Shut Up Malevolent Dragon I Dont Want To Have Any More Children With You Chapter 724

[ … words ]

Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial – Third Stage.

Leon, Safina, and the rest of the trial participants stood at the entrance to a vast forest, waiting for the third trial to begin.

“So… the female privilege doesn’t work this time?” Safina asked.

Leon shook his head.

“He drank way too much last night. Probably still passed out.”

“Drinking to drown your sorrows only deepens them.”

Safina sighed, folding her arms and looking ahead. “But what really surprises me is that you actually don’t drink at all.”

“I do drink a little at home. But when I travel, my wife doesn’t allow it.”

“My wife?”

The violet-eyed girl chuckled, teasing him. “Oh my, what a model husband you are.”

“I thought you were gonna say I’m just a whipped man who’s scared of his wife.”

“There’s no such thing as a man scared of his wife—only men who respect their wives.”

Leon smirked and continued chatting with Safina.

At around eight in the morning, the Divine Stallion Tribe’s judge arrived to explain the third trial’s rules.

“It’s a pleasure to see you all in the third stage. Reaching this point means that you have passed the basic capability assessment and the inner examination conducted by the Divine Stallion Tribe.”

“This means that, in both ability and heart, you have met the initial requirements for the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion’s blessing.”

“And now, I will announce the rules for this stage.”

“In your pockets, you will each find a crystal stone. These crystals come in two colors—black and white.”

Leon reached into his pocket and pulled out a black crystal stone.

That morning, when he arrived, a trial official had handed it to him, along with strict instructions not to reveal its color before the trial began.

“Oh, I thought it was gonna be some super-secret weapon, but turns out everyone has one.”

Leon mentally scoffed. But since the crystals were color-coded, there was clearly more to it than just collecting them.

Would this round be another face-off between contestants?

Leon stowed the black crystal away and kept listening to the judge.

“Each black crystal has a white counterpart. Your objective:

steal the crystals from other participants until you complete a matching set.

If you lose your crystal, you are still allowed to continue the trial.

The trial lasts six hours. In the end, only those who successfully collect a black and white crystal pair will advance to the fourth stage.

Those who fail to do so—will be eliminated.

The trial will take place in the forest behind me—a dangerous place filled with wild beasts, deadly creatures, and lurking threats.

So, aside from watching out for other participants, you’ll also need to survive against predators.

With that,

The Third Trial Begins!”

…

The trial participants scattered, entering the forest from four different entry points.

Leon and Safina had formed a temporary team.

Around them, participants of various species and races eyed each other warily.

People glanced at each other, sizing up the competition.

And before even one hundred meters had passed, everyone had already drawn their weapons.

“Looks like four entry points weren’t enough. Should’ve been eight,” Leon muttered to himself, watching the chaos unfold.

With such unbalanced rules, it was only natural for a mass brawl to break out the moment the trial started.

“Well, at least some people are smart enough not to rush in blindly.”

There were six hours—plenty of time to find a trial participant carrying a white crystal.

And from the way this initial fight was playing out, it didn’t seem like anyone was on Constantine’s level.

Leon had zero interest in joining the battle.

Then…

“That human has a black crystal! I saw it when he entered!”

A voice suddenly called out.

Instantly, all the white-crystal-holding participants turned their attention to Leon.

“Hah, a human joining the Divine Stallion Trial? Don’t blame us for not holding back!”

The stereotype surrounding humans on the continent of Samael was that their only strength was overwhelming numbers in war.

So when these non-human trial participants saw Leon alone, it was natural for them to assume he was an easy target.

In the blink of an eye, several trial participants with white crystals surrounded Leon, forming a tight encirclement around him.

They began closing in, step by step, restricting his movement.

“Just don’t go running to the Divine Stallion Tribe crying after this, saying we targeted you because you were an easy pick.”

“Also—whoever gets his black crystal first, it’s theirs!”

“As if you even need to say that?”

The moment the words fell, several trial participants lunged at Leon.

And with that first attack, the rest of the white crystal holders immediately rushed in as well.

“Shit, shit, shit—I just saw that pack of Wolfkin among the white-crystal participants.”

“And they’re infamous for being brutal fighters.”

“Damn, at least that human is soaking up the attention for us. If it weren’t for him, they’d still be coming after our crystals.”

“Good chance! While they’re distracted, let’s run! There’s gotta be someone weaker in this trial for us to target!”

Just a moment ago, the black crystal participants had been desperate.

Now, they had suddenly turned into spectators.

Of course, they weren’t going to waste time watching.

After all, that human wasn’t going to last long.

Once those white-crystal participants were done robbing him, they’d turn their attention back to the rest.

So the best move?

Escape now.

However, just as they were about to run, a massive rock came flying from above.

CRASH!

It slammed into the trunk of a tree right in front of them.

And mixed in with that rock.

Was the body of a Wolfkin trial participant, now slumped unconscious at the tree’s roots.

“Wh-what the hell…”

The group turned around.

And there they saw the ‘easy target’ standing unscathed.

Leon casually lifted the half-conscious Wolfkin by the collar, raising him into the air—

Then, with his other hand, he reached into the guy’s pocket and plucked out a white crystal.

