"Back to the main topic. Since we don't know how many trump cards the empire still holds, this time I've brought the Silver Dragon King from the dragon clan. Her name is Rossweise."
Leon's gaze skipped over the crowd and landed on her, "Wanna come up and introduce yourself?"
Rossweise opened her mouth. Honestly, she wanted to refuse, because she wasn't really used to introducing herself in front of a bunch of humans.
But after thinking it over, she figured she should still go along with Leon.
They also needed the people of the Lionheart Society to trust them as a couple. Otherwise, toppling the empire would be tough.
So Rossweise stepped forward, and the crowd automatically made way.
She walked up onto the speech platform and turned to face the people.
Her eyes were icy, her tone calm.
"I am Rossweise Melkvei, ruler of the Silver Dragon clan. At Leon's request, I have come to human territory to help you break free from the corrupt and dark rule."
As her words fell, the hall went completely silent.
It wasn't that anyone was trying to embarrass Rossweise, it was just that the moment she spoke, the aura and majesty of a dragon king swept through the entire room.
That level of pressure was too much even for normal dragons to handle, let alone humans present.
Rossweise noticed that the members of the Lionheart Society seemed pretty afraid of her.
Not surprising. After all, this was her first time introducing herself in front of another race, and it was inevitable she'd unconsciously release some pressure.
Once she realized this, Rossweise immediately reined it in.
Only then did the tense atmosphere in the room begin to ease.
Clap! Clap!
Rebecca was the first to applaud.
Nacho followed as the second.
Then, thunderous applause erupted.
Rossweise's gaze swept across the crowd, thinking, 'I'm probably the first dragon king in history to be applauded by another race.'
Alright, after that serious and brief self-introduction, Rossweise planned to crack a small joke and then leave the stage.
"Oh, right. There's one thing I need to emphasize," Rossweise said this in all seriousness, and everyone focused intently.
Even Leon looked at her curiously, not knowing what she was about to say.
After building up the suspense, Rossweise revealed a faint mischievous smile,
"I'm really not Leon's godmother, everyone, don't get it twisted."
A little joke, with good effect, it relaxed the tense mood.
"So dragons have a sense of humor too, huh."
"Then who was it that first spread the story about the Captain recognizing a female dragon as his godmother?"
"Not me, don't look at me, the version I heard was that the Captain adopted a dragon as a goddaughter."
"..."
"Eh? Silver Dragon King, Silver Dragon King, if you're not the Captain's godmother, then what's your relationship with him?"
Someone asked the most critical question of the night.
Rossweise was stunned slightly, her brain working fast.
Back and forth she debated with herself, she felt it'd be better to hide it.
After all, they weren't at home; there was no need to... ahem... play husband and wife with Leon here.
"Oh, we're just—"
"She's my wife."
Rossweise: "?"
"We also have three kids."
Rossweise: "??"
Lionheart Society members:
'Whoa, this is the most explosive version yet!'
———
The Lionheart Society wasn't just a revolutionary organization resisting the empire; its members were elites from all walks of life.
So, upon learning that their spiritual leader, Mr. Leon Casmodeous had married the Silver Dragon Queen Rossweise and had three daughters, a heated discussion erupted.
The former imperial dragon scholar sighed repeatedly, "I spent half my life researching dragon reproduction, and I never imagined that humans and dragons could have offspring. This is the greatest discovery in the field of cross-species research!"
The former royal psychological counselor raised a question, "What kind of psychological conditions must an exceptional human male meet to pair with an equally outstanding female dragon? This is a question worth pondering."
And a five-star general who formerly served in the Dragon-Slaying Corps remarked, "Give him the chance to be captured, and he can effortlessly conquer the Silver Dragon Queen. Even if the Sun God stood beside him, he'd still be overshadowed. Leon Casmodeous is destined to become the brightest monument in the shared history of humans and dragons!"
Watching everyone obsessed with discussing and speculating about his love story with a mother dragon, Leon just smiled helplessly and didn't speak up to stop it.
As long as no one rejected Rossweise as the dragon queen, it was fine.
As for the rest, they could chat however they wanted.
After all, what Leon said was the truth. He wasn't afraid of rumors.
While no one was paying attention, Rossweise shot a sidelong glance at the dog-man beside her, then quietly reached out and gave his waist a sharp pinch.
Leon felt a searing pain, but with so many people around, he didn't dare cry out, his face merely twisted slightly.
Once Rossweise let go, Leon immediately stepped away from her.
Clutching his aching waist, he asked, "Why did you suddenly pinch me?"
