“Why is Vice Chairman Theo~nim here…?”
Jeto, a legendary merchant, belatedly noticed Theo next to Piyot and asked in confusion.
“It’s not important, meow! What are you going to give to our Piyot, huh?!”
Theo, demanding as if entitled to receive something, boldly stretched out his front paw towards Jeto.
Piyot is his subordinate. Thus, if Piyot receives something good, it belongs to him.
‘And if I give that to Chairman Park, I’ll get to lie on Chairman Park’s lap and be adored, Puhuhut.’
Knee fanatic Theo Park, all about being on Sejun’s lap.
And then
Piyo! Piyo!
[Please give me mine quickly! I’ll give it to Vice Chairman Theo~nim!]
Piyot, the self-proclaimed right front paw man of Theo. Overjoyed to have something to give to Theo, Piyot quickly babbled to Jeto to give him his.
“Just calm down…”
Jeto, troubled by the insistent demands of Theo and Piyot, wore a troubled expression.
Then
Swoosh.
Kueng…?!
[Why aren’t you giving it…?!]
“It’s not Cuengi. Put it away.”
Sejun hurriedly stopped Cuengi, the apostle of justice, from taking out the stick of justice from his snack pouch to help Theo and Piyot.
Kueng?
[Is it not the time for Cuengi to punish the bad guys?]
“Yeah, not now. Come here.”
Sejun opened his arms wide,
And Cuengi jumped into Sejun’s embrace, and Sejun hugged him.
Kuehehehehe. Kueng!
[Hehehe. Daddy’s chest is so fluffy!]
Cuengi buried his head into Sejun’s chest and rubbed against it happily.
“Eh? It’s not that fluffy, is it?”
Shocked by Cuengi’s comment, Sejun asked seriously.
But
Kueng! Kueng!
[No! Dad’s chest is really fluffy!]
Cuengi replied honestly, without any pretense.
‘I’ll start working out from now!’
Sejun resolved to work out diligently from now on to build firm muscles.
While Sejun and Cuengi were talking,
“Give it here, meow!”
Piyo!
[Hand it over!]
Theo and Piyot were still pestering Jeto.
“Guys, stop it. We’ll be late for the founding ceremony.”
Eventually, Sejun stepped in to stop them.
“Che. It’s a failure, meow!”
Piyo! Piyo!
[Che! What a failure!]
Disappointed by Sejun’s intervention, Theo and Piyot pouted briefly before coolly turning back.
Then
“Excuse me… Are you perhaps the great Black Dragon?”
Jeto cautiously asked, observing Sejun giving orders to Theo.
Theo is a subordinate of the great Black Dragon. Thus, Sejun, who was giving orders to Theo, must be either the great Black Dragon himself or a subordinate higher in rank than Theo.
Of course, from the outside, it seemed like neither was the case.
However,
‘If he’s not the great Black Dragon, it doesn’t make sense.’
Seeing Sejun holding a bear filled with tremendous energy without showing any energy himself, Jeto was convinced that Sejun was indeed the great Black Dragon.
Puhuhut. Chairman Park’s lap energy is good, meow! All the energy released by Sejun was being absorbed by Theo due to Theo’s energy drain, but Jeto was unaware.
“Puhuhut. That’s right, meow! Chairman Park is the great Black Dragon, meow! And I…”
As Theo began to introduce himself under the guise of introducing Sejun,
Ppyak!
[We need to go now!]
Coco intervened at the right moment to cut it off.
“Alright, let’s hurry.”
Sejun hurriedly moved on, and Jeto followed Sejun for the time being.
So, Sejun and the animals arrived at a giant hall under Coco’s guidance. Unlike the wedding that had taken place outdoors before, the founding ceremony was to be held indoors this time.
Click.
Upon Sejun’s arrival, Ulrich, the king of the Black Orcs, Uren, the legendary merchant, and Mimyr, another legendary merchant, stood up from their seats and bowed their heads in greeting to Sejun.
Then
“Kyoot, kyoot, kyoot. Welcome, Sejun~nim!”
Iona quickly flew to greet Sejun and then
Zipped into Theo’s tail.
And then
Piyo! Piyo! Piyo?
[Hello! I’m Pirururur Yotra from the White-Headed Long-Tailed Tit Tribe, and I’ll be Vice Chairman Theo’s right front paw man! But who are you?]
