Evil Dragon Chapter 64: Extra 1-7: Want a Hug

Chapter 64: Extra 1-7: Want a Hug

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Aika

 

Since the day Lin Nuo was brought back to the palace, he had been living in a room next to Ren’s. Their rooms were identical in layout and size, sharing a small living room and a study. Therefore, when Ren was not in the prince’s exclusive reception room, Lino could see Ren and the ministers discussing matters in the small living room or reading official documents in the study.

He had wondered before why Rennes and even the ministers didn’t seem concerned about his unknown origins. Was it because this was a fairy tale world, where even in the palace, there were no elaborate schemes or power struggles? Lino thought so over time, and he gradually got used to it.

Sometimes, during dinner, Rennes would casually ask for his opinion on something, and Lin Nuo would respond without hesitation. He had thought before, was Rennes avoiding him? Was he spying on him? Not only Rennes but even the courtiers…

Perhaps it’s because this is a fairy tale world? Even within the palace, there seems to be no elaborate schemes or power struggles? Lin Nuo thought so. As time passed, he gradually got used to it. Even when Rennes asked him for his opinion on certain matters during dinner, Lin Nuo would casually respond.

Rennes’ questions were usually a bit peculiar. For example, one day, an icefield wolf insisted on moving into the rabbit area, stating that he wanted to marry a cute rabbit. Could such a situation be allowed?

Lin Nuo frowned and thought for a while before asking, “Does the rabbit want to marry the wolf?”

Rennes replied, “Seems like it, we’ve even slept together once.”

Lin Nuo was startled, wondering how an icefield wolf and a rabbit could sleep together. Nevertheless, since both parties were willing, he suggested, “If they are compatible, let them get married. If you’re concerned about scaring other rabbits, maybe they can live a bit farther away, and you can limit the wolf’s presence in the rabbit communal area during normal times.”

Rennes considered it and seemed to agree. He even proposed creating a separate living area for interracial marriages.

Lin Nuo scratched his head, thinking about how it was a child’s world, with talking magical creatures like crows and goblins that looked like frogs, and now there were even wolf-rabbit marriages. Since they lived so close together—practically in the same suite—Lin Nuo could go to Rennes’ room without the need for any attendants to announce him.

On the other hand, Rennes would knock on Lin Nuo’s door every morning and initiate their routine “hug.” At first, Lin Nuo felt a bit awkward meeting someone in his sleepwear, but Rennes insisted that it was more effective for warming up the body temperature when wearing fewer clothes. So Lin Nuo ended up just sleeping until Rennes came to knock, then he would be hugged in a half-asleep state.

Now, it seemed to be Lin Nuo’s first time going to knock on Rennes’ door. Following the physician’s suggestion, Lin Nuo hesitantly did so, waiting for Rennes to answer. In those few seconds, he became anxious: Wait, what is Rennes going to ask me to do, and how should I respond?

The physician obviously told me these things secretly without letting Rennes know. I can’t just tell him, “The doctor asked me to be a living heater.”

So… what should I say? Maybe I should say nothing and just rush over and hug him when Rennes comes to open the door?

As Lin Nuo was pondering this, the door opened. According to his plan, he spread his arms and pounced forward—

Huh? Why does it feel a bit… damp? He quickly took a couple of steps back and realized that Rennes had rushed out directly from the bathroom, hastily putting on a bathrobe, with water droplets still on his eyelashes. The black bathrobe was loosely draped, revealing his well-built chest, and tiny droplets of water were sliding down.

Meanwhile, Lin Nuo, who had just lunged forward without thinking, found himself in the arms of a completely naked Rennes.

Lin Nuo’s face turned bright red, and he apologized repeatedly, “Sorry, sorry… I thought you were wearing clothes—well, you are indeed wearing clothes…”

Rennes furrowed his brows, reached out to Lin Nuo’s arm, pulled the startled knight into the room, closed the door, and said softly, “I also wanted to find you.”

Hearing Rennes’ gentle and firm voice, Lin Nuo’s nervousness eased a bit. He bit his lip, slowly lifted his head, and met Rennes’ pair of dark golden eyes, which stared at him with a familiar intensity.

Lin Nuo lowered his head again and mumbled to cover his embarrassment, “Uh, yeah, you wanted to find me too?”

