Chapter 49: The Bat (2)

Ion stopped walking, and Jin Seongha halted too. Glancing around, Jin Seongha gave a sly smile.

“Just far enough that an A-rank Hunter’s hearing won’t pick it up.”

This is why sharp people…

“So, what’s the deal? Wanna pet Pippi too?” Jin Seongha asked, cradling Pippi from his head. Pippi’s tail sparkled in rainbow hues, clearly pampered by Team Leader Lee Jina.

“I want to meet Hunter Choi Jungo,” Ion said.

“…”

Jin Seongha raised an eyebrow.

“Why? To kill him?”

“What? Why would I kill Hunter Choi Jungo?”

“Hong Insu doesn’t seem like he’d kill Jungo-hyung, so are you meeting him to do it?”

“No way! I just… I really need to see Choi Jungo right now…”

“‘Right now’? So later, then?”

“No, never! I’d never kill him with my own hands, ever!”

“Hiring a hitman, then?”

“That’s not what I meant!”

Ion suddenly understood how Hong Insu felt.

“…Look, Hunter Jin Seongha,” Ion said.

Catching Jin Seongha’s playful expression, Ion regained his composure.

“You’ll regret messing with me.”

“Why?”

“Because…” Ion turned Sansevieria half a circle, as if revealing a trump card.

Jin Seongha’s eyes, casually glancing at Sansevieria, widened as he spotted the tiny bat perched on its leaves.

“Tch… this baby bat!” he gasped, clutching his chest.

“So cute…!”

Pippi, Pippi?!

Pippi flinched, staring at Jin Seongha with betrayed eyes, as if it had heard something unthinkable.

But Jin Seongha was already smitten with the fluffy baby bat.

“Look at that tiny round nose! So adorable. Its beady eyes are so lovely. It’s like a mix of a newborn fruit bat and a desert bat—a monster for sure,” he said.

Ion felt proud seeing Jin Seongha react exactly as predicted.

“You knew right away it’s not Earth-born but a monster,” Ion said.

“Of course. No bat on Earth looks like this. You couldn’t kill this poor little monster and brought it along, huh?”

“Absolutely not. I thought it snuck into the gate with me. If I knew it was a monster, I’d have left it.”

“Is that so?” Jin Seongha said with a warm smile, as if thinking, Sure, you softie.

Ion found the gentle gaze prickly but continued.

“This is a monster I’ve never seen, so I want to ask a monster tamer about it. Of course, you’re welcome to join, Hunter Jin Seongha. And if there’s nothing special about it, you can take it and raise it.”

“Me, raise it?”

“Yeah. I don’t have the capacity to care for animals. I’d probably neglect and starve it.”

“Hmm.” Jin Seongha crouched to eye level with the bat. Its wings, barely 20 cm spread, met his gaze with round eyes.

The bat fluttered, turning to face Ion. Ion rotated the pot, and the bat turned again to face him, and Ion rotated it again…

Jin Seongha watched, amused, until Pippi slapped his face with its long tail.

Pippi-rung.

Jin Seongha finally looked at Pippi.

“Pippi?”

Pippi, Pippi. Pippi.

Jin Seongha straightened up. Pippi flew to his face, ears flattened, rubbing its body against his large palm.

Pippi, Pippi-rung. Bbi…

“Pippi.”

Bbi. Bbi-i…

A sad, pitiful wail, desperate for its owner’s attention.

A slow smile of delight spread across Jin Seongha’s face.

Ion, slightly creeped out, rubbed his arm.

Jin Seongha cradled Pippi, stroking it gently. “Corps Leader Ion, I’ll introduce you to Jungo-hyung when we’re out. But I won’t take the bat. Pippi’s upset, as you can see.”

“But you want to raise this cute baby bat. You’re probably already planning a little cave in your mansion’s garden. Don’t mind Pippi’s feelings—raise it if you want.”

“When getting a new pet, the most important thing isn’t my heart but the heart of the pet I already have. Snowy, Choco, Candy, and Nari are friendly and would accept this bat as the youngest, but Pippi’s too timid and jealous. It won’t work.”

Jin Seongha scratched Pippi’s fur as it rubbed against his hand, a display of mutual affection.

“It’s clearly showing it doesn’t welcome the bat. I can’t be an owner who ignores that. You brought it, so you’re responsible.”

“Wouldn’t Pippi cling to you more pitifully out of jealousy if you took it?”

“Sure, but too much stress is bad for their health. What if it gets bald from stress? I like ‘cute’ critters clinging to me.”

“…That’s kinda creepy.”

Jin Seongha just shrugged. Ion declared firmly, “I’m warning you, I’ll neglect and starve it to death.”

“Doubt you’d let it die.”

“Don’t blame me if it dies later.”

“I won’t.”

Even threatening the bat’s life didn’t faze Jin Seongha’s calm response. Ion fumed.

