Chapter 17. Pururu
Assistant Pururu.
Real name, Seo Dan-bi.
She was getting ready to leave her house, having turned on Kang Geon’s broadcast.
‘I’ll just wear anything, and I’m too lazy to wash up, so I’ll just put on a hat.’
Seo Dan-bi quickly finished preparing to go out.
Then, she tapped her phone to send a chat.
【Pururu】─ Ready to go. Send me your home address.
［Huh? You don’t know where my house is?］
【Pururu】─ How would I know where your house is?
［You don’t know? Then that means you’re someone who doesn’t know my house.］
【Pururu】─ You want to die? Don’t try to pry and figure out my identity. ㅡㅡ
［Sorry.］
Seo Dan-bi didn’t want to reveal her identity.
It wasn’t because her relationship with Kang Geon was uncomfortable.
It was because their relationship was so thin and faint.
Same high school, same class.
And a shared interest in drawing.
Occasional exchanges of their drawings through short conversations.
These were the small threads connecting them.
Seo Dan-bi tried to imagine what kind of image she might have in Kang Geon’s memory.
It was probably blurry, like a faint watercolor.
They had exchanged phone numbers by chance during a festival preparation.
It wasn’t enough to call them friends.
And yet, it was too subtle to consider them complete strangers.
Because of this ambiguous relationship, she couldn’t bring herself to reveal her identity.
Maybe it was also due to the fear that Kang Geon might not remember her at all.
She didn’t want to be hurt.
It’s been a while, Geon-ah. It’s me, Seo Dan-bi!
Seo Dan-bi? Who’s that?
If such a situation occurred, it would leave a deep wound in her heart.
That’s why she decided to keep her identity hidden.
【Pururu】─ Don’t be curious about who I am, just send the address quickly.
［Got it.］
【Pururu】─ Oh, and is it okay if I bring a friend?
【003】─ Mr. Crackle has friends? That’s surprising.
【Mysticism】─ 😮
【Pururu】─ Shut up, you guys.
［Why bring a friend?］
【Pururu】─ Just. It’s scary to go alone.
［You’re not a kid, what’s there to be scared of… whatever, do what you want.］
After receiving Kang Geon’s address, Seo Dan-bi immediately left the house.
***
Seo Dan-bi arrived in front of a studio apartment building.
It was a five-story building with an old brick exterior.
It was the address Kang Geon had given her.
“It looks really old.”
Her friend, Hwang Mir, who had come with her, looked up at the building as she spoke.
Hwang Mir was aware of Seo Dan-bi’s situation.
She had heard the story that Seo Dan-bi was helping a friend who was broadcasting from another world.
Of course, at first, she didn’t believe it.
Kang Geon’s broadcast wasn’t visible to Hwang Mir.
But now, her doubts were cleared.
She had witnessed a scene that forced her to believe.
When Seo Dan-bi took a photo of an object with her phone, the object gradually blurred and then vanished in an instant.
Seo Dan-bi had said that the disappeared object had been sent to her friend.
Having seen such a sight, there was no longer any room for doubt.
It was a phenomenon that couldn’t be explained by any trickery. Seo Dan-bi didn’t have any skills in magic or illusions either.
“Dan-bi, are you sure this is your friend’s house?”
“Yeah. The address matches.”
“Really? Then let’s go in.”
Seo Dan-bi nodded and, as they entered the building, sent a chat.
【Pururu】─ Geon-ah. I’ve arrived.
［Already? You got here quicker than I expected.］
【Pururu】─ I’m pretty fast. I just go to room 404, right? What’s the front door password?
［It’s 0000. Just press that and go in.］
【Pururu】─ The password’s really simple. Is it your hobby to invite thieves into your house? Lol
【Mysticism】─ 🤣
At the end of the 4th-floor hallway, Seo Dan-bi stood in front of room 404 and entered the password into the door lock.
0000.
Beep—
The door opened with a mechanical sound.
Seo Dan-bi exchanged glances with her friend and cautiously stepped inside.
A faint lavender scent brushed past her nose.
Surprisingly, the interior was quite spacious and tidy.
【Pururu】─ You keep your place pretty organized.
【003】─ I want to see too. Take a picture and upload it.
【Pururu】─ Can I even upload a picture?
【003】─ I don’t know.
【Pururu】─ Then shut up.
Seo Dan-bi and Hwang Mir.
The two of them looked around the room as they slowly took in their surroundings.
On the right wall was a small wardrobe.
Next to it, a neatly arranged desk was placed.
To the left, there was a single bed, and on the wall above it, a small painting was hung.
“Dan-bi, did your friend draw this?”
“Probably. The style looks similar.”
“Wow, you were right—he’s really good.”
“I told you. He draw better than me.”
Seo Dan-bi answered, staring blankly at the painting.
【Pururu】─ Geon-ah. The painting on the wall, did you draw it?
［The painting? Ah. You mean the *Time Eater*? Yeah, I drew that.］
【Pururu】─ It’s not a monster too, is it?
［It is a monster though? It was the strongest one I ever fought. I remembered it so well that I drew it when I returned.］
【Pururu】─ So it is a monster…
Seo Dan-bi, lost in thought as she admired the painting, snapped back to reality and remembered Kang Geon’s request.
She opened the wardrobe door and looked inside.
