Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: An Uncomfortable Outfit
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Ugh, I don't want to wear the clothes Mom gave me.
—Ting!
"Gasp. Ophelia made a payment."
A payment notification popped up on my phone. I'd forgotten, but I guess this is the kind of alert I get when she makes a purchase. It meant Ophelia had finished her shopping, so she might be back soon.
"410,000 won...? What did she buy...?"
But the amount wasn't small. 410,000 won and a few thousand more.
Did we really need something that cost 410,000 won? Maybe she bought a ton of different tools, or perhaps some delicious food.
Ophelia was my creation, no doubt, but she felt different from the golems I'd made before. The fact that she could talk was probably the biggest part. It made her feel like a separate person.
"Minium, Suri. We're going monster hunting tomorrow like last time. Do you think Ophelia can fight?"
Suri and Minium, who had been lying flat on the floor with me, shot their heads up at my question, then clumsily got up and nodded.
"Really? Is Ophelia good at fighting?"
—Clank!
—Squeak...
Putting their reactions together, it seemed Ophelia wasn't an amazing fighter, but she was probably the strongest one here. Well, that made sense. Ophelia was the most expensive body in our house, after all. She was made of high-purity rare metals and high-grade magic stones that were hard to get even if you had the money.
-Eve: Where are we going, by the way?
-Han Do-hee: How about here?
-Han Do-hee: (Address)
"Hmm."
This time, it wasn't a gate with goblins, but one with lizardmen. It was a bit of a distance, but since I'd be riding with Han Do-hee, it wasn't a problem.
-Han Do-hee: Don't worry, I'm bringing my party members.
-Han Do-hee: You know Chae-ah, right?
-Han Do-hee: Her and one other person.
-Eve: I'm a bit awkward with people I'm meeting for the first time.
-Han Do-hee: They're nice.
-Han Do-hee: Or should I bring Jong-ho? lol
Jong-ho... she must be talking about 'Joining the Awakening Gallery', right? He's with the Nova Guild; is it really okay to just pull him away like that?
-Han Do-hee: It's fine.
-Han Do-hee: He's not part of the raid team anyway, so he's free.
-Eve: Hmm.
-Han Do-hee: I just need to talk to the squad leader.
Still, it would be much better if I felt like I knew the person to some extent. Even if we'd only talked on the gallery, it was better than meeting a complete stranger. And for some reason, meeting Awakening Gallery members in real life was kind of fun.
In the past, I probably wouldn't have wanted to meet them, but after seeing the reaction from 'Joining the Awakening Gallery,' it felt like... there was a certain joy in surprising them.
-Eve: lol
-Eve: If you can, go for it.
-Han Do-hee: Of course I can. Yup.
-Han Do-hee: Just you wait.
-Han Do-hee: (Sent a profile link. ‘_Death_Ho’)
-Eve: What's this?
-Han Do-hee: Jong-ho's Huntweet profile.
-Han Do-hee: Add him.
No way, is it 'Death' because his name is Im Jong-ho? I clicked the profile link Han Do-hee sent, and there it was—a close-up shot of the guy I saw at the hotel, flashing a V-sign with his hand.
His posts were full of pictures with captions like 'Having a good time with good people.'
And photos of him standing side-by-side with his male colleagues from Nova (they all looked kind of similar), arms around each other's shoulders, or giving a thumbs-up with one hand. He was an extremely average man. He didn't give off this vibe on the gallery at all; he was just a totally normal person.
"Somehow, it's funny."
And I'd thought this before, but this Jong-ho guy looked like someone I'd seen somewhere before. He had a common face, the kind you feel like there are probably 100,000 other people in Korea who look just like him. I felt like I'd seen at least ten people with that face in my life.
-Han Do-hee: Wanna add Chae-ah too?
-Eve: You just gave me Jong-ho's, why are you asking about Chae-ah unni? lol
-Eve: Go ahead.
-Han Do-hee: (Sent a profile link. ‘chaE._Vely_’)
There it is! The classic feature of a girl's social media account. Sticking something like '-vely' in the username. I went to her profile, and it was overflowing with pictures of her new nails and photos taken at aesthetic cafes.
There were photos of her covering one cheek with her hand and turning her head, or pictures of her back taken by someone else while she was on a trip.
