"Well, you four certainly had an eventful evening." Aqua commented pleasantly as she cooked breakfast for both her usual housemates and the four satisfied looking women who joined them at the table that morning, having elected to stay the night after their fun with Kazuma. "I'm guessing Kazzy's all tuckered out, considering I haven't heard a peep from his room all morning."
"Oh yeah," Chris confirmed after stretching her back and joints for a bit. "Big man's sleeping like a rock when we went to check on him. Figured we'd let him rest after all the fun he had last night. Guy deserves it."
"That he certainly does." Wiz concurred, sighing wistfully as she propped her head up on the table with her arm, recalling the previous evening. "I don't think I've felt as happy as I did last night since I was alive. Kazuma is too good to us, truly."
"Indeed he is," Darkness agreed with a small, honest smile etched in her face. "Even if he is rough around the edges, which I have no qualms with, he's truly a bastion of goodwill. When you think about it, Kazuma really has no right to put up with us after all the grief we inadvertently put him through. Yet look at how far we've come to learn and grow from each other. It's…rather beautiful, is it not?"
"I suppose it is, yes. And you definitely have a point about his kindness given our track records." Sena agreed, taking a small sip of her coffee before elaborating. "I almost had him executed, Wolbach was technically involved in one of his deaths, and given the history the rest of you share with him...well, I think the only person here that hasn't tested his patience is Yunyun."
The Crimson Demon in question, who was not used to nor a fan of having the spotlight on her, hid her blushing face in her shirt collar like a turtle. "N-no, I, uh, I'm pretty sure I've annoyed Kazuma at least once before with my shyness. Uhm, just ask Megumin. Yeah, she'll back me up!"
"Mmm, I dunno. I'm not sure he's ever mentioned it, at least not out loud." Megumin countered, pausing as she did some mental math before shrugging her shoulders loosely with a dismissive hand wave. "Regardless, he's given all of us our fair share of second chances, and I think we can all agree that was more than a little sweet of him."
Nods and hums of agreement were shared all around the table. As Aqua brought over the steaming hot pan of food she'd finished cooking up, she said, "Yeah, which is why we should probably do something special for him. Y'know, to make up for how we used to treat him. Remember when he said he withheld his birthday from us because he was afraid we wouldn't care? Well, I'm thinking we should plan a super big, super-secret surprise party for his next birthday! I know it's not for a couple of months, but it should be organized early to make up for last year's. You girls game?"
"Sounds like a good time. I'm in for sure!" Chris chirped with a smirk, lacing her hands together with a mildly menacing chuckle. "Oh, the things we could do for a surprise party. Don't suppose any of you have ever thrown one before?"
"What, a surprise party or an orgy?" Megumin snarked back before shaking her head and chuckling in amusement. "Because that's a no on both fronts, Chris."
"First of all, boo. Spoil sport." The thief retorted with a light chuckle before she clarified. "And yeah, I meant a party. I know Aqua's thrown plenty up in Heaven, but the rest of you don't really seem the experienced type when it comes to planning, discretion, secrecy...anything needed for such an event, y'know?"
Just like that, the tonal shift in the room was like whiplash for everyone. Wolbach and Aqua in particular noticeably tensed up, the former for obvious reasons and the latter because it just now occurred to her that Chris was the only person in the group who was uninformed about her real identity. Granted, Aqua knew she should've let the thief in at some point, but the fact that she randomly already knew about it? Something didn't add up in the water goddess' head.
"Uh...Chris? I don't think we've ever mentioned Aqua's...er, godliness to you before." Sena remarked, her tone slow and cautious, all too similar to that which you would use on a dangerous animal when it was cornered. "Perhaps I am mistaken, but...what exactly did you mean by that?"
Blowing a raspberry seemingly without a care in the world, Chris responded, "C'mon, you mean you really haven't figured it out yet? I knew Aqua, Megumin, and Darkness would be slow to catch on (no offense), but surely you would've picked up by now with your sharp prosecutor skills. Hell, I thought Wiz would've at least sensed it with her powers at this point!"
