The Secret Lesson
But this wasn't just any ordinary voucher.
Rune recalled yesterday, when Christina had given him the small pebble.
Rune stared down at the pebble resting on the sole of his foot.
Inside the translucent stone, letters etched in light were visible.
“Kyuu?”
[What is this? Christina.]
At Rune's question, Christina smiled gently and withdrew her hand.
“It's the reward I mentioned earlier, dear.”
At a glance, it looked like a pretty decorative stone.
It was beautiful, sure, but after rolling around on the ground for half a day, burning with competitive spirit, it felt a bit underwhelming as a prize.
Oblivious to Rune's thoughts, Christina nodded in approval.
“Turning back into your true form right after a kick in human shape and swatting the ball away with your tail—brilliant work.”
It was definitely praise.
But the little black hatchling's head tilted in confusion.
Is this really it?
He was baffled.
As a graduation gift, wasn't it a bit... lacking?
Rune was the sort who could spar with Christina anytime he wanted, if he put his mind to it.
Did I get baited or something?
Expectations lead to disappointment, as they say.
Ignoring Rune's inner turmoil, the stone glimmered like a star.
Perdikion felt the same.
He showed his discomfort but asked again without losing his manners.
“Kyauk.”
[……Lady Christina, this is the reward?]
“Yes, dear. It suits the feat of merely touching the ball.”
A reward fitting for merely touching the ball.
Rune and Perdikion exchanged glances upon hearing that.
So, if we want something bigger, we need to handle higher-level lessons.
It felt somehow lacking.
Christina picked up on their mood with uncanny insight.
“Faces like you've been tricked and suffered for it.”
“Kyuuu.”
“Kauu.”
The two hatchlings let out aggrieved chirps toward her.
Amused by the sight, Christina chuckled softly and spoke.
“Think about it carefully.”
Her long, pale finger pointed at the stone in Rune's grasp.
“Use it, and no matter where you are, I'll step in for your training. That's the promise it holds. Do you understand what that means?”
“!”
Rune's eyes widened slightly.
No way?
Rune's mind changed.
No—he realized the truth.
This stone possessed an ability no other magic artifact could match.
A voucher for a spar anytime means I can meet Christina anytime, too.
Limited to training purposes, sure, but it was essentially a Gold Dragon summon stone.
In a human world full of restrictions on summoning, this was an enormous boon.
Rune smiled inwardly.
This qualifies as a graduation gift.
Limited conditions?
That depended on how you played it.
If there's an enemy I can't beat, I can use this to have her teach me how to handle them right in front of me. For negotiations or persuasion issues, I can ask during a spar.
All it took was a bit of creativity.
At that moment, Christina continued.
“Oh, and anyone with enough mana to activate it can use it. Keep that in mind.”
Rune inwardly exclaimed at her words.
I can even give it to someone else. Heungmi or Amelia could use it.
Rune suppressed a twitch at the corner of his mouth.
The thought of holding a treasure anyone would covet made him want to grin.
“Kyuuu.”
[Thanks, then, Christina.]
Blinking innocently, Rune spoke up.
“Kyukyu.”
[If I steal the ball again next time, can I get another one of these?]
His ruby eyes, full of childlike purity, fixed on her.
“Of course.”
Rune and Perdikion glanced at each other at Christina's reply.
Rune spoke first.
“Kyuu.”
[Might as well stock up on a few more. What do you think, brother?]
A rare chance to obtain dragon summon stones.
He couldn't let it slip.
Perdikion nodded in satisfaction at Rune's question.
“Kukuu.”
[As expected, you think the same, little brother. I had no intention of settling for this much.]
Rune was impressed, thinking Perdikion had grasped the stone's true value.
Hoo. He figured out how useful this stone is, huh.
The red-scaled hatchling huffed firmly through his nostrils.
[To think she'd assume we've completed the full lesson just for touching the ball. Honestly, it's an insult to my pride. Besides...]
Perdikion glanced at his own stone and gripped it tightly.
[Proof of training from Lady Christina herself— the more, the better.]
Rune thought to himself upon hearing that.
……That's not the same as what I'm thinking.
To Perdikion, this stone was clearly a medal or a stamp of achievement earned each time.
The Fire Dragon youth might see it as an honor, but Rune viewed it differently.
Dragon summon stones as training stamps?
Stripping away the core, Rune was far older than this little Fire Dragon boy.
He watched the youth burning with pure determination for a moment, then shook his head inwardly.
Finishing his recollection, Rune speared a broccoli floret in his soup and ate it.
Perdikion, eyeing his breakfast roll like an enemy, tore into it with fork and knife.
“Kak.”
[This time, I'll force Lady Christina to use at least one hand. If needed, I'll raise the difficulty.]
The Fire Dragon hatchling ended his declaration firmly.
But Rune gazed at him with clouded eyes.
