Chapter 179 – Hedor’s Legacy (1)
“Something is wrong.”
“Yes, we can’t stay still.”
“Gather the magicians. What about you?”
“My job has ended.”
“Let us begin as soon as possible. Time is running out.”
“Right.”
***
Katalu had changed during Crockta’s absence. The preparations for war had disappeared, and it seemed to revive into a lively city.
Crockta walked through the bustling market with Tiyo, then he found a store and slowed down. It was a vegetable store. Old memories suddenly popped into his head. At one time, he had sold vegetables. He had helped Stella sell vegetables in Anail.
“That man, he is fairly good.”
“He can sell a fireplace to people in the desert dot.”
The vegetable seller was brilliant at dealing with customers. He stopped the guests, formed an affinity with them, and sold them a handful of vegetables. As Crockta and Tiyo were admiring his skills, there was a sudden commotion.
“Look, I don’t eat vegetables.” A man stood in front of the vegetable store, playing with the vegetables while laughing. “We aren’t herbivores. Do you think eating vegetables can make you strong?”
The man raised his arms and showed off his biceps. The muscles of his right arm bulged out.
“You can become strong like me by eating meat.”
The demonstration of his body stopped the crowd. The burly man shrugged and laughed at the vegetable seller. “Look, Mister Vegetable Seller, are you going to collapse right now? You are as skinny as a dried anchovy. Eating vegetables have weakened you.”
“Meat is good, but you need to eat a balanced meal for nutrition…”
“Balanced, balanced! I am tired of hearing this! I grew up hearing that I would be taller if I eat bean sprouts and stronger if I eat spinach! But then I was incredibly weak! Everything is a lie!”
As he screamed, a few customers turned away from the vegetable store. The vegetable seller’s expression turned grouchy.
“You should talk about this somewhere else…”
“Eat meat! Chicken breast! Pork sirloin! Pork tenderloin! Pork forelock! Beef if you are rich! That is how our muscles develop!”
He took off his top and posed again. The man had good muscles.
“That… Amazing.”
“Oh my, oh my, look.”
The men in the market were amazed by the muscles, while the women covered their eyes and peeked through their fingers.
The man smiled and shouted, “If you want to be like me, come to Arnold’s Butchery!”
“……!”
It was an explicit publicity stunt! Crockta realized something. This person was almost certainly employed by Arnold’s Butchery. The man deceived people with his good muscles. Why else would he discuss here while showing off his chest, triceps, and biceps!
The customers at the vegetable store turned away one by one. Then they asked the man, “Where is Arnold’s Butchery?”
“Hahat! Arnold’s butcher store can be found on the right side if you turn left at that corner! There is a discount for the pork tenderloin today!”
The atmosphere was already in his favor. People decided that today’s dinner menu was going to be meat. The vegetable seller’s head drooped down.
“It is sophistry… Without vegetables… people can’t live…!” However, his voice didn’t reach the people.
Crockta looked at him and closed his eyes. Obviously, meat and proteins were important. However, the value of vegetables couldn’t be discounted. Proteins were important, but the vitamins, antioxidants, and anti-cancer compounds as well as various minerals and phytochemicals were essential for the body’s health.
Crockta opened his eyes and stepped forward.
“……!”
The people were surprised at the sudden emergence of an orc warrior. The muscular man posing flinched as well. Who didn’t know of Crockta, the true hero who saved Katalu?!
Crockta looked at the muscular man with sunken eyes. The man winced and hopelessly maintained his pose. The muscular man looked like a dwarf once Crockta stood next to him.
He awkwardly smiled at Crockta. “Hahaha, it is Crockta. Your body is also good. Crockta eats a lot of meat right? Hahat! Take a look at these muscles! You must eat three chicken breasts every meal! Kelkelkel! Crockta as well!”
Crockta didn’t answer. A person’s beliefs weren’t shown through words but actions.
Crockta spoke to the vegetable seller, “Hey.”
The vegetable seller stuttered with confusion, “Y-Yes?”
“The spinach, how much is it?” Crockta grinned. “I would like to buy some.”
“……!”
Spinach…! It was rated as one of the top 10 superfoods in the world. He might have a rough green body, but he was devoted to eating spinach since it had various beneficial properties. Crockta declared that he would buy it all. The marketplace became noisy.
Then Crockta said, “Hey, inflatable muscles.”
“……!”
The man’s face turned blue. ‘Inflatable muscles’ was an unbearable insult to him.
“Look.”
Crockta gave strength to his arm…
And it swelled greatly.
“This is the ultimate compression muscle.”
Cries of admiration emerged from the crowd. If the compressed muscles were so big, what were the decompressed muscles like? The man wanted to protest that Crockta’s muscles were inflated, but the atmosphere was also on Crockta’s side.
No, Crockta’s compressed muscles were bigger than the man’s.
Crockta stated, “Meat is definitely important. However, you aren’t a real muscle man if you don’t know the value of vegetables.”
“T-That…!”
“Tell me, what did you eat this morning?”
“That…”
The man didn’t answer. Crockta demanded harshly,
“Tell me!”
“……!”
“Your body doesn’t lie! What did you eat this morning?”
The man gulped at Crockta’s push. Crockta stared at him. Confronted with the gazes of Crockta and the crowd staring at him, the silent man was forced to open his mouth.
He gritted his teeth and replied, “Of course, it is chicken breast…”
“And?”
“……”
Crockta looked down at him and asked, “What else did you eat?”
The man lowered his head. Then he spoke in a small voice, “Boiled sweet potato…”
“……!”
The people were shocked, but Crockta didn’t stop there.
“And?”
“Kuock…”
“What else did you eat?”
