Chapter 118

"… Contract?"

"Show it to your manager and let them know I'm finished with you if you don't sign it," Seojin instructed.

Bunny felt a lump in her throat at the mention of the word "contract," which had the power to make anyone apprehensive.

Seojin – Lv. 79 has invited you to join a party.

Invitation accepted.

"Book of Truth" has been applied.

Effective from the moment you agree, and it's Once you agree, your current character becomes the property of Seojin, and certain actions are restricted.

Selling equipment / Logging out in specific situations (outlined below) / NDA /…

"This is…"

Bunny frowned as she gradually regained her composure while reading the contract.

'I won't be able to make any decisions in the game on my own after signing it,' she realized.

The contract stipulated that she would need Seojin's permission for almost every action she wanted to take. She couldn't buy or sell anything of value without consent, couldn't disclose her conversations with Seojin, and even required permission to log out in certain circumstances.

'Was everything he did for me… for this?'

Bunny questioned, falling into the common mindset of doubting free gifts.

She was initially overwhelmed by the sheer value of the gear Seojin had given her, but it was only natural to think that he wouldn't bestow such expensive items upon her without a motive.

'But… no way… it's not like I'm worth investing a billion in.'

Seyeon was aware that one billion won was too extravagant of a lure for someone like her, an insignificant player. Each fish had its own suitable bait, and she couldn't help but wonder why Seojin would offer such a valuable gift to a small fry like her.

'But it doesn't make sense for him to give me legendary gear just to control me,' Bunny reasoned. 'So, is this really for my benefit? No, wait. What do I have to lose?'

Although it was natural to feel apprehensive, Bunny reminded herself that the contract only concerned BunnyRabbit, not Seyeon. She acknowledged that Seojin had been the one nurturing and supporting her all along.

'To be fair, I wouldn't be where I am now without Seojin. He provided me with the new class and the gear. Initially, all I did was buy a few gears for warriors.'

She didn't even have any of that now, as she'd sold everything the moment she acquired the hidden class. The sole purpose of BunnyRabbit was to contact Seojin in the first place, and everything her character had came from him.

"I'm sorry. This is the only solution I can think of right now. Do you have a better idea?" Seojin apologized.

"No, no, Seojin," Bunny replied immediately. On second thought, it was an obvious decision from the beginning. Even if Seojin had ulterior motives, the only thing Bunny stood to lose was what he'd given her.

"I'll do it. I'll show the contract to my manager first… So, it was like, you're finished with me if I don't sign it, right?"

"If possible. Oh, the quest I've been working on will be completed soon. I'm just getting started," Seojin explained.

"A quest!"

"It's an unofficial world quest. I don't know the specifics yet."

"The world quest is… unofficial? An unofficial world quest?" Bunny asked, surprised.

Her jaw dropped as she had never even heard of that before.

"You can tell that to your company. I think that'll be worth a coffee from your manager, right?"

"…I'll be right back after telling him. He should be available now. I'll contact you when I get back!"

Bunny made up her mind. It wasn't that strange to invest what she had received from Seojin back into him.

Especially when he was a man who cared so much about his "companions."

* * *

"Alright, I have one more companion now."

Bunny had logged out teary-eyed, and Seojin was highly satisfied with the outcome as well.

Now, he had successfully managed every risk. BunnyRabbit practically belonged to Seojin now, and he was her priority before the company itself.

For Bunny, it wasn't a bad choice either. She could earn more money than the salary she received from Hailstorm.

'Of course, it's a no-brainer.'

Though it was akin to a servant contract, with proper support, it was also a way to mutual benefit.

"Human."

"Berg."

The handsome young elf approached; his mood visibly improved.

"Any progress?"

"I'm just about to get started."

"…You'll have to take responsibility for what you said. Our fate is at stake."

"The forest will return. But that's not what you came here to say, right?"

Berg frowned.

"…Aisha cried."

"I made her cry."

"What did you do?"

"Haven't you heard it from her?"

"No, I haven't."

"I simply told her what she could do in this situation, in line with the mission of you guardians."

"What do you mean by… ?"

"Berg."

Seojin shook his head.

"You said I'm responsible for your fate, so you should trust and follow me completely. It will make a difference whether you choose to cooperate or not."

Berg had nothing to say. As the leader, he was the one who had decided to proceed in this manner.

"What about the things I asked you?"

"We're working on them."

"Hurry up. I don't know when we'll start."

"Even though you're the one making the decisions?"

"Aisha is the key. The plan will begin when she makes up her mind. I've told you, there will be casualties if she doesn't help us."

The word "casualties" brought a somber expression to Berg's face. Having witnessed many deaths over the past eight hundred years, and he understood the weight of it better than anyone else.

"…I'll believe in you."

"What you should be concerned about is not the current situation. I will bring back the forest, and you should think about what to do in the forest once it's restored. You will lead the elves here."

Berg had no choice but to nod despite his arrogant tone, accepting the heavy responsibility that came with relinquishing all control as a leader.

* * *

"Hmm, hiduhnit hare?"

Flappy was flying in the sky, scanning the dry yellow ground stretching to the horizon. Occasionally, she could sense the presence of various monsters, adventurers, and residents, but Belial was nowhere to be found.

"Naw way uh spirit could hide frum mah senses, then…"

Flappy took great pride in herself. She was a superior spirit, an honorable title bestowed upon less than one percent of all elemental spirits.

"Ah guess it's not within range then."

As Flappy turned to make her way back to Seojin, she abruptly halted in mid-air.

"Hmm?"

A strange sensation overcame her, an unpleasant feeling as if something was gripping her ankle and dragging her down.

"It's not that strong though…"

It would take much more force to restrain Flappy, but she slowly became curious.

