My Satyr Wife [ End of Arc IV ]

“So you’re not actually married?!”

The surprise in Meiruna’s eyes and voice caught Lucius completely off guard.

“…Well… we never got around to it,” he admitted at last, shifting nervously on the wooden bench.

Meiruna took another deep swig from her cup, a trickle spilling down the corner of her mouth.

“And when exactly did you propose to her?”

Lucius scratched his head awkwardly as Meiruna and Fin leaned closer, eyes already glassy from drink.

“Well… technically I asked Dionysus for her hand… I never really proposed to her myself.”

Meiruna shot to her feet, her cup tipping halfway across the table.

“You can’t be serious?! So you’re neither married nor engaged!”

Findergwyn laughed and gave Lucius a friendly slap on the shoulder.

“Still waters run deep, you sly fox.”

Lucius laughed uneasily, shaking his head and raising his hands in protest.

“It’s not like that! I really imagined it all quite differently…”

Then he stared down into his half-empty cup.

The sweet, fermented drink of the Kirraka shimmered in his eyes.

But… they’re not wrong. I’ve never actually proposed to her. Never really asked…

His gaze drifted toward the village square.

The great bonfire blazed high, flames licking the evening sky as the Kirraka danced wildly around it to the rhythm of drums.

And there, in the midst of them, he saw her, laughing and dancing, just as she had at the lake.

Melissa.

She showed the Kirraka dances from her former realm, and most had no trouble copying her steps.

Glizzy and Liviana joined in, though the little goblin tripped more often over her own legs, or someone else’s.

But no one cared; everyone laughed and celebrated.

“I thiiink… you shhould… make up for that…” Meiruna slurred, head resting on her arms.

“A woman… deserves a proper proposal. Hic!”

Tairaku, just arriving, took the cup from her and set it firmly at the far end of the table.

“I think you’ve had enough for tonight.”

Lucius said nothing, only gazed thoughtfully toward Melissa, still dancing.

She’s changed.

The black horns, her hair, the divine aura like a veil about her, it was plain for all to see.

But she had changed on the inside as well, and he knew it.

She was no longer only the playful, untamed maenad he had once met, she had become… more.

With her new powers she had rebuilt the Kirraka’s ruined village in no time, wood, hide, and stone weaving back together as if by magic.

Within hours Refalesh was no ruin but reborn, greater and fairer than ever before.

The Kirraka had fallen to their knees before her, much to Melissa’s annoyance, pulling them up at once and insisting she was no goddess.

And though that wasn’t true, in time they accepted it, at least after enough toasts had been shared.

For Lucius, however, those moments only deepened his doubts.

“What if I can’t keep up with her? What if I… am no longer enough for her…?” he murmured, barely aware he’d spoken.

But Tairaku heard and sat gently beside him.

“That’s something to be proud of, isn’t it?”

Lucius startled, pulled from his thoughts.

“What do you mean?”

Tairaku gestured toward the feast.

“Look at all those faces, children playing, parents smiling. Because of us they live, they’re free. That’s worth some pride.”

Lucius gave a faint smile and nodded, still watching Melissa with indecision.

“Yes… you’re right.”

For a moment both were silent, then Tairaku drew in a deep breath.

“You know, Lucius. Sometimes it’s better not to be weighed down by what we can’t change, but simply to do what lies in our own hands.”

With a pat on the back, he left him, carrying his already-dozing sister carefully to her tent.

What lies in our own hands…

Lucius’s gaze turned back to his mug.

A moment’s pause, a deep breath… then he raised his mug and drained it in one pull.

“Fin. I need you to do me a favor!”

The dark elf raised an eyebrow, then leaned closer.

---

“I think I’ve got the hang of it now!”

Glizzy spun in time with the drums, twirled once, landed on her toes, and flashed her sharp teeth with pride.

“Greenling dance good!” Eucho called approvingly from afar.

Melissa and Liviana whirled with her around the flames, unleashing all their agility, sweat streaming down brows and temples.

“Not bad, kitty!” Melissa teased with a wink.

