Just earlier.

"‘Cao Zhi's... Seven Steps Talent?’"

"‘Is it something like reciting a haiku within seven steps to survive? What a weird skill.’"

Right after hitting exactly 00:00, I was a bit dumbfounded and ended up doing a long comedy routine with Historien.

And naturally.

"‘For real? You're really hitting?’"

"‘Of course.’"

We even experimented directly.

"‘Hmm... But, well, Kim Yul can be annoying sometimes, but I don't feel like hitting with real emotion. Feels like my emotion module is broken.’"

"‘Your writing sucks.’"

"‘Unforgivable!’"

Historien's heartfelt flaming slap surged toward my cheek with AI-specific precision.

But.

Smack.

"‘Eh, w-whoa──’"

It was clearly coming straight at me, and I had just lightly taken one step forward.

It swung through the air and then body-slammed right into me.

I wondered if another step would dodge it too, but perhaps human pity is different in texture from a tin can's.

"‘...Thank you.’"

"‘It might be better to make the motion less intense.’"

"‘Yes.’"

Along with the first-ever fluffy soft sensation I felt in my life, the first experiment ended vainly.

After that too.

"‘Boring and pedantic letter combination.’"

"‘Rather than read your writing, I'd re-enlist in the army.’"

"‘Even if a professor wrote it, it'd be more fun than this.’"

As a result of enduring soul-shaving verbal abuse and Historien's sincere fierce attacks.

During the seven steps I take when sensing crisis, I learned I can completely evade physical damage aimed at me.

"‘...Are you okay?’"

"‘Do I look okay?’"

"‘No.’"

It was info I didn't want to know, but there was a cooldown too.

Roughly 30 minutes.

It was learned with a clear handprint etched on my cheek.

.

.

.

And now.

The instinctive step I took upon seeing the dagger saved my life.

They say when people feel a threat to life, the brain spins quickly, or maybe Hector's blessing keeps my thinking calm.

Despite clear death just brushing past me, I could calmly assess the situation.

Clothing that anyone would see as an assassin's.

An idiotically outdated expression.

And clear hostility.

"‘Ho.’"

Second attack, second step.

Unlike exaggerated moves in action movies, it was very disciplined, like well-trained.

Probably, the opponent is a pro assassin who's killed countless people.

Three steps, four steps.

Due to needless impatience, I took a few more.

Only on the fifth step, after letting all instants flow by.

"‘Huaat!’"

I swung the training wooden club aiming for the assassin's wrist.

Even to me, it was a mathematically perfect trajectory, and the lingering aura of Hercules in my body was a strike worthy of a smile and thumbs up.

The minor issue was.

"‘Not bad.’"

Momentarily, white light wrapped and extended the dagger's blade, slicing my club like tofu.

Hm.

So that's the sword energy only peak masters can emit.

Before my body turned into Kim/Yul along with the club, I took one more step.

"‘Huaa! Nureongi!’"

And simultaneously gripped the scale of Nureongi I had made into a necklace and hung, praying earnestly.

That instant.

"‘Ugyak?!’"

"‘Kuh──’"

Nureongi fell from empty air, crushing the assassin at the same time.

My seventh step touched the ground.

And.

"‘Whaaat! Heracleees!’"

Nureongi's scream echoed in the street.

* * *

"‘Today's mammma is──!’"

In a certain house near the train station in the imperial capital, where newspapers can be obtained fastest.

Estea was rolling on the bed, warming up for her only hobby, novel appreciation.

She was even savoring the feel of a hardcover for the first time in a while, not a newspaper serial.

It had been weeks since grabbing Ulysses by the collar and shaking.

- Sigh... Look at this at least.

As expected, shake an author and something comes out; unable to withstand her aggressive courtship, he gave a novel published elsewhere when he lived there!

It was tragic that with the Nureongi countermeasure Historien absent, Kim Yul's stockpiled Nureongi feed was all raided.

Well, to Estea herself, it was comedy.

Feed! Mammma!

"‘Unghihi.’"

Actually, the title wasn't appealing.

Olympus story.

Couldn't gauge the content well.

But originally, even if the title is bizarre, if the author's other dishes were gourmet, the content is likely closer to gourmet.

Still, she started voraciously devouring the most delicious-looking subtitle, "Hercules Heroic Tale," very yumyum.

And soon.

