Vol. 2 Ch. 21

More than half a month had passed since the incident with Maureen, and Leon had found no further clues about the Empire’s collaboration with the dragons.

He had asked Rosvisser when the internal turmoil within the Flame Dragon Clan would settle down.

He was eager to investigate the Flame Dragon Clan member mentioned in Maureen’s memories, the one who had been involved with Constantine.

But Rosvisser told him not to consider that path anytime soon and suggested he pursue other leads instead.

Other leads?

Those amounted to nothing.

Frustrated, Leon had no choice but to temporarily put his investigation on hold.

As everyone knows, when important matters are forced to pause, people often find strange ways to burn off excess energy.

And no, this wasn’t about "assignments."

Anyone thinking otherwise—go reflect on your thoughts!

Actually, this had to do with Aurora.

Now that she was over a month old, Leon took her everywhere he went these past few days.

It seemed quite mysterious.

Rosvisser had secretly followed him once or twice, curious to see what he was doing with their precious daughter.

What she discovered was that, throughout the day, the phrase Leon said most often to Aurora was:

“Aurora, sweetie, say ‘daddy.’”

This reminded Rosvisser of a previous argument she and Leon had about whether Aurora’s first word would be “daddy” or “mommy.”

Considering the timing, it was indeed nearing the point when their little dragon would begin to speak.

Rosvisser realized that Leon was getting ahead of himself—prepping early.

And if that’s the case... there’s no way she’d let Leon win so easily!

Aurora’s first word *must* be “mommy!”

Ah, that nostalgic feeling—it was time to compete for the title of "head of the household" again.

But Rosvisser was busy with work during the day and had limited time to spend with the baby at night. For at least half of every day, Aurora was always with Leon.

Even the most self-aware and resistant young dragon couldn’t withstand twelve hours of “say daddy” brainwashing, right?

So, the first step in Rosvisser’s plan was to separate Leon from Aurora.

The plan was clear, and it wasn’t hard to execute.

That morning, Rosvisser was handling her duties in the grand hall of the sanctuary, as usual.

Before long, hurried footsteps echoed through the hall.

“Where’s Aurora? Where did my little Aurora go?” General Leon was, of course, frantic after realizing the baby was missing.

Rosvisser calmly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and continued working, not even looking up. “I sent Shirley to take Moon and Aurora to play in the back hills.”

With Noa at school, only their second daughter and the baby were left at home.

Upon learning where his daughter was, Leon turned to leave without delay.

“Where are you going?” Rosvisser asked.

“To find Moon and Aurora.”

“No need.”

“Why?”

Rosvisser blinked her lovely eyes. She couldn’t outright tell Leon, “I don’t want you spending too much time alone with Aurora,” so she had to come up with another excuse.

“You’ve been spending all your time with our daughters lately, but not with me. I’m so bored.”

“Why would it benefit you for me to puke all over your Silver Dragon Sanctuary?”

Rosvisser thought for a moment, then set down her pen and stood up, offering her seat.

“Leon, sit here.”

Leon: ?

“What are you doing? You’re testing me, aren’t you? I’m not falling for it.”

Leon’s mind raced. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re plotting. The moment I sit down, you’ll accuse me of ‘usurping the throne.’ Silly dragon, such a low-level scheme!”

Rosvisser blinked in confusion, her eyes filled with innocence.

“What kind of dirty power struggle are you talking about, Cosmod?”

“You’ve been by my side, learning about power, but this is what you’ve picked up? Ridiculous!”

“No, no, you see, you’re my husband—”

“*Fake* husband,” Leon corrected.

“Okay, okay, fake husband. But in the eyes of Anna and the others, you’re still the rightful prince.”

Rosvisser coaxed him, “So what’s wrong with the prince sitting on the throne? Even if I wanted to accuse you of usurping power, no one would take it seriously, right?”

Hmm...

She had a point.

Leon glanced at the Silver Dragon Throne. It looked like a lot of money had gone into making it.

As General Cosmod, who had fought countless battles and slain more dragons than pigs, Leon had never sat on a dragon king’s throne.

Why not?

Since Rosvisser was offering so generously today, Leon figured he might as well give it a try. Let’s see if the throne was really worth all the fuss dragons made over it.

He placed his hands on the armrests and slowly sat down.

There was still a bit of warmth—Rosvisser’s leftover heat.

But, to be honest, the throne... wasn’t that comfortable.

It was kind of hard.

Sitting there, facing the grand entrance of the Silver Dragon Sanctuary, Leon took in the entire luxurious hall.

This was the view Rosvisser saw every day.

Magnificent, yet tinged with monotony.@@novelbin@@

Leon shifted his gaze to the desk in front of him.

The ornate mahogany desk was piled with work documents and logs, nearly forming a small mountain.

This scene stirred Leon’s memories.

He recalled the celebration banquet after defeating Constantine, when a tipsy Rosvisser had confided in him.

She had said the throne was nothing but a giant cage, and she, the queen, was trapped by it.

At the time, Leon hadn’t fully understood what she meant.

But now, he could somewhat grasp what it felt like to be a ruler.

Or rather, the cost of ruling.

No wonder his master had advised him to stay out of the affairs of those in power and just do his job as a “screw.”

“How does it feel?” Rosvisser asked from beside him.

“It feels... okay, I guess.”

Leon couldn’t quite describe his feelings after sitting on the throne.

A mix of confusion, suppression... and a bit of... well, concern for Rosvisser?

Let’s call it “concern,” for lack of a better word.

Despite his eloquence, General Leon couldn’t find a more fitting term.

As he was lost in thought, Leon suddenly felt something soft pressing against him.

He turned to see Rosvisser had sidled up beside him, squeezing into the throne with him.

Leon scooted over a bit, giving her more room.

The two sat shoulder to shoulder, leg pressed against leg. Even after Leon shifted, it was still quite cramped.

Leon rested his hands on his knees, lips pursed, looking a bit awkward. “It’s... pretty small, huh?”

“Yeah, they didn’t consider that I might have a husband to share the throne with when they made it, so it’s just my size,” Rosvisser responded lightly.

She paused, then flashed a mischievous smile at Leon, resting her chin on his shoulder.

“So, how about we get a bigger throne made? Big enough for both of us to sit on it... and do other things?”