Chapter 1: Dad, your apprentice is a bad boy ( Part 2 )
Now, Rosvitha was standing right next to him!
Although his relationship with Rebecca was pure comradeship, hugging another girl in front of Rosvitha…
God knows what kind of trouble the jealous Silver Dragon Queen might cause after they got home.
Rosvitha glanced at the awkwardly frozen Leon, suppressing a smile. She whispered, “Go ahead and hug her.”
“Really?”
“In public, I’ll give my man plenty of face.”
Leon’s eyes lit up. “You never said anything about me being your man at home.”
Rosvitha gave him a sideways glance. “Are you going to hug her or not? If you don’t, I’ll do it for you.”
Without hesitation, Leon stepped forward and gently hugged Rebecca.
Of course, it was a brief hug—Rebecca also used his clothes to wipe her tears.
“Captain, I thought you were gone this time! Our ‘old, weak, sickly, and crippled’ gang just can’t survive without you!”
“…Why do you care so much about that ridiculous group?”
Rebecca chuckled, wiping away her remaining tears, grinning as she said,
“Good thing you have a conscience and came back. I guess with such a beautiful wife at home, you didn’t feel safe wandering around outside for too long, huh?”
Leon smiled awkwardly, raising a hand to poke Rebecca’s forehead.
“You sure know how to make small talk, Rebecca.”
The familiar banter—whether now or in the future—hadn’t changed.
Leon was relieved to see that Rebecca remained the same.
Then, his gaze shifted past Rebecca, landing on the elderly man behind her.
“Master…”
“Kid.”
Tiger stood there, holding the family photo that Leon had given him for the first time. Tears welled up in his clouded eyes. “You’re finally back.”
“Yes. Sorry, Master, for worrying you and the Madam.”
Tiger stepped forward and patted Leon’s arm. “It’s good you’re back. That’s all that matters.”
Master and apprentice exchanged warm words.
Rebecca, with her sharp eyes, noticed the silver patterns peeking out from under Leon’s short-sleeved shirt.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, then pointed at the captain’s arm, saying,
“Old man, your apprentice is misbehaving again! He’s got tattoos on his arm! Hey, Captain, you’re married now with three kids, yet you’re still acting like a rebellious teenager with full-arm tattoos? You should be setting an example for the kids—mmph mmph mmph!”
Leon spread his hand over Rebecca’s small face, pushing her aside.
“Adults are talking, kids shouldn’t interrupt. We’ll discuss the rebellious teenager thing later.”
“Hey! We haven’t seen each other in six months! Aren’t you the least bit happy to see me?”
Rebecca complained, but then she felt a tap on her shoulder.
She turned to see that the silver-haired beauty had, at some point, come to stand behind her.
Rosvitha elegantly raised her right hand, placing her index finger to her lips in a gesture of silence. Then, she smiled gently and said,
“Shh, let them talk about business. I’ll keep you company in the meantime.”
Rebecca’s eyes widened slightly.
Wow, the Silver Dragon Queen herself is offering to keep me company? I’m flattered.
In the past few encounters with Rosvitha, Rebecca had always found her to be two words:
Gāo lěng (高冷).
But this probably had something to do with Leon’s disappearance.
Now that Leon was back, his wife seemed to be in a good mood, so it made sense that she’d be willing to chat with Rebecca.
“Okay, sure. Let’s talk over there,” Rebecca replied.
“Hmm,” Rosvitha nodded, and the two moved aside so they wouldn’t interrupt the master and apprentice discussing serious matters.
Once seated, both the human and the dragon suddenly fell into silence.
Rebecca had never sat so close to the Dragon Queen before.
Saying she didn’t feel any pressure would be a lie.
She could only occasionally steal glances at the beautiful woman beside her, quickly turning her head away each time.
To be honest, the Captain sure knew how to pick a wife. From any angle, Rosvitha’s face was just perfect.
She was so beautiful that even as a fellow woman, Rebecca had to admit she was a top-tier beauty.
And being around such a gorgeous woman always brought pressure.
Rebecca licked her lips, rubbing her palms together nervously, glancing around.
“How old are you this year?” Rosvitha asked softly.
“Ah… I’m twenty-two.”
Out of courtesy, Rebecca asked back, “What about you?”
“Over two hundred.”
“…Hmm, that’s nice.”
Captain, didn’t expect this to be a little sister-brother relationship.
Seeing Rebecca’s slightly surprised expression, Rosvitha covered her mouth and chuckled lightly.
She had a rather favorable impression of this human girl.
Leon’s loyal comrade, a reliable partner, and an excellent gunsmith, Rebecca may have been a young girl, but her sense of duty had long surpassed most of those who claimed to be just.
Especially in the future, when Leon went missing, Tiger retired, and Rosvitha herself was incapacitated, Rebecca still risked her life to gather intel for Noa.
Just of her courage and determination, Rosvitha had already started to take her seriously.
Hearing Rosvitha’s laughter, Rebecca became flustered. “What are you laughing at…?”
“Nothing, I just find you… quite interesting.” The Queen propped her chin up with one hand, her lips curving into a soft smile as she gazed at Rebecca.
Rebecca’s pupils contracted slightly.
She remembered that when they first met, Rosvitha had said the same thing before leaving: ‘An interesting human girl.’
Every time Rosvitha looked at Rebecca, she felt as if she were looking at a child.
What’s going on, Your Majesty? Are you planning to adopt me as your goddaughter?
Does that mean I’d be a generation younger than the Captain?
That absolutely won’t do!
“Have you ever flown before?”
Rosvitha’s voice interrupted Rebecca’s wild thoughts.
Rebecca shook her head. “Fly? No, I’m a gunsmith, I never learned any flight-based magic.”
Rosvitha made a soft oh sound, then asked,
“In that case… how about I take you out for a ride?”
…
Footnotes:
- Gāo lěng (高冷):Means “high” and “cold,” a term used to describe someone who appears aloof, distant, or unapproachable. Often used for people who seem too cool or elite to easily interact with others.
