Chapter Text
Once upon a time, in a beautiful White Castle on top of a beautiful hill, lived a little red Dragon called Roksu.
The infant Dragon woke up the world surrounded by friendly human faces. They had been the sworn protectors of this place for many generations, so when they saw the signs that the red eggshell began to crack, they all came to celebrate and greet the child as he took his first breath. Roksu remembered the moment of his birth very vividly – all Dragons did, unlike human infants. He remembered the chill of the air when he crawled out of the warm safety of the egg, the bright and excited expressions of the people who would soon become his friends and family, the fluffy blanket that was placed upon him. He recalled curling up inside it, his head barely peaking out as he watched them carefully. They cooed around him and spoke to him in soft tones. He had not known their language yet, but he could tell by their voices that... they loved him.
And so, within the first minute of his new life, the little red Dragon smiled – because he knew he was safe, and that was all that mattered to him. His toothless smile made everyone around him cheer.
From that point on, Roksu led a charming, idyllic life. A slacker life, one could say.
He did not need to do anything, as all the adults around him were eager to take care of his every need. When he was hungry, he was fed. When he wished to know something, he was taught and given books right away. When he wanted to play games, there were plenty of volunteers. There was no pressure, no danger. And Roksu was happy.
Then one fateful day, everything changed.
It was a quiet day in the castle. Roksu spent time lazying around as usual, reading his favorite books aloud to the black egg; his yet-to-be-born sibling. One day his sibling would hatch, and according to his friends, his mom's spirit would awaken as well from within the enchanted walls of the castle. Since he knew that Dragons lived for a thousand years, he didn't worry that the black Dragon was taking his time. They would all be together one day. Roksu just needed to wait patiently. He was good at that.
But once the evening came, a foreboding feeling crept unto the red Dragon, like a quiet midnight tide coming onto a dark shore – with unseendanger lurking in its depths.
It was so quiet. Too quiet. Come to think of it… How long has it been since one of his human friends visited?
Usually, they were very enthusiastic about keeping him company; he could hardly spend a day or two without visitors. Three days in a row of peace and quiet was a treat for the introverted little Dragon, who loved reading in silence. But without him noticing, it had been days. No… A week.
It had been a whole week. And no one showed up. Not even to leave him a message.
A cold chill fell down his spine.
'They're probably just busy!' Roksu thought to himself, trying to dismiss the bad feeling as nothing more than overactive imagination. 'They have jobs to do. They forgot to tell me they wouldn't be able to visit, that's all.'
With that thought, Roksu went to bed. But that night… Roksu had a most unusual nightmare.
He dreamed of living a different life, as a human named Kim Roksu. He lived with his parents in a small apartment, in a country called South Korea. He grew up loved and healthy, going to college and making friends, as ordinary humans do. It many ways, that past life was not much different than his current one. For him, it had been perfect in its simplicity.
However one day, without a warning... his world fell into chaos. He lost his parents, his home, his job, the stability he enjoyed. By the time he was 20, his perfect life was gone. And at the age of 26, he died a violent, painful death.
However, despite everything, he died without regrets.
'It's not such a terrible way to go,' Kim Roksu had thought during his final moments. 'If it has to end here, at least the others made it.'
The last thing he saw in that life were the tearful, heartbroken faces of his old friends, but they were alive – that was all that mattered to Kim Roksu. Everything had gone dark after that.
The little red Dragon woke up in the middle of the night, his skin covered in sweat.
'The Birth of Heroes!' he remembered frantically, his eyes wide in shock.
In his past life, shortly before his death, he read a fantasy series called "The Birth of Heroes" by Nelan Barrow. He remembered it now.
The contents of the book played in front of his eyes.
It was a story of a Korean transmigrator named Choi Han, who thought against a powerful villain. While the majority of the story focused on the protagonist, there was a short prologue at the very beginning of the first Volume. The villain, who went by the name of the White Star, desired to be unrivaled in strength – no matter what atrocities he had to commitin order to achieve it. The narrative stated that he killed everyone from his hometown one by one... and that once he was done, he broke into the White Castle in the middle of the night, and killed the Dragon children: both the sleeping red Dragon, and the unborn black egg. The White Star then devoured the heart of the red Dragon to boost his powers, and used the black one's corpse to create a chimera, by fusing its heart with a monster through a black magic ritual. The monster was meant to go on a rampage, slaughtering all creatures in sight to absorb their life essence, until the last Dragon Slayer came to slay it and absorb all the strength it gathered in his stead. In the story, Choi Han happened to come across that monster before it had a chance to grow stronger, kill it, and start off his heroic journey to defeat the dastardly villain.
