“Um, where am I?”
So, if I were to explain my current situation, it would take a really long time.
I didn’t mean for this to happen, but how should I put it…?
It feels like… I don’t really know where I’m going?
-Sniff-
I feel like I’m about to cry, an overwhelming sense of sadness washing over me, but my pride won’t let me.
“Hic… Mom… Dad…”
Tears start welling up, blurring my vision, and even though I’m looking at the map, I still can’t find the right way.
Yeah, to sum it up in one sentence—
I am lost.
Sniffling, I glance around my surroundings.
“Hing… There’s no one here…”
There are no dragons around who could help me.
I had left home early in the morning because I wanted to play with Ramir.
Looking back, my mistake was holding myself back from calling out to him in Dragon Tongue—I was afraid it might startle him too much.
I should’ve just waited for my older sisters to wake up and come with me.
“I-Is anyone there?”
Wiping away my tears with my arm as they threaten to spill over, I step out of the alleyway onto the main road.
Is this place usually deserted, or is it just because it’s still early in the morning? There’s not a soul in sight.
“Uuugh…”
Hugging my precious map tightly, I shrink into myself, scanning the area with teary eyes.
Maybe because I’m still young, everything around me feels enormous and terrifying.
“M-my map…”
Finally, I lift up the map, trying to figure out where I am.
“I dunno.”
-Thud-
Overcome with despair, I collapse onto the stone pavement.
I never thought I wouldn’t be able to understand the map even while looking at it.
I mean, how am I supposed to do anything if I don’t even know where I am?
I was holding the map upside down and ran off without thinking—now I have no idea where I ended up.
I feel so frustrated with myself for confidently going in the wrong direction.
“You idiot…”
Sniffling, I stare at my reflection in a nearby window, whispering the word “idiot” over and over again.
“Iiiing… Idiot…”
“You should’ve come with your sisters.”
“Hic… Someone… Please help this idiot…”
My words come out garbled through my sobs, and the tears that had been welling up finally spill down my cheeks.
“H-heung…”
The moment I start crying, I frantically scan my surroundings.
“I’m scared…”
Everything feels so huge.
The streetlights towering over me, the buildings, even the people—there’s nothing here that isn’t taller than me.
“I-I can’t even read the words…”
The letters on the signs are now just a blur.
I know I’ve learned how to read, but I can’t make sense of them in my panic.
“Uuugh…”
“Somebody, help me…!!”
I try shouting as loudly as I can, despite my trembling voice, but no one answers.
“Uuuuuuuh…!”
Frustration wells up inside me, and I stomp my feet on the ground in helpless anger before finally giving up.
“Waaaaaaah!”
I wail loudly in the middle of the street.
“Moooom… Daaaad…!!”
“Sisteeeers…!”
“Grandma… Grandpa…”
The faces of my beloved family flash through my mind.
The thought that I might never see them again fills me with despair.
When I was kidnapped, at least Void was with me, so I wasn’t that scared.
But now that I’m alone, I’m absolutely terrified.
I painfully realized just how much of a baby I really am.
Back when I lived in the forest and met the Wraith of Lake Forest, I wasn’t afraid.
Maybe because I didn’t have anything precious to lose back then.
But now, I do.
And the thought that I might never see those precious people again scares me more than anything.
Honestly, it feels unfair.
I had only just started thinking of them as my real family.
And now, because of my mistake, I might never see them again?
That thought made me even sadder.
“I don’t like this…”
Hic…
I don’t know how long I cried.
On this empty street, I suddenly felt someone’s presence behind me.
And then, I heard a voice—
“…Minho?”
It was Ramir.
The very person I had been searching for all this time.
“Hic… Ramir?!”
I turned around at the familiar voice, and there she was, staring at me with a blank expression.
Her hair was messy, she wore glasses, and she had lazily thrown on a coat.
She was holding a paper bag filled with apples.
She looked… well, pretty memorable like that.
“202!!”
“Hug me! I’ve been looking for you!”
The moment I saw her, I ran straight into her arms.
Ramir quickly put the bag down beside her and knelt down, opening her arms wide for me.
She was telling me to come in for a hug.
Without hesitation, I threw myself into her warmth, smiling brightly despite my tear-streaked face.
“I missed you!”
“Uh… Y-yeah? Really?”
“Yeah! Did you have fun at the festival?”
“Yeah, it was fun. There was a lot to see.”
“Hehe…”
Even though I wasn’t the one who planned it, hearing that she had fun at the festival my mom organized—one that felt like my birthday party—made me really happy.
