Chapter 127
Chapter 127
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 127
Chapter Title: Dragon Nanny
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'Is it because of my luck... 666 Luck... Scary...'
I stared blankly at the hatchling screeching and yelling at me from inside the cage, then locked eyes with Ye-won-i.
Maybe because I had such a serious look on my face, Ye-won-i's pupils trembled slightly as she gazed at me.
She seemed anxious, wondering if she'd done something wrong. She must have thought I'd be thrilled, but my reaction wasn't what she expected.
"O-Oppa... Is something... wrong...?"
In the end, seeing that I didn't look happy at all, she asked in a quivering voice, on the verge of tears. I felt like I'd done something wrong.
Ye-won-i had worked so hard to hatch the egg just to make me happy... but I'd gone and made her anxious with my pointless worries. I'd hurt the tender-hearted Ye-won-i.
'She hatched a dragon for me... I can't give her a lukewarm reaction like this... Yeah, fuck it. What does it matter if it's Zeke? We're not gonna see him often anyway. Ye-won-i is more important.'
I quickly softened my stiff expression and flashed her a big smile to reassure her. Then I made up an excuse, mixing in a little white lie about why my reaction had been weird.
"No way! I was just so happy I didn't know how to react. Wow! It's a baby dragon!! Amazing!! Good job, Ye-won-i!! There's no woman in the world who'd prepare a dragon as a gift for her husband. You're my treasure! Come here! Let me hug you!! You did great!!"
I pulled Ye-won-i into my arms and spun her around. As I hugged her and planted a kiss on her forehead, she finally broke into a beaming smile and said it was a relief.
Ye-won-i had brightened up a lot from living with me and receiving so much affection, but she still had her shy side. That's why I had to shower her with love like this from time to time. If her self-esteem dropped too low, she might relapse into depression.
'Ye-won-i went to all that trouble to hatch a dragon for me... I can't disappoint her with stupid worries... As long as the dragon hunter Zeke doesn't find out I'm raising it, it'll be fine.'
I had no real way of running into Zeke anyway. I'd used the guardian charm he gave me to kill Kotori Bako. Of course, the chances of him coming to find me were... pretty high, but I could just hide the hatchling then. No way he's some psycho who tracks dragons by scent...
'No... Zeke is... a psycho... He'll definitely notice...'
If the opponent was that dragon hunter Zeke, he'd surely pick up on the fact that I was raising a dragon. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't come up with a good way to hide it if he showed up in person.
'Whatever. If I say I'm raising it, what can he do? And Zeke isn't some maniac who kills dragons on sight. We can talk it out...'
From the few conversations I'd had with him, I knew he wasn't a complete lunatic obsessed with dragon hunting. He wouldn't just kill a dragon indiscriminately.
And whether it ended up as food or whatever, Ye-won-i already seemed attached to this hatchling. If Zeke showed up demanding to kill it... I'd have no choice but to stand against him. I had the guts to fight him, even if it was Zeke, if he messed with something that entered my protection.
'Besides, Zeke seems bored, like he hunts dragons as endgame content... He's not some foaming-at-the-mouth psycho who has to kill every dragon he sees. It'll be fine. I can't chicken out.'
For now, I kept stroking Ye-won-i's hair and praising her. The dragon hunter did nag at me a bit, but having a dragon in our hands was a huge deal anyway. If I raised it well without getting caught, this little wriggler would surely become an incredible asset in the future.
"By the way, Ye-won-i. Did you tell the others about this?"
"Everyone waiting at the mart together knows."
"Got it. One more time: you did amazing. Let's raise it well and evolve it into an adult."
"Yes! Hehehe..."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ After that, I asked a few questions about the hatchling. It seemed to see Ye-won-i as its parent and was growing by consuming her mana. It had grown enough to wriggle around just one day after hatching, so in a few weeks, it should sprout limbs and wings.
The problem was the amount of mana it consumed as food. According to Ye-won-i, in about a week, it would be too much for her to handle alone. Dragons eat a ton, apparently. Since my mana overflows, I'd have to feed it when Ye-won-i couldn't manage.
"Then I'll feed it then."
"Sounds good... Co-parenting... Hehe..."
Ye-won-i giggled happily at the idea of co-parenting. She looked thrilled at the thought of raising something together with me. Having grown up without love as a child, she wanted a baby right away as a rebound... but the hatchling should satisfy her maternal instincts for now.
"Oppa... This kid is ours now... Name it, please."
"Name? Me? You don't want to?"
"Yes... Oppa, name our kid. That's what I want."
"Alright then?"
Ye-won-i especially saw naming her summons as a hugely important event. Her reasoning was that it built more attachment. Moreover, she really preferred if I named them. It was like she felt like the dad was naming his child.
That's why even if it was something lazy like Tosil or Haesil, she insisted I do it.
'A dragon's name, huh...'
Dragonny popped into my head right away, but naming it something that half-assed didn't feel right, so I paused.
