101 Reforge the Glory of the Silver Dragon
A few days later, at the Silver Dragon Temple, the tribe’s citizens had mostly been called back.
Roswiser stood on the podium giving a rousing victory summary.
The members of her tribe below were all pumped up, hearts racing.
We have to admit, even though she doesn’t like showing off in front of the crowd, she sure knows how to stir the hearts of her followers.
Leon was silently listening in the crowd.
The Silver Dragon citizens around him were all trying to squeeze a little closer to His Royal Highness.
“Hey, you’re pushing me!”
“I was standing here first; you’re the one pushing me, okay?”
“What do you mean, you were first? I was here first! Your Royal Highness, wasn’t I here first?”
“Your Royal Highness, I was definitely here first; I even greeted you just now.”
Leon wore a helpless smile. “Everyone, please calm down and listen to Her Majesty’s speech.”
Internal thoughts: If you idiots don’t start paying attention to my wife, I’ll hang you all by your second-rate merits!
After a round of half-hearted calming down, the nearby Silver Dragon citizens quieted down to listen to Roswiser’s speech.
After the victory summary, Roswiser didn’t paint any rosy pictures for her people.
After all, she had always been a leader who got things done, and this time the problems truly required the cooperation of all the Silver Dragon citizens.
“Look at the compatriots around you. I wonder if any of you have noticed something,” Roswiser said.
The citizens looked around, but no one spoke up.
This is the unspoken rule during leadership speeches; even if the leader asks a question, you still can’t answer voluntarily.
Because the leader is just trying to introduce the next topic naturally with that question, and doesn’t actually need anyone to bridge the conversation.
Of course, if the leader really needed someone to chime in, they would arrange it beforehand or call someone out specifically.
Roswiser’s gaze swept through the crowd, and she continued, “Perhaps you’ve noticed that compared to a few years ago, we have lost many of our compatriots.”
“Continuous wars have drastically reduced the Silver Dragon population. If this continues and we don’t make any changes, by the time the next war arrives, we might not even be able to preserve the last spark of our kind.”
Roswiser got straight to the point, laying out the problem the Silver Dragon clan was facing.
And just as she expected, the citizens below began to murmur.
“Her Majesty is right; to keep our homeland safe, ensuring our numbers is a must.”
“But given the reproductive characteristics of our Dragon Race, it’s impossible for us to bounce back to the levels we had a few years ago in such a short time.”
“So, do we borrow soldiers from Princess Isar?”
“Princess Isar’s side is similar to ours; they just came out of a conflict and are still in recovery mode. Borrowing soldiers… well, that’s going to be tough.”
“Then… what about egg-laying?”
“If we go that route, the mother will be extremely weakened after laying the eggs. If invaders come during that time, we’d be in big trouble. So egg-laying isn’t a viable mass population strategy either.”
“This is… really giving me a headache.”
“……”
The citizens continued to discuss among themselves while Roswiser listened quietly.
After a moment, she slowly raised her hand.
The citizens below went silent immediately.
“I’ve considered all the thoughts you just shared; each does have its drawbacks.”
“To nurture the next generation of Silver Dragons while guarding against external threats, finding a perfect solution… isn’t easy.”
“But, everyone, while we’ve been racking our brains using traditional Dragon Race thinking, have we overlooked something that is right in front of us?”
Roswiser smiled, teasing everyone for a moment.
“Right in front of us? What is it?”
“I don’t know. Your Royal Highness, do you know?”
Leon smirked slightly, silently criticizing, “With that train of thought… it’s no wonder you guys are becoming an endangered species.”
But then again, one can’t really blame these second-rate citizens; after all, Roswiser had just said they needed to break free from traditional Dragon Race thinking.
So once they broke away, the answer would become obvious.
What Roswiser was hinting at was…
“How long are you going to lay low down there, my dear?”
Roswiser tilted her head on stage, her hair cascading down. She squinted and smiled, showing a rare gentle side in front of her citizens.
And that sweet “my dear” ignited the gossip spirit of all the Dragons present.
“Did I leave home too long, or did I just forget how to understand Silver Dragon dialect? Did Her Majesty just call His Royal Highness ‘my dear’?”