“You know, this morning, I woke up early and thought of you, so I decided to go find you.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah! But I held the map upside down and got lost… It was so scary that I just ended up crying here.”
“Pfft! What’s that?”
“Don’t laugh!”
Ramir chuckled and ruffled my hair.
“I may only be thirty, but Minho, you really are just a baby.”
“…I’m literally one year old.”
I looked at her like she was saying something incredibly obvious.
Of course, if I counted my past life, the story would be different.
But I had already decided to let that life go.
The past is the past, and this life is this life.
I chose to live in the present, so right now, I am one year old.
No further discussion.
Anyway, I safely arrived at Ramir’s house.
It wasn’t as bright and lively as I expected—it was a simple wooden cabin.
Apparently, wooden houses feel more stable to her.
Must be a racial thing.
“Oh yeah, Minho.”
I was taking off my shoes at the entrance when Ramir, who was putting away her things, called out to me.
“Hmm? What is it?”
“Can I call your parents ‘Auntie’ and ‘Uncle’?”
“Yeah.”
“O-oh, okay. Um… but did you tell your parents you were leaving? Won’t they be worried?”
Ramir looked genuinely concerned as she asked.
Did she really think I wouldn’t plan for that?
Did she really see me—no, a dragon—as someone that careless?
I answered her with confidence.
“Hah, of course I did. I didn’t want to wake them up, so I left them a note.”
“…Ugh, that smug look on your face is annoying. But I guess it’s a relief that you told them.”
“Yep!”
“…Something about this feels suspicious, though.”
Ramir narrowed her eyes at me.
“What exactly did you write in the note?”
“Hmm… Wait, let me think.”
What did I write again?
I know I mentioned I was going out and that I wanted to thank them for yesterday, so I probably included that…
“Uhhh…”
“You don’t remember?”
“No, hold on!”
I held my forehead, trying to recall my exact words.
“Ah! Got it!”
“Okay, so what did you write?”
I hesitated for a moment before telling her.
“I wrote: ‘I’m leaving. Thank you so much for yesterday.’”
Even thinking back on it now—yeah, that was a masterpiece.
As I recalled the neatly written letters in my note—impressive for a one-year-old—I nodded in satisfaction.
Ramir, on the other hand, was frozen in place, mouth agape, seemingly unable to process my level of politeness.
“Geez, Ramir, you’re such a klutz sometimes.”
Saying that, I walked into the kitchen and grabbed an apple, biting into it.
“Ish thish breakfast?”
Crunch!
“Mmm!!”
The sweet and tangy flavors of the apple exploded in my mouth—it was delicious.
“Ramir! You should try this too.”
I shoved an apple into Ramir’s still-open mouth.
“…Not gonna eat?”
Huh? Why is she still frozen?
No matter how amazing my note was, this reaction seemed a bit extreme.
“Sis?”
“GASP!!”
As soon as I called her “sis,” Ramir suddenly jolted back to life, picked me up, and started shaking me wildly.
“M-Minho!! What did you just say?!”
“Uh, s-sis?! WAAAHH!!”
“No, not that! The letter! What did you write in the letter?!”
“WAAAHHHH!!”
My body flopped around as she shook me like crazy.
Even while feeling dizzy, I proudly repeated the contents of my letter.
Hearing it again, Ramir’s eyes widened in shock.
“DID YOU JUST RUN AWAY FROM HOME?!”
“…Huh?”
She said something completely unexpected.
Me? Running away?
I even left a note saying I was going out for a bit.
“I-Is that… a problem?”
“…A problem…? Ugh…”
Ramir stared at me like she was about to shoot laser beams from her eyes, then sighed deeply and slumped back down.
“…Right, you’re still just a baby… And you came all this way just to see me?”
“…Yeah… You don’t like it?”
“No, I like it… But how about we go play at your house instead?”
The way she said it sounded like she had some deep-seated grievance.
But I obediently nodded.
“…Thanks.”
“Mm! As long as I have Ramir, I’m happy!”
“Alright… First, let me wash up and get ready. I can’t just go to the palace like this.”
“Okay! I’ll wait!”
I wagged my tail excitedly and swung my legs back and forth as I sat on the couch.
Meanwhile, back at the palace—
“Hic… O-our little Minho is already in their rebellious phase…”
“No way, our Minho would never—”
“I was a terrible sister…”
“No, sis, it’s my fault…”
Minho’s family sat in a circle around the letter on the floor, on the verge of a full-blown emotional breakdown.