Dragon Queen and Dragon Slayer

From those steadfast and sincere silver eyes, she could see only Leon.

"Whether it's a journey of hardship and displacement or smooth sailing, no matter what, Leon and I will never part. That alone is enough, isn't it, Senior?", Her reply wasn't long, in fact, it was quite simple.

But within the simple words was an incredibly firm and composed emotion.

Rossweise was never good at talking about her relationship with Leon in front of outsiders, but Claudia's question about the "ending" had indeed made her reflect.

Compared to so-called "eternity," Rossweise preferred fleeting beauty;

And as for "ending," what she enjoyed more was the process before reaching that ending.

So if you ask Rossweise whether she had thought about the ending with Leon, then her answer would be just that.

It didn't sound like a promise, but rather a settled truth.

Claudia slowly averted her gaze. After carefully savoring Rossweise's reply, she let out a low laugh.

"If Leon heard what you just said, he'd definitely be even happier than now, right?"

Rossweise froze and quickly said, "Senior, you absolutely must not tell him what I just said!"

She had gotten too caught up while answering, blurting out a bunch of cheesy love talk without thinking.

Leon absolutely couldn't be allowed to hear this.

Rossweise wasn't sure whether he'd be happy, but she was sure he would stand there with his hands on his hips, proudly spamming her with, "Haha mother dragon, so you actually like me that much, ayoyo I couldn't tell before" blah blah and all that.

Claudia raised an eyebrow, "Oh? Why not? You two have been married for years, what's wrong with being lovey-dovey?"

"Just don't tell him, okay!"

She was anxious now.

Claudia smiled, "Alright, alright, I won't tell him. This'll be... a little secret between the two of us."

"Mm..."

The little secret about the 'ending' was temporarily put aside.

Claudia squinted toward Donkey and suddenly said, "Donkey's temper has always been pretty stubborn and very wary of strangers, but you managed to calm it down with just one touch."

As she spoke, she looked back toward Rossweise, "Have you already reached the level where you can use 'Soul Judgement' with such finesse?"

Rossweise was slightly surprised.

Just now when she was interacting with Donkey, she had indeed used Soul Judgement to soothe its stubborn temper.

However, that level of magical fluctuation was so subtle that if you weren't paying extremely close attention, it would be completely undetectable.

But Claudia could still perceive it so sharply.

In response to Claudia's question, Rossweise replied openly, "Mm, just a bit of cleverness not worth mentioning."

Rossweise learning Soul Judgement was largely thanks to Claudia.

So it was necessary to stay modest in front of her.

"But how did you know I've studied Soul Judgement, Senior?"

At the beginning, when they asked Tiger to find books related to primordial magic, the couple used the reason "Leon wants to study it."

So logically, when Tiger asked Charlotte for help, he would've used the same excuse.

But Claudia immediately saw through the fact that Rossweise was using Soul Judgement.

That wasn't something that could be explained just by "keen observation."

Upon hearing this, Claudia chuckled, "At first, Charlotte wanted to get some books about primordial magic from me, saying it was for Leon to practice, but primordial magic is, after all, something of our dragon race. For outsiders, it's much more difficult to practice."

"So I started wondering, maybe Leon said he wanted to practice primordial magic just to help you."

Rossweise nodded, "Just as you said, Senior. Back then, we didn't know about the relationship between you, Tiger, and Senior Charlotte, so we made up that lie."

Claudia waved her hand dismissively, not minding at all, "It doesn't count as lying. A considerate husband securing a magic manual for his beloved wife, that's all."

"..."

'Why do you dragons all like to make jokes about 'husbands and wives'?'

'Do I and Leon look that loving?'

'Do we?'

Seriously.

After secretly complaining, Rossweise lowered her gaze to her palm and continued from where Claudia had left off, "I've been practicing Soul Judgement for a long time. After the battle in the far north, I came to understand primordial magic even better. With all this… I should be able to protect my people more effectively."

Claudia quietly listened, resting her chin on one hand, eyes half-closed, gazing off into the distance.

"Most dragons have a natural instinct to pursue greater power. You're no exception. But unlike other dragons who use that power to 'conquer' once they gain it, your desire for strength is to 'protect.' That's a noble aspiration."

Rossweise smiled faintly, "You flatter me, Senior. It's nothing so grand."

"To constantly hone yourself for the sake of the people and things you care about, enduring all manner of hardship. Maybe in the long span of ten thousand years of history it doesn't count as 'great,' but for you personally, it's already more than enough," Claudia said.

As expected of someone whose profession is translating and organizing ancient texts, she really knew how to talk.

No excessive flattery, just thoughtful evaluations and reasoning. Anyone hearing this would feel good.

Rossweise nodded slightly in humility, accepting Claudia's praise.

After a moment of silence, Rossweise asked, "Senior, is the Sea Dragon Clan about to begin the Dragon King succession?"

