Chapter 1: Got Kicked Out!
Chapter Text
Kim Rok Soo walked slowly out of the pub. It was an old place filled with old, drunk people and reeked of nostalgia. Two years ago, it was at this same pub when he was piss-dead drunk and playing chess with a random sore loser in a thick cloak.
Then the piece of shit ratted him towards his gang of “heroes” that were going to “save the world” and “slay the demon king.” Rok Soo didn’t bother at first, but they dared to drag in his sworn brothers, and they were bigger trouble magnets than he was, so of course, he was forced to come with.
Fast forward two years and there they were, in the same pub, now with his exclusion. Because one week before the raid to the demon king’s castle, he’d been unanimously kicked out.
‘Was that why Jung Soo kept randomly mumbling his name in the middle of the night? Something something, farming, something, Rok Soo, hyung, something something.’
He was a little loud in their three-person shared bedroom. In the dead silence of the night, no less.
Alberu Crossman, the ex-prince of the Roan Kingdom (by choice , he insisted), had abandoned his throne to fulfill the "Sacred Prophecy"—a flowery fuckfest of "sun this" and "moon that." Rok Soo had stopped listening after the third metaphor.
He was apparently the “ Hero ” in question. Only in the public’s eye though, since in reality they were all in one way or another heroes.
And he was also bawling his eyes out , crying Rok Soo’s name when he (rightfully) walked out on them with the soberness of a wine cellar.
‘They wanted it!’
So he walks giddily, like a kid in a candy shop, with only a list of goals in mind
- Build a farm. (because why not!)
- Build a house in the countryside. (the large cities that expanded around each kingdom were just too noisy, in Rok Soo’s humble opinion.)
- Make sure those “heroes” (and hyungs) don’t die during the great battle.
‘They argued about it for like– what? At least five nights and almost twenty hours combined? It’s just “leave and don’t come back” in the end, doesn’t mean he couldn’t send a couple lightning strikes from afar, and he will.’
- Slack off for the rest of his life.
All in all, Rok Soo took the forced retirement in stride.
That was, until two pairs of golden orbs glistened from a dark alleyway. They narrowed in on him, little meows releasing when they didn’t get any response.
Slowly, two kittens trotted from the shadows, their tails high as a sign of victory. The grey kitten, Ohn, stood in his path, eyes wide to give her best impression of Choi Han’s “puppy eyes.” Her younger brother, the red kitten, Hong, was climbing on his leg like a tree, trying his best to futilely grab his attention.
He paused. Waited for a moment. Then released a heavy, exasperated sigh.
“I’m not taking you all with me.”
“Meow~” (TL: wrong answer!)
Rok Soo leaned down to peel Hong off his leg, utterly done with the pair as he gave them the most deadpan look.
“I’m still not taking you all with me.”
Then, from the same alleyway came echoes of rather violent crashes that continued to grow louder, as if there was a crying dragon stumbling and fumbling through the narrow alleyway to protest against such injustice that came out of his mouth. Sounds that he valiantly ignored as if his entire life line was dependent on it.
He knew there was absolutely zero chance of him escaping the brewing storm that was a very young, very innocent, and very clingy baby dragon.
He shuts his eyes.
‘One. Two. Three–’ The crashes grew louder—then stopped. A beat of silence. Then–
“HUMAN!!”
A speeding bullet in the shape of a black blob crashed straight into his stomach, almost sending him barreling if it wasn’t for the fact he was already prepared to catch it.
He felt little patches of water wetting his shirt, claws gripping tightly, almost digging into his skin. Almost.
“WHY DID YOU LEAVE US, AND ESPECIALLY ME! THE GREAT AND MIGHTY RAON MIRU ALONE WITH THOSE WEAKLINGS!? AM I NOT GREAT AND MIGHTY ENOUGH?! WE WERE SUPPOSED TO FARM TOGETHER! YOU PROMISED IT WAS GOING TO INCLUDE APPLE PIES– THOSE WEAKLINGS DON’T EVEN KNOW OF MY GREAT AND MIGHTY EXISTENCE, HOW AM I, NO, ARE WE SUPPOSED TO SCAM THEM!?”
He continued to wail in utter despair into Rok Soo’s mind, uncaring for the absolutely stone-faced, apathetic, soulless, words, synonyms, deadpan he had never given to anyone else (aside from maybe Alberu).
“YOU SIGNED THE CONTRACT!” Raon unfolded a crumpled parchment covered in paw prints and what looked like gold dust. “IT SAYS WE WILL “SLACK OFF TOGETHER OR LOSERS FOREVER!” NOONA’S PAW PRINT IS THE SIGNATURE!”
Rok Soo narrowed his eyes at the rude implication, but ignored the rest. He was too tired to play along, and would much prefer to lay in a comfy bed for a twelve hour sleep.
“That’s yesterday’s grocery list.”
“HUMAN!” Raon wailed. “ARE YOU GOING TO JUST ABANDON US?! LIKE THE TWO YEARS WE WERE TOGETHER DIDN’T MATTER?! TO LEAVE US HOMELESS, STARVING IN THE STREETS?! WHAT ABOUT MOM AND HYUNG? DON’T YOU FEEL REMORSE FOR ABANDONING THEM TOO?”
Ohn and Hong, sensing an opening, meowed pitifully in synchronized despair.
‘Remorse isn’t the right word, it’s more like terror.’
Rok Soo’s face could not get any more deadpanned. He noted the trio’s devious act was almost perfect. Almost.
They would’ve easily fooled anyone that wasn’t Rok Soo, who had had his own share of faux tragedy from the same tiny creatures.
He was not only tolerant, but nigh-immune to their shenanigans.
His gaze locked with each of their own, noticing the little glances they subtly sent each other when they thought he wasn’t looking. The hints of mischief in the kittens’ eyes. Raon’s overdramatic sniffles. Their lowered, but gently swaying tails.
Raon was most likely roped into the siblings’ scheme, and as their genius youngest brother, he had acted like a professional scammer. They might’ve planned the whole thing out while he was dealing with the heroes, even though his “confrontation” only lasted thirty minutes at most, they were smart enough to conjure something during it.
Rok Soo sighed in resignation.
“...You’re all terrible liars.”
“FINE!” Raon drew himself up, tiny wings flaring. “I, THE GREAT AND MIGHTY RAON MIRU , will graciously and mightifully protect your farm! For FREE! And—AND I WILL NOT BURN ANYTHING TO THE GROUND! MY AMAZING SELF WILL EVEN PLANT APPLES FOR YOU!”
Silence. Then, a sigh deeper than the abyss.
“I never mentioned planting apples–”
“ NO! YOU HAVE TO–”
Before Raon could further implode his mind with purposefully deafening telepathic words that rang louder and louder each sentence, he yielded.
“Alright, fine.”
The kittens and dragon perked up, staring at Rok Soo with expectant eyes.
“But you’re helping with the farm.”
“Yay!” The trio sounded ecstatic. “I knew your plan would work, noona!”
Ohn simply nodded her head proudly, sending a smug look Rok Soo’s way.
“Now get up from the floor. We’ll rent an inn.”
“But Human! We need to build the farm right now–”
Rok Soo clamped a hand over the dragon’s mouth, effectively silencing him.
“Did you finish dinner?” He raised a questioning brow, to which the trio flinched in response. He knew since the four of them would always eat together, and when Rok Soo wasn’t with them, they’d wait until he returned.
But this time he didn’t.
The silence was loud and clear. Then, from behind his palm a little whisper sounded out.
“ Can we get apple pies…? ”
“Sure,” he watched them questioningly, before adding, “we’ll get meat and cake too, and whatever else we want. Tonight is a celebration.”
Their eyes gleamed. Ohn’s tail flicked in approval whilst Hong scaled his reaching arm to wrap himself on his shoulders, purring audibly. Raon, still muffled by his palm, vibrated in excitement, whether from farming or arson related activities, he didn’t want to find out.
Rok Soo sighed, just as a precaution. “No setting things on fire.”
“Not even a little?!”
“No.” He deadpanned.
Raon stared at him teary-eyed, his wings drooped. Rok Soo faltered, slightly.
“Hah, fine. Only when necessary.” He conceded, knowing compromise will always work better than arguing when dealing with a six years old dragon.
Even when said dragon, arrogant and domineering rulers of the lands, was acting like a lost puppy to get his way with him.
Raon gave a victorious “Hmph!” as he perched on the top of Rok Soo’s head before settling down and turning invisible.
Ohn also pawed at his feet, meowing softly to catch his attention. He masterfully lifted Ohn up to rest on his other shoulder, opposite of Hong.
As if he’d done it hundreds of times before, Rok Soo walked evenly with two kittens (and one mighty dragon) draped on his shoulders (and head) .
.
.
.
He made his way through the dimly lit streets, walking away without a single ounce of regret, his steps firm and steadily marching towards a familiar sign after the feast that spanned seven different food stands and three different restaurants (because of a certain baby dragon) .
“Hope and Adventure Loving Inn”
The letters carved crookedly into a wooden board, dangling on a miniature lamp post that shone a warm, orange hue that lit up the entire front yard of the inn.
A single wide cobblestone path led the way towards the front door of the building, surrounding it were flowers from across the continent, including new ones he hadn’t seen before.
‘Seems like he’s fulfilling his end of the deal properly.’
A bell jingled as he entered, the homely scent of spiced ale and roasted meat wrapped around him like an old friend. Behind the counter, a middle-aged barkeeper and clerk was cleaning the countertop, likely preparing to close for the night.
He did not look up, only giving Rok Soo a cursory glance before giving his most standard customer service smile.
“Your room will be one silver coin, sir.”
Rok Soo nodded, sliding over a gold coin before silently heading for the stairs.
“Keep up the good work. Give the owner my regards.”
“Yes, sir.”
As he moved, he could feel Hong’s nose twitching and brushing at his neck at the aromas from the kitchen and Ohn’s ears perking as she stared at the clerk. A certain invisible weight shifted on the top of Rok Soo’s head.
“Human! The drunk weakling is right outside! Do I say hi? He looks a little drunk–”
Suddenly, a knock, then a crash came from behind the door just as a slurred voice yelled out.
“ FUCK! Rok Soo–”
At the familiar voice and the call of his name, the man in question simply marched onwards while covering three pairs of ears like a professional, ignoring his problems the third time that day.
Another bang.
“YOU BETTER BE THERE ONCE I GET THIS STUPID DOOR OPENED, OTHERWISE SOMETHING REALLY ANNOYING IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU–”
Then another.
Then– silence .
An audible, almost pitying sigh could be heard even as Rok Soo was almost all the way up the stairs by then.
“Bill–” Momentary silence, the voice sounded sober, followed by another disappointed sigh, “I lost my keys…”
Rok Soo was already at the door to his bedroom when the clerk’s tired but fond and equally weary sigh rang loud in the silent inn and the stairs leading up to the top floor of the building.
