Otherworld Constellation Gallery Chapter 36

Otherworld Constellation Gallery 

Chapter 36

After eating ramen, I called Kang Ha-rin aside.

“Kang Ha-rin.”

When I spoke firmly, she flinched while unable to take her eyes off me.

“As you might know, I’m not that good of a person.”

Kang Ha-rin had no idea what I was trying to say. 

She just followed my words with an anxious face, fidgeting with her fingers.

“I sent you to get food knowing you’d be in danger, and you actually almost were.” 

“That’s…” 

“Listen to the end. I don’t want to add burdens because of unnecessary compassion. I mean I have no intention of helping others at the expense of my own benefit. Unless they’re companions.”

Kang Ha-rin hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.

“But… you protected the children… and readily shared your ramen…” 

“You don’t think I’d just give that away for nothing, do you?”

I tried to say it indirectly, but seeing her reaction, that won’t work.

 Perhaps Tulip would have understood by now.

“I’m thinking of raising Do-han here.” 

“What?” 

“I’m saying it’s not just out of simple pity.” 

If I could take him with us, that would be best, but he’s not the type to be persuaded by a simple ‘come with us.’

He would choose to stay here no matter what fruit I offered.

 For him, the orphanage is his family’s nest. 

So this is the best investment. Whether I can recover it is unknown. 

Nevertheless, I must take action like when I saved Tulip. 

Absolutely. 

“Right now, I can’t protect all of you alone. Even if you all grow, this is certain. We’ll need more companions in the future, and it would be hard to find someone as trustworthy as that guy.”

I lightly grabbed Kang Ha-rin’s shoulder and added:

“Help him build up his power by staying here. He’ll surely become a great force later.” 

“Why are you telling only me this separately…?”

That’s because I don’t need to explain to Tulip. 

She was close to death even before this world became like this. 

She knows how to empathize with others’ pain. 

Whatever the reason, she wouldn’t have the slightest complaint about helping the people here.

On the other hand, the Kang Ha-rin I’ve seen resembles me. 

Still a realistic person with stronger instincts for her own survival.

 If I don’t explain this first before what I’m about to ask, Kang Ha-rin won’t understand.

‘Why should we do that?’

That’s definitely the first thought she’d have. 

The task I’m about to assign her absolutely cannot be done with such doubts. 

It’s not enough just to hide your feelings from me.

‘You have to move with sincerity.’

If you just go through the motions instead, it will be meaningless and just a waste of time and resources. 

Poor construction is nothing short of a disaster.

“I have a favor to ask you.” 

“Me?” 

“Yes. We’re going to turn this orphanage into their fortress. For that, your abilities are needed.”

[Title: This Constellation is disappointed in Yu Ju-han] That’s not how you make male companions. You’re taking a roundabout path when you could use feminine charms.

ㄴ LOL seriously, if you’re an adult use other methods LOL .

ㄴ Wah~ I want milky~

ㄴ This way is definitely more reliable LOL.

ㄴ You crazy bastards, that would backfire.

ㄴ With men, it’s impossible for it to backfire.

ㄴ Ah LOL I dare you to try refusing it LOL.

Crazy bastards. No matter how desperate I am, I don’t intend to become like someone who shoots people dead.

“What are you doing?”

The children asked curiously.

 In front of them, Kang Ha-rin had skillfully disassembled the exoskeleton of the Craftlae.

“It would be nice if we could all move to a safe place together, but it’s questionable if such a place exists, and we don’t know what might happen on the way. So I’m trying to make this place safer.”

The orphanage is a shabby brick building. 

The door is made of metal, but there are many windows, and it’s an ordinary building that can’t be used as a proper defense facility. 

In this state, it was obvious that even a single Craftlae would destroy it completely.

“Now I think we can use this as reinforcement.” 

“I thought you needed fire, but you’re just tinkering with it?” 

“I have fire. A gas burner.” 

“That works? It’s not hot enough to melt metal.” 

“It works for me!”

What’s this? 

Is it because of her constellation’s skill? If I’d known it was possible with just that level of fire, I would have given her a burner or lighter earlier.

“I’ll reinforce the walls first with this. I’ll make shields for the windows that can be opened and closed. And the door needs to be reinforced too, right?”

Kang Ha-rin began transforming the orphanage with her tinkering.

“Wow… Big sister, you’re like MacGyver!”

The children exclaimed with twinkling eyes. I also lightly tapped the door.

“Not bad?” 

“For now, I’ve only fixed the urgent parts because materials are limited, but this should be enough as a makeshift defensive fortress.”

Just having a protective barrier to protect the orphanage children right away was enough.

“You mean you need more shells? Then we’ll need to hunt more Craftlaes.” 

“Mister, are you going to use that here?” 

“No, I don’t think it will be useful.”

What Tulip is asking about is probably the revolver. 

Those creatures are slower than ghouls, so waiting for them to gather would take longer. As evidence, despite the tremendous noise made while catching one, none appeared.

