Evening, Study Room.
The couple was discussing how to share their love experiences with the people of Rossweise's tribe tomorrow.
Leon expressed serious doubts about this endeavor.
"Your people are seeking your help with genuine emotions, but you're responding with fake love experiences. I don't think that's right."
"We've come this far, where else would I find real love experiences? Just make do with yours."
"How dare you! Mother Dragon, I'm your legitimate husband—how could it be 'make do'?"
The queen crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow and teasing him, "In the first sentence, it's fake love, and in the next, you're the legitimate husband. You change faces quickly, don't you, Cosmodeous?"
"For the relationship between you and me, I have a very flexible set of evaluation criteria."
Rossweise snickered, shaking her head. "Alright, whether it's fake love or a legitimate marriage, we need to come up with something tonight. Otherwise, we'll have nothing to say tomorrow, and everyone will be disappointed. That's not good for the great cause of reviving our race."
Leon sat in his chair, leisurely crossing his legs. "So, Your Majesty, where do you want to begin with the summary?"
"I don't know how to share normal love experiences… I'll just flip through some romance novels."
With that, Rossweise walked to the bookshelf and picked out a few romance novels.
At present, most romance novels follow a similar structure:
The couple meets and then separates. They later encounter each other by coincidence, form a connection due to some event, and finally hold hands, embrace, and kiss.
After flipping through for a while, Rossweise found that the classic love tropes couldn't apply to her and Leon.
Their meeting and getting to know each other was too abstract.
It was so abstract that, even to this day, she could hardly believe it herself.
"How should we beautify our meeting so that everyone can accept it?" Rossweise asked.
Leon frowned slightly, thinking for a moment. After a while, he said seriously,
"That's easy. Just say you fell in love with me at first sight, then you chased me relentlessly for two years until I finally agreed to be with you. After that—"
"Bah! Leon, can you tell me what your face is made of? I want to use it to reinforce the walls of my Silver Dragon Temple. It would be unbreakable!"
Leon grinned and then carefully analyzed it for Rossweise, "I'm not making this up. Think about it. What was the first thing you said to me when you saw me in the dungeon?"
Rossweise blinked and tried to remember.
Before she could speak, Leon finished for her, "You said, 'He's a tough and handsome man. The scars on his face are the perfect feature for this face,' right?"
Rossweise's face turned red, and she stammered, "I… I did say that, but what does that matter?"
"What does it matter? Your Majesty, when you saw me for the first time, you praised me for being handsome. Isn't that love at first sight?" Leon said confidently.
"You!…"
Rossweise laughed in frustration, so angry that she marched over and grabbed his neck. "I'll bite you! Let's see if you can still flaunt that face!"
Rossweise wasn't using much force, and Leon cooperated by gently holding her wrist, rolling his eyes, sticking out his tongue, and pretending to be dead.
Rossweise shook him a few times, still unsatisfied, and then playfully punched his chest.
"Hey, be serious. I don't have any good ideas. Give me some inspiration."
Leon stopped being playful, thought carefully for a moment, and then said, "Your people have very little interaction with the opposite sex, and most of them haven't had much experience with love, so they're very eager for it."
"Mm, and then?"
"Then we need to portray this love as beautifully and passionately as possible, but it shouldn't be too unrealistic."
The queen nodded thoughtfully. "Oh~~ this is called 'immersion,' I understand now."
"So all those novels weren't a waste of time," Leon praised.
Rossweise's silver tail flicked behind her as she smugly hummed.
But the next second, her smile suddenly froze.
Hiss~~
No, wait.
This Queen felt happy and wagged her tail just because he gave her a small compliment about her victory.
Impossible, it must be because she's not in her best state tonight, yes, that's it.
Lost in her thoughts, she heard Leon continue,
"In my opinion, our meeting and getting to know each other isn't the main point you'll share tomorrow. Your people are all dating within the same group; everyone has lived in the Silver Dragon Tribe for decades, even centuries, so they've all known each other for a long time. There's no need for some coincidental romantic encounter, right?"
"Mm~ that makes sense. So should we focus on our daily interactions?"
