Human Fail, Beast Pass
"P-Please... excuse me... for a bit... ugh!"
The gate staff member finally asked Lee Ji-woo 2's forgiveness and headed to a nearby building.
Good thing my hypnosis skill worked perfectly.
He ran off in a awkward, hunched-over posture, like he was about to burst if he didn't make it to the bathroom soon.
...He's not gonna have an accident on the way, is he?
I'd feel pretty bad if he did.
"Hmm..."
She glanced around, confirming no one was nearby, then slowly approached the gate. She brought Lee Ji-woo 2 along too, since there was one more thing she wanted to test with the clone.
But before entering the gate, there was one more thing to do.
She had to deactivate that weird S-rank passive skill that forcibly boosted the chances of encountering hidden bosses.
Let's Be Friends (P): S deactivation confirmed?
Currently applied entities: None
"...Deactivate."
The gate in front of her was a stabilized one, its dungeon core already harvested long ago. The monsters inside were docile, and it was safe enough to use for training low-rank hunters.
But the Haeinsa Gate she'd visited last time had been a stabilized gate too. And yet, the moment she'd stepped in, her body had floated up and she'd been forcibly teleported straight to Hwaran.
Let's Be Friends (P): S has been deactivated.
"Phew."
There was no guarantee the same thing wouldn't happen in Haetae Guild's training gate. Sure, meeting a new hidden boss and gaining a new Manifestation skill would be great.
But if she got forcibly teleported to one again, she'd be lost. Better to just run her experiments in the dungeon and head straight home. That way, Kim A-rin wouldn't find out.
"Let's go, Lee Ji-woo 2."
She took Lee Ji-woo 2 and stepped right into the training gate. A vast grassland stretched out before her.
Fortunately, no hunters were training inside. There were monsters, of course...
Hop, hop.
Hop, hop.
"...Why do the rabbits have horns?"
All she could see in the distance were small rabbit monsters hopping around. They didn't seem interested in her at all.
Anyway, it was the perfect spot for her—someone who couldn't let anyone see what she was about to do.
"Alright, first... let's play shiritori."
"Shi-ri-to... ri..."
"I'll start. Foothills."
"Shi-ri-to... ri... don't know..."
Lee Ji-woo 2 tilted her head blankly.
I made her, but she's such an idiot.
She was still full of glitches compared to Hwaran's clone. But that was fine.
Because she'd just had a "conversation" with Lee Ji-woo 2.
"Hit me."
"Hit...?"
"Hmm... how to explain. Raise your fist up, then smack my forehead hard."
"Fist... up..."
Finally, Lee Ji-woo 2 slowly raised her fist and delivered a knuckle rap to her forehead.
But.
No-Attack During Talk
Her S-rank invincibility kicked in again.
Meaning that dumb conversation with Lee Ji-woo 2 had counted as "talk."
The judgment range is insanely generous.
"Forehead... hit..."
Whoosh, whoosh.
Whoosh, whoosh.
Lee Ji-woo 2 kept swinging her fist, but it stopped right before her forehead every time.
So now, even if she entered a dungeon alone, she could go invincible just by using the clone.
Hwaran probably never thought of using her clone skill this way.
"My creativity is amazing. My brain must be S-rank too."
"Forehead... hit..."
"Stop it, you idiot."
She made the endlessly flailing Lee Ji-woo 2 stand at attention again. It didn't hurt anyway, but it was distracting her focus.
Glance.
"...No one's around, right?"
She checked her surroundings once more, then decided to test the Assimilation skill next. There were still a lot of unknowns there too.
"Deactivate Assimilation."
Assimilation with entity: Hwaran released.
First, she released her Assimilation with Hwaran.
What she wanted to test this time was Fenrion's power, not Hwaran's. She could only use Fenrion's power around other hunters anyway.
So she figured she'd start by getting a handle on Fenrion's power first.
"Hmm... Assimilate Fenrion."
