Dragon Clan: Avoid the College Entrance Examination to Slay the Dragon

Chapter 75 Lunch
In late autumn in Kassel, maple leaves rustled in the wind as they hung from the eaves. Gu Yi pressed his forehead against the cold wall, his eyelids drooping in sync with Professor Manstein's lecture on "An Introduction to the Science of Words."

"The Word of Power of the Dustless Land..." The sound of chalk striking the blackboard suddenly became distant, and the professor's dark gray suit gradually blurred into a double image in Gu Yi's vision.

Just as consciousness was about to sink into darkness, a thunderous shout rang out: "Gu Yi!"

The young man jolted awake, finding all eyes in the classroom fixed on him. Professor Manstein stood on the podium, forcing a stiff smile: "Gu Yi, I know you need rest after your mission, but two weeks have passed since the operation. Haven't you recovered yet?"

"I'm sorry, Professor, I didn't get enough rest last night." Gu Yi stood up, supporting himself on the table.

"Sit down and listen attentively."

A restrained chuckle rippled through the classroom, and several familiar students gave him a thumbs-up before quickly putting it down.

Gu Yi slumped back into his seat, rubbing his temples. This chairman of the discipline committee was known throughout the college for his strict requirements on classroom discipline. Last month, someone was punished by copying the "Kassel College Regulations" thirty times for secretly eating a donut in class.

The boy propped his cheeks up with his palms, barely managing to keep his eyelids open. Outside the window, maple leaves swirled and fell in the wind. Spring drowsiness and autumn lethargy—the old saying was true! Every spring and autumn, he felt like he was under a sleep spell. As he was thinking this, he suddenly remembered that good-for-nothing Lu Mingfei's eyelids were drooping 365 days a year. He wondered if the ancestors, when they compiled the solar terms, had foreseen such a perpetually sleepy creature.

"Ding--"

Lost in thought, the bell rang, and Professor Manstein tossed the chalk into the metal pencil case. "The assignment is a case study on 'The Influence of Dragon Script Grammar Structure on the Effects of Word Magic,' to be submitted to the Norma System by Thursday."

Before he finished speaking, Gu Yi's seat was already empty, with only the curtains slowly falling in the wind.

"Is this how you use Time Zero?!" the professor roared, but could only grit his teeth as he stared at the empty seat. The entire academy knew that the principal had granted S-class students special permission to use Word of Power freely on campus, but no one knew if the principal had considered that S-class students would use it to steal food.

As soon as the cafeteria doors opened, Gu Yi was already standing at the food counter. The burly chef, wearing a white apron, tapped the menu as if it were nothing out of the ordinary. "S-rank! What's for today?"

Gu Yi glanced at it and said, "Spaghetti plus a 9-inch Margherita pizza, with an iced Coke."

"He certainly knows how to eat!" The burly man gave a thumbs up.

Gu Yi nodded slightly and walked towards the four-person seat in the corner. The moment his back touched the back of the chair, the cafeteria door suddenly trembled. Countless feet collided on the ground, creating a sound like a sudden rainstorm. The cafeteria, which had been empty just moments before, was instantly filled with students surging in. The sounds of plates clattering and shouts exploded under the dome.

Watching the students surge in like a tide, Gu Yi bit his straw and nodded to himself. Time Zero was indeed living up to the reputation of the High-Risk Word of Power by spending it on grabbing the cafeteria.

"S-rank, is anyone here?"

Three girls, carrying salad bowls piled high like a small mountain, squeezed to the table. When Gu Yi looked up, he was met with three pairs of bright, sparkling eyes. The girl in the lead, with black hair, adjusted her slipped cardigan over her shoulder.

"Please, go ahead." Gu Yi moved the iced cola half an inch closer to himself, and the girls immediately sat down next to him.

The girl with her hair in a high ponytail scooped up a spoonful of yogurt from her bowl: "Why does an S-class student always eat alone?"

Gu Yi sighed, looking at the school staff maintaining order at the food counter. There was no way around it; everyone was busy these days. Caesar was busy taking over as student council president, constantly being dragged into meetings. His senior, needless to say, was now considered the successor by the Lionheart Society president and spent most of his days in the Norton Building. When he did occasionally appear in public, it was to duel with Caesar—strangely enough, the two seemed to be addicted to fighting. As for Fingel, he wouldn't leave dormitory 303 unless absolutely necessary. Gu Yi figured that even if a major earthquake occurred, as long as the building didn't collapse, Fingel wouldn't leave the dormitory.

The girls exchanged knowing glances, and the black-haired girl pushed the yogurt bowl half an inch towards Gu Yi. "Gu, do you have class this afternoon?"

"That's all, but I have to go to the equipment department this afternoon."

The girls' lips trembled slightly as they opened them, but they ultimately swallowed their invitations.

The food dispenser suddenly buzzed in Gu Yi's palm, and the burly chef's voice came from the counter: "S-rank! Your food's in your usual spot!" In the blink of an eye, a nine-inch pizza was neatly placed in the center of the table. Gu Yi was biting into the crispy crust when the cheese stretched into glistening strands, and the aroma of tomatoes and basil exploded in the air.

Looking at the girl staring blankly at him, Gu Yi suddenly felt a little awkward.

"Should we share some with you? We definitely ordered too much."

"No, no!" The three heads shook at the same time. The black-haired girl said cautiously, "It's just that it's the first time I've seen Time Zero up close, and I'm a little curious."

The girl with the high ponytail leaned over and asked, "Can you feel the wind in the realm of time zero?"

Gu Yi swallowed the pizza. "It's hard to describe in words. If you want, I can bring you in to take a look."

"Great! Great!" The girls were so excited they almost jumped for joy.

Gu Yi's pupils ignited with gold, and in an instant, the entire space seemed to be paused. The surging crowd was as if frozen in place, their running posture frozen in place.

"Oh my god..."

"This is truly...freedom..."

Their voices were exceptionally clear in the absolute silence, like pebbles thrown into an icy lake.

The girl with the high ponytail gently touched the person next to her, "So this is the perspective of Time Zero?"

The instant time was released, the clamor of voices surged back into my ears like a tide, and the frozen crowd continued their unfinished chase.

When the black-haired girl's earrings started swaying again, her voice was so soft it was as if she were afraid of shattering something: "Gu, living in such a fast-paced world every day, don't you feel lonely?"

Gu Yi paused for a moment while chewing, cheese condensing on his lips: "Loneliness, why?"

The black-haired girl gently shook her head. "When your time is faster than the whole world, no one can keep up with you. It's like being all alone."

“I hadn’t thought of it that way. But I feel you’re very suited to writing poetry. I had a classmate in high school who probably felt the same way.” Gu Yi chuckled.

Just then, the classic ringtone suddenly rang out. Gu Yi took out his vibrating phone, and a familiar short number appeared on the screen.

"Gu Yi, the principal requests that you come to the principal's office after you finish your meal." It was a cool, clear female voice.

“Okay, Norma.” The boy put away his phone.

The black-haired girl asked cautiously, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Gu Yi stuffed the last piece of pizza into his mouth, puffed out his cheeks, and stood up. "The principal wants to see me, and I'm also happy to chat with you all."

A flash of gold appeared in the depths of Gu Yi's pupils. By the time the girl came to her senses, the figure had vanished, leaving only the empty seat swaying slightly.

(End of this chapter)