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Stop Calling Me "Mate"! I Only Defeated You Once, Not Married You! (Web Novel) - Volume 9, Chapter 62: Why Are You Adults All So Nosy
Volume 9, Chapter 62: Why Are You Adults All So Nosy
This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl
“More and more like… Dad from back then?”After entering adolescence, Noa’s personality traits had all become more pronounced.
The good parts—and the flawed ones as well.
This kind of change didn’t happen overnight. It wasn’t as if she woke up one morning and suddenly became a different person.
Instead, it accumulated subtly over time.
So whether it was Noa herself or her family, none of them noticed the change right away.
At most, after certain incidents, someone would say in surprise:
“Sweetheart, you didn’t used to be like this, did you?”
But Claudia was different.
Because she didn’t see Noa every day—only a few times a month.
That made Noa’s changes far more obvious to her each time they met.
And beneath those visible changes was a gradual tendency toward a certain kind of emotional dependence common in adolescence.
“That’s right. You really are like him. Come—sit down and let’s talk.”
Claudia led Noa to the sofa and continued:
“Charlotte often tells me that when your father was still a student, he always took real responsibility onto himself. After every assignment or group task, he would analyze his own mistakes from an extremely objective perspective.”
She paused, then chuckled and added:
“And that meant that every time he reflected on himself, he’d only see what he hadn’t done well enough. Over time, a rather unusual form of perfectionism took root in Leon’s heart.”
Noa blinked, curious.
“An unusual kind of perfectionism? What does that mean?”
Claudia shrugged.
“I think what Charlotte meant was this—back then, he didn’t care whether others were capable of helping him complete a task. No matter how troublesome or difficult the problem was, the first thing he considered was never teamwork. It was whether he could solve it himself. If he could, good—that meant it was within his ability. If he couldn’t… Then it meant he himself wasn’t strong enough. That was how your father evaluated himself at the time.”
After explaining, Claudia looked at Noa.
“So during this mission, did you have similar thoughts?”
Noa lowered her gaze and quietly recalled the Cold Mist Forest mission.
There really had been many moments when she wanted to shoulder everything alone.
She had even thought.
“If it were just me, maybe it would be easier to resolve.”
Thoughts like that.
She nodded, then added:
“But that doesn’t mean I think the other team members are useless. I just felt that if I could complete the mission with my own ability, then the risk would be reduced to the lowest possible level—and no one else would be put in danger.”
Claudia smiled gently in agreement.
“Yes. That’s exactly how Leon was back then. That perfectionism of his wasn’t arrogance, and it wasn’t seeing his companions as burdens. He simply wanted to protect everyone—because he believed he had the ability to do so.”
Hearing this, Noa felt a quiet sense of realization.
So her father had already possessed that mindset long ago.
His sense of responsibility toward others truly was innate.
Whether it was perfectionism or heroism, it all stemmed from Leon’s belief in protecting the people important to him.
He valued honor—but valued his bonds even more.
And in a way, that nearly obsessive trait had now been perfectly inherited by Noa.
“Your father is lucky. And so are you,” Claudia said suddenly.
Noa raised an eyebrow.
“Why?”
“Because wanting to protect others without having the ability to do so is extremely painful.”
Claudia explained calmly.
“Toward others—and toward oneself. If a person lacks sufficient strength, self-doubt and self-denial will follow them throughout their life, right up until the moment they’re buried. They may keep asking themselves, again and again—why am I so weak? But you and your father aren’t like that. You possess that perfectionism, and you also have the power to carry it through. You won’t leave your lives full of regret. That’s why I say—you’re lucky.”
The purest sense of justice and responsibility, paired with strength and potential capable of standing at the pinnacle of the world.
Both were displayed vividly in this father and daughter.
Claudia’s judgment wasn’t wrong.
Noa was, in many ways, the dragonkin version of Leon.
Her future was destined to shine.
Of course, Claudia wasn’t going to praise her excessively just yet.
After all, her own daughter Helena had gone through adolescence at fifteen or sixteen as well.
At this age, personalities solidified, and children gradually became aware of just how much power they possessed.
