Evil Dragon Chapter 66: Extra 1-9: Leave

Chapter 66: Extra 1-9: Leave

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Aika

 

“Come, shake hands.” Lin Nuo crouched on the ground and reached out his hand to the brown kitten in front of him. Opening the door, the little cat obediently stretched out its front paws, sharp claws retracted, and rubbed its meat pads on Lin Nuo’s hand. “Good kitty, good kitty.”

Lin Nuo praised, “Here’s some catnip for you.”

As he spoke, he placed the catnip on a plate in front of the cat, and the cat lowered its head, purring as it ate. While speaking, he placed the plate in front of the cat. The cat lowered its head, purring as it ate.

Just as Lin Nuo stood up, a small fluffy brown shadow rushed over from the corner, twirling around his boots. After twirling for a while, the brown shadow simply collapsed in front of Lin Nuo, revealing its soft belly. The body twisted and turned, and its four paws scratched in the air.

Lin Nuo squatted down again, gently rubbing the belly of this kitten, saying, “Good boy, good boy. You’ve had your catnip, and there will be more later.”

After rubbing all the cats, Lin Nuo stood up, receiving a completion notification for the “side quest card” and a reward of three small dragon coins.

Since Lin Nuo started taking on tasks from the Knights’ Guild, he received a few small dragon coins for each completed task, whether it was walking dogs, rescuing cats, or entertaining hamsters.

Although this side quest was completed, Lin Nuo did not leave. He held all the cats in his arms, knocked on the door of the next room, and politely entered. It was a simple and comfortable bedroom. On the large bed against the wall, a neat and silver-haired woman half-lay.

After the woman opened her eyes, Lin Nuo placed one of the cats beside her and said softly, “We had a good meal and had a lot of fun. You seem to be in good spirits.”

The woman with wrinkled face smiled, “Thank you, young knight.”

Lin Nuo shook his head, “You’re welcome. And I’m just a probationary knight, not a real one…”

The woman laughed, “In my eyes, you are already a true knight with your gentle demeanor and thoughtfulness.”

Lin Nuo hesitated, “Madam, I’ve read your information before. It mentioned that you once wandered near the border and accidentally entered the lair of dark creatures, right?”

During this time, using the pretext of “doing tasks,” Lin Nuo had read numerous documents.

He learned that this region had once suffered from harassment by the “Fallen Black Dragon.”

Later, under the leadership of the royal family, the black dragon was driven beyond the borders, unable to freely enter this region. how the royal family expelled it, why they didn’t kill the hated black dragon, and where the black dragon hid afterward, remained unknown.

The woman, who kept cats, was one of the few who had accidentally entered the lair of the black dragon.

Hearing Lin Nuo bring up such an old event, the woman was a bit surprised but nodded, “Yes… terrifying creatures… the fallen black dragon…”

Lin Nuo looked at the woman solemnly, “Do you remember where the ‘lair of the fallen black dragon’ is?” 

The woman thought for a moment, looked up at the ceiling, and began to speak.

Fifteen minutes later, Lin Nuo left the room.

As soon as he left, the woman turned into a tired lioness, lying lazily on the bed, emitting the sound of snoring.

And that kitten instantly transformed into a young lion, lying obediently in the lioness’s arms.

*

It was raining outside. The sky was gloomy, and the continuous drizzle blurred everything. Lin Nuo had just stepped out and saw Rennes holding a large umbrella, waiting at the door. Looking at Rennes, who was slightly damp on his shoulders, Lin Nuo frowned, “It’s just a little rain. I can walk to the carriage myself. And,” Lin Nuo hesitated, “Why don’t you use a magic array to avoid it?”

Why would you get wet in the rain… What if you catch a cold?

Rennes smiled and just said, “Getting wet, you’ll warm me up, won’t you?”

Lin Nuo’s face turned red. He lowered his head and snorted, his arm still wrapped around Rennes’ arm, trying to keep him warm. Ten days had passed since Rennes presented that “multiple-choice question,” but Lin Nuo had not made a clear choice. He only said that he needed more time to consider.

Moreover, during this consideration period, Rennes couldn’t disturb Lin Nuo in his role as a “probationary knight.” Also, to avoid any awkward accidents, they could hug each other at night but couldn’t sleep together. It should be said that Lin Nuo’s reaction didn’t exceed Rennes’ expectations.

