Chapter 123

Chapter 123: The First Rift Baby I opened reservations for the Behemoth Sous Vide Tonkatsu at the Rift restaurant.

The price was one Highest-Grade Magic Stone per serving.

As soon as reservations opened, 136 out of the 161 people stationed at the Outpost signed up.

An extremely high reservation rate.

When word spread that a new Stat Dish was available, the customers could barely contain their excitement.

'Four combat stats go up? I am reserving right now!'

'I had been waiting for a new Stat Dish to come out. Yes!'

'A Behemoth -- is that the monster that attacked the wall recently? I have to try it just to find out what it tastes like!'

'Good thing I brought plenty of Magic Stones!'

'I came all the way to the Fourth Floor risking my life just to eat Stat Dishes, and it has been worth every bit of that risk.'

The biggest reason Hunters wanted to come to the Fourth Floor Outpost.

It was to buy and eat the Stat Dishes.

Hunters were desperate for stat increases.

Stats determined one's rank, and rank was essentially one's status in the Hunter industry.

Therefore, in order to join a good party or guild, one needed to build up their stat profile.

Thanks to that, I was raking in a fortune.

However, there were also Hunters who could not afford the Magic Stones to buy the food.

'I will go hunt in the Hunting Dungeon and gather Magic Stones! Please save me some Behemoth meat!'

'Our guild is looking for one Healer and one Tank to join us on a Magic Stone farming run in the Hunting Dungeon!'

They were willing to gather Magic Stones through hunting just to buy Stat Dishes.

Before the Hunting Dungeon existed, Hunters whose parties or guilds were of middling combat strength had been reluctant to venture outside the Outpost to hunt.

But ever since the Hunting Dungeon was established, even those middling parties and guilds had been actively going out to hunt.

As a result, the economy within the Outpost township was becoming increasingly vibrant.

'Not just the restaurant, but the bakery, the bar, and even the smithy run by the Eckard Dwarf family.'

All of them were recording tremendous sales.

The smithy was especially popular.

'I had my sword serviced once at the Dwarf smithy, and it got incredibly sharp!'

'I had my rare axe serviced too, and the stat modifiers went up.'

'Try getting your armor serviced. The Defense goes up by about 20%.'

Word had spread among the Hunters stationed at the Outpost, and the smithy was absolutely swamped with work.

As a result, it was pulling in enormous revenue.

'On top of that, the lodgings also open this afternoon.'

Both the tree houses and the general inn-style lodgings would be opening.

Reservations had been taken in advance before the opening, and a full month's worth was already booked solid.

The opening ceremony was scheduled to take place after the lunch rush ended today.

SIZZLE!

At the moment, I was busy frying the reserved Behemoth Sous Vide Tenderloin Tonkatsu.

A Korean customer seated at the bar counter, who had already received his tonkatsu, took a bite and exclaimed in admiration.

"Wow......, this does not make any sense."

The customer furrowed his brow and tilted his head as if he could not comprehend it.

That reaction was not negative -- it was positive.

I asked the customer.

"Is the taste all right?"

He gave a big thumbs-up and continued.

"All right? It is way beyond all right. I am a serious tonkatsu fanatic, you know. I have been to every famous tonkatsu shop in Korea and Japan, and I have never had a taste this moving."

"I am glad to hear that. Please enjoy your meal."

The other customers who received their tonkatsu also showed very satisfied reactions.

***

After the lunch rush ended and cleanup was finished.

I brought Rin along and headed to the tree houses.

The tree houses were structured in two tiers.

A lodging unit encircling the middle of the tree trunk, and another built atop the tree.

'The mid-trunk unit is the living room, and the treetop unit is the bedroom.'

The two units were connected by a spiral staircase.

They truly looked like the home of a fairy from a storybook, or a dwelling where elves might live.

Rin and I looked around the interior of the lodging.

Rin surveyed the inside and said.

"The pwace feews, um, diffewent on the outside and inside."

She seemed to be saying that the exterior and interior had a completely different feel.

"You think so? The exterior is designed to harmonize naturally with the trees, but the interior prioritizes comfort."

Comfort was the most important thing for lodging.

Therefore, the interior was furnished in a modern style.

A large bed, a spacious sofa, a big table, and so on.

It was designed so that Hunters tired of tent life could rest comfortably.

However, in keeping with the name "tree house," the floors and walls were lined with cypress wood.

"Thanks to you growing the trees for us, Miss Rin, we were able to build eleven tree houses."

"Heh......!"

Rin blushed shyly at Maxim's words.

After touring the other tree houses as well.

We proceeded with the opening ceremony.

Many Hunters within the Outpost had heard the news and come to watch.

The ceremony would be kept very simple.

"Rin, if you would."

"Yesh!"

Rin answered energetically.

Holding the Magical Wand I had given her, she concentrated her Earth Mana toward the large pile of firewood placed in front of her.

The logs began clumping together and taking shape.

That shape was none other than a Wooden Golem.

"Ooh! Is that a golem? That is amazing."

"That tiny child can raise a Wooden Golem that big?"

"Like parents, like daughter. The daughter must be a genius too."

She is a genius.

Not just a genius in terms of talent, but also a genius of effort.

And her effort was not the forced, grueling kind -- she did it while genuinely enjoying herself.

They say talent cannot beat hard work, and hard work cannot beat enjoyment. Rin possessed all three.

'As a result, Rin, who once struggled to even maintain a tiny golem, has now reached the level where she can raise a golem roughly 3.5 meters tall.'

Rin controlled the raised golem to pick up a wooden plaque.

