Chapter 8 : The Birth of Somi

The Black Masked Man.

At least, I managed to catch him.

He looked suspicious at first glance.

So, I called the Police right away.

If it hadn’t been for Bbyak, something terrible might have happened.

A little later, the Police arrived in response to my report.

They handcuffed the unidentified man’s wrists.

“You were really in danger.”

The man who seemed to be the highest ranking among them took off his hat and spoke.

“This guy is notorious in the area for using hidden cameras. He sneaks into homes of women who live alone and installs cameras.”

A hidden camera criminal, huh.

No wonder his face looked so sleazy.

But why did he come to my place? I’m not even a woman.

“You are the epitome of a brave citizen. The Police will probably give you a Citizen Award.”

He smiled warmly and left.

Anyway, I’m just glad nothing bad happened.

But still, a Citizen Award? I never imagined I’d ever receive something like that in my life.

I’d only ever seen that sort of thing on the news.

The kind of people who can’t stand injustice and step up to practice righteousness.

But me?

I’ve always hated sticking my neck out.

I don’t even go near noisy places.

I just don’t want to get caught up in anything troublesome.

That’s how I’ve lived for, what, 26 years now.

Thanks to Bbyak, I’m even getting an award I never would have dreamed of receiving. I guess people really should live kindly.

***

Trrrrr –

Taejin’s phone rang noisily.

He was eating alone at a gukbap place, and he frowned as he answered.

“Yeah, what is it.”

– Hey, you remember what you asked me? To dig up Kim Woo min’s background? The guy I hired for the job just got caught.

What kind of crap is this?

– The guy is famous for hidden cameras, so I just paid him and had him do the work, but apparently the landlord caught him red-handed. Seriously, who the hell did you mess with?

“So? Did you get the info or not?”

– Of course I got it, idiot. But it’s weird. That guy, no matter what, always checks if someone’s inside before breaking in. So how’d he end up face-to-face with the owner?

“How the hell should I know? Whatever, you got the info, right?”

– Yeah, I’ll send it to you by text, so check it out. Oh, and the guy seems to be a Player? There are photos of him coming out of the Gate. Anyway, I did my part, so send what you promised by next week.

Click –

And just like that, the call ended.

Infuriated, Taejin slammed the table with his spoon and cursed.

“Dammit, if this weren’t business, I’d have killed you myself.”

Swallowing his boiling anger, he looked over the info his friend sent.

Age: 26.

Of course, the same age as me.

Gender: Male.

This is getting annoying.

Who doesn’t already know this basic stuff?

Occupation: Unemployed.

Nothing unusual.

Most days, after finishing his part-time job, he goes straight home.

Met someone the previous day, confirmed to have come out of the Gate.

I paid a ton for this, and this is all I get.

The only useful bits are where he lives and that he’s a Player.

When he awakened as a Player, he didn’t even seem jealous.

All the better.

In fact, this makes things easier.

First, I’ll get close to him naturally.

Then, I’ll lure him into the Gate.

The pretext will be an apology and a peace offering.

Once he’s inside, I’ll use my ability, subdue him, and drag him back out. That’s it.

Grinning slyly, Taejin kept eating his now-cold gukbap and turned on his phone.

He made a call somewhere.

Trrrrr.

The ringtone played briefly.

But soon.

Click,

Call rejected.

He tried calling again,

Click.

Hung up again.

“Kim Woo min, you bastard….”

The person Taejin was calling was Woo min.

To proceed with his plan, he had to apologize first.

But there was one thing he overlooked.

Woo min is a cautious guy.

No way he’d answer a call from an unknown number.

The restaurant was filled with Taejin’s roar of rage.

People around him shot him glares.

“What, dammit. You all want to die or something?”

Taejin just spat out another curse.

***

[You have entered the 4th floor of the Tower]

Mission: Defeat 20 Red Slimes

Time limit: 12 hours

Once again, Woo min and Bbyak were up early.

The day begins, as always, with a Tower run.

Of course.

[Notice] You are the first in the world to clear the Black Tower 4th Floor with SSS rank.

[Reward] You have received a golden ticket.

[Reward] 8kg of magic stones

[Reward] 10 shabby Stamina Recovery Potions

[Reward] 1 Special Monster Nutritional Snack

[Reward] Nutritious Slime Lotion

The mission was complete as soon as I entered.

Why?

All thanks to the symbol of the King Slime.

I don’t even need to actually beat the slimes.

The moment they’re bound to me, it’s as good as being defeated.

Thanks to that, the 4th floor was a breeze.

While Bbyak was filling his belly, I leisurely basked in the sunlight and checked the rewards.

The doubled base rewards meant magic stones and potions were piling up fast.

I already have four gold tickets.

What happens if I get five?

As I mulled over this and cleared out the System Window, new rewards appeared.

First up: the Special Monster Nutritional Snack.

A homemade-looking chocolate chip cookie that looks delicious.

[Special Monster Nutritional Snack] A homemade treat that monsters love. Significantly raises monster favorability.

I’ll give this to Bbyak.

Our good boy deserves some health food.

Next reward: the Slime Lotion.

I’ve seen posts about slime extract on the community boards.

They say the King Slime’s extract even works for hair loss. If they’ve made it into an item, it must be pretty good.

[Nutritious Slime Lotion] 100% moisture. A lotion packed with enzymes accumulated by slimes over the years. Excellent for whitening and removing wrinkles. Apply to scalp for outstanding hair growth.

