The Solution

With the temporary Expedition team members gone on their own schedules, I either had to wait for them to be free or recruit new members to clear another gate.

In other words, now, while I had free time, was my chance.

The conquest of Gate 132 had ended sooner than expected, taking only four days and two nights, but it was originally planned to be longer.

Future expeditions could last five or six nights. If something were to blow up in the underworld then, I’d have no way to deal with it.

Of course, I could just ignore whatever happened in the criminal world…

Still, there was that little thing called responsibility.

I could save that option for when things went so wrong that I could no longer operate as a succubus. Even if I couldn’t be a succubus, it wasn’t like I’d be completely cut off from Essense, so completely ignoring it was a last resort.

What I wanted was a system where I could focus on my public life, while the underworld automatically supplied me with extra income and Innate Vital Energy.

…Is that too greedy?

No. Look at the shit the Swallowtail Faction is pulling.

Compared to them, aren’t Narak and Blue Forest saints? Or maybe not?

In any case, it’s annoying how things in the underworld seem to be trying to drag me down lately.

I don’t think I can afford to be looked down on anymore…

Hmm… What should I do?

First off, Seo A-gyeol’s ‘Body Enhancement’ feels… inadequate for this.

To avoid being underestimated, I need something to show off, like overwhelming firepower. ‘Body Enhancement’ just makes me stronger by myself, and that’s it.

Worse, I don’t have much combat experience, so I could even get my ass handed to me.

For that kind of overwhelming firepower, an Elemental Mage is ideal…

But to use elemental magic, I’d have to drop my transformation, and my secret could be exposed. Then it would all be for nothing.

The only way to keep my secret completely safe is to kill them all—dead men tell no tales—but that’s a bit much…

The idea of killing everyone is one thing, but besides, if I kill everyone, who’s going to spread rumors about my firepower?

I looked over the information Park Eun-su had given me about the surrounding factions, and honestly, it didn’t look easy.

Even setting aside the ‘Black Turtle Faction,’ which had lost a lot of steam after their failed surprise attack on ‘Nokrim’…

Ah. They’re paying protection money to the Swallowtail Faction, too?

This isn’t going to be easy…

But I can’t just reveal myself as an Elemental Mage. Is there any other way—

Just then, pop, the spirit appeared.

It seemed to have enjoyed flying and running around during the last gate conquest, as it was now acting more proactively.

I’ve been neglecting you… If I’d known you liked coming out this much, I would have summoned you sooner…

‘I know the solution!’

“Huh? How do you know what I’m worried about?”

‘When you think that hard… I can hear bits and pieces.’

“Really?”

‘Yep! It started happening at some point.’

Looking at it now, it had grown quite a bit. At first, it didn’t even reach my knees, but now it was almost touching my solar plexus.

The proportions of its arms and legs were now fully adult-like.

Still, it was a little troubling if it could hear all my inner thoughts…

‘It’s okay! I’m always on your side.’

“…Right. I am your contractor, after all.”

‘Exactly! So, time to tell you the solution, right?’

“Right. What is it?”

At that moment, the flames on the spirit’s head flared, wh-whoosh, taking shape—

Wait,

Is that me?

Soon, the disguise unraveled with a soft flicker.

‘Hehe. It’s still a little hard to hold for long. Anyway, what do you think?’

“That’s amazing…!”

This way, Lee Han-gyeol and Seo A-gyeol could exist at the same time.

Seo A-gyeol could draw all the attention as herself, while I wipe everything out from behind with fire and lightning.

And if—if by some crazy chance—the truth about my transformation was ever discovered…

Couldn’t I use this trick to escape that kind of situation at least once?

Or would it not work since they know I’m a Spirit Summoner?

Regardless, for now, this was the cleanest solution.

If the spirit could grow larger and maintain the disguise for longer, I could show off my firepower without my transformation ever being discovered.

I could just hide my own body, shrouded in flames.

The only problem was…

“When do you think you’ll be able to reliably disguise… transform? Yeah, transform?”

‘Hmm… First, I think I need to be the same height as you. And… even then, it’ll probably take some time…’

“Can’t we shorten the time with Innate Vital Energy? I have quite a lot of it right now.”

‘I don’t know… I don’t think eating a lot at once will make me grow up instantly…’

“That… I guess that makes sense. You don’t just keep growing because you keep eating.”

‘I do keep getting bigger when I eat!’

“…You do?”

Then what’s the problem?

‘Getting bigger isn’t the same as growing up! I think I need to be active, like last time, to really grow!’

“Ah, I see.”

My bad. So it was my fault after all.

I had a feeling its speech had matured a little after the last conquest, and it was because it had been active then.

“So… I’d need to combine Innate Vital Energy with activity. I have plenty of Innate Vital Energy, but the activity part… that seems difficult.”

I couldn’t let the Fire Spirit run wild on Earth like it would in a gate. It had to be done inside a gate.

Even if the guild had a training facility, anyone who wasn’t a complete beginner would train inside a suitable gate.

The Expedition team needed members to enter a gate. As for Elemental… Elemental?

*

The next day.

“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“Yes.”

I was back at the Elemental guild headquarters for the first time in a while.

In truth, it had only been two weeks, but so much had happened that it felt like a distant memory.

“Excuse me, does Elemental have a training gate?”

“Ah, a training gate? Just a moment.”

Yeeun tapped away at her keyboard, then stared intently at the screen—

“What element are you planning to train?”

“Fire. To be precise, it’s for my Fire Spirit.”

