Chapter 355

“I-Is he completely insane?!” Cold sweat running down his back, Kim Sangyoon took a potion out of his inventory and drank it.

Fortunately, the potion’s effect made his bones stick back together quite quickly, and the pain soon disappeared. However, Kim Sangyoon’s frown and furrowed brows were still directed at the crib.

The most chilling part of this incident, though, was that when the newborn baby heard Koo Hui-seo’s voice, he opened his eyes and stared at us.

The baby lifted his pitch-black eyes, gazed at Koo Hui-seo, and then chewed his lips. Without looking back, Koo Hui-seo reached out his hand.

Then, the servants, who had been standing back as if they were intangible spirits, approached silently and extended a dark red potion-like substance in a bottle. The bottle’s cap was shaped like a pacifier–a nipple.

Koo Hui-seo shook the bottle well and placed it by the child’s mouth.

*Suck Suck*

The baby began to drink with fervor, as if he were drinking milk. While eating, he gently wriggled both hands and tentacles.

As he fed the child skillfully–so that the liquid would not spill–he said, “The doctor told me to feed him one bottle an hour for a few days. We should be able to notice a speedy growth, then.”

After hearing that, Seo Dawon said, “He’ll grow as fast as a big green onion, then.”

“Big green onion…” I decided not to dwell further on what drink Koo Hui-seo was feeding his child.

As the child drank, it blatantly stared at Koo Hui-seo–though I couldn’t tell whether or not he was focusing on the drink or his father. I was a little puzzled as to whether or not the baby saw Koo Hui-seo as a paternal figure, but it certainly seemed that he felt something special for Koo Hui-seo.

‘I suppose that could be a good thing for Hui-seo-ssi…?’

Since he had been shunned or treated like a tool for all his life, it was definitely a cause for celebration for him to finally have a family member on his side. So, I silently observed the two–serene at a surface glance.

“The tentacles seem to be moving instinctively… Koo Hui-seo, does he show any aggression towards you?” Seo Dawon asked.

“Ahh… No. When he attacked me earlier, I pounced on one of the tentacles and crumpled it up. Since then, he’s avoided my touch…”

“What???” Koo Hui-seo’s calm answer made my head hurt.

Honestly–even if he attacked, how could he inflict pain on a newborn baby?! Only then did I notice that one of the intertwined tentacles, amidst its fluttering brothers, was rigid and scrunched in on itself.

Perhaps the aggressive reaction was instinctual, but I also wondered if the tentacles had reacted so violently to the Warrior because of Koo Hui-seo’s harsh punishment.

I felt complicated when I saw the baby’s blinking, dark eyes: Koo Hui-seo was truly an unstable caregiver. “Shouldn’t you treat it? That’s…That is to say, if the tentacle is part of the child’s body, an injury this young could give him a hard time later in life.”

“I usually recover automatically, even if I suffer injury…”

“Still…”

“Mmm, I understand.” Koo Hui-seo read my expression and gently placed the child on his hand. He then began to pour another potion on top of the tentacles that were stuck to the child’s back.

The baby’s face twisted as if he was about to cry, and when Koo Hui-seo touched the taut tentacle, the baby’s mouth opened. Simultaneously, the tentacles that were stretching and sticking to his body started coiling tightly around Koo Hui-seo’s wrist.

“Ah–hurts…” Koo Hui-seo frowned at the strong grip tightening around his wrist, but he continued to pour the potion over the damaged tentacle.

The tentacle seemed to have loosened and lost some of its rigidity after being doused; it soon began to wriggle. Furthermore, the tentacles wrapped around Koo Hui-seo’s wrist drooped down once more.

The baby’s expression also changed. Nothing dramatically shifted–like the emergence of a smile, but he seemed more comfortable than before. Perhaps…because the pain had disappeared. Above all, he looked so cute with his wide open lips as he stared at Koo Hui-seo.

[Clack Clack!]

[I want to see too!!]

Surprisingly, even Lackey seemed curious about the baby, shaking Koo Hui-seo’s pants while standing by his feet. (Normally, Lackey wouldn’t cling to anyone other than me.)

Anxious, I tried to stop the skeleton, but Koo Hui-seo readily leaned down and presented the baby at Lackey’s eye-level. The baby’s eyes shook when it saw the strange-looking skeleton, but Lackey didn’t seem to care and placed its bony hand on the baby.

