Growing Up with the Demon King Tyrant - Chapter 8

At this hour, the students were almost all in the cafeteria; the dormitory building was quiet, and very few people lived on this floor.

Xi Huai felt a sense of chagrin and irritability that Xue Yi’s existence had been discovered by Xi Nian in such a manner. Fearing that the other boy might lose his head and run out shouting, Xi Huai simply refused to let him leave.

Only after feeding Xue Yi his lunch and medicine did he turn to give Xi Nian a thorough warning.

Xue Yi seemed to sense Xi Huai’s poor mood; he buried his head and rubbed against the youth’s collar. “Ao…”

Xi Huai’s gaze softened slightly as he whispered in reassurance, “It’s alright, don’t be afraid.”

Lunch was only half-finished; fortunately, not much time had been wasted, and the food hadn’t gone cold. Xi Huai sat back down and picked up the small spoon.

Xi Nian stood by the door, having failed in his attempt to unravel the demonic energy on the lock. He could neither leave nor enter the room further.

“Where did this dragon come from?” He simply sat on the floor, his face written with a thirst for knowledge. “Father and the others definitely don’t know, right?”

The Dragon Clan lived in the southern part of the continent year-round, with a clear boundary separating them from the territory ruled by the Heteromorphic Demon Race. In recent years, the two races had lived in peace, and there had been no word of any contact with the dragons. Furthermore, this was a hatchling.

What amazed Xi Nian most was that Xi Huai actually seemed to have a good relationship with this hatchling. The little dragon was even wearing a small vest—so those clothes Xi Huai had ruined were for this… Skipping class every afternoon was likely to take care of this dragon as well.

Xi Huai acted as if he hadn’t heard, focusing on feeding the little dragon cub; he ignored every question Xi Nian had asked previously. Conversely, Xue Yi poked his head out for a look, reluctantly giving Xi Nian a tiny bit of a response.

Meeting the young dragon’s gaze again, Xi Nian felt inexplicably awkward. His reaction just now had been a bit much—shouting like he’d never seen the world over a single little dragon. Although, he truly hadn’t seen one…

The dragon cub was very small; its horns and wings were tiny, its sharp claws were not yet fully formed, and its cheeks were chubby. When it looked at things, its golden eyes were round and large. In short, it was very different from the image of the Dragon Clan in his mind. If it weren’t for those eyes, Xue Yi would look more like a pet-type spirit beast hatchling.

Xi Nian thought to himself: With such a cute appearance, could it be a new species of spirit beast that also has golden eyes? But Xi Huai’s reaction proved that Xue Yi was indeed a member of the Dragon Clan.

Xi Huai sat with his back to the door, almost completely shielding the dragon cub; Xi Nian could only catch a glimpse of a section of silver-white tail.

“No wonder you’ve been so unusual lately…” he muttered to himself, waiting patiently.

Half an hour later, Xue Yi finished his medicine and lay in the crook of Xi Huai’s arm, licking his paws. Xi Huai tidied the table with one hand, his gaze finally landing on Xi Nian by the door.

Xi Nian stood up. Seeing the youth approaching step by step with the little dragon in his arms, he pressed his back tightly against the door, not daring to move. His fearful and cowardly appearance looked interesting to Xue Yi, who raised a claw and waved it. “Wu!”

Xi Nian shrank his neck, looking truly frightened.

Xi Huai was expressionless. “Calmed down now?”

“Mm… about that,” Xi Nian said nervously, “I definitely won’t tell anyone. I didn’t see anything today!”

Xi Huai stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly drew the short blade from behind his waist and thrust it forcefully into the wooden door. The blade landed right beside Xi Nian’s face. Xi Nian’s breath hitched, and his face paled with fright.

Xue Yi was also startled; the little dragon cub’s body trembled slightly, and his curled claws hooked into the fabric of the youth’s sleeve.

Xi Huai’s movements paused, and he silently put the blade away.

“You’d better mean what you say. Otherwise,” his threatening tone instinctively softened a bit, “you know the consequences.”