“Ah, a spirit? Hmm… You can go in now, but someone else is using it at the moment.”

Isn’t a training gate supposed to be huge?

We’re basically using an entire other world as a training ground. Unless there’s a ton of users—

“Um… a Mr. Jeong Ji-hun, who also uses fire magic, is there.”

Jeong Ji-hun? The Vice Guild Master’s son?

—He’s the Vice Guild Master’s son, but he’s an asshole with a bad reputation, so you don’t need to bother getting close to him.

Han Na-ri’s assessment.

—Don’t worry about him too much. Ah, but maybe he’ll worry about you?

—Huh? Why?

—Because you’re a rising star? There are probably quite a few people jealous of you. He’s famous for caring about that kind of thing.

And so my conversation with Han Na-ri had gone.

Hmm…

“If you’re okay with sharing the space with him, I can show you the way and put in a reservation. Of course, the gate itself is so large you’ll almost never run into each other.”

Hearing Yeeun say that, it seemed she was aware of the situation to some extent.

But that didn’t mean I could skip training.

I had to solidify my foundation in the underworld as much as possible before entering another gate.

“Please show me the way.”

“Yes.”

*

‘You’ll almost never run into each other.’

When people say things like that, you’re bound to meet.

“Hello.”

“Yes. You’re Lee Han-gyeol, right?”

“Yes.”

“What brings you here?”

“I’m here to do some training.”

“Training? Does a genius really need to practice…?”

“Haha…”

It was Jeong Ji-hun, whom I’d met at the fire magic gathering.

Beside him was one of the women who had been with him then.

“Is it true you’re a Spirit Summoner?” she asked me.

“Yes. A Fire Spirit.”

“Oh, what’s someone so amazing doing here?”

Jeong Ji-hun’s tone was a little… off.

What do you mean, what am I doing here? I’m here to train. I just told you.

“We’ve booked this entire area, so you’ll probably have to go much farther out.”

“Excuse me?”

“We’ve rented everything from A-3 to A-20 over there. My flames tend to travel quite far, you see.”

I was sure Yeeun had said she reserved the empty A-10 section for me…

I was already inside the gate, so I couldn’t contact her to check.

Did this mean I had to go all the way to B-section to train?

But B-section was really far. Most people used A-section, and C-section was currently under development.

“Um… I came in with a reservation for section 10. You’re saying you reserved it?”

You guys can’t contact the outside either. How the hell did you make a reservation?

“Is that so? There must have been some confusion. Why don’t you go back and check?”

It takes a while to get from the gate entrance to where I was standing now.

…He’s being a pain in the ass for no reason.

Yeeun checked for an empty spot, made the reservation, and I came straight here. She even confirmed it right before I entered, so what confusion is he talking about?

Did he really expect me to go all the way back out and come back in?

Sigh… He’s a fellow guild member, and the Vice Guild Master’s son at that, so I couldn’t just confront him.

If I were in my succubus form, I would’ve decked him. For real.

“I’ll be training here, so go check and come back.”

He then spun around and walked off, laughing with the woman beside him.

…He really is an asshole.

Last time, I thought maybe he acted that way because I’d cluelessly asked about his vision, but no, he was just born an asshole.

*

In the end, I went back out and confirmed that my reservation was correct.

Agh, seriously.

I called Yeeun.

—Ah… really? Oh… dear. I’m so sorry.

“It’s not your fault.”

—Still. Hmm… What should we do? He’ll probably just do the same thing if you go back in.

“In that case, I’ll just cancel for today. Is that possible?”

You get a penalty if you make a reservation and don’t show up.

It was a shame there was no penalty for using a spot without a reservation, since that was just beyond common sense.

—Of course. I’ll cancel it for you. I’m really sorry…

“It’s fine, really.”

It’s not your fault. It’s that asshole’s—

No, forget it. I have more important things to deal with.

Yoo Yi-jun: Got a sweet gig. You in?

Me: What kind of gig?

Me: And can I use a gate to get some practice in?

Yoo Yi-jun: Hell yeah.

He replied instantly.

*

“So you’re not even trying to hide it from me anymore, huh?”

When I went to Yoo Yi-jun’s organization’s gate, they were hard at work.

Cultivation, harvesting, drying, packaging, and so on.

It was the kind of scene I had vaguely imagined, but the conditions were much worse than I thought.

“Well, you already know everything. I figured I might as well let you come practice.”

“…Right. Thanks.”

Right now, Yoo Yi-jun looked like a supervisor, a very high-ranking one at that.

There were the people working, the people yelling at them, and then there was Yoo Yi-jun, strolling through it all like he was on a leisurely walk, receiving their bows.

“Is there a place I can practice alone?”

“Alone? You don’t need me?”

Now Yoo Yi-jun was saying this to me, but then again, wasn’t he always like this?

…As they say, there’s no paradise in the places you run to.

Should I have just confronted Jeong Ji-hun and trained there?

“If possible, I’d like to be alone, somewhere with a bit of distance… Oh, but what’s the gig?”

“The gig? Just security.”

“Security? All of a sudden?”

His organization didn’t seem like the type to engage in such legitimate business.

“Ah, the children of some very important people are throwing one of those parties. It’s inside a gate, so the more security, the better.”

“Ah. One of those parties…”

“You won’t have to meet them directly, and the Succubus Queen’s Blood is also arriving around that time. If you can make it, I’ll give you the base pay plus some of the blood. I bought more than what I promised you.”

“When is it?”

“Tomorrow night.”