Chapter 74: Hand in Hand, Forever

Rosvitha’s current mood was somewhat complicated.

On one hand, there was the lingering fear from being startled by the spider.

On the other hand, Leon suddenly holding her hand left her feeling somewhat bewildered.

But if one were to describe this so-called ‘bewilderment’ more specifically, it was probably… shyness?

Though she was reluctant to admit it, her flushed and heated cheeks were the most compelling evidence.

Should she continue to enjoy this innocent shyness, or… release Leon’s hand and pretend nothing happened?

Contemplating, Rosvitha subconsciously took a deep breath.

However, this action led Leon to mistakenly believe that she was still afraid, so he tightened his grip even more.

Like an electric current, it spread from Rosvitha’s palm to her fingertips, tingling and numb, making her involuntarily respond to Leon’s touch.

From interlocking fingers to tightly clasping them, it didn’t seem so… awkward, Rosvitha thought.

So after a brief hesitation, she completely discarded the idea of “letting go of his hand and pretending nothing happened.”

What nothing happened?

As the Silver Dragon Queen, she dared to do anything and had never treated anything as if it hadn’t happened before.

What’s embarrassing about holding hands?

Just hold them.

Alright.

The reason was simply too perfect; Rosvitha silently praised herself in her heart.

“Thinking back to the last time we held hands—”

Leon, looking up at the ceiling, spoke leisurely.

Rosvitha glanced at him, her silver eyes carrying a hint of anticipation.

“It was during our last outing together,” Rosvitha added.

“I know, I just wanted to hear you say it,” Leon replied.

Rosvitha sighed. “Alright, I said it. What next?”

Leon shook his head and asked, “Why are your hands always so cold?”

“I have a naturally cold constitution.”

“You’ve lived for over two hundred years and haven’t done anything about it?”

“It can’t be cured, I told you it’s natural.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Leon remarked, “Your hands are sweating.”

“It’s you.”

“No, it must be you. Holding hands with you wouldn’t make me nervous enough to sweat.”

“Hmph, I bet you’re sweating buckets by now. Stop pretending.”

Leon glanced at Rosvitha’s chest. “Your dragon mark isn’t glowing, which proves I haven’t taken this seriously at all.”

“Are you seriously thinking about that just because we’re holding hands?

What a pure-hearted little boy you are! Besides, your dragon mark isn’t glowing either—”

As soon as the words fell, a faint purple light began to shimmer from under the covers on Leon’s side.

Rosvitha panicked, “N-no, it’s impossible! Absolutely impossible!”

“Oh, Your Majesty, are you flustered? Holding hands with me seems to have made you all jittery, hasn’t it?” Leon teased proudly.

Rosvitha’s eyes flickered. After a brief moment of panic, she immediately caught on.

She kicked off the covers, revealing Leon’s chest.

There, she saw his other hand clutching the purple ambient lamp she had used to scare him, pretending it was the glow of a dragon mark.

Rosvitha squinted, scrutinizing Leon.

Leon’s smile shifted from smugness to embarrassment.

He sheepishly tossed the ambient lamp on the ground. “I said it jumped into my hand by itself. Do you believe me?”

Rosvitha replied sarcastically, “Sure, I believe whatever you say.”

“Aww, my dear, you’re so kind~”

“Don’t be ridiculous, idiot!”

Despite their playful banter, their hands never let go, clasped tightly together.

Gradually, Rosvitha’s racing pulse, triggered by the spider scare, subsided.

Their grip became more natural, no longer exerting unnecessary force.

This relaxed state was the most comfortable—otherwise, with the strength of this mother dragon, Leon might end up needing a cast by tomorrow if they kept squeezing so hard.

But the night was long, and neither of them felt sleepy.

After a few jokes, they both began to feel a bit bored.

“Hey,” Leon’s tone became more serious.

“What?” Rosvitha responded.

“About your criteria for choosing a partner…”

“It’s fake. It’s been over a hundred years, don’t take it seriously.”

“Oh, so what are your current criteria then?”

“I don’t have any criteria now.”

As she said this, Leon could feel her fingers twitch slightly.

Leon wasn’t sure what this slight movement meant.

But based on his understanding of this mother dragon… her words just now probably weren’t entirely sincere, right?

Hmm, strange. What does his sincerity have to do with Rosvitha’s criteria for choosing a partner?

Why would he care about Rosvitha’s criteria for choosing a partner?

