Chapter 28: The Silver Dragon Captive, Step Forward!
The afternoon tutoring session was all about Noia’s wrong answers.
After a quick review of her mistakes, Leon realized that his eldest daughter had a very accurate assessment of her abilities.
All her errors were in chapters marked with a red difficulty level in the textbook.
Meanwhile, she aced the green and yellow difficulty ones.
This meant they could save a ton of time on unnecessary detours.
Studying was like treating an illness; you’ve got to hit the nail on the head to get better faster.
A whole afternoon later, Noia absorbed a lot of new knowledge.
When it was time to leave, she finally mustered up her courage to say to Leon,
“Thank you.”
Ah~~
That “thank you” hit Leon right in the feels!
He forced himself to suppress a smile and casually replied,
“No problem, it’s what I’m here for.”
Noia nodded, clutching the after-school assignments Leon had set for her, turned around, went on tiptoe, grabbed the doorknob, and then left.
Leon let out a sigh of relief and turned to look out the window.
It was almost night.
He quickly finished his dinner and plopped back down at his desk.
On the table were some basic medication books delivered by the maid Anna.
Plus, a few chili peppers Noia had brought him during lunch.
Leon picked one up and examined it, muttering, “It’s pretty much the same as the ones Master grows.”
He took a bite and chewed.
Two seconds later—
“Water water water water water!”
He rolled and scrambled towards the sink, turning on the tap. The cool water rushed into his mouth, but it did nothing to neutralize the brutal heat from that devil pepper.
Leon clutched his mouth, flopped on the floor, and rolled around like a fish out of water.
It felt like someone stuffed a searing hot lump of coal in his mouth.
After a few minutes of fighting with his taste buds, he managed to calm down a bit.
His eyes were teary, and his lips felt numb—like he’d completely lost their existence.
“If you dragons eat stuff like this all the time, you’ll definitely get hemorrhoids sooner or later!”
After grumbling, Leon levered himself off the ground and returned to his desk.
After all that commotion, he was completely wide awake.
He wiped his face, perked up, and started prepping for tomorrow’s lessons.
In a daze, he felt like he was back at the Dragon Slayer Academy.
Every day after class, he would immerse himself in his books like this, either reviewing or pre-studying, never letting himself slack off.
No wonder his roommate called him the King of Studying.
He’d work through the night, and when he was too sleepy, he’d chew on a chili pepper that Master had given him.
Great for staying awake!
He had only just woken up from a nap and should have rested more.
But Noia was taking her admission test next month, so he had to hustle and prepare lessons while also crafting a tight and efficient study plan.
Thus, in a state of exhaustion, Leon forced himself alert with the magical powers of chili peppers.
And those dragon peppers?
They definitely exceeded his expectations for keeping him awake.
While studying, Leon was so focused that when he realized he needed a break, it was already past eleven at night.
Rubbing his heavy eyes, fatigue washed over him, and he grabbed the chili pepper nearby and took another bite.
In an instant, the spicy sensation shot straight up to his brain, and any trace of sleepiness vanished instantly.
Leon squeezed his thigh tight as he endured the fiery heat in his mouth.
After a moment of composure, he set aside the prepared teaching materials and pulled out the medicinal herb books from his drawer.
Actually, he—
He flipped open the table of contents, landing on the sections for “Body Nourishment” and “Supplements.”
How embarrassing.
Roswiser’s comment “Your body isn’t what it used to be” still felt like a dagger to his pride.
And all serious studiers have one thing in common—they’re stubborn and love to get cornered.
When he asked the maid Anna for books on medicinal herbs that morning, he wanted to find something to replace his current supplements.
If it were just those supplements, it’d take ages for his body to return to normal levels.
He couldn’t let that Mother Dragon look down on him.
He would make Roswiser pay dearly for that comment about his body not being what it once was!
With that thought, Leon’s fighting spirit ignited, flipping through the herb book for potentially valuable information.
“Crimson Dragonfruit… Tasty flesh, seeds can be used as herbs, helps regulate qi and bl**d… Hmm, useless.”
“Ghost Lotus Grass can alleviate external wounds when applied externally, and improve digestion when taken internally… d*mn, you dragons really double up on your herbs, huh?”
“Dragon Kidney Protector… What the heck kind of abstract name is that? Sounds totally dodgy!”
As he complained, his eyes narrowed slightly, landing on the following description,
“Hiss… As expected, it fits perfectly with my stereotypical impression of that name.”
But Leon didn’t need a medicine with such blatantly powerful effects as Dragon Kidney Protector.
He still had to stick to “body nourishment and supplements.”
However, after flipping through for ages, he didn’t find any herbs he wanted.
Just as he was about to check another book, the door lock suddenly rattled.
Hearing the noise, Leon quickly hid the basic medication book and put the teaching materials Noia would need tomorrow on the desk.
The visitor was none other than Roswiser herself.
“Oh, you’re still up.”
She said, walking into the room.
“Uh-huh.” Leon feigned calmness, responding in a mumbled tone.
Roswiser leisurely sat on the edge of the bed, crossed her long legs, propping herself up with one arm and resting the other on her knee, exuding a lazy yet subtly tired vibe.
Leon bit his lip, feeling the dragon pattern on his chest.
Luckily, there was no reaction.
This Mother Dragon probably wasn’t here to torture him tonight.
Even so, he didn’t initiate conversation but instead thumbing through the tutoring plans he had just prepped, checking for any shortcomings.
Roswiser’s gaze slowly drifted from Leon to the various chili peppers on his desk.
She frowned and asked, “What are you eating chili peppers for?”
“To stay awake.”
“To stay awake?”
“Yep, Noia has her entrance exam next month. Normally, you’d prepare a year in advance, but we don’t have that much time, so I’m pulling all-nighters and doubling down.” Leon busily adjusted the lesson plan without glancing back.
After a pause, he added, “Oh, and I also wanted to thank you.”
Roswiser raised an eyebrow. “Thank me?”
“Yeah, thank you for giving birth to such a brilliant daughter, which gives me the confidence I can get her through the exam in a month.”
The queen let out a snicker. “Noia takes after me.”
Leon blinked, finally setting down the plan, turning his full attention to her, his face serious as he asked,
“How did you come to that conclusion?”
Roswiser blinked, seemingly not expecting that question from Leon. “Uh, I—”
“I entered the Empire’s Dragon Slayer Academy at ten, graduated at fifteen with top scores in both written and practical exams, and won every single top-level scholarship for five years. The principal even personally awarded me upon graduation, and I’m the first underage graduate in nearly a century. After graduating, I won all the skill competitions in the Dragon Slayer Army.”
Leon stared into Roswiser’s eyes, emphasizing each word as he continued, “So, Your Majesty, what championships did you win?”
“……”
Roswiser was left speechless by this guy’s retort.
Honestly, she never expected him to be a total nerd.
She’d always thought he was just a brute who only knew how to fight.
But she would never give him the satisfaction of hearing her compliment him directly; in the face of his inquiry, Roswiser replied blandly,
“Really amazing.”
“Of course.”
“Then how did you end up my captive?”
Leon:……
Wow.
Shot down.
XX
Three updates today! Eight in the morning, eight at night, and thanks for the support with your monthly votes! Much appreciated~
