Stay-at-Home Summoner

Kiharu.

Cat swordsman.

4-star character.

“…Success on 6 breakthroughs.”

I succeeded in all breakthroughs.

I also fully recharged my action resources to the maximum amount I can purchase in a day, and I gathered the materials needed for the rank-up.

Experience points?

‘I will buy them with money.’

I bought a package of character and weapon experience materials up to the limit, something I would never have looked at on a normal day, something I had never purchased in my life.

Essentially, I bought time with money, but my black card has no limit.

The problem lies with ‘weapons.’

There are parts that require several enhancements and overlaps from the full breakthrough materials.

About this, I needed to confirm a few things.

“Ah, Alice. I need your help.”

To Alice, the management AI of my summoning app on my smartphone.

“Hey, Alice.”

[…….]

No answer.

“Alice, are you upset because I only talk to Elaine and only summon you when I need you?”

[That is not the case.]

She answers sharply.

[I am the management AI of the summoning application created to assist the summoner with tower strategies. I am a digital fairy that provides advice for your benefit and for tower strategies.]

“Okay. I was worried you might have misunderstood.”

[Misunderstanding?]

From the way she questioned, it felt like she wasn’t just a simple AI, but since she insists she is, I decided to go along with it.

“If I consult you about matters like the laws of this country or creating a U.S. nationality, practical issues like that, you would end up using the calculations needed for the tower strategies on unnecessary things, right?”

[…….]

“Maybe I should have realized what you should have kindly explained to me by clicking around by myself.”

Alice is the tutorial fairy.

And if you’re a seasoned mobile gamer, you know she has encountered countless worlds—teacher, commander, leader, traveler, wanderer, pioneer, captain, trainer, video store owner, and countless other professions.

The problem is getting used to unfamiliar UI; ultimately, the framework of gacha games is basically the same.

-What are soul stones and fuel?

-Soul stones are the raw material, and fuel is resin.

…Even the item structures in the game are similar in some cases and circulate among gamers as image files referred to as ‘O-Method.’

Anyway.

“I’m not only calling you when I need help; I’m asking because I’m confused. I hope you don’t misunderstand.”

[…If that’s the case, from now on, the tutorial!]

“Skip.”

[…….]

“A man learns by directly throwing himself into the fray.”

[What will you do if you accidentally burn through expensive resources?]

“You learn from mistakes.”

I lightly tapped Alice twice.

“Before I start summoning Kiharu, I want to ask one thing: I can summon even if it’s not a rare character, right? Just with the full materials?”

Chijichijik.

The white rabbit mark appeared on the screen of my smartphone.

[Regarding summoning conditions.]

-You can summon a being that meets the conditions below.

-To summon a being endowed with potential in the alternate world to a higher dimension, one must achieve ultimate recognition that transcends the surfaces of dimensional worlds—

“Stop.”

It sounded like a quite lengthy explanation was about to follow, so I pressed down hard on the smartphone.

“Whoa.”

And I declared to Alice, who was about to spill forth a bunch of incomprehensible proper nouns.

“Dudaitai. Didaya. Udaya.”

[????]

Alice was taken aback.

I felt my face flushing as I directly vocalized those words, but embarrassment is only momentary.

“Make it easy to understand so I can comprehend it. If it’s like this, how can I ask for your help?”

[…….]

“ChatGPT would explain this in an easier way. Explain it tailored to me as a gamer. That should be possible, right?”

I didn’t expect her to explain in detail to the point even someone who doesn’t play mobile games could understand.

“I just need to know the conditions under which I can summon, whether it’s the same criteria as Elaine.”

[Data transfer in progress.]

The rabbit runs through the darkness.

The movement of jumping forward in place resembled a loading screen, and I sipped the capsule coffee Elaine had prepared for me as I waited for the loading screen.

[Essential criteria for summoning ‘fully leveled’ characters.]

#1 Character Level: ‘Max Level’

#2 Character Breakthrough: ‘Final Breakthrough’

#3 Character Weapon: Equipped Weapon ‘Max Level’

#4 Character Refinement: ‘Final Refinement’

#5 Character Skills: All Skills at Max Level

#6 Character Equipment: The character must have top-tier equipment at max level equipped in all slots.

[That’s all.]

“As expected.”

Just as I thought.

“A fully refined weapon doesn’t necessarily have to be a dedicated weapon, right?”

[That’s correct.]

“…Let’s see, looking at Elaine.”

Elaine.

1. Level 80/80.

2. Breakthrough 6/6.

3. Finality 80/80.

4. Refinement 5/5

5. Skills: Normal Attack, Combat Skill, Ultimate, Special Ability, Passive, all 10/10.

6. All Artifact Equipment full level 15.

“…So I just need to meet the criteria to challenge the final difficulty provided by the game.”

[Do you need an explanation?]

“Recite it once.”

[Summoning to a higher dimension requires drawing out the potential of the target to its extremities. This includes the target’s level, weapon, breakthrough, equipment, skills…]

“So, if I raise all abilities available for cultivation in the character window, I can summon?”

In conclusion, it sounds quite simple.

“I’m just checking whether I’ve ‘fully cultivated’ or not; it means I don’t have to care about specific equipment options.”

[Exactly, as you phrased it.]

“Good. Then I’m set.”

I re-entered [Permanence], where the target I want to summon, Kiharu, exists.

“Just transfer.”

Do I need to farm new equipment and adjust sub-options to raise specs?

There’s no need for that.

“Sorry, limited 5-star.”

I stripped my already leveled 5-star healer character of all its equipment and fitted it onto Kiharu.

