I Tamed the First Rank Chapter 54

He burst into laughter.

“It's gotten to the point where any kind of ability could suddenly appear and it wouldn't be surprising, but.”

When he stroked his fur, 8-se moved its snout in small, chewing motions.

“Your reaction also looks similar to a hamster. Would you like me to take an X-ray?”

There was no reason to refuse. 8-se laid down on the examination table. The X-ray image taken that way only showed the outline of the outer body, and the inside was pitch black.

Hyeon Gyu-ha furrowed his eyebrows.

“Does this mean there are no bones or organs inside?”

“I guess so. As expected, he’s the boss of a gate where only amorphous demons appear. It’s very interesting that not only did the amorphous demons take their own form, but their forms were very similar to animals on Earth. Their reproductive organs are swollen like a real male, but they probably can’t reproduce.”

“I also raised a female hamster, but it didn’t seem to recognize it as a member of the same species.”

“Then the testicles are really just a mere imitation, and the inside is empty.”

“But don't you think it might contain some cuteness?”

In any case, In Yoo-shin just found it endlessly cute, and Cho Sang-pil showed curiosity with a scholarly perspective, but Hyeon Gyu-ha was dissatisfied with everything.

“You can’t even change the form you have? A hamster is just a hamster no matter how big it gets. It doesn’t even have a way to protect its Master in times of emergency, so it’s really useless.”

“Hey, a hamster’s usefulness is enough with its cuteness.”

“I’m cuter.”

“…….”

I couldn’t deny it.

Cho Sangpil just coughed in vain, as if he wasn’t used to his words and actions.

“Stop just eating your food and show me your worth, you keep on monopolizing his front pocket. You were a gate boss after all, so you must have something..”

8-se, who had been shrinking from the blatant jealousy and bullying, suddenly lifted his front paws and started walking on two legs, standing on his hind legs only. Then he shouted confidently.

“Squeak!”

The short, dangling tail stretched out like a whip and wound up the syringe in the case. The tail waved proudly, but Hyeon Gyu-ha's gaze became colder.

"So?"

“……Gyuu.”

"What useful ability is it other than being able to pick up the remote control and give it to Yoo-shin-ssi?"

"This is just my opinion."

Cho Sang-pil, who was coughing uncomfortably, intervened.

"This demon entered into a taming contract with the system as a 'rodent'. So, isn't it impossible for it to deviate from the established definition? For example, there may be rodents with long tails depending on the species, but there are no rodents with five tails. I think the hamster shape reflects Yoo-shin's taste."

"Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!"

As if that was true, 8-se responded enthusiastically, waving his short front legs. Hyeon Gyu-ha commented coldly.

"So it's useless in the end."

"………………Squuueak."

"Even though you monopolized your Master's front pocket."

"………………Sque…………….”

“Phew.”

Hyeon Gyu-ha, whose sighs grew deeper every time he saw 8-se, got up from his chair.

“It might be less cute than me, but I'm sure it'll be healing for Yoo-shin-ssi, so I'll buy some snacks for that guy too when I come back.”

“Where are you going?”

“I have something to do for a moment. I’ll be back soon, so take your time talking.”

He left the lab, not forgetting to look at 8-se one last time. Cho Sang-pil smiled awkwardly.

“I’ve only heard stories, but you’re on good terms.”

“Haha………………. Thank you.”

“Anyway, let’s get back to the original topic. Your case is the only one of its kind in the world. How do you feel when you tame one?”

“It’s hard to explain exactly………………. I feel like there’s a connection. I guess it’s like a bridge is being built between souls……………….”

Cho Sang-pil slapped his knee.

“Animals are also living beings, so they could have souls. But monsters don’t have that. A body with bones and flesh is formed from the crystal stone, but it is not a living being. It cannot reproduce.”

“Well, how does it feel when you tame a monster?”

“It feels like I’m connected to the crystal stone, not the soul like you. I did the same with this guy.”

Yeppi, who was dozing off with her face on her front paws, opened her mouth wide and yawned.

“But the monsters of the Erosion Gate don’t have crystal stones.”

“Even when I tamed 8-se, I felt connected to the soul.”

“That’s a really interesting case. Oh, forgive me for that expression. I’m so excited that I can’t really organize my words.”

“It’s okay.”

