As the summoned spirits appeared and began fighting the monsters, people widened their eyes in surprise, capturing this rare scene with awe.
Of course, as I expected, some, overcome by terror, abandoned everything and fled.
For those people, I had the spirits gather their abandoned belongings and send them after the fleeing ones.
“Hey, isn’t that the person from the video?”
“Using spirits? That was definitely uploaded by Hyeolhyang, right?”
“Then they must belong to Hyeolhyang. But why are they with Ban Eunhyeol?”
“Hyeolhyang and the Four Heavenly Kings appeared! We’re saved!”
Now that the immediate threat to their lives seemed gone, people started murmuring to each other, their curiosity growing wildly as they looked at us.
Of course, among those talking about us, there were also groups who cheered simply because they weren’t the focus of attention.
“Wow, wow! Thank you! Can you talk?”
One person, safe thanks to the spirits, even spoke to them.
Seeing scenes like this made me feel incredibly proud.
Before long, people stepped back and began recording us on video.
Countless phones were pointed our way.
“Step back, please! And put those cameras away; you’re distracting us!”
When I showed awareness of the phones, Ban Eunhyeol glanced over and shouted at those filming us.
‘I’ve probably been filmed more times than you, kid…’
I kept the words I dared not say aloud buried deep inside and pretended to be awkward and unable to get used to the filming since it was my first time acting like this.
After so long, it felt like my hands and feet were curling up from the discomfort.
Fortunately, since we were nearby when the dungeon break happened, the situation was quickly resolved.
The spirits played a major role in wiping out the monsters so fast.
“Waaah! You’re so cool, heretic!”
“Thanks to you, sister, I survived! Thank you!”
“Milky-white heretic! I love you, heretic!”
Students who had seen me first through the video cheered passionately.
Then, even the adults who had only been filming nervously started clapping little by little.
What began as faint clapping soon grew into loud cheers mixed with shouts.
After dealing with the last monster, I called back all the spirits and, together with Ban Eunhyeol, hurriedly left the scene.
“Your skills were awesome. Without the spirits, there would’ve definitely been injured people.”
We ran to a nearby quiet park and found a suitable bench to sit on.
As soon as we sat down, Ban Eunhyeol nodded as if acknowledging that he recognized my spirits’ strength.
We settled down and took a moment to catch our breath, chatting about various things.
Maybe because it was quiet or maybe because of the winter night atmosphere, all sorts of topics came up.
“At first, I really hated you.”
Startled by his sudden confession, I looked at Ban Eunhyeol with wide eyes, but he turned his head away, avoiding my gaze.
“But I like who you are now.”
When he turned back to face me, speaking calmly, a breeze blew, softly ruffling his hair.
The parts of it lit by the streetlamp shimmered faintly with a blue glow.
I froze right there, as if I’d just received a love confession.
‘It’s not like that. He’s saying he likes me as a friend. Get a grip, heretic!’
I quickly sorted out my thoughts alone and tapped his shoulder, replying in a voice filled with deep friendship.
“Thanks. I’m glad I changed.”
“Right? It’s scary to think what would’ve happened if you hadn’t.”
We burst into silly laughter.
The cold wind reddened our cheeks and ears, but neither of us was in a hurry to go home.
While talking about my guild life and why the movie we watched earlier was so awful, Ban Eunhyeol suddenly asked,
“But since when did you get so close to Doihyun?”
“Hmm? I guess we just met a few times.”
“But you two went to the aquarium? Together?”
“You came along with me too, remember? Today.”
Ban Eunhyeol blinked at me as if speechless.
Then he bit his lip and asked in a softer tone,
“Is he… like me?”
“Eh, no way. I hang out with you way more.”
“Right?”
Suddenly, Ban Eunhyeol’s face lit up as if someone had turned on a fluorescent light.
I hadn’t really noticed before, but now I saw that his usually sharp eyes curved gently only when he smiled — a proper eye smile.
“Are you giving me an eye smile right now?”
“Huh?”
Ban Eunhyeol’s eyes snapped back to their usual sharpness, startled by my question.
They looked prettier just a moment ago. I should’ve just kept quiet.
Time had passed enough, and as it was about time to head home, we stood up from the bench.
Bzzzz—
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
There was a message from Doihyun, but the sudden words made me read it twice.
[Let’s hang out together before the new year — Doihyun]
“Together?”
I tilted my head and looked at Ban Eunhyeol.
At that moment, chat windows popped up in my mind.
