“I made Ah-rin…”
It was a breathtaking sight that left me speechless.
It felt as if I had fast-forwarded through the creation of life itself, and I could only stand there, mouth agape, watching.
Wooooo—
It felt like just a moment, but who knows how much time had passed?
As the shaping took form, I came to my senses and found a woman staring back at me.
Her expression was colder and more aloof than usual, but it was a sensation I had never felt before.
“Even the clothes are perfect…”
She looked just like the Ah-rin I had seen before entering the room.
Even the grungy parts from not being properly cleaned were replicated in White Ah-rin.
It seemed she was shaped based on the last look I remembered her with.
“Ah—”
The first words the doll uttered, as it moved its mouth, were just a gasp of surprise.
A being suddenly born into this world seemed startled by its own recognition.
“Clap, clap, clap?”
“Ah—”
The doll Ah-rin reacted again, meeting my gaze directly.
“She’s reacting properly. But her body is just a mass of some unknown substance mediated by magic power. Yet somehow biologically perfect. Maybe she could even exhibit physiological processes. What else could this be, if not a miracle?”
She is not a living organism.
But it was a perfect doll driven by a complex circuit of magic power that I couldn’t even begin to fathom.
“Ah—”
The doll Ah-rin approached me but tripped and fell right into my arms.
“Ah…”
The doll’s face flushed a little.
For some reason, she seemed to smell like baby powder.
She felt as soft as freshly made cotton candy.
I’d better handle her with care.
– The doll White Ah-rin senses the aura of the main body.
“Huh?”
With the message, the doll Ah-rin’s head smoothly turned to the right.
That was probably the direction where the main body was.
“Do you want to be with Ah-rin?”
The doll just stared at me with wide eyes.
I couldn’t help but fall silent in those pure, innocent eyes.
‘……’
This was way beyond what I could handle.
The innocent gaze filled me with a strange fear that she might get dirty just by being beside me.
The instant I thought that, I placed the doll down for a moment and went outside to call White Ah-rin.
“Ahh?! What, what is that?!”
Upon encountering her doppelganger, Ah-rin was startled and even made some bizarre arm gestures.
Carefully approaching the doll, Ah-rin stood beside her to gauge their heights.
“W-what the heck is this?”
Rustle—Rustle—
[Doll modeled after White Ah-rin.]
Staring at the note, Ah-rin seemed in disbelief, squinting at the words for a long while.
I wondered if it was the doll or the words that shocked her.
“My doll? You… what on earth…?”
Then she gently poked the cheeks of the doll that looked just like her.
She acted like a child, trying to touch it as gently as if it were a soap bubble.
“This is my doll… but what kind of function does she have?”
Her choice of words felt a bit detached from her actions.
‘Function… I suppose treating it that way wouldn’t be unreasonable.’
The doll, which looked completely devoid of emotions, could only be expected to be used for combat, nothing more.
I read the message again and relayed the necessary information to her.
[Combat power is half of the main body. The doll grows as the main body grows.]
“Huh? R-really?!”
[It says it wants to fight together.]
“Oh my, really? It expressed that intention, too?”
‘No… it’s just my intuition.’
I awarded Ah-rin the title of ‘doll.’
In truth, it was lacking in many aspects for me to carry around.
But as a partner for Ah-rin, it would be more than sufficient.
[……]
Was it just my imagination, or did the doll’s mouth corners seem to lift slightly?
“But if I go out looking exactly like myself, people are going to buzz about it.”
[Wait for 3 minutes.]
“Okay!”
Ah-rin’s face was so small that it could be covered by my one hand, so making a mask didn’t take long at all.
Tap—
I handed the doll a mask made of bone.
I hadn’t even touched the doll’s face, but maybe due to [Doll Shaping], I was able to create a perfectly fitting bone mask for her in an instant.
“Ah—”
The masked doll made a pleasant sound.
– The doll’s defense has slightly increased!
‘…… A message pops up just for putting on a mask? I guess I’ll have to make her armor later.’
“Oh, this will work. If we cover her face, it’ll be somewhat less troublesome. If someone asks, I can just say it’s a newly awakened skill. How about calling it Ah-rin’s clone technique?”
Ah-rin mumbled to herself, chuckling and then hugged the doll tightly.
“Hehe… Shall we go out and practice together, little sister?”
“Ah—”
‘If she stubbornly calls her ‘little sister’… it’s going to hurt when the doll disappears.’
I thought of that concern, but it was something Ah-rin would have to deal with.
“Oh, wait a moment.”
“Ah—?”
I took out the bone of an Orc High-Rank Fighter and quickly made a dagger to give to the doll.
– The doll’s attack power has significantly increased.
‘Hm… the dagger is quite efficient.’
“Oww!”
“Wow—”
Though the sounds of astonishment were different, the shape of their mouths was identical.
Somehow, that sight was so cute that I wanted to see it once more.
They matched up a few times in the front yard before they could no longer hold back and dashed into the battlefield.
‘Already going out? I wonder if they’ll be okay… I should have them practice a bit more first.’
My concerns were baseless.
The movements of the two, weaving through the Orc High-Rank Fighters, were truly like a storm.
‘What’s going on with that doll? It’s even following Lightning Step? At this rate, it could easily fill in for any shortcomings Ah-rin has.’
They seemed to think alike; there was never a moment when their paths overlapped.
Having an additional companion acting as her eyes gave Ah-rin a sense of freedom she hadn’t had before.
Moreover, the experience the doll earned was solely being transferred to me.
It felt like auto-hunting. Not bad at all.
‘So, as long as the doll doesn’t die or my magic power doesn’t run out, it can maintain itself?’
The reasons to increase the maximum amount of magic power were growing daily.
