IPDT 16

The dwarves, a race living on a volcanic island. Dwarves were a small race, just over a meter tall, and a race of artisans with delicate and strong dexterity that could rival the gods. They were very good at making ‘weapons’.

Weapons, weapons huh. I glanced at Yul. If Yul was a hero… then Yul would need a weapon too. A weapon so very, very strong that it would never break, one that could protect Yul in a crisis.

“Hmm…”

There were weapons made by dwarves piled up in the lair, but there was nothing that really satisfied me. I frowned and crossed my arms tightly. Maybe I should get a new weapon that would suit Yul…

“Illy.”

“Hm?”

Yul placed his fingertips on the space between my eyebrows. Then he pressed down firmly as if to smooth out the crumpled wrinkles. When I relaxed my furrowed brow in surprise, Yul smiled faintly. It was a smile so beautiful it felt unfair to have seen it for free.

“Chief! Make me a weapon!”

“Pardon?”

The moment I entered the dwarf village and made my demand, the chief’s eyes widened.

The dwarf chief, whom I had known for about 7,000 years, now had the face of a full-fledged old man. His beard, which had been reddish in his youth, had turned white, and his forehead was densely engraved with wrinkles like the rings of a tree. Still, compared to me, he was a mere child.

“What weapon are you suddenly talking about?”

“Well, ahem. Yul, wait here for a moment.”

Whoops, I had forgotten Yul was standing next to me and shouted. I asked for Yul’s understanding, who was looking at me with a bewildered face, and pulled the chief by the arm.

We moved about thirty paces away, and I bent my knees to sit. The chief, wearing a curious expression, leaned his ear toward me. I covered my mouth with one hand and muttered.

“Look here, Chief, this is a very important and serious matter.”

“Yes.”

“You see that human standing over there?”

“Yes, yes. I see him.”

The chief glanced back at Yul. Yul was standing in that spot, looking only at me.

“He’s my pet human.”

“A pet… human, you say?”

“Yeah. That’s not what’s important. I want to give that human, I mean Yul, a weapon as a gift.”

The smile I saw on Yul before arriving at the dwarf village came to mind again. His face as he smoothed my brow and smiled faintly.

I sighed without realizing it, huu. Yul’s smile was truly beautiful. If I gave him a weapon, would he smile again? I hoped this time he would smile brightly and say ‘I don’t want it if it’s not from you,’ just like that time. In the elf village, he spoke like he was about to cry, which didn’t feel good.

“You can make one, can’t you?”

“A sword for a human, you mean?” the chief said, sounding displeased. It wasn’t that I couldn’t understand. Because each and every dwarf was an outstanding artisan, they had been invaded by countless races. Naturally, they had suffered at the hands of humans as well. There was a reason why these people, who originally lived as part of the continent, had come to live on a volcanic island.

“Don’t be so cheap. It’s my request. Huh?”

“Goodness… I understand. To think I’d live to see the day I receive a request from you, Mr. Balancer.”

“That’s right. Who knows when I’ll ask for a favor again. So you’ll accept, right?”

I poked the chief’s side, and he burst out laughing, hahaha.

“I understand. But I believe you are also aware, Mr. Balancer. That a weapon cannot be created unless I receive some sort of inspiration from that human.”

Of course, I knew. A weapon for just one person could not be created without a powerful impulse to ‘want to make it’.

Of course, a weapon could be made even without inspiration. But such a weapon was useless. Because anyone could hold it and use it. I wanted a weapon that ‘only Yul’ could use. A weapon that, if held by any human other than Yul, would become so weak it couldn’t even catch a mouse, and heavier than a great mountain.

You ask where in the world such a weapon exists? The dwarf chief right here in front of me could make one. There’s a reason he’s called a blacksmith greater than the gods, is what I’m saying. I grinned, pulling my lips into a smile.

“Chief, you’ll definitely find inspiration. I plan to stay here for a little while anyway. If you take your time, it might come to you in more detail, right?”

“Understood. Then I will prepare a place for the two of you to stay together.”

“Good.”

As I nodded and replied, I suddenly thought of one more thing I needed to ask.

“Oh, and Chief.”

“Yes?”

“By any chance, is there a wide, open space here?”

“An open space, you say?” the chief asked back. His voice was full of the question of why I was suddenly looking for an open space.

“Yeah. I want to use it as a place to practice swordsmanship. I’m going to teach Yul.”

I smiled as I looked at Yul, who was standing still in his spot. Yul, who had been looking at me, seemed flustered and avoided my gaze.

I applied the medicinal herbs I had received from the elf village to Yul’s badly injured palms and wrapped them in bandages. After finishing the treatment, I raised my head, and my eyes met Yul’s. He had an expression that seemed to say he had something to tell me.

“Yul, do you have something to say?”

Yul nodded his head. Then he glanced toward the outside of the open space.

“Not human?”

“Who? Are you talking about me?”

Did he find out I’m a dragon? I hadn’t specifically hidden it, but I hadn’t told him either… How did he know? In that brief moment, various thoughts flashed through my mind. As I hesitated, Yul shook his head.

“Outside.”

“Outside? Ah.”

Is he talking about the dwarves?

“If you mean the dwarves, they aren’t human. Why?”

