Chapter 166
Chapter 166
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 166
Chapter Title: The Future Me (1)
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Drip, drip, drip—
Food was spilling from my mouth.
But even as it dripped, my mouth showed no sign of closing.
Why?
*Did I just hear that wrong?*
I'd just heard something utterly absurd from my daughter.
She was going to marry me.
What the hell was I supposed to make of this?
"Ah! Must be a dream."
"No, Dad. This is reality."
"..."
She wouldn't even let me escape into denial.
As she fed me another bite, she spoke casually.
"Dragons don't really have weddings. Dragons have such strong personalities that marriages between them are extremely rare to begin with. But you're human, right, Dad? So I was thinking we could do it the human way."
Heh heh—
Was Suryeon fantasizing about a happy married life?
With a sly, wicked grin, she continued.
"Anyway, Ehwaryeon and Echoryeon are out of their minds, so we can just have the wedding ourselves. Where should we do it, Dad? No, wait—I'll handle all the preparations. You just sit tight."
*I'll take care of everything, so just bring your body, Dad.*
Her eyes gleamed like those of a sinister snake.
*Her body's slim like a snake too... Did she evolve into a snake instead of a dragon...? No, that was over a hundred years ago? How good is her memory?*
Where the hell was I supposed to start correcting her?
Dizzy with disbelief,
I moved my one unbound part—my mouth—and spoke.
"Suryeon."
"Yeah, Dad?"
"You don't mean you've been planning to marry me even after a hundred years pass...?"
She nodded without hesitation at my question.
"Yeah? So why?"
Her eyes said, *Why are you even asking?*
Chills ran down my spine.
"You still remember after a hundred years? No, more than that—do you really want to marry your dad? For real??"
"That's weird."
She scrunched up her face, clearly annoyed.
"You promised a hundred years ago. Why are you going back on your word now?"
"I'm not going back on my word... No, to begin with, dads and daughters can't get married! That's basic common sense!"
"You're not my biological dad, so why not?"
She looked utterly baffled, like she couldn't comprehend.
"Common sense is all just an illusion humans made up. 'Common sense' is just an excuse to restrict other humans' freedom. And a tool to attack them with. So..."
She leaned in close and whispered coldly into my ear.
"Forget human common sense. From now on, you're going to marry me, a dragon, and live with me forever."
Then she pulled back just enough that our noses almost touched and stared right into my face.
With a crescent-moon smile.
In her eyes, I saw two emotions.
An obsession that vowed never to lose me again.
And a love that was somehow deeply twisted.
*I thought I'd raised her right as a father and daughter...*
When had the affection between us gotten so warped?
*I don't know.*
I'd have to fix it later when I got back.
Cancel that marriage promise too.
Thinking that, I looked at Suryeon.
She was still gazing at me intently as she slowly opened her mouth.
"You just stay put, Dad. I'll take care of everything."
"...What if I refuse?"
"I'll refuse your refusal. A promise is a promise."
Her eyes looked 100% serious.
My precious daughter Suryeon, whom I'd raised with such care, really seemed to want to marry her dad—me.
*I'm going insane...*
Looks like I'd failed at parenting.
***
Incheon.
An S-Rank Dimensional Gate raid was in full swing there.
A small command post had been set up to maintain contact with the site, and the perimeter was tightly controlled.
"Hmm, looks like the car's as far as we go."
The Association staff had the roads blocked anyway.
Regrettably, we'd have to walk from here.
"Hwaryeon sis."
"Huh?"
"You can lower your fist now. We're getting out."
"Okay!"
Hwaryeon immediately dropped the fist she'd been aiming at Bisil.
Bisil, who'd been inwardly terrified of a beating, let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew, phew—"
"Consider yourself lucky!"
After that little warning, Hwaryeon hopped out of the car.
Echoryeon followed her wild sister out and bowed politely in greeting.
"Thanks for the ride! See you next time, Bisil Uncle!"
"Y-Yeah... Don't tell the boss I gave you a lift... Call me if you need help again..."
