‘There is a high probability of a strong rejection reaction at first.’
Dr. Kang Hyun-wook’s voice rung in my ears.
Anyone could tell that Dialuria was angry right now. When I glanced back at her, I saw tears running down her eyes.
She looked a little scary, staring at me while snorting. I felt perplexed, not knowing what she would try to do. Dialugia also looked disconcerted, not expecting Tol To-ri to react in this manner.
However, Tol To-ri had not tried to ram into her mother, which meant she still had some reason in her left. It wasn’t too late to fix her attitude.
If she showed such animosity right in the beginning, I would have to think about how to solve this problem more seriously.
“How are you, Tol To-ri?”
“Kieeek!”
I had to say hello to Tol To-ri after saying hello to Dialugia.
Kang Hyun-wook’s solution was that, whatever I did, I should let her know that her mother was my priority.
She kept panting and running as if asking me to look at her, but I didn’t show any reaction other than giving her a slight pat on the head. I then turned back to Dialugia.
“Have you eaten?”
Though I wanted to be more informal, this was more comfortable for me. Dialugia, on the other hand, showed less effective acting than I did.
‘Of course, she would react this way.’
Right now, even I, upon seeing Dialugia’s friendly appearance, felt awkward. Of course, her appearance, polymorphed as a human, was beautiful enough, but the reality was that she wasn’t my type.
Of course, it would be the same for her, who harbored a very normal characteristic. Naturally, it was difficult to act in such a situation.
“No. I was waiting for you so we can eat together.”
“What about Tol To-ri?”
“Not yet…”
“We should have a simple meal.”
“But I have prepared something because you were coming. Let’s come in.”
Our exchange was so awkward that it was enough to drive me crazy.
Seeing Dialugia all dressed up and acting friendly only emphasized this. Her hair, which was well-groomed around her big horns, was swaying more today, and it felt like she applied something on her skin that was not necessarily makeup but made her glow all the same.
She had also tried to put on a nice outfit. All in all, I could see that she had done her best to imitate the fashion sense of the young women wandering around Lindel Square. Though it didn’t suit her very much, she still looked undeniably beautiful.
She must have been shocked to hear that Tol To-ri didn’t think of her as a charming woman.
‘Obviously so.’
When I thought that her human form had changed this much, I wondered what her dragon form would look like. Though I was not knowledgeable enough to evaluate the dragons’ beauty standards, I knew her black scales must be shining.
In any case, this non-standard family began to spend time together slowly, maintaining a little awkward atmosphere.
In the meantime, Tol To-ri was constantly trying to divert my attention using small, melee attacks, but as advised, I did not give more attention than what was necessary.
Of course, it didn’t mean I didn’t react at all. I would give her a little pat or brief praise, but that was all. I was careful not to show an enthusiastic reaction.
Instead, I spoke more to Dialugia and paid more attention to her.
Of course, the angered child began to scream once more, but we had to push through with this if we wanted her to grow the right way.
We did the same thing as we ate, with me showing more attention to Dialugia. It didn’t take much time for Tol To-ri to realize that she had been pushed back to second place.
“How was your meal?”
“It was delicious. Thanks to you, I ate well. Just sit down. I’ll do the dishes for us.”
“No. I’ll do it. You don’t even go hunting these days…”
“No. I’ll…”
“Then, let’s do it together.”
“It’s really fine…”
“No. Let’s do it together.”
I was not in my prime. Anyone could see that this was bad acting, yet Tol To-ri seemed completely fooled. It was harder to keep up this façade with Dialugia than expected.
Fortunately, the situation itself did not seem all that bad.
The process of standing next to each other and washing dishes was very tiresome, but I knew our image must look very romantic.
Of course, I didn’t like the way we were doing this without smiling.
‘Did she say she is very ticklish?’
I remembered it for sure because I almost got smashed in an experiment before.
As I gently touched Dialugia’s hand with my own bubble-stained one, she glanced at me as if to ask what the hell I was doing. However, she did not reject me outright, knowing it would destroy everything we’d worked for.
It seemed to be a success as I saw that she eventually started to giggle, right after I had begun scratching the back of her hand.
“I-It tickles. Hehe…”
“Haha.”
Though the awkwardness was still evident, our technique seemed to be working. As I continued to talk to her, she continued to listen to me.
‘It’s not that bad…’
Since this was the first time we had talked to each other longer than what was necessary, I began to see more of Dialugia’s good qualities than her flaws.
We communicated better than I thought, and, surprisingly, we were on the same wavelength.
“Hehe. That’s a fun story.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes. It seemed to be the funniest story I heard recently. Ah! Come to think of it… Has the museum manager got a little better?”