The six women stared long and hard at Chris, the turning of their mental gears practically audible while Wolbach sighed in exasperation, facepalming as she watched them slowly put the pieces together. Eventually, even Chris grew tired of waiting, and stood up with a dramatic sigh, apparently more than willing to make a show out of her grand reveal.
"Alright then, I can see you all need a little help with this one. How about I just show you wearing my normal clothes, hmm? Maybe then everything will make more sense to you~"
Then, with little fanfare, Chris raised her left hand and snapped her fingers, followed by a brief but binding shimmer of purple energy. After it dissipated, the flabbergasted group stared at what seemed to be Chris in a frighteningly convincing get-up that looked just like most portraits of Eris.
And suddenly, all at one, it clicked.
"YOU'RE ERIS!?" exclaimed everyone but Wolbach, who shook her head in disappointment while doing her best to not bring attention to herself. She wondered what Wiz would think now knowing she had been buddy-buddy with a being who'd love nothing more than to see all undead erased from this world.
"Finally! It literally took me reassessing the part just to get you guys to notice?!" Chris-or rather, Eris-cried out in mild annoyance, throwing her hands into the air dramatically. "I mean, I know I wasn't screaming it to the world or anything, but honestly! Even Wolbach figured it out before you lot, and she's...well, she's her."
"You expected us to figure out you were an actual goddess? How?!" Megumin sputtered in exasperation, throwing her arms up in turn and looking just as frazzled as the rest of her friends. "It's not like you gave us hints or anything! How on earth did Wolbach even realize it?"
"Because that thing used to be a fellow goddess, remember?" Wolbach reminded, crossing her arms as she eyed the painfully quiet demoness in contempt. "Even when a god is exiled and revoked of their powers, they still possess the inherent ability to basically sense their former kin. But really, any being with a high enough concentration of power can detect us, which is why I'm somewhat surprised Wiz didn't speak out sooner."
"I-I didn't realize...I mean, I suppose there was always something whenever I was near Chris. A pulse of sorts." Wiz admitted, slightly shaken by the reveal that another one of her friends was of a holy origin. "B-but it was never quite the same as Lady Aqua or Wolbach! Theirs are obvious and open to the world, but yours was...incredibly well hidden!"
"Hmmm. Well, in that case, I guess I did a pretty good job of concealing my aura then, huh?" Eris remarked, giving the lich a playful wink which understandably left Wolbach confused and even a little irate. "I don't like to toot my own horn, but I like to think I'm a professional when it comes to disguises. Which is why I choose to play the role of a thief! Fitting, is it not?"
"Yes, yes, you did such a wonderful job. Really had everyone fooled." Wolbach deadpanned from the sidelines, earning herself a sharp glare in the process, not that the goddess of wrath much cared. "And I assume you didn't consider the fact that our lovely lot would have liked to have been informed regarding your godly nature sooner? I know I'm no expert on transparency, but I feel like you could have approached this better."
Eris couldn't control herself when she let out a curt, mean-spirited laugh. "Am I seriously being lectured by actual no-life scum like you? Oh, that is rich! You lost the right to have an opinion on godly affairs when you broke our most sacred of rules and taught yourself dark magic. Now, unless you want to test my already dwindling patience with you some more, I suggest you sit there and stay quiet."
Hearing words so purposefully full of spite was literally unheard of by the rest of the girls. Even Aqua, her personal senior and mentor, couldn't recall a time her subordinate reacted in such a…visceral manner.
In the tense silence that lingered following Eris' outburst, Wolbach's eyes flared with barely restrained fury, her fists curling reflexivity as she took an experimental step closer towards her fellow goddess, the atmosphere of the kitchen becoming significantly tense as the two glared daggers into each other, practically daring their opponent to make the first move.
