In the evening, Leon arrived at Rossweise's study.
Unlike usual, she wasn't working overtime, but instead writing a letter to her sister, Isha, informing her that their grandmother had returned and would stay with her for a few days before heading to Isha's place. She advised her sister to prepare in advance.
Leon stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the door frame of the study, watching Rossweise writing at her desk. He slowly spoke up, "What did your grandmother mean by a survey mission in the far north? What are they surveying?"
Rossweise didn't look up, continuing to write her letter. "The Dragon Clan doesn't operate on hereditary systems like your human society, so my grandmother isn't an old Dragon King."
Correcting the dog-man's term for their elders, Rossweise picked up the finished letter, neatly folded it into an envelope, and continued, "As for the survey my grandmother mentioned in the far north, I'm not sure. I only know she seems to have been active there for many years."
The far north of the continent could be described as barren, covered in snow and ice year-round, with few human traces.
Even the Dragon Clan couldn't survive there for long, let alone other races.
It was said that the ice in the far north was so thick that not even Constantine, the Crimson Flame Dragon King who symbolized 'burning,' could melt through it.
This claim was debatable, as no one knew if Constantine, even at full power, could accomplish it—
But everyone probably would never know.
So, in Leon's view, there was nothing in the far north worth the old lady and a few other Dragon Kings spending decades surveying.
Rossweise's thoughts were similar to Leon's. She believed her grandmother was probably just using the survey as an excuse.
In reality, Grandma didn't elaborate on what she was doing in the far north. Of course, since the old lady didn't say anything, the couple didn't inquire further.
With the letter sealed, Rossweise stood up and walked to the balcony, wearing her dragon-winged slippers. Leon followed behind her.
The letter dragon on the balcony railing had been waiting for a while.
Rossweise placed the envelope into the bamboo tube on the dragon's back and then patted its head. With a nod, the letter dragon flapped its wings and flew into the night sky.
"What about the 'Star Wanderer Dragon King Ravi' and the other two Dragon Kings your grandmother mentioned earlier? Any idea?" Leon asked from behind her.
Rossweise gazed into the distance, her eyes darting between the stars and the moon. "Those three are all very ancient Dragon Kings. Ravi is even older than Constantine. 'Black Sun Dragon King Bly' and 'Chaos Dragon King Jags' are nearly as ancient."
Leon nodded thoughtfully.
They were indeed a group of ancient beings. These three Dragon Kings were also adversaries he had never encountered in his military career. He didn't know their strengths. But if they were all similar to Constantine… then there was no need to worry too much.
Just because a Blue Stripe could defeat Constantine in seconds didn't mean this Flame Dragon King really required Leon to use up all his magic.
To illustrate with a simple example: suppose a top student and a genius both took an exam and scored a perfect hundred. The top student proudly tells the genius, "See, our abilities are the same!"
The genius calmly responds, "No, you scoring a hundred is your limit, but me scoring a hundred is the limit of the paper."
It meant General Leon could use a Blue Stripe to take down a Constantine in a second, but if a few more Dragon Kings came along, he'd just have to work a little harder to take them all down together.
However, what Leon was slightly concerned about wasn't just the raw power. It was the 'Spatial Magic' he hadn't heard much about before.
"My grandmother said Ravi suddenly withdrew from their survey mission, shortly after which Bly and Jags also disappeared. Their common trait is their use of Spatial Magic."
Leon softly asked, "Could you tell me more about this Spatial Magic?"
Human research into magic had only been going on for a few hundred years, whereas the Dragon Clan had been around for thousands.
No matter how knowledgeable Leon was about history, he couldn't possibly learn knowledge that had never appeared in human history, such as this Spatial Magic.
"Well, about that… For the Dragon Clan, Spatial Magic is quite a novel concept. The Star Wanderer Dragon King Ravi became a tribe's Dragon King three hundred years ago thanks to his original Spatial Magic."
Rossweise explained, "Later, some Dragon Kings also began to emulate Ravi and researched this area. Bly and Jags were among the most successful. As you can see, although we don't know exactly what my grandmother and the others are doing in the far north, they definitely need Ravi's Spatial Magic. With Ravi gone, and Bly and Jags disappearing too, the operation is completely on hold."
