My Girlfriend Returned as a Dragon - Chapter 50

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

◈ My Girlfriend Returned as a Dragon ◈

Chapter 50: Oppa, What Do We Do Now…

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When Gates began opening, monsters pouring out, and Awakened appearing to stand against them, people wondered.

The existence of unrealistic things like monsters, artifacts, and magic had been revealed. Could dragons, creatures once thought imaginary, really not exist?

Some people insisted that dragons definitely existed somewhere. They simply had not been found yet.

And their predictions were not wrong.

Dragons did exist, and without people knowing, they had naturally settled down on Earth.

People had not been able to learn of their existence because the dragons had perfectly concealed their identities and blended into human society.

There were dragons like Sia who had come to Earth with a clear purpose by using dimensional travel magic, but such cases were extremely rare.

Most had been sucked into a crack between dimensions, willingly or unwillingly, and crossed over here.

In any case.

Whatever the circumstances, once they arrived on Earth, they enjoyed themselves here as dragons did.

Students, ordinary office workers, political figures, famous celebrities, Hunters, and more.

They thoroughly hid their identities while blending into various parts of human society, enjoying new pastimes that dragons in their home dimensions had never experienced.

Still, even while enjoying themselves, they sometimes felt the urge to interact with other kin who had taken root here.

They had landed in an unfamiliar dimension. Of course they would be glad to find others of their kind and want to talk with them.

Moreover, dragons could recognize one another's true identities, so building connections was not difficult.

After sensing each other's presence, the dragons periodically held gatherings to bring together their kin who had naturally blended into life on Earth and strengthen their bonds.

Today's gathering had also been held to welcome Sia, who had recently arrived on Earth.

However.

Normally, with a newcomer joining them, it should have been a warm and cheerful occasion.

For some reason, though, today's atmosphere was a little different from usual.

“Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to gather here.”

Rokan, the leader of this gathering and the grandfather of today's guest of honor, began as usual.

“Not at all. Isn't it only natural for us to make time to gather like this?”

“And since we heard the kin we're welcoming this time is your granddaughter, we couldn't help but be curious.”

Outwardly, that “problem” had not yet surfaced directly.

Rokan warmly greeted each guest who had come to his granddaughter's lair, and Sia, the guest of honor, politely introduced herself to the kin she was meeting for the first time.

“I can't tell you how happy I am that, in this unfamiliar dimension, I've unexpectedly had the chance to meet members of my clan.”

“The feeling is mutual. What could be more welcome than gaining more kin who can understand us in a lonely foreign land?”

“Welcome, Shasha. Let's meet like this from time to time and talk.”

Everyone welcomed their new family member with warm greetings.

But both Rokan and Sia could sense the strange undercurrent in the room.

Then.

“How has life here been, Lady Shasha?”

Evan, a dragon who had been speaking with Rokan moments ago, approached Sia and asked.

“I was a little worried at first, but with Grandfather here, I've had no difficulties.”

With a stiff answer that left no room for further conversation, she subtly tried to move away.

But Evan had no intention of letting her go so easily.

“Why leave out your human boyfriend?”

The moment he mentioned Minjun, the atmosphere in the lair turned cold.

More than half of those present knew about Minjun, but they had avoided bringing it up because they did not want to ruin the welcoming celebration.

There had been an odd mood in the room, but before this subject came up, the gathering had still proceeded with the proper formalities of a welcoming party.

The moment Evan mentioned Minjun's existence, though, the atmosphere crossed a point of no return.

No one had wanted to be the first to mention the subject, but now that someone had, there was no stopping the discussion from spiraling.

“A human boyfriend?”

One of the few dragons who did not know about Minjun looked surprised.

Evan satisfied her curiosity.

“Yes, she has one. There would be no problem with taking a human lover while enjoying oneself. The problem lies elsewhere.”

The dragons who had been enjoying the celebration without knowing this stopped their small talk and looked at Evan.

“You seem completely taken with him. It looks as though you intend to form an Eternal Covenant with a human rather than a dragon. Surely I must be mistaken, Lady Shasha?”

An Eternal Covenant.

