When it came to wits, the couple was actually evenly matched.

It was just that Roswitha was usually better at taking the initiative and had the advantage of being on her home turf, which frequently allowed her to secure the upper hand.

However, this time’s "no-lighting-the-Dragon-Mark" challenge was a fair game, and it remained to be seen how they would outmaneuver each other.

Leon knew that Roswitha’s advantage lay in that sultry, alluring black sheer swimsuit she was wearing. So as long as he kept his eyes off her as much as possible, he could effectively avoid the overwhelming visual temptation.

With that thought in mind, Leon lay back in a casual manner, exposing only his neck and head, and closed his eyes slightly to project a relaxed and leisurely vibe.

Roswitha glanced at Leon, instantly aware that he was purposefully avoiding looking at her.

But she couldn’t directly demand that he fix his gaze on her—in doing so, Leon would undoubtedly seize the chance to play the game his way and drag it out.

So... she had to resort to one of her tried-and-true techniques for dealing with him.

“The fireworks are so beautiful—it’d be a shame to miss out,” Roswitha said. “If you’re too scared to look at me, then at least look at the fireworks.”

“Too scared to look at you?”

Perfect. Triggered the keyword flawlessly.

Leon sat up instantly. “What am I scared to look at?”

Roswitha smiled. “Oh, good. If you’re not afraid, come closer and take a good look. We might as well take a few pictures together while we’re at it.”

Leon faltered immediately, swallowing hard. “I... My back hurts, so it’s inconvenient for me to move over. I’ll just stay here and look.”

“Alright, if you won’t come over, then I’ll come to you.”

“Wait, don’t—”

Splash—

Before Leon managed to stop her, Roswitha stood up in the hot spring. The black sheer fabric clung tightly to her gracefully curvaceous figure, translucent enough to faintly reveal her fair, smooth skin, granting her an ethereal allure.

Water trickled down her skin, and the steam of the hot spring just so happened to cover her chest and lower abdomen, giving Leon a momentary reprieve to catch his breath.

Her long, shapely legs waded through the water with a soft splashing. She approached Leon and sat down beside him.

Shoulder to shoulder now, Roswitha gave him a mischievous smile and nudged him lightly. “Admit defeat?”

Leon scratched his cheek and let out a soft scoff. “It’s only just begun. Why would I admit defeat?”

“Hmph, let’s see how long you can keep it up.”

With the beautiful woman so close, her delicate scent wafting in the air around them, Leon momentarily couldn’t tell whether it came from the surrounding spring or Roswitha herself.

The fireworks lost all appeal to him; all his thoughts fixated instead on how to turn the tables on Roswitha.

As he pondered, a cheerful hum reached his ear.

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star...”

Leon turned to glance at her, just as Roswitha locked eyes with him.

She smiled knowingly and continued her playful song. “How I light up Dragon Mark~”

Leon rolled his eyes. “Honestly, this feels weaker than... ‘Rubber Duckie, You’re the One.’”

“Hmph.” Roswitha averted her gaze and hugged her knees, looking up at the night sky.

Leon lowered his gaze, not daring to turn his head. Even his peripheral vision steered cautiously away from the temptation right beside him.

After all, she was so close that even the rise and fall of her breathing made their arms lightly brush against each other.

But it was at this downward glance that an idea sparked in Leon’s mind.

He moved his hand into the spring water, letting it slip downward inch by inch.

Roswitha was still leisurely admiring the night fireworks. She pointed at a newly blossomed burst of light. “Leon, look at that one! Doesn’t it look like my Dragon Mark—Ah, hey?!”

Before she could finish her sentence, a sharp sensation traveled up her tail.

She looked down, only to find Leon pinching the tip of her tail and lifting it out of the water.

Roswitha narrowed her eyes. “Let go. Of. My. Tail.”

“Come on, my dear wife,” Leon grinned. “On a night as beautiful as this, if I’m not allowed to hold your hand, surely I can hold your tail instead?”

