Rossweise and Shirley had already been waiting at the door for a long time.
"All done?"
Leon nodded, "Mm, all done."
"Good. Let's go home."
"All right."
Leon looked at Shirley beside him, "Thanks for the trouble, Shirley."
"You're welcome, Your Highness."
With that, Shirley unfolded her wings and in an instant transformed into a silver dragon.
Although her dragon form wasn't as large as Rossweise's, she could still carry the two of them back without issue.
On the way home, the couple sat together; Rossweise leaned gently against his shoulder.
The wooden chest holding the black-gold warplate sat before them.
After chatting for a while, the queen impulsively leaned forward, opened the chest, and looked at the armor quietly resting inside.
The black metal was mysterious and deep; the gold trim added a royal air.
Rossweise opened her mouth, wanting to bring up the old prank where she'd hidden a dragon rune on the black-gold warplate and tricked Leon into wearing it.
But that mischievous bit was better left unmentioned in front of Shirley, it was one of those private couple jokes.
So she let it go.
Besides, the dragon rune was gone from the warplate now; that kind of pure-love magic probably only worked on living things and couldn't stay long on armor.
"Rossweise."
"Mm?"
She turned to him and saw Leon beckoning her closer with a curl of his finger.
Curious, the queen leaned in.
Leon bent to her ear and whispered a few words.
In an instant Rossweise's expression darkened.
There was also a hint of speechlessness mixed in.
"You! Are! Insane!"
The queen gave her verdict.
Leon shrugged, "I did so much today for our daughter, can't you just play along this once?"
"...No!"
"I'm begging you, wife."
"Leon Casmodeous, you actually begged me and abandoned your dignity over this."
"Yes, because it's more tempting than a bunny girl."
Shirley, currently flying, thought, 'Bunny girl? What bunny girl? Do Their Highnesses play so flashy normally?'
Rossweise quickly clamped a hand over that idiot's mouth.
She'd been too embarrassed to bring up the old rune prank earlier, and he went and blurted out "bunny girl."
With his mouth covered, Leon asked with his eyes and raised brows, "Can I? Can I? Can I?"
Rossweise sighed, helpless, and agreed.
"All right."
"My wife is the best!"
Shirley (still flying): 'Sss... good tea, I'm into it!'
———
That night, in the couple's bedroom.
Rossweise sat on the bed like a duck, arms raised high, wrists bound with rope and suspended from the headboard.
Her long, beautiful legs were exposed, pale, smooth skin;
in stark contrast, a piece of black armor covered her waist and abdomen.
Her long hair spilled down as she hung her head; the bound hands and the damaged armor pieces made her look like a defeated Valkyrie.
"Heh, quite a seductive, beautiful woman, the scars are the perfect accessory for that face."
Queen: "..."
"The fall of a female hero often marks the rise of a new generation of heroes."
Queen: "..."
"Do you have children? If not, what a pity, if you die here, your line ends."
Queen: "..."
"Mm~ your blood's really nice."
The queen wanted to be speechless some more, but it was her turn to speak.
"Demon Lord, you've made two mistakes," She recited the lines without emotion.
But that scoundrel of a husband gave an over-the-top performance.
"W-what? What did you say?"
"First, you shouldn't be alone with a well-trained female hero;"
"Second, you shouldn't taste my blood."
"Ha~ the blood's charm~"
Leon buried his face in his hands, fingers tangled in his hair.
"Ugh! How, how could this be! So hot... my body's so hot!"
After a moment.
"Demon Lord, I'll be waiting for you in hell."
"Ha, ha, ha, your child is taking root in my womb, kill me and you'll have no child~"
Ah~
Finally they finished.
The silver dragon queen fainted from her childish husband's antics.
———
Results of the assessments would be announced about half a month after the exams.
During that time, the little hatchlings who had finished the assessment didn't need to return to the academy, essentially a short holiday.
And it seamlessly connected to summer break.
Those who help shoulder the nation understood the value of such a holiday.
Noah only needed to come back once during that period for the hatchling division's graduation ceremony.
Coincidentally it was the weekend; Luna and Little Light were also home. The three sisters hadn't played together in a long time.
All day long, except for meal times, the couple hardly saw them.
Of course that wasn't bad, it gave them more alone time.
Rossweise was now pregnant and had to reduce her workload; by early afternoon sleepiness would often overtake her, so Anna the head maid handled the afternoon duties;
General Leon inexplicably liked staying with the pregnant mother-dragon.
Whether it was the deepening "wife aura" she gave off, or that pregnant mother-dragons were more full of maternal warmth than their usual girlish hearts, he didn't know.
But whatever the reason, the five-person family lived harmoniously, until someone's arrival shattered the peace.
That morning Luna stood in the yard, tense as if facing an enemy.
She planted her legs slightly apart, clenched her fists, bit her lip; her little tail cautiously wagged back and forth; her eyes fixed on the gate.
Even the tuft of hair on her head stood straight like a sentry.
In complete contrast stood Little Light.
Little Third wore pink pajamas and an ice-cream nightcap, tears from a yawn still at the corner of her eye, clutching the teddy bear their father had given their mother back then.
"Second sis... why'd you wake me up so early..."
Mumbled and hazy, wobbling, she really hadn't woken up.
"Yesterday Sister got a letter," Luna put on a serious tone.
"A letter, fine... maybe it's... maybe it's... ugh..."
"Little Light? How can you stand and sleep at the same time?", Luna hurriedly shook her awake.
With a jolt, Little Light was forced to open her eyes, "Ah... huh? What did you say? Sister got a letter, and then?"
"The letter she got, it's from Helena!"
"Wow... that's... rare."
Friends writing letters to each other was normal.
Little Light didn't see the amusement.
"Be serious, Little Light! Helena said she's coming today to go on a date with Sister!"
Little Light stayed lazy about it.
"A date's a date, what's the big deal—"
"A date?"
"You mean that kind of thing where they hold hands, spend the whole day alone eating and playing? A date?"
Luna nodded seriously.
"You think it's dangerous too, right? Helena's coming to steal our sister away! She'll take our sister!"
"Uh... I just think it'll be fun to watch..."
To be honest Little Light didn't think anyone in the world could steal their sister from Second Sis.
Where a sister-adorer is born, a sibling-adorer naturally follows.
Big sister's way of expressing affection has always been reserved, unlike Second Sis's warmth, that's why Second Sis gets the illusion that "Sister will be stolen by Helena."
"So, Second Sis, are you standing here early to block Helena from entering?"
"No, that'd be impolite."
Right, Second Sis sacrifices her own comfort for the group; truly a model of dragon etiquette, an exemplar of hatchlings —
"I'm joining their date."
"..."
[My parents and sister always manage to stab me in the back just when I'm proud of them, and crush the blossoming feelings in an instant. — Aurora K. Melkvei.]
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