Chapter 154: The Girl Who Eats Meat, 2 - Yangrani Meat
"By the way, Shia. So, do you want to go to a restaurant here?"
"Um, well. I haven’t really decided yet… Menelapie, what do you think?"
"I will always respect your choice."
Of course, going to a soup restaurant while out on something like a date with just the two of them would be quite awkward….
But for now, there were three of them.
"Then, what about Olga?"
It's usual to feed the child what the child wants in front of them.
"Even if you ask what I want…"
Olga stared at the dazzling meat restaurant signs before her, entering a state of slight confusion.
She had never eaten meat before, so she couldn’t tell what was tasty or what kind of meat would suit her taste.
"Then, if it’s okay with you, Olga… can I decide on your first experience?"
At the word "first experience," Menelapie's eyes sparkled for a moment before calming down, but Shia, too focused on choosing a menu, didn’t notice.
"Since it’s my first time with meat or eating flesh anyway, I'll have to leave it to you, Unnie."
"Hehe, actually… I also looked something up online, you know?"
Saying that, Shia marked a location on her smartwatch and called for the delivery drone that was at her house.
It would take at least 30 minutes for the delivery drone, carrying various cooking ingredients, seasonings, green onions, and garlic, to arrive in Cheonan.
"Alright, let’s go!"
With that, Shia, Menelapie, and Olga walked past the Hunter Restaurant Street toward a dungeon with a sign that read “No entry below B-class Hunters.”
At the high-powered electromagnetic barrier blocking the dungeon, Shia presented her temporary Hunter ID, and a drone from the Hunter Association flew in from somewhere to scan it, opening a path through the electromagnetic field for a few people to pass through.
It was Olga’s first time entering a dungeon outside of the Great Forest, so she couldn’t hide her excitement and anticipation.
"But Unnie, what kind of meat did you choose? Beef? Pork? Maybe something like Minotaur meat?"
"That’s a secret."
"You won't even tell me?"
"Hehe, think of it as a gift. It’s for Olga, but I want to surprise Menelapie a little too."
At that, Menelapie shrugged and followed behind Shia.
Menelapie rarely got surprised by anything, but since Shia had said so, she naturally began practicing being surprised in her head like a simulation.
Shia said she wanted to surprise her, so wouldn’t it be disappointing if Menelapie didn’t show any reaction?
"I trust you. Little Olga, why don’t you trust Shia’s judgment? She has tasted various delicacies for a long time and is accustomed to eating meat. She won’t disappoint you on your first meat-eating experience."
"Um, yes. Okay! I trust Shia. I’m part of the Mangji Squad, after all!"
"Oh? The Mangji Squad? Now that I think about it, didn’t you say that’s the fan club for Shia’s broadcasts?"
"Yes, that’s right! Believe it or not, I’ve been watching and supporting Shia Unnie since she first started broadcasting!"
"Is that so?"
"Hahaha. I’m part of the original Mangji Squad. I’ll show you the badge later!"
"If you’ve liked Shia for that long, then I shall respect and like you too."
"Stop saying things like that right in front of me; it’s kind of embarrassing, you know?"
Even though Shia had been revered by many as a saintess in her previous world, it was inevitable that she would feel embarrassed when she received such open praise.
As they continued their friendly chatter, they soon found themselves entering a rather dark forest.
The forest was called [The Table of the Lambs].
"By the way, I’m going to start streaming from now. Is that okay, Olga?"
"Streaming? Now?"
Originally, Shia didn’t plan on starting a stream, but it had been quite a while since she last streamed. This stream would be important not only for Shia but for Olga as well.
"Yeah, I want to introduce you."
"Huh…?"
"Ah, don’t worry. I don’t mean I’m going to debut you as a streamer or anything."
Shia spoke while patting Olga’s head, trying to reassure the nervous girl.
"From now on, elves from the Great Forest will start immigrating to Earth bit by bit. The ultimate goal is for all elves to fully adapt and live as part of society on Earth. Right?"
