Chapter 114
Chapter 114
The Reverse Butterfly Dream - 2
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The warm sunlight shining on her face.
The cozy blanket wrapping her body.
The fragrant scent of the pillow tickling her nose.
The chirping of birds, as if singing a song.
When all three elements, which could be called the textbook definition of a morning awakening, were in place, and a languid yet refreshed mind and body were added, it became a perfect morning with nothing more to wish for.
“Uung….”
In the midst of that perfect morning, Renia opened her eyes with a light hum.
Immediately after, realizing it was a morning that couldn't be perfect, she looked around the ceiling with her eyes wide open.
A familiar yet unfamiliar air and atmosphere decorated the room.
“…What… is this?”
It was definitely an unfamiliar space, but strangely, it evoked a peculiar nostalgia, as if she had returned to her hometown.
Renia sat up, rubbing her eyes.
“Kyak.”
Then, realizing she was in her underwear, she wrapped herself in the blanket with a scream.
“Wh-what is this. What on earth. A dream… is it?”
However, the sensations were too vivid to be a dream.
The feel of the blanket, the chirping of birds settling in her ears, the sunlight enveloping her face, and even the bustling liveliness of the morning.
Everything was real, and rather, it felt like she had just woken up from a long dream and returned to reality.
Clatter, tap tap!
Then, she heard the sound of cooking from beyond the door.
‘Wh-who is it? Is it Tae-jin?’
She tried to summon her mana in case of an unforeseen situation, but strangely, she couldn't manage her mana.
To be precise, she couldn't feel the flow of mana itself.
She was suddenly scared, but it didn't seem like a dangerous situation, so she didn't look for a weapon.
If it had been dangerous, wouldn't something have happened already?
And rather, it was a situation far from danger.
Because it was a place that felt strangely cozy, even if it was unfamiliar and strange.
Getting out of bed, Renia quickly put on the clothes hanging on the clothes rack.
Naturally, she couldn't use Polymorph.
But…
‘Huh??’
Renia, who was putting on a t-shirt, touched the top of her head with surprised eyes.
‘Wh-what is this. Why aren’t they here?’
There were no horns.
Where her two goat horns should have been, there was only hair.
There was definitely no flow of mana felt, and since mana management was impossible, they hadn't disappeared through Polymorph.
Renia fumbled at her backside with a bewildered expression.
‘Huh? There’s no tail either?’
The tail that should be swaying was also gone.
What on earth was going on?
Whoosh!
Renia, who ran straight to the full-length mirror installed across from the bed, scanned her reflection in the mirror.
‘M-my eyes are different too.’
Her heart-shaped pupils were shaped into perfect spheres.
Her other features were definitely the same, but all her succubus characteristics had disappeared.
With questions that were not being resolved, but rather multiplying, Renia grabbed the doorknob.
The sound from outside would surely put an end to the multiplying questions.
It was scary, but if you do nothing, you can't know anything.
Creak~
Through the carefully opened crack in the door, a delicious smell wafted in.
And…
“Ah.”
Renia, who faced the source of the smell, let out a soft exclamation.
A kimchi jjigae bubbling on a pure white dining table. Seven side dishes spread out as if escorting it.
Two pairs of neatly placed spoons and chopsticks, and one pair of spoon and fork.
The two pairs were for adults, and the one pair consisted of a small spoon and fork.
And…
“….”
In front of that adorable pair of utensils, she could see a baby sitting in a high chair with a belt on, and Tae-jin fastening that belt.
“Pa! Papa!”
The baby babbled, pointing at the food.
Tae-jin, looking at the baby with endlessly loving eyes.
“Oh my, our princess Han Chae-rin~ Were you hungry~? Let’s wait just a little bit for Mommy to wake up so we can eat together~ Okay?”
What she had so longed for.
What she had earnestly wished for.
What she had missed so much despite never having experienced it.
“…Mommy?”
The story of a family was unfolding.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
‘Did I return…?’
Renia, who was sitting blankly at the dining table, thought to herself.
That she had fulfilled her duty as a summon, and had succeeded in a complete transfer from Drogfia to Earth.
She had no memory of the process, and she couldn't understand why her succubus characteristics had disappeared, but.
“Ma! Mama!”
Looking at the baby sitting across from her, calling her with puffy cheeks, all her disbelief and questions melted away.
“What’s wrong? You don’t look well. Are you sick somewhere?”
And Tae-jin’s hand, which checked her forehead with a worried expression, was so warm that the multiplying questions gradually stabilized.
“Hmm, you don’t seem to have a fever.”
“N-no. I’m just a little… dazed.”
It must be a fantasy.
It must be a dream.
Even as she repeated this to herself, the addiction brought on by the sickening sweetness began to paralyze her reason.
She was happy.
Just the existence of this moment made her so happy.
This moment, where she had succeeded in returning to Earth, had given birth to the child of the person she loved, and was living a happy, harmonious daily life.
It was a moment anyone would dream of, and a moment no one could refuse.
