Three damn months. I'm sorry it took so long to get this out to you all. I have good reasons though: my sister had a kid, I went camping for some time, I had to work extra shifts to make up for that vacation, I found out I have a half-sister - that one really surprised me, and then school started of things. But it's finally done!

This is the last 'slice of life' chapter before we get back to the main story. Which is why it's a little shorter than normal. Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter: 6

"YEOW!"

The scream echoed throughout the hut as Miko continued to apply a healing salve to Verdia's bright red back as he sat on a chair, leaning forward on the chair's back so his friend had easy access to the burn spots. Kyūdō, meanwhile, casually leaned against the wall with a towel draped on his shoulders.

"I told you this would happen." Miko said, wincing in sympathy.

The three friends had decided to take a short vacation at the girl's home village. It wasn't a very large village, but it was known to be a frequent stop for wandering travelers. The people there were very welcoming, but not overbearingly so like the Axel fanatics were, and the seafood, caught from the nearby lake, was cooked to near perfection. It felt like home to all that came there, but Miko was one of the few people that could say it was home.

"Maybe you should just let him suffer." Kyūdō finally spoke, using the towel to dry off his hair. "That should teach him not to spend hours out in the sun after wearing his armor for who knows how long."

"Bite me." The Sword Master growled, only to hiss when the Arch-Priest applied more salve to his shoulders. "I haven't been on a beach in years! Is it really so surprising that I was more excited about going swimming then being worried about getting sun burned?"

Kyūdō looked up at the ceiling as if he really had to think about it. "Not really," he looked back at him with a smirk, "you are a dumbass in that way."

"Hush, both of you." Miko ordered gently, but firmly, sending a disproving look towards her leader. She finished her work in silence and only when the last of Verdia's red skin was covered did she finally stand up, moving towards the nearby sink to begin cleaning her hands. "Stay out of the sun for the rest of the day, Verdia, and don't put on a shirt. You should be able to peel that salve off by night, but until then-"

"-leave it on and don't do anything I would normally do." He finished glumly, already making himself more comfortable on the chair.

She paused, turning back towards her friend with a frown. "Verdia, that's not what I-"

"I know it's not." He gave her a sad smile. "It just sucks, you know? Haven't been on a vacation in almost a year, and the now that we are on one, I can't even enjoy it properly."

"Oh don't be so dramatic, we'll still be here for another three days." Kyūdō inserted himself into the conversation, not wishing to go through Verdia's little pity party he decided to throw. "Just take the day to relax and we'll properly start it off tomorrow," he walked towards the door, rubbing his partner's hair on the way out – deftly avoiding the retaliating swat with a chuckle.

"And let me guess, you're going back out to enjoy the town?" Verdia mocked, but the twitch of his lips told the other two he was trying not to smile.

"Damn straight I am! Also, Miko's coming too."

"I… am?" the girl asked, placing her glasses back on. While she wasn't opposed to giving her leader a tour of the village, she also didn't want to just leave Verdia alone.

"I'm not going to let you sit around watching over his sorry ass." Kyūdō ignored the Sword Master's offended 'Oi!' "Now come on, you're on vacation too, and I want to know where the best spots to take a nap are."

"We have beds to sleep on!" Verdia called out. "You don't need to take naps!"

"Say's you." He replied with a snort.

"…Bastard." Verdia muttered as he watched his friends leave, Miko at least made sure to wave before going. He sighed, and placed his chin on his crossed arms. "Well, so much for getting to hang out with Miko today."

Despite everything, he was still excited. In two days time the village would be having a festival celebrating the day it was founded. There would stalls offering a wide variety of food and activities for anyone to try, lights and decorations strung about all over the place, and in the center of it all would be a massive stage for people to dance to the village's brand of music. Although he hadn't worked out all the details yet, Verdia knew that would be the night he tried to let Miko know how he really felt.

Worst case scenario being she doesn't return his feelings and they continue with their adventure. It would suck, but he could live with it so long that they stuck together. Those two were all he had now.

"Would you just relax? He's going to be fine."

"I know he will be," even as she said it, Miko chewed on the bottom of her lip anxiously, feeling horrible about spending half the day out and about while her friend suffered quietly inside.

Kyūdō would argue that there was nothing quiet about it.

"I'm going to ditch you if you keep zoning out like that."

"I wasn't zoning out." She refocused on the task at hand – that being to show her leader around the village. "What else do you want to see?"