But just when it seemed as though a gruesome fight of biblical proportions was about to break out in the kitchen, Wolbach's eyes…they lost their sharp edge. Her tense body loosened up and she merely stared back at Eris with a severely sad and tired face. A face which spoke volumes alone about the trials and tribulations the former goddess had endured for the past several eons. Naturally, this sudden one-eighty in her rival's body language left Eris momentarily locked in a state of confusion.
"I don't know why I figured we'd be past this." She mused quietly, her tone destitute and surprisingly defeated, as if every ounce of fight within her had just...evaporated on the spot. "I mean, we live for millennia, Eris, thousands of years, and yet we're still here bickering like my sins aren't ancient even by our standards. Do you truly detest me that much for my mistake? Enough to see me as little more than an enemy, after all this time?"
Again, Eris was left stunned by the words coming out of the sinner's mouth. Still, while it was enough to simmer her down enough to not want to commit homicide, the goddess crossed her arms and scrutinized Wolbach. "Do you really think feeling sorry for yourself and psychoanalyzing me is going to make a difference? If so, then you are sorely mistaken."
"...Very well. If that is to be your disposition, I'm not in any place to scold you for it." Wolbach replied evenly, her tone portraying no underlying sarcasm or bite. Needless to say, the sudden and seemingly genuine shift stunned the rest of the girls present, rendering them all silent until Aqua of all people managed to recompose herself and speak up.
"…You need to get over yourself, Eris."
A fresh wave of shock seemed to roll over the assembled women, this time not sparing either of the warring goddess' either. Both Wolbach and Eris met Aqua's determined expression with surprise, though the goddess of luck did seemingly sober up first, a betrayed snarl rising on her face.
"Aqua-sama…what is the meaning of this?" Eris questioned, her voice clam but undeniably strained. "You're not seriously taking the demon's side on this matter, are you? Where do your loyalties lie!?"
"My loyalties lie with my friends, Eris." Aqua retorted simply, a mature quality to her tone that the usually aloof goddess rarely ever used, crossing her arms and never breaking eye contact. "And as strange as it is, Wolbach qualifies for that category. She's changed a lot since she joined us in Axel, and for the better. It's not fair of you to hold this grudge without even giving her a chance at redemption."
"B-but she went against the Holy Codex!" Eris obstinately countered, her attitude slowly reverting into that of an intern butting heads with their manager. "She continuously questioned the Council at every turn and dabbled in forbidden knowledge! Through her own volition no less! And you're defending her right now? Aqua, I'm sorry, but what you're saying is borderline seditious."
"Eris, are you even hearing yourself? Everything you just said reinforces why Wolbach did what she did." Aqua insisted, sparing the goddess of wrath a meaningful look. "I may not agree with her actions, but I can see what drove her there. The dogma, the ceaseless insistence on following every whim of a bureaucratic council that has done little in the last hundred years to better itself. Eris, you have to recognize that, to a degree, Wolbach was right!"
The goddess of luck was about to call out her superior for spewing heretical propaganda but stopped herself when she stared into her shining blue eyes. Aqua may have always been hard on her back in Heaven (especially regarding her insecurity regarding her chest size) but Eris knew only did it to help her improve as a goddess. At the end of the day, she was her mentor, even an old friend. Sure, she may have grown lazy and complacent over the years, but her original training is what made her the goddess she is today.
And that's when the sinking realization hit: her own superior whom she looked up to grew lazy and complacent. Yet the Council did nothing about it. Worse still? She covered for her blunders as a means of making her record look good. Eris was part of the problem!
"I...I guess I never really considered the why of Wolbach's actions...and the fact that her grievances may have some merit." Eris admitted, her tone thick with uncertainty as she glanced between the two goddesses and the girls between them, choosing to address the latter. "While I know that none of you can speak when it comes to matters of Heaven, I trust your judgments. Do you think that Wolbach is changing for the better?"
