Chapter 38
An eighty-meter-tall Fissure suddenly appeared in front of the National Gugak Center on Nambu Beltway, Seocho-gu, Bangbae-dong. A giant dragon sat still in front of that Fissure without attacking the civilians.
The urgently dispatched police and military were busy evacuating citizens.
A police officer blew a whistle, directing traffic and guiding people to safety away from the dragon. Amidst the chaotic scene, filled with screams and shouts, a middle-aged man in a yellow civil defense uniform shouted, leading people to the underground shelters.
“This way! Hey, over there, don’t push!”
Cheol-Soo gritted his teeth as he looked up at the massive dragon with beige skin and was as tall as a skyscraper. The dragon stared blankly into the distance, expressionless, making Cheol-Soo almost wonder what it was thinking.
Amidst all this chaos, one thing was sure.
If it starts rampaging, we’re all dead.
Three years ago, when Masalis appeared, a single breath wiped out everything within its range. Even the elite S-rank Hunters who got caught in it were instantly killed. Recalling that incident, every second now felt like walking on thin ice.
“It’s the Mejai Guild!”
At those words, Cheol-Soo turned his head and spotted the three elite members of the Mejai Guild.
The expressions of the military and government staff, who had been in despair, brightened slightly upon seeing the Hunters rated quite close to S-rank who were praised for defeating the boss monster in the A-rank Fissure Swamp of the Dark Ogre with just three people.
Yoo Mi-Ra drew the Dark Elf’s Longbow, an A-rank bow she had been carrying on her back. But just when she was about to pull the bowstring, Mejai Guild leader Dong-Hyun stopped her.
“That thing isn’t moving.”
“That’s why now’s our chance. If I hit its weak spot in the eyes with a double shot, we can gain the upper hand. Once it loses its sight, it’ll be easier to take down.”
“But attacking might just provoke it even more,” Dong-Hyun disagreed.
What would happen if the dragon started a rampage after losing its vision? The situation could become even worse than the Masalis incident.
“So are you saying we’re just going to stand here and watch?” Yoo Mi-Ra said in frustration.
“Well...”
At that moment, a man in his early thirties approached them. “You must hold back for now.”
Yoo Mi-Ra quickly turned to see that it was Hyuk-Soo, a man in a civil defense uniform with a government ID around his neck.
“If that dragon starts rampaging like Hunter Han just said, this entire area will be decimated. There’s a residential complex nearby, with an estimated population of over ten thousand citizens. I understand how you feel, Hunter Yoo, but attacking now would be a mis...” Hyuk-Soo trailed off.
Grrr...
The dragon, which had been still, furrowed its brow and growled softly. But it wasn’t directed at the people.
A small creature was flying toward the dragon from afar, headed straight for it without hesitation.
“That’s...” Hyuk-Soo murmured.
The creature was, without a doubt, the pet that Do-Jun had with him. It then grew in size as it approached the dragon, soon becoming more than twice the size of the beige dragon sitting in front of the Fissure.
It was another dragon but with the number one engraved on its forehead.
The newly arrived dragon spread its massive wings and charged at the beige dragon, dragging both into the Fissure.
“W-what was that?” Dong-Hyun stammered in shock.
But the most surprised person was Hyuk-Soo.
“He’s my new pet. He will be helping me from now on.”
“Yong-Yong!” Suddenly, a teenage girl appeared in Hyuk-Soo’s line of sight.
The girl, Yoon-Hee, saw Yong-Yong being sucked into the Fissure, and without hesitation, she ran toward it.
“H-hold on a second!” Hyuk-Soo shouted in panic, trying to stop her, but it was already too late.
Yoon-Hee was already pulled into the Fissure.
***
In a land of seething magma, two dragons faced each other. The beige dragon, Karsiel, trembled uncontrollably in disbelief.
“L-lord Izaas...”
The first and the lord of all dragons. The leader of the beings that ruled over all other beings. He was supposed to be in eternal slumber, so why was the lord here standing before him?
Izaas was the first to speak. “You’ve made two mistakes.”
“M-mistakes, you say...?”
