Leon leaned against the hot spring, gazing up at the fireworks filling the night sky.

To be honest, in order to protect the "secret weapon" in his camera, Leon’s move of sharing a hot spring with Roswitha could easily be interpreted from her perspective as walking right into the lion's den—a lamb offering itself to a wolf.

But he could roughly predict what Roswitha would do when she got into the spring in a moment:

First, provoke him.

Then, tease him.

Finally, shift the blame onto him.

This three-step routine was something Leon was all too familiar with.

Provoke: “Dragon Slayer, why won’t you look at me? Are you scared?”

Tease: “Stop trying to hold on to your pride. Just be my obedient puppy, won’t you?”

Shift the blame: “Heh, you were the one who initiated this just now. You’re the one breaking your own boundaries again, not me.”

Even though Leon had grown accustomed to the female dragon’s “three-step strategy,” he still fell for it every time.

This time, however, for the sake of his holiday, Leon needed to come up with a countermeasure—

Even if he couldn’t completely turn the tables, he couldn’t just let her have her way either.

As he deliberated, he suddenly heard the light sound of footsteps approaching.

Leon turned his head slightly and saw an exquisitely delicate pair of feet, white and smooth, with cute, softly rounded ankles.

Following the line of those slender ankles and calves upward, Roswitha stood by the edge of the hot spring. Draped in a bath towel that wrapped her tightly, she seemed elegant yet mysterious.

“You’re not planning to soak in the hot spring while wrapped in a bath towel, are you?” Leon asked.

“Of course not.”

Roswitha spoke in a deliberately mysterious tone, her voice coaxing and tempting. “I bought a very sexy swimsuit. It’s just underneath this towel.”

She smiled charmingly at Leon, as if she didn’t care in the slightest about exposing her intentions.

Leon, feeling awkward, shifted in place, letting out a cold snort as he turned his head away.

“So what? An excellent Dragon Slayer can resist any and all types of temptation.”

“Oh? Then why don’t you look this way? Or could it be... you’re afraid of making my Dragon Mark light up, so you don’t dare?”

“What—what would I even be afraid of!”

Face flushed, Leon reluctantly turned his head back around, his heartbeat accelerating against his will.

Roswitha narrowed her eyes with a sly smile, and slowly began to undo the bath towel draped over her shoulders.

First revealed were her soft, rosy shoulders and slender, delicate collarbones. Then, the edges of the Dragon Mark on her chest peeked out.

Leon gulped audibly. The excitement felt oddly akin to the thrill of unboxing the Christmas gifts his mentor gave him each year—

Because Leon never knew whether he’d discover an S-class Dangerous Beast cub or the matchmaking standards of the widow next door.

However, the scene beneath the towel was... somewhat underwhelming.

It was a swimsuit so conservative one could almost say it wasted her incredible figure.

From head to toe, Roswitha only revealed her shoulders and her fair, pale belly. The swimsuit shorts were about the length of ordinary hot pants, the kind you could easily wear in public without issue.

Her delicate curves were particularly “reserved,” hidden behind what seemed to be impenetrable layers of fabric.

Leon let out a quiet sigh of relief. Good, good—this female dragon had always been quite conservative in her choice of clothing.

But of course, he couldn’t afford to let the relief show on his face.

“This? This is what you’re using to test a Dragon Slayer? What kind of Dragon Slayer wouldn’t pass this test? Even if you were wearing nothing, I still wouldn’t let your Dragon Mark light up.”

Roswitha placed her hands on her hips. “Tch, you sure talk big. Help me down. I’m getting in.”

Leon rose to his feet and extended his arm toward Roswitha.

She bent forward slightly and gently took his hand before stepping gracefully into the hot spring.

The warm water enveloped her, and Roswitha closed her eyes, stretching out her arms lazily, exhaling a satisfied sigh as relaxation washed over her.

As expected, soaking in a hot spring was pure bliss for both body and soul.

Splash—

Judging by the sound, Leon had also leaned back, settling into the water some distance away from her.

Roswitha smirked quietly and was about to tease him again—only to sense that something… unusual was going on.

Her eyes snapped open. Her swimsuit was transforming right before her very eyes, changing at an alarming rate.

The shorts were shrinking rapidly, from their original thigh-covering length to little more than a tiny strip barely larger than a handkerchief.

