How Druids Live with the Beast

Perhaps Elect was scared by its own face.

Upon closer inspection, Elect’s body, which had been lying flat, was trembling uncontrollably.

“Friend…?”

When Eunho cautiously asked, Elect’s trembling grew even more intense.

It was almost like the vibration of a cellphone.

“…Uhhhhh.”

Elect’s cries grew louder, and as it flapped its hind legs, it seemed more like a gesture of ‘Oh no, I’m going to die’ than sorrow.

Eunho couldn’t resist the temptation to crouch down and poke Elect’s flat body with his finger.

Tap.

Suddenly, Elect’s body curled up into a ball.

It looked like a soft-serve ice cream with a light sprinkling of matcha powder on top.

Eunho couldn’t hold back his laughter as he smiled widely.

“Friend…”

“……”

Elect’s crying stopped abruptly, and it continued to tremble.

Was it naturally timid, or was it just this particular Elect?

“I didn’t come here to eat you. I don’t really like matcha, you know? Ah, but what if the big guy, Brother Hound, likes matcha? You know, the big one?”

“……Ugh.”

As a slight whimper escaped, Eunho burst into laughter.

“I was just kidding, friend. I was trying to tell you to relax… but I guess it didn’t work?”

When no answer came, Eunho awkwardly smiled and slowly reached out his hand, causing Elect’s trembling to intensify.

“…Well, you did something dangerous, so I came to stop you. I hope you’re not too scared, but actually, from your perspective, we probably look really scary, huh?”

Eunho sat down with a surprised expression as he looked to the side. At that moment, the Black Hound’s ears stood straight up.

‘…That human.’

The Hound wanted to speak up immediately about Eunho’s reckless behavior but held back, waiting from a distance.

Leviathan approached, and the Hound stopped mid-breath, inhaling instead.

“We did kind of barge in, didn’t we?”

With his hand still extended, Eunho lightly rested his face on his knee as he looked at Elect.

“But friend, this electricity isn’t something you can just take because you want it, and this place is the same. It already has an owner.”

At the sound of Leviathan’s footsteps, Eunho turned his head.

Not sure whether to approach or not, seeing the wiggling toes, Eunho waved his hands.

Leviathan approached with a wide smile, crouching next to Eunho and looking at Elect.

Elect’s tail waved like a ripple at the new scent.

“That’s right. This is human territory. You invaded our domain.”

Elect slowly turned its head from the floor.

Tears filled its button-like small eyes, and its mouth was curled up in a pout.

It was full of dissatisfaction but couldn’t bring itself to speak.

Seeing this expression, Leviathan raised one of its antennae and squinted.

“Invading a domain is a bad thing.”

“That’s true. How scary would it be if someone suddenly barged into your home?”

Eunho, who had been speaking seriously, paused for a moment, contemplating.

“…Ah, I was given permission, right?”

He proudly brushed his hair upward and smiled.

“Friend, stop crying now and let’s go downstairs. We have so much to talk about. Your light and all the different kinds of electricity you’re releasing might have upset the other friends too, you know?”

When Eunho touched Elect, it stayed still.

As Eunho picked up Elect, its face and legs drooped downward.

This allowed Eunho to clearly see Elect’s slightly puffed-out lips.

“…It’s mine.”

Eunho heard a mumble and spoke more firmly.

“This isn’t your friend’s.”

“…No, it’s mine.”

Elect answered faintly while gazing longingly at the power distribution panel.

Its home was gone.

The delicious electricity was gone.

“…Everything is bad.”

As Elect began to whimper, Eunho grabbed it by the armpits and turned it to face him.

“Friend.”

Elect turned its small button-like eyes away.

“You probably discovered this place while wandering around. I bet you were so happy because there’s so much electricity. But that electricity over there isn’t ours.”

Eunho gently turned Elect around to look downward.

From above, the other familiars staying here were more visible.

“Friend, do you see? You prevented those friends from coming here. This isn’t our friend’s home, and neither we nor those friends came to take your electricity.”

Eunho stood up and took the totem in his hand, causing the electricity to flow again.

Elect’s body, which had been limp, suddenly straightened and flopped around like a live fish.

Just how much did it love electricity?

“Brother Hound.”

Eunho called out to the Hound and, glancing at Leviathan, slightly raised his arm.

Leviathan ran over and clung to Eunho’s arm with its tail.

“Thanks for helping, Leviathan.”

“…It’s nothing.”

As Eunho smiled, Leviathan covered its face with its front paws.

It was happy to have been able to help Eunho, and for a moment, it felt like its strength had returned.

Suddenly, a gust of black wind blew.

At the appearance of the Hound, Leviathan immediately lowered its front paws, and Elect’s gaze shifted along with it.

It was massive.

It was black.

Elect, overwhelmed by fear, lost consciousness.

“…Ha.”

