Calling Her Noona
Raylin sometimes charged in headfirst. “…I’m not letting go until you call me noona! It’s not even that hard a request, is it?!”
What the heck was she saying all of a sudden? She wanted me to call her noona…? Right now, in this situation? Out of nowhere?
“……”
At first, I was so dumbfounded that nothing came out. Naturally, the word “noona” didn’t either. Instead, a desperate groan nearly burst out. And for good reason……
—Sssssssst…!!
Damn it, right now I could feel the skin around my neck literally cooking in real time. No wonder they called her the Flame Dragon. The hellfire mapo-tang kiss was one thing, but this flaming headlock was on another level. Her entire body seemed naturally blazing hot. Just like yesterday, my whole body was heating up again. Scorching dragon blood had wrapped around my neck. An even hotter energy than yesterday was surging over me.
Noona or whatever—I had to survive first. To do that……
“N-Noona?! I’ll call you noona, so please let go of this first! I’m really going to get burned at this rate—!!”
Once I was in this kind of emergency, calling her noona was no longer an issue. The word just flew out on its own to stay alive. That was how urgent the situation was. Raylin’s arm was still locked around my neck, and my face was about to be swallowed by her burning chest. I couldn’t exactly get a burn on my face just because of the word “noona,” could I?
“H-Hohwah-?! H-Hee, Whitey, are you okay……!?”
Only after hearing my frantic voice did Raylin finally grasp the situation and release the scorching pressure.
“Cough, cough…!!”
Did she seriously forget I was human for a second? I almost turned into grilled neck meat. The skin around my neck felt like it had just gone through a hot compress. “W-What do I do—!! You didn’t actually get burned, right…?! I’m sorry! I’m really sorry……!!!”
Raylin pulled back after releasing the fiery hold and kept apologizing while checking my condition. She sounded extremely flustered, as if she hadn’t expected this at all.
More than that, my neck was burning. It felt like my skin had peeled from summer sunlight. This time, it really did feel like I’d been burned. I’d only wanted to bake cookies in the oven…… So why was it only my neck that got roasted?
‘My neck stings so much I can’t even move……’
I couldn’t look down at it myself, but the skin felt numb and sore. Somehow, it felt even hotter than yesterday when I was drunk on mapo-tang. Was she really that serious about the “noona” thing? Anyway, I needed first aid first. My neck was burning so badly I couldn’t move. Forget dessert for today—I had to head to the infirmary……
“Hohwahwah─?! H-Hee, Whitey? You… what did you just do……!?”
“……?”
My neck was already throbbing like crazy, and now Raylin was making a fuss right beside me. Was the injury worse than I thought?
“…Stop just standing there and help me—”
“Your wound is healing by itself?!”
“Huh……?”
“Look! The skin that was bright red and swollen just a moment ago is already going down—! Even the color is returning to normal!”
“What kind of nonsense is that… Huh, huh? W-What the—?”
Shockingly, Raylin was right. The pain suddenly vanished in an instant. It was as if I’d been given painkillers—everything felt fine all at once.
—Tap, tap……
Just in case, I carefully touched it with my hand, but all I felt was smooth skin. The burning and throbbing had disappeared, and it felt like fresh new skin had grown in—soft and smooth.
“…It really is. How is this possible???”
Come to think of it, I’d had a similar experience yesterday. The cheek that had swollen up from Raylin’s flame kiss had gone down much faster than expected, right? Even the kiss mark had faded overnight. I hadn’t thought much of it yesterday, but experiencing the same thing today sent a slight chill down my spine.
Could this be the effect of the pact? If I’d received even a portion of a dragon’s power, it wasn’t impossible. But then again, I still hadn’t received a Dragon Heart yet…… It was hard to make a clear judgment.
“W-Well, I don’t know how it happened…… but I’m really sorry—! Whitey, I went too far with the joke, didn’t I? Anyway, I’m so glad you’re not hurt, really…….”
“Raylin, miss?”
Raylin was fidgeting anxiously in front of me, worried she might have earned my dislike. An SSR-rank dragon was actually watching a mere human’s reaction and freezing up completely. Since she hadn’t done it out of malice, I didn’t hold any personal grudge against her. Whatever the reason, my body was fine now.
Still, if I just let this slide, the same thing might happen again next time. So it seemed necessary to put some kind of safety measure in place so she wouldn’t pull such rough pranks again. Just like a guard dog needs a muzzle and leash, I planned to install a similar safety device for Raylin. Given how playful she was, something like shock therapy(?) felt appropriate.
For starters, maybe I should just scare her a little as a warning?
“Haa, Raylin, miss…? I’m a little disappointed in you right now.”
“Huh? W-What do you mean, disappointed……?!”
“Yes. I thought you were a good person, but after yesterday and now today—”
“Hohwahwah-?! H-Hee, Whitey?! It wasn’t on purpose……! Really! Believe me—! I-I was wrong!”
—Thud!
Raylin suddenly dropped to her knees, cutting me off.
“Huh? Miss……?!”
All I did was lower my voice and say one thing, but Raylin’s reaction was intense. A dragon kneeling on both knees in front of a human? Was that even possible?
—Grab!
And that wasn’t all. Raylin tightly clutched both of my hands. Her red eyes were even glistening with tears.
“Sniff, hic—! I’m really sorry—! I was thoughtless. Sniff…! I never thought I’d put you in danger again……”
“Huh? What do you mean all of a sudden?”
