DRP 18

chapter 18

It’s been five days since I discovered that catching bad guys makes my body grow.

During that time, the adults kept me locked away in my room, forbidding me from going out.
It was because my sudden increase in height and limb length had to be hidden.

Not being able to go for walks was a bit frustrating,
but honestly, I wasn’t bored or lonely these past few days.

Actually, I was busy—busy trying on altered old clothes and newly made ones.

Of course, there was nothing my tiny hands could really do with a needle;
my mother and my aunt did almost all the work.

Fortunately, children’s clothes in Hleuguk were designed with plenty of extra fabric at the hems and cuffs so they could be easily altered as a child grew.

My socks and shoes had also become too small,
but that was easily solved—
they just took out the many gifted pairs from relatives that had been too large before.

“Hyeon’s clothes don’t have a single stain or tear. You’ve kept them so clean,”
my aunt murmured in admiration as she folded them neatly.
She said that when her sons were four, she could barely dream of letting them wear silk except on special occasions—
since they ripped or poked holes in their clothes several times a day, the seamstresses were always busy patching them up.

They were better behaved now, of course,
but even now they sometimes came home with sleeves or knees torn.

“Just yesterday, they managed to turn their long sleeves into short ones again.”
“Usually at the elbows or knees, right?”
“Yes, even if I patch it, it frays right away in those spots,”
she sighed.

Hearing her lament, Mother brought over a basket she had kept inside the closet.

I knew exactly what was in there—
scraps of leather left over from making my father’s and my own clothes.

All of it was high-quality, well-tanned leather.

“If you patch with this, the clothes should last longer,” Mother said.
“Are you sure it’s okay to give me all this?”
“Sharing among family isn’t something to be stingy about.”
“…Oh my.”

My aunt, known for her sharp eye (even Grandmother approved of her sense),
looked at Mother closely and said,

“You mean that sincerely, Yeryeom.”
“Of course I do.”

Mother tilted her head, puzzled,
and Aunt laughed warmly.

“Everyone in this family is so upright and honest.”
“You’re the same, Yeonri.”
“Oh no, I’m just prickly.”

They chatted lightly as they organized the clothes.

Meanwhile, I transformed into a puppy, settled down between them,
and let out a long, lazy yawn.

It was such a peaceful moment.

***

After the clothes were done, Grandmother called for me.
So Mother and I headed to the main house—
only to be struck by thunder out of a clear sky.

“A marriage proposal has come for you.”

“…!”

Apparently, proposals had begun pouring in for me.

I just gaped like an idiot.

I’m four years old.

A four-year-old puppy who proves her health by gnawing on chair legs—and I had a marriage proposal?

But of course, there was a reason.

In this world, families of high status often arranged marriages even before birth.

Among the five prestigious noble families of Hleuguk,
it was actually rarer not to have a betrothal in the womb.

These five great houses were:

The Hong family — fox clan, producing the most civil officials.
The Cho family — deer clan, masters of herbal medicine and healing.
The Geum family — rat clan, the richest merchants in the country.
The Baek family — tiger clan, known for descendants skilled in sorcery.
The Hyeon family — my family, dog clan, renowned for generations of exceptional warriors.

Among Grandmother’s four children, only my father and eldest uncle were married.

And among all the baby puppies born of love,
I was the only girl.

Even before I was born, people had quietly approached my parents, saying,
“If it’s a daughter, let’s make a match.”

But since my parents were a love-married couple, they firmly refused all such offers.

Still, curiosity got the better of me.

“But how could they want to form a prenatal betrothal when they didn’t even know my personality or species? What if I didn’t match their son or grandson?”

Grandmother chuckled.

“I asked them the same thing when they brought it up at your uncle’s wedding. You know what they all said?”
“What?”
“The bride and groom’s looks.”
“…!”
“They passionately declared that any child born from such beautiful parents would be lovely—regardless of species.”

Good grief.

So it wasn’t about alliances or power—it was about beauty.
They were rushing to secure a beautiful daughter-in-law for their bloodline!

***

“And indeed, you take after your grandfather most, so their prediction was right.”

Apparently, things stayed quiet for a few years because rumors spread that I was very frail.

But after my visit to Rose Village with Mother, that changed.

“She rode in a carriage for an outing? She must’ve gotten stronger! Let’s send a proposal before someone else does!”
That’s how the families started moving again.

“Those scrolls piled there are all your marriage proposals,” Grandmother said, gesturing.

