The Amusement came to an end.
After returning to Askalifa, Gyeoul returned to the region of blue dragons.
There, Gyeoul came across other adults of the blue race. Her relatives asked her about the content of the ‘revelation’ she received, how she performed with the revelation and then explained the identity of the forefather she met.
They asked whether she successfully executed her mission or not.
“…I don’t know,” Gyeoul gave a curt reply.
“We’re not that curious either.” They were also curt.
After that, her family gave her a place to live in, and explained how she should live there as well as what she was supposed to do. “Protect your territory and prosper,” they said but it went through one ear and out the other, because Gyeoul had no plans of living here for a long time in the first place.
She was only thinking about quickly turning twenty and going back to meet Yu Jitae.
That was why the ‘adults of her race’ felt like very strange outsiders. Some of them introduced themselves as acquaintances of her parents and sent memories of her parents, but Gyeoul skimmed through them.
Oh so it’s them – that was the end of her impression because her true family was somewhere else.
“…Phew.”
When she was finally left alone after sending the adults of her race back, Gyeoul scanned across her nest. It was decorated nicely. Leaving the house, she could see her nest – the icy cave that had fancy ornaments. Staying here relaxed her heart and it was a relatively good place to stay in,
Until going back, that was.
5 years old.
Gyeoul was nearing the end of her 5th year in life.
“…Hello.”
She called the protectors that were closing their eyes in wait at the corner of the nest. Among them was also a wise goblin wearing a monocle. Gyeoul asked them to find a way to return to the alternate dimension of ‘Earth’, and told them to have a look at the Dimensional Cruise because there should be traces left behind on it.
“I understand. My lord.”
After sending them off, Gyeoul thought to herself.
She was 5 years old. There were still 15 years left until she turned 20.
15 years.
15 years…
For Gyeoul, 15 years was a very long time. The amount of time she had lived for was already fairly long, so how was she supposed to wait for another 15 years?
“…?”
Uing?
Wait…?
What if I find a way to go back to Earth before that?
Like, if I find that when I’m 7, do I have to intentionally wait for 13 years?
“…”
Gyeoul was confused.
She was obediently staying still because there was no way to return yet, but would she be able to make herself stay even after finding the way back?
Her eyes became wide open.
“…Dat’s no good.”
Gyeoul used her brain.
Fortunately, hatchlings generally shed their skin again when they were around 10 to 20 years old. That was when they entered puberty as a hatchling.
After shedding her skin, Gyeoul would look similar to how Yeorum and Kaeul looked when they first met Yu Jitae. She should look a bit more mature.
It should be fine to simply say she was twenty.
‘Kuhihi.’ While giggling, Gyeoul leaned on the soft bed.
Whatever the case, she wanted to quickly find a way to go back.
Thinking that, she decided to wait.
*
She waited for one day.
That day, Gyeoul stayed on the bed the whole day and went through her past memories. Thinking of Unit 301 where Yu Jitae would be at, she recalled the piggy bank and the large fish tank in her room.
It should be fine right? That fish tank was amazing…
At night, Gyeoul got up for dinner.
And upon realising that there was no kitchen, she laid back down on the bed.
*
Same thing happened the next morning. She got up to head to the kitchen as a habit and halted her feet.
There must be something wrong with the nest. How could there be no kitchen?
Thus, she ordered the protectors to make a kitchen. A kitchen fitting that of an Askalifan aristocrat was soon created but it looked very strange in Gyeoul’s eyes.
“…Where’s the microwave?”
“A micro, wave, is it?”
“…Ah.”
After some thought, Gyeoul decided to create the best kitchen she could make. She ordered them to make every single thing that was in her head.
That night, they managed to make something that although sloppy resembled the kitchen in Unit 301.
But she was so engrossed in making one that she belatedly realised the obvious.
“…”
What she needed wasn’t a kitchen.
Gyeoul spent the night sitting by herself on a chair.
*
She waited for a week.
From time to time, blue dragons came looking for her but she didn’t really like that either. Even though she could feel them treasuring her, Gyeoul couldn’t help but think of them as strangers.
“…Dis is no good.”
Muttering that to herself, Gyeoul stood up from the bed.
Although lying down on the bed and going through her memories was good, it was time to go outside and do something. Gyeoul was a hatchling and as a hatchling of the blue race, she was able to cross the boundaries of other dragon races by using [Revelation] as the excuse.
If someone said something to her, she could say, “…I’m here for my revelation.”
There was no Unit 301 now.
But if she talked with her unnis, wouldn’t that fill her empty heart a little? Thinking that, Gyeoul left her nest with a backpack to see her other sisters.
“I’m sorry, but my child is busy right now.”
However, she was forced to stop in front of Kaeul’s mother.
“…Why?”
A dragon as tall as the sky said while looking down at her.
“Her lesson as a guardian deity has begun. It is the most important part of education to us, and she will be ruling over a small village of gnomes now.”
“…Can I talk to her a little?”
“Sorry. I’ll contact you when the lesson is over.”
“…Okay.”
In the end, Gyeoul couldn’t meet Kaeul.
*
The next week, she wanted to meet Yeorum but this time, she was restricted by the adult blue dragons that were protecting the boundary connecting to the red race.
“Child. You cannot go any further than this.”
“…I have a friend there.”
“Ahh, so you’re Kunna’s daughter that recently went on an Amusement with a red dragon right? Even so, you can’t. Cross the border and those barbaric red dragons will attack you.”
“…Can I see her for a bit? …She’s precious to me.”
That was when another adult dragon bellowed at her.
“Girl. Stop saying nonsense and go back! How can anyone of the red race be precious! They are nothing but disgusting and nauseating pieces of trash!”
