In the past, she would never have let her personal feelings influence her decisions.
But after spending so much time with Leon, Rossweise was quietly changing.
She was willing to embrace new ideas and incorporate them into her commands;
She was also willing to "lead by example," putting her relationship with Leon on display for the clan, allowing them to better understand what true "love" was.
Even after fifty years of being a queen, she was still constantly evolving.
What Leon admired most about them was their thirst for the unknown and their determination to pursue it.
They were similar in many ways. Besides the fact that both their faces happened to hit each other's XP, the admirable qualities in her deeply attracted him as well.
Leon withdrew his gaze and looked up at the night sky, exhaling slowly.
He wasn't much of a drinker, so he hadn't joined the Silver Dragons at the bonfire party.
Plus… Rossweise's speech earlier was just too "heartfelt," so much so that every time Leon thought back on it, his toes curled in embarrassment.
He looked at the courtyard, scanning the ground.
What was all over it?
Nothing but the goosebumps General Leon had dropped!
With that thought, Leon drew in a sharp breath, squinting at the dragons still dancing and singing around the fire, and muttered under his breath, necessary to be that cheesy… seriously."
Shaking his head to dispel the awkward memory, Leon turned away from the bedroom and headed to the sisters' room where Noah and the others slept.
It was already late at night, and the children were fast asleep.
Leon only peeked in from the doorway and didn't go inside to disturb them.
After leaving the sisters' room, Leon made his way to the temple hall.
Rossweise's new throne had already been completed, and before the bonfire party earlier, she had told Leon to wait for her here.
She'd been all mysterious about it, so he had no idea what she was up to.
Leon's eyes fell on the newly constructed throne at the top of the steps, and he inwardly grumbled, "Don't tell me she's going to show off her new office chair."
If you put it nicely, it was the queen's throne; If you didn't, well, it was just the queen's workstation.
No lies detected.
Leon hesitated for a moment before stepping up the stairs to the throne.
"Whoa, it's a lot bigger than before. You could fit two people on here."
As he spoke, he gingerly sat down.
The moment his backside touched the cushion—
Mmm!
Heaven!
Leon closed his eyes, savoring the perfect way the soft cushion molded to the platform. At that moment, he had an epiphany.
"No wonder they rebuilt it. This isn't a throne anymore; lazy chair dragons ragoness, you've grown slack!
As a workaholic, how can you use such a comfy office chair?
Might as well move this throne into my bedroom, and you can just make do with a little stool!
Leon sprawled on the throne, trying out various positions.
Lying down, sitting upright, feet up, flipping over, headstand, one-legged stance…
"Damn, this is amazing!"
Even the well-traveled General Leon couldn't help but give such praise.
This throne could support so many resting positions; the dragons put a lot of thought into it.
But after enjoying it for a while, Leon suddenly realized something, "Wait… something's not right. With her personality, she wouldn't just rebuild such a comfy throne for no reason. She's not a fan of indulgent spending."
Leon touched the armrest, trying to figure out why Rossweise would go out of her way to renovate the throne.
And even though it was still called a "throne," what kind of dragon king's throne was this spacious?
Spacious enough for Leon to do military drills on it.
"I'll just ask her when she gets back. If it is just wasteful spending, I'll have to educate her properly!"
Leon sat on the throne, waiting patiently.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but eventually, the bonfire in the courtyard died down, and the noise gradually subsided.
By now, Leon was feeling a bit drowsy too.
In a daze, he heard the crisp sound of high heels clicking on the floor behind the throne.
Without needing to turn around, Leon already knew who it was just by the rhythm of those footsteps.
"Little lion~ My little lion~ Are you there?"
She was humming an unfamiliar tune, speaking nonsense, clearly having had a bit too much to drink.
Leon stared straight ahead, rolling his eyes in silence, not bothering to greet her.
Drinking until this late, she still remembered she had a home to come back to, huh?
It wasn't until the faint scent of wine drifted into Leon's nose that he lifted his head to look at her.
Rossweise's face was slightly flushed, her gaze dreamy, her lips curled in a silly smile. She was holding a half-finished bottle of red wine in her hand.
"Good morning!" Rossweise greeted him.
"How much did you drink…?"
Rossweise hummed for a while as if trying to recall.
In the end, she held up two fingers.
"Only two bottles, and you're already like this? If you can't drink, don't drink."
"Two cases."
"😐"
Leon silently gave her a thumbs up.
Rossweise squinted at him, still smiling, then casually plopped herself down on Leon's lap.
She wasn't some seventy or eighty-pound lightweight; Her Majesty the Queen had all the right curves in all the right places, with a perfectly healthy weight. When she sat on Leon's lap, he could feel her full weight pressing down.
"You're certainly not shy, are you?"
Though Leon teased her with his words, he still carefully supported her waist to keep her from toppling over in her drunken state.
"This is the temple, you know. What if someone sees us?"
"It's fine. No one will see."
Rossweise said, "I gave everyone the night off. Tonight, the entire temple hall is just the two of us."
Leon sighed, "So, why did you ask me to wait for you here? Don't tell me you got so drunk that you can't find your way back to the bedroom and need me to take you."
