"Darkness!" Kazuma exclaimed as he slammed opened the noble's door, storming into the bedroom. He paused however when he saw the state of her room. There were papers scattered all over the floor, the desk almost broken into two, the candle on the desk long since burnt out. What stopped him mostly however, was the sight of Darkness fast asleep at her desk, her untied hair flowing down like a curtain of gold leaf. Her head was resting on her crossed arms, her breathing slow and calm.
The adventurer quietly walked over the dozing crusader, careful not to stir her awake. He tried his best to avoid stepping on the papers that laid on the floor as he walked closer to her sleeping form. He looked down at the wooden desk. A crack had formed almost all the way down the middle, Darkness' arms laying atop it.
Kazuma watched as the noble's body rose and fell with every slow breath. Her gentle breathing was quiet, almost silent. The blonde's face was mostly obscured by her hair and arms.
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He moved his hand towards her, hesitating before it made contact with her body. He nervously shook her awake, her body warm through her nightgown.
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He waited for a response, the blonde remaining still.
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Kazuma sighed, placing the box of chocolates onto the bed. He decided to let her rest for a little while longer, passing the time by working on picking up the documents that littered the floor.
The papers were hardy far and few between, taking him a good few minutes to pick up all the documents, only illuminated by the crackling fireplace. Kazuma found that the act brought him some calm in his slightly nervous state. The act of even just being in a girl's room was still a foreign concept to him, even if he basically barged in.
He neatly placed the documents on a pile onto the table. The table creaked under the new weight placed upon it, the thick stack making the table bend slightly. Kazuma heard a soft shuffling from Darkness, his breath hitching for a moment.
"K-Kazuma?" The blonde softly whispered, her voice till gravely from being awoken from her slumber. Her eyes fluttered open, her eyes falling upon the adventurer's dark green eyes looking down on her.
"Kazuma!?" Darkness exclaimed, pushing down on the desk to stand up. The table couldn't handle her immense strength, snapping down the middle into two pieces with a loud crash. The documents that had just been neatly organized fluttered back onto the floor as Darkness stumbled forward, but caught herself before she could fall forward. "W-W-What are you doing here!?"
"Damn it Darkness! I just cleaned that up!" Kazuma yelled, his hands on his head as he watched his work go all down the drain.
"W-What are you doing in my room?! You should be with M-Megumin!" She stuttered back. She covered her body with her arms. "W-What did you do to me while I slept?! Did you poke and prod and grope my exposed, venerable body while I couldn't resist?!" Her breath grew more ragged by the word, her face becoming flush with a hue of red. Her arms wrapped tighter around her body as fell to her knees, her breathing now heavy as she looked up at Kazuma.
"No! Don't make me out to be the villain here and get up!" Kazuma yelled as he tried to pull her up from the floor by grabbing onto her arms. "D-Damn… so heavy…." He groaned as he pulled with all his strength.
"H-Heavy?!" Darkness exclaimed, her erotic tone replaced by an embarrassed one. The blush on her face glowed even brighter. "I-I am not heavy!"
"Nevermind that! Get up!" Kazuma shouted. Darkness quickly obeyed, scurrying up to her feet. She miscalculated her trajectory however and fell backwards slightly before Kazuma pulled her back onto her balance.
"T-Thank you…" Darkness whispered, trying to avoid his judgemental eyes.
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"W-Wait, you still haven't explained why you're here! Shouldn't you be with Megumin?!" Darkness hissed.
Kazuma frowned as he thrust the box of chocolates towards her. "If you wanna give me something, give it to me yourself!" He exclaimed.
"T-These chocolates are from Megumin! T-They're not mine to give!" Darkness stuttered as crossed her arms, refusing to take the small box from Kazuma. "M-Megumin put her heart and soul into giving you those sweets!"
"Cut the crap I know they're from you!" Kazuma shot back, "How else would you know that there were chocolates in this box!"
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"O-Oh," Darkness whispered under her breath.
"Well?"
"Megumin loves you, Kazuma," She muttered under her breath. "She spent a lot of time working herself up to give you this, you should be be with her on valentines day, not here,"
Kazuma stayed silent, not saying a word as he judgmentally stared at the crusader trying to avoid eye contact.