Karsiel couldn’t move due to the overwhelming presence that was predetermined at birth. The sheer power, at least dozens of times greater than her own, paralyzed her body.
“The first mistake was leaving the nest without my permission.”
Izaas’s tail whipped across Karsiel’s face. Unable to withstand the impact, Karsiel was sent flying hundreds of meters away.
“Come.”
As Izaas’ words reverberated throughout the Fissure, Karsiel quickly picked herself up and flew back to stand before him. Blood dripped from her cheek, but she didn’t show any pain.
“Do you know what braised chicken is?” Izaas asked him.
“I cannot say that I do...”
“Of course you don’t. But that’s your second mistake.”
“So...rry...? What?”
Thwack!
Another tail strike landed, and this time, Karsiel was flung in the air and crashed into a boulder.
But at that moment, a familiar voice was heard. “Yong-Yong!”
Izaas turned his head to look behind him. There stood Yoon-Hee.
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“Why are you here...?”
“Because you just flew out without warning! Of course, I’m going to follow!”
“T-true, but you shouldn’t have come in here...”
Right then, Karsiel flew back and stood in front of Izaas. When she saw Yoon-Hee standing behind Izaas, her murderous intent flared up.
Yoon-Hee’s face turned pale, and she stumbled backward from the dragon's oppressive aura.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing to my master’s family? Do you really want to die?” Izaas shouted.
Realizing her mistake, Karsiel hastily retracted her murderous intent.
“Y-your m-master...?”
Izaas, the Lord of the Dragons, was known to have immense pride and unmatched power. But he was now calling someone his master.
“This is my master’s daughter, the one who made the great braised chicken. And you dare threaten her? You’re really asking for it. I’ll show you what real pain is. You’ll wish you were dead. But before that...” Izaas smirked. “You gotta take five hits.”
He was about to unleash on Karsiel what he suffered from Do-Jun.
***
“Straighten up.”
Trembling incessantly, Karsiel looked up in agony at the now-small Izaas, who was sitting on her head, and asked, “H-how long do I have to keep doing this?”
“Kekekeke. You say the exact same thing.”
Feeling a twisted sense of pleasure from repaying the pain he had suffered at the hands of Do-Jun, Izaas laughed uproariously.
“Sigh...”
Yoon-Hee watched them and let out a deep sigh. She had seen something like this on TV once. In the military, people who had been bullied by their seniors would treat their juniors the same way.
“You have no idea how much harder things were back in my day!” Yong-Yong said.
“D-does that mean you suffer through this too, Lord Izaas?”
“Enough with the unnecessary questions!” Yong-Yong smacked Karsiel’s head with his tiny foreleg.
“How long are you going to keep this up?” Yoon-Hee asked, seemingly grown tired of watching.
“Chef, this brat hasn’t tasted the bitterness of Hell-Joseon yet. We have to put her through this for at least another twelve hours...”
“Can we just go home? I can make the braised chicken again if needed.”
At those words, Yong-Yong quickly hopped off Karsiel’s head and ran to Yoon-Hee, panting like a dog.
“Lord Izaas...?” Karsiel said uncertainly.
The dragon that once ruled over all as their lord now seemed no different from an ordinary pet.
“If you run away from the nest again, you’re dead for real. You better close the Fissure up as soon as we leave, got it?” Yong-Yong scolded Karsiel.
“L-Lord Izaas!” Karsiel stared at him blankly.
“Don’t be too harsh! She looks sad,” Yoon-Hee said.
“Sad? That dragon needs more beatings to get her head on straight.”
“Isn’t she your friend?”
“Hah!” Yong-Yong scoffed as if Yoon-Hee had just told a big joke.
Yoon-Hee approached the slumped-over Karsiel. “Do you also have nowhere to go?”
“Sorry...?”
“Do you want to come to our house? Oh, but I’ll have to ask my father first. I couldn’t reach him on the phone...”
At those words, Yong-Yong jumped up in shock. “No! Absolutely not! What are we, a shelter for stray dragons?”
That was the outward reason, but deep down, Yong-Yong had another concern.
If that gal comes, there’ll be less food for me!
Yoon-Hee touched her lips, deep in thought.
