Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 011
Chapter Title: The Flute Sound Flowing Through the Quiet City
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“Huh?”
A shadow falls over the view of the man who was secretly filming the owner with his phone.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“Uh, uh?!”
He hurriedly hides his phone behind his back and puts on an innocent act, but it’s more than enough to stoke Grandpa’s rage.
“W-wait a sec! I didn’t do anything!”
“Save your excuses for the judge.”
“Gaaah!!”
Thud—!! Grandpa grabs the man’s leg and hurls him away.
A person literally spinning through the air like a windmill.
“Grandpa’s the best…!”
I giggled like a little imp, watching Grandpa—the pinnacle of human physical prowess—smash the creep to pieces.
The man desperately tries to hold onto his phone, but overpowering that 190cm giant looks impossible.
“Grandfather? What’s going on?!”
“This creep was secretly filming you!”
“Oh? Then stomp him harder.”
Mi-ra Owner bursts out of the kitchen in a panic from the commotion and tries to stop Grandpa… only to side with the violence once she learns what happened.
“Keeek!! Save… Gyaaak!!”
“Your actions confess your crime!”
The outnumbered creep is soon flung whirling out of the store.
“My phone…! Where is it?”
“This one? Took a lot of pictures, huh… You damn bastard.”
Crunch— Grandpa deletes every photo, then crushes the phone in one hand.
The sturdy titanium Apple phone folds neatly in half.
…It bends like that?
“If you don’t want to die right here, hands up and stay put.”
Grandpa glares down at the creep with murderous intent, but the guy doesn’t back down an inch.
“You think I’ll run?! Before I head back to jail, I’ll take you down with me!!”
“Hoo… Charging right at me, eh? Got some guts.”
Even if he retreats now, prison awaits either way.
With nothing left to lose, he pulls a pocket knife from his jacket.
“Die!!!”
With a shout, he thrusts the knife at Grandpa.
“Huh…?”
Clang~ Not the sound of a blade sinking in, but the thud of a fist meeting rock-hard abs.
“Where’s my knife? I swear I was holding it…”
The creep stares at his empty hand and looks around.
“It’s over.”
“...Wait?! Guhoook!!”
Boom—! Grandpa’s hammer fist cracks straight into his skull, sending him sprawling flat in a swastika flop.
“What a worthless punk…”
Grandpa shakes out his hand, slings the man over the back seat of his motorcycle, and climbs on.
…He’s not dead, is he?
Eh, whatever.
“Yay! Grandpa’s the best! The absolute best!!”
“...So you were the one who snatched the knife.”
(For the record, I was the one who took the knife, not Grandpa.)
Sneak up behind him… and snatch!
“Hehe…! I did awesome, right? Praise me!”
“...Ahem. Thank… you.”
I twirl the pocket knife gripped in my tail, demanding praise, and Grandpa averts his eyes before mumbling his thanks.
He’s shyer than I thought.
“I’m dropping this guy off at the station, so watch the store while I’m gone.”
Vroom—! The cyberpunk motorcycle peels out, leaving a neon streak in its wake.
“Take care, Grandpa! Uhuhu!”
I had him handle it so I wouldn’t risk damaging the store by jumping in myself.
“This is proxy fighting…!”
This… is way more fun than I expected.
The tension and thrill feel just like watching anime!
Bonus: Conquering the Grandpa who used to see me as an enemy!
The ultimate old-man swagger explosion.
“Ah.”
In my sea of overflowing dopamine, one detox shot slams into my brain.
“I should’ve asked him to grab a convenience store burger!!”
The store burger I missed out on last time dances tantalizingly in my mind’s eye.
Perfect setup to mooch one from the rich store-owning Grandpa!
“Grrr! Woof woof!”
I bark like a dog, furious at my own idiocy.
“Lua. What’re you doing back there?”
“...Kyaaang?! Owner?!”
Mi-ra Owner spots me after hearing the weird ruckus from the alley.
“Ah, nothing! Ehehhe…”
“Break time—come inside. It’s cold out; warm up a bit.”
“Kyaring!”
