The Golden-Haired Summoner - Chapter 23

The enormous cave was divided into several smaller caverns, one of which resembled a blacksmith’s workshop. Inside, a dwarf was hammering away tirelessly.

*Clang!*
*Clang!*
*Clang!*

The sound of hammering echoed out of the small cave and spread throughout the larger cavern. It was relentless, never stopping for even a moment.

“Huu…”

After hammering and refining for quite a while, the dwarf finally raised the sword he had been working on, carefully inspecting it for any imperfections. As soon as the hammering stopped, someone entered the cave.

A tall, slender woman with striking features and cat-like eyes—an unmistakably human woman—walked in with a bored expression.

“Is it done?”

Her voice was languid, as though she couldn’t care less. It was none other than Geenie Crowell, the source of all the recent commotion.

As she entered, a snake that had been hiding slithered up to her, wagging its non-existent tail as if overjoyed to see her. Its charred body, with its tail half-severed, looked like someone had taken a bite out of it—an unpleasant sight, to say the least.

The dwarf, oblivious to the snake’s appearance, sighed heavily and spoke as if in frustration.

“No, I think I’ll have to make it again. I’m not satisfied with it.”

“Huh? Again?”

“I’m telling you, I’m not happy with it! It’s useless! There’s no soul in it!”

*Tang!*

The dwarf threw the sword he had been working on across the room, pouting like a child throwing a tantrum. His grumbling didn’t match his grizzled, elderly appearance.

If Geenie’s expression could be summed up at that moment, it would likely be, *”Soul, my foot!”*

“Do whatever you want… So, what about food?”

“Food? Not eating! I’m making it again!”

Geenie looked down at the dwarf with a mix of pity and disbelief.

“You need to eat, don’t you? You said you eat one meal a day, right? Hasn’t it been three days since you last ate?”

“I don’t care! I’m not eating!”

The sight of this elderly dwarf throwing a tantrum at a much younger Geenie was not a particularly flattering one.

Seeing that the situation wasn’t going to improve, Geenie sighed and, in a resigned tone, offered a compromise.

“Fine, if I catch something for you, will you eat it? What do you want?”

“Hmm… An ogre.”

“An ogre? That’s far away. How about a troll or an orc?”

“No, I won’t eat that.”

The dwarf immediately stiffened his expression and began preparing materials for the next sword.

“Alright, I’ll go. Just watch over the lair while I’m gone, okay?”

“Mm, hurry up. I’m hungry.”

“I’ll be back! And don’t burn the place down while I’m gone!”

With a final warning, Geenie summoned Undain and climbed onto her spirit’s back.

Undain swiftly flew out of the cave, while the snake watched her leave with a longing look.

[Master, take me with you.]

It had been 15 days since Geenie Crowell had gone missing. Whether she knew or not that her disappearance had caused chaos across the land, she had somehow ended up as the caretaker for a dwarf who was actually a dragon in disguise.

The lair of the young dragon, Magicos, was vast—so large that it was akin to the size of several department stores put together.

Originally, the lair had been accessible only by teleportation, but since I refused to use teleportation, Magi reluctantly created an exit for me. The exit was located in the middle of a sheer cliff, making it impossible for any normal person to reach it. Below, a river flowed, and across from the exit was another cliff. It was the very same type of cliff I had nearly fallen to my death from before.

Actually, part of the reason the dragon didn’t use magic to seal off the exit was that Magi didn’t know how to cast barrier magic. It turns out Magi was more than just young—he was a bit of a simpleton.

Although he had the physical prowess and mana control typical of a dragon, he lacked the mental capacity to manipulate that mana properly. The only magic he had mastered were teleportation, spatial summoning, polymorph, and meteor summoning—abilities his parents had drilled into him, literally forcing him to memorize them without truly understanding the principles.

Whether he was a fool or not, one thing was certain after living with him for two weeks: Magi was obsessively passionate about crafting and forging things. He was a bundle of pure, childlike madness, fixated on making things with his own hands.

