Seoul Dragon - Chapter 64

"But earlier, this... Ha Yeonhwa? Yeonhwa said she's a Jinjho-type mutant, what is Jinjho?"

"Ah, y-yes? Ah, s-sorry. I'm quite shy by nature... so I stutter a lot."

"Come on, there's no need to be nervous at all!"

"I-I wasn't this bad usually, but I've been a huge fan of 'As Long As It's Not Me', so seeing people I've only watched on TV right in front of me makes me more nervous... I'm sorry. A-anyway, you asked what Jinjho is? Jinjho is... well, it's a superior species of Vampire-type mutants. N-Nobility... would that be the right term?"

Yeonhwa started rambling incoherently.

Yet she explained well about Jinjho, which surprised the other cast members.

"Ah, a Vampire-type mutant? But are you okay? The sunlight is strong right now... I heard that Vampire-type mutants are vulnerable to sunlight."

"I-I'm fine. It just drains my energy a bit..."

The cast was surprised that Yeonhwa, a vampire, could confidently walk under the sun.

It's understandable. Usually, other Vampire-type mutants can't properly walk under the sun.

This fact seemed quite fascinating to the cast.

Next, attention turned to Harin. No matter how impressive a vampire who can walk in sunlight might be, Fairy-type mutants are much rarer.

...Come to think of it, why a "Fairy-type" mutant?

Couldn't she just be called a sprite-type?

My question seemed to be shared by others.

"But why 'Fairy-type' mutant? Couldn't you just say sprite? The Bureau Chief here is a Dragon-type mutant, and vampires are called Vampire-type mutants."

"Well, it's probably to distinguish from Elf-type mutants. In the end, whether Elf or Fairy, they're both branches of sprites... it's more convenient than calling Elves tree sprite-type mutants."

Harin calmly answered the question about why she's called a Fairy-type mutant.

Oh, I see.

Indeed, Elves are also a branch of sprites, now that I think about it.

So they named it that way to distinguish between Fairies and Elves.

"Then what abilities do Fairy-type mutants have?"

Since it's quite rare for mutants to appear on broadcasts, and given how rare Yeonhwa, Harin, and my mutation characteristics are, the cast was curious about our abilities.

"I can make nightmares real."

"Nightmares?"

And at Harin's words, the cast was shocked again.

It's not a common ability.

Making nightmares real.

"Yes... I should say I can manifest phenomena from nightmares in reality? I can't manifest everything. For instance, even if a huge monster appears in a nightmare, it gets significantly reduced when manifested."

"That's amazing, really."

"I feel like I'm hearing about another world. Wow, it's truly fantasy."

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you...?"

"Ah, I'm twenty-two."

"Twenty-two!? You look no older than fifteen or sixteen at face value..."

"I got much younger after mutating. Personally, I quite like it."

"Oh... But of course, I have to ask this. Bureau Chief."

"Just call me Seohyun comfortably."

"Then, Seohyun. What kinds of abilities do you have? I saw the press conference last time and what happened in America. I know you can handle fire and lightning, but I heard at the press conference that you have more abilities than expected."

"Uh... I can use magic."

"...What?"

"I mean it literally. I can use magic... And I can also manipulate weather."

For a moment, there was silence.

"Excuse me? What did you just say..."

Despite having said it twice, Kang Woohyuk spoke as if he couldn't believe what he'd heard.

That's understandable.

While mutants have been known to use special abilities based on their race characteristics, there hasn't been a race that deals with such a comprehensive concept as magic until now.

The Lich we saw last time seemed to use magic to handle corpses... but I'm different from that.

When I killed the Lich last time, not only dragon words but also knowledge of general magic came to me.

"Would you like me to show you?"

At my words, the cast just nodded.

I pondered what magic to use. What would be best to show?

Creating something with fire is already possible with my inherent abilities, so I'll hold off on that.

So to really show something magical... this would be best.

Instantaneous movement, or what's called teleportation.

I focused my mind and thought about moving to where Harin was looking at me.

