When it came to cunning, the couple was evenly matched. Rossweise usually held the upper hand simply because she was more proactive and operated on her home turf. But this "no-lighting" challenge was fair game—it all came down to their skill in outmaneuvering each other.
Leon knew Rossweise's current advantage lay in her fiery black lace swimsuit. His strategy was simple: avoid looking at her as much as possible to minimize the visual stimulation. With this in mind, he pretended to relax, reclining back until only his neck and head were above water, and closed his eyes with an air of contentment.
Rossweise glanced at him, recognizing his tactic of avoidance. She couldn't directly demand his attention—that would give him an excuse to accuse her of foul play. So, she resorted to a classic move.
"The fireworks are so beautiful. It's a pity not to watch them," she said lightly. "Since you're too afraid to look at me, just look at the fireworks instead."
"Afraid to look at you?" Perfect trigger words.
Leon sat up abruptly. "What is there to be afraid of?"
Rossweise chuckled. "Alright then, come a little closer. We can take a few more pictures together."
Leon hesitated, swallowing nervously. "I… my back hurts. It's not convenient to move. I can see just fine from here."
"Okay, if you won't come over, then I'll come to you."
"Hey, wait—"
Splash—
Before Leon could stop her, Rossweise rose from the hot spring. The black lace clung to her graceful figure, subtly hinting at the fair skin beneath, creating an alluring silhouette. Water streamed slowly down her body, strategically obscuring her chest and lower abdomen, giving Leon a brief moment to catch his breath.
Her slender legs waded through the water as she walked over and sat down beside him. Their shoulders brushed, and Rossweise smirked, nudging him lightly. "Ready to admit defeat?"
Leon scratched his cheek and chuckled. "We've only just started. No reason to admit defeat yet."
"Hmph, we'll see how long you can hold out."
With her so close, her fragrance enveloped him—whether it was from the surroundings or her own scent, Leon couldn't tell. He had no mind to appreciate the fireworks; all his focus was on countering Rossweise's advances.
Just then, he heard her humming cheerfully beside him:
"Twinkle, twinkle, little star~"
Leon turned to look, and Rossweise met his gaze knowingly. She continued singing, "The dragon marks are like little stars~"
Leon rolled his eyes. "I'd rather sing, 'I love taking baths, my skin feels great.'"
"Hmph." Rossweise withdrew her gaze, hugging her knees as she looked up at the night sky.
Leon, meanwhile, kept his eyes lowered, not daring to glance sideways, not even paying attention to what he could see in his peripheral vision. She was so close that even the slightest movement of her breathing caused their arms to touch.
It was this downward gaze that gave Leon an idea. Slowly, he extended his hand underwater, reaching downward.
Rossweise was leisurely enjoying the fireworks, pointing at a burst of light. "Leon, look, doesn't that firework look like my dragon mark—hey? Oh—"
Before she could finish, she felt a sudden sensation at the tip of her tail. She looked down to see Leon gently pinching her tail and lifting it out of the water.
Rossweise lowered her eyes in exasperation. "Let go… of my… tail."
"Come on, honey. On such a beautiful night, since we can't hold hands to enjoy the scenery, can't I at least hold your tail?"
He knew Rossweise's tail was an extremely sensitive area. In the few deep interactions he could remember, gently touching and soothing her tail had always been a way to make her "submit" or feel more at ease.
As expected, a blush quickly spread across Rossweise's face. She swallowed nervously, feeling the "tingling" at the tip of her tail, and even briefly entertained the thought of letting Leon squeeze it a little tighter.
However, in the midst of the "no-lighting" challenge, she couldn't allow her tail to be controlled by him. She reached out to reclaim it.
But Leon reacted swiftly, pulling half her tail out of the water and resting it on his own body.
"Leon, you—ah~…"
His warm, broad palm glided over her tail, applying just the right amount of pressure to the tip, sending electric-like shivers through her. Rossweise's body softened, and she unconsciously squeezed her legs together.
Leon watched her reaction with secret satisfaction. Just as he was about to continue, Rossweise unexpectedly took hold of his hand.
"Holding hands while watching fireworks—what's wrong with that, dear… husband?"
"…"
Rossweise held Leon's hand and gradually moved it away from her tail. The tingling sensation subsided, and she breathed a sigh of relief.
Leon stared blankly at their joined hands. He remembered the first time they held hands—under Muen's "matchmaking." The second time was at Isha's house, when Rossweise was afraid of spiders and he offered his hand. And now… she was taking the initiative?
Although her purpose was to move his hand away from her tail, Leon could clearly sense Rossweise's nervousness and… shyness?
While he was lost in thought, Rossweise quickly withdrew her tail and tucked it away.
Leon found his hand empty and sighed with regret after regaining his composure.
Rossweise breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "My tail is a bit uncomfortable today. I'll let you touch it another day."
Leon glanced at her but said nothing.
Rossweise turned back to the night sky.
For the moment, neither made any further moves.
But their hands, still joined from earlier, remained clasped—and seemed to be tightening slightly.
That was how these two competitive individuals were. If one inadvertently applied more pressure, the other would perceive it as a challenge and respond in kind.
It became a vicious cycle until—
"Be gentle, you're hurting me," Rossweise said.
"Oops."
Though brief, that "Oops" was filled with Leon's pride and joy as the victor.
Both of them relaxed their grip simultaneously, returning to the warm, tender hand-holding they started with.
Rossweise had expected the innocent gesture of hand-holding to stir something in Leon, perhaps even cause his dragon mark to light up. But unexpectedly, even as she began to feel a little fluttery herself, the dragon mark on her chest remained unresponsive.
