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Stay-at-Home Summoner Chapter 7

The Answer Lies in Microtransactions (1)

Approximately 8 hours after the Towers, which had thrown the world into chaos during the “1 Million Awakened” incident, were cleared in record time—so fast it earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records:

 

[Hey, doesn’t that maid cosplay look absolutely insane?]
[I bet this person is really into cosplay. With this level of quality, they must even have dedicated accounts and all that…]
[Wait, what?]

 

People unexpectedly found a ‘clue’ regarding the [Maid], someone with the skills to solo-clear Towers and a minimum guaranteed A-Rank.

 

– Only someone who professionally cosplays could pull off a maid cosplay of this caliber!!

 

It was a logical conclusion.

 

– Hey, guys, what if it’s actually some buff dude transformed into Elaine?

– Or maybe Elaine couldn’t stand watching her master struggle and jumped out of the game to help?

 

…These theories circulated but, logically, the majority assumed it was cosplay.

 

Even though the world was filled with Awakened possessing abilities straight out of movies or games, the idea of transforming into an in-game character was entirely different.

 

– Has there ever been even one such case before?

 

None.

 

– Even transformation-type abilities only let people turn into beasts or dungeon monsters—not exact replicas of game characters.

 

For example, no gym rat who could bench 700 pounds and trained religiously had ever shouted, “Transform!” and turned into a black-haired, golden-eyed, combat-ready maid.

 

– Even those with domination-type abilities could only control monsters within the Tower. They couldn’t bring them outside. And the concept of Summoning as a power simply hadn’t existed before, right?

 

Among all known Awakened, no one—not a single person—had ever summoned “another being”, let alone an in-game character.

No matter how you looked at it, common sense was the only framework people could rely on. And so, they turned to their existing knowledge to make sense of this anomaly.

 

– What about that ‘Great America-Man’ guy in the U.S.? He’s an A-rank superhuman with flight powers, isn’t he?

 

A symbol of superhumans.

In the US, after a muscular superhuman awakened person was discovered to have the ability to fly, they made him wear a red suit with blue panties and put the ‘A’ symbolizing America in a pentagon on his chest.

 

A symbol of superhuman strength.

 

After discovering his flight ability, the Americans outfitted their muscular A-rank hero in a red suit, blue tights, and a pentagon-shaped emblem with an “A” for America on his chest.

 

While his costume stopped short of resembling a certain iconic superhero, he became an inspiration for other Hunters to mimic characters from games, movies, and anime.

 

Some did it as national propaganda to boost pride.

Others partnered with copyright holders to promote intellectual properties.
And some… simply did it because they loved it.

 

But then —an exact replica of a mobile gacha game character—appeared, leaving the public with one logical conclusion.

 

Ah.

 

A hardcore cosplay enthusiast awakened while still in costume!

 

The glowing magical energy in her golden eyes? Clearly, awakening had made color contacts unnecessary!

 

 

“Director, here’s the report.”

 

What started as a theory among fans quickly turned into the “expert opinion”, which then spread to government agencies responsible for national security.

 

“You want us to investigate the social media profiles of professional cosplayers? Are you seriously asking our nation’s top intelligence agents to sift through accounts of people who dress up as game characters?”
“Not models—cosplayers. It’s a niche hobby where…”
“Start the investigation immediately! Contact the U.S. for social media data access!”

 

Suddenly, intelligence agencies worldwide were laser-focused on this case.

 

“The company behind that game is Korean, right? Track down their CEO and find out what they know! Scan every CCTV in the country! Use algorithms—if that [Maid] shows up on any footage, report to me immediately!”
“D-Director…”
“Do you think Japan or China won’t jump on this? The CIA might. If they find her first, we’re all finished! She speaks fluent Korean, so she’s probably one of ours. Find her before someone else does!”
“Yes, sir!”

 

A confirmed A-rank, capable of solo-clearing a Tower.

 

“…She might even be an S-rank Hunter!”

 

In this world, an S-rank Hunter was equivalent to a nation’s military power.

 

* * *

 

[…The government announced that all Awakened must complete registration by Monday at 6 PM. Administrative resources will be fully mobilized to ensure compliance.]

 

The car radio buzzed with the latest news.

 

As the situation grew more complex, the government worked tirelessly—even through the weekend—to register Awakened.

 

“Master.”

 

Elaine spoke softly from the backseat.

 

“Is it really necessary to go this far? Doesn’t it seem more suspicious to act like this?”

“We have to.”

 

I replied, glancing at her while driving down the dimly lit highway.

 

Elaine, no longer in her maid uniform, wore my oversized black jacket, baggy sweatpants, and sandals.

The jacket swamped her petite frame, and the sweatpants seemed ready to slip off her slim waist with the slightest movement.

