Twilight spilled across the path home.
"Bell-kun, what kind of magic was that you just used?" Hermes asked with a smile.
To him, the youth seemed to have borrowed Airmid's magic—not only extending beyond the healing barrier's reach but also wielding its power to aid others.
"Prying into other familia's privacy is against the rules, isn't it?" Bell replied softly.
Regarding the [Argo's Ship], he actually knew very little. Explosive power or speed proved highly practical, but the healing power he'd just used not only continuously drained his own magic power but also required Airmid to maintain the incantation. Beyond protecting the Dea Saint's safety, its healing effect and practicality were both rather low. Bell suspected this peculiarity stemmed from healing magic itself. Other types of Ability-Granting Magic likely wouldn't require the partner to chant continuously.
More crucially, after using it once, Bell sensed that the [Argo's Ship] relied not only on the partner's magic power, but seemingly on something else as well. The true nature of this vague sensation remained elusive to him for now.
"That's a bit stingy of you to say, Bell-kun~" Hermes hooked an arm around Bell's shoulder. "Laurier is family to me. Our bond speaks for itself. If you two ever have children, I'd even help look after them!"
"...."
Airmid suddenly halted in her tracks, frozen in place.
"Hermes-sama! This is causing Bell great distress!"
Laurier mercilessly whacked the Familia God's head with her hand.
"To... to actually resort to violence for Bell-kun's sake... How terrifying it is when the children of Genkai discover love..."
Hermes chuckled softly in contemplation.
"Please stop talking about it, and stay away from Bell! You'll rub off on him with your frivolous aura!"
Laurier shoved Hermes aside and hooked her arm through Bell's.
"Eh—I was thinking of taking Bell-kun out to celebrate our victory."
"Absolutely not!"
Laurier criticized the Familia God's careless ways, insisting he'd surely drag Bell to some seedy establishment.
Amid Hermes' half-hearted, half-sincere protests, the group began their journey home.
...
As night deepened, stars twinkled in the sky. Bell gazed at the constellations, lost in thought.
After returning to the manor, he attempted [Argo's Ship] several more times. When with Laurier, he could maintain the invisibility spell without physical contact, but the drain on magic power was rapid. Cassandra's one-time healing could only sustain itself briefly on her own body, and the healing effect proved of little practical use. As for Daphne's enhancement Magic, perhaps it didn't meet the conditions of affection, proving completely ineffective.
Putting practicality aside, Bell still hadn't figured out what that vague intuition of his truly meant. Could he only keep trying slowly...
The night was deep. Just as Bell was preparing to sleep, a young girl knocked on the door.
"Bell... may I come in?" A shy, delicate voice sounded from outside.
Surprisingly, it wasn't the often-sneaking-in Laurier, but the usually timid Airmid.
"Hmm." Bell opened the door, letting Airmid step inside.
The Dea Saint wore thin nightclothes, her face flushed crimson.
"Please... don't keep staring at me..." Airmid's silver hair cascaded down, her graceful form fully exposed in the moonlight. As if evading Bell's gaze, she draped her pure white nightgown behind her and burrowed into the blankets.
"This is embarrassing... Please lie down beside me..." Airmid gestured with her eyes for Bell to lie down next to her.
The cool moonlight illuminated her silver locks. No sooner had Bell settled down than Airmid firmly turned him over, pressing her head against his shoulder.
"Airmid, are you afraid?" More than the cool, soft skin against his back, Bell noticed the slight tremor in her touch.
"Mhm... I heard about the Spirit Land incident from Loki Familia..." Airmid replied softly. The Dian Cecht Familia specialized in processing deep-layer alchemical materials, maintaining a longstanding amicable relationship with Loki Familia. When Lefiya and the others came to replenish potions, Airmid had pressed for details of the incident.
"There's nothing to worry about. I'm back safely now, aren't I?" Bell offered reassurance.
"But... you nearly lost your life..." When Airmid heard the boy had been caught in the fire dragon's explosion, a sharp ringing instantly filled her ears. It felt as though she were caught in the very heatwave's impact.
"Actually, at that moment, Syr gave me a talisman that could block fatal blows." Bell stated the truth.
In Airmid's eyes, the boy must have survived by sheer luck, disregarding all caution. Bell understood her worry and fear. He turned to face those violet eyes and spoke slowly:
"Airmid, I promise you this: no matter what hardships I face, I won't act recklessly. No matter how powerful the enemy, I'll return home just like this, to exchange words of safety with you."
"Mhm... I understand..." Airmid pressed her lips together. Bell's return wasn't the result of immeasurable luck, but his own deliberate choices.
Airmid, who had lain awake all night, finally felt her heart settle upon learning the boy hadn't forced himself.
"Bell... Can I stay here..." As worry dissolved into trust, Airmid suddenly realized her cheeks were burning. The doll-like expression she'd worn upon their first meeting as the Dea Saint had vanished, replaced by a tender, endearing charm she'd never shown anyone else.
"Of course. Didn't you already tell Laurier?" Bell stroked her silver hair, smiling softly.
"...How did you know? I told her not to tell you." Airmid asked in confusion.
"Because she didn't come to my room today." Bell pointed out their oversight.
"..." Airmid smiled faintly. She had intended to voice her concerns, to advise the boy to act within his limits. Instead, all her carefully prepared words dissolved into nothingness. All that remained within her heart was boundless affection and profound reassurance.
"Um... about what Hermes-sama said... about... making... children..." Airmid's violet eyes seemed to hold an endless tide of emotions churning within. Unable to suppress the fluttering in her heart, the words that escaped her lips were muffled and indistinct.
"Airmid already knows, right? After all, you were eavesdropping outside the door the other day." Bell shattered the Dea Saint's last line of defense.
"....?!" Airmid hadn't expected this matter to be exposed.
"Th-that... that was... just... curiosity... no, wait..." The Dea Saint's cheeks flushed crimson. She couldn't find the words to explain.
Before that flustered, delicate flower, the youth didn't press her further with clueless persistence. Instead, he simply leaned in and kissed her.
Outside the window, a vibrant red flower, seemingly nourished by spring's warmth, bloomed proudly in the courtyard.