The Forgotten News
The news I had forgotten — Chuup, smack…♡ The lips of a man and a woman overlapped. It was no ordinary kiss, but one meant to seal a pact. —Chyuup, chup, chuok♡ Normally, a single press of the lips followed by the transfer of a heart would complete the pact. But Raylin, who did not yet know how to materialize her Dragon Heart, kept pressing her lips against Breeder’s again and again.
Raylin could sense that the pact had already taken hold, yet she deliberately prolonged the kiss to satisfy her own desires. —Kkoooook…! As if that were not enough, she wrapped her arms around Breeder’s waist and began to move toward a more intimate stage. She wanted to raise her standing by sharing true affection with Breeder, just as Sofia had done…
‘I want to connect with Whitey from the bottom of my heart……!’
Just as Raylin spread her desire-filled dragon blood throughout her entire body, it happened.
—Kkiiiiiik…! Someone pushed open the door to the night-duty room without knocking.
""……?!""
At the sound of the hinges, Breeder and Raylin froze in place like thieves caught at the scene of a crime.
‘W-Who is it?!’
Breeder hurriedly pulled his lips away and turned toward the entrance, anxiety prickling down his spine. The mere presence of the intruder made his skin crawl, as though icy fingers were tightening around his heart. After all… if either Derke or Sofia discovered this scene, his life could very well be in danger. Moreover, Breeder was in no condition to control the jealousy of the dragons.
—Gulp…! Was this how a married man felt when caught cheating?
Dragon Pact has been established!
The bonded target will no longer be removed from the slot unless you perish.
Warning: Failing to uphold the contract will incur the dragon’s wrath. Proceed with caution.
‘What the—? At a time when my life is on the line, this is so tactless……?!’
Breeder’s gaze shifted toward the door, but countless system messages flooded his vision. Because of them, he could not immediately identify who had entered. Only a long, bony shadow stretching across the floor was faintly visible.
—Ssusssuk, suk…! Breeder quickly dismissed the system messages in his panic. Once the notifications finally cleared from his sight—
“Hohwawa-?! W-What…? What are you doing here at this hour? And without even knocking-?!”
Raylin, who had been facing Breeder, shouted in a flustered voice. She too was staring toward the entrance. Yet her tone sounded less surprised than outright angry. If the intruder had been Sofia or Derke, she would never have reacted this way.
“Huh? What the… You are……?”
Only after clearing his vision did Breeder mutter in disbelief, his expression showing that he now understood why Raylin had reacted so strongly. The one who had pushed open the door was none other than—
“Gogogo? Were you in the middle of absorbing sap at this hour……?”
The withered old tree trembled, its knothole eyes widening. Indeed, the one who had entered was Indrago.
“S-Sap……?”
The creature merely stared blankly, treating the kiss scene as “sap absorption.”
“Y-You startled me-! What do you think you’re doing, barging in without knocking?!”
“Gogo, I didn’t know the young lady was here. My apologies……”
Raylin bared her teeth and shouted, even exhaling a small burst of flame. She was expressing her fury through her breath. She was genuinely enraged—her carefully laid plans had been ruined in an instant. Instead of bubbles, flames of indignation poured from her mouth.
The pact itself had gone smoothly. But everything that was supposed to follow had gone awry. She had been so close to claiming Breeder for herself…! She did not want to lose to Derke…! If only this walking pile of firewood had not shown up…!
Raylin glared at Indrago while exhaling small tongues of fire, her eyes promising to reduce him to ashes at any moment.
“Gogogo…! Calm down……!”
“Do I look like I can calm down right now-?! Why of all times……!”
Still unable to materialize her Dragon Heart, Raylin had intended to physically unite with Breeder first. Even without the heart transfer, she believed she could at least secure the second-highest rank. As the vanguard of Sofia’s faction, she had planned to follow right behind her.
“Ahem, Indrago, sir…? What brings you here at this hour?”
“Yeah-!!! What are you doing here so late? If you came to make Whitey work overtime, I won’t let you off easy~?!”
Raylin rolled up her sleeves, backing Breeder’s question with her own threatening posture. She ground her sharp teeth in frustration over her ruined plan.
“Gogogo… It’s nothing much. I came because I have something to deliver……”
Indrago answered in a slightly subdued voice, sensing that he might truly become firewood if he made a wrong move.
“Something to deliver? To Whitey?”
“G-Go, that’s right……! I have something to deliver and news to share……!”
“Something to deliver to me, and news?”
“Correct. That is why I came.”
Indrago answered mechanically, maintaining his short, clipped speech even in front of the furious flame dragon.
“By the way, you know what? Your sentences feel even shorter today.”
“Gogogo…?”
When Raylin shot him a sharp glare, Indrago flinched and fell silent. Unable to change his speech pattern, he chose silence instead. Regardless, Raylin’s mood had already soured beyond repair. The veins bulging on her forehead showed no sign of disappearing. Already irritated by the ruined plan, she found the wooden servant’s constant “go” endings and defiant replies utterly infuriating. She wanted nothing more than to use him as kindling.
—Turbuk, turbuk…! Raylin approached Indrago with blazing red eyes.
“Gogogo…? Please calm down……?”
“Calm down~? Did you not hear what I just said?”
“……!”
Facing the flame dragon, Indrago trembled like a leaf in the wind. Merely meeting Raylin’s gaze made his wooden exterior feel as though it were burning.
“Why aren’t you answering? Did you already forget what I said?”
“…I-I remember you saying my speech was too short……”
“Haa-? Is it not short right now?”
“……”
Indrago could not change his speech pattern, even with his life hanging by a thread. It was a deeply ingrained racial trait, impossible to alter in an instant.
—Gulp…! Indrago swallowed dry sap inside his thick trunk, praying that Raylin would let the matter slide.
“…Haa, fine. I can’t show such an unsightly scene in front of Whitey.”
“Gogogot……?!”
“Hurry up and deliver whatever you came to say, then get out. Unless you want to become firewood.”
Raylin let out a deep sigh and resigned herself. She knew she was getting worked up over something trivial. She decided to stop here. Though her words were harsh, she had no real intention of burning Indrago. It was merely her fiery temperament flaring up for a moment.
‘I can’t show Whitey such an embarrassing sight. If he starts fearing me because of this, that would be a problem.’
Raylin simply wanted Indrago gone as quickly as possible. Once he left, there would still be plenty of time to carry out her original plan.
“I am grateful for the young lady’s mercy—”
“Skip the fake politeness……”
“…yo.”
“Haa? You wooden folk can actually speak formally?”
A voice cut into Raylin’s words. Indrago was desperately trying to use honorifics to survive.
“That is not the case…… yo. I-It is extremely difficult…… yoooo……”
Indrago had managed to force his speech into a more respectful tone out of fear of Raylin’s flames, though his voice trembled awkwardly.
“You should have done that from the start……. Haa, whatever! What did you come to deliver to Whitey? Say it quickly and leave.”
“Ah…! Breeder, please take this……!”
—Swoosh!
“Huh? What is this?”
Indrago extended a trembling branch-like arm toward Breeder. In his hand was a yellowed envelope.
“It is a letter addressed to you-!”
“Eh? A letter……?”
“That is correct!”
“Wait? This letter, could it be……?”
—Rustle…! Breeder accepted the envelope and examined it, then let out a surprised cry. The reason was clear: a familiar seal was stamped upon the sealing wax. The image of a dragon’s face formed by sharp straight lines.
‘Don’t tell me this is another……?’