Her and Isa's grandmother was truly an old schemer.
Let's put it this way. If the two sisters combined their scheming abilities, they could barely break even with the old lady.
And Leon?
Whether it was Rossweise or Isa, either one of them could spar with General Leon on equal footing.
If this old lady really wanted to pry information out of Leon, she'd probably be able to figure out the name of the donkey in his family within an hour.
That was Leon's most guarded secret. Even Rossweise didn't know what that donkey was called.
As her breathing gradually steadied and her mindset adjusted, Rossweise shook her head to clear out unnecessary thoughts. Then, she slowly opened her eyes, raised her hand, and lightly knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Upon hearing the voice, Rossweise's body stiffened.
It was her grandmother's voice.
She gripped the hem of her dress and bit her lower lip, still feeling a little nervous.
Although her grandmother's tone sounded calm and gentle, with no indication that she had discovered Leon's human identity, Rossweise still didn't dare to let her guard down.
She slowly pressed down the door handle, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.
Passing through the hallway, she arrived in the living room, where a familiar face sat on the sofa.
The moment she saw her granddaughter return, the grandmother slowly stood up with a kind smile and looked at Rossweise, "It's been a long time, Little Rose."
Rossweise's eyes welled up with tears, but a smile also graced her lips. She quickly stepped forward, opened her arms, and embraced her grandmother, "It's been a long time, Grandma."
The grandmother and granddaughter embraced, completely ignoring the other person in the living room.
Leon Casmodeous sat on another sofa, silently watching the dragon woman and her grandmother embrace.
Suddenly, an idea flashed through General Leon's mind—
'Why not take this opportunity to slip away?'
It wasn't that Leon was afraid of "meeting the family"; it was just that the process earlier had been nothing short of socially excruciating.
For the past hour, even though the old lady had a kind face and only asked trivial family matters, Leon still felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, as if a blade was pressed against his back, or as if he had a bone stuck in his throat.
He had never felt an hour pass so slowly.
And he had never wished so desperately for Rossweise to come home sooner.
Because the sooner she came back, the sooner he could make his exit.
As for the reason for leaving, he could make up any excuse.
Dizziness, stomachache, cooking dinner, taking care of the kids… he could pick any of them.
After a brief internal debate, Leon finally decided to escape.
He opened his mouth, intending to say he was going to put the daughters to sleep.
But before he could speak, he saw the old lady and Rossweise finish their hug and turn their attention toward him.
Leon panicked.
Damn it, if he didn't leave now, he wouldn't get another chance.
"Uh…", Leon stood up, preparing to chant a spell.
"Leon, sit down. Let's continue chatting," But the old lady mercilessly interrupted his casting preparation.
"Ah, this—"
"Leon, Grandma told you to sit, so sit," Rossweise added a knife to the wound, "Haven't you already been with Grandma for a while? Why are you still so nervous?"
Leon scrutinized Rossweise, his eyes shifting slightly before glancing at her right hand.
She was quietly pinching the hem of her dress, and her tail behind her was slightly curled.
That was a small habit she only had when she was nervous. Leon knew her all too well.
Damn it, he was already drenched in sweat, and she was calling him nervous? Talk about a pot calling the kettle black. Leon fumed internally.
But since both the grandmother and granddaughter wanted him to stay, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and sit back down.
The grandmother and Rossweise also took their seats.
Rossweise sat beside her grandmother, holding the old lady's hand, her face and eyes filled with undisguised longing.
Leon rarely saw Rossweise express her emotions so openly.
It was clear that she really liked her grandmother.
"Little Rose, really now, you've been married for three years, and you never even told me?", The grandmother patted her granddaughter's hand and glanced at Leon.
Rossweise's fair cheeks flushed slightly as she lowered her head, "I was just about to write you a letter when you came back."
The grandmother chuckled, reaching out to gently tap Rossweise's nose, "Getting shy now, are we?"
Leon, watching from the side, couldn't help but twitch the corners of his eyes.
'Grandma, your granddaughter isn't blushing because she's shy.'
'She's blushing because she's lying!'
'If you hadn't come back, not only would she have hidden the marriage for three years—she might have kept it a secret for thirty.'
Of course, if it were him, he wouldn't have told either. After all, love between a dragon and a human was too forbidden; most people wouldn't accept it.
Leon scratched his forehead, turned his head away, and decided to play dead.
