After several hours of flight, Rossweise and Leon arrived at the border between human and dragon territories.
Leading Leon, Rossweise found the mountain stream where Tiger had hidden before.
Since it was impossible to know for sure whether Tiger was still in the empire or had already left, it couldn't hurt to check while they were passing by.
Leon stood at the edge of the steep cliff, watching the waterfall cascade into the seemingly bottomless ravine, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Did my master really hide here?"
Rossweise nodded. "Do you still think your master is just an ordinary farmer now?"
To find such a secluded hiding place and live here for a time—that was not something an ordinary farmer could do.
How many secrets did that old master of his still have?
When they met again, Leon would have to get to the bottom of it.
Rossweise flew slowly with Leon into the treacherous mountain stream and found the waterfall from before.
She beat her wings, and the wind pressure parted the curtain of water, creating an opening in the waterfall.
The two passed through the gap, revealing a hidden cave inside.
Leon stepped in, with Rossweise following close behind.
The wooden furniture she had seen last time was still there, but…
Rossweise stood by the table and gently wiped it with her hand—a thick layer of dust. That meant no one had lived here for a long time.
Of course, Leon noticed this too. He walked deeper into the cave but still found nothing. "My master and mistress aren't here."
After a pause, he added reluctantly, looking further inside, "Not even the donkey is here."
Rossweise remembered Shirley saying that before Tiger left the empire for this isolated place, he had sold his farm and livestock but took the donkey with him.
This showed that this long-eared, four-legged creature—one of the few beings in the biological world that could injure Leon—was truly important to this family. And now, with the master and mistress gone, and the donkey missing too…
"So there are only two possibilities," Rossweise said. "Either your master has resolved the issues in the empire, taken your mistress and the donkey away, and is waiting for you to return home; or… the problem hasn't been solved, and it's far more troublesome than he expected. He doesn't have the energy to care for your mistress, so he moved her somewhere else temporarily."
Leon nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "Let's keep going."
Watching Leon's eagerness mixed with forced calm, Rossweise opened her mouth as if to say something but hesitated.
In the end, she softly agreed, spread her wings, and carried Leon away from there.
Along the way, the couple didn't exchange a single word.
She could feel Leon's urgent yet restrained emotions; Leon, too, sensed that she was holding back her feelings.
Two people who usually bickered endlessly whenever they met now found themselves at a loss for words.
Only the roaring wind whistled in their ears, unsettling Leon's mind.
After entering human territory, Rossweise activated her invisibility magic, slowed her speed, and became more cautious.
Human territory was not a place to enter lightly—the closer they got, the more dangerous it became.
Back when Leon had just awakened, Rossweise had brought him to the forest near the empire.
After that ordeal, carried away by residual excitement, she had threatened to bring Leon here every month from then on and thoroughly humiliate his dignity and beliefs.
However, that had been their only time here. Rossweise couldn't truly risk so much just to torment Leon.
Unexpectedly, entering human territory again was for a purpose completely opposite to before. From "keeping him by her side forever" to "personally sending him back to his homeland"… the gap between the two was too vast. And the emptiness in the queen's heart… was equally immense.
After several more hours of flight, they finally reached the empire.
Rossweise landed in the same forest as last time, from where they could overlook the entire empire in the distance. Leon stood on the high ground, gazing at his homeland.
The dazzling lights reflected in his dark pupils, and for a moment, he was overwhelmed with mixed emotions. Home was still home, but was the "empire" still the same "empire"?
Last time they were here, it had been the faith in Leon's heart, a bottom line worth guarding with his life. But now, it seemed like a slumbering beast. No one knew whether, upon approaching, it would wag its tail obediently at Leon or bare its blood-stained jaws and roar at him.
Leon silently clenched his fists, his breathing growing uncontrollably heavy. He rarely feared tangible things. Whether dragons, dangerous creatures, or anything else, Leon had never been afraid of them.
But now, as he looked at the empire he had once sworn to protect with his life, an unfounded fear crept into his heart.
