Holding hands was his lie.

Hugging was his true purpose.

Roswitha looked at that broad palm, and was about to extend her hands to respond to him.

But before she could react, that scoundrel grabbed her wrists directly and yanked her straight into his arms.

The queen, already frail and weary, staggered unsteadily and practically fell into Leon's embrace.

The sudden hug caught Roswitha completely off guard, being completely dumbfounded in Leon's hold.

Leon held Roswitha tightly. His arms wrapped snugly around her slender waist, pulling her close as if she might vanish at any moment.

He said nothing, nor did he do anything else. He just silently embraced his wife, burying his face in her neck, savoring her warmth, and the gradual acceleration of her heartbeat.

Roswitha finally snapped back to her senses.

Her face flushed crimson in an instant.

Wha—what is he doing?!

Leon Casmod, are you really just hugging me out in the open like this without a care for others' attentions?

In broad daylight, with our daughters and maids all around, you dare to hold me like this?

Then what about when there's no one else around? I can't imagine what you will do then!

The Silver Dragon Queen's mind spiraled into chaos, leaving only pure shyness to guide her body.

Her tail began to turn red, twitching ever so slightly, until finally it perked up completely—

Like an antenna sticking out from her tailbone.

To be honest, even when facing the combined assault of two Dragon Kings earlier, Roswitha hadn’t broken into a sweat like this.

Nearby, Muen blinked and then quietly covered Aurora's eyes with her hands. "Children shouldn't view this."

Noa walked over, standing beside Muen, and covered Muen's eyes. "Children shouldn't view this."

Milam crept up behind the duo and covered Noa's eyes. "Children shouldn't view this."

Well, well, so the Maid Squad gets to savor this drama all on their own, huh?

Sherry, meanwhile, was supporting Anna by the arm. The head maid was covered in injuries but still couldn’t forget about the couple she adored.

"What a pity..." Anna muttered.

"What?" Sherry asked.

"I didn't bring a camera. Otherwise, I would’ve totally made a photo album out of Her Majesty's blushing face."

Sherry glanced at Anna’s chest before commenting, "Head maid, you’re still bleeding... Can you take care of that before indulging into your fantasies?"

"It's merely a fatal injury... How could it possibly outweigh my lovely couple's sweet moment?"

"...Head maid, your whole life has been ruined by your obsession with couples."

Meanwhile, Roswitha was still in "blushing mode."

She didn’t respond to Leon’s hug.

Because she didn’t know how to.

Not to mention Leon had pulled her arms into the embrace, which left her unable to lift her hands. So she could only keep her fists softly clenched at her sides—

Just like a penguin.

Her silver tail slowly drooped, and her tense body began to relax.

"Are you... really just going to keep holding me like this without saying anything at all?"

"I miss you."

"..."

Whooo—Whooo—

Whose tea kettle is boiling?

Ohhh—

It turns out that the queen was so shy that she was practically steaming.

"I-idiot... With so many people here, can't you say something less?"

"I can't."

"Then let me go, and let's talk after we’re back home."

"I won’t."

Roswitha: “?”

"Then how can you let me go?"

"If you say you miss me too, then I’ll let you go."

"..."

The queen slowly turned her head and looked at Anna and the others, whose faces practically screamed their anticipation to hear "I miss you too" even more than hearing "I do" at a wedding.

If these three weren’t already heavily injured and were too battered to even find the strength to jeer, they probably would have erupted in fanfare by now.

Roswitha bit her lip.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to say it.

She was just TOO embarrassed to say it!

Anna, Sherry, and Milam would devour this juicy drama forever—beyond the end of space and time.

Still, knowing her husband's characters, Roswitha understood that if she didn’t say that today, none of them would be going anywhere anytime soon.

Okay...

I’ll say it.

What’s there to be afraid of?

I’m the Silver Dragon Queen!

"I miss you too—"

"Ahhh! She said it! Her Majesty said it! Ow!—Sherry, why did you hit me?"

"Can you let Her Majesty finish before you pop the champagne?"

"Uwu, sorry~"

Leon slowly loosened his arms, releasing Roswitha.

Her body was so warm.

The soft heat was left behind by someone's embarrassment.

"Daddy~"

Seeing that her parents' little public display of affection had drawn to a temporary close, Muen finally seized the chance to snuggle up to her dad.

Leon turned, bent down to scoop Muen into his arms, and added Aurora to the embrace as well.

"Daddy, Muen miss you so much. I thought maybe you didn’t want us anymore." The little dragon said in a pitiful voice.

"Why would I ever do that, Muen? I’m back now."

Pausing for a moment, Leon realized his little sweetheart seemed to have gotten slightly chubbier. He asked, "Have you been sneaking extra snacks lately? Hmm?"

"Um..."

"Second Sister ate tons of steak during the first month you were gone!" Aurora helpfully explained.

Leon froze for a moment. "Why?"

"Because! Because... every time Daddy leaves, if Muen eats steak at Daddy's funeral, you'll show up again," Muen replied earnestly.

"..."

Got it.

Steak is a dad-summoning spell.

Chuckling, Leon nuzzled Muen’s soft little cheek. "It’s time for a diet, or Daddy won’t be able to carry you anymore."

"Okay, Daddy," Muen said, nodding enthusiastically.

Leon smiled, then turned his attention to Aurora.

The two of them met eyes for a moment before Leon finally spoke slowly,

"Well done, Aurora."

The pink-haired girl froze, blinking in bewilderment. "I... didn’t do anything. Why’s Daddy suddenly praising me?"

"Time isn’t about how much you have, but how you use it," Leon said. "And you’ve used it well, Aurora."

Before activating the time-reversal magic, the future Noa had said that the past Aurora still hadn’t earned Leon’s acknowledgment when he was pulled into the spatial rift.

For twenty years, Aurora had yearned for her father’s approval.

So even though the little pink-haired girl didn’t fully grasp the reason behind his words currently, Leon couldn’t wait any longer to give his daughter the recognition she’d long deserved.

It's not exaggerated to say that Aurora K. Melkevi was the MVP of this temporal salvation.

"I still don’t really get what you’re saying... but Daddy praised me, yay!"

"So, how will you respond to Daddy’s praise?" Leon teased, leaning his face closer.

Most kids understood that this was the perfect time for them to grant their father a kiss, which would delight a doting dad to no end.

But Aurora wasn’t common kids.

"Alright, Daddy, get ready!"

Uppercut!

Leon saw it coming.

But he still pretended to be defeated by his daughter, just to make her happy.

Aurora clapped her hands, gleefully celebrating her victory over her dad once again.

Handing both daughters to Roswitha, Leon finally turned his gaze to Noa.

Her small face was smudged with ash, with traces of blood at the corners of her lips.

Leon reached out to gently wipe the dirt and blood from her face.

The father and daughter exchanged a silent glance. Their emotions conveyed completely through the sincerity in their eyes.

Finally, Leon extended his fist toward Noa.

Noa understood and bumped her own fist lightly against his.

"Daddy was so cool just now, wasn’t he?"

"Super cool, Daddy."

"You’ll be just as cool as Daddy someday."

Noa chuckled softly, pulling her hand back before stepping forward to embrace Leon.

She leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "I’m proud to have you as my father, Daddy."

Leon gently stroked her back before lifting her up in his arms. Then he turned toward Roswitha.

"What are we waiting for? Let’s go and make some steak for Muen."