"Absolutely!" Megumin passionately cried out, slapping her hands atop the kitchen table. "I can tell she's long improved herself even before joining my party. She saved me from her violent half that was sealed away when I was young and taught me my favorite spell. She didn't have to do either of those things. She could've let me die or, at the very least, not put up with me afterwards. But she chose to do both. Wolbach, she…she's almost like a godmother to me…"
"While I have my grievances with her, I must concur with Megumin's sentiment." Sena reluctantly chimed in, adjusting her glasses as she spoke with a light smile on her face. "While we may feud, Wolbach has been remarkably cordial and polite with both myself and my housemates...most of the time, anyhow. Regardless, she has indeed made progress for the better, and I firmly believe she will continue to do so alongside us."
Similar assurances of Wolbach's loyalty and upward moral trajectory were shared by the rest of the girls, gradually leading Eris' temper to simmer entirely, finding herself in an unexpected position that revealed Wolbach might not be the demonic monster she once assumed her to be. Eventually, the goddess of luck sighed heavily and lifted her hand, allowing the girls to finish before she spoke up.
"Alright, you've made your position very clear. Perhaps I have been a bit harsh of Wolbach given her time here since her banishment." She relented, before sparing the goddess of wrath a weary look as she stepped a bit closer. "That being said...how am I supposed to move past this? Wolbach, how am I supposed to trust you again, even after all this time? How can I forgive you?"
"I don't expect you to forgive me, Eris. Not right away, and certainly not without first proving myself to you," Wolbach sagely provided. "It will take a very long time for both of us to make amends. However, I believe this is a good starting point on the road to forgiveness. Give me a chance and I promise I will do everything in my power to further better myself. Not just for your sake, but for mine as well."
Eris seemed to mull over her fellow goddess' words, before ultimately sighing and extending her hand to Wolbach, a firm but less reserved look on her face. "To second chances, then."
Wolbach smiled softly in understanding, reaching out to shake Eris' hand. In all likelihood, they probably would never become friends, even when the day comes that Eris forgives her. But there was really no need for that. As long as there was no longer any animosity between them and they could learn to understand one another, then that was all that mattered for the fallen goddess. Her time in exile has given her a lot to think on, and one of those revelations included the trivial pointlessness of holding onto grudges. It was good to see Eris slowly coming to that revelation herself.
The two shook hands in a silent but firm agreement to let bygones be bygones. As soon as they finished, however, Eris found herself wrapped in an unexpected embrace as Darkness swept her up from behind, practically lifting her off the ground with a squeal of elation, the brightest of smiles on her face.
"I still can't believe my best friend was my Lady and Savior this whole time!" The crusader gushed, the full gravity of the situation finally having time to dawn on her after the dust settled. "I mean, I've always prayed to Eris for a friend, but I never anticipated that Eris herself would be that friend! Y-you mean so much to me; I've devoted my entire life to your teachings! I just, you're so, I don't even…I-I'm not worthy of being your friend."
"I can assure you, Darkness, you are more than worthy." Eris assured her earnestly, chuckling slightly from within the hug which she even started to return. "You're my best friend, after all. Being by your side has been one of the greatest honors bestowed upon me, as you taught me what it meant to be truly human."
Darkness very rarely cried, and even when she did, she typically did what she could to hide it in order to appear strong for her family in the worst of times. However, this was one of the few cases where she openly allowed herself to let the tears fall silently down her face. Giving Eris one final hug, she managed to choke back enough tears to say, "T-thank you…for everything. You've always made me such a happy girl, even in my darkest moments, provided you pardon the unintentional wordplay."
"The pleasure was all mine." Eris assured her, clutching her hands and giving them a gentle squeeze of comfort, a proud smile resting on her face. "You're a wonderful young woman, Darkness, I always knew the world had great things in store for you. These days, it seems like we'll end up exploring them together, no?"
Darkness chuckled at that, picking up on the subtle "Chris" within Eris' tone. In fact, she along with some of the others were about to question how she was down in the mortal realm when she, presumably, was supposed to be attending her duties up in Heaven. However, an unexpected guest had already beaten them to the punch on that one.
