Webnovel Author In The Apocalypse World-Chapter 191: The Case of the Missing Chestnuts (Part1)

Even if some seeds didn’t sprout, it wouldn’t be a loss. As long as he could unlock the seeds in the system, Kim Haru wouldn’t have to worry about running out in the future.

However, the zombies had been in the manure pit for so long that each time they brought seeds over to Kim Haru, they reeked terribly.

In the end, Kim Haru layered two masks over his face, but even with half of his clothes nearly torn to pieces trying to block the smell, it was no use. He couldn’t take it anymore and told the zombies to continue sifting through the manure on their own, piling up the unidentifiable seeds in one place until they had enough for him to examine all at once.

As for Kim Haru himself, he headed off to an odor-free spot to get some fresh air.

He didn’t go too far, though. As he left, he carefully watched his steps, making sure not to head in the direction frequented by the black pigs.

He stopped at a higher ground with a favorable wind direction, where there was less pigweed, and the air was free of any foul odors. It was close enough that the zombies could still see him, so if they needed to bring seeds over, they could easily find him.

This was a nice spot, and Kim Haru decided to stay here for a while.

With his back to the zombies, he avoided looking at that stinky area. Just imagining the bizarre mix of odors was enough to make him feel nauseous.

After standing for a while, his legs began to feel a bit weak, so he took off the tattered layer of his clothes that he’d torn earlier and laid it on the ground as a makeshift mat, then sat down to rest.

As he sat there, he started to feel a bit hungry.

He opened his system backpack and saw the stir-fried chestnuts he had made earlier, still warm and waiting. Now seemed like the perfect time to take them out and peel a few.

Kim Haru sniffed himself from head to toe to ensure there wasn’t a trace of odor on him. Satisfied, he vigorously wiped his hands on the discarded piece of clothing he’d decided not to wear again, and only then did he take the chestnuts out of his system backpack.

The fragrant aroma instantly wafted through the air. Discover stories with novelbuddy

Kim Haru began peeling chestnuts, but having just come from such a foul-smelling place, he found it hard to actually eat them despite their tempting aroma. Sitting there with nothing else to do, he decided to peel them without eating, just to pass the time.

Leisurely peeling chestnuts while waiting for the zombies to work, Kim Haru was quite content.

As he continued peeling, he suddenly noticed the foul odor drawing closer. Turning his head, he saw the zombie-bots approaching while holding a handful of seeds and making its way toward him.

Kim Haru let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, he hadn’t started eating the chestnuts earlier. If he had been mid-bite when that stench hit, swallowing or spitting them out would have been equally unpleasant.

He snapped a small twig off a nearby branch and used it to poke through the seeds the zombie-bots was holding, separating the shriveled, lifeless ones from the usable ones. Among a handful of seeds, only three to five were viable, but something was better than nothing. Kim Haru wasn’t particularly concerned about the quantity; he just needed some to plant.

After sorting through the seeds, Kim Haru instructed the zombie-bots to keep looking while he sat back down to pass the time.

When he reached out to grab another chestnut from the pile next to him, his hand came up empty.

Kim Haru froze for a moment, confused.

Strange.

He distinctly remembered not having finished peeling all the chestnuts yet. There had been so many earlier—how could they suddenly disappear?

He turned his head to look in the other direction and was stunned. Good grief! All that remained were the discarded chestnut shells. The chestnut meat was gone. Every single piece had vanished without a trace.

Now there was no way for Kim Haru to chalk it up to misremembering.

He stood up abruptly, scanning his surroundings.

In the short time it took him to separate the seeds, something—or someone—had stolen his chestnuts. He hadn’t noticed a thing. Whether it was his curiosity about the creature or sheer indignation over having his chestnuts swiped, Kim Haru wasn’t about to let this slide.

He carefully began searching the area.

The spot he’d chosen wasn’t particularly overgrown with pigweed, and there weren’t many places something could hide. If it were a large creature, it certainly couldn’t have stayed out of sight.

Kim Haru ruled out the possibility of black pigs.

Even small black pigs couldn’t hide their plump, round bodies in this sparse patch of pigweed. Besides, how could a small pig have stolen so many chestnuts and slipped away without him noticing?

Could it have been a mutated plant?

Kim Haru speculated as he continued to search.

Kim Haru still remembered how adept Little Oakie and Little Wheatie had been at hiding their identities before. Especially Little Wheatie, who had managed to stay on his farm for so long without being discovered. If it turned out to be a mutated plant this time, its quick movements might make sense.

However, Kim Haru harbored some doubts about this theory.

Judging by the personalities of the mutated plants on his farm, they seemed more interested in water, fertilizer, and nutrient-rich soil. Chestnuts weren’t likely to be on their menu, were they?

Then what could it be?

"Hyung! I’m back!" Go Okrim appeared next to the zombies. Not seeing Kim Haru immediately, he called out, "Where are you?"

Kim Haru straightened up and waved his hand.

Go Okrim jogged over. "Hyung, what are you looking for?"

"Something stole the chestnuts I peeled." Kim Haru pointed to the pile of empty chestnut shells. "It must’ve left some traces behind."

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