“Dad’s been gone for days.”

“Mom’s also been gone for days.”

“Sis, I think… it’s time!”

“Moon, this is serious. Are you sure you want to go through with this?”

“I’m sure, Sis. I can’t wait any longer.”

“Alright, I’ll go make the preparations.”

“Mm-hmm. I’ll go prepare the grilled steak.”

“What did you say?”

“Oh, uh, nothing! Moon said she’s going to get the clothes ready!”

An hour later, in the backyard of the Silver Dragon Sanctuary, the maids had gathered at the request of Noa and Moon.

They had no idea what the two little princesses were planning.

Maybe because the king and queen had been away for days, the girls were lonely and wanted some company to play with them?

Entertaining and playing with the princesses was part of the maids’ duties, of course, but the bonfire in the yard and the grilled steak Moon was holding stirred up some… *interesting* memories.

The last time they had gone to this much trouble was for a “memorial” for the prince.

The princesses had declared that their father was gone, had left, and would never come back, leading them to hold a grand—*funeral* for him.

So this time… were they going to repeat the same thing?

Milan leaned over to Anna and whispered, “Are we supposed to cry later, Head Maid?”

Anna crossed her arms and sighed. “Just follow the princesses’ lead.”

“...Alright.”

“What about the youngest princess? Is someone looking after her?” Anna asked.

“Yes, Sherry’s with her. Since she’s not officially part of the maids, we asked her to help take care of the little one.”

Anna nodded and glanced up at the clear sky. “By my count, the queen and prince should be returning soon.”

Milan raised an eyebrow. “Do you know what they were doing while they were away?”

Anna shrugged. “Probably just found a quiet place to enjoy some alone time after the pregnancy. Just my guess—don’t go spreading it around.”

Milan understood the subtext and giggled softly. “Got it, Head Maid.”

As they chatted, Noa walked over to them.

“Your Highness,” Anna greeted her respectfully.

“Alright, everyone can start crying now,” Noa said, her face completely serious.

Before the maids could react, Moon had already burst into tears.

“Waaaah~~ Daddy, Mommy, why aren’t you back yet?! Did you abandon Moon?! Waaaah~~”

Anna nudged Milan in the arm, signaling her to follow suit.

Milan panicked for a moment but quickly caught on.

“Ah! …Oh, uh, Your Majesty! Your Highness! You left so suddenly~~”

Under Milan’s guidance, the other maids began to play along.

Their exaggerated wails echoed throughout the yard.

Anna closed her eyes, sighing internally. She, too, wished she could find a quiet place like the queen and be left in peace.

“Oh, Your Majesty~ How could you leave behind your three lovely daughters, Your Majesty~”

“Without you, how will the Silver Dragons carry on, my Queen~”

“...”

There were plenty of tears for the queen, but not as many for the prince.

Not that he was completely ignored.

“Prince! You’ve done so much for the Silver Dragon clan, how could you just leave us like this?!”

“We were counting on you and the queen to restore the glory of the Silver Dragons, Prince——!”

“...”

One maid in particular got so into it, crying her heart out, that she didn’t even notice two figures standing behind her.

“I counted,” Rosvisser said in a calm voice. “About twenty-three maids cried for me, and less than five cried for you.”

Leon threw his hands up in disbelief. “Is this really something to compete over?!”

Rosvisser let out a proud little huff. “I don’t care.”

Leon waved it off, not in the mood to argue over something so trivial.

The dragon maid, hearing their conversation, quickly swallowed her sobs and choked back the eulogy that had been on the tip of her tongue.

She looked left and saw the queen, holding back laughter.

Then she looked right and saw the prince, whose face was dark with exasperation.

Oh~~ Got it. Time for the next phase—

“The princesses’ love has touched the heavens, and now the prince and queen have returned to life~!”

Familiar words.

Wait a second, didn’t I say this last time too? The dragon maid mused.

Upon hearing that the stars of this “memorial” had returned to life, the other maids also breathed a sigh of relief.

They stepped aside in unison, creating a path for the two “resurrected” royals to walk through.

Leon and Rosvisser exchanged glances and, in perfect sync, strode forward.

Reaching their daughters, the family of four stood there, staring at one another.

Noa’s face flashed with a hint of surprise, but she quickly composed herself, returning to her usual calm demeanor.

