A Dragon's Job Hunt, Part 6

Min-ah was currently overwhelmed, caught in a relentless barrage of questions from the other children.

"What's your name?"

"Why did you come with Oppa?"

"Your hair is so pretty! Can I touch it?"

"Did you come to play with us too?"

She was rapidly growing exhausted trying to answer them all. Just as she was about to reach her limit, the Orphanage Director and Hyun stepped outside, giving her a much-needed breather. She quickly ducked behind Hyun's back to hide.

Seeing this, the director told the children not to overwhelm her, but even a single question from each child added up to dozens of voices. It was far too much for an eight-year-old girl to handle.

"Alright, alright, everyone. I brought some delicious food, but did you finish setting the tables before making all this noise?"

At Hyun's words, the children scrambled to their seats, eager for the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠chicken and pizza. Meanwhile, Min-ah clung tightly to Hyun's leg, looking as though she had absolutely no intention of letting go.

Soothing Min-ah naturally fell to Hyun. The Orphanage Director watched them with a warm smile, making no move to intervene.

"Min-ah, sweetie? Won't you let ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠go of his leg? Don't you want to go home and eat pizza and chicken?"

Min-ah flinched slightly at his words, but she still didn't let go. Taking advantage of her slightly loosened grip, Hyun gently scooped her up into his arms.

"I'm sorry, Director. I think the other kids bombarded Min-ah with too many questions at once."

The elderly director chuckled warmly, saying it was perfectly natural for a child to be shy around strangers. She patted Min-ah gently and asked, "By the way, how old are you, Min-ah? I don't think you've told me yet."

"I'm eight," Min-ah answered meekly.

It wasn't just Hyun's imagination—a faint vein throbbed on the director's forehead the moment she heard the child's age. The elderly woman leaned in, gently hugging Min-ah as she whispered in her ear.

"Oh, sweetheart... You were abandoned during the school break, weren't you?"

"Those absolute monsters. If you ever need any help, sweetie, this young man has my number. You call me anytime, alright?"

"I will, Grandma," Min-ah whispered back.

Min-ah's circle of allies was growing by the day. Two dragons (backed by the President of South Korea himself) and a highly experienced orphanage director—with a lineup like this, she could probably conquer the world or secure a lifelong presidency, but that was a timeline that didn't exist.

In any case, unable to cope with the overwhelming energy of the other children, Min-ah practically fled the orphanage with Hyun. Since they left earlier than planned, they found themselves with some spare time, giving Hyun a perfect opportunity to talk with her. Once they were settled in the car, they both spoke up.

"Min-ah, since you're eight, it's summer break right now, isn't it?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Do you want to go back to school?"

Hyun's question plunged Min-ah into deep thought. Her parents had never even bothered to set foot near her school, but she still had people she knew there.

"Um... I don't really know. I don't have my parents anymore, and I didn't really have any friends either."

"Well, there's still plenty of summer break left. Shall we head to the cafe to see Yeoreum first?"

At those words, Min-ah's eyes widened, and she immediately began to urge him. "Let's go, Oppa! Hurry! We have to go see Unni!"

Hyun chuckled, stroking her hair as he started the car. The engine roared to life, and he smiled warmly. "Alright, we'll be there in no time, so sit tight, okay?"

"Then hurry up! Unni is waiting for us! Hehe."

Indeed, Min-ah was still just a child. Despite being abandoned and forced to face the harsh realities of life, she could still show such a pure, bright smile. It was a smile that only a child could give, one that weary, worn-out adults could never replicate. That was why we, the jaded adults, had to protect her. At least until she was old enough to stand on her own two feet.

Meanwhile, around the same time Hyun was talking with Min-ah, Flare had already mastered all the tasks Silvere had taught her. She had absolutely nothing left to do. The cafe was in a terrible location and barely had any customers—it was practically a ghost town. As she sat at the counter, yawning to pass the time, Silvere slid something across the counter toward her.

"Huh? What's this? Some kind of document?"

"It's the personal information of Min-ah's parents ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that I promised to look into. Go ahead and open it."

"Alright, let's see."

Flare opened the envelope and slowly scanned the document. She could hardly believe her eyes. The papers detailed how they had abandoned the child and immediately fled to Japan.

"Silvere? What is this? Is this actually true?"

"Yes, surprisingly. I was quite shocked when I first saw it myself. Even the President, who personally looked into this for us, was uncharacteristically startled."

"And it turns out both of Min-ah's parents hold dual South Korean and Japanese citizenship. On the bright side, we've already submitted a request to Interpol, and a formal request for cooperation has been sent to the Japanese police."

"The only complication is that Min-ah also holds dual citizenship. This makes it an international matter."

"So, this is a choice Min-ah has to make herself, right?"

"Yes, exactly. Whether she wants to live as a South Korean citizen or a Japanese citizen is up to her. As for her legal guardian... well, with you and me around, that won't be an issue. If worst comes to worst, we can just ask the President or the National Intelligence Service for a favor."

"The NIS is well aware of our existence. We play a crucial role in national security, after all. Oh, and by the way, the governments of other major nations are aware of my existence as well."

