Chapter 248: Chapter 175: Good Stuff!
"Well done! Excellent!" The Dean, who bore a striking resemblance to Gandalf, had a big grin on his face.
"So, I get promoted as a reward then?" asked Long Yi.
"Afraid not! You’ll have to take the exam just like everyone else!"
"Damn it! That’s not fair!" Long Yi immediately voiced his frustration.
"Okay, okay, don’t be mad. Let’s make a new deal." The Dean was in high spirits, but admittedly a promotion was out of the question.
"Another condition?" Long Yi carefully contemplated but found himself without any specific desires.
Good heavens, when did I become so undemanding? Quickly recall, my boy! How did those predecessors who traversed time and space demand invaluable items from these old folks!
"So, Dean, you must agree that our upcoming trip to the Black Dragon Empire is quite risky?" said Long Yi earnestly, with a sincere smile on his face.
"Yes, it is indeed quite dangerous." The Dean pragmatically replied.
"We could perish at the hands of those evil villains if we were to let our guard down." Long Yi further stated.
"Indeed, which is why I’ve already requested for a special guard team from the Emperor. They will be ensuring your safety around the clock." The Dean replied.
"But even with that, we can’t guarantee our safety."
"Oh? So, what do you suggest?"
"Look, Dean, you must be quite old by now, carrying such a strong Dragon Might around you. Dragons are known for hoarding treasures, aren’t they? Take for instance old Tyl, who gifted me a dragon egg. Why don’t you give me a few rare and powerful artifacts, which I could use to protect myself?"
The Dean burst into laughter, "Us old dragons heading for the Dragon Tomb, have we got any treasures left? If we had, all would have already been brought back to Dragon Island. Although, if you insist I have nothing, there is one thing."
With that said, the Dean rummaged through the bottom drawer of his desk and produced an object.
It appeared to be a bracelet, of a dark gold color, antique, and worn-out. It was adorned with powerfully depicted motifs. However, right at the center where a large gemstone was supposed to be embedded, was now missing, leaving only the piece of jewelry behind.
"Dean, you’re not actually planning to fob me off with this antique, are you?" Long Yi questioned as he took hold of the bracelet. The weight of the object surprised him, making him release his hold!
"It’s so heavy! Is this fine gold?"
Eventually, Long Yi realized what the familiar dark gold color meant. It was not old brass, it was the actual color of fine gold!
"Yes, it is. This is a fine gold bracelet. I found it in a ruins during my youth, along with my dragon rider. It was located in the deepest part of the ruins. We overcame a number of traps and defeated many enemies to finally find this bracelet at an altar. Unfortunately, apart from being made of fine gold, it has no other value. If you like, I’ll give it to you!" said the Dean, reminiscing of his past, but also feeling a sense of liberation.
"Thank you, Dean! Thank you so much! This is fine gold! This is gold coins!"
Fine gold, after all!
Apart from the time when Long Yi’s own wrist turned into fine gold, the largest piece of fine gold he had ever seen was that golem. However, he couldn’t exactly tear the golem apart and sell it off, could he?
And now, with this gargantuan piece of fine gold in hand, he felt an overwhelming sense of joy and relief!
Yet, Long Yi placed the bracelet back into the Dean’s hands.
"I can’t accept this." Long Yi Asserted.
"Oh? Why not?" The Dean asked, surprised.
"Because, while it might mean just gold coins for me, it perhaps means much more for you. Although I might not be the smartest, I can see the sentimental value it holds for you in your eyes. So, why not just give me a few gold coins instead? This object is too valuable, and I fear it would be too heavy for me to bear." Long Yi said, very sincerely.
If the bracelet had only been an ordinary artifact, no matter how many there were, even if they were made from more expensive materials like stardust, Long Yi wouldn’t hesitate to give them away.
But such a personal memento, even for Long Yi, who is thick-skinned as the corner of a city wall, felt inappropriate to keep.
"Hahaha, you truly are a good boy! I knew I had made the right choice. But this, this is something I sincerely want to give you. As I’ve already told you, I’m quite old, and I don’t have many years left before I have to return to the Dragon Tomb. The tolling of the Dragon Tomb is becoming clearer day by day. While this bracelet does hold memories for me, I think it’s time I let go of this remembrance of the rider who has been constantly on my mind for these past years."
"But..." Long Yi wanted to say something.
"Hear me out first," the dean raised his hand to stop Long Yi and put the bracelet back in Long Yi’s hand.
"I’ve heard that you once translated the text of ancient relics in the Research Institute. Tell me, what do you think of those ancient relics?" the dean asked.