As for Moon, she was her usual self:

“Daddy.”

“Hmm?”

“Does this mean I can eat your offerings again?”

“...Sure, but don’t eat too much fried food for breakfast. Just this once.”

“Yay!”

Leon turned to Anna. “Take Moon to the dining hall.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Anna stepped forward and led Moon away from the “funeral” scene.

The other maids, at Rosvisser’s command, also dispersed to return to their duties.

The backyard was now left with just Leon, Rosvisser, Noa, and the remnants of the bonfire.

Leon bent down and scooped Noa into his arms.

“Sorry, Noa. Daddy and Mommy had to leave for a bit on short notice, so we didn’t get the chance to let you know. Did we worry you?”

Noa, unlike her younger sister, was not so easily placated.

Some things needed to be explained.

Of course, not in too much detail.

Noa kept her face stoic but shook her head. “It’s okay, Daddy. Did you finish what you needed to do?”

Leon hesitated. Her question hit a nerve.

Noa couldn’t possibly know that he had gone back to the Empire to deal with a traitor—if she did, that would mean she knew her father was a human.

So this question must have come from her just assuming it was related to the “emergency” Leon mentioned earlier, without any deeper meaning.

Still, the question stirred something in him. Leon pressed his lips together, forcing down the fleeting sense of guilt, and smiled.

“Yeah, it’s all taken care of.”

Noa, being young, couldn’t easily tell the difference between truth and lies.

Even though her heart was filled with confusion, after a moment of hesitation, she chose to trust her father.

She trusted his honesty and his ability to handle things.

“That’s good,” Noa nodded.

Rosvisser came over, and Leon passed Noa into her arms.

Noa snuggled against her mother’s soft embrace, wrapping her arms around Rosvisser’s slender neck.

The queen nuzzled her nose against her eldest daughter’s soft cheek. “It must’ve been hard looking after Moon while we were gone. You’ve done so well…”

She glanced at the bonfire in the yard, where their photos were framed on a nearby rack.

*Sigh...*

From a technical standpoint, the “funeral” was done quite well—almost grand in its presentation.

But from the perspective of the two people it was for, it was a bit… strange.

Especially for Leon.

Attending your own funeral twice (without even getting to eat any of the offerings) certainly put him in a very exclusive category.

Rosvisser chuckled to herself and added, “Thank you for organizing such a grand ceremony.”

Queens have to be a little more diplomatic with their words.

“I did it to keep Moon distracted. You’ve been gone for five days, and if you didn’t come back soon, she was going to start missing you both.”

And I was starting to miss you too.

Though Noa couldn’t quite bring herself to say that out loud. Emotional growth is a slow process, after all. You can’t expect the current Noa to express herself as clearly as Moon does.

But in this way, she was very much like her parents.

“Noa, you’ve really grown up. You’re already coming up with creative ways to entertain your sister,” Rosvisser praised without hesitation.

Even if those ways were… a bit too creative.

Still, the end goal was met. Moon had been successfully distracted and hadn’t spent the past few days pestering to see her parents.

Noa’s face turned a little pink at the compliment, and she nuzzled closer to her mother’s cheek.

Her mother’s skin was usually cool to the touch, which made it extra comfortable.

“I’m hungry, Mommy. Let’s go eat.”

“Alright.”

Rosvisser glanced back at Leon. “Shall we?”

Leon nodded.

The family of three headed toward the back door of the sanctuary.

Rosvisser carried Noa as they walked ahead, with Leon following behind them.

Noa rested her chin on her mother’s shoulder, allowing her to see Leon behind them.

After a few steps, she slowly raised her arm and extended her small hand toward Leon.

Understanding immediately, Leon reached out and gently clasped her tiny fingers.

Leon thought it was just a sweet moment of father-daughter bonding, but when he looked up at Noa’s face, he noticed something was off.

Her expression and eyes were a mix of emotions—confusion, worry, uncertainty, even a hint of anxiety.

But when she saw Leon’s gaze, Noa quickly masked her feelings, replacing them with a smile.

Still, a child’s eyes can’t lie.

Leon had always thought that Rosvisser was the only one who could silently communicate with him through just a glance.

But now, he could see it clearly in his daughter’s eyes—a silent question:

You won’t leave me, will you?