This beach trip could be considered a nearly perfect conclusion.

Every member of Melqavi's family had gained something.

Aurora mastered her "uppercut" technique;

Moon unlocked the "something kids shouldn’t see" scene of her parents kissing;

Noa regained confidence in her family, as well as in her parents' relationship.

Even Rosvisser had her fill with a whole night of "intense rescue work"—so full, in fact, it was almost too much to handle.

As for why it was only almost perfect, instead of completely perfect, the blame falls squarely on General Leon.

Aurora practiced her uppercut on him;

Moon’s newfound knowledge of parental affection came at the cost of Leon taking a kick from Rosvisser;

Noa’s renewed confidence in the family came at the expense of her dad sacrificing his "waist" for the greater good.

And as for Rosvisser, well, the pain from that night of passionate "rescue" was something only Leon and his kidneys could understand.

Thus, the achievement of "A World Where Only Leon Gets Hurt" was unlocked!

But even so, as everything was packed up and Leon stood at the open hotel door, gazing at his fake wife and real daughters, his heart was still filled with warmth and contentment.

After all, the laughter and shared memories with family were priceless treasures that no small pain could ever erase—not that he wasn’t used to the pain by now. Worst case, he could always take some dragon-strength tonics to recover.

And maybe then, he’d be able to show that mother dragon a thing or two next time.

Speaking of dragon-strength tonics, the first batch hadn’t exactly worked as planned. Though Leon’s body had recovered quickly that night, he had gone completely wild, losing all self-control.

Looks like I'll need to make some improvements, Leon thought to himself.

With his own magical energy running low, and Rosvisser developing new ways to exploit the dragon mark, Leon would have to rely on his "gear" to level the playing field.

Otherwise, three months from now, when he went to exchange intel in the cave with his master, he’d surely be laughed at by that old man and his sharp-tongued apprentice for showing up looking drained.

They left the resort and returned to the Silver Dragon’s territory by evening.

Taking their time, they enjoyed the scenery along the way as a final wrap-up to their vacation.

This beach trip had accomplished Leon’s initial goal: to ease his eldest daughter’s worries, proving through his and Rosvisser’s actions that they loved this family, and indeed loved each other.

Though, in their everyday life, Rosvisser always seemed to be at odds with him.

If Leon said one thing, the mother dragon would say the opposite;

If Leon headed west, the mother dragon would head east.

The foundation of their relationship seemed to be "if you’re uncomfortable, then I’m comfortable."

But when it came to showing affection in front of their daughters, they were always perfectly in sync.

It was as if this sense of harmony was innate, or perhaps etched into their bones. In the beginning, they’d rehearse to make sure their displays of affection didn’t appear too rehearsed to their daughters.

But over time, these two fools no longer needed any practice. They could go straight into the performance with no issue—just one glance and they’d know what the other was thinking, what the next move should be.

Such was the self-discipline of seasoned actors.

Rosvisser would sometimes muse, "Life as a dragon is all a show—it’s all about the performance."

Feelings?

Come on, what feelings? There’s nothing between me and that stupid man.

This perfect sync came purely from... long-term familiarity—wait, no, no—it's from...

Practice makes perfect!

Yes, that’s it, practice makes perfect.

"Mom."

"Hmm?"

"Are you not feeling well?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"Your wings... they’re a bit red," Moon said, sitting on the back of the silver dragon, staring at her mother’s wings.

Hearing this, Leon and Noa both turned their attention to Rosvisser’s wings.

Indeed, they were a little red.

"Ah... It’s nothing, probably just the angle of the sunlight," she replied awkwardly.

Her daughters were still too young to transform into dragon form, so they didn’t know that in this form, any emotional fluctuation would show on the wings, where there were many blood vessels.

Kind of like how people blush.

But Leon, having dealt with dragons for many years, knew this biological quirk all too well.

In his days on the battlefield, every time he fought a dragon king in a final battle, the dragon’s wings would turn red as they vented their fury before being defeated.

In those moments, regardless of the original color of the dragon king, their wings would take on a reddish hue.

Of course, those dragon kings turned red because they couldn’t defeat General Leon.

So why was Rosvisser’s turning red...?

Leon couldn’t quite figure it out. Women’s emotions really were hard to guess.

They arrived back at the Silver Dragon’s territory, quickly making their way to the sanctuary.

As the queen’s family returned, the maids who had no current tasks naturally came out to greet them in the courtyard.

Anna took the bag from Leon’s hand, which contained the clothes they had worn during the trip. She promptly handed it over to one of the other maids, instructing her to wash them thoroughly.

Of course, Rosvisser’s "rescue" swimsuit was not included.

Because that night had been so intense, they had accidentally gotten some... "high-nutrition" material on the swimsuit. Rosvisser figured it’d be best to wash that herself—or perhaps have her captive, Leon, wash it.

Besides, in front of the maids, the Silver Dragon Queen maintained a persona of a conservative, cold-hearted workaholic. Even after marriage, she and the prince still maintained a respectful distance, with only a few modest displays of affection.

This gave the impression that the couple loved each other but weren’t all that close.

If the maids ever found out that, in private, the queen had a very different side with the prince... well, Rosvisser would suffer the ultimate social death.

After the brief handover, Anna led the family to the dining hall, where the chefs had already prepared a welcome-back feast.

At the table, the two daughters who could talk were still buzzing about the beach trip;

As for the one who couldn’t speak, she was busy eating in silence.

The couple ate slowly, occasionally glancing at their daughters.

Now and then, they’d also glance at each other.

But as soon as their eyes met, they’d quickly look away.

It was almost as if they were both afraid they’d bring bad luck to each other by making eye contact.

But before long, the two fools would inexplicably and yet perfectly in sync, look at each other again.

sigh

Forget it.

This cursed fate couldn’t be avoided. They’d just have to embrace it.

After dinner, they played with the children for a while before Leon carried Aurora back to the room with Rosvisser.

"Once Aurora is a bit older, she can sleep in the nursery," Rosvisser said as she kicked off her high heels and eagerly slipped into her soft, comfy dragon-wing slippers, stretching out with a satisfied yawn.

Leon paused in his tracks.

Uh... Did that statement carry a hidden meaning?

Once Aurora moved into the nursery, wouldn’t that leave just him and Rosvisser in the room again?

Then she could do as she pleased, right?!

Leon shivered slightly at the thought and swallowed hard, choosing not to continue that conversation.

He placed his youngest daughter on the bed, soothing her until she fell asleep peacefully.

As he gazed at her serene face, the corners of Leon’s mouth lifted into a gentle smile.

So this is what it feels like to raise your own child—it’s wonderful!

He reached out and gently stroked Aurora’s chubby little face with the back of his hand. Her skin was soft and smooth, and the feeling was incredible.

It was a shame he hadn’t been around to see Noa and Moon when they were babies. They must have been just as cute.

Speaking of Noa...

Now that his eldest daughter’s worries were temporarily resolved, it was time for Leon to get back to business.

In three months, he’d be going to the cave to exchange intel with his master.

He tucked Aurora in, then sat at the edge of the bed, looking over at Rosvisser.

She had already changed into her nightgown and was sitting on the couch, reviewing the work logs that Anna had brought in earlier.

"Rosvisser, I have a question I want to ask you. I’d like to hear your thoughts."

The queen set down the work log, propped her chin up with one hand, and looked at Leon. "Alright, what’s the question?"

"Do you think it was just a coincidence that Constantine chose to attack you when you were about to give birth...?"