A Dragon's Guide to Adapting, Part 3
Flash! I opened my eyes to find myself in a cave. It was a deeply familiar place.
"Lady Flare? Where are you? It is time for your lessons."
Damn it. That familiar voice. It was the guy I had pushed out the exit—the annoying pest who constantly watched and followed me around. I unleashed a full-power Breath straight at him.
"Stop looking for me!"
Inhale! Kwooooom!!!
The ground melted, the surroundings dissolved, and the entire cave turned into a sea of lava.
"Lady Flare, did you really think this would be enough to shake me off?"
Yet, he walked out of the flames completely unscathed.
Ah, it was a dream. If it had been real, I would have held back my strength.
I bolted upright, waking from the nightmare. My back was drenched in sweat. What a cursed dream.
I peeked through the window. The sun wasn't high in the sky like it usually was at lunchtime; it was morning. I opened my laptop. 8:00 AM. It had been a while since I'd had a nightmare. Was pushing him out the exit not enough? Normally, I wouldn't wake up until past 11:00 AM, but I barely got any sleep today. I barely managed to escape, yet he still torments me in my dreams. I just want to live freely, but too many shackles have bound me lately. What a terrible dream to start the morning with.
There was nothing to do at 8:00 AM. Besides, dragons naturally sleep a lot. I knew I was exceptionally lazy, but sleep is a wonderful thing. I hugged the teddy bear Hyun had given me. He said he received it as a gift, right? It was incredibly soft. As I squeezed and kneaded the plush toy, my troubled mind began to settle. For now, I threw myself back onto the bed, clutching the teddy bear. Since I was inside the house, I didn't even have to hide my tail and horns.
After lying there quietly for about an hour, I heard signs of life outside. It seemed Hyun was awake.
Hmm, looks like he's up. Well, I did wake up pretty early today, but going out is such a hassle. Maybe I should play a trick on him later? That sounds fun.
Clutching the teddy bear Hyun had given me, I opened the door. I deliberately put on a sleepy, just-woke-up expression. I was so curious to see what kind of face he would make.
When Hyun saw me walk out, he froze. This was fun, hehe.
It was 9:00 AM. Since I had slept in a bit today, I opened my bedroom door, already thinking about what to make for lunch.
Creak!
At that exact moment, I heard the door to Flare's room open. Why was she up so early? I had no idea. Perhaps it was because we still didn't fully share our inner thoughts, but Flare emerged clutching the teddy bear I had given her yesterday, wearing a drowsy, just-woken-up expression.
"Flare, aren't you up a bit too early? Aren't you tired? You can sleep more if you want."
Flare seemed slightly flustered by my question but quickly replied, "Huh? No, I got plenty of sleep today. I'm a little sleepy, but... hehe."
Whew, thank goodness. My acting worked. Hyun is usually pretty sharp, but is he surprisingly dense about things like this? But what should I do now? There's nothing to do. Should I just follow him around and watch what he does? He might do something interesting.
"Hey, is it okay if I follow you around and watch what you're doing?"
It was strange. I knew Flare was a dragon, but for her to be curious about what I was doing... was it just a whim? I couldn't tell. Still, showing this kind of attitude was a good sign, wasn't it?
"Are you curious? It's nothing special, but if you want to see, come along."
"Really? I'll follow you."
Since Flare said she was coming, I figured I should cut my workout time shorter than usual.
"I'm going for a morning workout. Do you want to come along, Flare?"
Hyun said he's going for a morning workout. Hmm... should I go with him? I am curious about what kind of exercise he does.
"Sure, let's go together. I actually have pretty good stamina."
"Then go change first. You have the tracksuit I bought you, right? Wear that, and don't forget to hide your tail and horns."
"Okay, I'll change and be right out."
A morning workout wasn't exactly my favorite thing, but since he was going, I went back to my room to change. He said these clothes were easy to move in, and he was right. When I stepped out of my room in the tracksuit, Hyun handed me a pair of sneakers.
"Wear these. They're shoes made to make running comfortable."
"So, where are we going for this workout?"
"I was thinking of heading to the park near the house. Is that okay?"
He was surprisingly attentive. He had even packed water in his bag. A park near the house... Well, it was fun to play along even though I knew what he was up to, so I decided to follow.
"Alright, let's go! Hurry!"
As I put on my shoes and urged him on, Hyun slowly put on his shoes as well and opened the front door.
"Hey, are there a lot of people at the park?" Flare asked as we walked toward the park together.
"No, not really. It's actually quite quiet and nice. It's more like a large trail than a park, though."
"We're here. Take a look, Flare. What do you think? Not bad, right?"
