God's Blessing on this Explosive Night!
Part 1
"Kazuma!? Kazuma!"
"Nn?" He opens his eyes at the call of this name to a familiar area. His back rests upon the chair he sat down on occasionally and looks up to the person in front of him sitting across with a disturbed look on her divine face.
"Yo Eris, got a minute?"
"EH!?" the Goddess of Luck exclaims in shock, "That's the first thing you say to me after what you just did? You didn't… Did you kill yourself just so you can talk to me?"
"Pretty much," he responds as he scratches his cheek nonchalantly, "It's not like you got a number I can just call, you know."
Eris sighs, "I'm already stretching the rules for you. If they found out about this…"
"Sorry, this will be the only time, I swear. Not that I can say the same about getting killed…"
The Goddess manages a weak smile and says, "Well, I'm not entirely opposed to a visit. Even if it because you want something from me."
"Already figured me out, huh? Sorry, but I really need to ask you of this." Kazuma stands up from his chair and clasps his hands together. Eris jumps at the sudden gesture before she watches Kazuma fall to the floor in a praying position that is more fitting to Aqua's liking.
"Just for this one night, can you please stop the curse from ruining everything?" he begs.
"W-what are you doing? Please get up! You're embarrassing me!"
Kazuma turns his head up at her while keeping himself in the same position with a strange look, "Wait, isn't this something you Goddesses need and see every day?"
"Y-yes, but I don't deal with praises that well. Especially when they're right in front of me…" she answers while looking away.
Just how is Aqua your superior? Seniority in a workplace is the worst!
"You mention something about tonight?" Eris asks.
Kazuma rises to his knees and remembers what he came here for. "Yeah, I know I might've… accused you of interfering with me and Megumin. And I'm sorry for that! But lately our nights together have been… stupid."
"If I recall, weren't most of those both of your faults?"
Kazuma narrows his eyes at her suspiciously. "Oh, so you have been watching us?"
"Ah!" she gasps, "N-no! I mean, yes, I know about those nights, but I wasn't interfering! Honest!"
"Then you were spying on us? I thought it was strange how someone like Darkness is a paladin of your order but now I'm starting to see the connection."
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT! I SWEAR!" the Goddess blushes madly and covers her face from him. Kazuma chuckles. "Sorry, I didn't mean to tease. I feel bad for asking but it's really important to her that nothing goes wrong on this date."
Eris peeks through her hands at him before letting them fall to her lap. "A date? You killed yourself to get the audience of a goddess and accuse her of interfering because you have a date tonight?"
"Y-yeah?" Despite being dead and placed in some strange room between realms, Kazuma felt as if the area got colder. Eris takes in a deep breath then rests her head on her hands. "If you don't mind, I would like to know a little more since I wasn't 'spying' this morning," she said with a small smile.
Relieved that she wasn't going to chew him out, Kazuma leans back against his chair. He takes a moment before he begins, "So, it's like this…"
~/Earlier/~
"Oi Megu," Kazuma knocks on her bedroom door, "Do you… want me to accompany you on your daily Explosion today? Megumin?"
He waits for a reply, but no answer came through.
"Hey, it's been a week since you started going without me. Don't you need someone to rate your performance? You're not secretly training to impress me, are you?"
Again, no answer.
Kazuma feels a pit in his stomach. Normally Megumin would always come to get him to go on their daily trip. He didn't mind it for the first two days, but as time went on, he begins to realize she seem to be rather distant to him. They only seen each other now during mealtimes and only made small talk.
He knocks on her door again, "Hey… is everything alright? If something's bothering, you… I wouldn't mind lending an ear. Megumin?"
"Aww, you look like a sad puppy scratching at his master's door." Kazuma stiffens by the sound of Aqua's voice and turns his head to the goddess peeking around the corner of the hallway with a sly grin on her face.
"What do you want?"
"Nothing, I was just heading to the bathroom till I heard you cry."
"I wasn't crying! I'm just- " he pauses before glancing at the door then back at Aqua and spoke with a hush voice, "I'm just checking in on her."
"That's nice and all, but she already left."
"Oh…" Kazuma's face reddens with embarrassment before he turns it away from her.
"It is strange how she's not going with you anymore." She walks over and looks at the door to her room. Aqua then turns her head and glares at him accusingly, "What did you do this time, you stupid loliNEET?"