‘They’re different from ghouls or archers too.’

The children who were facing the monster. I didn’t think much of it then, but looking back, the monster was just standing there without making any attack.

‘Was it because I attacked first?’

The order of this place is still confusing.

 I was thinking about this when….

“Can this really stop them? No matter how hard the shell is, it’s meaningless if it can’t disperse force properly.”

Tulip raised a question. Probably a doubt based on seeing it break with just hammering.

“That’s because I increased my strength and agility…”

“You don’t need to worry about that. I made it with a perfect stress dispersion structure.”

“Oh, then it should be fine.”

I tilted my head without realizing. They’re casually speaking words only they understand.

“Oh, and there are many abandoned cars around, we could use their frames to reinforce the internal structure. And this exoskeleton, if we stack layers like Kevlar fiber…” 

“Kang Ha-rin, you’re also banned from explanations from now on.”

Ha-rin shut her mouth tightly. At that moment:

DING!

[‘The Blacksmith Who Eats Flames’ has sponsored ‘2,000 gold’.]

‘Suddenly?’

Is this a thank you for making her shut up? If not that, then like Tulip’s constellation, it must mean they’re thankful for the help…

If it’s the latter, it means helping her walk the path she needs to. In other words, it seems Ha-rin needs to diligently create something to awaken or grow.

“Ha-rin.” 

“Yes?” 

“You shouldn’t just make this. Let’s build a fortress and make armor for everyone here too.”

Kang Ha-rin’s mouth slightly opened. 

She looked like an office worker who just got piled with work right before going home.

“What? Is it hard?” 

“No? I’ll, I’ll try. No, I should!”

DING!

[‘Dawn Singing of Hope’ has sponsored 2,000 gold.]

‘Oh, it’s been a while since I heard from this constellation.’

Didn’t it go to Tulip? 

Anyway, it seems they mistakenly think I’m doing a good deed for the orphanage.

‘Well, people are free to misunderstand, and I’ll gladly accept the sponsorship.’

At that moment, the orphanage director bowed deeply.

“Thank you so much. I don’t know how to express my gratitude…”

I waved my hand dismissively.

“It’s fine.”

I’ll collect my compensation myself, so don’t worry. 

Then I turned my head to look at Do-han.

“By the way, I’m planning to go catch more Craftlaes, would you like to come along?” 

“Me?”

I nodded.

“You said you wanted to get stronger. You need to face them often to become less afraid and think of ways to protect yourself.”

For a moment, Do-han’s eyes lit up. But that light soon disappeared.

He immediately turned to look at the children. There was desire in his eyes, but he seemed to still have lingering attachments. As soon as I felt that emotion, I looked at Kang Ha-rin.

“Ha-rin. Make one more war hammer.”

Ha-rin still didn’t seem to fully understand the situation, but she bit her lip and immediately nodded. 

Next to her, Tulip was quietly watching us.

“And Tulip, you take that and stay here.”

Tulip looked up at me, blinking. Immediately, reactions appeared in the Constellation Gallery.

 [Title: Oh come on man~] Suddenly what man? Damn it, take Tulip with you.

ㄴ This is about getting a companion, right? 

ㄴ Isn’t that obvious? 

ㄴ Don’t say it out loud, you’ll create competition.

ㄴ Isn’t he taking him as a companion? 

ㄴ If that’s the case, why is Yu Ju-han suddenly acting nice? 

ㄴ Did you idiots not listen to their conversation? 

ㄴ PinkuPojjak) Men are goooood~ 

ㄴ Aren’t you afraid of your husband? 

ㄴ PinkuPojjak) I will win~

 [Title: The terrifying thing about Yu Ju-han pretending to be nice] Like, who’s gonna protect the orphanage if he takes that guy?Isn’t that just Satan behavior, not kindness? LOL

ㄴ Who should be happy about this? 

ㄴ I already sponsored, but after listening I feel upset.

ㄴ I’m Satan and I’m considering sponsoring .

ㄴ Isn’t he not taking him and raising him here? 

ㄴ I understood it this way too .

ㄴ Yu Ju-han is ruthless so you never know.

ㄴ These bastards hear what they want to hear LOL .

ㄴ He’s not leaving now, you blockheads.

ㄴ No use explaining a hundred times LOL Regardless.

“That creature can be easily caught if you max out strength and agility. If people get hurt, you can heal them. Can you protect this place alone like that?”

Tulip hesitated for a moment. But soon she nodded brightly with a smile. 

I looked at Do-han again.

“Tulip is as strong as I am.”

At those words, Do-han’s gaze brushed past Tulip. 

She grinned and clenched her fist.

“I’m not as good as you, but don’t worry.” 

“Right. So don’t worry about this place. Now, do you feel like going?”

Do-han’s eyes wavered. 

Then finally, he nodded.

I held back my rising smile. 

‘I’ll raise you to be the Daejeon Branch Commander.’