Chapter 21: Melt and Soften

"Ah, welcome back."

I hurriedly dropped my hands, turned to Kazuya, and greeted him.

A twinge of panic—did he hear me just now? Me, whispering his name?

"Yeah... I'm home."

Alright, what now...

Okay, I've decided.

"Kazuya."

I stood up and opened my arms toward him.

Basically... well, I was asking for a hug.

Kazuya looked puzzled but replied,

"Ah, no, it's fine today. Yeah, I’m good today. Really."

That’s a lie.

Turning away and awkwardly trying to brush things off—that’s how I know Kazuya is lying.

Call it instinct, or maybe just the intuition of a close friend.

Why lie? He’s always the one initiating this kind of thing.

Suddenly shy? No way. That’s not how Kazuya is.

Could it be... he’s sick of me? No, if that were true, he wouldn’t be helping me like this. He was the one who made that embarrassingly bold declaration. After saying all that, there’s no way it’s just… over. Right?

Ugh, I don’t get it. I don’t get it, and I can’t accept it!

"What are you embarrassed about?! I said it’s fine, so it’s fine!"

I said that and threw myself into Kazuya’s chest, wrapping my arms around his back.

"Wa?! Ah—!"

Kazuya froze in confusion.

Weird. This is seriously weird.

What the heck is going on?

This isn’t like him! Not like him at all!

The usual Kazuya would’ve hugged me back happily, right!?

He’d get all carried away, squeeze me too tight, and I’d go "Ow! That hurts!" and he’d say "Sorry!"—isn’t that how it always goes!?

A brief silence passed.

Kazuya was still frozen, not hugging me back.

Hmm... something definitely happened.

Well, well. Looks like I, with my 400 years of life experience, am going to have to hear him out.

I let go of him and spoke.

"Kazuya, sit down over there."

I pointed to the bed as I said it.

"Huh? Ah... okay."

He reacted slowly and sat down sluggishly on the bed.

"Not like that. Sit up properly. Seiza."

I gave him a firmer tone and pointed again. Kazuya reluctantly got into a seiza on the bed.

"What’s going on?"

That’s my line!

Ignoring his question, I got up on the bed too, sat the same way, and gently pulled his head to my chest in a soft embrace.

"Eh!? Wait—!"

He struggled, but I held him tighter to keep him from escaping.

"Just stay still."

After a moment, he finally calmed down and let me hold him.

"Hey, Kazuya."

"......"

No response. Well, I figured as much.

"Hey, Kazuya... What happened to the brave Kazuya from yesterday? Are you not feeling well today? You seem like a completely different person. When you’re like this, I can't get into my rhythm either. I don't want to see you struggling and suffering alone, you know? We’ve come this far together—let’s face it together, okay?"

I spoke gently, like soothing a child, stroking his dark brown hair.

Still, no reaction.

In that case, I’ve only got one card left to play. Honestly, I’m scared to even ask. Especially now that I’m starting to realize what this might be.

If he says yes... I’ll go back to the village. Yeah.

I steeled myself and asked,

"Hey, Kazuya... did you maybe... stop liking me?"

"!?"

Finally, a reaction. His body jerked sharply.

"So—"

Tension crackled in the air.

"So?"

"There’s no way! Me?! Not like you, Miki?! No way!!"

Ahh... thank goodness. I genuinely felt relieved.

If that’s the case, then why?

"Then why?"

"Th-that’s..."

Kazuya clammed up. Come on, you’re this far in—just say it already!

"......"

And now he’s back to silence.

This is tougher than I thought.

But I wasn’t panicking anymore.

Because the biggest worry was already cleared.

Geez, what a stubborn little brat.

Guess I’ll just have to wait him out. Let the ice around his heart melt, however long it takes.

I held him gently against my chest, silently stroking his hair, waiting for him to open up.

Time passed quietly, and soon I could hear the bustle outside—the sound of people walking, the lively voices of children. Morning was ending, and the day had begun.

It was so quiet and still that I started to worry he might’ve fallen asleep—but finally, Kazuya spoke.

"Hey, Miki."

"Hmm?"

I replied while still stroking his hair.

"You said it before... that you'd stay with me forever. Do you still feel the same way?"

"Huh?"

Ah, right, I’ve said that so many times before. Yeah. That hasn’t changed. I’ll be with Kazuya forever.

"Yeah, I still feel the same. I’ll be with you for the rest of──"

Wait. Why is it suddenly so embarrassing to say?

Uh, well... I’ll be with Kazuya forever. Yeah, I’m fine with that. Forever... together...

Huh? That’s weird. I thought it was just to kill time at first. Even now... that shouldn’t have changed... right?

But I realized that the image I had of “forever together” had changed.

Before, the image was Kazuya with his wife, their kids, and me watching over them from the side.

But now... that wife isn’t in the picture. And I’m not standing off to the side anymore.

Instead, there’s a blonde woman next to Kazuya.

Is that... me?

