NOVEL WEB Chapter 20 - Hel is Very Cute (2)
✦ Chapter 20 – Hel is Very Cute (2) ✦
「Translator – Creator」
I carefully threw the 「Hel Ball」, ensuring it wouldn’t break and that the 「Hel」inside wouldn’t turn into a flat pizza.
Fwoosh, Boom-!
I wasn’t an idiot; I didn’t repeat the same mistake. This time, my 「Hel Ball」 accurately hit the purple spider.
Nice. Even I thought my aim was fantastic!
━Krrng…!?
The violet spider emitted a strange sound as its body transformed into light and was absorbed into the 「Hel Ball」. The magic artifact, now the size of a billiard ball, dropped to the ground with a thud.
Woom, Wooom—!
As I watched it shake violently from side to side, Somnia shouted louder than ever.
“Did we catch it? Did we? Did we succeed? Did we defeat it? I’ve never seen anyone catch a Hel with a 「Hel Ball」 before! This is so exciting!”
“Hey, quiet down for a bit.”
At my words, Somnia seemed a bit sullen, but I focused on the letters floating before me.
『Capture Probability 66.6%』
Woom, Wooom—!
A capture probability of 66.6% could be seen as high or low. It meant that out of ten attempts, you’d succeed approximately 6-7 times and fail 3-4 times.
Imagine skydiving from a great height with a parachute that fails 3-4 times out of ten.
A failure rate of over 30% was certainly not a low figure.
‘Please! Let’s catch it this time!’
I desperately wished with all my heart.
Perhaps my earnest prayer worked because, finally, with a click sound, something locked in place, and the 「Hel Ball」stopped moving entirely.
“Got it! Caught it!”
“Daniel, you caught a Hel! I can’t believe we did it like this!”
Somnia and I were jumping around in excitement. Catching a Hel with a 「Hel Ball」 was more thrilling and delightful than I ever imagined!
It reminded me of my childhood.
Everyone carried around their gaming consoles, boasting about the Hels they caught yesterday. I used to watch them with envious eyes.
And now, I had caught a real Hel!
“Emperor Wolf Spider, you’re mine!”
「Hel Possession Inventory」
「Lv.6 Emperor Wolf Spider」
『Name: Emperor Wolf Spider Lv.6
「Partner Skill: Howling – Removes harmful effects applied to the partner」
「List of Possessed Skills —」
Death Voice
「Status」
Attack: 22
Defense: 13
Efficiency: 120
Loyalty: 29
「Task Aptitude」
Crafting Lv.3
Gathering Lv.3
Pasture Lv.1
The Emperor Wolf Spider had a partner skill called “Howling.” Desperate to test it out, I decided to release the purple emperor spider from the 「Hel Ball」 I had picked up.
“Come forth!”
Fwoosh, Pop-!
The 「Hel Ball」hit the ground and spewed out a bundle of light, which then formed into the shape of a purple spider.
Its round body looked somewhat cute.
━ Barkkk! Barkkk!!!
So this little guy was now my Hel? It still felt surreal.
“Amazing! Daniel! Give it a command! Quick! Try telling it to do something!”
“A command?”
Good idea.
I picked up a wooden stick lying near the snowy mountain. It seemed like something left behind by the scholars of Avalam, dispatched to investigate the fractured peak. This should do.
“Alright, fetch!”
Whiiish—!
I threw the stick.
But the “Emperor Wolf Spider” I had just captured stayed still.
Instead, it was Somnia who moved.
Dash—!
Somnia sprinted quickly across the snowfield and picked up the stick with her mouth; the sight was both surprising and amusing to me.
“Hey, why did you fetch it?”
“…Ah! It was instinctive! I just felt like I had to do it!”
What kind of situation was this? Then it hit me—one of the essential systems of 「Hel World」.
Affinity and Loyalty.
‘Affinity’ affects relationships and story progression with NPCs.
Conversely, ‘Loyalty’ has a significant impact on combat and tasks involving Hels.
‘I heard that if loyalty is low, Hels won’t follow commands well.’
Somnia’s loyalty was 43 out of 100.
And the newly captured Emperor Wolf Spider’s loyalty was 23.
23/100.
That’s quite low.
Even if I gave a command, it might not follow obediently.
‘How do I increase loyalty again?’
Thinking back to my friends’ conversations from elementary school.
━Check this out! I caught the “Gehenna Phantom” last night!
━Hey, with loyalty that low, it’ll be useless in battle.
━It’s fine. I have a bunch of “Hel Bread” and “Hel Cake” ready.
Ah, that’s right.
“Hel Bread” and “Hel Cake.”
From what I recall, feeding Hels well increases their loyalty.
“Maybe this will work.”
I took out the last remaining Dumpling I got from Findman. I had been saving it for capturing a Hel, but since it was a freebie, it wasn’t that valuable.
Let’s use it now.
“Eat this.”
Swish—!
As I offered the “Hel Dumpling,” the Emperor Wolf Spider approached me cautiously and finally devoured the round dumpling eagerly.
━Grrang, Growl, Grrr, Growl, Argh!
“Daniel, can you see? It’s eating so well. It must have been starving. There’s hardly any food in this snowy place.”
