Casmod, you can give up any hope of ever seeing me wear a Bunny Girl outfit in your lifetime. Just forget about it.

“But… why do you most want to see me in a Bunny Girl outfit, though?”

Although she wasn’t particularly interested in discovering what kind of position she held in Leon’s heart, this kind of question could potentially lead to more juicy revelations.

So... it was all just a setup, driven purely by curiosity.

“Because… because… I…”

His voice grew quieter and quieter, as if he might doze off at any moment.

Roswitha’s curiosity was thoroughly piqued. Unable to hold back, she leaned in closer, afraid to miss the next words he was about to utter.

However—

“Zzz… zzz…”

“Hey, what’s with you? Say it already,” Roswitha grumbled, giving his shoulder a gentle push.

Leon let out a faint groan and shifted his position slightly.

Sitting cross-legged on the bed in frustration, Roswitha placed her hands angrily on her hips. She glanced up and noticed the time.

2:31 AM.

It was already past 2:30 in the morning.

“Oh, you sly little thing. Right on the dot, 2:30 as you said, not a single minute off,” Roswitha fumed. “Next time, I’ll let you sleepwalk and see if you’ll still be this lucky.”

Well… now that it was past 2:30, Roswitha had technically achieved her goal for the night.

Now then… should she take advantage of the fact that this guy was completely defenseless to give him a lesson that he hadn’t had in half a month? Roswitha pondered this while reaching out to touch the side of his face.

Just as her fingertips were about to brush against Leon’s cheek, however, she stopped.

She recalled that evening when Noa passed the admission exam. At the celebratory banquet, she had gotten a little too tipsy. That had been Leon’s perfect opportunity to get back at her. But instead, he had said he wouldn’t take advantage of someone’s vulnerability—that a Dragon Slayer must defeat the Dragon King fair and square.

Roswitha’s pupils shifted slightly as she muttered, “Hmph, and in this kind of half-asleep state, it wouldn’t even have much of an effect. It’s better to torture you when you’re fully conscious.”

With that thought, she pulled the blanket aside, slipped quietly out of bed, and, after one last glance at Leon, left the nursery.

---

The next day, Leon slowly awakened, squinting as he struggled to open his eyes. He glanced at the wall clock. 7:15 AM.

Whoa, this early? Guess I can catch a bit more sleep—

Wait.

This early?

No way!

Leon jolted upright, scanning the edges of his bed and looking around the room for any surfaces where one might lie down or lean against.

Everything was neat and tidy, with no traces of any battle.

Given the intensity with which he usually engaged in “turning in homework,” by this point, the room should have been an absolute mess.

But last night… it seemed like… nothing had happened?

His brain, slightly more awake now, clicked into gear as he reached a conclusion:

She chickened out.

I won!

See this, ladies and gentlemen? This is the bloodline suppression of a fully-restored elite Dragon Slayer upon the Dragon Clan.

Just give me a little more time to power up, and I could casually put that she-dragon in her place.

Leon’s future suddenly looked incredibly bright.

But he couldn’t celebrate too early. Knowing how cunning that she-dragon was, it wouldn’t be surprising if she tried all kinds of tricks to tire him out and then seized the opportunity to ambush him.

This time, he’d finally managed to gain the upper hand. He couldn’t squander it.

Caution was paramount.

With these thoughts, Leon got out of bed, freshened up, dressed, and left the room to grab breakfast in the dining hall.

As he opened the door, who else should he bump into but Roswitha?

She had swapped out last night’s provocative mini nightgown for a casual, homey long dress.

The two exchanged glances, and Leon broke the silence first.

“What time did you leave last night?”

Roswitha, combing her hair, nonchalantly replied, “I left after you fell asleep.”

“Didn’t you say you were going to sleep in my room?”

“I did. Slept there for a bit and then left. Why? Is that a problem?” The beauty tapped her foot impatiently and looked sideways at him. “What’s this? Judging by your tone, you sound a bit disappointed?”

Leon gave a dismissive laugh. Oh, dragoness, I know what happened—you realized you couldn’t touch a hair on me after seeing how much I’ve improved, so you retreated with your tail between your legs. Don’t think I can’t piece it together.

But Leon had also wizened up. Around this dragoness, it was important to play it cool.

“Disappointed? Why would I be disappointed? Sleep is just sleep. Anyway, the castle’s yours—you can sleep wherever you want.”

“You’re wrong.”

Hearing this, Leon stopped in his tracks, turned around, and asked, “Wrong about what?”

Roswitha walked up. As they passed shoulder-to-shoulder, she slowed her steps, locking eyes with him as she said, “This castle is mine, and everything in it is mine. Including you, my prisoner of war.”

Leon snorted and shrugged indifferently.

A psychological jab on this level no longer had any effect on him.

Dragoness, better update your tactics.