"Mm, once my father returns, the coronation and succession ceremonies will begin."

"You're the next Sea Dragon King?"

"What, you planning to challenge me for it?", Claudia joked.

Rossweise covered her mouth and chuckled, "No such thing, Senior."

Within the dragon race, the throne isn't passed down by inheritance but goes to whoever has the ability to take it.

Like how Isa often jokes with Little Light, saying, "When you grow up, auntie will pass you the title of Red Dragon King", that's just teasing.

To truly sit on the throne and become the revered king of a dragon race, one needs strength and wisdom.

But that doesn't mean the children of a dragon king don't have a shot at competing for the throne.

Take Claudia for example. She's the eldest princess of the current Sea Dragon King, and after rounds of competition and selection, she ultimately qualified to become the next Sea Dragon King.

And after spending so much time with Claudia, Rossweise could tell as a fellow Dragon King that Claudia fully possessed what it takes.

This was great, Leon's connections just leveled up again.

Not only was his wife a Dragon King, and his sister-in-law a Dragon King, now even his "mother-in-law" was about to become one.

"But I've never been a Dragon King before. In this field, you're my senior," Claudia said.

"Not at all…"

"Come to think of it, you became a Dragon King at such a young age. Your future is sure to be bright."

Most dragons only ascend to the throne at a minimum of five hundred years old.

Rossweise, however, became the current Silver Dragon King at just one hundred and fifty.

Just as Claudia said, with such effort and talent, her future was boundless.

"I've always believed… being king has nothing to do with age. As long as one's ability is sufficient, that's all that matters."

That line sounded quite deep at first.

But in truth, Rossweise's thoughts at the time were a bit off-track.

She was thinking: 'Noah darling, hurry and grow up. When you turn twenty, go run for Dragon King. Then by twenty-five, ascend the throne, and Mom can retire and run a farm with your dad!'

Jokes aside, the idea of a "twenty-five-year-old Dragon King" was still kind of terrifying.

Pulling her thoughts back, following the topic of succession and coronation, Rossweise naturally steered the conversation toward the Empire.

"The current King of the Empire… should take a rest already, don't you think, Senior?"

Claudia immediately picked up on what Rossweise meant in those words.

"What, Leon's planning to officially declare war on the Empire?"

"Mm. All the evidence to prove his innocence and expose the Empire's conspiracy is already in hand. Dragging this out any longer will only lead to more needless sacrifices."

"That's good. I've long had enough of that damn emperor. Back then, he even dared to covet Charlotte's protective dragon scale."

'Ah, as expected, just like Leon said, Claudia also has no fondness for the Empire.'

Which meant… recruiting her for help would be much easier.

"But, Senior, we may be a bit short on manpower on our side…", Rossweise said tentatively.

Claudia's gaze, which had been admiring the scenery, paused slightly. Then she slowly turned to look at Rossweise beside her.

Rossweise also met Claudia's eyes without flinching.

After a short stare-down, the blue-haired mature beauty gave a small laugh, "So all this time, you were trying to get me to help out, huh?"

"If Senior is willing to help, that would be best."

After a pause, Rossweise added, "If you have any conditions, just say the word. As long as it's within our ability—"

"Conditions, of course I have some. I wouldn't help for free."

Claudia lowered her head and fiddled with her nails.

Rossweise pursed her lips, mentally prepared for Claudia to make some outrageous demand.

"Then… have your eldest daughter come stay at my place for a few days sometime, how's that?"

"…Huh?", Rossweise thought she misheard.

Claudia shrugged, "Helena really wants to play with Noah. If you can do that, I'll help with your little problem."

To be honest, the condition Claudia offered was basically nothing at all.

No money, no resources, just wanted her daughter's best friend to come over for a few days.

This was pretty much an act of pure loyalty.

But after a brief moment of thought, Rossweise didn't immediately agree.

Seeing Rossweise hesitate, Claudia was a little surprised and asked,

"What's wrong? You can't even fulfill such a small request?"

She herself knew that the request she made was basically meaningless. It was just an excuse to help this married couple and, in passing, vent a little for Charlotte.

But Claudia didn't expect that even so, Rossweise would still hesitate?

"It's not that I can't do it, it's just… Leon and I have always respected our daughters' wishes, so I don't really want… to use my daughter as a bargaining chip for you to help us."

Claudia froze, blinked, and immediately realized, "Oh~ that's the human parenting philosophy, right?"

Claudia was a relatively traditional dragon. Helena had grown up receiving very dragon-style family education.

That kind of tradition wasn't bad. After all, Helena had grown up healthy and well.

But compared to Noah and her sisters, Helena's upbringing did seem a bit… stifled.

And when Claudia had brought up Noah earlier, she hadn't realized that Rossweise didn't want her daughter involved in negotiations or transactions.

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