But Roksu couldn't care less about Choi Han's heroic journey at the moment. That was him! He was the red Dragon from that story!! And his sibling was the black egg!!!
And he knew the White Star, too! He was that one creepy guy who always gave Roksu bad vibes whenever he visited, even though the little red Dragon had tried to convince himself he was being irrational since his cookies were good!
But no matter how much he wished to dismiss his memories as nothing more than a bad dream, he could feel in his bones that it was all real. He did not remember everything from his life as Kim Roksu – in fact, most of it was blurry and felt distant. He didn't feel like a 26-year-old man either, he was still the same child who went to bed a couple of hours ago. But the life he was currently living without a doubt reflected the contents of "The Birth of Heroes"…
...the book series which utterly failed to be specific about its timeline!
How old was the 'young red Dragon' from the book, exactly? Explain, Nelan! His life was was at stake here, couldn't you be bothered to be a little more specific about the details of his own murder?!
12 years old surely counts as young to any species, but! Since Roksu had not seen anyone for this past week… Did that mean they had all been murdered already by the White Star?! If anything, seeing as he had partly recovered memories of his past life just now for no discernible reason, all evidence pointed to tonight possibly being the very night when the White Star decides to break in and kill the Dragon children!
Roksu rushed out of bed in a blind panic, each heartbeat feeling like the seconds ticking away to his doom. Without wasting any time, the little red Dragon grabbed the first set of clothes in the wardrobe, shoved a bunch of random items from the pantry into his magical spatial bag, took the black egg from its silk cushion and fled from his home into the darkness of the night.
His attribute activated, making him as fast as Light. Within seconds, he was miles away from the castle.
A good thing, too, because mere minutes later two dark figures approached the hill with the castle.
"…The gate was left open? This is unexpected." The masked man spoke.
"That just makes our job easier, my Liege."
But once they entered, there was not a living soul inside the castle. The black egg was missing as well – the cushion it was supposed to rest on, conspicuously empty.
"Where could he possibly had run off to?"
"I do not know.The red Dragon isn't fond of hiding. Or traveling, for that matter. He is quite the lazy creature of habit." The White Star rubbed his chin. "How odd… There is no way anyone could have warned him about us coming."
He would know. The White Star had personally killed everyone protecting the castle and its inhabitants.
"Maybe he went to the village for a visit, and we simply missed him?"
"Possible. You stay here and wait, Bernard. I will search the area. Contact me at once when he comes back."
"Yes, my Liege. But what if he doesn't plan to return?"
The White Star smiled, his cold eyes behind the mask glowing with certainty.
"Oh, he will. After all, his mother's spirit is trapped within these walls." Making the Dragon Lord essentially a hostage, until she was released.
The little Red Dragon would return eventually, of that the White Star had little doubt. The little fool would never abandon his family. It was a weakness he had every intention to exploit.
Meanwhile, Roksu cursed himself as he realized he forgot to put on shoes. He didn't even have a blanket to cover his sibling's shell with! He briefly mourned his favorite fluffy blanket that he left in his bedroom, but it was too late to turn back. He quickly cast a charm to keep both of them warm, then another spell to make them invisible to other creatures. Just in case someone was following him.
Luckily, he was not completely unprepared. Roksu had always liked keeping all his favorite things in his spatial bag. He carried plenty of things with him, like pillows, books, cookie ingredients, gold bars and coins: the last two he never had a chance to use before, but he liked how shiny they were. They were also great to make forts with when stacked on top of each other. It was a fun game he liked to play with his friend.
...His human friends. Which... It seemed like… like he would never see any of them again.
Roksu sniffed, his eyes getting oddly moist despite the magic protecting him the weather.
He wished he had gotten his memories before today. Maybe he could have prevented this? Could he have saved them all if he remembered his past life just a little bit earlier?
