Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: I Found the Bad Guy
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“O-Ophelia... are you okay...?”
“I have become much smaller, but I am fine.”
Ophelia had become completely pint-sized. In exchange for giving more than half of her magic stone to Minium, she had lost her tall stature and the essential assets of a great mother. Still, she was a bit taller than me. Was it because of the high heels?
Well... I am quite small myself right now.
“I believe I must maintain this form for a day to acclimate to this body.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Shortly after, Minium, who had received the magic stone from Ophelia, was enveloped in a halo of light, flashing for a while before...
Fwaaash!
“Ugh... my eyes...”
With an intense flash of light, it returned to its original form.
“Huh...?”
Clank!
There were no visible changes to its appearance, but... how should I put it? The feeling it gave off seemed slightly different.
“Minium, how are you? Is your body okay?”
Nod, nod.
“Do you feel stronger?”
Shake, shake.
“What happened, Ophelia...?”
The now-tiny Ophelia observed Minium carefully before nodding her head.
“The magic stone has fused properly. Since only the amount of magic power increased without the addition of other materials, this is a normal reaction.”
“What, so it’s not going to get bigger or anything?”
“It is possible if the Princess wishes it. It is difficult to explain now, but the Princess will likely come to understand it vaguely during combat.”
“Hmm...”
It seemed this was what Ophelia had mentioned before. To summarize, Minium was now in a state where it could channel a portion of the memories or abilities of the great people who once existed in the kingdom.
Of course, since we weren't in a combat situation right now, there was no need to perform an action that would consume a tremendous amount of magic power, hence its current state.
“If there is an ability the Princess requires during combat, you may bestow a suitable title upon Minium.”
“Hee, I see.”
Honestly, seeing Ophelia shrink into a little kid, I was worried about what would happen if Minium grew enormous. But it seems that wasn't the mechanism.
“Bestow a title? How do I do that?”
“That is something the Princess will be able to figure out.”
“Really? Hmm.”
For example, something like....
“Minium! From now on, you are the Knight Commander!”
Clank!
Minium gave me a thumbs-up as if it was in a good mood. But besides the thumbs-up, nothing really changed.
“I guess that’s not it...”
Still, Minium is indeed the Knight Commander of our kingdom. It seems like it'll need some rare metals to get a little bigger. And I need to find a replacement for the hairdryer, but I'm not sure what would be good.
“It would be super strong if I put something like a fighter jet engine in it, right?”
How much would a jet engine cost? I heard fighter jets are incredibly expensive, but maybe just taking the engine would be cheaper?
I sat down at the computer and searched online. The result came out to be around ten million dollars.
“Ten million dollars... Ophelia, how much is ten million dollars?”
“It is ten million dollars.”
“Ah, I mean... in Korean won?”
“Approximately 15 billion.”
“Oh.”
Sigh... that's not gonna work. 15 billion won is not an amount of money I can get my hands on. Maybe Ophelia could earn it if she played the stock market for ten years. Or would it take less time?
I want to upgrade Suri and Mecha-Doggo too, but it's not easy when I think about the cost. Even if I postpone Suri's upgrade for a bit, Mecha-Doggo is too fragile, so I feel like it needs some kind of upgrade.
“Ophelia, should I buy a little rare metal and a magic stone for Mecha-Doggo?”
“You speak of Mecha-Doggo.”
“Mecha-Doggo is too weak, and its legs are short, so...”
“I see.”
Beep?
Mecha-Doggo, who had been playing around while lying on its back with its belly exposed, trotted over and rubbed its cheek against me when it heard its name.
“You little rascal, Mecha-Doggo. Have you just been playing around all day?”
Beep-beep!
As if shocked by the accusation that it only plays, Mecha-Doggo's screen started spinning.
“Huh? What’s this?”
A Wi-Fi icon with all the bars grayed out appeared on the screen. Is it saying it can't work because there's no internet? But Mecha-Doggo doesn't have a SIM card anymore, does it? Even with internet, it can't trade stocks.
Of course, stock trading isn't the only kind of work, but with Ophelia taking on so much, there's no denying that everyone else has gotten more relaxed.
“What is it, you can't do it because there's no internet?”
Beep!
“Heehee, just kidding. It’s okay for you to just play and not work, Mecha-Doggo.”
When I get a lot of money later, I should give Mecha-Doggo a magic stone and other things. If it were the size I wanted... it would be awesome if it were the size of a cool wolf I could ride.
“Hmm, is there anything around here I can make a golem out of?”
There isn't much left in the house that I can make a golem from. Not that there are no machines, but I need the computer. An electric blanket...? It seems like it would be fun to turn into a golem, but I need to use it.... I use everything.
“Wait, what if I give the electric blanket to Mecha-Doggo...?”
Beep?
Then Mecha-Doggo would become incredibly soft and warm, making it perfect for cuddling to sleep, right? But then its back and legs might get cold.
“This is a dilemma...!”
Well, to be honest, I have no plans to increase our family right now. Since my magic power will continuously drain if I create them, according to Ophelia, making golems indefinitely probably isn't a good choice.
But then how am I supposed to rebuild the kingdom? For now, the four of them—Mecha-Doggo, Minium, Suri, and Ophelia—seem to be fine. But a kingdom can't just have five people, including me, right...?
And among them, Mecha-Doggo and Suri are animals. Minium doesn't really feel like a person either.
“Ophelia?”
“You called?”
“Ah, uh... never mind.”
I was about to ask a question that popped into my head, but she's working so hard, I feel bad.
When the tall Ophelia was working, I didn't think much of it, but seeing the tiny Ophelia cleaning the house and cooking... it makes me feel like I should help.