Rennes wasn’t in a hurry and didn’t press him. On the contrary, he agreed to all of Lin Nuo’s requests. What surprised Lin Nuo was that, although Rennes agreed to everything, the actual implementation was quite different from what he had expected. For example, what he thought “not disturbing work” meant was that they wouldn’t meet at all.

On the first day after completing the task, Rennes personally arranged the carriage and expressed his intention to pick up Lin Nuo every day. Initially, Lin Nuo naturally refused, but Rennes just asked him, “If I don’t pick you up, do you know where these mansions on certain streets and certain numbers are? If I’m not with you, how do you plan to report tasks using crystals?”

Before Lin Nuo could come up with a counterargument, Rennes had already reached out to him, saying, “Come on, get in the carriage.”

So, the Crown Prince personally used a carriage to pick up this probationary knight. The facilities inside the carriage were quite complete, and with the assistance of crystals, it didn’t delay Rennes’ official duties. As for the restriction to “hug only,” that made Lin Nuo even more frustrated. The reason for his frustration was his self-loathing weakness.

No, it seemed more than just weakness. Because “weakness” implies an inability to resist temptation. In reality, in Lin Nuo’s view, many times, he was the one who initiated things. Hugging often led to… various situations. 

After Lin Nuo sat in the carriage, he took out pen and paper and began to earnestly record today’s work accomplishments. At such times, Rennes would not disturb him. Sitting across from him, Rennes also opened his documents, reading at his own pace. After a while, Lin Nuo put down his pen, not looking at Rennes, and continued to lower his head, whispering, “By the way…Tonight, can we have a physician come over?”

Rennes was somewhat surprised, “Are you unwell? Where does it hurt?”

Lin Nuo immediately said, “I’m not unwell! I’m perfectly fine everywhere!”

Moreover, you confirmed this just this morning, that everything was fine!

Rennes frowned, “Then why?”

Lin Nuo bit his lip, his voice as low as a mosquito, “Well, I have some, um, about, uh, certain matters, I need to consult a physician. That is, um, about how to proceed with, you know, the matters after…”

Rennes couldn’t help but laugh, simultaneously reaching out to touch Lin Nuo’s hair, saying, “This, if you want to know… you can just ask me directly. Or… I can explain while practicing.”

Lin Nuo blushed and said, “Anyway, I need to ask the physician!”

Seeing Lin Nuo’s flushed face, Rennes smiled, gently saying, “Alright, I’ll have the physician come tonight.”

Lin Nuo looked up, his voice determined, “You have to guarantee that only I will be present then, and you can’t be around!”

Rennes suppressed his laughter, saying seriously, “I promise.”

*

Night fell, Lin Nuo sat alone in his room. The room was brightly lit. But on Lin Nuo’s face, there was a deep sense of melancholy. His eyes, devoid of the usual liveliness, were filled with lifelessness. Today, he had finally found out the location of the black dragon. So, as long as he could convince the physician, he could proceed with that plan.

The plan was absolutely in line with the “Crossing Management Bureau Employee Regulations,” and… it should also minimize Rennes’ pain. Lin Nuo didn’t consider himself particularly clever, but in matters of the heart, he wasn’t foolish. When Rennes presented that astonishing “multiple-choice question,” he had been looking into Rennes’ eyes all along. Although Rennes’ attitude seemed nonchalant, although his words left no room for interpretation, those beautiful, captivating, dark gold eyes were saying one thing, “I like you. I want to be with you.”

This statement caused Lin Nuo’s heart to ache. So, that was it.

Those seemingly playful hugs, those occasional touches, those words with a smile… This person actually liked him. And what about himself? What did he think? He… didn’t have the qualification to think about this question.

As the top student Lin Nuo, he remembered the contents of the “Crossing Management Bureau Employee Handbook” very clearly: 

[Chapter 16 of the “Crossing Management Bureau” Employee Handbook, “Regarding the Content of Leaving the Small World.”]

[Normally, after completing the mainline task, the system will, in a reasonable manner, arrange for the employee to leave the small world. For example, in a traditional hero-type small world, the system would arrange for the protagonist to have a heroic battle with the antagonist after the final confrontation, ending in a mutual demise, leaving behind a magnificent legend. If it’s a farming-type small world, the system would arrange for the protagonist to encounter new “adventures,” such as venturing to a new continent for colonization, leaving behind an epic saga.]

