The Returnee’s Guild Must Grow Properly

At the Northern Grand Duke’s words, I casually looked around the shop. I wasn’t sure if what the Grand Duke said was true, but there wasn’t a single customer in sight.

The Hero, seemingly conscious of my wandering gaze, spoke irritably.
“Guild Master, the shop is doing just fine, so don’t worry about it.”
“I wasn’t worried in the first place.”

Feigning indifference, I pursed my lips. Ignoring the Hero’s piercing stare, I tried to settle into a seat when the Grand Duke stopped me.
“Guild Master, would you like to see Rim’s little performance?”
“Performance?”
“Yes! Watch this!”

Normally, he would be the type to be immediately chased out for showing up unannounced, but today he seemed unusually cheerful. Still, what kind of performance could he possibly show with a baby dragon? Perhaps the Northern Grand Duke, an A-class Tamer, was finally ready to live up to his title.

Curious, I leaned on the counter with the Hero and looked toward the Grand Duke. The Grand Duke held the baby dragon—Hatchling Rim—by its sides and suddenly tossed it into the air.
“Fly, my dear! Spread your wings!”
―Mama!!

The baby dragon—Hatchling Rim—spread its black wings and soared into the air just as the store’s bell jingled, signaling the door opening.

A man walking in froze mid-step, utterly stunned. The vitamin drink gift box in his hand was an added bonus.
“…A dog?”

On this clear, crisp winter day, there was only one person who would walk into the shop wearing sunglasses.
“A dog is flying?”

Doby, the stunned visitor, muttered blankly. In an instant, the Grand Duke pulled Rim, who had been basking in freedom with wings outstretched, back into his arms. With feigned innocence, he replied,
“Oh, come now, customer! How could a dog possibly fly?”
―Mama!

Rim called for his “mama” again, prompting Doby’s face to contort in frustration as he shouted,
“What nonsense are you spouting?! Are you saying I’m seeing things?!”

The Grand Duke, still playing innocent, said smoothly,
“It seems like you might be mistaken. Isn’t that right, Rim? Our Rim has never flown, has he?”
―Mama!!
“See? Never.”

The Grand Duke stroked Rim affectionately and gave Doby a look that seemed to say, What’s wrong with this guy?
Furious, Doby yelled back, demanding that the Grand Duke throw the “dog” into the air again to prove it. The Grand Duke, feigning offense, retorted,
“How could you suggest such a thing to such a cute little one?”

Honestly, this entire situation felt like it was happening in the wrong place.

I gazed at the unfolding chaos with a sour expression and then exchanged a glance with the Hero, who was watching with the same exasperation. Without missing a beat, I sent her a quick message.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: Hero, are you planning to keep using the Grand Duke as a part-timer?

If she kept employing him, the shop was bound to fail in no time. The Hero sighed deeply before responding with a message of her own.

|Pr. Hero|: The Grand Duke said if I fire him without a valid reason, he’ll report me to the labor office.

“……”

Scratching my chin, I replied curtly.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: ㅎ.

“Oh, for goodness’ sake! I’m telling you, our Rim can’t fly!”
―Mama!!

To think that someone like him was the Northern Grand Duke. I couldn’t help but pity the aides who had to follow him.

In the end, the baby dragon, who appeared as a dog to others, was officially declared incapable of flight.

“So, make sure to book an appointment with an ophthalmologist.”
“What do you mean by that?! Doby! If you don’t explain this properly—!!”

The line abruptly disconnected as the Grand Duke hung up without hesitation.

Draining the rest of my Americano in one gulp, I glanced at Doby. Apparently, the vitamin drink gift box he’d been holding was a present from his manager to the Hero.

Anyway, it was my first time seeing his face without the sunglasses.
For someone in showbiz, it wasn’t surprising—it was a face that screamed “celebrity.” I’d seen it on TV before, but still, it was almost unreal how good-looking he was.

“This body must have truly captivated your gaze,” he said.

The downside was his mouth.
If only he would just shut up.

Doby had a tongue that could inspire terror, though in a very different way from the Demon King.

Forcing my grimace into neutrality, I decided to cut straight to the point. Prolonging a conversation with him wasn’t part of my plans.
“How did you find out I’m Gloria’s Returnee?”

A question like that might leave someone flustered, but Doby, as expected, remained perfectly calm as he replied.
“I used a skill. At first, I saw nothing, but upon trying again, a system window I had never seen before—labeled ‘HIDDEN STATUS’—appeared.”

HIDDEN STATUS. A system window exclusive to Returnees.

Hearing that name come out of Doby’s mouth made me frown. The cursed system window was invisible to everyone else, even Hunters.

