Chapter 30: Irua’s luck brought by the Na-tae

[LEH PIGRITIA]

[The owner of the Red Dragon is not a passionate person. Even if they act on their desires, they can obtain

everything. Waste time.]

[If you enjoy play, shame will rise. If done with reason, the effect is doubled.]

[Warning: Multiple conditions will not rise simultaneously.]

It’s going too far.

As I get into a mess, the system tells me to waste time after I bought time for the Emperor.

A sigh escapes me.

Although I’m hungry, I feel like I want to open my belly and gulp down a whole bottle of digestive medicine.

Laziness.

It’s telling me to eat, play, and enjoy.

If done with reason, the effect increases.

I looked at the peacefully sleeping Ilua.

Maybe I should take her along.

She probably needs a refresh too.

The Red Dragon is truly a troublesome creature to handle.

At this point, it might be better to open level 7 quickly.

Form Change. This is definitely a power-up concept.

It would be nice to get stronger.

Now, what about other things…

…Hm? I remember the Lust level was 6, but now it’s 10.

Did I kiss Morgan?

Normally, a kiss shouldn’t raise the gauge at all.

How did it go up this much?

Is it a bug?

Or is it because of being a monster?

I don’t understand the system’s standards.

I was at level 7 for Wrath, and after a fight with the Dragon King’s army, it’s maxed out.

Greed is fine for now since I retrieved the Pegasus’ corpse through Ilua.

“Jeo? Are you awake?”

Ilua’s voice rang out. Even in the pitch black darkness, the spiral in her pupils gleamed brightly.

“Are you okay? Does it hurt a lot?”

“No. It’s all healed. Even though Hans is a drunk, he’s good at his job.”

Hans is in charge of Vengeance’s medical duties.

“Thank goodness… Was your conversation with the Emperor not going well?”

Irua knows all about the Red Dragon revival operation.

Including Kim Deok-bae and other actors, and Vengeance’s subordinates, they all have an idea of the general plan,

but of course, they don’t know I’m the Red Dragon. They think I’m impersonating it.

“No, it went well. For now, it looks like I’ll be busy hunting monsters.”

“Really? Then what about the injury?”

“Well, there were circumstances.”

Irua pouted. It seems she wasn’t happy that I skipped the explanation.

“This is a rare chance to grow, so I want to recruit some members for the Evil Legion.”

“Eh, were you going to add more?”

Irua had a face as if she had just been struck on the crown with a hammer.

“It’s better to have more talented ones.”

“…Isn’t that… enough with me?”

“More is better, right?”

Irua’s expression was unusual. I can understand how she feels. She gave Vengeance the name, so she probably feels

attached. It’s probably possessiveness.

“I should have discussed it with you first, sorry. Don’t worry. In Vengeance, you’re the best.”

“…Really?”

“Of course.”

“Alright. I’ll forgive you.”

Irua quickly cheered up. Without thinking, the dark matter she released made her hair stand up in spikes.

For now, the top candidate is undoubtedly Elena.

Irua is fine, but that woman is hard to control.

Considering the Dragon King’s army case, even if I recruit her later, it would be safer to put chains on her.

Two members, Irua and Elena, might be a bit too few, so adding one more would be ideal.

The person I had considered as a candidate was someone I could not yet approach.

To be precise, it was impossible to make contact.

“Jeo.”

“Hmm?”

“…this.”

Irua handed me something wrapped in packaging. A rectangular object.

A gift?

“Why a gift?”

“Well… Emma said that you give gifts on Christmas.”

Irua avoided my gaze.

“…to close… friends? People around you?”

A smile unconsciously appeared on my lips.

“Though the date has passed… is it okay?”

“Thank you.”

I accepted the gift and tore off the wrapping paper. A box. It seemed to be from a rather high-end brand. Inside was…

“A sleep mask?”

It had a sleek black design. The soft and lightweight fabric made it clear it was a premium product.

“Well… the faceplate mask is hard, right? It’s uncomfortable to sleep on your stomach with it.”

“Haha.”

What a cute one.

I roughly ruffled Irua’s hair.

“Ouch. What are you doing?”

Irua briefly resisted by raising both hands, but soon became calm again.

As I petted her for a moment, she became as quiet as a little rabbit.

“Thank you. I’ll use it well.”

“…Mm.”

Irua lowered her head deeply.

“I have nothing to give you in return. Though, if it’s okay, would you like to go out with me tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow? For monster hunting?”

“No. Just the two of us, spending time together. Let’s go out and have fun.”

“Uh, okay.”

“Then, since it’s still early morning, let’s sleep a bit more. I can’t use it right now since it’s precious. You should go rest too, Irua.”

