"Kiiiii—!"
The basement reverberates.
It turned out much larger than I expected. I thought it would be about human size, but at this rate it’s bigger than a bear.
‘I should have removed more.’
Honestly, I was reluctant to waste so much mana on something for the [Smiling One], so I ignored how much power remained—and this is the result.
‘The problem is, the larger it gets, the more likely it is to ignore my control.’
"Kiiiii—!"
Even though I haven’t issued a command yet, Red rises to his full height and spreads his four wings wide. This spacious basement feels cramped. If the ceiling here weren’t higher than in most spaces, something would have shattered.
Bauuung—
My vision is engulfed in white with the sound of wind.
"Uaaaah—Red?"
"Kiiiii!"
Red wraps me in his huge wings and pulls me close. I’m helplessly buried in his broad chest...
It’s incredibly soft. Red’s breast is layered with cotton-ball–like feathers, incredibly cozy and warm.
"Kiiiii—!"
"No, Red, wait! What are you doing?"
Red brandishes his massive beak—sharp and curved, as if poised to peck my head off—but not quite.
"Ah, okay, okay. Just... don’t do that. Slowly. Remember you’re much bigger than before."
When I imbue my command with mana, he finally loosens his grip. I was a little worried he might resist, but since he’s busy showing affection, I can relax.
I lift both hands and grab his great beak, which sits well above my head, and pull him closer.
"That’s right, come here. I will place a kiss upon you, breathing into you a surge of power—so that you may gain a new dominion to deceive others."
I whisper that, and place a brief kiss on Red’s beak. Of course I’m still wearing my mask. The kiss itself isn’t what matters—it’s the act of breathing my will and mana into him, the primal ritual.
Red adopts a reverent posture and absorbs my command, will, and mana, then in a flurry of feathers he shrinks to a small size.
"Now you’re a manageable size."
Red is now about 40 cm tall—about the size of an ordinary owl. He even resembles a plain white owl, if you ignore a few odd features.
"Though calling it just an ordinary owl requires overlooking a lot."
I mean—glowing ruby eyes like jewels, three legs, four wings, and even a bizarre tail reminiscent of plants or seaweed, if you want to call it a tail. Remove all that and you barely get something owl-like.
No matter how you describe it, this creature has never existed in the world. Still, it’s a more stable form than last time.
How am I going to carry this around? Is it what I think? I raise one arm.
"Come here."
Flap—
When he spreads his wings, they stretch nearly a meter. Red perches on my arm. He looks fluffy from all those layered feathers, but his body is light.
"Kiiiii—"
Red clings to my arm and nuzzles his head against me.
"Alright, alright. Now let me introduce you to the family."
I head straight up to the living room.
Thud-thud!
The living room is a mess.
"Master! Master!"
Jang Hyundeok’s desperate cries. Why does he always follow this pattern?
Rrroooar—
Doldoli hurls himself at Jang Hyundeok with tremendous force, and Hyundeok spins around the living room screaming, "Save me! Save me!" My head’s spinning too.
Click—
A dog-shaped spirit golem made of odds and ends blocks the path between Jang Hyundeok and Doldoli. Achilles is less than a quarter of Doldoli’s size, but he rushes at Doldoli with bravado.
Bang!
But that was a mistake. Doldoli finds Achilles’s body-slam amusing and thinks, “I can do that too!” then crashes into him even harder.
Crash! Rumble—
Achilles disassembles in all directions, immediately reassembles, trembles in annoyance, and using the power of the torch staff bound to his body, breathes out fire.
Fwoosh!
Kaboom!
Grrrr—
It’s like a monster showdown, but Heo Sanghyun stands back laughing (or chuckling)—wise choice. Anyone caught in the middle wouldn’t survive.
"Both of you, stop!"
I finally shout, imbuing my voice with mana. A thunderous shockwave rattles the entire living room. Heo Sanghyun, who was farther away, flees to the kitchen, and Jang Hyundeok tumbles off the sofa.
Grrrr—
Click-click—
After calming both of them, I say to Jang Hyundeok, "Hyundeok, I’m not sure you’ll believe this..."
"What is it? Am I going to die now?"
"No, they were just excited and running around. I guess they like you."
"They weren’t going to eat me or reduce me to ash?"
"No, both of these guys have dog brains inside them."
They’re essentially puppies under a year old by age.
"That stone monster really tried to eat me!"
He must have just nipped me, right? Doldoli can move at a speed you’d compare to a car, not a human, if he sets his mind to it. He was just happily chasing me, letting me keep pace.
"Hmm, better shrink Doldoli for now."
I cast a reduction spell on Doldoli. Now even if he tramples someone he won’t kill them.
Just then Heo Sanghyun approaches and asks, "Is this the new pet you mentioned?"
"Oh, right. His name is Red."
The moment I say Red, Jang Hyundeok responds incredulously, "It’s blue, so why is it called Red?"
"Blue?"
"But what is this thing? It looks full of water."
Red is undeniably a strange sight—three legs, four wings, mineral-like glowing eyes, plantlike tail. Otherwise he resembles an owl with white feathers. Yet Jang Hyundeok describes him completely off-base.
"I’ve seen many odd things in this house, but this is the strangest."
I ask Heo Sanghyun for confirmation: "How does it look to you?"
"A peculiar owl of sorts."
"What color?"
"White. Is it called Red because its eyes are red?"
"It’s blue, isn’t it? This flying glass fish. What’s that red orb inside?"
