Chapter 37: But I Still Like Him Very Much

It was already past seven in the evening when Rosvitha returned to the Silver Dragon Sanctuary after inspecting the borders.
Upon hearing that her grandmother had returned, Rosvitha rushed upstairs to the guest room without even eating dinner.
Anna said, “Your Majesty, there’s no need to hurry so much.”
Rosvitha stopped and asked why.
Anna smiled and said, “Because His Highness the Prince has been keeping the elderly lady company.”
Rosvitha inhaled sharply and instantly changed from “brisk walking” to “running,” disappearing up the stairs in the blink of an eye.
Leaving the Head Maid confused in the hallway alone.
What was that about? His Highness is so eloquent, he must be keeping the elderly lady thoroughly entertained, right?
So why did Her Majesty look so nervous?
Ah well, it’s Her Majesty’s family matter after all. Anna didn’t follow up, instead arranging for several maids to prepare some late-night snacks.
Her Majesty hadn’t eaten dinner, she would probably want to eat something after meeting with the elderly lady.
Meanwhile, on the third floor of the Sanctuary, Rosvitha, in a most un-queenly manner, was holding up her skirts and hurrying through the corridor to the guest room.
She stood at the guest room door, closed her eyes, and focused on calming her chaotic, rapid breathing and her slightly excited yet nervous emotions.
The excitement was because her grandmother had returned to visit her after fifty years;
The nervousness was worry that that stupid man might have said something wrong and aroused her grandmother’s suspicions.
She and Isabella’s grandmother was quite the shrewd one.
To put it simply, the cunningness of both sisters combined could probably match the old lady’s at fifty-fifty. Meanwhile, what about Leon?
Whether it was Rosvitha or Isabella, either one of them could go toe-to-toe with General Leon.
If this old lady really wanted to get information out of Leon, she’d probably learn the name of Leon’s family donkey within an hour.
That was Leon’s private information! Even Rosvitha didn’t know what that donkey was called!
As her breathing steadied and her mindset adjusted, Rosvitha shook her head to clear away the jumbled thoughts. She slowly opened her eyes and gently knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
Upon hearing the voice, Rosvitha froze.
It was Grandmother’s voice.
She clutched her skirt hem and bit her lower lip, still feeling nervous.
Although Grandmother’s tone seemed calm and gentle, it didn’t sound like she had discovered Leon’s human identity.
But Rosvitha still didn’t dare to lower her guard.
She slowly pressed down on the door handle, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.
Walking through the doorway into the living room, she saw the familiar face sitting on the sofa.
Seeing her granddaughter return, Grandmother slowly stood up, looking at Rosvitha with a kind smile, “Long time no see, little Ros.”
Rosvitha’s eyes glistened with tears, but her lips also carried the same smile as she quickly walked forward, opening her arms to embrace her grandmother.
“Long time no see, Grandmother.”
The grandmother and granddaughter embraced, completely ignoring the other person in the living room.
Leon Casmode sat on another sofa, silently watching the dragoness and her grandmother embrace.
Suddenly, General Leon had an idea—
Maybe he should take this chance to slip away!
It wasn’t that Leon was afraid of “meeting the family,” but the process of meeting them just now was truly mortifying.
So much so that in the following hour, even though the old lady maintained a kind expression and only asked about trivial family matters,
Leon still felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, with thorns at his back and a fishbone in his throat.
He had never felt an hour drag on so long before.
And he had never so desperately hoped for Rosvitha to return home early.
Because the sooner she returned home, the sooner Leon could slip away.
As for the excuse to leave, any would do.
Feeling dizzy, stomach ache, making dinner, taking care of the kids… he could take his pick!
After brief hesitation, Leon finally decided to make his escape.
He opened his mouth, planning to say he needed to put their daughters to bed.
But before he could speak, he saw the old lady and Rosvitha end their embrace and turn to look his way.
Leon panicked.
Damn, if he didn’t escape now, he’d lose his chance!
“Um…” Leon stood up, preparing to cast a spell.