Ideally, one should farm equipment that suits Kiharu perfectly, but time is of the essence now.

“Elaine is fired up and eager to dive into dungeon raids right now.”

Elaine, not sitting right beside me but on the sofa, is flipping through her smartphone rapidly.

“Blue Lightning…other S-ranks…strategy failures…Coser Maid might work…heh.”

She’s preoccupied with checking people’s reactions in the community regarding ‘Coser Maid vs other S-class hunters.’

“Master, how should I dress for the next time?”

“Whatever Elaine wants.”

“Is there a specific outfit you’d like me to wear? Or another maid outfit?”

Or she’s busy searching for materials regarding how to present herself when stepping in front of people.

“If it’s that…ah, that would be good.”

As I moved Kiharu’s equipment and similarly stripped the exclusive gear (permanent) of the 5-star healer, I searched for a reference in the search bar as the gacha screen transitioned.

“I’m sure there was something like that before…. Ah, found it.”

On the screen.

Elaine is seen wearing something other than a maid outfit.

“Elaine, how about this?”

“…Is this currently on sale?”

“It’s a collab item.”

A pop-up store collaboration costume.

Even characters in a medieval fantasy game can have different outfits.

“It’s needlessly expensive, but at least it’s for sale… Ah, it’s sold out.”

“That’s fine. A suit is unassuming enough, and the vibe of a medieval maid and a modern secretary feels quite congruent.”

A black OL outfit.

It’s not skin-tight; it’s just a design for collaboration, but it’s easily obtainable.

“But, Master.”

“Yes?”

“I can wear a different outfit, but are we undressing Kiharu?”

“It’s not a cat; it’s Kiharu. …That should be fine.”

If I recall from in-game memories.

“She doesn’t really feel any pressure walking around in her cat form, after all.”

* * *

[NPia Corporation, President’s Office.]

“…So you spoiled all the kids?”

“Yes, President.”

Whether he just came back from a gathering or not, the man, Park Kiwoo, president of NPia, was staring intently at those gathered in the president’s office, his face flushed from the alcohol.

“Guys, even though our sales are skyrocketing, there are rules we set when making games, right? We agreed not to mess with the core stories of each team.”

With everyone bowed down like they had committed a crime.

“Especially you, Permata.”

“…….”

“What will you do if you spill that? That the cat companion who has been by the protagonist’s side from the very beginning is actually the true final boss, a goddess observing the protagonist’s choices on whether to destroy the world or not right next to them!”

Although the president is explicitly revealing everything, this office is a secure facility.

The voices won’t leak outside, so the gamers of Permata 8X can rest easy.

“But, President, this is an opportunity.”

Lee Minjeong, the head of the division, stepped forward.

“There’s nothing else. The goddess… was unexpected, but if we adequately release this cat’s human form as a 5-star, it would seem like it was prepared from the very start.”

“To take a being observing humans from a beast’s perspective and change that? Ha, this is madness. That would completely alter the character’s core setting!”

“…But wouldn’t it still earn a lot of money?”

“Money is important! Yes, money is important, but the character needs to have ‘narrative’! Do you think players will like getting ‘This is a 5-star character without any set-up’ out of nowhere?!”

“If the cat turns into a chubby catgirl, wouldn’t everyone like that?”

“Ha….”

President Park Kiwoo covered his face with his hand.

“Permata. No, Jung Hyun.”

“Yes, President.”

“Are there any hidden story setups from everything released so far that can be salvaged later when the audience finds out? Let the Coser Maid take care of the design good enough for that.”

“…For now.”

The development team leader of Permata 8X cautiously opened his mouth.

“The cat form wanders around while suppressing its power, but since it’s a goddess and the true final boss…”

“What do you mean by that?”

“…The silhouette appearing in the opening and prologue is, in fact, the goddess.”

“…That.”

President Park Kiwoo pointed at his own clothes.

“It only shows the silhouette and it’s basically naked, isn’t it?”

* * *

[Summoning conditions have been met. Would you like to summon?]

“Summon.”

There’s no reason not to do it.

“Elaine, get ready to welcome the newcomer… huh?”

“Master!!”

The moment I pressed summon, Elaine yanked me as she swung her sword.

Pushinggg.

In the foggy living room.

“…Indeed. Was it such a world? A bitter affair, but this is reality too.”

A voice similar to a cat’s, but somewhat more refined and mature, echoed.

“Greetings, summoner. Make sure you don’t regret choosing me from among countless beings.”

In the fog.

“I am [Permata]. The goddess of the world you call ‘Permata 8X.'”

The blonde-haired, blue-eyed goddess slowly revealed herself.

“The Kiharu you speak of was merely my transformed self. As you fight against the modern-day evils as the ‘protagonist,’ I had been assisting you with this form. My saint.”

“Sa, saint…? How dare you be rude to the master…!”

“No, rather than saint, it’s…”

She struck a pose mimicking someone from in-game.

“You and I! We’re the best partners, nya!”

“…….”

“From now on, just call me partner.”

“……That.”

I squeezed my eyes shut and held my smartphone forward.

“Since I’m the summoner, let me say something first.”

“What is it?”

“Clothes.”

I shook the smartphone up and down.

“Could you please put some clothes on first?”

“Hm, how strange.”

The cat swordsman Kiharu, no, goddess Permata.

She revealed herself before us in her natural form, without a piece of fabric covering her.

“Is it not the virtue of a deity to reveal the beauty of the gods to the world?”

It was.

Larger than Elaine.

‘Sorry.’

I’ll need to take a look at the situation slowly, but there’s one saying in mobile gacha games.

‘Appearance is performance too.’

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