Chapter 144: The Bodyguard
Leon signed up for the new shop’s contest.
Sure enough, the first prize was that newly promoted jade dragon fruit, just as the shop owner had claimed.
Not many people signed up for the competition.
Although dragon fruits are rare, they’re basically just fancy snacks for pregnant dragons. For a normal dragon, eating one would be like munching on a plain old apple.
The competition rules weren’t hard either—it was just a promotional gimmick for the shop’s grand opening, so it was all about making some noise.
The contest had three rounds in total, each featuring different fun games. The first two rounds would eliminate contestants, and by the end of the third, only the final two participants would duke it out for the big prize.
Leon’s eyes lit up when he heard the rules.
“These rules seem awfully familiar! But why do you dragons love these ‘three-round fun contests’ so much?”
Leon was referring to the same kind of setup at the Saint His Academy’s sports meet, where he and Roswiser had turned into commandos, storming through challenges with one goal in mind: victory!
And, of course, they had succeeded.
Roswiser crossed her arms and shrugged. “Well, this is perfect! You don’t want to end up as a reigning champion who flops in a little contest, do you?”
Leon scoffed, adjusting his collar. “Hmph! Let me show you the meaning of the highest mountain and the longest river!”
“The most stubborn captive,” Roswiser chimed in, just in time to throw a jab.
“Shut up!”
As they exchanged banter, the shop owner announced the contest was about to begin and called the contestants to take their places.
Leon stepped forward.
Roswiser cheered from behind him, “Go, defend your title, champion! The world is waiting for you to become a dual champion!”
Leon didn’t turn around but simply raised his arm, giving an ‘OK’ sign.
He joined the other contestants at the playing field, positioning himself on the far left while quietly sizing up the competition, who all happened to be male dragons, with their wives cheering them on from outside the arena.
“Go, honey!”
“You’re the best, dear~~ Win and I’ll make you a feast~~”
“Take them down, darling!”
“……”
The wives had special VIP viewing spots right at the front of the field.
Following the loud motivation, Leon observed that the dragon ladies seemed more excited than the competitors, their cheers louder than the last. It was as if the loudest would win the championship by sheer volume.
And Roswiser stood calmly behind them, her tall figure easily detectable.
The queen’s way of cheering was worlds apart from that of the rowdy ladies.
She didn’t even need to open her mouth or use any body language. Just a fleeting glance was enough for Leon to get her meaning.
The couple shared a silent exchange, looking like they belonged to a different realm in the lively contest.
But they didn’t mind, because in a sense, this odd couple could only see each other in that moment.
After a moment of staring at each other, a gentle smile appeared at the corners of Roswiser’s mouth, and then she silently mouthed two words to Leon:
“Go~ Go~”
Leon nodded in response.
“Oh, excuse me, we still have one final contestant left! Please hurry up and get on stage; we’re about to start!”
The last contestant?
Leon looked towards the entrance.
When he saw this so-called last contestant, his eyes widened in surprise.
It was a tall and elegant silhouette dressed in a long black coat with a black top hat, sunglasses perched on her nose that obscured most of her face, revealing only a hint of a delicate nose and alluring red lips.
Even though she was conservatively dressed and mostly hidden, this last contestant radiated an air of a “cool, high-class beauty.”
“Hey, you! What are you staring at? Keep looking and I’ll have your eyeballs!” a wife shouted from the audience.
As soon as those words were said, one of the contestants immediately averted his eyes sheepishly.
Leon tucked his hands into his pants pockets and quietly watched this mysterious lady in the trench coat.
Among the sea of male dragons, she stood out like a rare gem.
What, did her husband make a living as a professional trophy husband? Even for a game, he needed his wife to step in?
Looking at Leon, even as a captive, he was out there showing off—makes it crystal clear who’s the boss at home!
But what piqued Leon’s curiosity most was that the lady in the trench coat didn’t show her tail either—
Dragons can usually identify each other’s species and ages by their tails, and most dragons hiding their tails belong to dwindled tribes.
Yet the trench coat lady had the air of a graceful, mysterious noblewoman.
Leon shifted his gaze back, deciding not to dwell on it.
The game began swiftly.
The first round was called “Jump Seven.”
The contestants formed a circle and took turns counting. If someone hit a number containing the digit ‘7’ or that was a multiple of ‘7’, they had to yell “jump,” and the next player would carry on counting.
