'Good job, Haviel.'
A surge of gratitude(?) welled up naturally.
It was all thanks to the message floating before his eyes.
'Haviel would have explained everything that's happened so far to the baron in a cool-headed, objective manner.'
Haviel, the protagonist of the novel *Iron-Blooded Knight*.
He was consistently level-headed.
He never panicked or wavered, no matter the situation.
He always strove to maintain an objective attitude in everything.
He must have done the same just now.
He would have calmly informed the baron of all the things Lloyd had done and the behaviors he'd shown.
'Lucky break. The baron didn't judge me as strange.'
Truth be told, it had been a bit of a gamble.
He was a son who'd spent every day causing trouble like a wastrel.
Then suddenly, he'd demonstrated knowledge he'd never learned before.
He'd gone and built an earthen ondol room that didn't even exist in this world.
Not content with that, he'd escalated things by signing construction contracts with the territory's residents and starting to make money.
It was a situation ripe for suspicion.
'But it didn't happen.'
Of course, the baron must have been puzzled.
But the joy had outweighed that.
'That's just how parents are.'
*My child has changed.*
In such a situation, isn't feeling joy first the way of nearly every parent in the world?
On the other hand, it felt a little uncomfortable to exploit that psychology.
Still, there was nothing to be done about it right now.
"Strike first, worry later."
Right now, it was time to prioritize gains over conscience.
Practical benefits through those gains.
Otherwise, he'd end up repeating the impoverished life he'd led in Korea his whole life.
With that resolve, Lloyd looked around once more.
The training grounds in the backyard, bathed in moonlight.
Fortunately, no signs of people.
He took a deep breath.
He opened the system window.
A wave of countless information floated before his eyes.
But his gaze was drawn elsewhere.
[Fantasy Beast Gacha]
[Invest RP to draw a Fantasy Beast.]
[Powerful and unique Fantasy Beasts offer absolute loyalty to their summoner and provide various abilities.]
[Cost per draw = 50 RP]
[Current RP: 61]
[Execute random draw?]
[YES / NO]
Naturally, his choice was 'YES'.
He nodded.
[Executing Fantasy Beast Gacha.]
Along with the notification, 50 RP was consumed.
At the same time, a change occurred on the ground five steps ahead.
Paaah...!
A pale light etched into the ground.
The inscribed light drew a complex pattern.
The completed magic circle emanated a mystical aura.
'It's coming out.'
It was a sight he'd seen plenty of times in mobile games, but seeing it in real life felt different.
No, completely different.
It was nothing like some mediocre 3D effect.
The sense that 'something real is emerging from there' was palpable.
Just watching made his heart race.
And finally, something emerged.
Crackle!
With a powerful shockwave, something burst from the ground.
It flew straight at him and plunged into his chest.
"Ppodong!"
"..."
Fluffy fur.
Short limbs and a plump, two-head-proportioned body with a bouncy butt.
A tiny frame not even half the size of his fist.
So this was...
"A hamster?"
"Ppodong!"
"Why'd a hamster come out here?"
"Ppodo-dong! Ppodong!"
"...You're why you came out here?"
"Ppodong!"
"..."
The hamster nodded as if it were the most obvious thing.
Lloyd looked down at it in bewilderment.
'This is a Fantasy Beast?'
He'd spent a whopping 50 RP to attempt the draw.
Yet what came out was unmistakably just a pet hamster, no matter how he looked at it.
But Lloyd didn't panic.
Instead, he calmly composed himself.
'Fantasy Beasts provide various abilities. This one understands my words and responds. That alone proves it's no ordinary hamster.'
And that wasn't all.
Somehow, he could understand its responses too.
Meaning, communication was possible.
He placed the hamster on his palm.
He looked it in the eye and asked.
"Hey."
"Ppodong?"
"No special abilities or anything?"
"Ppodo-dong?"
"You're a Fantasy Beast."
"Ppodong!"
"So, show me some proof you're a Fantasy Beast."
"Ppodo-dong? Ppodong!"
The creature shoved both paws into its mouth.
Then it pulled something out of its cheek pouch and offered it.
It was a small envelope and a crumpled paper note the size of a business card.
"Ppodong! Ppodo-dong!"
"This is for me?"
"Ppodong-dong!"
"Read the note?"
"Ppodong!"
"..."
He unfolded the note.
Tiny writing was inscribed on it.
Fortunately, the moonlight was bright enough to make out the contents.
