A/N: Hey guys! This is my first ever fanfic, so please don't hesitate to offer your criticism. I said the fic gets political, and I want to explain what that means, in case it scared anyone. I won't get into specifics because it would spoil the plot, but I'll say this: this fic explores real-world political themes and how Kazuma and Megumin grapple with them. Kazuma has his own political views from his time on Earth, while Megumin's views are shaped by her life in Belzerg. Megumin deciding how she feels about Earth politics is a core part of the story. Exploring that idea is what I want to do with this fic. What I don't want is to push my own views. I don't want a story where Kazuma and Megumin make political decisions without struggling with them. I don't want a story where the politics ever seem black-and-white, where the characters all do the "right" thing: of course, in stories like that, the "right" thing always tends to lean a certain way. If Kazuma and Megumin ever stop arguing about politics, I've done something wrong. Now that I've gotten that out of the way...

I currently have 14 chapters written, and I'm publishing the first 5 to start. I wanted to wait before publishing this, to make sure I had an interesting story, and before I knew it I had 14 chapters. I wanted to initially publish just enough to give a good idea of the direction of the story, and I think 5 is the right number. I'll be looking at comments and taking your feedback into account with the next chapters. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: Death

Kazuma found himself in a familiar room. Across from him was Eris, the goddess of luck. She had beautiful silver hair and a small scar on her cheek nearly hidden from view by her head covering. Kazuma had met her many times before, in the same room, each of the times he had died in this new world. She was kind and soft-spoken, unlike her noisy airheaded alcoholic of a superior, Aqua. But Kazuma didn't hate Aqua. While she may have caused him much trouble over the years, she also had her moments, and he had a strong feeling that she truly cared about him, even if she didn't show it.

Kazuma's thoughts about Eris had quickly morphed into a reflection on his life in this new world. He thought about the members of his party with whom he had been through so much. He thought about Darkness. She was tall, blonde, and had large breasts to boot. She was, to be quite honest, definitely his type. Her defensive prowess was unparalleled, though she couldn't land a hit on the side of a barn if she tried. She took her job as a crusader seriously, too seriously even. She was a bona fide masochist and she took immense sexual pleasure in blocking hits that could kill a normal person. Her fetish was far too much for him: even a pervert like Kazuma had his limits. She had confessed her love to him, and though he didn't feel the same way he still cared about her. She and Aqua were like sisters to him, though he would never say that out loud.

Kazuma looked to the right and saw the last member of his party, sitting in a chair just like his. Her name was Megumin and she had dark brown hair and crimson eyes which glowed brightly when she got excited. She was, to put it gently, underdeveloped, whether through malnutrition in her past or just her genes he wasn't sure. She was a powerful mage and yet she only knew one spell: Explosion. From a young age Megumin had pursued Explosion and nothing else. Though her chuuni tendencies were annoying, he had to admire her dedication.

Explosion magic was truly her first love, but she loved something else just as much, more specifically someone. Megumin loved him dearly. Neither he nor Megumin could honestly pin down when it had happened, but they had grown close after their party's visit to her home, the Crimson Demon Village. Though she was a bit on the jealous and clingy side, he didn't mind too much. He had thought about it quite a bit and realized he loved her back as well, though he hadn't yet said it to her face. For now they were less than lovers and more than friends.

But then Kazuma remembered why he was in this place to begin with. He was still looking at Megumin.

"Megumin… this is all your fault!"

Despite his feelings for the girl, Kazuma was incredibly angry. She was the reason they were both dead, waiting to be resurrected by Aqua.

"Kazuma… I'm sorry… when I was casting Explosion… I… made a mistake… and used too much mana..."

"Too much? You think?!"

At this point Megumin was quietly sobbing, and it made him pause and feel guilty for yelling. Eris stood up, and Kazuma and Megumin both turned towards her with their heads down.

"When Megumin cast her Explosion, she used every manatite crystal in the bag..."

Shit. There were 10 crystals in the bag, which meant… that the explosion was 11 times bigger than usual. Kazuma started to panic.

"...Unfortunately, the Explosion vaporized your bodies instantly. There's nothing left for Aqua-sama to resurrect."

Megumin started bawling and now he understood why she was so upset. But he couldn't cry. He wouldn't accept his party's adventures just coming to an end.

"Eris-sama… the last time I died you granted me an exception… please…"

Eris was clearly distraught by the whole situation. She could barely bring herself to look at the young couple before her.