It must be because tonight was too boring, and they were having trouble falling asleep, so they had run out of topics to talk about.

Yeah, that must be it.

The excuse was perfect, Leon silently praised himself in his heart.

It was surprising how alike they were in fooling themselves in this aspect—

They both loved to give themselves a ‘perfect reason’ and praise themselves for it.

When would they ever share their inner thoughts? Let the other one also praise and comment a bit?

Leon sighed, trying to relax.

Rosvitha glanced at him and asked, “Why the sigh?”

“Huh? Oh, nothing, just trying to relax and fall asleep sooner.”

“Mm…”

Their hands remained clasped under the covers, but after a long time maintaining the same position, their fingers inevitably began to feel a bit numb.

Leon tried to move his thumb, but this unintentional action inadvertently created a sensation as if he was lightly stroking the back of Rosvitha’s hand.

The hand beside Rosvitha instinctively tightened the hem of her skirt.

This guy… just hold hands, don’t start touching everywhere! You’re a prisoner, yet you dare to touch your captor.

Alright then, I’ll touch you too!

Rosvitha also moved her fingers, the warm and smooth fingertips brushing over the old scar on Leon’s hand, creating a unique sensation.

The saying goes, “ten fingers connected to the heart,” and especially in this intimate and ambiguous atmosphere, the feeling it brought was even more extraordinary.

Even the slightest touch could tug at each other’s heartstrings.

Tingling, itching—

They both wanted to… do something more.

Gulp—

Rosvitha suddenly heard Leon swallowing.

It seemed… that at this moment, this guy was feeling the same as she was.

As the night grew darker, people’s hearts seemed to be cloaked in a layer of secrecy.

They always wanted to take advantage of this moment to do things they wouldn’t normally dare to do.

Once such thoughts arose, they would intensify like the resonance of dragon marks.

Rosvitha licked her slightly dry lips, wanting to say something, but the words stuck in her throat.

It was really strange… This thing called “ambiguity” was like water, seeping in everywhere, always slipping in when they least expected it.

At the same time, it possessed a more captivating effect than any carefully crafted flirting technique.

Leon and Rosvitha had never lain together in such a conscious state, still holding each other’s hands.

The raw and naive affection took root in their hearts, then grew wildly.

This had nothing to do with their usual “hostility.” In this moment, in this night, they were both drowning in ambiguity.

Thud—

The waterbed made a dull sound.

They both unconsciously leaned closer to each other.

The lace border of Rosvitha’s sheer nightgown gently brushed against Leon’s hand. Underneath the nightgown was her soft body, radiating increasing warmth.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through their minds simultaneously:

Just for tonight.

They both turned their heads to look at each other.

In the moment when their black and silver eyes met, no more words were needed.

Leon gently rose, still holding Rosvitha’s hand tightly in one hand, while the other hand wandered over, embracing her fragrant shoulder.

The sexy nightgown slipped from her shoulder, revealing half of her chest, leaving onlookers breathless.

She lowered her eyelashes slightly, her gaze hazy, captivating.

Despite this being behavior spurred by the atmosphere of ambiguity, Rosvitha still tried to add her own touch to it.

She lifted her long legs and gently rubbed against Leon’s calf.

Skin against skin, smooth and delicate.

Then, she reached out her hand, lightly lifting Leon’s chin with her index finger, while her body slowly retreated.

Their gaze, their expression, seemed to say, “Come on, devour me.”

Rosvitha retreated to the innermost edge of the bed, with no way to retreat further.

Leon leaned in closer to her, their noses touching, their breaths mingling.

Interestingly, although they both knew what would happen next, their dragon marks showed no reaction at all.

After all, dragon marks were just a kind of magic used to add spice to things.

When both parties had the purest appreciation and desire for each other, even without dragon marks, everything would naturally fall into place.

Under the cover of night, Rosvitha was stunningly beautiful.

She closed her eyes, welcoming what was to come.

Leon didn’t hesitate either, responding to Rosvitha.

But just as their lips were about to touch, a small black object suddenly dropped onto Rosvitha’s arm.

“Ah!—”

Before Leon could react, there was a silver little head in his arms.

She held onto Leon’s shoulder tightly, burying her head in his chest.

A tail.

The tail had been scared out again, tightly coiled around Leon’s waist.

Leon calmed down from the atmosphere of ambiguity, patting Rosvitha’s head gently while picking up the spider and flicking it away.

Similarly, this spider felt… strange.

Leon furrowed his brows slightly. “It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s gone now.”

