Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Prim on the Run
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[Chapter 90]
In the past dungeon, Prim approached Saebyeok in an attempt to get friendly with her.
Prim was now in mortal danger. Adventurer kids whose movements eerily mimicked imperial palace assassins were charging at her, intent on killing.
Furious to the top of her head, Saebyeok messaged the other Abyss kids with her current location.
She'd crush her for sure.
The sight of that yellow-headed freak made her want to puke, so with the vinyl bag Seol Doyun had given her flipped over her head, she tracked Prim by presence alone.
Once the Abyss kids who'd received her message joined up, Saebyeok gave the order.
"Beat that bastard half to death and drag her here."
"Got it!!!"
Prim fired off spells at the kids relentlessly pursuing her as she ran.
{Prim: Dun! Your past self sent your lackeys to kill me! Give me a break!}
{Dun: Oh yeah, I did that.}
{Prim: Dun, I love you, but right now I really hate you!!!!}
{Dun: lololol sorry}
Dun's playful apology note softened Prim's expression.
At the same time, wooden swords and daggers flew at her. Prim swung her summoned staff around, batting away the incoming weapons.
"Anyone got rope!"
"That guy's heading to the Ellic hunting grounds—message the kids hunting there to set traps ahead of time!"
Even the kids following Saebyeok were scary smart, not just in their movements.
As Prim ran, she glanced back at Saebyeok in the distance, arms crossed, waiting for her hunting dogs to bring back their prey.
With the kids having joined and some distance opened up, the vinyl bag over Saebyeok's head added a strangely cute touch.
'Huh, first time being openly hunted like this, and it's kinda thrilling.'
Those red eyes like Dun's, brimming with murderous intent, were insanely attractive.
That kid was her closest friend and little sister right now. Prim's eyes sparkled as she dodged a flying stone aimed at her head.
Honestly, the pursuing kids were skilled, but to Prim—who'd survived fleeing Montgihell's monsters—this level of chase was a joke.
Prim began drawing a fog magic circle to escape.
"I'd love to keep playing tag, but I've got too much to do."
Suddenly, thick fog began spreading everywhere. It started thin, then filled the air densely, completely blocking vision.
"Saebyeok, we lost that NPC!"
"Ugh, where am I? I'm lost!"
Saebyeok focused on sound and presence, walking toward where the kids were clustered.
At the center of the scattered kids, she let out a sharp whistle.
Wheeeeek—!
"I'm over here. Everyone gather up."
The Abyss kids started converging on the whistle. The magic was so potent, the fog still hung thick. But huddled together, they could make out faces.
Saebyeok checked the gathered faces. Then, pointing at each one, she spoke.
"Pringles."
"Pokachip."
"Hongsam."
"Choco Pie."
....
Saebyeok always stashed snacks she'd gotten from here and there under her bed or in drawers. She didn't eat much, but people kept shoving them at her, so they piled up.
The kids went nuts for snacks, so at first she'd shared them all.
But when they started fighting over them, Saebyeok began letting the obedient ones divvy them up themselves.
She was doing the same now, assigning snacks for later.
"S-Saebyeok. N-not snacks, p-please pat my h-head."
Moon Serim twisted her curly hair around her fingertip, face flushed. She preferred Saebyeok's affection over snacks.
"Y-Yeah, me too! Hug me!"
"Help me with my kick skill!"
"Pat my head too!"
"Shut up! I-I planned it and sent the messages! P-Praise me most!"
Saebyeok crossed her arms, watching the chaotic kids.
"Everyone quiet. Head pats for all. Line up single file."
"I like hugs better...."
"Huh? What'd you say."
"Sorry...."
As the top fighter among the test subjects, Saebyeok's approval meant everything to the Abyss kids.
Even as awakened hunters started outpacing her, she remained the unspoken leader of Abyss.
Even without mana, there was something about her that made them want to believe she was Abyss's number one.
They lined up neatly in front of Saebyeok. She slowly passed by, patting each head.
"Good job. Alright, dismissed."
"But who's that NPC? Why'd we chase her?"
"Dunno, she popped up and started cursing me out."
"Psycho character?"
Saebyeok spat the words out, then took a deep breath in and out, arms crossed to calm her anger.
Suuuuuuh. Hoo.
"Should we hunt her down and kill her?"
"Nah, she's gone, so whatever. Wasting time on a buggy bastard just hurts me. You guys hurry up and awaken too."
"Let's run dungeons together!"
"I'm focusing solo till I awaken."
"Got it.... Call if you wanna run dungeons together!"
