Is It Really That Hard to Seduce a Dragon? - Chapter 3

The Divine Dragon actually cannot read?

Ji Aqing chuckled to himself. He took the map from the dragon’s hand; his tone tinged with a hint of feigned regret as he sighed dramatically: “These diagrams are incredibly difficult to draw; there are only a few copies in the entire Central Continent.”

While it was true that the Thousand Machines Pavilion only sent secret reports to a few major powers, he wasn’t exactly telling the truth but he wasn’t technically lying, either.

He intended to play along with the man’s words to brush the matter aside, but to his surprise, upon hearing this, the dragon let out an “Ah,” his expression turning awkward: “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

Immediately afterward, as if realizing something, he asked: “What is it used for?” The dragon mused to himself that if there were only a few copies in the entire Central Continent, it must be very important. He wondered if his treasure collection would be enough to pay for the damages.

Ji Aqing, who hadn’t anticipated this question and hadn’t prepared an answer, lowered his head slightly. After a moment of silence, he replied: “It is for… revenge.”

Ji Aqing had no intention of lying about something so easily debunked, and he had other calculations in mind. He took the opportunity to purposefully put on a miserable appearance, inwardly worrying that his acting might not be entirely convincing.

He coughed lightly, unintentionally letting his hoarse voice, trembling eyelashes, and eyes that instantly welled with red when he looked up, reveal a deep, intense sorrow.

“What!” Cang Ming stood up abruptly.

Why is his reaction so intense? Ji Aqing was stunned.

Seeing the youth look at him with what seemed like a fearful gaze, his bitten lips and teary eyes made Cang Ming’s heart tremble violently.

Of course.

Cang Ming recalled the scene when they first met: the man covered in blood, lying in the freezing snow and desolation, as if he could dissolve into the world at any moment. Combined with his grievous injuries such a situation could only mean he had been hunted and harmed by wicked people.

He possessed something so vital, and I only thought about paying him back with a few broken trinkets! I am a disgrace to all dragons!

“I’m sorry.” Cang Ming sat back down and spoke rapidly, his tone sincere and earnest. “It was my fault; I should compensate you.” He felt deeply annoyed at himself for asking such a stupid question and pointlessly stirring up the youth’s painful memories.

Hmm? The Divine Dragon is actually this simple and easily deceived.

Ji Aqing turned his face away and blinked. The astonishment in his eyes, as the mist slowly faded, was hidden by his lowered brows.

“It’s alright,” he said, his voice extremely soft, as if trying to comfort the dragon. “It’s not your fault. If it weren’t for you saving me, I wouldn’t have been able to hold on any longer.”

“Besides, compensation… what could you possibly compensate me with?” The youth’s eyes shimmered with watery light as he turned down the offer, though in his heart, he recalled the intelligence report saying the dragon loved collecting treasures, and a flicker of anticipation emerged.

How does he sound even more miserable? It’s like he’s saying he doesn’t want anything other than that report. Hearing what sounded like a fleeting sob, Cang Ming felt his heart sink; he was even more at a loss.

He had lived in his clan’s territory for years, and his daily life was always the same three things: fighting collecting trophies sleeping. He had only ever encountered tough-as-nails, sturdy clansmen, and had never met an object of interest so quiet, gentle, pitiful, and fragile.

What should I do if he doesn’t want compensation?

Cang Ming hesitated. He could only reach out to pull up the plush blanket that had slid down with Ji Aqing’s movement, tucking it in to cover the youth’s chest, which was trembling gently in the air.

As if charging into a heroic battle, he said: “Don’t be sad; it was my fault. Why don’t you teach me how to draw these patterns? I’ll help you restore it.”

The tall figure leaned in very close, his handsome face gazing at him. His gem-like eyes reflected the youth’s own image; his words filled with a sense of responsibility.

Feeling the warmth transferred by the fabric once his body was wrapped up, and feeling the slight pressure of the man’s hand as he helped hold the blanket down, Ji Aqing felt a strange sensation. He couldn’t help but reach out, his slightly cold fingertips brushing against the dragon’s forehead.

Warm, but not hot. No fever.

Something seems off. Where is the promised compensation? How did he end up becoming a tutor?

Startled by the youth’s sudden movement, Cang Ming, who had never been this close to anyone, subconsciously wanted to dodge or even restrain the action. However, after his gaze fell upon the youth’s thin frame, he forced himself to hold back.

Too fragile. The Divine Dragon worried that even a slight movement would hurt him.

He lowered his head slightly to make it easier for the youth. With his gaze having nowhere to rest, he fixated on a single spot: a red mole on the youth’s collarbone. As he watched it, his ears couldn’t help but heat up.

