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Chapter 9 – Entranced
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After told by the bearded man about Hakuryuu village's history and their situation, Yona & co. learned that they weren't welcomed the outsider that much and they weren't doubt to killing those intruders who dare to try sneaking inside their village. Yona who covered her hair because it was causing such a ruckus, stretching her hand to the front and sighing heavily. When Hak asked her about what she's wondering, Yona thinking back what the bearded man told them about Hakuryuu power.
"I came to borrow that kind of power, huh?".
Hak smirked, asking mockingly "are you giving up?".
Yona smirked back which make Hak stunned, she slipped both her hand beside his torso "Hak~".
Hak gasped and blushed because their proximity, but Yona pulled his dagger from his pocket "lend me your dagger".
Hak made a face as if he wanted to said that he didn't expect that, but Yon pivoted and pointed the dagger in front of him with slight challenged smile on her face "I made a decision, I'm not turning back, but if Hakuryuu doesn't want to do this then you'll need to train me all the more, Hak".
Kayano smiled when she saw Hak's smile, but she touched her head when she felt her head start to throbbing again.
Yun realized her gesture and blinked "what's wrong, Kayano?".
"ah, nothing".'
Hak didn't believe her "liar, you've became rather quiet. What's wrong?".
"it's no use, Hak Onii-sama always perceptive…", Kayano sighed before she smiled reassuringly, massaging her pounding head "really, it's nothing, Onii-sama… it's just my head… I've felt a bit dizzy, that's all…".
"let me see… your head hit by the fallen stone hard enough till you lost conscious, right?", Hak touched her forehead with his knuckles "at least, you've not caught the fever yet… but you're still a bit warm…".
Kayano grabbed both his wrist "and you've lost conscious when we fell from the cliff because lost too much blood as well, Onii-sama?!".
"hey, let me see?! I only want to check the injury on your head?!".
"I said I'm fine!? Nothing to fretting about!?".
Pointing his forefinger to Hak and Kayano who doing arm-wrestling with both their hand, Yun turned his head to Yona "…are they always like that?".
"they're really close, right?", Yona giggled before she told Yun about Kayano's weak body when they were still children "no wonder Hak became really overprotective to Kayano".
Kayano protested to Yona "don't say that?! I'm not that weak anymore, right?!".
"hey, woman over there!".
Because that voice mentioned 'woman', sort of their reflex, Yona and Kayano to turned their head to the source and as the wind revealed their face, Kija's eyes widened when he caught Yona's read hair "…red hair?".
Suddenly, Kija felt his blood boiling and all of the blood inside his body flowing backwards as he grabbed the wrist of his right arm. He heard the voice inside his head.
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Warriors of the Four Dragons!
From now on, you are our other halves.
With Hiryuu as your master
With The Dragon Priestess as your guide and savior
Protect them, Cherish them and never betray them for the rest of your life!
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Kija screamed in pain and lost consciousness which made the villagers gathered around him. After Yun put his bag under Kija's head as the pillow, they waited him to wake up and not long after that, he woke up and bowed his head in front of Yona.
"I am the person who has inherited the blood of Hakuryuu from the ancient times. I have been waiting for you", Kija lifted his face, his eyes sparkling "my master".
After all of villagers bowed their head to Yona, all of them getting excited but what made them all confused after that, because Kija acknowledged Kayano as as his master, too.
"you must be wrong, I'm not your master. Are you sure, you're okay? Let me see…", Kayano sat in front of him to checking him again but when she touched his forehead with her right arm, she quickly pulled her arm back and grabbed her wrist as she felt her right arm aching so suddenly. She didn't mean to screaming at all, but because she can't stand with the burning pain on her right arm, as if her right arm burned by fire, so she can't help but yelp in pain.
"…what is this?", Hak grabbed Kayano's right arm and pulled her sleeve, revealing the sparkling white scale on his sister's right arm.
The sparkling white scale disappeared as the shadow of White Dragon floated to the Sky, leaving the mark like tatto of White Dragon on her right arm. Villagers of Hakuryuu village, Kija, Yun and Yona kneeled on the ground as they felt their leg gave way to their limp.
The White Dragon's shadow stared down to Kayano who hugged Hak while Hak wrapped his arm protectively around her "The Dragon Priestess, from now on you are our other halves. Half of our self would be shared with you as the Dragon Priestess. Guide my vessel in this world to fulfill his fate till come the time for each of our soul going back to the Heaven, with you as our savior".
After that White Dragon's shadow disappeared with turning back to Kayano's body, Kayano lost consciousness on Hak's arm.
