"Agrh... Finally, I can rest after so long!" he said as he y on the bed.

  "Mmhh... I feel like I'm forgetting something! But what?" He scratched his head.

  "Ahh, maybe it's just my imagination. I’d better sleep now since I have to wake up early tomorrow." He closed his eyes and rested.

  (He forgot about the creature that had just formed a contract with him.)

  Morning arrived.

  —TSKTSKTSK!

  Someone climbed onto his bed.

  "Master! Master! Wake up, it's morning!" A little child climbed onto his bed, shaking his body with an adorable smile.

  He yawned, still half-asleep.

  "Mmhh? Is it morning already?" He rubbed his eyes and saw a blurry figure.

  The child eagerly tugged at his arm.

  "Master, let's go hunt monsters together! I've been bored waiting for you to wake up!" She puffed her cheeks with an adorable expression.

  He looked at her and sighed.

  "Uuhh, ye-yeah yeah, hold on. Let me take a quick shower first."

  Her eyes sparkled, and she gave a sweet smile.

  "Aaahh... Okay, Master, but hurry up! Don't take too long!"

  "Yeah, yeah, you're so impatient!" He walked toward the bathroom.

  (As you might have guessed, that child is the legendary creature who has taken human form.)

  (Now, let me expin the contract she used. Normally, contracts require agreement from both parties, but she used a one-sided contract, meaning if she ever betrays her Master, the consequence is her own life.)

  (And anyone bound by this contract can change their form to match their Master's.)

  The child let out a soft giggle with a sweet expression. Hearing her ughter, he finally became fully awake.

  He was shocked and pointed at her with a weird expression.

  "EEEEEEHHHHHH!! W-who a-are y-you?"

  "Hehehehe..." The child ughed happily.

  It seemed she successfully surprised her Master.

  "I'm the creature that made a contract with you, Master!"

  "Haahhh... Y-you can turn into a human?" he asked, staring at her in amazement.

  She nodded.

  "Uuhh... I can! I can also turn back into an animal if you want, Master."

  "Eehhh... Well, it's up to you. Just use whatever form you're comfortable with," he said.

  She stood up straight and saluted.

  "Understood, Master!"

  He scratched his head and smiled.

  "Oh yeah, what's your name?"

  The child was stunned and immediately looked at him with sparkling eyes.

  "Haaahhh, that's right! Master hasn't given me a name since forming a contract with me!"

  "Give me a name, Master! I want a name!" She jumped around excitedly.

  "Eehhh... Just use the name your friends used to call you. I'm not good at naming things."

  "No! I don't want that! I want a name from Master! Give me a name, MASTER!" she said while pulling his arm adorably.

  He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

  "Alright, alright. In that case..."

  Her eyes sparkled, and she bounced slightly in excitement.

  "La-" He hesitated, afraid that the name he chose wouldn't meet her expectations.

  "La?" she repeated.

  "La... Lara!" he said, sweating.

  She was silent for a moment, lowering her head.

  He panicked when she didn't respond.

  "I-I've never named anyone before, so sorry if it’s not what you wanted."

  Then, she looked at him with a serious expression.

  "D-do you not like the name?" he asked, sweating.

  The little girl suddenly screamed and jumped around in joy.

  "WOOAAHH!!! Lara loves it! I love it so much! Thank you, Master!" Lara said with a wide smile.

  "Eh, really? You like it? I'm gd to hear that!" He felt relieved that she liked the name he gave her.

  Lara suddenly tilted her head.

  "Mmhh, Master!"

  "Yeah? What is it, Lara?"

  "What's your name? From the first chapter until now, Master's name hasn't been mentioned at all!" Lara said.

  He froze. "Eh, really?"

  Lara nodded. "Uuhh..."

  (That's absolutely right. The name hasn’t been mentioned since the first chapter! Maybe the author has a reason for this, or they were just too zy to add it.)

  "In that case, my name is Jae."

  "Alright, I'm going to take a shower now. After that, we'll get ready for our first monster hunt!"

  Lara raised both hands and jumped.

  "Yayyy... Awesome! Hunting monsters with Master!"

  A while ter...

  "Are you ready, Lara? If you are, let's go now!"

  Lara stood at attention and saluted.

  "Ready, Jae Master!"

  He scratched his head.

  "Eeee Lara! Can you stop adding 'Master'?"

  Lara tilted her head.

  "Eeeehh, why?! Master doesn't like it when I call you that?" Lara pouted.

  His heart pounded at her expression.

  "N-no, it's not like that. You can call me Master if you want." He started sweating.

  Lara's eyes sparkled.

  "Mmhh, really?"

  He sighed.

  "Mmhh, really."

  Lara cheered up again.

  "Mmhh, in that case, Lara will always call you Master from now on!" Lara said with a sweet smile.

  He made a weird expression, and his eyebrow twitched.

  "Ehe!he!ehe!"

  (After hours of discussing names, they finally went to accept a mission to hunt monsters.)

  They headed to the Deadly Forest.

  "Master, thank you for saving Lara back then!" Lara said as they walked.

  He looked at Lara and patted her head.

  "Yeah, Lara, you're welcome. Do you still feel any pain?"

  Lara shook her head.

  "M-mm, not anymore! In fact, I feel even better than before!" she said with a sweet smile.

  He smiled while looking at Lara for a while.

  'Aaagghhh... She's so cute!' he thought.

  "Mmhh, Master! What's wrong?"

  He snapped out of it.

  "E-Eh, nothing. If we encounter any monsters, Lara, hide, okay? Let me handle them!"

  Lara stopped, pouted, and turned her head away.

  "Eeehh, why? Lara wants to fight monsters with Master!"

  He patted her head.

  "No, Lara. It’s dangerous! What if something happens to you?!"

  "Hemm... Fine, then Lara will increase Master's power if you run out of energy!"

  He was surprised.

  "Eeehh... No, just save your power to protect yourself!"

  Lara got annoyed.

  "Iihhh... Then what's the point of me coming if I don't do anything?!" she said, puffing her cheeks.

  He sighed.

  "Mmhh... Fine. After I defeat the monsters, you can help me collect them, okay?"

  Lara protested with a loud voice.

  "Eeehhh... That’s so boring, Master! Just collecting monsters?!" Lara turned her head away.

  "It can't be helped! Lara isn't ready to fight yet. When I think you’re ready, then I'll let you fight. Understand?"

  Lara spoke in a small voice.

  "Understood, Master! Then, help Lara train ter!"

  He smiled.

  "Yeah, we'll train together! But for now, listen to me. Just hide and stay within my sight, okay? Understand?"

  Lara brightened up again.

  "Understood, Master!" Lara smiled widely and hugged him.

  —GGRRRHHHH!

  (A monster suddenly approached them. It didn’t seem like a low-level monster. Instead, it was on the same level as Lara—a legendary-css creature.)