"…Master."
"Don't."
"Ahaha, I haven't even told you what it is yet…."
"Don't. Regardless."
From somewhere deep in an old memory, a voice drifted through — laced with a faint smile.
What met her was the same calm, unhurried gaze as always.
"I just… felt like calling your name. Out of nowhere."
The girl rested her cheek against the brown wooden table as she said it.
Just once, she'd wanted to call that name.
The name of the one person who had become her greatest source of strength.
"I lean on you. Always."
"Just how much trouble is it this time, that you're dancing around it like this."
"…As expected, I can never fool you, Master."
She glanced away with a sheepish look, then finally met Erdis Arcana's eyes again — and spoke with a quiet smile.
Words that carried a weight whose meaning couldn't quite be grasped yet.
"Someday, far in the future, if we meet again… will you be my master one more time?"
"I'm done with the whole teacher business. Figure it out yourself."
"I was lacking back then, and I'm still lacking now. There are so many things I'm still clumsy at."
"…I'm fairly certain I told you that putting yourself down isn't the same as being humble."
Erdis Arcana denied the girl's claim that she was still so very lacking.
She didn't know the true intent behind the request to be her master once more, far in the future.
But she knew better than anyone what miracles this girl had already accomplished.
"This quiet, this peace — you made it. Not me."
Erdis Arcana remembered what the world had been like before the girl appeared.
A world of war and violence, reeking of blood.
A world where screams and shouts never ceased.
"I must have told you countless times not to be so hard on yourself."
"…Hehe, I'm sorry. It's a hard habit to break."
She also clearly remembered how the world had changed after the girl arrived.
The girl now was the sole suppressor of all chaos — and at the same time, the only mediator between humans and magical beasts.
Whether human or beast, countless unnecessary sacrifices had been spared thanks to the girl's tireless efforts.
"So stop. You've already done enough. More than enough."
But Erdis Arcana knew.
The girl herself understood perfectly well that the current peace existed because of her.
And that the girl was already preparing for the chaos that would erupt the moment she disappeared from the world.
At the same time — that very preparation was eating away at the girl's health and lifespan.
"Even for you, dreaming of eternal, undying peace is nothing but arrogance and conceit, you foolish little student."
The first and last student Erdis Arcana had ever taken in was a greedy one.
A fool who dreamed of a world at peace forever.
A stubborn idiot who couldn't be satisfied with the peace of today and worried in advance about the chaos of a distant tomorrow.
Such a student struck Erdis Arcana as utterly foolish.
And yet—
"…Even so, as much as I'm able to."
Even in the face of Erdis Arcana's scolding, the girl refused to give up her foolish dream.
Because it was her conviction. Her will.
Someone pathologically selfless, who always put others before herself.
"So please, help me, Master."
And as it happened, Erdis Arcana was among those the girl held dear.
So in the end, Erdis Arcana found herself wanting to answer that heart in kind.
Because feelings aren't a one-way street — you want to give back exactly what you've been given.
And what the girl had offered Erdis Arcana, all this time, was exactly that kind of feeling.
"…………."
Unable to refuse and unable to accept, Erdis Arcana fell silent.
But the girl took that silence as a yes, entirely on her own terms.
— A quiet smile spread across her face.
And the girl spoke to the one who was both her master and her friend.
"Thank you, Erdi. Always…"
I lean on you.
At those words, Erdis Arcana let out a quiet sigh.
Because the girl still showed no sign of taking care of herself.
"…Haah."
— Flick.
"Ow, ow. That hurts, Master."
"If you're not going to listen anyway, what's the point of calling me your master."
Because the girl wouldn't look after herself, she wanted to do it for her.
Not just Erdis Arcana.
It was the shared wish of every being who had chosen to become the girl's follower.
Because she alone had treated them not as enemies, but as friends.
That was how precious she was to them.
"So don't even think about disappearing."
"Hehe. You really do care so much."
"You—"
— Flick!
She was the master of all things — so why couldn't she see what was in her followers' hearts…
***
"…Master?"
"What."
"I changed my clothes."
She'd told me first thing in the morning to change into something easy to move in, so I did.
But now Erdi — the one who'd told me to change in the first place — wasn't saying a word. She was just looking at me.
