Chapter 41: Don't read books. It changes your constitution (1)

After returning home and after giving Hwaryeon a light scolding, Hwaryeon stared blankly at the wall and muttered absently.

"Don't throw punches without reason. Only hit bad humans who try to attack me. Avoid fights when possible."

"Good job, Hwaryeon."

Good.

Maybe it’s because I repeated the same words for an hour until her ears were numb, but Hwaryeon started reciting the rules by herself without me telling her. Brainwashing through repetition was definitely effective.

"Hwaryeon, what did I just say?"

"Don't tell people I'm a dragon. Hide my identity no matter how much I want to boast. Dragons don't fight humans."

"Well memorized. Don't drool and face the wall for 10 more minutes."

"Hehe, dragons only hit bad humans..."

Maybe she used her head too much. The kid's drooling.

I wiped the drool from the dazed Hwaryeon's mouth. This won't completely stop her from leading with her fists, but it should reduce it.

'Even if it's fine now, if she makes a mistake when she gets stronger later...'

Not knowing her own strength, she might pop humans like balloons. She'd surely cause major incidents. Today's warning was to prevent such unfortunate events.

"Suryeon and Choryeon, remember this too. You shouldn't use fists easily."

"I know without you telling me, Dad."

"No fighting! I know very well!"

Such precious kids. I decided to give these precious ones a reward. That is...

"Fun different from the playground! Dad will play with you directly!"

"..."

As soon as I said that, Suryeon ran to the bathroom and closed the door.

Bang-! Click-!

From the sound, it seems she even locked it. Does she hate playing with me that much?

That hurt a bit.

I asked Choryeon, who often plays with me.

"...Choryeon, do you hate playing with Dad?"

"Well, sometimes it's too much! But I still like it!"

Somehow that 'sometimes' bothers me. I spoke through the door to get Suryeon to come out.

"Okay, Suryeon. I'll leave you alone. Come out."

"You're not lying?"

"Would Dad lie about something so petty?"

Creeak-

Suryeon opened the firmly closed bathroom door. I considered doing the airplane game with her for a moment but decided to maintain trust by holding back.

Suryeon looked at my face for a while after coming out, then spoke.

"Dad."

"What?"

"I need something."

I wonder what she suddenly needs.

"What is it?"

"When Dad goes to work, I can't use the smartphone. I'm bored."

"There's TV."

"When time overlaps with Hwaryeon unnie, I'm forced to watch humans fighting. That's not fun."

It’s understandable if it's not her taste. Maybe wanting to use that boring time better, she stared at me and asked.

"I want to read books."

"Books?"

"Yes, I want to go to a bookstore."

Suryeon declared that she wanted to go to a bookstore. It seems she wanted to choose books she wanted to read herself.

'What should I do..?.'

Though I hesitated a bit, I thought it wouldn't be bad for the kids' education.

"Okay, let's go kids."

***

It's not easy to find bookstores these days. The biggest reason is that people stopped reading books after dimensional gates appeared. But even before that, various issues caused fewer people to read.

'Why read books when there's 30-minute summaries on XTube? They're just expensive.'

I feel that way too. Most people say they gradually disappeared with the times, but Suryeon seems to think differently.

"The reduced demand for books is someone's intentional result. Price increases are for rich people to monopolize knowledge. And e-books on the internet can be easily censored. The unchanging value of knowledge gets distorted. That's why I want physical books I can touch."

"You've seen too many conspiracy theories, Suryeon."

What is she watching on the internet? Should I control smartphone use more? I started getting slightly worried.

"Anyway, everyone needs to be quiet in the bookstore. No talking and behave."

I instructed them in front of the bookstore in District 05. The dragons nodded and answered.

"That's up to me!"

"I'm already quiet."

"I'll try my best!"

Something feels off.

"Especially you, Lee Hwaryeon. I'll kick you out if you're not quiet."

"Why are you singling me out?! That's discrimination!"

Hwaryeon tried to body-slam me while claiming discrimination. I grabbed her head to stop her charge and said.

"It's not discrimination, it's special treatment."

"...Really?!"

Hwaryeon finally stopped charging. She looked like she'd realized something. I was about to enter the bookstore with the dragons.

But first:

"After 30 minutes, everyone turns into lizards and gets in the bag like before. Understand?"

"Got it!"

"Yeah."

"Yes!"

They answered energetically and entered the bookstore.

Cool air conditioning welcomed us. After entering, Suryeon looked around to assess the interior.

"Hmm, they don't have what I want here."

"I thought you wanted Y series. Guess not."

"What's that?"

"Children's books."

Suryeon responded seriously:

"...Dad, do I look like I'd read children's books?"

"You are a child."

"..."

Seeming hurt in her pride, Suryeon closed her mouth and headed upstairs.

"You are a child though. Besides, Y series is so fun. Aren't you dismissing it too much?"

Even if they're children's books, the Y series remains legendary and still lives on.

Should we consider it like dragons?

I headed to the children's book shelves to check out the Y series after a long time.

"Hwaryeon, you need to stay near me."

"Why?!"

"Just because. It feels like you should."

I made sure to hold Hwaryeon's hand. Though she looked frustrated being held, it was a necessary choice. I can't let her suddenly go wild and burn all the books, so it’s better to keep her sealed for now.

"Let's see, Y series... here it is."

There really are various series. Robots, animals, space. I pulled out dinosaurs, thinking the kids would like it.

"Didn't you say you liked dinosaurs?"

"I never said that!"

"Really? I must have been mistaken."

Should I pick something else?

I was about to put the dinosaur book back, but Hwaryeon reached out to stop me.

"What now, Hwaryeon?"

"I didn't say I didn't like them!"

"...You want to read about dinosaurs?"

"Yes!"

Hwaryeon nodded vigorously. So, I put the dinosaur book in the basket following her wish. Her mouth corners shot upward immediately.

"Hehe, nice! Bookstores are okay!"

It seems that her mood improved a lot. I led her along, heading upstairs to check on Suryeon. But Choryeon, who had been quietly beside me, stayed still instead of following.

'What book is she reading?'

I approached Choryeon who stood still reading. Her focused face was slightly red.

"Choryeon."

"Y-yes?"

Choryeon was noticeably flustered. I wonder what she's reading?

I checked the title of her book.

"Y...Puberty and Sex...?"

"..."

"Choryeon, you read things like this?"

"N-no...! I just pulled out random...! This just happened to...! A-anyway, my friends are calling me upstairs...! I'll go check...!"

Choryeon quickly put the book back, then ran upstairs with a red face. Seeing this, Hwaryeon told me, seeming confused.

"Dad, why's she like that?"

"Hwaryeon doesn't need to know. Just stay healthy."

"That's not fair! Tell me too!"

"Shh."

I quieted Hwaryeon and went upstairs holding her hand. While the first floor was full of children's books, the second floor had more serious books.

Maybe that's why, Choryeon, who was just intently reading about puberty and sex, stood frozen on the stairs.

I patted her shoulder and asked.

"Choryeon, what are you doing here?"

Tremble tremble-

Choryeon answered in a shaking voice.

"F-Father... this is a field of corpses..."

"What?"

"So, so many trees were massacred...! My friends are crying sadly...!"

Choryeon lowered her head, clenched her fists and shouted.

"Th-this isn't knowledge, it's violence...!!"

Environmental activist Lee Choryeon.

The sound of her protests starting up could be heard.