Your enthusiasm is great, but if you get any stronger now, it might turn from training into abuse.
Even for training, a spar was a spar.
They'd had to shift to full dragon form after holding out in human shape for so long.
Did he forget the pain that only dragon scales could endure?
Still, it wasn't impossible.
If Rune brought out his full power, it was manageable.
If I go all out, stealing the ball should be doable.
Rune took Christina's sparring lessons once or twice a week.
Experience points were surprisingly hard to ignore.
But he couldn't show his true strength from the start, so he had to fake a growth process.
That way, I can clear at least three or four stages smoothly.
By then, the training intensity would ramp up considerably.
Might even be the toughest lesson yet.
Savoring the taste, the black hatchling spread butter on his hotcake with a knife.
He liked this situation in many ways.
His childlike form had made most lessons too easy before.
Of course, he knew it stemmed from her kindness toward young lives.
A Gold Dragon Elder fighting a hatchling in earnest didn't make sense.
The real trouble for me is the stuff outside of lessons.
For instance, yesterday—after seeing his scales, Christina had grabbed his black forepaw to treat it.
Topping it with herbs and wrapping bandages made his insides itch; he'd wanted to yank it away.
Opportunities to learn that kind of gentleness are rare.
She could just heal it with magic.
When Rune grumbled inwardly, Christina added softly.
“If I did, you'd train at night, wouldn't you?”
Caught off guard, Rune had meekly offered his paw.
The herbs worked well; by morning, it was perfectly healed.
Even thinking back, it was embarrassing.
That's not the point.
Rune shook his head and stuffed hotcakes into his mouth.
Cheeks bulging, he pondered.
Can't go through that every time, so I need to build strength fast to avoid injuries.
The motivation for improvement latched onto an odd point, but oh well.
Rune popped dessert pudding into his mouth.
Sweet.
The caramelized sugar flavor sweetened his palate.
Just like his daily life.
Then, teleportation magic flashed, and Jed appeared.
“Everyone enjoying their meal!”
Ahem—he cleared his throat, climbing onto the table like a doll.
He almost looked like a house brownie fairy.
“Now, today we've got a special lesson. Eat up, and in an hour, use the mana stone with the teleport spell!”
Rune, who could teleport on his own unlike most under Christina's care, asked curiously.
“Kyukyu?”
[Where are we going?]
Jed grinned, hiding his intentions.
“That's a secret!”
Somehow irritatingly smug.
“Eee! Heungmi's curious!”
“Hahaha! But spoiling it ruins the fun, Lady Heungmi!”
Questions poured at the ever-polite Jed.
“I-is it... really hard?”
“Aigoo, what lesson is easy? But no worries—there's no lesson you can't handle!”
Rune recalled yesterday's lesson with Christina.
No lesson you can't handle... He'd managed, but barely.
Quite barely.
I pulled it off somehow.
Rune shook his head inwardly.
In truth, he already knew who was in charge of that 'secret lesson'.
Dullahan. Didn't hear the details, though.
Dullahan was Rune's vassal.
Christina would have asked permission in advance for the lesson.
But he hadn't heard the content.
Just approved it as lesson-related.
As the meal wrapped up, Perdikion urged them on.
“Kyuaak.”
[Time's up. Let's get to the lesson.]
His eagerness mixed with impatience to uncover the mystery.
Rune nodded in agreement.
“Kyuu.”
[Sure.]
“Ah, Heungmi too!”
Heungmi, last toast in mouth, hopped down from her chair.
“Pippiyak!”
“C-come too, Heungmi...”
Amelia, elegantly nibbling cake, joined with Baekya flapping its wings.
Confirming everyone was there, Rune activated the teleport stone from Jed.
Flash!
A bright light burst, and they arrived where the sound of rushing valley water filled a forest they'd never seen.
Atop a rock, facing the stream in meditation lotus position, Dullahan gazed at them.
Thud!
He rose, clashing his fists together, and bowed politely.
He looked just like a Daoist deep in secluded training.
But for some reason...
The pure posture and scenery carried an eerie, ominous air that didn't fit.
“Heungmi... what kind of lesson does Mr. Dullahan do? L-like the spars I had...?”
Curiosity laced Amelia's soft voice.
“Uun, does Rune know?”
Rune shook his head at Heungmi's question.
“Kyuu.”
[Who knows. Seems like something we all need, since it's joint.]
Conversations mixed with worry, anticipation, and curiosity flowed.
Before the arrivals stood Dullahan, seated in lotus, focusing his mind.
Shh.
Dullahan opened his eyes and gestured for Rune to put on a bracelet.
Human form.
Rune donned the golden bracelet and shifted to human shape.
Perdikion followed, changing to his human guise.
Clank.
Dullahan nodded silently and rose.
Rumble!
The atmosphere grew heavy.
A creeping darkness.
Helplessness.
A suffocating melancholy began to envelop them.