Slacker Second Gen C49

Chapter 49: Dragon Dad 19

Another school year had begun, and this year, the number of students enrolling at the Central Magic Academy had increased once again.

In recent years, the academy had lowered its admission standards, and the empire had been actively searching among the general populace for individuals with magical perception, offering them financial support to attend school.

The existence of magical beasts had become an open secret over the past two years, though the rifts leading to them had so far only appeared in remote and uninhabited areas. As a result, the general public had not yet been thrown into widespread panic.

Most people still lived their lives in peace.

Because high-level magicians who had graduated from various academies, along with the great magicians in positions of authority, were currently handling the situation, younger and less experienced magic students were still able to enjoy their studies without worry.

This year’s twelve-year-old freshmen were being led around campus by a senior student.

Del, who had enrolled in the same year that Qian was born, was now a sixth-year student.

She led the freshmen to the academy’s main plaza, pointing at a row of frozen ice sculptures and introducing them with practiced ease.

“These are also your fellow students. They tried to spy on the dragons in the Ice Ridge Valley next to the high tower and ended up frozen solid.”

The freshmen gasped, both in awe at their bravery and in astonishment at the legendary Ice Dragon.

In the past, it was rare for students at the Central Magic Academy to see the Ice Dragon in its original form. This led some to sneak into the Ice Ridge Valley near the tower to catch a glimpse.

In recent years, with the arrival of the young dragon, students had been able to see Professor Lacia’s dragon form more often, yet the number of students frozen into ice sculptures had only increased.

Now, these students weren’t just trying to see the dragon’s true form; rather, it had become a tradition among adventurers at the academy.

A true warrior, after all, wasn’t considered one unless they had ventured into the Ice Ridge Valley of the dragon at least once.

There was never a shortage of reckless youth, and thus, the frozen student sculptures remained a recurring sight every year.

Besides this long-standing tradition, a new school-year ritual had also emerged in recent years.

“Alright, now we’re going to pay our respects to the dragon! Our academy has two dragons, and today, we’re going to see the young one,” Del announced.

The children cheered excitedly. They had long heard that enrolling here meant they would get to see a dragon, but they hadn’t expected it to happen so soon.

Like a mother duck leading her ducklings, Del guided them to the front of the teaching building. There, coiled around a towering pillar, was a massive azure dragon.

Her form was majestic, and her serpentine body had grown as thick as a human’s. Wrapped around the column in a spiraling ascent, she could coil around it several times.

The students gathered at the base of the pillar, tilting their heads back in awe.

“So big, so long.”

“Her scales are so pretty, like gemstones.”

“Why doesn’t she have wings?”

Del spoke seriously, “This is the young dragon of Ice Dragon Professor Lacia. You must address her as Senior Qian.”

The azure dragon, who had been dozing with her eyes closed, slowly opened them.

Ever since she returned from Dragon Island, she had grown thicker with each passing year. But at heart, she was still a little azure dragon.

Hearing the unfamiliar voices below, she uncoiled from the ice pillar and lowered her massive head to examine the group of children.

Faced with the legendary dragon up close, the freshmen fell silent. They huddled together nervously, and the two students closest to her hardly dared to breathe.

Just as the more timid ones began trembling, they suddenly saw the dragon vanish. In her place stood a small child, no more than a few years old.

She was much shorter than them, with fair, snow-white skin. Her hair and eyes appeared black at first glance, but when caught in the light, they shimmered with a blue-green radiance. She was strikingly beautiful and utterly adorable.

Though her eyes remained wide and watchful, her humanoid form gave the freshmen an entirely different impression.

“Wow! She’s so cute! She looks amazing!”

Easily deceived by appearances, the humans immediately forgot their earlier fear.

Del chuckled and reminded them, “This is your Senior Qian. Remember to be respectful.”

The students obediently greeted her, calling her “Senior Qian.”

The tiny girl, who was shorter than everyone else, clasped her chubby hands behind her back in a dignified manner. She scanned them as if inspecting her own territory, then gave a nod.

“Mm, good. Hello, everyone.”

Then, she began rummaging through her pockets.

She placed a red fruit into the hands of a round-faced girl. The girl froze for a moment, looking down at the fruit in astonishment, unsure of how to respond.

Del, already accustomed to this, explained, “This is a gift from Senior Qian.”

The girl immediately flushed with excitement. “Thank you, thank you, Senior Qian!”

The rest of the students looked on eagerly.

Qian was fair. She handed out a red fruit to each and every student.

The children bent forward slightly, cupping their hands to make it easier for her to place the fruit into them.

Standing on tiptoe, Qian continued distributing the gifts, offering some words of encouragement.

“Mm, study hard. Magic will reward you.”

“Work hard for your future.”

“Diligence always brings rewards.”

Her mannerisms and expressions were identical to those of Principal Ude, and even the words she spoke were phrases she had learned from him.

But when a child put on such an air of maturity, it only made her look all the more adorable.

With their gifts in hand, the students happily watched as the azure dragon soared into the sky on a cloud.

Seeing her fly without wings, the freshmen launched into another round of discussion.

One student suddenly mused, “Dragons are so beautiful and cute. Are all dragons like this? The Ice Dragon Professor—he must be just as gentle, right? I can’t wait to meet him!”

“Yeah! Do you think the Ice Dragon Professor will give us gifts too?”

