A few days after the war that ended the Empire, the massive cleanup was finally complete.
The core members of the Lionheart Society, alongside the honest officials who had refused to collaborate with King Canter's corruption, had taken charge of the Empire's internal affairs. Martin's father was among them.
At first, the workload was overwhelming. Even simple tasks like compiling reports were falling behind schedule. Thankfully, Rebecca had a sudden, if grim, inspiration: if they needed to find good and honest officials quickly, why not look in the prisons?
The suggestion, while dark, proved to be highly effective.
After several days of relentless, tireless work, the Empire was functioning smoothly again, even without Canter and his cronies. As for electing a new king, that would be a slower process. The election procedures and the candidate pool needed to be carefully considered before a final decision was made. In the meantime, the Empire's military strength was more than enough to deter any opportunistic invasions from neighboring countries.
With everything stabilized, Leon and Rossweise were finally ready to return home.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay a bit longer, Captain?" Rebecca asked at the city gates, where she, Martin, Nacho, and other Society members had gathered to see them off. "After all, this is the kingdom you fought for."
"Kingdom?" Leon replied with a wave of his hand. "My master always told me to stay away from politics. Saving the world is just a side job."
Rebecca rolled her eyes so hard it seemed they might get stuck. She noted that since the captain had settled down with his wife, one thing had definitely changed: his flair for dramatic, humble boasts.
"But the Silver Dragon Sanctuary is so far away," she pressed on, a practical concern in her voice. "What if we have a real emergency? How would we get word to you in time?"
While the Empire was stable, building a new society came with its own challenges. Internal disputes were expected, and external threats, while unlikely, were always a possibility. As Rebecca said, the Empire was a great distance from the Sanctuary. Even for Rossweise, flying at her top speed took five or six hours. If a critical situation arose, by the time a message reached Leon and he returned, it might be too late.
"When I get home, I will send a trained messenger dragon," Rossweise stated calmly. "If an emergency occurs, use it to contact us. Messenger dragons are swift; they can fly from here to the sanctuary overnight."
Rebecca's eyes widened with curiosity. "A messenger dragon… what's that?"
"It is similar to your carrier pigeons. They are a subspecies of dragon, evolved and trained over generations to handle long-distance communication between dragon clans."
"Oh, I see! Thanks, Sis," Rebecca said, nodding in understanding.
"It is nothing."
"Well, we should be going now," Leon said.
"Safe travels, Captain."
"Have a good journey."
"I hope you're out of that wheelchair the next time we see you, Leon."
"Take care. See you next time."
One by one, the group bid their farewells.
Leon waved to them all, and then he and Rossweise departed. A magnificent silver dragon rose from beyond the city gates and soared into the clear sky.
Rebecca shielded her eyes with her hand, watching the couple disappear into the horizon. She let out a wistful sigh. "Men with families really are different. He's leaving a throne behind just to rush home and hug his kids."
"When you have a family of your own, you'll understand the Captain," Martin said in a tone of mock wisdom.
Rebecca shot him a sideways glance. "As if you're so experienced. If I recall correctly, you've never even been in a relationship, have you?"
Martin froze, his face flushing with embarrassment at being exposed. "So what if I haven't? Have you?"
"No."
Rebecca paused, then a sly, fox-like smile spread across her face. "Wanna try?"
"Who wants to try with you?!" he spluttered.
"Oh~ Little Martin is scared~" she teased.
"I'm not scared…" he tried to protest, but his reddening ears betrayed him.
The twin-tailed girl saw right through him. She patted his chest with a confident smirk. "If you're not scared, then I'll give you a chance to pursue me."
"Wait, what? Who said I was going to pursue you?!"
The boy and girl continued their banter, laughing and arguing as they walked back into the city.
Nacho, walking behind them, placed his hands on his hips and let out an exasperated sigh. "It's hard to believe I helped stage a revolution with a bunch of kids. Unbelievable."
Walker stepped forward and patted the older man on the shoulder. "Come on, senior. We still have a mountain of work to do."
"Yeah," Nacho agreed, shaking his head with a faint smile. "Let's go."
The morning sun rose fully over the horizon, its light shining down on the newly reborn nation and illuminating the long path ahead for the Lionheart Society.
.
.
.
High in the sky, the journey was anything but quiet.
"I bet when we get home, the girls will run to me first," Leon declared.
"No, they will run to me," Rossweise countered, her voice calm but firm.
Had Nacho been privy to this conversation, he would have sighed again. Not only were his colleagues a group of kids, but his leader—a married man with three children—and his wife were arguably the biggest kids of all. What kind of adults argued about this every single day? Only this particular pair of love-struck fools could be so invested and enjoy it so thoroughly.
"This time, I'm definitely going to win, Rossweise. And I'll win three times over."
"Oh? You are that sure all three daughters will go to you first?"
"No, what I mean is—" Leon began, a mischievous glint in his eye.
Rossweise tilted her head, curious about what logical contortion her husband was about to attempt.
"As long as one of Noah, Muen, or Little Light hugs me before you, that counts as one win for me."
"Mm-hmm. And then?" Rossweise prompted, already anticipating the absurdity.
"You'll have zero wins, and I'll have one win. The difference between one and zero is one, so that's a second win for me."
Rossweise: ?
"So, you'll still have zero, and I'll have two wins. The difference is two, which makes my third win."
"..."
"Three-nothing, Dragon Queen. How's that for a final score?"
"I am thinking perhaps I should let Canter out of prison," Rossweise deadpanned. "The leader of the revolution should not be this much of a fool."
She was now seriously questioning if Leon had a second personality. At crucial moments—making heroic entrances, turning the tide of battle, defending the nation—he would switch into a serious, decisive, and strategic mode. But most of the time, this baffling and infuriating primary personality was in control.
To say he was inconsistent wasn't quite right, as he'd been like this since the day they met. But to say he was consistent didn't fit either, because he was undoubtedly bolder and more exasperating now. After a moment of analysis, Rossweise came to a conclusion: This annoying man had simply gotten too comfortable with her. He no longer saw her as an outsider!
Five years of marriage, and he's forgotten his status as a former captive, she thought. When we get home, the daughters can wait. First, I need to remind him who is really in charge of this household!
With that thought, Rossweise beat her powerful wings and accelerated, cutting through the clouds as she sped toward the sanctuary.
.
.
.
By noon, the couple had returned to the familiar territory of the Silver Dragon Sanctuary. They landed at the main entrance, but something felt off. Oddly, no maids came out to greet them. The entire front yard was silent and empty. If Leon hadn't seen the guards dutifully patrolling the borders earlier, he would have thought the temple had been invaded.
They stepped into the yard and looked around. No maids, and no sign of their three daughters.
"Where did everyone go?" Rossweise murmured, a hint of concern in her voice.
Leon blinked, and then a sudden realization dawned on him. "Oh! I know where they are!"
Rossweise looked at him in surprise. "You know? And how did you just get out of that wheelchair so easily?"
"No, no, I mean, I figured out where Noah and the maids must be," he clarified, ignoring the question about his miraculously healed leg.
He turned to Rossweise, who met his gaze. The couple stared at each other for a moment, a shared understanding passing between them. Then, in perfect unison, they exclaimed:
"They're stealing offerings!"