Not bad at all.

I can sell this for a good price later.

Just one Tower run a day and I’ll never have to worry about money again.

Maybe I should just quit my part-time job altogether.

Just then, Bbyak, finished with breakfast, lightly flew over and sat on my shoulder.

Bbyak bbyak!

Bbyak looks happy as always today.

“Bbyak, have this too. It’s a homemade treat.”

As I handed over the well-baked cookie, his wings fluttered.

But.

Bbyak!

He didn’t take it.

“What’s wrong, don’t you like cookies?”

Bbyak bbyak.

“You do like them? Then why?”

Bbyak!

“You’re saving it for your soon-to-be-born sibling?”

Bbyak bbyak bbyak _

Unbelievable.

He’s giving up a favorite treat for his sibling.

Drool was hanging from his beak, but he stubbornly turned his head.

What a thoughtful Bbyak.

The soon-to-be-born sibling is so lucky.

With such a strong and kind big brother looking out for them.

Moved, I patted his head.

He nuzzled his face against my fingers.

“Let’s go check on your sibling.”

With that, we exited the Tower.

This afternoon, a visitor is supposed to come.

The people from the Association.

They’re coming in person because I’m under special management.

Well, that’s fine with me.

It’s dangerous outside these days.

Strange incidents keep happening, and the weather’s not great either.

Better to stay home as much as possible.

Might as well quit my part-time job for good.

Bbyak bbyak!

At that moment, Bbyak, who had been watching the egg, suddenly started making a commotion.

Startled by his reaction, I carefully lifted the blanket covering the egg.

And then.

Gone.

There was nothing where the egg should have been.

To be precise, only fragments of a broken eggshell remained.

The monster that should have been inside was nowhere to be seen.

Could it have hatched while we were in the Tower?

I hurriedly looked around.

The windows were closed, the door was locked.

Which means, it’s got to be somewhere in the apartment.

Careful not to step on anything, I walked around gingerly.

Then I spotted something strange.

A white, round, fluffy ball of fur.

I’ve never seen a creature like this before.

It’s about the size of a baseball.

If I hadn’t been careful, I really might have stepped on it.

Slowly, I approached the baby monster.

And gently poked it with my finger.

[Earth Rabbit]

[Grade] F–D+

[Preferred food] Vegetables

A status window for the monster appeared.

Earth Rabbit?

That round ball of fluff is a rabbit?

Just then.

Boing.

Something poked out of the round ball of fur, and the curled-up body slowly unrolled.

Slightly crooked ears,

Prominent front teeth.

No mistaking it, definitely a rabbit.

Bbiee—

The Earth Rabbit was still shy about its new surroundings, trembling a little.

At that, our reliable Bbyak walked over and patted its back.

What an adorable pair.

It’s almost cheating to be this cute.

No wonder people post cute animal pictures on SNS.

How am I supposed to resist the urge to show off my kids to the world?

Well, I have to, but still.

I’ll at least keep photos for myself.

Click—

As I snapped a photo with my phone, the two of them looked my way.

That’s cute too, so one more shot.

Click—

Then, Bbyak came over and pecked at my knee with his beak.

“Oh, you want me to give it?”

I almost forgot after just saying it.

The Special Monster Nutritional Snack I’d been saving for the new sibling.

I pulled it out from the inventory. It’s almost bigger than the Earth Rabbit itself.

I broke off a piece and handed it over.

Sniff sniff.

The little nose, black as a bean, twitched as it smelled it.

Then.

Chomp.

Grabbing the cookie with tiny hands.

Munch munch.

The prominent front teeth nibbled away.

The little mouth kept moving nonstop.

Soon, the Earth Rabbit’s eyes widened in delight.

Bbiee!

With its little fist clenched, the Earth Rabbit let out a triumphant cry.

Not threatening at all.

If anything, I just want to hug it tight.

“Hello, nice to meet you.”

As I slowly reached my hand out to the Earth Rabbit, it sniffed, seeming to check if it was safe.

Then, using both paws, it grabbed my finger and greeted me.

Bbiee—

Then Bbyak flapped his wings and greeted, too.

He waved his tail feathers in greeting.

Just like that, we had a new family member.

Even if the grade is F, it doesn’t matter.

It’s cute, after all.

Not even a bit less adorable than Bbyak.

But now there’s one little problem.

I need to give the Earth Rabbit a name.

“It needs a name, first.”

With a serious face, I pondered carefully.

I didn’t want my lousy naming sense to ruin the Earth Rabbit’s cuteness.

But nothing really good came to mind.

“Tusil?”

Bbyak!

Bbyak objected.

He seemed determined to protect his precious sibling’s name.

“Tosoon? Toto? Tokkikki??”

A series of possible names.

Of course, all of them were rejected.

Bbyak is more sensitive than he looks.

This is tough.

Bbyak bbyak!

Then suddenly, a name drifted through my mind.

“What about Somi?”

Somi—soft and fluffy like a ball of cotton, a perfect fit for the Earth Rabbit.

Plus, it sounds nice.

Somi.

Easy to say, too.

Bbyak bbyak!

At last, Teacher Bbyak gave his approval.

Just like that, our family grew.

The Earth Rabbit, Somi.

And right then—

Knock knock knock

The Association people arrived.

How do they always come at just the right moment?

“Yes, I’m coming.”

I put Bbyak and Somi on the desk and opened the front door.

A man in a suit was standing there.

Both hands full of gifts!