'It's a dragon, after all... Dragonny sounds too lame...'
Dragons were supposed to have cool, dignified names.
If it introduced itself roaring, "I'm Dragonny!" everywhere, it'd lack any majesty. Everyone would think it was a joke.
So I pondered deeply. If it wasn't something I'd raise myself or just a regular summon, I wouldn't care what it was called... but knowing it'd grow into a dragon got me way too excited.
Plus, since it'd be with me through thick and thin, I got even more cautious.
'But not something too grandiose, or it'll be hard for us to say...'
Suddenly, names of dragons from myths flashed through my mind. Like 'Nidhogg' or 'Fafnir'—popular, evil dragon names.
'No... those feel too real... and too old-fashioned.'
I first thought of using one from myths, but they might appear in future events. Then the names would overlap.
And they were overused, so they lacked uniqueness.
'Something fresher...'
Suddenly, dragons from games came to mind, like 'Alduin' or 'Dovahkiin.' They were from the RPG I'd played the longest—names of an evil dragon and the hero who slays it.
'Yeah, let's use one from that game... Hmm... Paarthurnax...? No... The 'nax' part overlaps with Kashnax, super ominous... Feels like it'd grow into a dragon of calamity... Can't have that...'
At this point, obsessing over the dragon's name so seriously, my worries about Zeke had long vanished. My head was filled only with fantasies of riding a massive dragon someday.
Dragon rider... That's every guy's dream. Riding a huge machine or a massive, badass dragon makes even older dudes' hearts race.
But dragon rider... Feels like there's probably a player with that class somewhere... Honestly, a bit jealous.
'If I can't be a dragon rider... I'll kill all dragon riders...'
With those thoughts, I finally settled on a name for Dragonny.
'Helgen. Yeah. Helgen. It's a place that always burns away... but it feels okay as a dragon name, short two syllables, easy to remember.'
Helgen was a village from a game with deep meaning to me. The tutorial village where every story starts, the beginning of the protagonist's legend. From multiple playthroughs, I'd seen it so often that the word itself felt intimately familiar.
"...Yeah. This guy's name is Helgen."
"Helgen...? That's not your usual naming sense, Oppa. I thought you'd go with Dragonny... You're different today... Does the word mean something?"
"Hmm... Meaning... Well. Cool, right?"
"Not bad... Way cooler than Dragonny!"
"Yeah. Good. Dragonny, your name is Helgen now. Live strong on the rooftop."
I tried petting the red hatchling's head with my index finger, but it bit down when I got close.
'It should feel affinity toward me because of Tenma... but this hostility means it's not a lifeform from the Tenma faction...'
Helgen dangled from my index finger after biting it.
Its teeth weren't sharp yet, so no real pain. But challenging someone my size showed guts or bravado worth acknowledging.
As expected of a dragon, even as a hatchling—it was reckless.
"Looking forward to its future."
"Right? So cute... Hehe... Helgen, no biting Daddy. Come down."
Ye-won-i petted it gently, and Helgen huffed before crawling back into the plastic cage. It understood her words perfectly.
'Ye-won-i... Nice...'
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Afterward, I hugged Ye-won-i on the rooftop and chatted more. Mostly her talking while I listened. She had so much to say, whispering animatedly to me.
She was so cute that I nodded enthusiastically, reacting to every word.
"Oh, right. Oppa. After hatching Helgen, I got an achievement too."
"Really? Let me see."
"Sure... Here..."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Slave Ye-won-i's Achievement Accomplished! ‘Dragon Nanny’] ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Please select achievement reward.] Ye-won-i brought up her notification window, and I could see the achievement she'd earned.
We decided to pick the reward right away. Dragon Nanny... I was too excited to see what it'd be.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Please select reward.] [1. Protector's Mark] [2. Ragal's Seal] [3. Dragon King's Amulet] [Protector's Mark: Upon selection, a pattern is imprinted on a random part of the body. Grants immunity to breath attacks. Survive dragon whims without dying.] [Ragal's Seal: A seal engraved with dragon words meaning transformation. Apply blood to the back of your right hand to polymorph into a dragon temporarily.] [Dragon King's Amulet: Necklace made from the fang of the golden dragon Ragal. Increases favorability with all dragons; most dragons will protect the wearer.] "Ooh..."
All the rewards were perfect for a Dragon Nanny.
'The Protector's Mark... If I ever have to fight a dragon... it'd be invincible against breaths...'
The downside was that only Ye-won-i could use it, since the mark imprints on the recipient's body the moment it's claimed. Melee class women couldn't borrow it.
"Hmm..."
Setting aside the Ye-won-i-only Mark, I wanted either Ragal's Seal for temporary dragon form or the Dragon King's Amulet for dragon favor.
Transform into a dragon... or befriend dragons...
'If I befriend dragons... maybe I can ride them...'
I debated whether to be stubborn or just let Ye-won-i choose entirely.