Liana’s main mode of transportation is flying.
Riding the wind spirits, she flies over the terrain, which is the quickest and most convenient way to travel.
Alternatively, she can move the very ground itself with earth spirits. This option is also fast and comfortable, and has the advantage of security and stealth.
However, Liana preferred to fly.
Even before her unique abilities awakened, she enjoyed the refreshing breeze.
Her hometown was filled with hills and mountains, and just behind her house stood a large hill.
Sitting quietly near the top of that hill, a cool wind would greet her.
Laying on the ground, closing her eyes, and enjoying the sound of the wind would make time fly by.
Thus, Liana leaned toward flying.
Perhaps it was due to Liana teaching him about spirit magic, but Lee Ha-yul also preferred flying via the wind spirits.
Thanks to this, while Liana soared through the sky, Lee Ha-yul stayed nestled in her arms without whining.
While flying, they periodically landed to rest, taking into account Lee Ha-yul’s condition.
In the meantime, Liana grabbed a quick meal for herself and fed Ha-yul some food and medicine.
Of course, her meal was instant food, while Ha-yul had a porridge that was easy on the stomach.
Then came the medicine…
– Crack…
[Squishy]
“…You’ve developed a weird habit.”
Every time she fed him medicine, Ha-yul would reach for her chest.
Usually, he would remain still, but whenever she gave him medicine, he’d instinctively reach out and squeeze her.
‘Could it be because I squeezed his chest when I first fed him the medicine?’
A peculiar habit had formed. Now, if she didn’t squeeze his chest while feeding him medicine, he would whine.
Liana looked down at Ha-yul, who was wriggling his hands with a strange expression.
For some unknown reason, Ha-yul had become like a child.
He was always a bit clingy, but now he was even more so.
A healthy body houses a healthy mind.
No matter how strong one’s mind, if the body is depleted, the mind suffers as well.
Given that this clingy child had gone through such an experience… it was understandable that Ha-yul’s mind felt even younger now.
‘So cute.’
More than just understanding, Liana felt a sort of maternal love.
With a benevolent smile, she patted Ha-yul’s head as he buried his face in her chest, craving warmth.
His pushing his face into her chest and whining while squeezing reminded her of a baby seeking its mother’s breast.
Of course, Liana couldn’t feed him since there was nothing to give.
After they had eaten and taken their medicine, Liana dealt with any noticeable monsters or spirits by sending the spirits off separately to subdue them.
She could send just the low-tier spirits, and if she felt lazy, she’d send mid-tier ones, and everything was taken care of.
– Whoosh!
A cool breeze swept by.
Liana’s hair fluttered gently.
As she turned her gaze, she spotted a bird flying in from a distance.
But this wasn’t just any bird.
It was a wind bird made of wind, returning from a recent hunt after defeating a monster.
From the mid-tier spirits onwards, they start to develop self-awareness.
As they gain self-awareness, they also acquire individuality, forming their own personalities and traits.
Liana outstretched her arms towards the spirit. With its bird-like appearance, it had a habit of landing right on them.
The wind spirit swooped in.
“?”
And then it zipped right past Liana’s arms.
In simple terms, it gave her a quick glance before flying straight to Ha-yul, rubbing against him.
– Peep peep!
[Wind Bird]
[Cuteness]
[Refreshing]
Ha-yul flashed a bright smile at the affectionate spirit snuggling against him.
The pure smile was so bright it lit up the surroundings.
As if expressing his happiness, the wings attached to his back fluttered.
Ha-yul reached out and hugged the spirit as if it were a doll.
What a tender atmosphere!
A lovely child that perfectly embodies the notion of a fairy, snuggling with the wind bird that adorably squeezed into his embrace.
If someone snapped a pic of this, it could sell for a fortune at an auction.
This scene had become quite commonplace over the past few days.
The spirits contracted to Liana would invariably shower their affection on Ha-yul.
“Oh my…”
Liana chuckled and let the spirit have its fun for a moment before snapping her fingers.
– Snap!
A crack appeared behind her. A gravitational pull emerged from the rift.
– Peep!
The wind spirit, overly affectionate just a moment before, flapped its wings and got sucked into the rift as if satisfied.
[Regret]
[Bird]
As a result, the necklace representing its feelings clacked, expressing its emotions.
Liana smiled, patting Ha-yul’s downcast face as he buried himself against her.
“Baby.”
[…I’m not a baby]
“Anyone can see you’re a baby, right?”
Liana chuckled again.
Just yesterday, he was begging for her to pamper him as a baby, and now his reason was starting to return, as he blushed and shook his head subtly.
“You’ll be arriving soon. Our baby will go straight to Shio-ram for thorough checks and even be hospitalized.”
[…Do I have to be hospitalized?]
“Well, of course?”
Liana replied incredulously.
Could he really think he could come back fine after causing such a massive incident?
Ha-yul flinched, avoiding her gaze, as if he knew how absurd his comment was.
“Be prepared to be scolded when we go back, okay?”
At her words, Ha-yul stiffened, his wings drooping behind him.
Despite having sacrificed himself to save people again, he had saved far more lives than he did when facing the Sicphnah.
If the subjugation of that two-headed dragon had been delayed…
Sure, it would have ultimately been defeated, but who knows how dire the situation could have worsened while the ground was still saturated in poison?
Furthermore, with the defeat of that dragon, many spirits causing trouble in China had become calm as well. It was likely that the dragon had been a medium for those spirits.