"She seems like such an insider, it's making me depressed...."
Chae-ah doesn't even use the Awakening Gallery. She's the epitome of a popular girl. I was starting to feel a little repulsed...
"Still, I should add her...."
Come to think of it, I hadn't checked what kind of posts Han Do-hee made. I was curious what her vibe would be.
"Huh, this is totally..."
First off, her ID was '_Dohiki_,' and her feed was full of screenshots from a female-oriented rhythm game (packed with handsome male characters), things she bought like Sanrio keychains, and character bags.
There were pictures of long, dazzling nails that put Kim Chae-ah's to shame, and a ton of posts where she was conversing in Japanese with a Hunter from Japan.
"So Han Do-hee was a walking landmine...."
The way she dressed had a certain vibe, but how on earth did Han Do-hee and Kim Chae-ah become friends? It was so strange.
-Eve: Hey.
-Eve: How'd you get close with Chae-ah unni?
-Han Do-hee: ?
-Han Do-hee: We went to the same high school.
-Han Do-hee: Why the sudden question? Yup.
-Eve: lol just wondering.
-Han Do-hee: What's up?
-Eve: Make a group chat.
Not long after, Han Do-hee created a group chat and invited three people, including me.
—Knock, knock, knock.
"Oh, is that Ophelia?"
Ophelia had arrived in the meantime, but she must have knocked because she didn't know the passcode to our door lock. It wasn't like I had written it down on my phone, and you couldn't find it by searching online.
—Creeak.
"Ophelia, you're back?"
"Yes, the shopping was completed successfully. Were you waiting?"
"Ah, no. I forgot to tell you the passcode. I'll write it down for you."
"Thank you."
Ophelia came in with her arms full of things she'd bought. It must have taken about two hours; the large supermarket wasn't that close, so it probably took a while.
As soon as she returned home, she neatly organized the groceries in the refrigerator, unwrapped various cleaning tools, put the plastic packaging in a bag, and then disappeared into the bathroom.
"O-Ophelia?"
"Is there something you need, Your Highness?"
"Are you going to clean the bathroom...?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Ah, I see...."
It would probably be better to ask her after she finished cleaning the bathroom, right...?
-Han Do-hee: yo yo
-Kim Chae-ah: What's this chatroom for?
-Han Do-hee: Gate tomorrow.
-Kim Chae-ah: But I just went yesterday ㅠ
-Han Do-hee: We're going with Eve.
-Han Do-hee: (Address)
-Han Do-hee: Possible?
-Kim Chae-ah: Eve too?? Then okay ㅎ
-Han Do-hee: This bastard Im Jong turned off his notifs.
-Han Do-hee: @_Death_Ho
-Kim Chae-ah: Jong-ho-ssi is going too?
-Han Do-hee: yup
-Im Jong-ho: Says who?
-Im Jong-ho: What time?
-Han Do-hee: Around 4 PM.
-Han Do-hee: Dinner after.
-Kim Chae-ah: Oh, Eve is here too??
-Kim Chae-ah: Jong-ho-ssi, do you know Eve?
-Im Jong-ho: I don't really know her ㅎ..
-Han Do-hee: You met at the hotel.
-Im Jong-ho: Ah, no way.
-Im Jong-ho: Is it her?
-Eve: Hellp
-Eve: o
-Eve: Jong-ho, why'd you reject my friend request ㅠ?
-Im Jong-ho: I thought you were a stranger;
-Kim Chae-ah: Jong-ho-ssi, that's mean ㅜㅜ
-Im Jong-ho: No lol
-Im Jong-ho: Why are you all doing this to me...
-Han Do-hee: Jong-ho needs a good beating. Yup.
-Im Jong-ho: Shut it.
-Im Jong-ho: I have gate maintenance in Guro-gu at 3 tomorrow.
-Han Do-hee: That's at 3.
-Im Jong-ho: I might be late.
-Kim Chae-ah: So you can't come?
-Kim Chae-ah: Then?
-Im Jong-ho: I'll try to finish quickly.
-Han Do-hee: Finish super fast.
-Han Do-hee: Eve is a baby, so we need to feed her early and send her home quick.
-Im Jong-ho: But is Eve even allowed to enter a gate?
-Eve: It's fine.