"Though you've done much for this world, Kazuma, I can only grant such an exception once. Megumin, if you wish, you may return to your world, but Kazuma won't be coming with you."

Megumin lifted her head to look directly at Eris, anger in her eyes.

"Never! I won't leave you, Kazuma..."

Megumin continued crying. Eris then began to speak once more, this time far more quietly.

"There is… one more option… where you can stay together…"

Megumin stopped crying for a moment, and she looked hopeful. Kazuma felt relieved and his urge to cry had subsided. Eris continued to speak.

"You can both keep your memories, and be sent to Japan."

"Thank you, Eris-sama! If I could still live in my own world I would pledge myself to the Eris Cult… anything to show my gratitude..."

"Megumin, what are you talking about? You've never worshipped anyone for as long as I've known you. Why start now?"

Megumin chuckled at his response, wiping the tears away from her eyes with her sleeve. But Kazuma knew that it must pain her to leave everyone else behind.

"Megumin, is this really what you want? To leave behind your parents, Komekko, Aqua, Darkness, hell even Yunyun cares about you Megumin..."

"Kazuma, you know my parents… they wouldn't want me to leave you. I'll miss them; I'll miss Komekko; I'll miss everyone, Kazuma. But I could never live with myself if I left you behind… especially because I'm responsible for us dying. Nothing could heal that heartbreak."

"That's not true, Megumin. You could find someone else… someone who deserves you more than..."

Megumin slapped him, hard. She was livid. The spot where she had hit showed a nasty bruise, and bled a little.

"How dare you! How dare you insult my love! I am Megumin, the foremost mage of the Crimson Demons and my love for Kazuma will never fade!"

Eris gave him a nasty look. Kazuma thought about why. He knew that what he had said hurt Megumin, but he needed her to hear the truth. To know that she could live without him. Unless… Kazuma looked at Eris. The way she looked at Megumin with pain in her eyes made him realize something. Megumin wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. He turned towards her.

"I'm sorry I doubted you. To be honest, the way you single mindedly pursue explosion magic should've told me just how attached you can get. You really are the clingy type."

As Megumin prepared to yell at him, Kazuma silenced her with a finger to the lip.

"Don't even try to deny it. You just said that you can't live without me. That is the definition of clingy…"

Megumin was about to break free of his silencing maneuver, but Kazuma was faster.

"But I love that about you. Megumin, I want to say this to you without any 'maybes' or 'buts'. I love you. I was too scared to say it before, scared that things would change too much if we really became lovers. But everything is changing whether we like it or not. You deserve to hear the truth."

Megumin smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss.

"Thank you, Kazuma. I've been waiting for you to say that. Even though I know I won't regret coming with you to Japan, I do regret putting us in this situation… I was careless and because of that I'll never see them again... I'll especially miss Komekko."

"I know that they'll miss you dearly, especially your little sister who looks up to you so much. But they'll also know that Megumin died doing what she loved, pushing explosion magic to its absolute limit."

Eris turned towards Megumin and smiled.

"Megumin, that explosion shattered every single window in Axel. It looked like a nuclear blast: it was kind of scary."

Eris replayed the explosion for them on a magical projector. Kazuma had seen such a projector one of the previous times he had died. He wondered how it worked. As he watched the footage with a mixture of horror and pride, he agreed with Eris' description. It looked just like a Cold War-era nuclear test. Megumin looked quite pleased with herself. Eris continued speaking to Megumin.

"They'll also know that Megumin died in the arms of her lover, and that she lives on in his world by his side, determined to master explosion magic. I'll let Aqua-sama know what happened and that you've gone to Japan."

"I'll be able to use Explosion in Japan?"

"Yes. Normally magic ceases to function between worlds, but I've made an exception for you and Kazuma. He can use his magic too. But Megumin, please be careful. Such powerful explosions will draw suspicion in Japan."

"Megumin, please don't nuke Japan a third time."

Megumin looked very confused.

"Kazuma, Eris-sama… what does 'nuclear' mean?"

Oh. Of course. Kazuma would have to explain that to her later.

"Kazuma, it was an honor to assist you in your campaign against the Demon King. You've grown a lot since you came here. And Megumin, I know you'll miss your friends and family, but Japan really is a wonderful place. Farewell!"

And with that the magical gate opened, and both Kazuma and Megumin were sent flying through it before they could respond. Eris smiled as she watched them leave, knowing that they'd be alright.