trees and Zelkovas… Oh, all the leaves have fallen off, and some of the broad-leaved trees have completely rotted away.”

Comparing them to the specimens I had taken at the department building before, they looked even more dismal.

Realizing why the professor had assigned the task during the first week of classes, I gathered all the ruined samples and threw them into the trash before grabbing my equipment.

“Where are you going?”

“Oh, the condition of the collected samples is beyond words. I need to go collect them again.”

“Be careful on your way back. I’ll catch some more sleep…”

“Sure, see you in a bit.”

As I packed my gear, a noise woke Jaehyuk briefly from his sleep. He waved his hand once and went back to slumber.

Seems like he had a tough day.

Deciding to get some snacks on the way back, I quietly left through the front door.

Heading back to school once more.

Last time I came, it was evening, so there were a few people around, but coming late at night, the campus seemed deserted.

Occasionally, one could spot a few zombie-like figures with twisted bodies and grim faces wandering around. They occasionally muttered strange things like “Please save me, Professor…” but they were solely focused on their tasks, making it an ideal situation for specimen collection.

“I shouldn’t have come at this hour last time.”

I shouldn’t have bothered coming in the evening.

When you come at night, there’s no need to be wary of others.

They say even cowards become brave when alone, and since there was no one around, I boldly started collecting specimens more daringly than last time.

…Of course, not as aggressively as last time when I practically stripped the trees bare.

“My pace is definitely faster than last time. Am I getting more skilled?”

After about an hour of wandering around the campus collecting specimens, I ended up with bulging plastic bags.

Satisfied with my collection, I sat on a nearby bench to enjoy the fresh air.

It would have been nicer to lie on a cozy bed and chat online, but my studio apartment felt a bit stuffy with a hint of garlic smell.

“Meow.”

Gazing at the moon emitting a chilly light while savoring the fresh air, a stray cat slowly approached me.

For some reason, the cat had been staring at me from nearby for quite some time, then suddenly leaped onto my lap and curled up.

Seems like it’s quite fond of human laps.

It was so cute, yawning widely on my lap, that I might have been petting its back for a while.

Soon, I had no choice but to throw the cat far away from me due to the unbearable stench of garlic emanating from below.

Trying to avoid the garlic smell, it ended up coming closer on its own.

Cursing under my breath, I quickly grabbed a wet wipe to clean my hands.

“Come to think of it, stray cats really eat anything, damn it.”

While it may seem odd that a cat smells of garlic, it was actually quite natural.

The place I was at was near the student cafeteria.

In simple terms, to stray cats, it was nothing short of a buffet.

Now, here lies the issue.

In a student cafeteria, how many dishes do you think don’t contain garlic?

At most, maybe spaghetti without garlic? No, there might even be garlic in that.

Although the leftover food waste that students couldn’t finish is properly cleaned up by the cafeteria staff.

Nevertheless, perfection is unattainable. Those fellows will probably eat the leftover scraps accidentally dropped while cleaning up.

In that case, it’s not at all strange for them to smell like garlic.

“…Could this actually lead to a garlic resistance?”

Thrown into extreme situations and surviving, didn’t they say you adapt to the environment?

Now I understand why vampires in subculture have almost no weaknesses.

Living beings, if they don’t evolve, they perish.

Over the long years of evolution, the weaknesses they originally had must have disappeared.

In my case, I became a pre-evolution version of a vampire.

“I might become famous as a vampire that can’t be eradicated.”

If one becomes immune to garlic, perhaps half of the lost life can be regained.

With a glimmer of hope, I finished gathering slowly and stood in front of the last tree before returning to my studio apartment.

“Oh, what a tempting branch.”

A reasonably sized oak branch that seemed like it wouldn’t show any signs even if broken.

Playfully muttering, I reached out to break it when…

“I, I finally found you! You tree murderer!!!”

Some lunatic with pointy ears blocked my path.

What the hell is wrong with this crazy guy?

—–

[Which species do you find most detestable among the different races?]