And yet, Doby was no Returnee—he was a Hunter. Kang Hasu, the CEO of Doby’s entertainment agency and a Spirit Master in our guild, had confirmed as much.
Though he said Doby had great potential as a Hunter, his skills were still lacking.

Perhaps Kang Hasu was underestimating him. Smirking crookedly, I asked,
“And now?”
“…What do you mean, ‘and now’?”

His response, dripping with smugness, reminded me of the Demon King. Suppressing my rising irritation, I clarified.
“Can you still see that ‘HIDDEN STATUS’ on me?”

Doby squinted slightly, scrutinizing me before shaking his head.
“…No, I can’t.”

His eventual answer was disappointing. If he’d said yes, I would have told him to use that skill on his CEO.

Feeling a twinge of regret, I twitched my lips in frustration. Just then, Doby raised a trembling hand to rub his eyelid.
“So my eyesight really has deteriorated.”

“……”

I had no idea what eyesight had to do with this, but since skills weren’t my domain, I let it slide. He could confirm his vision at an ophthalmologist.

Instead, I asked something else.
“When exactly did you see it?”

“At Van Gogh’s exhibition,” Doby said, tilting his chin up with an air of pride.
“This body has long been a fan of his.”

Somewhere, Van Gogh—now a star in the heavens—was probably shaking his head, refusing to acknowledge this fan.

“I was wrapping up filming and dropped by briefly. It was there that I saw you coming out of the aptitude test. You didn’t look surprised at all. For the record, I was furious that I didn’t get to enjoy the exhibition properly.”

Great, thanks for the info. I wasn’t particularly interested in his rage, but whatever.

Clicking my tongue in disinterest, I moved on to the next question. I needed to wrap this up as quickly as possible.
“If you saw me, you could’ve just moved on. Why use a skill to snoop into someone else’s information without permission?”

Doby tapped his finger rhythmically on the table before replying in a short but intense burst.
“A hunch.”
“?”
“And an undeniable feeling.”
“……”

What the hell is wrong with this guy?

The more we talked, the deeper the confusion grew. Frowning slightly, I sent a message to his boss.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: That Doby of yours is seriously insane.
―What are you talking about!!

“Argh…!!”

The voice that struck directly at my eardrums made my body instinctively lean to the side. With a loud crash, I toppled over, and silence fell over the Hero’s café.

|Pr. Hero|: Guild Master, what are you doing alone?
|Pr. Northern Grand Duke|: ㅋㅋ Guild Master, what are you doingㅋㅋㅋㅋ?

…Damn it.

None of my guild members ever seem genuinely concerned about me. How am I supposed to feel when the most ridiculous of them is looking at me like that?

Doby, squinting slightly, asked with a faintly puzzled tone,
“…I don’t know what’s going on, but screaming and falling over out of nowhere is certainly peculiar.”

“It’s, uh… something Returnees tend to do.”

That’s a lie. If it were true, I’d make sure it stopped.

I sniffled unnecessarily, set my chair upright, and sat back down. Doby, surprisingly, asked if I was okay.
It caught me off guard. Maybe he had some basic social skills after all.

“I just wanted to make sure. If you’ve been cursed or something, I should avoid you.”

“……”

“This body is far too precious for such risks.”

Never mind. No social skills at all.

Narrowing my eyes slightly, I shot off a message to his boss.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: You bastard!!! Why do you keep sending this guy my way?!
― Isn’t it more convenient for you this way?

That damn Spirit Master!

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: It’s not convenient, you idiot!! And stop sending him, Spirit Master!!!
― Why not?

Hearing his voice resonate faintly in my ears gave me goosebumps.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: Because it feels like I can feel your breath directly on my skin! It’s unsettling!!!
― It must be because the power of Sylph is imbued in it.

|Pr. Godslayer (Guild Master)|: DAMN IT!!!!

What kind of nonsense is this?!

I silently vowed to ensure that this Spirit Master would reap what he sowed someday, rubbing my arms to smooth out the goosebumps.

Noticing my behavior, Doby tilted his head and asked,
“This body finds the shop’s temperature warm, but you seem cold. Is that so?”

“I get cold easily.”

“Then why not put on a coat? Or perhaps this body’s—”

I don’t need your coat.

Although the Hero’s café felt overly warm thanks to the heater blasting, I couldn’t take back my words, so I grudgingly put on my coat.

Damn it, it’s unbearably hot. I could feel sweat beginning to bead on my forehead. No, not just feel it—it was definitely there.

Doby, looking at me as if he’d never encountered someone so ridiculous, asked,
“…Didn’t you say you get cold easily? It looks more like you’re overheating.”

“I’m also sensitive to heat.”

“…?”