Arcana Online
It had been a week since I started living in the City of Stars.
Whenever I picked up a quest from Erika noona, or when I had nothing better to do and wandered outside the city for a leisurely stroll, I found myself suddenly thinking of Cradle Village.
It hadn’t even been that long since I left, but I missed Bell noona. I missed the rabbits, too.
They’d brought me carrots every single day, so fair was fair. If something was coming in, something had to be going out.
I checked how many Magic Stones I had in my inventory, then looked over the new passive skill I’d obtained.
Growth
Your summon grows stronger.
[Grow big and strong!]
Was this supposed to help my summons grow?
I left the city with Yongyong and followed the road, only for the bear taxi to appear exactly as if it had been waiting for us.
“Please take me to Cradle Village!”
“Kraaang!”
“What do you mean Cradle Village is far away, so it has to be two Magic Stones!? You’re a thief, that’s what you are! And what do you mean far!?!”
“Kraang!”
“Fine! I’ll give you two! But next time, you’d better take me for free!”
“Kraaang!”
“Who charges for free rides!? That’s so mean!”
Even while I grumbled, climbing onto the bear’s back was still convenient enough.
The ride toward Cradle Village came with the bear’s powerful speed, and when I told it to drop me near the rabbit territory, it agreed—but I hadn’t thought through the aftermath at all.
The moment the bear appeared, the rabbits fled in a panic, and a few of them even fainted on the spot. It was total chaos.
After handing over the Magic Stones and sending the bear away, I went to greet the rabbits, only to get an earful.
“Kkyuu! Kkyuu!”
“I’m sorry! I had no idea you’d be that scared!”
“Kkyuu!”
“I’ll be more careful next time!”
After apologizing to the rabbits, I took out the Magic Stones from my inventory and handed them out one by one. Their eyes sparkled as they accepted each stone.
There were so many of them that even a low-grade stone wasn’t cheap in the slightest, but a favor was a favor. I had to pay it back.
Every single rabbit accepted a stone from me, and in return they gave me carrots as thanks. By now, I’d already received more than a few hundred carrots.
What was I even supposed to do with all these?
After saying goodbye to the rabbits and approaching Cradle Village, the guard uncle spotted me and waved.
“Did you come back because you love our village so much?”
“Haha! I came because I missed you all!”
After the greetings, I headed into the village, and everyone lit up when they saw me.
After exchanging hellos with the villagers, I stepped into the Moonlight Inn and heard a voice I’d missed dearly.
“Just a moment, please!”
Bell noona had her back turned, thinking a customer had arrived because she hadn’t noticed me yet.
The instant she turned her head and saw me—
“Yuna!?”
“I’m here!”
Bell noona came over and hugged me, telling me I’d come at just the right time.
I’d missed the warmth of another person so much.
Erika noona was in the City of Stars, but she was busy, so I rarely saw her, and physical affection was practically nonexistent.
At most, she’d pat my head.
Bell noona, on the other hand, gave me all the affectionate contact I could want, and it made it feel like the emptiness inside me was finally being filled.
Luckily, it was a slow time at the inn, so when I told her everything that had happened, she reacted with genuine interest, and before I knew it, we’d been talking for hours. I’d arrived early in the morning, and now it was already nearing noon.
“It’s already this late? Wait here for a bit, will you? I’ll get lunch ready.”
“Okay!”
After eating the meal Bell noona prepared, I told her I was going to step out for a while and headed over to Uncle Charles.
I told him everything that had happened, including how I’d shown the pass he issued me when entering the City of Stars and had been treated like a VVIP, and Uncle Charles responded as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“I was the one who issued that pass, so of course they should treat you that way. No matter what anyone says, Yuna is my disciple!”
“But I’m a summoner?”
“You learned swordsmanship from me, didn’t you?”
After talking with Uncle Charles, I headed back outside the village.
I’d already seen the rabbits, so let’s see. Should I go visit the slimes and goblins, too?
I walked along the road until a slime came into view in the distance.
It was peeking at me out of the corner of its eye.
“Come here! I’ve got something good for you!”
When I took out a Magic Stone and waved it, the slime came closer.
I placed the Magic Stone inside the body of the slime that had approached me, and it slowly began to absorb it.
“Ooh, that’s amazing! All right, then I’m off!”
“……”
After passing the slime, I headed for the goblin village. I checked the Magic Stones in my inventory, and then realized I’d given the wrong one!
I’d meant to give it a low-grade Magic Stone, but I’d handed over a medium-grade one instead.
Well, what could I do?
As I got closer to the goblin village, one of the goblin guards spotted me.
“Kruk! Young human! Kruk! What brings you here!?”
“I came to repay the kindness you showed me before!”
“Kruk! Come inside first!”
Following the goblin guard, I entered the village and saw the other goblins, too.
One of them—the one who had helped me before—came out to meet me.
“Kruk! Young human! Kruk! It’s been a while!”
“It has!”
We exchanged a few casual stories, and I handed the medium-grade Magic Stone to the goblin who had helped me before, then gave the others one low-grade stone each.
They all accepted them with great delight. Was this what the joy of sharing felt like?
With my debts repaid, maybe I should return to Cradle Village, say goodbye, and head back to the City of Stars. Or maybe I should spend the night in Cradle Village and go back tomorrow.
“Yongyong. What do you think?”
“Kkyuung?”
“Should we sleep in Cradle Village tonight?”
“Kkyuung!”
“Right? Let’s stay one night, then!”
Our Yongyong, who hated hassle, wanted to stay in the nearest village.
Was he saying that for my sake?
As expected, my Yongyong really was too kind.
*
*
*
In the forest, our kind was hunted every single day.
With no strength of our own, we survived only by running and hiding just to stay alive.
How pathetic I was.
Then, one day, a strange human appeared.
The first time he stood before us, he hunted our kind just like every other human.
And yet, not long after that, he greeted us and acted friendly, and somehow I didn’t resent him at all.
It was almost like the feeling of looking at my own kin. No, even more familiar than that—something warmer, closer, was there.
Then one day, after he’d been gone for a long time, the human came to me and handed me a stone filled with immense magical power.
He called it a gift.
The moment I swallowed it, before I could even change my mind, I felt my body begin to transform from deep within.
Overcome by sensations I had never experienced before, I hid in the brush and fell asleep, just in case something dangerous happened.
How long had I slept?
When I opened my eyes, I had been changed into an unfamiliar body.
I still had a human shape, but my body was soft and pliant like a slime’s.
My entire body had become something else.
That was when the humans found me.
“What is that? Is it a slime?”
“Isn’t it a named monster!?”
“Kill it before someone else steals it!”
The humans rushed at me.
If this had happened a little while ago, I would have felt terror at the approach of death, but strangely, I wasn’t afraid.
It felt like flies were swarming me.
The moment I swept out one hand, the three humans turned to dust and vanished.
With power like this, could I protect my kin?
The rabbit walks on two legs!
As soon as you step out of Cradle Village, the first thing you see is a rabbit—but do you see that build? That huge mountain of muscle looks like it could bench 500 with a 3-to-500 ratio, and that’s not even the end of it. If you get close, it smacks you with carrots, and if one hit lands, you’re guaranteed to be left on a sliver of health at minimum. And if you keep going to the slime area, you’ll find a named one, and the body on that thing is…
I’m currently sneaking into Goblin Village. Do you see that over there? That bizarre sight, chanting Valhalla while performing some suspicious ritual—Aaaagh!!