“Okay…”

Leaving Irua, who was still a little absent-minded, I laid back on the bed to try to sleep again.

Jeong Seok, who had fallen asleep again, and Irua, blinking her eyes, shook her head.

‘What? What? What?’

Am I dreaming? Irua pulled at her cheek with dark matter.

It really stung.

Or was it just a dream, and I just woke up?

No, that wasn’t it. The torn gift wrapping paper proved the reality.

‘Right. She gave it to me.’

A satisfied smile appeared on my face. The sensation of giving something to someone was something I had never

experienced before.

I had never had anything that could be called my own.

Giving was impossible.

The sensation of giving a gift for the first time.

When Emma had told me about this act, I had wondered what it meant and why people had such customs.

But now I understand.

When Jeong Seok laughed, receiving the item I had chosen after much thought and bought with my own money, that

smile was the reason people exchange gifts.

My chest fluttered.

I hoped this moment, this feeling, would last longer.

‘I want to give more.’

Seeing how they named the exchange of gifts “Christmas” and attached a special day to it, it was clear that gifts

weren’t something you just gave at any time.

Irua thought that she would have to ask Emma when she could give another gift to Jeong Seok.

The feeling of giving was so heartwarming.

Then, what about the feeling of receiving?

Jeong Seok had suggested it as a replacement for a gift.

‘That’s right! What should I do? What should I do?’

Irua, forgetting for a moment, looked around like a rabbit that had lost its parents, but all she saw was the dark

room.

‘Going out? Just Jeo and me? To play?’

This was something I had only heard about in runaway teen groups.

‘It must be a date!’

Irua’s eyes spun wildly. There was no room for misunderstanding. He had clearly said it was just the two of them

going out to have fun, not for monster hunting.

‘What should I do? What should I do?’

The clock pointed to 4:44 AM.

It could be seen as ominous, but it was surprisingly a common time.

Since I must have fallen asleep around 1:30 AM while taking care of Jeong Seok, Irua had only slept for about three hours.

‘Alright, I need to sleep! Otherwise, I’ll be exhausted and ruin everything tomorrow!’

But if I sleep?

I don’t know anything about guys or dates.

Should I go out without preparing at all?

Where would we even go?

What should I talk about?

As Irua pondered all of this, she realized just how little she knew about the world.

As Irua rolled her eyes around, all the sleep had already vanished. Her sympathetic nervous system took control, and

her eyelids moved more vigorously than ever before.

“Okay, search.”

Irua pulled out her phone. It was a device Jeong Seok had set up for her convenience. She wasn’t familiar with

typing, so she made several typos, even in the word “date.”

[How to naturally hold hands during a date]

“…Hold hands while walking?”

Irua stole a glance at Jeong Seok’s hand, which was resting as he slept.

His hands, rough and scarred from many battles, were large and calloused. If she held them, her small, smooth hand

would disappear inside his and wouldn’t even be visible.

“…No!!!”

There had been countless instances of physical contact during training and missions with Jeong Seok.

But holding hands while walking on a date?

At that moment, Irua became aware of something, and her ears turned bright red.

[How to naturally go to a motel during a date]

“What’s a motel?”

Irua read the contents of the post. At first, she didn’t understand, but after reading the comments, she almost

crumpled her phone.

“Not helpful, not helpful!”

Then, she remembered.

Back when she had just started seeing Jeong Seok, the way he had pushed her down due to his lust and her own

reaction at that time.

“…I see.”

A bit of what Jeong Seok had said back then began to make sense.

As he had said, there were many emotions she still didn’t understand, and she wasn’t skilled at handling them either.

“Still…”

Irua was certain that the warmth she felt in her body when thinking of Jeong Seok was a feeling entirely her own. It

was her emotion that she had created.

So, she promised to cherish it.

As she continued searching, morning slowly approached.

It was almost time for Jeong Seok to wake up. But midway, Irua sensed something unusual.

The smell.

A faint scent of sweat was rising.

It was coming from her own body. Over twenty hours had passed, and she hadn’t left Jeong Seok’s side, so this was

inevitable.

“I need to shower.”

It would be embarrassing if Jeong Seok woke up and noticed the smell.

It was their date today.

She didn’t want to ruin it from the start.

“What about caregiving?”

Jeong Seok had said it was fine, but she didn’t completely believe him. He was the type to say “it’s fine” no matter

what. He might suddenly complain of pain, and she wouldn’t know how to react.

In the end, unable to do anything about it, Jeong Seok woke up, and Irua snatched his blanket, transforming into a

worm-like creature.