Seeing Magi’s fixation on his work always made me think of Rovenin. That guy had been similarly obsessed with swordsmanship, to the point of insanity.

After all, he had forgotten the names of the maids he had worked with for over ten years…

[Master, we’re about to exit the tunnel.]

The tunnel leading to the outside was a narrow passage, and the first time I passed through it, I realized that my instincts were rejecting it. Cold sweat trickled down my back, and it felt as though I couldn’t breathe.

Was this some lingering trauma from my previous life, when I died in a tunnel?

Even though I hated teleportation, I managed to make the tunnel tolerable by lighting it with mana stones. As long as the tunnel was well-lit, I didn’t mind passing through it.

But I was always aware that if the mana stones went out while I was inside the tunnel, I might pass out on the spot.

*Whooosh*
*Splaash*

As we neared the tunnel’s end, the sight of the opposing cliff came into view through the bright white light of the exit. In an instant, we flew out of the tunnel and up over the cliff.

Truth be told, asking a water spirit to fly me through the air wasn’t the best idea. It was more suited to a wind spirit. But Undain was a mid-level spirit and more than capable of handling such tasks. She flew through the air with the grace of a swimmer, though it consumed a considerable amount of mana.

[Master, what are we looking for?]

Flying high above the forest, Undain asked me what our target was. I recalled Magi’s request.

“Ogre.”

[Understood, Master.]

Flying over the vast forest was quite a magnificent experience—aside from the fierce wind that battered my face.

The farther we flew, the colder the wind became, and my nose started to tingle from the chill.

If I had a wind spirit, I could probably shield myself from this wind… Then again, maybe even a water spirit could handle it. It was worth a try.

[Master! I’ve found one! Over there!]

“Sniff… huh? Where?”

[That way.]

Undain, in the form of a dolphin, pointed with her long snout toward a part of the forest.

Sure enough, I spotted an ogre lumbering through the woods. It was large and sturdy, just the kind of meal Magi would enjoy.

Silently maneuvering behind the ogre, I quickly began to chant my spell.

“Undain, Unwater Breeding!”

The ogre glanced back, sensing danger, but before it could flee, a large sphere of water formed around it, trapping it within. A few leaves swirled inside the water sphere, caught in the currents.

It was pointless to keep the ogre imprisoned in the water sphere, as it would only waste mana. I quickly called out to Ador.

“Ador!”

[What is it? What? Master, what do you need?]

Ador, who had been itching for some action, spun around me eagerly, awaiting orders.

“Unwater Breeding with a Lightning Bolt!”

[Four Bolts?]

“Ding ding, correct.”

Ador confirmed, though he seemed confused. Normally, when water was involved, the intensity should be lowered, but since the target was an ogre, I didn’t need to hold back. I needed to kill it.

*Zzzzt!*
*Crackle!*

The moment the lightning bolt struck the water sphere, the ogre flailed about wildly before its body stiffened. Soon enough, it collapsed, limp and lifeless.

Technically, it would be better to use *compression*, but Magi had complained that waterlogged meat didn’t taste good, so this was a more convenient method. Using Ador’s lightning cooked the meat just right, making it a perfect offering for Magi.

The main focus of my training for the past nine years had been on increasing the speed of my spellcasting. Whether for offense or defense, I had been working on casting faster than anyone else.

Among elemental spirits, wind spirits were known for having the fastest spellcasting speed since they had control over every material around them. Following wind spirits in speed were earth and water spirits, though earth spirits lost their power in places like the middle of the ocean, where there was no ground to work with. Water spirits, on the other hand, didn’t have as many restrictions but still took a little time to extract moisture from the air or create water before casting their spells.

In terms of speed, water spirits were far from the slowest. That title belonged to fire spirits, whose powerful attacks took the longest to manifest.

The only solution to overcoming these speed limitations was training, training, and more training! And teaching Ador to coordinate complex combination attacks with water spirits!

There were six levels of *Lightning Bolt*, ranging from 1-Bolt to 6-Bolt, and the strength had to be adjusted accordingly when combined with a water spirit. However, when fighting non-human enemies like the ogre, the full force could be used without weakening the attack.

