Chapter 55
Before we knew it, six months had passed since the dragon kids were born.
During that time, they had grown more than expected.
'If they were human, they'd still be crawling. Dragons really are dragons, I guess.'
Compared to humans, their growth rate is fast. I suppose that's why they're called dragons.
"But I still don't understand."
What exactly is a dragon, anyway?
I looked at the self-proclaimed dragon kids.
"Agh! You shouldn't throw a punch like that! I told you to fake it first!"
Crunch, crunch-
Hwaryeon was lying on the floor, watching TV and eating snacks. As she ate, countless crumbs fell to the floor.
I watched silently and sighed.
"Even if their bodies are growing, when will their minds mature? How many times have I told them?"
Sigh-
I had no choice but to approach Hwaryeon and block the TV with my body. Hwaryeon threw a fit and shouted.
"Aah-! What are you doing, Dad?! It's a crucial moment right now!"
"Lee Hwaryeon. I told you to eat snacks at the table. It's hard to clean up."
"Hmph, I can clean up after eating! What's the problem!"
"The problem is you don't clean up. I end up cleaning it in the end."
"I'll clean it up then!"
Burst-!
Hwaryeon sat up and puffed her cheeks. She looked as fierce as an angry pufferfish.
"Give me a broom! And a dustpan!"
"Here you go."
"Hmph, I can do it myself!"
Hwaryeon took the broom from me and started cleaning the floor.
Swish, swish-
She swept the floor with the broom and her tail in a double-action. After cleaning up the snack crumbs thoroughly, Hwaryeon puffed up her chest and confidently exclaimed.
"There! I can do it too!"
"Well done. Why haven't you done it until now?"
"Because it's annoying!"
"...That's nothing to brag about."
I patted Hwaryeon's head as she stood there confidently.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
"Stop touching now!"
Slap-!
As soon as the time passed, Hwaryeon sharply swatted my hand away. There seems to be a three-second rule for head pats. Today, I learned one more thing about Hwaryeon.
"It's difficult, so difficult. Even after six months, I still don't get it."
They're not human but dragons. Their personalities can't be defined in one way.
As I raise them, I feel like it's getting more and more challenging.
"I need to ask for help."
I stepped over Choryeon, who was lying on the floor diligently drawing trees, and sat next to Suryeon, who was using her smartphone in the corner.
"Suryeon, the dragon know-it-all."
"What is it, Dad?"
"What exactly is a dragon?"
What is a dragon?
Suryeon answered that question simply.
"A dragon is a dragon."
"But what does that mean?"
Frown-
Suryeon furrowed her brow.
"Then let me ask you in return. Dad, what is a human?"
"A human is... a human?"
"It's the same thing. Dragons have common inherent characteristics, but they can't be defined in one way. It's frustrating, but in that aspect, we're no different from humans."
As expected of Dragon GPT Lee Suryeon. Her explanation skills are impressive.
I listened to Suryeon's words and nodded deeply.
"You really are the smartest, Suryeon."
"Of course. Who else could be called smart if not me?"
"But Suryeon. I understand you're smart, but..."
Swish-
I pointed to the floor with my finger. There were snack crumbs scattered there, similar to Hwaryeon's mess.
"Shouldn't you eat at the table to avoid dropping crumbs, or clean up after yourself?"
Recently, the kids had been crazy about snacks to the point where I wondered if they were eating too much.
"Suryeon. If you've eaten, shouldn't you clean up?"
"..."
Suryeon looked at the snack crumbs and pointed her finger.
Then,
"Water Laser Beam."
Whirr-!
She started cleaning the snack crumbs by shooting water from her finger. Seeing this, I smacked my forehead in disbelief.
"Should I praise this as creative? Or scold it as lazy? I'm not sure."
"Call it smart, Dad."
They say smart kids are often lazy. I wonder if that's true. Both Hwaryeon and Suryeon seemed to have lazy tendencies. Suryeon added an explanation to my thoughts.
"Dragon trait. laziness. Sloth is a curse dragons can't escape, Dad."
