Outside the Castle, along a tree-lined path, the afternoon sunlight gleamed brightly, streaming through the gaps in the leaves and scattering onto the ground, transforming into patches of light.

A certain hapless couple, despite agreeing to take a walk together, ended up highlighting the phrase "each going their own way" once they were outside.

Roswitha walked along the far-left side of the path, while Leon stayed to the far-right.

The distance between them was wide enough to accommodate a half-grown dragon.

"Good afternoon, Your Majesty," the dragon maid sweeping the ground greeted, bowing slightly toward Roswitha on the left, before turning to the right. "Good afternoon, Your Highness."

Outwardly she maintained utmost respect, but inwardly, the dragon maid couldn't help but grumble:

Seriously, what’s wrong with these two?

They finally make their first public appearance together, yet they insist on keeping this absurd distance? Even bowing properly becomes a hassle!

Of course, the dragon maid wasn’t the only one itching to complain.

The onlookers, who had been quietly gearing up to gossip, were also bewildered by this scene.

"Her Majesty the Queen and her husband… don’t seem very close, do they?"

"Don’t be ridiculous. They’ve already had two little princesses. How could they not be close?"

"Then why would a couple walking together stay that far apart?"

"Maybe… Their Majesties really value their personal space?"

"Do you believe that nonsense?"

"Shhh! Her Majesty’s approaching! Quick, hide, hide!"

Several gossiping dragons quickly darted into the nearby bushes.

Leon and Roswitha strolled past their hiding spot.

Though Leon’s physical condition hadn’t fully recovered yet—especially since that particularly vigorous effort three days ago had drained his painstakingly restored stamina—his senses were as sharp as ever.

The sneaky movements of those gossiping dragons didn’t escape his eyes, nor did their whispered comments. He more or less caught the gist of it all.

Leon rubbed his nose and glanced at Roswitha. With her abilities, she must have noticed them too, right?

But she showed no sign of suggesting they move closer together.

Fine, Leon figured he’d keep quiet then.

Maintaining the facade of an amicable but fake family? That was her department. Let her worry about how those gossiping dragons perceived their relationship. Leon couldn’t care less.

"Hey," Roswitha suddenly spoke.

Leon turned his head to look at her.

Roswitha kept her eyes fixed straight ahead, her footsteps rhythmic and steady. "Let’s… walk a little closer together."

Leon let out a small grunt and didn’t refuse. "Alright."

With practiced coordination, they shifted toward the middle of the path.

Finally, they stopped about a meter apart from one another.

Leon shoved his hands into his pockets, while Roswitha clasped her hands in front of her stomach, displaying her characteristic elegance.

"Is this close enough for you?" Leon asked.

"Yes. Unless… you want to come even closer?" Roswitha countered.

Hearing that, Leon faltered slightly in his stride, eyeing her suspiciously. "What are you plotting, dragon?"

"I’m not plotting anything. I’m saying that if you want, I won’t refuse, and I won’t use it as an excuse to mock you. After all, this walk is part of my earlier promise to you for teaching Muen how to write her name."

This time, Roswitha shifted her gaze, turning to look at Leon.

In her silver dragon eyes, there was none of her usual aloof indifference or coldness. Instead, there was a trace of gentleness.

"So, do you want to come closer?"

"Sure—"

Wait.

No.

Absolutely not.

As a Dragon Slayer, Leon had an innate sense for dragonly schemes, and he was certain something was off about Roswitha today.

"Then come on."

"You know what? Let’s just stay like this. It’s fine."

When Leon declined her invitation, Roswitha didn’t exhibit any emotion. She simply nodded. "Alright."

"Dad! Mother!"

A familiar childish voice rang out from ahead.

The two of them lifted their gazes.

Standing in the middle of the path was their youngest dragon daughter, with her hands placed defiantly on her hips. The little tuft of hair on her head swayed in the breeze, while her small tail wagged enthusiastically behind her.

"Muen? Weren’t you playing in your room with your sister?" Roswitha asked.

"Uh… Well, it’s because big sister told me to follow you!"

"Noa would never ask you to do such a thing." Roswitha instantly saw through Muen’s flimsy excuse. "You just wanted to sneak out and follow us yourself, didn’t you?"

Realizing her little plan had been exposed by none other than her mother, Muen no longer bothered hiding it. She quickly ran up and squeezed herself into the gap between Leon and Roswitha.