"Exactly."
Leon said, "However, the way we interact might not suit everyone, since everyone has different personalities and ways of doing things. So, 'interaction' doesn't have a fixed template. It all depends on whether the two people are compatible."
"But there's one thing that lovers must pay attention to when interacting."
Rossweise became intrigued. "What is it?"
"The bottom line."
"The bottom line?"
"Yes," Leon said. "Remember, at the beginning, we used all kinds of methods to torment each other, trying to make the other person feel uncomfortable and disgusted. But looking back now, you'll realize that even when we were at our most conflicted, we never crossed each other's bottom line."
"Give me some examples."
"Remember when you took me back to the empire, and we were in the forest outside, doing… doing that, and then we ran into a dragon-slaying squad, right?"
Rossweise nodded.
"You could have wiped them out right then. You had your magic energy already gathered, ready to strike at any time. But I stopped you, and you didn't make another move. Do you remember what you were thinking at the time?"
Rossweise rested her chin on one hand, lost in thought. After a while, she smiled and looked into Leon's eyes,
"I didn't want to push you too hard. Hmph, it's strange. Even though I hated you so much at that time, I still held back a little, but I don't know why. Any other examples?"
She wasn't someone who liked reminiscing.
Dragons live for too long, and looking back at the past can be exhausting.
But when she thought about her little moments with Leon, she was quite interested.
From enemies at the start to "bedmates and battle partners" now, she wanted to know how things had changed along the way.
"Yeah."
Leon gave another example.
"For example, the first time I controlled you with the dragon tail, we were in the hallway of your room, your maid was outside the door, and I forced you to stay quiet. But if I wanted to ruin you, I could have just opened the door, but I didn't care about what your people thought of me."
Rossweise lightly kicked his knee. "Couldn't you give some better examples? Let's just bury these things in the river of history!"
Leon laughed, and then gently lifted Rossweise's ankle, placing her delicate foot on his lap.
Rossweise didn't resist and let Leon take off her shoe.
The dog-man lowered his head, fiddling with her toes, continuing, "There are so many more. Every time we tried to annoy each other, but still left a bit of space for the other to breathe. Though some of it was because of our daughters, if you and I were cold-hearted, ruthless, and without boundaries, it wouldn't matter how many daughters we had—we'd still hurt each other."
After a pause, Leon said, "Your feet are so soft, they're fun."
The Queen was speechless. "…From love expert to foot fetishist, that transition seems a bit sudden, my dear husband."
Leon grinned and put her shoes back on, then gently lowered her foot.
"Anyway, I believe the most important thing in a relationship is respecting each other's bottom line. No matter what happens, or how many conflicts arise, don't ever touch each other's most vulnerable spots."
Rossweise nodded slowly, genuinely complimenting, "I always thought you were just a warrior who knows how to fight, but turns out you also have a lot of insight into relationships."
Her praise was as rare as a meteor.
Leon beamed with joy, basking in it. "Of course. After all, I was the campus heartthrob back in school. A bunch of girls lined up to ask me out for dinner."
"Oh?"
Rossweise leaned back slightly, crossed her beautiful legs, and gently shook off the slippers from her feet, rubbing her soft foot against Leon's thigh.
Leon thought the Queen was rewarding him.
Cough cough
Although he wasn't a foot fetishist, who could resist the soft, delicate feet of the little queen?
However, just as he was thinking this, the queen mischievously said,
"Then… among these girls, was there a silver-haired senior?"
Leon:?
Oh no.
How did she know about that?
…
Rossweise looked at Leon's expression when his black history was exposed with satisfaction.
Mmm-hmm, just like that—surprise, shock, confusion, disbelief, and a hint of blushing that only a teenage boy would have.
Hubby, you are so cute—
Of course, hubby is fake, and cute is a derogatory term.
The Queen crossed her legs, propped up her chin with one hand, and gazed at Leon with her beautiful silver eyes, her lips curling into a faint smile.
She wasn't in a hurry to continue speaking, almost like she was waiting for Leon to defend himself.