"Nothing! At least… I don't think," Kazuma scratches his head.
Aqua chuckles, "I don't think he says, it's almost like you forgot how scummy you can be."
"Lay off! I know I didn't do anything wrong! And you got no right yourself to say that, you so-called goddess! Trying to act all high and mighty to people while you go and hoard booze like some alcoholic doomsday prepper!"
"Waah! There you go again! You're nothing but a big meanie! It's no wonder Megumin is avoiding you!" Aqua hugs her knees to cry before him.
Her words had more impact than he thought as Kazuma stops himself from making another comment. "Sorry… I was out of line," he muttered. Aqua gazes up at him with a perplexed stare.
"What?" he asks, slightly irritated.
"You really have changed, it's no on your knees and beg for forgiveness apology, but I didn't expect one so quick from you."
The only person who really needs a change is you…
But it's true, he should be tearing this useless Archpriest apart with his words. Megumin never liked them fighting with each other. The image of her being upset by it is now clinging to his mind. Could that be the reason why? It's certainly not because of that night when he and Aqua talked about his relationship with her since she couldn't remember a thing the next morning. So much for that torrent of rain to come and sweep him away.
"If you really don't know, then just go talk to her," Aqua suggested, "There's no better way of knowing without facing the problem head on."
"… I already know but hearing that from you is unexpected. Are you okay?"
"Excuse me for trying to help! Do you know how much my followers sacrificed to get advice like this? Since we are friends, I'll consider a discount by an offering of two-no, three expensive wines of my choosing."
"Didn't you hear me saying that I already know what you just told me? Why don't you take those empty wine bottles under your bed and shove them right up your-"
"What's going on here? What are you two doing outside of my room?" Megumin's voice interrupted their usual heated exchange. Aqua glances at her then back at Kazuma who turns to meet her gaze. She whispers, "Good luck," before turning to leave. He watches her go now wondering if she did indeed remember that night before turning his attention back to Megumin.
"Oi, Megu. Do you have a minute to talk?"
"N-not right now!" She tries to charge into her bedroom but Kazuma steps in front blocking her path. "Hold on, it'll be quick!" he said.
"Then it can wait! Just let me in my room for a bit then I'll talk to you, I promise!"
Kazuma frowns at her and notice how she doesn't move her arms away from her back. "Wait, are you hiding something?" he asks. Megumin stiffens then takes a step back.
"Nothing! I'm just… casually stretching it behind me, is that so weird? Now just let me through!"
"…" Kazuma squints at her then moves to his left to try to get a peek behind but Megumin shuffles to the same direction. He then quickly steps to his right, but she moved quicker. Keeping his eyes trained on her, he slowly raises his left hand.
"W-what do you think you're doing!?" she shouts.
"Nothing," he says, "just casually stretching out my arm."
"Kazuma, I swear if you use that Thief skill, I will pummel you with my staff!"
So, you are hiding something!
Nothing will come if this keeps up, however. Kazuma shakes his head and drops his arm, "Alright, alright, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to bother you."
"You're not…" Megumin's voice softens, "I know I been avoiding you for a while, but I have a reason for that, and I will tell you!"
He looks at her for a moment then gave her a smile. "If you say so, sorry for keeping you then." He moves out of the way for her then walks down the hall. Megumin let out a sigh of relief and reaches out for her door with one hand.
"… Steal." Kazuma shoots up his other hand before she could react. A brief light flashes from his hand. She immediately notices the absent feeling in her hands.
"NOOO! That was dirty! Give it baaack!" she charges blindly at him trying to grab the package but Kazuma stops her easily with one hand on her head.
He stares blankly at the object. It looks to be a simple rectangular wrapped box, no bigger than 6 inches long. A little red ribbon wraps around it in a tight little bow.
"… what's this?"
Megumin accepts defeat and let her arms fall to her side while keeping her body leaning against his hand. "A present…" she groans.
"Oh? Is this from your family?"
She shakes her head.
"Yunyun?"
"What? No, it's- "
"That weird Cecily chick who has a hard on for you?"
"For the love of-It's from me! It's my gift to you!" She pulls her mage hat down and stuffs her face into it.
Kazuma blankly stares back at the package in his hand.
Huh, Megumin got me a gift.
A surprised gift.