"Megumin is a good girl, she's lucky to have you," She continued. "You shouldn't be wasting your time here with me, it's unbecoming of a gentleman to avoid a lady that spilled their feelings for him,"
Darkness clenched her fists, her eyes looking down to the floor as she played with a stand of her golden hair. She twirled it around her finger as she turned her head to look out the window.
"Y-You love her too, Kazuma. You two are a good pair. Go be with her instead of a sorry noblewoman like me," Darkness whispered under her breath. "P-Please, you know how I feel about you. M-My heart can't take it, you being here,"
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Kazuma let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his head as he gently laid the box on Darkness' bed.
"I'm not avoiding her,"
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"T-Then why are you here?" Darkness asked, as she finally looked up at Kazuma.
"She told me to be here,"
"I-I don't understand. Why would she tell you to be here?" Darkness questioned. "D-Don't tell me she backed out after I told her-"
"She didn't back out,"
"Then…"
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"Isn't it obvious?" He muttered. "I rejected her,"
"W-Why would you do that! You obviously share feelings with her, w-why would you do such a thing!" Darkness exclaimed. "Why would you deny yourself happiness with the girl you love?"
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"Darkness… I love Megumin… I really do… but it's not in the same way that she loves me," Kazuma whispered in a hushed tone. "Do you understand how hard it was to tell her that? To break the heart of the friend I love?"
Darkness stared at Kazuma. It was strange to the noble, to hear her usually stubborn party leader act so… vulnerable.
"W-What do you mean?" Darkness stuttered. The blonde watched as her party leader avoided her confused look. "Then why would you be here?"
"Darkness, why do you think I would be here," He whispered under his breath.
There was a pause, her mind racing trying to interpret what Kazuma was implying.
"N-No you can't …"
"Darkness, I'm sorry. I need to apologize to you. I thought I was somehow protecting Megumin by waiting… but I realize now that I was only hurting the both of you by hesitating," Donning a determined look, Kazuma stepped closer to Darkness. She could feel her heart beating through her chest, her face becoming pale. She clenched the fabric of her nightgown, her knuckles going white as she stared into Kazuma's eyes, a sinking feeling rising up to her chest.
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"I… I love you," Kazuma bluntly stated. His words sounded like they were forced from the back of his throat, almost as if he wrestled it from within him. His cheeks wore the slightest shade of pink, invisible in the dark room.
Darkness' heart sank, it was exactly what she feared. Her knees felt weak as Kazuma stared into her watery eyes. His eyes showed nervousness, but a stubborn confidence that Darkness had come to fall in love with.
"N-No I-I…" Darkness stuttered. She looked down at the floor, avoiding Kazuma's eyes, not wanting to show her own teary ones. "Y-You can't love me," Her fists gripped tighter, her hands shaking as she forced the words to leave her body. It pained her to push him away, being so close to what her heart desired, but having to deny herself his warm embrace.
Kazuma stared at the crusader, dumbfounded by her response. He wanted to speak, but he found that no words could escape his mouth.
"Y-You should be with Megumin instead," Darkness whispered before Kazuma could respond. "S-She's a very sweet girl that really cares for you. You two are a good pair,"
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"What are you saying?" Kazuma questioned.
"You shouldn't love me," Darkness quietly replied, not looking up. "Please save your wonderful love for her,"
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"Who are you to tell me who I should love?!" Kazuma exclaimed, grabbing her shoulders. Darkness flinched, surprised by the sudden contact. "I don't understand! You lead me on all this time, clinging to my side, using your body to try and seduce me, let me fall asleep in your arms just to say I shouldn't love you?! Why?!"
"Because I don't deserve it!" The crusader exclaimed back, finally looking up at him.
Kazuma was taken aback by her sudden outburst, but he was more overwhelmed by the sight of her teary eyes. Darkness noticed him staring at her and quickly looked away. She tried to hide her face from him, but it was too late.
Kazuma had seen tears in Darkness' eyes several times before, tears of embarrassment, tears of happiness, even tears of lust, but he had never seen her this kind of tears flow down her face before. Tears of fear, of sorrow, a side of Darkness she seldom showed. He looked down at her hands, they shook as she clenched the side of her nightgown.
"S-Sorry, I shouldn't have grabbed you like that," He apologized, letting her go. Darkness didn't respond. "W-What do you mean you don't deserve it?"
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"I shouldn't have said that," She muttered under her breath, still avoiding his gaze.
