His small farm was home to an increasing number of non-human beings, both animals and plants. Communicating through gestures alone was far from ideal. Kim Haru had already scoured the system store multiple times, hoping to find a translation tool suitable for such situations, but he had never come across anything useful.

    Now, with the arrival of this ginseng spirit, wasn't that problem essentially solved?

    But there was one catch—the ginseng spirit wasn't like the other mutated plants. Would it even be willing to stay on his farm?

    However, this concern evaporated at dinnertime.

    Kim Haru watched as the ginseng spirit, using a sudden burst of agility akin to teleportation, appeared on his dining table. It clambered eagerly toward the plates of food.

    Holding his chopsticks, Kim Haru hesitated, unsure if he should pick it up or not.

    "Are you volunteering to be our dinner?" Go Okrim asked while reaching out with his chopsticks, aiming for the ginseng spirit. "You're way too big for us to finish in one go. We'd have to chop you up first."

    The ginseng spirit, who had been bickering with Go Okrim all afternoon, was now completely deflated. In a flattering tone, it stammered, "Th-these dishes… where did they come from? I—I just want a taste, just one bite! Please?"

    Kim Haru studied the ginseng spirit's radish-like body and asked, "Aren't you a plant? Can you even eat food?"

    Most of the other mutated plants on his farm thrived on soil, water, and fertilizer. Clearly, this gingseng spirit was something else.

    The ginseng spirit, with its beady, bean-like eyes, instinctively wanted to roll them in exasperation but stopped itself. The human before it was no longer someone it could casually sass; this person was its potential patron. Restraining its impulse, it quickly replied, "I—I'm not like those ordinary plants. Even though I haven't fully transformed into a spirit, I'm at least halfway there. So, I can eat human food."

    "What do these dishes do for you?" Kim Haru asked.

    "I… um…" The ginseng spirit hesitated, then spoke honestly. "I can sense spiritual energy in these dishes. It's the same kind of spiritual energy as before the apocalypse. By absorbing it, I can fully transform into a spirit."

    The ginseng spirit was eager to answer every question, even carefully using its words and not daring to say anything that might offend Kim Haru, lest it lose its chance to eat the food.

    Since waking up in this post-apocalypse world, it had wandered far and wide. This was the first time it had encountered food reminiscent of the pre-apocalypse era!

    Watching the ginseng spirit clutch tightly onto a plate of food, Kim Haru knew exactly how to persuade it to stay.

    "If you want to eat, it's not impossible," Kim Haru said. "I can even make sure you have three meals a day, just like us. However, you should understand that nothing comes for free. My farm doesn't provide room and board for freeloaders. You'll have to work for it."

    "If you agree, today's meal will include a portion for you."

    Seeing its chance to transform into a full spirit, the ginseng spirit didn't hesitate. Before Kim Haru even finished speaking, it was nodding furiously.

    "I agree, I agree! From now on, you're my boss. If you tell me to go east, I won't even think about heading west by so much as a millimeter!" It was so excited that it forgot to correct its usual speech habit.

    Kim Haru glanced at his farm system interface and saw a new addition listed under "crops." Satisfied, he nodded.

    The ginseng spirit had been registered as a "crop" by the system, unlocking ginseng seeds as a bonus reward. This unexpected surprise brought a smile to his face.

    As for the spirit's constant rude behavior Kim Haru didn't bother trying to correct it. After all, back in his pre-apocalypse days, he'd played games with plenty of teammates who couldn't stop cursing. As long as the personality wasn't rotten, it didn't matter much.

    Thus, the small farm's dinner table today featured not only two humans but also a semi-sentient ginseng spirit. Naturally, the plate that the ginseng had sprawled over became its designated share—neither Kim Haru nor Go Okrim had any appetite to touch it again with their chopsticks.

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    After dinner, Go Okrim took the new member for a stroll around the farm to familiarize it with the animals and plants. Meanwhile, Kim Haru busied himself by feeding the white radishes to the black pigs.

    Having learned that the white radishes were grown by the ginseng spirit, Kim Haru already had a guess about the result—and he was right. The two black pigs ate with great enthusiasm, clearly enjoying the treat.

    Kim Haru didn't forget the two chickens, Little Nugget and Sir Peckington, who were bored from endlessly sitting in their coop. He diced up a radish and placed it into their feed trough to give them a change of diet. S~ea??h the ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    After tending to the farm animals, Kim Haru packed over ten radishes to take to the Pyeongseong Safe Zone. He wanted to share them with Moon Baein, Hwa Jian, Han Gwonhee, and the members of the Delta Squad. After all, they were also employees of the farm—it wouldn't be fair if only Go Okrim got to enjoy the produce.

    "Gojo, I'll leave the farm in your hands," Kim Haru said as he called Go Okrim over. "If you're bored, take the ginseng spirit and let it pick a spot it likes to plant radishes. I'm heading to the Pyeongseong Safe Zone."

    It had been a few days since Kim Haru last visited the Pyeongseong Safe Zone, and now that the sled vehicle was complete, travel had become much easier. He figured it was a good time to check on how the Pyeongseong Safe Zone was faring this winter.

    Go Okrim and the ginseng spirit agreed readily.

    Kim Haru left the farm, while Snowball No. 1, Snowball No. 5, and Snowball No. 11 staying in the farm to assist them.