That she tried to hide from me…
His mouth twists in horror at the realization of his action. He hands it back to her by holding it next to her face. Megumin looks at it but made no movement to take it and frowns. "Stealing a gift that was meant for you from a girl, you really are the worst."
"S-sorry…"
"Everything is ruined…" She shoves her face back into her hat and muffles out, "I had it all planned out to give it to you after our date. And you just had to go and steal it from me!"
"Whoa whoa whoa! Hold on! What date? And what do you mean by planning?"
Megumin hugs her legs and stares disappointingly at the floor. "I been avoiding you this entire week because I was setting up a date night for us since we haven't gone on one for a while. I set aside money from our quests, booked a restaurant, and bought a new dress. This package was the last thing I needed just before I could ask you out…"
If this was a failed decision in some dating sim game Kazuma played, then it was clearly going for a bad ending. His blood ran cold and the chains of guilt wrapped themselves around his heart to point of stopping.
"D-don't look so down! I haven't even opened the thing yet, so technically the surprise isn't completely ruined!"
"But now you're going to expect it, it won't be the same…"
"Hey, it doesn't matter whether I know now, it's the thought that counts, right?" He sat down on one knee next to her and places his arm on her shoulder. "I'm really sorry for acting like an ass. I shouldn't have done that to you. I didn't… want to admit it, but I was worried when you stopped asking me to come with you. And to think this entire time you were trying to set up another date as a surprise, it just makes me realize what a piece of shit I can be."
"True, Kazuma really can't help being trash for once."
"… I deserve that."
"But," Megumin moves his arm from her shoulder and held onto his hand. "It's just how we are, right? I give you my fair share of trouble and you give me yours. I can't blame you for being worried either… I'm sorry too.
"And if Kazuma doesn't want me to cancel, then would you like to go out? With me?" She looks up at him with her eyes giving off a glow showing her excitement. Since when did that chuuni-like quirk of hers begin to look so cute?
"Of course," Kazuma answered, "I probably might need to find something nice to wear."
"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. You can go in however you like."
"Huh? Oh, alright… when is it happening again?"
"Tonight."
"T-tonight? And you were going to ask me now?"
"Well," she taps her fingers together trying to suppress a smile, "To be honest I been only thinking about making this night work, and I didn't think you would say no…"
She's… right about that, Kazuma admits. But how about a heads-up next time?
"It's not like I got anything planned anyway," he said as he hands the package back to her, "At least it's not a quest or another survival night in a forest full of monsters."
Megumin giggles and takes her present back, "Then it's settled! Be ready by sunset, got it?"
"Sure… I guess I'll see you then," Kazuma replied as Megumin lets go of his hand and heads to her bedroom. She pauses however at the door for a moment before running back to him.
Before he could respond, Megumin pulls him down and plants a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks," was all she said before rushing into the room and slamming the door shut behind her.
Kazuma stood there, feeling his cheek with his left hand as he took in the moment. Thanks? All he did was said yes to the date. If anything, he only made it worse for using Steal on the gift she made for him.
Was she that worried he'd say no to her? Eating out together at some joint is out of his comfort zone but how can he say no to another date with a beautiful girl? A girl who loves him this much to take initiative and spend her own hard-earned money on this night for them. A girl who is too stubborn to ask for help on these matters and is always trying to prove something. A girl who causes him no end of trouble and yet couldn't imagine a life without that anymore if he tried.
There is no way he can let this night end up like the rest.
Kazuma walks down the hallway to the living room where he found Aqua spread out on the couch. She lifts her head at his approach and says, "Yeesh, what's with the uber-serious look on your face? Do you need to use the bathroom?"
"Aqua, can you come with me to somewhere really quick? I got someone I need to talk to."
~/Now/~
"You're crazy! It's sweet! But crazy!" Eris cries, yet her eyes are tearing up from the story.
"Don't get the wrong idea! I didn't kill myself because of l-love! I'm not that kind of creep! It's this damn world's fault for making me desensitized to death." While that was true, he notices how it must have looked now thinking about it. And despite her disproval, she seems rather touched by the morbid display of affection. She really needs to come down from Heaven and live a little…
"And you're here because you don't want whatever this… 'curse' that's been ruining both your nights to affect this one?" Eris summarized, "Aqua may not be as strong as she is in that world, but her Dispel ability is still second-to-none. Any strange curse like that would've been gone long ago."
