"So...is anyone else a bit worried for Kazuma?" Sena broached hesitantly, glancing amongst the assembled women, all of whom turned to her after her question. "I mean, he hasn't left his room since Wiz visited, and it's been a few hours since any of us have even heard from him."

"It's not a terribly uncommon occurrence. He likes to take time for himself every now and then." Megumin answered, pursing her lips in consideration. "It is kinda weird how we haven't heard a peep from him, though. Usually, we'd run into each other at one point or another."

"Wiz also mentioned that Kazuma has been acting strange lately, though she didn't give many specifics." Darkness remarked, seemingly just as intrigued as her friends. "She seemed happy enough when she left, so I'm not sure if that has anything to do with Kazuma's silence."

Sena adjusted her glasses before remarking, "In any case, do you believe one of us should go and check in on him?"

"Sure, I'll go check up on him!" Aqua chirped happily, clearly not as concerned as her peers. "I'm sure he's just brooding like normal. Gimme a minute, and he'll be out here with the rest of us!"

"Just don't pressure him," cautioned Megumin. "We all know how he gets when you try to push him out of his comfort zone. Or his room."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say!" Aqua replied with little sincerity, practically skipping down the halls until she arrived at Kazuma's room, knocking rhythmically on his door. "Oh, Kazuma! Are you still in there?"

For a long while, silence was all that greeted the bubbly woman. However, before Aqua's fears could get the best of her, she witnessed the door open just a crack and an eye peeking out of it.

"...Aqua?" He asked softly, as though he was unsure of himself. "Did you need something?"

There was something about his tone that did make Aqua hesitate before answering. She'd heard him dejected before, but this was...different somehow. He didn't sound sad, more...nervous? Uneasy?

Still, the goddess decided to keep up her cheerful persona by saying, "Yeah, silly! You! Everybody else is downstairs and you're up here locked in your room! Come on out already, will ya!"

Naturally, the goddess didn't notice the way Kazuma's face paled slightly at her declaration, not that she could see much of it anyway. However, she did notice the ever so slight waiver to his voice as he answered her.

"O-oh, uh...sorry. I'm, uh, not feeling too well right now." He stated, clearing his throat with a few forced coughs. "Maybe I'll swing by in a few hours, after I get some rest."

"Kazuma, I may not be the sharpest spoon in the knife drawer, but I know when you're faking sick to get out of social events. I skimmed through your life on Earth before you died, remember?"

There was a beat of silence, as though Kazuma was mulling over her words, probably trying to bite back his usual irritation. However, instead of grumbles and protests, Aqua found herself answered with the door simply closing in her face.

"Wha-Kazuma! Open up, right now!" She hissed, only to receive silence in response. "Kazuma Satou, do not make me pull the goddess card!"

A muffled but loud "GO AWAY!" was the response she got from behind the closed door. Aqua scoffed, and after a few seconds of consideration, turned on her heel and started to walk away.

"Fine! Just go back to being a shut-in NEET then!" She huffed, stomping away like a child who had been told to put back the toy they had grabbed from the store. "It's what you're good at, isn't it?!"

Despite not being a stranger to insulting Kazuma in the past, Aqua had to admit, even she felt a little hurt by what she said, especially given recent revelations regarding the boy. She almost stopped mid stride, almost turned back around and walked back to apologize...but instead, she chose to keep walking away.

Eventually, she descended back to the kitchen, deciding that whether or not Kazuma was going to socialize with them, the least she could do was put aside some food for him for when he decided to exit his goblin cave. As she was preparing her food, Darkness and Megumin entered, regarding the goddess curiously.

"I take it he's still barricaded in his room?" Megumin asked rhetorically.

Aqua continued to whisk the pot furiously. "Yes…"

"Did he slam the door on you again?" Darkness also asked rhetorically.

Aqua carelessly threw two more eggs into the batter. "Maybe…"

"And you said something stupid, didn't you?" Megumin finished, resulting in Aqua growling in exasperation and turning to glare at the pair. "That's a definite yes."

Darkness sighed to herself, "Well, I can't say I'm terribly surprised. He's not exactly a sociable creature by heart, that much has been made apparent."

"I know that! I've been stuck with him for a year and a half!" Aqua hissed, apparently still quite agitated. "I just...I thought he'd be more willing to open up now, y'know? After everything we've been through together, he still has these walls, and I just...I just don't know how to help him."

