Dragon's Heart and Bandit Insanity
“You’re finished.”
“It looks like you poured everything into that Breath.”
“Everyone, let’s make it easy.”
I turned my head.
*Thud! Thud! Thud! Crack! Crack!*
The sound of blades piercing and tearing through leather filled the air.
“Master…”
Haneun looked at me with surprise and worry.
“I can’t watch this.”
“Me neither. Shall we keep watching until the end?”
Haneun pointed at the blue horizon.
“You even have a girlish appearance.”
“… Huh?”
Haneun beside me smiled.
Girlish appearance?
Not at all. Watching the dragon shrivel up like a summer 180mm howitzer on a hot day made my legs naturally curl up.
“It’s not like that. Just… I remembered my lost puppy.”
“Lost…”
Haneun seemed to recall something. She pondered for a moment, then nodded with a smile.
“You’ll get it back soon. I’ll help you.”
“Eh? Yeah… thanks…”
What was she thinking? There must be some misunderstanding. But I didn’t feel like correcting it.
*Ding!*
“Oh.”
A notification chimed. It wasn’t the level-up alert.
**[GATE CLEARED!]**
**[Rewards will be issued.]**
“The gate is cleared?”
“Really? Is it?”
“Yeah.”
The blue sky of the gate peeled away. I quickly ordered Yeongwon to collect the skeletons.
*Ziiik! Squelch! Squelch!*
The space tore open. The skeletons lifted the dragon’s body and entered the gap.
“Why are you taking that?”
“Master. Even if it looks like this, it has enormous value!”
“Really? Then Yeongwon must have suggested it. There must be something useful…”
“Yeongwon…”
The hunter Haneun whispered Yeongwon’s name. Her voice sounded strangely melancholic.
“Why are you blushing again?”
“Ahh! No!!!”
After getting close, this guy was weird.
Haneun suddenly started talking when I looked at her like that.
“When I was a middle schooler, I awakened.”
“I know.”
“With my family’s help, I started climbing the tower with the soldiers.”
“That too, I know.”
“I’m South Korea’s first S-class. People started looking up to me.”
“The media especially loved hyping you up.”
“Yeah. Not the media, but the Hunter Association. Thanks to them, people around me started fearing me. Like seeing a great person.”
“Hmmm…”
The story was getting long. I wanted to run away.
“So I had no friends… and the days of ruling South Korea as the strongest hunter continued.”
“You don’t have friends either?”
“Yeah. When I approached to get closer, they treated me like I was awe-inspiring.”
“So what? Then I appeared. I was strong. It’s a story like that?”
“Exactly. I met my first opponent stronger than me. That was Yeongwon. And someone appeared who didn’t look up to me but saw me as a pitiful person who needed help.”
“Not pitiful enough…”
“I’ve been carrying the weight until now. National defense, South Korea’s S-class hunter, commander of the special unit Sky Guild.”
“I know. I get what you’re saying, so stop.”
“… Thank you.”
“Sigh. What kind of person is called the light of South Korea…”
It wasn’t pitiful, it was a bit sad. After spending days together, she was exactly like a twenty-year-old girl.
We silently watched the collapsing gate.
Then suddenly, we were transported to the gate entrance.
No, the place that was the entrance was now gone.
“It was a troublesome gate, but it was solved so easily…”
“That’s me.”
“You only played with me. The skeleton guys suffered.”
“Oh, you were quite strong.”
I squished the bread dough. Now I didn’t get surprised anymore.
“Are you going back now?”
“Yeah. I have to prepare for the tower climb while resting…”
“Can I go play?”
“Come play when you’re bored. But are you going to get bored? You’re still fighting the Nokrim.”
“Ah… that…”
Haneun looked around. Then she leaned close to my ear and whispered.
“It seems a war is going to break out.”
“What?”
I was surprised. Haneun said it calmly, but it wasn’t something light.
“The Nokrim declared independence from South Korea.”
“Those crazy bastards.”
“Exactly! The military units on the eastern front are surrounding the Nokrim right now.”
“Why are they doing that? It’s too harsh.”
“There must be something. That crazy bastard Nokrim.”
“Right. You fought Okrim and lost?”
“Ha! No way? If he wanted to save the hostages, he told me not to use the barrier and fought without it. I didn’t lose, I drew?”
“Whoa… you drew?”
“Of course! If I lost, I could have escaped with the hostages without a scratch!”
“What? Okrim said he won?”
“The fight didn’t end, so we negotiated. Instead of saying I lost, I asked to release the hostages.”
“Oh ho.”
“The association judged the Nokrim as enemies in a meeting with the Ministry of National Defense.”
“Really… if we had the power to fight among ourselves, we could push the front a bit.”
“Exactly.”
“…”
“…”
A moment of silence.
“Yeah, I get it. Still, be careful… if anything happens, contact me.”
“Still… is that okay? Can I contact you whenever?”
“Yeah. Just think of me as a friend.”
“Friend…?”
“Yeah. We’re the same age, let’s be friends.”
“Friend…!”
“But since I’m older, call me oppa.”
“…”
No answer.
“Oppa is weird, right?”
“Probably…”
“But I want to hear it, so call me oppa.”
“No… calling a cute girl oppa is weird…”
“If you don’t like it, don’t be friends.”
“Jiha oppa!!!”
“Yeah. Oppa is going.”
“Yes, oppa.”
“Call me casually.”
“Yes! Okay, oppa!”
*Pfft.* I smiled and waved.
‘Yeongwon.’