“Give me a moment, young master.”
“Didn’t I tell you to not call me that–”
The front door clicked open in tandem with the unlocking of his room. Just as he stepped in to lay down the already drowsy children averaging nine years old, the previously loud yells from downstairs turned into muttered curses only listenable through the quiet night.
Rok Soo shut the door as softly as possible, giving no clue about his presence, despite Raon’s telepathically whispered protests.
He rested for the night, peacefully and blissfully ignorant of the shit he had gotten himself into.
Chapter 2: Reunions, Then Planned Vacations!
Summary:
A perfect morning to go scouting! (traveling)
But what the hell was Rok Soo up to before joining the party?!
Featuring: The Drunkard of Poor Life Choices, UNSUITABLE FARMING LOCATION #1, Platonic Kim Rok Soo & Litana?!
Part of this chapter was inspired by: Erubescens' The story of his love (https://archiveofourown.org/series/4234549)
Notes:
I got really motivated from the positive response! (fyi: I expected chapter 2 to be dropped at least a week apart from chapter 1 because my writing habits are just like that)
Just some details I wanna mention as I continue to develop the story:
- This is a parody of the Isekai/Fantasy genre! Expect a lot of tropes!
- Relationships will be included a bit further down the line, expected to be during/after the demon king's death!
- I, as a humble consumer, knows absolutely nothing about farming! Expect things to be a little, pardon the french, fucked when we reach that point.
Chapter Text
Rustle.
Rustle.
“Rok Soo-nya, it’s time to wake up~”
“Human, you have to wake up! We need to build the farm~”
“That’s right, nya~”
Three little voices whispered in his ears simultaneously, all urging him to wake up fresh and early in the god forsaken hour that was at most 7 PM.
Rok Soo groaned in protest, before lazily leaning to the side and stuffing his face full of the slice of heaven that was his pillow.
‘Why do I have to suffer like this even in retirement!’ He screamed in his mind.
From beside his head he could feel the weight of the three children, who were supposed to still be asleep, knowing that they had stayed up far too late last night simply eating to their hearts’ content.
But he knew why.
Raon was a mighty baby dragon, and he was, of course, very excited to find they would finally be able to slack off together in their own farm, far away from the rest of Rok Soo’s former party members.
The fact that he could feel Raon’s overwhelmingly enthusiastic poking at his exposed cheeks, neck, and nose, all at the same time, it was easy to come to such a conclusion.
He could also hear Hong’s weak attempts at covering up his habitual sleepy yawns with soft meows near Ohn’s equally sleepy whispers trying to wake him up.
It seemed as if Raon’s excitement wasn’t contagious enough for it to completely overwhelm the kittens’ urge to sleep in.
He wanted that too. But above the rest of his priority list, which just happened to include “sleep in as much as possible”, was his guardianship.
Over Ohn, Hong, and especially Raon.
Promises were the foundation to their bonds, and he did promise to take care of the three of them, to care for Raon’s in place of her when they couldn’t visit.
‘I should tell Sheritt-nim about it soon.’
She would love to hear about Raon’s mini-adventures while he was travelling with Rok Soo and the kittens, even while staying invisible for a majority of it. That, and the farming. Would she prefer him farming or arson?
The back of his hand tingled with a familiar sensation, a warm heat radiated where a sigil was marked, the physical representation of his promise.
‘It’s been a while, too.’
With that thought in mind Rok Soo cracked an eye open–
Sapphire eyes immediately locked on, literally shining brighter than Alberu ever could.
And–
A shifting weight on his legs, heavy enough to make it go numb and restrict movement.
Tearing his gaze from Raon’s, he looked toward the other end of the bed to see a rather familiar face.
A certain, red-headed drunkard was sprawled across his legs, face smushed into sheets as he clung onto Rok Soo’s calf like a koala . His usually well-kept and stylishly presented hair was a tangled mess, luxury clothes that definitely lost at least a few hundred gallons of worth, face slightly flushed as if he’d drank through the night and decided that Rok Soo’s legs would be the perfect sleeping accommodation, and a dangerously hanging line of drool near the silken sheets.
Cale Henituse, son of Count Henituse, professional high-stake gambler, drunkard, actor, and accountant . The one member of the hero’s party that doesn’t have absurd superhuman strength, and one that Rok Soo can relate to as he was also dragged in from the sidelines.
‘When the fuck–’
Raon, sensing his question, was already staring at the same figure before excitedly pointing at and introducing him like a show host.
“Oh! Human! That’s the red weakling from The Group of Weaklings™! He broke in like, err, two hours ago, and bribed us with free breakfast so we let him stay!”
Hong suddenly piped in disappointedly from his side. “Yeah…But he just rolled onto the bed and fell asleep right after.”
Then, an imaginary flashbulb flickered on and a mischievous smile crept up on his face.
“Let’s scam him!”
Ohn’s tail flicked lazily in agreement. “Let’s make him pay for lying to us.”
“Double the price!” Hong continued, gaining more vigor as the three continued to scheme.
“Triple!” Raon added with glee.
‘He’s not getting out of this one. Quadruple.’
He didn’t say it out loud, only sighed tiredly, but he shared their sentiment. Rok Soo wanted payback too. He carefully detached Cale from his legs, replacing it with a pillow to which the sleeping figure rolled over with it in hand.
“He’ll wake up on his own.” Rok Soo said, before picking up the awake kittens and ushering Raon toward the door.
‘Let’s just order breakfast and place it on Cale’s tab. The farm comes first. ’
He made his way downstairs, greeted the old clerk and ordered breakfast, before heading out.
The early morning air hit him, cool breezes flew past. The sun wasn’t fully up yet, but the little rays that shone onto the front garden made a beautiful sight. It was being taken care of properly, something he appreciated greatly.
He made his way into the streets, not yet crowded by the citizens as street vendors were still setting up shop. Stepping calmly into a small alleyway, he continued to brainstorm through suitable places for the farm.
Memories of over 20 years of travelling crossed his mind, yet nothing perfect came up.
‘Farming is rough.’
He sighed before glancing into the general direction of the baby dragon and asking quietly.
“Raon, teleport us to the Ubarr shores.”
“Sure!” An ecstatic reply came back immediately.
A shimmering pitch black circle was drawn beneath his feet as luminescent noir particles flowed upward like fireflies.
The air stilled for a moment as he and the kittens in his arms closed eyes.
Seconds passed.
“We’re here!”
The salty ocean breeze hit him immediately.
It was the middle of autumn and the wind was colder than usual, but it was the perfect atmosphere for residency.
Rok Soo could imagine it. Waking up late in the morning to the view of the vast expanse of water, the beautiful sandy beach that was just at his doorstep, and the perfect excuse to just run away and become a seafarer.
‘The kittens would hate that.’
Then, realization dawned on him.
‘How the fuck am I going to farm here.’
He could farm marine life, it was technically farming, but he imagined planting crops and enjoying a cold drink on a lush patio surrounded by nature.
The children averaging nine years old were probably having the same thought as him, looking slightly dumbfounded at the beach and their guardian.
He asked, just to make sure.
“What about here?”
They glanced at each other, then at him, before Ohn, as the oldest of the trio, spoke up.
“We’ll go wherever you go, nya.”
They’re letting him dictate where and how they’d live, which was always concerning, knowing that the three of them were far more mature for their own good.
He smiled as gently as he could.
“You can give your opinion. I want the three of you to be happy with our stay too.”
The trio looked back at each other for a moment, then started to discuss between themselves.
“The weather is…nice.”
“And it’s cool– Like a permanent beach vacation!”
“What would we do if there was a really big wave…?”
“I’ll just blast it away!”
“You’ll blast the crops with it too, nya.”
“Oh…”
“And saltwater kills plants, nya.”
“Oh…”
“Oh…”
The three looked back at him, looking much more downcast than prior.
“Then, we’ll try other places. We can have temporary vacations here in the future.”
They all nodded in response, Raon was staring at him from his perch on Rok Soo’s head, Ohn and Hong jumped back into his arms and snuggled into his hold, also staring at him questioningly.
“Raon, do you remember the coordinates to our vacation home in the jungle?”
The aforementioned great and mighty existence pondered for a second, a visible question mark floated above his head before disappearing as the puzzle pieces clicked together,
“Oh!”
The magic circle appeared once more, now appearing impossibly brighter than before as the mana resonated with Raon.
Seconds passed.
“We’re here!”
Right on queue, the air surrounding them changed abruptly as humidity clung onto their skin.
Raon had teleported them into the building itself, which was located directly on the shoreline, surrounded by large trees and vegetation, with a pathway that directly leads into the beach.
Unlike the Ubarr shores, this area was much more tropical, with fewer cliffs and much more suitable for farming. And unlike the Ubarr shores, the ruler of the area was someone much more desirable. One that isn’t linked with headache-inducing nobilities and politics, but with kindness, righteousness, and peacekeeping.
‘It’s been two years already.”
He was 36 the last time they properly talked.
Rok Soo ignored the gut punch that was his incoming mid-life crisis and surveyed the building.
It was…well kept, oddly enough. The place didn’t have any preservation charms installed, yet it looked almost brand new. The furniture made from the trees that encompassed the forest were spotless, as if people had been cleaning this vacant, almost abandoned house daily.
The kittens in his arms jumped down before rushing toward the door, clearly excited.
Raon, too, was looking around with stars in his eyes, especially through the windows.
‘Right. This is their first time here.’
Two years ago, he’d received an urgent message from Litana through one of her courier birds at dusk, prompting him to teleport to the Jungle by himself in the middle of the night.
The children were fast asleep at the time.
Being here again felt nostalgic in a way, like meeting a close friend after years of no contact. In a way, it almost felt like showing off his kids to an older sibling.
With a comfortable and familiar warmth in his chest, he walked out the front door.
Clang.
“Holy shit .”
A middle aged southerner with a tall stature and feminine features stood on the porch, her spear dropped onto the ground as she stared in shock.
She rubbed her eyes once, twice, thrice just to be sure, before muttering out loud.
“Rok Soo?”
He recognized her, one of Litana’s close aides. She’d aged noticeably, considering eight years had passed with neither of them ever meeting.
Before Rok Soo could say anything, the warrior whistled sharply. From the corner of his vision he could see the rummaging within the bushes before a spot of black fur dashed deeper into the woods.
The warrior was staring at him with full recognition now, her lips formed a tired but fond smile as she spoke.
“ Miss Lina would love to hear why you’ve ghosted her for over 2 years now.”
Rok Soo’s jaw dropped, his eyes widened comically, a never before seen sight for any, if not all people the children averaging nine years old ever knew including themselves!
“Please,” Rok Soo pleaded with a hint of regret in his tone, “I’d rather not have an earful of her tangents first things first.”
