NOVEL NEXT chapter 12
12. Have you eaten, Your Highness? If not, take a punch from me!
Valentina knew that even if her childhood friend Clyde said there were good and bad dragons, she couldn’t confess that she had actually become a dragon.
After all, she didn’t want to drag Clyde into troubles she couldn’t even handle herself.
Yet, Clyde’s kindness gave her the courage to face everything, easing her previously anxious heart considerably.
Just then, a group of royal guards passed by on the main street of the royal city, seemingly heading towards the scene of the incident. With her overflowing sense of justice, Valentina naturally couldn’t pretend she hadn’t seen it.
“Eh? Someone attacked a noble’s son in broad daylight? Wait! I want to go too!”
After inquiring with the leading guard about what had happened, Valentina’s expression immediately turned serious upon learning that someone had struck the noble’s son.
For some reason, she felt that this incident seemed to be the work of an evil god; even if it wasn’t, it surely had something to do with them.
After all, attacking a noble’s son in public was not something an ordinary person would do.
Her hostility towards the evil god transformed into an obsession, prompting her to bid farewell to her respected teacher and childhood friend, insisting that the royal guards take her to the scene immediately.
As Valentina’s figure disappeared from the sight of the two, Mr. Allen, who thought the princess was being foolish for willingly diving into trouble, feigned admiration and sighed.
“…Tina is still as brave as ever, leading the charge. As a princess, she could spend her whole life in the safety of the palace, and it wouldn’t matter.”
Due to Allen’s excellent reputation, Clyde, an ordinary person, felt somewhat inferior and reserved in his presence, so he didn’t even notice Allen’s performance.
Even if he had, Clyde wouldn’t have dared to voice any objections.
Moreover, Clyde actually shared the same sentiment as Allen.
“Yeah… Tina is really strong. I think she’s just like a hero from a story, always able to face everything on her own, shining brightly.”
The figure of the guard leader departing was so dignified and handsome that a look of admiration involuntarily appeared on Clyde’s face.
Of course, he liked Valentina; rather, he wondered which poor fellow could dislike a princess who had no airs about her and actively stood up for the people.
“A hero, haha, that’s true. But heroes usually have a beloved by their side, right? Clyde, when do you plan to confess? It’s obvious to everyone that you two have feelings for each other.”
Every word from Allen was carefully considered, and now he smiled while teasing the youthful pair, not genuinely wanting to encourage them to be together, but rather curious about Clyde’s thoughts on the woman he admired.
“Eh? Is it that obvious?!”
Clyde was startled and immediately turned around, looking at Allen’s handsome face in surprise.
Allen’s smile was so gentle (of course, it was an act) that the shy boy felt a bit embarrassed, scratching his cheek with his finger, glancing down at the ground as he awkwardly spoke:
“W-Well, I originally planned to confess after Tina returned from her training outside the capital, but since she changed her plans, I’m feeling a bit lost. Mr. Allen, do you think it would be better if I confessed sooner?”
At this moment, Clyde, the poor soul, had already come to regard Allen as a mentor in his life journey, even seeking his advice.
“…No, it’s still too early. Besides, Tina will be staying in the capital for a while, right?”
“I-I see. So, confessing is not something to be taken lightly! I understand now, thank you, Mr. Allen!”
Believing he had received valuable advice, the poor soul bowed to the blonde, his face brimming with the longing for love.
“It’s nothing. You young people are what we call treasures.”
The blonde, adopting a teacher-like demeanor and placing a hand on the poor soul’s shoulder, appeared as a gentle and handsome young man.
—Ah, what a naive kid. If I were childhood friends with the princess, I would have made my move long ago. Just wait here! Wait for the day when your woman becomes mine!
But deep down, Allen looked down on this timid and cowardly poor soul, even contemplating how to humiliate him in the future.
Should he let him witness the princess he admired groveling on the ground like a sheepdog, licking another man’s shoes, or should he make him watch the scene unfold live?
How exciting! Hehehe!
In front of the historically significant gates of the royal city, the relationship between the blonde and the poor soul seemed to have taken a small step closer.
They would not know that Clyde, though a victim, was not the main character, and that Allen, despite being the blonde, was not the only one.
They would be even less aware that the female lead, the focus of their discussion, was not thinking about either of them at all, but was instead preoccupied with another presence she had recently encountered.
Though she had never seen his true form, the voice was undoubtedly that of a young man.
A true calamity had suddenly intruded into her world.
Just a disaster from the heavens, that’s all.
Surely, it couldn’t really be that detestable evil god, could it? After all, he was a deity; would he truly attack ordinary citizens only to then go after the son of a noble?
With such thoughts in mind, the princess, leading a small squad of guards, finally arrived at the scene after about ten minutes of running.
And then Valentina witnessed one of the most shocking scenes of her life.
“Hahaha! What’s wrong? Is this all the so-called noble son is capable of? You fat pig! Just now, you were so bold to cut in line, but where’s that intimidating presence now? You like cutting in line, huh? You like flaunting your power, huh? How refreshing! It seems we’re kindred spirits! Because I also enjoy bullying the weak!”
It was a scene of a black-haired youth in strange casual attire lifting a plump young man dressed in luxurious clothing high into the air…
As the saying goes, a true man does not look down on others; instead, he looks up to them.
Yes, that’s right. Though he was lifting him high, the black-haired youth was actually gripping the throat of the much heavier noble, who was clearly struggling for breath.
And while the noble son was contorted in pain from asphyxiation, the youth wore a genuinely delighted expression, his face twisted into a crazed, malevolent grin.
But if it were just this scene, while shocking, it wouldn’t be enough to be considered earth-shattering.
The real issue was that every living being within a 20-meter radius of the black-haired youth seemed to have been beaten, lying sprawled on the ground, motionless, leaving one to wonder if they were dead or merely unconscious.
Among them were even a young couple who appeared to have been cut in line by the noble son, now collapsed closest to the youth.
It was a true display of equality among all beings.
“Y-You are!?”
Though she didn’t manage to shout out the words “evil god” at the last moment, Valentina was still stunned by the bizarre phenomenon before her.
And the black-haired youth, the protagonist of this world—Noah—couldn’t help but glance sideways at the beautiful princess on his left, then revealed the most ferocious and brutal villainous smile.
“Oh, isn’t this the princess? Have you eaten? If not, how about taking a punch from me?”
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