Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Enchantment, Nose Cut with Eyes Wide Open
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Yoho.
Seductive and utterly bewitching. A monster born purely to enchant others, living up to the word exactly.
[Kiieing…!]
It looked just like a snowball made from the season's first snow.
A fluffy ball of pure white fur. Its jet-black eyes brimmed with curiosity.
“…Urk.”
Its short tail, swaying clumsily, stabbed right at my heart.
Had I already fallen under its spell?
I couldn't escape this fixation no matter how hard I tried.
My fingers moved on their own.
Another video began to play.
[Kiieei…!]
Kitsune. A B-rank monster taking the form of a white fox.
No wonder people called it yoho.
It made perfect sense that it had claimed the number one spot on the "Most Desired Pet Monster" ranking for 15 straight years.
“Thwip….”
That was why I could only swallow a bitter smile.
‘Still, it doesn’t seem right for a bodyguard.’
A B-rank monster was no slouch by any means. It could easily slice through the wild boar in front of me.
But safety? The more overkill, the better.
Why else would peace-loving nations grit their teeth and churn out weapons?
For similar reasons, choosing B-rank when you could go A-rank was pretty unhinged.
So, a golem it would have to be.
Not some mini model, but a real one.
That massive fist swinging around would pulverize any B-rank monster. And it wouldn’t just be great for protection—it’d be handy for transport too.
It looked dumb as a rock, but that probably meant it’d be reliable at work.
“…….”
But why did it feel so wrong? My hand just wouldn’t go for the golem option.
It was like this, if I had to compare.
A high-level part-timer who was amazing at the job versus one who was average but so ridiculously cute.
A tough call.
This was why looks-based bias was so scary.
[Kiie…!]
………I’d decided. I had to go with the kitsune.
Thinking about it, it was the obvious choice anyway.
Go with what your heart wants—no regrets that way. Better to pick and regret than leave it wondering.
‘If it feels lacking… I can always summon a golem later.’
Click.
I downloaded the kitsune photo. The highest resolution one. I shelled out 10,000 won for the original.
“Ooh….”
Thanks to the cutting-edge tech fused into the photo, I could inspect the kitsune from every angle in 3D. Worth every penny.
It gave me a solid grasp.
Swipe.
I reached out with my right hand into the air, and a clump of mana gathered in my grip.
I slowly kneaded the mana, which shifted forms like sticky mud.
Wooong.
Over the mana dough, I layered a thin membrane of mana.
To add more detail.
By stacking the membranes, I could create varied textures.
Wooong.
A sleek body, four legs, and a pointed snout took shape in an instant.
I trimmed away unnecessary parts ruthlessly. In their place, I etched in heaps of fluffy fur.
Drip.
A bead of sweat fell. My mouth filled with the taste of sweetness.
“Fuu…….”
It had been a while since I’d concentrated this hard. I wanted to keep it perfect to the end.
Wooong.
The mana coalesced. The shapeless lump screamed as it solidified.
Crack…
The shell shattered, soaking the surroundings. The mana lost its glow, replaced by a wave of pure white.
……
Finally, the closed eyelids parted.
Obsidian-black pupils fixed on me…
Kiie!
Then flashed a seductive smile my way.
…Summon successful.
“Whew… Thought I was gonna die.”
I couldn’t muster any strength in my body. If the slime hadn’t steadied me, I definitely would’ve collapsed.
My skin burned red in patches. A bit longer, and exhaustion would’ve been no surprise.
It was clearly a B-rank monster… so why had it drained so much mana?
To find out why, I inspected the kitsune all over.
Surely nothing was wrong, right?
I’d paid good money for that photo—no way was I pulling a mutant. That’d be a disgrace to any monster summoner.
Kiie!
White fluffy fur, slender legs, properly placed eyes, nose, and mouth.
Phew, perfectly normal…
Huh?
Kiie!
**
**
**
“Yeah, I heard. Yeah. No other info? Got it. Keep digging and call me.”
Click.
“Fuuu…….”
A heavy sigh slipped through her lips.
Whenever she looked up at the sky to forget reality, four jagged skyscrapers mocked her.
Baekya, one of the top five guilds. Korea’s very first guild—the foundational one.
It had wielded prestige under that legacy for so long.
But even that flame was flickering out.
“…….”
Baekya’s tower was the shortest among Seoul’s pentagon of skyscrapers.
The height difference wasn’t that huge, objectively.
