‘…Good.’
It was the perfect environment for hunting.
I didn’t forget that the girl was near the entrance of the cave, and I moved quietly into the forest.
My senses had become incredibly sharp, incomparable to when I was human.
All sorts of forest sounds flowed into my ears.
The rustling of leaves in the wind, the chirping of small birds, the sound of a stream in the distance, and the movements of animals.
My nose detected even more information.
The smell of damp soil, rotting leaves, tree sap, and faint animal scents.
Focusing on my sense of smell, I slowly made my way through the forest.
Before long, I discovered relatively clear traces of an animal.
Judging by the footprints and droppings, it seemed to be a type of deer.
It looked like a decent size too.
I cautiously followed the trail.
Despite my massive body, my steps made surprisingly no sound.
I moved as naturally as if I were part of the forest itself.
Was this also an instinctual ability of dragons?
Finally, I found a deer grazing in a small clearing.
It was a stag with glossy brown fur and rather large antlers.
The creature was peacefully enjoying its meal, unaware of any presence.
‘…Sorry.’
I apologized briefly in my heart and kicked off the ground.
My huge body closed the distance in an instant.
Startled by the ambush, the deer tried to flee, but it was already too late.
I swept my front paw and tripped its legs, while with the other paw, I precisely pinned down its neck.
I felt the sharp claws sink into flesh.
Ugh.
With a short cry, the deer stopped struggling.
It was much easier than I thought.
In the face of my overwhelming power, the deer couldn’t resist at all.
I took a moment to catch my breath and looked down at what I had just done.
Some blood had spilled, but it was a cleaner end than I expected.
In one corner of my heart, I felt an unfamiliar satisfaction mixed with a faint sense of guilt.
I carefully grabbed the dead deer’s nape with my front paw.
I figured holding it in my mouth would look too threatening.
Then I began walking back toward the cave.
When I arrived, the girl was anxiously pacing near where I had left.
As I appeared with the deer carcass, her face went pale again.
Fear was clearly visible in her eyes.
‘As expected, she’s afraid.’
I tried to act as nonchalant as possible, entered the cave, and set the deer carcass down a bit away from the girl.
Then I looked at her.
‘Now, how do I cook this?’
I couldn’t just give her raw meat.
It needed to be cooked.
But how? Fire was necessary.
‘…Fire.’
The thought I had earlier.
Flame breath.
Could I really use it? Now was the time to test it.
I moved far away from the girl and faced a safe-looking spot on the cave wall.
Then I took a deep breath.
I imagined drawing up something hot from deep within my chest.
An energy glowing like a furnace.
And then exhaling it out of my mouth.
I focused.
With all my concentration, I tried to pull out the hidden power inside me.
My throat began to feel hot.
The muscles in my chest tensed with strain.
‘…Come out!’
I shouted in my mind and exhaled deeply.
Pshhhh—
The result was disappointing.
Only a lot of hot steam came out—no flames.
It sounded like steam escaping from a pressure cooker.
‘…Was that not it?’
I tried again.
This time more forcefully, gathering the energy more intensely.
Like a dragon’s roar, I pictured the energy inside me gathering to a single point and exploding out.
“Khuhhh…”
A strange sound came from my throat.
And then—
FWOOOSH!
With a tremendous roar, bright red flames burst from my mouth!
The fire struck the cave wall, and the stone surface blackened with the smell of burning rock.
Even I was surprised by the power.
‘…It worked!’
I did it! I could really breathe fire! But at the same time, a chill ran down my spine.
This immense power—
If misused, it could burn down the entire cave.
I needed to control it.
I caught my breath and this time, I breathed fire again, consciously adjusting the strength.
It was weaker than the first time, but still powerful.
After a few more practice attempts, I was able to get a feel for how to control the intensity.
Still not perfect, but good enough for cooking(?).
Alright, now it was time for some real “Dragon Cooking Time.”
I approached the deer’s carcass.
First, I had to separate the edible parts.
Since I didn’t have a knife or any tool, I had no choice but to use my sharp claws.
I tore the deer’s hide with my front claws and ripped off pieces of meat.
The process was quite messy.
Blood and flesh splattered everywhere.