Flip flip...

Swish swish...

Bang bang!

The sound of pages turning, tail wagging, and further, tail thumping the blanket at satisfying parts echoed in the quiet room.

Hercules! Like!

Hercules! Cool!

Using Nureongi-style reading to wagu wagu devour in no time, Estea bloomed a satisfied smile on her lips.

"‘Man-eating horse...! What scary imagination!’"

Momentarily imagining a monster horse that eats dragons, she spent enjoyable time.

But suddenly.

"‘Uh?’"

Estea felt her body slicing space and being sucked somewhere.

Estea panicked at the phenomenon first in her life.

No wonder.

It was the first in her long dragon life to gift her scale to someone, and she hadn't thought Kim Yul would use that chance so soon.

Next moment.

Estea was summoned in mid-air, still rolled in the blanket.

And.

"‘Ugyak?!’"

Letting out a stupid scream, she mercilessly crushed the person right below the summon spot.

And.

"‘Whaaat! Heracleees!’"

Unable to accept the sudden situation change, an intense reaction burst out.

Estea, turned violent like a violence novel protagonist, roared, but next instant.

"‘Kkeu eut, this again...! I'll skip the aisatsu!’"

The man suddenly under her pulled back, charged, and swung at Estea.

No.

Tried to swing.

"‘What are you?’"

"‘...!’"

Until eye contact with Estea turned his body to stone, he tried.

"‘Hmm.’"

Swishing her tail to tap tap the insolent man's cheek.

Estea exercised dragon-like intellect and insight.

From the situation.

This man threatened Ulysses's life, so Ulysses borrowed the scale's power to summon her.

For mere one human.

For mere worthless one human.

"‘Novels are fun when continued──!’"

"‘Kuh──’"

The man, Klapen's adam's apple decorated the dark night sky.

.

.

.

"‘Exactly, if you're an author, stay home and write quietly, why come out!’"

Estea, using the fainted Klapen as chair substitute, thumped her tail on the floor repeatedly and scolded.

Despite receiving a dragon's anger head-on.

"‘I can come out for a walk.’"

Kim Yul scratched the back of his head awkwardly and answered.

Seeing that, the moment Estea tried to raise her anger gauge more.

"‘Ugh. Suddenly psychological stress, feels like hiatus tomorrow──’"

"‘That's nooot!’"

Estea's anger subsided instantly.

Right after, wagging tail swish swish like Nureongi, she flew and clung to Kim Yul.

"‘Ulysses, hiatus is sin. That shouldn't exist. Right? So, right?’"

Estea had completely forgotten she was clinging to a lowly human.

Kim Yul didn't miss that opening thread.

"‘Hmm, then, if you grant two requests, I might even do double update tomorrow...’"

"‘D-double update!’"

Tail wagging sped up three times.

Perfect lure for Nureongi.

The bait only Kim Yul, who had steadily observed Historien carrying Estea around giving mamma, could wield.

"‘Kkeu eu eu...’"

Looking down at the assassin Klapen writhing with moan, front teeth gone.

"‘By chance, can the great dragon also dominate human minds?’"

Kim Yul deliberately added extreme honorifics to maximize persuasion.

"‘Ehem! Of course!’"

The effect was tremendous!

"‘Then, shake this guy to check who ordered my death.’"

"‘That's easy!’"

Estea ehemm, stood up abruptly, instantly wrapped Klapen with tail.

Brought the limp Klapen right before her eyes in no time, Estea placed hand on his head.

And.

"‘Solam veritatem dicere debes──’"

Estea's cheerful voice dropped a tone, and a spell shaking the soul flowed from her mouth.

Kim Yul's eyes widened slightly.

And.

The half-conscious Klapen's mouth opened, producing sound.

"‘Ber tt u... Duke nimi... ordered...’"

Pronunciation slurred from adam's apple flying impact, but Kim Yul understood exactly.

"‘Duke Bertus, huh.’"

Kim Yul murmured the name in a low voice.

"‘Ehemm! Shall this great dragon handle it?’"

Estea puffed chest long, growling as if about to breathe fire any moment.

But Kim Yul quietly shook his head.

"‘Revenge isn't delegated to others. I have to f*ck him over myself for true revenge.’"

Kim Yul's eyes gleamed insidious and vicious, like imagining a supervising professor who rejected a doctoral thesis.

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