“Hurk!” Thud.
Having exhausted all his true energy, he fell to his knees on the floor. ‘Did I get rid of it……?’ Panting for breath and coming to his senses, he looked at the egg touching his front paw.
Crack. Snap.
It was a success.
Centered around his palm, which had become the trigger for channeling his power, cracks began to form on the egg’s surface. ‘I did it! As expected, this body’s power is the strongest!’ The cracks gradually multiplied.
Imoogi grinned as he sat down, crossing his legs and wedging the egg between them. ‘To think it endured this. Though it’s merely an egg, that’s impressive.’ The moment Imoogi shook his head and placed one foot on the eggshell to peel it off and replenish his spent energy.
Snap!
“Cheep-yaak-!”
“Kyu?” ‘Hm?’ The eggshell popped off, and a white bird’s head poked out with a thunk, bumping into Imoogi’s finger.
“Cheep. Cheep! Peep-peep-peep-peep.”
“Kyu……
Woo?” ‘What is this……?’ Imoogi was half out of his mind.
The sensation of soft, white down rubbing and nuzzling came against his front paw.
“Cheep! Peep-ah!”
The bird lifted its white face and opened its eyes.
Yellow pupils embedded in white down met Imoogi’s red eyes. ‘A bird?’ The shell broke a little more, and tiny white wings fluttered.
“Chirp! Peep-ack!” ‘What the hell. Why is a bird here—!’ He, who had been staring blankly at the bird, finally came to his senses. ‘Wait…… Why is this alive? It was a roasted egg, wasn’t it? And what is this energy I’m feeling from this guy?’ Imoogi, examining the bird, opened his mouth even wider in bewilderment. ‘It’s mixed with fire energy, and even my power!’ No wonder he had felt his power being nullified every time he exerted force to break the egg; it wasn’t being nullified, but rather had been absorbing all his power. The fact that it hadn’t been roasted by the Red Dragon’s fire was surely because it had absorbed all that energy. ‘S-so then all the power I had built up until now went to this thing……?’ Thud.
Having realized the truth, his strength drained completely in futility. He could barely prop up his limp body with one front paw spread to the side. ‘What a waste…… Really, it’s driving me crazy how regrettable this is.’ His small body trembled with rage.
Meanwhile, the baby bird completely shed its eggshell and approached him, who was half-collapsed.
“Peep. Peep-peep.”
‘What are you saying.’ When he raised his haggard eyes to look at the bird, the chick-like white creature nuzzled its beak against the top of Imoogi’s front paw as if pleased to make eye contact.
“Peep-ah. Peep-ah.”
Seeing the chick approaching so boldly and leaning against him, a fleeting thought crossed his mind. ‘Could it be imprinting?’ Some creatures blindly follow the first thing they see upon birth, believing it to be their mother. Since it had even absorbed Imoogi’s power, it wouldn’t be strange if it felt they were the same kind. ‘Come to think of it, there were some among divine beasts born with similar traits.’ He left the chick and got up to test walking around.
The chick followed after him as if it were natural, clicking away.
Whether left or right, or even in circles, the chick diligently moved its thin legs to chase him. ‘This is absurd.’ Sighing into the air, he shook his head.
“Peep-ah! Chirp!”
Fluttering its tiny white wings, its bright, sparkling eyes seemed to ask for praise as it flapped. ‘Ugh. What a pain.’ Having exhausted all his strength and mental energy because of this unexpected creature, rest was desperate.
Imoogi spread his small wings and fluttered to his cradle.
“Peep-aaaa! Peep-peep! Peep-ah!”
‘What. It can’t fly yet?’ The desperate peeping sounds gradually grew distant. ‘Good. I was getting tired anyway; if I ignore it, it’ll sort itself out.’ He carelessly laid his face on the pillow.
“Peep! Peep-ah! Peep…….”
‘That’s right.’ Hearing the gradually weakening cries, he felt a prick of conscience, but he pressed his ear against the pillow to block the sound as much as possible.
However.
“Peep……. Peep-ah. Peep……
Woo. Chirrup.”
The sounds gradually grew sorrowful, eventually turning into sobbing hiccups. Glancing back thinking no way, the white chick was dropping tears like a child who had lost its mother. ‘Don’t cry! I told you not to cry!’ The chick flapped its tiny wings and hopped in place when it saw Imoogi’s face outside the cradle.