"I understand your frustration, Aqua, but we have to be patient with him. We can't rush things." Darkness retorted, crossing her arms with a pointed look. "Remember what we learned only yesterday about how his parent's behavior upset him?"

Megumin shook her head in surprise before asking both of her friends, "Wait, what about his parents got him upset?"

Aqua and Darkness glanced at one another before turning their attention back to Megumin, both of their expressions grim.

"His parents were more than happy when he left Japan, apparently." Darkness explained, her frown deepening. "Supposedly, their reactions were so enthusiastic regarding his departure that they left a lasting effect on him. It...didn't sound good."

The color drained from the Crimson Demon's face upon hearing the reveal. She turned to Aqua, silently asking for confirmation. She didn't want to believe somebody's parents could be that scummy to their own son.

"It's true. His parents...well, they didn't really seem to care that he was leaving, or if they did, they were...more positive than expected." Aqua answered carefully, knowing full well that the finer details would both be harder to explain and probably more upsetting. "In any case, Darkness is right. The fact that his own flesh and blood were happy to let him leave their lives forever has clearly really upset him. Even I can understand why, and I don't even have parents!"

That was true, and even though Aqua didn't have parents herself, Megumin and Darkness did. The very idea of their loved ones, the ones who are supposed to raise and nurture their kin, being apathetic in their lives like that was something straight out of a nightmare.

"I...I don't even know what to say." Megumin muttered quietly, truly at a loss for words. "How could they be so...disinterested in their own son's life? Especially if he's leaving for who knows how long?!"

"I do not know, Megumin. I couldn't possibly think of a reason why." Darkness retorted, a dangerous edge entering her voice as she turned to face the young mage, eyes flashing with repressed anger. "But if we ever do visit Japan, I can assure you that I have several choice words for them."

Megumin nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'd like to blow them into oblivion too."

"Kazuma said it himself. They don't even have magic in Japan." Aqua commented, turning back to her cooking with a thin frown, flexing her hand experimentally. "We could rain down hellfire on his parents if we really wanted to...what could possibly stop us?"

As much as the thought of Kazuma's deadbeat parents getting their comeuppance satisfied her, Darkness pushed her hate for them to one side in order to de-escalate the tension.

"We shouldn't be considering such things, Aqua. We should be better than that, better than them." She retorted sharply, prompting a series of reluctant, mumbled agreements from the goddess and mage alike. "Besides, how do you think Kazuma would feel if he heard us talking about his parents like that?"

"Pfft, he'd probably join in on the shit-talking," commented Megumin ruefully, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away. While Darkness wanted to counter the statement, a few seconds of considering it prompted her to simply nod in agreement.

Before long, Sena and Yunyun joined the group, and the five women enjoyed Aqua's freshly cooked dinner of bread and stew. After everyone finished their dinner, Aqua assembled a small bounty of food on a spare plate and prepared to bring it up to Kazuma, before pausing to reconsider if she should be the one to deliver it.

"...hey, Yunyun? You mind taking this up to Kazuma?" She asked dejectedly after a minute or so of internal debate. She wasn't ready to see him just yet, and didn't want to risk saying anything else stupid to further upset him.

"Oh! Yeah, I can take it. No problem." Yunyun agreed, surprised but entirely willing to run the errand. It's not like she had anything else planned, after all. Taking the plate, she ascended the stairs and made her way to Kazuma's room. "Kazuma? Are you hungry? Aqua sent me up with dinner."

It took abnormally long for Kazuma to open the door, Yunyun noticed. When he did open it, he only did it enough to peek out of the crack. Once he saw who it was, however, he fully opened it for her.

He...really looked like a mess. His hair was frazzled and his house clothes were wrinkled as hell. It hadn't even been that long since Yuyun last saw him, and yet he looked like he had been trapped in his room for weeks already.

"Yunyun?" he asked.

""Uh...yes, that is my name."

Kazuma blinked before responding, "Oh, yeah, right. Don't know why I asked."

"Are...you feeling alright, Kazuma?" Yunyun asked slowly, becoming more concerned by the second. "You kinda look like a mess right now...no offence!"