[In short, such arrangements would allow the small world to continue functioning normally, reducing the interference from employees to a minimum. It is also noted that if an employee maliciously delays, refuses to complete the mainline task, the system will forcibly eject the employee.]

[Chapter 30 of the “Crossing Management Bureau” Employee Handbook, “Regarding Emotional Detachment.” Apart from the plot requirements, we do not encourage employees to develop excessive emotional entanglements with characters in the small world. Of course, we understand that the more invested an employee is in performing tasks, the more inevitable it is to develop genuine feelings for the small world. Therefore, after an employee completes a task and leaves the small world, we conduct emotional detachment for the employee. The emotions generated by the characters in the small world towards the employee cannot be detached.]

[Chapter 60 of the “Crossing Management Bureau” Employee Handbook, “Regarding Employees Remaining in the Small World.” Basically, the Crossing Management Bureau does not allow such situations. The only exception is if the employee has taken on a high-difficulty world, successfully completed the task, and earned a large number of points. In that case, the employee can donate all the points to the Bureau for the construction of other small worlds in exchange for the opportunity to stay in the small world.]

In simple terms: If it’s a new world, employees of the Crossing Management Bureau cannot stay. The deeper the emotional entanglement between the employee and the characters in the small world, the more inevitable it is that these characters will suffer emotional trauma after the employee leaves the small world. These contents were repeatedly studied and memorized by the top student Lin Nuo in the classroom.

So… For Lin Nuo, he had no way to truly respond to Rennes’ feelings. According to the system’s goals, it was likely that he would be extinguished like smoke while defeating the evil dragon. Even if he stubbornly refused to complete the mainline task and forced a departure, the system would still compel him to leave.

In either case, Rennes would inevitably be hurt. If that’s the case… There’s another way to minimize the pain Rennes would endure, allowing him to recover faster.

Lin Nuo’s hand pressed against his forehead, and he sighed. 

The door was knocked, “Is Lin Nuo in?” The physician, who had been worried for a while, entered with excitement: “Sir Lin Nuo! I just examined His Highness and found that his condition has improved significantly!”

Lin Nuo’s dim eyes lit up, “Really? He’s improved!”

Was it because he had been with him all this time? Lin Nuo felt that he had been somewhat useful after the final confrontation. The physician placed his medical kit, looked serious, and asked in a solemn tone, “May I ask, Sir Lin Nuo, have there been continuous bodily exchanges between you and His Highness in recent days? This includes but is not limited to exchanging saliva and… gazing…”

Before the physician could finish, Lin Nuo blushed and interrupted him, “Yes.”

Well, although it hadn’t reached the final confrontation yet, but… Rennes’ lips and tongue were not just good at saying sweet words or kissing. In fact, almost every day, Lin Nuo needed to use one or a few small dragon gold coins.

The physician nodded solemnly, “Hmm, it must be such an exchange that alleviated His Highness’s symptoms.”

Hearing this, Lin Nuo was stunned for a moment, then slowly asked his own question, “Physician, I want to know… if I am destined to die due to an accident, and there is no way for me to stay with His Highness afterward, are there any other ways to cure his illness?”

A gleam of joy appeared in the physician’s eyes.

“Yes, there are, of course.” The physician grinned.

The next day, at dawn, Lin Nuo rode Pedro and left the palace directly. Lin Nuo told this exceptionally intelligent white horse, “His Highness ordered me to go to the border to fetch something very important, a medicinal herb, I heard. So, we need to go to the border as fast as possible. The faster, the better.”

Pedro neighed and gestured for Lin Nuo to quickly get on. Not surprisingly, Pedro’s speed was so fast that it felt like flying, astonishing Lin Nuo.

“This speed is fantastic,” Lin Nuo thought.  Even if Rennes woke up and found him missing, he wouldn’t catch up with Pedro for a while. By the time he caught up…

Lin Nuo should have already failed the mission and been forcibly expelled from the world for challenging the boss too early. As the prince of this kingdom, Rennes would meet many people. Lin Nuo believed that after some time, Rennes would gradually forget him, the person he had spent only a few months with. Moreover, Rennes’s body would gradually recover—

The physician should be working overnight, using Lin Nuo’s blood to create a special potion for Rennes. According to the physician, the blood Lin Nuo drew last night could be used as a medicinal ingredient to cure him. Rennes would no longer be so sensitive to cold, and his magical powers wouldn’t easily go out of control.

