D-Rank Constellation Hunter… Stuck Without Internet! - Chapter 37

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 37
“So Ulrim, will you be staying here from now on?”
“My avatar will remain on Earth, but I can’t stay here indefinitely. There’s only so much I can accomplish in this place.”
A flicker of disappointment crossed Ha Gyuhyuk’s face.
He’d probably assumed that since my avatar had descended, we could spend an extended period together.
Sponsoring hunters or purchasing items for them—those tasks were simple enough to manage.
After all, they were basic functions of a Constellation.
But to take any action beyond that, I naturally had to return to Sungdo.
“Still, when I do descend, I’ll make sure to spend about a week with you. Don’t worry. It could be several months if things go well.”
“But if your avatar is on Earth, does that mean you’re just leaving it here? Your… body?”
“I’m not going to lay it on your bed like some doll, so please stop making that horror-movie expression. You think I’m leaving behind a corpse?”
My avatar was bound to this world because I’d personally planted and nurtured its seed here.
When I’m not inhabiting it, it disperses into fragments scattered throughout this realm.
While I’m away, those fragments collect data on the world’s currents and changes.
There’s a minuscule chance it could deteriorate.
But if it did break down, it would only happen after the Server has expanded significantly.
By then, I can simply activate one of my spare avatars.
“So during this week, what would you like to do, Ulrim?”
“Shouldn’t I be asking you that? What did you want to do when I came down?”
Was his only wish simply for me to spend time in his room?
Or did he imagine me descending like a savior from religious texts, miraculously saving everyone he wanted to save?
Whatever it was, there was nothing I couldn’t do.
“Ah, well, actually I didn’t know what form you’d take when you descended, so I haven’t prepared anything yet.”
“True, I could have descended as a doll or something instead of a human avatar.”
“So… is it too late to think about it now?”
I sifted through my observations of Ha Gyuhyuk up to this point.
If I didn’t set a time limit, he’d clearly spend days just deliberating.
“In my opinion, you shouldn’t give yourself time to think. Once you start overthinking something on your own, you just dig yourself deeper and deeper into a hole.”
“….”
“Just think of me as someone who wants to get close to you—not as a god or a Constellation or anything like that.”
There were several things I wanted to do for him that required closing the physical distance between us first.
Now that I had a body, it made sense to leverage every advantage it offered.
“Generally speaking, you’d just eat together, have coffee, go somewhere quiet and talk…”
“The order doesn’t matter, right?”
“Ah, no, it doesn’t.”
“Then since we’re already in a quiet place talking, let’s go eat first.”
I’d been dead for quite some time now, and food was no longer a necessity for me, but I was born and raised Korean.
Even if I didn’t need it.
Somewhere deep in my soul, there existed an obligation to feed people.
My instinct—carved into the very essence of my being—refused to let me starve Ha Gyuhyuk under the guise of training him.
“Well, I usually just get by with delivery food or instant meals, so when it comes to actual food….”
“Koreans should eat something proper and decent. That’s why your hair’s turning white—eating that junk all the time.”
“….”
I ignored his face, which bore an expression that screamed ‘What does that have to do with anything?’, and sprang to my feet.
A pleasant fragrance wafted from him as he emerged freshly bathed.
“You smell good.”
“I just bought some shampoo from a dollar shop.”
“Really? I think I’ve used that kind before.”
Ha Gyuhyuk reflexively rose to his feet as well, mirroring my movement.
I had no idea what restaurants were in this area. But that was something I could easily handle once I went out.
“Let’s go.”
“Ah, right.”
“I’ll decide what to eat and handle the money, so just trust me and follow along. I’m a Constellation.”
An incredibly wealthy one at that.
When I spoke with such confidence, Ha Gyuhyuk’s expression shifted to something resembling awe.
If I could gain trust this easily, he was certainly a cost-effective client.
The moment we stepped outside, the landscape I’d observed through monitors thousands of times materialized before me. The world explored on foot was quite compact.
“How do you feel living in a place like this?”
“Pardon?”
“I mean, are you happy living in this world?”
I barely managed to stop myself from saying ‘this pathetic world’.
I had to be careful—my avatar’s words came without filters.
Ha Gyuhyuk fell silent again, maintaining a step or two of distance from me.
“Answer me!”
“Y-yes?”
When I suddenly cut through his thoughts with a loud voice, Ha Gyuhyuk trembled visibly in surprise.
“Are you happy?”
“…I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
In truth, this was a question I asked all my clients.
Clients were strange creatures.
Some loved their world unconditionally, no matter how harsh their reality was.
Others felt anxious about everything, even when the world loved them.
And then there were those like Ha Gyuhyuk, who simply didn’t know.
“That’s a good answer too.”
And I never told them to love the world or to resent it.
My role was simply to support them in walking the path they desired.
There was no need to ask why.
“Is it a good answer?”
“It is.”
I hadn’t lived long enough to develop feelings about the world anyway.
I nodded slowly.
He wouldn’t have had the capacity to concern himself with the world.
When he could barely manage to care for himself, where would he find time to worry about something as grand as the world?
I deliberately continued walking.
“Right, life’s probably been harsh enough. Let’s eat first before we get into all that.”
I surveyed the surroundings.
I scanned the numerous restaurants.
I skimmed through menus, prices, and reviews before pushing open a door.
“Is there anything you won’t eat? Your data said you had no restrictions, but preferences are another matter.”
“I, I don’t really dislike any foods. I seem to prefer meat, though….”
“Seem to? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’ve just gotten used to eating whatever’s available.”
My heart suddenly ached.
I clicked my tongue softly and opened the door.
A staff member appeared as if waiting and greeted us.
I seated him across from me and took the most secluded spot.
“Order whatever you want to eat.”
“W, Ulrim. This is really expensive….”
“Ha Gyuhyuk, I never told you to look at the price. I only asked you to choose the food.”
I cut off his thoughts decisively.
I needed to prevent him from thinking about anything at all.
No room for hesitation.
He deliberated briefly before carefully selecting a few menu items.
“You can manage with just the small portion?”
“No, well….”
“The taste here is decent, but the portions are a bit small, I’ve heard.”
I naturally upgraded the sizes and doubled the quantities.
“I can’t eat all of this.”
“If you can’t finish it, just leave it. We’ll pack the leftovers and I’ll work some magic on them at home.”
“You can cook?”
“I said I’d work magic, not that I’d cook.”
“Right.”
He awkwardly set down a spoon and chopsticks before me.
The way he laid out the napkin and arranged the settings was quite skillful.
After a brief wait, braised short ribs arrived. His face brightened instantly.
So he does like it.
“Eat plenty.”
“Y, you eat plenty too, Ulrim.”
“Me? Sure.”
It doesn’t matter if you don’t eat, but that doesn’t mean you can’t.
I picked up pieces of meat with my chopsticks and placed them on Ha Gyuhyuk’s plate, then popped the rest into my mouth with a faint smile.
“Today, you’re going to become someone who does the thing they want most in this world more than anyone else.”
I’ll make this day so satisfying and wondrous that you’ll wonder how such a thing is even possible.
Because that’s my joy.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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