Just as Somnia observed, the spider devoured the dumpling eagerly.
It must have been starving.
The harsh environment certainly played a role, but also, this spider had only six legs instead of the usual eight, indicating it was incomplete.
‘It must have been hard to hunt with such a disadvantage.’
“Hehe, it’s eating so well. It’s cute. I used to dream of raising a pet when I was young, but Gremory was against it, so I never got the chance.”
“Really?”
I could see why.
An insane sleepwalking Swordmaster accidentally killing their own pet—imagine the shock of waking up to that. The maid Gremory must have taken all precautions to prevent such a tragedy.
━ Barkkk! Barkkk!
The Emperor Wolf Spider finished eating the “Hel Dumpling.”
And its loyalty increased from 23 to 24.
I had secretly hoped for a dramatic rise in loyalty, but it seemed there were limits to what the “Hel Dumpling” could do.
‘I’ll need to learn how to make “Hel Bread” or “Hel Cake” when I have the chance.’
As I was contemplating this, Somnia spoke to the Emperor Wolf Spider.
“So what’s the deal with it?”
“It’s called an Emperor Wolf Spider.”
“Emperor Wolf Spider? Wait just a moment. Hel Hunter Findman gave me a 「Hel Encyclopedia」. Let’s see… Emperor Wolf Spider… Ah, found it! Look here!”
『Encyclopedia Number 666 – Emperor Wolf Spider』
『A proud and dignified Hel, known for rarely showing itself. It symbolizes wealth and power, and many kings have commissioned its capture, but all have failed.
Its coloration is as varied as a rainbow, with the purple variant considered the ‘rare specimen’ of the highest order.』
“It’s so rare that it’s said to be untamable! Also, the purple variant is the rarest! We’re so lucky!”
Lucky, huh?
Turns out I do have lucky days. It reminded me of those friends who boasted about catching rare Hels during childhood. Indeed, one does feel like boasting.
“Kaiser. Your name will be Kaiser from now on.”
I gave the Emperor Wolf Spider a grand name.
However, Somnia frowned.
“Kaiser? She’s clearly a cute female, so how can you give her such a fierce name? Besides, it reminds me of Emperor Bael, and I don’t like it. I think ‘Barkie’ would be better.”
“…Barkie?”
“She barks, so Barkie! Barkie, do you like it? If you do, bark again!”
━ Barkkk! Barkkk!
Barkie.
The name carried deep, meaningful connections for me.
“Somnia, you’d get along well with my sister Phoebe.”
I put Barkie, who seemed to be shivering in the cold of the snowy mountains, back into the 「Hel Ball」.
I was looking forward to testing and experimenting with her later. I couldn’t wait.
“Daniel, look over there! There’s another Hel!”
“Another Hel? Really?”
While we were crossing the snowy mountains, Somnia pointed at something with her hand. I saw a massive, ice-colored rhinoceros munching on snow flowers that had grown on the mountainside.
『Lv.43 Icicle Rhino』
『Capture Probability 0.18%』
“After the mountain was split, a hidden valley and ecosystem were discovered deep within. That’s why new Hels have been appearing in the snowy mountains, according to Hunter Findman.”
An interesting story, indeed.
I was curious about what partner skills I could obtain if I captured that rhino, but with a capture probability of 0.18%, it was too low. I decided to abandon the thought for now. Besides, the 「Hel Ball」 wasn’t charged.
‘It seems like the capture probability varies with the level of the Hels. When I captured Somnia, the probability was a question mark. For Barkie, it was 66.6%.’
We continued over the mountains, making our way to Ardan before sunset. The path created through the split peaks allowed us to reach Ardan faster than expected.
⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆
The lady of Ardan, Phoebe, laughed heartily after hearing my story.
“You must be joking! Daniel, winning a hunting competition? You may as well claim you’re the emperor! Hahaha!”
“It’s not a lie. This is Somnia Paimon. Say Hello.”
“Do you think I’ll fall for that? This woman in the helmet is just a stand-in you hired, right? Trying to deceive me! How much did you pay her to go along with this charade? Have some shame!”
“I am Somnia Paimon. I’ve heard the young mistress of the Dantalion family, Phoebe Dantalion, is very capable and impressive. Nice to meet you.”
Swish—!
Somnia extended her hand politely. And Phoebe’s eyes darted back and forth, questioning the reality of the situation.
— Is this for real?
— Yes, it’s real.
Nod. Nod.
As I nodded, Phoebe’s eyes widened even more, and she began to sweat nervously, her expression growing increasingly uneasy. Eventually, she grabbed my arm and pulled me aside.
“Excuse us. We need to have a family talk. Just. Family.”
“What’s there to talk about? Somnia is family now.”
“Oh, come on! Just follow me!”
Phoebe and I went into a small storage room behind the office.
— End of Chapter —
⚘ ⚘ ⚘
Translator’s Notes :-
Don’t forget to RATE and REVIEW the Novel on ⟿ NOVEL UPDATES.
If you cannot wait to read what secrets lie ahead, you can now read ⟿ ADVANCED CHAPTERS of this series either on this website or on [Ko-Fi Membership]