Chapter 37
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Friend of the Summons
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"Isn't that Shin Ji-ui the hunter over there?"
"Yeah, and she's been hanging around here forever..."
The other hunters who had come into the training room tossed comments my way as they glanced at me, but I ignored them completely, keeping my eyes fixed on the people inside.
[Animal Communicator]
Obtain favor from five or more summons.
[1/5]
🎁 Reward: Greatly increase progress on mission ‘Wolf's Companion’
⏰ Time Limit: 5 hours 31 minutes
I couldn't let this golden opportunity to grow Nokdu slip away, but damn it, time was just ticking by mercilessly.
My plan was simple: befriend every hunter training with their summons in the room and get familiar with the summons themselves.
'You really thought that would work?'
'What can I do? It's the only thing that came to mind.'
My ego clicked its tongue and scolded me. Thanks to our Nokdu, one was already done from the start, but the remaining four were the problem.
Where the hell was I supposed to find four summons at once?
There was a way to buy an item with a summoning skill attached, but snapping up a summon I couldn't even take responsibility for just to satisfy this greed? Absolutely not.
"Haaa..."
"Why are you sighing like that?"
"Wak?!"
A voice suddenly came from right behind my head. I yelped in surprise without thinking and whipped around to see Ji-ho unnie in her disheveled training gear.
"Ahaha! Look at your face~"
"You here to train?"
"Nah, just to hang out."
'Did I hear that wrong?'
I just stared at her instead of answering.
"Oh, clan battle. We're throwing down with the 'Silver' clan leader today."
"Ah..."
Clans were like self-organized clubs that hunters formed on their own. In our country, all hunters were under the Hunter Association, so they couldn't set up separate guilds. That made it hard for hunters to network broadly.
The clan system was created based on the chairman's philosophy that national hunters needed to bond closely. Gather at least five hunters, get HQ approval, and boom—you had a clan. I'd read about it on Hunter Net.
"What clan are you in, unnie?"
"The battle-fighting clan 'Musang,' boasting history and tradition! Why, why? Interested?"
"No..."
"Our clan members are all nice! Super united too!"
Ji-ho unnie leaned in with sparkling eyes, but I gently pushed her back.
'...Maybe there's a summon clan out there?'
"Ji-ho noona! Hurry up!"
"Ah, okay~! See ya~"
"Yeah. Don't get hurt."
Ji-ho unnie laughed merrily and dashed toward a male hunter who looked like her clanmate.
'Ji-ho unnie's always so bright and bubbly, huh?'
'Guess she was the same even in the last timeline.'
My ego snickered at my words.
'Ah, no time for this.'
I quickly pulled out my work phone from my inventory and opened Hunter Net. Tapping the Clan tab brought up a flood of clans.
[LIPS]
Clan Leader: Ha Mi-jun
A cooking clan where we cook and bond. Our clan leader is an ultra-beauty with a Western cuisine certification, waiting! Inquiries to Hunter Kim Dae-hyun, not the leader ;)
Waiting for interested kittens^^
'This guy's running a clan? A cooking one at that?'
Totally unexpected. I could picture him eating at a restaurant, but cooking himself? No way.
I scrolled down through the clan list until the search bar popped up. Combat clans dominated, as expected.
A couple flicks, and I typed in 'summon'.
Search: summon
Results: 0
"Huh."
Summon, summoning skill, pet monster, monster...
Results: 0
I tried every keyword, but not even a whiff of 'summon'.
'There are hunters with summoning skills out there. Why nothing? Do I have to make my own? That'd take forever.'
Panicking, I hammered the keyboard again.
"Ah."
Search: show summon
'Typo. Gotta search again...'
Results: 1
The screen that had only shown 'No results' now displayed something completely unforeseen.
[Miracle]
[Korea's one and only show summon clan 'Miracle'. For membership inquiries, please tell Kim Min-sook.]
'Write properly, jeez.'
My ego voiced my exact thoughts. My head throbbed in disbelief, but I shook it off and searched for 'Kim Min-sook' in the hunter directory.
One more typo and I'd be screwed.
[Kim Min-sook / A-Rank / Wind]
[Send Message]
[Call]
Good, the name was spelled right.
I took a deep breath and hit call.
Ring, ring.
After about four rings, a middle-aged woman's voice came through.
—This is Kim Min-sook.
"Hello, Hunter Kim Min-sook. I'm Shin Ji-ui! Mind if we talk?"
—Hm?
I didn't even know her face, but I could somehow picture her expression right now.
—Ah, are you that Shin Ji-ui hunter? The SS-Rank?
"Yes. Sorry to call out of the blue..."
—Of course I was surprised. The one and only rank in the whole world.
A hearty laugh boomed from the phone.
Honest type.
—So, what's up?
"Is it possible to join Miracle Clan right now?"
[Eloquence increased]
[Awakener ‘Shin Ji-ui’s’ words cause Awakener ‘Kim Min-sook’ to waver.]
'It works over the phone too, huh.'
But why'd she waver? I pulled my eyes from the eloquence status and focused on the phone. Hunter Kim Min-sook trailed off for a while, like she was pondering.
—Do you have a summon?
"Yes, I do."
—Then joining isn't hard. Not hard, but...
She mumbled a bit, cleared her throat, then continued.
—It's our regular meeting day today anyway, so I'll invite you. I'll send the location via Hunter Net.
"Yes, yes."
Click.
She'd been hearty during introductions, but got awkward once clans came up.
'Something wrong with the clan?'
Bzzzt.
A message from Hunter Kim Min-sook arrived right on cue.
[2 PM. Namyangju C-Rank Dungeon entrance. See you then ^^ —Hunter Kim Min-sook]
It was just past noon, so perfect timing to head out.