The fabric across her chest was also vanishing at a startling pace, as if being devoured by some unseen force.

Her snowy-white skin and Dragon Mark were instantly exposed to the warmth of the rising steam around them.

But the disappearing fabric wasn’t even the most shocking part—

What was truly mortifying was that a sheer black mesh had begun to spread across her chest, abdomen, and waist.

The mesh clung tightly to her damp, pale skin, completely accentuating her already striking curves. It was undeniably risqué—enough to make anyone’s blood boil at first glance.

In the blink of an eye, her conservative swimsuit had morphed into something that could only be described as black mesh lingerie—like a nod to those themed rooms in Isa’s “romantic” inns.

Roswitha pinched the hem of the black mesh that now adorned her figure. After a moment of surprise, she let out a sardonic laugh. “I should’ve known. Anything my sister gives me was bound to be more than it appeared.”

She slowly turned her head to glance at Leon, who was clearly dumbfounded, and asked with a sly smile, “Surprised?”

“Sur—surprised my ass! That’s cheating! Why are you even wearing something like that, you sneaky dragon?” Leon blurted out in protest.

Roswitha merely shrugged and kicked her legs slightly under the water, sending a few ripples in his direction. “It’s the swimsuit my sister gave me. I had no idea it’d turn out like this.”

Leon turned his head firmly away, his face flushed as red as an apple.

He couldn’t afford to keep looking.

Looking too much would definitely lead to trouble.

Seeing Leon’s flustered and helpless reaction, Roswitha felt secretly delighted. Still, she couldn’t resist taunting him further.

“Didn't you just claim that even if I were wearing nothing, it still wouldn't faze you? So what now? Changing your tune already?”

Leon scratched the tip of his nose awkwardly. “That was… uh… a childish exaggeration. How about you go back inside and change into another swimsuit?”

“I’d love to, but unfortunately, this is the only one I brought,” Roswitha replied airily. “What’s the matter, great Dragon Slayer? You’ve defeated countless Dragon Kings—don’t tell me you’re afraid of losing to this tiny black mesh swimsuit?”

“Afraid? Me? Abso—absolutely not! So long as you’re a dragon, I have zero interest, no matter what you’re wearing.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Leon realized the female dragon had already initiated Step One of her tried-and-true strategy: Provocation.

And he? He had already taken a half-step into her trap.

Backing out now would be nearly impossible.

In that case... why not turn the tables?

“I—”

“Actually, you.” Leon cut off Roswitha’s prelude with uncharacteristic decisiveness.

She raised an eyebrow. “Me? What about me?”

Leon turned to look her directly in the eye, calm but laced with just enough provocation of his own. “What if… what if it’s my Dragon Mark that ends up lighting up? How would you handle that?”

For one person’s Dragon Mark to light up meant they were feeling strong attraction or longing toward the other.

Hearing this, Roswitha chuckled, her voice tinged with amusement. “I’ve always had perfect control over my emotions and desires. I’ve never lost control before.”

“Confident, are we?”

“Of course.”

“Then… care to accept a challenge?” Leon asked.

Roswitha glanced down at the Dragon Mark on Leon’s chest and quickly caught on. “A ‘no-lighting-the-Dragon-Mark’ challenge?”

“Exactly.”

“Sure. Why not?” she teased. “But every challenge should come with stakes. If you lose, then what?”

“Then I’ll leave myself at your mercy.”

“Alright. And if somehow you win, I’ll give you another seven-day vacation.”

“Deal!”

Done!

Leon was overjoyed. With this “turn the tables” proposition, he’d successfully roped Roswitha into his logic trap.

After all, even without this so-called “no-lighting-the-mark” challenge, a female dragon like her would inevitably find ways to provoke and toy with Leon endlessly.

And when you combined the black mesh swimsuit, relentless teasing, and her innate Dragon Mark buffs, Leon would certainly be blushing even if he were made of stone.

If he managed to resist until the end, he would gain nothing from it.

Worse, if Roswitha got irritated, she might purposely force Dragon Mark resonance with him, and in the end, Leon would still lose.

But now, with this “no-lighting-the-mark” challenge in place, Leon had carved out a backup plan for himself.

At the same time, this challenge would act as a constant reminder to himself:

Resist temptation, and another vacation would be his!

The couple locked eyes.

The “no-lighting-the-mark” challenge had officially begun.