NOVEL NEXT Chapter 5 - Episode 5: Ta-da, We Can Communicate (2) (Concept Art)
‘…These crazy bastards!’
Eun-ho cursed the humans, then found himself unable to stop cursing himself for speaking so casually right after.
What possessed him to provoke them like that?
Once the chattering voice faded, the black dog turned to look at Eun-ho.
The black dog’s eyes wavered slightly, filled with guilt.
“…Sorry.”
The apology that followed, the black dog couldn’t really understand.
But it didn’t feel bad.
Turning its head away, the black dog stared at the cave wall, not at Eun-ho.
“…You didn’t kill them. Death is natural for living beings.”
“Still, I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I had no attachment to my kin.”
Anyone would have known this was a lie.
Recalling that sad voice from earlier, Eun-ho clenched his eyes shut and spoke.
“Just hit me once. Two times… that’s too much.”
Hearing his trembling voice, the black dog looked at Eun-ho.
He still had that foolish expression on his face.
His already weak human body was injured.
He was as fragile as a caterpillar now.
“If I hit you, you’ll die. I know you’re slow, but don’t say anything so stupid.”
“No, I mean gently. Gently.”
“Enough.”
“Are you really sure? No second chances, you know?”
“…You’re really a nuisance.”
The black dog snorted and lifted a toe, carefully tapping Eun-ho.
Tap.
Eun-ho let out a soundless scream, mouthing “Ah.”
“Is this ‘gently’ hit? You’re really mad! This hurts a lot!”
“You’re just weak.”
“…Okay, I’ll admit that.”
For a moment, Eun-ho almost denied it, but then thought he should humbly accept it since he made a mistake with the black dog.
“You’re weak, so I’ll specially go get food for you.”
“How nice of you. My taste is a bit refined, so you should get something tasty. If it’s meat, it should be tender and juicy. You get what I mean?”
With the black dog’s sigh, the wind swept in.
Eun-ho quietly held his breath.
As the thought of brushing his teeth came to him, the black dog asked.
“So… what are you?”
“Human.”
“That power… it was different.”
The black dog thought about the power that moved the plants.
Moving plants meant using nature, and that shouldn’t have been possible.
The power of nature was something one begged to borrow, not something you could control.
‘…And this human is different too.’
Seo Eun-ho.
From this strange, weak, and foolish human came a warm scent.
Even with him right next to it, there was no sense of discomfort at all.
“Ah, do you know what a Druid is?”
Eun-ho looked up.
“I don’t.”
“Too bad. Anyway, I’m one.”
“Is it some kind of superpower?”
“Uh…? Is this also a kind of superpower?”
It seemed plausible, so Eun-ho thought seriously about it.
What could he possibly say to explain the powers that suddenly appeared?
“Can I, like, use telekinesis or something? What I really envied was teleportation. If I could use that, I’d commute with it…”
“Enough.”
The black dog’s tail hit Eun-ho’s face.
“Hey, why are you hitting me?”
Despite his words, Eun-ho grabbed the tail.
It really looked like fur, but it felt different.
The sensation was like putting his face into water that didn’t get wet.
“Your thinking looks so dumb.”
The black dog suddenly stood up. As the warm presence disappeared, Eun-ho clung more tightly to the tail.
“…Where are you going suddenly?”
“You’re in pain. Aren’t you?”
“Just? Is it because the painkiller effect wore off, or what… I keep breaking into cold sweats.”
“I know a plant that can ease your pain. I’ll go get it.”
“Don’t go out right now…”
The black dog flicked its tail, slapping Eun-ho’s face.
“You should sleep.”
“If I close my eyes like this, I think I’ll really fall asleep.”
“Exactly. Go to sleep quickly. Rest heals you.”
“Do you know I can’t sleep without a blanket? I’ll go after I sleep.”
The black dog let out a big sigh, and Eun-ho stopped talking, holding his breath.
“You really are a troublesome human.”
Lying back down, the black dog covered Eun-ho with its tail.
Eun-ho quickly drifted off to sleep, feeling as if he were floating in water.
His breathing was shallow.
