There was always a strange dissonance in nuance between this world and mine. Moments like this made me want to strangle the author who’d possessed me without any kind of linguistic patch. Couldn’t they at least have installed a language update?
“Seril, I have a question.”
“Hm? What is it?”
The dragon turned his head sideways, eyes lowered to a patch of small wildflowers.
“...Would you ever... take another companion?”
That one caught me off guard. I’d never even asked myself that before.
Anyone who’s ever lost a pet knows the feeling. The time you shared was blindingly happy—but that only makes the emptiness that follows even larger.
“I don’t know yet. It was... happy, of course.”
“...Happy, huh.”
“But humans live longer. Sending them off first—it hurts too much.”
Varen, who’d been quietly staring at the flowers, suddenly snapped his head toward me. His gaze locked onto mine, firm and unblinking.
“Dragons live much longer than humans. You’d never have to send me off first.”
He fired the words off without a breath.
Since when did he talk that fast? And what was that, bragging about lifespan?
I just blinked at him, letting it sink in, then exhaled a short sigh. I wasn’t that slow on the uptake.
Cute little bastard. So after all that fuss about not being touched—
I’d once been called the “Hand of God.” There wasn’t a single dog I couldn’t get to roll over for a belly rub.
“You little punk. You wanna be my pet dragon or something?”
“What’s a pet?”
“Mm, I mean—do you want to be my companion dragon?”
The vertical pupils trembled. His breath hit my face, hot steam curling around us.
“If... if you’re fine with it...”
Before he could finish, my state-of-the-art monster security system went off.
“Hyung!”
Rami shot out of my pocket and scrambled across the ground. When she couldn’t draw on the grass, she turned around and pointed her rear at me—then folded her thin tail, straightened it into a sharp line, and jabbed.
“An arrow? Hunters nearby?”
“Hyung!”
I jumped to my feet and sprinted in the direction she pointed.
“Seril, where are you going!”
“That bastard hunter’s trying to hurt my dragon!”
How dare they! Fueled by righteous fury, I ran faster than Ella ever could.
***
It had already been four days since Varen entered the world.
I’d spent every day on edge, keeping an eye out for Jed. Between the Facility, the basement, and the mountains, I barely slept.
I was exhausted to the point of death—but I could endure it. It would all be over soon.
Once I sent Varen off, I’d probably feel lonely for a while.
Even though I’d made up my mind, the thought of his absence left a dull ache. Even while brushing Ella’s mane, my mind was full of the dragon.
“Pffhffhh.”
“Whoa, whoa. Easy, Ella. You’ve been tired lately—take it easy today.”
I gave her a day off. Yet for some reason, she kept fussing.
She pawed the ground, tossing her head and whinnying, even refused her favorite carrots and sugar cubes.
I patted her long neck and let out a helpless laugh.
“Restless? Wanna go out?”
“Ehehehh.”
“Well, can’t blame you. You love to run...”
And suddenly, the scenes from the last few days overlapped in my mind—
Ella galloping freely through the mountains.
Rami climbing trees with her friends.
Varen sprawled out on the grass, basking in the sun.
Epiphanies always hit the foolish without warning—and this one slapped me across the back of the head.
I said I hated humans, but I was one. Still trapped in a human-centered way of thinking.
Monsters were born to live freely in nature. We were the ones who dragged them into the Facility and locked them up.
And me? I’d only ever thought about healing and caring for them inside their cages.
I walked out of the stable at once, scanning the Facility grounds. One by one, I checked the enclosures.
The ice peacock Elicus, bald from feather-plucking.
The armored elephant Gronia, swinging its huge head over and over.
The gray wolf Luto, circling the same spot endlessly.
All signs of chronic stress from confinement.
“...We have to send them back to the forest.”
To “care” for them only meant to keep them confined in °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° good health. I’d been shackled by a foolish sense of responsibility.
Once I realized it, my body moved on its own. Every day here was already a ticking bomb—I had no time left to hesitate.
“Kallen! Come here!”
Far away, Kallen was stacking hay. She looked up, anxiety written all over her face, and hurried over.
“Why are you calling me again? I haven’t even finished—”
“Which monsters are the most seriously injured?”
I couldn’t just release everyone blindly. For some, the wild would be more dangerous.