Surprisingly, Kazuma managed to chuckle somewhat lightheartedly at the girl's timidness. "None taken," he said with a small smile which sadly didn't last for very long. He looked from side to side across the hall before looking back at Yunyun. "Hey, uh...Do you mind if I ask you a weird question?"

"Uh...no." Yunyun answered, shrugging her shoulders loosely. "Ask away."

The young breathed in for a moment before hitting her with the most straightforward thing a guy like him could ask. "...How do you sexually identify yourself?"

"...I-I beg your pardon…?"

The blush on Kazuma's face was the brightest shade of red Yunyun had ever seen, and she met a lot of Crimson Demons with bright red eyes! However, he pushed on (much to her discomfort).

"Y'know, are you straight? Gay? Bi? Asexual? Pan? That stuff."

"W-well...gosh, I wasn't expecting this." Yunyun sputtered, clearly thrown off for a moment before averting her gaze from Kazuma's. "W-well, I'm straight. I prefer m-men."

Kazuma nodded quietly at her answer as his mind was freaking out. Shit, that means she's susceptible to IT then! Still...I don't think she's been affected yet. But she's another target I gotta look out for.

"Yeah, ok. Cool." He answered awkwardly, clearing his throat and clapping his hands together. "Sorry, I know that was weird, I just, uh...just had to know, y'know?"

"Is, um, is that what friends normally ask each other?" questioned Yunyun. "I...I wouldn't exactly know myself on account of...well, not really having those most of my life."

"Oh, uh...yeah. Yeah, the subject can come up with friends. Not regularly or anything, but...yeah." Kazuma answered, allowing himself to reel it in a little to offer a serious answer. "I wouldn't have judged you for picking any answer, I was just curious is all. And no worries about your, uh...inexperience? You have friends now, and we're not planning on going anywhere."

Kazuma didn't realize it, but his simple words made the young mage's heart flutter in her chest. Even if he wasn't aware of it, he could have such a way with words sometimes. Truly a walking contradiction.

"Well, I'm relieved to hear that." She admitted with a bright smile, before shaking her head and offering Kazuma the plate of food she had been holding throughout their talk. "A-anyways, here's the food I mentioned!"

The young man reached out, then hesitated for some reason, then reached out again to take the tray off of Yunyun's hands. "Thank you...I was getting kinda hungry."

"No problem," she said, stalling a bit before asking, "Are you sure you don't wanna come downstairs with us? We'd really like to have your company."

Kazuma paused, his expression neutral as he seemingly weighed his options. A minute or so passed before he finally sighed, rolling his shoulders and meeting Yunyun's eyes once more with a determined expression.

"Alright. Maybe a little social interaction wouldn't kill me." He admitted begrudgingly, tentatively stepping out of his room and nodding. "Lead the way, I guess."

Nodding, the Archwizard guided Kazuma down the halls until they made it to the living room where everyone else had gathered, the snow through the windows still showing no signs of slowing down.

"So, uh...Aqua tried to get me to come down earlier." Kazuma started with an almost embarrassed smile, rubbing the back of his neck as he turned to the goddess in question. "I, uh, guess I owe you an apology then, huh?"

Aqua stubbornly crossed her arms and responded simply, "Yeah, I guess you do. You did slam the door in my face after all. Again."

"Ok then. Guess I have no choice." Kazuma mused dramatically, before falling to his knees before Aqua and assuming a begging position. "O' luminous and merciful Aqua, please do grant me forgiveness for the sins I have incurred against you!"

Despite herself, Aqua cracked a bit of a smile at the show. "Alright, alright. I get it, I'm the best and most loved goddess. You've made your point and, as such, I shall forgive you."

Relieved, Kazuma stood back up and stretched out his back from bowing so low to the floor. "Good, I was worried I'd have to repay you by being your personal footrest or something."

Whatever retort Aqua had prepared was immediately cut off by a pointed, "Do not." from Megumin directed at the goddess, sparking a wave of assorted laugher and mostly dissipating the tension in the room as conversation continued. Of course, Kazuma did his best to participate, but still found himself on edge throughout a majority of the night.

Don't worry guys, he thought to himself as he watched everyone talking and laughing without a care in the world. I don't know how, but I promise, I'll break you free from whatever curse or entity is responsible. And then you'll be back to your usual stupid, fun-loving selves.

