Gyeoul’s eyes sparkled from intense excitement.
He did not know why she seemed so happy. In any case, Yu Jitae decided to move some noodles into the smaller bowl. He lifted up the yellow noodles in one go as the smoke followed from beneath. Then, he placed the noodles into her bowl before pouring a bit of soup with it.
Gyeoul raised the noodles with her spork and blew on the noodles. It wouldn’t be hot even if she ate it as is, but she was copying what her unnis used to do.
After biting on some of the noodles, she started slurping the noodles in. However, the noodles were long and her suction power was meagre, and it took ages before she finally succeeded in sucking all the noodles in. Her two cheeks bulged out.
But, it was delicious…!
Gyeoul started diligently slurping the noodles in. It was slightly salty and warm, and it tasted very nice. She then noticed Yu Jitae drinking the soup, and after staring at his posture for a long time, she also raised her bowl and carefully took a sip of the soup.
“…”
It felt like something warm was pervading her body. Her stomach felt warm, and so did her chest. She could see more of her breath with a warmer inside, and seemed intrigued by it.
They had boiled three packs of instant noodles, but it had all disappeared. Looking at her now-empty small bowl, she appeared regretful, and after turning to the empty pot, she seemed disheartened.
“Have you finished eating.”
“…”
“Let’s clean up.”
She appeared hesitant.
When Yu Jitae grabbed onto Gyeoul’s bowl, she resisted with her two tiny hands, but it soon slipped out of her weak grasp. But she still appeared hesitant so Yu Jitae stared directly at her face.
“Why.”
“…”
“Is there something you need?”
“…More.”
“More?”
She extended her hands forward.
“…More please.”
With no other choice, he boiled more noodles. He had a lot of spare, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
But no matter what, he hadn’t been expecting her to eat 25 packs.
She asked for more straight after finishing one batch. Since this was her first time being like this, Yu Jitae did whatever she asked for and thus boiled noodles six times and 25 packs of noodles disappeared. It was as expected of a dragon, but he didn’t think it would be this much.
Gyeoul lay down on the ground with a swollen stomach. The child that giggled, “Hihi” after having tasty food was long gone, and she seemed to be in slight pain.
“Are you alright?”
Shake, shake…
She overate.
Burp.
Gyeoul burped unconsciously and glanced at Yu Jitae with an awkward smile. He pretended to have missed it.
Night arrived in an instant. The inside of the tent was darker – there was a crescent moon hanging on the sky but the light it gave off wasn’t intense, and they could thus see more stars.
He was going to spend the night today with Gyeoul.
“…”
Having finished digesting all the food, Gyeoul was wearing a relaxed expression. She was lying down next to Yu Jitae, while touching his hair.
Recently, she would often do that, and although he didn’t know why, Gyeoul showed interest in Yu Jitae’s belongings. Things like socks, ties, wallets and hair.
He had absolutely no idea why she was doing that. Why was she trying to pull his socks out every time…
“…”
Today was the same. Gyeoul placed her hand on his hair and carefully caressed it while sneakily trying to pull a strand out. However, his hair remained strong, and Gyeoul lacked power compared to the blessings covering the Regressor’s body.
“What now.”
“…”
“I gave you one last time.”
He had given her a strand of his hair before because she had been doing the same thing. That day, she was happy all day and wandered around with his hair in hand.
“…”
She hesitated.
“You lost it.”
“…!”
Shake, shake.
Immediately, she shook her head in a fluster but her expression gave it away.
After taking yet another strand of his hair out, he passed it over to her, who received it with sparkling eyes as if it was a treasure.
“If you lose it after a few days again, I won’t give it to you anymore.”
“…!”
“Do you understand?”
Nod nod.
Startled, Gyeoul tightly gripped onto Yu Jitae’s hair. She did not loosen her grip even after falling asleep.
*
It didn’t take a long time for her to fall asleep. It was most likely a tiring day for her, and she dozed off while snoring with her small nose. Since both her head and nose were small, it was a quiet snore.
Quietly, the Regressor stared at the sleeping child.
His head was muddled with thoughts.
If everything was the same in this iteration, it should be tonight.
[Revelation]
An event that leads a blue dragon’s life forward, should now begin.
