“Haha. Yes, it’s Grandpa. And this here is the newly appointed Director of the Agency—Director Yoon Seo-hyun.”
“Hello, I’m Park Ha-yoon.”
“……Hello.”
“Well then, I’ll let you two talk comfortably. This old man will step out for a bit.”
The girl’s expression was blank.
From that alone, I could immediately tell just how disconnected she was from the world.
Middle schooler.
She’s at the age where she should be called a young lady, but to me, she still looked like a child.
Well, of course.
A kid who lost the use of her legs just as she was stepping into adolescence—how could she possibly look at the world with optimism?
Unless she had an incredibly strong will, that would be impossible.
And the child sitting in front of me didn’t seem to be that strong-willed.
The way her eyes pretended to be calm—it was clearly the look of someone who had already given up.
“……Hi. So you were the one who asked to see me.”
“Yes.”
“Is it alright if I ask why?”
“You’re the one who caught that demon. So… I just wanted to say thank you.”
“……I see.”
Looking at me, the girl seemed to get a little emotional.
Maybe it was the thought that the one who ruined her life had finally been taken down.
Or maybe, it was the realization that even so, she would still never walk again.
“Thank you. Really. I think… I won’t have nightmares anymore.”
“……You had nightmares?”
“Every single day. Even when I tried to forget, I couldn’t.”
“Would it be rude if I asked what kind of nightmares they were?”
“It’s just the dream of when I ended up like this. It’s nothing special.”
After pulling her emotions back together, Ha-yoon returned to her blank expression.
That look of not caring what happens anymore.
It was not the kind of expression a child who had just entered middle school should ever wear.
That was the face of someone who had cried and cried until they were too exhausted to cry anymore.
And the way she said “It’s nothing special”—there was a deep sorrow in those words.
And I don’t think it was just my imagination.
“……I see. Is that all you wanted to say to me?”
“Um… You’re a dragon, right?”
“Yeah.”
“You can fly and all that, right?
I saw it on TV earlier. You turned into this huge dragon and flew across the sky.”
“So you watched the launch ceremony.”
“Yes. Um, could you take me flying?”
“Why?”
“I just… I want to know what it’s like to fly.”
It wasn’t a difficult request.
If that’s all she wanted—there was no reason to refuse.
I lifted Ha-yoon into my arms.
Maybe because of the lack of muscle in her legs, she felt unusually light.
“Is this okay for you?”
“……Yes.”
Holding Ha-yoon, I stepped out of the hospital room for a moment.
“Director?”
“Hmm? Ha-yoon and Director Yoon? What’s going on?”
“Ha-yoon said she wanted to try flying……………”
“Ha-yoon, you want to fly?”
“Yes.”
“May I ask why?”
“No real reason………… I just want to try it. That’s all.”
At her answer, the Director of the NIS fell silent.
“Go ahead, then. Director, I’m counting on you.”
“Understood.”
We stepped outside.
I could feel people’s eyes turning toward us.
“You’re famous, huh?”
“Well, it’s kind of unavoidable.”
“I heard you used to be a guy.”
“That’s right.”
“Did you lose something too?”
“I did.”
“Does it make you sad?”
“No. Because even though I lost something, I gained more in return.”
At those words, an unmistakable look of envy crossed Ha-yoon’s face.
“You’re lucky.”
“I think that’s possible too.”
Still holding her in my arms, I spread my wings.
“Whoa!”
Voices of surprise came from nearby…………
But really, it wasn’t a problem.
I was someone allowed to do at least this much now.
As soon as my wings spread, I soared into the sky.
A cool wind rushed past us.
Then, I heard Ha-yoon’s voice.
It could have easily been drowned out by the wind—
But her voice rang out clearly, loud and full of something like excitement.
“It’s so refreshing.”
“Not too cold?”
“There are still a few warm days here and there, so I’m okay. Besides………… I can’t remember the last time I felt something like this. I used to love running, you know.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I loved the feeling of wind brushing past my ears when I ran. I thought I’d never feel anything like that again………… But now, like this, I can feel it again.”
I had no idea what to say.
But in moments like this, I knew what the right thing was.
Say nothing.
There’s no need to offer clumsy words of sympathy.
That would only hurt her more.
In times like this, staying silent was better.
Ha-yoon’s gaze drifted downward slightly.
And in that moment, I understood exactly why she had wanted to see me—why she had wanted to fly.
This girl still longed for her former self.
The self she had been before being caught in the explosion caused by the demon-type mutant, before her lower body became paralyzed.