"I figured it might be worth seeing if you could break it or at least see it. Guess it's the same then," Kazuma sighs, but still not convinced. These interruptions are too well timed for him to brush off. "But since I'm here, I don't suppose I can ask for your blessing?"
"I-I can't! Gods are not supposed to intervene with the affairs of mortals!"
He rolls his eyes at the excuse, "Hasn't Heaven already done enough meddling around themselves? Dropping Cheaters from another world in this place with overbalanced weapons and skills, letting a goddess adventure with me who makes zero effort in hiding her identity, and leaving the cheat relics behind for people to take advantage of? And you're telling me a simple blessing is going too far?"
Eris lets out a giggle at his burst. "When you put it that way, it's hard to even argue when I'm just as frustrated about it as you are. After all, we already are a bunch of rebels?" she said as she scratches the scar on her cheek, "I don't sense any of this 'curse' afflicting you, and I'm certainly not interfering with your love affairs but if it puts you at ease, then I'll grant this blessing of luck upon you. But remember, this doesn't mean it will prevent any troubles you two will cause."
She holds out both of her hands with their palms facing up and closes her eyes. A bright light shines from them and engulfs Kazuma completely, irritating the crap of his eyes but feels something different about himself. Like waking up on a New Year's Day kind of feeling.
"Kazuma! Get your butt out of that seat and come back already!"
And now that feeling is overshadowed by sheer annoyance.
"Guess I got to go now, thanks again and sorry for the scare," said Kazuma as he bows apologetically to her before a column of light shines down on him and carries him off his feet.
"It's alright! People tend to act crazy when they're in love!" she replies with a wink.
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"
Kazuma shouted as he bolted up from the ground causing Aqua to jump back. He shakes his head and looks around the area, realizing he's already back. He looks up at the cliffside where he leapt from and involuntarily gulps after gauging the distance was about a good 60 feet from the ground…
Now that he thinks about it, just what the hell was he thinking?
Aqua regain her composure and grabs Kazuma by the collar shaking him viciously. "It's not like that!?" she shouts, "What! So, it's not like you dragged me to this side of the cliff and jumped off without a word, making me crawl my way down here on my hands and knees to bring your sorry ass back!? Have you finally lost it? You've lost it, haven't you!"
"Quit shaking me! You're making it worse!" He pulls her hands away from and rubs his throbbing forehead. Aqua gives him a minute while placing her hands by her waist. "Just what do you need from my kohai instead of asking me… Wait, is that a blessing I sense? You cheater!"
"Excuse me? I don't recall pledging my faith to you." Kazuma stands up and stretches out his back. "I just needed a second opinion is all, to make sure this 'curse' isn't going to ruin our night."
"Hmph, so you doubted my abilities and sought a lesser goddess for help, I should've just left you behind and tell Megumin how you killed yourself to talk with another girl."
"Don't you dare! I'm sorry, alright! I don't want anything to ruin this for her."
Aqua sighs and crosses her arms, "I suppose I'll overlook this treacherous act for Megumin's sake. Seriously, I know you're all lovey-dovey now, but you really need to get that head of yours checked."
"For the last time, I didn't do it for love!" he shouted, "Unless these churches start implementing call lines, this is pretty much the only method that works."
"So, what now? Anymore questionable plans I gotta tag along for?"
Kazuma rolls his eyes and responds, "No… well, there is something I need to get before this day ends. But you can just head on home."
"Wait! You're planning to get her a gift, aren't you?" Aqua guessed, and judging by his tensed reaction, she was correct. She claps her hands together excitingly, "Ooh! Let me come with you! I'm great at picking gifts, and I'm sure I can help someone as hopeless as you are in getting one!"
"You…" He stops after realizing he wouldn't know where to begin in finding a gift for a girl, let alone a person like Megumin. Besides, he did already give Aqua enough trouble for that stunt of his. And she is offering to help…
"Fine, but remember it's something that Megumin would like," he said as he begins to head out.
"Oh, come on! I'm sure she'll appreciate a nice bottle of wine!"
"What did I just say!?"