The Hound was amusing.

To think it was such a coward.

In the end, it seemed that it attacked anyone who approached because of its fear and greed.

The Hound wanted to strike Elect for causing this, but it held back.

Instead, Eunho lightly tapped Elect on the forehead.

“I’ve gotten my revenge, Brother Hound. Please be satisfied with this much.”

“Tar. And next time, put more power into your punch.”

“It’s too cute for that…”

Eunho sighed deeply and made a firm decision.

“But for Brother Hound, I’ll try to be a bit braver.”

Eunho thought he had supported the Hound quite a bit, but the Hound looked at him with a bewildered expression.

***

“…The power outage won’t cause too much damage, right?”

Eunho cautiously asked Taehyo.

Although only a small portion of the electricity had been cut off, there might still have been some damage.

Unlike Eunho, who looked nervous, Taehyo maintained a solemn demeanor and was politely holding Elect.

“…Eunho.”

“Yeah, what is it? Honestly, I can’t compensate, but I’ll listen.”

“…Is it my birthday today? Or should I change it to today?”

With insulated gloves on both hands, Taehyo held Elect, with the Hound behind him and Leviathan hanging from Eunho’s arm.

The familiars were all around.

Was this heaven?

“Well, I don’t know about that. By the way, I was born on November 28. Just letting you know, I’m asking for a gift in advance.”

Eunho confidently pointed to himself and spoke up.

“…Eunho?”

“I’m listening, hyung.”

“I’ll mark the calendar with tons of stars, so don’t worry. I’ll also put ‘Seonho Eunho’s Birthday’ in my phone.”

He would have liked to pull out a card and smile, but he didn’t have the hands to do that right now.

“I knew it. I have a good eye for people, you know?”

“Back to the point, what should we do when Elect wakes up?”

“Then it wakes up.”

“Won’t it be surprised when it sees me?”

“This friend is really scared. It might even cry.”

“…Then I’ll cry too.”

“Hyung.”

“Huh?”

“Adults shouldn’t cry.”

“Right. That would look… ugly, wouldn’t it?”

“Why is crying ugly? It’s just that you could get bitten, that’s all. Everyone’s ready to tear that topic apart, right? But you can cry in front of me. It might be hard to believe when I say this, but I’m good at keeping quiet…”

As Elect wiggled, Taehyo stopped immediately.

It was almost as if Elect, who loved familiars so much, had rarely gotten close to them.

When Elect blinked its small button-like eyes, Taehyo’s expression showed a sense of urgency, wondering what to do.

“It’s okay. It might bite, but if it nibbles lightly, it won’t hurt.”

Eunho took out the totem. It was a totem that contained electricity.

The front emitted, and the back absorbed.

‘Do I just do the same thing as before to activate it?’

Eunho placed the totem on his palm.

“Bill…”

Before he could finish his words, light burst from the totem.

‘…Huh?’

Eunho’s hand moved before his head did.

As he turned the totem toward himself, the Hound’s front paw swiftly grabbed him, and Elect, which had been in Taehyo’s hand, flew up.

It gently perched on Eunho’s shoulder, wrapping around his neck and opening its mouth wide.

The electricity released from the totem changed direction and was entirely absorbed by Elect.

Soon, Elect’s belly puffed up as it smiled with its eyes closed, looking satisfied.

It was an amazing taste. It felt like an exhilarating sensation Eunho had never experienced before.

“…That was close.”

Eunho, with his legs dangling from the Hound’s grip, finally let out a breath after a delay.

To think that I learned that a totem only needs to be activated once without saying “I’m buying Billy”…

That could have been a big problem.

Scratch scratch.

As something scratched his shoulder, Eunho slightly lowered his gaze.

“…Do you happen to have more?”

Elect, who had been trembling just moments ago, now rubbed its face shyly against Eunho’s, as if nothing had happened, and asked.

It felt really good, but what was this strange discomfort?

***

“…I came here because I listened well.”

Elect circled Eunho anxiously.

Its long body made it look like a round piece of white rice cake dusted with green tea powder, moving in a circle.

“I want more! I want more!”

The electricity tasted so good.

It was so delicious that it almost drove Eunho crazy.

“Calm down, you’re being too noisy.”

As the Hound growled, Elect’s button-like eyes quickly filled with tears.

“…Hing.”

Its face sank helplessly to the floor.

Eunho tried to pet Elect, but as he felt its trembling, he looked ahead.

“Are you okay?”

Eunho asked, and the doctor, Jeong Ah-yun, looked tense as she forced a smile.

“Of course… Ah.”

Had she bitten her tongue? Ah-yun tightly closed her eyes.

There were specialized veterinarians, called “Hwanyeosa,” who worked in the lab for the familiars.

Familiars’ bodies were so unique, even compared to animals and humans, and they said they would rather die than ask for help from humans, making specialists almost as rare as natural monuments.

