The morning air smelled of woodsmoke and bread as Kuro and Rei said goodbye at the threshold. Theo clasped Kuro's forearm with a rough, grateful grip; Mira dabbed at Rei's cheek with a flour-dusted handkerchief and pretended not to tremble. Lysa lingered by the gate, eyes bright and a little mischievous.
"Good luck, Rei," Lysa whispered when the others' backs were turned. Her voice was soft enough that only Rei heard. "Make him happy, okay?"
Rei's face blossomed into color so quickly the willow above them seemed to blush, too. She nodded, unable to hide the way her fingers curled around her basket. Jori and Marek shoved her jokingly, and the small bustle of farewell fell into a comfortable warmth. Kuro watched it all with the quiet patience he always wore: present, reserved, and somehow steadier for the affection raining toward them.
Back in the little house where they had been staying, Rei paused mid-step and looked at Kuro. The question she always wanted answered hovered on her tongue.
"Kuro-sama," she said finally, voice small, "are you—are you related to Aethelred Vi Regis and that Rank-A adventurer, Blade?"
Kuro's expression shifted, the practiced mask softening in a way that made Rei lean forward to catch the nuance. He didn't answer directly. "You will know soon," he said instead. "But not yet. I promise I will tell you everything when the time is right."
Rei's brows furrowed, curious and frustrated. But then she smiled, because he'd kept his other promise. "A date first," she said, firm as a thread pulling two people together. "Before the Mistwood."
Kuro's mouth twitched the slightest bit — enough that Rei saw it and her smile widened. He nodded, and the promise became something real.
Rei dressed for the date in an outfit she had not worn since youth: a flowing dress mended by Mira with careful hands, embroidered with tiny stitches that caught the sunlight. It was simpler than festival finery but arranged with a care that made Kuro take notice. He inclined his head, voice low and earnest.
"You look… beautiful." It was not the poetry of courtly love; it was an observation delivered like a weapon softened at the edge. Rei's cheeks flamed; she fluttered a hand in disbelief.
"You—praise me?" she gasped, delighted. "Kuro-sama, you flatterer."
He only smiled once, the corner of his mouth lifting in a way that was almost—briefly—boyish. Together they walked the short road to Valerion City, and the city greeted them with a livelier bustle than when Kuro had left: fuller markets, guilds posting more contracts, apprentices running errands with brass trays of bread. The church's recent actions had shifted things in ways both small and huge; the city felt steadier, like a bell that had been re-tuned.
They ducked through crowds, hand-in-hand at first and then only with fingers brushing when shyness crept in. In the marketplace they passed a woven stall where a young woman with quick, clever hands was arranging silks — Saria Elcrest, unmistakable even without fanfare. She looked up, blinked in mild surprise at the pair, then glanced slyly toward Princess Alisa, who was just a few paces away with a basket of herbs. Alisa caught sight of Rei and Kuro, the corner of her mouth lifting into an untroubled, proud smile.
"We'll leave them be," Saria whispered, nudging Alisa with a soft elbow. "They're having a moment."
Alisa inclined her head in a small salute and moved on, deliberately turning her attention to a merchant's ledger so she didn't break the scene. Ryuto, who had been buying supplies for the Church, saw the small tableau and let a private smile cross his face. He'd watched Kuro before—watched how the man had been like a distant star that now burned a little closer. "He's thawing," Ryuto thought, pleased. "More human, less iceberg."
At dinner they tried new foods, laughed when a street performer tipped a handkerchief into Rei's lap and pretended not to notice, and argued gently over which lane would give the best view for the hill at sunset. Kuro found himself explaining something about a structural detail in a bridge to Rei—an impulse to share knowledge rather than command—and the ease of it warmed him.
Later, as dusk slipped over the city, Rei guided Kuro up the narrow trail to the Hill from the festival. The place had memories layered into it: the echo of music, the ghost of laughter from past gatherings, the faint burn-smell of long-cool bonfires. Rei stopped at the crest and looked at Kuro with a small, conspiratorial grin.
"Remember this place?" she asked.
He nodded. "I remember."
Rei raised her hand and the air cracked with a soft pop; tiny motes of light began to gather, trailing from her fingertips like captive stars. Fireworks—delicate, shimmering blooms of color—erupted into the sky one after another, painting the clouds with brief, brilliant tales. The spectacle recalled the festival arc and folded it into a private moment between them.
Kuro watched the lights, and something in him loosened. Rei leaned her head on his shoulder as the fireworks painted their faces, and he felt the world tilt just enough to let him see what steadied him: not duty alone, but the small, human constellations of laughter, warmth, and soft obligation.
"You'll tell me soon?" Rei murmured into his shirt, voice heavy with the hush that follows something important.
"I will," he answered, fingers finding hers and squeezing—gentle, certain. "One thing now: I will come back. I will return from the Mistwood."
Rei laughed, content and light. "That is all I ask."
The fireworks dwindled into pinpricks and then to a single lingering glow over the valley. In the quiet that followed, Kuro tucked a small charm into Rei's palm—something Mira had stitched quickly that morning, a simple token of protection. Rei closed her fingers over it like a secret and smiled up at him.
They sat together on the Hill while the city below settled into the soft sound of lamps and footsteps, and for a few hours, Kuro allowed himself to be human: to listen, to hope, and to admit the small, fierce thing inside him that could not bear the thought of losing Rei.
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✦ To be continued...