Rennes chuckled lightly, leaned forward a bit, rested his hands on the door, and whispered into Lin Nuo’s ear, “Today, we haven’t hugged yet.”

Lin Nuo’s ears turned even hotter, and he mumbled, “Uh, yeah, right…”

Rennes smiled again, took Lin Nuo’s arm, and led him into his room. He motioned for him to sit on the sofa and poured a glass of water, saying, “Sorry if I startled you during dinner.”

While Rennes spoke, he sat beside Lin Nuo, one arm resting on the sofa’s armrest, and his fingers propped under his chin. His dark golden eyes were fixed on Lin Nuo, seeming to gaze intently.

Lin Nuo, holding the water glass, vigorously shook his head at first, then hesitated for a moment before honestly saying, “I wasn’t really scared. Just a bit concerned when I saw your complexion change… I was a little worried.”

As Lin Nuo spoke, his eyes subconsciously looked at Rennes’ face. when he saw those smiling eyes, the even redder lips than usual, his legs went a bit weak, and he quickly shifted his gaze downward—

Further down, Rennes’ hair was still damp. Apart from the black strands, his fair neck was devoid of any clothing or accessories, resembling a kind of porcelain-like smoothness that tempted one to… imprint a faint red mark on it.

Lin Nuo hastily extinguished the inappropriate thoughts in his mind and continued lowering his gaze—Unknowingly, upon seeing droplets on Rennes’ chest, he immediately remembered where those droplets might roll to and what kind of scene might unfold there. Realizing the craziness of his thoughts, Lin Nuo couldn’t help but blush deeply, and he forgot what he was going to say next.

Rennes, breaking the silence, asked, “Are you worried about me?”

Lin Nuo nodded, “Of course.”

Swallowing hard, he recalled the instructions from the physician and his mission on this trip, and spoke up in one breath, “So, I thought, since we didn’t hug this morning and I wasn’t by your side during the day… I thought maybe because we didn’t hug, you might feel a bit cold. So, I came to find you at this time…”

As he said the last sentence, Lin Nuo’s voice became very low. He didn’t know why, but he felt a bit guilty. Simultaneously guilty and thinking he was being irrational: I came here to heal and help people! Definitely not to take advantage of the opportunity to see a half-naked beauty. Humph!

Rennes leaned slightly towards Lin Nuo, speaking softly, “Yeah, I thought about that too… That’s why I wanted to take a bath before coming to find you.”

“Oh, I see.” Lin Nuo’s head hung down again, some longer stray hair fell over his face.

Rennes lifted his hand, gently brushing the stray hair away from Lin Nuo’s face, tucking it behind his ear. His fingers lightly touched Lin Nuo’s earlobe as he said, “Is this how we start, or… would you like to take a bath first?”

Even though Lin Nuo knew that when Rennes mentioned “start,” it was referring to “hugging,” hearing those words made breathing slightly difficult for him. He stuttered in response, “Just… like this?… Umm, I’ll… I’ll take a bath first.”

Actually, Lin Nuo had already taken a bath before returning from the training ground, but for some reason, he felt a bit apprehensive about the option of starting “just like this.” He mustered some strength in his legs and stood up from the comfortable couch, intending to head towards the bathroom.

“Where are you going?” Rennes asked from behind.

Lin Nuo trembled slightly, turned back a bit, and said, “To my room… to take a bath…”

“Oh,” Rennes fell into a thoughtful silence for two seconds and then apologetically said, “I forgot to mention… Before dinner, the steward informed me that the plumbing in your room is broken.”

“What?” Lin Nuo turned around, thinking everything was fine in the morning.

Rennes’ expression was genuinely honest as he continued, “I heard that it suddenly broke this afternoon because of hailstones hitting the pipes. He’s already sent someone to fix it, but I’m not sure when it’ll be repaired.”

Hmm, how could the palace plumbing be so fragile, like paper? Lin Nuo scratched his head and said softly, “Then… then I’ll go back to get my sleepwear…”

Rennes stood up, walked to Lin Nuo’s side, and ran his fingers through his hair again, asking, “Is wearing mine okay?”

“Um… that should be fine,” Lin Nuo’s voice got even softer.

Rennes took his arm and led the dazed knight to the bathroom entrance, asking, “Do you need… help with changing?”

Lin Nuo vigorously shook his head, “N-no, I can manage!”

