We advanced down the forest path I had gotten used to taking every morning, and my house was already just ahead.
“Reina, we’re back!” I said.
“We’re baaack!” Luna echoed.
In response to our greetings, Reina came out of the house. She was wearing small reading glasses which made her seem even more intellectual than usual. She must have finished her barrage of questions for Katima, then had also gotten done making breakfast, and had been leisurely reading until we got back.
“Welcome back, you two... Why are they here?” she asked.
“As a matter of fact...”
I realized that out of everything that had happened yesterday, I had forgotten to tell her what was going on with Zelos and Merlyn. After I explained things to her, Reina thought for a moment, then let out a quiet sigh.
“Should I not have?” I asked.
I had hoped she would be able to leave the past in the past and move forward, but I could definitely understand that it wasn’t so easy. She had previously told me that she didn’t get along well with the other Celestial Archmages. I had simply assumed that it would be all right because they weren’t enemies, but maybe I had been too optimistic.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Reina said. “If that’s what you want to do, then I don’t mind. It’s just, I have my own thoughts on the matter.” She must have understood that I was uneasy, because her awkward expression changed to a smile.
“I want to get along with them, seeing as we both live here on this island,” I said.
“Yes, I can see where you’re coming from... This isn’t even the continent anymore, let alone the kingdom.” Reina turned back to Zelos and Merlyn. “Zelos, Merlyn... This island can be absurd, but after living here for some time, I think it’s a nice place. I’m sure both of you have your own reasons, but let’s forget about the past and get along with each other.”
Zelos and Merlyn looked slightly awkward and didn’t reply. There really must have been a wedge between them I didn’t know about. Still, as an outsider, it didn’t seem to be my place to question them about it. And I could tell from my conversations with them that they were by no means bad people. If anything, they were good people who had clear consideration for others, despite their confusion.
They hesitated over what to do about Reina’s outstretched hand, but then Zelos moved first. He roughly scratched his head, then stepped forward.
“Gah! Fine, I get it, I get it already! I’m sorry about everything, Reina! I hope we can get along!” He firmly grasped her hand.
“I hope so too, Zelos.”
Zelos turned around to look at his partner. “C’mon, get over it already.”
After some hesitation, Merlyn said, “All right, fine. Hahh, I never thought this would happen after I made it all the way to being one of the Seven Celestial Archmages.” Though she seemed weary, she took Reina’s hand. “Reina... I hope we can get along this time.”
“So do I,” Reina said.
The sight of these two beauties smiling next to each other was quite striking. Merlyn in particular had a mature allure to her that any man would be charmed by.
“Hey, just so you know, she’s really getting up there,” Zelos said to me.
“I don’t really think you should say that,” I replied. If he was heard, the monsters on this island would be the least of his worries; he’d probably make a sudden departure from this world at the hands of his own partner.
“Also, drop the formality already,” he said. “I’m in your debt, and I hate being so stiff.”
“Oh, okay.”
Reina and Merlyn were having a conversation some distance away from us men. Come to think of it, the only male friends I’d had on the island were Elga and Gaius. I felt unexpectedly happy to have made a new one.
Luna, who had been quiet up until now, came up to Zelos’s side.
“Hey, can I ask something?”
“Huh? What?” he replied.
She nervously looked up at him. “You’re not scared of me anymore, are you?”
It might have been quite the shock that they had been afraid of her. Zelos seemed to understand this; while he had an incredibly awkward expression on his face, he confidently looked at Luna.
“Sorry about that. And... No, not anymore. Oh, also, I forgot to say it then, but thanks for saving us yesterday.”
“Yeah!” Luna must have understood that his apology and thanks came from his heart. She smiled from ear to ear. “It’s nice to meet you, Uncle Zelos!”
“Y-Yeah.”
“Pfft!” Merlyn burst into laughter. “‘Uncle?’ Aha ha! Uncle Zelos!” Unable to control herself, she laughed out loud. Next to her, Reina was smiling slightly as well.
Zelos shot them a glare, but then, realizing something, he turned to Luna. “Hey, Luna, what do you call Reina?”
“Huh? Miss Reina is Miss Reina. Why?”
“I see...” Zelos smirked, then pointed at Merlyn. “All right then, what would you call Merlyn?”
“Huh? Umm...”
Merlyn flinched beneath her gaze. “Wh-Why are you staring at me so much?”
As for Luna, she quizzically tilted her head, looked at Zelos, then back to Merlyn.
“Aunt Merlyn!”
Seeing the astonished look on Merlyn’s face, Zelos laughed as hard as he could.
“Bwa ha ha!”
“Wha— ‘A-Aunt’?!” Merlyn exclaimed.
Looking at Reina, I saw that she couldn’t bring herself to laugh about the age of a fellow woman, as you might expect. But she knew how old Merlyn really was, so she couldn’t deny it either.
“Z-Zelos! You knew this would happen when you asked her, didn’t you?!”
“Gah ha ha! That’s what you get for laughing at me, Aunt Merlyn!”
“Agh!” With a vein bulging in her forehead, Merlyn smiled and made eye contact with Luna. “Hey, you said your name was Luna, right?”
“Yep! I’m Luna!”
“D-Do you think you could tell me why you called me Aunt Merlyn?”
“Huh? I mean...” Luna glanced at Reina, then at Zelos, then looked back at Merlyn. “Because you’re older than Uncle Zelos.”
Merlyn froze. She was still smiling, but sweat trickled down her forehead.
“Bwa ha! Heh heh heh... Nice one!” Zelos said. “It just goes to show, no matter how much you try to cover up your appearance, you can’t hide how mean you are inside!” He burst into loud laughter again, reveling in his complete triumph.
Merlyn tried as hard as she could to get Luna to call her “Miss Merlyn” instead, but Luna just looked confused, like it didn’t quite feel right. She didn’t show any intention of changing how she addressed her. This only amused Zelos more, causing him to roar with laughter again, while Merlyn looked like she was ready to cry.
“Well... I guess this means they’re getting along?” I said. Though Zelos and Merlyn had reacted to Luna with fear at first, they didn’t seem to mind now. They just looked like adults at the mercy of an innocent child; surely no one would believe that these people were actually the strongest magicians on the continent.
Then, as the atmosphere calmed down, Katima came out of the house.
“Hey, Arata, I’m getting hungry,” she said.
Hearing that, Reina and I unconsciously smiled. We realized that it was already quite late for breakfast.
“All right, why don’t we eat now?” Reina said. “I know! I’ll go all out today, as a welcome party for Merlyn and Zelos.”
“Yaaay!” Luna shouted.
“Hm... I’m excited,” Katima said. Both of them were emitting happiness from every pore.
As for me, I was relieved that Zelos and Merlyn had been able to accept the inhabitants of the island.
“Well then, I’m glad to meet you,” I said to them.
“Same here,” Zelos said.
“So am I,” Merlyn said.
I didn’t know what their lives on this island would be like going forward. They might do whatever it took to escape, coming up with all sorts of plans. I wouldn’t be against that, and I’d even help out if they asked me. This island was a free place. I could do the things I wanted to do, and live in a way that put a smile on my face. There were no doubt all sorts of new meetings in store for me in the future as well. And, all sorts of absurd things were definitely going to happen too. But I wanted to enjoy my life here to the best of my ability, taking everything as it came.