Chapter 17

When he opened his eyes, it felt as if he had never slept. But he could see the bright ray of light shining through the small opening.

Meline got up and stretched her limbs. “Good morning.”

“Morning.”

They began their preparations to move. They rolled their sleeping bags and put them into their bags. Meline prepared some wolf meat combined with bread for their breakfast. After they finished, they continued on, battling more monsters as they headed for the finish line.

“Kade, is something going on?” Meline asked after she finished off a giant salamander. The creature looked disgusting, now lying motionless on the ground. Kade wasn't paying attention to the fight, his mind wandering all over the place. Now that he noticed it, the salamander looked jarring as it lay there. Not the kind of background piece for a serious conversation.

“Kade? Are you alright?” Meline approached and put her hand on his forehead.

“Ah…”

“Kade?” She looked deeply concerned. Kade remembered when he got a cold a few years ago. She took care of him, cooked him warm chicken soup, and accompanied him as he recovered.

Life… without her…

But he hadn't done anything for her. They've been together for so long, but it's always her taking care of him. Never the other way around.

“Meline…”

“Yes? Should we exit? You don't look too good, I tell you. If you're sick, we can stop.”

They had gotten quite far into the course, so they're pretty much guaranteed to pass.

What came out of Kade’s mouth had nothing to do with the dungeon. “... What do you think of me?”

Meline tilted her head slightly. “Huh? Where did this come from? You're acting weird, very weird.”

“Ah… you're right.”

“... Right? Kade, what are you talking about?”

Linda's words from the night before circled in his mind. How could he live without Meline? He never had to imagine it.

But now, he must face reality. This relationship wouldn't stay forever.

“Is there anything I can do for you?”

“Hu- huh? What's going on? Are you really alright?” She held his shoulders, peering into his eyes. He could see himself reflected in those crimson eyes of hers. They always looked so dazzling.

“... Let's go.” Meline grabbed him and threw him onto her back.

“Me- meline!?”

She teleported straight to the end of the course, defeated the monster standing there, and completed the dungeon, setting a record time in the process. She ran straight past the confused professors, bringing Kade all the way to the facility’s infirmary.

“Wait here,” she told him after putting him on the bed, before bringing back a thermometer and a cold wipe. It all happened in an instant. Only after seeing her slap that wipe onto his forehead did he truly wake up.

“Wait wait wait, I'm not sick!”

“Then? You're acting weird. I'll get you something to eat.”

“We just had breakfast!”

Meline ignored him and left. It didn't take long for her to return, warm soup in hand.

“This isn't something I cooked, but it should taste delicious.”

“Meline…”

Kade could feel his temperature rising, but not from a cold. He averted his eyes.

“Come on now, eat. It'll make you feel better. Believe me.” She scooped up a spoon of soup, bringing it to Kade's mouth.

“I- I'm not si- oumph!”

Meline pushed the spoon straight through his mouth, not letting him finish his sentence.

“Then what?” she asked, scooping some more soup.

“I just have some things I'm thinking about, that's all!” Kade said, half-shouting. The door swung open, and Linda entered.

“Kade! Meline! Did something happen?”

“Miss Linda…”

“He's acting really weird all of a sudden.”

Linda turned to Kade. “Are you alright?”

“I'm fine, really.”

Linda came closer and observed him. A wry grin on her face. “Did what I said get to you?”

“... What did you say to him?”

Linda sat down in the chair next to the bed before shifting her gaze toward Meline. “Last night, I spoke with him for a bit.”

Meline's eyes narrowed in suspicion as she leaned forward. “What did you say?”

“...” A nasty grin appeared on Linda's face. “I told him that you two should get married,” Linda said in a cheerful voice.

The room fell silent.

“...”

“...”

“... Huh!?”

Kade's face went red. He grabbed the bedsheet and pulled it up, covering his face with it.

“... Kade, is she serious!?”

“N- no! All she said was that once the link is gone, then there'll be no need for us to stay together!” he shouted from underneath the bedsheets.

Linda let out a loud laugh. She stared at her two flustered students, enjoying their reactions.

“This is better than I expected.”

“Sh- shut up! You're a professor, Linda!”

“Yes, and?”

“Be more professional!” Meline jerked her head toward Kade. “Kade, don't listen to her! Don't listen to her!”

“I'm trying not to…”

“Well, that half was partly a joke…” Linda's expression turned serious, her laugh fading away. “But the other half wasn't.”

“... What are you talking about? Wait, no, I'm not hearing your arguments.” Meline folded her hands and looked away…

“It's about the hero.”

… Only to jerk her head back when she heard the hero mentioned. Kade also lowered the bedsheet slightly, his eyes gazing at Linda.

“Marriage has always been an essential part of demon culture, right?”

Meline pulled out the three spears. Love is indeed one of the three essential pillars of demon culture, present throughout the cultures of the various races in demon land. It's also true that until now, marriage has been an essential part of being a demon lord.

Ruling a country is a difficult task. A good demon lord needed a good partner to support them. That was the case for her own parents.

“... But… are you saying that I should marry Kade? Why now, specifically?”

“Are you against it?”

Meline's cheeks turned red. “Not at all,” she admitted in a low voice. “But that doesn't answer my question! Why now?”

“That's… Lost children's abilities often come into play during tough times, while the demon's royal blood had abilities that could boost themselves with marriage, right?”

Meline's traits could be passed to another through marriage, and she could also gain access to some abilities through this. One such thing was the capability to share burdens. Kade had read about it in a book. When his wife was struggling with the burden of a magic spell, a demon lord that ruled in the past shared that burden, allowing both of them to take less of an impact. If they're serious, they could gain some positives from a marriage.

“Between Kade's appearance, the scrolls, the swords, and our findings, I have an inkling that something will happen.”

“... And marrying Kade would help us?”

Linda shrugged. “That's the thing, you never know. I mean, might as well consider it. You've been together for ten years.”

They had been together longer compared to a lot of other couples.

Meline glanced at Kade, and the two looked at each other wordlessly. Linda pulled the door shut.

“...”

“... Guess I'll start thinking about it.”

“... Yeah…”

The air in the infirmary turned awkward. And thus the nature test came to an end. They soon returned to the university.