I just hoped the girl wouldn’t see this scene.
After separating a few chunks of meat of suitable size, I picked one up with my claw.
It would have been nice to have something like a skewer, but I had to make do with what I had.
Then, I carefully adjusted the firepower and breathed fire toward the meat chunk.
Sizzle!
As the meat touched the fire, a loud sound rang out, and smoke rose up.
I tried to adjust the intensity and distance of the fire so the meat wouldn’t burn, but it wasn’t easy.
One side was getting charred black while the other still dripped with red blood.
The smoke thickened, filling the cave, and the smell of burnt and raw meat mixed into a sickening stench.
‘…This is a total disaster.’
Faint memories of grilling meat over charcoal during camping trips as a human surfaced. But what I was doing now wasn’t cooking—
It was more like just playing with fire.
The result was disastrous.
The outside was blackened, the inside undercooked, and it was covered in ash and soot.
Could this even be eaten?
But the deed was already done.
I picked the piece of meat that looked the least bad (?) and brought it to where the girl was.
Then, I carefully placed it on a flat stone in front of her.
“Eat.”
I tried to speak as gently as possible, but my voice probably still came out gruff.
The girl silently stared at the mysterious black lump placed in front of her.
Charred exterior, foul-smelling smoke, and faint red flesh barely visible beneath.
It wasn’t the kind of thing that would stir anyone’s appetite.
The girl’s small nose twitched.
She was probably sniffing it.
Her face still showed fear and wariness, but at the same time, there was a faint… trace of hunger.
I watched the girl silently.
I waited nervously to see how my first attempt at “cooking” would be received.
The cave was filled with tense silence, along with the stench of burnt meat and smoke.
‘…Was this too much after all?’
I silently mocked myself.
It was embarrassing to even call this cooking.
Me, offering this mess to eat, and the girl, who had to accept it—what a ridiculous situation.
Maybe it would have been better to just give her raw meat.
No—if I had done that, she probably would’ve freaked out even more.
‘What should I…’
As I contemplated my next move and looked at the girl—
She moved.
Very slowly, her small, trembling hand reached forward.
Still watching me cautiously, ready to run at any moment, she stayed alert.
But after some hesitation, her hand finally reached toward the black lump of meat.
Her fingertip touched it.
She flinched, but then picked it up with her small hand.
She brought it close to her face.
Her small nose twitched as if sniffing it.
What was she smelling?
The acrid burnt scent? Or the faint scent of meat hidden beneath the soot?
I held my breath and watched her next move.
She hesitated for a moment, then shut her eyes tight—and took a tiny bite.
‘……!’
I tensed.
Would she spit it out? Make a face? What kind of reaction would she show?
But her reaction was unexpected.
For a while, she seemed to be chewing it slowly in her mouth.
Then… her eyes widened.
Her tightly shut eyes popped open in surprise.
Her expression showed confusion and, very faintly… maybe even a hint of approval.
‘…Huh?’
Did I imagine that? Or was she just so hungry her taste buds gave up?
Before my doubt could clear, she brought the meat to her mouth again.
This time, she took a slightly bigger bite.
And then—
Crunch, crunch.
The soft but clear sound echoed in the cave.
The sound of her chewing meat.
The initial hesitation was gone. She began eating the meat at an astonishing pace.
Like someone who hadn’t eaten in days.
No—maybe she really hadn’t.
With small, chewing motions, she tore into the tougher parts with her teeth and—honestly—devoured it quite skillfully.
She didn’t care about the burnt exterior, or even the possibly raw red interior.
I stared blankly at the sight.
She was eating something so pitiful I was embarrassed to call it cooking, and she was enjoying it.
It was hard to believe.
She seemed completely focused on eating now, not even glancing at me anymore.
Wiping her mouth with her worn sleeve, she held the meat with both hands and ate with ferocity.
Her lips glistened with grease, her cheeks flushed slightly with satisfaction.
It was a far cry from the pale, trembling figure she was before.
Watching her, a strange feeling started to rise within me.
A ticklish warmth deep in my chest, like warm water slowly filling up.
What was this feeling?
‘…Pride?’
Yeah. It was pride.