Player Farming in the Dragon’s Lair - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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48
The Teleportation Ring brought down from the 80th Floor.
It could be thought of as a kind of Dimensional Gate connected to the Continental Sea.
Currently it sat installed in the one o’clock corner of the Dragon Lair, what could only be called Woojin’s back room.
What could he say.
When you thought about it, wasn’t this essentially like setting up a fish farm inside his own home?
‘Just like the 80th Floor, I can fish without earning rewards, but that doesn’t mean I can’t actually catch fish and eat them.’
In other words, there was no problem whatsoever with him fishing for fish, grilling them, making spicy stew, or eating them raw however he pleased.
“Is my thinking correct on this, God of Order?”
[The God of Order laughs heartily and nods.]
Okay.
Tonight’s dinner was decided: fish.
Assuming they bit, of course.
It was possible they wouldn’t.
Woojin wasn’t someone who fished regularly.
On top of that, he had no fishing rod or bait.
He’d considered stopping by the Auction House to pick up something suitable, but he shook his head.
He decided to make one himself while also raising his Handicraft skill proficiency.
‘If worse comes to worst, I can just buy one at the Auction House.’
If he failed to make a fishing rod, or if what he made turned out disappointing, purchasing one from the Auction House was a perfectly viable option. He had plenty of Coins anyway.
When he’d first entered the Tower, when Coins were scarce, he’d worried about how he’d manage. But now that they were plentiful, nothing worked quite like that kind of peace of mind.
Woojin chuckled to himself at the sight of over 280,000 Coins, then closed the status window again.
While searching through his Spatial Backpack for good wood and string to make a fishing rod, he spotted a log.
‘The rod itself I can make from this, but the important part is the line.’
And he had something suitable. In fact, he found it!
Woojin discovered the Plant Support String Set he’d received from Kang Minwoo long ago—the kind of string farmers used when planting cherry tomatoes.
“Huh. Perfect.”
It was fine even when wet, and quite durable.
Right there where he sat, Woojin began work on making the Wooden Fishing Rod.
He pulled out one log and started stripping the outer bark away with Amwol.
As the rough bark peeled off, the smooth wood beneath was revealed.
Scrape. Scrape.
He kept the lower portion thicker for the handle, then gradually tapered it toward the end as he began shaping the wood.
[Carving Lv. 3 proficiency increases.]
[Carving Lv. 3 proficiency…….]
Whoosh.
The knife blade glided along the wood grain, trimming branches and smoothing the rough surface evenly.
Gradually, what had been just a crude stick transformed into the form of a long, supple fishing rod.
Then he pulled out the string that had been used for the cherry tomato stakes.
Its length was plenty, and it was quite sturdy.
Woojin carved a shallow groove at the end of the rod, then wound the string tightly so it wouldn’t slip.
After tugging on it several times to test it, he nodded with satisfaction.
The last piece was the hook.
He decided to carve the hook from the Unknown Stone.
He sharpened the stone’s tip to a point, then slightly curved the end and honed it into a barbed hook shape.
[Wooden Fishing Rod has been crafted.]
[Handicraft Lv. 3 proficiency increases.]
[Handicraft Lv. 4 acquired.]
[Due to Handicraft Lv. 4’s effect, quality rises by one rank.]
[Wooden Fishing Rod]
– Grade: D
– Effects
– Fishing success rate +10%
– Large species (advanced aquatic creature) suppression bonus +5%
– Description: A fishing rod someone crafted from wood. Crude, but it looks like it performs well.
“Excellent.”
Woojin picked up the completed fishing rod and turned it this way and that in his hands. Though it was his first attempt, it certainly felt like a proper fishing rod.
One thing was certain: it was better than bare hands.
“So? What do you think?”
(…….) *Thumbs up!*
The Doppelgänger praised Woojin’s Handicraft as well.
That was when Kkamangi’s tail began to sway, and she appeared excited.
“W-Woojin! Is there anything I can help with?”
“Hmm? Nothing comes to mind at the moment.”
“If you need anything, just say the word anytime!”
Kkamangi’s gaze was fixed on the sea.
More precisely, on the fish beyond the water.
Woojin finally understood why Kkamangi was so excited.
A soft chuckle escaped him.
“I’ll definitely cook you some grilled fish.”
“R-really?”
“Of course. Don’t you trust me?”
Kkamangi nodded vigorously.
Woojin baited the fishing hook.
Normally, worms were used for fishing, but since he didn’t have any, he cut up some pork into small pieces and attached it to the rod instead.
Whish!
Splash!
He cast the line down into the Continental Sea.
The hook baited with pork sank steadily downward.
Now began the waiting game.
Usually when fishing started, you could wait hours for a bite.
But the bite came far quicker than expected.
Less than thirty seconds had passed when the rod in his hand suddenly jerked.
“Oh!”
[You have acquired Fishing Lv. 1.]
[Your proficiency with Fishing Lv. 1 has increased.]
Something had taken the bait.
The line pulled taut.
Woojin stood and yanked the rod upward.
The vibration traveling through the line transmitted a solid resistance through the Wooden Fishing Rod.
The fish thrashed wildly side to side, dragging the line and fighting desperately.
Splash-splash-splash!
“Hang in there, Woojin!”
Then.
Splash!
Water erupted as a large shadow burst through the surface.
Woojin didn’t miss the moment and immediately lifted the rod higher.
Splaaash!
What burst from the water was a fish with a blue back.
