Vol. 6 Ch. 22

Everything in front of Leon felt hazy and surreal. The sound of rain grew distant, and the raindrops that had been falling into streams gradually lessened until they disappeared entirely.

The scenery around Leon shifted once again, as if the stars themselves were rearranging chaotically, with no discernible pattern.

In the next instant, a blinding light suddenly burst before his eyes, and his consciousness began to fade.

When his awareness returned, it felt like waking from a long, immersive dream—a dream he could have left at any moment but didn’t want to escape.

He could hear the soft breaths of those around him, the faint murmurs of women whispering to each other. Even in his semi-conscious state, he instinctively grasped the cool, delicate hand beside him. Turning slightly, he opened his eyes and pulled her into his arms.

Rosvisser let out a gentle sigh, faint tears glistening at the corners of her half-closed eyes. She leaned into Leon’s embrace, savoring the lingering sweetness of the dream they had just shared.

“The memory regression magic is over, but why haven’t Dad and Mom woken up yet?” Aurora scratched her head in confusion as she asked.

Noa looked at the couple lying peacefully on the bed, entwined in sleep, and smiled warmly.

“You said it yourself, Aurora—experiencing memory regression is like dreaming. And isn’t sleep meant to relieve exhaustion? Why wouldn’t you linger in a perfect dream before waking up?”

“Is that so…? Then let’s head out for now. We shouldn’t disturb Dad and Mom while they’re resting.”

“Agreed.”

Moon and Muse quietly packed up the memory-capturing stone, while Noa and Aurora carefully climbed onto the bed. They moved to either side of their parents, gently removing the magical eyepieces.

Once everything was tidied, the little dragons tiptoed out of the room, leaving their parents alone to bask in the warm remnants of the dream.

“Aurora, stop calling me ‘Dad.’ You’re going to address me as ‘Teacher,’ got it?”

Noa rolled her eyes. “Dad, really? You already said the memory stone recorded everything. What’s this about a ‘Heaven-class seal’? These recordings are for perfecting magic, not for reliving moments.”

“I’ll buy you ice cream.”

“No.”

“Grilled steak.”

“No.”

“The newest Young Dragon Magic Encyclopedia!”

“No.”

“Then tell me, what will it take for you to lend it to me for two days?”

Seeing her dad’s persistence, Aurora’s resolve softened. Of course, her sympathy was only part of the equation. For Aurora, looking after her siblings always took priority.

The pink-haired girl pondered for a moment before speaking.“Dad, do you remember when our family played that Castle Werewolf Game with Aunt Claudia and Helena?”

“Yes. Do you want to play it again?”

“No, no, no! I died way too fast last time, had no fun at all, and I never want to play it again,” Aurora said, shaking her head vigorously before continuing.“There’s an interactive game we found in the activity area. It’s kind of similar to Werewolf. It’s a real-time escape game.”

“A real-life interactive game?”

“Yeah. They lock a group of people in a confined scenario, and you have to find clues to escape. But the rules are much more complex. My sisters and I talked about it, and we were wondering if we could try it out before winter break ends. What do you think, Dad?”

Leon didn’t hesitate long before nodding. “That sounds interesting. Sure, no problem. Dad promises to take you all there before winter break ends.”

“Yay! This time, I definitely won’t be the first to die!” Aurora declared confidently.

Leon chuckled. “Alright, now that Dad’s agreed to take you all, can I borrow the memory stone now?”

“Fine.”

Aurora handed over the memory regression stone without hesitation, placing it in Leon’s hands.

“You can have it for two days, no more!”

“Got it.”

Leon gazed at the stone in his hand, a faint smile curling his lips.

“Two days is plenty of time to crush that arrogant tea-dragon!”

“Leon~ Big Brother~ Teach me this, pretty please~”

“Leon, do you think your name is beautiful?”

“Wow! What an amazing spell! Leon-nii, you’re so cool!”

Every single "Leon-nii" felt like a knife stabbing into Rosvisser’s heart.

She covered her face with both hands, unable to bear the sight.