There was no feeling of handling magical power. Just, as naturally as breathing... I appeared in front of Harin.

It felt completely different from moving by spreading my wings.

"Whoa!"

Harin was startled by my sudden appearance. Seeing her, usually so calm, surprised like this is somehow cute.

I immediately grabbed Harin's cheeks and squished them. I just can't resist this.

"Ah, unnie! You're doing this even here?"

"Ah, sorry."

The other cast members were staring at me with wide eyes, unable to even make a sound.

Then they let out deflated sighs.

"Hu, huh..."

"Wo, no, wow, haha."

What followed was hollow laughter.

"That was teleportation just now, right?"

"Ah, yes. That's right. I can do several others too... but I'll show them to you gradually."

As I said that while glancing at PD Lee Myungho, his expression showed perplexity.

He's probably worrying about how to conduct the missions.

After all, if we participate, the missions might become too easy.

"Um, Bureau Chief? If it's not rude, could you refrain from using such abilities during missions as much as possible?"

"Sure, why not. But I can use them after the missions are over, right?"

"Of course. I'd appreciate it."

"Yeonhwa, Harin, you understand?"

"Ah, I understand..."

"Our abilities aren't really useful in daily life anyway... so you don't need to worry much."

At those words, the PD sighed in relief.

"Thank you very much, truly. Now, let's check the mission first. Basically, since we need to go to Hwacheon, Gangwon Province, transportation is very important."

The moment transportation was mentioned, the cast's expressions soured.

It was the most frequently used random penalty in 'As Long As It's Not Me.'

Whether to drive directly to the destination or take the express train.

The following mission was simple. Really, simple.

Just determining winning and losing with beverages.

If it's a normal beverage, you win; if it's not a normal beverage... that is, if it's anchovy sauce, you lose.

Those who lost would have to drive their own cars to Hwacheon, while those who won could use the express train.

In short, it's about distinguishing between those who suffer for hours and those who don't.

And so begins the random penalty.

I couldn't help but ponder.

Because... I already knew which one was the anchovy sauce.

My senses are so sensitive that no matter how hard they try to seal it, the leaking smell is unavoidable.

Still... for the sake of fun, wouldn't it be better to sacrifice myself?

Or should I pass this to someone else? As long as it's not me.

It seems Yeonhwa also immediately recognized which one was the anchovy sauce.

I glanced at her, and she did the same.

Just by looking at her eyes, I could tell what she was plotting. She was targeting Harin, who had the dullest sense of smell among us mutants.

The deliberation was not long.

Whether to deliberately choose the anchovy sauce or not.

While we were pondering, intense reactions were already erupting among the cast.

"Pfft!"

First, Kang Woohyuk spat out the anchovy sauce as soon as he drank it.

Starting with Woohyuk, the cast members cried and laughed in turns between winning and losing.

And then they shouted.

"As Long! As It's! Not Meeeee!"

...They're really getting into it.

It could be seen as exaggerated, but it's not entirely so.

These things are always more enjoyable when it's not me.

Then... I guess I have to join in too.

Without hesitation, I chose a beverage that wasn't anchovy sauce.

...Sorry, Harin.

Do me a favor and suffer a bit for your unnie.

And it was the same for Yeonhwa.

Yeonhwa also chose a regular beverage without hesitation.

We immediately gulped down our beverages.

"Oh, it's going down smoothly! This must be the beverage!"

Yeonhwa and I drank our beverages without hesitation, emptying them completely as proof.

Then we smiled slightly at the camera.

"Both of you win! Wait, if that's the case...?"

The PD said that and glanced at Harin, and at that moment, Harin's expression soured.

"Pfft-!"

Similarly, she couldn't help but spit out her beverage.

She had lost.

And she said this.

"T-this is cheating! These people knew which one was anchovy because of their good sense of smell!"

At Harin's words, the cast and PD looked at Yeonhwa and me with bewildered expressions, and I smiled slightly and said.

"Ah, we've been caught."