Piyot, greeting Iona whom he had never met before.
“Oh my…”
Jeto was horrified to see Piyot, oblivious to the fact that he was speaking to Iona, the tower master and the wizard of great destruction. He thought they needed to intervene quickly!
Just as Jeto was about to step in to prevent the situation from escalating,
“Kyoot, kyoot, kyoot. Yes. Piyot, nice to meet you. My name is Iona. Do your best to become a good right front paw man for Vice Chairman Theo.”
Piyo! Piyo!
[Yes! I will work hard!]
“Kyoot, kyoot, kyoot. Okay.”
Iona was seen encouraging Piyot. A grumpy wizard offering encouragement? Is it because they’re in front of the great Black Dragon? Or because she’s beside her lover?
While Jeto was amazed to see a gentle side of Iona,
Bam-bam-bam!
The founding ceremony began with the sound of trumpets.
And then
Thump.
As the giant doors of the hall opened,
Pi-ppi!
Ppyak!
ChuChu and the Black Rabbit, wearing a splendid golden crown, walked towards the throne and took their seats.
“The delegation envoys congratulating the Red Ribbon Kingdom on its founding may now enter.”
Various organizations and country delegations began entering, presenting greetings and gifts to ChuChu and the Black Rabbit.
While the delegations were taking turns greeting ChuChu and the Black Rabbit,
Piyo?
[Vice Chairman Theo, should I join the delegation or not?]
Piyot, having heard from Jeto about representing the Kingdom of Kov delegation, asked Theo.
“Puhuhut. Nothing comes for free…”
Theo was obviously aiming to make a profit from this opportunity.
But
“Of course, you should.”
Sejun spoke up, silencing Theo. It seemed like an important matter, considering Jeto’s urgency.
“Oh! Thank you! O great Black Dragon.”
Jeto expressed his gratitude to Sejun for stepping in.
“Just call me Sejun.”
“Yes, Lord Sejun.”
Thus, Piyot agreed to become a delegate.
However
Piyo…
Piyot was too small to carry the gifts Jeto had prepared, and it didn’t look dignified enough for a delegation.
Then
“Puhuhut. Jeto, need a part-timer, meow?! We’ll become the delegates as part-timers, meow!”
Theo extended his front paw towards Jeto again, implying to pay up for the part-time job.
“That’s…”
Jeto was considering whether to accept this offer when
“That’s a great idea!”
Sejun was excited at the thought of putting beaks and wings on Theo and Cuengi. It sounded fun.
Thus, Theo and Cuengi became part-time delegates.
Shortly after
“The delegation from the 79th floor of the tower, the Kingdom of Kov, will now enter!”
With the crier’s announcement, four delegates from the Kingdom of Kov entered.
Piyo!
Piyot, leading the way, walked forward with dignity.
However
Tip-tap. Tip-tap. Tip-tap.
Due to his short legs, despite his efforts, his walking speed was quite slow.
Following Piyot, Theo and Cuengi, adorned with beaks and wings made of green onion leaves, slowly trailed behind.
“Puhuhut. I’m not a cat, I’m a bird, meow!”
Kuehehehehe. Kueng!
[Hehehe. Cuengi can fly!]
Theo and Cuengi, flapping their makeshift wings earnestly as they walked.
“Guys, be gentle. The wings might tear if you’re not careful.”
Sejun whispered as quietly as possible from behind Theo and Cuengi.
Originally, he had planned to send just Theo and Cuengi,
“Meow?! Isn’t Chairman Park going to work part-time with us, meow?”
“No. I’m not going to.”
“That’s not acceptable, meow! We are one, meow!”
Kueng! Kueng!
[Cuengi wants to work part-time with dad too! We are one!]
Unable to refuse after their use of declaration of unity slogan, Sejun felt obliged to adhere to his words.
Thus, Sejun, too, donned a beak and followed at the end of the delegation.
Flap, flap.
The role of the wings was taken on by the golden bat attached to Sejun’s back, and thanks to that, they received the wages for four people.
Tip-tap. Tip-tap. Tip-tap.
As Piyot and the group, leading the way, arrived at the place for their presentation to ChuChu and the Black Rabbit,
‘Uncle, what are Theo hyung and Cuengi doing?’
The Black Rabbit asked Sejun with his eyes.
‘Don’t ask anything.’