[Lumoseu(Lumos..★)(10): Looks like they’re on a date? Those two are so cute><
Σ(Ju)Utdeum(8): Chk chk chk
Wanso(7): Since when did they become like that?]
‘What is this about?’
I narrowed my eyes and read the chat.
Judging by the timing of Doihyun’s message, the two people the chat referred to as dating must have been us…
Then, pale-faced Ban Eunhyeol hastily sent a chat.
[Pokeoseu(1): No, we’re not, so please shut up………….]
Immediately, those who seemed ready to make a fuss suddenly quieted down.
Even though he only sent a message, his anger seemed palpable.
[Sashimi(1): Ah, if it weren’t for today, I could’ve been on a date.]
The silence was broken by Yeonhayeon.
Full of regret in her chat, Han Jibin joined in.
[Gyiyomi(9): I want to hang out with Dana tooㅠ_ㅠ Just the two of us on a date!]
Her cute jealousy made me smile.
I almost sent a message in the chat to suggest that the two of them meet up and have a fun date later.
Wondering if our video had already spread online, I searched and, just as expected, today’s footage had gone up surprisingly fast.
The view count was already enormous.
Because Ban Eunhyeol was in it and my spirits, who had been getting a lot of attention recently, appeared as well, many people seemed to have watched it.
“This is how popular your spirits are. Don’t hesitate to summon them from now on.”
Ban Eunhyeol showed me the comment responses from the video.
Sorted by recommendation, the reviews ranged from praising how quickly the situation was resolved thanks to my spirits to comments saying spirits seemed really useful for saving people.
Then, one comment saying, ‘Some people put others in danger, and some save them,’ made me pause for a moment.
It felt like both the former and the latter were pointing to me.
After reading some comments, I handed the phone back to Ban Eunhyeol, who smirked and said,
“I think this will be a Christmas we’ll never forget.”
“Yeah. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it either.”
It was the first time I spent Christmas hanging out with a friend.
Just when it seemed like everything would pass peacefully, a dungeon break happened right in the middle of the department store.
We had no choice but to summon spirits in front of everyone, and the reaction was better than expected.
So much happened in just one day; I felt dazed.
In every way, today was going to be truly unforgettable.
***
Ever since I revealed that I use spirit summoning, there’s been a huge change at home.
“Oh my, isn’t that a ghost? How does it even eat food?”
“The more I look, the weirder it looks.”
Red, Bisharp, and Sahin no longer needed to hide at home.
After my parents watched the video Yeonhayeon uploaded and asked, “What are those tiny lizard-like things next to you?”
I summoned Bisharp and Red to show them directly.
Since then, my parents often sought out Bisharp, Red, and Sahin.
They called them into the living room, wondering how such big creatures could stay only in my room.
Even the kids got used to it, and now the spirits’ activity zones had expanded throughout the whole house.
Whenever the spirits did something, my parents marveled, saying things like, “How can a ghost have these kinds of abilities?” or “How can a ghost be like this?”
For them, it seemed easier to think of the spirits as ghosts rather than calling them spirits.
“But do they really grow that big inside dungeons?”
The true forms of Bisharp and Red hadn’t been revealed in any videos yet. Since people might find them threatening and because I didn’t want to show off needlessly, only their smaller forms were seen.
After hearing my explanation, my parents looked at me with curious eyes.
‘Would it be okay to show them?’
I glanced at Bisharp and Red rolling around playfully on the sofa.
When they were playing like that, they looked cute, but I doubted they’d be seen as just fascinating if their true forms appeared.
Of course, even the massive dragon forms looked cute and cool in my eyes.
“I’m curious how big they get. Can we see them too?”
“If there’s a chance later, I’ll show you.”
We decided to reveal the dragons’ true forms slowly at a later time.
Even when raiding dungeons with guild members, I asked them not to record videos of the dragons’ true forms.
Yeonhayeon agreed, so we postponed the reveal.
‘The cool stuff has to be shown off properly when I’m ready.’
Though her reasons were different from mine.
Since then, Bisharp and Red have only fought in their true forms inside dungeons.
The guild members were surprisingly supportive once they heard why we didn’t record those appearances.
“Wait, so only we get to see their true forms?”
“Hearing it like that makes it feel really special. How about never revealing it to anyone else?”
Their insistence on not releasing the videos, for reasons different from mine and Yeonhayeon’s, was refreshing and allowed me to participate in dungeon raids without worry.
I don’t know about other guilds, but I was glad to have joined Hyeolhyang.