Early in the morning, Muen got out of bed, her little head still groggy and not fully awake. She mumbled softly,

"Big sister... what's for breakfast...?"

No response.

"Big sister?"

Muen slowly opened her eyes and realized that Noa had already gotten up early.

Startled, she jumped off the bed and ran to the bathroom, study, and entrance hall, but she could not find Noa anywhere.

Finally, Muen went to the balcony and looked down into the courtyard below. That's where she found Noa.

However, the courtyard was not occupied by Noa alone. Leon and Roswitha were standing on either side of her.

The three of them stood like scarecrows, heads tilted at a forty-five-degree angle, staring motionlessly at the sky.

Muen scratched her head in confusion. "Is this some new version of the 'Red Light, Green Light' game..."

Muttering, Muen dressed herself, quickly combed her hair, and jogged downstairs.

Once in the courtyard, she stood in front of Leon and asked,

"Dad, what are you doing?"

"Waiting for the messenger drake."

"Huh?"

Muen blinked her bright, pretty eyes and hopped over to Noa.

"Big sister, what are you doing?"

"Waiting for the messenger drake."

Muen: ?

A small head filled with big question marks.

She finally hopped over to Roswitha.

"Mom, you wouldn’t also be—"

"Waiting for the messenger drake."

Muen raised her hands and smushed her cheeks.

"You’re all waiting for the messenger drake, so who’s going to make breakfast for Muen?!"

Half an hour later, in the nursery’s dining area, a family of four sat around the table eating breakfast.

"Come to think of it," Leon said, "even if the results of the assessment are out, there’s no way the messenger drake would fly over this early in the morning, right?"

"The academy has always been efficient. When I was a student, I received my results early the next morning," Roswitha replied.

Leon looked across the table at her. "You graduated from Saint Hiss Academy too?"

"Of course."

"Then should Noa call you ‘Mom’ or ‘Senior’ from now on?"

"Shut up and eat your food."

Sitting on one side of the table, Muen held her little dragon-specific knife and fork. She alternated glances between her mother and father before remarking in her innocent voice,

"Why does it feel like... Dad and Mom seem much closer after visiting the academy?"

Both parents froze mid-bite, glancing at each other with synchronized movements.

Leon pursed his lips. "Do we...?"

Muen nodded emphatically. "You do! You do! You’ve never joked during meals before!"

"Don't talk while eating, and don't speak before sleeping. We were just joking occasionally. Besides, your dad and I... have always gotten along fine. Now eat your breakfast, Muen," Roswitha said.

"Okay."

"I’m finished."

Noa placed her cutlery neatly on the table and jumped off her chair.

"You all can keep eating. I’ll go back to waiting for the messenger drake."

Seeing this, Leon quickly shoveled a couple more bites of food into his mouth. With half-chewed food and a brief swipe of his mouth, he stood up,

"I’ll come with you."

Watching her father and sister rush away, Muen marveled, "They’re so enthusiastic."

Roswitha patiently cut the bread on her plate into smaller pieces, spread strawberry jam evenly on top, and handed it to Muen.

"Your dad and sister take grades very seriously. Besides, your dad used to be a top student you know."

Stories of Leon’s feats—entering the academy at ten, graduating at fifteen, and even winning dragon-slaying contests—came pouring out, to the point that Muen felt he might as well hang a banner of all his achievements on their front door.

Poking at the jam-covered bread with her fork, Muen asked contemplatively,

"Then when will Dad teach Muen how to study?"

Roswitha smiled, lovingly ruffling Muen’s small head. "Very soon. When Muen grows a little older, you’ll be able to learn from Dad."

"Really?" Muen’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Really."

"Yay!"

"So, in order to grow up quickly, Muen needs to eat properly. First, finish your breakfast."

"Alright!"

Muen buried her head in her food enthusiastically.

Roswitha smiled with satisfaction, thinking to herself how unexpectedly effective Leon’s parenting tactics were.

After breakfast, Roswitha held Muen’s hand and walked to the courtyard.

Leon and Noa had already resumed their forty-five-degree skyward vigil, awaiting the arrival of the messenger drake.

Indeed, this must be the perseverance of top-tier students when it comes to grades—truly admirable determination.

Roswitha waved her hand, instructing the maids to prepare some tea and snacks.

The four members of the family ate and waited together.

And so they waited until evening, but the messenger drake still did not come.

Roswitha sighed softly, "I’ll go make dinner. We can eat first and then continue waiting."

She turned and headed toward the sanctum, but before she had taken more than a few steps, Leon’s voice rang out behind her.

"The messenger drake! The messenger drake is here!"

Noa’s excited shout quickly followed, "It really came! It’s the messenger drake!"

Roswitha turned around.

Sure enough, she saw a messenger drake descending slowly toward the sanctum, landing in the center of the courtyard.

The four of them hurried over.

There was a bamboo cylinder tied to the drake’s back.

Leon untied it and pulled out an envelope.

It was beautifully crafted—navy blue with gold lettering spelling out the surname "Melkevi." The seal was made of red wax imprinted with the Saint Hiss Academy’s crest.

"Hurry up and open it, Dad!" Muen urged, unable to contain her excitement.

Leon nodded, broke the red wax seal, and opened the envelope.

The contents were simple and clear:

Dear Noa K. Melkevi,

Congratulations on passing our academy’s entrance exam.

Please report to the academy in three days to attend the enrollment ceremony.