"Eris? Wait – WHAT THE FUCK!?" Kazuma screamed incredulously from the entryway to the kitchen. "What are you doing in my house!?"
"Ah. Right. Figured there was something slipping my mind." Eris remarked idly, before turning and offering Kazuma a small wave and awkward smile. "Good morning, Kazuma. It seems we have quite a bit to talk about."
It was a wild way to start his morning in Kazuma's professional opinion. After all, how often was it that one of your friends/friends with benefits revealed themselves to be a goddess you knew personally while you ate pancakes one of your three girlfriends (who is also a goddess) made for you? Not often enough to warrant an answer. As Kazuma's hands automatically shoveled food into his mouth with a fork, he listened intently as Eris calmly explained that she had been the sassy thief known as Chris this entire time. And, of course, as soon as she was done, the first thing the young man said back was:
"…So what you're saying is I've now had sex with two goddess, right?"
"Naturally. Of course that's your first question." Eris sighed, though an amused smile did play at her lips as she nodded in confirmation. "Yes Kazuma, you've had sex with two goddess. Enough to get you smited to ash twice over if you didn't have that loophole on your side. You're welcome for that, by the way."
"Oh! Right, uh…well, thank you for that," Kazuma said with a reserved nod. Clearing his throat for a second, he decided to change topics and asked Eris, "A-anyway, why and how are you even here with us? If you've been Chris this whole time, then who's up there to see me or anyone else that dies? I bump into Chris a fair bit whenever I'm downtown, so how is…this possible? Is there like a goddess-clone-magic thing going on or something?"
"Well...it is a touch complicated." Eris admitted, propping her head up with her hand as she hummed in consideration, before sitting up fully with a more certain expression a moment later. "Alright, I guess the simple version is that time works differently in Heaven. Hours down here are minutes up there, so whenever I dip out to check on you guys, none of my fellow gods really notice my absence. If they even notice it, of course."
Crossing his arms in contemplation, Kazuma hummed in surprise at the provided information and commented, "Huh, wow. So you've always been something of a rascal, even when not disguised Chris. Isn't that right, Eris?"
"I mean...I suppose it's my only real outlet when I'm playing Chris, yes." Eris confirmed, an almost bashful quality entering her voice as she drummed her fingers nervously on the tabletop. "You of all people know how I had to behave in Heaven. At times, it can be immensely stifling, so whenever I get the chance I like to come down here and cut loose. Chris' day is so much less complicated than my own, obviously."
"Yeah, well, we all need our off days too," Kazuma admitted before casting a cheeky glance at his three girlfriends. "Same goes for those knuckleheads, even if they won't admit it. But don't worry, I'm slowly conditioning them to see things my way."
"Oh, I'd expect nothing less." Eris remarked with a light chuckle, some of her mischievous ire returning as she cast the trio and surrounding additions a conniving smile. "Of course, you're conditioning all of us to a certain degree, aren't you? You just have that effect, apparently."
"Well when you put it like that, you make it sound like I'm some sort of a creepy cult leader," Kazuma snarked. "And here I thought I was the poetic wordsmith of the group."
"Yeah, I suppose I could have chosen my words more carefully." Eris admitted, her expression flashing once more to slight embarrassment as she leaned back in her chair, exhaling as she did so. "In my defense, this isn't really how I saw this morning going. After last night, I definitely wasn't expecting more earth-shattering revelations."
"To be fair, this is far more earth-shattering for me than you. Just saying." Kazuma retorted with a snort, before lacing his hands together and fixing the goddess across from him with a hopeful and curious look. "So...where exactly do we go from here?"
"Whatever do you mean, Kazuma?" Eris rhetorically asked with an all-knowing smile gracing her lips. "Because, from where I'm sitting, nothing about our dynamic has really changed other than me revealing my true identity. I figured that since everybody here was already comfortable about you and Aqua's origins, there'd be no harm in being…honest about myself to you all. Honesty does go a long way in fortifying relationships, does it not?"
