I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 503

Sometimes during adolescence, quite a few teenagers run away from home for various reasons.

A significant portion of those reasons stems from conflict with parents or parental abuse.

Running away simply out of a reckless desire for independence could be dismissed as immaturity, though it still drove parents crazy with worry.

Either way, Tyranno running away from home was by no means a good sign. First and foremost, the reason mattered most.

It had only been two days. A mere two days had passed, yet she had arrived back at our shelter covered in wounds.

Vanir might be strict, but she wasn’t the type to abuse her child. How could she abuse an offspring she treasured like a priceless jewel?

Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, the odds of an actual tragedy occurring in just two days were extremely low. Tyranno had pulled a massive stunt.

’...What do I do?’

My mind grew complicated watching Tyranno wolf down meat ravenously.

Her wounded body had been completely healed using an Elixir. I was curious why she was so beaten up, but feeding her came first.

The rest of the party seemed to sense that the current situation had gotten pretty tangled, remaining completely silent.

"Chap-chap-chap! Chap-chap!"

"Kkyuuu~"

Only Wonmo was standing beside Tyranno, grinning ear to ear.

Reaching out his front paw to gently tap her body, his gesture seemed to say, Eat slowly.

Seeing Wonmo make a gesture like that made me realize just how much he truly adored his friend.

"Master."

"What."

"Are you contemplating whether to bow prostrate when the mother arrives, or pretend to be completely innocent?"

"Spot on."

As expected of Lackey. The guy could read my mind like a damn book.

However, the chances of Vanir taking revenge on me were remarkably low.

Even if she was a dragon, she felt deep gratitude toward me.

Still, she might demand an explanation for what kind of black magic I had used to entice her child away.

Therefore, playing as innocent as possible was the play, while hoping for an amicable compromise.

Title) Tyranno ran away from home

Wild Grylls

(Photo 1 of Tyranno happily eating food)

(Photo 2 of Tyranno happily eating food)

(Photo 1 of Wonmo beaming with joy next to Tyranno)

And the place she ran away to is my shelter.

Just heard a dragon roar outside, mom’s probably gonna show up real soon.

ㄴHeavenly Demon) What an adorable and admirable little creature. It seems she knows who her true master is.

ㄴSword Matstar) That’s dangerous talk;; What if the dragon ends up hurting Grylls-nim because of that?

ㄴHeavenly Demon) Should a mere lizard dare to harm this maiden’s benefactor, I shall personally execute it myself.

ㄴSword Matstar) Who couldn’t make big claims on an internet forum? If I said I’d do the same right now, you wouldn’t believe me either lol

ㄴThat guy is just an Armchair Heavenly Demon lololol

ㄴSeriously change your handle to Armchair Heavenly Demon lololol

ㄴHeavenly Demon) Once this maiden brings resolution to the grand situation, I shall demonstrate immediately that these were no idle words.

ㄴSo when is that "grand situation" gonna end?

ㄴIs she talking about the civil war that broke out in Zhongyuan?

ㄴHeard rumors that civil war might drag on longer than expected.

ㄴWho said that?

ㄴMax who lives in Viscounty Pario of the Messiah Empire.

ㄴWho’s that? A reporter?

ㄴMe?

ㄴWTF lolololol

ㄴlololololol

ㄴSo shameless it’s actually endearing lololol

ㄴStarlight Lady) But do animals run away from home too? There was no mention of such things in books.

ㄴAllfather) Usually, one doesn’t call it ’running away from home’ for animals, but rather just wandering out. It is much like a kitten straying from its mother’s embrace only to be dragged back by the scruff of its neck.

ㄴStarlight Lady) Ah, I understand right away! But Grylls-nim, have you ever run away from home before?

ㄴWild Grylls) My parents passed away before I even had the chance to run away.

ㄴStarlight Lady) I’m so sorry!!!

ㄴSpeaking of running away, it reminds me of my childhood. I loved my friend’s house so much I snuck out at dawn without my parents knowing and knocked on his door.

ㄴDidn’t the guards say anything?;; Guards patrol at night, right?

ㄴOf course I snuck past them! It was fucking thrilling back then lol

ㄴAn aspiring rogue was right here;;

ㄴDidn’t the friend’s parents say anything?

ㄴWhen I knocked, their guard dog greeted me instead? Got scolded to death afterward. That’s when I realized: if you want to break into someone’s house, you gotta kill the dog first.

ㄴ?