He’d thought Jin Seongha would eagerly take a cute monster, not make excuses to refuse.

“What does it eat?” Jin Seongha asked.

“No idea. I’ve only given it water. I’m not some saint who feeds monsters. I’ll keep starving it.”

“I brought bananas for Pippi. Follow me.”

“I’ll make it watch while Pippi eats.”

“Fine. Come on.”

Ion followed, sulking.

Jin Seongha’s personal tent was littered with Pippi’s favorite fruits: bananas, strawberries, apples, peaches.

Kyuu.

The bat flapped at the scent, stretching toward the fruit but not flying, just circling Ion’s pot.

Jin Seongha peeled a banana and gave it to Pippi. When Pippi ate half, he peeled another and asked, “Pippi, can we give some to that one?”

Pippi-rung…

Pippi glanced between its half-eaten banana, the new one, and the bat, then wrapped its long tail around the new banana.

Pippi.

It flew to the pot, landing and offering the banana to the bat.

Pippi.

Kyuu…

Bbeng.

Kyuu!

The bat snatched the banana with its claws and devoured it hungrily. Pippi returned to the table, and Jin Seongha praised it generously.

Crunch, munch, nibble. The tent filled with the sounds of two monsters eating.

Watching the bat gobble the banana, Jin Seongha asked, “When did you bring it out of the dungeon?”

“About a week ago.”

“What did you feed it?”

“I told you, nothing! It was probably starving. It’ll keep starving with me.”

“If it was that hungry, it would’ve eaten your Sansevieria. Guess it can last a week without food. Didn’t it snoop when you ate?”

“I never ate in front of it.”

Jin Seongha stared at Ion, as if measuring something, then tilted his head. “Not once in a week?”

“Nope.”

To Ion, the bat had vanished for five days before reappearing. He hadn’t had time to feed it.

Chasing Wendy Lowells, he’d eaten just one or two energy bars a day on the move.

“You’ve been too busy to even eat properly,” Jin Seongha said. “Was gonna ask you to check my training, but guess not.”

“Training?”

“Hong Insu’s skills spiked recently.”

“…”

“I noticed a while back you taught him something. Team Leader Lee Jina mentioned it too. She wants to convince you…”

“Convince me for what?”

“To teach the others too, Teacher Ion.”

The word Teacher sent chills through Ion, his hair standing on end.

“Hong Insu’s skill changes have nothing to do with me. I’m leaving. Introduce me to Choi Jungo after the dungeon.”

“Knew you’d say that.”

Ion stood, clutching the pot. Pippi waved its tail at the bat, but the bat ignored it, sprawled on the pot, eating its banana.

Teacher.

Sure, he’d briefly trained Hong Insu.

But Teacher?

Ion never wanted to be anyone’s Teacher.

Never.

After the dungeon raid, Ion headed to Horizon’s headquarters with Sansevieria and the bat. Jin Seongha waited in the lobby, drawing all eyes, flashing a bright smile at Ion.

“You’re here. Let’s go up. Hyung’s waiting.”

They took the elevator to the Monster Research Team’s floor. The office was empty, everyone in labs.

Entering the team leader’s room behind blinds, a gaunt man stood. He greeted Jin Seongha and Pippi, then Ion.

“You’re Corps Leader Ion? Seongha talks about you a lot. Nice to meet you. Sit.”

“…Hello, Team Leader Choi,” Ion said.

No need to worry about killing Choi Jungo for the butterfly mask—he looked like he’d die of overwork first, pale and haggard.

Choi peered at the bat on Sansevieria’s leaves. “This the bat monster? Hmm, definitely new. Let’s check its profile.”

A tiny stethoscope appeared, sized for the bat. Its diaphragm touched the bat’s wing.

“…Huh?” Choi Jungo tilted his head, his expression growing strange.

“What’s wrong?” Jin Seongha asked.

“The skill… isn’t working.”

Jin Seongha frowned. “What do you mean, not working?”

“I don’t know. Never happened before. A-rank and below always worked fine…”

“Have you tried it on an S-rank monster?”

“Never encountered one, so I don’t know. Doesn’t seem like this tiny, scared bat is S-rank.”

The stethoscope, aimless in the air, turned to Pippi in Jin Seongha’s arms.

Pippi-rung?

Familiar with it, Pippi wasn’t scared. Choi Jungo stared into space.

“Pippi’s profile pops up fine.”

“…Guess we need an S-rank dungeon. The Association sent an exploration team to one yesterday.”

“What? Dude, are you crazy? I’m not combat-class and never entered a dungeon!”

“Just check if Monster Diagnosis works on an S-rank and use a return stone.”

Jin Seongha pulled out his phone, seemingly serious about arranging it.

“Wait, Team Leader Choi. What’s the exact message?” Ion asked.

Choi read the text before his eyes: “‘Not a valid target for this skill.’”