~/~
Megumin hums to herself as she watches the sun from the window. Just a few hours left till sundown. Her heart has been anticipating for this moment ever since she came up with the idea. These past days have felt so painful in waiting and distancing herself from Kazuma to keep him from knowing her plans. Even if the invitation turned out to be… less glamorous than she hoped, she couldn't be happier to see him accept.
And yet, she feels like she's forgetting something…
"Someone's in a good mood," a familiar voice call to her from behind.
Her stomach tenses as she turns to her friend, Darkness, wearing her casual dress and giving Megumin a kind smile.
"Yeah…" she replies wearily. She swivels her body on the sill to face her but cast her eyes to the floor, not being able bring herself to look at her.
Darkness leans over trying to meet her gaze, "Megumin… you're not feeling guilty for me, are you?"
"…"
"It's okay…" Darkness said somberly, "This is your night, I know how much you love him… and he clearly feels the same about you too."
"So, do you…" she replied but not accusingly, "But I care about you too… I want to be with him, but I don't want this to separate us. I don't want you to leave…"
"Of course, I won't! If anything, I should be thankful that you would still want me by your side. You're important to me as he and Aqua is."
Megumin finally looks up at her with tears brimming in her eyes. She smiles before Darkness reaches and wipes them away for her. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't make you cry before your big night. Even though I lost, I'm still content knowing that I can be together with you all to the end."
"Thank you, I couldn't ask for a better friend." She wraps her arms around Darkness for a tight hug, who also returns the gesture.
"If you don't mind me saying," Darkness pulls away and brushes Megumin's hair back from her face, "Are you sure Kazuma will be okay in a romantic public setting?"
Megumin pridefully places her hands at her hips, "Of course. I know Kazuma better than he thinks, that's why I took the extra step to renting out the entire place to ourselves!"
"R-really? That can't have been cheap," Darkness exclaims.
"It wasn't, but the owner was really generous after I told him how Kazuma rescued me from a life of poverty after falling head over heels for me when we first made eye contact. But I had to wait for the 17th of this month to book it."
Darkness let out a short laugh realizing Megumin just swindled a kind man with that exaggerating sham of a love story. Sounds like something Kazuma would do too… Hold on, did she say the 17th?
"M-Megumin…"
"Yes?"
"You do know that… today is the 18th, right?"
She blinks at Darkness' words then let out a forced laugh, "Very funny, but I'm not falling for that you know. I been tracking the days on that calendar over there." She points at the wall next to the doorway that leads to the kitchen. Darkness' face twists into a horrified expression before turning back to her poor friend.
"You mean that calendar? The calendar that's dated a year ago?"
"… eh?"
Megumin hops down from the window and runs over to the wall to check for herself. Her head slowly cranes back to Darkness and asks, "T-t-t-this is a joke, right? You're just playing a mean prank, r-right?"
"I wouldn't dare to do such a thing, but for once I wish…"
"WHY DO WE EVEN STILL HAVE THIS!?" Megumin tears the outdated calendar from the wall and proceeds to tear it to shreds. Darkness thought about explaining that Aqua kept it because of the cute dog pictures but decided against it to save her friend from her wrath.
"Everything's ruined! Again!" she shouted as she drops to the floor with her hands over her head. "It's not fair! It's not fair!"
"I-it's okay!" Darkness tries reassuring her from a safe distance, "You can always reschedule- "
"NO!" she snaps, "I waited for far too long and I'll damned to wait any longer than this!" She rises to her feet and grabs her black mantle.
"Don't tell anyone about this!" she demanded before charging out of the house leaving a stunned Darkness behind with a mess of shredded paper.
Aqua strolls down the hallway and sticks her head into the room, "Hey, what's with all the-AAHHH! What did you do!?"
"I-I…" she looks at the pile then back at Aqua, "… I really hate this calendar…"
~/~
"I chose yesterday because it's usually a slow day, but if we had opened, we would've made more than what you gave us," the owner said to her.
"I'm sorry…" Megumin replies, bowing her head.
"I don't mind being generous, but generosity isn't going to keep the place running. You're welcome to dine in tomorrow, but we'll have to stay open for everyone unless you can make more than we can."
"B-but…" she chokes on her words, "I told him it was going to be tonight… And I really want to show him how I feel…"
The owner lets out a tired sigh as he runs his hand through his beard. It would be easier if it was the boyfriend doing the begging. A girl who looks to be his own daughter on the other hand… He's too nice for his own good.
