Chapter 03

Monster in the Barn

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Monster in the Barn

At Erdin's request, I headed towards the barn at around 9 o'clock.

By 8 in the evening, all the lights in the academy during the vacation period would be turned off.

The lamp posts, apart from the patrol path, stood cold and still.

This was to be expected.

There was no reason to illuminate the empty campus.

Only the red full moon and starlight illuminated the night sky.

The dormitory was no exception.

The surroundings were as dark as pitch.

It gave off the eerie feeling of an abandoned school left untouched for years.

During the semester, the dormitory lights would indirectly illuminate the streets, but unfortunately, today was a holiday, so I had to rely on a small lantern.

Rustle, rustle...!

 'But what on earth is that? 'A wild animal?'

Something continued to move and make noise among the collapsed remains of the barn. Moreover, a greenish light resembling will-o'-the-wisps kept staring at me.

The mysterious gaze was enough to freeze me in place. In that moment, my body wouldn't move easily due to tension.

Gulp!

I swallowed dryly and continued to face off against the unidentified creature.

Having encountered wild boars during my military service, I knew that in moments like this, it was crucial to act calmly. Acting hastily or showing your back and fleeing would be nothing short of suicidal.

Rustle...!

My frozen body began to move again.

No matter what, I had to avoid provoking the creature. So, once my body fully recovered, I planned to retreat slowly, step by step.

At the same time, I shone the lantern ahead.

While escaping safely was the priority, I also wanted to make sure to catch a glimpse of the culprit who had caused the barn to end up like this.

Indeed, if I were to flee now, although I might be able to escape immediate danger, I could later be unfairly accused of neglecting my duties in the barn. The consequence might be an extended period of service as a servant or, as Erdin feared, facing the dragons' reprimand.

'Damn, the light isn't strong enough to reach far, is it?'

But the lantern only light up my surroundings,

 The light could not shine far.

 Before my eyes, a faint shadow was moving slowly.

Since the figure wasn't clearly visible, my fear intensified. Goosebumps ran down my spine. The anxiety of what if it's not just another wild animal is overwhelming.

Stay calm. It's probably nothing serious. 

Considering this island has been inhabited by dragons for so long, it's unlikely there would be any aggressive wild animals. At most, there might be some wildcats.

I slowly stepped back, trying to reassure myself. However, it was only temporary relief, and it didn't have much of an effect.

Wait a moment? 

Who could have caused the barn to end up like this? It doesn't make sense. It's unlikely that mere stray cats would have done all this... Something doesn't add up.

As I was paralyzed by the contradictions in my own logic, a dark shadow emerged from among the debris, revealing its overall silhouette.

 It was definitely bigger than a cat.

The thick, long tail waving gently

Something I had never seen before walked towards me walking on all fours.

'What should I do? Why is it coming towards me?'

I had no combat skills whatsoever. 

The only thing I had was the Beast Taming skill, suitable for barn management. 

And my only specialty was accurately measuring coffee water.

Moreover, his physical strength was also very average.

Still, I was confident in my running abilities. If the creature were to charge at me, it seemed like my only option would be to grab a lantern and run for it while it was distracted.

It was during this moment of planning my escape that suddenly—

'Oh, here it comes!'

The unidentified creature emerged from the shadows with a thud, thud sound, finally revealing itself outside of the darkness. However, it was far from threatening.

Instead, it was, how should I put it...?

Familiar in appearance?

It was an entirely unexpected and surprising sight.

"Wha... What...?!"

In the darkness, as the lantern light fell upon it, surprisingly, it stood up on two feet. It was no longer in the shape of an animal.

To be precise, before me stood a young girl.

Her hair was tied into two ponytails.

Her eyes shone with a bright green color.

She appeared to be about 150 centimeters tall.

She was an unmistakable little girl.

"Huh? What? Whoa..."

She was wearing a black robe that resembled a cloak, and she giggled while emitting a greenish glow. She kept making sounds of exclamation as she spoke.

"W-What? A little girl...?"

For a moment, I thought I was dreaming. Or perhaps it was exhaustion causing me to see hallucinations. After all, I've never experienced hallucinations before.

Despite blinking and trying to clear my vision in this strange standoff, the girl in front of me didn't disappear.

She was not a figment of my imagination, but a real person before my eyes.

As difficult as it was to accept, it was better than the alternative.

"Hey there, little one... Who are you?"

"Eek! I'm Derkein Deathsung-!"

"Derkein...?"

In response to my question, the girl answers. She presents her name with a peculiar manner of speech. Her voice doesn't convey any malice. Rather, it sounds almost cheerful to be engaged in conversation.