"Then what should you have said?!" Kazuma shot back.
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"You deserve better than me,"
"W-What?"
Darkness took a deep breath, her fingers loosening on the fabric she gripped. She tried to calm herself, she was just going to push Kazuma away from making a bad decision, nothing she needed to get worked up about.
"Thank you Kazuma,"
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"Why are you thanking me?"
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"For as long as you know me, you've treated me like a person. Treated me based on my thoughts and actions, not some title I was born with. But that doesn't change the truth," Darkness whispered, her voice shook with every breath. "I am a noble, or more importantly, governor. I'm a busy person, I have a lot of responsibilities I must attend to. As much as I wish I did, I don't have time for a committed relationship,"
Kazuma didn't respond, staring at her, speechless.
"If you were to become my lover, to me, and I'm sure to you, it would be a relationship between two adventurers, two party members, two close friends, and that's all I've ever wanted," Darkness could feel her cheeks grow the slightest bit warmer as she continued to speak. "But the nobility won't see it that way. They'll see you as a target, a commoner that doesn't belong in the upper class. You'll be ridiculed, ousted, perhaps even the target of assassination. The nobility are willing to do anything to climb to a higher position in society, and if they see you, a commoner, take my hand, they'll stop at nothing to take your place,"
"That doesn't matter," Kazuma replied. "The rich be damned, I can protect myself from their filthy hands,"
Darkness shook her head. "Kazuma, a man with financial smarts like you should understand that it's not the physical threat that you should be worried about. Remember when Aldrep targeted you after you destroyed his residence? Don't you recall his power and financial influence being enough for you to almost be executed? You only escaped by the skin of your teeth. Imagine every noble that wishes to accelerate their rise of power going after you. It would be impossible to escape unscathed,"
Kazuma opened his mouth to respond, but stopped himself as thoughts ran through his head.
"Kazuma, when I joined this party, I promised, no swore on my life I would protect you. But I fail every time I try. I'm a terrible excuse of a crusader. I-I can't even protect the man I love from death. I can't protect you from harm, and I can't protect you from them," She took a shaky breath. "I-It's like I'm cursed,"
He frowned. He tried to respond, but was interrupted by the noble before he could speak.
"I hate it, I hate not being able to protect you, I hate watching you suffer because of my inaction," Darkness whispered, she could feel a fresh tear flow down her cheek. "S-So I will take action. Kazuma, I-I love you, but I-I refuse to let us become more than friends,"
Kazuma stared deep into her teary eyes. She tried to smile for him, to show her strength and resilience to her leader, trying to reassure him that he would be alright, she would be alright, that they would be alright, but it was hopeless, the tears wouldn't stop flowing. For the second time, Darkness was trying to push him away in order to protect him, wearing a sad smile.
Kazuma reached out and placed his hand on her cheek. He cupped it, feeling cold yet somehow still warm to the touch. Darkness flinched, the sudden contact surprised her.
"N-No, K-Kazuma," She begged, "P-Please don't make this any harder than it needs to be," Yet she did not move away, instead leaning her head into his hand.
"Is this what you really want?" Kazuma quietly whispered in an annoyed, yet concerned tone.
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"N-No, of course not," The crusader replied. "I-I want to run away, away from this title, the responsibility, the nobility. I-I want to run away and spend the rest of my life in your a-arms," She placed her hand on Kazuma's, pressing it closer to her cheek. "But I would become just like the nobles that I hate, selfish and only worried about indulging their own desires. I have duties, responsibilities, to my family, the people I govern, to our party, and to you,"
"Darkness..."
She didn't respond, only avoiding his gaze by gently closing her eyes, rubbing the back of Kazuma's hand with her palm. The noble let out a quiet sob, holding onto her emotions the best she could. "I-I'm so weak, I hold onto you, like some scared child, when I swore I would p-protect you," She grasped his hand, shifting it to in front of her. Her hand crawled down his arm, the other joining it in embracing Kazuma's arm close to her body. Her hands traced the burns that littered his arm, physical manifestations of her failure to protect him from harm. "Forgive me," She begged, pulling his arm closer.
Kazuma looked down at the noble, her head hung, face obscured. He could feel her warm, shaky breath on his hand, as well her heart rapidly pounding through her chest. The mighty crusader, reduced to a sobbing mess. He raised his left arm, moving it around her body. He hesitated for a moment, before wrapping it around Darkness, pulling her in close.