"Yeah, I...suppose it does." Kazuma agreed with a short nod, a more confident smile growing on his face as he leaned back in his chair. "Well, all things considered, I think your little reveal went pretty well! Any thoughts, girls?"
"Certainly had me fooled," Megumin admitted before narrowing her eyes at the goddess, as though studying her. "Although, I always suspected there was more to you than meets the eye. Call it my Crimson Demon seventh sense. That's like a sixth sense but exclusively for Crimson Demons. Plus, it's way cooler."
"Truth be told, as shocked as I am with this reveal, I must agree with Megumin." Sena chimed in, mirroring the younger girl's critical eye narrow. "There was always something about you that just seemed...important. Of course, I never suspected you were a god. I had no logical reason to!"
"Yeah, hi, uh, is nobody gonna bother questioning how I, a goddess, didn't see this coming for myself!?" Aqua demanded, yearning for some more attention. "I mean it's crazy, right? I'm not the type who's so easily fooled, y'know!"
All members of Aqua's party immediately fixed her with a doubtful look, sparking a shriek of protest from the water goddess, resulting in another five minutes being dedicated to calming her down. After they did so, the visiting girls said their goodbyes and departed, with Eris resuming her disguise as she left. While the party tidied up the kitchen, Wolbach approached a sulking Aqua.
"Aqua," she stated, causing the downtrodden arch priest to gaze at Wolbach with a look of slight irritation. "If you're quite down hosting your own little pity party, there's something I'd like to discuss with you in private. It…it has to do with our last talk. You know the one I'm referring to."
Aqua stared at her fellow goddess for a beat, before her eyes widened in recognition and she snapped her fingers, before motioning for Wolbach to follow her as she discreetly (or at least a fair attempt at it) left the kitchen, ending up in her room. After shutting the door behind them, she turned around and fixed the goddess with an expectant smile.
"Well? What's the word then, Wol'?"
Crossing her arms underneath the safety of her cloak, Wolbach glanced down at the floor as she chose her words carefully. "It hasn't been easy for me to stay in touch with my emotions. When you've wandered the world for as long as I have with nobody but your own thoughts to hear you out, you risk growing cold and numb inside. That's been my situation for the longest time until Kazuma took me in as a member of his family. Since then, I've…well, let's just say he's inadvertently helped rekindle some of my more coveted emotions like love and compassion. Which is why it somewhat pains me to admit that I…"
Having not felt this shy in what could pass as forever, Wolbach gripped the inner fabric of her cloak as she struggled to get the words out. "…I may have fallen for the boy myself…"
To the goddess of wrath's immense surprise, Aqua didn't seem upset with her confession. Far from it, in fact, as the water goddess' face was soon adorned with a bright smile, followed by a celebratory fist bump.
"Ha ha, yes! Luna owes me twenty eris and free drinks for a month!" She cheered, before noticing Wolbach's bewildered and slightly irritated expression, and composing herself. "Ah, sorry about that. I'm, uh, I'm happy for you, Wolbach! I'm glad that you've found someone to connect with, even if he happens to be my boyfriend."
The dark goddess' troubled face never lifted, however, and she asked the now confused Aqua, "Do you really not see how this is a problem for me? How this is a problem for the both of us? Please, Aqua, don't make me have to spell it out…"
"Wolbach, we literally just had four women come over for a night with Kazzy. We're open to sharing, clearly, especially considering how much they care about him." Aqua retorted with a surprising amount of certainty, clearly having thought this over herself. "If you have problems you want to talk about, I'll hear them, but right now all I think we should do is tell Darkness and Megumin too, and gauge if this is going to work out."
"No, Aqua, that's not what I…!" Wolbach started to shout before cutting herself off and taking deep, controlled breaths. Apparently, she really was going to have to spell it out to her. She really didn't want to bring this topic up as it would undoubtedly upset Aqua to no end, but the band-aid had to come off sooner rather than later.
