Webnovel Author In The Apocalypse World

Kim Haru recalled a black pig he'd seen before. He remembered being struck by how its layers of fat rippled over its body.

So, this pigweed was the secret behind that.

He had to admit, he was interested. There was no way he'd only raise one pig in the future; if this was something the black pigs enjoyed, other types of pigs might like it too, right?

"Can it be planted?" Kim Haru asked.

From the way Do Seungjin had described it, gathering a bundle of pigweed sounded no small feat—not only because you need to go to the west but also due to the mutated black pigs that was as large as houses, guarding the area. He doubted his own small stature would be up to the task.

So if this pigweed could be grown, well, he had plenty of mountain and forest nearby. Expanding his farm to include a plot of pigweed wouldn't take up valuable farmland or disrupt the ecosystem.

Hearing Kim Haru's question, Do Seungjin froze.

Grow it?

Why hadn't he thought of that? Of course! If he could grow his own pigweed and find a way to get some piglets, he wouldn't need to worry about them starving or failing to thrive. If the pigs couldn't adapt to being kept by humans, he could even let them roam freely. As long as they stayed close to the safe zone and humans managed their movement, it would be just as good as keeping them.

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As expected of Mr. Kim—he'd gotten right to the heart of the matter.

However…

"I'm… not exactly sure," Do Seungjin admitted, shaking his head helplessly. He'd been so focused on observing the pigs and their food that he hadn't looked into how this plant grew.

"I know," said Jang Dojung, who'd just arrived and overheard their conversation. Before even coming to a full stop, he jumped in, "But let's not talk here. Mr. Kim, please come to our research institute. In one of our labs that was dedicated to mutated plant studies, we've got research data on cultivating this grass."

Jang Dojung glanced at Do Seungjin before turning back to Kim Haru. "Don't worry, Mr. Kim. At this hour, most people are busy in their labs, and I've instructed the rest of them to keep things quiet. There'll be no crowd or disturbance."

Jang Dojung was already aware of the incident outside the vegetable shop.

Do Seungjin usually would have been snapped back at Jang Dojung, but knowing he was in the wrong, he shrank back and took a half-step away.

Still, he didn't want to retreat too far. Mr. Kim had spoken to him directly, which meant he wasn't all that angry. If Do Seungjin could show some improvement, maybe Mr. Kim would let him see the animals he was raising.

By now, Do Seungjin was certain Mr. Kim kept animals at home.

He wasn't sure about chickens, but he was positive that pigs were involved. Otherwise, Mr. Kim wouldn't have shown such interest in pigweed.

With this realization, Do Seungjin grew even more spirited.

The group entered the plant research institute, and just as they were approaching the lab Jang Dojung mentioned, Kim Haru remembered something.

He pulled an orange from his system backpack. "Could you run a full analysis on this?"

Kim Haru finally remembered that in this post-apocalyptic world, not everything edible was safe. Most of the food was contained with a traces of the mutagenic virus. Although he'd eaten plenty of similar things and hadn't felt any effects, he hadn't really thought about it at the time.

In truth, a small part of Kim Haru still felt a twinge of worry.

Jang Dojung, Do Seungjin, and Jang Dojang stared at the orange before them, unable to look away for a long moment.

In this world, many mutated plants, if defeated, could yield edible parts. But fruit was an entirely different story. Even if they could overcome a mutated plant bearing fruit, they would never get to eat the fruit itself.

What was fruit to mutated plants? It was a fruit, a seed, and even a weapon.

Some mutated plants used their fruit as a long-range attack. Even if the fruit didn't explode, release toxins, or turn into some hard projectile upon impact, it was still inedible—one bite could cause instant death.

If a fruit was used as a seed, it became even less consumable. In the plant's final moments, it would channel all of its remaining energy into the seed. These seeds typically had one of two outcomes: they either sprouted into a new mutated plant right then and there, or the entire fruit became 100% infected with the mutant virus.

Who would dare eat that? A single bite could turn you into a new zombie.

And yet, here was an orange before them, one that hadn't become a weapon, hadn't sprouted into a mutated plant.

It was about half a palm in size, and the fragrance of the peel was deeply refreshing. Who knew what the flesh inside would taste like? Just by looking, they could tell it was packed with juice and, maybe, bursting with the sweet aroma of oranges.

Fortunately, these men weren't strangers to remarkable sights. They snapped out of their daze after only a brief moment.

With utmost care, Jang Dojung took the orange from Kim Haru. "Don't worry, Mr. Kim. I'll ensure it undergoes a thorough analysis. It might take a while for the results to come through, so please bear with me for a bit. I'll be back once I hand it off to a researcher."

"Sure," Kim Haru replied, unbothered.

Jang Dojung then left, holding the orange like a rare treasure.

He returned shortly after.

"All set—the testing's underway. Mr. Kim, let's go check out the pigweed cultivation data," Jang Dojung said, showing Kim Haru even more respect than before.

What he didn't mention was the reaction from the researchers when he'd handed them the orange. Every one of them was eager to take on the analysis, nearly in a frenzy.