Clone 2 had been protecting the entrance of the dimensional tunnel even after the baby chicken left. 6 out of the 7 connecting barriers had closed already – the path between Earth and Anum will disappear the moment the last one closes.
The connection with the nearby dimension, Anum, will be severed.
Clone 2 gazed into the fissure.
It was Spring in Anum. The flowers were in full bloom as the refreshing smell of the World Tree spread far and wide. Various species of spirit beasts and beastmen were running up and down the large tree having fun.
Laughing beastmen, whispering birds, and the cold breeze sweeping past the grass.
Clone 2 raised his eyes a tiny bit. Even a small piece of darkness tended to be clearly visible in a world full of light.
From beyond the horizon, black things were swarming forward in large groups, having clear objectives and in thrill and excitement.
Two months ago, one of the reasons why the baby chicken wanted to leave was because the fissure was starting to close.
There was another reason why the baby chicken wanted to leave. After living for several years with the Gold Dragon, the baby chicken who had unknowingly received mana from her had also received the ability, [Crisis Perception] from her.
Vuuuuung…
The frightening echoes of buzzing wings resonated across the air.
[King Bees]
Plunderers were on their way.
***
Upon leaving for their Amusement, dragons lived with humans. They looked for their hobbies and their roles.
Kaeul was also a dragon.
At first, she wanted to be loved.
Kaeul loved attention and that was all she had wanted.
Despite that, the ahjussi who was the most precious in the world told her that her fate was to not lead such a life. Therefore, Kaeul decided to live without craving for the love of others.
There were still a lot of things to do in the world.
But what should I do…?
Turning around, she could see her unnis of Unit 301.
At the start, she enjoyed laughing and chatting at Unit 301.
She wanted to try her best at living a successful school life.
However, that wasn’t easy. People appeared to be covered with thorns and getting too close to people made such thorns stab each other. Because of that, Kaeul could not easily befriend humans.
But if I were to approach with a smile, shouldn’t that allow us to become friends? If I smiled at someone, wouldn’t that person smile back at me? It was then that she was betrayed by her most-trusted friend. The moment she heard the dirty thoughts lying inside that friend was when Kaeul realised that human relationship wasn’t the way for her.
Kaeul despaired.
Once, she became envious of Bom-unni’s ability of healing injured people. Thus, she tried to learn healing magic.
However, it was obvious from the beginning that healing magic was not the way for her. The thing that gets healed by her cannot put up with her output: the memory of the chimera that exploded the moment she used healing magic on it was vividly etched into her mind. She had used magic to let it live, and yet it expanded and exploded, scattering as blood and flesh to all sides.
Her unforgetting memories did not allow her to forget such memories.
Kaeul despaired.
Once, she became envious of Yeorum-unni who was overflowing with passion. So after hearing the suggestion to become a soldier, she decided to try it.
She quite liked saving people but fighting was, as expected, not a good fit to her personality. Calmly retaining her rationality in front of dying people in tense situations and fighting monsters was very burdensome.
Seeing the injured puppy, seeing the child that couldn’t receive help in time, embracing her hand that trembled after using a spell,
Kaeul despaired.
Once, she wanted to do volunteer work but throughout her time doing it, she was under a dilemma, wondering whether she was doing this purely for others or as a self-satisfaction.
At other times, she wanted to leave on a journey looking for other sources of enjoyment, but gold dragons were territorial spirit beasts.
“Nothing goes well whatever I do.”
Connecting such memories one by one, Kaeul reached a certain conclusion in the end.
“Nothing in the world goes the way I want it to.”
It was after she gathered everyone, saying that there was something she had to say. After hearing that Kaeul had returned, Bom, Yeorum and Gyeoul dropped everything they were doing and gathered.
Their sister, who they hadn’t met a single time in the past 2 months, said with a calm look on her face.
“Oi. What would the chicken think if he heard you say that?”
“That’s right, Kaeul. Didn’t Chirpy return home safely thanks to you?”
Yu Jitae and Gyeoul appeared to be thinking the same thing. With a faint smile on her face, Kaeul gave a nod.
“Uun.”
Her lips were smiling but her golden eyes were calm.
“Maybe.”
After hearing that she couldn’t lead a life of being loved by others, back when there was not a single thing that she had actively done, Kaeul did something for the first time out of her volition.
‘There is a baby chicken’, she said to him.
– A baby chicken?
It was a wild baby chicken. She saw it often but it never opened its heart up to her.
– Hmm, I see
‘When you meet someone for the first time, how do you open their hearts up?’
He gave a genius reply in response.
– Try luring it in with food.
That was how she herself had opened her heart up to him.
“At the start, I found it very pitiful.”
Closing her eyes, she could still clearly see the small, dirty and starving flurry ball.
“That’s why I thought I had to raise it.”
Kaeul moved on her own volition for the first time. She provided the poor child with food and washed its dirty body.
“And what I found is that I, who can’t do anything properly, could finally do something.”
