Epilogue

It's been a week since that disastrous hunt; we all agreed to take a break from quests. As such, we continued to pass the days in relative peace and comfort. As I cooked, Megumin and Aqua were displaying their usual competitive nature.

"My turn," Megumin said, grabbing the controller from Aqua.

"Hey, I thought we agreed it was two tries per turn," Aqua remarked.

"We did…and you went four times already."

"I was closer than on any of your attempts."

"As if."

"Oi," I said, interrupting the argument, "Aqua, did you finish with the laundry?"

"Huh, oh, uh…almost."

"Almost?" I stuck my head out from the kitchen. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means almost, Kazuma; like, not all done."

"I know what it means, you dolt; I mean, what do you mean."

"Oh, I just need to finish yours."

"Huh, mine should've been the first ones to get done."

"Mhm—hah, my turn, Megumin!"

"Oi, I'm almost out of clothes—hey, are you listening?!" I grumbled as I went back to cooking.

Megumin walked in. "What you making?" She asked, looking at the pan.

"Hm, eh, nothing unique; just a bit of stir-fried vegetables with beef."

Megumin stood quietly watching.

"…oi, that's kinda distracting."

"Hm, sorry."

I smiled. "Wanna help?"

She smiled childishly, but then looked back to the living room.

"Ah, you can go play with Aqua; I'm almo—"

"No—I wanna…help."

For some reason, I felt a bit flustered. I cleared my throat. "Alright then, here." I handed her another pan. "Makes us some desert."

Megumin fumbled to grab the pan, grabbing my hand in the process.

In that split second, as our rings touched, they activated; however, the rings themselves almost seemed to tear apart, revealing their glowing cores to be a coil of manatite; mine green, and Megumin's, red. As we stared in awe, I could hear the sound of a heartbeat…was it my own.

Megumin looked up at me.

In my mind I heard, "Is he hearing my heartbeat?"

"Am I hearing her thoughts?"

Again, I heard a reply in my mind, "Is he hearing my thoughts?"

We both stared at each other and then the rings, quickly pulling away from each other. Megumin avoided looking at me; I subconsciously did the same.

"W-What the hell was that all about?"

I quickly turned my attention back to the food which was beginning to overcook. "Megumin," I said, somewhat calmly. "Do you…still wanna help?"

She nodded silently.

I looked down at her ring; it was back to normal. I glanced over at mine; the same. "Surprise me," I said.

"Hm?" She said, looking up at me.

"Surprise me," I repeated. "You're a good enough cook in your own right; make something good…you are my wife…right?" Even though I said it with a straight face, I felt highly embarrassed.

Megumin stared at me wide-eyed, her eyes glowing slightly; her ears and face also. "Umu." She grasped the pan and stood beside me. With a smile, she eagerly went to work.

A couple minutes later, we were done; we brought out the plates of food and placed them on the table. Aqua instantly ran over.

"We're waiting for Darkness, so don't start eating yet," I said.

"Oh, right, she headed out to get the maid, right?" Megumin queried.

"Umu."

"I think this a joyous occasion," Aqua said. "I almost forgot, but Ambrosia oba-sama gave me a bottle of her wine to share with you all."

Me and Megumin stared at each other.

"Ah, it is diluted, right?" I said worriedly.

"Of course," Aqua snapped. "I have a bottle of the undiluted one for myself."

Just then, the front door opened, and in came Darkness.

"Darkness, welcome back," Megumin said.

"Hey," she replied, "I want to introduce you guys to Irene." As she said that, a tall and slim woman walked in. "She'll be our new maid."

Irene bowed deeply. "Pleased to meet your acquaintances."

As I laid eyes on the tall and beautiful lady in front me, she turned her dark blue eyes towards me. And in a single instance, I could sense the amount of overflowing contempt she had for me.