chapter 04
Wrapped snugly in my swaddle, I had no chance to get bored during the whole journey.
Having only stayed in a small ondol-heated room before, I hadn’t realized that the outside world was full of diverse smells and sounds.
It felt a bit like wandering near a movie theater.
The noisy clamor came thumping from a distance, and the sweet-and-salty smell of popping popcorn wafted from all directions—just like a cinema.
This is really fun.
As I sniffed eagerly, my mother looked down at me with a soft expression.
I’m a dog that knows how to learn.
I closed my eyes and started counting.
1, 2, 3!
Smooch.
“Aren’t you a little shy?”
“It’s inside a carriage.”
Dad kept stealing kisses whenever he could. But it wasn’t just him—when no one was watching, Mom, in her wolf form, would often put Dad’s head in her mouth.
At first, I barked furiously, thinking Mom was going to eat Dad, but apparently that’s how wolves show affection.
I had to squeak and squirm for a while to get over my misunderstanding after my parents carefully explained. It was the lingering effect of being so startled.
“We’ve arrived.”
Dad announced that the carriage would soon stop.
Ah, of course, now I have to change form.
“Woo.”
“Looks like even the heavens are helping our baby.”
Mom, back in human form, gently caressed my soft cheeks.
“Let’s get out just like this.”
“You won’t… change suddenly, right?”
Dad whispered softly. The missing subject in his question could have many interpretations: I won’t misbehave, I won’t cry, I won’t get hurt, and so on.
But the real meaning was likely:
You won’t suddenly turn into a beast, right?
Even in the carriage, Dad spoke cautiously as if someone else might hear, and that caution was filled with concern for me.
“Wooo!”
“Hyeon?”
My nose tingled as I made a sound. Not only that, I somehow managed to wriggle my hand out of the swaddle and waved it.
Seeing my tiny hand flail, Dad offered me his index finger. I grasped it tightly and shouted:
“Ahh!”
I won’t get caught no matter what!
Perhaps they understood my determined declaration. Dad and Mom, who had been silent for a moment, began to stifle their laughter.
Soon, the carriage stopped. Mom tucked my hands back into the swaddle.
“Let’s get out.”
The carriage door opened.
Dad stepped out first, and Mom, holding me, set her feet on the ground with cloud-like, quiet steps. Though less overwhelming than when I was a puppy, the sounds around me still stimulated my senses.
“Baby.”
Dad slightly lifted the swaddle.
“This is Daddy’s house.”
I blinked in astonishment at the sight before me.
Beyond the gate, decorated with a black dog that looked like a goblin, lay houses with tiled roofs like whale backs, lined up against the backdrop of green mountains.
Almost like a small castle. While I was staring in awe, Dad snugly adjusted my swaddle again and wrapped his arm around Mom’s shoulders.
“Welcome.”
“Brother.”
It’s Uncle! That low, firm voice—definitely Uncle!
“Come on in. You had a fever recently, right?”
“Thanks for the medicine before.”
“The best thing is to be healthy enough not to need medicine. I’ve already moved the luggage into the annex. The fire is lit, and everyone’s been sent away, so it will be comfortable for a sensitive and weak child to rest.”
“Brother… really, it’s just you…”
Dad was genuinely touched.
No wonder. Every word Uncle said was a lie.
The reason he spoke with such a serious and trustworthy tone in front of a busy gate was one:
To cleverly hide the fact that I’m a Haetae.
According to Dad, the Hyun family has many military-background members, so hierarchy and unity are strict. When Uncle became the family head, succession was clearly settled, but envious people from other prestigious families might try to cause trouble.
So Uncle worked even harder to maintain the deception.
If anyone discovered I was a Haetae, who knows what schemes rival families might attempt.
“You and your wife have worked hard. When a child is sick, a parent’s heart tears into a thousand pieces. Now you can relax.”
“I’ll be dutiful, Brother.”
“Be dutiful to Mother.”
Uncle led Dad and Mom through the gate with perfect positioning. Beyond the swaddle, only Dad and Uncle were visible, their large bodies naturally shielding me from view.
The amazing thing? It was all improvisation.
Originally, the plan was to tightly wrap me in the swaddle so no one could see me and sneak in without attracting attention.
But when I turned into a human baby, Dad changed the plan, slightly revealing my face. Uncle, seeing this, smoothly adjusted, making everything look natural.
“Isn’t this the young master? Is the first child already one month old?”
“One month? They barely just passed their hundredth day.”
“Then why are they coming to the main house already?”
“The baby is weak. That’s why they repaired the small annex in the northeast.”
I could hear people whispering. They spoke quietly, but if you focused, you could hear everything. That explained why Dad spoke so softly inside the carriage.