"N-No you c-can't," Darkness pleaded, as she took a step closer to him, resting her head on his chest. "Y-You can't sway me... so e-easily," She let go of his arms, unable to bear touching his burns any longer. Her hands moved to grip his shirt, only finding enough strength for her index fingers and thumbs to ever so slightly pinch the fabric of Kazuma's shirt. No words escaped his mouth as he moved his newly freed arm around the noble's body. He pulled her in tighter, making her flinch, but she leaned in closer.
"Darkness..." Kazuma whispered.
"Y-You can yell at me as much as you want, I won't change my decision," Darkness weakly responded. Her hands shook as she inched the slightest bit closer to his body. Her hand slid to his chest, feeling the heartbeat of the adventurer. The rapid pace brought her the slightest amount of comfort, knowing she wasn't alone in her nervousness.
"Darkness, I didn't know you could be so... protective," Kazuma whispered.
"I-I am your crusader after all," She quietly replied, her voice barely audible. "I-I'm sorry. If I was a more capable crusader, I could allow myself to stand by your side. But I'm weak, my body, my strength, my will. To truly fulfill my purpose in this party, I-I have to let you go,"
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Kazuma took a deep breath and smacked Darkness on top of her head.
"O-Ow!" Darkness exclaimed as she held where Kazuma had made contact. "Why would you do that!?"
"Darkness you muscle brained idiot," Kazuma scolded. "Don't you think I've considered that,"
Darkness looked at him, confused at his words. She blushed when Kazuma gently petted her on top of her head.
"Thank you, Darkness,"
"Y-You shouldn't thank me. I-I can't even do my job properly," The noble looked away, trying to avoid his gaze.
"No, Darkness, you do. You've been doing a good job since the day we first met," He replied. His words made the blonde look back at him.
"Y-You're lying," Darkness replied in a shaky tone. "I'm a failure of a c-crusader. I've held your still warm, dying body in my arms too many times. H-How am I even a passable crusader if I continue to allow you to get hurt like this,"
"Because you protect the others from harm."
Darkness blinked, a bit taken aback by his words.
"I-I,"
"Darkness, you don't allow Aqua or Megumin to receive a single scratch when we're in a fight. That means you're a great crusader," Kazuma said in a hushed tone. His face was a bit pink, his eyes slightly shifting away from meeting Darkness'.
"B-But... what about yo-"
"I throw myself into danger, it's reasonable that you can't protect me from harm every time. Besides, Aqua can just revive me whenever I die so don't worry about it,"
Darkness clenched Kazuma's jacket in both her fists, tightly grasping onto them as she finally looked up, staring into Kazuma's emerald green eyes, her own overflowing with tears.
"Don't you understand how hard it is to hold your corpse?! To see the devastated look on Megumin's face, knowing it's because of me, us panicking that Aqua's magic won't work this time?!" The crusader exclaimed. Kazuma felt his feet leave the ground as she lifted him slightly, her fists growing ever tighter as she continued to berate him. "Not even kings can be revived as many times as you! What if one day, you don't return to us, you don't return to me?!"
Kazuma's hands came up and grabbed Darkness' wrists, trying to convince her to let him down. He could feel her arms shake with fear, with anger, with frustration in his palms as she held him aloft.
"D-Darkness, w-what are-"
"The worst part is, you always just get up, as if nothing happened! As if you didn't just return from the afterlife! You don't berate me, you don't get angry at me... Why don't you get angry at me!" Darkness shook Kazuma in the air.
Darkness had asked for him to degrade her many times before, it was basically expected of her. He would normally expect these words to be said out of lust, from the masochist inside her, but one look into her eyes told him otherwise. She was frustrated, angry at him, perhaps angry at herself.
Tears flowed down Darkness' face as she could no longer find the strength to hold Kazuma up, her limbs shaking as she gently let Kazuma down onto the floor. She collapsed into his arms, clinging tight to his body for support as she spilled her emotions for the adventurer.
Kazuma gently wrapped his arms around her once again, pulling her tight into an embrace. She buried her face into his chest, ashamed of being unable to hold back her emotions. He gently patted her on the back, not knowing what to do in this tense situation.
