Chapter 9
Sniff, sniff!
The hatchling drake, who had been nestled comfortably in Jade's arms, suddenly opened both eyes.
It had instinctively reacted to the delicious smell.
-I knew it must be hungry!
“It's at the age when it eats a lot.”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
When Sylaphe brought over part of the Black Drake's corpse, the hatchling drake's tail spun like a windmill.
It seemed to have instinctively realized that it was its food.
At the sight, Jade smiled faintly and brought the food to the hatchling drake's mouth.
-But even if its color is different, it's still technically one of its kind. Is it really all right to feed it this?
-I don't think it matters. Most monsters fight and eat one another anyway. Some even hunt and eat their own kind to grow stronger, so this is nothing. Besides, this child has every right to eat the Black Drake's flesh.
-That's true.
Chomp, chomp!
Despite having just been born, the hatchling drake ate the meat with great relish.
Even though Sylaphe had brought a fairly large chunk, it devoured the entire thing in an instant.
Even then, perhaps still hungry, the hatchling drake looked up at Jade imploringly, its mouth covered in blood.
-Looks like it wasn't enough!
“I thought so, too. Sylaphe, could you bring some more meat?”
Neeeigh!
At Jade's request, Sylaphe dashed underground as if to say, “Leave it to me.”
Soon, a chunk of meat about the same size as before was given to the hatchling drake.
-So cute. It's eating while nestled right in Jade's arms.
-Its wings are small compared to its body, but it's amazing that it can fly.
The two spirits watched it eat with expressions that said they could die from the cuteness, even though it was merely having a meal.
Even the normally composed Elestera repeatedly reached out her hand, then stopped herself.
Like Silestin, she wanted to hold the hatchling drake, too.
Burp!
Having finished its meal in the blink of an eye, the hatchling drake let out a hearty belch.
Unlike before, it seemed its stomach was suitably full this time, and the two spirits once again went wild at the sight of it lazily patting its belly.
Even that was cute.
“Looks like it'll be a handful for a while.”
Kyu-uung.
As Jade wiped its mouth, the hatchling drake closed its eyes and savored his touch.
It was a small thing, but it had put the hatchling in a good mood.
As if to prove it, the hatchling drake's tail swayed gently from side to side.
-Why worry? We've got so many children!
“It's a relief. Anyway, what should we name it?”
-I've already thought of one!
“What is it?”
-How about Res? It's cute and adorable, and it seems like it would suit a hatchling drake perfectly, don't you think?
Elestera, who was beside them, wore an incredulous expression.
She could immediately tell where the name Res had come from.
-Why are you naming the child after yourself?
-Because it's cute, like me!
-What nonsense.
Silestin was so shamelessly confident that the phrase “the pot calling the kettle black” sprang to mind.
Elestera was rendered speechless by the sight.
“I agree. I don't think that's a good idea, either.”
-Why not?! It's cute and adorable, just like me, so of course it should be named after me!
“That doesn't make it your child.”
-Th-that may be true, but still!
Strictly speaking, Jade was now the hatchling drake's guardian.
Its mother had asked him directly, and he was the one who had made the contract, so he also had the right to name it.
-Have you thought of anything?
“I'm still thinking. But nothing in particular feels like the one.”
-There's no need to rush. We've got plenty of time. So does this child, and so do you.
“My lifespan has certainly increased quite a bit.”
Jade answered with a much more relaxed expression.
Having undergone the body change, he was no longer quite as anxious.
Of course, his aging had only slowed rather than stopped completely, so he still had a long road ahead of him.
-As long as you can properly summon the Spirit Kings, you'll be able to get what you want, Jade.
“More precisely, it's a possibility. There's no guarantee the dragon knows for certain.”
Jade clicked his tongue.
Ideally, he wanted there to be a human who knew about dimensional travel, but he himself knew
how unlikely that was.
Moreover, he had to think carefully about revealing that he had come from another world.
Grrr. Grrr.
While he was lost in thought, the hatchling drake fell asleep.
Its belly was full and its body warm, so it seemed sleep had come easily.
-It'll work out. If you came here from Earth, then there must be a way to get from here back to Earth, too.
“Because of the law of causality.”
-We'll help as much as we can, too.
-And if we can't find one, you can just live happily with us!
Perhaps to lighten the somber mood, Silestin shouted brightly.
Jade smiled faintly at her voice.
“I'd still like to return to Earth if possible. I've adapted to this world, but I'm an Earthling. I have friends there, even if there are only two of them.”
-Home isn't necessarily a good place just because it's home, but humans are generally like that. They want to return to their homeland.
“That's what it means to be human.”
Shrrr.
The gnome created a small earthen bed.
It reproduced it exactly as Jade had envisioned it.
Jade laid the hatchling drake on the bed.
-Have sweet dreams, little one.
Seeing the hatchling drake curl up on the earthen bed, Elestera gave it a kiss.
Silestin followed suit, kissing its other cheek.
“A spirit's kiss, huh? Are you going to summon spirits later, too, you little rascal?”
-It's possible. Drakes are quite intelligent. It's just that although they can communicate with other beings, they rarely do.
Elestera shrugged.
Even so, her expression showed that she was secretly looking forward to it.
She was curious what would become of a drake raised by a human and spirits.
-Kyahahah!
Silestin laughed brightly and ran off.
She was going to play tag with Whid.