But no, the little red Dragon realized his own folly right away. The timing had been beyond his control. There must have been a reason why he got his memories back at this exact moment. It had to be divine intervention.
'Stupid gods. If they have to meddle, can't they do it right?'
(Far away in the celestial realm, the God of Death sneezed.)
At least, his memories explained why Roksu had always felt most comfortable in his human form. Ever since he learned to polymorph, the little red Dragon had rarely ever bothered to return to his natural draconic shape. He used to believe that he simply liked to match the appearance of his friends, in order not to feel like the odd one out. Turns out, he was the odd one out all along – but in a different way than he thought.
Because as it turned out, he was not a Dragon wearing the shape of a human. He was a human wearing the shape of a Dragon. Or, well… he used to be a full human, and now he was a full Dragon… with the spirit of a full human? The confusion of it all made his head hurt, so he decided to stop thinking about it for now.
He was Roksu. That had to be enough.
In like no time at all, dawn started to above the snowy mountain peaks. And once it hit, turning the sky pink, Roksu stopped running to catch a breath, and finally start planning his next steps.
If he wanted to survive, he couldn't fight the White Star alone. The villain from the book series was freakishly strong, even compared to Dragons, and Roksu was still just a kid. And he couldn't count of Choi Han's help either – even if the protagonist of "The Birth of Heroes" was already around, he wasn't ready to face the final boss right away either. There were a lot of trials in the series that gradually made him grow stronger, and allies who helped him on his journey.
Not to mention that Choi Han's involvement in the plot only kicked off when the chimera monster attacked Harris Village. Which would never come to pass in this reality, thank you very much – Roksu promised himself as he patted the black egg's shell for comfort.
This was too much to handle for him. He needed an adult.
A strong, trustworthy adult. Which meant another Dragon.
Fortunately, there was such an individual mentioned in "The Birth of Heroes". An Ancient Dragon from the Western continent. Not a main character, but definitely powerful and trustworthy. All he had to do was find him.
Roksu was startled out of his contemplation, when something colorful caught his attention in the otherwise monochrome landscape. On a mountain nearby, there was a moving spot of red among the sparkly snow.
The curious little Dragon cast a levitation spell, getting closer within a blink of an eye to get a closer look.
The moving spot that caught his eye was, in fact, a tiny red kitten. One of a pair, the other a silver color, blending inwith the surroundings much better than its companion. As a Dragon, Roksu could sense right away that they were Beast People.
The kittens did not look so well. Unlike Roksu, who had magical defense against the weather, they were shivering from the sharp cold winds, fur wet and their paws sinking in the deep snow no matter how carefully they tried to tread. Roksu started to feel cold just by looking at them.
To ease his own discomfort, the little Dragon cast a spell to dry their fur and warm them up. The kittens gasped, feeling the difference immediately.
"Sister!" the red kitten said, his ears perking up. His big golden eyes were filled with wonder. "It suddenly got warm! But the snow is not melting?"
"It feels like magic," the older kitten said.
"But where is it coming from?"
The kittens stopped, looking around. Roksu felt a sigh leaving him. He couldn't have these two getting lost in these mountain, trying to find a non-existent source of magic. He never planned on revealing himself, but it seemed like it was the only choice in this situation.
He landed gently on the snow, his bare feet not sinking into it at all despite his considerable weight.
"What are you two doing here?" He said taking off the invisibility spell, not bothering to even say hello. "It's dangerous to wander these mountains alone."
The kittens, startled upon his sudden appearance, tried to back away. The red kitten slipped and was about to roll down the steep snowy slope of the mountain. Roksu caught him with a levitation spell and lifted him up into the air, taking a closer look at him. The kitten blinked at him cutely.
"I can see all of your ribs," Roksu said, displeased. Both of them looked unnaturally thin despite the fluffy fur covering their bodies. The little red Dragon hated the signs of starvation, especially on children.
Children should be able to eat well, no matter who they were or where they came from.
Roksu let the red kitten back down next to his sister. The silver kitten's fur, previously raised in fear, slowly lowered as she checked on her younger brother.