Leon stuffed his hands into his pockets and resumed heading toward the dining hall.

Seeing that this line no longer worked, Roswitha’s mind sparked with a new idea. She followed him, walking by his side, and casually said, “By the way, last night, as I was leaving, I heard you talking in your sleep.”

“Talking in my sleep? What’d I say?”

“It was all scattered and hard to catch, but it seemed to be something about… a schoolmate… and regretting not saying yes to her back in the day.”

Leon froze mid-step, a trace of panic crossing his face.

It was true that, back in the day, he’d turned down numerous schoolmates for the sake of his studies and career.

Most of their names and faces had long since blurred in his memory.

But there was one.

One schoolmate whose appearance he remembered vividly to this day.

Leon glanced quietly at the she-dragon beside him—

Yep. Her. She looked exactly like her.

In theory, the only schoolmate capable of inspiring this kind of sleep talk must have been her.

Leon also remembered how, when he had rejected her back then, there had been some hesitation on his part.

He couldn’t help it. The girl had been completely his type.

And yet, his response at the time had still been the classic: “You’re a great girl.”

How was it that, so many years later… he was dreaming about her now?

Noticing his reaction, Roswitha deduced that he was going through his mental “Rejected Schoolmates List” and had likely figured out who she was referring to.

Flashing a smug smile, Roswitha kept up her oblivious act and said, “You also mumbled something about how, if she had said yes, you wouldn’t have become a Dragon Slayer, wouldn’t have gone to war, wouldn’t have lost the battle and ended up a prisoner. So much regret.”

Making a prayer-like gesture, she added with mock solemnity, “Tsk, tsk, tsk. How touching, Dragon Slayer. I never thought you had such a profoundly moving secret crush. Compared to that, I really am that ruthless she-dragon who coldly tore you two apart.”

Leon’s face turned red.

It was the emotional equivalent of swallowing ten pounds of raw carrots.

“I… I never had a crush on her. Don’t make stuff up.”

Hah, of course I know you didn’t have a crush on her. You confessed the truth in your sleep last night.

“Then why were you mumbling about wanting to be with her?”

What I want, though, is for you to admit it outright while awake.

“It’s a dream! You can’t control what happens in a dream.”

Roswitha crossed her arms and headed toward the dining hall. “Hah, and you call yourself the strongest Dragon Slayer? Can’t even admit to a little crush on a schoolgirl. Pathetic.”

Leon scurried after her, gesturing wildly with his hands, and tried to explain. “I really didn’t have a crush on her! Come on!”

“Not listening.”

“Seriously, listen to me! How can you not—"

“Breakfast time~”

“Ugh, you insufferable dragoness!”

From the other hall emerged Muen, rubbing the sleepiness from her eyes. Wearing her fluffy pink pajamas, a single strand of hair stuck up as her nightcap slipped off her head.

At the far end of the corridor, she spotted her parents’ backs.

Her dad was chattering on about something, while her mom was quietly smiling to herself.

Must be some funny morning joke~

How warm and happy my parents are together~

---

In the evening, the school bus Leviathan gently descended.

Leon raised a hand to shield his eyes as he gazed at the immense floating machine. “How much would something like that eat in a day if we kept one at home?”

Roswitha crossed her arms. “Why? Thinking of retiring and raising one with your old schoolmate?”

“You’re still not letting it go, are you?!”

A beam of light appeared as the transport field activated, and Noa hopped off, turning to wave goodbye to her classmates still aboard.

Oh, it looked like their daughter was doing pretty well socially at school.

“Mom, Dad, I’m back.”

The maid stepped forward to take the book bag from Noa’s back.

Noa opened her arms to Muen. “Muen!”

Muen ran over, grinning. “Big sis~”

The two little dragon girls hugged tightly, Muen nuzzling her sister’s face affectionately.

The couple watched their daughters with warm, content smiles.

But Leon, noticing a piece of paper in Noa’s hand, asked, “Noa, is that your homework?”

Walking over while holding her sister’s hand, Noa handed the paper to Leon.

Leon took the page and looked it over. It appeared to be some kind of competition rules.

“An essay competition?” he asked.

Roswitha leaned over to read it. “‘All students are to write an essay on the theme of “Family” and “Happiness,” with a minimum of 800 words.’ Whew, there’s even a word count requirement.”

Leon handed the competition rules back to Noa. “So, have you decided what to write about?”

Noa nodded. “I have. Since the theme is family and happiness, most of my classmates will probably write about familial bonds—they’re almost all live-born dragons, after all.”

“If I write about familial bonds, I might not stand out. So I’d like to take a different approach and highlight the unique advantages of a live-bearing dragon family.”

The couple exchanged glances and blinked. “Unique advantages of a live-bearing family? You mean…”

Noa smiled. “I mean you two, of course.”