In human terms, it could easily be explained as marriage.

But unlike human marriage, once dragons formed this covenant, they could never break it and had to remain with their Eternal Covenant partner for the rest of their lives.

More importantly, an Eternal Covenant could only be formed between dragons.

To begin with, unless they had formed an Eternal Covenant, even two dragons could not be recognized as lovers by other dragons.

In short, Minjun and Sia could not be acknowledged as a couple from the beginning.

At Evan's words, Sia tightly pressed her lips together before speaking clearly.

“...That's right. I will form an Eternal Covenant with him.”

“With him? Perhaps the custom of an Eternal Covenant is different in Lady Shasha's home dimension than it is in ours?”

He asked as though he genuinely did not know, but everyone did.

No matter how different their dimensions were, dragons shared several common customs. One of them was the Eternal Covenant.

“Evan. That is enough. Given the nature of this gathering, let us arrange a separate meeting to discuss this matter later.”

Knowing how his granddaughter must feel, Rokan tried to put an end to the uncomfortable situation.

But Evan ignored him and questioned her as if demanding an answer.

“Dragons can never love anything outside their own kind. If you believe this is love, then you must be mistaking pity or compassion for it.”

“...Why are you doing this to me?”

From a dragon's perspective, it was natural that they could not understand. It was also natural that she would not be understood.

She had planned to tell them everything if Minjun became a complete dragon.

But why was this dragon named Evan exposing someone else's private life like this?

And why bring it up in front of every dragon living on Earth?

Could he not just pretend not to know?

She did not want her relationship with Minjun to become gossip among the other dragons, as though it were something impure.

Sia's eyelids trembled.

“Compared to our lives, your connection with him is only a fleeting moment. Yet you intend to form an Eternal Covenant with such a lesser creature. Wouldn't it be better to call it part of your amusement?”

A dragon marrying a human was no different from a human making love to and marrying a pet.

Evan continued to lash out.

“A human may play the role of a puppy in a play. But neither while acting nor afterward would they sincerely feel romantic love for that puppy.”

“Evan.”

“I apologize for bringing up such matters on this meaningful occasion, but shouldn't we address what must be addressed?”

“Evaaan!”

Rokan growled, lacing his voice with a trace of Dragon Fear as his anger reached its limit, but Evan did not so much as blink.

Instead, in an even sharper voice, he began digging into Sia's heart.

“Lady Shasha. May I ask why you made such a choice?”

His tone was polite, but his attitude was anything but.

What was she supposed to say at a time like this?

“...”

Her eyelids shook badly as she silently glared at Evan.

Unconcerned by her reaction, Evan kept provoking her.

“You must know that even if you build a family together, you cannot have children.”

Everyone here looked perfectly human right now, but that was only an imitation of human appearance.

She could not carry Minjun's child because he was a different species from her.

“I know it is an unspoken rule among our kind that we do not interfere with this world or each other's affairs unless necessary. But this is not one of those ordinary matters.”

Quite a few dragons nodded at Evan's words and looked at Sia with harsh eyes.

But not all of them looked on her unfavorably.

“Evan, even so, your words have gone too far. I... I understand how Lady Shasha feels. Comparing love between a dragon and a human to that between a human and a puppy is excessive from the start.”

“That's right. Frankly, I believe we should break free from outdated customs like the Eternal Covenant itself. Everyone considers it sacred, but it is really no different from a curse disguised as a covenant, one that prevents people from leaving a relationship even after their feelings have faded.”

A few dragons began taking Sia's side, and Rokan also scolded Evan and told him to stop.

As the welcoming party became an uncomfortable place filled with raised voices and shouting, Sia's eyes turned red.

For the other dragons taking her side, and for her grandfather.

For Minjun, who had unexpectedly become the subject of other dragons' gossip, and for herself, who had chosen forbidden love.

What should I do?

One solution came to mind, but she feared it might only make things worse.

Still, she soon concluded that doing something was better than doing nothing.

“Um.”

With difficulty, she opened her mouth.

“Oppa is even prepared to change his species for me.”