"Here," he said, taking out some cooked chicken legs on a silver plate from his spatial bag. He left floating in the air it in front of the kittens, as there was no even surface nearby to place it on. "It's not heavily seasoned, so it should be alright for you to eat."
After a cautious sniff or two, the Beast kids did not wait any longer and started devouring the food with frightening speed. Roksu decided to join in, taking out another plate for himself.
"Thank you, mister!" said the red kitten as soon as he was done, purring in happiness. "It was delicious!"
"Yes, thank you," the silver one added as she licked her paw. "We were very hungry."
"Yes, I could tell. Now, can you answer me why are you out here? This place is dangerous for kids to be alone."
"We're running away!"
"Yes, we would have been killed if he stayed."
Roksu blinked and said without thinking: "Oh, you too?"
The cats perked up. "You ran away too, mister?"
"Yes, from a very bad man." The White Startruly deserved the title of the main villain. "If you are against someone stronger than you, you have to run and save your strength to smack them in the back later." He remembered that much from his past life as Kim Roksu. "That's why I'm going to search for someone who can help me."
The kittens came closer to him and started rubbing against his ankles, the vibration of their purrs sinking into his skin. "What is your name, mister?"
Since he had no free hands to push them away, he decided to allow it. For now. "...Roksu. What are yours?"
"I'm Ohn." The silver kitten introduced herself.
"I'm Hong!" Her red brother followed suit, blinking with large golden eyes. "Can we come with you, Roksu?"
"We can be useful!" Ohn rubbed her fluffy cheek against Roksu, her tail twisting around his leg.
"Please let us come with you?"
"Please~?"
Roksu sighed, his fingers tapping gently against the black shell. He already had one younger sibling to carry. Was he really about to saddle himself with another pair?
However…
"How old are you two?"
"I'm five!"
"And I'm seven!" Apparently Ohn was the older sibling.
Roksu remembered a certain passage from "The Birth of Heroes", concerning the Ancient Dragon he was looking for. The author described the golden Dragon's personality as "someone with a softer heart than he'd ever be willing to admit, especially towards children, the pathetic and the weak". These kittens certainly belonged in all three of these categories, making them the perfect bait for the Ancient Dragon.
That settled it. Roksu could use these two to make the Ancient Dragon take pity on them all.
(Roksu conveniently ignored the fact that he himself was also a child, and himself alone would certainly be enough to convince the old Dragon to help against a murderous psychopath willing to eat Dragon hearts. Not to mention he had an egg with him that was also in dire need of protection… and that their mom was the Dragon Lord.
No, taking these poor, homeless, adorable children along was clearly a necessary move, definitely not motivated by any altruistic impulses.)
"Alright, but you will have to stick close to me," Roksu warned the other two. "We might have to travel through some pretty dangerous places."
The fact that Nelan Barrow failed to mention where the golden Dragon lived was troublesome. But if Roksu knew anything from his experience as a Dragon, it was that most of their race preferred solitude. Or, at the very least, introverted lifestyle. Being constantly surrounded by overly excitable, energetic people was exhausting. And the best way to be left alone is build your house in a place others don't have easy access to – like Forbidden Regions for instance.
Roksu remembered all the Forbidden Regions of the Western Continent from his lessons. The number one was the Forest of Darkness. It was the place where the beginning of the plot of "The Birth of Heroes" unfolded. He doubted the Ancient Dragon actually lived there, but he had to start somewhere.
If nothing else, he could at least confirm Choi Han's existence to prove to himself that the memories of his past life were real, and the White Star was a real threat, instead of just a dumb nightmare that made him ran away from his cozy bed in the middle of the night… without shoes. The last thing he wanted was to abandon his perfect slacker life over a fit of imaginary paranoia.
(Also, Roksu did not think he should bring the kittens to the Land of Death just yet. It seemed like a rapid jump from a frosty mountain peak to full desert heat could be a bit dangerous for their fragile health... and the Valley of Despair would be just as bad where it came to the weather, if not worse.)
Yes, it would be best to start the search in the Forest of Darkness, since it was the closest to their current position anyway. He was a Dragon, so he really wasn't worried about monsters in the slightest. Once he looked around, he could proceedwith investigating other, more remote locations.
With a clear destination in mind, Roksu prepared the teleportation spell. "Are you two ready?"