“Hmm, plenty of sick ones. Luto still has diarrhea, and Erni’s weak...”
“Not that kind. I mean the ones who couldn’t find food on their own.”
Kallen thought for a moment, then pulled out her ever-present notebook and flipped through the pages.
“If that’s the standard, none.”
“What about ones that can’t move?”
“Ella’s treatment’s done. A few limp or are timid, but none that can’t walk.”
If they could hunt and run from danger, they’d survive. They could adapt.
“Then let’s check on the weakest ones first.”
“Huh? Right now?”
“No time. Move.”
Still bewildered, she led the way as I hurried through the Facility, inspecting the worst cases first.
There were issues, but nothing life-threatening. In fact, most illnesses stemmed from stress.
Our final stop was the most infamous monster of all—so feared every handler had given up, even Kallen.
“Still not eating?”
“Maybe sneaks food at dawn, but barely touches anything.”
Inside the iron cage crouched a predator-type beast: Tymer.
Short brown fur, long tail—looked like a puma, except for the one-meter fangs jutting from its snout.
It had been here over a month. On its first day, it tore through a handler’s thigh. No one dared approach since.
I shone a light through the bars. The belly and legs were hidden under its body, but there was no blood or rot. No injuries.
Its fur, though, was dull. Nutritional deficiency.
“It’s because it can’t hunt. Predators need to satisfy the instinct.”
“How do you do that?”
“You enrich their behavior. Not really possible here, though.”
Even major zoos couldn’t meet a predator’s need for exercise. In a cage like this? Hopeless.
There was only one diagnosis for the Facility’s biggest problem child.
“Alright. Let’s call it a day early.”
“It’s not even evening yet.”
“You deserve a break too.”
Since becoming my assistant, Kallen had never left on time. Her eyes widened at her first ever early leave, then she beamed and ran off.
Once she was gone, I tapped my pocket. Rami peeked out.
“Hey, can you unlock all the locks we saw today?”
“Hyung.”
“Impressive. Bring the others to help—don’t do it alone.”
Rami stiffened, tail bristling.
Good grief. Monsters here really were jealous.
“Okay, okay. You’re the number one Noak. My best little one.”
Satisfied, she wagged her tail and disappeared again.
I hurried back to my quarters. Even going over the list again, there wasn’t a single monster better off here.
If a hundred monsters vanished at once, the Facility would be in chaos for days.
And in that chaos, I’d escape—with Varen.
My chest pounded wildly, like a kid about to unwrap a Christmas present.
If I could go with Varen all the way to the Velzena Mountains—the dragons’ homeland—
If I could actually see a dragon colony...
One dragon was already breathtaking. A whole flight of them? Insanity. It’d be the most spectacular sight of a lifetime.
***
Before dawn, I slipped out quietly. This time, the bag on my back held only my clothes and personal belongings—not gifts for Varen.
Ella stayed in the stable. If anything unexpected happened, she’d use telekinesis to help Rami.
Rami, meanwhile, had orders to guide the freed monsters into the forest. Quietly, far, and deep before sunrise.
By daylight, the Facility would explode into chaos. They’d start with the nearby forest—it would take time to reach Varen’s area.
If only he could manage to humanize by then. If he could, I’d ride Ella out of the woods, make it to the Silvern Plateau, and we’d be free.
My overworked body protested, but I pushed on. Two hours up the mountain, no room to rest.
To open all the pens at once, I needed the Noak patrol’s help. Meaning: right now, Varen was alone—no CCTV, no supervision.
“Haah... damn, I should’ve worked out more.”
“Yeah. You really should have.”
A voice answered.
One that shouldn’t have been there.
Cold flooded my veins. Every pore prickled.
“...Jed.”
“Mountain climbing under the moonlight? Charming hobby.”
Jed stepped from the underbrush, and behind him loomed several broad-shouldered men.
And that—that—was why he always put me on edge. The way he made me feel like I was dancing in his palm.
“The trail’s rough. What’s got you in such a hurry?”
He hadn’t followed me—he’d known exactly where I’d be.
“Ahaha, Seril. You look troubled.”
“...Wonder why.”
“Because of me? Hmm, I have quite a few questions of my own.”
“...”
“For instance—when exactly were you planning to report that a dragon escaped?”
“Something like that.”
Where the hell did he learn to talk like that—just to flip people inside out?