I hop down from the utility pole and charge toward Owner with arms outstretched.
Slick!
“Hngok?! Kyuhiik!”
My uncontrollable tail tangles my feet. I faceplant and roll across the ground like a tumbling hoop, finally stopping at her feet.
“...Ehehe.”
“You okay, Lua?”
“Fihne!”
Grinning through the dirt on my face, she wipes it clean with her handkerchief.
“Such a good little pup… How’re you ever gonna get married?”
“Meeeeng…”
She stretches my cheeks, drawing out a cute noise, then sighs and frets over my future.
Marriage, huh.
What marriage? I lived thirty years as a guy with zero prospects.
An anomaly lives solo like an anomaly!
“I’ll mahwy a buwgew meeeing!”
“Can’t marry food.”
She stretches my cheeks even longer for the nonsense, and I flail my arms wildly in the air.
“These clothes are filthy…”
She mutters to herself, scoops me up, and carries me back into the store.
“Lua. Where’d you get those clothes?”
“These ones?”
“Yeah. Way too grimy.”
Now settled in my dedicated corner seat, I look down at my outfit.
A plain white kid’s t-shirt, but yellowed and filthy.
“...Sniff sniff.”
Still smells nice, though—like puppy or kitty paw pads.
Anyway.
“Picked it up in the Mapo-gu ruins and put it on.”
“...Yeah? Looks like you’ve had it for months.”
“Months? It’s been less than a week… Huh?”
It hit me naturally forgotten: I’ve had this on since I awoke as a dragon.
“No way… Is this my skin too?!”
“Don’t take it off.”
“Kyuuhing!”
Full of experimental spirit, I start to strip, but she lightly chops the top of my head.
“I’ll buy you a new outfit when I get time.”
“Gyaruring…”
Petted, I instinctively let out a deep purr.
…A purring dragon.
Vroom— While enjoying some laid-back time with Owner, Grandpa returns after handing the creep over to the police.
“I’m back, granddaughter. Oh? Lizard’s here too.”
“Grandfather. Not a lizard—Iru-a.”
“...Right, Lua. Ahem, Lua’s here too. Anyway, check this out first.”
Finally calling me by name, Grandpa rummages in his pocket.
Burger, maybe?
“Burger! …Aww, what is it…”
My red eyes sparkle with anticipation, but sadly, it’s just his phone playing the news.
“People have been vanishing without a trace since yesterday.”
Grandpa shows the missing persons report and recites a few more details.
“Witnesses say they heard a flute sound right before people disappeared. Probably an anomaly’s work.”
People vanishing with a flute? Total Pied Piper vibes…
“Liz…, er, Lua. Any guesses?”
“Me? Nothing really.”
Figuring another anomaly like me might know something, but I’m clueless.
My brain’s 35% Mi-ra Owner, 35% burgers, 29.9% Lua’s Hamburger, 0.1% Grandpa.
“Ah! There was one thing!”
Earlier, while scouting the neighborhood, didn’t I catch that thick blood stench?
The smell so heavy it overpowered the burger aroma—could it tie to these disappearances?
I give Grandpa a rough rundown of what happened.
“Hmm… I see. Got it.”
“What… I’m not the culprit, you know?!”
Does he have me on the suspect list too? A suspicious glance passes over me.
I swear on my life, it wasn’t me.
No time to spare with burgers, why would I kidnap people?
“Anyway. If you hear a flute, don’t look back—just run.”
After relaying the news, Grandpa grabs his broom and heads out front.
Sweep sweep. Leaves gather with the sound.
“Anomalies always show up whenever customers pick up… Haa…”
Owner breaks the silence by tapping something into her phone, then lets out a weary sigh.
“...!!”
Even she’s just human—no iron will to shrug this off.
With anomalies popping up more often lately, feeling frustrated is only natural.
If this keeps up… No more burgers?!
“No way! Keep making burgers forever!”
“Ugh? Lua?”
“Owner’s burgers are the best in the whole world…”
I nuzzle into her arms for comfort, rubbing my cheek against hers.
I can’t just sit by and watch my precious Lua’s Hamburger get ruined by anomalies.
