Vol 8. Chapter 18: Sisters, Get Ready to Go All Out!

Red hair is fairly common among dragons; Aunt Isha and several classmates in our class have red hair too. So when Hefei heard Anton say his examiner also had red hair, she didn’t think much of it.

However, when that figure stepped out from behind the brush, Hefei realized the Samael Continent was actually pretty small.

“Father?!”

Hefei’s eyes widened slightly. After a brief moment of shock, she trotted over to Constantine.

“Father, how are you here too?”

Constantine looked down at his daughter, lifted a hand, and gently placed it on her head. He said softly:

“The Academy invited me to serve as an examiner for this assessment. My partner is that boy named Anton.”

Her father taking part in an Academy-run exam—especially a joint assessment to promote ties between the two races—truly surprised Hefei. In Hefei’s impression, Dad had basically no interest in such things.

Even when Uncle Leon and Auntie Rosvisser occasionally invited him over for dinner, Constantine rarely accepted. It wasn’t that he was antisocial by nature; he simply preferred to spend that time training magic.

Despite her surprise, Hefei felt happy inside. She seldom got to take part in something together with her father. Being able to participate in the exam together this time—even if they weren’t on the same team—left her feeling very content.

Not far away, Orion looked toward the red-haired man.

“So that’s Hefei’s father... the Redflame Dragon King, Constantine...” She narrowed her eyes slightly and murmured, “Completely different from the terrifying image in the rumors...”

Old Con’s name rang loud among dragons, and outsiders knew it well too. But outsiders’ impressions were almost the same as Orion’s—stuck on a version from long, long ago. The Redflame Dragon King before her was clearly a high-cold type like Orion herself, but when he spoke to Hefei, his tone was extremely gentle.

After the father and daughter exchanged a few words, Hefei took her father’s hand and came over, taking the initiative to introduce:

“Sister Orion, this is my father, Constantine.”

Orion drew back from her thoughts, extended her hand, and said politely,

“Hello, Mr. Constantine.”

“Hello.”

Out of courtesy, Old Con also extended his hand and gave Orion a light shake.

“You’re Hefei’s examiner?” Constantine asked.

Orion nodded. “Yes, Mr. Constantine. I’m Orion Pyx, captain of the Blazing Sun City Guard.”

At the sound of her full name, Constantine paused slightly. He looked Orion over carefully, then asked tentatively:

“Pyx?... Have we met somewhere before?”

“Have we, Mr. Constantine?”

“I have some impression of the surname Pyx, but there are no clanspeople named Pyx among our Redflame Dragons, so I thought it might have been someone from another race I once met.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Constantine, you may be misremembering. I’ve never been far from Blazing Sun City since I was little. Coming to Biyun Valley is the farthest I’ve ever traveled.”

“I see...”

While the two adults chatted, the two little ones stood between them, craning their heads left and right.

Hearing their exchange, Anton sidled up to Hefei’s ear and whispered:

“Hefei, your dad’s flirting skills are terrible.”

“...”

“Don’t worry. Sister Orion doesn’t even have a boyfriend. I’ll put in a good word for Uncle Constantine later.”

Boys this age always had strange things on their minds. Hefei was almost too tired to roast him. But if “I think I’ve seen you somewhere” really was her father’s flirting line, Hefei agreed it was awful.

Hefei also knew her father well; he’d never shown interest in the opposite sex, let alone “flirting.” Which meant if he said he’d heard the surname Pyx before, then he truly had encountered someone by that name a very long time ago.

It just wasn’t ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Orion.

“Mm. In the past few centuries there have only been two people with the surname Pyx in all Blazing Sun City. One is me, and the other was the teacher who raised me—but she passed away long ago,” Orion explained.

Orion had seen the Redflame Dragon King before, yet she didn’t know why he claimed to have heard the surname Pyx. Even if it were true, the other party was a Dragon King among dragons, his name and status not to be taken lightly, so Orion felt it necessary to explain a bit more.

“Then I must really be mistaken.”

Constantine didn’t press it. As a Dragon King—one of the long-lived—nearly a thousand years, even more, was not unusual. How could he remember everything clearly?

Occasionally mixing up a memory was normal.

He looked at Anton and said:

“We’ve said our hellos. Let’s keep looking for point cards.”

“Alright, Uncle Constantine.”

Anton nodded, waved to Orion:

“Then we’ll be off, Sister Orion.”

“Okay.”

Anton jogged a few steps to catch up with Constantine. Before leaving, Constantine looked back at Hefei and said:

“Do well, Hefei.”

The little redhead’s eyes lit up. She nodded vigorously:

“Yes, Father!”

Constantine gave a slight nod and turned to leave with Anton.

Watching her father’s back fade into the distance, Hefei gathered her feelings, brimming with fighting spirit.

“Let’s go find point cards too, Sister Orion.”

“Mm. Let’s go.”

...

...

All the teams were meticulously searching for the point cards hidden throughout Biyun Valley. Meanwhile, Claudia and several representatives of the Blazing Sun Clan were at the camp by the valley entrance, watching the entire assessment through shadow-stones placed around the valley.

“Samantha, how do the team rankings stand now?” Claudia asked.

Samantha stepped forward and replied respectfully:

“At present, the top five Academy examinees by points are Hefei, Muse, Zorn, Felicia, and Luke.”

“And the Blazing Sun examinees’ rankings?” one Blazing Sun representative asked politely.

Samantha turned to the representative with a smile and said:

“Your clan’s top five are Claire, Jain, Anton, Proskai, and Arthur.”

“Thank you, Miss Samantha.”

“You’re welcome.”

Hearing the Blazing Sun rankings, Claudia’s lips quirked slightly upward. Samantha noticed the detail and said:

“Does the Vice Principal also find these rankings interesting?”

Claudia nodded with a smile.

“The examinee led by Little Ross has ranked above Leon’s... It seems the competition will only get fiercer.”

Samantha covered a small laugh.

“You’re right, Vice Principal. I’m also curious what methods the Prince will come up with to surpass our Dragon King.”

Claudia thought for a moment, then said:

“Alright, send out the surprise we prepared. Let’s make this assessment even more interesting.”

Samantha blinked.

“Send it now?”

“Mm. Those kids have probably been waiting long enough. It happens to be their second outdoor live-combat drill for the Longlang Unit, and I can’t wait to see their performance.”

“Understood, Vice Principal. I’ll arrange it at once.”

With that, Samantha left the camp. About five minutes later, at the entrance to Biyun Valley, a group of youths—boys and girls—gathered.

They wore the uniforms of Saint Heath Academy’s Youth Dragon Division, lined up in a row, fighting spirit blazing. Standing at the center of the formation was a girl with long hair streaked silver and black.

Clap!

She pressed her fists together, eyes fixed on the depths of the valley, itching for action, her gaze burning with hunger for battle.

“Then... Moon, Aurora, and everyone in the Youth Dragon Division—get ready... to go all out!”