WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ My Girlfriend Returned as a Dragon ◈

Chapter 48: Oppa, What’s That Picture?

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“How did you know I made these accessories from my bones?”

Sia had once carved one of her bones into a sword for me, so I had only thought it might be possible.

Even as I said it, I had not seriously believed it could be true. Unfortunately, my instincts had been right.

I stared at the silver-white ring on my hand, carved from Sia's bone.

‘...Ugh.’

Goosebumps rose all over my body.

The sword she had given me before had at least had a handle, and I did not need to carry it around all the time, so it had felt less unsettling. But this was directly touching my body.

For now, keep your expression under control.

Hiding my feelings as best I could, I turned to Sia.

Sia proudly held out the hand wearing a ring made from her own bone.

“Oppa, since we're at it, should we make a few more couple rings?”

“...What?”

“We can make enough to wear one on every finger, then wear different ones depending on our mood that day. What do you think?”

Sia smiled innocently, which somehow made it even more chilling.

Imagining myself wearing rings made from Sia's bones on all ten fingers...

Ugh.

“...I really appreciate the thought, Sia, but this is more than enough for me.”

“Honestly, Oppa. Are you saying that because you think it would be hard for me? It isn't hard at all.”

Having completely misunderstood, Sia told me to hold out my hand, then took a picture of our hands together, both wearing rings.

Then she gently stroked the ring on my hand.

“And Oppa, try to wear the ring and necklace whenever you can. They contain a little dragon power, so they'll probably help you, even if only a little.”

Because of what they were made from, I had been planning to take them off except on days when I met Sia.

But after hearing that, I had no choice but to wear them all the time.

I desperately wanted to make an excuse and say that would be difficult, but I had no suitable excuse.

All I could do was nod.

“I will. Thanks.”

Giving up on everything, I decided to do as Sia said.

“Sia, hold on. I need to use the bathroom.”

“Okay!”

Needing a moment to pull myself together after the shock of these accessories, I fled to the bathroom.

When I looked in the mirror, the silver-white ring and necklace boldly announcing their presence gleamed especially brightly.

Would I get used to this someday, just as I had with the Dragon Bone Sword?

Worried Sia might hear me, I could not even sigh freely.

I lightly slapped my cheeks and tried to get my thoughts under control.

‘They're just accessories. Accessories that are good for me. The texture feels a little unfamiliar, but I'll get used to it soon.’

After hypnotizing myself in the mirror, I left the bathroom.

But just as I thought I had regained my composure...

“Oppa.”

Another problem arose.

Sia held out a photo strip to me.

It was the four-photo strip Yuna and I had taken with our mothers before we parted ways when I met Yuna recently.

I had accepted it at the time, but I had not known what to do with it, so I had left it alone.

If it had been a photo of just Yuna and me, I probably would not have thought twice before throwing it away.

No, we would not have taken a photo alone together in the first place.

But both my mother and Yuna's mother were in it, so throwing it away had felt awkward.

‘How did I forget about this?’

I knew there was a chance Sia would come to my place today.

I had only thought she would not like seeing it. I had forgotten to put it away in a corner.

“What is this photo?”

One problem after another.

Sia's cold gaze sent another shiver down my spine.

“Uh... that.”

My mind began going blank.

How could I answer this and get through the situation safely?

Should I be honest again?

Or was there some better way?

The weather was fairly cool, but for some reason, I felt cold sweat trickling down my back.

After thinking it over, I decided that telling the truth was still my best option.

Yuna had suggested the photo, but I could not refuse in that atmosphere, so I had taken it.

And because it was not only Yuna in the photo, it had been awkward to throw it away.

But being honest might not be enough.

So what came next was important.

I rummaged through a drawer and brought out a permanent marker, then began coloring Yuna's face in the picture completely black.

Sia seemed startled by my sudden action at first, but she did not try to stop me.

It looked a little strange, but I still thought this was the best option right now.

The more Yuna's face disappeared from the photo, the more Sia's stiff expression softened into a smile. Only when it felt like her anger had faded could I finally relax.

Once I had thoroughly blacked out Yuna's face, I thought for a moment about what to do with the photo, then handed it to Sia.

“I probably won't look at this anyway, and keeping it would only make me uncomfortable. Do you want it, Sia?”

“Should I take it, then?”

At my offer, Sia put the photo in her pocket without hesitation.

Only after everything was over could I finally relax.

Maybe it was just my imagination, but ever since I had reunited with Yuna, things like this seemed to happen a lot.

‘What a life.’

This was exhausting.

How had things ended up like this?

* * *

There had been a few minor incidents, but we enjoyed our longer-than-usual time together and finished our sweet date.

The day after our date.

I had plans to have lunch with Rokan today.

Ever since reuniting with his granddaughter in this unfamiliar world, Rokan seemed to find eating alone lonely. He often invited Sia or me to have lunch with him.

