Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot

Chapter 36 - 35 - Faceslapping Plot?

The next day.

The golden gates of Velmoria Royal Academy were right before him, decorated and tall, glinting under the pale afternoon sun.

Other than the high walls covered in detection magic, this gate was the only entry to the academy.

The Velmoria Royal Academy—where children of nobles, warriors, and awakened geniuses walk toward power, prestige, and politics—was the place most of this story's starting plots originated from.

Right now, Raven stood before those gates, hands in his pockets, posture relaxed yet eyes sharp with a tinge of conflicted emotion.

A black uniform hugged his lean frame, the crimson crest of the Velmoria Kingdom burning like a fresh wound over his heart.

The wind tugged at his coat lightly, brushing his inky hair over his pale forehead and framing his haunting red eyes.

"I'm finally here..." he murmured under his breath, eyes scanning the school grounds beyond the gate. "...The place where the plot actually begins."

But his voice didn't carry excitement.

It carried unease.

'What kind of changes am I going to see?'

Yes, he was the protagonist; the plot wouldn't progress without him, but it could and would change.

It could be for the best or worst; he could never guess.

Before, when he had an Indigo-ranked opportunity, he had thought of it lightly, but now that he had obtained it, he felt a bit worried.

He remembered how many people were supposed to suffer in this arc, and the protagonist was supposed to bring them out of their suffering.

'Did they suffer more? Or did they overcome their challenges?'

Raven didn't think the latter was possible, but he hoped that some of them did, one person in particular.

After all, her life was... pitiful.

She was supposed to become the first harem member after Clara in the story, as the first one the protagonist saved in the academy was her.

But now, two years had passed.

'I did send a message to Clara, asking her to look after her, but...'

Raven wasn't sure it would've helped.

The problems that the girl had were not something Clara could solve.

With so many things going on in his head, he rubbed the back of his neck as he stepped toward the gate.

The security guard at the front entrance was an older man with a neatly trimmed beard and half-moon spectacles perched on his nose.

His expression was neutral, but his eyes widened slightly when Raven approached.

Maybe because he recognized Raven, or his looks were too much for the guard to take calmly.

"I.D.?" The guard asked, his tone professional.

Raven pulled out a sleek black card and handed it over with a skeptical look.

"You'll tell me if this is fake, right?"

The guard frowned. "Huh?"

"It's just... the old man who gave this to me is a bit of a prankster. You know the type—writes 'Definitely Not a Bomb' on ticking boxes and leaves them in the living room."

The guard squinted at the card, placing it over a stone, and the stone changed into green.

Then he looked up, expression now unreadable.

"...Welcome to the academy."

Raven blinked. "...Huh. So it's real."

The guard handed the ID back and stepped aside.

Raven nodded before walking in, glancing at the stone once, as it was a very expensive metal that changes color when touched by a specific type of metal—the metal used to make the Academy's ID card.

As he walked forward, his boot crunched lightly on the gravel path that led through a garden and toward the main academy.

It was then that it began.

The whispers.

The turning heads.

The hushes and gasps.

Dozens of students loitering outside the front building—groups of third-years in black clothes matching his and first-years in white clothes laughing with nervous excitement—paused as Raven passed by.

The air shifted. Conversations died. Even the birds seemed to go quiet.

He could feel the stares and hear the whispers behind them.

"Who's that?"

"Heck if I know. But he's hot."

"His eyes look a bit scary, right?"

"No way, he just looks cool with those eyes."

"He's... beautiful."

"The fuck you mean, beautiful? Men are supposed to look handsome."

"Yeah, that."

"No, but seriously. That face... no one should look that good in uniform. It's criminal."

Raven scratched his cheek, pretending not to notice the swirling buzz around him.

His crimson eyes were sharp but tired, carrying the weight of someone who had seen too much for someone still so young.

'Maybe I should have worn a hood or something.'

Still, as he surveyed the surroundings, using one of his new abilities—one that lets him sense the approximate strength of those he lays eyes on—he felt...

'Kinda disappointing.'

He knew that children in the academy were normally supposed to range from second to third level in their respective cultivation, but looking at it now, he couldn't help but sigh.

'No wonder most major villains were either fathers or outsiders.'

Most of the students he could see were either level one or two. Some seniors, probably fourth years, who didn't even glance at him, seemed to be at the third level.

But still...

'Their form's messed up,' Raven sighed inwardly.

They were probably from prestigious families, and their techniques must be strong, but they didn't know how to use them perfectly.

A few junior students nearly dropped their books as he passed them.

A girl clutched her friend's arm, whispering, "Hey, hey! Let's go and talk to him. Even though he's wearing a third-year dress, he looks like he's new here."

"N-No," her friend, a shy girl with spectacles, shook her head. "With looks like that, he couldn't be unknown, no matter where he came from. He's probably someone special."

Another girl beside them nodded, adding, "And people like that usually attract trouble. So, it would be in your best interest to stay away from him."

Raven raised a brow in surprise. 'Since when did side characters get so intelligent?'

But before he could even reach the front steps of the academy building, a voice called him from behind.

"Hey, you."

"Dammit," Raven growled under his breath, knowing what would happen.

"Did this fucker just curse?" The voice continued before Raven heard steps closing toward him.

"Hey, you. You fucker. Can't you hear?"

Raven could feel the grip on his shoulder, and he knew—it was 'that' moment.

The faces-lapping.

"Who are you?" The voice asked, trying to turn Raven by pulling his uniform but failing miserably.

"Raven Von Vaise—Ah, wait," Raven finally turned around, his head tilted. "You guys aren't going to believe me even if I told you, right?"

It wasn't a question for them, but the plot.

Usually, people distance themselves from anything that involves the Vaise family's name, but he was sure that right now, even if he showed his ID card, they would call it fake.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" One of the guys following the one holding his uniform barked.

"Does he think he's some protagonist because he's handsome?" Another woofed, making Raven imagine them as two small dogs following a big dog.

In his mind, their faces had comically turned into dog faces.

"Damn, it's Scooby, Courage, and Droopy!" His eyes went wide.

The leader of the dogs, Scooby, bared his teeth at words that he couldn't even understand, throwing a paw at Raven's face.

"What the fuck are you yapping, you bastard—?"

But just then, a voice cut through the air.

"RAVEN!!!"

It was Clara, and she was rushing straight toward him.

Scooby paused, and so did Courage and Droopy, their eyes going wide.

"Fuck! It's the Vaise Witch!"

They stepped back, releasing Raven, but then they noticed something.

"Wait... why are all the Vaises moving this way?" Scooby frowned while Droopy and Courage just blinked.

Then, the murmurs erupted.

"Did the Vaise Witch call him... Raven?"

"Yeah..."

"Is he 'that' Raven?"

"... he can be."

"Raven Von Vaise..."

"But wasn't he missing for two years?"

"I don't know, man. But if it's him, then the academy would change."

"For real, I heard he's the greatest genius the Vaise family has seen."

Hearing all those words, Scooby, Droopy, and Courage trembled, recalling Raven's earlier words.

"Raven Von Vaise—Ah, wait, you guys aren't going to believe me even if I told you, right?"

Those words now echoed in their heads as they stood frozen in their spots, knowing that they had fucked up.