How to Survive as a terminally-ill Dragon

Chapter 8. In the Blink of an Eye (2)

The first of Lois’s ordeals was refusing to eat.

“Lois, it’s time to eat!”

“I don’t wanna! I’m not hungry.”

“What…?!”

Of course, it wasn’t that he had lost his appetite.

He avoided eating because feeling full made him sleepy.

And the second ordeal was this:

“Lois, it’s time for your bath!”

“I don’t want to today.”

“……”

The second was refusing to bathe.

Again, the reason was the same: the warmth of the water made him drowsy.

Besides, moving around too much made him sleepy, so he minimized his activity; the proximity to his bed made him want to lie down, so he banned himself from going within 5 meters of it, and so on.

Lois tried various methods to resist sleep.

After three days of this routine, his face began to show signs of weariness.

It was natural for Genelocer’s face to be etched with worry.

Unable to stand it any longer, Genelocer caught Lois as he tried to escape his meal and pushed baby food toward his mouth.

“Here, be a good boy. It’s time to eat!”

Confronted with the baby food right before his eyes, Lois’s pupils wavered momentarily.

But with superhuman willpower, he turned his head away.

“No!”

“Lois, you need to eat!”

“Ughhh!”

Lois kept his mouth shut tight, continuing to refuse the baby food that approached his lips.

As the stand-off continued, frustration appeared on Genelocer’s face, which usually looked like it could only smile.

“Lois! Are you really going to keep this up?”

“……”

“Why are you doing this?”

“……”

Genelocer’s heart burned with worry as his son, born with four attributes and needing several times more nutrition than other children, stubbornly refused to answer his questions.

Refusing to eat could have a detrimental effect on Lois’s growth.

Meanwhile, Lois was suffering his own ordeal.

‘I’m starving!’

His belly continually cried out for food, and he felt like he might unconsciously eat if he kept this up.

In the end, Lois chose to flee.

“I’ll eat later!”

Though he said later, it was clear as day he had no intention of eating.

Watching Lois stubbornly refuse his meal and escape to his room, Genelocer sighed deeply.

“Ah… what’s all this about?”

Genelocer couldn’t figure out his son’s behavior, while Lois quickly flapped his wings and retreated to his room.

Once there, Lois slumped helplessly against the wall.

“Ah… my blood sugar’s dropping.”

By now, it had been three days since he began his fast.

Hunger surged before his eyes, and he longed to fly to his bed and collapse onto it.

The situation was so dire that he even started to hallucinate the rabbit doll on his bed waving at him.

“No!”

Slap.

Lois slapped his cheeks to steel his weakening resolve.

The sharp pain snapped him back to reality.

However, the pain was only a momentary distraction.

Nod nod.

Swoosh.

The fatigue of the last few days surged in, and his eyelids drooped heavily.

Startled, Lois jerked his head up.

“I, I nearly gave in.”

The realization that he had almost succumbed to sleep—and death—shocked him back to full alertness.

“I have to find a way…!”

Frantically, Lois rose and flew to a pile of books that had grown several times larger than before.

They were books he had stealthily taken from Genelocer’s library, and they now towered to several times his own height.

“A way to stay awake… or at least to reduce fatigue! Yes, there must be something… After all, this is a fantasy world.”

A world where imagination becomes reality.

In a fantasy world, what is impossible in reality can be made possible.

Lois was banking on that very possibility.

The books he read were all related to legends and folklore about sleep, as well as materials on magical arts and artifacts.

Although many contents were still beyond his understanding, Lois analyzed the materials with superhuman concentration.

‘I don’t have time!’

He didn’t know how much longer he could fend off the impending deep sleep.

He had to find a solution quickly.

As time passed, more and more books piled up by Lois’s side.

Yet, his gaze never left the pages.

Time passed again.

Nod nod.

Lois’s little head bobbed up and down, side to side, struggling against the pull of sleep.

* * *

Thunk.

“Yelp!”

Lois shouted, startled by a hand grasping his shoulder.

Looking around frantically, he saw Genelocer standing in front of him with a warm smile, albeit looking a bit gaunt.

“You scared me!”

Lois protested, but Genelocer just continued to smile serenely.

Somehow his face seemed thinner than before.

Genelocer, still smiling with crinkled eyes, said to Lois.

“Did you sleep well?”

“No, I didn’t sleep! Just dozed off a little!”

Lois insisted, shaking his head vigorously in denial.

Genelocer then presented him with a small box, elegantly wrapped in colorful paper.

“……?”

Lois looked puzzled at the box before him.

“Haha.”

With a bright smile, Genelocer handed the box to Lois.

Soon after, Genelocer said something that completely astonished Lois.

“Happy 100th birthday to my son, and congratulations on successfully completing your first sleep!”

“…What?”

“And for successfully getting through your first deep sleep!”

“…Eh?”

Lois’s mouth dropped open as he received the box, a gift commemorating his birthday and the first deep sleep.

* * *

To put it simply, Lois had indeed experienced his first period of deep sleep.

And it lasted for a whopping 100 years.

