Chapter 9: Theodore’s Dilemma and Catherine’s Ignorance

Theresia, of course, possessed ample clothing, for how could a dragon with vast assets not own a spatial ring?

In her earlier days, before mastering the switch between dragon and human forms, she had ruined countless outfits. Consequently, her ring was always stocked with a generous supply of garments, including some specifically for Theodore.

Yet, Theresia pressed a small fist to her chin, her gaze fixed on the unconscious Theodore. She had initially intended to help him dress.

However, Theodore’s ‘capital’ was conspicuously excited, undeniably prominent. To force the clothes on him would be impossible without first dislodging the ‘handlebar.’

Theresia wrestled with this dilemma for several minutes, until her face began to flush, hot enough to boil water.

Helping him was utterly out of the question.

With a sigh, she simply tossed the clothes onto Theodore, completely obscuring the obtrusive sight. Then, she settled down to the side, savoring a treasured book she had purchased from the Succubus Master.

Though her ‘tools for the deed’ were gone, such things often offered a purely spiritual enjoyment. Moreover, with her current physical advantage, there was no painful, unreleased tension.

It was a win-win situation, or at least, that was how Theresia consoled herself. During this time, Theresia’s attention was anything but focused, her eyes constantly, almost subconsciously, darting towards Theodore.

‘What exactly am I looking at?’ This was a philosophical question indeed!

Humans, after all, always harbored a trace of longing for what they had lost, even if it hadn’t grown on their own bodies, and even if it might eventually enter them.

Theodore, however, did not allow Theresia to ponder for too long. His body trembled, and then he suddenly sat upright, gasping for several breaths before pulling out the herbal nose plug.

His consciousness had only just returned and remained hazy. His eyes, still slightly dazed, scanned his surroundings. Then, he spotted Theresia, elegantly holding a gorgeously bound book in one hand, waving at him, exuding an extraordinary intellectual beauty.

“Awake?”

Theodore instantly sobered. The memory of seeing Theresia naked and subsequently fainting from arousal flooded his mind, making his face burn with shame.

“Theresia, I…”

Theodore had no recollection of his conversation with the patriarch, so the raw impact of seeing Theresia’s body still deeply affected him. He yearned to offer an explanation.

“No need to explain, I understand, I understand. Men will be men,” Theresia said with a sigh of empathy. “We’ve all been there. Frankly, it’s also my fault. By the way, put your clothes on first, and I’ll give you something good.”

Theresia’s thoughtfulness left Theodore momentarily speechless. ‘No, sis, you truly see yourself as a male dragon.’

It was then that Theodore noticed his own erect ‘capital’ and the clothes draped over him.

“Theresia~”

Watching Theodore’s expression of utter resignation, Theresia covered her mouth, fighting to suppress a laugh. “Mhm, I’m here.”

Theodore slumped back onto the ground, his voice heavy with despair. “Why don’t you just bury me here? Look at this beautiful scenery, the birds singing, the flowers blooming. I think I’d find peace in death.”

Theresia finally gave in, bursting into uproarious laughter. “Hahahaha, peace, my foot! This entire area is an uninhabited island within the dragon territory. Those mischievous little dragons could dig up your grave and leave nothing behind just by playing around!”

Faced with her unrestrained laughter, what could Theodore do but offer the shameless female dragon his most faithful eye-roll?

****

After Theodore had dressed, Theresia prepared to teleport away. Before she left, she glanced back at the trial island. Only the Old Patriarch and Catherine remained there now.

‘Nothing bad should happen, right? Definitely nothing!’

‘With over a hundred years of friendship between them, she surely wouldn’t side with the old dragon!’ Thinking this, a flash of white light enveloped them, and Theresia and Theodore vanished from the small island.

****

Meanwhile, on the trial island…

“How is it? Delicious, isn’t it?”

“Mhm, delicious.”

At the gathering chosen by the patriarch, Catherine, in her human form, was a white-haired, adorably clumsy girl. She was currently feasting with gusto, the long table before her laden with the delicious delicacies brought by the Old Patriarch.

The Old Patriarch watched the guileless and charming Catherine with a benevolent expression. He spoke softly, “These are all dishes I brought back from the Imperial Palace, prepared by humanity’s top chefs. Eat slowly, slowly, don’t choke.”

This scene resembled a kind old grandfather watching his beloved granddaughter eat, filled with warmth and harmony.

“Okay, Patriarch. Thank you so much.” Catherine looked up to express her gratitude, then immediately began stuffing her cheeks with food again. This magnificent White Dragon was living like a hamster; one might think she hadn’t eaten in centuries.

Watching her silly antics, the Old Patriarch sighed deeply. He knew he would have to put immense effort into finding a truly reliable partner for this child in the future.

‘So carefree day after day, it’s all Theresia’s doing.’

The Old Patriarch chuckled as he asked, “Catherine, you know that three days from now is a very important day for Theresia, right?”

“Mhm mhm mhm.” Catherine nodded in response to the Old Patriarch while gorging herself, but her affirmative sounds were completely drowned out by her chewing and swallowing, making her utterly unintelligible.

‘This glutton.’

The Old Patriarch snapped his fingers nonchalantly, and all the food on the table vanished.

Catherine’s pupils dilated, her plump little face crumpled, and disappointment and sadness rapidly spread across her features. Her restless little feet, clad in white knee-high socks, swung back and forth frantically.