ㄴ??

ㄴ???

ㄴWhat the hell are you saying? Are you actually a rogue?Read the latest chapters at nove⁠lping.com.

ㄴYeah, I’m active in the Thieves Guild.

ㄴWhat the hell lol

ㄴMan put his natural talents to work lololol

ㄴlololololol

ㄴlolololol

In an instant, a variety of runaway stories unfolded in the thread.

Some were intriguing, while others were absurdly immature.

Anyway, putting the forum chatter aside: what mattered right now was handling Tyranno’s situation.

Having Tyranno at our shelter was certainly delightful, but it wasn’t a mutually agreed-upon arrangement.

Meaning, it was extremely likely that Vanir would arrive very soon looking for Tyranno.

"Jjeop-jjeop."

Having finished her meal, Tyranno rubbed her puffed-up belly with absolute satisfaction.

To think such an adorable creature had braved dangers just to run away from home. It was truly unbelievable.

Did she even understand the concept of running away? Considering Tyranno’s age, it was closer to a jailbreak than running away.

Running away typically occurred during adolescence, when ego and independence began to form.

’Do animals have teenage angst too?’

Besides, dragons—mythological dragons, no less—possessed intelligence fully on par with humans.

The very fact that they could communicate via speech proved their intelligence.

It might sound insulting from a dragon’s perspective, but in a way, they could easily be considered another branch of humanity.

’Another human race, huh... I heard they used to polymorph and enjoy lives of mortal Amusement back in the day. Did they never leave behind half-dragon descendants?’

A random odd thought crossed my mind, but I brushed it aside immediately. That wasn’t what was important right now.

It was awkward to ask Vanir directly, so I’d just ask on the Gallery later.

Next, I looked straight into Tyranno’s sparkling, wide eyes staring up at me.

Her expression practically shouted: Let’s go play right now! It was a flavor of cuteness similar to yet distinct from Wonmo’s.

"Tyranno. Did you tell your mom before coming here?"

"Pbeek!"

Even without Lackey’s translation, I could tell what she answered. She had proudly answered: Nope!

That made my heart even heavier. Tyranno liking us was undoubtedly heartwarming.

However, Vanir’s reaction worried me just as much. Having a dragon visit too often presented its own set of problems.

Putting our discomfort aside, Vanir would also be in a tight spot. Leaving Tyranno unattended like this wasn’t an option.

’With this level of stubbornness, she’ll just run away again...’

I had no idea where Vanir’s lair was. Yet Tyranno had escaped anyway and made it all the way here.

Traversing that perilous journey was why her entire body had been covered in scratches.

If she had bumped into a truly dangerous creature, her very life would have been threatened.

"Tyranno. Weren’t you scared making your way all the way here?"

"Pbeeeek! Pbeek!"

"She says she smoothly broke through using the experience gained while traveling with us."

Tyranno puffed out her chest proudly as she answered, and Lackey translated from the side.

Was a dragon still a dragon even as a hatchling? It seemed she had navigated dangers relying on the experiences we had shared.

For starters, being a dragon meant most wild beasts were intimidated and hesitated to attack her easily.

And because she had almost been eaten by a frog before, she steered completely clear of rivers.

That wasn’t all. Due to the nature of the Forest of the Four Seasons, small creatures were uniformly lethal.

So Tyranno had ignored and refrained from touching small animals that didn’t initiate an attack.

’If not for that real-world experience, she would’ve been in serious danger.’

The reason she was able to locate our house was remarkably simple: the World Tree.

Not the World Tree at our shelter, but the other World Tree nearby that we had used as a base camp.

Once she found that landmark, reaching our place took almost no time.

Her scratches were merely sustained while fleeing from small beasts.

"What if you had gotten severely hurt? Your mom and all of us would have been heartbroken. You know that?"

Admirable as her feat was, a scolding was necessary.

Being smart, Tyranno acknowledged this and quietly absorbed my stern lecture.

Yet even while getting lectured, she seemed so happy just being back that she kept beaming. I could practically hear Vanir’s heart burning with anxiety from miles away.

She was bound to cause even more trouble in the future, never less. An amicable agreement felt absolutely necessary.

[What do you plan to do? Judging by her disposition, even if her mother takes her back, she will likely escape again.]

"I know, right? Or Vanir might fly off to another realm entirely so Tyranno can never return."

[We must prepare for the worst-case scenario. Even if she feels indebted to us, from a dragon’s perspective, we are little more than insects.]

