Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot-Chapter 64 - 63 - “I need to talk to you... alone.”

The night in the capital city of Velmoria was as quiet as ever.

A full moon hung lazily in the sky, its silver light spilling into the room through a half-opened window.

Inside the spacious lounge of the elite students of the Vaise family, six figures lounged in various positions, each with their own brand of exhaustion—or boredom.

Raven lay sprawled on a plush couch like he owned the place, one arm behind his head, the other flipping a mana conduction coin, used to help one learn how to control mana better, lazily.

"Man... I’m bored," he began, his tone flat. "Why the hell are we even enrolled in classes when we can just pass the damn tests?"

He had read about it in the plot. The Vaise didn’t have to attend the class, as they had learned most of what they could in the Cradle.

More importantly, only a few teachers could teach them, as they were magic swordsmen.

Raven had completely forgotten about this part, but now that he knew about it, his excitement for the academy life died.

With no classes, what was there to even do in the academy?

Yes, the characters he was supposed to interact with would still come to him, but waiting was boring.

Hearing his question, Jessy looked up from the book she was pretending to read and pushed her fake glasses up her nose. "Protocols. Like every other noble family, the Vaise send their children here."

Rufus raised a hand meekly. "Technically, the law says Vaise children can test out if—"

"Silence, walking dictionary," Raven deadpanned, flicking the coin at Rufus’s forehead.

Thwack.

"Argh—! I’m trying to help!" Rufus groaned, rubbing his forehead with watery eyes, but looking at Raven, who wasn’t even looking at him, he lowered his head.

’Why is it always me...?’

He felt like crying.

After all, even after so long, he was still being bullied by Raven.

He had changed. He wasn’t arrogant anymore. But he was still being bullied.

’Just why?!’

He would probably start crying if he knew that all of this Raven did was because he found it fun.

Bullying Rufus made him feel good, so he did.

Jake, understanding that, sighed, leaning against the far wall, arms crossed, gaze distant.

He said nothing, as usual.

"Anyway," Clara added, sitting cross-legged beside a table while idly stirring a teacup. "No one expects us to attend classes. Especially not after you made a knight eat dirt before the academy."

Everyone was now looking at Raven as if he were a monster. Even some teachers, who were layer-six knights of sixth-circle mages, were scared to get on Raven’s nerves.

In a situation like this, how could Raven expect that they could attend any class?

"I didn’t make him," Raven shrugged. "His pride threw him."

Alex, stretching like a bear by the window, suddenly grinned. "Still! That pose you did after slapping him to the ground?"

He mimed it dramatically. "’Try not to choke on your pride next time’—bro, that was cold. It was gold."

Raven arched a brow, smirking. "After ten tries, you finally did it correctly."

"Hehe. It was AWESOME, bro," Alex grinned, throwing imaginary punches. "Even the professors didn’t stop you! They were all like, ’damn, he’s hot.’"

"I don’t think that’s what they said," Jessy muttered without looking up.

On the other hand, Clara observed and listened to everything, sipping the tea silently.

Rufus opened his mouth to speak again, then immediately closed it when Raven casually picked up a second coin.

"Smart move," Raven said.

Rufus slumped into his chair like a defeated cat.

After a minute, Raven sat up, stretching. "Anyway. Enough about my magnificence. Let’s talk about the Trial."

Everyone quieted.

"The annual one?" Jessy asked, placing her book down.

"Yeah," Raven said. "That treasure-hunt-pretending-to-be-a-test thing. Teachers set challenges. We run around like idiots looking for gemstones."

Clara nodded. "It’s next week. You’ll like it. It’s more about survival and strategy than memorizing ancient text."

"What about the gemstones?" Raven asked.

"The person with the most wins. There’s no gold or prize—just reputation," Jessy said calmly.

Raven already knew it, but he wanted to hear it from them, as he could never be sure how things had changed.

’Looks like the trials didn’t change—’

Alex interrupted his thoughts, a huge grin playing on his lips.