But how could there be so many spiders in the guest room of the Red Dragon Temple?

He gently stroked the back of the beauty in his arms and looked up at the ceiling.

Sure enough, he discovered a clue.

A small, hinged mechanism was slowly closing.

It seemed that the “spider” had dropped from there.

As for who orchestrated this twisted mechanism, Leon could easily guess.

So… what was the purpose of the scheming elder sister?

Leon glanced at the spot where the first spider had dropped.

He compared the distance between the two spots and the width of the waterbed.

After a moment of contemplation, Leon couldn’t help but smile wryly.

He understood.

The spider mechanism would only trigger on both sides of the waterbed, and it wouldn’t activate if they were pressed together from the beginning.

It was only when Rosvitha had inadvertently triggered the spider mechanism by moving to the corner of the waterbed just before they were about to kiss.

Well done, elder sister—

You’ve calculated everything so accurately for us.

After realizing this, the timid mother dragon in his arms stopped trembling.

Leon patted her shoulder. “Do you want to keep holding onto me like this?”

Although somewhat reluctant, the silver-haired little head nodded twice.

Now Rosvitha didn’t feel like they were in some S&M-themed couple suite anymore.

It felt more like an “adventure chamber,” with traps hidden at every step.

In such a situation, where was the safest place?

Well, it was in Leon’s embrace.

If anything happened, he would take the brunt of it, and she wouldn’t be in danger of getting close to the spiders!

Although it was a bit embarrassing to do so, this was probably the only way to safely get through tonight.

Moreover… if they had really kissed just now, Rosvitha really didn’t know how it would have ended.

So, let’s thank Mr. Spider.

For interrupting that reckless intimacy.

Rosvitha’s body gradually relaxed, nestling comfortably in Leon’s embrace, allowing him to hold her.

Her body was soft, completely disconnected from the image of the silver dragon.

Moreover, she happened to be wearing a tight and sexy lace nightgown, exposing large areas of her skin.

Being so close, held so tightly, made Leon’s heart itch with excitement.

Although Rosvitha was no longer trembling, Leon could still sense her fear.

So, Leon patiently comforted her, much like he would do with Muen, stroking her head, patting her back, and reassuring her, “Don’t be afraid, it’s okay, I’m here.”

Rosvitha wanted to say, “Don’t treat me like a child,” but the words didn’t come out.

She enjoyed this somewhat shy and awkward tenderness and unexpectedly blurted out, “Your… heartbeat is so fast.”

“I’m afraid of spiders too,” Leon responded immediately.

“Just for tonight, Leon, I won’t do this with you again. So after tonight, let’s both pretend this never happened, okay?” Rosvitha said.

“Okay.”

In the end, the Silver Dragon Queen chose to “pretend nothing happened.”

This was the first time she had broken her own rule.

And it was in front of a human.

Talking about it… would be so embarrassing…

After being startled twice, Rosvitha was exhausted, overwhelmed by drowsiness, and fell into a deep sleep in Leon’s arms.

Accompanying her into slumber was the strong and steady sound of his heartbeat.

The next morning, when Rosvitha opened her eyes, Leon was no longer by her side. The bed had cooled down, indicating that he had been up for some time.

Rosvitha sat up, rubbing her eyes. She thought that after experiencing last night’s events, he might also be feeling a bit confused.

If Rosvitha had woken up first, she would have chosen to go out for a walk first, just like Leon. When others arrived, the subtle awkwardness between her and Leon would naturally dissipate.

Slightly more awake now, Rosvitha threw off the covers, changed out of the embarrassing lace nightgown, put on her clothes, quickly freshened up, and headed out the door.

Just as she took a step, Rosvitha retreated back inside. She looked straight ahead, only using her peripheral vision to see the person waiting at the door for quite some time.

“Sis, are you here to spy on us so early in the morning?” Rosvitha said, leaning against the door frame, her arms crossed.

“How was last night? Exciting?” Isabella’s eyes lit up.

Rosvitha gave her sister a silent glare. “Exciting, very exciting.”

If a few more spiders had come, Rosvitha would have blown up her sister’s lair.

Hearing this, Isabella’s eyes brightened. “Then did you use the little props I prepared for you?”

Rosvitha sighed. “Leon is afraid of pain, so we… didn’t use them.”

“Well, that’s a shame. How about I give you a few when you go back home later? You can practice with them at home,” Isabella suggested.