“He is adjusting well now. In fact, he wasn’t really hurt from the start. It’s because he is stronger than normal children.”
“How about the work he’s doing?”
“Now that he has just entered research, we’re bound to see results soon.”
“It’s amazing.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, how we can send out a hologram of magic power in multiple directions from one place. Humans have been doing that since before. They’ve tried to do a lot of strange things. In fact, I haven’t been very friendly to humans, but I knew there was something to learn from them.”
“That’s a little strange. Most of the empire’s ancient books state that dragons have a fairly good magic level and have some things developed…”
“I heard that we usually get a lot of such misunderstandings. However, if you think about it a little, you will find the answer. Our people…”
“Hmm… You won’t need it.”
“Yes. We don’t. Of course, we can learn, but we don’t have to. Some dragons cannot use magic, and most of them are interested in the human world. Of course, they are apt to be treated differently by the older ones. In a way, humans are amazing.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Since humans are biologically weak, they constantly develop to overcome that weakness. They craft weapons, learn magic, and keep searching for new things. Of course, there were times when that desire produced negative consequences, but there were certainly other times when it had beneficial results. To be honest, even to you…”
“Yes?”
“It’s nothing…”
“Yes?”
“Ah…”
“No. Don’t do that. Please tell me, wife.”
“That term of endearment is terrible.”
“The child is watching.”
“…”
“I am asking you because I’m curious, Dialugia.”
“It’s nothing. Just like the previous story, I just thought you were great. The dragon Breath potion, and the previously made serum… It’s even more so when I think about your lack of physical ability or magical affinity compared to other humans. You’re not that bad.”
“Am I different from your first impression?”
“I still get angry when I think about that time, so I hope you don’t mention it…”
“Ah. Okay. Pfft.”
“Pfft.”
As soon as I started laughing, Dialugia did the same. This wasn’t acting anymore. It all felt genuine. Remembering our first meeting was indeed hilarious at this point.
I knew Dialugia would never have expected her life to end up this way—to go from living in the wilderness to eventually forming a bond with humans.
I didn’t know her real feelings, but she seemed to think that her life here wasn’t too bad.
‘This is a nice atmosphere.’
After all, being natural was better than useless acting. I even momentarily forgot about Tol To-ri’s constant screaming. If we could keep this up, we would make a more beneficial process.
When I raised my hand slightly and tucked Dialugia’s hair behind her ears, she looked up at me with wide, startled eyes.
‘She actually is pretty.’
The atmosphere was strange for some reason, perhaps because of her big horns.
Seeing that her face was strangely red, she seemed a little embarrassed, but she also seemed to think that this expression of affection was fine. This was all for Tol To-ri, after all.
‘I think this is harmonious enough…’
When I wondered if I should kiss her forehead to show a more definitive image, Tol To-ri started grabbing my pants, trying to separate me from her mother.
‘This is…’
“Kiyiing. Kiyiing… Kieek!”
As if she found this unacceptable, she had begun to pull at me with all her might. If I were to remove my resistance, I would end up getting dragged onto the floor.
“Ke-e-e-e-ee!”
Her big eyes seemed to desperately ask me not to do this. It was almost as if she was a wife whose husband had gotten stolen by a prostitute.
‘This is your mother, Tol To-ri.’
“Kiyiing… Kiing…”
Not only did she continue to cry, but she was also now staring at her mother. At this point, I had begun to wonder if Kang Hyun-wook’s diagnosis might’ve been wrong, but it was still necessary to have to try and discipline my family.
Right now, she was frantic about not wanting her dad being taken away from her, but if she were to constantly see this, I knew she would eventually learn.
What I was worried about was whether or not Dialugia could withstand her child’s hurt gaze, but upon seeing her determined expression, I knew she would be able to handle this.
“I’m talking to your mom, Tol To-ri. You shouldn’t do this.”
“Ke-e-e-e-ee!”
“Hey! You can’t keep throwing a tantrum.”
“Kiyiing… Haaaa… Haaaa!”
As if trying to draw attention to herself, she began to show off the jump pose that I liked seeing the most. It squeezed at my heart to see her doing it with tears in her eyes, however…
“You can’t keep doing this. Sometimes you should be alone, too.”
Dialugia opened her mouth with courage as if this was also an opportunity.
“D-Dialuria. You should listen to your dad, right?”
Her expression was definitely that of a firm mother’s. At this, I subtly nodded at Dialugia, praising her for her efforts.
“I… I don’t want to!!!”
Upon hearing an unfamiliar voice, I turned to see a child—not a dragon—staring defiantly back at us.
“Uh? Tol To-ri?”
Now it looked like I couldn’t use this nickname anymore.