Several days later, in the evening, Leon took his couple's pajamas and headed to the bathroom to change.
Although Noah had already returned to school, there was no telling if Muen had been assigned by her sister to inspect their parents' room at night. If they were found not sleeping together or not wearing their couple pajamas, they would definitely face a stern lecture.
Leon placed the pajamas on the nearby clothes hanger, then crossed his arms and pinched the corners of his shirt, swiftly pulling it off over his head.
Looking at his reflection in the mirror, Leon's gaze fell on the dragon mark on his chest. Even though he was now cohabiting with that Mother Dragon, it didn't stop him from secretly condensing and storing magical power. It was fortunate that Rossweise hadn't been very "reliable" lately.
After the last incident in the study where he lost part of his magic due to the "tail entanglement," Leon realized that any interaction involving the dragon mark, no matter how normal the process seemed, resulted in a loss of magical power.
Even just her using her tail. So, the prerequisite for accumulating a certain amount of magic was clear: he must never again be intimate with Rossweise—in any form.
But even thinking about it with the simplest logic, one would know that was highly unlikely.
Rossweise's fundamental motivation for retaliating against Leon, her captive, was to force him into those very acts, thereby insulting his pride and dignity as a human and a Dragon Slayer.
Asking her to change her methods now? She probably wouldn't even know how to torture him otherwise.
Would she actually hang him up and whip him? That would be considered domestic violence.
In essence, if Leon wanted to restore his peak strength, for the foreseeable future, he needed to minimize his interactions with Rossweise as much as possible. Ideally, he should have no interaction with her at all. That meant he had to maintain his "purity."
"Hiss… No wonder the Master always said, 'Young man, train harder.' It all makes sense now," Leon muttered to himself.
But asking a married man with children, who was cohabiting with a partner who was not only beautiful and well-proportioned but also possessed a tail she seemed intent on using for various nocturnal activities, to maintain so-called "purity" was quite a challenge, wasn't it?
And if Rossweise found out that intimate relations with Leon would deplete his magic, she might very well increase the frequency from "once every three days" to "three times a day."
One shouldn't underestimate that Mother Dragon; she surely had her methods, even in this unique situation.
"Sigh… Anyway, for the sake of steadily restoring my strength, I'll just have to try not to provoke that Mother Dragon for now," Leon concluded.
Then, he suddenly remembered, "But regardless, the prenatal education plan must continue. It's been several days since I last taught the second child, so I'll try again tonight."
With that thought, Leon changed into his pajamas and left the bathroom. The light in the study was still on, indicating Rossweise was still working.
Leon thought for a moment, then casually walked to the study door and leaned against the doorframe.
Rossweise heard the movement, glanced up, and then lowered her eyes back to her documents. "Do you need something?" she asked.
She was also wearing the pink couple's pajamas, likely having changed into them while Leon was in the bathroom.
Her silver hair was tied into a simple ponytail draped over her shoulders. She had clipped her bangs back with a hairpin to keep them from blocking her view.
When Rossweise was immersed in her work, she exuded a mysterious charm completely different from her usual cold or sarcastic demeanor. It made people involuntarily quiet down and admire this intellectual beauty.
Of course, in recent days, this intellectual beauty had gained a touch of adorable contrast. The somewhat cartoonish pink pajamas created a subtle juxtaposition with her refined temperament, making her seem more approachable.
Leon glanced at the coffee on her desk, a clear sign she was preparing for a late night.
"So much work? Will you be able to finish it all?" Leon asked.
"If I don't work, it will never get done," the workaholic replied succinctly.
"Should I get you some snacks, then?" Leon offered.
"No need, I'm not hungry," Rossweise declined.
"I'm worried our baby might get hungry," Leon said.
Rossweise's pen paused. Her silver eyes flickered as she looked up, her fingers holding the pen, her palm propping her chin. From across the desk, she smiled at Leon, her eyes slightly squinted.
"Are you really worried about the baby? Or… are you using the baby as an excuse because you're too embarrassed to show concern for me directly?"
Having learned from her sister Isha about the promise Leon had once made, Rossweise had finally found a leverage point that could effectively target him.
Though she wasn't sure if it reflected his true feelings or was just a way to placate Isha, she knew using this would work.
Sure enough, Rossweise's words struck a nerve, revealing a hint of vulnerability in Leon.
"Me? Concerned about you? The only thing I'm concerned about is when you'll hand over the position of Silver Dragon Queen to me, so the entire Silver Dragon Temple will be under my rule, Leon Cosmodeous."
Rossweise knew these exaggerated and insincere words weren't what Leon truly meant. But what he was really thinking, she wasn't sure. However… it didn't matter.
