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“Eruhaben-nim. I’ve been curious about this for a while,” Cale said.
“What is it?”
“Are the ears of an elf the same as human ears?”
“Of course not.” Eruhaben observed Cale with a thoughtful expression before continuing, "Elven ears are shaped differently, allowing us to perceive sounds that most humans cannot detect. They have an innate sensitivity to high-frequency sounds and they’re also able to pick out the faintest of noises, such as the rustling of leaves or the distant hum of magic.”
It was a surprise to see Cale curious about his ears. Cale was well-known to only care about a few things in his downtime. One of the biggest things was slacking off and taking naps. The next was eating and drinking alcohol. He rarely expressed interest or curiosity in anything or anyone else.
“I see,” Cale replied. He surprised Eruhaben again by asking, “Can I try touching your ears?”
Eruhaben hesitated for a moment before acquiescing. “... Fine.”
Cale tentatively reached out a hand and brushed a finger over one of Eruhaben’s pointed ears. To his surprise, the texture wasn’t quite what he expected. It was unexpectedly soft and smooth, much like silk. Mystified, he couldn't resist running his fingers along the delicate ear, caressing and rubbing as he explored it.
“Hmm,” Cale hummed to himself as he tugged on the tip of the pointed ear gently.
There was a soft sheen to the pale skin, almost like a subtle iridescence of a gem held under a light. It reminded Cale of a dragon’s scales shimmering under the sun.
The ear started turning pink.
“Ahem,” Eruhaben cleared his throat and crossed his arms. With a haughty tone, he declared, “Most people don’t even have the luck to see a dragon in their entire lifetime, and here you are, touching one.”
The corner of Cale’s lips hooked up into a smile. He pretended not to see the light blush on Eruhaben’s face as he agreed, “I’m so honored, Eruhaben-nim. Thank you.”
“Hmph. As long as you know.”
Raon flew over to them at that moment, having heard the tail end of their conversation. His expression was one of childlike wonder and confusion. “But weak human! I’m a dragon too. Don’t you pat my head and hug me all the time?”
“Ahem, ahem!” Feeling choked up, Eruhaben cleared his throat again a few more times.
Cale chuckled and opened his arms for Raon to fly to him. He hugged the round and chubby child closely and said, “You’re right, Raon. But it’s not every day someone gets to touch a thousand-year-old dragon.”
“Really? Then I want to touch Goldie gramps too!” Raon wriggled out of Cale’s arms and flew to Eruhaben. He patted the old dragon on the head disrespectfully and cheered, “Now I’ve done it too!”
“Hah…” Eruhaben sighed. His lips twisted slightly, as though he didn’t know whether to smile or frown, but there was no hiding the fondness in his eyes, no matter how good he was at maintaining his expression. He patted Raon’s round head with a gentle hand.
“Hehe. Now Goldie gramps has touched a six-year-old dragon too!” Raon declared happily.
“Ahem.”
Cale snickered and said in a very worried tone, “Aigoo, listen to that. Looks like our mighty dragon-nim might be falling sick. I’ll have to ask Ron to make some honey lemon water for you.”
Eruhaben’s face couldn’t possibly get any redder as Cale teased him.
“Shut up, you punk.”