There was no time limit or circle limit for this round, and once five people were eliminated, the game ended, with the remaining contestants proceeding to the next round.
Once they heard the rules, Leon and the other contestants formed a circle.
The mysterious lady stood directly across from Leon.
Yet, her face was still obscured.
“Alright, contestants, get ready! We’ll start with the gentleman who was standing on the far left, then count clockwise.”
The far left being Leon.
He glanced left and right, acting casual, but suddenly shouted out a number:
“6!”
“7!… Uh? Wait, that’s wrong.”
The male dragon on his right paused, clearly thrown off by Leon’s little trick. “Hey, you can’t start counting from 6! That’s cheating!”
Leon shrugged, “The rules didn’t say it had to start from 1.”
“……” The other guy was left speechless.
What Leon said was true; the rules only mentioned counting in order without specifying starting from 1.
Thus, Leon began with 6, and the poor guy, without thinking, reflexively said 7.
Well, though it was a bit embarrassing to be out in the first round, the guy took it like a champ and stepped off the field quietly.
“Am I still starting first?” Leon turned to the shop owner.
“Sure, you may begin.”
Leon looked over at the smaller male dragon to his right.
The short dragon raised his head slightly, meeting Leon’s gaze.
This guy clearly had a trick up his sleeve for not showing his tail, so Leon thought he’d be careful not to trip up after he counted.
After a brief staring contest, Leon grinned, causing the smaller dragon to panic.
Is it my turn to count?!
Leon opened his mouth slightly, the smaller dragon’s pupils danced nervously as he focused on what number Leon was about to say.
“ACHOO!—”
The smaller dragon froze.
Was that just… a sneeze? Seriously?
“44.” Leon abruptly stated.
“Ah… 44… if it’s 44… jump… jump!”
“You were supposed to say 45! What are you jumping for?” Leon shot him an incredulous look before he returned his gaze elsewhere.
“Hey, you sly dog!”
Leon’s antics cracked up the other contestants.
However, the wives in the audience weren’t too pleased.
“Ah~~ This isn’t fair; isn’t that cheating?” the dragon lady speaking was likely the wife of the eliminated contestant.
“Doesn’t seem like cheating to me; the owner hasn’t said anything,” another said.
“Ugh, what a crafty guy, exploiting the loopholes,” one of the wives fumed.
They were so worked up that they overlooked the ‘crafty guy’s’ wife who might be lurking nearby.
“Mind your language, miss,” came a cool, distant voice from behind.
The two dragon ladies turned to see a silver-haired beauty.
“My husband is utilizing the rules wisely; how is that exploiting a loophole?”
Hearing this, the dragon ladies felt aggrieved but couldn’t muster any counterarguments, so they reluctantly turned back and kept quiet.
Moreover, the silver-haired beauty certainly didn’t exude the vibe of an ordinary wife; she seemed best left undisturbed.
In the midst of this conversation, Leon eliminated another contestant.
Once he eliminated two more, he could progress to the next round! He was already plotting his next move.
“For the next round, the lady in the trench coat will start us off,” the owner announced, realizing that if he let Leon play longer, the promotional event would wrap up in ten minutes—what kind of promotion was that?
Leon shrugged, signaling he had no objections; a strong hero always gets banned, right?
The mysterious trench coat lady went first to call out a number. She opened her lips slightly, her voice a touch hoarse,
“26.”
“Uh… twenty—jump! Jump!” That was a close one.
The next contestant said, “28.”
The trench coat lady slightly tilted her head, “Wrong! 28 is a multiple of 7, so you should jump as well.”
“Ah? What! Really?”
At this point, just one more elimination and the remaining contestants could advance to the next round.
The trench coat lady prepared to call her next number, but suddenly one contestant raised his hand, “I—I’m out! I quit!”
What was supposed to be a fair contest quickly turned into a dramatic exit.
Who wanted to continue playing for just a jade dragon fruit? Not worth it!
The owner scratched his head, wanting to stretch the event out longer, but since the contestant had chosen to drop out, he couldn’t very well drag him back in.
“Alright then, let’s move on to the next round!”
Leon silently gazed at the trench coat lady in front of him, feeling oddly like she seemed familiar…
Was it just a trick of the light?