Maybe... now that I’ve become aware of my feelings for Kazuya, the image changed?

But if that’s the case──

"Miki?"

Kazuya’s voice snapped me back to reality.

"Ah, sorry, sorry, ahem. Just like before, I’m sticking with you for life, Kazuya—so relax."

No, no, that’s not what’s important right now. I can set myself aside for the moment. Right now, I need to prioritize Kazuya.

"I see... I see."

Even though I couldn’t see his face, I felt like Kazuya was smiling, just a little—happy.

"Hey, Miki."

"Hmm?"

I replied while gently stroking his hair.

"I want to live here."

He said that, then rubbed his head against my chest, burying his face in my cleavage.

I didn’t expect that at all, and an involuntary "Nnn!?" escaped from me.

"Cut it out!"

I stopped stroking his hair and gave his head a firm chop as he kept rubbing.

"Ow, ow... But thanks. You woke me up."

Kazuya pulled away from my embrace, sat up straight, and looked me in the eye.

"Miki, you really are the best friend ever!"

"Ah, uh-huh..."

That’s it?

"And the best girl too. I’m glad I fell for you!"

"Huh!? HUUH!? What the hell are you saying all of a sudden!?"

He’s always like this—so sudden!!

"No, really. I mean it, from the bottom of my heart."

"Kazuya, you..."

But still, I’m glad. It seems like Kazuya’s finally feeling like himself again.

"Miki, there’s something I want you to hear."

"Yeah? What is it?"

Oh? Is he finally ready to open up?

Alright, let’s hear it then.

"I love you. I want you!"

"Eep!?"

W-What the hell is he suddenly blurting out!?

N-No way! Absolutely not!!

"No! I don’t wanna! Not happening!"

I somehow managed to get that out.

But Kazuya took it surprisingly well.

"Yeah, I figured. It’s still too early, huh?"

Still, he says... Still, huh.

Yeah. Still. That means someday it could change. It could be a yes, or still a no—still means it’s undecided.

It’s not just about timing, you know.

"It’s okay. Really. If you had said yes now, it would’ve made all my resolve feel pointless."

"...What do you mean?"

I don’t get it. Does he want to be rejected or something?

"This time, I’m being serious. Will you listen?"

"Yeah. Sure."

So this time... will I finally get to hear what’s been weighing on him?

"Yesterday, I met with Dominic. And I realized something—"

---

I listened to Kazuya’s story, all the way to the end, without interrupting.

I had a lot of thoughts, but still—I let him finish.

"That’s why I’ve decided. I won’t let myself be conflicted anymore. I’ll grow stronger—become a man worthy of Miki. And once I’ve defeated the Demon King, I’ll confess to you again."

To sum it up, he thought he wasn’t good enough for me, so he was thinking of giving up and putting distance between us. But after feeling my kindness, he couldn’t suppress his feelings anymore. He wanted me.

So he decided to stay close—as a friend, as someone I said I’d be with for life, and to use that connection to stay by my side, become someone strong enough to stand as my equal, and then defeat the Demon King and confess again.

Yeah. I get it now.

I always knew what kind of person Kazuya was, but hearing it spelled out like this really drove it home.

Anyone would be happy to see Kazuya the way he was yesterday, to have him there when they needed help. And I know how hard he’s always tried. It’s not like he gave up on the Earth Dragon just because his attacks didn’t work. He even managed to break its horn with that golden aura.

Sure, he’s still lacking in strength—but I knew that from the beginning. I chose to stay with him anyway.

If anything, the Earth Dragon incident was my fault. I let my guard down too much.

And what’s with all this “worthy” or “not worthy” stuff? Don’t be ridiculous.

I’ve never cared about that sort of thing.

Everything I’ve done is because Kazuya’s my best friend. That’s how strong our bond is—at least, that’s how I see it. I’ve felt that way from the start.

In fact, the fact that our relationship evolved to the point where I started noticing him like that? He should be proud of that, you know?

And seriously, “I’ll confess again after defeating the Demon King”? Isn’t that setting the bar a little high?

What if I get feelings for him before that? ...No, no way. Probably not. I don’t think so. Hopefully not. ...Maybe I should be ready, just in case.

Well, anyway!

Kazuya’s just overthinking everything, as usual.

...Then again, I guess that just shows how much the Earth Dragon and Dominic shook him up.

Honestly, Kazuya’s hopeless without me. What a handful.

"Kazuya."

"...Yeah?"

He’s waiting to hear what I’ll say. Wondering what I’ll think, what I’ll tell him now that he’s let it all out.

He’s so nervous, it’s practically radiating off him.

So I told him—

"Idiot. Dumbass."

"Huh!? W-What the hell was that for!?"

"Noooothing at all~"

I laughed. Kazuya laughed along with me.

After we’d had a good laugh, I reached out my arms to him, silently asking for a hug. Kazuya grinned wider than I’d ever seen, and wrapped his arms around me tight.

It felt warmer than ever before, peaceful, like something inside him had finally been set free.