"Oh, I get it."
He must have cleared a near-death experience and read the grimoire, soaked in that rain, and even taken a Nirvana pill, right? He’s probably awakened a new ability.
‘Maybe he gained True Seeing?’
A useful ability, but one that invites madness. There’s too much horrific truth in this world that shouldn’t be known.
‘He’s not the only one.’
With all the torrential rain, many people must have awakened new powers. And of course this was when foreigners swarmed in to avoid the immigration authorities. Soon, incredible things will unfold.
“Well, odd as each of these things is...”
“If I pointed out oddities, there’d be no end to them.”
Jang Hyundeok sighs.
“Sinhwa-nim, I’m going to the storage room for a moment.”
Heo Sanghyun leaves, oddly in high spirits.
“Alright, everyone, get acquainted. Red, this is Doldoli, and that’s Achilles. You two, this is Red.”
Click-click—
Fwoosh!
Achilles suddenly breathes fire.
“Kiiiiiik!”
Splash!
Red counters with a jet of water.
Grrr! Grrrumb!
With nothing to shoot, Doldoli tries to fling himself at them. Luckily I shrank him.
Click-click—creak—click-click!
At the same moment, the furniture (spirit golems) in the mansion detect the chaos and begin tidying up.
“I—I’m going upstairs!”
Jang Hyundeok can’t stand it and flees to the second floor. Did Heo Sanghyun anticipate this and escape early?
“Everyone, stop!”
This will be noisy for a while.
“Sinhwa-nim, how do you like this?”
“Yes?”
Heo Sanghyun returns with a long T-shaped rod he said he’d fetch from the storage room.
Ah, a perch. Perfect for Red to sit on.
“What is it?”
“It’s the wand my great-grandfather used.”
“Ah, so that lingering will is attached to it.”
“Hmm—can we use it despite the remnant will?”
“If we can remove it, it’s fine. Red, eat that.”
“Kiiiii—”
Screee— Grrraaah—
With gruesome screams, the remnant will clings to the wand and is devoured by Red.
Heo Sanghyun watches with satisfaction. “An owl—my childhood dream comes true.”
“He seems to please you?”
“Yes, I once saw a film and dreamed of being a wizard raising a white owl.”
Still, it’s not truly an owl, and you’re feeding on your great-grandfather’s remnant will without concern?
But it’s not his soul—only residual thought.
That spectacle seems to have shocked the phantoms haunting this mansion.
Whispers and light poltergeist phenomena erupt here and there.
“In any case, it’ll catch mice well.”
But why are there so many phantoms today?
I settle onto the sofa to rest, and Heo Sanghyun approaches with a grim look.
“Sinhwa-nim, while you were downstairs, I spoke with Hyundeok.”
“Oh? And?”
“Is it safe for Hyundeok to live in this house?”
“In what sense?”
“I too practice spiritcraft and shamanism. This material is rare.”
Material... Heo Sanghyun sometimes uses awkward phrasing in certain contexts—probably picked up from Heo Joo.
“Recently, phantoms that fled from you all have returned inside the house.”
“Are the phantoms trying to possess Hyundeok?”
Heo Sanghyun nods quietly.
“Well, you should know what you’re dealing with.”
I expand my senses to locate Jang Hyundeok. He’s safe in his room; as long as he’s quiet, they won’t hear him.
I give Heo Sanghyun a rough outline of Hyundeok’s special trait.
“I understand. The previous master killed many people to create something similar.”
“Heo Joo’s research journal mentioned that. It ultimately failed, right?”
“Yes, but because I ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) assisted in the research, I know the nature of the ability. It’s Demon Eater.”
Demon Eater is one step below Hyundeok’s [Living Altar] trait. Heo Joo killed hundreds but still failed.
Thinking about it, Jang Hyundeok is truly a strange fellow.
He’s a spiritual nude mouse—stripped of all defenses, ready for any invading spirit.
It’s not just the Yellow-Clad King problem. Hyundeok could accept the power of any god. If I were a cultist...
‘They’d deify Hyundeok and recruit him as their envoy.’
They could trigger worldwide chaos or even directly host a god in his body, easily causing the world’s ruin in an instant.
I don’t want to die from a three-minute apocalypse.
“In any case, you know what he is. Please protect him as much as you can.”
“Understood. I’ll keep an eye on him.”
“Well, the phantoms won’t dare approach while Red’s here.”
Honestly, I designed Red’s awakening to devour the phantoms and remnant wills of this house.
“One more thing I should tell you...”
But Heo Sanghyun, still uneasy, was about to speak when his phone rang.
“It’s Tudor. One moment.”
– What are you doing?
“Playing.”
– Paju is in crisis; the righteous hero Kim Sinhwa shouldn’t be playing.
“Looks like my commissions are piling up. Should I go pick one?”
– Heh, you can’t choose.
“What, I can’t choose?”
– No, your task has already been decided.
That’s ominous.
“What is it?”
– Heh heh, an amazing commission came from an unprecedented place! You really are the best! I’m lucky to have contracted with you!
It sounds good but isn’t at all.
“What is it?”
– It’s a commission from Cheonggeumdang.
“From Cheonggeumdang? The Cheonggeumdaewang?”
– No, what are you talking about?
Cheonggeumdaewang your friend?
I’ve already received one commission from Cheonggeumdaewang.
But Tudor doesn’t know that, and he scoffs briefly before continuing:
– The Commander of Cheonggeumdang has personally named you.
“Socheonseul?”