“They say raising a hybrid is tough.”
“Oh, right. Hybrids are born as small humans. I saw my nephew, also a hybrid. It takes a human baby ten months just to stand.”
“Ten months just to stand?!”
I agreed silently. The human form was definitely inconvenient.
Seriously—puppies walk in 21 days, but a human baby can’t even hold its head up yet!
“No wonder they came early.”
“Right?”
Hearing the distant voices, Mom sighed in relief. Dad and Uncle had been worried about rumors. It seemed public opinion inside the family was okay, so I was relieved too.
The move had been hard on my little body. By the time I woke up in the annex, the sun was already setting.
Dad had gone to greet Grandma, so I ate my meal in my scruffy, fur-flattened state.
I love Mom’s scent. I love Mom’s milk.
Only at times like this did I truly feel like a baby. No matter what I was in my previous life, right now, I loved being cradled in Mom’s fluffy, cloud-like embrace.
My little body, faithful to instinct, moved only to satisfy its unmet needs—hunger or sleep.
As a reincarnated being, I knew parenting wouldn’t be easy. I wanted to make my parents comfortable, but my body wouldn’t obey me. Sigh.
Creak.
While eating, the sound of a door opening in the yard made Mom tense, then relax once she recognized the visitor.
“It’s me.”
It’s Dad!
I wagged my tail once and ignored the movement outside. I couldn’t move until I finished my meal!
At that moment, the annex door opened, letting in the outside breeze. Mom shifted again.
“Stay comfortable. I came unexpectedly.”
“Yes. Our baby is eating, so pardon the intrusion, Master… ah!”
“Has the man, now a father, still not learned manners?”
Meal finished!
Mom, now in human form, picked me up. My full belly jiggled at the sudden lift.
“Long time no see, Master.”
“Yes. You’ve worked hard.”
“Thank you for your help.”
Mom rubbed my back. Ah, a satisfying burp escaped.
Embarrassed, I licked my nose, feeling a sharp gaze, and lifted my head.
Oh.
A woman with a firm tone greeted me.
Seeing her dark eyes, and the faces resembling Dad and Uncle, I immediately recognized her.
The head of the Hyun family, Dad’s mother.
“I am your grandmother.”
Grandma Hyun Tae-rang!
My previously still tail started spinning noisily like a propeller.
Mom put me down. My belly, swollen from milk, nearly touched the floor. I waddled forward with effort.
Arriving in front of Grandma, I sat politely and greeted.
“Woof!”
Hello!
“….”
Up close, Grandma looked surprisingly young. Her short black hair had no gray strands, her face almost wrinkle-free—I might have mistaken her for Dad’s older sister.
More than anything, her first impression was striking. Sharp, precise, like a well-forged blade.
“I do not speak to scold your mother-in-law, let that be clear.”
Grandma peered at me seriously.
“The child is very small.”
Huh?
I felt like I’d heard that before. I remembered Uncle saying the same thing the first time I met him.
Am I really that small?
“Our direct descendants usually grow this much by their hundredth day.”
Small, indeed. While I barely filled Dad’s palm, others had arms like full forearms. What the heck—this gap is bigger than when I was twenty-one days old!
“By the way, you and your brother grew to this size.”
“You were exceptional from the start.”
“Ahem.”
Even Dad had seemed bigger than a forearm by a hundred days. Mom, in wolf form, had admired him, so he must have been a superior child. I didn’t understand why I was like this.
Grandma reached out to me. Pressing my moist nose to her hand, her rigid mouth softened slightly.
“But fortunately, you look very healthy.”
“Right? Our baby is lively and adorable.”
“Baby, shall we cry a bit?”
If it’s that, I can certainly comply.
I sat up straight, chin raised, and cried.
“Woof! Awoo! Howooong!”
“Yes. Quite brave.”
Grandma nodded, satisfied. Proud, I puffed my chest.
“Your fur is thick and glossy, your legs strong, and your cry loud. No major problems are apparent. Being small is a concern…”
Grandma gently patted my head.
The careful touch made me feel like I was flying.
“You’ll be fine, Haetae. No one will dare hit you.”
“What does that mean?”
Mom asked, and Grandma replied casually.
“There’s a record of a one-year-old Haetae bringing down a beam in our house. Actually, we came early today to warn you because the child is so strong.”
“No way…”
“Yes.”
Grandma’s serious, firm voice continued:
“This little one, no bigger than a chestnut, might bring down a house when they turn one.”
“…!”
Mom and Dad seemed to experience cognitive dissonance. So did I. Destructive strength?
I looked at my soft, paw-like hands. Everyone’s gaze focused on my tiny, sock-white front paws.
Even more frightening than a black flame dragon’s power.
