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Survive.
He had to survive.
That was the only thought ringing in the fox’s mind as he desperately ran. Its staggering body burned painfully with each step, a clear evidence of exhaustion settling in. The tiny body continued to blindly rush forward, using every last remaining bit of strength left to escape an aggressive pursuit.
A group of uniformed men followed closely behind the fox, the sounds of their footsteps drowned out by the heavy rain. Through unfocused eyes, the fox’s gaze darted everywhere in an attempt to spot anything that could help hide its small body. It wouldn’t take long before they caught up to him and—
The fox stumbled, a pained whimper leaving its snout.
Just then, a voice shouted from behind, “Got it!”
As the humans started to approach the struggling fox, a thick fog suddenly formed, obstructing their field of view. The fox couldn’t even find the time to think about where the fog had come from, its only thought was to escape right away but the arrow that had been shot by one of the humans was lodged deeply into the lower half of its body— trying to run, let alone get up, was impossible.
Suppressing the urge to cry out in pain, the fox began to slowly drag itself away, hoping that the fog would never dissipate. Before it could even get far, the fox felt its own body being quickly swept up and pulled into a warm embrace. In a panic, the fox started to writhe weakly but the hold on its body was firm— perhaps even gentle.
What’s this?
Clearly, it was someone with a human form that had picked the fox up but wasn’t there only those people in uniforms that were present in this area?
Regardless of who this was, the fox had felt no ominous aura coming from them. Instead, it felt completely foreign— something the fox wasn’t used to; something it had once longed for, as if someone had finally answered its desperate pleas. The fox stopped struggling and went limp, letting itself melt into the warm embrace of an unknown person.
The fox was held tightly as the figure swiftly moved through the forest before eventually coming to a stop. The unknown person quietly settled down under a tree big enough to shield their figures from view. After exhaling a sigh, they started to examine the injured fox that was still pressed up against their chest, lying pitifully with its ears drooped and eyes closed.
Its fur was stained completely by blood, body covered all over in open wounds and had an arrow still stuck to its lower back. The unknown man frowned and muttered softly, “Where did you come from, hm?”
The fox could only slightly shift in response, confirming that it could at least hear what he was saying.
“Stay still. I’ll take this thing out, okay?” He spoke gently, caressing the top of the fox’s head. The fox didn’t object and quickly felt the arrow being carefully pulled out. Immediately, pain shot through its body, causing it to cry out in pain. The man continued to caress the fox’s head while his other hand tossed out the arrow before fumbling around to pull out a bottle filled with shiny looking liquid.
He wasted no time feeding it to the fox who obediently drank. A few moments later, the pain quickly subsided and a few of the open wounds began to close up. The man carefully threaded his fingers through the fox’s red fur with his brows slightly furrowed as he examined the remaining few open wounds.
“This…”
Why aren’t some of these wounds healing?
Almost immediately, his parted lips quickly shut in realization.
“They used dragon slayer weapons to attack you?” There was a deep frown on his lips as he spoke.
Dragon slayer weapons were more special than any other kind of weapons. Even regular dragons were struggling to heal after being fatally wounded by one. How was this fox able to survive until now?
Unless—
“You’re a beast person?”
Slowly, the fox opened its eyes and stared at the person he was lying on— no wait, this wasn’t a person? They were definitely male but there were horns that looked like branches coming out from the top of his head and golden scales visible, glistening from the sides of his face down to his neck.
For a second, the fox almost doubted his own eyes, blinking a few times in shock.
There was no mistaking him for anything else— horns and scales— this young man was a dragon.
The stunned fox stared dumbfoundedly at the being in front of it, almost as if it couldn’t fathom the idea of being saved then held gently in the arms of a dragon of all people.
Dragons weren’t all like this, right?
How could the fox be so lucky to encounter one like this?
At that thought, the fox’s ears involuntarily twitched and the dragon’s eyes that had a hint of red in the pupils narrowed slightly with a flash of amusement. It was only then did the fox notice something odd about the other's physical condition. His complexion didn’t look normal at all. He looked exhausted and was deathly pale, similar to that of a sick person.
Could he be sick?
Wait— was it even possible for dragons to get sick?