The ground was dizzyingly far below, and she could almost reach out to touch the others.
So why did the ground feel so much closer?
It was too heavy a reality to dismiss as mere inferiority complex.
[Baekya, the Only Top Five Guild to Chart Declining Growth.]
[No Longer Top Five? Baekya’s Fall from Grace.]
[Zenith Tops Global Growth Potential Rankings. Baekya Plummets 57 Spots in Shock.]
The other four towers blazed on, while Baekya’s sun was setting.
No set order in downfall, but at this rate, it’d be soon.
So.
They needed a breakthrough. Something explosive enough to shatter the status quo.
[The hot topic among awakeners lately: the Molrangtori item. As you can see, it produces as many goods as you want… Expectations are high for a civilian release someday.]
Yes, at least something on that level.
An item of infinite value.
Even conservatively, it’d keep Baekya burning for another 50 years.
Like the other top guilds, Baekya was hunting for the creator.
And among them, Hwayeon had been the most desperate.
‘Those crazy bastards….’
Scouring all of Seoul like madmen. Talk about a public nuisance.
But she was grateful too. That’s how they’d tracked down the creator’s old address.
Through some digging, she’d contacted the previous landlord. Learned the creator had rented the rooftop room from someone named Kim Se-ran.
But that person was already dead. Probably the creator’s family, high chance.
Kim Se-ran had no relatives, though. Dead end on further info.
Cooperation with the creator felt impossibly distant this way.
“I need to change course….”
The creator didn’t want their identity out. Instead of digging, she’d have to accommodate that.
Switch the dynamic.
From now on, Baekya wouldn’t be the top dog—they’d be the underdog. Wait for the creator to reach out first.
Prioritizing future growth over pride in their legacy was the smart play.
Rrring…
[Yes, Guildmaster.]
“You know that thing we talked about before? Let’s go with that.”
[Uh… You sure? There’ll be major backlash.]
“Then fire them all. They’re rotten anyway. Can’t tolerate it anymore.”
[You’re serious…?]
“Anyway, that’s the plan.”
Click.
**
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[Found this friend wandering while searching for a bodyguard somewhere in Korea, 20XX.][Posted by: DragonRaisingIsMyDream]
(Photo of baby kitsune)
Two tails, right?
…………Why the hell two?
This is rare, yeah? Got a super rare monster?
-?????????????
-Wow, looks so biteable
-FurLoverHehe: Which gate? Spill it now
└FurLoverHehe: Spill it right now ffs
└HeyHey… Cursing’s frowned upon in HalfbeastGal;
└Lmao the nick
-Two tails means at least quasi-A-rank monster.
└FYI, they can grow more tails as they level up.
└Usually handles up to three tails fine.
└From what’s known, US S-rank hunter Layla has one with seven.
└Three tails or seven—what country language is that?;
└Seven tails supposedly makes it quasi-S-rank.
└Holy shit, seven! SEVEN!
└Plus, max tail count is set from birth. Mana capacity varies wildly by that.
“Quasi-A-rank, huh….”
Kiie?
Chasing a cow and catching a mouse, they say.
No, on second thought, isn’t this better potential than a golem?
A plain mouse feels underwhelming, but this is like snagging a chicken at least.
Kiie!
But what ability turned this adorable thing into quasi-A-rank?
Normal kitsunes were just a bit nimble, puffing up their cottony fur and rolling around—that was it.
Kiie!
As if reading my mind through some thread, it hopped down to the floor.
Its two tails wagged furiously, scattering red particles around.
The open window caught them just right. The particles rode the wind straight to the wild boar.
Kkueee!
The boar reacted instantly. Eyes rolled back like it was enchanted, drool spilling from its lewdly gaping maw.
Thud… Thud…
It started stamping its hooves. Bad vibes. It was gearing up to gore the kitsune with its tusks.
Pierce that frail body and savor the juicy mana, no doubt.
But.
That was a pipe dream, apparently.
Kkuee……!
An agonized groan erupted. From the boar, not the kitsune.
Its stance crumbled in a flash, blood gushing from its mouth instead of spit.
Kiie!
The kitsune leaped back to my side.
Drip drip. Red liquid fell. Something blunt dangled from its jaws.
“…The liver?”
Kiie!
The boar’s liver.
So this was the legendary yoho sorcery. Eyes wide open, nose clean cut.
But it didn’t stop there.
Kiie!
The kitsune wagged its tails again.
The two tails began spinning like propellers.