Raising, feeding, putting it to sleep, playing together, going out on a walk, saving it from being taken and healing it.
While doing all the above, she pondered on how to make a good farewell.
Kaeul was always thinking about the baby chicken and in the end, they did carry out a ‘good farewell’.
“Before we separated, I thought that would be enough but…”
As she looked after the baby chicken more and sacrificed even her own enjoyment, Kaeul thought everything she was doing was a pure sacrifice. She thought everything she did was for the baby chicken.
“But it wasn’t.
“I finally noticed it after he left.”
Kaeul was a person who gave food to the baby chicken.
Kaeul was a person that looked after the baby chicken when it was injured.
Kaeul prepared a place for it to sleep in, and decorated the room into a place that the baby chicken could comfortably relax in.
She tried her best so that the baby chicken would be happy even during the farewell.
“I didn’t do any of that because I was talented. Nor is it because it was the path for me… I’m, just…”
I was a guardian.
“…”
After the baby chicken disappeared, Kaeul was no longer the guardian of the baby chicken.
She realised that she had returned to her previous incapable self.
“It’s alright, Kaeul. Nn? You can meet a new child and form a good relationship.”
“Yeah, that’s fucking right. He’s not the only chicken in the world is he?”
Kaeul did not cry.
She simply whispered with a faint smile.
“No. I tried doing a lot of things, but you know how they all ended up. No matter what I do, it doesn’t go well.”
“Oi. So are you going to give up now?”
“I’m not giving up.”
“Then what?”
“I just want to take a little rest…”
Yeorum frowned.
“What do you mean, rest.”
“My mommy told me to look for a dream during the Amusement. Even though everything has been a mess, I at least learned something now so isn’t that enough?”
“No, you fuck. So what do you mean by resting.”
“If I make new relationships, there will come a time for separation again… I don’t want to bid another farewell. I don’t want to feel so powerless again.”
“…”
“I think I’ve learned everything I need to learn already. Not right now but one day I will become the guardian of another child. So… let me just sleep for a little.”
As the kids listened in silence, she continued.
“Just, 10 years…”
Kaeul dropped an outrageous comment.
“10 years? Are you sick in the head?” “Yu Kaeul!” “…!?”
Yeorum and Bom simultaneously raised their voices. Gyeoul also startledly clenched onto Kaeul’s sleeves.
Adult dragons tended to sleep for centuries but no dragon slept during their Amusement. Young dragons had to earn good experiences and memories and the first Amusement was the most important of them all. Wasting 10 years of that time meant in other words…
That she would be giving up on this Amusement.
Surprised by the shouts of her unnis, Kaeul widened her eyes. However, she was firm with her words.
“Why are you so surprised? I, I tried my best as well.”
“Oi. Stop talking crap.”
“But, I just can’t do anything properly so what can I do?”
“Stop! Do you not think about anyone around you? How can you give up so easily? Have you tried to the brink of death?”
Yeorum stood up, held Kaeul by the collar and pulled her towards her, seeming extremely frustrated.
Kaeul did not retaliate but instead, she looked directly back at Yeorum with her wavering gaze.
“Unni. I’m not an idiot. I’m not that stupid you know…”
Soon, her eyes turned red.
“I know. I know everything. I know how hard Bom-unni was trying to help me. I know you take care of me, Yeorum-unni, and I know how much ahjussi is worried whenever I cause problems. My mum said it too, that I had a weak mentality. So I knew it ever since I was very young.”
Yeorum looked like she could slap her any time so Yu Jitae walked up and grabbed her arm. Releasing her grip, Yeorum turned and glared at Yu Jitae.
Meanwhile, Bom held onto Kaeul’s arm and said, “Kaeul. Let’s calm down first. Okay?”
“Unni. I’m sorry. You taught me how to use magic so much, but I couldn’t learn them properly.”
“It’s fine. It’s fine. Okay?”
“I know you were trying really hard to teach me. But I couldn’t learn it. It’s because I’m stupid.”
Tears budded under her eyes. Bom hurriedly held her by the hands and received Kaeul’s emotions.
“Kaeul.”
“It’s all because of me. I don’t like worrying everyone, and I’m sorry for not returning anything despite being helped all the time. So…”
“Kaeul. You can stop for now. Let’s calm down.”
But Kaeul did not stop.
“I’m tired. I’m useless, stupid and my willpower is so weak that I just can’t endure it anymore…”
She had never shown it on the outside before, because she knew that expressing it would burden other people even more.
However, she couldn’t help but say it now.
“It would have been so much better if I was more stupid… so stupid to the point that I can’t even think about such things. I’m only half stupid so I can’t use anything I learn and I cause trouble to everyone all the time. That’s just how I am, so what can I do…”
Kaeul who had identified her position by looking at the baby chicken, this time apprehended her identity by looking at the dragons.
“I’m not as clever as Bom-unni, as strong-minded as Yeorum-unni or as mentally strong as Gyeoul. I’m, just a pathetic kid…”
Wiping her endlessly flowing tears, Kaeul came to a conclusion about her own self.