-Eve: Jong-ho will protect me.
-Im Jong-ho: Hmm.
-Im Jong-ho: Eve, you should call me oppa.
-Eve: Ugh.
-Eve: Mister.
-Kim Chae-ah: khkkhkhkhkhkhkhk
-Kim Chae-ah: So funny.
-Im Jong-ho: Is this right...
-Han Do-hee: Jong-ho's face doesn't exactly make you want to call him oppa.
-Im Jong-ho: You too.
-Im Jong-ho: This is what happens when you don't call me oppa.
-Han Do-hee: I'm a super-duper-early birthday, so I'm friends with people up to 2 years older.
-Im Jong-ho: What a mess.
After chatting like this for a while, Ophelia finished cleaning the bathroom. But instead of sitting down to rest, she immediately grabbed a lint roller and other things and started cleaning the floor again.
"O-Ophelia...? Wouldn't it be better to rest a little...?"
"I am quite all right."
"I have something I want to ask you...."
Only then did Ophelia put down the lint roller she was using on the floor, came over to my side, and knelt.
"What is it you require?"
"By any chance... can you fight, Ophelia?"
"Are you referring to combat?"
Ophelia seemed to ponder for a moment. After glancing at Minium and Suri, who had climbed onto a cabinet to stay out of the way of her cleaning, Ophelia gave her answer.
"I am not an entity created for direct combat. However, I understand the basic principles of combat for the purpose of escorting Your Highness, and due to the specifications of the materials used in my creation, I can be considered to have the highest combat power at present."
"Really? You fight better than Suri?"
"That is correct."
So, even though she wasn't originally made for fighting, she was made with the best rare metals and high-grade magic stones. That meant she was the best fighter among the golems I currently had.
"Then... just how strong are you?"
"One moment."
At my question, Ophelia gently closed her eyes and took a moment to think.
"Based on the Awakened ranking system documented on the internet, my combat power is equivalent to that of an A-Rank Hunter."
"Whoa."
Wait, then that's incredible. She's that powerful even though she wasn't made for combat?
"Then how do I make stronger golems? Do I have to make them just for combat?"
"As of now, the 'Minium' entity appears to be the most suitable for combat. In the future, if we proceed with enhancements using better materials and increase the body's completion, it may be possible to summon a fragment of the kingdom."
"A fragment of the kingdom... I see...."
A fragment of the kingdom, that probably meant something like a pre-existing personality. Once Minium's body reached a higher level of completion, a powerful knight from the kingdom could be summoned into Minium's body.
"But... does that mean Minium will disappear again?"
"That is not likely."
"Really? Isn't a fragment of the kingdom... the same as you, Ophelia?"
"Typically, a vessel is created that can withstand a fragment of the kingdom, and their combat power or knowledge is channeled through possession for a set period of time. Minium will remain as Minium."
"Is it the same for you?"
"My case is somewhat special. I am a type of tutorial guide, meant to assist Your Highness in awakening your abilities. As I am not a combat entity, the mana required to maintain me is significantly less than other fragments."
In short, she was the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings. It wasn't that maintaining her cost anything; rather, she was the only fragment that was helpful to maintain.
The true combat fragments required an immense amount of mana to maintain and could only be summoned through things like temporary possession of combat power.
"So you don't really fight, Ophelia...."
"It depends on the difficulty. The entry-type gate at the address Your Highness received in the conversation should be well within my capabilities to clear."
"Huh? Oh, right."
Come to think of it, Huntweet used the same account for both phone and computer. Ophelia would have been able to see our conversation on the computer.
This felt kind of weird....
"So, is it okay for us to go to the gate?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Oh yeah."
And so, a 4-person raid party... or with Ophelia, does that make it 5? Or is Ophelia not a 'person,' so she's a 'unit'? In that case, with Suri, Minium, and Doggo, is it a 4-person, 4-unit party?
'A difficult problem indeed...!'
"This will be Your Highness's first official sortie. I shall prepare your attire."
"Huh? Attire? Where are you going now?"
"To the draper's. It may take some time, so I humbly request that you have the ready-made meal located on the top shelf of the refrigerator for dinner today."
"Ah, um."
What's a draper's?
"Your Highness? Is there anything uncomfortable?"
"...."
"Everything...."