Evil Dragon Chapter 5: Want to Skip Class

Chapter 5: Want to Skip Class

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: CaiCai, Kris

BANG A delicate ceramic cup was fiercely thrown against the wall, leaving a large stain of spilled tea on the pale golden wallpaper. This was Otto’s private lounge. Right now, Otto had dismissed all attendants, closed all doors and windows, leaving only himself and Josef.

“This is too infuriating!” Otto sat on the sofa, angrily pounding the table, scattering exquisite desserts all over the floor. The handsomely dressed prince’s teeth gnashed loudly, his face contorted. “That little weakling, pretending to be pitiful. I see right through his act. He gained Grandpa’s sympathy, and then used that advantage to pull Rennes over!”

“Hey, Otto, calm down,” Josef lounged on the opposite sofa, propping up his chin lazily, “Regardless of whether our little brother is genuinely weak or not, Grandpa feels guilty towards him. He’s been overly caring, even strangely appointing Rennes as his teacher. I must say, this little guy has managed to outmaneuver us both.”

Otto’s temples bulged with veins, teeth clenched, he hissed, “Josef, you know he’s outmaneuvered us, yet you’re acting like it’s none of our concern?! Have you not thought about seeing Rennes swearing allegiance to that weakling after a few days, and then a few days after that, us kneeling before him, calling him ‘king’?!”

Josef shifted his position, chuckled lightly, and said, “Big brother, why are you in such a rush? Don’t you think there are two layers of meaning behind Grandpa appointing Rennes to be Linno’s teacher? The first layer, visible to all, is to expedite Linno’s mastery of magic, to become a qualified royal bloodline successor. For the second layer: have you considered that if someone as outstanding as Sir Rennes were to judge that there’s no magic left in Linno’s body, that it’s permanently unusable, wouldn’t that mean that the child is utterly useless?”

At this point, Otto’s eyes lit up, slapping his thigh repeatedly, exclaiming, “Exactly! If even someone from the Clement family, a talented individual like Rennes, decides that the little weakling is a waste, Grandpa won’t bother with him anymore! But,” Otto frowned, remembering another issue, “but what if the power inside that little weakling returns…”

“Tsk.” Josef lowered his gaze, teasingly floated a comment, “Big brother, why are you so unsure about something you did so thoroughly over a decade ago?”

Otto’s forehead instantly relaxed, a look of relief spreading across his face, “True. I did it so thoroughly back then that the magic within the little weakling was completely destroyed. There’s no way it could withstand the Clement family’s training.”

—

At this moment, the so-called ‘little weakling’, no, the weak little dragon Lin Nuo, was sitting in the garden, leaning against an inactive fountain, staring blankly at the noblewomen walking around with parasols in the distance. He had chosen a secluded spot. Although the garden wasn’t exactly empty, few looked in his direction, sparing him from exchanging greetings with anyone.

Since his return to the court, while the nobles had shown decent enthusiasm towards him, it was akin to: ‘Oh, there’s an inconsequential little toy added to the collection.’ Ever since the old king announced that Rennes Clement would be Lin Nuo’s teacher, the nobles had gotten inexplicably excited, their gazes towards Lin Nuo filled with different meanings.

From breakfast until just before lunch, two marquesses and three countesses had found their way to Lin Nuo’s resting quarters, seeking his favor under various pretenses. An exhausted Lin Nuo, after finishing lunch, slipped into the garden, finding a less populated corner, curling up, hugging his legs, fretting.

He was truly worried.

Leaving aside the chance of being discovered by the knight, the feeling of oppression when he was with that person made him feel like he was suffocating. Moreover, the king had ordered him to stay in the palace to study. How and when could he escape, and how would he find another gold coin? Lin Nuo worriedly bit at his fingernails.

“Prince Linno?” A voice that had accompanied him all night rang beside Lin Nuo.

Lin Nuo snapped out of his thoughts, turning to see a blond and blue-eyed young man walking towards him. Without thinking, he blurted out, “Roy Clement?”

The blue-eyed youth showed surprise, “Ah, Your Highness! You recognize me!”

Lin Nuo blinked, suddenly realizing he shouldn’t have recognized Roy. He stood up, casually making up a reason, “Um, I’ve heard your name before and chanced upon your portrait.”

“You’ve seen my portrait?” Roy seemed delighted. Approaching with joy, “I’ve seen yours too. You are just like in the portrait, no, even more outstanding than the portrait.”

Being praised like this, Lin Nuo blushed, feeling a bit awkward and not knowing what to say, feeling quite embarrassed. Seeing the shy little prince, Roy’s smile became even brighter. Taking a step forward, he wanted to say something else—

“Roy, refrain from being impertinent.” Cold, emotionless, the voice came without a hint of feeling.

Lin Nuo shuddered, turning to see his future teacher, the Paladin Rennes, walking towards them.

Roy quickly turned away, anxiously explaining, “Rennes, I just wanted to talk a little more with the little prince. I meant no disrespect.”

Rennes didn’t even acknowledge Roy, directly stopping in front of Lin Nuo, giving a slight nod, then said, “Your Highness, you left after breakfast without discussing with me about tomorrow’s lesson.”