The two were brothers and had spent the most time together among their peers; Xi Nian knew Xi Huai’s personality well. He stiffened his neck. “…I know.”

“Also,” Xi Huai asked again, “what did you mean by ‘Dragon Disease’?”

Xi Nian scratched his head and explained, “Actually, I don’t know either. I think I saw it in a book somewhere.” He quickly added, “It should be a book at Mother’s place. Tomorrow… no, I’ll bring it to you after I go back today?”

Xi Huai was marginally satisfied and tilted his chin. “Fine.”

The little dragon cub in his arms listened quietly to their conversation, looking very well-behaved.

The demonic energy binding the door lock finally vanished. Xi Nian opened the door to slip away, but then stepped back inside. “That… can I look at it again?”

His response was the cold thud of the door; Xi Huai directly kicked him out and relocked it. Xi Nian still had a stomach full of questions he couldn’t ask and had to leave, looking back with every step.

In the afternoon, Xi Huai appeared on time for his Magical Plants class. He had indeed skipped class for several days; Xi Nian coming to find him at noon served as a reminder. To be safe, he shouldn’t overdo it.

Xue Yi was still with him, hidden in his outer pocket.

The Magical Plants classroom was in an open-air courtyard filled with flowerpots and plants of various heights; the students moved about freely. Xi Huai specifically chose a deserted corner to stay in, occasionally picking a non-toxic leaf and holding it to his coat pocket.

The hem of his coat would wobble slightly, and a small claw would slowly poke out from the edge of the pocket, hooking the leaf and pulling it down.

The second afternoon class was Practical Magic, as usual. Xi Huai went to that as well, using the excuse that the injury on his leg hadn’t healed to sit on the side and rest.

In the past, Xi Huai was basically only interested in practical classes—in other words, he loved to fight. Yet lately, not only was he skipping class, he was also making excuses to avoid participating. His leg injury was nearly a month old; the constitution of the Heteromorphic Demon Race was formidable, capable of directly withstanding the flames of a Crimson Flame Dragon—how could he be so fragile?

However, Xi Huai’s grades had always been excellent, so the instructor didn’t meddle much and let him rest.

Not far away, Xi Huai sat alone on a bench, head down, appearing to be in a daze. Several Titan students passed by, casting provocative glances. They were the ones who had fought with Xi Huai before and had recently recovered from their injuries, looking for a chance to vent their anger.

In the past, Xi Huai would surely have reacted. Today, he merely looked up with a cold, indifferent gaze, then turned to sit with his back to them. The students failed in their attempt to pick a fight and had to leave.

Upon returning from the Academy, Xi Nian immediately ran to Queen Wei’s study. He searched the shelves and indeed found a book about the Dragon Clan.

Queen Wei followed him inside. “What are you looking for? In such a rush.”

Xi Nian stuffed the book into his storage ring and hurried back out. “I’m going out for a bit.”

Queen Wei stopped him. “You just got back. Do your schoolwork before you go play.”

Xi Nian argued, “I’m going to see Xi Huai, not to play.”

Hearing this, Queen Wei hesitated and let him go. “Alright then… take this with you.” She handed him a bag of her homemade dried fruit. Xi Nian, fearing he would be delayed, snatched it and left.

Arriving at the sleeping quarters, Xi Nian knocked and lowered his voice. “It’s me.”

“Enter.”

Xi Huai’s voice rang out from inside, and Xi Nian pushed the door open. Having promised Xi Huai, he was also afraid of being discovered and quickly closed the door once inside.

He turned around to see a little dragon cub squatting by the openwork door, looking up at him. Xi Nian paused. “Ahem… hello?”

After an entire afternoon, he was now completely calm and appeared much more composed.

“Ao!” Xue Yi squatted in place and gently wagged his tail.

“Did you bring the book?”

Hearing Xi Huai speak, Xue Yi turned and ran into the bedroom. The floor was covered in rugs, and Xi Nian walked in cautiously. “I brought it!”