What on earth dared to try and restrain a superior spirit?

-Think I found something. Let me check. It's not dangerous.

-Be careful.

Flappy dived down toward the potential source of the mysterious energy. As she drew closer, the power grew stronger, but it posed no threat to her superior spirit.

And then…

Amidst the energy, a conversation caught her attention.

"Hey, quit that circuit nonsense. We should utilize the magic circle…"

"Nonsense? ! It's always better to handle mana with machines, not the human body!"

"What's this?"

To Flappy's surprise, she discovered two familiar humans beneath her. While she couldn't recall their exact names, she knew they were affiliated with Seojin.

'Huh, so does Seojin not trust me?'

Flappy was not a fool - it seemed that the two humans were on a mission to find a spirit, which explained their presence and the mysterious energy she'd detected.

-Hey, Seojin.

-Yeah?

-Did you send these guys? The two humans, the weird ones we met before.

-Oh, that's right. I just sent them. But why?

-Are they searching for Belial?

-No way. If they were enough, I wouldn't have sent you in the first place.

-Oh… yeah?

Seojin's response left Flappy perplexed. If they weren't sent to find Belial, what was their purpose?

-I needed to assign them something, anything.

-Any progress on your side?

-No, it's beyond my range. I think you should join me on this one.

-That can't be helped, I guess. Come back and take a rest. You did a good job.

'So it really wasn't the case…'

Seojin's lack of expectations for the two humans and his trust in Flappy's abilities brought her a sense of reassurance. It made her feel valued and appreciated.

-But these guys… they're trying hard, so I think I can, um… offer them some assistance.

-…Help them? Is that even possible?

-Huh? There's no way it'd be impossible. Did you forget who I am?

Although she refrained from stating it outright, Flappy knew that her keen eye for magic and machinery made her uniquely suited to help. She could easily spot flaws and provide valuable insights.

-Go ahead, my partner Flappy. You're always full of surprises.

-Hm, that's enough.

-Instead… I'll prepare a prime magic stone.

-Trust me, I'll help them. It's not like they're bad people.

-Should I hide my identity?

-If possible. Well, it'll be okay to tell them if there's no other way around it.

-Well, well, good.

Flappy replied, flipping around in excitement.

'Well, how should I help them then?'

She pondered for a moment before deciding. Staying in stealth mode, she raised her hand and wrote in the air.

* * *

Hey, what are you doing?

"Exploration magic is much more useful… ahhhh!"

"Damn, you surpri… what? What are we?"

Kiri and Bigfoot, the two seasoned adventurers, found themselves startled as letters suddenly materialized in the air before them.

I'm asking, who do you think you are to try finding spirits?

"Be-Belial… ?"

"Do something! I hate ghosts more than anything in the world!"

"And what makes you think I'm okay with them? !"

Bigfoot quickly managed to regain his composure.

"Are you a spirit?"

I believe adventurers in Valaran should display more politeness.

"…Are you a spirit, sir?"

-I am. However, I am not the one you're searching for. I merely sensed an unpleasant presence along my way. Judging by your reactions… it's likely that you're looking for Belial, aren't you?

"That's right! Do you happen to know where he is? Hey, wizzy! It's not like he's a ghost."

Kiri raised her trembling head at Bigfoot's words.

"It's not a ghost?"

"It isn't. How the hell can you call yourself a wizard if you're afraid of ghosts? I'd pay to see your reaction to encountering the undead!"

"Well, it's not listed in my job description! So, are you… a spirit?"

Don't make me repeat myself. I'm only inclined to help you because you appeared to be intelligent, and…

"I'm sorry…"

"No, wait a minute. Mister Spirit, are you going to help us find Belial?"

"… Wait, what if it's Belial?"

If I were Belial, you would be in serious trouble. You can't even pinpoint my location.

The realization hit them. The device they'd painstakingly constructed together had failed to detect Flappy, and now it was evident that the spirit had found them first.

-Can you find this guy with your magic, wizzy? I can't. What about you? Me too.

Bigfoot gulped.

"…I'm sorry, but this was kind of unexpected. Could you show us your face at least once?"

-Well, that's all good with me, but I hope you don't mind if your body can't handle my energy and crumbles down.

Of course, Bigfoot minded.

"No! Just stay where you are! But frankly, it's surprising that you're helping us to catch your kindred…"

Kindred? You're saying we are the same?

"…That was my mistake."

Bigfoot found himself sweating in the sudden situation, realizing that he had apologized more in these few days than in the entire year.

'It must be a real spirit, attracted by our machine. Its class… no, it can't be just a spirit, considering its way of speaking!'

Everything that Bigfoot had seen about spirits was on streaming platforms. Besides, most of the spirits on the streams were like children who couldn't even speak properly.

-Call Seojin. Now.

-I'm already on it!

-He's saying we're… lucky? Seems like he knows something.

-Really?

…Then there was nothing more to worry about.

"Thank you, but how, by any chance, are you going to help us… ?"

First of all…

Flappy carefully examined the device created by the two, a fusion of magical and engineering prowess. She soon identified the problem.

You, wizard. Come here.

The letters appeared in a different location this time, and Kiri dashed over immediately.

Look at this first. It's a mess. Get rid of that piece of machinery first.

"…As expected! The spirit here knows something. Did you see that? There was no room for the machine to intervene here."

"Nonsense!"

But get rid of that magic circle too. That's too much. Connect the red circuit here.

"Hahaha! I knew it! This wasn't a place for magic to step in! The spirit is indeed right!"

Kiri's shortlived smile dropped and Bigfoot immediately burst into victorious laughter.

Wizard and engineer.

It was the moment when the two achieved miraculous harmony through Flappy.