He knew that her tail was an extremely sensitive spot for Roswitha.

In the few deeper “discussions” he could recall, he had often leveraged her tail—pinching, stroking, and soothing it—to make her “surrender” to him or even bring her more pleasure.

And as expected, a visible blush quickly spread across Roswitha’s face.

She swallowed hard, her tail tip buzzing with a tingly, ticklish sensation, and part of her even wanted Leon to grip it tighter.

But there was no way she would allow her tail to remain in Leon’s grasp during this “no-lighting-up” challenge.

She reached out to snatch it back.

However, Leon moved swiftly. He yanked half her tail out from under the water and draped it over his lap.

“Leon, you—Ah~!”

His broad, warm hand slid over her tail, applying just the right amount of pressure on its tip. A wave of thrilling, electric pleasure traveled through her tail, causing her body to weaken involuntarily, her legs tightening instinctively.

Leon observed Roswitha’s reaction, a smug satisfaction rising within him.

Just when he was about to press further, Roswitha suddenly grabbed his hand.

“What’s wrong with holding hands while watching fireworks, my dear husband?” she whispered sweetly.

“......”

Roswitha clasped Leon’s hand and slowly but firmly peeled it off her tail.

The numbing euphoria faded considerably, much to her relief.

Leon stared at their clasped hands, momentarily stunned.

He remembered the first time they held hands—it was arranged by Muen’s meddling.

The second time was at Isa’s house when Roswitha got scared of spiders, and he had offered to hold her hand to comfort her.

And this time... it was her who initiated it?

While her intent was to remove his hand from her tail, Leon could clearly feel Roswitha’s nervousness and... shyness?

Taking advantage of Leon’s moment of distraction, Roswitha quickly pulled her tail back and tucked it away.

Leon’s palm was left suddenly empty, and he couldn’t help inwardly lamenting the missed opportunity.

Roswitha breathed out a quiet sigh of relief, smiling. “My tail’s not feeling well today. Maybe you can touch it another time.”

Leon gave her a sidelong glare but said nothing.

Roswitha turned back toward the night sky, her gaze capturing the shimmering splendor above.

For the time being, neither of them made another move.

But the hands they had clasped earlier remained entwined—

And they were still gripping tighter and tighter, inching toward an invisible tug-of-war.

Driven by their strong competitive streaks, neither party was willing to back down. If one started squeezing harder, the other would take it as a challenge and respond with even more force.

It became a vicious cycle, until—

“Easy there; you’re hurting me,” Roswitha murmured.

“Aw.”

That single “aw” was short, but it brimmed with Leon’s smugness and joy at his perceived victory.

The two of them lightened their grip simultaneously, returning to the warmer, gentler hand-holding from before.

Roswitha had assumed that such a tender and slightly flirtatious gesture would make Leon’s heart flutter, triggering the glow of his Dragon Mark.

Yet to her surprise, even though she was the first to feel a slight fluttering from the contact, her own Dragon Mark on her chest showed no signs of glowing.

Roswitha’s mind raced as she thought: Before I lose control, I have to get Leon first.

“Oh my!—” Roswitha suddenly cried out.

Leon reflexively wanted to turn toward her, but he caught himself just in time.

There couldn’t possibly be spiders here. That inexplicable cry of alarm had to be a trap.

Leon wasn’t about to fall for it.

“My Dragon Mark lit up! Haha~ you’ve lost!”

Leon’s heart skipped a beat as he panicked, straightening his back to glance at Roswitha’s chest.

But there was no glow from the Dragon Mark whatsoever.

Instead, his gaze was greeted by the full splendor of Roswitha’s soft, shapely chest.

Underneath the translucent black fabric, her alluring curves demanded attention. The outline of the Dragon Mark dipped tantalizingly into the cleavage, leaving much to one’s imagination.

“Does it look nice?” she teased.