His master had said that tangible monsters weren't scary. What was scarier than monsters was the human heart—something unseen and untouchable.
Leon's pupils trembled slightly, and a bone-chilling cold swept over him like a flood, making it hard for him to even breathe. He subconsciously took half a step back, overwhelmed by a formless fear he could hardly bear.
Yet, at that moment, a wave of warmth spread across his back. Leon paused, then slowly lowered his head to look at the slender arm wrapped around his waist.
The softness and warmth embracing him from behind instantly dispelled all the fear and chill before him.
"Rossweise—"
He wanted to turn around, but the person behind him stopped him with a firm command. "Don't move. Don't turn around."
Leon could feel Rossweise gently resting her forehead against his back. She wasn't holding him too tightly—perhaps because she didn't dare… or perhaps because she couldn't.
Leon looked at the delicate jade hands encircling his abdomen—the tender backs of her hands, her slender fingers, nails shimmering with a faint pink glow. He slowly raised his hand, hesitated for a moment, then gently covered Rossweise's slightly cool hand.
A gust of evening wind rushed into the forest, rustling the leaves around them. Cicadas chirped from the darkness, fireflies danced around the pair, and moonlight slipped through the gaps in the leaves, generously bathing their silver hair.
Before Leon lay the perilous empire, awaiting his master's resolution; behind him was his former "enemy" and the person he had spent day and night with.
After a long silence, Leon spoke softly. "After I deal with the trouble, I'll—"
"I'm not waiting," Rossweise interrupted before he could finish, like a sulking little girl.
She had endured for so many days, even restraining herself on the journey here. Now, with only minutes left before she had to part with this man, she could only count down the seconds.
She wanted to be willful, just this once. Even if only for these few short minutes.
"What am I to you… Why should I wait for you? I'm not waiting. I don't want to."
Leon pursed his lips, his shoulders slumping weakly. "I'm sorry."
She held him tighter, her voice choked with unrestrained sobs. "Don't get into any trouble… Leon, please, don't get into any trouble…"
Indeed, willfulness didn't suit her.
Leon bit his lip, gripping Rossweise's wrist tightly so she could feel his resolve. "I promise, Rossweise. I won't get into any trouble."
She said nothing, only continued to hold him from behind.
After a while, Leon asked softly, "How do we explain this to the girls?"
"I'll talk to them," Rossweise said, adjusting her emotions.
"If you and your master can't resolve the empire's troubles quickly, then every three months—if you're still alive—go to the mountain stream where your master hid. It's at the border of human and dragon territories, relatively safer. I'll explain to the girls and bring them to see you."
This didn't sound like a spur-of-the-moment decision. Knowing her, she must have decided this long ago, Leon thought.
"Do you hear me?" She gently bumped her forehead against Leon's back.
"Yes, yes, I hear you."
"Go there every three months. Don't you dare not show up. Understand?"
If you're still alive, go there. Go there every three months. Don't you dare not show up.
For Rossweise, this was as blunt as she could be.
She wanted Leon to live.
"I'll be there on time. I promise," Leon assured her.
Rossweise closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.
"One last thing—let's give our daughter a name."
"Shall I choose it?"
Rossweise nodded, then quickly added, "No stars, no blaze."
At that, the couple smiled simultaneously.
She slowly turned her head, pressing her cheek against Leon's back, holding him tighter. They swayed gently in the evening breeze.
After a moment's thought, Leon spoke. "Then let's call her Aurora. It means 'dawn' and 'light.' Our little daughter was born at dawn."
"Aurora… Yes. Let's go with that."
The smile faded from Rossweise's face as she reluctantly released Leon and took a few steps back, watching his figure.
"Go, Cosmodeous. Go do what you must."
The man half-turned, moonlight outlining his resolute profile, the breeze tousling his bangs.
He nodded, then strode away toward the silent beast in the distance.
The Silver Dragon Queen watched his retreating figure, murmuring to herself, "Leon, may fortune favor you."