Where am I?

A white ceiling comes into view, and the room is filled with numerous patients.

Yes, this is a hospital.

“Patient Han Yuna.”

“Yes, yes!”

“The examination is complete. We’ll contact you via phone once the results are ready.”

“Thank you!”

As I stood up and exited the waiting area, I found Lea waiting by the door.

“Is your health checkup all done?”

“Yes! But was it really necessary?”

“Of course! You need to be healthy to play games!”

After joining the Frey Guild, I came early in the morning for a health checkup as part of the guild’s benefits.

Are they offering all four types of insurance too…?

Thankfully, I had told Yongyong I’d be out for the morning, or else he’d scold me for oversleeping, just like last time.

Since I hadn’t eaten since last night for the health check, I followed Lea to a porridge shop in the hospital’s basement to ease my hunger.

After a simple meal of porridge, I got a message that the test results were ready, so I headed back to the waiting area.

Sitting in the waiting area, a nurse called my name.

Following the nurse into the examination room, I noticed that Lea also joined me.

Inside, the doctor was looking at the chart with a serious expression.

“Miss Han, have you lost consciousness recently?”

“How… did you know?”

Lea stared at me with wide eyes, clearly surprised by my response.

Ah, I said too much.

“Your health stats are poor. There are signs of malnutrition as well…”

“Malnutrition!?”

“For now, I’ll give you an IV and prescribe some medication. You must take it regularly and ensure you eat properly. If not, things could become quite serious.”

“Yes, doctor.”

Following the nurse to the IV room, I felt Lea’s intense gaze on me.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“About what…?”

“I clearly told you to let me know if you’re struggling!”

I didn’t have any good excuses.

She looked at me with teary eyes, and if I said anything here, I’d be trash…

After apologizing, Lea stared at me with a determined expression.

“I know why you’re living in that place, so I won’t tell you to move next door. Instead, I’ll move next to you.”

Lea announced her decision to move next door.

But… someone already lives next door?

She made a call somewhere, and just as I was finishing up my IV, her phone rang.

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

She ended the call, saying she’d arranged the moving date. Already!?

“I offered double the market price, including moving expenses.”

“…”

Lea showed that, for her, money solves everything.

As she laughed, saying that the only reason things don't work out is insufficient funds, I felt a bit uneasy.

She drove me home and said she’d see me next week before leaving.

I stood there for a while, staring at the empty space she left behind.

My chest felt warm, though I couldn’t quite put it into words.

A world where I knew no one.

But slowly, this once-colorless world was beginning to take on color.

---

“Kyuuu!”

“I told you I’d be out this morning, didn’t I?”

“Kyuuu!”

“So you’re letting it slide this time?”

Patting Yongyong’s head as he munched on mana stones, I opened the window and looked out at the city view.

Thanks to the bear taxi’s wild driving, I arrived much earlier than planned.

Definitely faster, though it felt like a nightmare…

Ugh. Just thinking about it makes me feel sick.

“Kyuu?”

“I’m okay.”

After reassuring Yongyong, who was looking at me with concern, I packed up my things and checked out at the hotel lobby.

“Thank you for everything.”

“No, it was an honor to have you with us!”

And so I left the Star City behind.

“Let’s stop by the information guild one last time.”

“Kyuu!”

“Oh, come on. We have to visit since they helped us when we were out of mana stones.”

“Kyuuuu.”

Trying to calm Yongyong, who didn’t seem interested in anything except me, I headed to the information guild.

I entered the guild’s base at the general store and spoke to an employee, who guided me to the request room.

Inside the request room, Erika was enjoying tea and greeted me with a bright smile when she saw me.

“My little sweetheart, you’re here?”

“Hello!”

After sitting down opposite Erika, she poured me a cup of tea—it was sweet.

“Did you come to say goodbye?”

“Yes! It’s time for me to leave.”

“In that case, could you do a small errand on your way?”

She handed me a letter along with a pouch.

[You’ve received a quest.]
Deliver mail to the information guild in Talassa, the commercial city.

Reward: Mana stone pouch.

“I couldn’t let my sweet one leave empty-handed.”

Though she called it an errand, I knew she was just trying to take care of me.

“Thank you.”

“Hehe. If you’re grateful, come visit again.”

I said my goodbyes and left the store, heading out of the city.

Standing on the road a bit away from the city, I waited for a bear taxi, and soon I heard it approaching from afar.

But it sounded like there were more than one…

As I looked closer, I saw a group of war bears running toward me.

And leading them was a particularly massive bear, followed by a large group of war bears.

“Who are all these other war bears!?”

“Roaaar!”

“Your family!?”

Now I understood why he had been collecting mana stones.

He said he came to introduce me to his family, as he’d been gathering stones to support them.

Being surrounded by these giant bears was a bit intimidating…

As they curiously sniffed around, one of them locked eyes with Yongyong.

“Roaaar!”

Just like the first time I met a bear, they immediately showed a posture of submission.

Watching the war bears lie down in awe, I found myself bewildered. The lead bear took charge and organized them.

“Roaaar!”

In an instant, all the war bears backed away.

The lead bear approached me.

He nodded in thanks.

“Why are you being so formal between us?”

“Rooaar!”

He chuckled and invited me to climb on. But he had grown so much that getting on was a struggle.

After a bit of effort, I climbed onto his back, and he began to walk slowly, with the other war bears following.

With a group of war bears in tow, I finally felt like a true summoner.

“Let’s go!”

“Roaaaaar!”

---

The movement of the war bear group was impressive.

On the road to the commercial city Talassa.

We encountered many monsters, but none dared to approach us.

In fact, they ran away the moment we made eye contact.

Understandable, though—what monster would want to take on a group of massive war bears, led by a bear over 10 meters tall?

Together, we climbed mountains and swam across rivers until we finally saw the city of Talassa in the distance.

At last, we reached Talassa, its massive spire standing at the center, surrounded by countless buildings.

After saying goodbye to the bears, I approached the city entrance, where there were two gates.

One was crowded, while the other was completely empty.

As I started toward the empty gate—

“Dear, you can’t go that way.”

“Huh?”

I turned at the sound of a voice, finding an elderly woman looking at me.

“That gate is for nobles only.”

“Nobles?”

“Yes, dear. People like us commoners need to line up over here.”

Well, technically, I do have the title of a duke in the demon realm, but…

It’s probably best not to attract any unnecessary attention, so I lined up behind the old lady. She shared a lot of useful information while we chatted.

“Dear, just because it’s a commercial city doesn’t mean everything’s cheap.”

“Really? I thought it would be cheaper here than in other cities.”

While talking, my turn eventually came, and I passed through the checkpoint, entering the bustling city.

The streets were filled with merchants and carts loaded with goods.

After bidding farewell to the old woman, I opened my map and headed toward the guild headquarters Lea had marked for me.

As I turned down an alley, I bumped into someone.

“What the—!? Hey, kid, watch where you’re going!”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t see you.”

Red hair, shirtless…a bit of a weirdo?

He glared at me, looking me over with a fierce expression.

“If you’re not careful, you could get hurt! Are you okay?”

“Huh? Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Always be careful! This is the kind of city where even with your eyes open, you might lose your nose!”

Grumbling but concerned, this weirdo… is he a tsundere?