Her mind raced. She had to make a move on Leon before she herself couldn't hold out.
"Oops!" Rossweise suddenly exclaimed.
Leon instinctively wanted to turn his head, but he controlled himself in time. There were no spiders here—that exclamation was surely a trick. He wasn't going to fall for it.
"My dragon mark lit up! Haha, you lose!" Rossweise declared triumphantly.
Leon's heart skipped a beat. He straightened up and looked toward Rossweise's chest, but there was no reaction from the dragon mark. Instead, his gaze inadvertently lingered on the soft curves of her chest.
Beneath the black lace, those proud, full curves seemed almost ready to burst free, with the corner of the dragon mark dipping into the "valley," sparking the imagination.
"Like what you see?" Rossweise teased.
"Like what I see—what are you talking about? I didn't see anything!" Leon quickly turned away.
But that glance had shaken him. Rossweise's chest was nothing short of perfect—well-rounded, distinct, and just the right size.
Leon tightly shut his eyes and shook his head, trying to erase the image from his mind.
"It didn't light up! You tricked me!" he protested.
"Maybe it'll light up if you keep looking," Rossweise said with a smirk.
"Shut up, you evil dragon! I'm not going to look at your dragon mark anymore!"
Splash, splash—
The sound of water grew louder as Rossweise moved closer to Leon's side.
Her soft touch pressed against his arm as she leaned in close to his ear, her voice warm and gentle. "Stop resisting. Let it light up already, and let's end this torturous challenge. It's good for you, and… good for me too."
After several rounds of teasing and scheming, Rossweise had now shifted to ambiguous seduction.
Leon had anticipated this.
"Is it good? Hmm?" She lifted her hand to his shoulder, her tone soft and alluring, making it hard not to waver.
Leon's breath grew heavy and rapid. He knew that if he didn't act soon, Rossweise's dragon mark would inevitably light up.
His mind raced.
What to do when faced with Rossweise's seduction? What to do…
Ding—
Suddenly, he had an epiphany.
Since no matter how he defended, he couldn't resist this mother dragon's ambiguous advances, then…
As he turned around, he reached out and grabbed Rossweise's wrist. Before she could react, Leon gently lifted her chin with his other hand.
Their upper bodies pressed tightly together in the hot spring, the couple locked eyes. The atmosphere grew thick with ambiguity, as if the temperature had risen several degrees.
Rossweise's pupils trembled slightly.
Thump, thump— Was that Leon's heartbeat?
No.
It wasn't.
It was her own…
It was her own heartbeat!
Rossweise bit her lip, her pride as the Silver Dragon Queen refusing to let her lose control of her desires.
Just a flutter of the heart… nothing I can't suppress!
"The feeling of restraint… isn't it uncomfortable?" Leon whispered softly.
Rossweise stared directly into his eyes, showing no signs of backing down. "You're trying hard to restrain yourself too. Don't think I can't tell."
"Alright, then let's see who can hold out until the end."
"Do you think I'm afraid of you, Leon?"
Yet, things seemed to be unfolding in a direction neither had anticipated—
The dragon marks on their chests began to flicker simultaneously!
But this flickering wasn't continuous like before. It was intermittent, like faulty light bulbs, flashing on and off.
Both of them felt a pang of panic.
"What's going on…" Leon asked.
"I don't know, Leon… I… I…"
After a brief moment of panic, they looked at each other again.
In their black and silver eyes, they saw waves of desire and affection for one another.
The dragon marks were the switches of desire, and when those switches malfunctioned, desire would no longer be under control.
The night was deep, the fireworks were bright, and they couldn't tell if the other had blushed or been stirred emotionally. But one thing was certain: they both wanted… to kiss each other's lips.
"Leon…"
"Rossweise…"
She lifted her slender arms and embraced his sturdy back. His cool, soft palm gently held the slender waist beneath the black lace, pulling her tightly into his arms.
As the final cluster of fireworks burst in the sky, Leon leaned in and kissed the Silver Dragon Queen before him.
The world seemed to fade away—the steam of the hot spring, the distant cheers from the fireworks display, the scent of night-blooming flowers carried on the breeze. None of it mattered. There was only the feel of her lips against his, soft and yielding, yet demanding in their response.
Rossweise's hands moved from his back to tangle in his hair, pulling him closer as if she could dissolve the space between them entirely. Leon's grip on her waist tightened, his other hand coming up to cradle the back of her head, fingers threading through silver strands damp from the spring's mist.
The intermittent flickering of their dragon marks steadied into a soft, synchronized glow, pulsing in time with their racing hearts. The challenge was forgotten, the stakes meaningless in the face of this raw, unspoken need that had been simmering between them for so long.
When they finally broke apart, breathless and foreheads resting together, the fireworks had ended. The night was quiet again, save for the gentle lapping of water and their ragged breathing.
Rossweise's silver eyes were dark with emotion, her usual sharpness softened into something vulnerable. Leon's black eyes held a similar warmth, the constant guard he kept up finally lowered.
"Does this mean I win the challenge?" Leon whispered, his voice hoarse.
Rossweise let out a breathless laugh, a genuine, uncalculated sound he rarely heard. "I think… we both lost. And both won."
He nodded slowly, his thumb stroking her cheek. The dragon marks on their chests still glowed, a silent testament to the truth of her words.
The vacation, the camera, the secrets—none of it seemed important anymore. Here, in the quiet aftermath, something had shifted. The lines between captor and captive, dragon and slayer, were blurring into irrelevance, leaving only the undeniable truth of two souls, fiercely opposed yet inextricably bound, finding a fragile, unexpected peace in each other's arms.