Her leader placed a hand on his chin, and looked up towards the sky. "We've seen the beach, the main square, most of the restaurants, a couple lodges, the incredibly small guild hall… what else is there?"

"The hot springs hidden in the forest?" Miko suggested.

"We can do that later," he dismissed, knowing full well Verdia would throw a fit if he knew they went somewhere like that without him – the man loved hot springs. "Is there a place where I could shoot a couple arrows?"

She thought about it for a second before shrugging. "Maybe? I feel like there was, but I can't remember it right now."

"Damn," he muttered under his breath. Seeing a group of girls walking by, he put on a charming smile and waved at them.

They blushed and waved back.

Turning back to the Arch-Priest, Kyūdō waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Think I've got a shot?"

"I think we both know the answer to that." Miko sighed while shaking her head. Kyūdō gave her a sly look.

"Now, now, no need to be jealous, you know I love you."

"Ha, ha." With a wave of her hand, Miko conjured a small ball of water that she tossed at her leader's face, making him cough and sputter in surprise. Holding her head up high, Miko continued onward with confidence. "Now come on. I just remembered where that place was."

Annoyed about the impromptu head soaking, but much more curious about what his friend had in mind, Kyūdō followed along with a few quiet grumbles to show his displeasure.

They traveled together in silence, Kyūdō mostly working on getting the water out of his hair, again, while Miko continued forward with an excited leap between each of her steps. Whatever she had to show him it must have been good. Soon enough, the evenly spaced out huts were replaced by trees and rocks as the two of them traveled up a worn-out path. After traveling for what felt like an hour – when it was no more than half of that – the Archer and Arch-Priest reached the top of the path, and Kyūdō sucked in a breath as he looked at the sight before him.

"That's… wow."

"It's something else, isn't it?" Miko tied her hair into a ponytail so it wouldn't blow all over the place from the strong winds.

A canyon stretching for miles in either direction separated him and Miko from the other side where an equally dense forest grew. But what really drew his attention were the dozens of waterfalls decorating the entire other side as crystal clear water flowed calmly down to feed a river that surged through the valley with enough force that would make any person hesitate to travel down it. How had they missed something like this when it was so close?

The wonder wore off quickly – as it always did for him, and the Archer turned to the girl next to him to ask a question. "So how exactly am I supposed to challenge myself here?"

"I'm surprised you haven't noticed, you're usually the observant one." Miko pointed towards one of the many trees on the other side of the canyon, a twinkle in her eyes as she looked expectedly at him.

Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, the leader turned his eyes towards the direction she was pointing and looked for anything out of place. It took a full minute for him to spot what Miko was aiming at, and it brought a disbelieving smile to his face. "No way…" because on the very tree being pointed at were very rough circles carved deep into the bark, forming a natural target for him and anyone else wanting to test their skills.

It was after seeing the first one that Kyūdō noticed the other targets carved into multiple trees. The long distance, constant gust of wind blowing through, and hard to see targets would indeed test even the greatest of archers. Himself very much included.

"I gotta admit, four-eyes, I'm impressed." He used one hand to block some of the sun from his eyes and the other to pat the girl's shoulder.

"I'm glad."

They stayed that way a little while longer, Kyūdō excitedly looking around and finding more and more targets – some of which were hidden until wind blew some debris out of the way while Miko herself relaxed, closing her eyes letting out a quiet giggle every time the wind tickled her face.

"I'm grabbing my bow!" the Archer yelled out of nowhere, startling both the Arch-Priest and the nearby birds.

"Wha…?" Miko questioned, only to notice her friend was already sprinting down the path they came from. She sighed, half expecting this but still annoyed the guy couldn't sit still long enough to really enjoy the sights and sounds this canyon had to offer.

Maybe Verdia would appreciate it more.

KO-NO-SU-BA!

"FUCK!" Verdia screamed, slamming a hand over his mouth immediately after uttering the curse. Miko was usually lenient when it came to swearing, she had to be in their line of work, but there were certain words that she could not stand him and Kyūdō using, the one he just screamed at the top of his lungs being one of them.

He sighed in relief when the girl didn't show up to reprimand him. Gently lowering himself to a sitting position, Verdia glared at the broadsword he had taken from the General of the Demon King. The teal blade seemed to give off an unnatural glow during the last hours of twilight, sending shivers down the man's spine every time he used the weapon around this time. No matter how much he practiced with it, it always felt… off to him.