Then, grabbing her parents’ hands, one in each of her own, she declared childishly, "Muen wants to take a walk with Daddy and Mother!"

"Alright, alright."

Leon was more than happy to let his adorable daughter ease the awkward atmosphere between him and Roswitha.

"No, Muen."

Roswitha’s tone turned stern. "Daddy and I are supposed to walk alone. Be a good girl and don’t disturb us."

Muen puffed up her plump little cheeks. She knew her mother’s orders were absolute, leaving no room for negotiation. So, she sneakily cast Leon a pleading look.

"Really, Daddy? You’re going to walk alone with Mother and leave poor, lonely Muen to play in the backyard all by herself? Muen will be so, so sad. What if a Dangerous Beast sneaks in and takes Muen away into the woods, and Daddy never sees Muen again? And it’ll all be because you wanted to walk alone with Mother!"

"…Have you been reading Enlightening Stories for Little Dragons too often?"

"Muen doesn’t care, doesn’t care! Muen just wants to come along! Daddy, do you not love Muen anymore? Do you only love Mother now?"

Say yes! Say yes!

How could anyone say no to someone this cute?

Today Daddy’s got your back. You’re coming with us. If your mother disagrees, I’ll deal with her tonight!

(Well, okay, she’ll probably deal with me, but who cares! Daughter’s happiness comes first!)

"Muen, be good. Daddy and I already agreed on this."

Roswitha seemed to have her own agenda and continued rejecting Muen’s request. "How about this? Whatever delicious food or fun toys you want, we’ll get them for you tonight. How does that sound?"

"Muen doesn't want anything else, Muen just wants—"

Little Dragon Girl's words trailed off.

She actually knew Roswitha's temperament well; no matter how much she pouted and acted cute, it wouldn't work. It might even make Roswitha impatient and angry.

Even though Roswitha wouldn't hit or scold Muen when she got angry, Muen still didn't want her mom to be troubled by negative emotions all the time.

She wilted a bit, thought for a moment, and said, "Muen doesn't want tasty treats or fun toys. If you don't want Muen to follow you, then you must promise Muen one thing."

Roswitha nodded. "What is it?"

"This!"

With gleeful determination, Muen raised the two hands she had been holding and brought them together.

When Leon’s and Roswitha’s fingers touched, it was as if a spark of electricity ran through their bodies from the contact point, spreading instantaneously.

Leon’s hands, rough and weathered from years of battle, bore the marks of hardship.

Roswitha’s hands, delicate and porcelain-like, were slender and elegant.

But one thing they had in common was that both sets of fingers were slightly cool to the touch.

Probably from nervousness.

Muen held her hands over theirs until she was sure they were actually holding each other’s hands. Only then did she let go, satisfied.

"Alright! Daddy and Mother have to keep holding hands and walk like this~"

Roswitha’s expression faltered.

In her 200 years of life, she had never held anyone else’s hand—this moment of standing so close to Leon had already been the boldest she’d ever dared.

She deeply disliked letting others—especially male dragons—enter her personal space. Any male dragon daring to come within three meters of her would either be a corpse or soon become one.

So this simple act of handholding was…

Surprisingly unconventional.

As for Leon, while it was a little awkward for him, his thoughts were far less intricate than Roswitha’s.

He simply wondered:

I’ve already tasted dragon claws. So what would dragon hands taste like?

This hapless couple even accepted the fact that their first time holding hands was with someone from another race.

Meanwhile, as Muen bounded away, she hid behind a tree to spy on the two of them.

Watching her parents holding hands, the little dragon girl chuckled to herself.

"You planned that, didn’t you, Muen?"

"Aah!—"

Noa had appeared behind Muen at some point, arms crossed, imitating their mother’s stern demeanor.

"Big sis, you scared me to death!" Muen clutched her chest, feigning indignation.

"Hmph. What’s so great about handholding, anyway?"

"It’s just nice to look at! It’s just nice to look at!" Muen insisted.

With a quick gesture, Noa pinched her younger sister’s chubby cheeks. "You definitely did this on purpose."

"Uuu~ Muen was wrong! Muen won’t do it again! Big sis, let go, let go~"

The two little dragons tumbled about, playing and laughing.

Before they left, Muen couldn’t resist casting one final glance in her parents’ direction.

She pouted slightly. "Seriously, Daddy… needing me to teach him how to hold Mother’s hand? Tch—so clueless!"

Watching her gaze, Noa thought quietly:

"If only things could stay like this forever."