The days when she could walk freely, run without limits, and laugh while playing with kids her age.
If she had never been able to use her legs in the first place, she probably wouldn’t have this kind of longing.
But…………… because she once had perfectly healthy legs, this girl couldn’t help but feel even more despair.
In most cases, rehabilitation therapy can sometimes miraculously restore sensation—
But her condition was said to be beyond even the faintest chance of that miracle.
And now, I understood instantly why her eyes were filled with resignation and despair.
“Unnie.”
“Yeah?”
“Do you think… I’ll be able to run again?”
I couldn’t bring myself to answer.
Because instilling vague hope is one of the cruelest ways to push someone deeper into despair.
“I guess not, huh.”
“I’m not a doctor, so I really don’t know.”
“I overheard the doctors talking before.
They said the nerves are completely destroyed.
I didn’t get it at first, so I looked it up online.
If the nerves are completely gone, you’ll never walk again, they said.”
“……I see.”
“Honestly, I think my family all knows too. That this is how I’ll be for the rest of my life. Isn’t that just… horrible?”
“I can’t even begin to understand what you’re feeling. I’m sorry.”
“………Unnie, you’re a kind person.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because everyone else told me things like, ‘You’ll get better,’ ‘You’ll be fine soon,’ ‘One day, you’ll run again.’ But when is ‘one day,’ exactly?”
“At some point, I realized that the more I hoped vaguely, the more it hurt. But you didn’t say any of that.”
Ha-yoon was far too mature.
These weren’t the kind of things a middle schooler should be saying.
“Sorry for whining. I couldn’t say any of this to my family, and I’ve been bottling it up.”
“I understand.”
“Kind unnie, I have one wish.”
“Go on.”
“I wish I could walk on my own legs again.
I wish I could run again.
If I could do that, I feel like I could do anything.”
“……That’s a wish that’s hard to come true.”
I answered honestly.
Because like Ha-yoon said earlier, I didn’t want to give her false hope and throw her into even deeper despair.
“Figured as much.”
“Yeah.”
“Then I guess… I’ll have to find a hobby or something.”
“A hobby?”
“Yes. My arms still move just fine, like this. If I don’t believe there’s still something I can do, I don’t think I’ll want to keep living.”
Ha-yoon moved the arms that were wrapped around my neck, shifting them back and forth.
“That’s a good idea.”
“Can you recommend something I could do?”
“Hmm…………. I’m not very good at hobbies myself.”
“Then… can you help me find one?”
“Let’s do that.”
“Will you come visit me often?”
“If I can find the time. I kind of got thrown into a high-ranking position, so there’s been a lot going on lately.”
“Then… even once a week would be enough. If it’s too much trouble, just once a week is okay.”
“I’ll do that.”
“Is that a promise?”
For a moment, Ha-yoon’s face lit up.
If that’s all it takes, there’s no reason I can’t keep that promise.
At the same time, I found myself truly wanting to help this girl recover.
And in that moment, one particular fact came to mind.
The blood of a dragon is said to hold miraculous power.
After my meeting with Ha-yoon ended, I reached out to Yeon-hwa.
There was something I needed to check.
That idea that had surfaced earlier—I needed to figure out if it was real or not.
I opened my chat app right away.
It was easier to get a response from Yeon-hwa by texting than by talking directly.
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Yeon-hwa, do you have a moment?]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: What’s going on?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: It’s nothing serious… I was wondering—when you drank my blood, did you notice anything special besides just the taste? I figured you’d be the most knowledgeable when it comes to blood.]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: Hm………… how should I put it? It felt like an insane amount of energy surged through me. And maybe it’s because of that, but after I drank your blood, I didn’t really feel drained in the sunlight anymore.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: What do you think would happen if a normal human drank it?]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: I can’t say for sure, but… it would probably cure most illnesses. You know how in fantasy or other media, there’s always that cliché? Like, if you bathe in dragon’s blood, you become immortal… something like that.]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: Well, even if your blood doesn’t make someone immortal, I’m sure it has restorative effects. You can trust me—when it comes to blood, I can usually tell right away. But, why are you asking about dragon’s blood all of a sudden?]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: ??]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Just… something I want to test.]
So it’s true.
If even an expert on blood is this confident, then there has to be some kind of effect.
…I mean, I’m not totally sure if I should be doing this.
But it’s not like it’s impossible.
Sure, it might cause a bit of a stir.
But as long as I control it properly, it should be fine.