[Ppodong User Manual]
[Ppodong is a cute hamster. Please care for it with love.]
[Ppodong offers absolute loyalty to you, its summoner. Fantasy Beasts are lifelong companions and family. Please do not abandon it carelessly.]
[Ppodong can change size by eating the two types of sunflower seeds included.]
[Red Sunflower Seed: Makes Ppodong gigantic. Maximum giant form duration = 12 hours]
[Blue Sunflower Seed: Makes Ppodong small. Feed before exceeding giant form maximum duration. If 12 hours pass in giant form without a blue sunflower seed, Ppodong automatically returns to small form. However, it enters exhaustion and cannot gigantify again for 24 hours.]
[2-color Sunflower Seed Set purchase cost = 1 RP.]
[Ppodong can use various skills in giant form.]
[Digging (Lv. 1)]
[Ground Compacting (Lv. 1)]
[Cheek Pouch Utilization (Lv. 1)]
'Hmm. Digging and ground compacting, huh.'
Did that mean it could act like a backhoe?
Having read the manual, Lloyd opened the included envelope.
Sure enough, it contained sunflower seeds.
'Ten red and ten blue.'
Lloyd looked at the hamster—no, Ppodong.
"Hey?"
"Ppodong?"
"You eat this and get bigger?"
"Ppodong!"
"How much?"
"Ppodo-dong!"
"Huge?"
"Ppodong!"
"..."
Just how big would it get?
'This thing's so small to begin with.'
Size is relative.
Even if it grew here, how big could it really get?
'If it at least reaches human size, there'd be plenty of uses.'
He'd never raised a hamster.
But he'd heard they were good at digging burrows.
So he had high hopes that even at human size, it could do the work of several men.
"Then let's check it out."
"Ppodong?"
"Get down first."
"Ppodo-dong?"
He set it on the ground.
Then he held out a red sunflower seed.
"Wanna try this?"
"Ppodong?"
"Smells good, right?"
"Ppodo-dong? Ppodong?"
"Here, it'll be tasty."
"Ppodong!"
The creature sniffed it.
It snatched the seed eagerly.
It popped it into its tiny mouth and chewed.
Meanwhile, Lloyd stepped back a few paces.
'How big will it get?'
He watched Ppodong with half anticipation, half worry.
The moment Ppodong swallowed the red sunflower seed it had been munching...
Thwoomp-!
It grew.
...To about 10 meters tall.
'Whoa.'
Jackpot.
Lloyd looked up in disbelief.
The face of the gigantified hamster Ppodong was way up high.
'If I hadn't backed up enough, I might've gotten hit and bounced away like a pinball...'
The gigantification had happened in an instant.
Like popcorn popping.
Or an airbag deploying.
Its volume had expanded explosively.
So if he hadn't kept proper distance?
He would've been launched by the inflating body.
Like getting hit by a car.
'Be more careful next time.'
With that vow, he looked up at Ppodong.
Either way, now was the time to test its capabilities(?).
"Hey, can you hear me?"
"Ppodong?"
The creature's massive head peered down.
Fortunately, its eyes were still innocently pure.
No need to worry about being eaten.
"You wanna try digging first?"
"Ppodo-dong?"
"From here to over there. Can you make a uniform 2-meter-deep trench?"
"Ppodong? Ppodo-dong!"
It nodded.
It wiggled its gigantic, plump butt and moved to the spot he'd indicated.
Then it began moving its short front paws.
At near light speed.
"Ppodo-do-do-dong!"
Whooshwhooshwhoosh!
It was a storm of earth.
Literally, mounds of dirt exploded outward.
Through it all, its plump body advanced relentlessly.
After about three minutes.
A massive trench 2 meters deep and 20 meters long had been completed in the backyard training grounds.
"...Whoa."
It exceeded his imagination.
Exceeded his expectations too.
But Lloyd quickly snapped out of his awe.
No time for admiration.
'Someone could see this anytime.'
He needed to test as quickly and efficiently as possible.
With that thought, Lloyd said.
"Good job. Next, ground leveling."
"Ppodong?"
"Fill in the trench you just made. As flat as possible."
"Ppodo-dong?"
"Can you do it?"
"Ppodong!"
It moved immediately.
It took position in front of the trench it had just dug.
It shook its plump butt.
It spread its front paws wide.
Then it whipped left and right like a gale.
"Ppodo-do-do-ong!"
Fwooshfwooshfwoosh!