"Of course not. I remember the way back to the bedroom." Rossweise proudly puffed out her chest.
Leon was skeptical, "So which floor is our bedroom on in the temple?"
"Em… the third floor!" Rossweise held up five fingers.
"It's the fourth floor."
"Aah! I was going to say the fourth floor! Yes, the fourth floor!" She lowered two fingers, leaving three.
Isn't this just outright nonsense?!
Leon slapped his hand against his face.
She's hopeless.
He gently pressed down on Rossweise's hand and sat up straight, leaning in close to her, face-to-face.
"Put the bottle down. Let's go back to sleep."
"No."
"Why not? You're already drunk."
"It's rare for it to be just the two of us. Going to bed so early would spoil the mood, wouldn't it?"
Leon snorted, "What mood is there to spoil between you and me? Just go to sleep."
"I! Won't!"
Rossweise dug her heels in, wrapping her arms around Leon's shoulders and coiling her tail around his leg.
Her warm breath brushed against Leon's lips, carrying a faint scent of wine.
He had to admit, a slightly tipsy Rossweise was more alluring than usual.
Leon couldn't resist her and had no choice but to obediently wait until she sobered up a bit before taking her back.
She sat on Leon's lap like a duck, her soft chest pressing against his, getting very close, but intentionally keeping a certain distance.
Her red lips brushed near Leon's mouth, neither too close nor too far. She knew well that if she kissed him now, Leon wouldn't refuse.
But she chose to hold back, teasing him instead.
She wanted to let the fire in both of their hearts burn even stronger.
"How was my speech today?" Rossweise asked.
"Do you want the truth?"
"Of course."
"It was a way! Too! Cheesy!" Leon wasn't afraid, to be honest. "I practically got goosebumps all over."
"How was it cheesy? Didn't you see how my people were all rooting for the two of us?"
Rossweise said, "This just shows how our usual act has become so convincing. Everyone thinks we're truly that loving. I simply used that to promote the revival of the live-birth plan. Hmph, fool, you don't understand anything."
Leon's thoughts stirred, and he tightened his grip around Rossweise's waist a little more before asking, "So, those words from your speech… were they from your heart?"
Rossweise raised her beautiful eyebrows.
"What do you think? Of course, they weren't from my heart."
She leaned down, resting lightly on Leon's shoulder, her fingers playing with his earlobe, speaking slowly, "It was all just to make everyone believe in love. Of course, I had to make it sound touching. You didn't… take it seriously, did you?"
"Hmm, I did. Are you going to take responsibility for that?"
Hearing this, Rossweise suddenly sat up, a hint of surprise and joy flashing across her slightly drunk face. Then, she snorted a couple of times and said, "Well, you're out of luck. I'm not taking responsibility. I said those words just to deceive people. If you believe them, that's your problem. It has nothing to do with me."
"Is that so, Rossweise?"
The hand holding her waist slowly moved down to the base of her tail, and Leon gently stroked the root of her tail with his fingertips.
Rossweise's body softened, but her mouth remained stubborn. "O-Of course it is! I don't love you… not even a little."
She lay on Leon's chest, her fingers unconsciously gripping his clothes.
Rossweise bit her lip as the alcohol surged through her brain, and an overwhelming sense of unwillingness suddenly rose in her heart.
In the end, she grabbed Leon's collar and sat up abruptly, looked him in the eyes, and boldly denied her earlier words.
"I like you. Everything I said during the day was true. I've fallen in love. I'm done for. So what?"
Leon had long guessed that the little dragoness was being contradictory and, having had a bit of alcohol, would eventually tell the truth, so he hadn't been in any hurry.
"What are you laughing at, huh? Laugh, laugh, laugh. I'm telling you, I'm only saying this because I'm drunk."
"When tomorrow morning comes, and I'm sober, I won't admit to anything!"
"Got it? Say something!"
She coquettishly pushed Leon's shoulder.
Leon continued to smile faintly.
He sat up slowly, one hand still gently stroking her tail, while the other hand slowly caressed her smooth, tender back.
"Say a little more, Melkvey."
"I don't want to."
"Didn't you say that, since you're drunk now, anything you say doesn't count? You won't admit to any of it in the morning anyway. So, if that's the case, saying a bit more doesn't hurt, does it?"
Soothing drunk dragons was just like coaxing a child.
It just so happened that General Leon was an expert at handling kids!
Rossweise was indeed swayed.
She averted her eyes, her face as red as a tomato, and murmured in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
"Then, what do you want to hear?"
"Say you want to be with me for a lifetime."
Rossweise pouted. "No… Ah~ don't squeeze my tail, you bad guy…"
She made a half-hearted attempt to push Leon's hand away, but her tail remained firmly in his grasp.
"Say it; you want to be with me for a lifetime." Leon pressed her step by step.
The blush spread to the tips of the queen's ears.
She pursed her lips, wanting to speak but feeling too shy to open her mouth.
Being together for a lifetime… even when drunk, it was still incredibly embarrassing to say it out loud!
This wicked man, always taking advantage of her!