"I thought you wanted to do this alone with me," She gently traced the Black Gold Chariot's helmet with her pink fingernail, pouting her lips, looking like a wronged little wife.
Leon noticed her acting itch was flaring up again, "...Mother dragon, that's enough."
Seeing that her little trick was exposed, Rossweise was not in a hurry. She adjusted her emotions, raised her head, and looked at him, "Oh? Now you're saying 'that's enough'? How come you didn't say that when you told me you liked me the other night?"
"I was—!"
"Was what?"
"I was... drunk. Can what I said while drunk even count?"
Rossweise snorted coldly, "One drink got you drunk? Who are you fooling? You were definitely sober at the time."
Leon rolled his eyes at her, not wanting to continue the conversation.
To be honest, that night, he was sober.
Although he couldn't hold his liquor well, it wasn't to the point where a single sip would make him lose control of his speech and actions.
He knew exactly what he had said and how he felt when he said it.
It's just that bringing it up again now would make his old face blush a little.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Do you regret it?", The queen pressed forward.
Regret?
Not at all.
He only regretted doing things against his own heart.
So that "I like you"… [reluctantly] counted as General Leon's true feelings, heartfelt words.
"Tch, who do you think I am? I said it, and I meant it. Why would I regret it?"
Leon was stubborn, but when it came to owning up to his actions, he never backed down.
Rossweise had always admired this about him.
"Then say it again," She coaxed.
"Are you done? I already said it, but you didn't respond. Why should I say it again?"
'Oh. He's annoyed now,' Rossweise pouted and muttered under her breath, "Fine, don't say it, who cares."
She continued painting Leon's helmet.
As she brushed, Rossweise noticed that all the paint Leon had brought was the same color—silver.
'What is he planning?'
Black Gold Chariot - Special Edition Skin - Silver Dragon Exclusive?
"Why is it all silver?", Rossweise asked casually.
"I like silver," Leon replied without thinking.
Rossweise froze for a moment, then coughed lightly, trying to get the dog man's attention.
Leon cooperated and looked up at her.
He saw Rossweise casually fiddling with her silver hair as if nothing had happened.
Leon rolled his eyes in silence and continued painting.
"Ahem—"
He looked up again.
Rossweise was now holding the tip of her silver tail, still pretending as if nothing was going on.
Leon sighed but remained silent.
"Ahem—"
"Alright, alright! It's your silver, happy now?"
The mother dragon's hints were practically shoved in his face. If he kept playing dumb, Rossweise would probably force him to say it.
Since that was the case, he might as well say it on his own.
Only then did Rossweise feel satisfied, happily continuing to paint.
The couple worked for a while and finally finished the Black Gold Chariot's new paint job.
Looking at the refreshed armor, Rossweise nodded in satisfaction, "Not bad, looks pretty good."
"Mm."
A very dull "mm."
Rossweise glanced sideways at him, his face was expressionless.
His mood and demeanor were completely different from earlier in the temple.
Rossweise could guess why.
That conversation just now—
("Are you done? I already said it, but you didn't respond. Why should I say it again?")
The stubborn guy had finally taken a step forward, but that night, she had only held him and kissed him without giving him any verbal response.
She hadn't said anything about it in the past two days, but he must have minded, even if just a little.
Rossweise bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, then quietly moved closer and tugged at his sleeve.
"What is it?", Leon asked in a low voice, but his gaze remained on the Black Gold Chariot.
"Casmodeous."
The queen stood on her tiptoes, leaned close to his ear, and whispered softly,
"I like you."
[Black Gold Chariot: So I'm just a stepping stone for your love story, huh?]
———
Uh-oh.
Not only was His Majesty inexplicably happy, but now even the Prince was inexplicably happy.
Could it be that this couple was already preparing for a fourth child...
The maids gathered in private to discuss. The third princess, Aurora, had only been born recently, and they were already impatient to prepare for the fourth princess?
'Your Majesty, take care of your health!'
"Shh~ His Majesty is coming, quiet, quiet."
Hearing this, the maids immediately shut their mouths obediently and watched as His Majesty's family and His Majesty's grandmother walked out of the sanctuary.
"Grandma, are you really not staying for a few more days?", Rossweise held onto her grandmother's hand and slowly walked down the stairs.