The essence of a hero is to protect the innocent.
From a hero’s perspective, Ha-yul’s actions were more than commendable.
However.
From the standpoint of Lee Ha-yul, as a child and as Liana’s disciple, it was a recklessly dangerous act that warranted scolding.
Liana didn’t scold Ha-yul.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to scold him.
It was merely pushed aside for the time being, considering his physical and mental struggles.
– Squeeze…
[It hurts…]
Liana reached out and pinched Ha-yul’s nose. He pouted, gently squeezing her finger.
But perhaps due to his weakened strength or his guilty conscience, he couldn’t brush her hand away.
“Especially Artra is very… mad. You might say she’s fuming?”
– Hic…
A hiccup escaped Ha-yul’s lips.
“She was so mad she was frothing at the mouth, smashing everything in the room! It was a struggle to keep her from breaking everything…”
– Hic!
“Is it just Artra? Even Hong Yeon-hwa, who adored you… or Elia, who was taking care of Seo-yul… they’re all very worried, angry, and sad.”
Was it a premonition of the future? Ha-yul trembled.
His terrified face was pitiful yet adorable.
*
In Shio-ram, the house assigned to Artra was located.
At the far end of the second floor, there was a room used for work.
The room was filled with bookshelves crammed with books, a reception table, a sofa, an office desk, and other furniture.
– Crash…
The bookshelf was smashed into pieces lying all around. The books within it were similarly scattered, and all furniture had been destroyed.
Even the protective spell had been breached, and the ceiling creaked with dust falling.
Dust plummeted onto the remaining intact desk like snow.
“……”
Artra’s eyes twitched. Her gaze swept over the dusty bookshelf.
For a moment, her gaze fixated on the dust before returning to where it belonged.
Her eyes were locked on the door straight ahead, glaring intensely.
Blood vessels were ruptured, making her eyes a vivid red, devoid of any life or luster.
The shadows under her eyes were thick and pronounced, clearly marked by tears shed.
– Yes
– I’ll definitely remember Master’s words
– You don’t have to worry
Suddenly, the words Lee Ha-yul had spoken came to her mind.
On the day of the winter break… no, even before that.
When he showed his concern as he was about to step out of Shio-ram, his response when she expressed her worries.
No need to worry. I’ll remember your words. I’ll be careful. I won’t get hurt. I’ll return safely…
“Crack…”
Her teeth clenched.
Kaboom! The only remaining intact desk rattled ominously.
The desk appeared like it might split in two at any moment, but Artra ignored it completely and continued to glare at the door.
‘He must be properly scolded.’
Lee Ha-yul, the utterly lovable pupil.
Though there’s not a single reason to hit him, this time, he absolutely needed to be reprimanded.
He had promised to behave during vacation but had sneaked into the gray area of China.
It’d be fine; he might have taken a bit of a shock but given that he returned safe… if there were accomplishments, she could perhaps let it slide with a slight pinch on the cheek.
But to assure everyone that he wouldn’t get hurt, only to go tussling with monsters of fourth-tier or so… and end up missing, leaving a nail hammered into her heart.
She could not let this slide.
She couldn’t let it slide, not this time.
To ensure that such events do not repeat, he had to be thoroughly scolded.
Artra steeled her determination.
– Tap tap…
Footsteps approached.
The familiar sound of Liana’s steps, her presence as she searched for missing Lee Ha-yul, affirmed that she would bring him back in one piece without major injuries.
– Tap tap…
The steps drew closer. The door opened, and a presence stepped into the room.
There were two presences. One was Liana’s. The other… who?…
“…?”
Something felt amiss.
This presence felt different from Lee Ha-yul’s.
It was too faint, almost evading her sharp senses.
Though it had similarities, there were clear differences.
– Knock knock
“Entering~”
Just as Artra was puzzled, Liana stood at the door, knocking and entering.
As the door swung open, Artra’s bloodshot eyes scanned the face revealed.
Liana. With green eyes and black hair, today her complexion appeared slightly worn. She must’ve drained her energy searching for him.
Artra’s gaze dipped below.
And then…
‘…?’
In her arms… was a child?
For a moment, Artra’s mind froze.
Even so, her bloodshot eyes inspected the child stiff in Liana’s embrace.
Pure white hair that seemed to refuse external colors.
Delicate features that seemed as if a master artist had crafted them bit by bit, with eyes gently closed in sleep.
A small frame that fit perfectly in her arms was cozily wrapped in three pairs of dreamy blue wings.
The tiny hands trembled slightly, holding onto Liana’s arm, making Artra’s heart ache with bittersweet emotions.
Lee Ha-yul.
The name surfaced in her thoughts.
“…uh…”
“Aha! Look at your reaction. I had a similar… No, why is there drool…?”
From her gaping mouth came a bewildered sound.
Creak… As Artra stood up, she briskly moved toward Liana.
“Hmm?”
Liana blinked.
Her arms felt empty all of a sudden.
When she looked down at the emptiness of her arms, she saw Artra hugging Lee Ha-yul tightly, her gaze befuddled and lost.
“…You were going to scold him, right?”
It was as if Liana’s words echoed unheard as Artra absentmindedly caressed Ha-yul.
*
[Player Adjustment System: Favorability]
Lee Ha-yul → Liana Velus
●●●●●●●○○○ (74▶75/100)
“Favorability” “Gratitude” “Kind Adult” “Squishy” “Warmth”
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