"Tell you what, since we don't open today, I'll let you use the place as long as you clean up after."
Her eyes glow as she beams up at him with a huge grin, "Really? Thank you so much!"
He holds his hand out to stop her, "Let me finish, I won't charge you again but since there's no profit in this, I can't ask my workers to come in especially outside of work hours. Either you two do all the cooking yourselves or find some volunteers to help. But remember, I don't want anything to either go missing or damaged. Got it?"
"Yes, sir! Thank you, sir!" Megumin gratefully bows to him again.
"Yeah, yeah…" the owner turns to leave but stops to say, "Heh, if I didn't know any better, I'd say he's probably the lucky one to have someone like you. Hope your mother's operation goes well, and bring your little one with you next time, I'll treat her to one of our fine desserts!"
"Huh? O-Oh! Right, thanks…" she smiles as hard as she can to hide the disgust feeling of guilt clawing its way through her stomach.
As the man leaves, Megumin bites at her thumb. So far, she still managed to get the place to themselves and there's only a couple of hours left until the sun goes down. She may consider this good enough and head on home but having to cook all their meals would cut down on their time together.
I can't ask Aqua and Darkness for obvious reasons but who else could I find that's willing to help? Maybe if I make a post at the guild board, I could get a response before sunset? If I act now, I could hang around there until an hour left and-…"
Her thoughts stopped as soon as she recognizes a certain figure peeking from a corner at her. The girl smiles at her as soon as their crimson eyes connected.
Megumin looks the other way and starts to leave.
"Megumin! Wait! Don't just ignore me when you clearly need help!" Yunyun cries.
"You really can be irritating sometimes…" Megumin mutters under her breath before flapping her mantle dramatically to face her rival. "I'm only considering this because I'm running on short time! Can you cook?"
"Of course! Just who do you think made those lunches you keep taking from me during school?"
"Well, I certainly hope you improved since. But why are you so intent in helping me out on this? Aren't you going to feel overwhelmingly alone seeing us on our date together all night?"
"Again with the mean words! Is it so hard to believe that I just want to help out a friend?"
Megumin scoffs, "Friend? I thought we were rivals. What? Don't have some lame excuse like 'Oh, I can't let myself be seen with someone who couldn't go steady with a guy she loves' or 'I can hardly call someone who couldn't take her man on a proper date my rival if people were to know'!"
"I would never say something like that about your relationship… are you okay?"
"Of course, I'm fine! What kind of stupid question is that!? You got anything more to say, Captain Obvious!?" she shouted. Yunyun leans back from her uncharacteristic display. She closes her fists in frustration and shouts back, "Well excuse me for offering! If you're going to be like that then never mind! Why don't you go cast that Explosion spell of yours on something before you blow up on somebody's face again!"
Megumin opens her mouth ready to unload another barrage of words until her memory finally clicks. Her anger immediately subsides as an overwhelming feeling of shock causes her mouth to go agape.
Yunyun took this as an advantage and continues, "What? All out of mana again? You need someone to carry that jaw of yours home too?"
"I didn't cast it…"
"… huh?"
Megumin stares at her own hands like she just woke up in a different body. "My Explosion… I didn't get to cast it today…"
"… EHHHHH!?" Yunyun cries out and grabs her friend by the shoulders. Her friend who she remembers during their childhood who never stopped talking about Explosions. Her friend who listened to no one about how using Explosions is useless. Her friend who constantly lies about and made sure to be able to cast her Explosion spell every day, now telling her that she forgot the very thing she lives for.
"How did this happen!?"
"I been… so worked up about this date… it was all I could think of…" Megumin said with a distressed look glued onto her face as Yunyun shakes her vigorously.
"D-Does Kazuma matter to you even more than Explosions? Is that even possible?"
"There was that time… when I was willing to give it up for him… but he let me keep it because it makes me happy," she said with her cheeks slowly reddening.
Yunyun covers her mouth, unsure whether she should feel touched or terrified at this revelation. To think Megumin of all people would make such a girly face!
She takes her by the hand and says, "Then let's go right now, I'll take you home before your date tonight."
Megumin blinks and looks down at her hand. Yunyun waited for her to respond before letting out a small gasp when Megumin pulls it back from her. "I can't… even if I get my mana refilled, my body will be tired, and it will be hard to focus… I'm sure Kazuma won't mind if I do it after dinner, so I'll just have to wait."
