Chapter 3: First Morning With A Child

Crackling, crackling.

The sound of firewood burning still remained soft and steady.

I listened intently.

It was always a pleasant sound.

For someone like me, whose preferences had blurred, this rare sense of “good” was one of the few things left.

Subtle, warm, constant.

It was calm.

Not noisy.

A rhythm that quietly calmed my mind.

Perhaps that’s why, even after all this time, I never grew tired of it.

Some things that never change,

Sometimes, simply by existing, bring comfort.

Like the sound of this small fire.

‘But today…’

Through the crackling sounds,

A faint, weak breathing could be heard.

“…Still resting.”

A quiet mutter, almost unsure if it was just to myself.

I slowly opened my eyes.

I turned my head toward the child.

A chest that slowly rose and fell.

A face that had faintly regained its color.

Though the expression was more relaxed than before, the eyes still remained closed.

Whether it was fainted, asleep, or stuck somewhere in between, I couldn’t tell.

But still,

The child was breathing.

That was enough for me to stay right there.

Occasionally, I added more wood to the fire,

And when the wind blew hard, I pressed down the blanket to keep it from flying away.

That was all.

That’s all I did for the child.

I sat beside them until the sunlight became brighter than the fire.

“…Strange.”

Once again, a mutter escaped.

The sense of curiosity grew as I recognized that I was talking to myself.

Unlike the usual times when I was simply killing time, I was now doing this and that.

Yet.

Why did it feel like time was moving so slowly?

‘I haven’t felt this in a long time… It’s strange.’

I gently touched the child’s face.

It was cold.

Still unmoving.

Just letting out faint breaths.

They must be alive.

After all, they were still breathing.

For now, I decided to believe that.

“When will you wake up?”

No answer came.

Since I didn’t expect one, I didn’t mind.

I kept my gaze on the firelight.

I stared at the flames in silence for a while.

“…The sun is fully up.”

Was it because the roof and windows were broken here and there?

The sunlight came in so vividly that it almost gave the illusion of being outside.

“It’s blinding.”

I instinctively reached up to lower the hood of my robe, but stopped.

Right.

My robe was taken.

I shifted my gaze to my robe,

And the child, wrapped up in it.

Seeing it under the bright sunlight made me realize something.

This child,

The more I looked at them,

“So dirty.”

My robe was probably dirty as well.

I grabbed the hem of my robe and checked—it was definitely dirty.

A sigh of annoyance escaped me.

I raised my left hand, considering using my power, but stopped.

“…I’ll just wash it.”

I slowly stood up.

I stretched my stiff back.

‘The sunlight is warm enough, the blanket should be enough.’

I carefully reached out,

And unwrapped the robe from around the child.

At that moment—

Dust and fallen leaves fluttered from the robe.

A spider web full of cocoons clung to it like thin threads.

“This is… Worse than I expected.”

I quietly observed the child.

Face, hands, feet.

Even their hair was covered in dirt.

‘…Wait, there’s blood mixed in.’

Now that I looked, the dirt was mixed with blood.

I lightly rolled up the child’s sleeve.

The wounds weren’t large, but scars seemed to have been left from being unattended for a long time.

“You really are unlucky.”

It would’ve been better if a paladin or priest skilled in healing magic had found you, not a dragon like me.

Or an elf.

They probably wouldn’t have cared either, like me.

“Hmm…”

I looked over the child again.

I slowly tilted my head.

“If you wake up in this state, wouldn’t it feel gross?”

I glanced between the child and my dirty robe.

I muttered softly, looking back and forth.

“Can I wash the child with the robe?”

I carefully considered it.

Then, suddenly, an old memory surfaced.

There was a time before.

When I had found a life barely hanging on.

Small, white, fluffy.

A dust-covered unknown creature.

It had been so dirty that I washed it, and it died.

‘Back then, I probably washed it too harshly.’

The foam wouldn’t go away.

I kept scrubbing, rinsing, and soaking for a long time.

In the end, it became clean.

But it wasn’t alive anymore.

The child’s chest still rose and fell slowly.

“…I shouldn’t wash it like that, should I?”

I had fed them with the horn ground down.

It wasn’t a waste, but I didn’t want my actions to be in vain.

Besides…

If I managed to save them,

I should at least help them survive.

‘That’s what responsibility means.’

I gently brushed the child’s hair.

It was rough and tangled, but it didn’t feel like a dead person.

“Let’s not kill you this time.”

For now, I’ll just wipe them with a wet cloth.

I’ll have to figure out how to wash humans when I go down to a human village later.

Creek—.

