Chapter 18

# Chapter 18. < Saw a Dragon >

"…A dragon?"

"Yeah."

"I've seen something similar."

Similar, indeed. Kale knew what Chaihan meant by "similar." He was referring to the monstrous creatures living deep in the Dark Forest, some of which were a cross between lizards and dragons.

Chaihan had killed one of those dragon-like monsters while developing the latter part of his Black Mist Sword Technique.

"Seen it? So what was it like?"

But Kale pretended not to know and asked Chaihan. Currently, only Chaihan was in Kale's room.

"…It was a monster."

"In what way?"

"In terms of its appearance and ferocity, it was a monster."

"Is that so?"

Kale nodded casually and continued. His words were at odds with his actions.

"So you haven't seen a dragon."

"Huh?"

"A dragon is like a human."

Kale placed the cup of lemonade, which now tasted sweet after the sour, on the table. He answered Chaihan, who looked curious.

"Dragons, merfolk, dwarves, elves. They are all like humans. Because they have emotions and lives."

That wasn't the important part for Kale. The main point was coming up.

"But you know."

Chaihan, sensing the change in Kale's demeanor, sat up straight and looked at Kale.

"Such beings fall into darkness without even knowing it, never understanding what sunlight is, and live by the light in the darkness. Do you know how they live?"

Kale tapped the table with his index finger.

"They are forced to become beings without reason."

Kale tapped the table again.

"They have to endure loneliness without anyone or anything to rely on."

With each tap, Chaihan's eyes grew darker. His hands, resting on his knees under the table, clenched into fists, veins bulging on the backs of his hands. Unaware of this, Kale continued.

"Every day, they barely survive through torture and abuse."

Chaihan's expression hardened, and anger was visible in his eyes. Kale had expected this. This kind, young man couldn't help but be angry at such a story, and he probably guessed why Kale was talking about dragons.

Kale took another sip of lemonade and concluded.

"And that being is nearby."

A brief silence fell. Kale, who had been looking out the window, turned his gaze to Chaihan. Chaihan was enveloped in a fierce aura, deep in thought.

Perhaps he was angry about the story of abuse. But contrary to Kale's expectations, Chaihan was reflecting on his own decades of barely surviving alone in the Dark Forest.

The silence stretched, and at its end, Chaihan met Kale's gaze and asked.

"Will you rescue and take it in?"

"Are you crazy?"

"Excuse me?"

Kale, startled by his words, asked in return. Chaihan, surprised by the "crazy" comment, asked again.

"Why take it in?"

Kale waved his hand dismissively.

A dragon that has grown up being abused by humans would not say, "Please take me in." Instead, it would be filled with distrust and hatred toward humans. Even if someone rescued it.

Fundamentally, dragons believe they are superior to humans and all other living beings. This is almost instinctual, something they feel without needing to learn.

Therefore, dragons cannot grow up under humans. That's why raising and training dragons is almost impossible, and their reason must be broken through torture and abuse.

'Dragons are said to be born with an incredibly arrogant nature. And most importantly, if you raise a dragon...'

He had a feeling. A feeling that he would get involved in unnecessary trouble.

There were fewer than twenty dragons in the entire continent. Taking in one of them? It would be like saying, "I will be at the center of the continent's events."

Besides, this dragon was supposed to have died. It would be better if it went somewhere alone and immersed itself in its own world, like the other dragons.

In any case, Kale firmly declined. Just by untying the collar with the mana control device, the dragon would live better than Kale himself. It wasn't called the king of nature for nothing.

"Then what?"

"What do you mean? Isn't it obvious?"

Kale, looking at Chaihan who was staring at him intently, laughed helplessly and answered.

"Let it live freely and comfortably. Dragons should live in their own way, right?"

"…I see."

The tension in Chaihan's clenched fists under the table eased.

"Will you rescue the dragon?"

"Yeah. So help me out a bit."

"Anything. I'll do anything."

Kale, sensing that the situation might escalate due to Chaihan's enthusiastic attitude, slowly shook his head.

"Anything? There's no need for that. I don't want to kill anyone if I can help it. Let's just do this as quietly as possible."

"Indeed, Master Kale-"

Chaihan, with a flickering gaze, started to speak, but Kale, glancing at the clock, cut him off and spoke first.

"Go out and tell Ron to set up a drink table on the first floor."

"Sir- Yes?"

Kale decided to start with a drinking session.

* * *

The drinking session began in the afternoon. Chaihan sat there, bewildered, looking around. Everyone else seemed calm.

And at the center of that calm scene was Kale Hennithus, drinking from a bottle. His face was gradually turning red, clearly drunk.

"Shouldn't someone stop him from drinking like that?"

Chaihan asked Hans, who was sitting next to him. The butler Hans, still unaware that On and Hong were miaos, was serving food to the cat-like creatures. He answered Chaihan's question cheerfully.

"Yes! He doesn't have anything in his hands, so it's safe! He said he won't throw the bottle!"

Chaihan was talking about Kale, but Hans was referring to himself. The mismatched conversation made Chaihan clench his jaw and turn away from Hans. It was better not to touch Hans when he was with the cats. Instead, Chaihan kept an eye on Kale as a bodyguard.

"Master. This drink is really good? Beyond my imagination."

Kale, oblivious to Chaihan's watchful gaze, genuinely marveled at the taste of the drink. The drinking session had been going on for about two hours. A few people hadn't drunk for precaution, but most were enjoying the atmosphere.

'At first, they were very cautious. Tsk.'

Initially, the soldiers, hearing that Kale was hosting a drinking session, gathered in their helmets. Kale, momentarily stunned, managed to ease the tense atmosphere by promising not to throw any bottles.