With that, he darted into the bathroom and closed the door. In this confusing state, Lin Nuo clumsily took a bath in Rennes’ bathroom. What puzzled Lin Nuo a bit was that Rennes had just taken a bath, but why was everything so clean in his bathroom?

The bathtub was filled with clean, steamy water of a beautiful light blue color. On a small table next to the bathtub were neatly arranged cookies on a delicate plate, along with a silver cup containing milk and another with clear water. On a rack beside it lay soft towels and a matching set of clean sleepwear. Everything looked untouched.

So… how did Rennes manage to bathe earlier? Was it possible that he quickly tidied up the bathroom using magic while he was talking to him just a few minutes ago? With these questions in mind, Lin Nuo soaked in the bathtub for a while, ate a couple of cookies, dried himself off, and put on the sleepwear that was a size larger than his before leaving the room.

Lin Nuo felt somewhat reassured seeing Rennes sitting on the couch when he emerged, while he himself sat on the bed. But even so, was there any reason for him to be so nervous? Was a simple hug all it was about? Lin Nuo ridiculed himself internally.

Rennes, still in a bathrobe, saw Lin Nuo coming out and extended his hand, motioning for him to come closer.

Lin Nuo’s heart suddenly began to race.

“Don’t be nervous, it’s not the first time we’ve hugged. We do it every morning,” Rennes said as Lin Nuo sat beside him.

Observing Rennes’ long black hair that was previously wet and now dry and smooth, Lin Nuo made small talk, “Your hair is dry now.”

Rennes chuckled, “I was worried it might be too cold and uncomfortable for you.”

Thinking for a moment, Lin Nuo responded, “I should dry mine too, so it doesn’t make you uncomfortable.”

Although there wasn’t a hairdryer here, Lin Nuo knew about a stone used for drying hair. It was a handheld stone with numerous holes on top, emitting hot air, capable of quickly drying hair. After his bath, Lin Nuo sometimes used this stone to dry his hair if time allowed. Of course, Lin Nuo knew someone else should take care of these tasks. But being used to fending for himself as a transient guest and due to his habits, he wouldn’t readily ask others for help.

Unexpectedly, when Rennes heard Lin Nuo’s explanation, he smiled and offered, “Alright, should I help you?”

What? Let Rennes help him dry his hair? Oh, should he?

Lin Nuo vigorously shook his head in refusal, but Rennes had already stood up. He produced a stone from somewhere, then moved behind Lin Nuo, using his hand to lift Lin Nuo’s hair and evenly spread the warm air from the stone onto his damp hair.

Rennes’ touch was gentle, and his movements were soft, causing no discomfort to Lin Nuo. It was more than just non-discomfort; it was surprisingly pleasant. The gentle touch, combined with the right amount of warmth, made Lin Nuo half-close his eyes and almost hum with contentment, if not for restraining himself from doing so.

Hmm, if he were back in his original world, he might answer a question on a platform: “What’s the experience of having a crown prince blow-dry your hair?”

While lost in thought, Lin Nuo heard Rennes ask from behind, “Does it feel comfortable?”

Lin Nuo honestly responded, “Yes.”

A somewhat absurd dream scene popped into his mind.

In the dream, Rennes was softly asking him, “Does it feel comfortable?”

But in reality, Rennes’ hands were nowhere near his head. Thinking about this dream and the nonsense he might have said, Lin Nuo’s face instantly turned red. Hey, hey, stop overthinking! He’s just kindly helping you dry your hair. Why are you conjuring up such weird images in your head?

Lin Nuo bit his lip, trying hard to banish these unsettling scenes from his mind. After a while, his hair had completely dried.

Rennes’ fingers lingered in his hair, repeatedly combing through it while gradually placing his body closer to Lin Nuo’s back. The prior warmth now turned into a slight chill, causing Lin Nuo to shiver, not out of discomfort, but because it felt incredibly pleasant. Rennes chuckled softly, gradually gliding his hand down from Lin Nuo’s head, gently brushing over his forehead, face, and ears.

So comfortable…

Rennes asked again, “Do you like it…?”

Lin Nuo nodded, honestly replying, “I really do.”

Almost involuntarily, he added, “It’s like… when my parents used to dry my hair when I was a child.”

 

Rennes’ hand froze on Lin Nuo’s shoulder.

 

 

 

 

 

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