Father, I Won’t Do Anything

How long had she walked? She saw children surrounding a piglet. They seemed to be blocking it from escaping.

“Have you ever eaten roast piglet? It’s really delicious.”

“Really? Then let’s catch and eat it together! If it doesn’t have an owner, we can take it, right?”

“Don’t hit the pig. What if the meat goes bad?”

“Oink oink!”

The piglet’s voice rang out louder, as if calling for help.

And that’s when it happened.

Through the gaps between the children, Jaina’s eyes met the piglet’s.

‘Huh?’

Though she was seeing it for the first time, the piglet’s appearance seemed somehow familiar.

‘Did I see wrong? Its eyes seemed to resemble someone…’

While Jaina was puzzled, an incident occurred.

“Oink!”

The moment the children were distracted, the piglet kicked its short legs and jumped towards Jaina.

“Ah! The pig is escaping!”

“Catch it!”

Jaina reflexively caught the piglet rushing towards her.

“Oink!”

The piglet was small enough to fit snugly in Jaina’s two hands, surprisingly tiny.

Its round eyes were large compared to its small face, and Jaina instinctively held the piglet tightly to her chest.

“What are you children doing?”

“The piglet’s owner has appeared! Let’s run away!”

Fortunately, the timid children began to flee as soon as Jaina approached.

“Phew.”

As the children scattered, Jaina looked at the piglet in her arms.

“Hmm… how do I talk to a pig?”

If she could use dragon language freely like other celestial dragons, communication would have been possible, but for Jaina who had just awakened, it was impossible.

However, being more sensitive than humans, she could sense the other’s aura.

Now that she was holding the baby pig, she felt a familiar energy along with an artificial mana.

“Could it be… Rosian?”

“…”

The piglet that had jumped happily earlier now struggled to escape from Jaina’s arms, as if embarrassed.

But when Jaina didn’t let go easily, the piglet whimpered pitifully.

“How in the world did you end up like this?”

Perhaps from being bullied by the children, it looked dirty and had small injuries here and there.

As Jaina examined it closely, the baby pig struggled even more.

‘I wanted to show only my handsome and cool side…!’

Rosian, who had collapsed in front of Jaina not long ago, found the current situation very awkward.

All sorts of worries popped into his head, like what if Jaina was disappointed in him, or what if she thought he was pathetic.

“Rosian is cute and handsome even as a piglet.”

However, when unexpected words of praise came from Jaina’s mouth, Rosian was bewildered.

‘She says I look cute now…?’

It didn’t matter what he looked like as long as he was fine in Jaina’s eyes, but…

“…Oink.”

As the confused Rosian hesitated, Jaina spoke in a concerned voice.

“Ah, right… you can’t speak human language… Then nod your head. This happened because of my father, right?”

Rosian hesitated, then carefully nodded. A long sigh escaped Jaina’s lips.

“Oh Father, how could you do this to a person!”

If she hadn’t found Rosian, something terrible could have happened.

What if Rosian had been seriously injured…

Jaina thought as she stroked the back of Rosian who had turned into a piglet.

This incident needed to be clearly addressed.

Running away from home because his daughter got a boyfriend, turning a normal person into a piglet.

Even for a father, this was going too far.

Jaina’s face gradually hardened. And the piglet Rosian was looking up at her, whimpering.

* * *

“Jaina.”

Diamid tried to control his expression as he saw Jaina walking straight towards him.

Though he had threatened not to return unless they broke up, when he couldn’t see Jaina, Diamid felt unbearably empty in one corner of his heart.

So he had come to the Magic Tower under the pretext of work, hoping to see Jaina’s face from afar… and Jaina had found him just then.

‘How much must she have missed me to find me right away after I came to the Magic Tower. She must be here to say she’ll break up with that guy?’

While Diamid was full of expectations inside, he put on a stern expression outwardly.

As if he wasn’t affected at all.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

“Yes. Quite a lot.”

Diamid was startled. Contrary to his expectations, Jaina’s tone was sharp.

Only then did Diamid notice that Jaina was holding a piglet in her arms.

‘Not only washed, but with a ribbon around its neck too. I’d believe it was a real pig.’

Seeing Rosian nestled peacefully in Jaina’s arms, Diamid wasn’t pleased.

“Jaina, even if he’s turned into a piglet, to hold another man in your arms…”

“Father.”