Dragons each seeked for the meaning of their life through their Amusements. The green race would stay holed up in their room and become artists, or craftsmen. Gold dragons cohabited with others as their guardian deity while the red race enjoyed fights and battles…
Despite all that, the blue race did not have one predetermined direction for their future.
After around 80 days since their birth, they would receive a revelation from the previous ‘Lord’. To be exact, it was the Blue Dragon Lord’s will that was carried down in their blood, that gave an assignment to the hatchlings of their race.
And for blue dragons, it was an assignment that continued on for their entire life. It was very important, and it could not be opposed.
Therefore, the Regressor wasn’t in a good mood.
In the fifth and the sixth iterations, the Blue Dragon became unhappy straight after receiving its revelation. Until then, the child merely sat down in the corner of the labyrinth, watching him, but after receiving a revelation, the dragon continued asking him to let itself out.
-…Let me go out please.
Yu Jitae back then had rejected it.
-…You will need me.
And had ignored it.
Every time, the Blue Dragon quietly cried to itself under its breath. And towards the end of the sixth iteration, the dragon even ended up ending its own life.
The problem was that even Yu Jitae had no idea what that damned ‘revelation’ was about. Blue dragons weren’t allowed to talk about the details of their revelation.
– This child was not allowed to achieve the revelation she was given.
– She couldn’t get closer with someone.
– For forever…
The only clue he had were the words leaving the Green Dragon’s mouth like curses along with tears, towards the end.
Get closer? With who?
What was it, and why was it unable to be achieved forever?
He waited for the child’s revelation with a myriad of emotions.
The moon crossed the sky, as the barren wasteland had occasional growls of beasts.
Hwaaaak…!
Gyeoul’s body started lifting itself up into the air.
Her ancestor’s mana that was inside her blood, started creating a magic circle in the air. Surrounded by light emanating out of the rotating magic circle, Gyeoul slowly opened her eyes, and with her water-coloured eyes, she gazed at a distant place and listened to a revelation from someone.
***
– My dear daughter.
A voice urged Gyeoul to open her eyes. It was a familiar, yet somewhat distant voice.
Half-awake, she glanced around with unfocused eyes. Her surroundings resembled the inside of an ocean, and she could see a beautiful underwater scenery through the clear, blue water.
That was when a flash of bright light reached her from above the surface of the water.
– My young child. Just like how you know me, I know you too.
Uh? Grandpa…?
Gyeoul blinked her eyes. She hadn’t met her grandpa before, but it made her think that for some reason.
– You are living a happy life, aren’t you?
She nodded her head. It felt like ‘grandpa’ had been watching over her.
– There were many happy things in your life.
Once again, she nodded with a bright expression.
– When were you the most happy?
…When I sledded.
The voice laughed heartily at her response.
– You are spending an Amusement more enjoyable than anyone else, and there is someone who’s truly wishing for your happiness. I also feel the happiness you feel in your heart and am glad.
Really?
Gyeoul’s eyes brightened up, as a faint smile appeared on her face.
– Do you also wish for his happiness?
She nodded her head. She hadn’t thought about it before, but the answer came instinctively.
It was then.
The ocean rose up unstably, as the water waved and roared. Tornados started soaring up to the sky, before crashing into another and splashing around.
Within all that came the grandpa’s voice.
It was slightly more stern and serious.
– To do that, there is something you must do.
Although startled, Gyeoul gave a nod.
– From now, you need to protect your precious ones with your own hands.
Protect? Me?
– You are young and powerless. You might not know what to do, nor how.
The light on the other side of the roaring waves started flickering with more intensity.
– Even then, you must prepare. Realise what is precious to you, and ponder on how you could protect it.
– Before long, a long night will come for sure.
– It will be very dark. With nothing visible, someone would inevitably fall. Merely standing up with those injured legs will be difficult and they therefore might not even be able to stand up properly.
Gyeoul widened her eyes into circles.
– When that time comes, my child, do whatever you can.
– And protect what you must.
Within the swirling tornado,
– If everything goes well, in a distant future, ask him to go sledding once again. Feel the flakes of snow together and share a warm soup.
‘Grandpa’ once again beseeched Gyeoul.
