Hello there. Good morning.

It is good to start everything with a greeting, says Airi.

Mn, Leila also agrees.

Oh, that’s right. Although this seems rushed, Leila has begun cohabitating with Sieg.

Hm? What’s that? It’s weird? It’s too fast?

No, no, no.

Though it may seem as if things are escalating too quickly, in actual fact, it is not.

Leila had spent months in Mimi’s clinic. And in turn, Sieg had never failed to visit Leila every day, save for the days which he had to hunt overnight.

Meeting each other so often, even if one did nothing, one can easily cultivate feelings for one another.

And so, Sieg and Leila fell in love~ ehe~ But because both of us are ultimately side characters and extras in the world, our story don’t really get much attention, you see~

“Welcome back~” Leila who has easily acclimated herself into the role of the stay-at-home wife, happily greeted Sieg who was dragging a large four-legged animal that resembled a moose into the house.

“I’m back, Leila.” Sieg bashfully answered her greeting with a slight blush. Although this had become a habit for both of them, he still felt a sense of nervousness but also sweetness, just like the first time.

“Today, I got lucky. We can have wild game for dinner.”

“Nn~ I’ll prepare the ingredients for the stew, so go process the meat, okay~”

Sieg nodded. He had already planned on how to divide the meat inside his head. He’d save the best parts for them to eat, and divide the rest into shares for the other villagers as well as Druuk’s share.

“Leila, wait!” Sieg abruptly stopped the girl.

“Hm?” Leila stood by the kitchen stove, looking at the man with a questioning, but smiling, look. “What’s wrong? Oh, did you not want to eat stew? Should we roast the meat instead?”

Sieg looked as if he wanted to say something, but ultimately decided not to. “…Nothing, never mind. Stew is fine.”

“?” Leila tilted her head quizzically.

This had not been the first time he had acted the same way. Actually, this behaviour of his had been going on for almost a week. At least once a day, he would ask her to wait, looking as if he had something to tell her, yet in the end, he backed out, simply telling her not to worry.

The two had dinner together as usual, with some small talk in between.

The next day, Leila went over to Mimi’s clinic.

“Fuah~ Spring is finally here~” Mimi stretched lazily. The temperature had risen and the snow had melted. Today marked the first day of spring.

“Mimi, did you notice that Sieg has been acting a little differently lately?” Leila spoke as she opened the window to ventilate the clinic.

“Hm? Sieg?” Mimi nonchalantly replied, then chuckled. “Haha, spring~ has come~” She sang.

“Ah! Could it be…” Leila paled as she paused, for dramatic effects.

Mimi’s tail raised in anticipation, wondering if the girl had caught on.

“…that he wants to kick me out?!”

“…” No! For a moment, Mimi really felt like telling the truth. She was afraid that the girl might misunderstand that idiot Sieg’s intentions. “What makes you think that?” Mimi asked helplessly.

“Um… well,” Leila began to think, “Sieg is treating me well, but somehow he doesn’t talk as much as he used to. And, he seems to be extremely jittery when I’m around. Also, also, he seems to look conflicted every time I asked him what’s wrong.”

“Isn’t it because he has something important he wants to tell you?”

Yes~ of course he does~ but Leila is having too much fun playing dumb~

“Eh~ it must be that he finds it difficult to tell me to pack up because Sieg is such a nice person,” Leila muttered dejectedly.

Girl, can you not be so dense, thought Mimi. “Well, give him some time, okay? I’m sure the thing he wants to tell you is a good thing.”

“Nn~ if Mimi says so~”

Meanwhile, Sieg who was patrolling the area with Druuk is currently mumbling to himself.

“Leila, w-will you, will you…” Sieg groaned. “Druuk, I can’t do this! Why can’t I say it to her?!”

Druuk huffed, as if in annoyance.

“Hey, I’m not a coward!” Sieg replied. “I had no idea this would be so hard, either!”

“Hey, Druuk, why don’t you help me practice? You can be Leila, and I’ll be me.”

Here we go again, Druuk the intelligent wyrm rolled his eyes. Sieg had been doing the exact same thing for a while now, and though he was supportive in the beginning, it was becoming irritating for him.

“Leila, will you… marry me?” He said seriously, staring at Druuk’s snout.

Druuk growled dismissively in response.

“No good… I can’t do it.” Sieg ruffled his already messy grey hair in frustration. “No… you can do it… you can do it… alright! Today, I’ll do it.”

After pumping himself up, he finally regained his vigour. He continued to hunt for the animals that had just came out from hibernation, bringing in a sumptuous feast for the village.