Tonight, she was ready to play a game of "Truth or Dare" that she hadn't indulged in for a long time.
"And then?" Rossweise was willing to play along with his banter for now.
Cohabitation was like this. In this room, they were each other's only companions for conversation. And amidst the tedium of paperwork, listening to Leon's words, whether true or false, was Rossweise's only way to relax.
"And then? Then I'll take care of all your work, leaving you, the workaholic, with nothing to do but retire peacefully."
He couldn't come up with any sweet, cheesy lines to say to Rossweise. After much thought, this was all he could manage.
The Queen chuckled softly at his words. "Alright, I still have a few hundred years until retirement. You can come share my workload then."
"A few hundred years from now? I'll have to crawl out of my grave to help you with work?"
"Don't worry, I'll find a mage to resurrect your body and turn you into a work-only puppet. How does that sound, dear husband? Thoughtful of me, isn't it?"
Leon grinned reluctantly, grinding his teeth. "You're truly considerate, my dear wife."
Rossweise smiled, then quickly refocused. She sighed softly and glanced at the piles of work reports and documents on the desk. Leon was right—the work was endless.
For tonight, she would stop here. After all, she still had to stay up until half-past two after getting into bed, and the coffee on the desk was prepared for that very purpose.
Rossweise removed her hairpin, loosened her ponytail, and her silver hair cascaded down to her waist like a waterfall. She stood up, turned off the desk lamp, and said, "I'm going to bed."
Leon felt a surge of joy. Finally, the workaholic was going to rest. Once she was asleep, he could begin his prenatal education plan!
The couple climbed into bed from their respective sides. Rossweise turned off the bedside lamp and, lying down, said softly, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight."
Truth be told, they hadn't made a habit of saying goodnight before. They didn't even feel it was necessary.
What kind of goodnight could a prisoner of war and a queen exchange? The fact that they could sleep in the same bed was already a miracle in itself, making them seem more like a married couple than ever.
However, since that night when Noah and Muen had unexpectedly checked on them, the couple had developed an unspoken agreement to bid each other goodnight.
They had "committed the crime" that night, stealing kisses in secret, and that ambiguous feeling of confusion and infatuation had stirred something within them.
The word "goodnight" was simple, yet it effectively soothed the cravings in their hearts. Not saying it would leave a sense of incompleteness to the day. So, they said it anyway, since no third party would ever know.
Besides, saying goodnight didn't mean anything, right? Did saying goodnight imply mutual affection? If that were the case, then why hadn't the donkey Leon used to say goodnight to every day turned into a beautiful donkey lady and started a forbidden interspecies romance with him?
Reining in his wandering thoughts, Leon slowly closed his eyes, silently waiting for the Mother Dragon to fall asleep. The room fell into silence. After a while, Leon felt the time was right.
Without moving his head from the pillow, his eyes darted to the wall clock.
It was 1:55 AM. The Queen should be asleep by now, right?
Leon prepared to make his move. He pursed his lips, opened his mouth slightly, and was about to tentatively ask if Rossweise was still awake when he heard her voice from beside him.
"Are you asleep, Leon?"
"N-no… I'm not…" Leon quickly pretended to be drowsy.
"Oh."
Ten minutes passed.
"Are you asleep, Leon?"
"No."
"Oh."
Another ten minutes passed.
"Are you asleep, Leon?"
"If you have something to say, just say it."
"Nothing, just asking."
Yet another ten minutes passed.
"Are you sle—"
"Nope."
"Oh."
Rossweise glanced at the wall clock; it was almost 2:30 AM. Why isn't this stubborn man asleep yet? Come on, hurry up and sleep! I've been saving up questions for so long!
Meanwhile, Leon's mind was racing: What's wrong with the Mother Dragon? Did she drink too much coffee? Can't sleep?
No, that couldn't be it.
Leon's brain worked quickly. Normally at this time, Rossweise would be fast asleep. And even if she wasn't, there was no need for her to keep asking if Leon was asleep. After getting his answer, she usually had nothing else to say.
Didn't this mean… Rossweise really wanted Leon to be asleep so she could do something "shameless"?
Leon became alert, deciding that the next time Rossweise asked, he would pretend to be asleep and see what she was up to.
After a while, Rossweise's voice came again, "Leon, Leon, are you asleep?"
Leon kept his eyes closed and did not respond.
"Oh ho~ He's asleep."
The rustle of the blanket accompanied the graceful movement of the woman sitting up by the pillow. Her silver eyes sparkled in the moonlight.
"Well then, I'll… help myself~"
Leon: ?!
Great Mother Dragon, what are you planning to do?!