Sejun shook his head subtly, replying with his gaze to the Black Rabbit’s question.
Meanwhile,
Piyo…
[The great queen of the Red Ribbon Kingdom…]
Piyot started with the speech he had memorized.
However,
Piyo…
[Uh…]
Piyot began to stumble from the first line. A delegation not knowing the name of the opposing kingdom’s queen? It was a massive blunder.
What was the queen’s name again?
Piyot looked at Sejun with eyes almost welling up.
‘No choice. Time for plan B.’
Sejun had prepared a backup plan in case Piyot forgot his lines.
“Golden bat.”
Sejun summoned the golden bat in a whisper, so quiet that no one else could hear.
(To the great queen ChuChu and King Black Rabbit of the Red Ribbon Kingdom…)
The golden bat, from Sejun’s back, telepathically transmitted the script to Piyot, allowing their delegation part-time job to end successfully.
***
Pi-ppi!
Ppyak!
As ChuChu and the Black Rabbit finished receiving the gifts from the delegations and were bestowing official positions on the founding contributors,
“Elge, is that bastard the one who took your inner core?!”
A humanoid crocodile in the VIP seats, looking like Elge Caiman, asked while looking at Sejun, who had returned from the delegation part-time job and was dozing off.
“Yes! That’s the guy!”
“This will make things easier.”
Komodo Caiman, the second prince, smiled viciously at Sejun after hearing Elge Caiman’s confirmation.
Three days ago, Komodo Caiman, as Elge Caiman’s escort, received news from his subordinate that Elge had not only become a slave but also had his inner core stolen. A prince of the Caiman Kingdom?
Komodo Caiman, furious at Elge for bringing shame to their family,
Rushed to inform his father, Croker Caiman, of the situation and requested elite soldiers’ support.
He said he would take charge and solve the problem himself.
Thus, Komodo Caiman descended to the 55th floor of the tower with 100 elite soldiers, having received the king’s permission.
“Just wait a little longer. Kukukuk.”
Elge Caiman laughed, looking at Sejun.
And
‘Stupid fool, to have your inner core stolen by such a worthless creature?’
Komodo Caiman eyed his brother disdainfully. He wasn’t here to save his brother.
‘Your inner core will be put to good use. In exchange, your corpse will be buried in the royal cemetery.’
Komodo Caiman’s plan was to kill Elge Caiman, the disgrace of the royal family, and consume the inner core that Sejun possessed.
Of course, he intended to kill anyone who belittled the Caiman Kingdom.
Then
Bam-!
With the sound of a long trumpet, the founding ceremony came to an end, and
“Move out.”
“Yes!”
At Komodo Caiman’s command, the elite soldiers who had been waiting began to move.
***
Bam-!
“Huh?”
Sejun snapped awake at the sound of the trumpet.
And then
Tap, tap, tap.
“Guys, wake up. It’s over.”
He began waking up the animals sleeping on his legs by gently tapping them.
“Meow-!”
Kueng-!
“Kyoot-!”
(Pip-!)
Piyo-!
As Sejun woke them up, the animals energetically stretched and got up.
“Everyone’s already gone.”
Since the banquet hall was set up in another location, except for a few engaged in conversation, almost everyone had moved to the banquet hall, leaving the hall almost empty.
“Let’s quickly go and eat something.”
Waking up made him incredibly hungry.
Kueng! Kueng!
[Daddy, let’s go quickly! Cuengi is hungry!]
Cuengi, feeling equally–if not more hunger, urged Sejun.
“Alright, let’s hurry. Come on, to your positions.”
At Sejun’s words, Theo and Cuengi took their places on Sejun’s legs, while the golden bat and Piyot settled on Sejun’s shoulders.
“Kyoot, kyoot, kyoot…”
Iona was still not fully awake, but with securely attached to Theo’s tail, she wasn’t worried.
Just as Sejun was about to head to the banquet hall to eat,
“Can we talk for a moment?”
Komodo Caiman, along with his elite soldiers, surrounded Sejun and the animals.
Kueng…
[Cuengi is getting angry because Cuengi’s hungry…]
An annoyed Cuengi took out the stick of justice from his snack pouch, but Sejun didn’t stop him.
“What do you want?”
Sejun was also in a bad mood because of hunger.
It was the worst possible timing for Komodo Caiman.
*****
5/6