“Is something wrong?” Cang Ming asked after waiting for a moment, having touched his forehead without saying a word or making another move.

“Nothing.” Ji Aqing shook his head. As he lowered his hand, he took the opportunity to smooth out the long, sweat-dampened hair that had fallen onto the man’s left chest, revealing a faint smile.

Hair had no sensory nerves, but Cang Ming inexplicably felt as though every spot brushed by the youth’s hand now possessed a tactile sensation a subtle itch. How strange.

The Divine Dragon stared at the person who gave him such strange sensations. In his eyes, the youth’s smile was genuine, his sorrow faded, like a winter flower blooming.

Ji Aqing’s thoughts, however, were nonchalant, he has no sense of danger even when someone is this close to his vitals; it seems he really isn’t very smart.

“Alright, I’ll teach you when I have the chance.” Ji Aqing did not refuse the man’s request. Although failing to get compensation and having to teach an illiterate person didn’t make him particularly happy, he wouldn’t turn down an excellent means of closing the distance between them.

“Mm.” The man nodded vigorously, his fire-like eyes full of determination. “I will study hard.”

“Thank you, you’re so kind.” Ji Aqing’s eyes shone with worship and longing. As if remembering something, he asked: “My name is Ji Aqing, and my home is in the Ten-Thousand Sword Forest of the Central Continent. What is your name? And what element of dragon are you?”

“My name is Cang Ming, the Divine Dragon who lives in the Southern Cliffs, and my element is Fire…” Meeting the youth’s gaze, Cang Ming instantly forgot the warning his parents had once given him that humans were insatiable and that he should never reveal his true name to them.

He even curled his fingers, which were resting on the youth’s back, in embarrassment under the youth’s encouraging and curious gaze.

He subconsciously rubbed the youth’s protruding spine, which felt like the wings of a butterfly due to his thinness, as he explained his origin to the youth in detail.

My parents’ assessment of humans might not be entirely objective. Cang Ming thought to himself. Aqing is already in this state; what kind of ill intentions could he possibly have?

“A Fire-element Divine Dragon, that means your fire element affinity must be very high!” Ji Aqing curved his lips, curiously reaching out to touch the area around the dragon’s eyes, brushing over his equally red eyebrows and eyelashes.

A pity.

The youth secretly felt a touch of regret in his heart. As far as he knew, Wood-element dragons were nourished by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and were naturally more useful for healing.

A Fire Dragon… well, it’s barely acceptable. It seems the horns can be used in medicine.

Completely unaware of what the human who was expressing such total trust in him was thinking, Cang Ming only felt that the place touched by the youth was burning hot, his blood surging.

No, no, that’s just the heat of his blood transferring to the skin; in reality, the youth’s hands are ice-cold.

The Divine Dragon, once he calmed down, reacted immediately. He subconsciously leaned in closer, gathering the youth’s fingertips which were still tracing his brows into his palm.

Without time to marvel at how much smaller the youth’s hands were than his own, he frowned upon feeling the chill in his palm. Why are they like the ice cubes I use to cool off? This constitution is simply too poor.

He mobilized his spiritual energy to transport heat into his palm to warm the youth’s hands.

The Divine Dragon’s actions were subconscious; he completely failed to notice that the distance between them had become infinitesimally small. As their breaths intermingled, warm air sprayed onto each other’s necks in a cozy embrace.

Ji Aqing was slightly stunned. He looked at him for a moment; his pitch-black eyes landed first on the man’s slightly furrowed brows, then swept past his handsome, deep-featured face, and finally settled on their tightly clasped hands.

It was evident that the man had no experience. His overexerted hand was gripped very tightly; the veins beneath his pale skin became prominent, the force so great that it made him feel a bit of pain, and the area around his grip turned red.

So we’re already holding hands? Ji Aqing pursed his lips.

A steady stream of warmth was transmitted from their tightly locked hands, surging through the meridians into his limbs, making the spacious cave feel much less cold.

What does this mean? Is he hinting at something? Ji Aqing’s mind flashed with the statement from the Thousand Machines Pavilion’s report. Divine Dragon, libertine by nature.

What should I do now? Should I pretend to be more innocent?

He looked at the man steadily for a few more seconds. After a long while, he turned to the side with hesitation, and then slowly leaned against Cang Ming’s chest.

“Are Fire Dragons not afraid of the cold?” His eyes were filled with amusement. One hand rested on the man’s chest, feeling the powerful beating of the man’s heart. “You are so warm.”

“But the cave is very cold.” Taking the initiative to lean into an embrace for the first time, Ji Aqing racked his brains to pave the way for the man’s “libertine” nature. His lips were pursed until they turned pale, only to become flushed as he spoke, “I am also very cold.”

“Cang Ming, could you please… hold me?”