Eventually, the group dispersed for the evening, with Kazuma slipping away before any of the girls could get particularly close to him. He made his way back to his room hastily, locking the door behind him as he entered and breathing a sigh of relief. He eventually settled down enough to slink into bed, assuring himself that he would start looking for answers to what exactly could be affecting his friends the coming day.

A curious meow interrupted his thoughts as Chomusuke, seemingly out of nowhere again, hopped onto his bed and rested flat on his stomach. The cat stared at him, almost as if she were asking him, "What is it this time?"

"My friends are in trouble, Chomps, and it seems like I'm the only one that can help them." He explained tiredly, rubbing his eyes as sank further into his bed. "And I still don't even know what specifically is wrong with them! This isn't what I signed up for!"

In response to his dilemma, the black cat walked across his chest and booped him on the nose with one of her paws, which naturally prompted a chuckle from the young man as he reached out and scratched behind her ears.

"Heh, at least I have you on my side."


It took some convincing (and promise of wine later on), but Kazuma was eventually successful in persuading Aqua to ask Eris to temporarily lift his house arrest. He still had that promise he made to Wiz and he figured he might as well do it sooner rather than later. Even if she was potentially compromised by whatever this force was herself.

While he was eating breakfast the next morning, (still in his room, naturally), a familiar rhythmic knock sounded from the door. He pushed his plate to the side before standing and walking over to the door, opening it to reveal a smirking Aqua.

"Good news, Kazuma!" She chirped excitedly. "With some convincing, I was able to convince Eris that you should be able to go into town today to visit Wiz!"

"Really? Wow, I'm actually kinda surprised you managed it!" The young man admitted, before noticing Aqua's smug expression and narrowing his eyes. "...there's a catch, isn't there?"

"You say catch, I say proper arrangement." The goddess retorted, her grin never faltering. "If you go into town, we all have to come with you to make sure you don't get into any trouble! Simple as that. So, do you have anything to say to me..?"

Why, Eris? Just...why? Kazuma thought to himself despondently. He looked back at Aqua to see her still smiling, waiting for her complimentary praise. Well...she did manage to sweet talk her junior into cutting him some slack. A small thank you was the least he could provide.

"...thanks…" he muttered softly, refusing to meet Aqua's eyes.

"You're very welcome!" Aqua replied pleasantly, before turning and starting down the hall with a playful wave. "Come on, you've been cooped up long enough! Let's get going!"

The real Aqua would've asked for more, reminisced Kazuma before catching up to the blue-haired girl. The pair arrived at the door a minute or so later, meeting the rest of the girls in the main hallway. As they got closer, Kazuma paused briefly, a thought occurred to him.

"Hang on, isn't it still snowing out?"

Aqua turned on her heel, fixing Kazuma with a surprised, if not slightly troubled look, before shaking her head and answering him properly.

"It's still coming down, but not as hard as it has been the last two days." She stated, cocking an eyebrow in confusion. "Have you not looked out a single window today or something?"

"...No?"

"Then perhaps you need this more than we thought." Darkness remarked, offering Kazuma his winter gear with a small smile. "Some fresh air, cold or not, should do us all some good."

"I concur, Ms. Lalatina." Sena agreed, pointedly ignoring the look of absolute despair on the crusader's face as she instead turned to Kazuma, offering him a look of slight concern. "You really should get at least some fresh air. You look like you're having second thoughts."

"I'm always having second thoughts, but that's really nothing new," Kazuma unintentionally replied bluntly before putting on his winter coat. "You ready or what?"

"Ready." Aqua confirmed, before opening the door and pointing outside. "Onwards, to victory my friends!"

With that, the group disembarked, walking out into the snow filled air and down the main path back towards town. Aqua and Sena led the group, with Kazuma and Megumin residing in the middle while Darkness and Yunyun trailed behind.

"Sooo…" Megumin drawled, thinking of something to say. "How's bunking with Chomusuke been treating ya?"

"Actually, it's been really nice. She's good company." Kazuma admitted, feeling a little less tense with the relaxed topic the mage introduced. "I can see why you like her so much. She's a good familiar."

That earned Kazuma a small victorious chuckle from the girl. "Only the finest familiar for the finest Crimson Demon of course!"