As if the blade knew he wasn't its true owner.

It was equal parts aggravating and concerning.

I should get rid of it. He was a Sword Master, if a thought like that ever popped up in his head, there was probably a good reason for it. But it would be an awful waste, his mind continued suddenly. The anger from earlier faded as it was replaced with something else, something powerful.

"Verdia!"

And just like that, the feeling vanished, leaving Verdia in a state of confusion as he looked towards the source of the noise and saw Miko walking towards him, clearly frustrated by the way her nostrils flared.

"Miko." He said as if they were greeting each other.

"What are you doing outside?" Miko demanded, ignoring the greeting in favor of scolding him.

He held the blade out to show her, and gave an innocent shrug. "Just practicing, I was getting bored in there."

"Despite me telling you to stay inside all day?" She wasn't outright mad at him for being outside, she would have been surprised if he did, but being the team healer was frustrating when her only two patients constantly put themselves at risk. Even if it was nothing more than a large sunburn at the moment.

Verdia held up his hands in surrender, dropping the blade on his foot in the process, causing him to start hopping up and down while holding the damaged appendage.

Miko sighed, it was always one thing or another with Verdia. "Sit down and hold still." The familiar green glow of a recovery spell already appearing on her hand as she reached out to place it on his foot.

"…Sorry."

She looked up, barely hearing the apology, and saw her friend refusing to meet her gaze. Miko reached out with her free hand, placing it on his cheek to tilt his head so they were making eye contact again. She kept the hand there so he wouldn't turn away.

"You don't need to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong."

Sapphires… That's the word he would use to describe her eyes as they warmly gazed at him. Verdia desperately wanted to tell her everything right then and there, but it wasn't the right time. He didn't how he knew that, but following his gut, Verdia did nothing more than silently nod to the Arch-Priest just so she knew he understood.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Verdia was going to murder that bastard for interrupting the moment. "No, Kyudo, Miko was just healing my foot is all," he said, moving his head away from the girl's hand. His face felt much colder without it there.

"How the hell did you damage your foot?"

"That's none of your business!"

Miko rolled her eyes as the familiar scene played itself out. Those two would argue till the end of time, she would scold them while simultaneously healing one or both, and together they would face and overcome every obstacle as a team. They were an unstoppable force of nature when working together.

"Say that to my face! I dare you to say that to my face, bastard!"

"Oh, so you want me to lower myself to your level?"

For what felt like the millionth time today, Miko sighed as she continued to heal her friends foot, and chastise them both for arguing so much. She loved her friends dearly, but they were a handful.

The former General opened his eyes, having just woken up from a very deep sleep, to a bizarre sight. His usual spot on the scarecrow gave him a good vantage point to look out across the entire yard and some of the roof if he turned his head slightly. What caught his eye though were the two figures passed out in the middle of the area. Aqua and Fio.

Between them was a large bottle of, what Verdia thought was, alcohol. An empty bottle of alcohol, he corrected himself after taking a better look at the object.

"It's way too early for this."

Verdia turned his gaze towards the door, where he saw Kazuma – a cup of something in his hand – with both Kyouya and Megumin flanking his sides, looking towards the two unconscious girls with varying looks.

"What happened?" Kyouya asked, having never seen Fio, and for that matter Aqua, in such a state before.

"Wake up Aqua!" Kazuma yelled out, completely ignoring the Sword Master's question while walking towards the Goddess so he could nudge her with his foot. "We have a quest involving undead, and you're coming with."

Despite the yelling and physical shake, Aqua was still slow to wake up, stretching out her arms while giving a big yawn.

"Ohiyo," she muttered, rubbing her eyes to get the sleep out of them.

"Don't 'Ohiyo' me, did you get Fio drunk last night?" Kazuma handed Aqua the cup which she took a large gulp of before actually answering him.

"Ah, much better." Aqua said, looking revitalized. Glancing over towards the still passed out Fio, Aqua hummed as she tried to remember what happened. "Maybe?" she finally said, shrugging to tell him she truly didn't know.

Megumin, who had been surprisingly quiet this whole time, kneeled next to Fio, and began to poke her cheek.

"How long do you think she'll be out?"

"Another hour at least if we leave her alone like this." The explosion manic was pleasantly surprised to know Kazuma knew that she was figuring that out instead of assuming she was just poking her friend for fun. "Three or four if we move her to her bed."