The entire motion was so smooth, so effortless, it looked like he was simply pulling something out of his own coat.

“You bastard!”

The Wolfkin grit his teeth, glaring furiously at Leon.

“Who told you that humans were all easy prey?”

Leon smirked.

Leon casually tossed the unconscious Wolfkin to the ground and weighed the dozen or so white crystals in his hand.

“Hmm… I was planning to challenge myself by waiting until the last ten minutes to steal a crystal.

But I ended up exceeding the requirement way ahead of time. Now this trial is gonna be boring for me.

So…”

With a flick of his wrist, Leon scattered the white crystals toward the black crystal participants who had tried to run away earlier.

A loud clatter echoed as the crystals hit the ground in front of them.

But the black crystal holders just stood there, frozen, staring at the pile of free loot.

Not a single one dared to make a move.

Leon blinked, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“Take them,” he said. “Those guys won’t be getting up anytime soon. Just grab their crystals, go find a hiding spot, and sit tight until the six-hour limit is up.”

Hearing Leon’s permission, the black crystal participants instantly scrambled forward, snatching up the white crystals.

Leon simply smirked and turned away, strolling deeper into the forest.

Behind him, the remaining white crystal participants stood there.

Dumbfounded. Mouths hanging open.

…

Leon ran into Safina six hours later, after the trial had already ended.

It was midday, and he spotted her standing in a river, holding a makeshift wooden spear fashioned from a tree branch.

The girl had her skirt hiked up, her bare feet submerged in the cool, flowing water.

She was gripping the wooden fork tightly, her body completely still, her eyes locked onto the fish swimming below.

SWOOSH!

She struck—

And missed.

“Ah…! I didn’t get it…”

From her tone and expression, it was obvious—this wasn’t the first time she’d failed.

It wasn’t even the fifth or sixth time.

“Light refracts when it enters the water.”

A familiar voice spoke from the riverbank.

Safina turned. “Leon?”

Then, after a pause, she frowned. “What do you mean, refraction?”

“In simple terms,” Leon explained, “you shouldn’t aim directly at the fish you see.”

“You need to aim slightly lower than its actual position.”

Safina blinked. “Really?”

“Try it and see.”

“Alright.”

Without hesitation, Safina adjusted her stance—this time, aiming lower than the fish appeared to be.

She waited for the right moment, then struck.

SPLOOSH!

“I got it!”

She lifted her makeshift spear, revealing a freshly caught fish wriggling at the end.

Grinning triumphantly, she patted her chest with pride.

“I’m a genius! Just one explanation and I—!”

SPLASH!

Before she could finish, her foot slipped and down she went, tumbling straight into the river.

…

Ten minutes later.

A campfire crackled at the riverbank.

Several fish were skewered over the flames, almost fully cooked.

Nearby, Safina sat wrapped in Leon’s borrowed jacket, her black vest laid out beside the fire, drying.

She shivered slightly, rubbing her nose.

“Why is this water so cold—Ahhh—ACHOO!”

Leon glanced at her and chuckled.

“I’m more surprised that you didn’t know about light refraction when fishing.”

As he spoke, he handed her a grilled fish.

Safina accepted it, biting in immediately.

Through a mouthful of fish, she mumbled,

“Tastes good.”

“You were saying? Oh—right, about refraction—”

She swallowed, then patted her chest with satisfaction.

“My hometown doesn’t have any rivers. I never had the experience.”

“But that’s basic physics.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m an idiot, I get it.”

She rolled her violet eyes, then took another bite.

“But since this grilled fish is so good, I’ll forgive you for teasing me.”

Leon blinked.

Forgive me?

Wait… what? Who’s forgiving who ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ here?

But he let it go.

As long as there was fish to eat, it didn’t really matter.

“By the way,” Safina asked between bites, “did you get your second crystal yet?”

Leon shook his head. “Nope. You?”

“Same.”

She finished her first fish and reached for another.

“What color was yours?”

“Black,” Leon answered honestly. “You?”

“Same, black.”

She paused mid-bite, then reached into her pants pocket.

“I’ll show you.”

But… Her hand touched nothing.

She frowned, then quickly checked her vest pockets—still empty.

“Shit!”

She groaned. “I must’ve dropped it when I fell in the river!”

Leon stared at her.

“…Well, that’s unlucky.”

“Yeah, yeah, tough luck…”

She let out a deep sigh—then immediately stuffed another bite of fish into her mouth.

Seeing this, Leon raised an eyebrow.

“…You lost your crystal, and you’re still just sitting here eating fish?”

“What else am I supposed to do?” she said between bites.

“Food is energy. Gotta eat first before I go fix the problem.”

She picked up another grilled fish.

“Once I’m full, I promise—I’ll steal your crystal and get one for myself.”

Leon narrowed his eyes. “I never asked you to do that.”

“Consider it a thank you for teaching me how to fish.”

Safina finished off her second grilled fish, let out a satisfied burp, then stood up.

She pulled off Leon’s jacket and handed it back to him.

“Alright, let’s go.”

She smirked at him.

“Let’s see if the ‘Hero Who Killed Shadow’ is impressed by my strength.”