Secrets in the Flames, Secrets in the Soil

“Don’t let your guard down.”

“I’m not. But wow, the guild leader is crazy strong. Look at that.”

Kang Yujun looked where Aileen was pointing.

There, Lee Jaehun was butchering the remaining Fire Bulls.

Just by glancing, it was clear he had killed more of them alone than their entire team combined.

“He’s always been incredible.”

“I know. That’s why I joined him. But starting with Fire Bulls on the 50th floor… I’ve got a bad feeling.”

Before the collapse of civilization, there had been a soft drink with the same name.

Because of that, the monster’s name sounded funny at first.

But Fire Bulls were no joke.

On lower floors, some levels even had them as bosses.

“Didn’t we hear that the 50th floor would bring the biggest shift?”

“Yeah. We’ve climbed halfway. Whoever built this tower must’ve prepared a massive trial up here.”

Someone overheard Aileen and groaned.

“Don’t jinx us!”

“Not jinxing. It’s called keen foresight.”

“Aileen-nim, you’re unlucky as hell.”

“Right. You’ve never gotten a lucky pull in any game or draw.”

“You brats!!”

Aileen trembled in rage, but they weren’t wrong.

“Come here! Let me smack you!”

“Ah! Aileen-nim is going berserk!”

“Enough playing around.”

“We’re just trying to ease the tension.”

Yujun ignored the bickering and reorganized formation.

At the same time, Jaehun finished the last bull and approached them.

“Any monsters left?”

A tall, slender man scanned the horizon.

“No more Fire Bulls. But we won’t be passing peacefully. A flock of Wyverns is coming.”

“When did we ever pass peacefully?! Alright, move out!”

As the head mage Aileen stepped forward, Yujun raised his shield again.

A long battle began.

Whenever they encountered monsters, they killed them.

Some were familiar.

Others were new.

New monsters slowed them down, but they remained patient and steady.

Raw strength meant nothing if they got caught off guard.

Boss rooms every 10 floors only allowed one team at a time.

If they lost people, they couldn’t replace them.

They had to reach the end with everyone intact.

“We rest here.”

Yujun lifted his hand.

Half the team collapsed on the ground while the other half stood guard.

After thirty minutes, they would switch.

The moment rest began, Jaehun stepped inward and pulled a small pouch from his pocket.

“What’s that?”

Aileen asked curiously.

“Food.”

“Well, obviously.”

“Sweet potato and potato sticks.”

“Is it good?”

Jaehun nodded.

Aileen’s eyes widened—he almost never evaluated food out loud.

Now she needed to try it.

“Give me some!”

She cupped her hands politely.

Jaehun dropped a few sticks onto her palms.

“It’s a secret.”

“Yes!”

Of course it wasn’t a secret—he gave it to her right in front of everyone.

But she answered loudly anyway.

She picked a golden stick and popped it into her mouth.

Crispy on the outside, soft inside.

Slightly sweet and very pleasant.

As she chewed, a status window suddenly popped up before her eyes.

[You ate a crop grown by a beginner farmer.
Slight stamina regeneration for a limited time.

-Effect is greater when eaten whole.]

“Cough!”

She nearly spit it back out.

“W–What is this?!?”

“I said it’s a secret.”

“Well yeah, but still!”

She clutched the remaining sticks carefully, wanting to tell the others what she experienced—but Jaehun’s icy stare cut into her.

A clear warning.

Don’t talk.

Aileen looked at the sticks, then at the sky, then at the ground.

Then she tucked her staff under her arm and vigorously ruffled her hair with both hands.

“Are you insane?”

“No, this is insane!”

Not her.

The sweet potato sticks.

The regeneration was subtle, but it was there—she could feel it precisely.

Someone less sensitive might not have noticed, but she did.

‘What even IS this!?’

Not a potion.

Not magic.

Just a sweet potato stick that restored stamina.

For years, fantasy nerds had tried adding stat boosts to food in theorycraft—but reality said it was impossible.

Ingredients didn’t carry stats.

So food didn’t either.

That’s why awakened fought with healers and potions.

Aileen stumbled to a nearby boulder and sat down.

Then she ate the remaining sticks slowly, savoring each piece.

‘It said beginner farmer…’

Meaning the system recognized such a class.

‘The problem is… the guild master knows.’

And he clearly didn’t want it revealed.

If Jaehun disliked something, Aileen had no choice but to bury it.

‘But I’m so curious!!’

Her curiosity screamed, but she pushed it down.

She couldn’t betray the guild master’s trust.

He wouldn’t have shown her this if he didn’t believe she’d keep quiet.

“So unfair.”

She sighed and shoved all remaining sticks into her mouth.

“Switch!”

The guards rotated.

Aileen brushed off her robes and stood.

Clearing the 50th floor came first.

‘Think I can get research lab info?’

She considered it, then dismissed the thought.

Researchers signed strict NDAs.

Break them, and they lost body parts.

And the more important the secret, the more vital the sacrificed part.

They would never talk.

She gave up neatly.

‘Because I trust the guild master.’

All she had to do was follow where he led.

“Alert! New monsters incoming! Prepare for combat!”

At Yujun’s shout, Jaehun grabbed his weapon again.

This time, among the Fire Bulls, massive strange gorillas appeared.

But no one flinched.

The guild members raised their fighting spirit and stared ahead.

Moments later, the monsters collided with them.

While Jaehun ran across the burning wasteland, Garam harvested new crops—tomatoes and corn.

[A tomato harvested for the first time.
Collected by a farmer who barely passed beginner level.
MP regeneration +0.5 per minute for 10 minutes.]

Like others, each tomato permanently raised mana by 0.1.

‘Mana?!’

If his mana rose, he wouldn’t need to chug blue potions until his stomach burst.

His eyes blazed as he stared at the tomatoes.

“But how do you even eat tomatoes? Just… bite them?”

He’d never eaten one properly.

No one bought them for orphans.

And after the collapse, tomatoes—or even dead rats—were hard to find.

As he hesitated while holding a firm, shiny tomato, Deokpal approached.

“What are you doing?”

Garam held out the tomato.

“Oh, finally harvesting tomatoes? They don’t keep long. Gotta eat them fast.”

“You think we can eat them all?”

“Probably not. I’ll ask hyung if he wants some. He probably will. Whatever’s left goes to storage—there’s tons of space.”

“Well, it is meant to store huge amounts of produce originally.”

Compared to that, Garam’s harvest was tiny.

They finished picking corn as well and stored it.

Then each grabbed a big tomato and bit down.

The skin split and juice burst out.

Sweet, fresh, tangy.

They sat side by side, devouring tomatoes until full.

Deokpal then asked,

“What about the corn?”

“We can eat that now too.”

Assuming there was room in their stomachs.

Deokpal nodded.

“Can I take a tomato and corn with me? One each?”

“For the uncle?”

“Yeah.”

Who knew what debt he felt he owed?

But he had loyalty.

From Garam’s perspective, Kang Jung-bae looked like a sinking ship.

Whatever broke him, he surely wouldn’t talk.

Instead of asking, Garam packed a few tomatoes and corn for him.