Puppet Jo-ah (3)
Ten minutes later, finally all the tension in me had unraveled.
I approached Jin Yeo-ul, who was awkwardly sipping tea with Mark One after I had left the gate behind me, leaving Alkerniman writhing on the floor.
“So, what’s the name of our cute little lady?”
“N?! Ah, hello! My name is Jin Yeo-ul! I’m 18 years old, a high school student!”
“Hmm… So you’re young, huh?”
I approached her cautiously and slowly, speaking kindly to avoid startling her.
But Jin Yeo-ul shot up from her seat like a fresh recruit on high alert and shouted.
Was I that scary?
“I-I’m sorry for being rude! I’ll fix my behavior!”
“… Why is she so tense, Mark One?”
Confused, I asked. Mark One shrugged once and replied as if it was obvious.
“My lord’s ruthless beating of Alkerniman was witnessed, so it’s only natural to be terrified. Moreover, Puppet Jo-ah was forcibly brought here.”
“Hmm… You’re not wrong there.”
“If it makes you uncomfortable, shall I have a separate conversation with her?”
“No, no need to go that far.”
I calmed Mark One, who was trying to switch to FM instructor mode again, and looked at the still stiff Jin Yeo-ul.
… I never imagined I’d see this expression again from Earth.
The face locked in fear, terrified that one wrong move could mean instant death — I’d seen that countless times during my Elder Lich days.
But after becoming Ha Yuna, seeing me with that look made me feel a bit weird.
Is it true that I can never return to being a perfect human?
Of course, I had no intention of forcing myself to change, so I tapped Jin Yeo-ul’s shoulder and spoke.
“Let’s skip the pleasantries and get to the point. The reason I called you is simple.”
“I’m really sorry for lying! Please spare me!”
When I got right in front of her, she either relaxed or her legs gave out from fear and she collapsed to the floor.
Then she suddenly wrapped her arms around my waist and wailed.
“Huaaaang! I really just wanted to live! I wasn’t trying to deceive anyone, let alone the NecroEmpress-nim! Huaaaang!”
“Ouch! I’m not going to kill you, so let go!!”
“Uwaaaang!! If you let go, I’ll beat you with that huge bat of yours! I’ll never let go!!”
“I won’t beat you! I’m not going to hit you, so let go!!”
“Please spare me!!! I have a sick mother at home and younger siblings I have to feed and raise!!”
“Uwaaaaaaaa!!!”
Even in my Elder Lich days when I was just bones, I didn’t think I was this weak.
Is it because I’m a human woman, or because as an Awakener I’m weaker than Puppet Jo-ah? I don’t know.
No matter how much I struggled to free myself from her grip, I couldn’t make her release the arm holding me.
But if I really used magic or physical force… beating a child like this didn’t sit right with me.
Moreover, with a melodrama unfolding, beating her would make even Satan cut ties.
So, I just.
“Haa… I don’t know. Keep crying until you calm down.”
“Huaaaaaang!!!”
I gave up.
***
Twenty minutes later.
“I’m sorry. I got too excited and made a mistake…”
Jin Yeo-ul, having calmed down, released her arms from hugging me and clasped her hands on the floor, then suddenly bowed.
“Thank you for saving me. I will never forget this favor for the rest of my life.”
“… Are you calmed now? Then can I get to the main point?”
“Of course! I’m listening! Hehe.”
For a moment, I thought of feeding her a honeyed bean because she smiled so brightly when she lifted her head.
But then I realized repeating the previous situation would happen, so I barely suppressed the desire for honeyed beans that rose in my throat.
I crouched in front of Jin Yeo-ul and asked.
“I heard from Mark One earlier that all the friends in the photo were puppets, right?”
“Yes. My ability is puppet creation!”
Jin Yeo-ul, surprised that I was interested in her ability, suddenly jumped up from her seat and activated it.
And in an instant, a puppet exactly like Jin Yeo-ul appeared in a corner of the room, or rather, a mini version of her?
“Hello! I am Jin Yeo-ul!”
“Oh! It can talk? Is it intelligent?”
The puppet approached me cutely and greeted, so I patted it a bit and looked at the original.
Then the puppet, feeling happy about the praise, puffed its chest and shouted.
“Hmph! It’s an A-rank trait! If made properly, I can create puppets that are completely identical to humans!”
“Oh! Amazing! It’s similar to undead creation but a bit different.”