I called out to Yeongwon in my mind. The space split open.
‘What’s this? I feel a sharp gaze…’
I walked through the gap and returned home.
Yeongwon’s figure appeared. Her lips were pouted.
“Hubby!!! My husband!!!!”
“!!!”
I said that and spread my arms wide. Yeongwon flew and hugged me.
“Master…”
“Yeongwon! I missed you!”
Ha… This violent tenderness. The fatigue from tent living melted like snow.
Suddenly Yeongwon’s eyes softened.
“You’ve worked hard, Master…”
“Ueng…”
I petted her head.
After a short healing time, I asked the question I’d been curious about.
“Yeongwon. Why did you take the dragon corpse?”
“Master, the dragon is a dragon.”
“Ha… I didn’t think it was that.”
“…”
I looked into Yeongwon’s eyes.
What I thought… right?
“Ancient Dragon?”
“Most of the dragon’s body is made of muscle and cartilage. The only proper bones are the teeth.”
“Oh my god.”
“But it has a heart.”
“Heart…? So I can eat a skewer of entrails?”
“Huhu, no.”
Yeongwon took my hand and led me. I followed obediently.
The portal connecting to Grandfather’s room led straight into Necropolis.
“This is the corpse processing workshop of Necropolis.”
“It’s gruesome.”
The skeletons were dissecting the dragon’s body. More than half was already gone.
“This is the dragon’s tooth. It can chew through rocks. The dragon’s tooth is tougher than other dragons’ bones.”
“Oh ho.”
“This is the dragon’s skin. Unfortunately, the dragon’s skin is soft. It’s not particularly useful.”
“It looks like the leftover hide from catching a whale.”
“…”
“This is the dragon’s blood and flesh. I stored it, thinking it might be useful as alchemy material later.”
“Good. I’ll buy you a fridge.”
“Thank you! And here is the dragon’s heart. Dragon Heart.”
“Oh…”
In the place Yeongwon pointed, a kidney the size of my head hung.
“What am I supposed to do with this?”
“Master, dragon hearts are different from animal hearts. Animal hearts circulate blood, but dragon hearts have an extra function.”
“Ueng… my head hurts…”
“Dragon hearts spew mana.”
“Uuueng… so?”
“Master’s skill… using Skeleton Armament, you can make the dragon heart an item. My guess is it will have mana recovery as an option.”
“…… Really?”
*Smirk.* Yeongwon smiled. Then she called two working skeletons.
“Listen up.”
The skeletons each handed me a shield and a spear.
I nodded and picked up the shield.
“It’s… it’s heavy!!!”
*Jittery jittery…*
Is this even possible? No matter how strong I was, it wasn’t like that.
Unlike those bone-only things, I had muscles and skin.
I quickly handed the shield to a skeleton. After a short rest, I picked up the spear the skeleton beside me was holding.
“This… this is pretty good!!!”
*Jittery…*
“Master. Want to put the bone spear in the inventory?”
“Ueng!!!”
I quickly put the spear in the inventory.
“Oh?”
It was possible to store. More than that, item description!
====================
**[Bone Spear (C)]**
A sharp spear made of bone.
====================
“So the Skeleton Armament skill is C-rank, and the item is C-rank?”
“It seems so.”
“Then the item made from the dragon’s entrails would be C-rank too.”
“It won’t be. Probably because there’s a grade for material items. The bone spear and shield created value from nothing.”
“Oh ho… By the way, what else is in the inventory?”
I realized I hadn’t checked the rewards from the gate clear.
==================
**[INVENTORY]**
Orc Warrior’s Mana Stone (A)
Goblin General’s Club (C)
Dragon’s Mana Stone (S)
Gate Core (S)
Dragon’s Poop (F)
==================
“Fuck, why poop?”
“Ma… Master!!!”
Yeongwon, who was checking the inventory with me, jumped.
“Why?”
“Could you… perhaps grant me the dragon’s mana stone and gate core?”
“Why? If you say it like that, I’ll give them.”
*Flick.* I gave a hint.
“Th… then…”
“Please say it sexily.”
“Understood…”
*Swoosh.* Yeongwon’s clothes disappeared.
“Already approved!!!”
“!!!”
“Well, I have to finish what I was going to do anyway?”
“Uuu…”
Yeongwon, who had her head down for a moment. But she immediately raised it. Her eyes were fierce.
“Is our love like this…? ♪”
“!!!”
“Pa-ba ba ba ba ba ba bam!”
Yeongwon played the high-speed terminal BGM with her mouth. She danced to the song.
Was she remembering the women I was watching with “Huhu”?
I shed tears of emotion. Haneun’s howitzer, are you crying too?
“Approved… approved!”
I quickly handed the mana stone and core from the inventory.
“But what do I do with that?”
“Huhu.”
Yeongwon smiled happily at my question.
“Job creation for the skeletons! Providing a columbarium for souls wandering without homes!”
“Eh?”
Election time? Yeongwon watching TV suddenly looked strange.
“The city good for dying! Necropolis!”
“What’s the point…?”
“Hmm, hmm. Using the gate core, we can install professional facilities in Necropolis. And using the dragon’s mana stone, we can summon my subordinates.”
“Ueng…”
“One-line summary! We can make a blacksmith and laboratory in Necropolis! Forge and alchemist can be summoned!”
“Ooh!!!”
“Master’s precious mana! I will protect it! Dragon’s heart, leave it to me!”
*Clap clap clap!*
The applause I always received. Now I return it.
“Proceed!!!”