Yunyun was about to comment about her aggression but decided against poking the bear any further. To think she would see her to show constraint over the very thing that gives her life. She imagines this could only end poorly if her resolve doesn't outweigh her desire.
No, this is the time when she should be giving her friend the support she needs. If Megumin is willing to sacrifice Explosion for him, then she can't let her struggle be in vain! "Don't worry about it! Just show me the place and I'll see what I can to help. You focus on spending time with Kazuma and leave it to me!"
"Yunyun…" Megumin looks to the ground trying to hide the sincerity in her eyes. Feeling her confidence coming back to her, she raises her head proudly and flaps her mantle. "If you insist! Prove to me you got what it takes, and I'll consider taking you on seriously once this night ends with a bang! Onward! To the best night of our lives!"
~/~
Night has finally fallen. Kazuma sits on his bed in his usual adventuring gear and gazes down at the bag in his hand.
Aqua was no help as always to him, but neither could find anything for someone like Megumin. Better gear doesn't sound like a gift between couples. She's not interested in jewelry either. And there's barely any magical items or potions that could boost someone who relies on a one-time use spell.
Despite Aqua's protest, he finally settled on Vanir's idea when he visited the shop. Trusting a demon who feeds off bad emotions is about the worse choice he could've gone for admittedly, but this was about the best thing he could get on short notice.
The sound of knocking on his door pulled his attention and immediately a feeling of butterflies burst into his stomach.
"Kazuma?" Megumin's voice calls out through the door, "Are you ready?"
"Y-yeah, just a sec." He wipes his palms onto his bed as they began to feel clammy. His legs shake a bit as he stood up to approach the door.
What's the matter with me? This isn't our first date. I shouldn't be so nervous… But it is going to be just us together this time, in an area filled with strangers… Like a real couple…
His fingers went white from gripping the doorknob hard. He takes in a deep breath and pats the bag hanging from side for reassurance before opening the door.
Kazuma froze upon seeing Megumin standing before him adorning a simple yet elegant black dress. It's rare he ever sees her without her typical witch outfit and eyepatch except for her nightwear. Such a simple attire and yet she couldn't look more mature and beautiful than before as it emphasizes her porcelain doll-like features.
Megumin smiles and twirls around letting her knee-length skirt spread outwards in a bowl. "W-what do you think?" her voice cracks.
"It's…" Kazuma swallows, trying his best not to stare. "It… suits you."
"… that's all?" Megumin said, apathetically.
Give me a break! I'm not good at this kind of thing! Is what he really wants to say, but instead he mutters, "S-sorry…"
"It's fine…" she lies. Deciding to cast a bait for another attempt, she pulls at her skirt innocently and asks, "It isn't too much, is it?"
"Nope… not at all," he said as he shifts his eyes away in reflex.
"You sure?"
"Positive."
Try harder than that, you damn coward! Gods, I could really use something hard to blow up right now!
Megumin shakes away her thoughts after noticing the grip on her bag containing his gift is tightening. This was already proving to be harder than she thought. He's not an open book, so she shouldn't expect such an easy reply from him. At least his constant glances at her says it all.
"I see you're wearing your usual gear tonight," she comments.
"You said I didn't have to worry, but I probably should've got something different…"
"That's fine, it's hard to imagine you in a sharp outfit but I always liked this look of yours." She takes his hand into her own and smiles, "Ready to go?"
Kazuma closes the door behind him as Megumin leads him down the hall to the foyer. As they pass through, both Aqua and Darkness looks over from the couch and waves at them.
"Have fun you two!" Aqua said, "But be careful out there! Someone might get the wrong idea and throw Kazuma in the slammer given his track record."
"If that happens, come to us first before you do anything rash, Megumin," Darkness warns.
"Can I blow them up?" Megumin mutters to Kazuma.
"Not now, we'll wait when they least expect it," he answered before they both head out the door and into the night.
Author's notes
Next part is all planned out, but my time is being really limited with college and work so the estimation of when next chapter will hit will be anyone's guess but I will make sure not to leave this story unfinished. I hope you guys enjoy this so far and I pray this final chapter will bring satisfaction to you all. Thanks for reading!