“I could say the same, fawny,” Liviana shot back with a grin.

But suddenly the music ceased.

The revelers turned in surprise and beside the drummers, who had stopped mid-beat, stood a figure.

Lucius.

Slowly he walked toward a bewildered Melissa.

A bright melody rose, delicate and enchanting, like a distant memory filling the night air of Refalesh.

Findergwyn stood only a few paces away, yet his playing sounded as if a hundred flutes echoed through the village.

When Lucius finally reached Melissa and extended his hand, the others stepped aside instinctively, leaving them the square.

“Took you long enough…” Liviana murmured, before tugging Glizzy away from the firelight.

Wordlessly, but with a smile, Melissa took Lucius’s hand.

He pulled her close, and she followed his lead.

At first he guided her clumsily, almost shyly, but within a few steps Lucius found a rhythm he hadn’t known he had.

Melissa’s brows lifted in surprise as he spun her gracefully, his hands steady on hers, his gaze fixed solely on her, no fire, no feast, only the two of them.

Findergwyn’s melody carried them, bright and clear, like a promise.

“I didn’t know you could dance like this,” Melissa said with a wink.

“Honestly, neither did I,” he replied with a smile.

Perhaps it was the lingering Essence of the Swordmaster that made his movements so smooth, so sure, or perhaps it had always been within him, waiting for her to awaken it.

For a heartbeat time stood still, their eyes, their hands, the melody, all in perfect harmony.

Then the melody shifted.

The drums returned, faint at first, then pounding harder, until they throbbed like heartbeats through the night, and Findergwyn’s flute, once gentle and light, climbed faster, sharper, as if feeding the fire itself.

Melissa laughed, that wild, free laugh that had captured Lucius from the very first moment.

She tore from his gentle lead, spun around him, leapt, stamped, her horns gleaming in the firelight.

Lucius let her storm sweep him up, he caught her by the waist, lifted her, spun her high.

She landed lightly, hooves striking the ground, and countered with a bold sweep that nearly sent him stumbling into the fire.

The music drove them harder, their steps faster, their movements wilder.

Sweat shone on her skin, her breath came ragged, and Lucius’s heart pounded in the same rhythm, louder, faster, until at last he caught her, breathless, in his arms.

Then, as the music crested, they froze.

Only a breath separated their lips, their gazes burning into one another.

The fire roared, sparks soaring skyward, yet for Lucius the night was silent, save for her heartbeat against his chest.

Now. Now is the moment.

Only she stood before him, laughing, panting, her hair wild, horns gleaming in the firelight.

I have to say it…

“Melissa…” he began, his voice trembling.

"There’s something I’ve never truly asked you..."

He swallowed, and she noticed his sudden hesitation.

“Will you...”

But before he could finish, Melissa pressed a finger to his lips.

Her eyes sparkled, mischievous yet earnest.

“Shhh. You always make everything so complicated, my little wizard.”

She caught his hand, yanked him closer until their foreheads nearly touched.

“So I’ll ask you first: Will you take me, with all my chaos, with wine, fire, dance, and the rule of a far-off underworld? Will you have me at your side? Will you… marry me?”

For a heartbeat, utter silence.

The music stilled, the fire crackled, and all around the square even the Kirraka held their breath.

Glizzy gaped, as if she’d just missed the punchline to the best joke in the world.

Liviana’s eyes widened, then softened into a smile.

Tairaku folded his arms, but respect glinted in his gaze.

Findergwyn only nodded in quiet approval.

And Meiruna was already snoring loudly in her tent.

And all of them waited.

For him.

Lucius’s heart pounded, his throat dry, but the words came:

“Of course! Of course I’ll marry you!”

Then the square erupted in cheers, and at last, their lips met.

For the first time, as betrothed.

Shouts and music rang out across the village, but for Lucius and Melissa there was only the kiss they shared.

Above them the stars glittered, silent and endless, yet one burned brighter, as though distant eyes watched their vow.

And at the edge of the night, a low rumble stirred, faint as a memory, yet a reminder that their war with the gods… was not yet over.

                            THE END