Chapter 161. Lord of the Abyss
The world of the undead spirits, the Abyss.
Solorb appeared in this world.
It wasn’t that he descended with his body.
Only a part of his soul, carrying his consciousness, had crossed over.
Thus, Solorb’s appearance wasn’t that of the sun but of the cat form he favored when manifesting in his inner world.
And.
Even in this form, it was more than enough to drive away the darkness of the Abyss.
Although he hadn’t brought his body, his soul alone was able to exert his full power.
The hedgehog looked at Solorb approaching and tilted her head.
[“Doom-ba? Who is this cute little cat?”]
[“It’s Solorb-daong.”]
[“Doom-bat?!”]
The hedgehog, hearing Bastet’s response, was startled and bounced her rear twice.
[“I’ll take back what I just said about being cute and adorable. I’m sorry!”]
[“…”]
Solorb wasn’t displeased.
On the contrary, he felt secretly happy to be called cute.
[“But it’s surprising that you can appear like this. Then why haven’t you visited us until now?”]
[“This is a world where I can manifest with only my soul, so I was able to come here. Manifesting within the Ancient Labyrinth, however, is impossible… for now. Anyway, explain what’s going on here.”]
As Solorb spoke, he glanced at the SS-grade spirits in front of him.
The SS-grade spirits hastily looked away.
Then, as if they had committed a sin, they fidgeted nervously, their heads hanging low.
Their reaction was understandable.
The cat before them was a being of another dimension, comparable to the Spirit King who ruled the Abyss.
They instinctively understood the vast difference between themselves and Solorb.
What exactly is that being?
Why did it suddenly appear here?
It’s conversing familiarly with the Hedgehog Summoner—could they be close?
Countless thoughts crossed the spirits’ minds.
As the spirits watched Solorb’s every move, the hedgehog began to explain what kind of place this world was and recounted everything she had experienced from the beginning.
While recounting her story, her round eyes filled with tears, as if overcome by sorrow.
The SS-grade spirits remained silent, unable to do anything under Solorb’s intimidating presence, only swallowing their breath and glancing at them.
[“…”]
Solorb’s face showed anger after hearing the whole story.
Recently, Solorb had grown fond of a few creatures after cats, one of whom was the Hedgehog Summoner.
The reason for his fondness was simple.
She was small and adorable.
Her actions were cute too.
That was all there was to it.
In any case.
To think someone had toyed with that hedgehog and tried to kill her.
It was absolutely unforgivable.
He felt an intense urge to incinerate the spirits before him.
Solorb barely suppressed his fury and spoke.
[“Hoo… So, in order to establish a master-servant contract, you have to fight those guys and win? Clearly, that condition is impossible for you.”]
[“Exactly! How could I ever beat those monstrous spirits?”]
Solorb nodded.
Then he spoke in a low voice.
[“Don’t worry. I’ll fight on your behalf.”]
[“Doom-ba?!”]
He would subdue all those spirits.
And he would forcibly bind them into a contract for her.
Hearing this, one of the SS-grade spirits, who had been watching cautiously, shouted in alarm.
[“Th-that’s absurd…! That’s cheating!”]
Hearing the spirit’s outburst, Solorb’s eyebrow twitched.
[“What did you just say? Cheating?”]
It was absurd.
For such unreasonable conditions to be imposed on a small, defenseless hedgehog, and for the word “cheating” to come from their mouths.
Solorb, feeling very annoyed, extended his small, plump forepaw.
[“A third party intervening in a sacred contract is unacceptable—”]
[“You, die first.”]
Paaaht!
A fierce burst of sunlight enveloped one of the SS-grade spirits.
The spirit, consumed by the light, vanished without a trace before it could even finish speaking.
The other SS-grade spirits, who witnessed this, flinched, their bodies trembling, and quickly adopted a subservient attitude.
[“…To clarify, we have no connection to what that spirit just said.”]
[“Indeed…! That was solely his opinion! I don’t think it’s cheating at all for you to fight on her behalf!”]
[“W-well, actually, we were throwing a surprise party for the Hedgehog Summoner. We only meant to tease her a little before revealing it was all in good fun and then proceed with the contract.”]
[“The last one to speak, you die too.”]
Paaaht!
Solorb extinguished another spirit.
He disliked the blatant lie.
[“The rest of you, since you are to contract with our hedgehog, I’ll only burn you to the brink of death.”]
Come, bring it on.
Despite his words, no one dared to step forward.
The SS-grade spirits only glanced at one another nervously.
Finally, one spirit cautiously stepped forward and, in a trembling voice, spoke.
[“Uh… we’ll just surrender and contract with the Hedgehog Summoner…”]
***
[“Doom-ba-aaaat!!!”]
From that moment, the SS-grade spirits were permanently bound to the Hedgehog Summoner.
The master-servant contract between the summoner and her summoned spirits was established.
