IPDT 21

Fortunately, Yul hadn’t gone far. Thanks to that, I caught up with him in no time, but there was a visitor waiting for us. An elderly dwarf with a neatly braided white beard, smiling with his wrinkled eyes crinkled.

“So you were here!”

It was the chief. I greeted the chief, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, warmly.

“Chief, did you finish making the weapon before you came out?”

“Of course! You’ll surely be impressed when you see it.”

The chief let out a hearty “Uahaha” laugh and pounded his chest. Thump, thump.

“Because something incredible has been created.”

Then, he held up high the sword he had been hiding behind his back.

“Wow.”

As soon as I received the weapon the chief showed me, a gasp of admiration escaped me. It wasn’t the familiar shape of a ‘sword’, but that’s what made it look even more special.

I scanned the single-edged, sleek blade up and down. The blade, which grew sharper toward the tip, looked delicate. However, thanks to the black body of the sword, the blade looked more solemn than delicate. If there were such a thing as a handsome sword, this is exactly what it would look like. It was such a cool sword that if I wasn’t giving it to Yul, I would have put it in my subspace long ago.

“Where’s the scabbard?”

When I asked in an excited voice, the chief held out the scabbard as if he had been waiting. I quickly took it and sheathed the blade. The scabbard was also black, but thanks to the gold details, it even felt beautiful.

Yul is going to use this. It suited him really, really well. I wasn’t just saying that because I was his master; I was sincere.

“Chief, how did you make something like this?”

“Uahaha, it’s a very fine sword, isn’t it!”

“Yes, enough to make me want to give it a sharp bite.”

As I mumbled as if bewitched, the surroundings fell silent. Huh? I turned my head to look at the chief and Yul.

“…”

“…”

Neither of them had a very pleasant expression on their face.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“If you bite it, Balancer, the sword will crack.”

“It’s just an expression.”

The chief’s leap in logic was too much. Did he think I would actually bite the sword I’m giving to Yul? Hmph, I snorted and approached Yul.

Yul was looking at the sword in my hand with eyes that said he didn’t like something about it. I held the sword out in front of Yul.

“Yul, this is my present to you. If I have to be away for a little while, this will protect you.”

Yul’s sunken black eyes widened. I took Yul’s hand and placed the sword in it.

“Oh, right. And only you can use this sword. When you hold it, it feels like a feather, but if another human holds it, it becomes as heavy as lifting a rocky mountain. The chief is the best in this field, so you can trust him.”

At my words, I saw the chief proudly puff out his chest. Yul stared at me blankly for a moment, then glanced down at the sword in his hand.

“…”

A faint feeling emanated from Yul as he fiddled with the scabbard. He was definitely happy. I bit my lip hard. I almost broke into a wide smile right there in front of the chief without realizing it. For the sake of a dragon’s dignity, I shouldn’t show that I’m too happy. I with difficulty tore my eyes away from Yul and turned back to the chief.

“Chief, we’re going to leave now.”

“Are you leaving already?”

“Yes. I have to go to the northern icebergs.”

The last place holding the power of chaos. In the underground of that place, filled with ice that never melts, an immense chaos was seething. It was a place where ordinary living beings could never survive.

So, before I entered that place, I planned to leave Yul somewhere far away. Since I gave him the sword as a gift, he’ll be able to endure being apart for a short while, right? Besides, Yul was an adult now. I checked yesterday, so I was certain.

“What a shame.”

“You’re probably the only dwarf who would say it’s a shame that I’m leaving.”

I patted the chief’s shoulder, pat, pat, and looked to the north. I need to hurry up and check the iceberg and return to the lair. Once I returned to the lair, I planned to spend time with just Yul, without being disturbed by anyone.

“There’s no need to see me off, uht…?”

At that moment, a sharp pain, as if my heart were being squeezed, shot through me. I clutched my chest and blinked. What is this, all of a sudden…

Before I could even finish my thought, an ominous premonition ran down my spine. There couldn’t be a problem with my heart.

Then, Yul?

“…!”

I whipped my head around to look back at Yul. Yul, who had been standing perfectly fine just a moment ago, staggered and then dropped to his knees on the ground.

“Yul!”

I hurriedly knelt in front of Yul. His out-of-focus black eyes looked at me once, then slid shut. Flutter. Soon, Yul collapsed onto me like a person who had used up all their strength. I caught the falling Yul. His body was as hot as a ball of fire.

Ah.

I was suddenly reminded of how Yul had a fever every night here. But even though he had fevers before, it was never this severe. Why all of a sudden? Why, on earth? A sense of injustice welled up.

“No, no.”

This was not the time to be panicking like this. I had to show him to someone who could fix him. It would be great if I could do it, but I don’t know how to heal humans. To someone who knows how…

No. What if Yul gets taken away? Since the oracle was issued, if I took Yul to a place I couldn’t trust, I wouldn’t be able to get him back. I am the great Balancer, but I do not know how to defeat God.

“I have to go back to the lair.”