As the words fell, he felt the man’s arms exert sudden force, pinning him tightly.

It was a bit painful, but Ji Aqing’s smiles only widened. He pressed his cheek against the man’s skin and listened. He heard the man’s suddenly amplified heartbeat one beat louder than the last, like the beating of a war drum.

So noisy.

Ji Aqing’s eyelashes fluttered rapidly, a smile filling his eyes again as he scanned the red color spreading to the man’s chest. He took a deep breath and adjusted to a more comfortable angle.

However, the subsequent development was completely different from what he had envisioned.

As the object being leaned upon, Cang Ming’s eyes widened suddenly, and his limbs stiffened. The task he had been mindlessly performing was interrupted by the soft body that had suddenly entered his embrace. His brain went blank; he had no idea what to do next.

“Hmm, cold…”

It wasn’t until the soft, slightly hoarse murmur came from his arms again that the Divine Dragon, whose system had crashed, realized what he had just been doing. His face flushed red as he held the youth tighter to continue transferring heat, his gaze fixed on the top of the youth’s head.

The black hair, which he had washed with his own hands after bringing the youth back to the cave, carried a cold fragrance. It lay softly against his temples and ears. The crown of the youth’s head was soft, the hair fluffy and cool, and the multicolored cord was spread out across his chest, provoking a bit of an itch.

The itch wasn’t just on his skin; it seemed to seep into his blood. His heart felt as if it were being tickled by a soft feather, causing it to beat “thump-thump” very fast.

After a moment of silence, he suspected he hadn’t washed the youth’s hair properly, which was why it was still making him itch.

“We’ll talk about being cold later.” After struggling with himself for a long while, Cang Ming spoke under the youth’s encouraging and meaningful gaze, and then bewildered Ji Aqing: “Is your head uncomfortable?”

The person who had been nervously preparing to welcome everything that might happen next suddenly looked up.

“……?”

Meeting the face raised in his arms, Cang Ming watched as the youth’s palm-sized face sank into his dense black hair, his chin resting against his chest, his eyes slightly widened, full of confusion and bewilderment.

Misinterpreting Ji Aqing’s meaning and thinking he truly hadn’t washed the youth’s hair clean, the Divine Dragon frowned. He loosened his grip, pulled over the displaced plush blanket, and began to wrap the person in his arms tightly.

As he moved, he said: “Don’t worry, wait for me a little longer. I’ll wash it for you again once I’m done. You are too weak right now; just get some good rest.”

Ji Aqing, who had been flipped out of the embrace and back into the blanket by the man, froze for a moment. He suddenly felt a sense of absurdity. He closed his eyes and listened to the magnetic voice beside his ear continue to chatter: “Did I forget to tell you?”

Cang Ming had just remembered what he hadn’t had time to explain.

“Your clothes were dirty, so I was washing them for you.” The man said. “I’m sorry you have to lie here for a bit longer.”

Upon suddenly hearing these words, Ji Aqing thought he was hallucinating.

As if knowing what he was puzzled about, Cang Ming meticulously tucked in the four corners of the plush blanket for him, moving his tall body aside at the right moment.

So, Ji Aqing’s gaze bypassed his body to look not far away. Only then did he notice a golden, jewel-encrusted basin, with the corner of an article of clothing he recognized draped over the side.

“I don’t have any clothes for you to wear here.” Cang Ming said.

Whenever he transformed into human form, the scales on his body would turn into outer robes according to his will either brilliant gold or fiery red and they possessed extraordinary defensive properties that perfectly matched his preferences, so he had never thought about preparing anything else.

He had forgotten about this until he had brought the person back to the cave for simple treatment and cleaning, and was then put on the spot by the blood-stained clothes he had peeled off and discarded to the side.

He couldn’t let the youth wear dirty clothes again. The very idea made Cang Ming, who had a bit of a clean-freak streak, unable to accept it. Ultimately, he had furrowed his brows and learned to wash clothes himself.

The intelligence report had been washed until the colors faded because of this.

Ji Aqing was dumbfounded, but before the emotions in his eyes could be conveyed, he heard the tall man’s tone filled with pride.

“Washing clothes isn’t that hard. Just wait a little longer; I’ll be done washing them very soon.”

With that, he rolled up the plush blanket again, picked up a corner, stuffed it forcefully into the gap where the blanket met the youth’s skin, and before Ji Aqing, who had been wrapped into a cocoon, could react, he patted the youth’s shoulder and stood up.

The man walked toward the basin with light steps, leaving behind only his back: “Watch me show you my skills.”

“…” Ji Aqing, who had been laid flat, listened to the “splash-splash” sound of clothes being scrubbed by the side and resignedly closed his eyes.

What an illiterate, silly dragon.