"Alright, we should probably let her sleep then." Turning towards the Sword Master, Kazuma pointed to Fio. "Do you mind moving her?"

"S-sure," Kyouya said, still a little confused on how this whole situation came to be.

Once that was all done, the group moved back inside where Megumin and Kazuma started to cook breakfast for those that were awake – the only ones still asleep were Darkness, who had stayed up several hours polishing her armor and sharpening her sword, while Fio slept away peacefully in her bed.

"So, what are we doing today?" Clemea looked at Kyouya, who was sitting at one end of the table glancing through the paper to see what kind of weather today was going to be, and then to Verdia as he waited patiently for the food to be served. Aqua was next to her, working on some kind of flower-looking object.

"I will be heading out with Aqua-sama and Kazuma to deal with the undead in the forest nearby. Megumin planned on going to the guild with Darkness to see what kind of quests are available. Fio is probably going to spend the day here by the looks of it." Kyouya grabbed his own mug and took a sip of it while still going through the paper, now looking for any interesting news or stories to keep himself busy for the time being.

Clemea quirked an eyebrow at that. "Nothing for me though?"

He shook his head and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry, no, I would invite you to the quest, but the three of us are more than enough to handle it. You could join Megumin if you-"

"I wouldn't bother," the Arch-Wizard interrupted, popping her head out of the kitchen. "We'll be heading back as soon as we're done. We can do something after that, if you want."

"Megumin! Did you move the eggs? I don't see them in their usual spot." Kazuma's voiced echoed from in the kitchen.

The Arch-Wizard went back in to continue working on the meal. "It should be behind the milk. Did you look there?"

"She's so adorable in the mornings." Clemea smiled, and shook her head to focus back on the original topic. "Well, at least I have an option," looking over towards the silent General, Clemea asked him a question. "Anything you plan on doing today?"

"Not unless one of you is willing to carry me around."

Was it wrong to feel sorry for a former General? It was weird for Clemea to realize she actually felt bad that the undead didn't have a body anymore.

"Maybe I'll take easy today and tend to the garden."

"That would be great if you did!" Megumin called out.

Darkness came out of her room soon after, joining the group of three while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes much like Aqua was earlier.

"Good morning everyone." The Crusader muttered just before yawning.

"Tired?" Kyouya asked, already knowing the answer to that.

"Very," Darkness nodded, attempting to keep her eyes open. "Will breakfast be done soon? Food would definitely wake me up this morning."

"Almost done!" Kazuma confirmed this by bringing out and setting a couple plates stacked high with steaming food. The aroma caused everyone to pause what they were doing and just enjoy the smell, their mouths watering as they prepared to eat.

"Dig in everyone!" Megumin announced after placing the last plate of food.

They did so with gusto, devouring the food while some of them – mainly Clemea and Aqua – moaned in delight. Megumin beamed as she watched everyone enjoy the food, looking towards Kazuma, she saw him give her a thumbs up which she returned. Kyouya and Kazuma began to plan out their quest after some time, having enjoyed both seconds and thirds, Aqua and Darkness volunteered to do the dishes, and Clemea, Megumin, and Verdia talked about nothing in particular.

Verdia was the first one to actually leave, levitating himself out the backdoor where he would place himself on his usual perch. If that simply spell didn't cost so much mana, Clemea was sure he would have been able to move himself around freely. Although, he probably would have run away the first chance he got were that the case. Maybe not now, which she wasn't so sure about, but definitely in the beginning.

It took some time for the Arch-Priest and Crusader to finish, having also decided to clean up part of the kitchen as well, but when they did, the two groups with plans said their farewells to Clemea as they left her alone at the table.

"Well, I did say I would work on the garden."

After switching over to some work clothes and grabbing the tools in one of the closets, Clemea headed outside. She looked around once outside and saw the light amount of snow gathering on their neighbors' roofs. Winter was just a few weeks away, but it looked like it was getting an early start on the beginner town.

"The lamps are working splendidly." Verdia said, looking around from his perch.

"They sure are," Clemea agreed as she moved to grab the watering bucket, filled with Aqua's purified water, and begin the first task of watering the plants. "Water is your weakness, right?"

"It is."

"Then doesn't it bother you when it rains or snows?"

The body-less knight shook his head. "The only time it bothers me is when it is pouring out, and when that happens I can simply use the umbrella over there." He glanced over towards the object resting on the side of the building, and demonstrated what he meant by using the levitating spell from earlier to move it over his head.

