199. The Magic Squirrels' Kingdom

Carpe was utterly baffled.

He'd logged in just like any other day, only for a barrage of alerts to suddenly flood his screen.

Even Cheonma, who always greeted him, was nowhere to be found.

Tilting his head in confusion, Carpe tried to summon his familiars next.

"What the hell is going on...?"

As Carpe floundered in this completely unexpected situation,

Whoosh!

A bird suddenly swooped in from somewhere and came to a halt right in front of him.

Poof!

In an instant, the bird transformed into Mirage.

"Herald Mirage arrives! Target sighted—making a personal appearance!"

"...What kind of game is this? More importantly, where's everyone else?"

"Hunting nearby! Oh, hold on a sec, Master. Herald Mirage has a mission to complete first!"

"Mission? What mission?"

"Gonna let the general know you've returned."

"If you're just gonna report that, wouldn't it be better if I came along?"

"No can do. This is my herald duty. You wait here, Master."

With that, Mirage turned back into a bird and flew off somewhere.

"...I have no idea what's happening."

Still, knowing everyone was safe put his mind at ease.

A short time passed after Mirage left.

Swoosh!

"Kyuu kyuuut!"

Mukhyang emerged from Carpe's shadow. It was the activation of his Shadow Step skill.

"Ah, so short-range movement skills aren't blocked in the Spirit Realm either."

"Kyuuuung. Kyuuuung ung ung!"

Mukhyang scampered up to Carpe's shoulder and rubbed his cheek furiously against Carpe's face.

"Yeah, yeah. Bro's happy to see you too, Hyangie. You're extra affectionate today. Something up?"

Come to think of it, his fur looked messier than usual. With dirt smudged all over his body, it was clear he'd been through a lot.

"Kyuuuung! Kyrng!"

"...Sorry. Can't understand you. I get that you're feeling down, though."

But he'd find out soon enough.

Shadow Step was a short-range teleport skill. For it to activate meant Mukhyang hadn't been far away.

And sure enough.

Less than a minute after Mukhyang appeared, the rest of the familiars showed up.

—Yo. You're here.

"Yeah. But what the hell is going on...?"

—Ah, yeah. Must be confusing. I'll explain slowly.

Cheonma gave a brief rundown of what had happened while Carpe was logged out.

—...And that's how it went down.

"...Whoa. That's insane. Epic."

After hearing Cheonma's explanation, Carpe couldn't help but gasp in admiration. "Epic" was the only word that fit.

"RaSe actually has auto-farming? I thought it was a bug when I leveled up right after logging in."

—It's busted. Handing out freebies to a freeloader like you. Wild that the game's balanced enough to even run.

"Thanks for all the hard work."

—Eh, wasn't bad. Just bossing familiars around, but it felt like playing again after a while.

"So you'll keep doing this while we're in the Spirit Realm?"

—Way better ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for leveling familiars and farming items... Wait, hold up. This is ridiculous. I'm grinding all night, but you get all the benefits!

"Hmm... The difference between the bound and the binder? Fate? Something like that."

—Sigh. What did I do in my past life to deserve rolling even in death...?

The bear does the tricks, but the handler pockets the cash—this felt like an advanced version of that.

—Tch. That reminds me. In about six months, some weirdos in the real world start claiming—

"Claiming what?"

—That RaSe NPCs deserve rights too. Can't kill monsters recklessly, can't boss NPCs around. So-called AI rights groups.

"...What kind of nonsense is that? It's just a game."

—Exactly. Total bullshit, and they're treated like lunatics.

RaSe's AI was so advanced that bizarre crap like this cropped up.

—But now? Kinda getting it. Hey! NPCs have rights too! Especially me! Who works 24/7 in this day and age?!

"Anyone hearing you would think I forced you. You all did it willingly, right?"

Carpe glanced at the other familiars.

"Thrilled to have aided my liege. This body would shatter without regret."

Huff huff! Get too idle and the body's all stiff. Perfect workout.

"Herald play was fun!"

Master. I seek the mystic metal.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Royard's request was hard to parse, but they all seemed satisfied.

Even Mukhyang was bouncing around like he'd never been tired.

"From a grand strategic view, bro, you gotta burn yourself out here in the Spirit Realm!"

—Urgh. Fine, it's efficient. My goal's seeing the game's end through you anyway.

"Then why complain?"

—Not complaining. Just venting at the absurdity.

"Ah, then vent away. I'll listen to it all."

Free overnight farming? A little griping was nothing. He could take double the cursing.

"Anyway, auto-farm aside, that Patron Spirit upgrade is shocking. A real 10-star Patron Spirit?"

—Who knows. Gotta clear the quest to find out.

"Kuh. I believed in you, bro. Of course. The first 0-star Patron Spirit wouldn't end like this. Humble beginnings, grand finale! Cheonmimi fighting!"

—...

"Alright, let's grind hard today too!"

Fresh off a massive freebie right at login, Carpe shouted energetically.

The top priority in the Spirit Realm was Mukhyang's evolution.

To jog his memory, Carpe pulled up the evolution quest again.

"Hmm. Tamia, the squirrel kingdom... You ever heard of it, bro?"

—Nope. First time for me too. Didn't even know magic squirrels had a country till the quest.

"Hidden real good if even you don't know."

So what now? Scour every corner of the Spirit Realm like a blind quest?

—Why worry? Just ask.

"Ah, right. There've gotta be chatty NPCs in the Spirit Realm too..."

—Those work, but there's an even better one right next to you.

"Right next to me?"

Carpe looked where Cheonma indicated. There sat Mukhyang, happily gnawing a acorn.

"Kyuu?"

Sensing the stares, Mukhyang perked up his big ears.

"Hyangie? Think he knows the squirrel country? I hatched him myself—would he even remember?"

—Logically, no... but it's a game. He might. Pulled by ancestral scents or whatever.

"Kyuu!"

"My liege. Hyangie says so."

"Huh? Says what?"

"Keeps feeling nostalgic. Wants to check it out."

"...It works."

—See? Told ya.

"You sure stutter when it hits, though. Kinda shocked yourself?"

—Nah.

"Alright, Hyangie. Lead the way! We'll follow you."

"Kyuuut!"

Mukhyang saluted Carpe, then took point and started moving.

The journey was grueling.

Spirit Realm monsters and spirits were all hostile to outsiders, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sparking fights at every encounter.

Some battles were easy, others tough. Carpe kept mowing down monsters nonstop.

Beep beep—

"Whoa, already? Ten hours of pure grinding."

—No choice. Gotta move again tomorrow.

And the next day.

"Hahaha!"

Carpe burst into a huge grin the moment he logged in.

He wanted to stay in the Spirit Realm forever like this, but...

—Pots still good?

"About 2/3 left. Burning faster than expected."

—All-day fighting? Bound to happen.

Supplies were running low.

He'd stocked his inventory full of food and potions before entering, but endless combat was depleting them fast.

At this rate, he'd be forced out in under a week.

—Worst case, starve to death. Need a resupply spot.

"What about spots back to the human world?"

—Far from here.

"Big trouble. Haven't even started the quest..."

"Kyuu! Kyuuut!"

"Huh? What's up, Hyangie?"

That's when it happened.

Mukhyang bounced around, pointing with his front paw. There loomed a massive rock mountain pocked with countless small holes—like mouse burrows.

"No way. Is that...?"

And in that instant, an alert appeared before Carpe's eyes.

"Whoa, finally!"

As Carpe basked in the thrill of discovery,

"Kyuuut! Kyuu! Halt! Human kyuu!"

Dododo!

Countless magic squirrels poured out of the rock mountain, surrounding Carpe's group.