There was an official notice from Lair.
– Guardian Consultation Period
It was time for another one already, but the consultation theme today was slightly special.
– Consult through an informal conversation and record it.
Of course, this ‘consultation theme’ wasn’t mandatory and it didn’t matter whether people adhered to it or not. Therefore, Yu Jitae was thinking of skipping the informal part, and sticking to a normal consultation.
That was his plan until Kaeul found out about it.
“Nn? What’s this?”
Hugging the baby chicken all morning, she brushed and played with its fur. After that, they ran around the room until Chirpy discovered the notice, which had been randomly placed on the ground beneath the living room table.
“Is the guardian consultation going to be in casual?”
“Casual?”
“In a casual tone. Like informal talk time*? We can talk casually with each other during the given amount of time!”
“What? Why is that necessary?”
Yeorum, who was sitting on the floor trimming her toenails, opened her mouth.
“Just speak casually from the get go.”
“Unn? Now that you mention it, why don’t you speak politely to ahussi, unni?”
“Why do I have to?”
“Nn? That’s… uhh, umm…”
Kaeul tilted her head and contemplated which the baby chicken mimicked by tilting its own head. Then, she thought of something and gave a clap.
“Because someone that doesn’t know manners is a ruffian?”
“What about ruffians.”
“Everyone hates them right? Ahht…”
During her speech, she realised that she was talking about someone that was specifically inside the living room. “Uang!” Yeorum raised her body and compressed Kaeul’s temples with her two fists, while claiming that she had no manners.
“Chirp!”
The baby chicken counterattacked in order to protect its owner. The chicken ran to Yeorum on the side and pecked her near the ribs.
Even a dragon was like a human with the polymorphed body. “Ah, fuc*,” Yeorum swore with a frown from the tickle and changed the target. The baby chicken had its temples pressured like its owner and growled in pain.
“Asking for death.”
Kaeul and the baby chicken rolled on the living room floor in pain.
In any case, it was time for the guardian consultation period. He decided to gather them together and do it all at once.
When he told them that they can speak to him casually, Kaeul and Gyeoul appeared especially excited.
“Bom.”
“Why, Jitae?”
Hearing Bom’s words, Yeorum, Kaeul and Gyeoul all giggled. The Regressor looked at Bom with his hazy gaze, before turning back to the paper.
“How are you.”
“Good.”
“Anything you need.”
“Nope. Doing fine.”
“Anything difficult happening at school.”
Bom shook her head so Yu Jitae completed the consultation record saying that there were no problems. That was when she opened her mouth for a question.
“Ah, by the way ahjussi.”
“Yeah.”
“Can I ask you for one favour?”
“What.”
“At least during the consultation, can you speak to us politely instead?’
He was wondering what nonsense this was about but he seemed to be the only one thinking that. Kaeul clapped sonorously and shouted.
“Uwaaah. Unni. You’re the best!”
“No joke, that would be quite funny.”
“…!”
Yeorum and Gyeoul were the same. It was unclear what they were so excited about but they showed enthusiastic support for Bom’s idea.
“I don’t want to.”
“It’s just going to be for a short period of time. Can you not?”
“…”
“Please.”
Seriously. Bom had an innate talent at making Yu Jitae feel troubled, to the point that he wondered why he didn’t even catch a glimpse of such a side in the previous iterations.
“No.”
He shook his head. For the most part, he would do everything that they enjoyed but he seriously didn’t want to do this.
“Whyyyy~ That’s such a shame!”
“What a boomer.”
“…”
What followed the zealous support was an intense disappointment but he shook his hand and continued with the questions. He asked what they needed to Yeorum and Kaeul, as well as their life at school and the things they found difficult.
Even this time around, Gyeoul looked like she wanted to be included so he added her to the mix naturally and asked her.
Kururung…
That was when the protector who was standing in the corner of the room like a statue, gave an empty cough (probably).
Understanding his sign, Bom took the paper from Yu Jitae’s hands.
“How are you these days, Cleaner ahjussi?”
“As for me, you can say that I have discovered the enjoyment of household chores. In the very distant past, there were times where I’ve found such tasks to be superficial and low-end, but whatever the task, so long as you undertake an essential task that necessitates a being to be in charge, that is perhaps destiny itself. If there are people that need me…”
“Ahh. So you’re doing fine?”