The children who had dashed in front of him protectively after noticing the commotion, all had a silly wide-eyed stare on their face as they took in the entire exchange.
Chapter 3: Big Cat™ Problems
Summary:
Rok Soo becomes yet another victim of The Big Cat™.
It was long overdue anyways... with how he practically ghosted them for over 2 years!
Notes:
Here is the real chapter 3!
A very short one, unfortunately, as this serves as a little interlude for me to plan out the rest of the story, as well as continue overhauling it so I can work on it with more ease.
Did you notice? The title changed! Some contents of the previous chapters did too, though rereads are completely unnecessary.
I've decided to continue with this work, knowing that plotline never strayed too far from what I originally envisioned, thanks to your comments!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
“Human,” Raon’s voice echoed in his head. “Who’s this Miss Lina?”
Rok Soo, who was thoroughly done with his life choices, decided to ignore the baby dragon until further notice.
If he were to look at this moment a single year in the future, he’d call it a blunder of apocalyptic proportions.
Rok Soo could only stare helplessly as the warrior’s jaw hung open like a fish out of water as a very great and mighty existence manifested before her eyes.
Raon might’ve been a little done with his attempts of ignoring his problems for the n* time in a row now, and simply asked the question out loud to the second most knowledgeable person in the general vicinity.
‘I wish you good luck.’
The dragon perched on his head like a king to his throne, before waving enthusiastically to the stunned southerner.
“Hello! I am the great and mighty Raon Miru, and the protector of this human! I, as the very generous, benevolent, great, don’t forget the mighty, amazing, and curious being that I am, will give you the honor of answering my question!”
‘She looks like she’s about to pass out.’ Rok Soo noted with mild concern.
His tone dropped to a spine chilling temperature, the undeveloped draconic aura “Dragon Fear” flaring up dangerously, as if demanding an answer.
“Who is this ‘Miss Lina’ and what is her business with my human?”
Rok Soo could only sigh exasperatedly as he patted the top of Raon’s head, somewhat successfully calming him down while saving the warrior the trouble of collapsing from Raon’s fierce protective streak.
“She’s an acquaintance–”
“Noona.” A tired voice cut through the tension in the air like a knife. Within the shades of the tropical trees, a figure emerged gracefully as the flora and fauna parted ways like an open sea, walking as if she owned every inch of the land she walked on.
And she did.
“Right– Noona.” He replied instinctively at the familiar commanding tone, shoulders tensing and relaxing again within heart beats.
Litana, the Queen of the Jungle, looked as if she’d just rolled out of bed and into a war council. Her pitch-black hair tied back messily into a single long ponytail, her usual leather armor was replaced by a haphazardly worn tunic, in her hands a half-eaten mango with its juices leaking onto the soil as an afterthought.
She took one look at the scene– her trembling close confidant, a menacing (cute) baby dragon on Rok Soo’s head, and two kittens by his ankles.
She smirked. “Took you long enough to visit, dongsaeng.”
The mango in her hand was tossed back into the bushes as rustling grew louder and louder every second.
She sent him an ominous look, one that promised revenge after years of no contact, before taking two steps into the left.
A deep, rumbling chuff was the only warning he got.
A massive black panther jumped from the foliage, instantaneously locking onto a startled and frightened Rok Soo before pouncing directly at him.
Rok “life long martyr” Soo, of course, indignantly decided to not move away, instead quickly shoving the children averaging nine years old to the side before bracing for impact.
“Oof–”
Over 200 pounds (90 kilos) of pure muscle mass slammed onto him with the force of a raging bull, knocking him flat on his back. Ten, Litana’s partner (in crime) and the ever affectionate black panther, immediately buried her face into Rok Soo’s chest, purring loud enough to shake the trees as the sandpaper texture dragged across his face in continuous motions.
“ Ugh– Ten, you’re getting drool everywhere–” His protests, however, were only half hearted at best as his hands automatically scratched behind the panther’s ears just as affectionately.
From the sidelines, three tiny voices spoke in unison.
“Betrayal.”
The kittens’ ears flattened, Raon’s wings drooped dramatically.
“Human, you never cuddle with us like that!”
“Yeah! And it’s always ‘no licking’ !”
Raon and Hong’s eyes were turning more glassly the more they stared.
Ohn, the eldest, said nothing, merely sending a look so devastating it could topple empires.
And Rok Soo couldn’t even tell if they were faking it or not behind the several layers of drool and black fur!
“Human…” Raon trailed off, his voice several [Hurt No Comfort] less mighty than minutes prior, “Do you love her more than us ?”
All the while Ten, acting absurdly unlike the gracious predator that she was, smugly draped herself across Rok Soo’s torso like a living, purring, very heavy blanket.
Litana, out for vengeance, simply added fuel to the bonfire.
“Rok Soo was with Ten for six years now! They’ve always been so cute together~”
She whispered audibly, loud enough for him, and by extension the children to easily hear, like the devil on your shoulder that won’t ever shut the hell up.
Rok Soo opened his mouth to defend himself, his honor, his pride, just to be met with three sets of shimmering eyes and wobbling lips, the image of a dam about to burst projected itself behind the trio.
‘Damn it all.’
He released a sigh that spoke volumes about his crumbling dignity, before yanking an arm from under the panther-shaped blanket and holding it out at the children.
“Fine. Get in here.”
The resulting cuddle pile would haunt Rok Soo forever.
The mess of tangled paws and dangerously poking out claws, three different shades of fur stuck to him like a mutated porcupine, the mere sight of Raon casually lifting Ten and juggling her around before gently crash-landing on his exhausted, almost shattered rib cage.
All the while Litana watched, smirking as Rok Soo’s complaints were eventually blended with the mutually exclusive giggles of the children and loud purrs from the cats.
“Welcome home, Rok Soo.”
He wasn’t sure yet, but for the first time in years to hear that phrase, he almost believed it was true.
Notes:
This probably should've been in chapter 2....
Chapter 4: Consequences of Ignoring One's Problems
Summary:
Litana, after two years of waiting, finally got reunited with Rok Soo!
But what happened during those two years? Everyone that knew Rok Soo knew his previous "permanent" residence was in the jungle, so what happened to Litana, who was, unfortunately, the last person to have seen Rok Soo? (excluding the heroes)
Notes:
Part of this chapter was inspired by:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/47625358
https://archiveofourown.org/works/57009457
https://archiveofourown.org/works/47744845
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
After what felt like hours, the cuddle pile eventually turned into a normal cuddle session for Rok Soo and the children. Ten had, fortunately, or probably unfortunately from Litana’s point of view, bounced off into the woods, apparently chasing a wild animal only an apex predator can sense.
Rok Soo held them normally despite his appearance now looking like one of those divorced stereotypes, the one with far too much cat hair to be justified.
Raon was, of course, victorious in his fight against Ten for his affection and the fight against the onslaught of fur.
If only–
“Oh!” He exclaimed, noticing Rok Soo’s mild discomfort at all of the cat hair. “Here, Human! This mighty me can always spare a cleansing spell for you!”
The surrounding mana in the air sparkled, circling him like a gust of wind as all of the fur floated off to anywhere other than on his body.
“Thank you, Raon.”
The young dragon had definitely learned to read his expressions, and since he’s such an excellent learner, he must’ve mastered it already.
Rok Soo felt a twinge of pride, considering he himself had mastered the art of the resting bitchface , and the fact he was able to accurately see through him every time, he’s proven himself to be better than Alberu Con man at reading expressions.
Litana, who’d been watching the entire ordeal with a warm gaze, finally pushed off the tree she’s been leaning against.
“So, how long will you be staying?” She said, walking over giddily, expecting one particular answer.
“Possibly permanently.”
“How so?” A quizzical expression on her face.
“I retired yesterday.”
Litana froze, eyes widening cartoonishly while her mouth was agape.
He was slightly concerned about her jaw unhinging.
“Retired…” She repeated, voice laced in disbelief and exasperation. “Are you really the same Kim Rok Soo that reorganized the entire supply log for three days straight in a fever?”
Rok Soo was offended on his past self’s behalf. They weren’t even sorted properly, and it piled up in ten different stacks that even reached the ceiling of the jungle palace! Any sane accountant would’ve lost their mind even glancing at it! He did them all a favor.
He brushed past her inconsiderate comment. “We had a falling out, kind of.”
Raon, tired of his human’s nonchalance, spoke up while puffing out his chest. “They were too weak to comprehend my existence and tried to send the human away, so we took him and left!”
Ohn and Hong perked up from his shoulders. “That’s right nya!”
Litana, of course, understood the gist of it, but didn’t want to bother Rok Soo about it, especially after the heartwarming reunion.
Instead, she trailed off.
“So,” she said slowly, “you must be the great and mighty Raon Miru. I’ve heard a lot about you. You were probably the little mage protected him when he was trying to get himself killed, weren’t you?”
‘Huh?’
She continued, not sparing a glance at Rok Soo’s and Raon’s expressions.
Coming face to face with the kittens on Rok Soo’s shoulders, she continued. “And you two must be Ohn and Hong.” She booped their noses in order. “I’ve known a lot about you two indirectly from Raon. One is mist, and the other is poison. Together, you two make a wonderful combination!”
She straightened herself, enjoying the shocked expression on Rok Soo and the children’s faces. She whistled at the dense foliage and waited.
A black panther, Ten, pounced out once more, now carrying a large bag in her mouth.
Rok Soo continued to stare wide eyed as Litana grabbed the bag, opening and reaching inside it, pulling out a familiar looking letter envelope.
“I fucked up.” He said in recognition.
“Yes you did, dongsaeng. These letters’ been coming daily since you left, so that’s two years worth of scolding for you.”
She handed him a small box, one that shone with bright white light reminiscent of a certain Dragon Lord, with a warming. “You better reply soon.”
Dread filled Rok Soo’s expression as he held the box with utmost care, his eyes narrowed on the letters carved into the top.
“To My Son’s/Brother’s Ungrateful Babysitter - Open Immediately.”
-Note: Explosions may occur if the correct recipient doesn’t reply in two (2) years.
Sheritt Miru, Dodam Miru
The words were written with a familiar, yet terrifying mana color.
Red.
Sheritt’s signature was of course written in a bleach white mana, but the rest was covered in a fiery red, especially the co-signer.
Dodam Miru. Raon’s twin brother, older by exactly one second, and unlike Raon, Dodam had the personality of a dragon.
Fierce, protective, arrogant, and especially destructive.
And two years worth of pent up draconic rage was surely enough to destroy the entire jungle, no, continent.
Sheritt’s scolding, Rok Soo can deal with, but a clingy baby dragon with a passion for blowing things up for fun, he’d rather run away.
He didn’t have to, yet .
But seriously, how did he even manage to convince Dodam to stay behind with Sheritt? He was even more clingy than Raon, and Raon was the clingiest dragon he’d known!