Perhaps due to excessive blood extraction, Lin Nuo, now sitting on Pedro’s back, couldn’t help but feel dizzy. Last night, he had told the physician to extract as much blood as possible but leave him a lifeline. If he died due to excessive blood loss, it might be judged as suicide by the system. The punishment for suicide was much more severe than the penalty for mission failure.

So, he had to hang on and die in the boss’s claws. The physician was not polite at all; he really drew blood to the point of leaving “only a lifeline.” If Lin Nuo hadn’t told him, the physician would probably follow him to the border, pick up his corpse, and make use of it. Thinking about this, Lin Nuo couldn’t help but shiver.

The sun was rising, Pedro, following the direction Lin Nuo had pointed out, approached the “lair of the fallen black dragon.” When Pedro saw the black aura ahead, he began to howl and refused to go any further.

Lin Nuo gently stopped Pedro, dismounted the horse, and patted the horse’s long face, apologizing, “I’m sorry… I’ve tired you out. You… go back. I won’t be returning. I lied to you. Rennes didn’t ask me to fetch any herbs.”

Hearing Lin Nuo’s words, Pedro neighed in surprise, lifting his hooves high, looking extremely anxious. Lin Nuo quickly followed the smooth white mane and said, Rennes is fine. He’s just drinking a sleeping potion and still in a deep sleep. Oh, rest assured, those sleeping pills should be safe. They were specially prepared by the physician, and there shouldn’t be any side effects.”

Pedro stomped his hooves again, still in a hurry, exhaling air from his nostrils. Lin Nuo smiled bitterly, didn’t explain any further, shouldered the fine iron sword, dragged his steps, and walked towards the black aura.

*

“Dark Aura” gradually revealed its true form. It wasn’t mist but clusters of black crows. Looking at the crow flock, Lin Nuo couldn’t help but recall the situation when he fought with black crows until he was exhausted in the mine at the beginning, and then Rennes came to his rescue.

Rennes…

This time, Rennes could no longer come to save him. A pang of sadness surged in Lin Nuo’s heart. It’s okay; after leaving the small world, I’ll undergo emotional detachment.

The crow flock had noticed Lin Nuo, hoarsely cawing as they attacked. Lin Nuo tried “Moe Suppress All” again, but it still didn’t work. Nevertheless, he wasn’t just going to wait for death.

Should he last until the boss comes out?

Lin Nuo activated “Learn on the Fly” and started using sword techniques from the book, precisely attacking the crows. With the skill’s enhancement, Lin Nuo’s swordsmanship was indeed impeccable. For a while, crows fell one after another, leaving the ground covered with foul-smelling corpses.

“Learn on the Fly” consumed stamina. Already having lost a considerable amount of blood, Lin Nuo, within ten minutes, was drenched in cold sweat, legs weak, and even his vision blurred. Amidst the crows’ cries, Lin Nuo heard a deep and thunderous roar.

Then, the crows retreated. One by one, pitch-black flying dragons with eyes glowing like red embers emerged from the mist.

“Tsk, tsk…It turns out to be a purebred human.” The black dragon spoke in a human voice.

Lin Nuo’s heart ached again. It’s okay; after leaving the small world, I’ll undergo emotional detachment.

The dragon circled in the air, and Lin Nuo’s vision became increasingly blurred. Accompanying the circling dragon, scorching heatwaves rolled from the air. Lin Nuo coughed a few times, staggered back a few steps, and barely propped himself up with the sword. He couldn’t swing the sword, let alone attack. Right now, even standing was challenging.

The only thing he could do was use the sword to support himself, preventing himself from falling in a miserable posture. Since he was a quasi-knight, at least he should retain some dignity when dying.

“Ho ho ho, little knight, you can still stand under my pressure? This makes me a bit more interested in you… Before I eat you, it seems there’s still time to enjoy something else!” The black dragon chuckled and dove toward Lin Nuo.

Hearing these typical villain lines, Lin Nuo smiled bitterly and closed his eyes. It would be over soon. Farewell, Rennes.

“Bang!” A loud crash echoed through the air. Following that, there was a wail from the black dragon.

Huh? Lin Nuo, puzzled, reluctantly opened his eyes. He saw a golden figure, like lightning, crashing straight into the black dragon. This figure Lin Nuo had seen countless times in his dreams.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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