"Aren't you just rationalizing not wanting to do things because it's bothersome?"
"..."
It's just that you find it annoying, right?
Suryeon, having nothing to say, kept her mouth shut at my words. Her reaction made me realize one truth.
'Dragons. They're definitely lazier compared to humans.'
Especially, there's one dragon who's the laziest of all. The dragon who sleeps the most.
I quietly looked at Choryeon. Feeling my gaze, Choryeon turned her head and waved at me.
"Father, would you like to see my drawing?"
Choryeon stopped waving and showed me her drawing.
Ta-da—
"What do you think, Father?! This is my masterpiece! Isn't it good?"
"Hmm..."
How should I respond to this?
Seeing Choryeon's drawing, my mind went blank. What on earth was the intention behind this? I moved closer to examine Choryeon's drawing in detail.
"The trees are growing well."
"Yes, that's right!"
"They're growing very lush and green. But, Choryeon."
"Yes?"
"Why are there human faces attached to the trees?"
Human faces were attached to the fully grown trees.
A truly bizarre picture had been born from Choryeon's hand. As Choryeon looked a bit scared and hesitant, she opened her mouth and explained confidently.
"That's, you see! It's called a plant human!"
"Plant human...?"
"Yes! Plant humans! I saw it on TV! If you keep a dying person alive, they become a plant human! Isn't that great, Father?"
That's quite different from the concept of a vegetative state that I know. Unaware of this fact, Choryeon was smiling brightly, waiting for my reaction.
"What do you think, Father?!"
If I said it wasn't good, she'd obviously droop her horns and tail and become dejected. So I had no choice but to say.
"Uh... well... it's good, Choryeon. You have an artistic sense."
"Really?!"
"Yes, you're the best."
You're the boss.
I gave Choryeon a thumbs up. At this, Choryeon smiled radiantly and said to me.
"I'm so glad you like it, Father! If you ever fall into a bad state... I'll turn you into a plant human!"
"Th-There's no need for that..."
"Don't be modest! Just trust me, Father!"
Puff—
Choryeon puffed out her chest confidently and declared to me. Seeing this, I thought to myself.
'...Choryeon is such an innocent child. Maybe too innocent, which might be a problem.'
Having shown me her drawing and exhausted her artistic spirit, Choryeon laid out her blanket and lay down.
Soon after, I could hear Choryeon sleep-talking.
"Mmnya... Father mustn't die... You have to live with us forever... Even if you become a plant human... Live forever..."
"..."
I don't know much about dragons. But for some reason, Choryeon's words didn't sound like mere passing remarks.
I had an eerie feeling that she might actually do it someday.
***
Before falling asleep, while lying in the dark room and looking at the ceiling, I pondered about what exactly dragons are.
"What are dragons, Hwaryeon?"
"Yaaawn— Mmnya—"
"Thanks for the answer, Hwaryeon."
"Mmnya..."
Hwaryeon kindly answered me with sleep-talk. It wasn’t particularly informative, but at least she gave an answer.
"I'm just complicating things unnecessarily."
I scratched my head in frustration. After visiting the kindergarten, my thoughts had become more complex.
"They need to live among humans, but no matter how I look at it, these kids have no social skills."
But can I teach them social skills?
No, absolutely not.
Having grown up without parents, I'm not particularly good at socializing either.
"Should I keep pushing them, like the headbutting dinosaur Hwaryeon likes? What do you think, Hwaryeon?"
"Mnyaaa..."
Of course, she couldn't understand what I was saying.
What am I even doing?
Feeling the absurdity of the situation, I closed my eyes and muttered.
"Humans... dragons... six months... coexistence... kindergarten... Agh, just thinking about it gives me a headache."
Sigh.
I don't know. Parenting is making my head complicated, but I decided to think simply.
"Let's just raise them my way. What's the worst that could happen?"
Humans and dragons. I decided not to think about it too complicatedly.
I felt that getting trapped in those labels wouldn't be good.
"Instead of dragons, let's just think of them as my daughters and raise them."
Before being dragons, they're my children.
Thinking this, I quietly closed my eyes.