“Can you shrink down like Yong-Yong?” she asked Karsiel.
“I can.”
Swoosh.
Just like that, the once massive Karsiel shrank down to a size similar to Yong-Yong’s.
“Let’s go to our house for now. But if my father says no, there’s nothing I can do. Okay?”
Yoon-Hee smiled as she patted Karsiel, whose eyes grew wide.
She...she is an angel!
***
Whoosh!
Yoon-Hee stepped out from the Fissure. Seeing her, Hyuk-Soo quickly ran toward her but then quickly slammed on the brakes.
“W-what is...?”
Following closely behind Yoon-Hee’s heels were two small creatures. One was Yong-Yong, whom Hyuk-Soo knew, but the other was one he had never seen before.
“Ah, Mr. Kwon!” Yoon-Hee greeted him.
“Y-yoon-Hee, what are these...?”
“Oh, did you not see Yong-Yong last time?”
Hyuk-Soo gulped and asked, “Is he... a dragon?”
Yoon-Hee nodded, assuming Hyuk-Soo already knew Yong-Yong’s true identity. But that was a big mistake. Hyuk-Soo took a shocked step back.
At that moment, Dong-Hyun and the members of the Mejai Guild approached, having confirmed that the Fissure had closed.
“Oh, you’re...” Dong-Hyun recalled the events from the morning when he saw Yoon-Hee.
She was the girl who had been with the man claiming to be Lee Do-Jun, who was suspected to be Kim Hyun-Woo, at the Hunter Festival.
Recognizing Dong-Hyun, Yoon-Hee bowed her head in slight surprise.
Yoo Mi-Ra, standing next to him, looked down at the two small creatures following closely behind Yoon-Hee.
“What are these?” Yoo Mi-Ra asked.
Caught off guard, Hyuk-Soo spoke quickly, “Ah? Haha! These are pets, pets! Right, Yoon-Hee?”
“Huh? Well, yeah, I guess.” Yoon-Hee tilted her head, not understanding why Hyuk-Soo was so flustered.
Yoo Mi-Ra squinted as she alternated her gaze between Yong-Yong and Karsiel.
“Wait...! Aren’t these the dragons from earlier?”
Everyone gasped at her words.
“W-what are you talking about?” Hyuk-Soo began stammering as he tried to explain.
“But they’re the same color as the dragons from before. Their appearance is different, but look at the number! Earlier, the brown dragon had a nine on its forehead, right? And so does this one!”
“That’s not true! There’s no way these are dragons! Look at how cute they are!” Hyuk-Soo rebutted as he lifted Karsiel and held him out to Yoo Mi-Ra.
“They... are cute, but aren’t these just those dragons shrunken down?”
“They are drag... hup!” As Yoon-Hee was about to confirm Yoo Mi-Ra’s speculation, Hyuk-Soo quickly covered her mouth with his hand.
If it was revealed that they were dragons, it would cause a huge upheaval in society.
Hyuk-Soo whispered into Yoon-Hee’s ear, “If you reveal they’re dragons, Do-Jun will get in big trouble.”
Yoon-Hee nodded in understanding. She had thought that those around Do-Jun already knew Yong-Yong’s identity, but if he had kept it a secret, as his daughter, she needed to cooperate.
“They may look like dragons, but they’re not.”
“Are you lying...? This one looks just like the red dragon from earlier. Oh, and you went into the Fissure too! W-what happened?”
At Yoo Mi-Ra’s persistent questioning, Kwon Hyuk-Soo quickly stepped in and separated them.
Then, he pretended to check his phone and said, “Do-Jun says to come home quickly! Come on. Your father’s worried, so you should go.”
“Oh...! Oh no! I’m going to be in trouble. I have to get home fast. T-then, I’ll be off.”
Yoon-Hee hurriedly left, with Yong-Yong and Karsiel trailing behind her.
Watching them go, Dong-Hyun rubbed his chin in thought.
Kim Hyun-Woo is Lee Do-Jun, and those two little creatures are the dragons from earlier?
He ruffled his hair roughly and sighed.
I don’t know what’s what anymore.