"No, I still have to check on Isa. After that, I need to return to the extreme north to continue the survey operations. Even without Ravi, the operation can't be put on hold."
Reaching the spacious front yard, Rossweise reluctantly held her grandmother's hand, her eyes glistening with tears.
She hadn't seen her grandmother in decades, and now that she was finally back, she had to leave after only a few days.
Although dragons rarely visited each other, her grandmother had raised Rossweise since she was a child. The bond between grandmother and granddaughter was naturally deep and beyond words.
"All right, little Rose, once things are settled, I'll come back and spend more time with you and your sister."
Her grandmother patted Rossweise's shoulder with a kind smile, "Of course, don't forget what I told you a few days ago. Pay more attention, stay prepared, and don't cause any unnecessary losses to your people or yourself."
Rossweise nodded, "I understand, Grandma."
"Then I'll be off. We'll keep in touch through letters."
After a brief pause, the old lady half-jokingly added, "Though, I suppose letter dragons will have a hard time reaching where I am."
Rossweise, with tears in her eyes, gave a slightly bitter smile, "Letter dragons may not reach, but my longing for Grandma surely will."
Her grandmother smiled warmly, "All right, I'm heading to Isa's place. You, Leon, and the little ones take care."
"Mm… Goodbye, Grandma."
"Goodbye, Great-Grandmother!"
Noah, holding her little sister, bid farewell along with Luna.
Leon stood behind them, silently waving his hand.
The old lady said her goodbyes to the children one by one.
When she reached Leon, the old and young locked eyes.
After a long moment, his grandmother narrowed her eyes slightly and said with a meaningful tone, "I hope to see you again at the training grounds next time."
Leon was stunned.
'Is… this old lady teasing me?'
'Or does this sentence carry another meaning?'
"Ah, yes, we will meet again."
Though he wasn't entirely sure, Leon responded politely.
His grandmother nodded, then turned away, took a few steps forward, and transformed into her dragon form, soaring straight into the clouds.
Rossweise stood motionless, watching her grandmother's figure until it completely disappeared from sight.
Milan, the maid beside her, wanted to step forward to remind her, but Leon gestured for her to stop.
"Noah, take your sisters to play with Sister Milan," Leon said.
"Okay."
After sending off the daughters and maids, Leon stepped forward to stand beside Rossweise.
"You said before that your grandmother was very strict. I thought she'd be one of those rigid old dragon lords."
The longer one lived, the more rigid they became. That was a common impression.
Rossweise wiped the corners of her eyes and forced a smile, "Why? Sounds like you're satisfied with this 'meet-the-parents' session?"
Leon scoffed, crossing his arms and turning his head away, "What's there to be satisfied about? It's not like we're a real couple."
Rossweise playfully punched his arm with a smile.
The sadness of parting with her grandmother lightened slightly.
Leon glanced at her smile and felt the strength of her punch.
'Mm, she's not sad anymore.'
'Three sentences to pull a dragoness out of her slump and reshape her mindset—please, call me Life Coach Casmodeous.'
The couple walked into the pavilion in the courtyard and sat opposite each other across the stone table.
Over the past two days, they had kissed, hugged, and their once firm lips had softened a bit.
Now that her grandmother had left, it was time to discuss serious matters.
"Ravi, Bly, Jags… Three dragon kings skilled in spatial magic mysteriously left their tribes, and, like Constantine, they haven't participated in the human-dragon war for a long time."
Leon said, "So, there's reason to suspect that they are among the many dragon kings cooperating with the empire. But there's no solid evidence to prove this theory."
Rossweise interlocked her fingers, resting her chin on the back of her hands, and picked up Leon's train of thought, "And the evidence lies with Constantine's former confidant. As long as we find this confidant, we can figure out what those three dragon kings are up to."
Leon nodded, "Little Light is already four months old. The Red Flame Dragon Clan should have settled down by now, right?"
To outsiders, the birth of a daughter and the stabilization of a dragon clan might seem unrelated.
But this was General Leon's unique way of marking time.
He had slain so many dragons, Constantine was just one of the countless dragon corpses, albeit a particularly deranged one. Other than that, there was nothing special about him. So, Leon never bothered to remember the exact day he killed Constantine.
But as fate would have it, Little Light was born on that very day.
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