– If you succeed in protecting it, that day will come for sure.
His last words echoed as if she was in a cave and remained in her ears.
Slowly, the light reflecting onto the water distanced itself.
Left alone, Gyeoul closed her eyes.
The baby dragon was too young for it to fully understand what that was about. She did not know what night was referring to, nor what he meant by falling down.
However, there was one thing she understood.
Protect.
One word etched itself clearly onto her brain, and Gyeoul repeated it endlessly in her head.
***
The morning broke the day after.
Unlike his worries the previous night, Gyeoul did not appear downhearted or sad.
However, she was a little bit weird.
“…!”
With a strange concentrated look of resolution in her eyes, she glared at Yu Jitae.
“…!”
What’s with that resolve in your eyes.
Seeing her sharp gaze, it made him think of a sloppy new recruit but fortunately, it didn’t give off a negative feeling. In the previous iterations, she had cried for several days and nights straight after waking up from her revelation.
But when she tried to pull his socks out with that resolved expression, he wondered what had happened with the child.
Yu Jitae pulled his leg away, which Gyeoul followed with a regretful, yet sharp glare.
“What’s wrong with you.”
“…”
“Is there something you want to say?”
Shake, shake.
“Then why are you doing this.”
“…”
“Your eyes are like an eagle’s.”
“…?”
Taking out a hand mirror from his tackle bag, he passed it onto Gyeoul. She stared at her reflection inside the mirror with curiosity and her eyes returned to normal for a split second, but after turning towards Yu Jitae, they changed into a glare yet again.
…Was the revelation about glaring at me? While thinking that, the Regressor laid his hand on her head.
After that, Gyeoul was a bit strange.
On the way down from the mountain, a large deer appeared out of nowhere. If they ignored it and continued climbing down, the deer would have ignored them as well, but Gyeoul stepped in front of Yu Jitae and glared at it.
The deer glared back at her, and its gaze seemed to be looking down on the tiny child.
A staring contest thus began.
– Bleeat…
The deer let out an intimidating grunt.
“…Aauh.”
That was when Gyeoul fought back the deer with a strange voice.
She was a child but at the same time was a dragon. After feeling an unknown sense of terror that came crashing down, the deer ran off to the opposite direction. Gyeoul then looked back at Yu Jitae with relief and gave him a nod.
What, why. What’s that nod for.
No matter where they went, she walked in front of Yu Jitae and appeared to be vigilant about their surroundings. She moved as if she was a bodyguard.
The Regressor was slightly dumbfounded.
However, the child’s strange course of action did not last for that long. She went back to normal after a few days and reached her hand out and requested for Yu Jitae’s hand. Thinking back, even when she was acting like a bodyguard, she had been throwing a few glances behind with regret.
At the same time, it felt like she became a bit more mature. She had always gone looking for the teddy bears and a bottle of water that was taken from the Lake of Life when she returned to the dormitory, but ever since that day, that became increasingly less.
– She couldn’t get closer with someone.
– For forever…
Reflecting on the words that had been shared by the previous iteration’s Green Dragon, it sounded as if there was a person whom Gyeoul had to be closer with.
If the child happened to get closer with someone, he had to help them get even closer while not staying on guard too much.
He didn’t know who it was, and he did not exactly know what the revelation was about, but it seemed to have been positive. Thus, the Regressor decided to let it be.
At the very least, Gyeoul did not cry in this iteration.
“…”
She was watching him with a smile.
“What are you freakin’ grinning at?”
That was when Yeorum’s words caused Gyeoul to glare.
“What’s wrong with her? Well, anyways, you are free right now right?”
“Yeah.”
“Should we talk, with just the two. of. us?”
Her words appeared to be targeting Gyeoul, who indeed reacted by standing between them in a fluster. Yeorum then gave her a sly smile.
“Back off kid. Now is the time for adults.”
While saying that, she naturally crossed her arm with Yu Jitae’s.
“Right, oppa♥?”
She acted cute with a nasal sound. Gyeoul freaked out and twitched her entire body while Yeorum gave an evil laugh like a witch.
*
But the moment they entered the room, she returned to her serious expression and with a hesitant voice, she opened her mouth.
“…You know, there is something I want to say.”