Bisil gave his farewell, looking all wrinkled up,
then turned the car around and drove off.
"I'm never getting involved in something like this again..."
Actually, "fled" was more accurate.
With Bisil gone,
the remaining kids looked at the barbed-wire blockade and eyed each other.
"Hmm, what now?"
"What do you mean? Straight through the front, obviously!"
Clench—!
Hwaryeon balled up her small, round fist and thrust it toward the barbed wire.
"Dragon Taekwondo Fire Punch—!"
Whoosh—!
The barbed wire caught fire and split open.
Hwaryeon smirked in satisfaction.
"Hmph, that's basic! Alright, let's head in! Follow me!"
Come on—!
She gestured for them to hurry over the wire.
Suryeon and Echoryeon sighed at the sight.
"Sigh, can't we go quietly?"
"Yeah! What if we get caught acting like that?!"
"Mang-mang—!"
They didn't like her method.
But the kids followed Hwaryeon into the S-Rank Dimensional Gate zone.
The moment their skin felt the mana,
they instantly recognized its nature.
"This is dragon mana!"
"...It's similar to mine."
"There's another dragon besides us! It hasn't laid a hand on Dad, has it?!"
Tremble, tremble—
Was it a bad premonition?
Echoryeon puffed out her cheeks and shook violently.
"Hmph, no way! Hold it together, Echoryeon!"
"Phew, I barely held back!"
Echoryeon stopped shaking at Hwaryeon's words.
But she was still mad—her hands trembled.
"Anyway, everyone be careful. This dragon mana isn't something to ignore. Even if I unseal my right arm, it might be tough."
Suryeon pulled back the bandage on her right arm to show them.
Hwaryeon and Echoryeon stared blankly at it for a moment.
"Hmm..."
"Eee..."
They had nothing to say.
Undeterred by their reaction, Suryeon pressed on.
"If the Azure Dragon sealed in my right arm opens its eyes, everyone run. You might get swept up in its power... Heh heh heh..."
"...Let's ditch her and go, Echoryeon."
"Yes, Hwaryeon sis!"
Heh heh heh—
Leaving Suryeon giggling to herself,
Hwaryeon took the lead.
Association staff were posted midway,
so they used polymorph briefly to slip past their sight.
The kids wandered the S-Rank zone, desperately searching for Dad.
"Dad! Come out right now!"
"Dad, where are you?"
"Daddy! Your daughter Echoryeon is here!"
"Mang mang mang—!!"
Walking through the city,
the dragon kids frantically called for their father.
And after a short while.
"I smell it!"
"What smell?"
"Sniff sniff— This is the smell of battle!"
Hwaryeon suddenly caught the scent of fighting and bolted.
The kids chased after her.
What appeared before them was a very familiar dinosaur doll to them,
and
"Hey, that guy! That's Kim Si-hu, my bread friend Dad! I remember him as a strong human!"
"...That's the woman who was hitting on Dad. Tch, I blocked her, but she still shows up in reality."
"I don't like her!"
A familiar doll and people came into view.
In that moment, rather than attacking the doll first,
"Hey, Suryeon, you messed up my doll like that, didn't you? Dragon Knifehand Strike!"
Swoosh—!
Hwaryeon decided to go after Suryeon first for tampering with her doll.
Suryeon swiftly dodged the knifehand strike and protested innocently.
"...That wasn't me."
"But I can feel your mana!"
"...It's slightly different. Hate to admit it, but that one's stronger. And can you not start with punches?"
"Hmph, this isn't a punch—it's a knifehand strike!"
Clang—!
Hwaryeon proudly flashed her hand blade instead of a fist.
Suryeon sighed deeply.
"Sigh, how is she my sister?"
"Quiet! No matter what you say, I'm the big sister! More importantly, let's kill that doll first!"
Clench—
Hwaryeon clenched her fist toward the massive dinosaur doll.
She glanced sideways at the nearby heroes.
*...They've been chased by that doll for a while!? They all look exhausted!*
Burn—
Seeing that made Hwaryeon's heart pound even harder.