“Hey, let’s—“ The dragon was abruptly cut off, his previously calm demeanor quickly shifted to an alerted one. Suddenly, the fox’s ears perked up as its sensitive ears started to pick up sounds from within the woods. It sounded like footsteps belonging to a group of people that were approaching their area with a sense of certainty.
The fox’s eyes widened.
How—
“We have to get out of here.”
The fox lightly scratched the dragon’s chest as if wanting to say something but was ignored by the dragon who hurriedly stood up and ran even further into the forest.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
“Are you cold?” The dragon softly asked, feeling the fox’s slightly shaking body still clinging onto his chest. He’d taken his coat off to cover the fox’s small figure as he held him close but the shivering wouldn’t stop. The fox’s chances of survival were low, especially if they continued to run like this instead of seeking treatment for the wounds caused by the dragon slayer weapons.
This fox could be saved if he could send him away to that person but—
He pressed a hand against the left side of his chest where his heart resided. It was beating rapidly, thumping loud enough for the fox resting in his arms to hear. The dragon closed his eyes, feeling the weak energy circling around his heart.
“Should be enough…” He muttered quietly to himself, moving the same hand up to slip into the collar of his shirt before pulling out a small glittering piece of jewelry. With a snap, the jewel’s string broke, freed from the dragon’s neck.
In his arms, the fox began to stir, opening its eyes to stare questioningly at the other.
“Can you walk?”
Upon hearing the question, the fox tilted its head slightly. It didn’t answer directly, only staring at him with curiosity instead. It seemed the fox was more concerned about what the dragon was planning.
“Ah, nevermind,” the dragon’s lips curved up into a smile. “I know a healer who could treat these types of wounds,” the fox stared blankly at him. “If I could send you to him then everything would be fine—“
The fox abruptly propped its own body up in alarm. From outside of the cave, where they were hiding, it could hear the sounds of familiar footsteps approaching once more.
They’ve been found again.
No matter how much they run—
The dragon continued, “I figured out something.”
Realization finally sunk in.
It wasn’t just the dragon who’d figured it out, the fox did so too.
“If I could just send you away then…”
No!
The fox jumped up, frantically clawing the dragon’s chest through his shirt and shaking its head repeatedly.
You can’t! You can’t do that!
It wanted to scream.
Even if the dragon hadn’t voiced it, the truth was painfully obvious to the both of them.
The fox had been bait for the dragon from the start.
If only—
“You know, when I picked you up earlier, I really thought you were just a regular fox but—“ The jewel in his hand started glowing brightly.
If only he could turn into a human—!
With a crack, blinding light bursted out of the jewel. At the same time, the fox’s figure shifted into a silhouette of a man, startling the dragon who just finished casting a spell. Before he knew it, the fox in his arms had disappeared and was replaced by an unfamiliar young man with light colored hair, a mole under one of his eyes and fox ears sticking out of his head.
The dragon felt himself being pulled into the other’s embrace then something soft crashing against lips. His eyes widened in shock, body stiffening up immediately. There was another pair of lips on his own— he was being kissed.
Just then, something solid and cold slipped into his mouth. Instinctively, the dragon had the urge to swallow and so he did. He swallowed the foreign object in daze, unable to process a single thing that was happening. When they eventually parted lips, he stared at the unfamiliar man in front of him with unfocused eyes. It was only at that moment did he feel a burning sensation in chest.
This wasn’t the feeling of mana exhaustion at all.
“You…”
His brows furrowed as he made eye contact with the “fox”.
What the hell did you feed me?
The question couldn’t be asked as the body of the young man slowly became transparent. His teleportation spell had finally activated and it was going to send the “fox” away now. The “fox” sent him a glare, smiling bitterly with his disappearing hand still clinging desperately onto the dragon’s hand.
“I’ll find you again so don’t you dare die on me, okay?” He finally spoke to the dragon for the first time, a voice that was calm but firm.
“W-wait—!” The dragon gasped, trying to reach out to the “fox” but he no longer had a physical form. “You— What’s your name?”
“… How about you give me one?”
The dragon was stunned.
“Then—!”
He ignored the approaching footsteps that were gradually getting closer.