The pink fox ears that had been there vanished with a pop, replaced by black wolf ears. Her tail was now a black wolf tail too.
Her senses felt noticeably sharper. But.
Flicker, flicker.
Flicker, flicker.
"Turn your head. Don't look this way."
"Don't look... this way..."
Lee Ji-woo 2 was still staring blankly at her, so she made her turn away.
What she was about to do next was extremely embarrassing.
Even if it was just a clone watching, it felt wrong.
Swish...
Thud.
"...Hoo."
She plopped down onto the grass and recalled her memory from the Gangseo-gu Gate. The first time she'd used Assimilation. And how she'd raised her assimilation rate with Fenrion from 1% to 23%.
"Show me the Assimilation description."
(A) Assimilation: F
Assimilate with entities stored in Lee Ji-woo's data. Physical changes may occur based on entity traits. Use entity skills based on assimilation rate. Current Rank: F. Evolves to (A) Manifestation: S upon meeting special conditions.
"Hmm..."
As she remembered, every time the assimilation rate went up, the skill's performance improved too.
So if she raised her current 23% rate a bit more, she'd get that much stronger.
The problem was how she'd raised it before.
'I'm so cool, I'm so cool, I'm so cool...'
Back at the Gangseo-gu Gate, she'd hypnotized herself to boost the rate. She'd even imagined herself as Fenrion.
And it had actually worked. But what if she didn't stop at imagination—what if she acted like Fenrion too?
"Awoooo—!"
There was a reason she'd howled like a wolf.
If she matched Fenrion not just mentally but in actions too, maybe the rate would rise even more.
Active skill Assimilation (F) proficiency slightly increased...
Currently Assimilating: Fenrion (24%)
"Huh?"
It actually worked. Both the skill proficiency and Fenrion's assimilation rate went up.
...Eureka.
"Awooooooo—!"
Buoyed by confidence, she howled even louder. In the distance, the horned rabbits flinched and fled.
But she ignored them. What mattered now was raising the skill proficiency and assimilation rate, even a little.
Pat-pat.
Pat-pat.
She didn't walk like a human either. She went on all fours like Fenrion, sniffing the grass now and then.
Like a real wolf. No—like she was a real wolf.
Swish, swish.
Swish, swish.
Pause.
"...Awo."
"Urgh..."
Wolves don't use hands.
Setting aside her human shame, she picked up a stick from the ground with her mouth.
And just like that, notifications popped up praising her.
Active skill Assimilation (F) proficiency greatly increased...
Active skill Assimilation (F) proficiency greatly increased...
Currently Assimilating: Fenrion (37%)
"...Urgh..."
It was weird that it worked, but better than nothing.
As long as acting like a wolf raised it, great. Now at 37%, her senses were even sharper, her body lighter, and she felt this weird euphoric high, like she was getting stronger.
Good thing I came alone.
If she'd done this doggish nonsense in front of Kim A-rin, she'd die of shame for sure.
Effect or no, how could she pull this in front of Kim A-rin? If anyone saw this crap, her spirit would break.
...Though "doggish" felt a bit off since wolves were canines anyway. Whatever. She spent quite a while trotting on all fours with a stick in her mouth.
"Urgh... ptooey, ptooey."
She finally spat it out when she tasted dirt. She wanted to raise it more, but Kim A-rin would be back soon.
Time to leave the gate. She'd found a reliable way to boost it, so she could keep trying later.
Pat-pat.
Pat-pat.
"Human fail, beast pass..."
She brushed the dirt off her palms and evolved back into Homo sapiens.
She walked out on two legs.
Twitch.
Twitch-twitch.
"...Hmm."
But there was one problem.
The gate staff she'd hypnotized earlier was back at his post.
If she just strolled out, he'd realize she'd snuck in.
Any good ideas?
"Shi-ri... to-ri..."
"Oh, there you are."
Her eyes met Lee Ji-woo 2's, who'd been standing quietly beside her. The clone's duration must've been ending—her body was starting to flicker and fade.