If the previous digging had been a storm of earth.
This was like a vacuum cleaner.
Its plump butt served as a heavy anchor point.
Using the butt as a solid weight, it swiftly swung its upper body side to side.
It gathered the scattered dirt mounds from the digging.
It pushed them into the trench.
It advanced without pause.
With each step forward, the trench filled solidly.
But it didn't stop there.
"Ppodo-dong!"
After filling the trench to the end, it lay down.
Then it began rolling back and forth along the trench.
Forward once.
Backward once.
That was enough.
The weighty, bouncy side fat it possessed.
That area acted like a massive construction roller, crushing the ground.
Thanks to that, after one roll forward and one back?
The uneven ground became neatly(?) flat.
Not even traces of the trench remained.
'Good. Very good.'
The more he saw, the more satisfied he was.
The 50 RP invested in drawing it didn't feel wasted at all.
'Lucky. I'd pushed a bit hard to gather RP.'
He'd deliberately sought out the baron amid his argument with the moneylenders.
He'd taken a bit of a risk to appeal to him.
All to raise affinity with the baron.
'The risk of suspicion was worth it. Now, let's test the last skill.'
Lloyd looked up at Ppodong.
Ppodong was gazing proudly at the trench it had perfectly filled.
"Ppodong?"
"Ppodong?"
"You've got cheek pouches, right?"
"Ppodong!"
"Can you store stuff in them?"
"Ppodo-dong? Ppodong!"
"Possible? How much?"
"Ppodong!"
It pointed with a front paw to the opposite side of the backyard.
There sat a boulder about 2 meters in diameter.
Lloyd's eyebrow twitched.
"No way?"
But that no way was reality.
Without even being told, it moved and stuffed the boulder into one cheek pouch.
"Ppudeung!"
"...Whoa."
"Ppudeuung! Ppudeung!"
"You okay?"
"Ppudeung! Ppudeung!"
It nodded with a proud face.
Each time, the massively swollen cheek pouch—stuffed with the 2-meter boulder—jiggled impressively(?).
'This thing could double as a weapon. Total tank.'
Ten meters tall, sure.
But seeing this size up close.
It felt exactly like a dinosaur.
Even the elephant he'd once seen at the zoo would seem like a neighborhood pup in comparison.
"Alright, put that boulder back where it was."
"Ppudeung? Ptoo!"
"Good job. Now try this."
"Ppodong!"
He fed it a blue sunflower seed.
The instant it gulped down the seed, it shrank.
Hug.
He scooped up the shrunken creature into his arms.
Drowsy, it crawled into his inner pocket on its own.
Feeling that small warmth, Lloyd thought.
'Success. This is huge.'
He reviewed what he'd just seen of Ppodong.
Honestly, it far surpassed his expectations.
'Dug a 20-meter-long, 2-meter-deep trench in three minutes. And filled it back perfectly. Plus stored a boulder that must weigh several tons in one cheek pouch...'
High-performance backhoe.
Perfect roller.
Dump truck to boot.
He'd acquired the MacGyver knife of heavy machinery—all three functions in one.
With abilities like this, spending RP on transformation seeds felt entirely worthwhile.
'And the portability is top-notch.'
Before he knew it, Ppodong was fast asleep in his inner pocket.
He'd probably have to keep this one hidden for a while.
'Guess I'll carry a summoning tome around. To prepare for when I show it to people someday.'
He needed to plant that seed.
That way, when the baron's wastrel son suddenly summoned a giant hamster one day, no one would bat an eye.
They'd cheer 'Our young master is the best!' instead.
With Ppodong in his arms, he left the backyard training grounds.
As he returned to his bedroom, he thought about the next steps.
'Finally got some decent construction equipment. Next up: full-scale construction.'
He'd already successfully "sold" the ondol rooms during the day.
Might as well strike while the iron's hot.
He planned to ride the momentum and launch the construction business proper.
'For that, I need a pro construction team. Skilled workers who move in perfect sync on-site, elite laborers, and a leader to command them.'
Of course, he'd already planned the site team's lineup.
Tap, patter.
The flickering light of the bedroom fireplace burning all night.
In front of it, Lloyd picked up paper and pen.
He recalled from memory.
He began listing all the major characters from the early parts of *Iron-Blooded Knight*.
This marked the monumental first step in transforming Frontera Barony's ordinary knight order and guards into a full-fledged construction combat unit.
(End of Chapter 6)
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