Chapter 4. Autumn (2)
"Sir, I didn't follow you because of the bread. I'm not that simple-minded."
"Oh."
"Of course, the sausage bread was delicious. Much better than the finest sausages in Ascalifa… Anyway! I didn't follow you because of the bread. Got it?"
"Alright."
"That doesn't mean it was because of the macarons either. Sure! The outside is crispy, the inside moist, and the cream filling is so sweet and tasty that while eating it, I… but, but…!"
"Got it."
Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam District. On the way home, the Regressor and the dragon walked together. "Anyway, I didn't follow you because of the bread! Got it?" muttered the Gold Dragon repeatedly, clutching the paper bags full of bread.
"…Alright."
When Yu Ji-tae nodded in acknowledgment, the little chick smiled, cream smeared on their lips.
Well, if that's what you say, I'll take your word for it.
***
"Have you returned, my lord?"
When Yu Ji-tae got home, his doppelgänger, Spring, and Summer were already there.
Spring was lying on the prime spot on the sofa where Yu Ji-tae usually reclined. The young one blinked, switching gaze between him and the doppelgänger, and when they saw the Gold Dragon, their eyes widened.
On the veranda beside the sofa stood a red-haired girl, someone he hadn't seen in person before. That was Summer.
Judging by the smoke drifting away, it seemed she had been smoking. From what he knew, the Red Clan tended to go wild like that—alcohol, gambling, drugs…
"Wow, Green! Red!"
Carrying the last bread bag, the Gold Dragon entered the house with a bright expression. "Gold," Spring smiled and hugged them.
Summer flicked the cigarette butt with her fingers and returned to the living room. He had wondered if she could be controlled, but surprisingly, she stayed quiet. From the low angle of her gaze, she seemed gloomy.
When would that "operation" even start?
Yu Ji-tae glanced at Spring. Spring noticed his gaze and met his green eyes. They didn't speak much, but somehow, he felt there was no need to worry.
Meanwhile, the yellow-haired one approached the red-haired one.
"Red, Red. How have you been?"
"······."
"Hey? Why the silence? It's me. We're meeting for the first time in a year. How have you been?"
Ignored, the little chick kept talking, but Summer entered Yu Ji-tae's room without a word and closed the door.
That's surprisingly natural.
"Red. Did something bad happen? I got some delicious treats, let's eat together!"
Knock, the Gold Dragon tapped on the door.
"Gold," Spring called the little chick, then shook their head. That simple gesture magically calmed the Gold Dragon.
"Then, Green, do you want to eat this with me?"
"Sure, sounds good."
They ate the bread together, talking about how they had spent their time and their experiences. At first, it seemed the Gold Dragon was chattering on, but later, Spring's stories dominated.
"Wow, really? The street musicians are that amazing?"
"Yeah. Isn't it fascinating?"
"In Green's nest, sirens played music, right? Is that even more incredible?"
"I think so."
They were talking about the street musicians of Florence. Having traveled extensively over the past year, Spring had seen, heard, and experienced a lot. Their stories flowed naturally, eventually leading to how they came here. Then, the Gold Dragon asked:
"Spring?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you just call Green 'Spring'?"
"Ah, yes. That's the name Sir gave me."
"······?"
The Gold Dragon's eyes widened.
"Just a nickname?"
Spring shook their head.
"No. It's my name."
"Huh? How? Why? We're hatchlings. We haven't even had a coming-of-age ceremony. How could someone give us a name? And it's not a nickname?"
"Well… that's how it happened."
Yu Ji-tae couldn't understand the conversation no matter how he tried. Why would giving a name be a problem?
"My goodness. I see. Then Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter… I guess that makes me Autumn?"
"Why do you think so?"
"Summer is red, Winter is blue, right?"
The little chick giggled.
"Hey, giving someone else's precious name can't be that simple."
In fact, that was the correct answer.
***
That evening.
Yu Ji-tae gathered the dragons in the living room and asked their ages.
"I'm twenty."
"Ten!"
"······."
"This one's fifteen."
Spring answered for the still-pouting Summer. Conveniently, their ages matched the names.
"Let's go with Spring, Summer, and Autumn. And the one born later will be Winter."
Yu Ji-tae said this while looking at the necklace hanging around Autumn's neck. Autumn's eyes widened.
"You knew?"
Of course. The blue gem embedded in the necklace was actually a polymorph form of a dragon egg. The Blue Dragon hadn't hatched yet, but it was due to appear soon.
In other words, Yu Ji-tae had already gathered all four dragons.