“Just a kid that can’t do anything…”
Only her weeping sound could be heard in the living room.
“So please let me sleep at least…”
Kaeul said with a choking voice.
“Thank you for everything until now…”
***
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Kaeul went into her room. Immediately after that, Yeorum turned towards Yu Jitae and grabbed him by his collar.
“Why are you silent, huh?”
“…”
“I’m asking you. Why, why the fuck aren’t you saying anything.”
“…”
“You can tell her something can’t you. I don’t know shit so I can’t give her any advice, but you’re different! You always gave me advice when I was suffering!”
Yu Jitae didn’t reply.
“So why are you so silent!”
Gyeoul was crying after receiving Kaeul’s emotions with Bom consoling her from nearby.
“…”
Yu Jitae wasn’t in a good mood.
Whose fault was it that Kaeul’s heart had crumbled to such an extent?
He could give out excuses. It was because of the previous iteration’s Kaeul. It was because he saw the death of BY.
But regardless of what excuse he were to give,
The one that made Kaeul powerless in the ‘7th iteration’,
Was none other than himself.
“Yeorum. Stop. It’s not ahjussi’s fault that this happened…”
“This is so freaking frustrating! Why’s that bitch so weak-minded? Why? And what the fuck am I supposed to do?”
Kwang–. After kicking a chair with her foot, Yeorum dashed out of Unit 301. Bom also gazed at Yu Jitae with a gloomy gaze before hugging Gyeoul and following after Yeorum.
“I will, go buy chocolates, macarons and stuff…”
She said while leaving the house.
“I don’t know if Kaeul would like them or not, but I’ll try something at least. So please do something as well ahjussi…”
*
After the front entrance closed, Yu Jitae stood in front of Kaeul’s room in thought.
If there really was an omnipotent, omniscient and wise existence, that being might know how to put a mentally unstable girl in front of the media and the public while not hurting her in the slightest.
However, he could not do such a thing.
“…”
But at the very least, he had been expecting something like this to happen and the fact that Kaeul decided to ‘sleep’ instead of killing herself was in fact a statement to the achievement of his initial goal.
So everything that will happen henceforth will be an impulsive act done on a whim.
“…”
Yu Jitae knocked on the door but she didn’t reply.
Opening the door, he walked into the room. The child lying down on the bed had her eyes closed but wasn’t sleeping yet.
He walked up and sat next to the bed. Then, he caressed her golden hair the way the child liked, following the line down the forehead.
“…”
Taking a small bracelet out of the dimensional storage, he put it around the child’s wrist. Although Kaeul flinched a little, she did not resist.
After putting the bracelet on, he quietly walked out of the room.
“…”
Yu Jitae had a plan.
A plan that he had been preparing for for almost 3 years ever since the first time he saw the baby chicken; ever since he realised that it was a chicken from the alternate dimension, ‘Anum’.
A plan delicately prepared all for this moment.
He had such a plan in mind.
***
After Yu Jitae walked out of the room, Kaeul opened her eyes. A myriad of complex emotions and a sense of emptiness flooded her.
She had extracted all the words that she had been suppressing inside. Although it felt better, it still hurt her heart. In the end, being honest about her thoughts like this was something that pained everyone.
It was a fitting last moment for an incompetent and whinging kid like herself, who couldn’t do anything properly. Although this wouldn’t be an eternal farewell, it was still a type of farewell and something that can’t be called a good farewell by any means.
She was pathetic until the very end.
“…”
However, at least this was the end.
This is fine.
Everything, was now over…
Her golden eyes shining under the moonlight slowly came to a close.
.
.
.
.
.
.
That was when it suddenly struck her.
Buzz—
A foreign emotion seeped into her head and her eyes slowly opened back up.
Her senses – the crisis perceiving ability of the gold race alerted her of the incoming hazard. It wasn’t something that was happening around her and the hazard was very far away. This was mana that had originated from the [Reverse Scale] that she had attached to the baby chicken’s ankle.
The size of the risk was immensely huge…
As if possessed, Kaeul raised her body. She then hurriedly opened the curtain and added a ridiculously enormous amount of mana into her eyes.
Kaeul’s two eyes were staring outside the window but her vision was going beyond the horizon. The dimensional gate located at the basement of the restricted area was almost gone but hadn’t fully dissipated yet.
“Ah, ah… uhh…”
Startled, she hastily opened the door and jumped out to the living room. But for some reason, neither Yu Jitae nor the protector were inside the living room.
She touched the watch and scanned through the contacts with her frantically trembling fingers.
“Uhh, umm. What should…”
Kaeul always looked for Yu Jitae in times like this but Yu Jitae did not pick up the call.
“Why, why, why isn’t he…”
Her head turned blank as if it had been struck by a hammer and time felt as if it was stretching like a cheese stick.
Her wavering gaze headed outside the window.
By the time she came to herself.
Kaeul was jumping out the window.