As quickly and as calmly as his thrumming heart allowed, he gently dropped the children perching on him to the ground, still recovering from the temporary shock, and opened the damn box as if his life depended on it.
It did.
Because he was sure Dodam had personally delivered all of the letters from within the bag.
The box opened with a gentle click as red and white mana particles floated out from inside, where almost two years of daily letter envelopes were piled up in a subspace dimension.
On top was a single note, the words were clumsily written in red, as if a little kid was learning fancy calligraphy.
“Reply to each and every single one of them.”
‘Fuck.’
He should’ve visited the Castle of Light first thing in the morning.
Scratch that, last fucking night.
Notes:
Brief explanation!
No one except for Sheritt and Dodam knows about Raon's existence, as well as Ohn and Hong's as they were adopted a bit later than Raon, somewhere around the start of Rok Soo's adventures with the heroes.
Raon Miru is the baby dragon we know and love, Dodam Miru is this story's red dragon, and Sheritt Miru was collateral when both Raon and Dodam asked Rok Soo for their names.
Also, in this universe, there is no communication orb! It's a bit too convenient for me to write with, and I plan on having Dodam or Sheritt invent it and show it off to Rok Soo later when they visit!
Don't worry, I've retconned DHB into something entirely different! He's still gonna be loved, trust. Never forget the fluff tag!
Thank you for reading, even though I've started making chapters shorter and shorter!
Chapter 5: Of Greats And Mighties!
Summary:
Babe, wake up. It's time for your weekly dose of info dump!
Chapter Text
Dodam Miru.
If you were to ask Rok Soo to explain Dodam Miru in a single word, his answer would be:
Special.
“I’m not special! You are just stupid and weak and– HUMANS ARE ALL STUPID!” The red dragon bolted off through the front door of the castle, a visible flush on his face despite the vibrant red scales.
He kept his teasing smile to himself, not mentioning the fact that he was the only human Dodam had ever met.
He was special in countless ways, the most obvious is of course, his birth.
Dragons, as dictated by the natural laws of the world, are given only one chance to continue their legacy with only one child.
His mother, Sheritt-nim, was an equally special dragon. As a former Dragon Lord, the leader of all dragons that had passed away ten millennia ago, she had successfully extended her “life” beyond its limits of a measly thousand years.
That life was, of course, not physical. She’d used her near-infinite mana supply and her attribute to attach her consciousness, alongside her memories, goals, aspirations, everything that made her her, into the Castle of Light to stay with her children even as they grow up.
Not child.
Dodam Miru and Raon Miru are Sheritt-nim’s children.
“I wanted this Castle of Light that was far from the sun, moon, and everything in the world to be the shield to protect them until the end of their second growth phase, the umbrella to block the snow and the rain, the fire to keep them warm.”
She glanced around, motioning her spectral hands.
“That was my hope when I created this.”
Her motive, words she’d kept to herself for generations.
She pointed at herself, the sole remaining ghastly figure that walked the castle halls.
“I then made, ‘me.’”
Her voice was calm.
“So that they wouldn’t be lonely.”
A bright smile and a warm gaze.
“It was because a beautiful death didn’t matter to me. I cared more about the life to come.”
It was only after Rok Soo had returned both of her cherished children that he’d learned the whole truth about the castle.
“It was as if fate had brought you to me, and my children to you.”
That was just the tip of the iceberg.
Their eggs had existed longer than any living creature in the entire world.
It had taken them that long to hatch. So long that Sheritt-nim had started coming up with weird jokes that sprouted from utter boredom after having existed for longer than entire draconic generations. And Rok Soo had to listen to all of them as the only unfortunate soul that managed to get clearance to enter the castle.
“What do you call a dragon who waits 9999 years for breakfast? Eggs-tra hungry!”
She looked expectantly at him from across the large dining table, across the two plates of steaming hot dragon-made-quality fried eggs and exquisitely fancy bread toasted to perfection, across the two dragon eggs seated on his lap as he enjoyed the eggcellent meal.
She even formed a spiritual elbow from mana to nudge at his side as he ate his breakfast.
It was the fifth time that week he’d heard an egg joke. It wasn’t even the third day of the week yet.
Ignoring Sheritt-nim’s questionable sense of humor, Rok Soo must appreciate her absolute patience. She’d existed far longer than any being should, and she’s still able to joke like that.
That patience, unfortunately, was not inherited. Not in the slightest.
If you were to ask Rok Soo to explain Dodam Miru in a single word that isn’t “special”, his answer would be:
“Apocalyptically-short-fused-great-and-mighty-dragon-that-is-the-entire-reason-why-wrath-is-a-sin.”
It’s not a word, simply because a word isn’t enough to physically, mentally, and spiritually interpret the levels of utter destructive impatience Dodam has since the moment he hatched.
Unlike Raon, who’d fortunately inherited even 1% of Sheritt-nim’s patience, with the other 99% having been drilled into Rok Soo’s skull after just one month of babysitting them, Dodam has less than 0%.
It amazed both him and Sheritt-nim as to how Dodam came out, both as a potential dragon lord, and as the physical manifestation of a hellfire-infused infant and a ticking time bomb going off indefinitely that literally jumps number for fun and exploding at random.
And at the moment, it also amazed both him and Litana, the unfortunate ruler that got turned into a delivery box primarily for Rok Soo’s retrievals that also had a taste of Dodam’s wrath, as to how the jungle hadn’t burned to the ground yet.
The note, still clenched in his sweaty palm as he went through years of babysitter PTSD, was definitely written with both the intervention and enabling of Sheritt-nim.
He had to make it quick, otherwise it might not just be his ears that get lobbed off, but also every member of the human race ever labelled “hero!”
Hastily, he snatched the bag out of Litana’s hands before unceremoniously dropping the box and the note inside.
“Raon.” He called, the baby dragon’s temporary stupor disappeared as his eyes shone in recognition and expectancy.
“You can tell your siblings about the castle, but hurry.” That also woke the dazed kittens up.
“Okay Human! Noona, hyung– you won’t believe the secret that the Human’s been making me keep from you!”
Raon, as per usual, bounced into their vacation home away from earshot, dragging the kittens with him.
“Noona,” Rok Soo called, “can this humble dongsaeng of yours, after a heartwarming reunion, borrow a quill? Surely the great ruler of the jungle can spare a simple ink bottle as well, to accommodate this long-term resident and sworn sibling? My life is dependent on–”
Before Rok Soo could finish, Litana had exasperatedly silenced him by shoving a conveniently present quill, parchment, and ink combo right into his face.
“You know your glib tongue won't work on me. It seems quite rusty, though. Don’t tell me you never used it on that former crown prince?” Litana, after years of dealing with Rok Soo’s scheming tendency, knew that aspect of his very well.
“I did the same to him and then he made me his sworn brother .”
Rok Soo furiously scribbled onto the parchment, uncaring of Litana’s utterly shocked and disrespectful expression, most likely aimed at the hero in question.
Before she could respond properly, Rok Soo called out to Raon once again just to catch not one, but two speeding bullets, now in the shape of red and grey blobs, with Raon giddily flying from the cabin.
“Ohn, Hong, you can ask questions at breakfast. Raon, deliver this to your brother and mother.”
The kittens only looked slightly bothered with tens of question marks visible on their feline faces. Rok Soo would laugh if his life wasn’t on the line at the moment.
“It’s done!” The baby dragon cheered, successfully teleporting the handwritten letter to the Castle of Light.
“Now let’s return to the inn.”
.
Litana watched on with familiarity as the storm passed, noting how even after two years of no contact, Rok Soo’s still too shy to say goodbye properly.
She didn’t expect that, after the storm an entire asteroid would strike.
Minutes after Rok Soo and his children left, a crimson light shone as the destination teleportation circle was drawn in the exact spot where Raon had teleported the letter at.
A childish voice, one that sounded entirely similar to that of the baby black dragon but with a lot of frustration mixed in, practically yelled as a figure emerged from the light.
“The great and mighty Dodam Miru has arrived! I knew you’d come crawling back to me eventually, weak human!”
A baby dragon with vibrant red scales, his body slightly larger than Raon’s, his head tilted upwards in supremacy, small chubby paws, resembling Raon’s crossed in front of his puffed out chest.
Litana stared on.
It took no less than a second before the alarms rang.
“I know your eyes have grown old after two entire years , but it’s impolite to keep me waiting like this–”
Crimson eyes stared at her, startled at the scenery and especially the lack of Rok Soo and Raon.
“What.”
His boisterous voice became impossibly cold, eyes fixed on her as the mana sparkled intensely in the air.
Litana, already feeling exhausted from the reunion with Rok Soo, tried the best she could.
“They left a few minutes ago.”
“What.”
The red dragon glanced around with a glare that can melt the air at a moment’s notice, noticing the house, little paw prints on the sand, a pair that were bigger than the rest, and a spot on the ground where the four had teleported.
He didn’t spare any more attention on Litana, sparing her of his wrath, before landing on the sand himself.
He circled the ground, tapping rhythmically in what seemed like frustration and intrigue, before starting his own teleportation spell.
The circle flashed a fiery red before disappearing entirely, leaving Litana standing there, absolutely exhausted.
No one would believe her if she told them she’d survived two undeveloped instances of Dragon Fear in a single day.
Chapter 6: Opportunities Arise!
Summary:
Cale Henituse woke up to an eerie silence and the smell of really good alcohol.
Notes:
I got really excited after finishing chapter 5, since this is the first time I'm writing in a different character's POV! The thing about Rok Soo's POV is that, you have no fucking clue what he's thinking. With Cale (and potentially others), I can finally give some simping insights!
Chapter Text
Back in Rok Soo’s rented bedroom.
Cale Henituse was not having a good time. He lay uncomfortably on the floor with drool staining the entire lower half of his face, still wearing his drinking outfit which got absolutely obliterated since yesterday.
The last thing he remembered before passing out cold was talking to a baby dragon, and the weirdest thing is that he didn’t even know the kid, nor the things he babbled on about. Was he even sober enough to understand anything?
It was definitely something related to Rok Soo, that’s for sure. Speaking of, the bastard definitely had some fucking balls preparing farewell gifts in advance then just walk away without even saying a single goodbye.
Cale’s gift was, of course, suspiciously high quality alcohol .
Yesterday night’s charade was enough to warrant a bottle. Maybe fifteen, or fifty . But all it took was a single sip to get him tipsy, like what the fuck? He’s been hiding the good shit away from him for how long now? With this strong of a drink he could’ve been motivated enough to actually bribe the rest of the party into letting Rok Soo stay for the battle.
Because damn did it taste divine . For all he knew, the thing could’ve been brewed using a divine artifact and laced with dragon blood with how there’s literally no labels, no watermarks, no anything to indicate the source.
The alcoholic’s dream solution in a bottle still stood half full on the nightstand, physical evidence that whatever was in that thing was going to be the death of him, and his liver.
