The first person Leon thought of was his master, the old man.
In this timeline where he was absent, his daughters had learned his true identity and past. It was likely Rossweise had told them about his master. And since the Gates of Nine Hells was originally a gift from his master, it stood to reason the girls might have contacted him in those eight years.
"Yep," Aurora said. "Someone you'd never expect, Dad."
Leon blinked, venturing a guess. "An old man named Tiger Lawrence?"
"No, not Grandpa Tiger."
Grandpa Tiger. The affectionate title clarified much, confirming his daughters had met the master. But it raised another urgent question: What had happened to the master, Rebecca, and Martin over twenty years? Had they left the Empire, or had something worse befallen them?
Seeing her father's expression darken with concern, Aurora quickly added, "The last time I saw Grandpa Tiger was a few years ago. He's quite old now, so he couldn't stay active in the Empire. Grandma Charlotte took him back to her homeland."
So, the master and Rebecca had been causing trouble in the Empire all these years? The fact the old man hadn't immediately drawn his sword and charged the Emperor after Leon's disappearance showed how much his temper had mellowed. In his youth, he wouldn't have settled for anything less than stirring up an empire-wide storm.
"If it's not my master, then who is this 'great teacher' of yours?" Leon pressed. Great Grandmother Veronica? She didn't seem the type to specialize in body techniques.
"Claudia Poseidon."
The name sent Leon's mind reeling. He had a strong impression of that distinctive surname. Rossweise had once told him 'Poseidon' was the royal family name of the reclusive Sea Dragon Clan. And Claudia was the recorded author of the Gates of Nine Hells.
The author herself had come to teach his daughter?
Other people prayed to deities for luck; his family had the actual deity show up for personal tutoring.
"After Mom fell into a coma," Aurora explained, leaning on the stone table, "Anna and Sister Shirley looked after us for a long time. Even after the clan disbanded, many of Mom's subordinates stayed to protect us. But the Empire's hunt for the Silver Dragons never ceased. Even after they knew Mom was comatose, they persisted. There had to be a deeper reason."
"Anna, Sister Shirley, and Sister Milan… they all died protecting Mom and us. Great-grandmother isn't a combatant, so she could barely hold off the assaults. Aunt Isha's Red Dragon Clan was caught in the war too; they wanted to help but were powerless."
"So, Great-grandmother, my sisters, and I kept running, but we couldn't escape the joint siege of the Empire and the rogue dragons. In our deepest despair, Claudia of the Sea Dragon Clan appeared. She saved us and brought us to this hidden refuge."
"After we recovered and confirmed this place was safe, Great-grandmother set out alone to find a way to wake Mom. Claudia stayed, cared for us, and taught us survival skills. It was then she began teaching me the Gates of Nine Hells."
Leon rubbed his chin, frowning. "So, Great-grandmother just… trusted this stranger, Claudia?"
"By then, we'd been with Claudia for some time. If she'd meant us harm, she'd had ample opportunity. Everything she did proved she genuinely cared for us. She taught me the Gates, guided Big Sis in illusion magic, and helped Second Sis fully awaken her twin elemental powers."
"This Sea Dragon is quite the polymath," Leon remarked, impressed. Body techniques, illusions, magic—she was a master of all, and an excellent teacher. Noah's mastery of illusion magic, evidenced by the boulder at the cave entrance, was testament to that.
"But why did she help you? Did you ever ask?"
"Of course. She said she was acting on someone else's behalf," Aurora replied.
"On whose behalf?" Leon's curiosity about this Sea Dragon grew. Rossweise had said the Sea Dragons had withdrawn from worldly affairs for over thirty years. Yet, first his master produced their body technique manual for him, and now a Sea Dragon had saved his family. Why were they so invested?
"She never said. But Dad," Aurora continued, "I have a theory. What if… she knew you? Or owed you a debt? Maybe from your Dragon Slayer days, you spared a Sea Dragon once?"
Leon shook his head firmly. "I never set foot in Sea Dragon territory. Our missions were always against rogue dragons from other clans. I've never even encountered a Sea Dragon, let alone one named Claudia Poseidon."
"Hmm," Aurora mused, pushing her glasses up. "A mystery, then. But her help was real. She stayed with us for years, a steady presence, until one day… she left."
"Left? When?"
"About five years ago. And her departure was… abrupt. She was in the middle of a lesson, then she saw someone, hurried over, they argued… and ten minutes later, she came back, said our master-disciple bond was ended, that we were strong enough now, and forbade us from ever mentioning her name. Then she left."
Leon's mind raced. "She saw someone? Who?"
"I didn't see clearly, hidden by the bushes. But from the voice, it was a woman, not young, around Claudia's age."
Another unknown woman. The puzzle deepened. Leon sighed, feeling the limits of his understanding. The Sea Dragons' motives were an enigma wrapped in a mystery.
"Forget it," he said, letting the matter drop for now. "You mentioned you've opened the Eighth Gate? Show me what you've got."
Aurora's proficiency was indeed formidable. With a few pointed remarks, she clarified stumbling blocks Leon had faced for years. They sparred briefly, and the exhausted General Leon was swiftly subdued by his youngest daughter.
And so, the second dragon to defeat Leon Cosmodeous emerged.
(The first, of course, was Rossweise.)
This story teaches us: even the invincible Family Knight is only vulnerable to his own family.
Afterwards, Leon lay sprawled on the grass, limbs splayed, his weakened body heavily burdened by even a light spar.
Aurora, hands in her lab coat pockets, walked over. "Mom once said, 'As long as you can beat your father, you can walk sideways across the continent.' By that logic, I'm practically invincible now."
Leon snorted and sat up. Aurora sat beside him, adopting a posture eerily similar to Rossweise's: knees bent, arms wrapped around them, chin resting on her knees—like a well-behaved kitten.
"Dad," she said, her voice softer now. "Whoever she was, and whatever her reasons, she helped us survive. She gave us the strength to hold on until you came back." She looked at him, her gaze clear behind her glasses. "That's what matters now. You're here. You're the variable. You can change this future."
Leon met her eyes, the determination in them mirroring his own. The confusion surrounding Claudia would have to wait. Right now, he had a family to save, a wife to wake up, and a wronged future to set right.
The path ahead was clear, even if the shadows behind them remained deep and unexplained.