"I don’t have any particular thoughts on them, just some ruins. It’s a pity for the once magnificent civilization." Long Yi replied.
"Is it? I heard you took a golem from someone else’s collection." The dean said with a smile.
"Hey, dean, you can’t falsely accuse a good man. I didn’t sneak it out, I took it fair and square, it was perfectly legal!" Long Yi immediately argued loudly.
"Okay, okay, it was perfectly legal for you! But I still hope that in the future, you can help the people in the Research Institute, especially Dean Ma Deburg of the Crystal Core Research Institute who has already come to see me several times. He assured me that he would never force you to do any research and also would not disclose the matter of you having the golem to anyone." The dean said.
In fact, this statement struck a chord with Long Yi as he was quite worried about the news of him obtaining the fine gold golem being leaked on a large scale. Golems are not uncommon in this world, with all countries doing research. Although the level of research is very basic, it’s not anything new. However, once it is linked to ancient relics, it could become dangerous.
From current archaeological excavations, it appears that even a mere stone left by the ancient giants could potentially alter the present world’s balance of power. The level of civilization among the ancient giants was far superior to the modern era, and if this were to be known by some with ulterior motives, it would certainly cause endless trouble.
However, since the dean has given his assurance, there’s nothing to worry about.
Long Yi had already learned about the dean’s character from many sources, and Wesley highly admired him.
Back when he was young, the dean was a notable figure in the White Dragon Empire.
Generally speaking, the Dragon Clan and the human race, as two different races, find it extremely difficult to form a relationship beyond friendship. Especially considering the pride ingrained in the Dragon Clan, it’s even less likely for them to fall in love with a human. But exceptions do exist in this world.
The dean and his female knight fought side by side, galloping through battlefields. In the era of the Black Dragon Tyl’s dominance, the dean was the only one who could oppose him in the White Dragon Empire.
Eventually, the dean’s knight fell in battle. Before her departure, she asked the dean not to return to Dragon Island, but to continue protecting the Empire in her stead.
And so, the dean agreed.
Without his knight, the dean has been protecting the kingdom alone. With his tremendous strength, he became the Guardian White Dragon of the Empire and then one day, the dean of this academy.
Over the years, this Dragon Knight Academy has sent countless elite dragon knights to the White Dragon Empire. These dragon knights made great contributions to the empire while the dean remained behind the scenes, avoiding public attention. Although it was not kept a secret, unless one deliberately sought information, no one would know that this benevolent old dean is the same Guardian White Dragon who had once stood on equal footing with the Black Dragon Tyl!
In the end, Long Yi accepted the bracelet, but not because of its worth. On one hand, he was moved by what the bracelet symbolized. On the other hand, he discovered that the ornamental pattern on the bracelet was not as simple as it seemed. When Long Yi looked closely, he seemed to see the pattern emitting a faint light!
Back in the dormitory, Little Zi was the one who opened the door.
Long Yi saw the strange expression on Little Zi’s face and looked past her to Ai Lin, who was hiding and blushing. Long Yi understood that although Ai Lin seemed to have let go at the time, some knots in her heart still needed time to untangle. After all, she was a delicate girl, Long Yi couldn’t expect her to be as carefree as him.
"Hey, stop crying, come and see the good thing that the dean rewarded me."
As he said this, Long Yi took out the bracelet from his private space. Now Long Yi had become very adept at using his private space, taking things out of it was as easy as reaching into a box. He had also stashed his turbofan engine into his private space, but since he didn’t know how to fix it, he just left it there, not daring to touch it.
"I’m not crying!" Ai Lin pouted and said defiantly. Long Yi didn’t mind and handed over the bracelet.
"Be careful, it’s heavy..."
Clang!
The bracelet slipped from Ai Lin’s hand, hit the ground, grazed Long Yi’s toes and fell, piercing through his shoe. Long Yi was startled, covered in cold sweat. The bracelet was incredibly heavy, if it had fallen directly on his foot, his toes would have been crushed, or at least broken.
"Brother Long...are you okay..." Ai Lin quickly bent down to pick up the bracelet, checking on Long Yi’s foot.
"I’m okay, just look at this thing first!" Long Yi wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said with a dry laugh.
Ai Lin looked guiltily at Long Yi, then got up, her eyes fixed on him.
"Should I cry too, would that make you feel better?" Long Yi joked.
"I didn’t cry!" Ai Lin pouted again, looking down at the bracelet, not giving Long Yi any attention.(To be continued. If you like this work, please come to QiDian (qidian.com) and vote.