So… have you all already forgotten about the students frozen into ice sculptures at the start of the tour?

Listening to their innocent speculation, Del was left utterly speechless.

She spoke with a tone of pity, her voice heavy with warning.

“Junior schoolmates, as your senior, I must remind you—if you see a teacher outside of class with silver hair, purple eyes, and an extraordinarily beautiful appearance, do not be deceived by his looks! Absolutely do not approach him! Because that is none other than the Ice Dragon, Teacher Lacia! He is completely different from Qian!”

“Qian is a little sweetheart, but Teacher Lacia… he is a great demon king!”

Under her repeated warnings and vivid descriptions, the new students felt as if a shadow had loomed over them.

A student whispered hesitantly, “But… Teacher Lacia will still be teaching us. What do we do during class?”

Dale gave a bitter smile. “Do you remember what Qian said just now? When facing Teacher Lacia in class, study hard. That is your only way out.”

Qian soared over the vast teaching grounds of the Central Magic Academy, heading straight for the Dragon Tower.

The icy valley, which deterred students from exploring, posed no obstacle to her. She skillfully flew through the wide-open windows and dove into a massive nest built from various sparkling treasures, crashing straight into the Ice Dragon, waking him from his slumber.

The now much heavier little green dragon pressed all four paws against her mountain-sized father.

“Daddy! Daddy!”

Her claws pattered against his scales.

Lacia rolled over and opened his eyes.

“There are new students,” she said, nudging his chin with her head.

But the dragon merely rolled over again lazily.

New students did not interest him—he had seen far too many batches come and go.

Seeing that she couldn’t wake her father, the young dragon began rummaging through the nest, creating a chaotic clatter.

Gems clinked against each other, towers of gold collapsed, and she busily searched for her favorite treasures, stuffing them into her magic pocket.

The old dragon glanced at her but did nothing to stop her.

He had long since grown accustomed to his daughter taking treasures from him. After all, his greatest treasure was this little dragon herself.

Having lived for so many years, Lacia had amassed countless treasures and hoards, but when it came to his child, he was always indulgent and generous.

Of course, he was only this generous with his little dragon.

As usual, the young dragon scoured the nest for treasures, eventually reaching beneath her father’s massive form. Spotting a beautiful crystal trapped under his paw, she nudged his foot up and quickly pocketed it.

Lacia obligingly lifted his foot, watching as she finished her treasure hunt and trotted off to sort through her own collection.

Dragons are naturally fond of hoarding treasures, but Qian’s “treasures” were quite different from his own.

A pot of vines that had nearly overtaken half the tower, bearing the same red fruit she gifted others. A dozen fruit trees of various species, all exchanged from the wood elf Lexuer.

A collection of dazzling, glittering magical potions—each one shimmering as if containing tiny stars—obtained from Fizke.

An assortment of snacks and candies, taken from Principal Ude.

And then there were all sorts of oddities, like a hat that changed one’s appearance when worn, a small orb that turned into a crow when placed in one’s mouth, a frog statue that blew bubbles, and a spiky, cactus-like magical plant that could record voices.

Qian walked past the “cactus,” giving it a pat, and it immediately began to sing:

“I have horns on my head, I have a tail behind me.

No one knows how many secrets I hold.”

The voice belonged to Qian herself. She swayed her head as she sifted through her collection, singing along.

“I am a little green dragon, I have so many little secrets… but I won’t tell you…”

Her childish, innocent voice echoed through the tower, and the Ice Dragon flicked his tail in rhythm with her strange song.

Over the years, as his daughter displayed increasing intelligence, Lacia often heard her humming tunes in a language unknown to him. He attributed it to the ancestral memories of young dragons.

Having listened to them so often, Lacia had come to understand their meanings. He actually enjoyed hearing his daughter sing.

In his heart, her pure, lovely voice was even more beautiful than the songs of mermaids and sirens.

A few years ago, during a graduation ceremony at the Central Magic Academy, Qian had performed a song. As one of the judges, Lacia had insisted on awarding her the title of Best Performance.

Had she participated in other events, he would have given her all the awards.

Later, he even suggested holding a singing competition at the academy. Unfortunately, the other teachers rejected the idea.

Undeterred, Lacia proposed a Magic Spellcasting Competition instead. This time, the idea was accepted, and even students from other magic academies joined the event.

When Lacia pushed Qian onto the stage, everyone sensed that something was off.

Before the adults could react, the adorable Qian, encouraged by her father, immediately froze all the contestants on stage, securing an effortless victory.

Was it fair for a dragon to compete against humans?

As the panel of judges deliberated, Lacia spoke in an extraordinarily gentle voice, “The award must go to Qian. Let me see who dares to object?”

No one dared to object—especially since Lacia had said this in his dragon form.

The massive dragon filled the competition arena, his frost-laden breath hovering just above the judges’ heads, making it quite clear that anyone who disagreed would be personally “dealt with.”

Thus, Lacia cheerfully awarded the prize to Qian.

In his heart, his little dragon was the best! How could this shining medal not belong to her?

When Lacia attempted to host a similar competition a second time, he faced unanimous opposition.

In the end, Principal Ude created a special “Dragon Award” just for Qian—one that she would receive automatically after every competition, without needing to participate.

This temporarily appeased the domineering dragon father.

As a result, Qian became the official mascot of all the academy’s competitions.