“Leon, sit down, let’s continue our chat.” However, the old lady mercilessly interrupted his pre-casting preparation.
“Ah, this—”
“Leon, when Grandmother tells you to sit, you should sit down,” Rosvitha twisted the knife, “Haven’t you already been keeping Grandmother company for a while? Why are you still nervous?”
Leon scrutinized Rosvitha, his eyes moving slightly before glancing at her right hand.
She was secretly clutching her skirt hem, and her tail behind her was slightly curled.
These were little habits she only showed when nervous – Leon knew her well.
Damn it, he was already sweating bullets, yet she accused him of being nervous. This was clearly a case of the dragon crying foul first! Leon thought angrily.
But since both grandmother and granddaughter told him to stay, he could only steel himself and sit back down.
Grandmother also sat down with Rosvitha.
Rosvitha sat beside her grandmother, holding the old lady’s hand, her face and eyes unable to hide her longing.
Leon rarely saw Rosvitha display her feelings so openly.
It was clear she truly loved her grandmother.
“Little Ros, really now, why didn’t you tell me you’ve been married for three years?” Grandmother patted her granddaughter’s hand, glancing at Leon.
Rosvitha’s pretty face reddened as she lowered her head slightly, “I was just about to write you a letter when you came back…”
Grandmother smiled and reached out to gently tap Rosvitha’s nose, “Why are you getting shy now?”
Leon watched this scene from the side, his eye twitching involuntarily.
Old lady, your granddaughter’s red face isn’t from shyness!
It’s clearly from lying!
If you hadn’t come back, not only would she not have told you about being married for three years, she probably wouldn’t have said anything even after thirty years of marriage.
Of course, I’d do the same – after all, a human-dragon romance is too taboo, most people couldn’t accept it. Leon scratched his temple and turned his head away, choosing to play dead.
Meanwhile, Rosvitha followed the marriage topic and steered the conversation toward Leon, indirectly probing her grandmother to see if Leon had let anything slip.
“By the way, Grandmother, you don’t mind Leon’s background, do you?”
“Background… I don’t mind at all.”
Grandmother looked at Leon, who was playing dead on the side, and gave him a once-over, “He’s handsome and capable, just born in unfortunate times.”
It seemed Grandmother hadn’t detected Leon’s human identity.
But hearing Grandmother praise Leon this way, Rosvitha was still somewhat surprised.
Because Grandmother wouldn’t casually praise others.
Those who earned Grandmother’s approval were either top dragon kings or had profound academic achievements.
And that dog of a man was neither—
Though he had slain many top dragon kings, so he somewhat met Grandmother’s standards for praise.
“However—”
That simple ‘however’ made Rosvitha’s heart, which had just settled, rise again.
“However, I didn’t expect that Little Ros would like a man with this kind of personality.” Grandmother’s tone was surprised, and her ‘this kind of personality’ wasn’t meant as criticism.
Hearing Grandmother say this, Rosvitha finally let out a quiet sigh of relief. She raised her hand to brush the hair near her ear, smiling sweetly as she looked at Leon,
“Leon can be quite stubborn, and a bit childish.”
“When he talks, he often deliberately contradicts me.”
“Sometimes he’s so awkward, and you can never tell if he’s telling the truth or lying.”
“He has so many little schemes but keeps to himself, doesn’t like to communicate, likes to act tough, bit of a lone hero complex…”
Rosvitha listed Leon’s “sins” as if she were reading off a menu.
She got more and more into it, nearly exposing everything about Leon.
Leon, listening from the side, felt increasingly uneasy.
Hiss—
Dragon lady, so you’re using this opportunity to pick apart my flaws, huh!
Fine, fine, fine, since I have so many little problems, then you—
“But I still really like him.”
The Queen propped her chin with one hand, gazing at Leon. The blush hadn’t left her cheeks, and her silver eyes danced with ambiguous light.
Leon stared back at her blankly, blinking his eyes as warmth flooded his heart.
Was she really using this chance to complain about Leon’s little flaws, or…
Was it all just to say that last line?