"Yeah."
With a short reply, Saebyeok sauntered back toward the dungeon she'd been clearing.
The kids lingered awkwardly near her for a bit before scattering to nearby hunting spots.
Now alone again, Saebyeok entered the leech dungeon. She kicked the corpses she'd handled earlier and killed the lunging leeches as she advanced.
And trailing behind such a Saebyeok was another NPC.
[NPC Fran]
This time, a girl with short black hair and pink eyes. She looked about 10, with Prim's delicate features.
* * *
{Dun: Prim, try changing your appearance and name, then go to Saebyeok. See if she wants to puke.}
{Prim: Why?}
{Dun: If past me and current me meet, maybe she'll recognize... Ah, whatever. Just do it.}
{Prim: Got it.}
To test the scope of this "intervention," Dun had asked Prim to approach disguised.
He suspected Saebyeok's extreme aversion to Prim might stem from someone deeply connected to him.
With no clue on the exact cause, he'd narrow the penalty's range through trial and error.
It was past him suffering anyway. Current him was fine, stamina aside.
"But Dun, how long you gonna follow? What do you want?"
Seol Doyun, walking ahead in search of the next task, turned and asked. Dun, chatting with Prim while walking, blinked at the question and sent a pigeon note.
What he wanted? Oh right.
Earlier, he'd gotten emotional and forgotten the main point.
His first plan had been to appeal to Saebyeok about his identity, which somehow succeeded too easily.
The info got slightly twisted, but it should build some trust. Using that, propose a soul contract as step one.
"Wanna do a soul contract with me?"
"Oh, that slave contract."
"What, you know about it? How?"
"You're famous. I did my homework."
A soul contract that granted full trust in Dun.
It was basically a slave contract, but given Dun's personality, it was more for raising someone reliably than treating them like a slave.
Seol Doyun answered without hesitation.
"But I don't do contracts where I'm not the top dog."
"Even if I can raise you way faster than you could alone?"
"Yeah."
As expected. Even if she gained more as the sub, she had to be the dom.
She'd never accept a slave contract, no matter the benefits.
Exactly the reaction he'd predicted.
Dun stroked his chin.
He had a line ready for when she'd reject a one-sided soul contract.
"How about we both sign a soul contract?"
Seol Doyun stopped dead in her tracks.
She turned to look at Dun ambling along behind.
"Why bother?"
She tilted her head, genuinely puzzled.
"Because otherwise you won't sign."
Seol Doyun hated being sub not just from pride, but because unpredictability terrified her.
She dreaded being at someone's mercy.
So, if he showed he couldn't control her at will, she might agree.
Like letting her point a gun at his head too, instead of just him at hers.
Did it work? Seol Doyun thought silently for a moment before speaking.
"...Fair enough. But lemme read what's in it first. Show me the contract."
Dun had planned to persuade her anyway, so her positive response was fine from her perspective too.
Dun pulled two crumpled sheets from his pocket and showed them to her.
Her blue eyes scanned left to right, devouring the content.
Her expression gradually hardened.
"Setting penalty to death makes it insanely binding, even for me."
Dun watched her stiffening face and spoke.
"...You're staking your account, but I'm staking my soul?"
"Yeah. I lose big time, right? I'll throw the match, so let's do it. Dropped here outta nowhere, no one I know or trust—it's scary."
'Will this land?'
Dun answered as casually as possible. Seol Doyun sighed and muttered a quiet curse.
Whatever the situation, seeing her so casually stake her soul suddenly overlapped with current Saebyeok, stirring irrational irritation.
Her smile faded as she silently reread the contract over and over. Reading, thinking, rereading, rethinking.
Unexplained anger bubbled inside her.
Finally deciding, she pulled a pen from her inventory.
"...Tch."
Clicking her tongue again, Seol Doyun wrote her name only on one sheet—the sub side.
She neatly signed her account name and handed it to Dun.
Once the contract was complete, it flashed and began burning on its own.
Dun's pre-written name on the dom side floated and sank into Seol Doyun, while her freshly inked account name rose to Dun's hand. He gripped it tight, and it absorbed into his palm.
"Just one sheet?"
He'd half-expected it, but her impulsive reaction confirmed she hated risking her life.
Half a gamble, but it worked—kinda stung.
Truth was, Dun never intended mutual soul contracts from the start.
Both staking souls? Nah. To earn her trust, him staking soul while she staked account didn't add up.
Sure, Seol Doyun wouldn't set absurd penalties, but the psychological weight mattered. Plus, she saw him as an AI.