"Ah," she briefly wondered who left it there for him, but figured it wasn't really important in the end. Deciding to switch subjects, Clemea asked a question that's been on her mind for a while. "You're really old, right?"

Although he didn't have any, Clemea was sure Verdia was looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "I am."

"Which means you've been through a lot, right?"

"A great deal, in fact."

"So, can you tell me a story?"

He blinked at the odd request, and then, against his will, Verdia smiled. "I suppose that would be alright. So tell me, have you heard the legend about the 'Valley Dragons?'"

The title alone was enough to get her a little excited. "I haven't."

"Well then, allow me to tell you. Centuries ago, the creatures of flight and fire were revered as valuable battle mounts. However, there were ones that no one had been able to tame. Known for their size, strength, and most of all, pride, these ones lived in the far north. I was tasked by the Demon King with taming one of them…"

KONOSUBA!

"She certainly seems to be enjoying this." Kyouya noted, standing next to Kazuma on a relatively tall hill overlooking the clearing below them.

"Yeah, undead are literally the only enemy Aqua wants to fight, and can beat." The Adventurer watched the spectacle with crossed arms. "To be honest, these are the only missions where that useless Goddess can get experience."

Said Goddess was currently battling a horde of undead, by herself, using all of her spells to defeat the creatures.

"Gods Requiem!" Aqua drove the staff into a particularly large undead, shattering its armor and disintegrating the creature in it. Turning around, the Arch-Priest performed three simultaneous "Turn undead" to eliminate a group that was charging at her. Aqua began laughing, a crazed look in her eyes as she began running towards another undead.

"Is there a reason she's like that?"

Kazuma shrugged. "Something about their presence irritates Aqua. She never explains it properly, so I'm just guessing here. Do you know any Arch-Priests that could explain it?"

"Not really." He shook his head, before looking up with a hand on his chin. "I have met a few during my travels, but I never stayed in contact with any of them."

"Damn."

"Kazuma!"

Oh no. The Adventurer easily recognized the panic within Aqua's voice, and looking back towards her brought out an equal amount of fear. Behind the Goddess, who was running towards the two of them at full speed, was a group of undead warriors, their numbers being several times more than the previous groups. Kazuma felt a sense of déjà vu as he turned around to begin running away, only to remember who was standing right next to him.

So, grabbing Kyouya's shoulder to get his attention, Kazuma used his other arm to point towards the hoard, and screamed at the Sword Master. "What are you standing around for?! Do something!"

"I thought this was part of the plan." Embarrassed after realizing how stupid that was, Kyouya simply removed Gram from its sheath, before charging towards the monsters. Passing Aqua, Kyouya gripped his weapon – which was glowing blue now – with both hands, before swinging it with a battle cry. From the blade came a blue, crescent-shaped wave of energy that decimated all the undead with little trouble.

He smiled, and sheathed Gram before turning back to walk up the hill where Aqua stood, hands on her knees, panting while Kazuma looked like he was scolding the Goddess. It didn't take long for Kyouya to get within earshot, the Adventurer wasn't being quiet at all, and he shook his head with a smile as he heard the last of it.

"-blem if you would just focus instead of getting distracted by every undead you saw! How many times do I have to tell you to focus on the larger groups so they don't get overwhelming?"

"It's not my fault!" Aqua cried out, standing back up. "Those undead can't help but be attracted to my presence!"

"That's why you take out the large groups first!" Kazuma repeated, running a hand down his face, looking exasperated from the whole thing.

"Aqua-sama did take care of a large number of them beforehand." Kyouya felt like a mediator whenever the group began to argue. Not that he minded. It was kinda fun really. "But he does have a point, you should really try to plan ahead, especially if you already know more undead will eventually come."

Kazuma sighed, and relented to Kyouya's point. Aqua, however, was still Aqua.

"Huh? How am I supposed to plan for that?!"

He let out another laugh as she childishly waved her arms while continuing to pester Kazuma.

"What about this one?"

Megumin followed Darkness' finger towards the quest, and read over the description before shaking her head. "I don't think so, it's not too difficult and the pay is good, but its location is a couple days away. How about this instead."

Darkness mirrored her previous actions. "It doesn't pay well enough, and I'm the only one in the party who could deal with the hallucinations properly."