"Ah, yes… yes."
"In fact, they say there were a few elves here even before you. Among the returnees, some came back as elves. There were also cases where small groups or individual elves crossed through gates and settled on Earth."
The reason humans weren’t completely unfamiliar with the elf race was that there had been elves who immigrated to Earth even before Olga and the elves of the Great Forest.
"But now that the elves have become more like my companions, I thought, instead of hiding it from the viewers, why not make them gradually familiar with the idea?"
"Oh… If that's the case, then I’m okay with it!"
"Hehe, good! We’ll commemorate Olga’s first time eating meat and broadcast it to the world!"
"Umm… Should I feel embarrassed?"
"No, you can be proud!"
Although it seemed like a casual conversation, Menelapie looked at Shia with surprise.
‘Wow… Our Shia is smarter than I thought.’
Outwardly, it seemed like Shia just wanted to stream for a simple reason, but in reality, the broadcast was a highly calculated move.
The countries on Earth, which might be wary of elves, needed assurance that the elves of the Great Forest, who had formed a large community, were safe and could communicate with humans.
A stream might seem like nothing, but small, casual acts like this could have the most significant impact.
Shaping social awareness comes down to ideals, propaganda, and seemingly mundane daily interactions that infiltrate subtly and gradually.
Menelapie knew how much influence these broadcasts had on the modern Hunter society.
If Shia had been running some insignificant stream with few viewers, this collaboration with an elf might have been dismissed as a cheap publicity stunt.
However, Shia’s stream was so influential that she didn’t need to worry about her viewer count. It wielded tremendous power.
Even though she didn’t hold an S-rank Hunter license, it was widely accepted that she had S-rank status. Her beautiful, holy appearance had garnered her countless followers and fans. Shia held the position of gallery owner in a genre gallery frequented by millions of people daily.
Shia’s broadcast had the potential to influence many people unintentionally. By introducing elves on her stream and shaping a positive image, it could serve as a highly effective step toward integrating them into society.
While the collaboration with Olga might seem like mere entertainment, it was actually the first step toward solidifying the image and social status of elves by camouflaging it in the guise of familiarity.
‘Even though I didn’t teach her… She really is my Shia.’
Menelapie shot a proud glance at Shia, smiling fondly to herself, thinking she should reward her later.
"Hehe, then I’ll also try to make Shia’s broadcast as fun as possible."
"Hey, don’t worry about it! I’ll handle the stream. These viewers love whatever I do!"
[No way, insulting your viewers right as you start the stream, is this okay?]
[lol]
[WAAAH!]
[Open the door, open the door, open the door, open the door, open the door, open the door, open the door]
['WhyNow' has donated 10,000 won!]
「Seriously, why are you just now streaming? I almost thought my neck would break waiting.」
Shia giggled as she watched the flood of chat messages pour in as soon as she started streaming without any prior greeting.
"Hehehe, hi! Thanks for the donation, WhyNow~ But there’s no reaction for donations."
[Ahh, I miss when she was a small streamer.]
[She used to stream nonstop back then lol.]
[Now she’s full from all the success lolol.]
By now, Shia had pulled out a small AI drone from between her chest to start the broadcast.
The chat about being full wasn’t entirely wrong.
Shia didn’t even have to greet her viewers anymore; they would gather on their own.
"Huh, actually, I’m not full… I’m really hungry."
[Has the streamer ever been full?]
[Lol, that’s true.]
[Isn’t it crazy that the gallery owner doesn’t stream regularly anymore? Do you want to fall from grace?]
[Down.]
[Fall.]
[Down!]
[Down.]
[Fall.]
"Those who chant 'fall' seem to be asking for a collab."
The chat suddenly froze as Menelapie's ominous voice, which had clearly grasped the meaning and intent of the word "fall," cut through.
[Sorry.]