Right. I could trust my nest. That was the only place that was the safest in the world. I held Yul tight and cast a teleportation spell. The moment a light enveloped Yul and my body, the scenery of the dwarf village disappeared, and the familiar smell of the lair stimulated the tip of my nose.

“Yul.”

I gripped the arm of Yul, who was leaning against me and letting out rough, ragged breaths, and shook him. His body, flushed with fever, shook limply. However, no matter how many times I touched him, Yul didn’t open his eyes. His pretty black eyes were just hidden behind his deathly pale eyelids.

“Master!”

Fleabag, who had recognized my presence, came running out of his room in a flurry. I looked at Fleabag, my hand still gripping Yul’s arm tightly.

“Fleabag, Yul is sick. What should I do?”

Fleabag looked back and forth between me and Yul. As if he had finally grasped the situation, Fleabag cautiously approached my side.

“Let me take a look.”

Fleabag touched various parts of Yul’s body and then showed a troubled expression. My heart sank. What that expression meant was all too clear.

“Master, showing a human to a healer is—”

“No.”

I shook my head. The hand clutching Yul’s arm tightened.

“Yul is the hero of the oracle. What if we go to the human world and the people from the temple use the oracle as an excuse? Kidnapping a healer is also dangerous. I just… want to be with Yul quietly…”

“Then how about showing him to the elf village elder? Aren’t elves all individually excellent healers?”

“…Lauren is no good either. You say that because you don’t know Lauren well. Lauren will do anything to protect his village. If he thinks the way to protect his village from ruin is to make Yul the hero, he will send Yul to the temple, even if it means bearing my wrath.”

“Then…”

Fleabag trailed off. I bit my lip hard. The hands holding Yul were trembling.

“I don’t know what to do either, Fleabag.”

I am the great Balancer, yet I couldn’t understand why I felt as helpless as an ordinary creature.

“I don’t know what I should do.”

“Master…”

Fleabag, who had been hovering around me, knelt down as if he had made a decision.

“Please leave it to me. I will do my best.”

I can’t trust Lauren, and I certainly can’t trust humans even more. So in this situation, Fleabag would be the best choice. I opened my subspace, took out the rug, and laid Yul down on it. Lying on the white rug, Yul looked like the sleeping princess from a fairy tale.

Fleabag immediately went into his room and started to diligently make something. I listened to the sound of Fleabag rummaging through something and lay down in front of Yul.

Yul was sweating coldly and breathing raggedly. I reached out and placed my hand on his wet forehead. As I raised my mana, a white light formed at my fingertips. I wanted to lower his fever, even for a moment.

However, just as the fever seemed to drop for a moment, it soon shot up again frighteningly. I took Yul’s hand in both of mine and rested my forehead on it. I knew it was useless, but I kept casting the spell over and over again. Because that was the best I could do.

After taking the medicine Fleabag made, Yul’s condition remained in an ambiguous state, neither worsening nor improving. No, it seemed like his fever had dropped a little, but he still couldn’t regain consciousness. I sat by the sleeping Yul and covered my face. Because we were connected, I could hear Yul’s heartbeat clearly, so it was strange that he wouldn’t wake up.

“Fleabag.”

“Yes, Master.”

Fleabag, who was checking on Yul’s condition, looked back at me. I hesitated before with difficulty parting my lips.

“Don’t you think it would be better to show Yul to a healer, even now? I’ll live for a very, very long time, so I can wait for Yul to wake up whenever that may be. But Yul lives a fleeting life. If Yul’s life is shorter than my wait…”

I trailed off and sighed. The weight of my words was too heavy to get them out all at once.

“I think I was wrong. I should have taken Yul to a healer when he first collapsed, but this happened because I was greedy. No, maybe Yul is being punished in my place because I’m trying to defy the oracle.”

“That’s not true! Are you not the great Balancer, Master? This Fleabag does not think your thoughts are wrong.”

Fleabag desperately shook his head. I smiled weakly.

“You think so?”

After answering, I looked at Yul. Yul still had his eyes closed. My stomach churned as if there was a lump inside.

I give Yul the medicine Fleabag made and sleep by his side. That day was just another one of those repetitive days. No, I thought it was just one of them.

Someone touched my sleeping face. No, not just anyone. The touch on my face felt like Yul’s. In an instant, sleep completely fled. I snapped my eyes open and sat up.

“Oh…”

The black-haired human was sitting up in bed. Moreover, his black eyes were also clearly in focus. I blinked blankly, then grabbed his face with my hands. Grab. Yul didn’t avoid my hands. Instead, he placed his own hand over mine.

“You’re awake?”

“Yes.”

Yul’s voice, unused for a long time, was low and sunken. Even so, hearing his voice made me feel relieved. I knocked my forehead against Yul’s. Thud. Yul lightly rubbed his head against mine where they touched.

“Does it hurt anywhere?”

“No.”

“You’re lying.”

Something welled up inside me. A lie. His face was still clearly pale with sickness, yet Yul was lying. If Yul had been hurting just a little less, I would have given him a flick on the forehead. That’s how resentful I felt.

“I told you to tell me if you’re in pain.”