"Is something wrong?"
"…No. Nothing."
Seemed like she still had something on her mind.
Still, thanks to sleeping soundly next to Erdi last night, her affinity had gone up by 20 — and maybe because of that, she'd finally agreed to take me on as her student.
Since there wasn't much else to do in England anyway, I'd decided to take this chance and get some one-on-one lessons from Erdi.
A crash course in becoming an S-Rank Hunter, taught by an actual Hidden Boss.
"Assimilation."
【Rank: F → S (Assimilation in progress: Fenrion)】
【Currently assimilating: Fenrion (37%)】
Things like how to stay safe even if some shady people tried to kidnap me.
And how to build a reputation as a proper S-Rank Hunter.
That's why I'd activated Assimilation using Fenrion's ability — the one I was most comfortable with.
"Let me be clear about one thing first."
"Yes?"
"I'm going to make sure you never have to fight directly. As much as possible."
Erdi said it with a firm expression.
She was going to make sure I never had to fight monsters myself.
"That power of yours isn't meant for fighting. It's a minimum safety measure."
"A safety measure?"
"Because when you're alone without us, you need to have the strength to protect yourself."
My Assimilation skill was a power to protect me — not a weapon for fighting monsters directly.
That's what Erdi said.
But if I didn't show people me defeating monsters, how was I supposed to get famous as an S-Rank Hunter?
How do you get famous without showing anything?
"Those humans you call Summoners — did they get famous by fighting themselves?"
"Oh."
"Command. Give orders. As the master of all things."
Instead of going to Gates myself, I could send my followers in my place.
Erdi explained it that way, and said she planned to make me famous as a Summoner-type Hunter.
Either way, the end result — getting famous — was the same.
"Which do you think is more threatening — you fighting directly, or us taking the battlefield in your place?"
"The… second one?"
Honestly, I'd wanted to say the first, but even I had to admit that wasn't quite right.
No matter how strong an S-Rank Hunter I was, I'd still be weaker than a Hidden Boss.
And if it was Hidden Boss-level strength on display, wouldn't word spread way faster?
Which meant I'd get famous faster too.
Hwaran hadn't called Erdi smart for nothing.
"Hey, but. Master."
"What."
"You're technically… a monster too, right? Is it really okay to fight other monsters?"
"Why do humans go to war against other humans?"
"Ah."
"And calling us 'the same as monsters' is rude. We're fundamentally different beings."
Monsters that went berserk the moment they spotted a Hunter and swarmed them — and Hidden Bosses like Erdi — were entirely different species, apparently.
It was just that humans like me lumped them all together as "monsters" because that's how they looked from our end.
Anyway, it was a relief to know she didn't mind fighting monsters on my behalf.
Honestly, asking her to fight other monsters had felt a little awkward.
"But then, Master."
"What now."
"When Arkiel or you defeat monsters in my place — do you just go up to people and say, 'Ji-woo sent us!'?"
"……Don't say that to the lizard. She'll genuinely do anything you say."
"But then people won't know my name, will they…?"
"Who's the most famous king you know?"
"King Sejong?"
"Not the title. What's that person's actual name?"
"Uh…. …Yi Se-jong?"
"…………."
Erdi thought about it seriously for a moment, then shook her head and said that was probably not right.
Honestly, I figured it probably wasn't either.
"Even if your name and face aren't known, there are plenty of ways to get famous. Like using an alias."
"An alias?"
"Yes. Revealing your real name and face carries too much risk."
Erdi said she was going to create a fictional persona — something like the ruler of the Hidden Bosses.
That fictional persona would stand in for me, representing Lee Ji-woo's fame and standing.
"You already have a few of those, don't you? Aliases."
"Huh? I don't have any aliases."
"You had plenty on that phone of yours. Two circles, KimArinIsCute, WannaBeDried——"
"Aaaaaaugh."
Erdi started rattling off my Hunter Wannabe Gallery usernames one by one, and I panicked and slapped a hand over her mouth.
Wait, how did a Hidden Boss even look at my phone?
Was she seriously this sharp?
Her cultural adaptability was way beyond what I'd imagined.
"Anyway, using an alias will keep you safe. And it'll draw more attention from people."