[Please spare us, spare us, spare us, spare us, spare us, spare us, spare us.]
[We were wrong.]
[Sorry.]
It seemed the forced collab from the last time had left quite an impression, as the viewers quickly became submissive.
"Hehe, I’m just joking. I’m not so foolish that I can’t distinguish between jokes and seriousness. Feel free to have fun with it."
[Then, how about we set up a viewer beam?]
"But if you cross the line, I'll take that as a death wish."
[.....]
['KawaiiHorned' has donated 30,000 won!]
「Show the hero more than the streamer. The Hero Noona is way too pretty.」
"Well, it’s obvious my hero, Menelapie, is beautiful. Anyway, did you see the title? Today’s stream is a collab with an elf!"
[Is it really an elf?]
[For real?]
[A returnee? Who is it?]
"I’ll show you. Ta-da! Olga, come here!"
"Ah, y-yes!"
Olga, who hesitated, stood shyly in front of the drone camera, fidgeting with her fingers.
Even though Shia and Menelapie’s appearances were overwhelmingly stunning, Olga’s looks didn’t fall short either.
[Whoa.]
[Oh oh oh oh oh.]
[Loli! Loli! Loli! Loli! Loli!]
[Get out of here, you pedos.]
[Pedo or not, she’s freaking pretty!]
[Is this the elf class...?]
[She’s so damn beautiful.]
[Wow, this is crazy.]
The delicate and pure-looking elf girl, who appeared youthful and innocent like morning dew, was enough to set hearts ablaze despite her youthful appearance.
"Alright, Olga. Why don’t you introduce yourself?"
"Hah..."
[Her shyness is too cute.]
"Don’t cross the line. She’s only 80 years old!"
[?]
[Huh....]
[Heu-eung, chicken coop smell…]
[What… What? This is ruined.]
"Unnie, I’m not 80!"
"Oh, you’re not? Sorry."
"Ahem… then I’ll introduce myself again. My name is Olganiafarceti. I’m an elf."
"No, Olga."
"Yes?"
But Shia shook her head and seated Olga on a flat rock.
"Name, age, and your measurements too. And explain why you came on this stream…"
"Unnie, this is just like the AV actress introduction we did back in the Great Forest."
"............"
Oh no, she caught me...
"Even though I’m part of the Mangji Squad, I’m not lacking in communication skills!"
[?]
[What did she just say?]
[Mangji Squad?]
[LOL, is this elf really claiming to be in the Mangji Squad?]
[She looks like someone who's never even touched a computer.]
"I am part of the Mangji Squad!"
[Drop the username then.]
[Mangji Squad sounds like a dog's name, lol.]
[Mangji Squad = Hybrid perverts and old runners on S-net, aren’t they?]
"My username is 'LeafFriedforSale'! That’s my username!"
[?]
[?]
[??]
"You don’t believe me?! Then Shia Unnie, let me log in on this drone for a moment!"
"Uh, uh…"
Login…?
Does this drone have that kind of function?
Unlike the puzzled Shia, Olga operated Shia’s drone as if it were her own, showing them that she was logging into the Hunter streamer channel on Switch.
"See? It says 'LeafFriedforSale' as my username!"
[?]
[What’s going on?]
[What’s this, damn.]
[lolololololololol]
[Is the elf... using Switch…?]
[Maybe Jangbung and those S-net guys are secretly elves too?]
[No way, with that appearance… An elf in the Mangji Squad?]
Switch's policy did not allow duplicate nicknames.
Viewers watching Shia’s stream had no choice but to accept that this girl named Olga was truly the 'LeafFriedforSale,' one of the Mangji Squad’s core thirteen.
Of course, accepting it was one thing, but experiencing cognitive dissonance was unavoidable.
Once Olga confirmed that people really believed she was a Mangji Squad member, she grinned triumphantly and shouted.
"Hey! KawaiiHorned! I met Unnie before you did!"
"......"
Watching her, Shia pondered for a moment.
