The bunny girl was nowhere to be seen, replaced instead by the familiar sight of the "Mother Dragon's Seat."
Rossweise sat perched on Leon's lap, one knee firmly pinning his left hand. His right hand was tied to the bedpost with the very stockings she had just been wearing.
Both of them knew perfectly well that a flimsy pair of stockings was no match for the strength of a top Dragon Slayer's right hand. Yet, Rossweise refused to believe this dog of a man could still act tough after his little scheme had been exposed.
With her arms crossed over her chest, the queen looked down at Leon pinned beneath her. She narrowed her eyes slightly and spoke in a sickly sweet tone, "I'm truly touched, darling. When you said all those things earlier, you must have moved even yourself, right?"
"…I, I dare not move."
"What is there that you, Prince Leon Cosmodeous, wouldn't dare to do? Hm?" Rossweise leaned down, her ample bosom pressing lightly against Leon's chest. She reached out and patted his cheek with a jade-like hand. "Especially here in my Silver Dragon Temple?"
Leon licked his dry lips. "Actually… This is all a beautiful misunderstanding. Would you like me to explain?"
Rossweise smiled, her eyes curving into dangerous slits. "Of course, darling. I'll listen to whatever you have to say."
"In that case, please be a dear and untie this stocking from your husband's hand…" Leon wiggled his right wrist, bound by the purely ceremonial black stocking.
Untying stockings required cooperation. If he dared to break free by force, it would surely provoke this Mother Dragon who was already teetering on the edge, fast-tracking them to the "submission" phase.
After the last battle in the study, Leon's magic power hadn't fully recovered. He couldn't afford to appease her any further.
But Rossweise pouted, shook her head, and uttered the most torturous words in the gentlest tone, "No, darling. Tonight, these stockings will either bind your hands or be stuffed into your mouth. If you insist on being untied, then I'll have to—"
"Thank you, no need to trouble yourself. Being bound is just fine."
Rossweise let out a cold snort. "You dare to deceive me, Leon. Aren't you afraid your tongue will rot?"
Leon averted his gaze, muttering under his breath, "Even if it rots, it's only half…"
Rossweise frowned, not quite catching it. "What did you say?"
"I said, even if it rots, it's only half. I'm not afraid."
"Half rotten?… What do you mean?" She had a vague guess about the implication behind Leon's words. But since he had just tricked her, Rossweise didn't immediately confirm her suspicion.
Leon glanced at her, then quickly looked away. "The things I said to your sister… were half true and half false." The last few words were mumbled, as if he were eager to change the subject.
However, Rossweise still caught the phrase "half true and half false," and her concerns eased slightly due to Leon's obvious evasion. If he were still lying through his teeth, he wouldn't be so hesitant.
A hint of softness returned to Rossweise's expression. She tilted her head slightly. "Half true and half false? I don't understand. Explain it to me in detail."
"What's there to explain? And there weren't that many words to begin with; you heard them all just now."
That wasn't wrong. The promise he had made to Isha was indeed just a simple sentence. The "half true and half false" didn't refer to the content of the promise itself, but to Leon's state of mind at the time—complicated and awkward.
Trying to articulate it verbally in their current situation was impossible. Even given time to think and write it down, Leon doubted he could accurately describe his mindset. He couldn't give Rossweise a reasonable explanation.
"Hmph, aren't you just talking nonsense? What 'half true and half false'? It's just a lame excuse you came up with on the spot."
Of course, she knew Leon wasn't spouting nonsense or making excuses. She said this purely to make him uncomfortable. He had just tricked the queen with sweet words; now it was time for him to pay a little price.
"Tsk, believe it or not. I can't be bothered to waste my breath trying to convince you."
Oh, still so stubborn? Saying you can't be bothered, but deep down, you really want me to understand, don't you?
Hmph, Leon. While we may be archenemies, isn't the prerequisite for being archenemies a deep understanding of each other? Your little thoughts are sometimes written all over your face.
Rossweise was quite satisfied with Leon's reaction. She had thought he would retort sharply, escalating the situation to a tense standoff where things might spiral out of control.
Unexpectedly, although he remained stubborn, there was a hint of softness she hadn't seen before.