There was still some time before our appointment, so I browsed the internet to pass the time.

Just as expected.

The internet was flooded with articles about yesterday's Gate Break.

‘Well, of course it is.’

An S-rank, nearly disaster-level Gate Break appearing in the middle of Seoul was already huge news.

And one person had stopped it alone, without a single casualty.

I looked through the related headlines one by one.

<An S-rank monster appears in the heart of Seoul, yet casualties are “zero”? An unidentified Hunter's “heroic feat”>

<Who was the Hunter who stopped the Gate Break? Authorities “investigating”>

<[Video] Wyvern massacre. Has another rising star Hunter appeared in Korea?>

Countless articles were pouring out besides these, and every single one was getting explosive views.

After reading through them, I felt that things would become quite troublesome if it were revealed that Sia had been at the center of it all.

This time, I went on YouTube and played videos showing Sia's battle yesterday.

The limits of the recording equipment meant there were no clear videos of Sia herself, but her fight had still been captured vividly.

After replaying the footage several times, a thought suddenly came to me.

If I could use Dragon Speech and freely control dragon power too, could I show that kind of strength someday?

I could not imagine it.

Me, wielding such incredible power.

‘But it isn't impossible.’

I was growing steadily while being acknowledged by the Dragon Lord himself.

This time, I looked through the video's comments.

There were many people there curious about Sia's identity too.

They wondered where such a rising star had come from, said she could become a Hunter representing Korea, and said that even though the video quality was poor, her beauty came through clearly.

They were not talking about me, but they were showing positive interest in my girlfriend, so I felt proud the whole time I read the comments.

It almost felt like I was the one being praised.

How would things go from here?

They would probably never figure out Sia's identity, but even so, I was curious about what might happen next.

Had Rokan seen these articles too?

It was nearly time for our appointment, so I Teleported to Rokan's lair while thinking about all sorts of things.

As soon as I arrived, I saw a lavish lunch spread before me.

“Thank you for inviting me, Rokan.”

“I should be the grateful one. My son-in-law came to keep me company so I would not feel lonely.”

After warmly greeting each other, we began eating.

Naturally, we started talking about what had happened yesterday.

“Rokan, did you see the articles?”

“You mean that Gate Break Shasha stopped yesterday?”

“Yes.”

Of course he would know. It was news about his granddaughter.

“At first, I wondered if she had stepped into something she did not need to. But Shasha told me you were on a date nearby.”

“Yes.”

Sia had probably told him roughly what happened, but I explained the situation to Rokan again.

Rokan nodded as though he understood.

“Our clan does not usually interfere in the affairs of the human world, but that was why she did it.”

“There is something I am curious about. As a dragon, couldn't you stop Gate Breaks happening all over the world?”

“I could, but there's no need for me to. Gates are you humans' business.”

“Even when you could save many lives...?”

What would I have done if I had Rokan's level of power?

I thought I would have used it to contribute to the world, even if only a little.

But Rokan seemed to think differently.

“That is your concern. To be frank, I have little interest in human lives.”

“Well...”

I wanted to argue, but nothing came to mind.

“From my perspective, it does not matter whether a disease spreads here or Gates erupt. My only interests are experiencing this new world and Shasha's well-being.”

Perhaps I had become too comfortable around him because he usually felt like a kind grandfather.

From a dragon's point of view, could humans not simply be interesting little creatures?

Just as we did not care much if a few ants died, dragons might not care much when humans died either.

Seeing this, I felt that I still did not understand dragons very well.

If I ever wanted to completely control dragon power, perhaps I would need to understand and accept their values to some degree.

As I sat silently lost in thought, Rokan seemed to think I had been hurt by what he said.

“Of course, I care about your well-being too. You are the person our Shasha loves. If you smile, Shasha smiles. If you are hurt, Shasha will be sad.”

He added that I should not take it too personally.

He seemed to have a cute side to him as well.

Anyway, after talking about Sia and many other things, our meal eventually came to an end.

We had finished eating, and I was at Rokan's lair.

What I had to do next was obvious.

“Rokan, if you have time, I would like to ask for a spar.”

Naturally, a sparring match.

But Rokan refused, saying that today would not work.

“I am sorry. I have something to do today, so I do not think I can.”

“Ah... I understand. Then please spar with me next time you have time.”

It was only that he had always been so willing to make time for me.

Rokan was not someone, or rather, some dragon, who needed to keep time set aside to spar with me. I had simply taken it for granted that he would.

That aside.

This made my schedule a little awkward.

Should I train alone in the lair, or should I look for a Gate I could clear even now?

Just as I was deeply considering what to do with the rest of the afternoon.

Rokan made me an unexpected offer.

“Minjun, have you considered applying for a rank reassessment?”

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