He then talked about living arrangements, just as he had previously told Spring: don't hide your traces from me. That was the only wish of the Regressor.
He also taught them basic rules about addressing older and younger siblings and human relationships. He thought hierarchies might make things easier. The dragons followed along well.
On a dim weekend evening, Spring and Autumn started chatting like sisters. Though it was said they would fight like cats and dogs, it didn't seem exactly like that.
"Crime is forbidden, Summer sister."
"······."
Until then, Summer hadn't said a word. Her seated posture and gaze were off, giving a distant impression. When Autumn started sulking after several attempts at conversation, Spring glanced at Yu Ji-tae.
This is it. Time to begin.
The operation was surprisingly simple: Yu Ji-tae would step in to resolve the situation, and then Spring would care for Summer.
According to Spring, Summer's pride, once hurt, couldn't be immediately restored. But her bad mood, separate from her pride, could be eased. And that's where Yu Ji-tae played his part.
Hatchlings easily found joy in trivial things. With Spring's relative life experience, she could figure out what the others wanted and how to satisfy them.
It was possible because the Green Clan had superior empathy.
Green eyes brushed past Yu Ji-tae's gaze.
Spring passed by him and linked arms with the two hatchlings.
"Hey, kids. Shall we go out for a bit?"
"Yeah! But where?"
"There's a nice place nearby. Let's go check it out."
"······No thanks."
"Come on, let's go."
"Spring." Yu Ji-tae called, following the plan.
"Yes?"
Then he tossed a wallet.
"Huh?"
The one who caught it widened their eyes. Spring, who usually had a dry reaction, showed genuine surprise.
"Go have fun."
"Really? Thank you, sir. How much can I spend?"
"As much as you want."
***
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 181,000₩]
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 375,540₩]
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 475,300₩]
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 600,000₩]
The Regressor stared blankly at the holographic display.
"······."
Meanwhile, Yu Ji-tae was reading a book alone.
When he had nothing else to do, he read or watched movies. It didn't stir him deeply, but it was an effort to blend into everyday life.
Even with eyes closed, he could still sense the presence of the dragons, so he wasn't worried.
Sometimes he received text notifications on his watch. At first, amounts like 5,000 or 10,000₩ appeared, making him wonder if they were buying food.
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 1,990,000₩]
[(Ji-won Bank, one-time payment) 2,150,000₩]
The amounts kept increasing.
What on earth were they buying?
"If necessary, I will take measures."
Normally, his doppelgänger, who lived in the pocket dimension "The Shallowest Depths of the Abyss (S)," spoke to him like this. He shook his head. At that moment, another message arrived.
[(Kiwon Bank Co.) Check-in Lump Sum 41,239,000₩]
Did he just buy a car or something?
[(Kiwon Bank Co.) Check-in Limit Exceeded.]
And finally, the last notice arrived.
It was the moment when all the savings Yu ji-tae had carefully accumulated over several years before his regression were destroyed.
Still, it didn't matter much. Things that could always be obtained had no value. So he didn't feel lacking in either wealth or prestige.
Soon, three dragons returned from their outing, each carrying shopping bags in both hands. Bom was the first to approach him and handed over her wallet.
"Sorry, mister. I spent too much."
Then she whispered,
"Was it okay?"
At the words of the regressor, Bom smiled faintly and nodded ever so slightly.
"Mister, look at this! I bought this too!"
Next, Autumn came ran over, proudly showing off her latest watch. That explained where two million won had gone.
"Did you buy all of this for us? Thank you so much! This is amazing! Incredible! You're the best! Whoa!"
She suddenly ran up to Yu ji-tae and hugged him tightly. The regressor was momentarily startled but gently embraced her back.
After that, Summer, still looking unwell, entered the living room.
On her wrist was the same watch as Autumn's. But that wasn't all. At her waist hung a sword Yu ji-tae hadn't seen before. An artifact. He immediately realized where forty million won had gone. Generally, a level-1 artifact costs as much as a car.
As Autumn was about to leave, Summer slowly approached him.
She avoided his gaze, then suddenly lifted the scabbard and offered it to him.
"I bought this while we were out. I lost my sword…"
He had thrown that one away somewhere in the desert.
"Is that your money?"
"Yeah. Do you like it?"
"Well… just… I tried it briefly earlier."
Summer paused for a moment, then, as if she wanted to say something, her brows furrowed.
"…It wasn't anything special."
She left the words at that and walked into her room.
Clutching the artifact sword tightly.