Maybe Olga was even more adept at using modern tech and had better communication skills than I did.
○○○○○
After introducing Olga on the broadcast, Shia temporarily left her in a safe place and disappeared somewhere with Menelapie.
She had said they were going to get some meat, but she still kept secret exactly what kind of meat she was getting, leaving Olga feeling a bit pouty at being left behind.
If only I had also received one of those smart watches and could watch the stream—I wouldn’t be bored...
Rustle!
"Unnie?"
At that moment, Olga pricked up her ears at a sound moving between the trees.
Already back?
No, this was way too quick, wasn’t it?
Olga knew that Shia’s power was immense, but she also knew that Shia had an unusual appetite.
It was hard to believe she’d managed to secure enough meat in this short time to feed Menelapie, Olga, and Shia herself.
"Shia Unnie, where are you?"
"............"
"Come on, don't play around and show yourself. I’m scared."
While a forest is generally more familiar and comforting than even their own rooms to an elf, that only applies to naturally formed, clean forests.
Elves don’t feel at ease in woods crawling with demonic energy and unknown monsters.
"Un..nie...?"
Getting no response from the direction of the sound, Olga sensed something was off.
What is it... Why isn’t she answering...?
Could it not be Unnie?
Rustle...!
"Hi-hick!!"
Strained by fear and tension, Olga’s heightened senses picked up even the sound of the wind.
She froze at the simultaneous rustling of leaves nearby and let out a long sigh.
"Oh, oh gosh... It was... the wind..."
They say once a startled heart jumps at everything, even a pot lid will scare it.
To Olga, this dungeon—a strange new place—was an utterly unknown world.
She had only ever experienced dungeons secondhand, watching them on Shia’s stream, but her life was more or less that of a reclusive homebody in the Great Forest. During her lifetime, she’d never once ventured outside the Great Forest where her mother, the World Tree, resided, so her fear of this forest was only doubled.
"But even for a forest, it’s so dark at night..."
—Gurrrk?
"Huh...?"
Turning her head, Olga met eyes with a large, bipedal roe deer gazing down at her.
It had sharp fangs like a bat's, and its half-lidded yellow eyes emitted an eerie, malevolent energy.
—Grr...
Ah...
A...monster...?
—GRAAAAWR!
"Kyaa, kyahhh!"
Anyone would be shocked if a gigantic, bipedal roe deer was staring down at them.
And even more so if that deer was immensely fat, had horns twisted like spirals, and was holding something that looked like axes in both hands.
Naturally, since Olga was just as capable of fear as any human, it wasn’t strange for her to scream.
—Heheheheheheh!
The B-rank monster, Yang-Roe, was pleased to have found Olga.
He had thought he’d have to return home empty-handed again today, with no decent prey in sight. But now, a small, young, seemingly defenseless human was right here...!
If he could hunt her down and bring her back, he wouldn’t have to settle for a meager meal of grass. Instead, he could enjoy a truly filling and satisfying meal.
However...
"Oh, you son of a..."
—GURRRK?
Humans need to breathe to live, fish need to live in water, and elves love nature—it’s an unshakable truth as fundamental as breathing.
"You filthy..."
It’s almost an axiom.
But if you ask whether elves respect and love the lives of monsters as part of nature...
—GURRRK! GRAAH!
The answer is absolutely not.
Monsters are an abomination that elves despise even more than the humans who burned the Great Forest. Naturally, monsters deserve to die and are beings unworthy of existence.
"Rot in hell, you wretched roe deer!!!"
WHAM!!
The next moment, Yang-Roe had to feel his entire body twist about 360 degrees as a crushing pain exploded from his face.
—Gurr...?
What the... What’s happening?
Yang-Roe was in so much pain from the sudden agony.
He wanted to scream from the pain.
But the moment he took the first blow from whatever mysterious force was behind this, he realized that his lower jaw, which should have been producing sound, had been literally crushed.
