Art Is Explosion

“Whoa.”

As I scrolled through Shorts, a video of a bomb obliterating an abandoned building popped up. With a tremendous roar, the structure lost its original form in an instant.

“So this is art, huh?”

I knew nothing about art, but a character in a manga I’d enjoyed had once declared that art was explosion. His words had to be right.

The next video showed a bunch of puppies.

“All fluffy and cute…. I wanna pet them….”

Watching the adorable dogs tumble and roll around, I started to think maybe this was art instead.

I flicked my finger and swiped onward.

Next up was an idol’s fancam.

“Whoa.”

A girl group where all four members were Hunters.

“Now this is art.”

Their Hunter status had given their looks and talent wings, turning them into the ultimate idols. I rewatched the video three times in pure admiration.

The moment I scrolled down, buffering hit and a black screen greeted me.

“Ah.”

On that black screen was the reflection of a twenty-year-old non-awakener orphan with zero acquaintances, currently living the NEET life. Strength left my hand; the smartphone dropped straight onto my face.

Embarrassing as it was, I blacked out right there.

“Hahk!”

The second consciousness returned, I bolted upright. The smartphone that had been on my face clattered to the floor.

“How long was I out…?”

My junk phone had powered off from the impact of hitting the ground. Even with a window, it was hard to tell the time in a semi-basement. Judging by the darkness, it was probably night.

My head had been throbbing for a while now—like someone had freely stirred my brains around.

“Status window.”

My mouth moved on its own. Startled, I clapped a hand over it.

When an awakener first ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠opens their status window, the words come out involuntarily, regardless of their will.

That was the common testimony of every single awakener.

A small window appeared before my eyes. The instant it did, I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠rubbed them hard.

“This is a real awakening…?”

Dazed confusion hit first. Passing out after dropping a phone on my face while watching Shorts… and then awakening?

My heart pounded. Whatever the process, the result was an awakening!

The “non-awakener” part of my title—orphan with no acquaintances, twenty-year-old NEET youth—had just been erased.

“Huh…?”

There was a word that should never have been there.

Summoner.

When Gates opened and the Tower rose, Earth’s language barriers shattered. Information about the new phenomena exchanged even faster, and Hunter ranks were established. Ranks were determined by class, possessed skills, skill grades, and so on.

And every single Summoner was, without exception, E-rank.

The biggest reason:

“Because they can’t form contracts.”

According to the internet, contracting a summon required the summon’s recognition. Strong summons refused to listen to anyone weaker than themselves. Even when a contract happened—

“A summon weaker than you….”

—it was always just a special pet-level creature. And you could only ever contract one.

So the absolute peak for a Summoner was becoming a YouTuber posting summon vlogs with a million subscribers. And there was only one of those—lucky enough to have a winged puppy for a summon.

A Summoner without a summon. Or a Summoner whose summon might as well not exist. Society simply called them ordinary people. Online communities even ranked Summoners below non-awakeners, since they supposedly had zero potential to awaken into anything better.

“…….”

Silence and a sigh filled the tiny semi-basement.

“Still, I awakened, so I might as well try the skill….”

You never knew. A stronger summon might be moved by my pure heart and agree to a contract. Or even a weaker one could be cute enough for me to aim for that million-sub YouTuber life.

“But what’s EX-grade?”

Skill ranks topped out at S, as far as I knew. What the hell was EX? Did it mean it couldn’t even reach E-grade?

Pushing the disappointment aside, I muttered the skill name inwardly.

Contract.

Nothing happened.

Yet in the blink of an eye, I was no longer in the semi-basement but somewhere else entirely. The ground was soft and springy. Two moons hung in the sky. Twice the moonlight, yet the surroundings remained dark.

“Is the summon here?”

Summons supposedly lived in their own dimensional worlds. The place where you contracted them was their home. And if a Summoner’s skill brought you there, you couldn’t die—no matter how strong the summon or how thoroughly you pissed it off. That was how Summoners always managed to return to Earth and leave reviews.