After hearing my answer, Yul shook his head as if it were nothing. I didn’t ask further and just tilted my head once. It was because a more important announcement remained. I cleared my throat unnecessarily, ahem ahem.

“Anyway, Yul, there’s something I want to teach you.”

“Something you want to teach me?”

“Yeah. Stand up.”

As I shot up from my seat, Yul also stood up. I took out a wooden sword from my subspace. Yul flinched. From Yul’s perspective, a sword had just popped out of thin air, so it was understandable that he would be surprised. But if he lives with me, he’ll get used to it soon. I casually offered the wooden sword to Yul.

“Here!”

Although it had a dull appearance with no decorations, this was undeniably a sturdy wooden sword made by a dwarf. It was perfectly fine as a practice sword for Yul.

“…”

After hesitating, Yul took the wooden sword from me. And then, before I could even teach him, wasn’t he getting into a stance? The way he stood, gripping the sword hilt with both hands and measuring his footing, was not the form of someone who had only done it once or twice.

“Yul, do you know how to use a sword?”

“…A little.”

Yul answered, avoiding my gaze. The nuance that he didn’t want to answer in detail was practically radiating off him. I narrowed my eyes.

“Since when?”

“I learned. A long time ago.”

He learned a long time ago? I was sure he learned from some weak human, but I felt strangely upset. That someone had taught Yul something I hadn’t.

That swordsmanship Yul learned, what if I were to deconstruct it? If I beat him overwhelmingly so he can never use that swordsmanship again, then wouldn’t he only accept what I teach him?

“If you know how to use a sword, would you like to spar with me?”

“…”

Yul just looked at me without answering. Why isn’t he answering? Does he not want to? I started to get a little anxious.

“If you beat me, I’ll grant you one wish. How about it?”

“…Going home, too?”

“Home? Are you talking about the lair?”

Does he want to go back to the lair? As I blinked, Yul let out a dry laugh, ha. Then he squeezed his eyes shut and bit his lip as if holding something back. Why is he making that face? It was when I, unable to bear the anxiety, was approaching Yul. Yul, who had closed his eyes, sharply opened them and thrust the wooden sword toward me.

“Are you saying you want to spar?”

Yul nodded his head. Only after hearing the answer I wanted did my anxiety lessen. I pulled out another wooden sword from my subspace. Yul soon retracted the wooden sword he had aimed at me and corrected his stance.

“Yul, if you succeed in striking me even once, you win. And I’ll give you the chance to swing your sword first, five times. I won’t attack you until you’ve attacked five times.”

Yul’s eyes widened. Is he thinking the condition is too easy? It won’t be easy at all. I narrowed my eyes into a smile.

Yul, who had been observing me silently, closed the distance and rushed at me. I was a little surprised. It was a fairly skilled movement. It seemed he had held a sword for longer than I thought. But that was all; I lightly twisted my body to escape Yul’s sword strike. Yul’s eyes fiercely tracked me as I dodged his attack.

Two times, three times, four times.

Yul’s swordsmanship was by no means clumsy. He would have certainly stood out among humans. So why was he being threatened in a back alley? Was it because he couldn’t use mana?

While I was pondering, Yul’s sword had swung five times. This time too, I narrowly turned my body to dodge and raised my dangling arm. It was the hand holding the wooden sword.

I swung my sword with just enough force not to hurt Yul. From bottom to top, it was a simple movement. Yul’s wooden sword and my wooden sword collided. Thwack! At the harsh sound of friction, Yul’s face contorted.

“Kuh!”

Yul dropped his wooden sword. In that moment, the match was already decided. But my goal was to win ‘overwhelmingly’.

“I’m going to attack one more time.”

I swung the wooden sword again. I intended to place the tip of the blade at Yul’s nape to make him collapse to the ground.

Yul, who narrowly dodged my sword, couldn’t maintain his balance and staggered. He looked like he was about to fall at any moment. That was what I had been hoping for, but for some reason, my heart sank.

What if he falls badly and hits his head? What if there’s a stone or something and he gets hurt somewhere else? What if he gets another scar?

In the moment I hesitated without realizing it, Yul completely lost his balance. Without a second thought, I wrapped my arms around Yul’s head, turned my body, and fell. Crash! With a loud impact, dust rose up around us. However, neither Yul nor I could even let out a groan.

“…”

“…”

Because our lips were blocking each other. In other words, our lips had crashed together. I lay pinned under Yul and blinked my eyes. Yul also blinked his dark eyes blankly.

Then, Yul pulled away from me as if he’d been burned. His eyes were wide, and he was covering his mouth with one hand. His dark pupils were trembling noticeably. I sat on the dirt ground and touched my lips.

It was soft, wasn’t it?

My lips meeting Yul’s, that is to say, kissing, didn’t feel bad. In fact, it felt good. Moreover, I even had a sort of realization.

Sometimes, when Yul looked cute, I would feel a sense of not knowing what to do with myself. Should I say I wanted to give him a big bite? But if I bit him for real, Yul would collapse, bleeding profusely, so I hadn’t been able to do it until now. All I could do was clench my fists and pace around.

But now, I had figured out a way. I can just kiss him!

“Yul, Yul!”

After my realization, my face brightened. I shot up from my spot and approached Yul. Yul, his eyes red around the edges, took a few steps back, but I was faster.