“I must really be beyond saving, just like Seirin unni said……. Hic, even if you look like Shaolin, I still shouldn’t have done that to you……”
Raylin lowered her head, eyes brimming with tears.
‘A supreme being like a dragon kneeling and crying in front of a mere human…? And who the heck is Shaolin?’
I’d only tried to get back at her with a joke, but her reaction was way over the top, leaving me flustered. One thing was clear, though—I couldn’t just leave Raylin like this. If I left her alone, her emotions might boil over and she’d breathe fire or something.
“Miss?! Please stand up first—! Why are you suddenly kneeling?”
“Hah? But Whitey…? I did something wrong……”
“I’ll forgive you this one time. Whatever the reason, my body’s fine now anyway.”
“R-Really—?!”
“But…! Next time I really will get angry. And please explain why you keep calling me Whitey, and who Shaolin is.”
“You’ll really forgive me if I do that?!”
Tears stopped welling in Raylin’s eyes. Then her face quickly brightened, glowing like a freshly lit flame. Raylin was desperate not to be hated by me. She’d already forgotten how my body had survived the extreme heat and was now only focused on gauging my reaction and begging for forgiveness.
“Yes, but please keep the explanation short and simple. I’m kind of busy right now, you know.”
“Ah, got it…! I’ll explain everything……!”
*
“……So that’s what happened.”
“I see. So that’s the story……”
Raylin’s explanation was simpler than I expected, but it wasn’t light. It was the kind of story that made even me feel solemn.
This is what she told me.
Whitey was her younger brother’s nickname. His real name was Shaolin. Unfortunately, that Shaolin had gone far away to a place she could never meet him again……
According to Raylin, three hundred years ago, he was brutally murdered by demonic beasts. It happened near the place where they’d gone out together to prepare an entrance gift for the academy. At the time, Shaolin had been trying to prepare a dish using flowers as a gift……?
Ah, and I also learned about demonic beasts. They were byproducts of darkness and demonic energy created when the Demon Dragon Ditronos revived. Monsters born solely for slaughter, without intelligence or reason. Basically, the monsters that appear in each stage of Destiny Dragons.
Anyway, to cut to the conclusion—Shaolin, her younger brother, looked a lot like me, so she started calling me by his nickname, Whitey. She saw her brother’s image in me. That’s probably why she took such good care of me.
Hearing this story made my heart ache a little. Maybe it was because I’d been separated from my own family for quite a while? It didn’t feel like someone else’s story at all.
But thinking about it again, she still hadn’t explained why she felt guilty toward her younger brother. Earlier, she’d clearly said something about putting Shaolin in danger……
“You can lift your head now. I’m fine.”
Well, she probably had her own reasons she couldn’t tell me. If I brought that up, it wouldn’t end quickly anyway.
“R-Really…? You don’t hate me now……?”
“Hate you? Of course not. Just please refrain from such rough pranks from now on.”
“Y-Yeah—!! Got it! Thanks so much, Whitey…! I’m sorry! I’ll do better from now on!”
At my forgiveness, her face lit up again. True to her nature as a Flame Dragon, her personality was refreshingly straightforward. As if nothing had happened, she smiled brightly and gave me an eye-smile.
“That aside, miss? I never gave you permission to keep calling me Whitey—”
“By the way, Whitey? What were you making just now?! Dough?”
“……”
Raylin smoothly cut me off. She was only hovering around the dough, pretending she hadn’t heard me. Apparently, she couldn’t compromise on the nickname Whitey, at least.
“Tsk… I was making it in advance because I thought tomorrow wasn’t a day off.”
“Cookies? Or something like biscuits?”
“Yes. But now I think I should pause this and make something for Professor Benetric first.”
“Huh? Why the vice principal?”
“After yesterday’s incident, she said she was curious about my skills.”
“Ah, really? I almost got caught in the cafeteria yesterday too, didn’t I?”
When the topic naturally shifted, Raylin regained her energy. She looked genuinely happy just having a normal conversation with me.
“You’re right. They say it’s darkest under the lamp—the kitchen was actually the safest place.”
“That’s true too. The vice principal hates anywhere that looks even slightly unclean.”
“Hmm? Do you know Professor Benetric well, miss?”
“Well, I’ve been seeing her for nearly three hundred years, so I know her to some extent?”
“Oh, then would you help me?”
“Aang? Help with what?”
This was perfect timing. I’d been needing some direction anyway. If it was Raylin, who’d been watching the vice principal for three hundred years, she could probably help me.
—Grab!
I suddenly took both of her hands and made my request.
“I was actually worried about what to make, so I need your advice, miss.”
“Hohwah-?! H-Hee, Whitey? W-Why are you suddenly holding my hands……?”
Raylin’s hands tensed up. But she didn’t pull away. She just stiffened, fidgeting awkwardly.
It was funny. She’d been the one to grab my hands earlier. Just from holding hands, I could feel the heat. Her face had also turned as red as a flower. Even our joined hands were gradually heating up like molten iron. She was probably getting a rise in body temperature from embarrassment or intense emotions again.
Even so, I couldn’t let go of her hands. I had to seize this opportunity. Right now, there was no one else I could trust besides Raylin. So I had to drive the point home properly.
“Could you tell me Professor Benetric’s preferences, Raylin… noona?”
“W-W-W-W-W-What…? Whitey? What did you just say—?!”