“Cheep! Peep-peep!”
It was enough to make him go crazy and jump around. Feeling irritation and the prick of conscience simultaneously, he finally shot up. ‘This damn little bird!’ He placed his foot on the cradle railing and glared at the chick with a fierce expression.
Meanwhile, Christina, unaware of this situation, returned to her lair with an anxious heart. ‘My return home was later than expected.’ The basket hanging on her left wrist was full of freshly roasted, steaming Phoenix eggs. ‘I told him I’d bring them as soon as possible…… What if he’s hungry?’ Recalling the expression he’d made when he said there was no milk, Christina let out a small laugh. Because his shocked face had been cuter than she’d thought, and his sulky face had been funny too. ‘He was cute.’ But she quickly erased her wandering thoughts with worry for the child left alone.
“Baby.”
Entering Imoogi’s room, she heard a rumbling sound and let out a sigh of relief. Looking around, broken eggshells were scattered about. ‘Oh dear. It seems he got tired of waiting and ate all the remaining eggs before falling asleep.’ Christina approached Imoogi, then tilted her head upon seeing a white lump of fur curled up roundly on top of his head.
“What’s that?”
It was a white furball that hadn’t been there when she left. The hatchling sleeping with his brows slightly furrowed, and the white chick with a single black feather sticking out from its head like an antenna, took turns snoring.
“Chirrrrrrp.”
“Kuu……
Woo.”
Their bellies rose and fell as they curled up and slept without a care in the world. It was a sight that would melt anyone’s heart just by looking at it.
Chapter 8: Roasted Eggs and Phoenix
Christina looked back and forth between the broken eggshell and the chick, letting out a strange exclamation. ‘Don’t tell me it’s a Phoenix egg……?’ Christina carefully brought her hand near the sleeping bird.
A subtle, pure magical power of fire. And there, the power of darkness coiled around it.
At that moment, the awakened chick snapped its eyes open.
FWOOSH.
The white bird standing on the pillow with thin black legs wrapped its body in flames, its yellow eyes containing clear hostility. The innocent baby bird it had shown to Imoogi was nowhere to be seen. The bird puffed up its down as if seeing an intruder, glaring at Christina with sharp, wary eyes.
“Cheeeep……!”
Hot heat and light began to emanate from its white body. ‘Not bad.’ Christina didn’t reach out any further, retreating slightly as she looked at it.
‘It must know the energy of a Dragon, yet for a newborn Phoenix chick to oppose me this much.’ Divine Judgment. The flames of divine punishment. The sacred fire bird called the one that travels to and from the divine garden. A Phoenix, said to be rarer than Dragons, with only one existing per generation. ‘However, this generation’s Phoenix is a child shrouded in darkness rather than pure fire.’ She looked at the black hatchling sleeping without a care in the world. ‘Surely it’s the influence of this child, without a doubt.’
The child of a Black Dragon that had once disappeared from this world being born, and a Phoenix chick, called the bird of god, protecting him. It felt like glimpsing a fragment of fate. ‘What a strange feeling. It’s as if I’m looking at an eddy in a predetermined flow.’ While she was immersed in that mysterious wonder, the hatchling let out a groan and opened his eyes heavy with sleep.
He looked back and forth between Christina and the white bird burning with light, then flicked it with his hand.
“Kyu.” ‘Shut up.’
“Cheep! Chirrup.”
The Phoenix chick rolled weakly to the side and fell over, chirping sorrowfully, having returned to a white furball devoid of any light.
“Kyu. Kyuu.” ‘Don’t act rudely toward Christina. She’s my benefactor.’
“Cheep-peep-peep……. Peep-ah.”
As if understanding what he was saying while snorting, the white chick sharply raised the black feather on its head that hung like an antenna, then drooped it loosely while watching Imoogi’s reaction. Seeing it sparkle its eyes obediently, Imoogi nodded once.
“Kyu-kyu.” ‘Good job.’
Rewards and punishments must be clear.
Imoogi nodded and lightly stroked the white chick’s head.
“Peep-peep! Peep-peep-ah!”
The chick quickly brightened and rubbed its head against him. Then it quickly climbed onto the hatchling’s lap and settled there. As if asking for more praise.
“Puhut.”