 

Buying women’s clothes at this hour was impossible.

The only items a man could reasonably purchase for a woman at night without raising eyebrows were stockings or underwear—things I could explain away as “for my girlfriend”.

Regular clothes?

Not a chance.

 

There were no clothing stores that were open late at night.

 

‘I can rent a cosplay costume at a motel, how can I get there?’

 

Instead of overcomplicating things, I dressed her in my clothes.

 

Her maid uniform and heels were tucked away in a suitcase.

 

“Elaine, what do you say if anyone asks?”

“Oppa, let’s just get moving already.”
“…Perfect.”
“I am the Perfect Maid.”

 

Elaine’s annoyed tone and demeanor perfectly matched that of a girlfriend frustrated with her current outfit situation.

 

“Elaine, do you know why you’re sitting in the back seat?”
“Because of the CCTV, correct?”
“Exactly. You’ve probably noticed by now, but CCTV cameras are everywhere, even on the way here.”

 

We just passed a speed camera.

While its angle likely didn’t capture Elaine, the car’s tint wasn’t dark enough to obscure the interior during daylight hours.

 

“Even so, the reason we’re heading to the A-rank Tower at Mungyeong Saejae is for one thing: my certainty.”
“What certainty?”
“Certainty about how far I, as your Master, can assert myself and how much strength I can wield.”

 

Now that I had become Elaine’s master, it was my responsibility to protect her.

 

“I have the Summoning ability, but raw combat power? That’s all you. Not me.”
“I am your strength, Master.”
“That’s the problem. Others don’t see it that way. Take, for example, some rogue Hunter as strong as you trying to cause trouble.”
“…I understand what you’re saying now.”

 

Elaine snapped her fingers.

 

“Master, are you concerned about NTR?”
“Of course—wait, hold on.”
“…Hehe.”

 

Ah.

I fell for it.

 

“How do you even know that term? You’re talking about being ‘stolen’ as a summon, right?”
“Who knows? I wonder what Master was thinking of?”
“…Fine. You’re technically not wrong, so I won’t deny it. Elaine, you’re my summon. No matter what you think, I see you as my eternal partner in this Awakened life.”
“Eternal partner…”

“But with a partner as exceptional as you, there’s bound to be a whole world of people—especially men—after you. The only way I’d have to protect you is by forcibly re-summoning you, and I don’t want that.”
“I don’t want that either.”
“So, this is to ensure I can protect you properly.”

 

The car sped closer to the Tower.

 

“S-rank classifications come with specific conditions. But before that, there are the rules for determining Hunter ranks.”
“The ranking rules…”

 

Elaine fiddled with the spare phone but set it aside.

While we had data sharing enabled, the light from the screen could accidentally illuminate her face, which we couldn’t risk.

 

“To start, ranks are determined by whether you can fight and defeat enemies of a Tower level matching your rank and if you can fully clear the Tower.”
“So that’s why I’m at least A-rank.”
“You entered and cleared an A-rank dungeon. That’s enough to guarantee A-rank status.”

 

Even if she had taken 12 hours to clear it, she’d still qualify as A-rank.

 

But an hour and ten minutes?

 

“Do you know about the S-rank Hunter in Korea called [Blue Lightning]? He holds the national record for clearing an A-rank dungeon. Guess how long it took him.”
“How long?”
“Three hours and forty-nine minutes.”
“…Maybe I should have held back a little.”

 

Elaine smiled sheepishly.

 

“Sorry, Master. I grew stronger from the love you poured into me, and I ended up clearing it too fast, causing trouble for you.”
“It’s not really trouble. If anything, I should’ve—”

 

I stopped myself just in time.

 

I almost said, ‘I should’ve maxed out and refined other summons too.’

 

“…Master?”
“I just meant I should’ve summoned other versions of you. Haha.”

 

Alternate versions.

When the same character is released in different outfits or forms.

 

For example: Elaine (Swimsuit) or Elaine (New Year).

 

“Master.”

 

Elaine’s tone turned icy.

 

“Are you saying there might be a stronger version of me out there?”
“…”

 

Elaine (Original) and Elaine (Swimsuit).

 

Two versions of Elaine in the same house, each in my hands at once—

 

“Wow….”

“Master.”

 

Is it the late-night drive, or did the temperature drop?

There’s an unmistakable chill coming from behind.

 

“I will prove it.”

 

Elaine said, leaning forward, her upper body inching into the driver’s seat.

 

“I’ll show you that I alone am more than enough.”

 

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Stay-at-Home Summoner

Stay-at-Home Summoner

집구석 소환사
Score 7.6
Status: Ongoing Type: Author: Released: 2024 Native Language: Korean
The Age of Hunters, where humans climb the Towers. The characters I summoned from a gacha game ascend the tower.

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