The expression was fine, so In Yoo-shin just smiled. He didn’t tell Hyun Gyu-ha because he wasn’t sure, but it must have something to do with the premonition that it was ‘someone’s gift’ before he tamed 8-se.

“Even if you tame it and form a deep bond with its Master, the monsters are fundamentally low in intelligence. It’s impossible to have a specific conversation like this hamster. Is this a characteristic of a typical monster, or is it a characteristic unique to this monster? Are there other awakened beings who have tamed typical monsters like you?"

Cho Sang-pil, lost in a sea of deep thoughts, muttered to himself and continued his thoughts. In Yoo-shin waited quietly while caressing 8-se who was rummaging through the food he had brought in his pocket, and only after a long time did Cho Sang-pil raise his head and apologize.

“Oh, you called me to help, but you were just satisfying my curiosity. Your case is so rare that I wonder if the general training method of Tamer would be useful.”

“Actually, there was something I wanted to ask you, Doctor.”

“So, what?”

In Yoo-shin slowly spoke out the words he had prepared in his mind.

“Are you also researching a way to release Taming?”

Cho Sangpil smiled lightly.

“Of course. It’s theoretically possible.”

The man opened his eyes, struggling in a nightmare. His back was soaked with sweat. What scared him more than the pain of the surgery for a full-body fracture was those eyes.

‘Fuck. How can a human baby’s eyes be like that?’

Those amber eyes, fixed solely upon him. Eyes devoid of all joy, sorrow, anger, or delight, coldly focused on the methodical process of crushing him to death.

It would have been less scary if he had been angry or full of murderous intent. Such emotions are easy to imagine and familiar, and I can just dismiss him as a madman.

However, what on earth do you call someone who can torture and kill someone cruelly without any emotion?

The man was relieved that he would be tried and locked up in prison. If he had been free in the outside world, he would have definitely met those eyes.

That creepy and eerie color.

“……!”

Hello.

Unlike last night, Hyeon Gyu-ha greeted him with only his lips moving outside the hospital room window, his face quite emotional. He wanted to scream, but it didn't come out. He quickly tried to call the detective who was watching him from the bedside, but he couldn't even move his fingers.

“Senior, we’ll be changing shifts in an hour, so we’ll go back and look for each other then.”

The detective, who had no way of knowing his feelings, didn’t even look this way because he was busy talking on the phone. A scroll flew in through the crack in the window, as if mocking the man who couldn’t do anything but roll his eyes.

The scroll flew over the detective’s head without a sound and was torn apart, and the detective yawned a few times before nodding off.

The man could do nothing but helplessly move his eyes until Hyeon Gyu-ha tore off the hospital window and came inside.

“Did the surgery go well?”

“…….”

“I’m glad you didn’t die during the surgery. My Master is kind-hearted and left you alone, but I’m not like that.”

“…….”

“Isn’t it the job of a guard dog, or rather a guard mouse, to eliminate anyone who has harmed the master even a little?”

“…….”

I couldn’t understand a single word he was saying. That was why it was even more terrifying.

Hyeon Gyu-ha clicked his tongue when he saw the man’s wrist. The other end of the handcuffs around the man’s wrist were hanging on the bed rail.

“I didn’t think about the handcuffs. It’s a hassle to carry them to the bed……………… Hmm, what should I do?”

It didn't take long to make up his mind.

Hyeon Gyu-ha took out an axe from the inventory. The sharp, glossy axe rose up without hesitation. The man’s face turned bright blue.

‘The detective has the key! I saw it in his pocket.’

He tried to shout desperately, but he couldn't even mumble a groan. The man's wide-open eyes reflected the axe striking his wrist in an instant.

“……!”

He let out a desperate scream that wouldn't come out.

Hyeon Gyu-ha roughly wiped the blood from the axe blade on the hospital blanket and smiled at the man whose blood vessels were red in his eyes.

“Well, maybe you'll get lucky and survive. Since you're an Awakener, you must have gone dungeon hunting, right?”

“……!”

"Then let's go quickly, since I have to go pick up Master."

Hyeon Gyu-ha took the man and flew through the broken window.

An hour later, the hospital room was thrown into commotion by a detective who came to change shifts. The only trace left of the man was his bloody wrist. They traced the blood trail that led outside the window, but they never found him.

“I’m back.”

When Hyeon Gyu-ha returned after being away for about 2 hours, In Yoo-shin was at the training grounds.

“Gyu-ha-ssi! Look at that!”

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