Her sky-colored eyes welled up with tears as she looked at the Patriarch. Though she didn’t speak, her aggrieved expression silently questioned why he had taken away her food.

Her exquisite beauty, combined with Catherine’s petite, adorable, and naive demeanor, was undeniably captivating. The Old Patriarch even wondered if she was a succubus who had taken the wrong reincarnation.

Fortunately, as an ancient dragon who had lived for ten millennia, his heart was as hard as stone, impervious to such charms.

“Catherine, you know that day is extremely important to our Dragon Race.”

Seeing that the Patriarch had no intention of feeding her, Catherine felt a little dejected. Hearing his words, she blinked and asked, “Is that day important?”

The Patriarch’s expression froze for a moment, then he patiently explained, “Of course it’s important! It means you’re reaching adulthood, you’ll experience your first heat, you’ll mature, you’ll become independent, and you’ll learn to survive on your own!”

Catherine gasped in alarm. “So many ‘musts’?!”

Seeing Catherine’s reaction, the Patriarch frowned slightly, sensing something amiss. “Then what did you think it would be like?”

The cowlick on Catherine’s head twitched. “I thought I just had to lie on the ground! I wouldn’t have to move at all, just bury my head and eat for three days! The male dragons would do all the work.”

The Patriarch’s mouth twitched. He took several deep breaths, then ground out, “Who told you that?!”

As expected, yet to the Patriarch’s extreme displeasure, Catherine uttered four words: “Theresia.”

The Patriarch nearly blacked out and fainted. Relying on his powerful willpower, he suppressed the urge to lie down, remaining silent for a few seconds to let his heart rate slow slightly.

He forced a calm demeanor as he asked, “…No, I remember you young dragons all attended the Dragon Race’s compulsory classes. These things were heavily emphasized by the teachers, and I even had them assign homework and exams… Wait, why do you look so surprised?!”

Catherine said a little guiltily, “During that time, I was half asleep, half awake in class. It seems the teacher was very unlucky; I was asleep when he covered that part.”

The Patriarch could no longer maintain his composure. ‘The teacher was unlucky?’

‘The teacher was unlucky?! Believe it or not, I’ll send you back for a complete overhaul, and I’ll tell him what you said today! I guarantee, out of consideration for you both being White Dragons, he’ll beat your backside so hard you won’t dare sit down for three days!’

“How did you pass the in-class checks?” the Patriarch asked.

“I copied Theresia’s,” Catherine replied.

“What about the homework?” the Patriarch pressed.

“I copied Theresia’s,” Catherine answered.

“And the exams?” the Patriarch queried.

“I copied Theresia’s,” Catherine stated.

The Patriarch: “…”

His feelings were incredibly complex at that moment. ‘Theresia, you truly are something else!’

Although Catherine and Theresia were ten years apart, the dragon birth rate was inherently low. Therefore, dragon compulsory education wasn’t based on precise ages like humans.

Instead, dragons born in the previous century would all begin their compulsory education in the 30th year of the current century. Even so, the number of dragon students was in the single digits, easily counted on one hand.

He recalled that Catherine had indeed never lived independently from Theresia for several years. The Patriarch asked with an overly gentle voice, “If Theresia weren’t around, would you be unable to survive?”

Catherine instantly sat up straight. She remembered Theresia’s warning: when the Patriarch’s expression suddenly shifted from ominous to exceedingly amiable, it meant the old dragon was on the verge of explosive rage.

At such times, one absolutely had to humor the old dragon.

Of course, if one desired to enjoy the old dragon’s ‘beat you to death as long as you don’t actually die’ package, that would be a different matter entirely. Undoubtedly, Catherine was merely naive and adorable for a dragon, not truly foolish, nor a masochist.

She vehemently defended herself. “No, it’s not like that! All the other knowledge the teacher taught, I later had Theresia tutor me on again! I completed all the homework and exams for those subjects myself, and my scores were always top of the class!”

“If you don’t believe me, you can ask the teacher. Even if he questions me on the spot or gives me a test, I guarantee I can answer it all.”

The Old Patriarch smiled, a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Then why didn’t you ask Theresia to tutor you on the knowledge about your heat period?!”

Catherine said, feeling wronged, “I did ask, but Theresia said that merely recalling it would insult her dragon dignity, so she refused. She told me to just copy her homework instead.”

However, Catherine’s answer did nothing to improve the Old Patriarch’s expression. And so…

“Boo hoo~, don’t hit me! If you absolutely must, don’t hit my stomach; I just ate. It would be such a waste to throw it up, and it feels awful.”

Catherine huddled into a ball on the chair, clutching her stomach. Her soft, white hair covered her body, making her resemble a fluffy, trembling dumpling.

The Old Patriarch’s fist clenched and unclenched, then clenched again, then unclenched, finally dissolving into a long sigh. He waved his hand, and another large spread of food appeared before Catherine.

“Eat.”

Catherine’s eyes lit up. She secretly glanced at the Old Patriarch, whose face had turned grim again, no longer amiable. Only then did she relax and begin to feast with gusto.

The Old Patriarch, watching Catherine, felt utterly exhausted. He had thought that after Theresia’s matter was resolved in three days, he could finally relax a little. Now, it seemed a certain White Dragon also needed to become a key focus of attention.

‘Why are there so many problem children in this generation of dragons?!’ This was the worst generation he had ever guided, without exception!