After waiting for a while, she noticed that Leon just sat there awkwardly, although looking like he was sitting on pins and needles, he remained silent, not explaining a single word.
Rossweise raised a beautifully shaped eyebrow. "Don't you want to say something about this silver-haired senior?"
Actually, Rossweise had heard about this silver-haired girl from Leon's master a long time ago.
The late-night truth-telling sessions at 2:30 AM also made Rossweise aware of her.
In her impression, Rossweise had never officially discussed this matter with Leon. She had only teased him once or twice using the excuse of 'I heard you talking in your sleep.'
So now, she wanted to take advantage of the juicy information she had just gotten from Rebecca and talk about the mysterious 'silver-haired female classmate.'
Ah, Not talk, just purely wanted to tease him a little, and see his embarrassed and awkward expression.
If, after being embarrassed, he could still cheer her up, she would let him off easy;
But if he couldn't cheer her up, hmph, don't blame the Queen for spilling the vinegar jar all over his head!
"Say… something…"
Leon swallowed, "What do you want to hear?"
"You can say anything, I'll listen."
Rossweise smiled leisurely, "I remember a long time ago, you were still thinking about her when you were talking in your sleep."
"I never talk in my sleep, you must be framing me."
"Is that so? I don't care, anyway, in your dull life, there must have been such a silver-haired classmate who left a deep impression on you, right?"
"..."
Leon wasn't sure where this mother dragon had heard about it, but he pursed his lips and reluctantly admitted, "Yes."
"Then talk about it, how far did things go with her? Did you kiss her?" The Queen leaned back, hands on her chest, adopting an interrogation posture like a criminal suspect.
She knew perfectly well that nothing had happened between Leon and that girl, pure as white paper.
But she just wanted Leon to say it out loud.
Leon rubbed his palms and looked down at the floor, "No…"
"Didn't kiss? Then you must have held hands, right?"
"Em, I held her wrist when we danced, but that doesn't count as holding hands."
"Danced? You even danced with her?"
"No, no, no, it was a social dance hosted by the academy, everyone had to participate, and we only danced one song.
Oh my…
Even when General Leon defeated Constantine, he wasn't sweating this much trying to calm down Rossweise.
After all, no dragon king could be solved by a single thunderclap, but no vinegar king could be calmed down by just a word or two. If there was one, it certainly wasn't her, Rossweise Melkvey!
"Did you ever dance with me?" Rossweise asked.
"You never mentioned dancing…"
"If I didn't mention it, does that mean you wouldn't have told me?"
Leon: ...
Everyone, what exactly does marriage bring to men?
It makes them shiver.
Leon sighed quietly, then asked softly, "Rossweise, are you… jealous? Or angry?"
Rossweise's eyes flickered slightly, then she slowly stood up, walked in front of Leon, bent down, and extended her hand, gently scratching the bridge of Leon's nose with her finger.
"I'm not jealous, nor am I angry. I don't care about that female classmate at all. Alright, turn off the lights and come to bed."
She straightened up and walked out of the study.
Soon, the sound of shoes dropping on the floor was heard, and she crawled into bed, letting out a relaxed sigh.
Leon sat quietly in his seat, hesitating if he should just sleep on the sofa tonight…
His master had said before, that women's words should be interpreted oppositely.
When she says she doesn't want something, that means she does;
When she says it doesn't matter, it matters;
When she says she's not angry or jealous, it means she's definitely "pouring vinegar."
Leon asked, was that how mistress was?
His master replied, of course, otherwise, how would I have figured it out?
Leon asked again, does that mean all women's words should be interpreted oppositely?
His master thought for a moment, then replied, not really. When she tells you to come to bed, you don't need to interpret it oppositely, because she wants you to come to bed.
At that time, his master didn't go into depth, since this sort of thing was obvious between an old married couple. Leon was still too young, so his master just laughed it off.
Returning to the present, Leon slowly sighed, then stood up, turned off the study light, and went to the bedroom.
He pulled back the blanket and lay down.
The warmth and scent of Rossweise had already filled the bed.