Trying somehow to change the chaotic atmosphere, Sia made a bombshell declaration.

“Shasha, what did you just say?”

“A human is going to... change species?”

At Sia's shocking words, everyone gathered there began murmuring.

Amid the confusion, Sia continued with difficulty.

“Oppa knows, too. He knows I'm a dragon, and that he has to become a dragon for us to be able to form an Eternal Covenant. So he's giving everything he has to make our dream come true.”

Minjun did not actually know about the Eternal Covenant or dragons recognizing them as a couple. Still, he did know that he needed to become a dragon to marry Sia, so it was not entirely untrue.

“What does that even...?”

She wondered whether it was right to reveal it now, but it was something they would learn eventually anyway.

They had somehow learned that she was dating Minjun, so eventually they would learn that Minjun was practicing Dragon Speech to become a dragon as well.

The dragons' murmuring grew louder.

Sia looked at Rokan with tearful, watery eyes.

As though asking him whether she had done the right thing.

Instead of answering, Rokan took his granddaughter's hand gently, wearing a conflicted expression.

Unfortunately, things did not go as she had hoped.

“Does that human think such a thing is possible? It is nonsense.”

“It may be impossible, but I think the courage itself is admirable. There was a human like that where I lived, too. They failed in the end, though.”

“Admirable? That fool simply does not know his place!”

“That's right! That isn't courage. It's recklessness!”

The dragons split once more between those who viewed his attitude positively and those who did not, and another argument broke out.

The latter far outnumbered the former.

How dare a mere lower life-form like a human covet the status of a dragon, the species closest to the gods?

That alone was enough to offend many dragons, and even if Minjun succeeded, their displeasure would not disappear.

Besides.

There was another problem.

“There is one thing we are overlooking. That human knows of our existence. And the reason he learned that must surely be...”

The dragon who said this turned toward Sia.

“Because of Lady Shasha.”

Since settling on Earth, they had lived while thoroughly concealing their identities.

Nothing but trouble would come from people learning of their existence, so no dragon liked revealing their true identity directly.

And yet.

Because of love for a mere human, the fact that dragons existed in this world had become known.

“Lady Shasha.”

Evan, who had brought the situation this far, spoke in a voice colder than before.

“Do you understand what you have done?”

She wanted to refute him, but she could not.

Feeling as though everyone present had become her enemy, she timidly opened her mouth.

“...Even so, Oppa does not know there are other dragons besides me and Grandfather. The rest of you would never be affected...”

“You keep calling him oppa, but I understand Lady Shasha is about two thousand five hundred years old. Not twenty-five.”

Evan had learned through various channels that she was in love with a human man and that the man was trying to wield dragon power.

However, despite learning even that, there was something he could not uncover until the end.

It was why Sia called that human man oppa.

“Who exactly is this human? No, Shasha. Why do you insist on forming an Eternal Covenant with that particular human?”

“Exactly. That was what troubled me from the beginning as well.”

“Rokan, you know something too, don't you? As our leader, our elder, and our wisest adult, you know full well that what is happening is unnatural. Fulfill your duty. Either explain what your young granddaughter is doing, or guide her onto the right path, even if it is late.”

Rokan was not only the sole ancient dragon among them, but he had also once been the Dragon Lord. Since the gathering had formed, they had trusted and followed him as their new Dragon Lord.

But.

They believed Rokan, as Sia's blood relative, also bore responsibility for what his granddaughter had done. They wanted him, as their leader, to resolve this situation.

Sia shut her eyes tightly, and Rokan groaned.

Even with wisdom accumulated over thousands of years, he could not determine what the right decision was at this moment.

After a long silence, Rokan met Sia's eyes without a word.

It was a truth that would inevitably be revealed someday.

Sia read Rokan's intentions in his gaze, which held complicated emotions.

After letting out a deep sigh, Sia barely gathered the courage to stand before them again.

“...In my previous life, I was human.”

* * *

‘The more I think about it, the more something feels off.’

On the night of his rank reassessment, Minjun's thoughts were a mess.

Normally, Sia would have contacted him long ago.

But since she still had not contacted him, something must have happened.