[Clack Clack…]

[So small…]

Lackey was also petite as it didn’t exceed 120 cm in height. However, it must have seemed so strange to see a baby much smaller than the skeleton. Lackey’s eyes glistened.

Furthermore, the baby didn’t cry or try to push Lackey away; instead, he used his tentacles to feel around Lackey’s face.

“Ara…?”

The tentacles didn’t stop at groping around the skull’s surface; they even slithered through the empty eye sockets. The tentacles made smacking noises as they tried to smack the hard bone.

It seemed this baby showed great interest in the skeleton. And, unlike with Kim Sangyoon, the baby remained calm, even when Lackey reached out and lifted his body.

“Huh? He’s smiling…” Kim Sangyoon muttered. Following his words, I looked at the baby’s face.

He was indeed smiling. My eyes opened wide, and I was taken aback by the delighted expression on the baby’s face as he opened his mouth wide. Somehow, he seemed quite pleased with Lackey’s appearance.

In addition, the baby wriggled more than when Koo Hui-seo held him; he attached himself to Lackey. Seeing that, for the first time this whole while, I thought, ‘adorable.’

[Clack Clack Clack Clack…]

[It’s so small…]

Though Lackey didn’t seem to dislike holding the baby, it kept shaking its head; perhaps, it found the tentacles wandering through its skull quite ticklish.

The baby was completely fascinated with the skeleton, even letting the liquid he was drinking dribble down his lips.

“At this rate, Lackey’s skull is going to be completely filled with tentacles…” Seo Dawon also looked down, fascinated at their entangled bodies. And, soon afterwards, he flicked a finger to summon something around the baby’s body.

The golden aura lightly brushed against the baby’s body; the baby’s gaze followed the light towards the Mage. His neck muscles were so strong–I couldn’t believe that only a few hours had passed since he was born.

“There’s no skill or curse on the child. Surprisingly, he’s 80 percent human.”

“…Really?”

“Mm, I guess he’s closer to a chimera…Or perhaps, should I say he’s more successful than a chimera.” Koo Hui-seo replied, adding to Seo Dawon’s diagnosis.

“More than that, how did you create an artificial uterus?” Seo Dawon asked.

“I didn’t create it–our guild used Koo Kyungman as a secret project in conjunction with a medical foundation.”

“What about the side-effects?”

“Quite grave. If it wasn’t Kyungman-ie, the operation wouldn’t have been able to proceed. It cost an astronomical amount as well…”

The project required not only advanced medical technology, but also rare skills and reagents as well.

Koo Hui-seo sighed deeply, lowering his eyes, “I was greedy for a second child, but… Kyungman-ie’s body is too weak.”

“……” I didn’t want to hear any more, but Seo Dawon, as if he was strangely interested, continued to pry more details from the ex-chimera. I glanced at the mage.

‘I’m sure I’m mistaken, but if he’s thinking about some nonsense, he’d better quit now.’

With that thought in mind, I subtly pinched the Mage’s elbow. Then, Seo Dawon glanced down at me and smiled. I felt a little uneasy at that smile…and even uneasier at the way he kept looking at the child.

The baby looked so adorable for someone born as a result of brutal revenge. He said he was 80% human, right? Then, if he grew up safe and sound…when he found out how he was born… wouldn’t he be shocked?

Click–

However, those thoughts didn’t last long. The door had opened and the servants crowded in.

No one said anything, but, judging from their persistent smiles, their Koo Kyungman observation must have gone well. Nonetheless, after noticing the baby nestled against Lackey, the servants wisely refrained from making any comments about Koo Kyungman.

“So small…”

“How can he already move around so much?”

“Hehe… He’s climbing all over Lackey-kun.”

“It looks so fascinating.”

Then, Jung Garam was the first to touch the baby. The baby did crook his tentacle, but he didn’t attack and instead squeezed Jung Garam’s hands gently before gathering all over Lackey again.

At that time, Lackey seemed to be getting a bit exhausted by the baby, but it still didn’t pull off the tentacles that had been over its body.

Eunji also gently stroked the baby’s cheek with her hand, but the baby merely blinked calmly. Olim-ie folded her arms across her chest and just gazed at the baby, but, from the look in her eyes, she definitely wanted to touch as well. As for Choi Kyung-sik, he observed the tentacles’ movements with great interest–his eyes fixated on the black tendrils.