But if I step in, I might just create more work. It's best to stay put. I spilled coke last time, after all.
Tiroring.
“Princess, will you be alright on your own?”
“Ehehe... don’t worry, Ophelia. Do-hee said she’d come pick me up right in front of the house.”
Ophelia left the house first to attend to her scheduled work for the day. I was more worried about whether the tiny version of Ophelia could handle her work alone. Honestly, looking like that, I was afraid she might get kidnapped somewhere.
But she supposedly has the combat power of a B-rank Awakened, so... I guess it'll be fine.
“The pre-arranged time with Miss Do-hee is 11 o'clock. Please be mindful that it is in 48 minutes.”
“Kay... I get it.”
After reminding me of the appointment time once more, Ophelia bowed her head deeply, closed the door, and went outside.
With Ophelia gone from the house for the first time in a while, being here with just the golems felt strange.
“Ophelia will do fine, right?”
Kiii.
“Hmm, right, right. I should worry about myself? Got it!”
Suri seemed to trust Ophelia completely. To be honest, I also think Ophelia is perfect, but people are heavily swayed by appearances. I'm actually a super adult, but I ended up looking like this.
Anyway, Ophelia helped me get dressed (the princess dress she made is hard to put on without help), so I was perfectly ready to go out. This is my first-ever raid party; I can't afford to make any mistakes...!
“Minium! Let’s meditate together!”
Clank!
I sat on the floor for a while, cross-legged like Minium with my hands gathered near my stomach, meditating. Then...
Beep-beep, beep-beep.
“Ah, a call.”
“Hello? Eve?”
“Do-hee?”
“I’m downstairs now. Get ready and come out.”
“Ah! Okay...!”
Han Do-hee had arrived downstairs.
“You checked the gate info and all that, right?”
“I looked at it yesterday... but I don't remember everything....”
“It’s fine. I didn't look.”
“Huh...?”
Yesterday, Ophelia had checked the gate information this way and that, organized it neatly, and gave me a crash course on it. I think I remember most of the parts that were absolutely necessary to memorize.
The place we're heading to is one of the entry-type gates open near Namsan Park. On average, it has a suitable difficulty for a B-rank party, meaning four B-rank Hunters going in.
The environment is in the form of ruined ancient sites, so the paths are well-paved, and there are no issues with movement. Although it's said to be like a maze, like most remaining entry-type gates, the paths have all been completely mapped out.
First off, Han Do-hee is B-rank. I'm A-rank, but without Ophelia, I feel more like a B+-rank. Chae-ah is C-rank but she's a Healer... I don't know about the others, but since it's a raid party, there will be a lot of people anyway.
“Phew... I'm so nervous...!”
“Eve, don't be so nervous. Everyone's nice.”
“R-Really...?”
That's why I'm nervous, because they're nice people. If they were bad people, why would I even bother meeting them? I'd just go home and eat snacks. I'm meeting them because they're nice, and because they're nice, I'll probably see them again.
Of course I'm going to be nervous....
“Most of the people going are pretty skilled, so even if you make a few mistakes, it won't be noticeable. Got it?”
“Ah, yes!”
I took out my phone to let Ophelia know I got in the car and also petted Mecha-Doggo, who was next to me.
Screeeech.
“Okay, we’re here. Shall we go together?”
“L-Let's go together....”
“Hehe, alright. Get out with the others first. I'll park and get out too.”
I got out of the car with Suri, Mecha-Doggo, and Minium, and waited for Han Do-hee to park. Looking at the car made me want to turn it into a golem again. Minium looked so cool when I made it last time.
“Alright, let's go! They said they're gathered over there.”
“Phew... Yes!”
Han Do-hee was also wearing some kind of gear today. Something like armor on her chest, and gauntlets on both hands. She didn't have any other armor, but even with just that, she looked much more like a Hunter.
“By the way, Eve, is it okay to tell them your gallery handle?”
“My gallery handle?”
“Yeah, most of them have lurked on the gallery at least once or are registered users.”
“Hmm...”
Now that she mentions it, I did hear that. But I never really thought about whether I should reveal my handle. It would be hilarious to see their reactions if I did, though.
“I... I think it’s okay to tell them.”
“Really? This is gonna be epic. Right?”
“Ehehe... yes....”
As we walked a little further, I could see a group of about ten people gathered in the distance. Han Do-hee spoke up first, as if greeting them warmly.
“Wow, looks like all the trash in the world gathered here.”
“Han Do-hee, are you crazy? Why aren't you hurrying up?”
“And why are you so lightly geared again?”
“Hey, watch your mouth. There’s a kid here.”
“Ugh, crap. What kid... oh, what the. There really is a kid.”
An unknown man, thinking Han Do-hee was referring to herself as the "kid," made a gagging sound, but then composed himself after seeing me standing behind her.
“Whoa, what, who is this?”
“So cute~ It really is a kid.”
“Don’t you guys check my Instagram? I posted a picture with her just a few days ago. Eve, you came in your princess dress today?”
“Ehehe... yes....”
The three women who were there, and Chae-ah who was among them, all rushed over and hugged me tightly.
“Hey Do-hee. You can't just go around kidnapping kids.”
“Whatever, cut the crap. You guys don't know who she is, do you?”
“Who is she? Her name's Eve?”
“She's Life Is Ruined, you know. Yeah you, Ryu Min-ho.”
“Huh...?”
The man named Ryu Min-ho, who had been smoking a cigarette from a distance, looked at me in disbelief at Han Do-hee's words.
“Eve, it’s that guy. See the one who looks like a punk.”
“Yes...? Who is he...?”
“He's the one who needs to go to Sosa Station and do windmills.”
“Gasp.”
“Hey now...”
So it was you. You bad guy.