“Cabbage salad with tomatoes and blackberries…”
Sweet potatoes, cabbages, tomatoes, and blackberries! He didn’t hate vegetables!
As a man who loved physical beauty, he knew the importance of a balanced diet. He used his body to be hired by Arnold’s Butchery, deceiving people for publicity and preaching false beliefs. However, before Crockta’s questioning and doubts, he had to tell the truth.
“That’s right. Say it again. Do vegetables not matter?”
“Vegetables…”
Crockta urged him on, “Aren’t they really important?”
The man decided to admit defeat. He couldn’t fool himself any longer.
“They are important…!”
He finally revealed his heart. Vegetables… They were important.
The man’s head drooped down. It was a declaration of defeat.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
The people watching the spectacle started to clap and chant Crockta’s name. Crockta had preserved the honor of vegetables.
“Kuock…”
The man looked down with shame. He was embarrassed about deceiving himself for money. Since this happened, he wouldn’t be paid by Arnold anymore. The man had become someone who didn’t have money nor honor. He fell into shame.
Suddenly, a thick hand grabbed his shoulder. It was Crockta.
Crockta spoke with a merciful face, “Hey.”
“……”
“It was a joke. You have very nice muscles.”
“……!”
The man looked at Crockta with quivering eyes. Crockta’s expression was warm as he genuinely admired the man’s body.
“I previously called you inflatable muscles…”
“I said I didn’t need vegetables.”
Crockta showed off his tough biceps and said, “Next time, let’s lift weights together.”
The man received Crockta’s recognition…! Crockta recognized the time and effort he’d put into building his muscles. The man was filled with great emotions, and he touched his nose, shrugging in a show of bravado.
“My training is harsh. It is hell training.”
“Right. That is natural.”
“……”
“You must’ve overcome hard times.”
The man was overwhelmed. They weren’t just comforting words because Crockta truly understood. Crockta reached out his hand, and the man responded. The two men embraced. The two muscular men forgave each other’s mistakes.
Then people flocked to the vegetable store. The vegetable store was recognized by Crockta!
Having a healthy body which could live a long time was people’s dream. The people who saw such a future bought the vegetables from this store. Like this, the vegetable store became well-known because of Crockta.
The muscle man restored his courage and spoke to Tiyo, who was standing quietly beside Crockta.
“Tiyo as well. You should buy some vegetables. How can you accompany Crockta with a body like that? Kelkelkel!”
“Kulkulkul, kulkulkul!”
Crockta laughed together with the man.
Tiyo frowned.
“What did you say dot!”
“You should gain some muscles. Kelkelkel!”
“That’s right. Kulkulkulkul!”
“Kelkelkelkel!”
The two muscular men laughed at Tiyo, while Tiyo’s eyebrows twitched. His gnome’s pride couldn’t allow this. Tiyo jumped forward.
“Achu!”
He spun like a spinning top and kicked. They were lightning fast strikes aimed at Crockta’s and the man’s jaws. Crockta barely escaped, but the man failed and was hit in the jaw. It was only a light hit, but the man swayed and sat down. The man couldn’t easily recover from the damage and sat for a while.
“Uhhh…”
“Look, inflatable muscles dot! This is the truly ultimate compression muscle dot!”
Tiyo took off his top…
And his upper body was revealed. His body contained tight muscles, with no signs of fat anywhere. It was reminiscent of Bruce Lee. While wearing clothes, he looked like a child, but once they were thrown off, dense and compact muscles were revealed. It was a perfect and slim figure that wasn’t lacking in anything.
“This…!”
“Beautiful…!”
People admired him. The vegetable seller also clapped.
“Watching Tiyo, I am reminded of a gnome that I knew before.”
“What dot? There was another wonderful gnome dot?”
“That’s right. The gnome loved eating spinach when he stayed in Katalu. His body was as dazzling as Tiyo’s.” The vegetable seller’s gaze became distant. “His name was Hedor! A cool gnome.”
“……!”
“…Hedor!”
Crockta and Tiyo’s eyes widened.
Hedor. It was Tiyo’s father, whom they were looking for. They got a clue about Hedor at the vegetable store.
***
Crockta’s popularity meant there were fans and followers tracking his every move. The movements were often ordinary, but Crockta didn’t avoid or tell them off. This was the reason why…
“You came because you want a nice body…”
“Yes.”
Baek Hanho was troubled as the number of people joining his gym increased. More members was a good thing. However, most of them said strange things during the first consultation.
Baek Hanho looked at the form submitted by the applicants and sighed.
“Yes, I would like the same ultimate muscles as Tiyo.”
“That’s right!”
“There is someone who wants muscles like Crockta?”
“Yes. I want to become stronger like Crockta!”
The three men sitting side by side looked at Baek Hanho with firm eyes. The remaining silent person suddenly said, “I want to be like the butcher shop meat man. I don’t have unrealistic goals like them.”
The man who interfered with the vegetable seller’s business was known on the Internet as the butcher shop meat man. His meat praising character was surprisingly popular, and there were those who started exercising with the goal of being like him.
The new muscular craze…
Crockta’s popularity led to trends in reality.
“……”
Baek Hanho hit his forehead with his pen. He thought for a moment before opening his mouth.
“Hrmm… What about a body like Andre’s?”
“Andre?”
They shook their heads in unison.
“Aish. What is Andre?”
“He is too strange.”
“Crockta is the trend. Andre, yuck.”
Baek Hanho nodded. “Right. Today, let’s start straight away. Change your clothes.”
“Huh? We were going to start tomorrow…”
“I have an appointment…”
“Shut up. He who lives for tomorrow won’t be able to defeat his enemies today! Take it off right now!” Baek Hanho’s eyes blazed passionately. “I’ll make those bodies… through hell training.”
