I Became the Weakest Summon of the Genius Summoner

Chapter 3. First Battle

'By rest, do you mean entering that space again? No way!'

She gently closed her eyes and began to chant while extending her palms towards me.

'Ugh... I really hate it.'

Thin strands of magic power from her palms softly wrapped around my body, and gradually, I began to lose strength.

A considerable amount of time passed that way.

'... Hmm?'

She slightly opened her eyes to check on me, tilted her head in puzzlement, and resumed her chant.

'Ugh, I'm losing strength. Am I really going in this time?'

"...?"

'...?'

"Huh? What's happening?"

Clearly showing signs of panic, she approached me closely and chanted once more, only for her efforts to fail again.

"This isn't working, Ilwol! What do we do?"

I shrugged my shoulders at her, feeling like things were already going awry from the start.

"That's strange. I'm sure I should be sensing it right."

She tried over 10 more times after that but failed every single time.

'I should consider myself lucky. At least I don't have to worry about going back to that dreadful place.'

Had she ever faced such trial and error while alive? Probably not.

There was a reason for this assumption.

Most of the summoned creatures she conjured, except for a few, were monsters commonly found in dungeons.

If this had happened before, there would certainly be records of causing chaos on the road while taking monsters to a dungeon.

'Was it because of me... because I didn't want to enter?'

She appeared deeply disheartened, on the verge of tears, clearly losing confidence in her abilities.

She took a deep breath and said, "This is the last time", and poised herself once more.

'Let's just enter... If that's what it takes, I'd rather not see that troubled face.'

I silently chanted to myself, 'I'll go back there. I want to return.'

Then,

Clunk-!

The giant door behind me suddenly opened wide and swallowed me whole.

"Ah, Ilwol-!"

Thud, clatter-

Whump!

'Damn, could you put me down more gently?'

"Clack-clack!"

Having been thrown from the door, I voiced my small grievance with an irritated click and stared blankly at the faintly glowing giant door.

Instinctively, I felt I should return to the initial space, but...

'I don't want to go there. I don't want to huddle up.'

So I just lay flat in front of the door.

Even doing so, no other force acted upon me.

'When will Yeon-hee call me...?'

Probably after she entered a dungeon.

'I hope she calls soon...'

***

"Humming~ Hmm~"

Summoner Lee Yeon-hee was in an excellent mood.

Her first summoning had succeeded, and she felt a satisfaction that the word 'successful' seemed inadequate to describe.

"Ilwol is... hehe, so cute."

Thinking back to the moments he stared dumbly at the club, she couldn't help but chuckle.

However, she also pondered about his role in the dungeon.

Previously, she only had to focus on herself during battles, but now she had a summoned creature, so she needed to develop multitasking skills.

"I'm not sure if he'll hit anything with such low Agility."

Her recent advancement to a summoner in her second awakening hadn't yet been reported to the Hunter Management Bureau.

After the first awakening, faint blue auras drifted from the body, making them impossible to hide.

The second awakening, however, brought no such outward changes, allowing her to report only when she was proficient in handling it.

After showering, she lay in bed, looking at a photo of her mother, who was smiling brightly, and said, "Mom, I'm not alone anymore... I have a big, smart friend, so there's no need to worry."

The shabby one-room apartment, once just a place for sleep, now felt surprisingly empty after Ilwol had been there.

"I should've not canceled the summon... There's even the bonus from the first summon."

〈You have achieved the first successful summoning in this world!〉
〈You have acquired the achievement 【First Summoner】!〉
- Magic Power +20, Summon Capacity +10
- The first summoned creature does not consume magic power upon summoning.
- The first summoned creature does not consume magic power for maintaining summon.

Reviewing the messages that appeared after her first summoning, she imagined Ilwol standing beside her now.

A skeleton with the height of an adult male, holding a club, looking down at her with deep, hollow eyes.

...

"While sleeping, it's better to cancel the summoning."

Her thoughts were accompanied by the sound of her heart pounding excitedly, and before she knew it, she fell asleep.