And with her S-rank brain, she had a flash of genius.
A way to slip out without the staff noticing.
"Lee Ji-woo 2."
"Foot... hills..."
"Bear claw."
"...!"
"Anyway, go. Ask him for a hug."
She ordered Lee Ji-woo 2 to run to the gate staff.
The still-idiotic clone faithfully carried out her final command.
Dash!
"Hug... me...!"
"Wh-who are you?!"
Lee Ji-woo 2 charged at the gate staff with arms wide open and a blank face.
Seizing the moment of his panic, she bolted out of the gate at full speed.
Thanks to her assimilation rate hitting 37%, her already quick sprint was even faster.
Whoosh—!
"W-wait! Who's that?! Stop—!"
Her body shot like the wind, and the staff's frantic shouts faded behind her.
Moments later, she was back inside the Haetae Guild dorm building.
She felt like one of those marathon-battery ad athletes. Super fast.
Beep, beep, beep, beep.
Ding-dong♪
"I'm back."
She flung open the front door and slid into the living room like nothing happened.
Kim A-rin wasn't back yet, apparently. Even with her heightened senses, she couldn't detect her. Perfect crime.
"I'm amazing, as expected."
Or so she was patting herself on the back when.
Beep.
...Unnie.
"Huh, wha?"
Kim A-rin's voice came from somewhere in the house.
But she wasn't anywhere in sight. Where was it coming from?
...Where'd you go? I told you to stay home.
"G-g-ghost—!"
Not a ghost.
"A ghost pretending to be Kim A-rin! Explain exactly how you fixed the azimuthal coordinates!"
...Come back down to the first floor.
Ding-dong. The clear chime cut off along with Kim A-rin's voice.
Only then did she notice the intercom that had been broadcasting it.
Turns out Kim A-rin had called her on the intercom. She hadn't known it had a phone function.
Fancy houses even had fancy intercoms...
Shamble, shamble.
Shamble, shamble.
"I-I'm back again..."
"...Where were you? No text or anything."
"J-just a quick walk?"
"............"
Kim A-rin stared down at her silently.
But she was totally innocent. She'd literally just been a wolf strolling the vast plains. No dangerous stuff.
No reason to be nervous.
"W-we're moving today, right? Let's go already."
"............"
Before Kim A-rin could nag, she beat her to it and dashed to her car.
Kim A-rin, still arms crossed and staring, eventually followed and got in.
Vroom—!
"Ahh, feels nice~."
She deliberately rolled down the window wide to enjoy the rushing wind.
This way, any nagging from Kim A-rin would get drowned out by the noise.
Whiiiir—.
"Eugh."
She'd forgotten the passenger window could be controlled from the driver's seat.
Her cheek got sucked up with the rising glass.
"Fine dust is bad for you."
"...I'm invincible."
"...Does invincible block fine dust too?"
Good question. She wasn't sure.
Did fine dust count as damage?
She shrugged and said she didn't know.
"...Huh?"
While gazing out the window, a familiar intersection came into view.
Well, former intersection. Now the site of the Gangseo-gu Gate.
Murmur, murmur.
Murmur, murmur.
A massive sinkhole had formed around the gate, with tents pitched nearby. The Haetae Guild emblem was visible on them.
Haetae Guild hunters were probably investigating the Gangseo-gu Gate.
But her eyes were drawn elsewhere.
"Hold on, A-rin."
"What?"
"Pull over."
A convenience store slightly away from the Gangseo-gu Gate, packed with Haetae Guild hunters.
Her former workplace caught her eye.
Hop.
"...Mm."
Getting out of the car gave her a better view inside.
Including the familiar face at the counter.
She should at least say goodbye to the Store Manager. Might never see him again.
"Um, Kim A-rin..."
"?"
"Can you come with me?"
Suppressing the tension she felt, she headed to the convenience store with Kim A-rin.