Xi Huai sat by the desk and bent down to pick up Xue Yi. Xi Nian pulled out the book while his gaze constantly drifted toward the youth’s embrace. The dragon cub lay down practicedly, turning its head to lick the tip of its tail.

“It’s this one,” Xi Nian said, also producing the dried fruit. “Oh, and there’s this, made by Mother.”

There were many types of dried fruit in the bag, mixed with some dried vegetables; it had a nutty fragrance. Xue Yi’s nose twitched as he sniffed it, looking quite curious.

Xi Huai took the book and flipped through it quickly. He made no other gesture, so Xi Nian remained where he was. Xue Yi continued to look at the dried fruit on the table and couldn’t resist jumping up for a closer sniff.

Xi Nian whispered, “Do you want to eat?”

Xi Huai was still flipping through the book. Xi Nian quietly opened the packaging of the dried fruit and placed a piece on the table. Xue Yi slowly approached the fruit and sniffed it, but didn’t eat.

At that moment, Xi Huai found the passage in the book about “Dragon Disease.”

“The root of a dragon’s inferiority has reached a pathological level: they are obsessed with gold coins and gemstones, and they crave pleasure and lust. Such behavior is also referred to as ‘Dragon Disease’.”

Xi Huai: “…”

He looked at the signature at the end of the page; sure enough, it was the same author who wrote the book about “dragons being lower-class beastmen.” He had actually thought it was some kind of genetic hereditary disease and had Xi Nian bring the book out of concern for Xue Yi.

He instantly lost interest and tossed the book into the wastepaper basket. Demonic energy followed, shredding the pages in mid-air.

Xi Nian was stunned. “What are you doing? That’s Mother’s book…”

“This kind of worthless trash,” Xi Huai’s face darkened slightly, “is useless to keep.”

Xi Nian didn’t know why he was suddenly unhappy; he rubbed his nose and didn’t dare argue, thinking to himself that he’d just say the book was lost when he went back—Queen Wei shouldn’t be angry.

Xue Yi ran to the edge of the table, watching the paper scraps fall like lint. He returned to Xi Huai’s side and pawed at his sleeve. “Wu…” The dragon cub’s golden eyes sparkled with anticipation as he looked toward the dried fruit.

It was a small piece of dried lettuce that Xi Nian had placed there earlier. Xi Huai reached out, took it, and fed it to Xue Yi. The little dragon cub licked it first, then bit down and finished it with a “crunch, crunch.” Xue Yi never liked eating vegetables, but the dried lettuce was very fragrant, like a small snack.

Xi Nian watched wistfully. “Why does he eat when you feed him?” He also took a piece of dried lettuce, trying to entice the cub. “By the way, does he have a name?”

Seeing that Xue Yi liked the dried fruit Xi Nian had brought, Xi Huai generously told him: “He’s called Xue Yi.”

“Xue Yi, Xue Yi…” As Xi Nian repeated the name, the dragon cub indeed reacted and looked over. A hatchling this small must still be a baby.

Xi Nian held up the dried lettuce in his hand and, mimicking the way Queen Wei gave nicknames to him and her pet cat, used a new title: “Do you want more, Xue-bao?”

The little dragon cub was tempted but didn’t go to him. Xi Huai glanced at him and took a piece of dried mango from the bag. Xue Yi wagged his tail and ate the food fed to him.

Xi Nian finally accepted reality and put the lettuce back. “Alright then…”

He remained silent, watching Xi Huai feed Xue Yi dried fruit with practiced movements. Looking at the clothes on the dragon cub and the rugs all over the floor, Xi Nian suddenly felt that the Xi Huai before him was a bit of a stranger.

He had never seen Xi Huai be so gentle with anyone. If, before today, he had heard that Xi Huai was raising a small beast, his first reaction would surely have been: Hope he doesn’t end up killing it.

The little dragon cub finished the dried mango and used Xi Huai’s hand to drink water from a cup. Xi Nian felt inexplicably envious, though he wasn’t sure whom he was envying.