The two stood there, not saying a single word as Darkness quietly sobbed into Kazuma's chest, trying to get a hold of herself. A long while passed before Darkness' tears subsided, her heart still racing as she relied on Kazuma for support.
"Darkness..." Kazuma whispered. She only responded with a gentle squeeze, letting him know that she was listening. "When I die, for a few moments, I get the chance chat with Eris,"
"E-Eris?!" Darkness whispered, not looking up, but the surprise is her voice was evident.
"We've only shared conversation a few times, but she asked me to look after you, Darkness," Kazuma whispered. "I owe her a lot, in fact I'd say I'm indebted to her for the rest of my life,"
"As am I," Darkness weakly added.
"After all, she does look the other way when I'm revived," Kazuma softly chuckled. "When I stood at your father's bedside, he asked me to look after you, Lalatina. He even asked me to run away with you,"
Darkness stayed quiet, unable to find the words to respond to the adventurer.
"I promised, the both of them, I would look after you, both Darkness and Lalatina. But when I agreed to them, it wasn't to pay back a debt to a goddess, or the moral obligation of fulfilling the last request of a dying man," Kazuma gently pulled Darkness into his embrace a little tighter. "It was simply because I love you,"
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"K-Kazuma... w-why are you being so forward... I-It's not like you..."
"Because... I hurt Megumin by not being honest, by being closed off, by trying not to hurt her. I was trying to protect her, but in the end, I only made it sting more. It didn't even matter, she saw right through me, right through the wall I thought I built up,"
The blonde looked up to see his eyes watery, his gaze sincere, but ashamed.
"The last thing I wanted was for someone to feel the pain I did, but I'm an idiot for thinking I could soften the blow by dragging it out. I hurt Megumin, but I also hurt you. I-I'm sorry,"
Darkness pulled him closer, resting her head on his shoulder. "It's alright," She whispered. "I-I, understand, all I wished was to protect you and Megumin... perhaps we were fools... trying to shield each other from an inevitable pain,"
"No, we aren't fools," Kazuma corrected. Darkness backed up, lifting her head to meet his gaze. His eyes were soft, and calm, a look she rarely saw in him. Her heart raced as she took notice of how close their faces were, her eyes darting to his lips as he spoke. "We're just stubborn,"
"Stubborn?" Darkness asked. She didn't need to ask, however, she completely understood. She was stubborn. Perhaps the most stubborn out of the four. "Stubborn..."
"Yeah stubborn, especially the two of us,"
"Doesn't our stubbornness make us fools?"
"I-I guess," Kazuma admitted. He stepped an inch closer to her. "But maybe I'm a fool for loving you. It'll be hard, I'll be the target if nobles and maybe society as a whole, but I'll stubbornly love you until you let me,"
Darkness opened her mouth, but no words escaped her. She tried to speak, but her sobs prevented the words from coming out.
"I'll live the life of the stubborn fool for the rest of my life if it means I'll be by your side,"
"Y-You idiot..." Darkness managed to force out through her sobs. "I-I can't, how- how are you... how am I-I supposed to protect you,"
"Stubbornly,"
Darkness couldn't hold back her emotions any longer, collapsing into his embrace. Kazuma held her tightly to his body, stroking her back in an attempt to comfort her.
"I love you..." She whispered through her sobs. "I love you... I love you,"
"I love you too," He whispered back, embracing her tighter.
"D-Do you really love a f-fool like me?" Darkness desperately clung to Kazuma's body, tighty grabbing the cloth of his shirt. "A f-fool that cannot protect the one she l-loves from just about anything..."
"Yes, maybe I'm a idiot for saying that I do, but I love you,"
Darkness didn't say another word, instead she let all her emotions she kept inside spill out of her in the form of tears. The anger, regret, self pity, jealousy, self consciousness, all seemed to escape her body as she wept. For a long moment, the only souls in the universe to the two adventurers were each other. The rhythm of their heartbeats and breaths slowly became one, in sync as they embraced.
"Lalatina,"
Darkness flinched, her embrace tightening for just a moment. Her blush grew to a bright hot red as she clenched her fist on his shirt.
"W-Why would you call me that..." Darkness hissed, her voice shaking with embarrassment. She squeezed Kazuma tightly, trying to push the information out of him.
"It's fun to say,"
"T-That's not a good reason..." Darkness replied, hiding her face by keeping her head down. "It's embarrassing..."
