Kidnapped Dragons

y chicken.
This tree dying had nothing to do with him, and the countless spirit beasts living here losing their habitat was none of his business. 

However, the gold hatchling of this iteration – her heart had to be unhurt.
Thus, he had followed behind the baby chicken for the past few months and had placed several small devices in this world.

“Let us finish this quick and go have some food!”

He turned around.
Near the centre of the world tree, there was an immensely large mechanical structure that resembled a whale.
At a glance, it looked like a broken wing of an airplane.
However, it reached 30 metres in length and was as big as a whale.

Next to it were beaver spirit beasts gathered together moving metal and timber with safety helmets on their head.

“Oi! Oi mate! Be careful with that, would ya!?”

One of the beaver spirit beasts shouted at the other beavers.
The ones that received a mouthful were carrying something, and a mana core could be seen inside it. 

“Treat it with care! It’s over if the core’s broken! We got no power source to replace that with! How would we meet our esteemed Prophet if it breaks!?”

““Sorry sir–!””

“Go again.
Slowly!”

The beavers again started diligently carrying the mana core. 

The Regressor gazed at the great tree that would eventually fall; and also at the countless spirit beasts living there, and the large whale-shaped mechanical structure, before turning around.

[Are you leaving already.]

Right before he was about to return, a voice echoed in his mind.
He turned around again and gazed down at the large tree – the world tree was talking to him.

“Yeah.
I see you’ve managed to find it.”

[We were simply listening to your commands.
However, it seems that that thing is not of our dimension.]

Trees probably wouldn’t have eyes, but Yu Jitae knew that the ‘gaze’ of this tree he was stepping on was on the large mechanical structure. 

“It is yours.”

[No.
I am certain that over the 8,000 years of my life, I have never seen anything like it before.]

“…”

[Today of all days, we would like to ask.
For what purpose have you guided us to the road of life?]

Yu Jitae did not reply.
He couldn’t tell the tree that he was twisting the flow of the world simply because of the maturing of the mind of one young gold dragon. 

It was as if this place, [Anum] and the [World Tree] had become a virtual set adjusted by Yu Jitae.
All the organisms and even the world tree were nothing but actors and the stage of the play formulated by the Regressor.

However, there was no reason for him to tell them the truth.

[Art thou the Executor of Providence?]

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The tree asked if he was a sovereign.
Shaking his head, Yu Jitae opened his mouth.

“I shall return in the near future.”

[As you wish, Prophet.]

*

The baby chicken, Chirpy, would play with Kaeul during the day and sleep in Kaeul’s arms at night.
To stay with her for as long as possible, it remained at Unit 301 till the end even after it’s subordinates all returned.
And since Kaeul liked the ‘baby chicken’, Chirpy stayed as the baby chicken despite having a chance to humanify. 

“Ahjussi.
If, even if I don’t want to let him go, it is correct to let him go if he wants to, right?”

Right after realising that the baby chicken would eventually leave her, Kaeul asked him.

“Of course,” he replied.

“Even if I really, really don’t want to let him go?”

“That’s what a farewell is.”

“Even though I don’t wish for a farewell? Even then?”

“Who are you to stop him.”

“Me? A dragon that really, really, really likes Chirpy…”

Yu Jitae looked into the golden eyes of the child.

Although he was a guardian, he didn’t know what was the correct way for him to live as the guardian of the dragons.
He simply had to linger on the topic everyday and ponder on.

However, he knew that even the mightiest of the powers could not protect a person’s heart, so he carefully told her.

“Kaeul.”

“Yes.”

“When there’s a beginning, there is an end.”

“Yes.”

“When there is a new encounter, there has to be farewells.”

“Yes…”

“You can’t look away from it.”

“I, I just don’t want to… I want to run away…”

“Even if you try to avoid it, you can’t.
In the end, it will be right in front of you.
When that happens, you might regret all the time you spent trying to avoid it.”

“…”

Then what should I do? She asked, and Yu Jitae replied.

“You must prepare for a good farewell.”

“How can there be a good farewell?” She asked again.

“…”

“That’s weird.
How can farewells be good… How can there be good farewells in this world…”

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Yu Jitae’s words broke a dam built inside Kaeul’s emotions.
The child began crying with drops of tears dripping on the ground, and after crying for half a day, she vacantly asked.

“If we bid farewell, will there be another new encounter one day?”

There probably would be.
He nodded as Kaeul asked yet again.

“Ahjussi.
What are things that are required of a guardian?”

“Who knows.” He replied.

“Hmm… They should be able to heal a wounded child, and look after it right?”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.
I think so.
Bom-unni healed him whenever Chirpy was hurt.
Me.
I was the guardian but I couldn’t do anything… I was always sorry about that.
I’m the guardian… but I’m useless…”

After that, Kaeul changed her major so that she could learn healing magic, and began learning aspects of healing magic occasionally from Bom.

For another little thing that would require her protection,

For another little thing she will meet one day in the future –

… That should have been the case.

So after returning to the dormitory,

Why was it that he found Kaeul pointing a small knife at her own hand;

Why was it that a drop of blood was travelling down the white wrist of the child onto her clothes.

Huu… when his eyes caught sight of the blonde child breathing out a hesitant sigh, 

The top floor of the extravagant hotel,

The girl that slit her own wrist with a sharp dagger in the bathroom,

Her appearance that was a spitting image of Kaeul –

Images of that girl flashed past his head.

“Ahjussi?”

With surprised eyes, Kaeul looked at him.

Without saying a word, he stepped into the living room without even taking off his shoes.
His expression might have scared her – Kaeul was sincerely startled and was frozen stiff.

Approaching the child, he reached his hand out and waited.

Forgetting to even give him the handle of the knife, she handed it over with the tip of the blade pointing him.
Yu Jitae grabbed the knife with his hand in response and began crushing it with his grip.
Like clay, the blade of the knife was reformed accordingly with the shape of his fingers.
Seemingly unsatisfied with that, Yu Jitae ripped the blade like paper and threw it behind his back.

Charang–!

Fragments of the metal blade rolled across the front entrance and echoed.

When Kaeul raised her hands in surprise and fidgeted not knowing what to do, blood splattered and wetted both the ground and her arms.

“Kaeul.”

Facing the child frozen stiff from surprise, the Regressor asked with a low voice.

“What did you just do.”