The ghost of that sweet aroma that can lure him into alcohol poisoning lingered in his body, his lungs, even his fucking clothes which were definitely doused with at least a quarter of the bottle.
He wanted to get up, he really did. But he really didn’t want alcohol for breakfast, since it was even worse for his hangover than lemonade.
So instead he lay there, eyes half lidded as his mind wandered elsewhere, refusing to get up in fear of the urge to drink his problems away again.
‘Seriously, what the fuck happened last night?’
As soon as the thought came to him, a fucking bomb went off.
It wasn’t a bomb but it definitely felt like it.
A black mana circle appeared in front of his eyes as figures emerged from the dark light.
One was, of course, Rok Soo. Anyone can recognize that man’s features, no matter how drunk or hungover, especially Cale’s flavor of both.
Black hair, one of a starless night sky framed his pale, handsome, punchable, and very k – killable face. The fucking shoulders he used to shrug off Cale’s compliments that were broad enough to easily deflect Dragon Breath. The wrinkled shirt dampened by sweat that left little to his imagination and– was that cat hair?
He didn’t get to appreciate the sight anymore when three other much smaller figures bounced out of the light.
Two kittens, one grey, the other a darker shade of red than his. For sure the mischievous creatures that caused such a thing to happen.
AND THAT FUCKING BABY DRAGON!
So he WAS sober enough to remember that glaring detail!
Tiredly, he dragged himself up from the floor on shaking limbs, catching the attention of the three kids and one Rok Soo.
“Good morning, Cale.” He spoke, not a hint of whatever’s going on in that dense head of his escaping.
“Good fucking morning to you too, asshole .”
The piece of shit had the galls to raise a questioning brow.
“You’re paying for breakfast, by the way.” Was all he said before picking up the children, not even giving him a chance to ask a single question about them, just before walking through the bedroom door.
Cale stared.
He didn’t know if he should laugh or cry anymore.
.
Rok Soo made his way down the long stairway, catching the eyes of other tenants as he rushed for breakfast.
‘A fucking time bomb is ticking, damn it!’
Raon had turned himself and his siblings invisible as they exited the room, like the smart dragon that he was. He just didn’t know how Cale would react to him, because while he did bribe the children using breakfast, knowing him, he was probably drunk on Yggdrasil’s Nectar. It was Rok Soo’s special brew, of course, made from the World Tree’s fruits , of course.
Guaranteed to make even the most drunk understand their heart’s scream in pleasure, and their liver’s scream in pain.
It was a quote he came up with while brewing it, but it was very accurate. Of course, only three bottles (except for the hundreds in Rok Soo’s possession) exist, and one of them came into Cale’s hand.
The same man was heard from the third floor of the building all the way from the ground floor kitchen.
“BILL, I NEED A FUCKING HANGOVER DRINK!”
The old clerk, who looked far too used to the shit that went on in the inn for the uninitiated, silently chimed a bell in response.
Rok Soo ignored all of it as he rushed for the prepared meal, only slightly bothered at Raon’s exposure to Cale’s colorful language.
The current employees were all formerly Rok Soo’s, and were more than happy (or frightened) to make a massive portion of food, packing them all in an inconspicuous spacial bag for him to bring with.
He looked inside, taking in the sight that was tens of plates of different dishes covered and wrapped floating inside the subspace, before booking it back to his rented room, conveniently dashing by the waiter that was delivering Cale’s hangover drink.
An appreciative nod and a few flights of stairs later, he could finally enjoy breakfast.
.
Cale had expected Rok Soo to eat in his room. He’d been with him for two years, so he knew the bastard despised eating in public places.
Something about awkward glances and predatory gazes, which he totally understood, but that meant he couldn’t see him eat too! Rok Soo had developed a habit of eating in his room, and it was off limits for anyone that didn’t have Choi or Soo in their name, those assholes!
But now’s the time to finally share a proper meal together.
He didn’t expect that, in addition to breakfast, he’d bring a second fucking baby dragon?
It was red this time, which meant he still had hope. But fucking hell.
“IS THAT ANOTHER ONE?!”
He couldn’t stop his traitorous mouth from letting it out, and in response, the same dragon, who was crying while clinging onto Rok Soo’s face, stared at him for a split second before shoving his small head back into the black locks, then he felt his voice disappearing. Of course it had to be a fucking silencing spell! How was he supposed to flirt now ?!
He could still appreciate Rok Soo’s masterful entrance, completely blinded by red scales and teardrops, as he entered the room with ease, dodging Cale’s outstretched body still on the floor, setting the only table in the room with ease just right above where his legs were, setting exactly six chairs divided evenly while sparing not a single glance at the obstacle that was his body, setting at least twenty plates of food from a fucking spacial bag, perparing the bowls and utensils for everyone including Cale, before sitting himself down with the children.
Cale, as the nobleman that he was, had to at least act like one in front of his crush. He successfully got up again, hopefully not going to experience tripping over himself again, before dragging himself on the seat with a drink present.
He uncorked the bottle before lifting it up for a chug, until that fucking voice had to intervine.
“Eat first. You might get a stomach ache if you down that entire bottle.”
Cale tried his best to fight off the present flush, not from alcohol for the first time in a while, before taking his own plate with a click of his tongue.
“Fine.” He tried to speak, but no sound came out. Rok Soo nodded understandingly, though.
And gods be damned. He was either down bad like a hormonal teenager again or had gone crazy for him. Both too, both is good.
Chapter 7: Breakfast was special.
Summary:
Four children! Two twins and two siblings!
Cale would like to be a co-parent...
Notes:
This was written at approximately 2 AM! Am I having fun? Yes! Do I feel good? No!
Hope you'll have more fun reading this than my future self trying to rewrite the shit I came up with while sleep deprived!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Minutes prior.
Dodam Miru had successfully tracked down Raon’s teleportation destination through the traces left on the jungle’s shores.
It had, of course, taken very little effort despite it being his first time attempting the stunt. Afterall, a single miscalculation in the coordinates can send him across the continents, which would be a much more of a hassle than if he’d just done it correctly.
And he did!
His arrival was a lot slower than he would like, but he’s here now! Which meant he could finally satiate that itch in the back of his neck!
The red lights emitted from the magic circle dissipated slowly, clearing his path as it should, creating a grand entrance befitting of his mighty self.
He stepped out slowly, showing his majestic side (even though he was invisible) as the space manifested into his vision.
A decently sized bedroom, with white marble walls and a window behind curtains. One that reminded him of his human’s bedroom in their castle, though watered down and not at all befitting of him nor his family!
There was also someone else there, but that doesn’t matter.
He strode toward the open door, walking away from that awful smell that clouded the room. Seriously, why would his human live in this filthy shithole instead of with them? And why would his dongsaeng accept this?! If he’d come along, such pitiful accommodations would cower in fear and run far off into some other bastard’s life!
Like that someone else that dared copy his mighty scales!
Dodam glanced back, took one good look at the weakling with ugly red hair before casting a relatively harmless spell. He wanted to blow that wig right off, but he didn’t. Of course it was because of his great self control, and not because someone might be disappointed in him for it.
Ignoring the thud and the loud ass scream, gods be damned ‘cause he really wanted to blow something up right about now, he followed the familiar scent down the stairway.
And there he was, walking all nonchalantly as if Dodam never existed at all.
Some stupid bugs started prickling at his face which he valiantly ignored as the invisibility magic was deactivated.
And that was all it took for him to acknowledge his existence again.
.
Rok Soo froze on his track, the spacial bag hung heavily in his hand as the morality guillotine hung heavily over his head suddenly dropped on him like a bucket of cold water.
The red dragon, Dodam Miru, stood in the middle of the hallway. He slammed his tiny front paws onto the floorboard with a “hmph!” , lifting himself up into the air to stare at him with an expression between wanting to curse and wanting to cry.
He knew which was which, though.
“Y-You!” Dodam’s voice cracked into his head. He scrubbed fiercely at his snout, wanting to satiate an invisible itch.
“Two years! Two years and you–”
A hiccup cut him off.
His tail lashed, thumping violently against the narrow hallway walls. He puffed out his chest, as if wanting to curse out the pent up anger away, but instead resorted to launching himself into Rok Soo’s chest, knocking him down.
“Stupid! Stupid human! Living in this stupid shithole! You’re so stupid!”
Each word was followed by a softened slam on Rok Soo’s shirt, accompanied by fat tears escaping the reptilian eyes.
Dodam swatted them away like offending insects, but they kept falling, pooling into wet patches in the already messy clothing.
His shoulders hunched as the swatting stopped, tiny fists grasped tightly at the shirt like a lifeline.
He stared expectantly at Rok Soo, vision blurred by streams of tears. He wanted something, an excuse for breaking their promise and more.
“I’m sorry.” Was all he got in return.
Sadness was not something he wanted to see on any of his family’s faces, but what was he supposed to do? He never learned how to comfort others.
His voice was rough, almost apathetic.
The baby dragon shifted slightly, his grip tightening some more as a low sniffle escaped, the small frame shaking in an attempt to hold back another wave of tears.
Dodam mumbled into his chest, low and cautious.
“You don’t even have any excuses…”
Rok Soo stared, the same blank look on his face that veiled the twisting in his guts. He opened his mouth to give an answer but nothing came out, just a meaningless rebuttal.
“I know–”
“Then shut up!”
Dodam lifted his head, body shifted to put weight on his hind legs before pouncing onto Rok Soo’s face.
‘Oof–’
Tears started to dampen his hair as Dodam buried himself into his hair, the red scales that covered his underbelly shone from the rays of light peeking through a gap between himself and Rok Soo’s face.
‘I deserved this.’
Rok Soo said to himself, and he was correct. He had broken his promise, and this was the least he could do to make up for it.
He raised a hand to rest on Dodam’s back, rubbing soothingly while scratching the back of his head. The familiar comforting act only made the silent sobbing louder, though.
He could still breathe under the entrapment of the admittedly heavy baby dragon, thankfully.
He’d never been more thankful of Raon’s quick thinking, snatching himself and his siblings into the bedroom first to let Rok Soo deal with the consequences of his own inaction.
Ohn and Hong had just met their second great and mighty sibling minutes prior, to see him in such a state would be embarrassing to say the least. Dodam might actually burn down the continent, hell, the World Tree if that was the case.
.
Breakfast was an interesting ordeal, in Rok Soo’s opinion.
Cale acting weird in front of the children, more so with Dodam, definitely docked some credibility from him. Next time he’d have to spike his drink with something strong enough to get him to forget ever meeting Rok Soo, because hell was it embarrassing watching him mime his way through the meal.
First, and the one that earned the most displeasure from Rok Soo, is the subtle glares he sent at Dodam.
This was, of course, because Dodam had opted to lie himself down on Rok Soo’s head, limbs holding on as his body rested limply and sluggish like a hat of sorts. That way, Rok Soo didn’t know of the staredown the two would have every time Cale wanted to say something.