"You piece of— you scared the hell out of me!"
When Yang-Roe looked up, he saw that his prey’s fist was swirling with a massive amount of elemental energy and mana, distorted into a raging eye of a storm.
—GRR! GRURK!
"You damn filthy roe deer!!"
I-I'm going to die...!
WHAM!! CRACK!!
Yang-Roe tried to bolt immediately in the face of that thought, but... an elf in a forest is faster than anything.
CRUNCH!!
As Olga’s fist smashed down from above, crushing Yang-Roe’s head, he couldn’t even scream as he plummeted to the ground.
—Gurr...uh...
This was Little Olgania.
Full name, Olganiafarceti.
An elf, the princess of the Great Forest...
And as a spirit fighter, she was a child of the World Tree, born of the same bloodline as the great Olgania.
Of course, it wasn’t particularly surprising that Little Olgania shared the talent of becoming a Spirit Fighter, just like Big Olgania.
Crack!!
Anyway, Olga was angry.
She was annoyed that this weird-looking Yang-Roe had looked down on her as if to eat her, disgusted by seeing such a grotesque creature after only being around nice-looking ones like Shia and Menelapie, and irritated by the creature’s strange cry that sounded like a baby wailing or something similar.
So it wasn’t unusual for Olga to unleash her pent-up anger and frustration by punching Yang-Roe.
—GRAAARGH! Agh! Grrrrk!
“Agh! Aaaagh! You think you’re the only one who can scream? Huh!!?”
Thud, thud-thud!
Left side!
Right side!
What’re you looking at, you jerk?!
Looking at me like that when you look like a KawaiiHorned copycat!
Those dull eyes of yours still haven’t cleared up!?
Don’t plead for mercy after trying to eat me!
If you’re mad, fight me back, you bastard!
—Graaagh!
“Agh! Aaagh!!”
Thud, thud-crack!
“...Uh.”
“Aaagh!!”
—Grrrk, guh!
“Agh!”
Thud!
“Try screaming again, you jerk!!! Aaaagh!!”
“Uh... Olga?”
“...Huh?”
“.......”
Finally, Olga noticed Shia standing right beside her, hesitating as if wondering whether to grab her shoulder or not.
Shia’s eyes, for once, were filled with rare bewilderment on the stream...or was it fear? Olga couldn’t quite tell.
‘When... when did she get here...’
Ahahaha...
Olga wanted to laugh hollowly inside...
[Hahahahahahaha]
[Omg hahahahahaha]
['KawaiiHorned' has donated 100,000 won!]
ㄴLeafFriedforSale, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.
[Hahaaha]
[Those punches are terrifying lol]
[...That thing...an elf?]
[5252, that’s no elf. It’s Punch King Ganelf.]
[She punches better than the streamer?]
[Totally lol]
As the flood of donations, donation messages, and hologram chat filled the screen, Olgania’s face turned pale.
“It’s okay, Olga. These things happen to people...”
“You saw it?”
“.........”
Still clutching Yang-Roe’s thick hide by the scruff in one hand, Olga asked Shia.
“Uh, well...”
Shia glanced briefly at Yang-Roe, who was beaten to a pulp in Olga’s grip, unsure if he was even alive, then looked back at Olga.
Can’t you tell from the chat?
“You... you saw? From when? From where?!”
Oh, so she was worried about where it started, huh?
I guess she wanted to do some damage control...
“Well... from when you greeted the deer, maybe?”
“Eek...”
“Eek?”
Of course, it was too late but...
“Gyaaaaaaa!!”
“Whoa... that one was really close to Yang-Roe’s sound, Olga!”
“Aaaaaah!!”
Thus, the child of the World Tree took another step down the path of corruption today.
Actually, no.
With her carnivorous corruption and punching corruption, Olga took two steps down the path of corruption in a single day.
A corrupted child of the World Tree.
Doesn’t it have a rather nice ring to it?
Or not.