They could accept criticism and praise—but neither in excess.
Too much of either would backfire.
Still, for Noa, being compared to her father’s former self was already the greatest compliment she could receive.
She had always been following in that powerful man’s footsteps.
Since childhood, she had carried the title “daughter of the Dragon Knight.”
And now, she truly was beginning to walk the same path he once had.
She was drawing closer and closer to the goal she had set as a child.
“Oh, right,” Claudia added thoughtfully. “If you really are becoming more and more like your father… then the troubles he encountered back in school will probably come your way too.”
Noa blinked.
“What… kind of troubles?”
“Many. For example—being too outstanding and attracting excessive attention.”
Noa’s eyes shifted slightly. She had expected Claudia to bring up Tucker as an example—jealousy born from attention.
But instead, the blue-haired woman’s focus went in a completely different direction.
“Charlotte said that back then, your father received so many love letters that they couldn’t even fit into boxes.”
Noa: …
That was the focus?!
“Then, Noa...”
“…Vice Principal.”
“Have you received any love letters recently?”
“You adults are all so nosy,” Noa replied helplessly, her mouth twitching.
“…I have.”
“From whom?”
“…Both underclassmen and upperclassmen.”
“All boys?”
“Not all.”
“And how did you handle them?”
“I burned them on the spot.”
Claudia rubbed her forehead, laughing.
It seemed Noa was handling things just fine.
Noa herself did her best to maintain a blank expression.
After laughing for a while, Claudia continued:
“Mm. Being admired because you’re outstanding is indeed one kind of trouble. But judging from your situation, that’s fairly easy to deal with. Then… do you know what the other kind is?”
Noa’s brow moved slightly. She nodded.
“Yes. Becoming a thorn in someone else’s eye. Being envied.”
Claudia hummed.
“That’s right. Since you’ve already noticed it—your excellence triggered Tucker’s jealousy. And that jealousy won’t weaken just because you were right and he was wrong in one incident. It will only grow heavier. Back then, when your father was framed by teammates, part of the reason was jealousy as well.”
Hearing this, Noa frowned slightly.
“Then… what should I do?”
Claudia shook her head.
“I’ll first tell you about Tucker’s past. Then you can think it over carefully.”
“All right. Please go on.”
Claudia spoke slowly.
“He comes from a clan that has already been disbanded. Back then, Tucker’s clan’s dragon king launched a campaign against other dragonkin. But in a sovereign territory, they were counterattacked, and the clan collapsed in a single defeat. The survivors scattered and fled. Tucker’s parents took him and escaped to Sky City, hoping to receive judgment and protection. But Sky City does not accept refugees from clans that initiated internal war. So the Empire rejected them. At that time, Tucker had already graduated from the academy, but he hadn’t remained in the Adult Dragon Division. After being rejected by Sky City, father and son had nowhere left to go. So Tucker returned to the academy as a specially recruited member of the Adult Dragon Division. A few years ago, Tucker’s father passed away. That caused his already extreme personality to deteriorate even further. Over time, he came to resent Sky City and anyone who came from there. He also developed deep hostility toward companions born into noble families. He believes the war was caused by those people—and that it was why he lost his family. Even now, he still hasn’t reconciled with his past.”
Noa listened quietly, finally understanding why Tucker had always looked at her with thinly veiled hostility.
“It’s because I come from Sky City.”
And Tucker’s hostility wasn’t entirely without logic.
In his eyes, Noa—being the child of a Dragon King—was the daughter of those who created war.
Everything now fit together.
“So,” Claudia asked softly, “what do you think, Noa?”
Noa’s eyes shifted slightly. After a moment of thought, she said:
“His personality and his obsession were not caused by me. So I have no responsibility to bear the consequences of his past.”
As she spoke, Noa slowly stood.
“I will protect him the same way I protect everyone else. But he will never receive my forgiveness or my pity. The side that initiated war but lost in the end, becoming homeless refugees—I don’t believe such people deserve sympathy. And although there is conflict between Tucker and me, that conflict must never endanger other team members. For those reasons alone, I will never reconcile with him. Vice Principal—this is my decision.”