"La-la-ti... na?" He teased.
She didn't respond, only shaking in embarrassment as Kazuma grined down at the noble.
"I used to think Lalatina and Darkness were two different souls," Kazuma whispered. "You kept them so neatly separated, a fine line dividing the two. I don't know when, but one day, the noble and the crusader, was the same person to me, a girl who just wanted to protect those around her,"
"K-Kazuma..."
"It's astounding, you're the protector of this provenance, this city, your family, this party, and-."
"Y-You, Kazuma," Darkness weakly replied. "I'll be your protector till I draw my last breath..."
The noble tightly embraced his body, tighty holding him to herself as she attempted to finally calm herself. She took a deep breath before finding the strength to step away from the adventurer.
Darkness could now finally take in the sight of Kazuma's face. He wore that usual comforting smile, that one Darkness had grown so fond of. However a few stray tears rolling down his face betrayed his calm facade. She could tell, he was just as emotional as her.
She reached out and gently caressed his face, her other hand softly finding his and intertwining. His hand held on to her tightly, her thumb wiping the tears for his cheeks.
"I'll protect you," They both whispered in unison. The two weakly chuckled, before stepping a inch closer to each other.
"You're being uncharacteristically nice to me Kazuma," Darkness joked in a hushed tone as she leaned in closer.
"Don't get used to it," Kazuma harshly responded, a smirk on his face. "I'll be back to normal tomorrow,"
"I wouldn't have it any other way," Darkness whispered. She leaned in even closer, she could feel his breath on her face, sending a shiver down her spine.
"J-Just spoil me like this o-occasionally..." The noble said as she buried her head into his neck, hiding her bright red blush. "A-As long as it's you, I-I don't care if you pamper or humiliate me,"
"Sounds good," Kazuma chuckled. "I'll keep it in mind,"
Darkness removed her head from his neck, moving back so she could see Kazuma's face once again. His cheeks were flush with a light pink, his mouth formed into his normal smile. She caressed his cheek once again, feeling the heat on his face on her palm. It brought her a small amount of comfort, and enough confidence to close her eyes.
Kazuma had one of the best reaction speeds in the world, his days shut in his room playing video games had trained this skill to an art, but when Darkness began to lean in, his body failed him. He stood there, watching as the blonde slowly leaned in, unable to move even a muscle. Her shaky breath on his face made his brain freeze up, not able to even process a single thought.
Their lips softly touched, only for a fleeting moment. It was quick and sudden, contact only being made for just a second, but to the two adventurers, it was like an eternity. Her lips were soft, warm and gentle. The pressure she placed on his lip with hers was more gentle than a feather falling onto the softest pillow. Kazuma could feel his heart pounding a million times a second. He could vividly remember him dismissing a kiss from Darkness on his cheek, unwilling to even lift a finger for it, but in this moment as he felt her lips leave his, he would fight a million hydras if it meant feeling her warmth on his lips again.
"W-Was that to your liking?" Darkness whispered, her face a deep crimson, her eyes avoiding his.
Kazuma squeezed the crusader's hand tighter. He opened his mouth the slightest amount, but closed it before any words escaped him. He gave her a simple nod, his blush growing even deeper.
"I-I'm relieved..." Darkness let out a gentle sigh. "I-I've been worried about this for a while..."
"I don't believe it," Kazuma scoffed. "A perverted like you worrying about something as small as a kiss,"
Darkness felt her cheeks burn even brighter. "K-Kazuma,"
"Yes I'm Kazuma,"
"I-I know I'm like... that sometimes..." She paused, looking up into Kazuma's eyes. He forgot how to breathe as he watched her ocean blue eyes sparkled in the moonlight.
"I-I'm still a girl..."
The adventurer's heart skipped a beat, his mind racing as Darkness continued to stare at him. He could tell it was taking all her resolve to keep gazing into his eyes. A tiny step forward making it seem like her eyes where shining even brighter.
"D-Darkness... I-"
"Kazuma!" Darkness cut him off before he could finish his thought. "C-Can I perhaps... k-k-k-kiss you a-again?"
Kazuma didn't hesitate simply leaning forward and closing the gap between their lips as is his response. Her lips were as soft as he remembered. Although they had kissed just moments ago, to them it felt like an eternity.
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"I love you, Darkness,"
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"I love you too,"