The kittens boldly climbed up his back, and settled on each of his shoulders. "Yes!" They seemed very pleased with themselves.
Roksu huffed, amused. He activated the spell, making all of them vanish.
Off to the West they went.
On a bright sunny morning, three children magically appearedat the edge ofForbidden Region of the Roan Kingdom. Roksu blinked, adjusting to the different light and colors. The air smelled of recent rain.
"Are we going into the forest, Roksu?" Hong asked, sniffing around as well.
"So warm..." Ohn purred, happy to be out of the freezing mountains.
"Wait here for a minute, you two," Roksu instructed them. "I will be right back." He turned himself invisible again.
In the blink of an eye, he moved high into the air and looked around. Sure enough, there was a human settlement nearby. It certainly looked like Harris Village.
With his sharp, draconic eyes, Roksu watched the bustling villagers, trying to spot a head of black among mostly the brown-haired folk. Sure enough, he found one before long.
The little Dragon flew in a circle around the village to get a better look. He did not dare to get too close, lest he could be spotted by a protagonist's sharp senses. He could tell this individual already possessed extraordinary strength and potential for Swordsmaster aura, even if his abilitieshad not been refined yet. One couldn't be too careful around someone like that.
Still, Choi Han did not seem to notice anything amiss. He was focused on his work chopping wood, casually exchanging greetings with the passersby.
He definitely looked the part of a young Korean transmigrator. Roksu let out a sigh. There was no doubt about it, then. He made the firm decision to stay as far away from this person as possible. As long as the White Star didn't create a monster to attack the village, Choi Han would have no reason at all to leave this peaceful village. Staying away was the best option for both of them.
With that conviction in mind, Roksu quickly went back to where he left his companions. "Let's get going."
And so, a Dragon and two cats walked into a forest.
"Welcome, to the Forest of Darkness."
"Forest of Darkness? Is that what it's called?" The kittens looked around curiously.
"That's right. Its one of the five Forbidden Regions of the Western Continent."
"We're on the Western Continent now? Cool!"
"Why is it called a Forbidden Region, Roksu? It looks so normal."
"It is just a forest, like any other." Roksu shrugged, adjusting his hold on the black egg as he confidently strolled through the woods. "According to the books I've read, the only things that make it different are the mutated monsters and plants."
"Monsters?" Ohn stopped purring and looked around curiously. Both she and her brother stepped closer to their guide. "There are monsters here?"
"Not at the moment. "
"Why?"
"They must have ran off. They probably sensed powerful magic aura when we teleported. Wild monsters wouldn't usually dare to mess with something potentially stronger than them, unless they were desperate."
The red Dragon was beyond a doubt one the strongest being in the Forest of Darkness right now. But come to think of it… Had these siblings even realize he was a Dragon yet?
Eh, whatever. Roksu didn't feel like explaining himself.
"It's still quite early in the day," Roksu spoke thoughtfully, rubbing the shiny dark shell. "Let's explore a bit, and see if anyone lives here – aside from the monsters."
"And then?"
"And then… we could take a break to eat?"
The kittens were more than happy with that plan.
The children explored the forest with curious, energetic glee that of kids who had never stepped outside their hometown before. Before long, Ohn started collecting colorful leaves from the ground and passing them to Roksu, who put them into his spatial bag. Hong found a bush full of poisonous berries and started to munch on them. Roksu wasn't worried – it was obvious the red kitten had Poison Attribute, so he would be fine. They discovered a big lake, but there was nothing there aside from a lot of monster tracks leading in all sorts of directions.
"There is a peak of a mountain in that direction," Roksu mused, the lack of trees around the lake allowing him to see horizon above the branches. "I think that's the center of the Forest."
"Do you think your friend lives on that mountain?"
"Friend?" Roksu blinked at Ohn in confusion. "What friend?"
"The friend who will help you with the bad man?" the silver kitten blinked back at him. "Wasn't that what you said?"
"Oh, him. He's not my friend."
"Then how do you know he's going to help you?"
Roksu smirked. "I think I can convince him."
Ohn suddenly had a foreboding feeling, as if someone was going to get scammed in the near future.
(Far away, a certain Golden Dragon sneezed.
"Must be the elves gossiping again," the Ancient Dragon sighed.)
