"Ugh..."

For some reason, whenever I pet Baekrang, the nearby Igaksu creatures go wild.

"Polygamy-y-y!"
"Geh-geh-ggek."

Whatever, as long as they seem to like it.

Things seem to be going well.

I suppose the misunderstandings between the Igaksu and the wolf pack have been resolved. Now that the youngest and the leader are together, there’s no need for them to attack the wolves recklessly. At the very least, they'll hold back for my sake.

The Igaksu weren’t that aggressive to begin with.

“Rustle, rustle, rustle.”

Yes, from now on, let's settle things with words.

"Geh-geh-ggek!"

As I continued petting Baekrang and Chillang for a while, the Igaksu gradually started to retreat.

"Huktayaang..."

They left something behind — a suspicious-looking root.

It looked like a large mushroom.

It didn’t seem poisonous, but were they telling me to eat it?

"Omnivore, omnivore!"

From the look on their faces, it seemed like that’s exactly what they meant.

Crunch.

The creatures looked absolutely delighted as I accepted their offering.

"Polygamy-y-y!"

Then, the Igaksu respectfully withdrew.

"Gehk."

Take care, everyone. See you later.

Problem solved.

Now that I’ve completed my mission, I just need directions to the Dragon Gate, and I’m done.

"Alright, let's wrap this up..."

Oh, right.

"Gehk-gekk."

Before I knew it, I was petting both Chillang and Baekrang.

Chillang felt pretty good to touch, but Baekrang was on another level. I just couldn’t help myself; I wanted to keep petting.

"Enough!"

Grrr.

Hey, you're the one who asked me to pet you — why are you getting mad?

"Huff... huff..."

Guess Chillang’s the better choice.

---

After the petting frenzy, I returned to the cave.

"Whimper..."

Baekrang scolded the other wolves for failing to keep the youngest out of trouble.

"...I never imagined the problem would be resolved so quickly."
"Gehk."

Right? It was way easier than I thought it would be.

So, what kind of trouble did these Igaksu get into anyway?

…Could it be that Baekrang just wanted to give me an easy mission because simply asking for help would’ve been too embarrassing?

This guy. He’s more thoughtful than he appears.

If it were me, I would’ve kept a debt hanging over him.

"Still, as much as I hate to admit it, you saved me from a lot of worry. Thank you."
"Gehk-gekk!"

If you’re that grateful, how about giving me an elixir or something?

…I wanted to say that, but it wouldn’t be fair to ask Baekrang for that. He has to take care of the seven sisters, so feeding them alone is already a struggle.

"What you want is the location and details of the Dragon Gate, right?"
"Gekk."
"Hmm... Alright, let me give you the information first."

Baekrang is quick to get down to business.

“There are four Dragon Gates I know of.”

I had heard from my master that there were multiple Dragon Gates.

Since he specified, there might be more than just these four.

Though, for me, one gate would be enough.

“One is made of stone, another is decorated with flowers.”

That’s exactly what Baek Yeon-Yeong told me.

Those two mountains are likely just ordinary ones.

“Then there’s one covered in snow and another with flowing lava.”

Those two mountains, however, are anything but ordinary.

It’s possible for such mountains to exist naturally, I suppose.

But snow-capped and volcanic mountains coexisting? It’s unusual, to say the least. The nearby stone and flower-covered mountains should either be scorched by the heat or frozen solid.

“You can choose among the four. Which one do you prefer? Stone? Flowers?”
"Gekk."

I shook my head.

The stone and flower-covered mountains.

At first glance, they might seem easier than the snow and lava ones.

But that’s a trap.

Being in the same category as the other mountains means they likely hide their own dangers.

“Good choice. The guardians in those two places are rather dangerous.”

"Gekk-gekk."

Tell me more about these guardians.

“I haven’t seen it personally, but the one in the stone mountain resembles a snake made of rocks. It floats masses of stones around it, slowly draining your strength, and its body is so tough it can wear you down over time. It’s like a long stone serpent.”

A snake made of stone!

And it can float rocks in the air?

It wouldn’t be an easy opponent.

While I could shatter stones, a creature with a body of solid rock would be something else entirely.

It would have formidable defense, no doubt.

“The flower guardian is even nastier. It’s turtle-like and uses poison. It also controls plants to drain its opponents’ nutrients, but I haven’t seen it myself, so I’m not sure exactly how it does that. It has strange flowers attached to it.”

Poison shouldn’t be too much of a problem for me.

I am somewhat resistant to poisons.

But being resistant doesn’t mean fully immune, and I should be wary of its plant control ability too. If it can drain nutrients, it might be able to absorb my energy.

“The snow mountain and volcano are just as dangerous. The snow guardian is a large hawk that manipulates ice.”

An ice-wielding hawk?

That won’t be easy.

While cold itself is a powerful weapon, I have some resistance after consuming Sulsam.

I could endure the cold to an extent.

But its flight will be a problem. If it can stay in the air and attack from above, I’ll be at a disadvantage.

“And as for the volcano, it’s obvious, right? It controls fire. More precisely, it’s a white rat that manipulates flames.”

A fire-controlling white rat.

Unlike the others, this one’s a well-known spirit beast.