“Release Unwater Breeding.”

The water dispersed, still crackling with residual electricity, so I stayed back to avoid getting zapped. I waited for the current to dissipate before moving closer. Since I was already out here, I decided to take a break in the forest and landed some distance away from the fallen ogre.

I found a flat-looking rock and sat down, dismissing Undain for now.

“Undain, you can return.”

[Yes, Master. Call me again soon…]

With a wistful tone, Undain disappeared. Meanwhile, Ador, still crackling with energy, seemed overly eager to release the leftover sparks.

“You… go ahead and play for a bit.”

*Whoosh!*

Ador zoomed off the moment he got permission, disappearing from sight. He would either wander around for a while or return to me before I had to forcibly recall him.

I thought about how long it had been since I last summoned Ador. It hadn’t even been three days, but to Ador, who craved being summoned every day, even that felt like too long. He was clearly different from Pein, who whined endlessly if summoned two days in a row.

*Rustle*

“Grrr.”

“Grrr.”

As I was lost in thought, I suddenly heard rustling and growling. A few wolves appeared from the bushes.

There were plenty of small to medium-sized monsters near Magi’s lair, and sometimes wolf packs roamed the area. They likely preyed on the deer and rabbits that inhabited the forest, or sometimes even clashed with more ferocious monsters. These wolves were larger and more aggressive than typical wolves, likely due to their proximity to the lair.

Many of the wolves stood taller than me when upright.

“…What do you guys want?”

“Growl!”

The largest of the pack, likely the alpha, bared its teeth at me. Seven wolves had now gathered around the rock I was sitting on, all growling and baring their fangs.

Though their threats didn’t really faze me.

“You mangy mutts, huh? Ador!”

I sprang up from the rock and called for Ador.

If he didn’t arrive soon, I’d summon Undain or Pein, but it would be easier to use Ador since he was already summoned and roaming around nearby.

“Growl!”

“Roar!”

“Snarl!”

The wolves seemed agitated as I rose to my feet, snarling even louder.

Just then, I spotted Ador flying toward me in the distance.

He sure is quick.

And why do these wolves think they can pick a fight with me?

I was about to fry the lot of them when I noticed something strange—a few tufts of fur and bone fragments scattered around the rock I had been sitting on. Two of the wolves had small animals clamped in their jaws.

[Master! What do you need? Should I fry them all?]

“Hmm…”

It seemed that the rock I had been sitting on was some kind of meeting spot for the wolves. Maybe this was my fault?

I considered backing off, but it was already too late—the wolves clearly saw me as an enemy.

“Growl!”

“Grrr!”

As I scanned the pack, I spotted one wolf whose fur stood out from the rest. Its coat gleamed, as if meticulously groomed, and it had a fine mane. Compared to the charred, half-roasted shell of my snake, Rai, this wolf looked like the picture of vitality.

How convenient.

“Ador, return.”

[What? But Master, I was just about to—]

Ignoring Ador’s protests, I sent him back. Then I immediately summoned Undain.

Now that the ogre had probably cooled down, it was the perfect time to finish this off.

I could’ve used Ador, but that would have ruined the beautiful fur on that wolf. And fur, after all, is an animal’s greatest asset.

“Undain!”

[Yes, Master.]

“Unwater Breeding.”

Undain swiftly targeted the gleaming wolf I pointed to. As water formed around the wolf, the rest of the pack panicked, watching their alpha thrash within the water bubble.

The alpha wolf and I locked eyes for a moment. Even though it couldn’t understand human language, I smiled and thought, *”You gonna keep fighting or back off?”*

Seemingly understanding my intent, the alpha tucked its tail between its legs and bolted.

“Whine!”

“Yip!”

“Yelp!”

The rest of the pack quickly followed, leaving their captured prey behind.