“I’ll protect you… Promise…”
If any anomalies mess with what’ll one day be hailed as Korea’s national treasure, I’ll crush them mercilessly.
“...Can’t breathe. Let go?”
“Hik!? Sorry!!”
Guess I hugged too tight.
“Wanna touch my tail…?”
“Sure.”
I offer it up as an apology.
To boost Owner’s spirits, I start tracking the flute-playing anomaly the moment night falls.
“The smell came from… Yongsan Park direction…?”
Since the stench wafted from Yongsan Park, I focus my search there.
Wide grounds blanketed in woods—plenty of hiding spots.
“...Searching inch by inch would be a pain.”
Even with my superior sight and smell, there are limits.
I scrap the scent-tracking plan and switch to hunting the flute sound.
Focusing my hearing, a cacophony floods in.
Cars rumbling by.
Crickets chirping.
Amid the symphony of noises, a faint flute melody drifts through.
“Found it!”
Daring to disrupt Owner’s business? Unforgivable!
I scan the surroundings with razor-sharp eyes.
“...!”
There—below me. A massive rat playing a flute.
Peelili~~
Skill so bad it squeaks off-key, but a man dances entranced behind it.
So that’s how it kidnaps them…
“Stay right there!”
I activate precision aerial strike mode and smash my tail down on the giant rat.
Boom—!
“...Dodges, huh.”
It senses the ambush and leaps back, evading successfully.
“Enemy of Lua’s Hamburger!”
But it’s cornered in a dead-end thicket with nowhere to run.
Time to take it out and boost Lua’s Hamburger’s fame.
“Die!!”
I sharpen my claws and slash at it.
“Chwung! Why’re you messing with me, bitch?!”
Clang!! It barely blocks my attack with its flute.
Intelligent enough to speak and negotiate, even.
“Your fault our store’s on the brink of closing.”
“Hamburger store? The one hawking human flesh as patties?”
“Hell no? Owner’s spirit’s about to break!”
Not grasping why one anomaly would fight another, it rolls its eyes and flicks out its grotesque tongue.
“Sticking with some human running a shitty store… Aren’t you ashamed as an anomaly?! Chwung!!”
…Shitty store?
SHITTY… store?!
“Hey. What’d you just say?”
Fuming to my scalp, I spew pale pink flames and glare it down.
Its fur bristles as it hurriedly puts distance between us, prepping to flee.
“Chweek! Tamed by a human!! Food! Cheap-ass fast food, no less!”
Utterly fearless of my killing intent, it keeps mocking.
“……”
No point getting madder; it’d just hurt me.
Time to rip out that heart and vent my stress.
“Chwung?!”
I launch like lightning, thrusting my hand toward its heart.
The instant my fingers pierce flesh, the anomaly blows its flute!
A black shadow bubbles up from nowhere, engulfs it in a flash, and vanishes.
Planning to yank out the heart, I lose my target and land on the ground.
Missed it right at the finish line.
I scan sharply around, but all that’s left is the dazed man standing there.
No trace of the anomaly’s eerie escape technique.
That’s why it vanished so suddenly last time I tracked it.
“Had you… Shouldn’t have held back to spare the forest.”
Vowing coldly to rip its neck off next time, I check for any traces it left.
Soon enough, I spot something on the ground.
“Sheet music?”
The remnant left by the vanished anomaly was a crumpled scrap of score.
“Boccherini’s Minuet. Famous European dance tune.”
“Dance music?”
“Yeah. Think of it as music commonly played at parties around the 18th century.”
Next morning at Lua’s Hamburger opening time, I ask Owner about the sheet music. Turns out it’s dance music.
“Hmm… Playing party music, huh…”
Not outright hunting people, but luring them to dance and kidnapping them.
Definitely shady.
Peelili~~
“...?”
That instant. In broad daylight, a nauseating bloody stench assaults my nose, accompanied by flute sounds.
“...!!!!”
“Eh? Lua? Where’re you going? Your burger?”
The flute-playing anomaly shows up near the store. Without a backward glance, I bolt outside.