But before Ohn could press any further, a sudden noise of a branch snapping reached her ears.
Startled from the sound of the first creature they'd encountered so far, the kittens quickly ran back to Roksu to hide behind his heels, their fur standing up.
Roksu tilted his head. Oh… that was quite an interesting presence, one he had not felt yet since he was born in this world.
"Show yourself," he spoke with calm confidence, his small figure emanating power.
He did not have to wait long. With the rustle of the leaves, a hooded figure emerged from behind the bush.
...A figure which, much to Roksu's annoyance, happened to be significantly taller than him.
"I can't believe it…" A young male voice spoke in awe. "You are… a Dragon, aren't you? A real Dragon?"
The kittens behind him meowed, audibly shocked at the revelation. So they really had not figured it out before this point, despite his powerful magic. Then again… They only just met him a short while ago, and they were just small children. It was still a little off-putting how easily this stranger figured out his identity – he would have preferred plausible deniability for a little longer.
Also, the moment Roksu heard those words, he felt a cold shiver go down his spine. He had a bad feeling. And so, he decided to lie – even if the cat was very much out of the bag.
"Who, me?" he asked in the most innocent, child-like voice he could muster. "I'm just a lost traveler walking through the forest. And who might you be?"
The hooded figure huffed in amusement, crossing his arms in such an immature way that immediately betrayed him as a teenager. "Just a lost traveler, you say? But somehow, your presence alone sent every monster in a mile radius running.
"Must have been you, mister. You should probably take a shower." Roksu deadpanned, making the other boy twitch in annoyance.
"Says the child walking barefoot through the Forest of Darkness."
"I lost my shoes."
"And your socks too?"
"They got stuck in mud."
"Your feet are perfectly clean."
"Are you staring at my feet now? How creepy."
"You claim to be an ordinary traveler, yet you are accompanied by two Cat Beast People."
"Is that a crime?"
"You have a literal Dragon egg in your hands."
"It's just a rock I found."
"An egg-shaped rock?"
"Yeah. There is a ton of those in that lake over there."
"Seems like a pretty big rock to carry for no reason."
"Who said I had no reason?"
The stranger was very much unimpressed with his unrelenting lies.
"Which is?"
"I don't feel like sharing it with a creepy stranger."
"What creepy stranger!" The teenager took a stepforward, putting a hand to his chest as he bowed. Roksu thought he seemed unfairly elegant for someone so annoying. "I'll have you know that I am a very respectable individual. I am Al-" He conspicuously stopped mid-sentence, then cleared his throat. "-bert. I'm Albert. Pleasure to be of service."
"I see," said Roksu. 'Like hell you are,' he thought as he put on a grin. "Nice to meet you, Albert! I'm Bob."
Definitely-Not-Albert lifted his head, his posture full of disbelief. "Bob. That's… that's what you're going with? Seriously? Bob?"
"It's just as real as the name you gave me, mister," Roksu replied with an angelic smile.
"It could be my real name."
'Yeah right.' Roku rolled his eyes. "And I could be simply Bob the traveler."
"I refuse to believe there's an actual Dragon named Bob." Not-Albert seemed to find that premise very offensive for some reason.
"Why are you so sure I'm a Dragon? That seems statistically unlikely."
"Aside from all the reasons I listed?"
"Circumstantial evidence at best. I might be a perfectly normal human."
Not-Albert walked closer, until he was two feet away, leaning down and making eye contact. He looked smug. "Bob, my friend… Do you really not know?" He pointed at his own eyes. "You have slit-shaped pupils."
Roksu blinked, annoyed. Seriously? He couldn't believe he missed such a stupid detail. The only reason why the kittens did not notice was probably because they had slit-shaped pupils themselves, being cats and all. Roksu almost polymorphed his eyes on the spot just to spite Not-Albert, but. Why even bother at this point? He was used to this form of his, he felt too lazy to change it now.
The red Dragon huffed, deciding he had enough of this conversation. "Whatever. I don't have to explain myself to anyone." He stated with all the natural arrogance of a juvenile Dragon. "Much less some suspicious Dark Elf."
If anyone else had ever made such an observation about Alver Crossman, the Crown Prince of the Roan Kingdom, it would have meant an inevitable death – for the Prince, that is.