I carefully opened the door to avoid breaking it.

Sunlight warmly illuminated the cabin.

The forest was quieter than yesterday,

And both the wind and the leaves moved gently.

I arrived at the well.

Slowly, I drew water from the well and filled the nearby bucket.

“…It’s cold. I wonder if you’d dislike it.”

I started a fire to heat the water.

I am a dragon.

I barely feel cold or heat.

Though I don’t shake from the cold or sweat from the heat,

I still stacked the firewood just to hear the crackling sound.

‘I should gather more firewood, I don’t know when they’ll wake up.’

The water boiled quickly.

A faint steam rose from the bucket.

I lightly stirred the water with my finger.

“…Is this good?”

I returned inside the cabin.

The child was still there.

The small breath.

Slow but steady movement.

“You sleep well.”

I left a brief remark and placed the robe into the warm water.

Once, twice.

I thoroughly soaked it,

Then squeezed out the excess water with my hands.

“I’ll have to wash it anyway.”

I took the wet robe and sat next to the child.

Carefully.

Slowly.

I placed the cloth on the child’s face.

I wiped their forehead,

Passed between their eyebrows,

And slowly moved down their cheek.

I wiped away the dirt, moving along their small nose and jawline.

At that moment—

Their eyelashes trembled slightly.

The child’s brows furrowed.

“Ugh.”

It was the first time I heard the child’s voice.

I stopped immediately.

I watched them for a long time.

‘Their eyes are still closed.’

I swallowed hard and carefully spoke.

“Does it hurt? Did you wake up?”

The child remained silent.

Their eyes were still shut.

It was probably just a reflex.

‘…I thought I was being gentle.’

I wet the robe again.

I carefully wiped their arms, hands, and between their fingers.

The dried blood stains were hard to remove.

This time, I didn’t rub forcefully.

‘I’ll try again when I learn the proper way to wash it.’

I eased my grip.

Not too much.

This time, I didn’t want to kill them.

Finally,

After wiping their feet, I let out a long sigh.

“Is this good enough?”

Wiping down this small child took more time than I expected.

The sun was now high in the sky.

I glanced at the robe I had just finished washing.

“Yeah.”

It was too dirty.

It should be thrown away.

I tossed it aside without hesitation.

If something needs to be thrown away, I do it immediately.

That’s how I always am.

I turned my attention back to the child.

Most of the dirt had been cleaned off.

Thanks to that, they were looking presentable again.

Now then,

The child still hadn’t woken up.

“Do humans sleep for a long time?”

Once again, the silence returned.

The room was once again filled with the sound of the fire crackling.

At that moment, as I smiled faintly at the familiar situation, I heard a response for the first time.

– Grwwwwwwwwww

Sadly, it wasn’t the child’s voice.

“You’re quiet with your mouth, but your stomach is noisy.”

I chuckled softly.

But only for a moment before falling into another round of contemplation.

‘I don’t have any food…’

I opened the small leather pouch on my belt.

Inside, there were

Gems and gold that I had stored for when I got hungry.

“Let’s see…”

I fumbled around, pulling out one gem after another,

Until I held a diamond imbued with the most magic.

At that moment—

A memory popped into my head.

“Ah, right. Humans can’t eat gems.”

It was something I had only recently learned.

Before that, I thought humans collected gems to eat.

‘So food isn’t a delicacy but a staple for them.’

It still fascinated me when I thought about it.

To think they’d rely on something so inefficient without magic as their main source of sustenance.

“Why can’t they eat this?”

I carefully opened the child’s mouth.

A small tongue.

Even smaller teeth.

I poked at them out of curiosity.

They seemed like they’d crumble if I just squeezed them a little.

“With something so delicate, it’s no wonder they can’t eat it.”

I muttered in admiration as I looked inside their mouth.

Fascinating.

So interesting.

‘I wonder if I can grind it into powder and they can eat it?’

I pressed my fingers against the diamond.

It shattered, and fine powder settled on my palm.

I stared at the glimmering powder for a moment.

“I’ve never eaten this before… Is it worth eating?”

I slowly touched it with my tongue.

The sensation was like licking sand, and I furrowed my brows.

“…It tastes awful.”

I shook my hand, scattering the powder.

It seemed that once it was ground into powder, all the magic inside had disappeared.

Now I understood.

Why humans don’t eat gem powder.

It has no taste,

The magic is gone,

And most of all, the texture is horrible to swallow.

“What do I do now?”

In the end,

Do I have to make food, the kind humans eat?

“…How do I even make that?”

I sighed quietly as I looked at the sun visible through the roof.