Leon turned his head and saw Rossweise lying with her back to him, the shoulder strap of her nightgown slipping off her shoulder, casually hanging on her pale arm.
Leon opened his mouth, wanting to explain more about the female classmate.
But after thinking for a moment, he decided to give up.
I'll talk about it properly tomorrow… Leon thought.
However, just as he was about to close his eyes and fall asleep, he heard a soft voice from beside him.
"Are we sleeping like this?"
"...What else do you want, my Queen?"
"Idiot."
Rossweise's tone carried a hint of grievance. "If you want to sleep, just sleep, good night."
Leon's thoughts stirred.
Wait.
She told me to come to bed, and then asked, "Are we sleeping like this?" Didn't these behaviors all indicate one thing: She is waiting for me to give her a clear answer?
General Leon's mind unusually worked hard on this issue of comforting his wife.
He turned around and looked at Rossweise's delicate back. Her silver hair shone like a starry river in the moonlight.
After a long while, Leon spoke, "I have no relationship with that female classmate. The most ambiguous thing that happened was just dancing to one song. After the dance, I never really spoke to her again."
"Mm."
Her reaction was somewhat indifferent.
That meant Leon hadn't quite hit the mark yet.
General Leon's brain raced again. After a moment, he continued, "To this day, I can't even remember her name. Back then, I couldn't have had any feelings for her, could I?"
"Hmm."
Still didn't hit the mark?
Leon scratched the corner of his mouth.
This time, he thought for a long time before speaking, "You are the first woman I've hugged, held hands with, and kissed."
"Mm-hmm, is that so?"
There was a reaction!
That's it!
Her tone even carried a bit of smugness.
"Yes."
Leon said, "Actually, back in school, I was pretty slow and stubborn. I only wanted to find a girl who was perfect in my mind to be my lover, but 'perfection' almost doesn't exist in this world."
"That silver-haired classmate just happened to meet some of my 'perfect' criteria, which is why I tried to get closer to her."
"But after getting to know her, I realized she was completely different from what I had imagined."
"I'm not saying she or other girls are bad, it's just that they all lowered their stance too much when interacting with me, and I don't like that."
"What I want is a lover who can reciprocate in the relationship, not one who just compromises and endures unilaterally."
"For a long time, I thought I'd never meet someone like that."
"Until… I started this fake marriage with you."
"Although saying things like 'You are the one I've been looking for' sounds a bit too… cheesy."
"But…"
Leon pursed his lips, searching for the right words in his mind.
But none felt quite right.
After hesitating for a moment, he smiled bitterly, then immediately became serious and said,
"But you are the one I've been looking for, Rossweise."
After Leon finished speaking, he felt a bit uncertain.
Because throughout the entire process, Rossweise didn't react at all.
He bit his lip, unable to stop himself from wondering if he had said something wrong.
If it were before, he wouldn't care about Rossweise's emotions at all.
But after spending so much time together and seeing the future images, it was hard for him not to care about this woman by his side.
His heart wasn't made of iron. He would feel emotions for Rossweise—sadness, joy, or other feelings.
Leon didn't know if this counted as 'love,' but he… didn't dislike it.
And as for Rossweise…
She had almost been sweetly stunned by what the stupid man just said.
Is this something I could hear?
Hey, hey, hey, I'm a dragon, your enemy, and you… Do you just say all this mushy stuff to me?
Hmm~~
Well said!
That was her purpose in bringing up this topic tonight.
The key was never about the relationship between him and the female classmate, because Rossweise believed in his character.
The point was… she wanted to know her place in his heart.
She needed to hear Leon say she was his first; She needed Leon to admit how important she was to him; Those sweet, ambiguous words, she could never hear enough of.
"Are you done?" Rossweise said, suppressing a smile.
"Ah… done."
"Mm. Hug me."
"Ah… huh?"
"Don't understand? I said, hug me."
"Okay..."
Leon stammered as he crawled up behind Rossweise, gently wrapping his arms around her delicate shoulders.
"Just hugging the shoulders?" Rossweise asked.
"Otherwise…?"
"Hmph, idiot."