"We did it! We did it, we did it! Big sister’s amazing! Dad and Mom are amazing too!"

Muen hugged Noa tightly and twirled around in excitement.

Leon handed the letter to Roswitha. She read it through twice and then let out a relieved smile.

Placing the letter down, she took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and turned to Leon.

"Thank you."

Leon spread his arms. "What are you thanking me for? This was mostly Noa’s doing. She’s a smart girl."

"Can you drink alcohol?" Roswitha suddenly asked.

"What? Me?"

She nodded.

"Not... very well, but I can try."

"Alright, let’s celebrate tonight. I’ll go make dinner."

"Okay."

Roswitha carefully placed the letter back into its envelope and walked toward the sanctum.

After a few steps, she stopped and looked back. "Want to help me in the kitchen? Or are you going to keep complaining about being invisible in this household?"

"You know, my dear dragon queen, you can be so petty sometimes."

Leon muttered as he eagerly followed her.

About an hour later, dinner was ready.

Roswitha even opened a bottle of fine vintage wine, claiming it was from the stock she kept for her coronation as the Silver Dragon Queen fifty years ago.

She poured Leon a glass. "Is this enough?"

Leon nodded.

Dinner was extravagant.

Muen chattered away enthusiastically, mapping out her big sister’s future life at the academy—rules about not adopting other dragon girls as sisters, not bringing boys home (or girls either), studying hard, learning magic, and then protecting Muen after graduation.

Noa listened seriously, taking every word to heart.

After a few rounds of wine, the two young girls retired to their rooms early, giggling over secret conversations shared only between sisters.

Roswitha, seated on her chair, looked a little dazed, her flushed cheeks glowing crimson from the alcohol.

She had drunk quite a bit.

It had been a long time since she had felt such joy.

After a brief moment, Roswitha reached out to pour herself another glass.

However, her hand was stopped by Leon.

"You’ve had enough, Roswitha."

"What? You’re worried about me now?" she slurred.

"Who’s worried about you? I’m just saying, if you drink too much and can’t get up tomorrow morning, who’s going to take Noa to the academy?"

"Why would that matter? Even if I’m drunk, I can still fly!"

Leon sighed. "Back on the Empire's continent, we can't even ride horses while drunk."

"That’s you humans. We Dragon Clan don’t care about such things..."

Leon stood up and helped her to her feet. "Come on, I’m taking you to the balcony for some fresh air to sober up."

"Nooo... I just want one more drink..."

"You can have more after Noa’s been dropped off tomorrow."

With words of persuasion and occasional coercion, Leon managed to drag her out onto the balcony.

Leaning against the balcony railing, Roswitha let the cool night breeze brush against her face. Her long hair swayed and shimmered under the dark sky like streams of silver sand.

Leon stood beside her with his hands in his pockets, planning to take her back to her room to sleep once she sobered up a bit.

The two stood in silence, the only sound being the wind in the night.

After a long while, Roswitha tilted her head back and murmured,

"I’m really worried about her."

"Noa?"

"Yes. She’s mature and sensible for her age, but she’s still just a child. She’s never been away from home or lived on her own before."

She closed her eyes and continued,

"Will she remember to do laundry? Will she be picky about food? Will she eat breakfast on time?"

"If she encounters someone with a bad attitude, will she accidentally get into trouble?"

"And then there’s her studies. What if the academy’s teachers aren’t as good as you? Will she get annoyed and stop paying attention in class?"

"What if she gets sick? Can she go see the doctor on her own?"

"Leon... I’m just so worried about her... so worried... about her..."

The last syllable of her words melted into the wind.

She had fallen asleep.

Her body leaned slightly to the side, resting against Leon’s shoulder.

Leon sighed again, muttering, “Women are nothing but trouble,” but he still obediently picked up Roswitha and carried her back to the bedroom.

He removed her shoes, tucked her in with a blanket, and left a glass of warm water on the bedside table.

After making all the necessary preparations, Leon exhaled deeply, his gaze falling on the slightly tipsy Roswitha.

The beauty lay on her side, her silver hair fanned out across the bed. Her peaceful, serene sleeping face was so captivating that it felt almost sacrilegious to disturb her.

The strap of her nightgown had slipped off her smooth, rounded shoulder, revealing a glimpse of her soft, fair chest and a corner of her Dragon Mark.

Leon gulped, quickly averting his gaze and preparing to leave.

But just as he turned, his wrist was gently grabbed.

“Not planning on seizing this chance to get back at me…?” Roswitha murmured softly, “Even the Dragon Mark is already responding…”

Leon pressed his lips together, using slight force to free his wrist from Roswitha’s grasp.

“Go to sleep, mother dragon.”

Hmph, you think I’ll just act on command whenever you summon me? Where’s my pride in that?

Only by retaliating when you’re fully awake will it leave a lasting impression.

After all, a skilled Dragon Slayer knows how to bide their time, wait for the target to lower their guard, and then strike with a crushing blow at just the right moment.

He turned off the bedroom light, closed the door, and his footsteps gradually faded into the distance.

Night deepened, and Roswitha was soon swallowed by drowsiness, sinking into a deep slumber.

Before long, her even breathing echoed softly in the quiet bedroom.

Just as an aside.

If this ridiculous family had any clue about what was going to happen at the opening ceremony three days later, there’s a term in academia that would perfectly describe their behavior tonight—popping a bottle of champagne!