“Ey. Calm down.”
Gyeoul replied with a pout.
“…You don’t even know anything.”
“This brat? Go back right now. Unless you want a big scolding!”
After being told off, Gyeoul empty-handedly returned to her nest.
*
She wasn’t even able to go near Bom.
Going around everywhere, Gyeoul asked how to head to the territory of green dragons, but none of the adults replied to her.
She met all sorts of dragons during her search, and even met a male adult blue dragon who had married a green dragon in the past. However, even he didn’t tell her how to get to the green dragon’s territory.
“Oh yeah, by the way, things are not looking too good on that end right?”
Dejectedly she was walking back when someone opened their mouth.
“Did you hear that too? Seriously, I guess it was unavoidable.”
“Those lunatics. Staying quiet for 20,000 years was, I guess, fairly patient for them.”
Blankly standing there, Gyeoul widened her eyes.
Lunatics?
20,000 years?
Did something happen?
Gyeoul was lending a close ear when an adult who had just woken up from a long hibernation asked a question.
“What is this about?”
“You know, the quons.”
That name was something Gyeoul knew about.
[Quon] was the martial race that dragons detested. They were the monsters of Askalifa who used weapons and spells with six arms.
They were a race that could live for thousands of years, and there was a long history of strife between quons and dragons. Their hatred was mutual.
“Tch tch. They’re doing this because the old Lord is about to die soon.”
“That’s why we should have wiped them out with karl-gullakwas when we were cleaning up the ancient forest, so that those insects stop acting up. It’s all because of that. I heard a few of the green dragons were killed, right?”
Gyeoul felt her heart sink.
There was war happening in Bom’s territory!
“Nn? Why are you still here?”
One of the dragons asked Gyeoul who couldn’t help but ask with concern.
“…Is it dangerous? For the green dragons?”
“Very dangerous. It’s probably going to be the biggest war in the history of green dragons.”
“…”
“But the Dragon Lord is probably going to do something about it.”
On the way back, Gyeoul panted out of worry for Bom.
In the end, without being able to meet any of them, she had no choice but to wait by herself.
.
.
.
*
She waited for a month.
The protectors were unable to find the way back to Earth.
*
Gyeoul waited for three months.
The protectors were still unable to find the way back to Earth. One of them even told her that there was no record of such a thing happening in the history of blue dragons. Gyeoul couldn’t believe it.
“…Then?”
“I think you would have to see a black dragon, but I believe that would also be difficult. Not only are we on bad terms with them, they are also hard to find in Askalifa.”
“…Dat can’t be.”
Even after waiting for another six months, she could not find a solution.
*
A year went by.
Gyeoul could not find a way to return.
That was why she started looking for a method herself. No matter what cost and no matter who she had to meet, she searched for the method.
She needed to study in order to view the complicated records and understand them, so Gyeoul began learning magic.
*
However, the protectors were not wrong. After waiting for 3 years and earning enough knowledge, Gyeoul went through the library of blue dragons, the Akashic records, and the countless technique preservation devices including memory crystals, but could not find any information on the equipment required to return to Earth, or anything about their coordinates.
She didn’t even know where to begin.
She had to cross an ocean,
And yet the only things recorded down were a canoe and tiny paddles.
Even so, Gyeoul did not give up on studying.
*
5 years went by.
Gyeoul could not find anything.
*
7 years went by.
Gyeoul wanted to become an adult. She wanted to quickly be acknowledged as an adult by her race, and wanted to confidently gloss over it with Yu Jitae upon going back, that she was already twenty.
That desire affected her mana and her heart. Because mana was the manifestation of will, Gyeoul felt her heart ache all of a sudden.
Since she didn’t have parents, she had to alert the elders of her race but Gyeoul did not do so.
She simply went into the depths of the icy cave and closed the door.
It was her second time shedding skin.
“…”
It hurt just like before, and Gyeoul had to suffer from the pain by herself for a whole week.
Was it okay to hurt this much? Feeling her body crumbling down to pieces, Gyeoul panted for breath. Thinking of how it would become even more painful after a few hours frightened her tremendously.
“…”
Stuck in a crystal of ice, Gyeoul thought to herself.
She remembered the large fingers that she gripped onto when her body was in a lot of pain. She also recalled the slow shiritori she did with the owner of those fingers.
– …Gorilla.
– Anaconda.
– …Anaconda.
– I already did it. Anaconda.
– …Anaconda.
– …
– …Hihi.
She wanted to see him again.
*
15 years went by.
She turned twenty as she had promised.
But Gyeoul was unable to return home.
*
50 years went by.
The large planet was under a blizzard. In the world filled with cold hails and endlessly stacking piles of snow,
The blue-haired girl sitting on a large tree turned her gaze towards the sky.
Staring at the three moons in the sky, she heaved a small sigh.
Gyeoul still could not find the way to return to Earth.
*
200 years went by.
*
.
.
.
Usually dragons from 500 to 1,000 years old were treated as adults, so Gyeoul was considered a hatchling even though she had already lived for almost 300 years.
And every hatchling had to leave on at least two Amusements.
Unlike how other hatchlings tried to leave on as many Amusements as possible, Gyeoul did not want to leave and had been postponing it over and over again.
But after delaying it for centuries, she was at last visited by the chief of the blue dragon race who came and scolded her. Telling her to experience the world immediately, the chief ordered her to complete her second revelation.
Gyeoul ran her fingers through her long blue hair.
She did not need to experience the world. She didn’t get a second revelation.
Instead of saying that in return, she replied to the infuriated chief.
“Okay.”