After completing the contract, the hedgehog bounced her rear seven times, looking down at her body.
Nothing had changed.
[“Doom-ba? Why is my body the same? Didn’t they say I’d evolve upon completing the contract? Did I fail to evolve? Or does my body not change even when I evolve?”]
The hedgehog fired off a barrage of questions.
One of the SS-grade spirits bowed and explained.
[“It’s not that you failed to evolve or that your body doesn’t change. In your original world, your physical body should be gradually transforming.”]
As the spirit said.
The hedgehog’s body was slowly being reconstituted inside an egg.
[“Doom-ba! I see! Thank you for the kind explanation! But please don’t use honorifics with me! And don’t call me ‘Master’!”]
[“Huh? Then, how should we address you… no, what should we call you?”]
[“Just call me whatever you want! We’re friends now!”]
The hedgehog bounced her rear three times.
Then she called all the spirits to her side.
Both the newly contracted SS-grade spirits and the previously contracted S-grade spirits gathered.
[“Doom-ba! To celebrate our friendship, let’s all do the Doom-ba dance together!”]
The hedgehog bounced her rear.
Then the S-grade spirits shook their rears from side to side.
The SS-grade spirits hesitated momentarily but,
[“Quickly, dance!!!”]
under the hedgehog’s command, they began to wiggle their rears with faces full of humiliation and tears in their eyes.
Doom-ba.
Doom-ba, Doom-ba!
Solorb watched the sight with satisfaction.
And then.
[“…”]
For a moment, Solorb’s expression twisted.
With his fur bristling, Solorb turned and glared sharply in one direction.
He sensed something ominous approaching.
[“…A dangerous presence is coming this way.”]
[“Daong?”]
[“Kkyuu?”]
[“Doom-ba, Doom-ba… Doom-ba? A dangerous presence?”]
[“Everyone, retreat behind me. This opponent is beyond your ability to handle.”]
Melody, Bastet, and the hedgehog quickly took shelter behind Solorb.
The large S-grade and SS-grade spirits also retreated with them.
[“Daong? Why are you all so naturally hiding behind Solorb?”]
[“Because the one approaching is terrifying and troublesome. Every time we meet, he forces us to do strange dances, so we’d rather avoid him.”]
[“Do you know who’s coming?”]
[“That energy unmistakably belongs to the absolute ruler of the Abyss, Abyss Lord.”]
At the moment the SS-grade spirit finished speaking.
Guuuu—
A sinister energy surged forward.
And from afar, dense darkness began to rush in.
Engulfing the world that had been illuminated by sunlight.
With the darkness.
A humanoid figure glided through the air, seated in a lotus position.
When the being arrived.
Light and darkness split perfectly, facing each other.
One side was darkness.
One side was light.
It was as if a giant boundary had been drawn.
The figure halted in midair.
Carefully touching Solorb’s light with his darkness, he spoke.
[“Such esteemed guests have come to this humble place.”]
This was the lord of the Abyss, a realm that governed all depths of the dimensional void.
The king of undead spirits.
In terms of threat level, by Kang Geon’s standards, he would be rated SSS.
[“Greetings. I am Abyss Lord, the instructor of the Abyss Dance School. Ah, I haven’t come to fight, so please lower your guard.”]
So please, restrain your hostility.
After saying this to Solorb, the Abyss Lord turned his attention to the Hedgehog Summoner behind him.
In fact, his purpose for coming here was to meet the Hedgehog Summoner.
[“Hedgehog Summoner, I have personally
come to see you as the administrator of the Abyss. I had planned to restore your soul if it was destroyed, but fortunately, you’re still alive.”]
[“Kkyuu?”]
[“Were you two acquainted?”]
[“I doubt that.”]
[“Doom-ba? You came to see me?”]
The hedgehog poked her head out and asked.
The Abyss Lord gave a slight nod.
While practicing dance alone,
he sensed an exquisite, artistic energy that resonated with his soul. He immediately pinpointed the source of that energy, using the eyes of a spirit in that location to observe.
There, the Hedgehog Summoner was dancing.
It was the ultimate evasion technique, “Doom-ba Hip Dance,” developed by the Hedgehog Summoner based on her species’ unique evasive abilities through her own research.
Of course.
It was a dance he’d seen before.
Some spirits of the Abyss also danced similarly with their hips.
But the soul emanating from this dance was on another level.
The hedgehog’s dance was extraordinary.
Not only did it carry the sincerity of one who loved dance.
It was so beautiful, mesmerizing, and artistic that, to be frank, it felt as though his soul was experiencing ecstasy.
At least, that’s how Abyss Lord felt.
[“If it’s not too much to ask, might I have the honor of watching your… no, your esteemed dance here?”]
The highest existence in the Abyss, humbly bowed his head and respectfully requested the dance from a being far beneath him.