About forty centimeters long, with firm muscle that felt substantial when held in hand.
[You have caught a Tower Mackerel.]
[Grade: E]
[Size: 40cm]
[You have acquired Fishing Lv. 2.]
Flap-flap-flap!
“We got one! A fish!”
“First catch!”
He dropped the mackerel into a wooden barrel.
Watching the mackerel thrash about in the barrel, he felt a sense of accomplishment.
[The God of Adventure observes you and remarks that you seem to have a talent for fishing.]
[The God of Fate lets out a long sigh and says he cannot believe that the adventurer is peacefully fishing while all of them watch over the situation.]
.
.
.
“Fifth one!”
Plop!
Splash-splash!
Five mackerel already.
Moreover, each was at least thirty centimeters.
They were all quite large specimens.
Splash, splash, splash!
The caught mackerel was gutted at once by the Doppelgänger.
Truth be told, Woojin had only ever watched mackerel-cleaning videos on YouTube and had never actually done it himself, nor did he know how to do it well, so he was fortunate that the Doppelgänger cleaned it with practiced ease into perfect eating portions.
“Doppelgänger, you’re the best?”
(…….) Bashful!
“I think that’s enough fishing for today. We’ll call it here.”
“Good work, meow!”
It was already past six in the evening.
Perfect timing for dinner.
Tonight’s menu?
Charcoal-grilled mackerel, naturally.
With the mackerel already cleaned, it was just a matter of grilling it.
Grilled mackerel, like all fish, was best cooked over charcoal flame on a grill grate.
Click, click.
[You have acquired Carving Lv. 4.]
He brought out the Unknown Stone
and began making a grill grate using Amwol in dagger form.
Soon two thin grill grates were complete.
With two grates, he could flip the mackerel back and forth, rendering out all the fat while grilling it to a light, golden brown.
“Doppelgänger. Would you cook some rice for me?”
(…….) Nod!
The Doppelgänger poured rice into the Stone Pot just as Woojin instructed, rinsed it with water, and began cooking the rice.
Pitter, patter!
As time passed, the pot rice would be ready.
In the meantime, there was one thing for Woojin to do.
Grill the mackerel.
‘When I was living alone, I rarely got to eat grilled mackerel. Heh heh.’
Grilled mackerel and fish in general were delicious.
The problem, however, was that the smell was so strong it was difficult to cook at home.
Especially in Woojin’s studio apartment, where the kitchen and living space weren’t separated—once you grilled mackerel, the smell lingered all day even if you kept the windows open.
But here?
There was a large hole in the ceiling, so ventilation was excellent.
Woojin brought charcoal, gathered it together, and lit a fire.
Then he placed the mackerel over the charcoal.
The fresh, newly caught mackerel began cooking, and that distinctive mackerel-grilling smell started to fill the air.
He sprinkled salt over the mackerel.
Click, clack!
Kkamangi’s rear end was wiggling and her eyes were shining brightly with anticipation.
“Ah. Why does my shoulder feel so stiff?”
Woojin murmured while rolling his arm, as if making sure Kkamangi could hear.
Hearing that, Kkamangi bounded right over and began kneading his shoulder with her paws.
“Here, meow? Is this where it’s stiff, meow?”
“Seems like it.”
Knead, knead, knead.
“Ahh. That feels good.”
Woojin let out a small laugh and finished grilling the mackerel.
At last,
[You have made Charcoal-Grilled Tower Mackerel using Cooking.]
[Cooking Lv. 4 proficiency increases.]
[Charcoal-Grilled Tower Mackerel]
– Grade: D
– Effects
– Taste Bonus +10%
– Stamina Recovery Speed +5%
– Description: Grilled mackerel made by charcoal-roasting Tower Mackerel.
“Complete!”
The blue-backed mackerel was grilled to a light, golden brown over the charcoal.
And with perfect timing, the pot rice was done as well.
The moment he lifted the pot lid, white steam rose up, and the savory aroma of rice wafted in.
[The God of Adventure swallows hard.]
This evening’s meal.
White rice.
Charcoal-Grilled Tower Mackerel.
Simple, yes—but precisely because of that simplicity, the combination allowed one to taste the mackerel’s flavor in its full, unadulterated form.
[The God of Adventure accepts the rice and mackerel, saying he will eat well.]
“Let’s eat!”
“Bon appétit, meow!”
Woojin picked up a piece of mackerel flesh with his chopsticks.
The skin, crisp and golden.
Within it, the meat tender and moist.
One bite released the full aroma of charcoal, and the salt seasoning was perfectly balanced—exactly as his palate desired.
Not a trace of fishiness.
“This is… this is really delicious, meow!”
This time, he placed a piece of mackerel atop the white rice and ate it all at once.
The rice’s nutty sweetness paired beautifully with the mackerel’s briny depth.
[The God of Fate sets down his chopsticks, amazed that grilled fish could taste so extraordinary, unable to stop eating.]
[The God of Adventure holds out his empty rice bowl, asking for just one more serving.]
Day thirty since arriving at the Tower.
Evening meal: Charcoal-Grilled Tower Mackerel.
A Player Farming in the Dragon Lair (Serial)
Author │ Gaebyeok S
Publisher │ Kim Joo-hyung
Published by │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyuk
Address │ 401, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong, Ace Techno Tower 8)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Gaebyeok S 2026
※This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder. All content is protected, and no part may be used in any form or by any means without permission from the publisher and author.
Violations of this notice may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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