Rossweise let out a slow breath, thinking it was best to end things here for tonight.
If it was time to "submit the assignment," it was already too late. There were less than three hours until dawn. They could talk about it another day.
However, just as Rossweise was about to let Leon off the hook, she heard the dog of a man muttering again, "I didn't expect you to care so much about the promise I made to your sister… Could it be that you want to make it real—mmph!!"
Before Leon could finish, Rossweise grabbed the large teddy bear from the bed and shoved it into his face.
The Dragon Slayer beneath her struggled and writhed, but Rossweise sat on him as steady as a rock.
"Murder! Rossweise, you're committing murder! Mmmph!"
"Heh, it's the teddy bear that's killing you. What does that have to do with me, Rossweise? Darling, just endure it for a while!"
"Mmmph mmmph (Rossweise)!"
"What? I can't hear you, darling. Just bear with it. You won't feel uncomfortable in a little while~"
She wasn't using much force, and Leon's struggles weren't life-threatening. This was just part of their daily marital… fun.
However, as Leon's hands flailed randomly, his fingers suddenly brushed against something slightly hard on the back of the teddy bear.
His movements halted abruptly, and his thoughts drifted back to a long time ago.
It was when Rossweise was unconscious due to the Blood Enchantment. He had spent his days by her bedside, taking care of her, washing her face, wiping her body.
One day, exhausted, he had fallen asleep by Rossweise's bed, his hand inadvertently touching the teddy bear he had given her.
Back then, he had also felt something hard.
Generally, a regular teddy bear's stuffing… was just soft cotton, right?
As he pondered this, the teddy bear pressing against his face was pulled away.
"Oh, darling, you're quite hard to kill," Rossweise teased, looking at Leon's flushed face.
Leon ignored her and instead glanced at the teddy bear beside him. Catching Rossweise off guard, he suddenly grabbed it and unzipped the back.
Seeing this, Rossweise's smile vanished. She lunged forward to snatch the teddy bear back.
Oh? Why so flustered?
That bear must hold some unspeakable secret!
Leon executed a clever maneuver, slipping out from under Rossweise. She, not even bothering with slippers, hurriedly got out of bed and chased after him.
Of course, Leon wouldn't let her catch him easily. The couple circled the large bed in a game of chase, resembling children playing a frantic game of tag.
After a few laps, Rossweise stood on the left side of the bed, Leon on the right. They faced each other across the expanse of the bed, locked in a stalemate.
"Give me back the bear!" Rossweise demanded.
"No way. Your urgency proves there's definitely something good inside," Leon retorted.
"I'm not urgent!"
"Heh, you might as well have the word 'urgent' written on your face."
Seizing the moment, Leon made a dash for the balcony.
Rossweise, with long strides, scrambled over the bed and chased after him barefoot.
But by the time she reached the balcony, the poor teddy bear had already been "dissected" by the despicable Dragon Slayer. In Leon's hand was a photograph.
Seeing this, Rossweise hurried forward and snatched the photo, blushing as she hid it behind her back. But she was sure Leon had already seen its contents.
Leon also dropped his playful demeanor. He scratched his head, remained silent for a moment, then said, "I didn't expect you to still keep that photo."
Rossweise bit her lip and awkwardly explained, "I just forgot to throw it away."
"Forgot to throw it away… and hid it inside the teddy bear I gave you?"
"I really just forgot."
With that, Rossweise bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately threw the photo off the balcony into the night.
As the photo disappeared into the darkness, Rossweise's heart lurched. But she quickly averted her gaze and looked at Leon stubbornly. "See? I've thrown it away now."
"Wow, you really threw it away!"
Leon leaned over the balcony railing, peering down. Unfortunately, it was night, and the light was too dim to see where the photo had landed.
"Of course, I really threw it away. Ugh, how boring. I'm going to bed."
She stormed off in her pink cartoon pajamas, disappearing into the messy sheets.
But Leon didn't follow her back inside. He stood alone on the balcony, staring into the darkness where the photo had fallen, feeling the emptiness and loneliness as the "lively" night drew to a close.
He had already forgotten why he was smiling at Rossweise in that photo. But the words written on its back remained vividly etched in his memory.
"May the silver light forever shine in the eyes of my beloved…"