***

'This waiting is probably the most tormenting part. I'm sure of it.'

Now, even the light seeping from the door had vanished, leaving only darkness with me, so dark I couldn't even see my fingertips.

Even a normal person would go insane spending just a day in a place like this and come back with mental problems.

=====

Calmness

- Never loses composure in any situation.
- Resistance to mental status ailments +50%

=====

Even the most skilled hunters didn't have the ability, like in stories, to check the status windows of monsters, so knowing that the skeleton soldier possessed such skills was new to me.

And it explained some things.

'The skeleton-type creatures are strong against mental magic, not because they're mindless, but because of their traits.'

While other monsters live their lives inside dungeons, the undead, especially skeleton-types, mostly roamed and reacted mechanically.

Magic spells targeting the mind often had little effect on them.

It wasn't a complicated reason.

They just had those traits.

'This is an incredibly great trait. Almost ludicrously so.'

The other trait, 【Protection】, was also rare, and when looking at the composition of skills and traits, it was hard to believe it was the weakest.

Creak-

"Clack-clack!"

Just as I was deeply lost in thought, the door started to open, and I joyfully performed a clicking celebration as I ran forward.

'Finally, I'm getting out!'

With a surge of joy, my shoulder bones shook, and I was sucked into the door with a now-familiar sensation, only to be spit out into a forest overgrown with weeds.

Thump-

Landing lightly, I used my feet and hands to steady myself on the ground.

Relieved that I hadn't stumbled awkwardly this time, I cheerfully greeted her, who was looking at me in awe.

"Clack-clack-clack-!"

While I could use my palm to make sounds, clacking my teeth together produced a clearer sound.

"Pff- Ilwol, let's move to another spot first."

Yeon-hee dashed to my side, guiding me to a more secluded area among the dense foliage. After scanning the surroundings, she whispered:
"Do you remember the conversation we had yesterday?"

Nod-

"Wow- you're really smart, Ilwol. Well done."

Is this what it feels like to be a dog looking at its owner?

This dynamic was an unfamiliar situation of master and servant.

Yet, I didn't feel too bad, probably because I was her summoned creature.

Anyway, I started contemplating as I looked around.

'I feared this might be a different world from the one I experienced... but thankfully, it feels familiar.'

While lounging in front of the colossal door, various thoughts crossed my mind.

I wondered if this was not the past of my world but a different Earth in a parallel universe.

But it was undoubtedly the same Goblin Dungeon I remembered.

Despite the term 'dungeon', the sky was exposed, and the place started in a fairly large forest where goblins posed the greatest threat.

Hardly had we taken a few steps forward when we encountered them.

Rustle-

"Shhh-"

Yeon-hee placed a finger to her lips, tense, as if worried I might make a move.

Without her command, I couldn't move an inch, yet she seemed unsure about her control over her abilities.

The goblins, on the other hand, were around a short tree, picking its fruits.

Standing around 140 cm tall, it was a usual trait of the regular goblin race.

She didn't need to worry about the mutated kinds just yet.

Only dealing with the three right in front was important.

They stood about 15 meters away. Her talent in archery was nothing special, but she was close enough for her not to miss.

She sent me a signal with her eyes.

It was as if she said, "(You can start, Ilwol.)"

I wondered if it would feel like this if 【Whisper】 skill, which enabled telepathic communication, existed.

Besides, she gave me full control over my movements.

At that, I instinctively filled myself with magic power and cast my favorite skill.

'Stealth...'

Magic Power: 4/6 (-2)

Stealth, a low-rank skill that required 2 magic power.

But its utility could compare to many high-rank skills. Not to mention, it was quite unique.

Shuffle-

My body melded into the surroundings, concealing my presence entirely from the enemy's sight.

The familiar sensation I had long forgotten was returning.

As I maneuvered around to reach the goblins from behind, she let her arrow fly without hesitation.

Thump-

Thok-!

A goblin collapsed with a sputter, an arrow lodged accurately in its throat.

The other two began to panic, grabbing their clubs that hung about their waists.

TL's Corner:
Let the hund begin!