The bevor of the headpiece that was rambling came to a stop.
“…That is the case.”
The consultation continued. The consultation topic began with their recent hobbies, Yu Jitae’s hobby, hobbies that can be carried out together, trips and future plans, before connecting to a completely different topic altogether.
“You know. Who do you think you know the best out of everyone here?” asked Yeorum.
“That’s a good question.”
“Ohh, ohh. I want to know as well!”
“…?”
It wasn’t a significantly important question, and it was probably something they randomly chucked without thinking too much about it.
But as always, the Regressor was a boring human who thought a lot. He therefore pondered seriously in response to the question.
The answer however, was simple.
“Kaeul of course.”
They appeared surprised evident from their gazes. Gyeoul especially looked slightly shocked.
“…Me?”
“I’m getting to know you better.”
His reply must have been quite good. Hearing his response, Gyeoul regained her peace.
It was the same for everyone else. Yu Jitae was getting to know Bom, Yeorum and Gyeoul better every single day but that wasn’t the case for Kaeul. Yu Jitae already knew a lot about Kaeul.
The one that was curious the most was in fact Kaeul.
“Uing…? How do you know me the best, ahjussi?”
“I just do.”
“But if you think about it, don’t ahjussi and I talk the least?”
That was true. Somehow, he didn’t have much of a chance to talk to Kaeul and it was becoming more like that recently.
But the one that he knew the best was definitely Kaeul, and the one he knew for the longest and was the closest to was also Kaeul.
There was no doubt about that.
That day,
Kaeul had her day off.
After the consultation was over, she gave a big stretch and hugged the baby chicken to sleep. Yu Jitae watched her quietly and didn’t look away for a very long time.
The seventh iteration seemed to be a success for the time being.
Judging from how she was sleeping so soundly.
***
Fourth iteration.
He could remember the first time he saw the Gold Dragon.
Back then, he was 35 years old. At a young age, he had become a national hero and was a superhuman ranker. After suddenly declaring his retirement from the army, he left the Grand Natural Society temporarily.
He thought it was only the death of the Gold Dragon that brought the Apocalypse before, so he formed a group of security guards to protect the dragon. Being the guard in lead, he worked in the front lines himself.
Unlike other iterations, Baby Yellow (BY) of the fourth iteration debuted when she was slightly older. She grabbed a mic for the first time at 18 years of age and only began gaining fame after she was over 20.
“Nice to meet you…!”
Yu Jitae remembered the first time he met BY. Her blonde hair was braided into a twintail, while her sparkling eyes were brighter than gold.
Dragons quickly looked like adults and stayed in their youth for a long time, so the 20-year-old BY was very similar to the current Kaeul. Her face, expressions, voice, thought process, vocabulary as well as her cheerful laugh were all similar.
She was loved by everyone.
“I’ll be your security guard from now on.”
“Uwaah! I’ve heard stories. You’re extremely famous right?!”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Umm, I, don’t think I’m worth being protected like that yet, but please take care of me…!”
After that, he rarely ever talked to her.
Like a shadow, he watched on from nearby.
If she was like a bright gold, it could be said that a dark rust began forming somewhere within the gold over time. It was a very gradual change over time, but looking back, one would realise that she had changed so much.
Signs that he had been clueless about until the third iteration, which he couldn’t understand until the start of the seventh iteration, began showing themselves.
After 5 years, BY was 25 years old.
“You’re a really strange person, you know that?”
One day, she said that.
Her appearance was mysteriously the same as the first time he met her, but childishness could no longer be noticed from her voice, tone and expression.
“Strange.”
During that time, there was a special team over 40 in number, dedicated to BY. From music, broadcast, road and head managers, to hair artists, makeup artists, coordinators, back dancers, guards, lawyers etc.
In other words, all those people worked only for BY and her schedule was therefore jam packed.
“Aren’t you tired? It’s my first time seeing a human refuse to leave on vacation for over 5 years.”
“It’s my job.”
“Did I say it wasn’t? I’m saying that because you don’t even go home.”