"Yeah, that's right! My name is Derkein Deathsung-! Are you a human, by any chance?!"

The girl's disoriented speech momentarily left me dumbfounded. Even though I try pinching my cheek to check if this is a dream, the sensation of pain confirms that it's not.

"Um, yeah. Derkein...? It's dangerous over there, so do you want to come this way for now?"

I couldn't stay dazed forever. Now that I confirmed she was human, there was no need to be on guard anymore.

I didn't know why a little girl like her was in such a place, but we needed to evacuate from the collapsing barn as soon as possible.

"A kind human's invitation...! Derkein will gladly accept-!"

With that, Derkein, as she introduced herself, gracefully stepped toward me, her movements surprisingly agile for a young girl.

Tap, tap, tap...!

With each step, Derkein, the girl who identified herself, gracefully approached me, stepping lightly on the wooden planks. Despite her young age, her movements were surprisingly agile.

As she drew closer, Derkein's innocent expression came into close-up view. I couldn't help but laugh, wondering what was so fun about jumping up and down while stepping on debris.

Finally, Derkein stood before me.

From the looks of it, she was a kid in her mid-teens.

She appeared to be in her mid-teens, with the unusual hair color, just like mine, tied into a ponytail, and strangely enough, her eyes were glowing green.

"Hehe-♪ What's your name, oppa?"

Derkein's lips curled into an innocent smirk as she stared at my face.

  Tch!

She stuck out her right hand to shake mine.

 "Oh, I am Breeder and the Academy's dormitory director."

 I said simply, extending my hand to Derkein. There was no reason to reject the young girl's handshake so coldly.

 Squeak!

 Her tiny hand slipped into my palm.

 It was such a cute little hand.

 How did this little girl end up here, anyway?

"Breeder oppa! I'm counting on you from now on!"

That's when Derke grabbed my hand to shake it, saying he's counting on me.

'What, what is this...?!'

In an instant, the system notification popped up. Countless system windows blocking my view displayed unbelievable messages.

The sudden jump to S-rank in Beast Taming was surprising enough, but the fact that I apparently tamed a superior being?

'Could it be...?'

A sudden possibility flashed through my mind.

I quickly closed the system windows.

Then, the cheerful expression of Derkein caught my eye.

"Vesisi~ ♬"

As I look closely, her slightly protruding fangs between her sunny smile are quite striking.

"Are you... a dragon, by any chance?"

"Yeah-! I'm Derkein Deathsung, the last descendant of the Death Dragon who presides over death-!"

"Goodness..."

Could it be that she uses the term 'deathsung' because she's a Death Dragon?

Sometimes, characters with extreme concepts like this appear. They use dialects or repeat certain speech patterns...

Normally, just hearing this type of speech would have been repellent to me, but seeing this lively little girl with her sparkling smile, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by how adorable she was.

"Um... So, did you make the barn like this?"

"Yep-! I left early to avoid being late for the entrance ceremony, but that's why I am here now-!"

"Then, you ended up making a wrong landing because it got dark?"

"Smart oppa-! That's the correct answer-!"

Derkein maintained her consistent high energy, nodding vigorously.

Now, it finally made sense why the rank of Beast Taming suddenly increased. I didn't just commune with any other animal, but with a dragon no less. No wonder.

'Derkein... Derkein, huh...'

As I continued to mull over the name while gazing at the girl's face, there was no information matching the SSR-grade character from my memory.

While it was great that the Beast Taming rank had skyrocketed all the way, there was a slight disappointment. After coming this far, not even one SSR-grade character appeared.

Suddenly, amidst my contemplation,

Grrrrrrr...!

"Hm?"

Focused on examining Derkein's face, I was interrupted.

"I am so hungry... "

Just moments ago, Derkein had been full of vitality, but now she seemed completely deflated. She held onto her stomach with a pouty face, sending me a pitiful gaze.

Seeing her like this, I couldn't help but think that dragons were nothing compared to a lost kitten. She clung to my leg as if I were her chosen caretaker.

"Oh, um, would you like to have this for now?" 

I pulled out a cookie I had secretly saved for a late-night snack before bed.

It was a homemade cookie made with ingredients I had gathered from here and there.

"Wow...! Thank you so much!" 

"Wait a moment...!"

As I was planning to take out a few cookies from my pocket, Derkein unexpectedly snatched the entire pocket.

"Crunch, crunch!"

Before I could say anything, she hastily devoured all the cookies.

"What now?"

The system message that kept popping up whenever I least expected it.

I couldn't resist my curiosity and called up the communion list.

"??!!"

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