The secret quarter Dark Elf was watching at the young Dragon with carefully concealed awe. Despite his earlier words, the child's polymorphed human form was quite convincing. Draconic pupils aside, the disguise could have fooled him...if only everything else about the child wasn't also out of place. Everything from his ill-suited attire for a journey through a dangerous forest, to striking appearance, powerful aura and confident posture – not to mention the company of Cat Beast children, a race completely uncommon to the Western Continent – his entire presence gave him away as a rare Dragon.
The very creature he had been searching for. Alver refused to pass on this chance. Especially since this little Dragon wasn't even hostile; amusingly grumpy and childish at worst.
Speaking of which...
"Well, this suspicious Dark Elf – only quarter at that for your information, my friend-"
"We are not friends!"
"-could hardly consider himself a respectable adult if I let a non-Dragon child wander around a Forbidden Region alone."
That… was an annoyingly good point, and Roksu did not like it. Still, that did not mean he would give in without a fight. He turned around and started walking away. "I can handle myself, Dragon or not. And you're probably not even an adult yourself!"
"Well I am turning 18 tomorrow, so I might as well be." Alver was infuriatingly smug about it as he followed right behind him. "And you are what, ten?"
"Twelve. And a half," Roksu added quickly, then immediately felt embarrassed about it. Wasn't it terribly childish to add half-years to your age?
Then again, Not-Albert just added a day to his own – so who was the childish one here again?
"And I'm five!" Hong suddenly joined in the conversation, seemingly having accepted that Alver would be their companion from that point on – an unspoken agreement which Roksu very much resented. "My sister is seven. We are big kids!"
"Ah, yes I see," Alver nodded solemnly. "I'm sure you two are very mature for your age." Ohn laughed, clever enough to recognize a jab directed at the little Dragon.
Roksu felt doubly betrayed. Whose side were those two on, again?
"But you three are definitely too young to travel without supervision…" Alver looked over the group with sincere concern. "Were are your parents?"
"My mom is waiting for me at home," Roksu said boldly, seeing as the kittens weren't eager to answer. It technically wasn't even a lie. "And we don't need supervision anyway. If we add up our ages, together we're basically 24 and older than you."
Did that make sense? Not really. But Roksu did not care. Why couldn't the annoying teen just let them be?
"You should probably average it if that's how you want to count it," Alver said with amusement. "That would make you only 8-years-old each."
Roksu pouted. Then, his expression cleared as something simple occurred to him. Why not use this situation to his advantage?
"Well… if you insist on supervising us…" Slowly, a smirk rose on his face. "That means you will have to fill the role of a responsible adult to look after us helpless children. Isn't that right, Albert?"
The Prince had a very bad feeling all of a sudden.
The little red Dragon lounged on a luxurious red cashmere blanket and a couple of pillows placed over soft grass, presenting the perfect picture of a spoiled Young Lord while the part Dark Elf tirelessly worked on their campsite. Roksu continued to pet the silver kitten on his lap as the red kitten amused himself by making biscuits with one of the pillows, all three perfectly content with this arrangement.
"You are putting them together all wrong." The Dragon made another remark with glee, causing the kittens to snicker. The teenager to shoot Roksu an irritated look. "The campfire needs to be perfectly symmetrical!"
"I don't think that makes much of a difference..." Alver said, attempting to correct the position of the logs according to the instructions.
"I know what I'm talking about. Start over!"
The Prince groaned in irritation. He was certain the child was just messing with him.
But, well. He wasn't exactly in a position to argue with a Dragon – no matter how petty said Dragon was.
"There. Is that better?"
"I guess." At last, Roksu magnanimously agreed. "Good job, I suppose."
Alver huffed. "Anything else, oh mighty Sir Bob?"
"That's great and mighty Sir Bob to you!" Roksu rolled his eyes at him. "What do you think? Get the fire going! We are hungry. Some responsible adult you are, letting us starve." This was so much fun, he thought. What a joy it was, to be still and do nothing while someone else did all the work.