I opened my eyes, to found myself in the middle of dark void, the world of nothing but silence and darkness. When I turned my head to where the light that starting enveloped my surroundings came from, I found my old self wept, kneeling before the Dragon God.
She looked so helpless, so fragile yet so beautiful. She's nothing but a woman in front of Dragon God.
With tears flooding her face, she lifted her face to the Dragon God "please let me meet him and help him, Dragon God!? he has given everything to me yet nothing I can do for him?! I' m his wife and I wanted to save him, like he did to me?!".
Dragon God narrowed its eye, looking a pity on her "fine, but with one condition…".
"Kayano?!", Hak patted her cheeks before touching her forehead with his knuckles "she's burning up… Yun?!".
When Yun checked upon Kayano, the Elder of Hakuryuu village murmured "The Dragon Priestess, like the White Dragon God told us through one of our ancestor".
Kija turned his head to the Elder of Hakuryuu village "do you know something about it, granny?".
The Elder asked them to come with her to Hakuryuu's house "let her rest here for tonight and we will explain what we know about The Dragon Priestess".
After Kayano laid down on the bed by Hak, Yun put the wet rags on her forehead. Yona, Hak and Yun sat beside her bedding. Not long after that, Kija came back with the Elder, some scroll on his hand.
On Hakuryuu village, on the night of Eve New Year where the night become the longest night at one year, they always have held spiritual ceremony to speak with their ancestor's spirit with let Hakuryuu on that generation being possessed by the spirit of their ancestor.
The Elder untied and read the scroll from 1.000 years ago "written on the ceremony 1.000 years ago, that year become different with before because the ancestor not possessed by our ancestor. Instead the White Dragon who showed itself in front of our ancestor, like what happened today in front of our eyes".
White Dragon God told his vessel that at the same time when King Hiryuu returned to this world, he would be accompanied by The Dragon Priestess. Half of the Dragon's vessel self, like its mind, its soul, its power, its heart, its presence and its feeling, all of that able to detected and felt by her as the Dragon Priestess.
"when our Ancestor asked the White Dragon God about the meaning of her being in this world, it only told him about that. Last, one of Dragon vessel would become the partner of her red-ribbon".
The last statement left them all baffled "…huh?".
The Elder grinned as she closed the scroll "it means, one of Four Dragon Warrior this generation, whether it would be Lord Hakuryuu or other Dragon Warrior will become her partner-life… her husband~".
Kija's jaw dropped "what?!".
Hak lifted his hand "wait?! how could it become like this?!".
"looks like it because of the contract that made by my old-self with the Dragon God".
"Kayano, you're awake?!", Yona turned her head, supporting her to sit upright "are you okay?".
"drink this", Yun offered a drink to her that gratefully accepted by her "feeling better?".
Kayano's face pulled into disgusted grimace "ew, I really hate this one… this is the best herb for reducing fever, though".
"don't complain and sleep", Hak pushed her back to the bed "we can't continue our journey if you haven't gotten better yet".
Yun nodded in agreement "geez, you're a healer, yet you're so weak… by the way, what do you mean with your old-self thing just now?".
Kayano explained that she has dreamt about her past life, where she reincarnated to this time because 'her old self' wept for her beloved, asking the Dragon God to returned her to this world "looks like one of Dragon Warrior once become my husband and I left him behind alone without anything I can do for him… so I've asked Dragon God to return me here to meet him again and help him… The memories of my past life still vague, but at least for now only that what I've remembered already".
Yona's eyes sparkled "oh my, so romantic… it's really true love tale".
Hak scowled "I mind if my Imoutou must taken as the wife of one of the Four Dragon Warrior".
"Onii-sama, I don't mind if you'll be marrying with your beloved. Can you do the favor, can you not?".
"not so fast, Imoutou… I'm not letting you go to other man's hand who asking for your hand if I'm not acknowledge him".
Yun pointed his thumb to Hak "princess, I thought it's only Kayano who brother-complex… so he is sister-complex as well?".
Yona chuckled and waved her hand "he is just overprotective, Yun".
"shut up!?", Hak covered Kayano with the blanket before patted her head "sleep, don't thinking too much for now, just rest so we can continue our journey".
Kayano giggled, smiling brightly "Onii-sama, you've barely changed… since we were a kids, every time I fell sick and forced to sleep, you've always patted my head till I fell asleep… I really love it".
Hak leaned his jaw above his palm, head tilted to the side, he smiled when Kayano fell asleep "have a nice dream, Imoutou".
A/N Maya :
Hahaha, looks like Hak become a little OOC here. I mean, he was really dear to Kayano since he has become her brother, so it can't be helped if he protested, right? *smirk
