After lunch, Leon and Roswitha started chatting again while washing the dishes together.

In fact, they didn’t have much time to talk throughout the day.

Roswitha was busy dealing with all kinds of matters for the Silver Dragon Clan, while Leon had to accompany Muen for magical enlightenment lessons.

What's more, both of them adhered to the mindset of "Why would I bother going to chat with them if I'm perfectly comfortable?"

The core principle was simple: no unnecessary communication.

However, there were things Leon needed to clarify.

"Your birthday in a few days—it’s going to follow human birthday customs completely, right?" Leon asked.

Roswitha nodded, “Yes.”

"Okay. Then, if I may ask, how old are you this year?"

"Eighteen—"

"Eighteen?!” Leon was so shocked that he almost wanted to add a swear word in front to emphasize his disbelief.

“…plus two hundred years.”

"......"

Roswitha turned her head to look at him, her beautiful eyes curving into crescent shapes as she smirked. Then her expression turned serious as she asked, "What does age have to do with celebrating birthdays? Aren’t they all just a bunch of clichés?”

Leon shook his head. “The clichés might be generally the same, but there are always some nuanced differences."

“Nuances?"

Leon glanced at her, then lowered his head to continue scrubbing the dishes. He didn’t elaborate and simply said, “You’ll find out when the time comes.”

Roswitha pouted, “What’s with the mystery?”

Leon shrugged and didn’t respond.

Roswitha didn’t push the conversation further either.

After finishing the dishes, Leon didn’t leave in a hurry like he usually did. Instead, he walked out to Roswitha’s balcony and started gazing toward the back mountains.

Roswitha dried her hands and walked out of the kitchen. Seeing Leon’s figure on the balcony, she asked, “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing, just taking a look around.”

“What an oddball…”

Roswitha muttered under her breath and didn’t press him further. She turned and headed to her study alone to resume tackling her mountain of tasks.

It wasn’t clear how much time had passed, but when she finally looked up to take a break, she discovered that Leon had already left.

Roswitha frowned slightly. “He comes and goes as he pleases, treating my room like his own. Looks like I’ll need to give Leon a lesson in etiquette when I have the time.”

The queen huffed coldly, then bent her head back down to immerse herself in work.

In the afternoon, Leon took his two daughters to the library.

While preparing for Roswitha's birthday, Leon hadn’t forgotten his primary concern.

He continued searching Roswitha’s private library for a way to resolve his magic depletion issue.

Muen obediently worked on the homework Leon had assigned her at a desk near the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Whenever she didn’t understand something, Noa stepped in to help explain.

As evening approached, Noa fetched a beginner dragon textbook for Muen to read for relaxation after her studies. Then she glanced toward the rows of bookshelves deep within the library—her dad seemed to be searching for something.

After thinking for a moment, Noa hopped off her chair and walked over slowly.

Leon was engrossed in reading an ancient text when Noa approached.

“Dad, are you looking for something?” Noa asked.

Hearing this, Leon smiled and returned the ancient book to its shelf. “Nothing much, just browsing to pass the time.”

He didn’t want his daughters to know about his magic depletion issue.

Not only would it add unnecessary worry for them, but it also risked word reaching Roswitha.

From what he could tell, Roswitha seemed unaware of his situation for now. At most, she probably thought his body hadn’t fully recovered yet, which was why he never used large-scale destructive magic.

If that dragoness figured out the truth, she’d undoubtedly roast him with a string of “You’re so weak!”

Leon also understood the value of keeping a low profile. Until he fully recovered, it was best not to let anything slip.

But unfortunately, an entire afternoon of searching yielded no breakthroughs for Leon.

As he had expected from the start, this would be a long, arduous task.

Thankfully, Leon had plenty of patience when it came to solving problems.

He adjusted his mindset and asked Noa, “Is Muen done with her homework?”

“Not yet, but she’s almost finished.”

Noa paused, then added, “I think with Dad’s teaching efficiency and Muen’s learning speed, she should be ready for magical enlightenment in about half a month.”

Leon nodded and gazed toward the floor-to-ceiling window. Muen was sitting there, pouting slightly as she earnestly worked on the assignments he gave her.

“I wonder what Muen’s innate element will be.”

Noa also looked at her sister’s adorable, focused face and smiled. “Fire or maybe lightning.”

Roswitha had previously told Leon that almost all members of the Dragon Clan awaken with fire as their natural elemental affinity.

But Noa’s was lightning, just like Leon’s.

Leon had then questioned if Noa, being the only lightning-element child in a class dominated by fire, might have faced bullying or isolation.

After all, kids often perceive “special” or “different” as abnormal, and ostracism is common under such circumstances.

But Roswitha assured him that wouldn’t happen. It wasn’t unusual for Dragon Clan members to occasionally awaken non-fire elemental affinities.

Only then did Leon let go of his worries.

His thoughts wandered before he crouched down and asked Noa, “So, do you think your sister will awaken fire or lightning?”

Noa touched her chin in contemplation, “Mom’s element is fire, yours is lightning, and mine is also lightning… So, if I were Muen, I’d try hard to awaken fire just to make Mom feel a bit more balanced.”

Leon chuckled, amused by Noa’s reasoning.

He ruffled his daughter’s hair affectionately. “What element you awaken isn’t something you can decide just by trying hard.”

Noa scratched her head and laughed sheepishly. “It’s just a wish. Oh, right, Dad—speaking of lightning elements…”

“Yeah? What about them?”

“In a little over a month, Saint Hiss Academy will be on winter break. I’ve learned a lot of magical basics this term, so during the break, could you teach me more advanced lightning spells? That way, I’ll have an easier time tackling the curriculum when the new term starts.”

Leon froze for a moment.

Not because he was surprised by Noa’s request.

Quite the opposite—if Noa didn’t use the winter break to “grind” her skills, it wouldn’t match her personality.

The issue was… Leon was still in a state of magic depletion, and formal instruction in lightning magic would inevitably involve demonstrations.

If his daughter wanted to see an awe-inspiring “Heavenly Thunder Annihilation” spell, but all Leon could muster after straining himself were two tiny sparks…

His daughter might say, “It’s okay, Dad, that’s cute too. You carry on; I’ll go find Mom to teach me.”

No way!

That kind of scenario must not happen!

In both family dynamics and his standing in his daughters’ eyes, Leon had to claim the dominant position!

With over a month until winter break…

Leon pursed his lips and clenched his teeth, finally agreeing, “No problem. When the time comes, Daddy will teach you more lightning spells.”

Noa’s eyes lit up with joy, her little face brimming with excitement as she leaned forward, hugged Leon’s neck, and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

“Thanks, Daddy!”

Noa ran off happily to join Muen.

Leon let out a silent breath. “After the dragoness’s birthday, I really need to pick up the pace.”