Kyu-u-u!
Whid, no longer wary of Silestin, flapped its wings and chased after her.
But, as one would expect from the spirit of wind, Silestin refused to be caught easily.
-Are we here to explore or to play?
“We came out to explore and take a walk.”
-And have Whid hunt while we're at it?
“Yeah. The more experience it gets, the better.”
Before they knew it, a full year had passed.
Unlike Korea, the Great Forest did not really have four distinct seasons, so they kept track of time simply by counting the days.
It wasn't as though this place were a deserted island, either.
-I didn't know Whid had an ability like that, either.
“I don't know much about drakes, so what would I know?”
-Do other drakes have it, too?
Elestera tilted her head as she watched Whid fly about frantically.
She could not tell whether it was an ability unique to Whid or one possessed by other drakes as well.
He had seen and fought quite a number of drakes since coming into this world, but he had never spoken with one.
“We'll probably run into some eventually. We can check then, can't we? I have enough power for that now.”
Awooooo!
As they followed the two while chatting amiably with Elestera, the distinctive howl of wolves rang out not far away.
He could sense hundreds of them.
His keen senses had not missed the wolves' movements.
-Here we go again.
“Maybe it's because it still has that milky smell. For some reason, they think Whid is easy prey.”
Jade looked intrigued.
Normally, any beast or monster that caught the scent of a drake would flee.
But perhaps because Whid was still a hatchling, they strangely seemed to regard it as harmless.
-So what? Whid actually likes it. And it's not as though a mere Dire Wolf could hurt Whid. You said it yourself, Jade—we have to raise it strong because it's a drake.
Grrrrr.
At the Dire Wolves' howl, the expression of Whid, who had been playing innocently with Silestin, changed.
In an instant, its face became that of a predator.
Not only that, but its formerly adorable little body began to change.
It grew to over three meters in an instant, as if it were becoming gigantic.
-I like this form, too!
Silestin shouted from where she was now sitting atop its head.
As if it were a designated seat.
KROOOAR!
When Whid's short, booming roar ended, Dire Wolves appeared from all directions.
They had formed a perfect encirclement in that brief interval.
But when the Dire Wolves saw Jade standing there, they flinched.
-They're scared!
-Of course they are. Jade is practically an apex predator in the Great Forest now.
The Dire Wolves, who had appeared so full of themselves, did not know what to do.
They had rushed over, driven wild by the smell of the hatchling drake, but with Jade there, the hundreds of Dire Wolves could neither advance nor retreat.
The Dire Wolves knew that they had been free to come, but they would not be free to leave.
Kyaooo!
Then Whid charged.
As if it would not let the Dire Wolves that had dared to charge at it get away, Whid snarled viciously, bit the nearest one, and tore it apart.
Awooo!
And that was how it began.
When one of their kind was killed, the Dire Wolves that had been milling about all charged at Whid at once.
As if to say that, since things had come to this, they had nothing left to lose.
But the result was horrific.
Crunch! Crunch!
No matter how many Dire Wolves charged in and bit it, Whid did not receive so much as a scratch.
Instead, the teeth of the Dire Wolves biting it broke off.
And Whid took full advantage of that.
It crushed the Dire Wolves beneath its overwhelming physical strength.
KROOOAR!
Whid had only just passed its first birthday, but it was not an ordinary drake.
Since it had grown up eating the Black Drake's corpse, it could not be judged simply by its age.
Tremble, tremble!
The Dire Wolves realized that too late and began retreating one by one, but Whid did not simply watch them go.
It let out a weak blast of breath at the Dire Wolves trying to flee.
“The power's still a little weak, as expected.”
-It's only one year old. It'd be stranger if it could trample them like that.
“True.”
-Kyahahaha! Roast them some more! Burn them all!
They were roasted until crisp, like electric rotisserie chickens.
Of course, that did not mean they intended to eat them.
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat!
Once it started spraying them with breath as well, the Dire Wolves scattered in every direction.
Perhaps they realized that charging in would only get them killed, and fled in all directions under their leader's command.
Kyaooo!
At the sight of the fleeing Dire Wolves, Whid let out a tremendous roar.
It was celebrating its victory.
-Think it might be ready to take on a troll soon?
“It handles orcs without any trouble. An Orc Warlord might be a bit much, though.”
-An Orc Warlord would obviously be difficult. They can wield mana.
Elestera answered as though it were self-evident.
An Orc Warlord who could properly wield mana was powerful enough to fight a troll one-on-one.
Of course, winning was another matter.
Kyuuk!
After celebrating its victory, Whid returned to its small form and nestled into Jade's arms.
Even though it had grown quite large by now, Whid still loved being held.
“You little rascal.”
Seeing Whid, covered in blood from head to toe, snuggle into his chest, Jade chuckled and wiped it off with his sleeve.
He had immediately understood what Whid wanted.
Grrr. Grrr.
As expected, Whid closed its eyes and made happy sounds.
It was savoring Jade's touch.
-Huh?
-What's wrong?
-It seems there are humans not far away.
“Humans?”
Jade looked slightly surprised at Silestin's words.
The area where he was standing was far too dangerous for ordinary humans to enter.
With hundreds of Dire Wolves roaming in packs, anyone who wasn't exceptionally skilled had no business coming this far in.
-Yeah. Let's go! Aren't you curious what kind of humans they are?