‘I’ve had moments where I dozed off in class and woke up to find it over…’

But this wasn’t just dozing off and missing a lesson.

He had blinked, and 100 years had passed.

‘But… how am I still alive?’

Before falling asleep, he was constantly on the brink of death, so he couldn’t believe he had woken up safely after a hundred years.

“Is it that they won’t kill me while I’m sleeping?”

The more he thought about it, the more his head swirled with confusion.

‘Sometimes they try to kill me without warning, and now they just leave me be. It’s impossible to predict.’

But regardless of the process, he had survived.

That was what mattered.

However, one thing nagged at him.

“Dad… why do you look so gaunt?”

While it had been but a moment for him, 100 years had indeed passed, and during that time, Genelocer’s face had become incredibly haggard.

The concept of a father was still new to him, but he was undoubtedly his family.

Despite usually being grumpy with Genelocer, he couldn’t help but feel affection due to the love he received.

Therefore, he was worried about Genelocer’s poor complexion.

“…Are you not feeling well?”

Or had his own troublesome behavior worn his father out?

The thought made his heart ache.

‘I’ll start being more obedient from here on out.’

Regretting his actions before falling asleep, Lois resolved to be more compliant and pushed himself to his feet.

Then, he called out with a loud voice, using the affectionate term Genelocer loved, for the first time in 100 years.

It felt a bit embarrassing, but right now, it was the only gift Lois could offer Genelocer.

“Daddy! I’m hungry!”

“Just wait a bit! It’s all ready!”

At the immediate response, Lois gave a slight smile and quickly left his room.

* * *

Late at night, Genelocer returned to his own room and pulled a thick book from the shelf.

The luxurious leather, ornamentation, and the title embossed in gold revealed the nature of the book.

“Lois’s Baby Book”

Flustered, Genelocer opened the journal.

“Oh no, have I already filled it up?”

There was no more space to write in the baby book that was nearly 20 cm thick.

“Time sure flies…”

A sense of tranquility filled Genelocer’s eyes as he looked over the densely filled pages of the baby book.

The hundred years had not been a lengthy time for Genelocer, but because it was spent watching over Lois, it was precious beyond anything else.

He tenderly stroked the cover of the baby book, then flipped it open to the first page.

“Dimensional Year 3090, January 1st”

My child with Valentina was born today.

A healthy boy weighing 2.6 kg.

Born with white scales, resembling Valentina, the baby’s purple, luminous eyes were exceptionally beautiful.

We decided on the name together: Lois.

Lois, our son.

May you grow up healthy and strong.

“Dimensional Year 3090, January 5th”

I transferred basic language knowledge and common sense to Lois.

Though I miss his chirping cries, I was eager to hear him call me ‘Daddy.’

His first word, however, was ‘Mister.’

I nearly cried when he asked, ‘Who are you, Mister?’

“Dimensional Year 3090, January 10th”

Now Lois speaks well and crawls around proficiently.

Though he seems like any other hatchling, it bothers me that he occasionally mutters incomprehensible things.

But apart from that, I’m relieved he eats well and plays well.

He especially loves books, clinging to them daily.

He must be smart like me!

“Dimensional Year 3090, January 17th”

Today, Lois asked for my name for the first time.

I was so happy I told him right away.

But then Lois looked shocked.

It shocked me too.

…Is my name that strange?

“Dimensional Year 3090, February 3rd”

After being struck by lightning on an outing, Lois, who had been down for a while, regained his spirits.

Suddenly, he asked to learn.

He always liked books, so I thought he would be smart, but I didn’t expect him to request teaching so soon.

It made me happy but also a bit sad that he seemed to be growing up faster than other children.

Yet, he’s been such a good son, never once whining, and this was the first time he asked for something.

I couldn’t refuse my son’s request.

So, I’ve decided to check Lois’s attributes tomorrow.

I’ll decide what to teach him based on what attributes he has.

I wonder what his attributes will be.

As much as attributes are born at random, as a father, I wish he has Dark attributes.

Or even Light attributes, like Valentina.

I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

“Dimensional Year 3090, February 4th”

My son is a genius!

He has four attributes!

He’s definitely like me!

“Dimensional Year 3090, February 13th”

Signs of Lois’s first sleep period are starting to show.

Carlos’s twins, born a month before Lois, went into deep sleep last month, so the timing seems about right.

The most important thing for Lois, who will enter a long period of sleep, is nutrition… but the boy doesn’t eat well.

For some reason, he doesn’t eat or play and spends all day in his room reading books.

I can’t help but worry.

I’ve cajoled, coaxed, and even scolded him, but, like someone, he’s stubborn.

The stubbornness of my son is definitely like Valentina, that’s for sure.

Rustle rustle.

As he reflected on the past, a smile unavoidable as sunshine emerged on the lips of Genelocer, who was revisiting the scenes of Lois’s growth.

Rustle rustle.

Genelocer’s hand continued to turn the pages of the diary.

The pages moved further back, heading towards those that recorded the time of Lois’s long slumber.