The doll, battling alongside Ah-rin, began to show more vitality.
‘At this rate… it might be better to keep her with Ah-rin instead of using her myself.’
Ah-rin had no worries now.
Eun-young had Azraelon watching over her, so she was beyond my authority, Yeon-hee had the White Dragon and Eden as top-tier summoned creatures protecting her, and Joo-ah was doing duets with Noh Ha-yoon.
It felt like the puzzle pieces that had been missing were dropping one by one from above.
‘This… feels like a surge of excitement. When did everyone grow so much?’
Seeing my companions showcase their skills honed over three weeks stirred deep emotions within me.
Lost in my reflections, I snapped back to reality and moved in the direction where the Ogre had appeared.
The Ogre, having moved to the forefront of the Orc army, strutted around like it was the leader, looking down on the Orcs ahead.
Suddenly, it began to squirm when Ah-rin showcased her abilities from the opposite side.
‘Is that an Ogre on par with an Orc Warrior?’
Among the S-rank monsters, there were more in my sense range besides this one.
I was curious about where all these monsters kept appearing from; how did they supply food?
“Wooaaaahhh—!!”
Of course, no one was here to answer my questions; it just let out a fearsome roar, drooling all over.
– The Thunder Warrior Ogre challenges you to a one-on-one duel!
The Ogre must have taken offense at my contemplating how to respond, as it specifically pointed at me.
“Oh, come on. Why are you doing this, Ogre…?”
Even Jung Tae-hyung was by my side, yet the monster decided to single me out.
‘Is the Presence of Oppression not working? Or is it reacting to the pressure and becoming more aggressive towards me?’
Perhaps they could even see the number of Orcs I’ve slain floating above my head.
After all, I might have defeated thousands of Orcs today alone, so if that were the reason, it would make sense for me to be targeted.
“Master… should I take care of this?”
“Clap, clap…”
It wouldn’t make sense to avoid being singled out by a monster.
This was an unavoidable contest as fellow monsters.
Bang! Fwooosh!
Sounds of clashes echoed from every direction as my companions were actively engaged in the chaotic battle.
I hurriedly moved as well.
As soon as I stepped out of the sanctuary, an eerie silence fell upon the area as if it had been agreed upon.
“Wooaahhh—!!!”
The Orcs, Ogres, and Chimera were roaring at me as if to shake off the momentary fear inspired by my presence.
In response, the entity with the imposing title of ‘Thunder Warrior Ogre’ charged straight at me.
If the title ‘Thunder Warrior’ indicates its rank, then there’s likely an even higher rank called ‘Fighter.’
‘As much as we prepared, it seems the monster’s strength has also escalated. How disappointing.’
The Ogre caught a glimpse of my slightly drooping shoulders, and its mouth seemed to twitch upward.
It didn’t seem to regard what abilities I had or what level I had attained.
It simply charged straight ahead.
‘Well, it’s nice to avoid pre-battle calculations!’
This guy was undoubtedly stronger than the Orc Warriors I had faced today.
Given its Ogre resilience and the ability known as [Ogre Rage] that activates below a certain health threshold, it had to be a much higher tier.
‘With the help of Goddess Irmana, I did defeat Krabe…’
Even so, I didn’t feel confident about defeating this Ogre alone.
Within my instincts, the Ogre’s movements appeared remarkably swift.
Running like a wrestler with its body lowered, it charged towards me.
‘What…?!’
I quickly cast restraints to control its movements.
[Skeleton Bomb]
Kwahhhhhh───!!
After exploding thirty bombs beneath, I soared into the sky.
“Phew!!”
The Ogre shook its head violently, trying to recover from the shock of the bombs.
Its skin turned a bright red, with blisters rising in real-time.
But soon enough, those blisters burst, releasing a sticky substance and quickly healing the wounds.
‘What a crazy monster. And what was that stance just now?’
It was a clearly structured attack.
It was a far cry from the reckless attacks of the Ogres I had encountered in the dungeon.
The reason Ogres didn’t surpass Orcs was due to their training being absent, relying merely on innate talent. In this case, the Ogre deserved to be viewed one rank above Orcs.
‘This… is going to be troublesome. I should tell other hunters to avoid it altogether.’
[Meteor]
‘For now, take this!’
“Uwoaaaa?!”
In this one-on-one duel, the Ogre hadn’t expected me to use a Meteor, and it showed signs of surprise.
Maybe it felt a vague fear from the meteorite creeping through the rifts in the sky.
The Orcs were in shambles, however.
– Pratistra!!
– Pratistraah!!
It seemed they had been trained to retreat after suffering a few hits, and they scattered in all directions, crying out to ‘retreat from the meteorite zone.’
‘Looks like my relentless torment has paid off.’
Honestly, the idea of casting this grand magic several times in a single day was absurd, so I could understand the fear the so-called brave Orcs displayed.
Of course, the reason I could cast high-level magic repeatedly was due to my sheer mental stamina and magic recovery rate that was beyond imagination.
In an attempt to turn the chaotic situation around, the Ogre took a run-up and leaped toward me, hoping to snatch me from the sky.
But would I be caught that easily?
It seemed the Ogre, feeling desperate, took a boxing-like stance to intercept the meteorites flying down.
‘What a bizarre fellow! You’re seriously going to take it on with your bare body?’
[Chain of Flame]
[Warped Green Restraint]
The Ogre in its fighting pose was caught up in my binding magic and the provocation combo from ‘Jim,’ causing it to lose its balance for a moment.
Had it already forgotten the restraints just seconds after being caught?
Kwah kwaah kwaah kwaah kwaah───!!
Ultimately, it took the meteor head-on.
‘What a dullard! Intelligence doesn’t change, does it?!’
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