【Pururu】─ How did you fit your big body inside this wardrobe? And why did you even go in?
［I was just bored. Anyway, is the phone in there?］
【Pururu】─ No phone.
［No? I didn’t have it when I got dragged into the labyrinth… could it have disappeared during that process?］
That was a possibility.
The labyrinth had analyzed Kang Geon’s phone and sent invitation messages to his acquaintances.
［Well, if it’s not there, I guess there’s nothing I can do. I’ll have to withdraw money using my bank account or card instead.］
【Pururu】─ Where’s the bankbook and card?
［They should be in the drawer under the desk, with the wallet.］
【Pururu】─ Lol, I should take them and run.
Seo Dan-bi typed with a chuckle.
It was just a joke, not serious.
［Go ahead then.］
【Pururu】─ ?? Why are you so indifferent?
［If you want to steal them, go ahead. I’ll just track you down when I return to Earth and take revenge.］
【Pururu】─ Why are you being scary? I was just joking. ㅠ
【Pururu】─ I’ll definitely never steal it, so don’t get mad…
Seo Dan-bi felt a little scared.
***
The support supplies from Pururu arrived.
A digital clock, mattress, blanket, and pillow.
Along with other daily necessities.
The total balance of my bank account had already been converted to coins by Pururu.
【Pururu】─ Should I send all the coins?
“No. Just hold onto them for now. I still don’t know what we’ll use the coins for.”
I decided to ask for the coins when I needed them.
Until then, we’d use the remaining coins for the transaction fees required to send supplies.
‘Now it’ll be less of a burden to ask for things.’
The supplies I received were neatly arranged next to the box.
I placed the mattress right next to the box.
Originally, I wanted to get a bed, but since the transaction fee for the bed was 7 coins, I opted to receive just the mattress.
【Pururu】─ Should I send the bed frame too?
“No, that’s a waste of transaction fees.”
The mattress alone was enough.
There was no need for the bed frame.
【Pururu】─ But Geon-ah, why did you ask me for help? You have Mysticism and the Undertaker.
【003】─ I’m not an undertaker.
“Because I trust you the most.”
【Pururu】─ Really?
“No.”
【Pururu】─ ?
“Yumi is busy being a doctor, and I just didn’t feel like asking Mysticism. So, I asked you.”
【003】─ I’m not busy though.
【Pururu】─ But still, I’m more trustworthy than that jerk Mysticism, lol.
【Mysticism】─ 😡
Of course, I trusted Pururu more than Mysticism.
Pururu was the first assistant who had come to help me.
Not only that, even though she had her doubts at first, she was relatively quick to offer support.
Because of that, even if I didn’t know her true identity, I judged that I could trust her with my finances.
Mysticism had also provided me with support, but…
Since she only used emojis and never really chatted, I couldn’t trust her enough to leave her in charge of my money.
【Pururu】─ Oh, right. Geon-ah.
While I was spreading the blanket over the mattress, Pururu sent another message.
【Pururu】─ I changed your house password. Just letting you know.
“Huh? Why change the password?”
【003】─ Maybe it’s because 0000 is too easy to guess.
【Pururu】─ No, I’m not that nosy.
【Pururu】─ It’s because of a suspicious person.
“A suspicious person?”
【Pururu】─ Right before my friend and I entered your house earlier, someone suspicious was hiding in the stairwell, poking their head out and staring at us.
【003】─ So what? Maybe it was just a neighbor?
【Pururu】─ That’s what I thought too, but my friend said she got a bad feeling, so we decided to change the front door password. After we left the house, we snuck back and saw that woman trying to open your door, entering the password. From the finger movements and sounds, I think she was entering 0000.
【003】─ What? That’s totally a stalker. Did you report it?
【Pururu】─ No, I just yelled at her and scared her off.
【003】─ Why didn’t you report it?
【Pururu】─ The owner of the house isn’t even on Earth. Reporting it would just be a hassle.
Not reporting it was the right decision.
If the police came, they’d be looking for me, the owner of the house.
Pururu could end up being mistaken for a burglar, or worse, someone who had kidnapped me.
“Lulu, what did this person look like?”
【Pururu】─ Besides being short, I don’t know. She was wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask. I’m not sure, but I got the feeling it was a woman.
“Hearing the description, I think I know who it is.”
【Pururu】─ What, do you know them?
“No, not exactly, but someone’s been secretly following me for a while.”
【003】─ ?? So, she’s a stalker, right?
【Pururu】─ What, you just let that happen?
“She hasn’t harmed me, so I didn’t pay any attention. I didn’t expect her to try breaking into my house, though.”
【003】─ Why are you so calm about this…
【Pururu】─ So what are you going to do? Should I live in your house and catch her for you?
“No, don’t do anything dangerous. You might get hurt.”
I figured there was no need to worry about the stalker.
There was nothing valuable left in my house now anyway.
“Anyway, thanks for the help, Pururu. I’ll make sure to repay you somehow later.”
***
For the final exploration of the day, I led my monsters into Passage No. 7.
After walking for about 20 minutes while communicating with my assistants,
【Pururu】─ ?
【003】─ Huh?
Something on the wall of the cave caught my eye.
A rectangular metal case.
About two meters tall and one meter wide.
It had a large glass window on the front that showed the items inside, and digital displays blinking at the top and bottom.
“Why is this here?”
A vending machine had appeared.