Akira looked at Kaito with wide eyes. She was speechless for a long moment.

When she saw the beautiful scene, she had guessed his intentions. However, the entire occurrence was still a little surreal. She felt like she was floating, and her feet could not touch the ground. At the same time, her heart was beating in a steady rhythm.

She wanted the perfect moment to last forever.

However, she also knew that a more beautiful future waited for her with Kaito. This perfect moment was fleeting, but she would have countless other chances to create more memories with Kaito. There was no need to be afraid.

"Yes. Yes. I will marry you." She finally said with a glorious smile.

With the flair of a magician, a ring appeared in Kaito's hand. Akira realised that it was the ring she always wore around her neck. She lifted her hand to touch the string around her neck and found that the ring was gone,

She had not noticed when he took it away. As expected of a world-class ninja…

"You stole my ring." She pouted cutely.

"I am returning it, then," Kaito said indulgently.

He had planned on proposing to Akira a long time ago, or else he would not have hidden the ring in the model of Yuki the Sword Princess. However, it was not possible to proceed due to the incident that occurred. Of course, his proposal plan was different then.

But he believed that this choice was even better because it presented a new and wonderful future for them in their new home.

After putting the ring on her finger, Kaito stood up and pulled Akira into his arms. He kissed her until she got breathless before hugging her tightly.

"I promise to give you a good life filled with happiness and love." He said.

Akira wanted to say something romantic too, but she seemed to have become speechless. She nodded with her face hidden while promising to be the best wife in her heart. She was not sure about how a good wife lived, but she would make Kaito happy.

"Let's go back," Kaito said. "It is a little cold."

"Ok. I am hungry." Akira said.

The two started walking back through the woods, following the track of the fairy lights. As the gazebo and the lake disappeared from the view, Akira remembered something. She looked back, but she could not see anything.

"Wasn't there another person with you, rowing the boat?" She asked.

Kaito laughed. "Yes. I wanted a magical boat that drifted among the lanterns without a motor. It turns out only the souls being ferried to the underworld can use that type of boat."

"I think there is usually a guy rowing the boat to the underworld," Akira replied. "Wait, that is not the point. What happened to the person rowing the boat?"

Kaito was dissatisfied with the question. "You have a husband now, why are you asking about other men?"

Akira rolled her eyes. "You are a man with a wife now. Why are you being as childish as ever?"

They continued walking in silence before Kaito responded.

"He is one of my trusted subordinates. Even if he fell into the lake he would be fine." He paused. "Of course, I would kill him if he ruined the pictures."

"There are pictures?" Akira asked loudly.

She did not look her best. She had been wearing her usual clothes while going to visit her father. Moreover, the long cloak on her body was a little retro. But again, it did somehow match Kaito's robes, so the effect was not bad.

She was surprised by how well Kaito had planned everything.

"Naturally, there are pictures for posterity. How can we tell Little Precious about our glory days without photographic evidence?" Kaito laughed.

Akira smiled. She was glad he was so thoughtful because she was not the kind of person who kept a lot of photographs. It would be a shame if the memories faded from her mind as she grew old and grey.

When they returned to the house, the housekeeper was all smiles as she showed them the hotpot setup she had made. She was naturally very happy to see Kaito living a blissful life because she had been at his side for quite a while.

She could not believe how much time had changed.

Their meeting was not a good one, per se. At the time, she was a widow who had lost her child. She had become a housekeeper in the home of the person she held responsible for the death of her daughter. She did not have power, but she was determined to get justice for her child.

As a housekeeper, she thought she would have a lot of chances. Unfortunately, that man had a lot of enemies, so he was extremely cautious. He would not trust his household stuff with issues that could affect his life and death.

It was frustrating to wait for an opportunity for revenge.

When she was going to stake it all out and attack the man in his sleep, a young Kaito appeared from nowhere and stopped her. She had never seen the boy before, and he looked like he was still a teenager. Therefore, she was shocked enough to snap out of her murderous stupor.

She realised that she had almost done something stupid. How could she have hoped to kill a cautious man in his sleep with a kitchen knife? Even if she was able to open his bedroom door, she would not be able to fight him.

She would only end up dead or in jail for the attempted murder.

The young Kaito got her to meet him outside of work, and he said he was looking for information to take down that powerful man. Following that, she became an underground spy for the young Kaito and passed him details about that man.

At the time, she thought that the young man was some sort of spy or law enforcement undercover agent, especially when he promised to get justice for her. It was not until that man was found dead in his car that she realised that things might not be so simple.

Regardless of his identity and motives, she considered him her benefactor for helping her get her revenge on the vile person.

When she thought she would return to her hometown, Kaito appeared again and asked her if she was interested in being his housekeeper. Without her daughter or a husband, she did not have much going on, so she agreed, if only to pay back her debt.

She did not regret following Kaito, and she treated him like she would a son.

In the past, she thought he would always be alone. But looking at him with a woman he loved and a child on the way, she felt fulfilled. She looked forward to more time caring for the small family.

"Where is Uncle Taiki?" Akira asked as they sat down at the table with the ingredients and the hotpot.

"He said he is going to take care of some business. He will be back later." The housekeeper replied.

"Oh ok. Did he have anything to eat?" Akira asked.

"I will make him something when he returns."

After that, the housekeeper left the dining room with a smile. She was glad to see that the girl had a kind heart. At the same time, she was not a pushover. It was just that her mood could be a little bit unpredictable.

"Why are you so concerned about him?" Kaito pouted in annoyance at the care Akira showed towards his uncle.

"You are such a child." Akira giggled.

"But you are stuck with me." He replied. "What is so good about my uncle?"

Akira looked contemplative. "He reminds me of myself when I first came to Mountain Ridge."

"How so?" Kaito asked.

"I did not lack anything, but I felt like I was drifting in something unknown. I was looking for something special to help me understand family. I don't know how to describe it. It is like a yearning and curiosity about the meaning of family." She was a little frustrated by not being articulate.

Kaito was silent for a while as he placed ingredients into the hotpot. He did feel like his uncle was drifting. There was even a sense of disillusionment. Even on the island, Kaito could not understand why Taiki was putting so much effort into the Iekami clan.

He was probably tired of being the babysitter.

"So, what do you want to do?" Kaito asked after a while.

"Of course, I want him to be part of our family." She responded with a smile.

"Why? He might look like an emotionless human, but he is very annoying. Don't let his deadpan jokes fool you. Once he gets serious, we will regret it." Kaito said with a laugh.

Akira giggled. "We are going to have our own family. What fun is it if we do not have a weird uncle to make things awkward?"

Kaito continued complaining about Taiki. He did not dislike his uncle, but it did not stop him from picking at his faults. If Akira wanted him to be part of their family, he would not stand in the way. Anyway, it might be a little interesting.

Their life together was just beginning.

And he hoped it would be an adventure.