‘Unmute me already you brat!’ He wanted to say, mouthing the words out slowly as if trying to get a toddler to understand him.
Second was Dodam’s insistence on his perch, which was Rok Soo’s head.
Rok Soo assumed he wanted to “stay in contact” for a bit longer, a lot longer, long enough to make up for the past two years actually, so he just went along.
He was used to it, anyway. Only a week after his babysitting career started, he’d learned that Dodam, and Raon by extension, both wanted their own flavor of attention, and the former absolutely loved to cling onto Rok Soo’s head.
It had gone on for so long that Raon had developed that habit as well, even though he preferred being held or flying by himself.
They quite contradicted each other in that sense, with how Dodam preferred to attach himself to him despite his more draconic nature and how Raon was inclined to do the opposite of that, only doing so as a learned habit from his twin.
When he’d asked they only answered vaguely, so he never pried.
In Dodam’s opinion, he wasn’t very convincing. He was also stupid. And ugly. And a copycat. And trashy. And impolite. And annoying. And unsubtle. Mainly the unsubtle part.
‘Quit trying, ugly.’ He mouthed back with enough subtlety to not alert his human who was still busy portioning the food for everyone else but himself.
Wanting to prove a point, Dodam even wrote words into the space behind Rok Soo using mana.
‘Stare at my human one more time and I’ll pluck your fucking eyes out.’
Third, the kittens.
Rok Soo had expected a more blatant reaction to Dodam, though considering the fact that Raon had probably done his usual thing and threw them at Dodam and Sheritt-nim like the enthusiastic dragon that he was, he shouldn’t be surprised.
He knew they still had some questions for him and Dodam, probably things related to before he became their guardian and before his time in the hero’s party. He’d get to that eventually.
They ate in relative silence, the comfortable kind that followed him and the children whenever they had meals alone together, far from the onlookers of the restaurants and food stalls.
Raon was being the usual him, devouring his way through plates of food at the speed comparable to at least three hungry gluttons combined. It was a pretty bad comparison, since his standards for gluttons are a bit skewed thanks to a certain someone.
That aside, Hong definitely looked like one, with sauce tainting his furry face and tail moving in delight as he chomped through the food. The only breaks he took was when Rok Soo had to wipe him clean before it got too bad.
Ohn, on the other hand, had been learning table manners and dining etiquette from him recently, and though he wasn’t the best example, he couldn’t deny her completely. It explained why she had been the only one amongst the children to be in a human form.
The spark of mana caught the attention of Raon, who had been tearing through the plates Rok Soo gave him, and the kittens that followed suit. Rok Soo, who was too busy prepping his own plate, didn’t notice the four pairs of disgusted eyes aimed directly at Cale’s soul.
Ohn, who had been in her human form and was peacefully eating with Hong, who had abandoned his prepared seating to join Raon on the table, glared with enough tension, hatred, disapproval, and disgust combined to almost make Cale cry.
Too bad the thickness of his face made up for at least half of the Henituse’s treasury in gold.
Cale was too busy keeping his eyes to himself to see Raon’s own message appear behind Rok Soo.
‘He hasn’t given up yet…?’
Notes:
Reviewing this two days later. I did... okay... not bad enough to warrant a rewrite, and it did accomplish my goal of finalizing the main cast with Dodam! Of course, other characters still has a chance to get in...
Chapter 8: Scamming For Two, Please!
Summary:
Preparations are set in stone! Both for Rok Soo & Cale, oddly enough.
RokCale fans you might be winning today!
Notes:
Enjoy yourselves!
Chapter Text
After the eventful breakfast, Rok Soo decided to tackle the elephant in the room bluntly.
“Dodam.”
The dragon was sleepily lounging on his head, yawning and dozing off occasionally. It would make an adorable record, if not for the fact that he can’t see him properly at all other than the red snout poking out above his forehead.
He slid himself further down to meet Rok Soo’s eyes, hanging awkwardly with his snout bumping Rok Soo’s forehead. The movement caused his short black locks to cascade and curtain his vision, though he wouldn't be able to see either way.
Beyond the stripes was Dodam’s questioning face, hanging upside down, expression looking more silly than serious.
“Hmm?” He made a questioning sound that suppressed a yawn.
Rok Soo wouldn’t mind if he stayed on his perch, but it was starting to make it hard on him to balance himself.
He was packing up several empty plates, half of the spacial bag to be precise, that were completely emptied and licked clean by the children, and while three was easy after having trained himself for two years, he was currently balancing four.
The kittens decided to take a nap on his shoulders as always, with one of his hands busy holding Raon. The three had a habit of dozing off for a while after meals (Dodam too but he wouldn’t admit it) and instead of sleeping on their own to let Rok Soo do his thing, they decided to follow their new sibling’s stead and join him on turning Rok Soo into a treehouse.
They were sleeping comfortably, mostly due to him doubling his efforts to keep a balance.
It’s already been an hour since breakfast had finished and he attempted to clean up. He just had to finish last, which was enough time for the children to snooze.
Then there he was, stacking up the plates on one hand while conversing with both a very sleepy Dodam and a suspiciously ecstatic Cale.
He had been unsilenced when Dodam finished eating, thankfully, though his first words were… questionable.
“Just you wait. I’ll get shared custody one day and you’ll like it.”
Cale seemed to not even realize he said it out loud.
He was probably still drunk on Yggdrasil’s Nectar, and Rok Soo wished he could be too. Though, he did volunteer to help with the cleanup which earned a smidge of Rok Soo’s gratitude.
Dodam’s snout poking at his face pulled him away from his thoughts, still upside down.
He was taking too long to reply.
Rok Soo hummed in acknowledgement. “Have you said anything to Sheritt-nim?”
Dodam tilted his head in response.
“Mom?” He asked back silently, minding the kittens and his twin.
“Yes.” Rok Soo affirmed naturally, a bit of stiffness and anticipation in his tone.
He tilted his head again, gaze wandering elsewhere before back at him. A mischievous smile dancing on his face as his eyes turn into crescents.
“Nop!”
“...”
The silence was palpable. Rok Soo could not tear his gaze away from Dodam’s even if Cale had just dropped a plate shattering on the floor.
“Not even why you came here?”
“ Uh… I told her I’d drag you home!” He replied with a bit too much enthusiasm.
“Did she agree…?”
“Yeh! She told me to ‘do it well!’”
Well shit.
“She also mentioned something about those furballs…” He motioned to the kittens on Rok Soo’s shoulders. “But she started rambling so I ran away!”
Well shit.
“Can you teleport back and tell her I’d return tomorrow?”
“Then I’d have to drag you back with me!”
Damn it.
Rok Soo sighed tiredly, dragging his free hand over his face, almost losing balance and dropping Dodam in the process.
He glanced back to the harbinger of trouble, whose eyes were sparkling with a smug grin on his face, victorious.
He’d have to do it again.
Scammer Sign「BARGAINING」
“What if…” Rok Soo kept his voice low, “you make a deal with me.”
Dodam’s grin grows wider.
“Oh?” His tone teasing and arrogant. “What can you possibly do to convince the great and mighty me?”
Rok Soo smirks mentally as the bait was casted. He kept himself neutral, expressionless, absolutely unreadable.
“I’ll give you all the sweets you can dream of. Even the ones Raon hasn't gotten his claws on.”
He felt the “sleeping” baby dragon in his arm flinch. He’d deal with him and the troubles that come with later.
Dodam looked starstrucked. The effect was instantaneous as his mouth started to drool subconsciously.
“Chocolate, candy, ice creams… anything you want, tell me and I’ll give it to you.”
The message was clear, his sweet tooth clung onto the idea of endless sugary goodness.
He had fallen for the bait.
“Only for a month.” Rok Soo added. It wasn’t meant as a limitation, rather an additional lure meant to ensure Dodam understood he was completely serious.
Now to close the deal off.
“ But. ”
The dreamy expression snapped back to neutral immediately. The line of drool wiped haphazardly onto his chin, accidentally splashing onto Rok Soo’s hair.
“There’s something I learned from these past two years… It’s that…” He intentionally let the silent draws.
“Snitches don’t get cookies.”
A frown appeared on Dodam’s face, his expression slightly concerned, ignorant to what Rok Soo was getting at.
“But that’s not true… they don’t get anything.”
There. A connection had been formed, the imaginary lightbulb was turning on. He needed to strike where it’s guaranteed to hurt most.
“If you snitch… I’ll tell Raon to stop sending sweets.”
Dodam’s eyes narrowed into slits as the words hit him like divine judgement, the sound of an imaginary heart break echoing in the silence.
“ No– ”
Rok Soo cut in before he could say anything.
“And I’ll let Raon take it all for himself–”
“ NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT!” He almost screamed out, barely muffled in time by Rok Soo’s free hand as to not wake the three children up.
He also felt a suspicious twitch on his arm that was holding the “sleeping” baby dragon.
Dodam’s eyes were starting to get watery, which was a sign he’d won. He’d rather not have resorted to making him cry like this, but Dodam had truly left him with no other solutions. He was getting an unhealthy amount of sweets for any living being in return though, so he didn’t feel as bad.
Rok Soo managed to convince him to relay his message after that, though with more negotiations and extra sweets, sprinkled with dragon tears at the possible loss of said sweets.
He just hoped the letter won't explode for another day, he still had a farm to build.
.
The abrupt silence left behind Dodam’s departure lasted not even a minute.
A certain drunkard reemerged into the room as the sparks of crimson mana dissolved into the air, having gone and delivered all of the dirty dishes to the kitchen downstairs.
“I thought you wanted to retire?” He asked Rok Soo, who was staring at him from his seat on the edge of the bed, three children napping using him as sleeping accommodations.
The dragon was definitely not sleeping, he could tell that much.
“I am retired.” An immediate response.
“Do retired slackers bribe baby dragons with chocolate? I don’t think so.” Cale quipped back with a teasing tone while walking towards the bed to sit next to Rok Soo.
“You’ve just seen me do it. And I’m not a retired slacker, I’m a slacker in retirement.”
“Sure you are.” He responded with a knowing tone.
“What do you mean by that…?”
“Say, what are you planning on doing on this retirement of yours?”
Rok Soo frowned, nearly toppling the children as he turned to face Cale. “Farming.” He said resolutely, mind thinking of all the slacking he can do on a farm in the middle of nowhere isolated from every source of trouble in the world.
A quiet hum.
“Yeah. With your children?”
“ My children?”
“The koalas that are treating you like their favorite sleeping branch, dumbass.” Cale clarified, his hands forming a square that framed the four perfectly, noting the way the black dragon in Rok Soo’s arm was visibly vibrating.
Definitely not asleep.
Rok Soo looked back and forth between Cale and the children quizzically, the silence stretched as he continued the dizzying motion.