Who would have thought that Prince Alver would end up serving as a Dragon's personal chef one day. If any of his Dark Elf relatives ever found out, they would have been envious for sure. For his part, Alver just felt irritated to be bossed around like a servant, when he knew for a fact this kid could prepare everything – food included – in a short moment using his own magic. But he wouldn't give up so easily.
He had to get on the little Dragon's good side even if it killed him. The fate of his whole kingdom depended on it.
"You don't happen to have any cooking ingredients, do you?" the teenager asked, putting some packet beef jerky out of his pockets. "I have only this much on me. We might need to do some hunting if-"
Roksu lazily waved his index finger in the air. An abrupt pig-like shriek sounded from beyond the trees, interrupting the teenager mid-sentence. The noise went silent as quickly as it started. A moment later, a huge body of a boar monster soared through the trees and landed directly in front of Alver.
He blinked at the dead body in shock.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Roksu said nonchalantly, taking out a bag of spices and throwing it at the boy's head. "Prepare the meat. You know how to do that, right? You are such a mature adult after all."
Alver's eye twitched. "This is driving me nuts," he muttered to himself, pulling his sleeves up. Never before had he been forced to do such dirty work, but. He accepted the challenge with dignity.
Roksu, Ohn and Hong happily ate all of the Prince's jerky while they waited for him to skin the animal, prepare the meat, and roast it above the fire. By the time the food was ready, it was afternoon and despite their snacks in the meantime, all of their stomachs were roaring from hunger. The four companions dig into the roasted pork happily.
"Delicious," Ohn said, licking her paw.
"So good!" Hong agreed with his mouth full.
"It actually is really good," Roksu said, pleasantly surprised. "Not bad, Albert. You might have potential as a professional chef after all."
"As tempting as that sounds," Not-Albert said with dignity, wiping his mouth with a handkerchief "I already have a different career path in mind."
"Shame. I would have hired you – if you were a little less annoying, that is."
The part Dark Elf laughed. "Thank you for the compliment."
"Alright, since you passed basic cooking requirements now you get to make us dessert."
"Wait wha-?"
From his spatial bag, the little red Dragon pulled out a sack of flour, a metal tin with sugar, and several other ingredients, including chocolate chips. "Chocolate cookies, if you please. Go on."
Alver stared.
"Uh…May I ask why would you carry an industrial sized bag of flour with you?"
Roksu responded: "Better question is, Albert, why wouldn't I have an industrial sized bag of flour with me?"
The teenager wasn't sure if the other was serious or not. 'Truly, Dragons are beyond mortal comprehension…' he thought, and decided not to question it anymore.
By the time the sun set behind horizon, all the cookies the part Dark Elf painstakingly cooked over the campfire were long gone. One cannot underestimate children's love for sweets.
"You know," Alver said as they prepared the tent for the night. "Why don't we visit my place tomorrow? I have some really good sweets back home."
"You do?" Ohn asked with starts in her eyes.
"What kinds of sweets?" Hong eagerly climbed onto the boy's shoulders. "More cookies?"
"Not just cookies. We have dried fruit, and candied nuts, and all kinds of cakes. Meat and snacks, too! What do you think?"
The kittens meowed eagerly, rubbing against him and purring.
"How manipulative," Roksu said from his cozy spot on the blanket, his eyes closed. He had not moved from it since they first stopped to make camp – or more accurately, since Alver made the camp. The part Dark Elf thought it was both irritating and adorable how lazy this little Dragon was. "Tempting us with candy to go to your house? You sound like a second rate kidnapper." Despite these words, he sounded completely relaxed.
"You mean you don't want the opportunity to mooch off of me for food to your hearts content?" Alver asked slyly. "Especially at my birthday banquet tomorrow."
Roksu's eyes snapped open in an instant. "Birthday banquet?"
"Exactly." The teenager leaned in closer and whispered into his ear: "There will be layered chocolate cake."
Well, that settled it. "We'll go first thing in the morning." Roksu turned onto his side, moving his arms around the pillow where the black egg rested. With a flick of magic, a blanket covered him and his sibling. The kittens settled between the little red Dragon and the quarter Dark Elf.
Alver's warm brown eyes reflected the stars as he quietly celebrated this incredible victory in his mind. All of today's labor had been worth it.
He was finally bringing a Dragon home with him. Perhaps, his curse was soon to be over.