"Uh…. Why?"
"…Should I teach you how to breathe while I'm at it?"
"I, I genuinely didn't know. I'm asking because I really don't know."
"Haah…."
Erdi pressed a hand to her forehead with a sullen look, then opened her mouth to explain.
People are always more drawn to what's hidden than to what's fully exposed.
"A person wearing a mask versus a person with nothing to hide. Whose face are you more curious about?"
"The mask?"
"Exactly, you dunce."
"Oh."
So the idea was to make people curious about me on purpose, drawing in more attention that way.
And then, even when my real name and face were eventually revealed someday, the interest would be even greater.
She followed that up by glaring at me and asking if I still had more questions, so I shook my head.
"As expected, Master. You're incredibly smart."
"I think the more accurate statement is that you're a bit slow."
"Th, that's going a bit far. You've never taken the college entrance exam, Master. I got a combined score of 7 across three subjects."
"What does that mean?"
"It means I'm really smart…. …Well, not really smart. But it means I'm not an idiot."
Sure, I hadn't managed to get a job back then.
But technically, I'd become a Hunter — so I did end up employed.
Which meant I wasn't that much of an idiot.
"Enough. Sit down."
"Yes, ma'am."
Erdi's expression made it clear she was done listening, and I obediently plopped down.
Almost at the same moment — pop.
A glass panel materialized in front of Erdi.
— Click click──!
— Click click──!
｢Yes, Haetae Guild Hunter Kim A-rin is entering the press conference now. Behind her is the Hunter who played a major role in last week's Thames River Red Gate——｣
"Oh? Arkiel?"
Something like a news broadcast appeared on Erdi's glass panel, and both Arkiel and Kim A-rin were on it.
Watching the two of them, Erdi told me to pay close attention — this was how I was going to get famous.
Come to think of it, she'd said she had somewhere to be early this morning. They went to see the reporters without me.
…Not like I could've gone anyway, but still. A little jealous.
I want to hold a press conference like that too.
｢Hello. I'm Kim A-rin of the Haetae Guild.｣
Kim A-rin, dressed neatly, explained things to the reporters.
Roughly what had happened during the Thames River Red Gate incident, how the Hunters had handled it.
And an overview of the damage sustained.
｢Casualties: zero confirmed.｣
"Hmm…."
Up to here, it was just the usual kind of news.
Arkiel was standing beside her, but there hadn't been any mention of me specifically.
I was technically an illegal entrant right now, so appearing on TV would've been a bit of a problem anyway.
But then again, Arkiel was in the same boat. Hmm.
｢I am. …No, I am a Transformation-type Hunter, Arkiel. I determined that the local London Hunters alone would be insufficient to clear the Red Gate, and therefore——｣
Kim A-rin stepped aside briefly, and Arkiel took the podium holding a sheet of paper and began to speak.
It looked like Kim A-rin had written the script for her.
Instead of saying weird things like "humans, listen up" in that strange way of hers, she explained things politely.
What Arkiel had done during the Red Gate incident.
Then she set the paper down for a moment.
She looked directly into the cameras and spoke.
｢I am affiliated with the Haetae Guild through a cooperative relationship, but I am not a Haetae Guild member.｣
Who had sent Arkiel to England.
｢I am a member of M.M.L.I. I was dispatched to London in order to rescue Haetae Guild Hunter Kim A-rin, who is in a cooperative relationship with our organization. Furthermore, going forward, M.M.L.I will——｣
After that, Arkiel announced that M.M.L.I was based in Korea and would continue its cooperative relationship with the Haetae Guild.
Then, almost immediately, she skipped past the flood of questions from reporters and vanished from the press conference hall.
Directing all inquiries through the Haetae Guild, she said.
— Ding.
— Ding ding.
[ Trending Search: 1. M.M.L.I ]
The moment Arkiel disappeared, M.M.L.I dinged its way to the top of the real-time search rankings.
But even I was hearing this name for the first time.
What on earth was M.M.L.I?
"Hey, Master. What's M.M.L.I?"
"Mu. Mal. Raeng. I. It's your alias."
"?"
"You used it the most, so I went with that one."
The story of how my gallery username ended up as the number one trending search worldwide.
