“Let’s go back, Ha-Yan,” I said.

“Okay…” Jung Ha-Yan replied.

I wanted to comfort him, but I didn’t think this was the right time to do that, as no matter what I would say, I was sure he wouldn’t process it. As someone who talked to Park Deok-Gu pretty often, Jung Ha-Yan looked a bit sad. The other party members were important, but Kim Hyun-Sung and Park Deok-Gu were labeled the most important, so I could understand why she was reacting this way. We had been together since the tutorial dungeon, and we took care of her when became an outcast. Park Deok-Gu even gave a beating to the molester whose name I couldn’t remember anymore, so excluding me, I was sure she was very close with Park Deok-Gu.

‘He even played cupid…’

I was afraid that he might see us, but even when we started walking away quietly, he continued to swing his sword. It did bother me that he kept mumbling.

‘I can do better...’

I was certain he kept repeating the words I told him when we first met. Honestly, I only said that to urge the scared Park Deok-Gu, but I guess those words must have been supporting him all this while, and I couldn’t help but feel a bit embarrassed. Of course, I trusted him, but the reality that the status window had displayed was harsh.

‘Whoever said fortune favors the prepared is full of shit.’

A few people would truly earn great things by putting in the effort, but effort alone wouldn’t change the situation. If his goal was to become a genius, then his efforts would easily betray him. When I glanced back, I saw Park Deok-Gu continuously swinging his sword, and despite trying to ignore it, the scene kept playing in my head. I didn’t want his efforts to betray him, but if his stats really reached their limits, and if others decided that he could no longer keep up with Kim Hyun-Sung’s party, I thought about which side I should take.

‘He’s going to die.’

It wasn’t about abandoning him or not. I would always be in the rear with many safety devices during expeditions, but Park Deok-Gu was a vanguard, and his mistake could wipe out the entire party.

Honestly, the annihilation of the party wasn’t the issue. If Park Deok-Gu fought an opponent he couldn’t handle, he would die. It was the same with Cha Hee-Ra. If she had become crazy to the point that she wasn’t able to differentiate between her enemies and allies, Park Deok-Gu would have failed to block her first attack, and he would have died on the spot. The path that Kim Hyun-Sung’s party was going to take onward would be a difficult one, so it might be better for him to stay put from now on.

‘I’m getting a headache. Shit… I still need to change my job…’

My hands were already full with thinking about my fourth job, but now, there was an additional problem I had to think about.

***

“I’ll see you later,” Kim Hyun-Sung said.

“Okay. I’ll make sure to wrap things up here, master,” Jo Hye-Jin told him.

“You can take your time,” he replied.

“I’ll also take care of the business in Lindel, so don’t worry, Mr. Hyun-Sung. Enjoy your time, Mr. Ki-Young and Miss Ha-Yan,” Hwang Jung-Yeon assured us.

“We’ll see you in Lindel, Miss Jung-Yeon.”

“I hope you have a great time, Mr. Ki-Young.”

“We won’t take long. I’ll leave the slums up to you, Miss Hee-Young,” I told her.

“Okay…” Sun Hee-Young replied.

Before leaving, we took a moment to say goodbye, but I couldn’t help but feel like someone was glaring at me from the corner. Jo Hye-Jin was left in charge of rebuilding Castle Rock’s black market, and Kim Ye-Ri was agitated about the prospect of being away from Kim Hyun-Sung. However, the glare wasn’t coming from either of the two. Dialugia was glaring at me while holding Smartie. She usually had a straight face, but now, she looked down and dissatisfied. She must have disliked the fact that I had to go to the city. I told her it wasn’t going to take long, but despite that, she was still angry. On that fateful night when I saw Park Deok-Gu secretly training, she slightly raised her voice at me when I returned to their room, and she got mad because I had neglected my family to wander outside.

‘What’s going on…’

Something felt off, but I had never thought that she would try to tie me down this soon. From her point of view, she was doing it for Smartie, so it was reasonable. Smartie must’ve realized we would be apart for a bit, as it kept screeching and struggling. Naturally, I thought it would be good to say something to them, and since Jung Ha-Yan was talking to the other party members, I could have a short conversation with her.

“I’m heading out, Dialugia.”

“...”

I awkwardly laughed before speaking once again, “Ha…hahaha… I’ll be back, Dialugia.”

“...”

“It won’t take long,” I assured her.

“I don’t understand why you’re reporting to me. Aren’t you the type that must do everything you want to be satisfied?” Dialugia asked.

“If I had a choice, I would stay with Smartie, but I can’t do that in the current situation,” I told her.

“And what kind of situation is that?” she asked.

“I explained it to you last time… I hope you understand that I’m doing all of this to create a safe nest for us…” I replied.

“I understand what you’re thinking, and since we’re on that topic, let’s discuss more about it. A safe nest. A safe nest. A safe nest. That’s great, but the safest nest is when Dialuria is by your side. As I’ve explained before, this is the most important time for Dialuria’s growth, and if you take that into consideration, I really can’t understand why you’re doing this. Even Dialuria is anxious,” she explained.

“Kyah! Kyah! Kyah! Kyaaah!”

‘Smartie… stop overreacting.’

“It’s so obvious how humans think. When you arrive in the city of humans, you’ll drink the bad drink you had that night and lose your mind. I believe you know better than anyone just how much of a bad influence that is to our Dialuria and even to your health. I don’t care if you hold hands or kiss other female beings, but don’t you think you should at least be loyal to Dialuria?” Dialugia asked me once more.