"Oh yes, how could I possibly forget?" Kazuma snarked, shooting Megumin a playful glare. "It's not like you bring it up every other conversation, right O' powerful one?"

"Because you're one of my dearest friends, I'm gonna let that slide for now. But keep the sass up and I won't be held responsible for what I may or may not do," Megumin echoed ominously.

Normally, such idle threats would mean next to nothing to Kazuma. Given his current situation, however, his face paled for a moment and he actually blanked, ultimately just turning his gaze back to the front and keeping his mouth shut.

Megumin turned back to him, wondering why he wasn't playing along like usual. She grew concerned when she saw the subdued distress etched on his face. "Hey, you know I was joking, right? You can be an ass sometimes, but you know I wouldn't actually hurt you, right?"

"Hmm? Oh, uh, yeah. Course not." Kazuma answered unconvincingly, forcing a chuckle. "That wouldn't be very friendly, would it?"

"No, it would not," she agreed slowly. "And you also know that you can trust us with any problems you have, right? We are a family after all."

"Yeah. Yeah, a family." Kazuma agreed, some of his tension melting away as he considered their usual dynamic, before everything had gotten so strange. "And yeah, of course I trust you. All of you. It just...y'know, gets hard to let you in on everything. Sometimes I get worried, you know?"

Megumin pursed her lips and nodded. It didn't take a genius to figure out that their leader was struggling with some deep-seated anxiety; they had all picked up on that at this point. Plus, she had Yunyun as a classmate back during her school days, and upcoming tests always brought out the worst in that girl. So, on some level, she could understand where Kazuma was coming from.

"Yeah, I do get it..."

The walk to town took about a half hour, and by the time they arrived the snow had actually died down to a trickle of its previous flow, though cold was still as piercing as ever. After some debate, the group agreed to split up for a time. Kazuma would go to Wiz's shop with Aqua, Megumin, and Yunyun while Darkness would escort Sena back to where her group had previously been stationed.

After the gang split, Kazuma entered through the door of the shop, mentally bracing himself to see Wiz for a third time in a row. The undead shopkeeper herself was nowhere to be seen, likely stocking in the back while Vanir dusted the room while wearing that ridiculous pink apron of his.

"Ah, there you are! My favorite (and technically only) business partner!" The demon crowed, smiling evilly as he patted the young man on the shoulder before casting his three companions. "And with three of your darling party members, of course. Keeping them at arm's length, yes?"

"Vanir, I know it's hard for you, but could you mind your own business?" Kazuma grumbled, not in the mood for the demon's brand of irritating mockery. "They were kind enough to come with me for my visit with Wiz. You know, that whole arrangement you fucked up the first time with your useless spell?"

"Ohoho, getting feisty now, are we?" Vanir quipped, apparently more amused by Kazuma's apparent irritation at his prying, further stoking his hunger for negative emotions. "If I knew that all it took to get you this upset was a touch of paranoia and sexual tension, I would have escalated things long ago!"

Kazuma had put up with the demon's constant teasing for long enough, and that little stunt he pulled yesterday had been the tipping point. So, even if it was small, Kazuma was going to stand his ground and get back at Vanir effective immediately.

"Yeah, yeah, good for you. Say, could you excuse us for a moment, we need to have a private chat with Wiz." Kazuma then made an effort to signal out the silly pink apron the demon always wore during work hours. "Besides, don't you have a freshly baked pie you need to put out on the window sill or something~?"

In a rare moment that only happens once in a blue moon, Vanir's smug grin turned into a neutral thin line as he cupped his chin and hummed curiously to himself, "Hmm, that's new…"

As stated, it was small and it probably didn't do much in the way of hurting his pride, but Kazuma was at least proud of himself for giving it the old college try considering how much of a pain Vanir had been recently.

Soon enough, Vanir simply shrugged and remarked, "Fair enough. I have a shipment of new supplies I need to count in the back anyway. Have fun, but not too much fun you crazy lovebirds!"

Cackling like a mad man, Vanir walked out of the main room and into the backroom of the shop, leaving a thoroughly bemused and irritated Kazuma and his friends to their business. Man, sometimes, he really did he hate that demon.

"Well, with that out of the way, Wiz should be out any second now." He mused aloud, before turning to his friends and making a "shoo" motion. "You guys mind waiting outside? I don't really know what she has planned, but it seemed personal."