“I have to say, that’s nothing to brag about,” Leon remarked nonchalantly, holding the memory stone in one hand while gesturing in the air with the other, like a teacher lecturing students.

He paced slowly behind Rosvisser’s chair as he continued, his voice teasing.

“Sure, hearing you call me ‘nii-san’ back then just shows how polite you were as a kid. But to call me cool when you were only six? Pfft. Some people’s taste in aesthetics, honestly, hasn’t changed a bit.”

“Hey, Rosvie, why so quiet, huh? Rosvie?”

“Do you like this memory or not?”

“We could rewatch your school years next, you know. We almost had one of those classic aristocratic school romances going on back then~ Ah—”

“Enough!”

The queen slammed the table and stood up abruptly, clearly intent on snatching the memory stone out of Leon’s hand.

But General Leon wasn’t about to let her succeed so easily. With a quick sidestep and a leap, he vaulted onto the opposite side of the bed.

Thus, the classic scene of “you on one side of the bed, me on the other” played out once again between the couple.

“Hand over the memory stone, Leon.”

“Nope. I worked hard to borrow this from Aurora.”

The two stood off across the bed, their playful bickering almost impossible to believe given their combined ages were well into the triple digits. Yet here they were, acting like squabbling children in a game of tag.

“If you won’t give it to me, you’d better sleep with one eye open from now on. Because… who knows? One night you might wake up gasping for air, only to find my tail wrapped tightly around your neck!”

“Well, then, let me ask you this: how exactly is the tip of your tail—”

“Don’t you dare ask! Give me the memory stone!”

Rosvisser’s long legs shot forward as she darted around the foot of the bed to intercept him.

But Leon simply rolled across the mattress and landed smoothly on the opposite side.

Their positions had reversed, yet the stalemate remained unchanged.

“You want it?” Leon taunted, shaking the memory stone in his hand.

Rosvisser didn’t reply, her eyes glaring daggers at the infuriating man in front of her.

“If you want it so badly, just call me ‘Leon-nii’ once, and I’ll give it to you.”

“Keep dreaming!”

“Well, in that case, my dear wife, I’ll just relive the sweet, adorable version of you every night from now on.”

“You—!”

“Help! How is this supposed to be heartwarming or a way to fill in the gaps in our memories? Why does it have to come with such socially excruciating consequences?!”

“Aurora! Hurry up and cancel the memory stone’s recording function for your mom!”

But no matter how much Rosvisser complained internally, it didn’t change the fact that Leon would keep using this piece of her history as blackmail.

The only way out of this mess was to meet his childish demand.

What to do? Call him or not?

Rosvisser’s mind raced as she weighed her options.

In the end, she made her decision—to call him.

Calling him “nii-san” would be embarrassing for a moment; refusing would bring embarrassment without end!

Her face flushed bright red as her lips parted hesitantly. She looked more embarrassed now than when her dragon markings flared.

Clutching the bedsheet tightly in both hands, her tail curling slightly from sheer embarrassment, Rosvisser glanced at Leon briefly before quickly averting her eyes.

“L-Leon-nii…”

“Ah.”

“Conquered.”

Her reluctant yet obligated tone satisfied Leon greatly. Smiling contentedly, he handed the memory stone over to Rosvisser as promised.

Rosvisser accepted it, waiting for the redness on her face and the shame in her heart to subside before asking, “So, there’s no hidden backup like with those bunny-girl photos, right?”

Leon scoffed, crossing his arms.

“Do you think I’d stoop to such petty tricks again?”

Rosvisser smirked. “You’d better not, you dog.”

She turned her attention back to the memory stone in her hand, then asked, “So, you went through all this trouble, even bartering a real-time escape game as a condition to borrow this memory stone, just to make me call you ‘nii-san’?”

“Of course not.”

Leon pointed at the memory stone in her hand. “Check the last segment of the memory. You’ll hear faint traces of a conversation between your parents and Grandmother Veronica.”

“In that conversation, they mention something…”

“A crown.”