Diamid, who had started speaking confidently, had to close his mouth at Jaina’s single word.

He sensed a different emotion from her than usual.

“You might not like Rosian. As a father, you might oppose my boyfriend.”

A quiet, soft voice. Though the tone was no different from usual, the hidden thorns were very sharp.

“I’ve never unilaterally demanded that you understand my position. But what about you, Father?”

“…Well, you see.”

“You’re telling me to obey unilaterally because you don’t like him. You don’t see me as a being with free will at all.”

“I just don’t like that guy…”

“Rosian is a good person. Even when he became a piglet, he comforted me, worried I might get hurt. Unlike you, he’s very broad-minded.”

Jaina’s expression turned cold.

“You say it has to be someone who can face you with one finger? A human who can lay eggs, is that even possible?”

“…”

“In the end, aren’t you just telling me to never love and live alone for my whole life? I’m disappointed, Father.”

Diamid felt as if his heart had dropped for a moment.

In fact, this wasn’t the result he wanted.

He just…

“Come live in the Magic Tower. You don’t need to avoid me. I’ll leave the Magic Tower.”

“Jaina!”

“I’ll just live with the piglet. This happened because of me, so I should take responsibility.”

“I was wrong. Please don’t say such things.”

“Why not? I’m just going to do exactly what you did.”

Jaina seemed to be thoroughly angry. Diamid, at a loss, sighed and opened his mouth.

“I wanted to spend more time with you, but suddenly you got a boyfriend and I felt jealous… confused.”

“…”

“The time I’ve spent with you is still so short, and I was afraid you might get married soon and leave me… This foolish father has hurt you again. I’m truly sorry.”

In fact, he couldn’t contain his jealousy when he saw Rosian trying to give the ‘ring’ he had set aside, Diamid added with another sigh.

“I’ll lift the curse right away.”

Poof!

With a loud noise, white smoke appeared and then disappeared.

In place of the smoke stood Rosian in human form.

Diamid just touched his face, unable to say more. Jaina also remained silent, her mouth tightly closed.

It was Rosian who broke the silence.

“Tower Lord. Jaina and I are still young. Moreover, we haven’t been dating long, so marriage is too early.”

“…”

“I’ll keep trying, but it will be difficult to become strong enough to face you with one finger. Laying eggs would be even more difficult.”

Jaina and Diamid remained silent at Rosian’s soft voice. He continued speaking.

“But when Jaina is going through hard times, I will never let her be alone. I will cherish and love Jaina with all my heart.”

Rosian looked into Diamid’s eyes and spoke in a clear tone.

“I don’t expect your permission right away. That would be selfish of me. And I don’t want Jaina’s relationship with you to be strained because of me. So… could you consider it ‘on hold’ for now?”

“On hold?”

“Yes.”

“A Crown Prince would accept such a disposition?”

Jaina, who had been listening quietly, also spoke up.

“Rosian doesn’t deserve to be treated like that.”

“But I can’t bear to see you upset…”

“Rosian…”

Diamid’s aura became ominous again.

It seemed this incident had brought Jaina and Rosian closer.

“…”

At that moment.

Diamid, who had been staring intently at Rosian, noticed a deep wound on one side of his body.

Judging by Jaina’s lack of mention, it seemed Rosian had deliberately hidden it.

‘It seems he didn’t tell Jaina that I tried to kill him.’

Of course, he must have done it for Jaina’s sake, but Diamid began to see Rosian, who had seemed like just a playboy, in a slightly different light.

“And Tower Lord. When Jaina accepted my confession, she said this. She wanted to spend a lot of time with her family, and asked if I could understand that.”

Diamid’s eyes widened, not knowing Jaina had said such a thing.

He had been throwing tantrums, feeling that Jaina was growing more distant as she grew up, but his daughter had been thinking of him.

“Father, just because I like Rosian doesn’t mean my love for you in my heart diminishes.”

It was a fight with a predetermined outcome from the start. No parent can win against their child.

“…If you ever make Jaina cry even once in the future, I’ll turn you into a piglet for the rest of your life.”

Having said his piece, Diamid turned away.

Perhaps he had sensed that such a day would come from the moment Rosian first visited the Magic Tower.

Returning to his study with a gloomy face, Diamid found a letter on his desk.

[And I still like you more than Rosian, Father.]

Whether it was true or not was unknown.

For now, he had no choice but to believe Jaina’s words.

(Side Story: THE END)