Saebyeok might buy it, but as Dun? No full trust.
Worst case, Monster King could sway her to control him. Couldn't risk soul-binding lightly.
He had family—Lihaowel—and a comfy home now.
Sorry, but if testing with life failed, he'd force it. Hated that option, but luckily...
"...Anyway, I'm just staking my account, so if you piss me off, I'll blow it up and bail."
"Huh? What? You don't need mine for real?"
Seol Doyun tossed the pen to Dun and pulled another contract from her inventory.
"Wipe that smirk. You sign this one."
She carefully slit open a neat brown envelope with her dagger and extracted the paper.
[NPC Partnership Contract]
Dun took it readily but frowned.
What now? Walls of tiny print. Dun focused his brain and read each line.
It promised to handpick decent adventurers and give them better quests than others, in exchange for a cut of fees they paid to the "HappyNPC" group.
Win-win all around.
Similar to that ex-broker corp "Smart Knife-Wielder Inc." he'd seen, but using affinity for quest brokering instead.
He recalled her monopolizing hunter awakenings and ability paths through this biz.
Even snagging NPC likeness and merch rights.
Sue anyone posting dirty NPC stuff online for "tarnishing image," raking cash.
Seeing it from the other side was intriguing.
"Nope."
Dun refused outright with a smiling face, no hesitation.
Signing meant managed quests and activities, dictated what quests to offer. Too much control—he hated that.
Seol Doyun had backups prepared.
From her view, she needed him somehow.
It'd help Abyss eventually, so he'd assist—within reason. Time to coax another contract out.
Lucky it was baby Seol Doyun he was dealing with.
Seol Doyun held out the contract, locking eyes with Dun.
"...."
"...."
Dun's mischievous smile met Seol Doyun's subtly pressuring one.
"Join up, and I'll protect you in every way."
"Nope."
"Mind if I ask why?"
"Don't you already know?"
Ugh, that vague counter-questioning. Infuriating up close.
Seol Doyun forced her smile.
"Dun, that slave contract means I can't force you into anything."
"You don't need to force me anyway."
"...Think I'd micromanage you through others?"
"Could be."
"How? Soul contract—make you rat out the list, then nab 'em."
"You'd delete the soul-bound account and make a new one first. Keeping the signed contract I signed."
Dun's firm answer made Seol Doyun scowl.
"Truth? No imperial seal or anything to prove this partnership contract. Just for show. Unapproved scrap—whaddya think it'd do? Just a record."
Wait, hold up.
Seol Doyun flinched after blurting it. From Dun's earlier words, he read her patterns better than expected.
Saying this now...
"Hmm, really?"
'Slipped.'
"Aah, really? You didn't prep that far? For real? You?"
"...Even if."
'Fucking... Fantasy's made her even worse.'
Soul contract had her on the back foot already, but he exploited the gap, pushing harder.
Her pride stung; she gritted through it.
A full minute of staring contest wasted.
Then a quest popped for Seol Doyun.
[F-Grade Quest] Accept Dun's Rejection.
Content: Quietly accept Dun's refusal.
Reward: None.
Failure/Reject: Soul contract penalty.
"I hate this contract."
"...Haha, got it. If you hate it that much, can't force ya."
'Fucking damn bastard.'
Seol Doyun accepted the rejection, grinding her teeth subtly.
She'd already won, but using a quest for this bullshit?
She cursed inwardly.
This is why she hated Saebyeok.
Always essential as hell, but so damn willful—wrangling her took twice the brainpower of normals.
Brawler type should've been dumb at least. But judgment and quick thinking let her read Seol Doyun easily.
She wanted to ditch this Dun-clone with Saebyeok's stubborn ass, but his NPC popularity and influence would boost her new group if she aggro'd as him.
Planned to secure leverage first, then show the contract—ruined.
Sudden appearance, tossing "Saebyeok" intel. Offering soul-staked contract outta nowhere.
Rashly signed soul contract in anger, pulled backup to offset—crashing all her minor plans. Brain freeze.
Brain freeze dredged up her pride-fueled dumb blurts—mortifying.
Regretted signing that soul contract on impulse, hard.
No choice. She'd gained his trust, not a total loss.
Bittersweet, but time for Plan B. Seol Doyun forced a smile, scanning her inventory's contract stack.
Over ten Dun contingencies. Willful and impulsive, so she'd prepped meticulously.
Could've ended clean, but she kicked the chance herself.
'Fucking idiot.'
She cursed her own dumbass inwardly again.