Rosvitha quickly grabbed her sister’s wrist. “Sis, about that… you don’t need to bother anymore. Let’s go have breakfast.”

Isabella pursed her lips, then reached out and held her sister’s hand. “Let’s go, then.”

The two sisters arrived at the dining room, where Leon and the two little dragon girls were already seated.

“Oh~ Mom and Aunt are here~ It’s time for dinner~” Muen jumped off Leon’s lap, circled around the table, and ran to her own seat across from him.

Everyone sat down in the same positions as yesterday, with Isabella at the head, Leon and Rosvitha on one side, and the two little ones sitting across from them.

As Rosvitha walked over, she inadvertently met Leon’s gaze. But their eye contact lasted only a brief moment before they quickly looked away.

After everyone had taken their seats, breakfast began. The two little ones ate obediently, while Isabella had a small appetite and sat there with an aunt-like smile on her face after finishing her meal.

On Leon and Rosvitha’s side, however, they ate with discomfort. Despite the breakfast being delicious, they somehow managed to make it feel “hard to swallow.”

Leon reached for a piece of bread and glanced at the jar of peanut butter on the table, intending to grab it. But at the same time, Rosvitha also set her sights on the jar of peanut butter. The couple almost reached out their hands at the same time, but it was too late to pull back.

In the instant their fingertips touched, they both reacted as if shocked. What’s more, the hands that touched were the ones that had interlocked fingers last night. Memories rushed into their minds, and the faces of the couple turned red in an instant.

Isabella noticed the subtle movements of her sister and brother-in-law and teased, “Feeling hot?”

“Huh?” Rosvitha was a little flustered.

“Is the dining room too hot? Why are both of your faces red?” Isabella rested her chin on her hand, squinting and smiling.

Rosvitha and Leon both realized that Isabella was asking knowingly, but they couldn’t easily say anything in front of the children. They could only nod and agree, “Uh, yeah, it’s quite hot.”

“In that case, let’s go back to the room and take a shower after dinner,” Isabella suggested.

Take a shower.

What to use for the shower?

Would you like to use your bathtub filled with rose petals but unable to release water for the shower? Big sis, you’re really funny, heh.

Finally, they managed to finish breakfast reluctantly. After that, Isabella took her family of four to stroll around the Red Dragon Tribe.

Because Noia had to return to the academy tomorrow, they planned to start their journey back in the afternoon.

The little dragon girls hugged Isabella goodbye. Then, each of their faces received a lipstick mark from their aunt.

“Be safe on your way back,” Isabella said.

“Okay, we’ll come visit you again later, sis.”

Isabella nodded and then handed a gift box to Rosvitha, saying, “Here’s a farewell gift for you. Open it when you get home.”

“Okay, thank you, sis.”

The two sisters also hugged each other. While hugging, Isabella leaned close to Rosvitha’s ear and whispered in a low voice, “Give birth to another one for me to play with. Maybe I’ll let her inherit my Red Dragon Temple in the future.”

Rosvitha shyly pushed Isabella away. “Sis, what are you talking about…”

Isabella chuckled and reached out to pinch her sister’s blushing cheek.

When it was Leon’s turn, out of politeness, he shook hands with Isabella instead of hugging her.

“Don’t forget what you promised me,” Isabella looked into Leon’s eyes, her smile fading, her expression becoming somewhat serious.

“Yeah, I won’t.”

“Alright, then I wish you a safe journey.”

Rosvitha walked to the front yard of the Red Dragon Temple, spread her wings, and transformed into her dragon form. Leon held Noia and Muen as they climbed onto her back.

Before taking off, Rosvitha glanced back at Isabella.

Isabella nodded in response, and Rosvitha gave the same nod. The silver dragon flapped its wings and soared into the sky.

Watching the distant silver figure, Isabella breathed a sigh of relief. “Children are just too adorable.”

With a sigh, she turned and headed back to the temple. Upon reaching the third floor, the maids were cleaning the sister’s room where Muen and Noia stayed last night.

Isabella walked to the innermost room, the “romantic suite,” wanting to see the aftermath of her sister and brother-in-law’s “battle scene” from last night.

But as soon as she opened the door, a small black dot suddenly fell on her nose. Isabella was startled. When she looked closely, she realized it was a rubber spider toy.

She pinched the small toy and chuckled helplessly. Rosvitha was very afraid of such things, so it couldn’t have been her who set up this little prank. That left only Leon.

“Young man, fiercely protective of his wife,” Isabella laughed, closing the door to the room.