Meanwhile, Rossweise smoothly shifted the conversation toward Leon, subtly probing her grandmother to see if he had slipped up.
"By the way, Grandma, you wouldn't mind Leon's background, would you?"
"His background… I don't mind."
The grandmother glanced at Leon, who was still pretending to be dead, and sized him up, "The young man is handsome and capable; he's just a victim of the times."
From the sound of it, the grandmother hadn't noticed that Leon was human.
But hearing her evaluate Leon like that still surprised Rossweise.
Because her grandmother wasn't someone who easily praised others.
Anyone who earned her recognition was either a top-tier Dragon King or someone with deep academic accomplishments.
And that damn man was neither—
Though he had slaughtered many top-tier Dragon Kings, so he kind of met the standard.
"But—"
A single "but" made Rossweise tense up again.
"But I never expected you to like a man with this kind of personality," The grandmother's tone carried genuine surprise, though "this kind of personality" wasn't meant as an insult.
Hearing this, Rossweise finally breathed a sigh of relief. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled sweetly at Leon.
"Leon, you see, he's a bit stubborn and a little childish."
"He often contradicts me on purpose."
"Sometimes, he's difficult, making it hard to tell if he's being serious or joking."
"He's full of little schemes, yet he's a total introvert, dislikes communication, loves acting tough, and has a bit of a hero complex…"
Rossweise listed Leon's "sins" like reading off a menu.
She got more and more into it, almost stripping him down to his underwear.
Leon, sitting at the side, started feeling uneasy.
'Hiss—'
'Mother dragon, so you're just using this chance to nitpick my flaws, huh?'
'Fine, fine, since I have so many little problems, then you—'
"But I still like him."
The queen propped her cheek on one hand and gazed at Leon, her cheeks still flushed. Her silver eyes shimmered with an ambiguous light.
Leon stared blankly at her, blinking as warmth surged in his chest.
'Was she really just using this moment to complain about my faults, or…'
'Was it all just for that last sentence?'
"You two... ahem."
Grandmother really couldn't bear to interrupt her granddaughter and grandson-in-law's deep gaze at each other.
'But good grief, do you two not realize your gazes are practically forming a heartstring between you?'
'Grandmother here is already over eight hundred years old and wants to live for a few more centuries. Stop showing me this kind of thing.'
Hearing this, Rossweise quickly averted her gaze, instinctively scratching her cheek.
'Mm, still a bit hot.'
Grandmother looked at her granddaughter's slightly shy expression and sighed inwardly. A married woman really does change a lot—it was like night and day compared to fifty years ago.
However, she did not scold her or subtly remind her in her words.
Grandmother was indeed a strict person, but since little Rose had already grown into the Silver Dragon Queen and built her own family, how she wanted to live her life and where she wanted to go was entirely her own decision.
Grandmother would not interfere too much in the younger generation's choices.
"It seems Leon didn't lie to me. You two are indeed very much in love," Grandmother said slowly.
Rossweise raised an eyebrow, "Leon said… we are very much in love?"
Grandmother nodded, "He did."
Pausing for a moment, she added, "And he said it quite a few times."
The queen's heartbeat sped up, and she couldn't help but glance at the mutt of a man opposite her. Holding back the corners of her mouth from rising and suppressing the smugness in her voice, she called out sweetly, "Really? Hu?"
At that moment, Rossweise activated the couple's private voice chat.
[Ohhh, you really said that?]
[And multiple times?]
[How much in love are we? Tell me about it~]
[How come I've never heard you say it before? Were you too shy?]
[Speak! Leon!]
[Mic on! Turn it on now!]
[Leon Casmodeous exited the team voice chat and muted his teammate.]
He lowered his head and silently covered his face.
The female dragons of the Melkvei family weren't just good at changing expressions, they were also experts at making people die of embarrassment.
"Sigh, Little Rose, you've made him all shy," Grandmother stepped in to smooth things over.
Rossweise snorted lightly, "It's fine, Grandma, this is just how we are."
Grandmother smiled faintly, "That's actually quite nice."
After chatting for a while, Rossweise changed the topic and asked, "By the way, Grandma, you didn't come back this time just to visit me and my sister, did you?"
Grandmother only came back once in decades, and every time she did, it was for something important.
So Rossweise figured this time wouldn't be an exception.
Sure enough, Grandmother nodded, her expression turning serious, and her tone also becoming more solemn, "Mm, there is indeed something I need to discuss with you."
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