"Oh, I see…" Leon rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
Rossweise turned around, leaning against the balcony railing, looking at Leon. "You seem to have something on your mind?"
Having lived together for so long, she could naturally tell what the dog-man looked like when he was pondering something.
Leon gave a faint smile. "It's not really a thought, just… intuition."
Rossweise tilted her head. "Intuition?"
"Yeah. Constantine is a Dragon King I've never heard of or encountered before. Even among your Dragon Clan, he hasn't been active for many years. But as soon as he resurfaced, his plans were exposed, proving his collusion with the Empire."
Leon continued, "And those three Dragon Kings, including Ravi, Bly, and Jags—I've never heard of them before either. Are they relatively low-key within your Dragon Clan as well?"
Leon's words sparked a realization in Rossweise's mind. "Indeed, Ravi, Bly, and Jags rarely show themselves within the Dragon Clan. Everyone thought they were focusing on researching Spatial Magic. But with what you've just said… it's very easy to link them with Constantine."
Leon shrugged. "The line of speculation is sound, but we still need some evidence to prove it."
Rossweise knew what he was referring to. "You mean the trusted aide by Constantine's side."
"Yeah. We've been waiting for four months now. The turmoil within the Crimson Flame Dragon Clan should have subsided by now, right?"
He was getting impatient.
Rossweise understood his sentiment. After all, it concerned his faith. He must be eager to understand why the human Empire he once served relentlessly pursued him and why they insisted on cooperating with the Dragon Clan.
"After my grandmother leaves, we'll go to the Crimson Flame Dragon Clan and root out that guy," Rossweise promised.
Leon raised an eyebrow, a smirk forming at the corner of his mouth. "Oh, finally getting to stretch our muscles, huh?"
Rossweise chuckled. It seemed that being out of action for so long had really gotten to the dog-man.
After chatting for a few more moments, the couple tacitly skipped over that topic. Nerves and thoughts couldn't be kept tense all the time; they needed some relaxation.
Rossweise had already prepared a bottle of red wine on the small wooden table on the balcony. And two glasses.
Her grandmother's sudden visit and the latest information she brought were indeed helpful to her. But they also inadvertently brought extra pressure outside of work.
And the Silver Dragon Queen's method of relieving stress was either through her captives or through alcohol. Since her captive had received an upgrade and she couldn't lay a hand on him for now, she had to resort to drinking away her sorrows.
She sat at the table, crossing her long legs. The silky skirt slipped down to the base of her thighs, the black lace hem revealing itself subtly against her smooth skin.
Who was this little tease tempting here? Leon wasn't falling for her trap. He didn't sit down; he just stood there on the opposite side of the table from Rossweise, making sure his gaze wouldn't accidentally wander to where it shouldn't.
Ding ding ding—
Rossweise poured the red wine into the glasses, lifted hers, and took a sip, enjoying its taste. The wine flowed into her stomach, leaving a lingering fragrance in her mouth.
With a slight chill in the evening breeze, Rossweise spoke with hidden meanings in her words, "I prepared two glasses, Leon."
Implicitly, she was inviting him to drink with her.
"What? Now one glass isn't enough for you?" Leon pretended not to understand.
Rossweise rolled her eyes. She knew she had to speak straightforwardly with the dog-man; otherwise, he would definitely play dumb.
"Join me."
The Queen's command was short, but it carried a certain authority that couldn't be refused.
"Not to be refused? Well, General Leon refused today!" He rebelled.
"I won't," Leon said, "You know I can't handle alcohol."
Rossweise leaned forward, resting her forearms on the table, chin gently propped on the back of her hand. The strap of her nightgown slipped off her shoulder as she peered at Leon through the wine glass.
In her view, Leon turned into a "big-headed doll."
She chuckled foolishly a couple of times, then pouted, using a slightly coquettish tone, "Join me, won't you? I'm under so much pressure."
Leon closed his eyes, unmoved.
Yeah, he was pretending. Obviously pretending.
"Leon~"
Can't hear you, buddy's a little deaf.
"Le~on~"
Alright, Mother of Dragons, you're about to make me vomit.
"My dear Cosmod…eous~~"
Give it up. I won't drink with you no matter what you call me.
"Husband."
"Here."
Hey, don't get it wrong, I just couldn't stand it anymore, not because she called me husband.