“Nice—What? No! I didn’t see anything!” Leon snapped his head back instantly.

But that single glance had shaken him.

Roswitha’s figure was almost unnervingly perfect, with a perky, well-defined silhouette and just the right amount of fullness.

Leon squeezed his eyes shut tightly and shook his head, trying to banish the vividly etched scene from his mind.

“It didn’t light up! You lied to me!”

“Maybe if you keep looking, it’ll light up,” Roswitha suggested with a sly grin.

“Shut it, you wicked dragon! I won’t look at your Dragon Mark again!”

Splish-splash—

The sound of water rippling marked Roswitha’s approach from his side.

Her soft form pressed lightly against his arm as she leaned into his ear, her voice dropping into a low, sultry murmur.

“Don’t hold back. Let it glow already so we can put an end to this torturous challenge. It’s good for you... and good for me.”

This round of teasing and sweet-talking from Roswitha was something Leon had anticipated.

“Wouldn’t you agree? Hmm?” she cooed.

Her hand rested lightly on Leon’s shoulder, her tone almost a whisper yet laced with undeniable allure. It was hard not to falter.

Leon’s breath quickened.

He knew that if he didn’t act soon, Roswitha’s Dragon Mark lighting up was simply an inevitability.

His mind raced for a solution.

Faced with Roswitha’s overwhelming advances… what could he possibly do?

What could he do...

Ding—

It hit him.

If there was no way to defend himself from her seductive assault, then—

Leon suddenly turned around, reaching out to grab Roswitha’s wrist.

Startled, Roswitha blinked in surprise, not yet processing what he intended.

Before she could figure it out, Leon used his other hand to lift her chin gently.

Their upper bodies, gleaming with water from the hot spring, pressed closely together. Their gazes locked, the atmosphere shifting in an instant.

Even the ambient temperature seemed to rise under the mounting tension.

Roswitha’s pupils dilated slightly, trembling in response.

Thump-thump—thump-thump—

Was it... Leon's heartbeat?

No.

No, that wasn’t right.

It was her own...

It was her own heartbeat!

Roswitha bit her lower lip. The pride of the Silver Dragon Queen would not allow her to lose control over her own desires.

It was just a quickening heart... How hard could it possibly be to suppress it?

"Doesn't it feel bad to endure?" Leon asked softly.

Roswitha stared directly into his eyes, not backing down in the slightest. "You're also trying hard to restrain yourself. Don't think I can't see that."

"Alright then, let’s see who can hold out until the very end."

"Do you think I'm afraid of you, Leon?"

Yet, everything seemed to be moving in a direction neither of them had anticipated—

The Dragon Marks on both of their chests suddenly began to glow!

And this glow wasn’t continuous like before—it was intermittent.

Like a faulty lightbulb, flickering on and off unpredictably.

A wave of panic coursed through them.

"What’s happening..." Leon asked.

"I don't know either. Leon... I... I..."

A moment of brief panic passed, and then they looked back at each other.

In the depths of those black and silver eyes, waves of longing and love for one another rippled and swirled.

The Dragon Mark was the switch for desire, and when the switch malfunctioned, any attempt to contain that desire would naturally be futile.

The night wore on. The fireworks sparkled brightly, but they could no longer discern whether the other’s face had flushed or emotion had overtaken them.

What was beyond doubt, however, was that they both desperately wanted to... kiss the lips before them.

"Leon..."

"Roswitha..."

The beauty raised her delicate arm, wrapping it around his strong back.

Her cool, soft hand rested around his slim waist beneath the sheer black veil, pulling him tightly into her embrace.

The final burst of fireworks—the most breathtaking one of the evening—erupted in the sky above.

At that moment, Leon leaned in and kissed the Silver Dragon Queen in front of him.

**XX**

*Dragon Mark: Oh, so I’m just a lightbulb to you, huh? Don’t you love teasing? Well, now you can flirt all you want!*