"Hmph, you guys are lucky! Lady Ehwaryeon will specially save you humans!"
Shrug—
Shoulders puffed up high.
Hwaryeon gripped her flaming fist and charged the dinosaur doll.
"Dragon something... Anyway, Fire Punch!!"
A flashy fist wreathed in flames.
She thrust it toward the dinosaur doll.
And at that moment.
Swoosh—
"Huh?"
A rift in the dimension opened right in front of Hwaryeon.
Her Dragon Fire Punch...
"Wh-What the hell?! Not my Dragon Fire Punch!!"
Whoosh—vanished into the rift.
"...Idiot."
"She's an idiot, right?"
Suryeon and Echoryeon just found Hwaryeon ridiculous.
Suryeon said to Echoryeon.
"Looks like us coming here fulfilled the condition."
"Huh?"
"That dimensional rift seems to appear when a certain amount of mana builds up around it. And..."
She pointed at the rift with her finger.
"Dad's inside there."
"Huh? How do you know, Suryeon sis?"
"I can feel it. It feels like Dad's right beside me even now."
"...Why can't I feel it?"
Echoryeon turned into a slightly sulky duckling.
Ignoring her, Suryeon grabbed Echoryeon's bag and said.
"So let's go in. Us too."
"The humans over there are going in anyway. I don't like one of them, but fine!"
Swoosh—!
Suryeon and Echoryeon jumped into the dimensional rift.
The remaining 15 heroes followed suit, sucked in after them.
"...More new humans? No, not just humans this time."
Of course, the first to hear the news
was future Suryeon, who spent 24 hours a day glued to Dad.
***
Suryeon had left the room.
She said a guest had come.
Of course, probably not a real guest.
*...Now's the time.*
The moment I could escape these chains.
Of course, escaping for real was out of the question.
I couldn't anyway.
*...How the hell am I supposed to run from a dragon?*
I just wanted to look around briefly.
I channeled mana through my entire body to temporarily dismantle the chains.
"Hup!!"
My body heated up.
To break the chains binding me, I analyzed the mana structure within them.
Decode the structure perfectly and find the key to unlocking them.
*Argh, typical dragon—made it way too complicated.*
Not like she needed to show off her smarts.
After grunting for about ten minutes,
I finally managed to free myself from the chains.
"Ugh, how long's it been since I walked on my own two feet... Gotta tie myself up again before Suryeon gets back..."
Alright then.
Time to tour this future dimension.
Bonus if I found an escape clue for later.
Thinking that, I left the confinement room and entered the living room.
"...Nothing's changed."
The living room was perfectly preserved, identical.
It could've fooled me into thinking this was the real dimension.
I glanced around the living room, then went into Hwaryeon's room.
"...This one's exactly the same too. Except for the uniform hanging up."
So Hwaryeon actually went to school properly.
I'd thought she'd cause trouble with bullying or grades.
But she'd finished elementary school steadily.
Thinking that, I left Hwaryeon's room and peeked into the one Suryeon and Echoryeon shared.
And there, I witnessed it.
"Gyaaah—!!"
Crash!
I startled and fell backward.
No wonder.
An enormous creature lay asleep in that room, eyes closed.
*Is what I saw real...?*
Gulp.
I hoped it wasn't.
Tense, I swallowed hard and cautiously opened the door.
On the wall there, frozen with eyes closed, was exactly what I'd hoped not to see.
*...Why the hell didn't they bury this thing?*
It was me—with eyes closed.
Lee Ha-jun, no longer breathing, cooled like ice.
"No matter what, seeing myself without any life in it is creepy. What the hell is this...?"
Thud—
I placed a hand on my forehead and sighed at the situation.
Seeing my own dead body was shocking enough.
But the bigger shock was...
"What were you planning to do with this frozen, Suryeon...?"
My daughter had frozen my corpse for some purpose.
Suryeon hadn't become a Black Dragon, but as a Blue Dragon, she'd blackened considerably.
"...Damn it."
Now I had way too much to think about.