“I’m their guardian.” He concluded.
“Tell that to their faces and see how they react.”
“They know I’m their guardian.”
“You, denying being their parent, I mean.”
The response caused Rok Soo to shift uncomfortably, more aware of the three than ever. His free hand reached to pat Raon’s, Hong’s, and Ohn’s head.
Staring at the admittedly heartwarming scene, Cale decided to give Rok Soo a break for once. It was his retirement, after all, which meant he’d get plenty of opportunities to admit it later on.
“Where’s this farm gonna be?” He redirected, causing Rok Soo to pause his attempt at forming a pyramid from hand movement.
“You don’t need to know that.”
“I do!”
“So you can steal my crops later or sell me out to Alberu?”
Cale stared in shock and earnest disgust at the insult. “That bastard can go fuck himself with his paperwork . Also, do you even know how to tilt soil?”
The silence was deafening, and so were Cale’s words.
“I swear, is it gonna be at some bumfuck nowhere island? No, that’s too easy to locate. Is it underground? Surely you’re not stupid enough to not know most crops need sunlight… Maybe a forbidden region?”
A hint of a reaction from Rok Soo’s facial expression, one that any normal person would miss. Cale knew from experience, however, that the inhumanely stonefaced bastard is still human.
“I’m still thinking about it.” He replied.
“So it is a forbidden region.” Cale concluded out loud, earning himself a raised eyebrow.
Unexplored areas across the continents that are innately dangerous are labelled as forbidden regions. Either due to their nature, their residents, or their mysteriousness that brought the demise of people that attempted to venture through them, it is the hope of all spectators that the label will stop people from entering and prioritize their livelihood instead.
The bastard had a dragon, no, two dragons that he’s taking care of. Hell, the mysterious bastard might be more than he lets on if he could hide his children that well for two years straight when grouped in close proximity with the strongest group of humans across the whole planet.
“Since you’re still thinking about it, I’ll let you in on a little secret. Consider it a favor from the firstborn of the Henituse family that our dearest hero named the ‘Guardians of the Land of Boulders!’” He exclaimed with a light nudge on Rok Soo’s side before leaning in for a whisper as his smirk turned into that of a scammer.
“I heard the Forest of Darkness has very rich soil. Just rumors from the citizens, you know? Rosalyn also mentioned high mana density, your dragon kids will love that, hmm~?”
“But why would I–”
Cale cut him off, the expression not falling. “You love isolation right? Not even a drunkard would venture in there willingly, don’t you think? No one would bother you in there!”
“Except–”
Again. “Your children, silly! And whoever else you can think of!”
Another light nudge accompanied by a wink.
Rok Soo just frowned at him like Cale had just lost half of his brain cells.
Cale just stared back at him with a deadpan expression in return, the smile falling entirely.
“I’ll pay you with alcohol.”
Rok Soo leveled him with his own deadpan, challenging his determination.
“I’ll pay you with alcohol and money.”
“Try harder.”
Cale rolled his eyes. “I’ll pay you with alcohol, money, and I won’t tell Alberu about it.”
“And Lee Soo Hyuk.”
“Your sworn brothers.” Cale rephrased.
Rok Soo paused, his free hand resting on his chin to create a picturesque thinking pose that was only improved upon by the masterful balancing of three small bodies.
“I’ll consider it.”
That’s a yes. THAT’S A FUCKING YES!
“I’ll see you soon then!” Cale jumped with joy, almost tripping over himself as he stood back up.
Ignoring Rok Soo’s utterly done expression not for the first nor the final time, he practically bounced out of the room with his now favorite bottle of alcohol, down the stairs (almost tumbling to his demise), and to the open street, heading to the “Pub of Heartbreak” as Rosalyn dubbed where the rest of the heroes resided.
Chapter 9: Reflection, Growth, and CUTE BABIES!
Summary:
Mini chapter centering the children averaging nine years old!
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
After a short conversation with Cale, Rok Soo decided to join the children in their post-breakfast food coma.
Not before replacing the wine-soaked blankets, though. It was a good thing he decided to incorporate backups into the inn’s system. Rarely were they ever used, and it gave the place a better reputation overall resulting in a win-win.
Especially now, after sleeping with a drunkard that of course had to spill alcohol all over the damn place as if Cale wasn’t the current owner of the establishment.
Rok Soo tossed the soiled blankets from the bed to be cleaned later, before reaching from under the bedframe and pulling out a somewhat dusty but still new and unused blanket.
Moving as if he wasn’t holding onto three children at the same time, he fluffed and dusted the soft fabric surface before laying it flat on the sheets. One by one he deposited them down starting from Raon, who’d seemingly fallen back asleep.
The kittens required more gentle handling, having been in deep sleep the whole time on his broad shoulders. He laid Hong down on the bed next to Raon where he’d instinctively curled up next to the admittedly big baby dragon, Ohn joining them both soon after alongside Rok Soo himself.
Raon was already six, and was already approaching Ohn and Hong’s size despite them all being three years apart.
As he trailed the scaly obsidian back, a record resurfaced to the front of his mind.
“You’ve grown bigger.” He commented, staring at the chubby Raon in his arms.
He’d just returned from the jungle, having teleported back using Sheritt-nim’s teleportation scrolls for convenience. The two places were an entire continent apart, after all.
“Weak human, that is a good thing! It means I will become even greater and mightier in the future! Also, hyung tried to bake cookies yesterday and it exploded in his face! The worst part was that I had to help clean up and his cookies were not at all up to draconic standards… Well, your standards! Don’t let him hear that, he might blow up the kitchen again. Oh! Mom also told me about the brown stuff you keep bringing back from that jungle! What was it called… Anyway, give me more! Hyung doesn’t deserve them! He keeps burning them to ashes and taking from my portion instead! He mentioned something about a fountain, but I don’t know what that is, and it still ended with him blowing something up so I forgot! There’s also this thing…”
Rok Soo stared at the rambling baby dragon in thought. He’d apparently snuck out from his bedroom without Dodam noticing, and he guessed Sheritt-nim, the all powerful spectre that watched over the entire castle allowed him to do it. From his one-sided conversation, Rok Soo could guess Dodam did something to actually displease her.
Half of the words from Raon were starting to go from one ear to another, so he decided to stop him before the two year old could collapse from oxygen deficit.
“It’s called chocolate–”
“Yeah! He was trying to make a chocolate fountain, whatever that is!” Raon rambled on.
It seemed as if Sheritt-nim’s habits had magically transferred over to her children. Hell, he was 27 when he delivered those eggs, and in only three years she managed to infuse the unborn twins with any and everything about her.
Except for the puns, thank the dragons.
Also, the thought of the already chubby twins becoming even heavier was starting to become reality.
“Raon, I won’t be able to hold you if you get even bigger.” He had indeed grown far bigger since last month, and far heavier, now forcing him to actually use some leverage to hold him up without his arms shaking like twigs in a windstorm.
The words had cut surprisingly deep on the young dragon, who had entirely stopped talking to stare at him shocked and utterly flabbergasted.
“W-What do you mean by that, human!?” He stuttered out as his eyes became teary, tiny wings drooping lifelessly.
As if an alarm had rang, a humanoid figure of Sheritt appeared from beside Rok Soo, her transparent hands channeled mana to cup Raon’s chubby cheeks before speaking softly. “He’s just tired from the long trip, my child.”
Raon locked gazes with his mother’s reassuring one before glancing back at Rok Soo.
The human had been standing awkwardly aside as the mother-son duo’s silent conversation went on, his blank expression not portraying the onslaught of sudden guilt at the instantaneous effect of his comment.
“R-Really…? So you didn’t mean it?” He sputtered out, cheeks still being cupped within Sheritt-nim’s ghostly hands, his wings suddenly reinvigorated.
Rok Soo could only put up his professional blank face before speaking as gently as possible, praying to his ancestors that the genius baby dragon wouldn’t pick up on his bold-faced lie.
“Yes.” He agreed. “I can still hold you just fine, can I not?”
Raon simply stared at him in silence before he reached his own incomprehensible conclusion. He nodded to himself, but before anything could come of it, Sheritt-nim intervened.
“Raon, shouldn’t you be in bed?”
The comment made him realize his current predicament, that was being caught red-clawed awake far beyond his bed time.
“Oops…” He only responded shyly before flying back to join his twin in sleep.
Raon never mentioned anything about the little incident after that, but Sheritt-nim continued to remind him of it whenever he pointed out Raon’s gained weight, even after the earful he received on the same night.
He hadn’t spoken to her in two years, surely she’d forgotten about it entirely? He’d find out tomorrow either way, only if Dodam was successful, of course.
He was just worried about how to get Dodam and the kittens to get along.
Their first meeting was definitely something unheard of, even if Rok Soo wasn’t there to witness it first hand. Well, it could’ve gone similarly to their first meeting with Raon the best case scenario, but considering how he was the outlier in all of dragonkind, it was almost an impossibility.
The dense fog that swamped the bed finally started to fade as the young girl woke up.
“Noona!” The red kitten jumped the moment he saw his elder sister’s eyes open blearily.
The first thing she noticed was her brother’s crying face, then it was the ceiling that was painted in a soft red, unfamiliar in every way.
She would've grabbed him and ran for the nearest window if not for the current state of her body.
Under layers of thick and cloudy soft blankets with a dampened cloth on her forehead, restrictive but comfortable.
Knowing his sister’s current thoughts, the red kitten was quick to ease her worries. “Don’t worry, noona. Mister Kim Rok Soo helped treat you while you were out, nya.”
Tiredly, she murmured the strange name. “...Kim Rok Soo…?”
Another voice came from the side of the bed.
“I told you to just call me Rok Soo.”
It was dry, tired, almost sounding bored, but it was also soft and gentle.
“And don’t get so close to her either, you might make her cold worse or even catch one yourself.”
At the comment, the red kitten wisely and shyly stepped away.
“Okay, nya…”
“And you.” He motioned back to the bedridden girl, a bowl of soul in hand. “Here.”
She was about to reject it when Rok Soo suddenly spoke up again.
“Your brother downed an entire bowl by himself already. Come on, my arms are getting tired.”
Slightly shocked by the revelation, she could only stare dumbfoundedly at the man.
“You… know? Did he tell you?” She rasped out.
“No.” The answer was immediate. “I know you’re both children of the cat tribe, and I treated you knowing so. All your brother told me was why you got like this in the first place.”
“That’s right, nya.” He piped in from the side.
“Then…” She continued, still denying the outhanded bowl of soup. “What will you do with us?”
At the question, Rok Soo only raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Nothing.” He paused. “Just focus on getting better, then I’ll let you two decide for yourselves.”
She appeared contemplative, though finally accepting of the bowl.
Then she realized she was too weak to even hold the spoon properly.
