<104. Shock and Terror (2)>
Jenkinson was in an exceptionally good mood. The stress that had been weighing on him, to the point where he feared he might become the first dragon in history to develop cancer, had significantly lessened.
The main reason was that he had eliminated his rival, Changchun. Most of the lucrative businesses she ran had fallen into Jenkinson's hands. Though the anti-dragon opposition party and progressive media condemned him, their outcry barely made an impact.
Moreover, a friend who used to frequently contact him to urge debt repayments or ask for various errands had been unusually quiet lately. Jenkinson was curious about the reason but didn't bother to reach out. There were no major incidents that required his power at the moment, so he was content to enjoy the rare peace instead of stirring up trouble himself.
He was so relaxed that the stress-induced binge eating urges that had been plaguing him for a while had subsided.
As a result, the livestock at the elephant farm were no longer living in fear of the dragon who used to devour them day and night, and the managers were finally able to catch their breath. Jenkinson was even considering returning to his old diet—a clean diet consisting purely of refined mana, without any meat.
"Chairman, I have a report for you."
The happy dragon gave his secretary a warm smile. Blair paused for a moment, then lowered her gaze to the papers and began to read out the report in a formal tone.
"The progress on free health check-ups, blood sampling, and genetic analysis for goblins nationwide is nearing 90%. With the exception of those whose whereabouts are unknown due to being on deep-sea fishing boats, sold abroad, or enslaved, we believe we have covered nearly the entire population. We plan to continue collecting blood samples by leveraging the Jenkinson Foundation's network and collaborating with international aid organizations."
The dragon nodded leisurely. Minjun seemed to have little interest in this project lately, but it was still ongoing. There was no telling when he might suddenly show up at the office and demand results, so Jenkinson made sure to stay on top of things.
"And the genetic mapping?"
"We estimate that approximately 3% of the subjects have trace amounts of demonic goblin blood. It will take more time to combine these genes to create a complete DNA map of a purebred demonic goblin."
"Understood. Keep me updated."
"And next..."
This news had the potential to displease her superior. Blair carefully chose her words.
"This is the research progress report on the specimen known as 'Spider.'"
The paper she handed over was filled with various tables and complex graphs. As the dragon skimmed through it, he quickly got to the point.
"Essentially, we've learned almost nothing."
It was a report on the hybrid creature that Minjun had captured—a cross between a dragon and an Ober spider.
The technology used to "create" her was far beyond what could be reproduced or analyzed on Earth. It was a significant matter.
The dragon asked, "What about her offspring?"
"Another one has awakened to their abilities."
"Really? That makes three now. What's the new ability?"
"Elemental affinity."
The eyebrows of the dragon, who was currently in polymorph form, twitched.
Dragons with elemental affinity are extremely rare. While it doesn't completely approach zero like divine power, it's still quite uncommon.
The reason was simple. Spirits, wraiths, and elemental beings were all considered mere ghosts to dragons. The concept of treating such phantoms as companions and respecting them as equals was something dragons found hard to accept.
Therefore, any dragon that occasionally managed to summon spirits was often regarded as mentally unstable.
"A dragon's blood mixed in, and it summoned an elemental?"
It was probably possible because the hybrid was something that couldn't naturally occur, like a half-elf mix.
"If the remaining one awakens divine power, it would be news to shock the entire universe."
Of course, such information would never be leaked.
"And..."
Blair continued, reading from the document.
"It seems the children who have awakened their abilities are showing remarkable talent."
Jenkinson nodded, as if it were obvious.
"With dragon genes mixed in, it would be strange if they weren't."
"Even to someone unfamiliar with these abilities, it seems impressive. Their skills are improving rapidly, and sometimes they make mistakes or become difficult to control. It's been suggested that it would be best to assign them proper teachers to ensure they receive adequate training."
"What do the children want?"
"They've shown great interest in the abilities they've awakened and seem eager to learn properly."
Jenkinson hesitated for a moment before asking.
"How much longer do those children have to live?"
"About ten months."
The dragon didn't hesitate long.
"Let them do whatever they want. Make sure they have no regrets. Assign them teachers. Make sure they're good ones."
After receiving permission, Blair moved on to the next item.
"The Lord's partner has successfully laid eggs."
As a result, the long-delayed dragon council meeting would soon be announced. Jenkinson felt another long-standing worry fade away.
"Now things are moving forward."
"What should we send as a gift?"
"What did I send as a congratulatory gift last time when that fellow got divorced?"
"You gifted a Lich from the Medemos dimension."
Only then did he remember. The old butler had been taken by his ex-wife during the division of assets, so he had bought a Lich as a replacement.
Jenkinson, trying to think of a gift that wouldn't overlap with the last one, said, "Take out some orichalcum and mithril from my lair and send them over. If that creature inherited the same blood, it'll hatch quickly and teethe early. It'll need some toys to chew on."
After finishing the report, Blair checked the next appointment. A meeting with the ruling party's leader was scheduled. Just as Jenkinson was about to head out, there was an interruption.
"Ms. Blair."
An employee from the secretarial office entered the room. Blair's eyes widened as she reviewed the paper handed to her. She immediately passed it to the dragon.
"You should see this directly, Chairman."
As Jenkinson read the document, his expression hardened.
"…!"
It quickly turned to one of shock.
"No, why now, of all times, when the position has been vacant for so long?"
He was stunned, reading the document over and over.