Megumin groaned as they failed to find a suitable quest. There were plenty of quests they wanted to do, but they needed the party leader's approval to take any of them, and both Darkness and Megumin knew Kazuma well enough to know which ones he would approve. The two of them could reserve the quest or quests with Luna's approval so they could go over them back home.

Darkness looked over the board one more time, before looking at the two quests they had already picked out. Kazuma gave the party a one rule when they were picking out quests without him: Always reserve at least three so they had options. They were just one shy, and it didn't seem like there was a third one to pick.

"Should we head back?" The Crusader asked.

"Let's ask Luna if there are any more quests we can look at." The Arch-Wizard suggested. Together, the two-party members did so, and were disappointed when there wasn't any.

Sighing in unison, Darkness and Megumin headed home.

"He won't be happy about the lack of quests." Darkness suddenly perked up with a blush on her cheeks, and an excited look. "Perhaps he will punish us for it!"

Megumin gave her a look. "Kazuma won't be mad," she said matter of fact.

Darkness' shoulders sagged in clear disappointment. "Oh."

"He'll probably be annoyed, not towards us, but at the lack of quests to pick from." Megumin continued, already picturing how the conversation will go. Noticing a familiar sign from the corner of her eye, the Arch-Wizard nudged her friend to get her attention. "Do you mind if we go shopping?"

"Not particularly."

"Great!" Megumin immediately made a beeline towards the store with Darkness right behind her. "Hello?" the girl called out upon entering the store and seeing no one behind the register.

"I'll be out in a moment." Came the reply from behind the door to the backroom. The door opened, and the old woman in-charge of the store came out with a smile on her face – it widened a little once she saw who it was. "Well hello dear. What can I help you with today?"

By the time the sun had set, and the moon was making its way high into the sky, the group had come back together to enjoy another home-cooked meal. Clemea and Megumin took turns making light jabs at Fio as she rubbed her temples with a groan, swearing to never drink so much ever again. Darkness, Kazuma, and Kyouya went over the day's earnings and adjusted their budget accordingly, taking occasional bits from their respective plates. Verdia spent the entire meal in fear as Aqua kept gazing at him with that look she seemed to reserve just for him. One that promised a very painful death.

The food was finished, dishes were done, and soon Kazuma, Megumin, and Verdia were outside where the young Adventurer was checking over the lamps, the Arch-Wizard checked the area Clemea went over – not that she doubted the girl's ability to tend to the garden, she just wanted to make sure. Verdia, meanwhile, made himself comfortable by levitating a blanket up to wrap around himself.

"How are they?" Megumin asked.

"Fine, as far as I can tell that is. Any idea how long these will last?"

She shook her head in response. Wiping a hand across her cheek, Megumin looked up towards the moon with a content look. "I really like it here Kazuma."

He had a sarcastic reply just ready to go, but when his eyes landed on the Arch-Wizard, bathed in moon-light, Kazuma suddenly felt his throat go dry. The pale light gave her an ethereal beauty that he had never noticed before.

"Kazuma, are you ok?"

A hand on his cheek brought Kazuma back to reality, where he saw his friend standing in-front of him. She was gently smacking his face, obviously trying to get the Adventurer's attention. "I zoned out, didn't I?"

Megumin removed her hand to cover her mouth to, unsuccessfully, stifle her laughter. "You've been doing that a lot lately, maybe you should go on a vacation."

"I would if I could, but we're currently several million Eris in debt right now, Megumin." Kazuma's smile disappeared, and his shoulders sagged as if he were physically carrying the debt. "At the rate we're going, however, I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. Maybe I should get a real job, then we would at least have some form of stable income."

Kazuma's head whipped to the side, a red handprint burning his face. "Megumin, what the hell?!"

"Sorry, you were talking crazy." She shrugged, unapologetically.

He stared at her, a hand on his cheek and his jaw completely slack. She looked at him, an innocent eyebrow raised while both hands rested comfortably on her hips. Then they started laughing, leaning on each other for support while holding their sides. Neither really knew what made them laugh so much, but they were happy to be sharing it with each other.

Verdia watched the exchange in silence. How the two of them forgot his presence, he didn't know, but he would respect the moment they were sharing. The undead knew all-too-well how precious they could be, especially in this line of work.

Enjoy these moments while you can, child, because they could be snatched away just as quickly as they come.

Done!

Another flashback to Verdia's past, a bit more slice of life for the main group, and that's about it.

Next chapter shouldn't take as long, hopefully. Might be a bit emotional if I do it right. Anyway, I hope you all have a great day!