Author: 깐프발닦개

For me, I think it’s the Elves.

There’s no other race as detestable as them, for real.

Mix environmental activists, vegans, and cat moms together, what do you get?

That’s an Elf for you.

I’m not talking about ordinary environmental activists or vegans;;

Let me clarify, I’m talking about those crazy bastards who engage in actions beyond common sense.

In fantasy novels, elves are often portrayed as a super arrogant race, right?

Whether that crappy setting applies or not, they keep imposing their beliefs on others thinking they’re always right.

My friend turned into an elf, and now I’m seriously considering cutting ties with them, damn it…

No, you go ahead and eat only vegetables… I want to eat meat, damn it.

Recommend 27 | Dislike 136

– What a terrible combination, seriously haha. Why doesn’t the author just cut ties with these gay guys?

– Environmental activist… vegan… cat mom… Just having one of these would drive me insane, but all three, damn haha.

– If it were me, I’d immediately start grilling meat right in front of them if they said beef tastes sweet haha.

– So, is that elf a guy? Or a girl?

ㄴ My female roommate_(author)

ㄴ Damn bitch, shut up.

ㄴ No, she was a high-level bitch;;;

ㄴ Why isn’t anyone blocking this asshole?

.

.

.

I remember reading a post like this before.

Elves are a race composed of environmental activists, vegans, and cat moms combined.

I wondered what kind of terrible experience the author had to use such extreme expressions.

The moment I saw ““, I understood.

Why the author evaluated elves in such a way became clear to me.

“You, you wicked tree murderer…! Can’t you hear the tree’s cries?! How can you perform such cruel acts so nonchalantly?!”

“Cruel acts? What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you see it screaming in pain with sap dripping?! The child is suffering!!!”

I meet the elf’s accusing gaze with a puzzled expression.

How am I supposed to know that, you lunatic?

And what child, clearly that tree looks older than you by a long shot.

Just by looking at the trunk diameter and height, you can roughly figure it out.

Even if you take it lightly, that tree seems to have lived longer than the crazy person in front of me.

If elves truly communicate with nature, wouldn’t the tree be scolding that lunatic?

Calling her a brainless woman.

With a sense of suspicion, I hardened my face and asked the elf,

“Sorry to interrupt, but could you tell me what that tree is saying right now?”

“Um, it’s asking for revenge! You should kneel down and apologize to the tree immediately!!!”

“So, does that mean it considers not shedding blood as being treated like a child?”

“N-no, not at all?!”

Sure, whatever you say.

The amplified senses revealed the sound of the elf’s heartbeat.

The pounding sound indicated the falsehood in the elf’s words.

There’s no point in continuing this conversation.

As I attempted to break off a pine branch in front of me, the elf lit up with fiery eyes to stop me.

After casually giving up, I gathered the broken branches and prepared to leave, but…

“Hey, put that down right now! Tree murderer!!!”

The bewildered elf, recovering from shock, blocked my path with a fierce expression, ready to sacrifice himself.

“Sigh.”

Nothing ever goes right for me.

Showing a scene that could be misunderstood by my mother, getting caught by an unfamiliar environmental activist elf—people consumed by their beliefs won’t listen to reason. But resorting to violence in the 21st-century society would only make things worse for me.

Hence, there was only one option left. Yes, I decided to employ that cunning strategy.

That is…

“I’m outta here!”

Transforming into bat form and fleeing.

I mocked the elf with a look akin to a dog chasing a chicken on a rooftop, using all my might.

“Haha, fooled you, elf! This is my escape route!!! You’ve lost in the battle of wits against me!!!”

Thinking I had successfully escaped, but then…

Thud!

“Ouch!”

Not long after taking flight with the envelope, I ended up headbutting the building wall.

…It was due to severely impaired vision in bat form.

The only silver lining was that I was out of the elf’s sight… Returning to human form, I held my head and started to cry.

“Sniff…”

Seriously.

What a bunch of idiotic species.