"This village is small, but there are many surrounding mountains. This special drink is made with wild fruits and herbs from the mountains. That's why it's a bit expensive."

The old innkeeper's drink was indeed quite good, as he claimed. Kale, impressed, raised the bottle and ordered more.

"Is this a large bottle?"

"Yes, it's quite large."

"Then let's share it with our group."

"Master, you don't have to-"

The deputy captain, with a flushed face, waved his hand, saying it was fine, but his eyes were fixed on the bottle in Kale's hand. The soldiers' eyes were the same. Kale wasn't oblivious to this.

"Just drink it. It's my treat. Got it?"

Most of the soldiers, except for a few who were on duty to report about the bandits, were excited. They had never been so thrilled to see the bottle in Kale's hand.

Kale watched the innkeeper, who was getting excited about selling more drinks, distribute the food and drinks to each table with sharp eyes.

Kale Hennithus. This man was strong with alcohol. His face easily turned red, and he often acted recklessly when drunk, so everyone thought he was weak with alcohol. In reality, he was just acting recklessly while fully sober.

Thus, Kale's mind was clear. After drinking for about half an hour, he looked at Chaihan and said.

"Chaihan. Come and help me up. I'm going to rest upstairs."

"Master. I'll do it."

"Alright. The deputy captain, and the other soldiers, should rest today. Didn't they fight yesterday? It seems there won't be any dangerous situations here, and it's only fair to let those not on duty have a day off."

"Master-"

"I'm tired. I'm going."

It would be quite troublesome if the deputy captain or others followed. And they didn't react further when Chaihan helped him up. Chaihan was the only one who didn't drink and was the strongest, so they weren't worried with him as a bodyguard.

'Now, only one person is left.'

The guards at the inn's main door and outside could be easily avoided, but Ron was still there. Both Hans and Ron would never enter the room if told not to.

However, while Hans wasn't skilled enough to detect his presence, Ron was a formidable expert.

'This old man won't care what I do.'

In fact, Ron wouldn't care if Kale snuck out or did anything. He never had before. But Ron would hate getting involved in anything troublesome, so Kale had to warn him in advance.

Kale, with Chaihan's help, told Ron, who was following them.

"Ron. I'm going out to play. It's a secret, got it?"

This old man, who loved alcohol, didn't drink today. Instead, he stared intently at Kale, a truly terrifying person. Even more terrifyingly, Ron smiled kindly.

"Understood. I'll wait for you."

"Don't wait."

Wait, my ass. As expected, Ron agreed without another word, just as Kale had predicted. Kale, supported by Chaihan, entered the room.

"I'm going to rest. Don't come in unless it's an emergency, Hans, Ron. You know what happens if you disturb me while I'm sleeping."

A while back, a servant who tried to wake Kale up in the morning was scolded so badly that he told everyone in the mansion that it felt like he had been beaten.

"Of course. Sleep well."

"Master, I'll wait outside the room."

Kale's expression turned sour at Ron's answer, but he soon watched the two leave and secretly instructed Chaihan.

"Come to my room quietly through the window."

Chaihan nodded without a word and soon followed the two out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Meow.

"Now?"

Following Kale upstairs, On and Hong asked. He nodded and immediately opened the box. Click. The magic lock released, and from the box, Kale took out a piece of clothing. After changing into it, Chaihan entered through the open window, his eyes wide.

"Master Kale?"

Before putting on the black mask, Kale threw the black clothing to Chaihan.

"Put it on."

The magic image storage device he planted yesterday would temporarily stop working. But that wasn't enough. Kale didn't want to be discovered. That's why he drank from noon and prepared these clothes.

"What is this?"

The black clothing had a red star and five small white stars embroidered near the chest.

'What is it? It's a secret organization's uniform.'

The book "The Birth of a Hero" described the uniform of the secret organization that Chaihan had constantly clashed with in great detail. Based on that description, Kale had specially made these clothes. Just in case, he had the clothes made separately and embroidered the stars himself. From a distance, they looked quite convincing, though up close, they were a bit crude.

People who saw this uniform would only remember "black clothing with a red star and five white stars," not the crudeness. For Beinion, who had only heard about the secret organization, this would be a troublesome and infuriating report from his subordinate.

"…Is this a bad deed?"

Chaihan asked again, seeing Kale's lack of response. Kale, now wearing a black mask, looked like a typical villain.

"Yeah. It's a bad deed."

Kale, with a lecherous smile, revealed his eyes through the mask.

"It's a bad deed for Beinion."

"Oh."

Chaihan sighed and pointed to another mask in Kale's hand.

"Give it to me."

Even the kindest person can have someone they dislike and want to get back at. Chaihan, who had lived alone for decades and was now 17, was no exception.

"Oh, and these are miaos, merfolk."

Kale introduced On and Hong to Chaihan as if it were nothing. They greeted each other without much fuss. The miao children, sensitive to people's true nature, had a vague sense of Chaihan's abilities, and Chaihan had noticed that they weren't ordinary cats during their travels.

"That's Chaihan. This is On, and that's Hong. Introduction over. Get ready quickly."

They were given a short preparation time. Kale, in the bathroom, ordered Chaihan, who had come out wearing the same black clothing and mask.

"Let's go."

Of course, he added as they stood by the second-floor window.

"Carry me down when we leave from the second floor. I don't know how to land properly."

Chaihan sighed for the first time in front of Kale. On and Hong patted Chaihan's hand with their paws. Then Kale said to them.

"Let's go."

The group successfully left the inn and headed to the mountain where the viscount's villa and the dragon's breeding ground were located.