“Are you really okay? You seem very tense; would you like some water?”

As Eunho stood up, Ah-yun quickly called out.

Her short hair swayed dramatically.

“The patient is Seonho Eunho as well!”

“Oh, I guess I am a patient too?”

Eunho didn’t stop walking and grabbed some water from the water dispenser and handed it to her.

She drank it quickly and, only then, managed to speak.

“…How is this possible?”

“I cut it with a knife. I thought it would be fine since the bleeding stopped.”

“Not that… Wait, you cut it with a knife?”

Ayun was about to move on but suddenly froze in shock. Her hand, which had been wrapping the bandage, paused for a moment, and her voice grew louder.

“You have to take care of your body!”

“I know. I’m very precious to myself.”

At Eunho’s words, laced with a hint of humor, Ayun blinked in confusion.

Something seemed off with the flow of the conversation.

Eunho chuckled at her reaction and asked, “When will Levi… no, Dorolong’s examination be finished?”

Leviatam had gone to the examination room to properly check his tongue, and Eunho, waiting, had ended up noticing the injury on Ayun’s palm.

“It should be done in about 10 minutes.”

Ayun glanced at the clock for a moment and swallowed dryly. Her gaze shifted to the beasts.

“After the treatment, could I briefly check on them?”

“One moment, let me ask.”

Eunho turned his gaze to the black dog first.

“Big dog, is it alright if they check your condition?”

“No need.”

“Actually, I’ve always been worried about Big dog’s condition. What if there’s an injury I don’t know about? What if there’s a sickness I’m unaware of? It’s up to you if you don’t want to get checked, but I won’t be able to sleep tonight if I don’t—”

“…Fine.”

Black dog responded with a hint of annoyance at Eunho’s lengthy words, and Eunho clenched his fist, laughing.

“Big dog’s getting checked.”

Next, Eunho turned to Elect.

As soon as their eyes met, Elect looked at him with bright, curious eyes.

“Do you want to get checked too? I’m worried your stomach’s too bloated.”

“Will you give me something delicious if I do?”

“If you get checked, we can help you stay here again.”

“…Stay here again?”

Elect’s button-like eyes widened slightly.

He hadn’t expected this kind of proposal.

“Of course. I wasn’t trying to kick you out. I just stopped you to prevent further harm. The landlord likes you all so much, they’ll probably allow it.”

Eunho smiled brightly, and Elect, taken aback, sniffed and nodded.

He thought they were going to kick him out.

“Elect agrees too.”

“…Are you by any chance a psychic?”

Ayun asked carefully.

“I don’t think so.”

When Eunho laughed, Ayun found it hard to ask more questions.

It seemed like he could communicate with the beasts, but if that wasn’t the case, maybe he was just really good at reading their emotions.

Either way, it was impressive.

Knock.

The sound of a knock on the door made Ayun feel a bit disappointed, and she spoke up.

“Yes, come in.”

“Thank you for your hard work. And hello, Seo Eunho.”

Autumn entered with a neutral expression.

“Hello, Autumn.”

“Has Seo Eunho’s treatment been finished?” Autumn asked Ayun.

“Yes, it will be finished soon.”

“Jeong Ayun. I’d like to mention something just in case.”

Autumn pushed up his glasses, and his pink wavy hair, which had flowed over his shoulder, swayed along with the movement.

“All events that take place at the research facility must not be disclosed to the outside. You agreed to this, correct?”

“…Yes. That’s correct.”

Ayun stammered slightly under the pressure of Autumn’s words.

“Please don’t forget that this also applies to anything related to Seo Eunho.”

Autumn’s polite yet firm words made Eunho slightly surprised.

‘He’s so good at his job.’

Although Eunho already knew, this thought crossed his mind once again.

“Seo Eunho.”

“Yes?”

“I have something to confirm with you today. I’ve decided that this can no longer be delayed. Do you need to travel with the beasts?”

“Big dog, I’ll just be stepping out for a moment. You can stay here quietly, right? Our friend is fine, too?”

“Human, don’t cause any trouble. You’re too much of a hassle.”

“…Wow, did I suddenly become a troublemaker? Big dog, I…”

“Did you forget what happened earlier? If that electric being hadn’t absorbed the energy, anyone could have died.”

“…I’ll admit it today.”

As soon as the bandage was finished, Eunho immediately got up from his seat.

Embarrassed, his light brown eyes shook.

“…Um, Autumn. Before we leave, could you just tell me once why I need to go? I’ll understand perfectly.”

“I need to check if you’re a psychic. After that, we’ll need to adjust to several situations.”

After hearing about today’s events from Taeho, Autumn was certain.

Even if Eunho turned out to be a psychic, he would never let the Beast Management Agency take him.

Eunho was exactly the talent the Beast Research Institute had been waiting for.