“Hehe… Thank you for the compliment. More importantly, could you tell me why you brought me here?”
While pondering how to answer Jin Yeo-ul’s question, I thought it wasn’t necessary to hide anything.
“Originally, after saving you, I was going to make you write a post praising me in the community.”
“… What? What does that mean…?”
“Literally, my undead servants couldn’t understand my words well, so they were rampaging without understanding what was appropriate…”
I glared at Mark Two and Alkerniman, who were listening to the conversation from the side, then continued.
“So, I was trying to use you to boost my standing in the community, like ‘NecroEmpress clears A-rank gate and saves Puppet Jo-ah’ or something.”
“Ah… I see. It’s not that hard, but would that work?”
“No, I did it, remember? I changed my mind when I heard about your ability. I wanted to do something more fun than these trivial things.”
“…?”
I ignored Jin Yeo-ul, who didn’t understand my meaning, and installed a new magic circle in the center of the room.
And soon, an enormous amount of mana was drained, and a gigantic magic circle far larger than the previous undead ones was drawn.
Then, from the center, some being began spewing out mana of tremendous density, chilling the air inside the room.
Jin Yeo-ul instinctively stepped back and held her breath, while Mark One and Alkerniman lowered their postures quietly.
Scratching, scratching—
The patterns on the floor converged into one, and slowly the silhouette of a girl began to form.
First, her white hair appeared.
Her silver-white and ash-gray wavy hair was tinged with red frost at the ends.
And inside her lavender-colored eyes, a thin red thread-like pattern was woven.
Lily Vendette.
The one the Latena Kingdom called the ‘Funeral Puppeteer’.
She slowly opened her eyes, quietly surveyed her surroundings, and fixed her gaze on me, Ha Yuna.
And.
“Uwaaaang!!! Master-nim!!!! I missed you!!!!”
She ran over, acting spoiled, and immediately hugged me by wrapping her arms around my neck.
“It’s true!! It’s really true, just like Mark One said!!! You’ve become so cute!!! Waaaa— I’m so happy!!!”
“Hey— wait— you crazy woman!! I can’t breathe— let go!! Let go!! Let go!!”
“Uwaaaang Master-nim is rejecting me… But I won’t let go…!!”
“Kuaaaaaak!! Let go!! You crazy woman!!”
A brief combo of choking, pushing, and kicking with feet occurred.
All the undead, including Mark One, nodded with arms crossed, as if they were used to it, from a distance.
Only Jin Yeo-ul was worriedly trying to help Ha Yuna, stomping her feet.
Finally, after about a minute of physical struggle, I managed to breathe again, and Lily sat next to me as if nothing happened, bowing her head.
“It is an honor to meet my master again. So, why did you call me?”
“This crazy… Haa, good. The reason I called you is simple. To settle on Earth and live without noise, I need forces that can move directly, other than your undead.”
I pointed at Jin Yeo-ul with my finger.
“This kid. Name is Jin Yeo-ul. She has puppet creation ability, right? Quite high level. But control is still immature. You teach her.”
Jin Yeo-ul was startled and pointed at herself with her finger.
“E, ee?! Me…? Me… I’m just… I only know how to like dolls and make them a little…”
Lily quietly raised her head.
The red thread pattern slowly spread inside her lavender eyes.
And staring fixedly at Jin Yeo-ul, analyzing her like a doctor, she eventually smiled very gently.
“It’s okay. I’m not the scary puppet master who tears people apart to make dolls.”
“… Because of that tone, it’s even scarier.”
“Haha, it was a joke. Don’t worry. I just… make more precise and lifelike puppets.”
Lily raised her hand.
At the same time, red threads unraveled from the air and in an instant, a human-sized puppet slowly stood up.
Each joint moved naturally like human muscles, turning its head and even mimicking breathing.
Jin Yeo-ul held her breath.
“This… is this… really… alive…?”
“Yes.”
Lily smiled quietly.
“If you learn from me, you’ll be able to control puppets to this level. Jin Yeo-ul, your talent is surprisingly high.”
The puppet raised its head and looked at Jin Yeo-ul.
And smiled.
This shocking sight made Jin Yeo-ul’s eyes tremble widely.
“Then… if I learn, can I make such perfect puppets?”
“Of course. Jin Yeo-ul’s talent seems quite high.”
“… Okay. Then I’ll learn.”
Lily’s eyes smiled very quietly and happily.
“Please take care of me, my cute junior.”