So, after composing herself once more, Wolbach calmly looked at the water goddess and slowly laid out the problem. "As gods, we live for a very, very long time. So long, in fact, that it's easier just to say we're immortal so we don't have to list any specific numbers. Humans, when compared to our lifespans, don't live for very long. As such, we will outlive Kazuma. It's an inevitability. And I admitted to having fallen for him. Now do you see why I'm not exactly jumping for joy about this like you are? I mean, surely you were aware of this issue yourself; how could you not?"
Aqua did seem to falter for a moment, her mouth opening and closing a few times with nothing coming out before she eventually managed to compose herself enough to answer properly.
"Wolbach...I don't really have a good answer for you." She admitted quietly, keeping her gaze downcast, her words and tone far less exuberant now. "I know that our time with Kazuma is limited. We'll outlive him ten times over, but...I adore him. I would sacrifice my powers for him if I had to. As short as our time together may be, I'm going to savor every second of it. Because life with him for a while is better than a life of never having known love, right?"
The fallen goddess looked to Aqua with genuine awe and even admiration. In all her time having to put up with the airhead back in Heaven, never had Wolbach ever heard her say something so befitting of her title. Even her little speech with Eris not too long ago was proof that perhaps she was indeed growing for the better. It would seem her love for Kazuma was the missing key to unlock her full potential as a benevolent deity.
"So, despite knowing the inevitable loss and grief ahead of you, you're still willing to see your relationship with him through to the end?" Wolbach asked cautiously, feeling a strange desire to hear more of Aqua's surprisingly profound words.
"Without a doubt. I love him too much to risk not taking the chance." Aqua confirmed, a small but hopeful smile resting on her face as she finished her declaration, before she tilted her head to Wolbach in a curious manner. "I know I can't convince you to just accept my mindset as your own, but...I really think you should tell Kazuma about how you feel."
The weight of the conversation was finally enough to drain Wolbach and to make her want to sit down on the bed. She raked a hand through her hair, annoyed with her own horns getting in the way as she considered Aqua's suggestion. Was she willing to purposefully set herself up to more pain and loneliness just for, in her mind, a couple decades of blind fun? Wolbach had never experienced love back home with the other gods, let alone down here in the mortal realm with humans! She was already taking a risk by entertaining the notion of having that kind of connection with the one who took her in when he didn't need to.
But if people like Aqua and Wiz could be happy now with Kazuma despite knowing they'll eventually outlive him…could Wolbach feel the same?
"I...I suppose you have a fair point. As painful as it will be when our time with Kazuma comes to an end, perhaps it will be worth it to spend that time with someone I l-love." She managed, stumbling over the final word slightly before clearing her throat, trying to blink away the stray tears that had started to form. "T-thank you, Aqua, for even allowing me the opportunity to have someone to be with after my years of isolation."
The blue-haired woman smiled softly as she proceeded to sit down next to Wolbach and place a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hey, us goddesses have to stick together, right? But seriously, think nothing of it, Wol'. Like Kazzy says, you're part of this family now. Even if it's only for a short while, just know that you don't have to be alone. That's all I ask of you."
"Thank you again, then. I'm eternally grateful for this opportunity, and I don't plan to waste it." Wolbach repeated, before an almost embarrassed look crossed her face, along with an accounting blush. "Perhaps it is best to move on to a lighter subject, one that I'm sure you'll enjoy just as much: how should I bring my feelings up to Kazuma?"
The starry-eyed look on Aqua's face instantly made Wolbach regret having asked her fellow goddess in the first place. "Heh-heh, weeeell…I may know of some useful tricks that'll have Kazzy wrapped around your little finger in no time~"
"It's going to be a long morning, isn't it?" Wolbach mused with a sigh, before taking a seat on her bed and fixing the water goddess with an expectant look. "Very well, I did quite literally ask for this. Show me what you have in mind, Aqua."