Mother followed her gaze calmly.

“The ones in the basket?”
“No, those are the ones that need my seal for Do-ui’s documents.
The ones in that chest are Hyeon’s.”

Mother froze. I did too—my jaw dropped open.

The chest was huge,
and the pile of scrolls inside reached above my head.

“Even when Do-ui and Do-hyang were of age, it wasn’t this bad.”

This wasn’t Grandmother’s first time being bombarded with proposals.
It had happened before—with Father and Aunt.

Especially with Aunt, since daughters were rare in our family,
proposals flooded in since her childhood.

And with Grandmother being a famed general and beauty herself,
Aunt had been hailed as the most desirable bride in all of Hleuguk.

Suitors from lesser houses didn’t even dare try—
only the elite families lined up for her.

The problem? Aunt’s impossibly high standards.

Since the first face she’d ever seen was Grandfather’s—one of the three most handsome men in the kingdom—
no one else could compare.

“She rejected everyone, saying, ‘If he’s not at least as good-looking as Father or my second brother, I’m not interested.’”
“Wow…”

She never found anyone to her liking.
She’d realized that not all men looked like her father and brothers,
and out of disappointment, she passed the warrior’s exam and left home the moment she became an adult.

Her twin brother—my uncle—naturally went with her.

***

The headache was that my situation was even worse.

Among all the noble families’ recent generations,
there were hardly any girls.

Especially among my peers—it was all boys.
Finding a bride had become like reaching for the stars.

To make matters worse,
the current emperor had only one son—the crown prince—and no consort.
He even declared that he would never take one.

In other words, the crown prince would be his only child.

This year, the prince turned ten—
prime age to begin seeking a match.

So the few noble families with daughters were in chaos.
And since the royal family could claim first choice,
every other house was in a panic.

Meanwhile, the top-tier families—those who could potentially intermarry with the royal line—
were all rejecting normal proposals left and right,
aiming only for the crown princess seat.

“Long-lived species, like dragons, tend to prefer younger partners to match lifespans,” Grandmother explained.
“Then they must be very picky about health too?”
“Exactly. That’s why you were quickly excluded from the crown princess candidate list.”

Well… that “fake frail” cover to hide my true Haetae (divine beast) identity sure came back around.

Judging by Grandmother’s expression, she had already accounted for this.

“More proposals will probably come.”
“More than this?”

I stared, horrified.

“This is just the beginning,” she said.
“Families with even a little influence want well-born daughters-in-law. It can’t be helped.”

At that point, I started to feel amazed by my parents—
they’d managed to marry for love amid all this chaos.

Didn’t Father get tons of proposals too?

“It’s a guardian’s duty to find a good match,
but it’s up to the individual to choose their partner.”
“So I can refuse them all?”
“For now, yes.”

That settled it.
I decided I’d refuse every single one.

But less than a week later,
that resolution crumbled to dust.

***

“……”
“……”

Silence hung over the room.

Grandmother’s office was now piled to Father’s height with marriage proposals.

After spending the past week diligently reviewing and rejecting them,
both Mother and Father were speechless.

Even Grandmother just poked the pile blankly.

Crash!

Scrolls tumbled everywhere across the floor,
but no one bothered picking them up—
there was no point. More would come tomorrow.

“Unbelievable,” Grandmother muttered with a hollow laugh.
“Did they all eat something funny together?”
“Maybe word got out that our daughter’s so pretty and lovable,”
Father chuckled, shaking my paw.

He looked half-dead from exhaustion, and Mother didn’t look much better.

Actually, this was the third year since my sealing (protection ward) had been placed.
It needed to be reinforced soon.

But my aunt and uncle couldn’t come home for the holiday,
and my other aunt—Aunt Hyeseo, a high-level sorceress—fell ill unexpectedly.

It wasn’t impossible to hire another sorcerer,
but none were as skilled or as trustworthy as Aunt Hyeseo.

She’d apologized and promised to come by next spring at the latest to redo my warding during the New Year,
but… that seemed unlikely now.

A few days ago, urgent news arrived—
Aunt Hyeseo was pregnant.

Apparently, the last time she’d fallen ill, it was because she hadn’t known about the pregnancy and overexerted herself.

So lately, Mother’s nerves were frayed to the limit—
worried about Aunt Hyeseo’s health,
worried about my seal’s timing,
and now swamped by this avalanche of absurd proposals.

Dark circles shadowed her eyes.