‘Shit… she’s scary…’

“I know very well that humans are liars. Good contractor, my ass… You boasted that you wouldn’t make me suffer, but you easily neglected your nest. You’re lacking in self-awareness, to begin with,” she continued.

“Human society is complicated. Communication is important, and that’s why I can’t miss out on the drinking parties,” I explained.

“That’s what you always say. It’s complicated. Human society is dangerous. Then could you explain why you’re leaving Dialuria all by itself in this complicated and dangerous society?” she asked.

“It’s… It’s all part of my job,” I could only say.

“Your job is to protect and love Dialuria, not drink and lose your mind,” she argued.

“...”

“...”

“Come here, Smartie,” I called.

I didn’t have an answer to her remark, so I changed the subject. I knew very well she wasn’t going to accept anything I would say. Playing with Smartie before leaving was the best thing I could do right now.

“Kyah! Pant!”

“Good job, Smartie. That’s right! Just wait for two days, and I’ll be back,” I said.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

“Hey! No yelling, Smartie!” I yelled.

“Kyaaaaah…”

“I’ll be right back, so can you wait a little bit?” I asked.

“Pant… pant, pant!”

“Listen to your mom and wait patiently for me…”

“Pant! Pant!”

“Our Smartie matured a lot,” I complimented.

“Kyah!”

“That’s right! Good job!” I complimented once more.

“Kyah! Kyah! Kyah!”

I guess seeing the baby dragon jumping around helped Dialugia calm down a little. How could she not feel calm when her precious baby acted so cutely like that? She was still mad, but there was nothing more effective than Smartie when calming her down. All of a sudden, I could feel the others looking at me strangely. Excluding Jung Ha-Yan, the majority of the members looked at us as if they were touched, and that was when I realized the sight Dialugia, and I were displaying was unusual. Dialugia didn’t seem to care, but I couldn’t help but be bothered because I was worried about Jung Ha-Yan. The majority of the female members had fallen for Smartie’s cuteness, but Kim Ye-Ri especially had sparkles in her eyes when she saw Smartie jumping around. When Dialugia saw the look on Kim Ye-Ri’s face, she quickly picked Smartie up.

“I-It’s cute,” Kim Ye-Ri remarked.

“Please come back as soon as possible,” Dialugia said to me.

“I will, and after you arrive in Lindel, the guild will start building the nest, so if there’s anything you need, find the human named Team Leader Kim Mi-Young and tell her what you need,” I instructed her.

“A nest?” she asked.

“That’s right. I honestly don’t know how a dragon’s nest is made… but I told them to discuss it with you and to start working immediately,” I replied.

“I see…” she mumbled.

“It’ll be customized, so you can build it however you want,” I added.

Dialugia still looked unsatisfied, but after hearing that a new nest was going to be officially built, she looked like she was feeling better. Thanks to my gift and Smartie’s cuteness, I overcame the hurdle of Dialugia’s anger. However, I had another hurdle to overcome. Fortunately, I had a lot of opportunities to make Jung Ha-Yan feel better, as we were heading to the city together. It seemed that Jung Ha-Yan knew that as well, as she seemed a bit happy. She ran up to me and hugged me, but I was more concerned with Park Deok-Gu than her.

When I glanced at him, I noticed his big, calm face approaching me.

“Have a safe trip, hyung-nim!” Park Deok-Gu said, almost exclaiming.

“Thanks. Take care of Dialugia and Dialuria for me while I’m gone,” I requested.

“Oh…”

“Since we’re sharing a life. You understand, right?” I asked.

“I think I know what you’re talking about,” he replied.

“Deok-Gu,” I called out.

“Yes?”

“I trust you, and if I can do it…”

“I know, I know. I can do even better. That’s what you were trying to say, right? You’re going to make my ears bleed. You don’t have to worry about me, so enjoy your trip,” he assured.

“Have fun with Miss Jung-Yeon,” I added.

“Ahem. I’m not in that kind of relationship with Jung-Yeon noonim. Hyung-nim, you should be the one worried about Ha-Yan noonim,” he retorted.

“Hang in there! Deok-Gu Oppa!” Jung Ha-Yan exclaimed.

“Hehehe. I’m Park Deok-Gu, a man overflowing with power every day,” he boasted.

After saying that, he smiled and patted Jung Ha-Yan’s head. I couldn’t help but think that he was pretty skilled at pretending like nothing was wrong. When I was still unfamiliar with him, there were signs I had overlooked, but now, I was noticing those signs, and I couldn’t help but be bothered by them. I was sure he was swinging his sword all day yesterday. He probably thought I wouldn’t notice it, but I could smell his sweat just by standing close to him. He did change into clean clothes, but I guess he didn’t shower. Of course, the smell didn’t really bother me.

“Mr. Ki-Young, we should…”

“Oh, okay, Mr. Hyung-Sung.”

Naturally, we got on our griffons, and Jung Ha-Yan stuck to my back like gum. I waved at the people waving us goodbye and the still jumping around Smartie. When Park Deok-Gu saw Kim Hyun-Sung and me fly into the sky, I felt like I saw his fists tremble. Before I disappeared into the clouds, I saw him turn his back before running away.

‘Fool.’

He was the stupidest person I had ever met.