The black dog tried to get up but paused, looking ahead.
“There.”
“…Eek!”
At the growl of the black dog, something passing by let out a startled noise.
“Come here.”
Amid the pouring water, something stuck its face out.
It looked like a hamster but had sharper features, with two horns on its head.
It had blue fur and round eyes.
It was about a meter in size and was trembling as it looked at the black dog.
It instinctively knew that no matter how much it ran, it would die from the thunderous roar.
Tears dripped from its eyes.
“…You’re talking?”
“Yeah, you.”
“…Me?”
“Yeah.”
At the black dog’s nod, the magical beast trembled and flew toward it.
It had four small wings on its back, about the size of its front paws, and they resembled peacock feathers.
“You’re just warming up its body for a moment. Got it?”
The magical beast rushed in front of the black dog, exposing its belly as if to show submission.
Closing its eyes tightly, the black dog prodded the magical beast with its front paw.
“Piiaaak!”
The magical beast cried out in sorrow, and the black dog immediately covered its mouth.
“…Say another word.”
The icy chill running through its bones silenced the magical beast, who couldn’t speak.
The black dog grabbed the magical beast with its front paw and placed it gently beside Eun-ho.
“Just stay there. If you move, I’ll kill you.”
After pushing the magical beast so hard that it could hardly breathe, the black dog melted into the shadows.
The magical beast, shedding only tears, weakly let out a faint cry.
“…Mama.”
The tablet, which had been showing a black screen, suddenly lit up.
《Magical beast detected.》
“…I’m going to die. I’m going to die.”
“Hah! Who said you’re going to be eaten? I just told you to warm it up.”
Eun-ho heard the sound of someone crying like a dead mouse and the furious voice of the black dog.
When he slowly opened his eyes, something appeared in front of him.
It was so piled up that it covered his face, making him curious.
“Grass…? No, is it a flower?”
It squirmed.
As he was pondering, something wiggled from his chest, and Eun-ho looked down.
“…What is it?”
Sniffling, he petted the magical beast.
“…What did that doggy master say?”
“…!”
The magical beast startled and looked up.
‘Hamster… No, it’s too big to be a hamster. It’s different.’
“…I… I heard the human talk!”
The magical beast, terrified, backed away, bumping into something.
When it glanced up, its eyes met the black dog’s.
“Leave. Now.”
“Doggy master, wait a second…”
Eun-ho tried to get up, using his arms, but he couldn’t move an inch.
Instead, cold sweat kept running down his body.
His body felt like it was burning. Something was wrong.
Whether it was the painkillers wearing off or not, the pain surged so intensely that he had to bite his lip.
“…Tablet, did you register it?”
《Yes. Magical beast detected.》
The tablet positioned the screen so that Eun-ho could see it clearly.
《Hampia.》
*《It mainly lives near water, spending more time outside the water than in it. It has small wings on its back that allow it to fly, but its speed is slow. However, it can raise its body temperature up to 200 degrees, so you need to be careful.》
《It is highly cautious and reacts sensitively to even small sounds. Despite being sensitive, it shows strong affection in comfortable surroundings.》
“…Ah, it’s Hampia.”
Eun-ho smiled weakly as he looked at Hampia.
“I’m sorry. Our doggy master is a bit on edge right now. And thank you.”
“…The human… said thank you.”
Hampia, puffing up its fur, stared at Eun-ho intently.
Its nose twitched, but it didn’t relax its tense face.
Eun-ho laughed briefly before looking back at Hampia.
“Don’t be scared anymore. You can go now. You must have been busy, it must have been hard being here, right?”
Hampia glanced at the black dog, and Eun-ho urged it to leave.
“Hurry up. Let’s greet each other next time we meet.”
“…Weird.”
Hampia gave a confused expression.
“That’s fine. You look weird to me too.”
Noticing that Eun-ho’s expression hadn’t changed from earlier, Hampia slowly moved toward the exit and then quickly flew away.
Eun-ho smiled broadly at its plump back.
‘I kind of want to poke it again.’
“Human.”
The black dog called Eun-ho’s name in a heavy voice.
This matter bothered it.