“Looks like your mommy is still not fully awake. Right? Our daughter?”
“Kkyareureu!”
When Tae-jin tickled his daughter’s cheek, a small and cute laugh burst out.
Uncertain, no.
The sweetness offered by the immediate fantasy made her want to abandon the expectations of an uncertain future with a slim possibility.
Renia looked at the baby.
The baby, who resembled Tae-jin’s black hair and her own purple pupils, was undeniably ‘our daughter’.
“You’re acting strange today, my dear~? Did you have a nightmare?”
Renia, who was sitting blankly, looked at Tae-jin at the word ‘nightmare’.
A nightmare….
She didn't know which side to call a nightmare yet, but one thing was certain.
The mountain to be climbed to call the baby, who was laughing and eating baby food with her hands, and Tae-jin, who was looking at the baby with a pleased smile, a ‘nightmare’ was too high.
Therefore,
“Hehe, no. I’m just… so happy.”
Renia could only smile.
Tae-jin chuckled and placed a side dish on Renia’s rice.
“Have there been only one or two days we were happy~? Please eat up, Your Majesty the Queen.”
Renia looked at the side dish Tae-jin had placed with a heavy heart. A delicious-looking side dish placed on top of warm, steaming rice.
As if possessed, she picked up her spoon and scooped up the rice.
And put it in her mouth.
A sweet flavor spread throughout her mouth.
The moment she chewed once, she was captivated by the flavor and it was an addictive taste that she couldn't help but chew until she swallowed.
Tae-jin watched her with a pleased expression, then turned his gaze to his daughter.
“Oh my, you’re eating so well~ Who wants to eat a snack after eating papa~?”
Whoosh!
“Snack? Snack snack!”
“Oh my, then please eat up quickly~ Princess.”
At the sight of the baby raising both her hands high, Renia could only chew and swallow the tear-filled rice.
With a pleased smile.
It was such a sweet morning.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Swish!
Tae-jin pulled Renia’s blanket up to her neck.
Today marked the tenth day.
Since Renia had collapsed from Kelkaton’s poison.
A lot had happened in the meantime.
As expected, the Chimera had reappeared across the entire region, and had also devastated numerous cities and towns.
Cities with breached barriers had become veritable battlefields due to the onslaught of monsters and villains, and the cities that had managed to protect their barriers were busy recovering from the massive damage.
What was fortunate was.
After the strategy that the joints were weak spread, the Chimera were quickly annihilated, and with the hunters and holders gaining momentum after the Chimera’s fall, they subdued the villains and monsters, and the political situation showed an early lull.
Illusion’s final strategy, which could be called the apocalypse, had come to nothing.
Of course, it couldn't be determined yet if the final was the first.
Since they hadn't shown any particular movement after the Chimera's annihilation, everyone agreed that things would be quiet for a while.
The problem was.
That Renia had not woken up while the Chimera were being subjugated.
“…Haah.”
In the meantime, they had brought renowned detoxifiers from the city, but they couldn't find any particular solution.
Of all things, the poisonous stinger had left the poison near her heart, making physical detoxification difficult, and they said that the greater the desire, the harder it was to wake up on one's own.
“What on earth are you dreaming about… Renia.”
Tae-jin stroked the hair of Renia who was lying with a peaceful face.
A sigh escaped him out of frustration, but there was no clear solution.
His mother, Ercia, Na-yeon, and Hye-seo were all out looking for a detoxification method, and Yu-ra had entered seclusion since the day after Renia collapsed, forgoing food and sleep to make something.
Han-na was procuring the supplies Yu-ra needed.
“Sweet Dream….”
Tae-jin muttered blankly.
It was the nickname of Kelkaton’s poison, which the detoxifier who had visited the day before yesterday had told him.
A nickname given because of the poison’s symptom of presenting the intoxicated with a sweet dream.
It was also said to be used for medical purposes to escape from severe pain.
Though it was an illegal use.
Anyway,
What kind of sweet dream was she having to make such a peaceful face?
He squeezed Renia’s hand in frustration, but only a silent sorrow returned.
“Hah….”
Then.
Bang! Thud!
The hospital room door was violently thrown open and someone entered.
Eyes bloodshot and red from burst capillaries.
Hair so greasy it was matted.
Dark circles reached down to her cheekbones, and both cheeks were sunken in.
Yu-ra, who had been struggling with guilt for nearly a week without eating or sleeping properly, had ended her seclusion and revealed herself.
It was the only, and would be the only, hope that had come in ten days.
“Oppa!!”
“Huh?”
“Get ready! Hurry!”
<w:pgmar w:bottom="1440" w:top="1440" w:left="1440" w:right="1440" w:header="720" w:footer="720"><w:pgnumtype w:start="1"><w:r w:rsiddel="00000000" w:rsidr="00000000" w:rsidrpr="00000000"><w:rpr><w:sz w:val="28"><w:szcs w:val="28"><w:rtl w:val="0"><w:t xml:space="preserve">“Wh-what for?”