“I don’t need to.”
“You have families right. Aren’t they waiting somewhere back in Asia? Mummy~ When’s our daddy coming~.”
BY giggled.
She laughed wherever she was, but the smile that day was slightly different to the one she showed outside.
He didn’t reply.
As she got older, BY began going further astray. It was evident from how the first thing she did when she had a day off like that day at her palace-like mansion, was to naturally lay her hands on drugs.
“Light.”
Wearing nothing but a large gown on her wide, golden sofa, BY told the security.
Yu Jitae went and used his lighter for her.
It wasn’t something to make a fuss about. BY back then was in mid-twenties, and celebrities of her age enjoying drugs was in fact quite common.
But, it was indeed a new side of the Gold Dragon which he had no idea about in the previous iterations.
“Hmm– so do you have a family or not.”
“I don’t.”
“Where did they go.”
“They weren’t there from the start.”
“You were born because you had parents. Or what, is your mother’s name Maria?”
“Don’t know.”
“Is that all.”
BY took a deep breath of the smoke in.
Seemingly feeling something, her chin, fingers and toes shivered faintly. While she was breathing the smoke out, her eyes were upturned as an orgasmic gasp left her mouth.
Staring at Yu Jitae, she smiled.
“Speak a bit more. I’m bored today.”
“It’s fine.”
“Just do it. I’m not asking for anything difficult.”
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Hah… if you’re like that, I’m gonna cancel all my schedule alright?”
“…What?”
“Called the offense of boredom. You dare make me bored? Then everyone needs to be screwed. Right?”
It wasn’t just one or two people that would be harmed from her cancelling the schedule for one day, let alone the financial loss. Unlike how she usually ignored Yu Jitae, BY was aggressive that day.
“…It’s because I have nothing to say. I can’t remember. I was at an orphanage when I was very young and I don’t know my parents’ faces.”
“Hmm… then something else.”
“There’s nothing.”
“There can’t be nothing. You were a ranker, right? And a hero of war. There has to be some stories.”
“Stop asking.”
“…What? What did you say?”
“There’s seriously nothing in particular.”
“No, what was that tone just then.”
The golden eyebrows gave a frown from his words.
“I’ll wait outside and don’t smoke too much. It’s been a while so take a good rest.”
In order to put a stop on the unnecessary conversation, the Regressor turned his feet. He didn’t want to impact the Gold Dragon, who was leading a decent life by herself, in a negative way by telling her something unnecessary. Until the fourth iteration, he was just a soldier riding along with the wave, instead of being in charge of the flow.
“Stop there.”
But for some reason, BY stopped Yu Jitae’s feet that day.
“There’s no problem with guarding you from outside. I won’t interfere with your rest.”
“I’m telling you to stop.”
She was easygoing on the outside, but was stubborn on the inside.
With a golden pair of eyes that dripped of authority, BY stared at Yu Jitae. She tapped the seat next to her sofa.
“Come here and sit.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Are you going to make me say it a second time again?”
“I can’t follow orders that may cause inconvenience to my duty.”
Her voice was slightly coarser than usual but disregarding that, Yu Jitae was going to do what he wanted.
But that was when BY threw the wine glass in her hand to the wall.
Crash! Glass fragments scattered left and right.
“Sit. I’m telling you to sit. Don’t you understand? What I, your employer, is saying? Or are you looking down on me as well or what?”
The hand holding the cigarette, the pink character nail art engraved on her nails and her golden gaze were shivering like never before.
It was a reaction that had never been shown before in the fourth iteration.
He had been watching BY suffer from ill-willed rumours and anti-fans recently. Thinking that that might have acted as a catalyst for something, he quietly went and sat next to BY.
“Good. Now you’re listening…”
High on drugs, BY wore a debaucherous smile on her face and laid down with her head resting on his thigh. The loose knot caused her robe to be disordered and her skin was showing here and there.
In the fourth iteration, his body was still living a normal life but his heart and mind were far from it, so he was feeling quite annoyed from the situation.
“Why are you doing nothing.”
Her unfocused eyes gazed up at him.
“Pat my head.”
After adding, ‘Like my mum’, BY slowly closed her eyes.