But the moment Flare stepped onto the trail, something strange happened.
The birds that had been flying around the trail suddenly took flight all at once, fleeing the area in a panic.
At that, Flare's eyes turned cold, and she let out her frustration.
"Ah... damn it. Even if I hide my dragon power, do they still sense it instinctively? This is why it's so hard to see any animals near my lair..."
"Ugh... so annoying! Can't I just burn all those birds? Why do they do this to me even when I'm polymorphed into a human?!"
"Other dragons don't get noticed when they polymorph, so why is it only me?!"
Flare felt deeply wronged. Why was she the only one being singled out? Dejected, she stepped off the trail and called out to Hyun to head back home.
"I'm going home. My mood is completely ruined..."
Hyun was left wondering how to comfort the now-gloomy Flare.
"Alright, let's go home. Let's buy some snacks on the way, okay? Cheer up."
"Should I buy you something sweet? I don't know if there are any cafes open right now, but maybe a bakery is open?"
Flare rejected the offer with a sullen face.
"No, I don't need it. Let's just go home. I want to go to bed. I'm just going to wash up and sleep today, so don't look for me."
And indeed, as soon as they arrived, Flare washed up and fell asleep in her room. Since they hadn't fully opened up to each other yet, it was a natural outcome.
Day 5 of their promise. With only two days left, Flare woke up at 11:50 AM. Perhaps she hadn't had any nightmares today, as she sat on the sofa holding her teddy bear with a faint smile. She seemed to really like the doll, propping it up next to her while staring intently at Hyun.
"Are you awake, Flare? You seemed in a bad mood yesterday, but you look fine today. How are you feeling?"
"Yeah... not bad. Though reality itself is still pretty depressing."
I wish someone would approach me too, but no one ever does. I like animals too. I want to pet them.
Listening to Flare's lament, Hyun recalled the events of yesterday morning. The sight of even the birds fleeing in unison after sensing her presence had been truly pitiful. He still had no intention of asking why only Flare experienced this, but seeing her look so down made her resemble a drowned rat—even though she was a dragon.
"Well... since neither of us is ready to share our stories yet, it's probably best to leave each other's secrets be."
"Still, do you want to go to a cafe after lunch? Maybe eating something sweet will make you feel better."
Watching Hyun's efforts, Flare decided to remember his respectful attitude. He was easily one of the best humans she had ever met. And since he had been trying so hard to cheer her up since yesterday, she figured she should at least wash up and go out. She would go to the cafe as he suggested. He had never done anything bad to her, after all.
"Alright, let's go. But I'm going to wash up first, so make lunch in the meantime."
"I'll be quick, so wait for me! Make something delicious!"
As Flare went to wash up, Hyun felt a sense of relief seeing her expression brighten. It seemed it would be perfectly fine to take her out after lunch.
After eating lunch with Flare, who had finished washing up, we headed out. The weather was pleasantly warm with just the right amount of sunshine. Even with her tail and horns hidden, Flare seemed to be in a good mood, so I decided to take her to my favorite local cafe.
Tring!
A clear chime rang out as I opened the cafe door. Since it was a weekday afternoon, it was naturally a quiet time with few customers. For someone with an eye-catching appearance like Flare, this was the perfect time. Her vibrant red hair easily drew people's attention, so timing was crucial.
"Oh my, it's been a while! And who is this behind you?"
It really had been a long time since my last visit. The owner looked at me with curious eyes, which naturally drew attention to Flare as well.
"Well... should I say we ended up living together? Or that I picked her up in an alleyway?"
"That's a bit ambiguous."
"Hmm, I see. Well, would the red-haired lady like to order? Take your time looking at the menu."
Flare scanned the menu and chose a chocolate cake and a caramel macchiato.
"I'll have my usual kiwi juice, please."
"Got it. Will you be paying by card?"
"Yes, card. Single payment, please."
"Payment went through. Please come back when the buzzer rings~"
The buzzer rang, and we picked up our drinks and cake.
"Oh! Thank you for the food."
I picked up the fork and took a bite of the cake. It was sweet. I could also taste the bitter hint of cacao. I took a sip of the coffee. The caramel syrup, steamed milk, and coffee blended together delightfully. Any lingering gloom completely melted away. This was exactly why people ate sweet things. Plus, dragons didn't even gain weight.
I could feel the cafe owner watching me eat, but I ignored it and happily devoured everything. Now, it was time to think about what to do at home. The freedom to ponder while waiting for Hyun to finish his drink in front of me... This was what true leisure felt like.
It was definitely better than back when I had to take lessons.