I stowed the phone back in my inventory and headed for the bus stop.
[Animal Communicator]
Obtain favor from five or more summons.
[1/5]
🎁 Reward: Greatly increase progress on mission ‘Wolf's Companion’
⏰ Time Limit: 3 hours 36 minutes
I pulled up the status window again to check the time first. I should be able to meet all the summons today, but the real issue was how to win their favor.
'Can I pull it off in time?'
I shoved the stray thoughts aside and opened the Hunter Net map. The Namyangju C-Rank Dungeon was near the old café street walkway.
Following the map along the trail, I spotted a cluster of people ahead—and beyond them, a container box.
"Whoa! You actually came!"
"Wow! Hi!!"
The hunters noticed me and greeted one by one.
'They all have such distinct vibes.'
One burly guy, one with a fierce tiger-like face, and one who looked like he was made of dough. Their faces were so striking, you'd recognize them anywhere on the street.
"You have no idea how shocked we were when our clan leader said Shin Ji-ui was dropping by."
"Oh, really? I showed up so suddenly, haha..."
"Ah, we didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."
The flour-white guy blinked wide like a rabbit, then smiled softly. He was so pale and skinny, he almost looked unreal.
"Oops. Looks like I'm the latest."
A middle-aged woman's voice rang out. Wrinkles traced her life around her eyes and mouth, and her gentle downward-slanting eyes held kind brown irises.
She had a clean, wise impression that screamed experience.
"I'm Kim Min-sook. Nice to meet you, Hunter Shin Ji-ui."
"Thanks for inviting me. I'm Shin Ji-ui."
"We'll talk details inside the dungeon. Calling summons here would freak people out."
Hunter Kim Min-sook smiled brightly and opened the container door.
Nokdu still looked like a regular puppy, but apparently others didn't see it that way.
Bzzzzt.
"Oh, right, you planted cherry tomatoes in that flower bed."
"Yeah. How'd they turn out?"
"Oh my god, they grew so fresh and plump! I picked a few for salad!"
"Hyun-wook, if you're gonna brag, bring some next time."
Even as the association staff scanned them, the chatter didn't stop. They seemed so tight-knit, I felt a bit left out.
'They're not reluctant about me joining because they're so close... are they?'
"Opening it up!"
Once scans finished, the burly male hunter shoved the wooden gate open.
Whoosh—
A breeze heavy with coffee aroma tickled my nose. Pretty cafés lined the path. It was so tidy, you'd forget it was a dungeon.
"Shall we do introductions now?"
Hunter Kim Min-sook smiled softly and nodded to the fierce-faced man.
"Hello. I'm C-Rank Hunter Kim Hyun-wook! Fire attribute, unique skill is the summoning skill 'Baekdu Tiger'!"
Boom.
He stomped, triggering a small explosion.
Grrrrowl...
"And this is my summon, Hoyangi!"
'It's a tiger!'
Pretty cute name for such a massive, majestic tiger. Hunter Kim Hyun-wook scratched under Hoyangi's chin, rubbing his face against it, and Hoyangi grinned happily.
"Dark attribute, Kwak Min-ho. Unique skill is B-Rank summoning skill, 'Black Cat'."
A man with long cream-colored hair, Hunter Kwak Min-ho, appeared like a ghost.
Snap.
He flicked his fingers, and black fluff gathered on his hand. It bulked up into a proper body, then long ears popped out.
Kwak Min-ho's black cat glared at us with glowing red eyes. Him like clay, and a pitch-black rabbit—an eerie combo matching his vibe.
"Does it have a name?"
"Yeah. Rose. I like roses."
Ahem!
The house-sized burly man cleared his throat unnecessarily to draw attention.
Somehow reminded me of Hunter Lee Woo-wook.
"I'm Song Yun. Earth attribute, B-Rank summoning skill! Come out, Deokbae!"
A mound of dirt rose on Song Yun's hand, and an arm-thick iguana popped out. It rolled its big eyes nimbly and hopped onto his shoulder. Wildly exotic for a friendly name like 'Deokbae'.
Shreeeek—
A wind blew with an eagle cry straight out of a wildlife doc. I turned toward it, hair whipping, and saw a streak of green light landing on Hunter Kim Min-sook's arm.
"Whoa..."
I gasped involuntarily as it revealed itself. Golden eyes, sharp beak, massive wings—an incredibly dignified hawk stared us down from her arm.
"I'm Kim Min-sook, leader of Miracle Clan. A-Rank summoning skill holder, wind attribute."
"Our leader's Korea's first summoning skill user!"
"You don't need to add that. Oh, and this is Dushim-i."
Dushim-i... Suited her somehow?
Dushim-i pierced me with shining eyes, then looked away.
"Alright, your turn, Hunter Shin Ji-ui. New summoning skill?"
"Not exactly... Nokdu!"
Kiiing.
Calling Nokdu's name summoned a lime-green light instantly.
Awoo—
"Whoa!"
"So~ cute!!"
Hunter Song Yun and Hunter Kim Hyun-wook squealed. Nokdu tilted her head, scanned around, then tucked her tail and hid between my legs.
'No way, is Nokdu...'
"Haha! She's shy, huh!"
"Guess it's her first time meeting so many people at once. Haha..."
I chuckled awkwardly, picked her up, and she plopped her now-thicker front paw on my shoulder.
"SS-Rank light attribute hunter, Shin Ji-ui. This is Nokdu. I met her through an item from the Wonju A-Rank Dungeon."
"A summon from an item?"
"Ah! I've heard of that. But getting one is like reaching for the stars."
Hunter Kwak Min-ho added while petting Rose's head.
Clap.
"Well, that's the basics covered..."
Hunter Kim Min-sook clapped and spoke cautiously.
"Shall we raid the dungeon now?"