Rok Soo stared at her shaking fingers for a while before sighing tiredly, as if he was the patient instead. He gently took the bowl out of her hands, before scooping up a small amount and holding the spoon in front of her mouth.
She appeared to be even more contemplative over the act, but proceeded to comply dazedly.
If anyone were to ask him why and how he ended up with guardianship over the kittens, he’d point at the prime suspect, Raon Miru.
He didn’t mind, though.
After pushing the nostalgic memories away, he laid down with the children fully, now with the intent to sleep away the late morning.
The bed felt slightly warmer than usual, for reasons he could never explain.
Notes:
I initially intended for the chapter to go a lot deeper into Ohn and Hong's first meeting, but decided it was a bit too long for my liking so it'll be for the next chapter instead!
I'm still following through with my promise of another chapter on Monday... I just never promised which Monday!
Chapter 10: you are, you are, you are loved
Summary:
Bonus chapter! Think of this as a canon event that's separated from the main timeline for coherence's sake. These are mostly for world building, and are titled by random sentences I deemed coherent enough!
Though, details may be expanded upon in the future!
Notes:
I kept my promise and finally defeated my greatest enemy, "Procrastination."
Chapter Text
Rok Soo walked through the bustling market as noise filled the streets of Rain City, his hands held onto dozens of bags full of different sweets and baked goods all for his young draconic companion.
They were sharing an apple pie, because in the great and mighty Raon Miru’s own words: “Apple pies of all kinds are better shared with family!”
And to his credit, Raon actually did split the pie for the rest of his family, storing it in his spacial dimension for the next time he visited, which was likely to be tonight.
But at the moment, when the sun was still up and early, they were still shopping for more.
From stalls to stands to stores, the young dragon practically demanded that they visit every single food-related shop across the whole city. It was a good thing he thought of trading some of Sheritt-nim’s absurdly valuable treasures for quick, easy, and guilt-free money.
It didn’t even come with any reprimand, which he thought was pretty suspicious for a dragon, and Dragon Lord no less. All she said was a single comment that he couldn’t make sense of, something that came from thousands of years of wisdom he assumed.
“You’ll bring back more, anyways.”
No way he could ever. Hell, he was legitimately dirt-poor even while living inside a dragon’s lair since technically speaking, he was a hired babysitter paid with 24/7 free housing.
The massive sum of money that could rival entire baronies came in handy, however, when he decided to start a business on the Western Continent.
It was going better than he thought until yesterday, when some shitty nepotistic “hero” bastard decided it was really funny to drag him on their little adventure to save the world.
He couldn’t really stop them since he might get his neck chopped off and his head lobbed from a catapult.
Oh how cruel democracy can be…
He just prayed that the asshole of a Sun God who wore blindfolds when choosing heroes would get pissed and trash the continent like during the Holy Crusade so he can escape to some hole underground and do something more productive than “herowork” like slacking off or farming.
Maybe if he cursed the Alberu Crossman name even more, it might become a reality. He’d do it either way, but it’s good to know there’s an end goal.
As the sun rose to its peak, Raon, who had been talking nonstop in his head about all kinds of people and vendors, suddenly stopped their shopping spree, halting Rok Soo in front of a narrow alleyway.
“Human, who are those two? They’re not human, but…”
Rok Soo gazed into the dimmed space, one that appeared much darker than the rest of the bustling street under the sunlight at peak noon.
Hidden between an inn and a bakery was a set of odd objects. Covered crates and barrels, with layers of dust and cobweb that covered most of them, looking seemingly abandoned.
It definitely was not .
The long alleyway stretched impossibly long with no end in sight, almost as if covered behind a veil of transparency that clouded the narrow and enclosed space, seemingly disconnected from the rest of the world.
Rok Soo cautiously took a step inside, but the moment he passed the boundary the fog suddenly thickened.
He instinctively took a step back, just to move deeper into the fog instead.
‘Shit.’
As quietly as possible, he slowly handed the items back to Raon to transfer it to his spacial dimension.
A silent whisper to the young dragon on his shoulders.
“Cat beastfolks.”
But why were they here? On the Western Continent, and in such a place in Rain City no less?
Though the innocent two year old did not know that, and simply asked back in an equally quiet whisper telepathically.
“What’s a beastfolk?”
“I’ll explain when we get back. For now, cast invisibility on me and try to not make any noise.”
If his records were correct, and they definitely were, his current situation was one that no mortal man wished to experience twice.
Because they were already dead. And odds were, they never even knew it was going to be their final moment.
He was currently within the domain of a berserk cat beastfolk. More specifically, one from the mysterious fog tribe.
When in a berserk transformation, cat beastfolks become exponentially lighter, faster, and have extremely heightened senses. If that’s not menacing enough, those of the fog tribe can transform the moisture in the air into a thick fog.
Fighting against natural-born assassins by trade inside an outrageously disadvantageous arena that blocked most senses was not, and will never be something he’d wish to ever experience ever again.
One would be right to assume they’re mysterious because most never lived to tell the tales.
He was lucky Raon was currently there with him, really. He’d rather not go through all of the trouble from last time.
“Sure!” An excited whisper sounded in his mind, easily agreeing to his request.
He could either ask his overpowered companion to teleport them home, but knowing the curious child, he wouldn’t let them leave so easily if something managed to stop him from rambling, and in the middle of food shopping no less.
No matter how limited his senses are, as long as he hadn’t been displaced beyond the alley then he could rely on his records.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Deeper and deeper into the fog.
The young dragon was, of course, cheering him on telepathically with some reassurances of mighty magic.
Suddenly, the black fog turned a deep, blood red.
‘Two. Raon mentioned two .’
One was fog and the other…
Poison!
As soon as red filled his vision, he immediately covered both his own and Raon’s face. He moved hastily out of the poisonous mist, careful as to not alert the potential assailants.
A deadly combination for the unprepared, but Kim Rok Soo had fared with far worse in his prime.
His choices were:
- Run the fuck away and never walk into suspiciously foggy alleyways ever again.
- Be a dumbass and a bad example.
The former. No questions asked.
His footsteps remained even and soft on the old pavement as he whispered to his companion.
“Raon, we need to leave.”
Without a hint of hesitation. “But something’s wrong with them! The grey one looks like she’s in pain!”
A frown appeared on Rok Soo’s face. ‘Must be the one from the fog tribe.’
‘How troublesome.’
It must be her first berserk transformation if she appeared to be in pain. If so, she might not even be an adult yet.
So what was she doing in this place?
And the one that controlled poison, are they protecting her? A family member?
The main question remained the same.
Why?
He was already neck-deep in this hole of unanswered questions already.
‘Really. First the heroes, now these strays from nowhere.’
He sighed to himself tiredly, no longer caring about keeping it stealthy.
“Raon.”
The first reaction the young dragon had was seriousness, then turned into worry, then going a full circle and somehow looped beyond the bounds of negativity into excitement.
Childish amazement filled his eyes in the span of seconds.
“Human! You’re gonna do that cool thing again– Wait! Hyung would hate to miss out on this! Let me record–”
‘Why does he do this everytime.’ Rok Soo sighed to himself again.
The excited child rummaged through his spacial dimension with way too much energy, before pulling out a small palm-sized black orb.
Rok Soo had to ignore him if he wanted to do his job correctly.
“From an upright posture, close your eyes and take a deep breath. Since your job is Nature’s Conduit, you can pass all of the boring prerequisites and jump into the action immediately. Take a step forward as if you were walking while focusing on your ankles as you move your leg. Simple, right? Here’s the fun part.“
She was right. The more he embraced this feeling, the more fun it got. He wasn’t exactly fond of being recorded though, the black orb flashing a small red light as it was held in mid air by an invisible Raon.
“Lean forward so your front foot has full contact with the ground. Concentrate so you can hear the whispers of the wind. Even if there is no wind, you can always rely on your mind. Remember, it’s all about feeling. You are free, Rok Soo, and will always be free as long as I am with you, as long as the winds blow.”
He moved with grace, stepping forward to be embraced within the whirling fog as the howls of wind converged into one point within the enclosed space.
“I don’t know what or where your mark would be, since it varies from person to person. Mine is on my wrists. Quite fitting for a thief, right? Anyways, since a certain someone has already taken residence on yours, my best bet is on your ankles so just focus there.”
Just as she had predicted, silvery white wings sprouted from his ankles where he stood.
“As long as the mark is manifested and the winds are with you, you are to control them as you please!”
He reached a hand forward, the fog parting away as the air shifted alongside each of his subtle movements.
“Rok Soo. Remember to never get caught like I did. I’d hate to see you bound by the divine, by fate, and by our wills, but if you’re so willing to carry the rest of us on with you, then I can only hope your future is yours to control.”
Slowly, the fog dragged along as his hand rose into the air.
“Be sure to visit often! Crybaby gets teary-eyed from time to time and you’re the only one with enough parental instincts to sooth him. We also need another mediator for Cheapskate and World Tree-nim, since Super Rock’s been getting depressed about you not wanting to sacrifice yourself anymore.”
A fluid but instantaneous motion, as if cutting the air into two. For a split second, the winds stilled.
And as if a storm was passing, the air condensed into a single point, before expanding rapidly as a powerful wall of wind swept across the entire space in a single, instantaneous motion, dragging all of the fog away with it.
Everything was exposed within a single heartbeat.
Including a red kitten and a grey-haired girl. And just as Rok Soo had deduced, the child was unconscious and in the middle of a berserk transformation, constantly producing fog from the moisture in the air while whimpering in pain on the ground. The kitten, however, was looking up at him from in front of the girl.
Frightened, scared, but resolute and desperate.
“What a nice gaze.” He commented, the words accidentally slipping out of him.
The kitten only looked at him as if he was stupid, still standing protectively in front of the girl.
Suddenly, Raon materialized from beside him, floating with the recording device in hand.
“Human! You need to help them!”
“...”
Rok Soo’s silence spoke volumes, not to mention the absolute deadpan on his face.
He couldn’t even get a word in before the young dragon started babbling again.
“Do not worry, beast catfolks, For this great and mighty me will protect you from the admittedly pretty cool human! Even if he’s far too weak to hurt you in any way!”
Rok Soo could only sigh once more as the red kitten stared at the four year old in absolute bewilderment.
“Hey.” He called, earning another distrusting glare from the kitten.
If he had to guess, the two were children from the slums judging by their general appearance in rags.
And for those from the slums, they’d rather die than go hungry.
“I’ll feed you both if you come with me.”
He really did look like one of those suspicious human traffickers while bribing children with food.
The kitten also did not look very impressed, so he added. “And I’ll help her.”
But before any other interaction could happen, Raon had convinced himself that it was enough awkward persuasions for the day. A teleportation circle appeared, large enough to encompass all four of them.
“NYAH!?”
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Kershy on Chapter 1 Thu 12 Jun 2025 01:25AM UTC
Last Edited Thu 12 Jun 2025 01:25AM UTC
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