The queen's delicate face was slightly flushed. She didn't dare meet Leon's eyes. Standing there, arms folded, eyes looking straight ahead,
"W-who told you to talk about us in front of so many people?"
"But wasn't what I said true?"
"You!"
"From the thousand-year-old dragon elders down to five-year-old dragonlings, everyone in your clan knows we're married; shouldn't our side, the humans, know too?"
Hearing his well-reasoned explanation, Rossweise wanted to argue, but couldn't find a proper angle. In the end, she could only squeeze out four words between her teeth, "Twisting logic and making excuses."
"Eh? How am I twisting logic? Mother dragon, I'm telling you—"
Mid-sentence, Leon suddenly seemed to realize something and stopped abruptly.
He glanced at Rossweise's slightly flushed face and blinked, Realization dawning.
"Oh~ I get it."
Rossweise rolled her eyes at him, "You 'get it' again."
"Actually, deep down, you're really happy I called you my wife in front of everyone. But since you're used to acting tough, showing too much joy would break your cold Silver Dragon Queen image. So you pinched me and acted like you disapproved, all to hide your excitement, right?"
Being exposed by the dog-man in just a few words, Rossweise was both embarrassed and angry.
If there weren't so many people around, she really wanted to draw a dragon rune and teach this guy a lesson.
The queen glared at him, mumbling under her breath, "Just wait till we get home."
"My master's wife used to say that to my master all the time."
"That proves you and your master are carved from the same mold."
"No, what I mean is…"
He deliberately drew out the end of the sentence, keeping her in suspense.
Rossweise tilted her head slightly to listen.
"We're more and more like a real married couple."
"…If you say shameless things like that again, I'll tell all your embarrassing stories right in front of the Lionheart Society!"
Leon instantly behaved himself.
The members kept chatting, and the couple didn't interrupt or disturb.
Leon walked to the edge of the platform and casually jumped down.
The stage was about one meter high. Rossweise was wearing a long dress and heels, so it wasn't convenient for big movements. After jumping down, Leon turned and held out his hand to help Rossweise down, to prevent her from falling.
Rossweise took Leon's hand with one hand, lifted her skirt with the other, and lightly jumped down from the stage.
"This world is really magical, Captain," Rebecca's voice came from behind.
Leon let go of Rossweise's hand and turned his head, "What do you mean?"
"The Silver Dragon Queen needs someone to help her down from a one-meter-high stage; and the unrefined dragon-slaying hero is constantly thinking of his wife. Tsk tsk, is this the power of love?"
The couple could tell the little girl was teasing them.
Rossweise naturally couldn't say much. After all, in Rebecca's eyes, she had the "gentle sister-in-law" persona.
But Leon wasn't going to be polite.
He stepped forward and grabbed Rebecca by the collar, "Your sister-in-law flew to the empire overnight, worn out from the journey, what's wrong with me helping her down?"
Lifted off the ground by her collar, Rebecca dangled in the air, wearing a fawning smile, "Nothing wrong, nothing wrong,.wishing you a happy marriage and a third baby soon—ah!"
Just as she said "third baby," Leon let go.
Rebecca fell straight to the ground.
The twin-tailed girl stood up and brushed the dust off her clothes.
"Seriously, why are you only gentle with sister-in-law and still so rough with everyone else?"
'That's because you didn't see the times I'm rough with your sister-in-law,' Leon grumbled inwardly.
"By the way, where's Martin?", Leon asked.
"At home."
Rebecca replied, "Because of family reasons, he rarely comes to the Lionheart Society. But every time the empire's about to make a big move, it's always Martin who notifies us in advance, that's how the Lionheart Society has continued to survive."
Leon nodded.
"Captain, this time we're going to officially declare war on the empire. While exposing their plot, we also need to clear your name. Do you have a specific plan?"
"Mm, I do."
On the way here, Leon had already drafted a rough plan.
"I counted the days. In three days, it'll be the empire's annual Lantern Festival. By then, citizens all over the country will be out releasing paper lanterns. We can use that opportunity to expose the empire in one fell swoop."
The Lantern Festival was a traditional holiday in human society, held once a year.
On the day of the festival, people would release lit lanterns made of paper. Legend had it that if you wrote your wish inside the lantern, the gods would help make it come true.
Children loved this festival. After all, once the lanterns were released, all they had to do was wait for the gods to grant their wishes;
But adults no longer believed in gods, they just celebrated for fun or good luck.
Nevertheless, the Lantern Festival was still the empire's grandest holiday of the year. By then, the streets would definitely be packed with people.
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