“I’m sorry for lying. If I hurt your pride, I’m sorry about that too.”
With Eun-ho’s sincere apology, the black dog no longer felt any anger.
Hearing Eun-ho’s words, which were completely devoid of any playful tone, only sincerity seemed to come through.
“…It’s fine. You’re a lot of work.”
“Thanks, doggy master. You brought this for me, right?”
“If you know that, just eat it. You can do that, right?”
“Of course. I’m really touched. I’m about to cry! How did you manage to pick all this?”
“I just came back.”
It had just arrived, but the surroundings felt warm.
Eun-ho chuckled and reached for some leaves from an unknown plant.
The tablet flickered and stood upright on the ground so he could see it clearly.
《Chia Flower detected.》
‘Hmm…?’
《Tonana Tree detected.》
When Eun-ho touched the text for Chia Flower, a description appeared.
《Chia Flower.》
《Contains compounds that help heal wounds.》
Before Eun-ho could say “next,” the description moved on.
《Tonana Tree.》
《Has pain-relieving effects.》
《.》
《.》
《Upon analyzing your current state, it is not an efficient time for use.》
‘So, I shouldn’t eat this yet?’
However, without hesitation, Eun-ho reached out for the flower and leaves.
What did it matter?
‘The black dog didn’t bring it to assassinate me, right?’
How could he throw away something brought for him?
He clenched the plant in his hand.
He didn’t know what was sharp, but he felt a slight sting.
He was about to put it in his mouth when a green light swirled in his hand.
Eun-ho opened his eyes wide as he saw the light.
‘…I didn’t do anything.’
As he slowly opened his fingers, he watched as green light emanated from the flower and leaves, glancing at the black dog.
“…Human. What did you do? This light looks just like the one I saw before.”
“This? You brought it.”
“I didn’t bring anything like that light.”
“Then…”
Suddenly, the flower and leaves began to grow, and Eun-ho quickly shut his mouth, throwing them away.
He felt his heart race.
Creak, creak.
Though they were in a cave, the plants grew rapidly as if someone had sprayed a thousand times concentrated growth formula.
“The ceiling! No! It’s collapsing. We’re going to die.”
Responding to Eun-ho’s shout toward the ceiling, the plants momentarily stopped.
After what seemed like a brief moment of hesitation, the branches moved sideways and then quickly stretched toward the waterfall.
Eun-ho, staring blankly at the scene, called the tablet behind him, leaving the black dog in the background.
“Tablet.”
The tablet flew over and displayed a new app on the screen.
“Guide for Druids: A Manual for Those Who Struggle.”
When Eun-ho clicked on the app, the screen quickly changed, and a description that matched the current situation appeared.
《Blessed by nature, you can now accelerate the growth of plants. However, like all things in nature, there is a price to pay for such deviations.》
《To foster growth, your blood, marked as a Druid’s, is required. The more blood, the faster and stronger the growth. However, don’t waste too much blood. Once the blood that paid the price disappears, everything will revert to its original state.》
‘…Ah, there’s a price to pay?’
Eun-ho looked at his palm.
Only a tiny amount of blood had pooled at the tips of his fingers.
Considering the size of the wound, it seemed to be only about three drops.
‘And yet, with just a few drops, this much has grown?’
The plants, now thick enough to fill half of the cave, seemed almost unreal.
At first, the two plants had grown tangled together, taking on different forms. But as they continued to grow, the entanglement gradually disappeared, and they started to look like a single plant.
“Wow…”
Eun-ho was in awe, belatedly.
“Master, I think I did this.”
“It’s obvious, human. You did it. I don’t have that kind of power.”
The black dog shook its head at Eun-ho’s obvious statement.
Eun-ho, ignoring the black dog’s words, gazed at the creation he had made.
A branch grew toward Eun-ho and extended in a way that resembled fingers, reaching out toward his face.
Flowers bloomed from it.
If the Chia flower was yellow, this one was white. Not only the color but the shape of the flowers was entirely different.
“…Are you giving it to me?”
As Eun-ho was overwhelmed by the emotion, text appeared on the tablet’s screen.
《A new species has been born.》