The first thing I did once my trade restriction was lifted was give the registered users a little bribe—no, a gift.

The gifts were nothing more than pieces of fish on skewers. Given the size of the fish, I still had plenty left to eat even after sharing it like this.

How does it taste?

Heavenly Demon

Absolutely superb.

A delicacy among delicacies.

It was the finest food I have ever tasted.

You're too kind. I'm really glad you enjoyed it, haha.

Heavenly Demon

Not at all.

To think such simple cooking could produce this flavor.

I wonder how it would taste if properly prepared.

I'll give you some when I have enough to spare.

Only when I have enough.

Heavenly Demon

You never know how long that surplus will last.

Do not worry about me.

Naturally, Heavenly Demon gave it a glowing review. She would probably be delighted with anything I gave her. Still, her kind words made me happy.

Sword Masta

This fish tastes like meat?

I'm jealous you get to eat this every day.

Want to come over?

Sword Masta

But nothing beats my mom's cooking.

It's been so long since I had my mom's cooking that I wouldn't know.

Sword Masta

Oh... I'm sorry. I'm really sorry.

I'm joking, haha. Still, it must really taste good.

Sword Masta liked it too. I felt genuinely proud. All I'd done was salt and grill it, but even that was enough to make it delicious.

Passing Dwarf

Hey. Give me more. This isn't enough to go with my booze.

You shameless bastard.

Passing Dwarf

Jush gimme one moar pleashe.

I can smell the booze through your typing. Go to bed already...

The dwarf, well... he was being utterly shameless. I could practically smell the booze in his messages, so he might have been drunk. Apparently he wasn't actually intent on taking what little I had, though, because he left it at that.

Starlight Lady, Slutty Princess, Allfather, All Hail the Sun, and the others, too. I shared small portions with the registered users who'd shown me kindness. Most of them praised it, which made me feel proud myself.

Last but not least was the admin. And with that, my giveaway event(?) came to an end.

'Anyway, the admin really does seem to be religious.'

We'd had a brief conversation, during which the admin asked whether I'd consider believing in a god. It felt like someone trying to convert me, which made me uncomfortable, but they didn't push it, so I didn't say anything harsh. They only wanted to know why I cursed the gods, so I explained everything.

KRA-BOOM!

And now I seemed to be seeing the consequences. The consequences of insulting the gods. All I could do was groan at the rain, which was falling much harder than before.

Exploring was apparently out of the question today. The weather had gotten even worse. With thunder and lightning thrown in, it was practically holding a ceremony to keep me indoors.

'This is driving me crazy.'

At least I had plenty of food stored away, and I'd worked on the drainage channel during the brief lull in the rain. If I hadn't done that, the moat would definitely have filled with water or overflowed. Working in those conditions would have been much harder.

'I'd better put up the iron fence too, just in case.'

Just this morning, some raccoon dog had barged in when it rained. Warming itself by the fire hadn't been enough for it; it had even stolen a fasting pill. The speed-sloth had punished it and it had become Roundfur's snack, but I still needed to watch out for other intruders.

'Lucky it was a raccoon dog. Something else might have been dangerous.'

Not that raccoon dogs were safe either. If it had come in with rabies, I would have been in danger. By that logic the speed-sloth was a risk too, but what could I do when it hated washing?

I shook my head as I watched the rain fill my vision. Losing an entire day put me in a rotten mood.

"Roundfur. Come here."

"Kyuu?"

Time to cure that rotten mood by hugging plump little Roundfur. He was like a round ball of fluff, and holding him always soothed me. He didn't resist, quietly accepting the hug.

'He'll get much bigger than me when he's grown, won't he?'

Roundfur's mother had been sold off through the auction house. "Sold off" sounded a little odd, but that was what had happened. Anyway, that owlbear had been as big as a truck. In other words, given time, Roundfur would grow to that size too.

'I hope that doesn't happen while we're still in the forest, at least.'

I'd heard that an owlbear needed at least three years to reach full size. Considering an ordinary bear took ten years, that was a terrifying growth rate.

'They eat that much more to make up for it, though.'

Owlbears had gained monstrous appetites as the price of putting everything into growth. Still, there was plenty to eat in the Forest of Four Seasons, and I had plenty of money loaded into my forum account.

SHHHHHHHH!

The problem was the rain. Rain like this would pose problems for survival. Besides the river overflowing, I could run into unexpected situations, like that raccoon dog invading my cave. I'd put up the iron fence, but this place was bound to have creatures that could smash straight through it.

PITTER-PATTER

Like that lizard trying to climb over it right now. Naturally, trying to climb the fence instead of breaking it didn't exempt an intruder from punishment.

"Roundfur, want to eat that too?"

"Kyuu!"

The lizard trying to scale the fence became Roundfur's snack. The rain had all sorts of animals clamoring to get inside the cave.

I couldn't explore and had nothing to do. But that didn't mean I could let my guard down.

'Sleep... No, I'll just practice my internal energy cultivation method.'

Cultivation was perfect when I had nothing else to do. It got rid of fatigue too; nothing could beat it. I sat in the lotus position and was about to begin breathing when I noticed the speed-sloth standing in front of me. It was staring at me with its usual carefree expression. As I gazed back at it, a brilliant idea struck me.

'It seems to understand me. Could I teach it an internal energy cultivation method?'