"For now, we can handle the prosecution of her parents however Min-ah wishes. It would be impossible for ordinary citizens, but our backing is on a completely different level."

While they were discussing this, the cafe door swung open, and Min-ah walked in.

"Unni, I'm back!"

As soon as Min-ah entered, Silvere guided her and Hyun to the counter seats and brought up the subject.

"I'm sorry to bring this up, but I need you all to look at this document. Min-ah, this concerns you directly, so I had no choice. I'm sorry."

Min-ah's face darkened as she read the papers. Perhaps it was because of A-yeong's explanation that her situation had escalated into an international issue, but she tightly wrapped her arms around Yeoreum's leg and refused to let go.

Seeing this, A-yeong tried to soothe her with a gentle tone.

"Don't worry, Min-ah. All you have to do is decide where you want the parents who abandoned you to be punished. Do you prefer Japan, or Korea?"

Meeting A-yeong's gaze, Min-ah felt a sudden shiver of fear. Although A-yeong was smiling, her eyes held a cold, genuine fury.

"I... I don't want to see them... Is it okay if they get punished in Japan...?"

At Min-ah's hesitant, quiet response, A-yeong smiled, though her eyes remained ablaze with anger.

"Of course. Everything will be handled exactly as you wish. And I'm sorry, sweetie. You won't be able to go to school for a while. Will you be okay with that?"

"I was always alone at school anyway. As long as I have Yeoreum Unni, I'm fine."

Clinging to Yeoreum's leg, Min-ah buried her face, turning away from the others.

"By the way, who would you like to be your official guardian, Min-ah? Yeoreum, of course?"

Min-ah nodded vigorously. "Yes! Yeoreum Unni, of course! If not her, then A-yeong Unni."

"Alright. I'll make sure it's settled exactly the way you want."

After saying this, Silvere closed the cafe early and sent Min-ah, Yeoreum, and Hyun on their way. She then contacted the President and met with him, spending the entire night discussing the matter.

From that point on, everything proceeded with lightning speed. The pressure exerted by a dragon of Silvere's caliber, combined with her subtle hints that another dragon existed, had an immense impact. About a month and twenty days later, Min-ah's parents appeared on the news. Perhaps because of the covert involvement of dragons, they looked utterly battered by the relentless media storm. In a Japanese courtroom, they were sentenced to several years in prison, banned from entering South Korea, and stripped of all parental rights.

Furthermore, backed by presidential authority and pressure from the NIS, the issue of Min-ah's custody and legal status was resolved in the blink of an eye. Well... technically, Flare (under her human identity, Han Yeoreum, age 24) officially became a "married" woman with an eight-year-old daughter. However, she hadn't told Min-ah yet. She wanted to keep it as a surprise.

After receiving the finalized documents, Flare waited until after dinner. Before they went to wash up, she called Min-ah over to the living room sofa. Sitting her down, she handed her the envelope, calling it a present.

"Unni? A present?"

"Yes, a present. Why don't you take a look? Open it up."

Encouraged by Yeoreum, Min-ah opened the envelope and began to read the document inside.

"Huh...? Adoption? Han Yeoreum's daughter? Is... is this a dream?"

With ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wide, disbelieving eyes, Min-ah read the document over and over again. But no matter how many times she blinked, it wasn't a dream. It was reality.

"You chose me, and I promised to take responsibility for you. So from now on, you can lean on me as much as you want, okay?"

At those words, large tears began to well up in Min-ah's eyes, spilling over as she choked out a sob.

"Th-Then... *hic*... can I call you Mom?"

"Really? You're not lying to me, right?"

Yeoreum gently wiped away Min-ah's tears, pulling the trembling girl into a warm embrace.

"Of course you can. You can call me Mom whenever you want. You're my daughter now."

"Mom... Mom... *waaaah!*"

"Yes, Min-ah. You're my family now. I'll even walk you to school, okay?"

Min-ah had never imagined she would receive a gift like this. To be honest, she hadn't expected Yeoreum to actually become her mother. When she was asked to choose a guardian, she had simply named Yeoreum because she loved her, but now, the dream she had only ever dared to imagine had actually come true. Sobbing uncontrollably, she repeated the word "Mom" over and over again. Clinging to the embrace of her new mother, she let all her tears pour out. She cried like that for a full thirty minutes.

*Sniffle!*

"Are you finally done crying? Well, at least it's a good thing we haven't washed up yet. You're covered in snot."

"Don't look! It's embarrassing!"

Realizing that Yeoreum's shirt was completely soaked with her tears and snot, Min-ah frantically tried to drag her toward the bathroom. Yeoreum, having fully accepted her role as a mother, let herself be pulled along willingly, gently stroking Min-ah's hair with her tail. After washing up, Min-ah changed into matching pajamas with Yeoreum. Snuggled up in bed, she drifted off to sleep, murmuring "Mom" as she dreamed happy dreams. There was a slight mishap in her sleep where she ended up sucking on Yeoreum's pajama sleeve, leading to a very embarrassed little girl the next morning—but wasn't this all just part of the process of becoming a real family?