Perhaps because he was a paladin who always planned for the worst, Cain offered a word of caution.

Since it was a realistic possibility, I couldn’t just relax completely.

As time ticked away toward lunch, our expected visitor arrived.

—It seems better for you to raise her for the time being.

She just gave up instantly. Vanir wore a deeply exhausted aura.

Flustered, I turned my head to look at Tyranno.Get faster updates on novelping . com.

At Vanir’s permission, Tyranno bounced up and down in sheer joy.

Watching that, Vanir’s expression naturally grew gloomy.

’Is it like preferring the chill uncle over strict parents?’

However, a dragon had to be raised like a dragon. What did that mean?

It meant Vanir’s education was indispensable for fully awakening Tyranno’s latent potential.

Look no further than nature: countless animals did the same. They raised their young initially, then provided intensive training when independence neared.

Birds taught their chicks how to flap their wings, and lions taught their cubs how to hunt.

A dragon also required dragon-exclusive education to mature properly.

"What about her education? She can’t just stay here forever. You must have dragon-specific training methods."

So I put the proposal forward to Vanir. I loved having Tyranno here too.

However, we couldn’t raise her like a toddler forever. It was natural law for a dragon to grow up as a dragon.

Fortunately, Vanir hadn’t completely failed to anticipate this, offering her own solution.

—I believe I mentioned it before. A few young hatchlings developed a taste for mortal Amusement early on and caused all sorts of trouble.

"Yes, I remember hearing that."

—I was far too young back then, so it didn’t apply to me... but the elders devised a solution. Dedicate a specific period strictly to education, and allow them freedom during the rest.

"..."

—It was remarkably effective, so everyone adopted that method. It seems that time has come for us as well.

’Are you seriously turning our shelter into a kindergarten?’ I wondered.

No—to be precise, Vanir’s side would be the kindergarten and school, while our shelter was the playground.

I gave her a look asking if she was really okay with that. Vanir let out a deep sigh and spoke.

—What choice do I have?

"..."

—I even erected a magical barrier, yet she escaped. What power do I have?

It was a lament filled with parental sorrow.

She had done everything within her power, yet Tyranno had broken out anyway.

Offering hollow comfort wouldn’t help, so keeping my mouth shut was the wisest move.

—Still, I felt a sense of pride. Seeing how she identified a weakness in my barrier to reach this place, my child is undeniably a genius.

"..."

—Therefore, I cannot abandon her education. Besides, that gorilla over there seems to possess a bit of talent as well.

"Yeah... Lackey uses magic surprisingly well. He’s good at memorization."

I wondered if she was going to teach Lackey magic too. That raised a question in my mind.

The gods supposedly taught magic to humanity, so why did dragons know magic as well?

Vanir cleared up my doubt effortlessly.

—That is simple. Humans dismantled and analyzed our magic into bizarre formulas.

"Aha."

—The elders used to say no species was as perverted as humans. Can you comprehend a race that scientifically analyzes even the act of breathing?

’And that’s why they destroyed their own civilization—digging too deep into weird places.’

Well, I brushed it off as a distinct racial trait.

And so.

—I shall visit this shelter once a month, followed by one week of intensive education.

"Isn’t training usually a month long?"

—I am taking your short lifespans into consideration. We live for over 1,000 years, so a month is but a brief instant to us.

"Well... if you say so, that works for me."

—As a side note, unless an extreme situation arises, I will not interfere in the affairs of this place. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say I cannot.

"Why?"

—My mere presence visiting too frequently would disrupt the local ecosystem. Dragons don’t shut themselves inside their lairs for no reason.

And so, Tyranno returned to our shelter in less than two days.

Just as Vanir was about to take her leave, she turned to ask Tyranno a question.

—My child. Before your mother departs, answer me one thing.

"Pbeek?"

—Do you like this human better, or do you like your mother better?

"Pbeek!"

Without a single moment of hesitation, Tyranno pointed straight at me as she answered.

Vanir’s reaction was... too painful to put into words.

Still, one thing was certain.

—...I truly hope 100 years pass quickly.

Among dragons, who were notorious for foul tempers, Vanir was on the kinder side.

Extremely so.

"Ah, right. I have one more question."

—What is it?

"Around when do dragons usually learn Polymorph?"

—They can use it when they learn to speak, like me. You have another 100 years to wait.

That was a bit disappointing.