People would probably hear that and think it sounded f*cking stupid. Which made it worth trying. Besides, it was a chance for the speed-sloth to get stronger. It was already powerful, and now it could become even stronger through cultivation? How could I resist?

I'd have to ask the forum first, though. It was worth checking.

Can animals practice cultivation methods too?

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the speed-sloth staring intently)

I want to teach this idiot an internal energy cultivation method. Can animals do it?

It's already faster than me. Can't hurt to make it even stronger.

└Heavenly Demon My honored friend. Surely you do not mean to teach it the cultivation method I taught you?

└Wild Grylls Even if I told it the formulas, it wouldn't understand them, would it?

└Heavenly Demon Hmm. True enough. But is it not a clever creature?

└Wild Grylls Intelligence and wisdom are different things, Master.

└Heavenly Demon I see your point. Still, I have never heard of an animal practicing a cultivation method.

└Sword Masta I don't know about mana training methods, but there are similar cases. Relatively intelligent monsters like orcs, goblins, and gnolls. I'll exclude liches since they used to be living humans.

└Wild Grylls Those can use mana?

└Sword Masta Yes. Though it's more a mutation than formal training, I suppose? Still, the important thing is that they can use mana.

└Wild Grylls But no animals, right?

└Sword Masta None among the monsters I've encountered, as far as I know. If there were, it would have been a huge deal.

└Allfather There are historical records of people teaching mana training methods to monkeys and apes. Apparently, not a single attempt succeeded.

└Wild Grylls So you're saying it's a waste of effort?

└Allfather I couldn't say. As Sword Masta mentioned, a 'mutant' might be different. The speed-sloth is technically a mutant too, so there is a possibility.

└Hey, if it gets even stronger, won't it kill you?

└It'll kill you and steal all your fasting pills.

└I can actually see that happening.

Those last remarks were a little chilling. As soon as I read the comments, I looked at the speed-sloth. Its face seemed to advertise, "I'm a perfectly harmless animal!" But behind that face lurked some terrifying claws.

"Speedy."

"..."

"You won't kill me even if you get stronger, right?"

It nodded. Somehow, it had understood and nodded in response. Its reaction seemed to say, why bother killing me when it would only lose out?

└Wild Grylls I asked, and it says it won't kill me?

└How do you know?

└Wild Grylls It nodded. I saw it.

└It's obviously lying lmao

└It's ready to stab you in the back any time lolol

└You trust an animal? You're gonna get backstabbed lol

└Wild Grylls It's already stronger than me. Why would it need to backstab me...?

└It'll kill you when you start getting strong. Isn't it obvious?

└Wild Grylls Don't insult my Speedy...

Even if they were right, I already owed the speed-sloth my life several times over. I'd just have to keep showering it with fasting pills so it had nothing to complain about.

Anyway, I decided to try teaching it an internal energy cultivation method—no, a mana training method. Everyone said it sounded f*cking stupid but fun, or something like that.

└Sword Masta Why on earth would you do that...?

└Are you a woman?

└Sword Masta Why do you ask?

└Then you wouldn't understand lol

└It's weird, so that's all the more reason to do it!

└Absolutely. Absolutely.

Putting the forum aside, I faced the speed-sloth. It merely watched me with that carefree expression, making no move.

"Okay, Speedy. Try copying me."

"..."

As I spoke and sat in the lotus position, Speedy slowly shifted its posture too. I'd thought its legs might be too short compared with its long arms to manage it, but apparently not. Agonizingly slowly, it eased itself into the lotus position. I was surprised by how flexible it was. And since it didn't topple backward, its core muscles must have been strong too.

'Well, it does climb trees.'

When I straightened my back, it did the same. All that remained was breathing. I passed on exactly what Heavenly Demon had taught me.

"Okay. Now you just need to breathe. Keep doing it while tensing your lower belly, and you'll feel something."

"..."

"I'll show you how."

I began practicing my internal energy cultivation method to demonstrate. It wasn't a proper session, just a short example. When I finished and opened my eyes, the speed-sloth was still watching me.

"Give it a try. The important things are your breathing and your lower belly. Got it?"

"..."

"You know where your lower belly is, right?"

Just in case, I kindly explained everything step by step. Whether it understood my words or not, it managed to copy exactly what I'd done.

It hadn't taken me long to sense mana. I'd been eating three fasting pills per meal, and the Forest of Four Seasons itself was rich in mana. Wouldn't the speed-sloth be able to sense it just as quickly? I waited quietly, nursing that curious hope.

"..."

"... Hooo."

"..."

Only after I'd waited about three minutes did it inhale. Watching its mouth slowly open was a real pain in the ass, but I waited patiently. With the inhale done, only the exhale remained. That would complete its breath.

"Hooo..."

"Forget it."

And my patience had reached its end too.

I thought I understood why animal researchers had given up studying sloths. Their everyday movements were so ridiculously slow it was maddening.

'It's strong enough without my help anyway.'

Sighing, I sat in the lotus position. Rather than wait a lifetime, I was better off practicing my own cultivation first.

'I just need to keep it supplied with fasting pills.'

With that thought, I began cultivating.

* * *

While Grylls had his eyes closed, focused on his internal energy cultivation method...

"Hooo..."

Slow though it was, the speed-sloth was steadily practicing its 'breathing.'