"Don’t forget bragging rights," Alex added. "Last year, I found fifty-eight. Jessy got sixty-one, but she cheated using logic."

"That’s not cheating," Jessy said dryly.

Jake, from the corner, held up two fingers.

"He found seventy-two," Rufus translated for him.

"...as expected of you, Jake," Raven blinked.

Jake’s lips twitched lightly, enough for everyone to tell that he was smiling. freёwebnoѵel.com

Raven leaned back again, his eyes now thoughtful. "Any incidents in the past two years? During the trials, I mean."

That question silenced the room momentarily as everyone other than Raven exchanged curious yet cautious glances.

"Incidents?" Clara echoed.

"Yeah, anything strange? Like the barrier malfunctioning, students going missing, a teacher with a mustache turning out to be a demon lord—?"

Everyone blinked.

"...No," Jessy said slowly. "Nothing ever happened."

Rufus nodded. "We, the Vaises, won both years. That’s just... how it was."

"Huh," Raven breathed.

’They won?’

That wasn’t how it was supposed to be.

Even if he wasn’t there, there would still be one person who would’ve ranked above them.

"What about a guy named Shirozan?" Raven asked, his gaze serious, making the others frown harder, feeling something was wrong.

"...there was no one with such a name," Jessy, who could remember most of the things, replied.

"What’s wrong?" Clara asked, and the others straightened.

Raven, however, kept frowning.

He remembered the plotline well.

The first-year trial was when the plot began, and there would’ve been interruptions during the trial.

He could understand if it didn’t happen because of his absence, but what about the ranking? There was supposed to be another guy who had ranked right below Raven.

He was another important side character.

But... there wasn’t anything with that name?

How was that possible?

’Did the plot change so much that a major character didn’t even come to the academy?’

"Raven?"

Clara’s voice broke him out of his thoughts as he shook his head.

"It’s nothing."

Before anyone could ask anything, he suddenly noticed something.

Siris wasn’t here.

"Where’s Siris?" He asked, glancing around with a frown.

"She went out to get something to eat," Clara replied nonchalantly, still sipping the tea.

Raven turned to her slowly. "And you let her go alone?"

Clara’s eye twitched. "Excuse me?"

"I mean," Raven said, "why didn’t you tell me? You knew I’d want to know—"

"And why do you need to know everything about her?" Clara snapped at him, her tone still polite but carrying venom. "Is she your wife or something?"

Raven blinked, his lips parting, but no voice came before he sighed. "...no."

Clara looked away with a small huff.

Everyone stayed silent for a while, as Clara’s mood, which had been fine until now, had again turned bad because Siris was mentioned.

Raven could also see that, so rubbing his temple, he spoke. "Clara. I need to talk to you alone."

Clara didn’t turn; her arms were folded. "I’m not going anywhere."

Raven nodded slowly. "... Right."

He then turned toward the others, who didn’t even need him to say it out loud before they got up, ready to leave.

’Alright. I gotta get serious now.’

For the first time, Raven decided to deal with something with utmost seriousness.

.................

Meanwhile, in another corner of the academy city, the moonlight barely touched the alleyways.

The city around the Academy was still alive—laughing students, late-night vendors, and magical lanterns casting gentle glows.

But away from the warmth, a figure walked silently in the quiet corners between elegant manors.

It was Siris.

She didn’t rush.

Her steps were steady and precise, moving like a shadow that had always been there.

Her robes fluttered gently behind her, blending with the darkness. Her expression was calm.

Too calm.

She walked down a side path, her gaze falling on a distant mansion. The emblem etched on the door was Royal, implying that someone from the Royal family lived there.

Looking at the gate up close, Siris’s hand reached into her coat, brushing against the hilt of something she hadn’t used in public.

Her dagger.

’I can do it now, right?’

She asked inwardly, and a calm and melodic voice replied with a pause.

’...yes.’

With that, she jumped past the boundary of the mansion.