The letter from the committee succinctly explained that the long-vacant position of head of the Earth Branch of the Committee had finally been filled.
That alone was bad news, but when he saw who had been appointed, the dragon felt a wave of terror.
His lips began to tremble slightly.
"...Endelion?"
Moreover, the status of the person in question was clearly specified.
"A princess, no less?!"
A chilling shock created a fissure within him. Jenkinson felt as if a hole had been punched through his chest. And he felt an urge to fill that void with something.
The Red Dragon had a sudden, intense craving to fill that void with elephant meat.
"Brother, are you really going to seal it?"
Jungpal cautiously asked while driving. When he had opened the office door earlier, he had looked like he might collapse at any moment, but now his complexion was completely different. Rather than focusing on the fact that his fatigue had vanished, he was more concerned about gauging Minjun's mood.
Just a little while ago, Minjun had asked about the material of the frying pan that had revolutionized their eating habits, then abruptly announced that he needed to go to Cassie's house and had gotten up. Jungpal had instinctively followed, and now he was driving them there.
Instead of answering the question, Minjun said, "Jungpal, think carefully. Have I ever forgotten to do something after declaring I would?"
"...No, you haven't."
"I'm the type to easily forget things I only think about and don't say out loud. That's just how I am. When I decide that something needs to be done, I like to get it over with quickly. I know how badly things can go if you miss the right timing."
It was a habit ingrained in him from his time as an inmate. Although things had improved recently, in the beginning, he had struggled just to pay his survival tax on time...
"But how long has it been since I decided to seal that frying pan? How many times have I forgotten about it, remembered, and then forgotten again?"
"...It's definitely strange."
Minjun pointed out one more thing.
"Remember when we talked about the ego sword earlier? Compare what I said then with what I said about the frying pan. It gets even weirder."
"What do you mean?"
"When we talked about the ego sword, I definitively stated that there was no way it could be an AI capable of such sophisticated speech and abilities. I said there must be a soul inside it."
"You did."
"But with the frying pan, I said the opposite. I said that despite its smooth speech and all its excessive functions being suspicious... there was no way it had a soul."
What he couldn't see with his eyes either meant it was a minuscule soul fragment or, conversely, a very high-level soul. If it were the former, it wouldn't be able to maintain a self, and in the latter case, Minjun didn't believe such a soul could exist. He had concluded that there was no soul his eyes could miss.
"It was too hasty and baseless of a judgment. Yet I didn't question it. I just naturally assumed... that the frying pan was an AI. Even though there was plenty of evidence to the contrary. And if my suspicion is correct, that frying pan has one more function that we don't know about. The idea that an AI could control such a supernatural ability? That's nonsense."
Jungpal thought he could guess what the additional ability Minjun was referring to was.
But he hesitated to say it out loud and silently drove towards Cassie's house.
"Oh? What brings you here without any notice?"
The door opened, and Cassie greeted him. Her eyes moved between Minjun and Jungpal, showing signs of surprise.
"Mind if I come in for a moment?"
"Sure, come on in. I was just eating, so it's good timing."
"No, I'm not here for food."
He strode inside.
"Oh? Agent... hello."
Ha Eunseong, who was in the middle of stuffing his mouth with fried food, awkwardly greeted him, feeling out of place.
Minjun was unaware that the two had recently started having regular lunch gatherings. He glanced at the table. The spread was overly lavish, enough to make the table legs buckle under the weight, for just the two of them to eat.
Next, he focused on his sense of smell. It was an enchanting aroma that, once inhaled, made his body feel empty, even if he hadn't felt hungry before.
"Isn't this strange?"
Cassie responded.
"What is?"
"No matter how excellent a frying pan is, is it really possible for it to make every dish smell this irresistible? And regardless of the type of food."
Jungpal understood Minjun's intent. However, Cassie and Ha Eunseong still looked puzzled.
"Everyone has their preferences when it comes to food. Some people are very particular about what they eat. But when food is cooked with that frying pan, it becomes an unprecedented delicacy, even if it's something you usually dislike. Moreover..."
He pointed at Ha Eunseong as he continued.
"Even when the food is cooked for humans, a dragon can eat it in their dragon form and still taste it as if they were human? That's impossible. No dragon can do that. I know this well."
He pointed out another thing.
"No matter how delicious the food is, if you eat it repeatedly, your brain will eventually produce less dopamine or decrease the number of receptors, leading to tolerance. This is true for both humans and orcs. But with the food made using that frying pan, there's no such limit. There's no threshold change. Feeling the same level of pleasure every time you eat is biologically impossible."
Minjun headed to the kitchen. There was the frying pan, coated in oil from the recent frying session. He repeated what he had just said.
"Yeah, it's impossible. But if such a thing were possible... there's only one way it could be done."
The moment he heard about the "ability" of the ego sword found at the scene of Gwaktocheol's murder, and when he considered the connection between that sword and the frying pan... he was baffled as to why he hadn't realized this sooner.
"It must have tampered with the minds of the people who ate the food."
Minjun grabbed the handle of the frying pan. Whoosh! Flames flared up. The oil bubbled and evaporated, and even the fumes ignited.
As the flames died down, revealing the clean surface of the frying pan, Minjun growled while staring at it.
"What are you?"
After a brief silence,
A cheerful psychic voice resonated through his hand.
=Oh dear, you've figured it out?=
<104. Shock and Terror (2)> End.