Hwagwangsoo. In fire, it’s red; outside, it has white fur — a legendary creature.

The clothes made from its fur are the famous Hwaanpo.

“The volcano’s guardian should be the easiest to defeat. The others haven’t had a change of guardians, but the volcano’s was replaced relatively recently.”

I understood what she meant.

Baek Yeon-Yeong and the Snake Queen had mentioned that one of the creatures ascending to the Dragon Gate evolved as a result.

The volcano was the gate it chose, and in the process, it likely defeated the volcano’s previous guardian.

Naturally, that guardian was replaced.

"Gehk..."

This one seems like a perfect match for me.

After all, I have a certain resistance to fire.

If fire is all it has, I could quickly finish it off.

I can counter its flames with my dragon blood’s fire resistance and use ice to inflict damage.

I pointed toward the volcano with my claws and tail.

“Alright. The volcano is probably your best choice. All you need to do is prepare for its fire.”

I’m already prepared for fire.

But it sounded like there was more to it.

Come to think of it, Baekrang…

He controls ice, doesn’t he?

"...What’s with that look? Alright, fine. While I can’t help you fight directly, I can help you counter the flames.”

"Gekk!"

Just as I thought.

“My power alone isn’t enough, though. You’ll need to gather some materials. Can you manage that?”

The guardian of the Dragon Gate will undoubtedly be powerful.

It’s uncertain if I can fully withstand its flames with dragon blood alone.

Better to prepare as much as possible.

"Gehk-gekk."

I nodded.

“It feels like our contract’s been extended a bit. Then, I’ll be counting on you for a while. And don’t pet the wolves too much!”

And so, I ended up sticking with the wolf pack for a while.

Until I could prepare to face the volcano’s guardian.

---

Baekrang, the alpha of the wolf pack, had a lot to think about.

It was all because of the black-scaled lizard that was now traveling with them.

Its strength was impressive and useful.

If not for the lizard, peace with the Igaksu would have been impossible.

And the prey it hunted was always large.

But there was a serious downside.

"Awooo..."

One by one, the other wolves started wagging their tails at the lizard.

Baekrang couldn’t understand this behavior.

After talking with his sisters, he learned it wasn’t an attraction in a romantic sense.

Of course, they were different species, after all.

But strangely enough, they couldn’t resist the lizard’s touch.

"Sa, love me!"

Even the fourth was purring in the lizard’s embrace, and the youngest was at his side, wagging her tail.

Baekrang had experienced the lizard’s touch as well and knew how it felt.

In his head, he wanted to resist, but his body couldn’t.

Being an advanced spirit beast, Baekrang could withstand the lizard’s allure.

But his younger sisters, who hadn’t yet reached that level, couldn’t.

Baekrang took this very seriously.

Liking the petting was one thing.

But this lizard was just temporarily part of the pack.

What if he left?

What if his sisters were so attached to his touch that they followed him?

It was a critical issue for the survival of the pack.

"Sa, Chillang! Come here, I'll pet you!"

He had to separate them from the lizard.

He could certainly provide similar affection.

But for

 some reason, the wolves weren’t as satisfied with his touch.

When he called, they came to him, but their eyes lingered on the lizard’s large hands.

This wouldn’t do.

Baekrang thought long and hard.

He needed to surpass the lizard in petting.

Wolf paws were a hindrance.

So why not use something other than wolf paws?

Baekrang was a spirit beast.

And he could take human form.

He disliked taking that form, but his sisters enjoyed it.

Usually, he avoided it because it reminded him of domesticated dogs, but he had no choice now.

If he petted them with human hands, they’d be satisfied.

Human hands would surely be better than the lizard’s rough paws.

For the first time in a while, he took on his human form.

“Grr?”

Chillang looked up at Baekrang.

“Pant, pant!”

The wolves liked this form.

It was warm, and they enjoyed the feeling of being petted by these hands.

“Chillang. Come here.”

No matter what magic the lizard used, this form would be hard to beat.

Just as Baekrang hoped, the youngest wolf dashed over to him.

“That’s right. Good girl…”

Baekrang proudly stroked the wolf lying with her head on his lap, restoring the pack’s harmony.

“See, Chillang. You don’t need that lizard…”

Then Baekrang felt something strange.

Instead of soft wolf fur, he felt hard scales.

He looked down at his lap.

"Gekk."

The shameless lizard was staring up at him with a smug expression.

“…Whimper.”

Chillang had been pushed aside by the lizard.

“You want to leave?”

"Gek-gekk!"

Who is this lizard, anyway?

Baekrang pondered the question but found no answers.

“This is Chillang’s spot, you know?”

The lizard moved off his lap, looking disappointed.

No way the lizard preferred the human form, right?

But, oddly enough, a plan formed in Baekrang’s mind.

The wolves like the lizard’s petting.

And the lizard seems to prefer my human form.

If I keep the lizard close, that could solve the problem, right?

"…Hey, mind coming back here for a second?"

Baekrang tapped his thigh.

"Gek-gekk!"

The shameless lizard eagerly returned.

As Baekrang stroked the lizard, a plan began to take shape.

"Mon... monogamy-y-y-y!"

Far away, in a distant jungle, a spirit beast howled, but its cry never reached the black-scaled lizard.