“Hey, hey, this is a public setting! How can you be so indecent! Hmm, a bit more of that, I love watching.”
“I figured she’d at least call him ‘hubby’ or something, since Her Majesty and His Royal Highness have been married for three years. But calling him ‘my dear’… Oh boy, I can’t even—”
“……”
“Everyone, back off! Let us professionals handle the gossip and shippping!”
As soon as this was said, Sherry and Milan raised two flags high in the crowd.
Each flag had its own slogans.
Sherry’s banner was straightforward:
“Reestablishing the glory of the Silver Dragons, we have no choice but to shoulder this responsibility!”
As for Milan’s sign, it contained a message a bit unfamiliar to the assembled Dragons.
“Life continues because of love… Dreams illuminated by children?”
“What does that mean?”
“I know every word, but when they come together, I just don’t get it…”
“Oh look, His Royal Highness is coming up on stage!”
This reminder drew all the Dragons’ attention back to the podium.
Leon and Roswiser stood side by side, lowering their voices. “I told you, the Empire’s slogan encouraging procreation isn’t something your Dragon Race will understand.”
“Not understanding now is fine; we can explain it later.”
Leon shrugged, opting to say no more.
“I believe you’re all familiar with this man beside me.”
As she spoke, Roswiser wrapped her arm around Leon’s, “Three years ago, we met and fell in love, building the family we have today. And in these three years, we’ve also raised three lovely, well-mannered kids.”
“I wonder what everyone thinks of them?”
Sherry shouted out from below, “Princess Noia is the best!”
Immediately, many chimed in.
“Princess Moon is the cutest little dragon baby, no arguments allowed!”
“Alright, in that case, I’ll take Princess Aurora. Sorry everyone.”
“……”
Ah, this is the ‘supporting act’ that the leadership prepared in advance.
And it’s working wonders!
“Looks like everyone really loves the little princesses.”
Roswiser continued, “Then you all should also know, since I’ve married Leon, it means all our children are born of live birth.”
“In the past, in the traditional view of the Dragon Race, egg-laying was always mainstream.”
“Because compared to live birth, the dragonlings born from eggs can better inherit their mother’s power.”
“And egg-laying doesn’t require coupling with others, so there’s no risk of betrayal from one’s partner.”
The Dragon Race places a high value on “pure love.”
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any scoundrels who “put on pants and deny their partners.”
Though there are few, when they do appear, it’s a lifetime scar for the Dragons who value ‘pure love’ deeply.
This reason is also why most Dragons pursue the egg-laying method.
Below, the Silver Dragon citizens listened intently to the Queen’s speech, quietly waiting for her next words.
“I’m not forcing anyone to love someone, because love is free; it can transcend age, status—”
Roswiser shot a glance at the man beside her and spoke in a tone only he could hear, “It can even transcend races.”
Leon was slightly taken aback, then noticed the corners of his mouth involuntarily lifting.
Then, he held Roswiser’s hand even tighter.
“But the hardest thing to transcend is still trust.”
“Indeed, I can’t guarantee that the person you fall in love with will reciprocate with the same love. Such prolonged suspicion has led most Dragons to close off their innermost feelings.”
“Before I met Leon, I was the same.”
“I even wondered if I had lost the ability to love.”
“But then I met him, the man who would influence my entire life.”
General Leon inhaled sharply; in a sense… ahem, he did indeed influence Roswiser’s life.
“I, once upon a time, didn’t understand what ‘love’ was.”
“Some say love is instant attraction;”
“Others say love is sharing hardships together.”
“But my husband taught me what true ‘love’ is.”
Leon discreetly glanced at the silver-haired beauty next to him.
Her tone lacked the previous fervor; there was no ‘motivational speaker’ vibe either.
She smiled, her silver eyes shimmering as if telling a beautiful fairytale.
“Love is the steadfastness and persistence to choose to stay after knowing all of a person’s faults;”
“Love is the reckless decision to spend today with him even if tomorrow is the end of the world;”
“Love is also the opportunity to witness the most beautiful side of this world.”
“So, what I want to say is… I’ve never felt that Leon would betray me.”
“Because at the moment we fell in love, all that remained in our eyes was each other.”