Aqua seemed slightly miffed by the prospect, but nodded reluctantly and stepped outside with Megumin and Yunyun, closing the door as they exited. A few seconds later, Wiz emerged from the back room, smiling as she met Kazuma's gaze.

"Kazuma! I'm glad you came!" Wiz greeted cheerily, resulting in Kazuma offering her smile in turn. It was good to see her in such a good mood, even if there was the looming threat of some kind of mind control plaguing his friends. "Give me a moment to retrieve your gift, I had it stored right here in case you swung by soon."

"Thanks, Wiz. I appreciate the thought, even if you really shouldn't have gotten me anything." Kazuma mused, some slight skepticism breaking through his façade of normality. "Not like I've done anything particularly spectacular lately."

"Perhaps not, but it is more a token of our friendship than a prize for accomplishment." Wiz supplied, before humming in affirmation as she retried the gift itself, standing back up. "And I believe it should help you in the future as well."

Wiz's gift itself was admittedly beautiful. She held a silver round shield with sage green trim along its borders. It's polished metal was in pristine condition, clearly well maintained. Stranger yet, there was the slightest shimmer of magic along sto shield's front, barely perceptible to the eye.

"Wiz...this shield looks amazing!" Kazuma remarked in wonder, gingerly taking the item from the lich and inspecting it eagerly. "Where on earth did you find it?"

"It's actually something I held onto from my adventuring days, back when I was human." Wiz explained, her eyes glazing over slightly as she smiled sable recalling easier times. "My friends and I never had use of the shield, but it's properties were always just enough to keep me from selling it off. Now at least I know for sure that it's in the hands of someone who will make good use of it."

"It's properties? So it's a magical item?" Kazuma questioned, equipping the shield to his left arm and giving it another once over. "I wasn't really sure, honestly. It's kinda hard to tell."

"Yes, it is indeed a magically imbued item." Wiz confirmed, listing of the specifications with ease. "Specifically, it increases both the strength and defense of its user by 10 points, essentially making them more fortified and able to take more damage."

"Huh, that's...really useful, actually! I can see why you held onto this for so long!" Kazuma remarked, before turning his attention fully to Wiz and offering her a grateful smile. "Thank you, Wiz. Really. This is an amazing gift, and I hope I can find a proper way to repay you for it."

"You don't need to repay me, Kazuma. Friends help each other when they need it!" Wiz assured him with a bright smile, waving her hand dismissively. "If you really want to repay me, just take care of yourself in the future. The occasional cup of tea would be nice, as well."

"Sounds more than fair to me." Kazuma replied, before unequipping the shield and hooking it onto his belt. "Still, maybe I could trouble you for that tea right now."

"That sounds lovely, but I'm afraid I must decline." Wiz replied remorsefully, sighing as she gestured towards the back room. "Due to my slacking my last three days, Vanir and I have quite a bit of work to do still, both unpacking products and handling our finances."

"Hey, I get it. Guess we'll just have to break out the tea next time, huh?" Kazuma replied, a small part of him relieved. Clearly, despite whatever was affecting her, Wiz was still able to have control over her actions. "Well, I'd hate to keep you from your work any longer. I'll see you around, Wiz!"

"Likewise, Kazuma. See you next time!" Wiz chirped happily as the young man left her shop, humming happily to herself with the thought that her relationship with him was mending slowly but surely. Now all she needed to do was keep from letting her emotions get the better of her...or jumping his bones.


The Daughter stared at the assembled maps laid out before her, analyzing just about every detail she could as she hummed in concentration. Wolbach's proposal offered her quite the opportunity, but a single misstep could spell disaster for both her operation as a whole, as well as any hopes of taking her father's throne in the future.

"Ma'am, I apologize for the intrusion." Serena announced as she entered The Daughter's temporary war room. "Your commander has responded, and claims that the invasion force will be at the city limits by dusk tomorrow."

A suboptimal time, but one that The Daughter was aware she'd have to work with. After all, she had done far greater with much less at her disposal.

"Excellent. Send back word that I will meet him personally at the main path before the beginning of the assault." She instructed, a cold smile of confidence creeping up her face. "Tomorrow, Axel will fall by my hand. After that, there will be nothing left in our way."