Nervous, Lin Nuo nearly forgot to breathe. He could only stare mechanically at Rennes’ fair but cold face, mechanically repeating the man’s last two words, “Tomorrow’s lesson?”

“Your Highness,” Rennes calmly continued, “As His Majesty said, your daily schedule already includes etiquette, politics, horsemanship, and dance. I don’t want to interfere with your other lessons, so we should agree on a suitable time.”

Lin Nuo pressed his temples, forcing his brain to function, finally giving a somewhat normal response, “I understand. I… I’ll check with the attendants later and see what my schedule is for this week, and then, um, how should I inform you?”

Rennes furrowed his brow slightly, seemingly a bit impatient. But his voice remained steady, merely rephrasing, “Your Highness, our magic guidance lesson will take about two hours each day. You can check your portable crystal. Your schedule will be automatically recorded there.”

Lin Nuo awkwardly clasped his hands behind his back, fingers tightly entwined, “I… um, I don’t have magic; I can’t use the crystal.”

Upon his return, the old king had ordered a portable crystal for him, a translucent sky-blue stone, along with various other daily necessities, placed in his room. Unfortunately, for Lin Nuo, it was just a pretty stone. He had no way to activate it.

Rennes’ brow furrowed again, “Oh,” he said, still looking at Lin Nuo, with no intention of turning away or speaking further.

Lin Nuo, feeling embarrassed, blurted out, “Tomorrow, 3 o’clock! I can do it!”

He wasn’t sure if he had any free time at 3 o’clock tomorrow, but right now, he just wanted to end this conversation quickly and escape.

“Fine, 3 o’clock in the training room,” Rennes concluded the conversation.

Lin Nuo nodded and turned away, running like a rabbit, disregarding royal decorum.

Rennes stood still, watching the rapidly retreating little prince, nearly bumping into a tree, seemingly lost in his thoughts.

“Rennes, did the prince really say he has no magic?” Roy, left hanging, approached, curious.

Rennes didn’t directly answer, simply saying, “He should have some.”

Encouraged, Roy asked again, “Should have?”

Rennes said, “There are traces of magic on the prince, just very faint.”

Roy thought for a moment, laughed, and said, “Certainly, the prince hasn’t learned how to use magic yet. That’s why His Majesty asked you to teach him.”

After speaking, Roy stretched his body, envy evident in his tone, “It’ll be great as the little prince’s teacher, able to see his adorable face every day—ah, he’s even better-looking than in the portraits, blushes so easily, eyes like black crystals… Ah, I really want to pinch his cheeks…”

Rennes didn’t acknowledge him, walking towards the square.

Roy, feeling awkward, quickly caught up, changing the subject, “Oh, by the way, how is the little magical creature you caught last night? Do you know its breed now?”

Rennes paused, “Not yet.”

Roy looked puzzled, “Huh? Didn’t you bring the little creature back to your room last night? Didn’t it say anything? You can understand…”

Rennes interrupted him directly, his voice revealing unmasked displeasure, “Roy, you’ve said too much.”

With that, he continued walking forward without looking back, leaving Roy gazing at his retreating figure, unsure of what he said wrong.

—

“So, Your Highness, do you remember the tax arrangements for a territory? They’re roughly categorized into different types. Have you got them down?” Count Kaunitz, in charge of teaching politics, asked sternly, pushing up his monocle.

Lin Nuo held a quill in his right hand, swiftly writing on parchment while fluently answering, “Understood. They can be classified into three main categories. One is taxes levied on individuals, all kinds of poll taxes fall into this category; the second is taxes based on certain activities, like tolls or hunting taxes; and the third is related to resources, such as mills or orchards…”

Count Kaunitz’s eyes gleamed with surprise from behind his glasses. “Excellent! Your Highness has categorized them correctly!” He pushed up his monocle again, praising, “It’s beyond my expectations! In such a short time, you’ve not only memorized and understood these complex tax types but also grouped them based on their characteristics. Truly remarkable!”

Blushing at the praise, Lin Nuo put down his quill and earnestly looked at Count Kaunitz. “Count, may I be excused for today? I made a mistake with the timing yesterday and scheduled training with Sir Rennes this afternoon…”

Count Kaunitz generously waved his hand. “Of course! You’ve completed your tasks for today.”

Lin Nuo promptly tidied up his scrolls, nodded in a respectful gesture towards the Count, and hurried off to the training grounds.

Behind him, Count Kaunitz watched the young prince’s departure, murmuring softly to himself, “He’s truly a talent! I must report this to His Majesty…”

Of course, Lin Nuo couldn’t hear these words. Since last night, he’d had only one thought in mind: Today, he had to make it clear to Sir Rennes that he was magically powerless and had no intention of training. Only this way could he minimize contact with Rennes and reduce the chance of his true identity being exposed! For this, Lin Nuo diligently composed a 500-word draft in his mind and rehearsed repeatedly in front of the mirror, ensuring he could recite it flawlessly without trembling or missing a word.

He believed he could overcome this basic fear and firmly reject Rennes!

With this determination, Lin Nuo stepped resolutely onto the training grounds.

 

 

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