She then had it hang the plaque on a branch that jutted out alone from the middle of a Giant Leaf Tree.

The plaque read "Tree House Building A."

She then hung plaques on the branches of the other Giant Leaf Trees as well.

Eleven plaques, from Building A through Building K.

After the task was complete, Rin released the Wooden Golem.

She took a deep breath.

CLAP CLAP CLAP!

Applause and cheers erupted from the watching Hunters.

Rin, looking shy, responded with a deep bow from the waist.

And so, the brief opening ceremony concluded with Rin's performance.

The nightly rate for a tree house lodging would be two Low-Grade Magic Stones per night, equivalent to 3 million won.

With a total of eleven tree houses, that would generate 33 million won in daily revenue.

A regular inn room cost 600,000 won per night, making the tree house lodging six times more expensive.

'Now that the tree house opening is done, there should not be anything too pressing for a while.'

Outside of the lunch rush, I would be able to focus entirely on Ria.

***

Ria's thirty-eighth week of pregnancy.

According to Professor Lee Yeong-seon from the obstetrics clinic, the expected due date was at thirty-nine weeks, but it could come earlier or later.

"Seon-u, are you not prepping ingredients today?"

After finishing the lunch rush, I would come home to the Rift house and pre-prep a certain amount of ingredients for the next day's service.

Today, I had not done that, which made Ria curious.

"I am going to close the restaurant for a while."

"Close the restaurant? Why?"

"Because I want to be by your side."

"But the customers must be waiting for your food."

"I posted an announcement in advance, so it is fine."

Even without the restaurant, people could now buy bread at the bakery and bar snacks at the bar.

And Ji-young had agreed to come to the restaurant every other day during lunch to make free ramen for the Hunters.

Ria stroked the back of my hand.

"You do not have to do all that......"

"I want to."

I stayed by Ria's side for the next three days.

We drank tea together, chatted, and spent leisurely, unhurried time.

On the fourth day.

I stepped out briefly to look around the Outpost.

As Guild Master, I needed to show my face at least once every few days.

After a quick tour of the Outpost and a stop at the guild branch to confirm nothing unusual had happened in my absence, I returned to the Rift house.

At that moment, Ria had been doing string work at the outdoor table, and she stood up to welcome me back.

In that instant, Ria's expression twisted with pain.

"Ria? Are you all right?!"

I rushed to her side and supported her.

"......It seems the contractions have started. I need to get to the bedroom."

"Y-You think so? Okay."

My heart began pounding violently.

Seeing me supporting Ria, Ruina and Han Se-a came running over.

"Lady Ria, have the contractions started?"

"I think so. Please prepare for delivery right away."

"Understood!"

Ruina and Han Se-a had already rehearsed for this situation multiple times in advance.

So they would be ready to receive the baby in no time.

I helped Ria to the bed and laid her down.

"Ria, are you okay? Is the pain very bad?"

"I am fine. It is bearable."

"......Bearable, she says. You are covered in cold sweat."

If I could, I would gladly take the pain in her place.

I pulled a handkerchief from Acresia and wiped the cold sweat from Ria's forehead.

Ria took my hand and said.

"Please wait outside from here."

"Do I really have to? Can I not just stay by your side?"

"Absolutely not. I do not want you to see me grimacing and struggling. I only want to show you my smile."

"You are beautiful no matter what you look like."

"Still, no. Ugh......! Please."

Ria had been telling me for weeks to wait outside during the delivery.

Seeing the pleading look in my wife's eyes, I could not bring myself to refuse.

"......All right. Ria, stay strong. I love you."

"I will. I love you too."

I kissed Ria's forehead and stepped outside.

Ruina and Han Se-a were waiting outside.

I bowed deeply to the two of them.

"I am counting on you both."

They bowed back in return.

"Do not worry, Seon-u. We have been preparing for this day."

"Seon-u, please try not to worry too much and just wait."

I nodded.

"Understood."

The two of them went in.

Then Rin approached me with a worried expression.

"Papa! Is Mama huwting......?"

I lifted Rin into my arms and gently rubbed her back.

"It will be okay, Rin. Mama is going through pain right now to bring your precious little sibling into the world. So let us pray that Mama can deliver the baby safely and stay healthy."

"Mm-hmm......! I'ww pway!"

Waiting with the heart of someone in prayer.

Every minute felt like a year.

How much time had passed.

Then came the sound.

-Waah! Waah!

A baby's cry.

The moment I heard it, a wave of emotion hit me and tears came pouring out.

A moment later, Ruina opened the door.

"You may come in now, Seon-u."

"Yeah......"

Rin and I walked into the room side by side.

There was Ria, sitting up on the edge of the bed, holding a baby wrapped in a white cloth.

For an instant, the sight looked sacred.

I approached Ria and asked.

"Ria......, are you okay?"

She looked perfectly fine on the outside.

So much so that anyone looking would have found it hard to believe she had just given birth.

Ria smiled at me and answered.

"As you can see, I am fine. More importantly, hold our baby."

"Okay......!"

Ria carefully handed me the newborn.

The moment I held the child in my trembling arms.

[The first Rift baby has been born.] [As an achievement reward, a Legendary skill is granted to the child.]

What is this......?

Skills could only be obtained by Awakened individuals.

Does this mean our baby was born as an Awakened from birth?

On top of that, a Legendary skill?

The sudden turn of events left me deeply confused.

But the moment I looked at the baby's face, my spinning head grew calm.

That was not what mattered right now.

What mattered was that my child had been born healthy.

"Little one, I am your daddy."

My chest swelled so much it felt like it might burst.