Then something soft and fluffy brushed my cheek. I whipped my head around in surprise. A small ball of fur. Black fur. The little fluffball floated gently in midair. It had no face, yet it seemed delighted—twisting its body this way and that, bobbing up and down. Then it began spinning circles around me.

“You’re the summon?”

I spoke to the fluffball. It rubbed its body against my cheek, wriggling every which way. Pretty damn cute. The puppies I’d watched before blacking out floated into my mind, making it even cuter. Cute really was justice.

“Yeah, well, if I’m awakening anyway, having a pet’s not bad.”

It didn’t look like it needed food or anything. And it seemed to like me just fine….

I scooped the fluffball into my hand. It squirmed and wriggled in my palm.

“Wanna make a contract with me?”

It froze for a second. Then it bounced out of my hand and spun around me even faster than before. Looked happy.

But… does that mean the contract’s done…?

I opened the status window to check.

“Oh.”

A new line had appeared. The contract must have gone through properly. But… it was full of unreadable characters.

Anyway, contract complete, so time to name it.

“What should I call you….”

Calling it “fluffball” forever felt wrong. Hmm…. Black, floating, fluffy, soft….

“Meonji! From now on, you’re Meonji!”

At that, Meonji spun around me again—this time burrowing into my hair and rubbing itself all over.

“Guess you like it.”

Then a voice rang out inside my head.

Before I could even react to the voice, the space around me twisted. And once again, I blacked out.

Something soft and furry wriggling all over my body made my eyes open.

“Eek…!”

The fur was roaming every inch of me, and a sound slipped out naturally. It was a sweet voice I’d never heard before—like the idols’ voices from the Shorts. Or maybe… even sweeter.

?

No one ever entered the semi-basement where a friendless person like me lived. Least of all a woman. While I was still puzzling over the voice, the fur stopped at my navel. Then it slowly climbed higher and rolled left and right like crazy. I felt it go up, then down.

…?

I reached out and grabbed the moving fur. Pulling it out from under my clothes revealed Meonji.

“What the—it was just you, Meonji.”

?!

I’d spoken, but the voice wasn’t mine. Uh… no way?

Stories of bodies changing after awakening were common, but never a gender swap. I recalled the voice from right before I blacked out.

It definitely said something about becoming a queen… and reconstructing….

Even an idiot like me could figure out what had happened.

I released Meonji; it spun around me in lazy circles as if sightseeing the semi-basement. I lifted a hand and poked the place where that sensation had been.

“Smaller than I expected….”

In a way, equal exchange. Something of mine had vanished, and something else had taken its place. The feeling was a little weird, but I could accept it. One hand went lower—nothing there either, of course.

First things first: I got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. It was the only place in the house with a mirror. Both the front and rear cameras on my phone had been broken since I bought it used.

“Whoa….”

In the mirror stood a woman with a cool, aloof impression. Long black hair cascading to her waist gleamed and swayed; her body was lean, toned, and beautiful without a speck of excess fat. Her eyes were sharp yet refined. The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠beauty mark under her left eye only added to the allure.

I stared until Meonji floated over, bobbing excitedly. Seeing it reminded me of the status window. Now that I was a woman, something might have changed.

Status window.

The status window had grown richer. Apparently the “Queen of ■■” title was why I’d become a woman. That cool, regal impression really did suit a queen.

My eyes stopped on Meonji’s skill.

“Huh…?”

A skill whose name screamed “do not use under any circumstances.” Using it might turn Meonji into actual dust.

“What kind of skill is this…?”

I muttered in panic, and the detailed description appeared.

It really was a skill that turned Meonji into dust. Thankfully, it wasn’t the cruel kind that made Meonji vanish forever. The “can be used again” line meant Meonji didn’t actually die.

If the power was strong and Meonji took no lasting damage… then together we could climb the Tower and close Gates. I might become the first Summoner Hunter to break free of E-rank!

Well, more than any of that…

I was curious.

Trying out every skill you already ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠have is the iron rule, right?

I powered on my phone and checked the time. The dead of night—4 a.m., when everyone else would be asleep. With nothing proper to wear, I threw on a loose top and shorts, tucked Meonji inside my clothes, and stepped outside.