With the situation resolved, I turned to the one wolf still trapped inside the water bubble, now half-drowned. Floating alongside it was the animal it had been holding in its mouth—a small, reddish-brown fox, about the size of a human head. Blood trickled from the fox’s neck, indicating that the wolf had killed it with a single bite.

For me, this was a pleasant surprise.

“Oh, good, good. Undain, let’s take these with the ogre back to the lair.”

A fresh, well-prepared ogre for Magi and a wolf and a fox for Rai—this hunt turned out quite satisfying.

When I returned to the lair, Magi was already devouring the ogre, so I politely ignored the sight and sat down with Rai. Watching a monster tear into another creature, even after seeing it several times, was still not a pleasant sight.

Grinning at Rai, I announced the good news.

“Rai! I’ve got great news for you. I brought back a new body for you.”

[Oh! Really, Master? I was getting tired of being a snake!]

“Hmm… Get ready~”

I stood up and revealed the two animals I had brought—both the wolf and the fox. I was quite pleased with both options, so I figured I’d let Rai choose between them.

The sight of the two animals clearly thrilled Rai, who began bouncing around, an odd sight for a snake.

Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen Rai this excited.

[Kyaah~ Master, I love you!]

*Whoosh!*

Rai launched himself at me, as if asking for a hug, but I quickly dodged.

*Thud!*

[Ouch! Master, why…]

“Sorry, I don’t have many clothes left.”

Plus, it would hurt to collide with you.

Rai’s head was now half-buried in the floor of the lair, but he didn’t seem to mind. He quickly pulled himself free and, with an exaggerated display of grace, slithered over to the wolf and the fox.

[Wow! I’m so happy, Master~ But… are both of these mine?]

“Yep, do you like them? Which one do you want?”

When I asked him to choose, Rai hesitated for a moment, seeming unsure.

After a pause, he finally asked, [Can’t I have both?]

“Both? Wouldn’t they end up mixed together?”

[No, Master! Once I make one of them my body, I can transform into whichever one I want whenever I feel like it, as long as I have enough of your mana. I can even combine them if you want!]

What! That’s a hidden feature?

“What? Why didn’t you tell me that before?”

[You never asked.]

This… this snake!

Rai had a habit of keeping things from me, always answering with *”You didn’t ask,”* when I discovered something new. Just wait until I get my hands on him.

“So, what about your current body? Can you turn back into a snake when you want to?”

Rai averted his gaze, clearly uncomfortable with the question.

[Yes…]

This little…!

“And if you turn back into a snake, will it be the same burnt, half-eaten shell you’re in now?”

[…Yes.]

Unbelievable. All this time, he’s been pestering me for a new body, and he could’ve just transformed back into his original form?

“And what if I made you a new snake body?”

[…Yes…]

This time, Rai buried his head under the wolf’s belly, too embarrassed to respond.

So that’s a yes.

It was typical of Rai to avoid answering when he didn’t want to admit something.

“You’ve been saying all along that you didn’t need your shell, but now I find out you could’ve just asked me to make you a new one? You little…!”

I grabbed Rai by the neck and pulled him out from under the wolf. He resisted, but there was no escape from his master’s grip!

With Rai in hand, I asked one final question.

“What’s with the tears, huh? You were keeping this from me on purpose, weren’t you?”

Transparent liquid dripped from Rai’s eyes—an imitation of tears. There was no way Rai could actually cry, and I could tell my mana was draining into him.

[Master… Please…]

“Please, what? You should’ve just asked for a new shell earlier! Why’d you keep it a secret? Huh?”

[Wahh, Master… Water droplets… sniffle, sniffle.]

There it is again—Rai’s obsession with “water droplets.” Whenever he starts talking about that, he begins to cry.

What on earth is this “water droplets” thing?

“…Water droplets? What’s that even supposed to mean?”

[Sniffle… You don’t remember, Master?]

“What are you talking about?”

[A while ago, you promised me my next body would have water droplets on it…]

Rai’s words triggered something in my memory.

Water droplets for Rai’s next body? It vaguely rang a bell, but nothing concrete came to mind.

“When was that?”

[About nine years ago.]