“Ho…”
As the “fox” was about to completely disappear, there was a sudden sharp ringing in his ears, preventing him from hearing the rest of the dragon’s words. Despite that, he could clearly see the other’s lips moving to form the words.
For the first time in his life, the “fox” felt a gush of warmth bursting from his eyes.
“Ho Yuwon,” he whispered
That was the name his beloved dragon had given him.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Ho Yuwon awoke with a throbbing headache and loud ringing in his ears. He panted heavily and squinted his eyes, trying to adjust to the sudden brightness. His whole body was drenched in cold sweat, making him feel even more uncomfortable.
“Fuck,” a soft curse left his pale lips.
He must’ve fallen asleep without realizing it.
Ho Yuwon’s trembling hands moved up to touch his heaving chest that was rising and falling rapidly. He could feel his heart beating uncontrollably and the tight sensation on his chest was suffocating.
That dream again—
Why did he have to dream of that again?
Unknowingly, Ho Yuwon slowly started to recall the contents of the dream— or rather, his past memories. In a daze, he lifted a hand to touch his lips.
They were warm.
Just like those lips he’d kissed that day.
Buried deep within his memories, he could faintly make out the face of another man. His face was shrouded by nothing but fog but Ho Yuwon would never forget the warmth he left behind— the warmth that lingered on his skin as a reminder that he was still alive.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Loud clattering, classical music that was slowly becoming more obnoxious, the clinking of wine glasses, blinding lights pouring down from the chandeliers— everything was ticking Ho Yuwon off.
Having to attend a mandatory banquet while he was still in a sour mood was unpleasant. He couldn’t recall how many times he had to resist the urge to spit at someone for simply just greeting him. Ho Yuwon silently let out a sigh, lost in deep thought as his gaze swept across the crowd of people.
He’d been drowning in an awful mood and momentarily forgot about the purpose of this entire banquet.
Right, Her Majesty is going to make an appearance and—
Ho Yuwon’s gaze landed on an unfamiliar figure who’d just entered the hall through the main entrance. Almost instantly, everyone’s eyes shifted towards that person at the same time. Accompanied by two other familiar knights, each adorned with golden brooches, was a man with dark hair and glasses, dressed in a formal attire made for knights with a sword resting on the side of his hips—
It’s him.
Without wasting another second, Ho Yuwon made his way towards the man before anyone else could.
“Hello, you must be the new recruit I’ve heard so much about!” Ho Yuwon naturally suppressed his emotions and smiled brightly, extending a hand out in greeting.
The knight looked stunned but was quick to shake his hand in response and greeted, “Good evening…”
“Duke Ho.”
“Ah! Your Grace!” He seemed flustered, slightly bowing in respect. “My name is Kim Soleum. It’s an honor to finally meet you.”
“I’ve heard lots of things about you too,” Ho Yuwon’s sharp eyes stared deeply into Kim Soleum and continued, “You slayed a dragon after joining for only two weeks?”
“Oh, you know about that too,” Kim Soleum smiled awkwardly.
“Of course, I’d know!” Ho Yuwon nodded meaningfully and tightened his grip on Kim Soleum’s hand. “After all…”
Aren’t you a dragon yourself?
Kim Soleum’s expression shifted into an uncomfortable one, his brows slightly furrowing as he stared at their tightly intertwined hands.
“… This banquet’s main topic is you!” Ho Yuwon exclaimed enthusiastically.
“Ah,” Kim Soleum nervously chuckled in response. “That’s right.”
Ho Yuwon kept his smile as he continued to chatter happily with the other man.
But deep in his mind, he was sure about one thing—
He’s a dragon.
Ho Yuwon was no stranger to encountering dragons, especially one that was disguised, but he found it interesting that this particular dragon had joined the knights— had become a dragon slayer and even killed another dragon himself.
Who exactly was he?
Placing yourself in a cage, surrounded by the very weapons made to kill you— what goal was he trying to achieve by doing all this?
Assassinate the queen?
But could his goal be as simple as that?
And why—
Ho Yuwon’s gaze landed on their tightly intertwined hands.
Why was this warmth so familiar?
Kim Soleum, who exactly are you?