Caroline woke up slowly. It took her a moment to figure out what she was feeling: it was painlessness.

She stretched out and felt her stiff joints pop pleasantly. It’d been days since she could do that and the relief was immense.

Opening her eyes, she sat up and looked around.

After a confusing moment, she remembered Thio saying he’d brought her to the Capital. This was his house.

She patted the bed, impressed. It was so big and comfy! And the room was very grand. Half the wall was covered in white and silver wallpaper, the bottom half had dark wood paneling. The floor was made of wood too. A big window gave her a peek of a dusk covered neighborhood outside.

What a fancy place he lived in!

Swinging her legs out of the bed, she went to stand up. Her knees buckled beneath her, legs too weak to carry her own weight.

Fortunately she had lots of experience falling. She simply let herself fall back on the bed, a look of surprise on her face.

The sound of footsteps could be heard from the hallway, a knock, and Thio entered. He frowned at the sight of her, half her body hanging haphazardly off the bed. Shaking his head, he set the tray he’d been carrying down, and walked over to help re-situate herself on the bed. The whole action was so smooth and quick, she didn’t even have time to object to it.

“The doctor said you should take things easy.” Thio said, tucking her in the covers like a child.

“O-oh.” Having lived alone for four years, she found such pampering awkward.

“I’m serious Caroline. You’re dehydrated, starved, and weak. Don’t do anything reckless.”

His nagging tone helped rally her spirit.

“I’m not a child, I can follow Doctor’s orders.”

His eyes narrowed, not believing her at all.

“We’ll see.” He turned around and brought the tray over. “Here’s some water and food. Sentra, that’s the Doctor, told me to start with small simple meals since your stomach has likely shrunk from days without eating.”

He wasn’t joking about small meals. There was a small bowl of soup. It was just broth. That was it.

When she reached to pick the bowl up, he stopped her.

“Can you even hold a spoon?” He asked.

“Of course I can!”

He handed her a spoon. “Then prove it. Try to hold this steady.”

Annoyed, Caroline did as in instructed. Or tried. Her hand was shaking, making it impossible to hold it properly.

“That’s what I thought.” He held up the water, causing her eyes to widen. “What? If you can’t hold a spoon you can’t hold a cup of water either. I’m helping you.”

Caroline really wanted to argue, but he shoved the cup in her mouth before she had the chance. Despite his gracelessness, the actual drinking went smoothly. She licked her dry lips, and sighed. She’d been way more thirsty than she’d thought.

“Now for the soup.” He started spooning it in her mouth. She made a face at him but didn’t have the energy to protest. He was right about her being weak.

While she was eating, she took the time to look him over. It had been four years after all. That time in the Capital barely counted, since she only saw him in passing.

Thio’s black hair was now down to his waist. He had it braided in a loose plait, with the wave of his hair giving him a slightly wild look. Was it part of the Mage code to grow out your hair? Now that she thought about it, all the Mages she saw had long hair. His was just extra long.

His eyes were as beautiful as always. Light sea green, with dark thick eyelashes. His long straight nose, paired with a narrow face but strong jawline, gave him a metropolitan appearance that was rare in this world. His tanned skin had lightened since joining the Institute. He really was the type to scowl rather than smile, based of the slight creases beginning to show around his eyes and mouth.

Dammit, she thought feeling as though she’d lost. He’s so good looking!

“What?” He asked, noticing her staring.

“You’re wearing the shirt I made you.” It was a wonderful deflection and she silently congratulated herself for it.

“Ah yes…” He glanced down at himself, clearing his throat. “It’s a very nice shirt. Very comfortable.”

“Should I make more of them?” She’d only made that one. He’d thanked her for it, but hadn’t requested more be made, so she hadn’t made them. Seeing him wear it now, it occurred to her he might like another one.

An eager look flashed across his face before instantly being replaced with cool indifference.

“Only if you have the time.”

Uh huh. She thought. He definitely wanted more. If he’d mentioned it sooner, she would have made more.

“Well, I’ve got nothing better to do, maybe I should make one.”

Seeing his eyes widen ever so slightly and sparkle, despite keeping a stoic expression on his face, made her want to snicker.

“It’ll keep me from wanting to move around.” She added.

“I’ll have Metts go and get the material for you tomorrow then.”

“Metts…?”

“Ah, that’s my Butler.”

“You have a Butler?!” How the times have changed! He really went up in life.

“A young one, yes. I only hired him two weeks ago.” Thio set the spoon down, soup bowl empty. “I’ll bring him in to introduce to you after I put this away.”

He got up and went to leave, pausing at the door: “Stay in bed.”

“Jeesh, I told you I’d take it easy!”

——

Metts was naturally excited to be introduced to his Master’s mysterious wife. He’d been snooping on Sentra and Thio all day, so he got the gist of what was going on. (It’s a Butlers privilege!)

Back straight, head held high, he walked into the room with Thio. Giving a fancy bow at the waist, he greeted: “I’m Metts, the Head Butler of this fine house. If you need anything, Madam, don’t hesitate to ask me.”

Thio grunted, teasing lightly, “You’re the only Butler of this house.”

Metts cleared his throat. “Should you ever acquire more servants though, I’d be the Head Butler.”

“When did I agree to that?”

“Master!” The young boy looked heart broken.

“Fine, fine.” Thio patted him on the head. “You’re the Head Butler.”

It wasn’t like Thio had any plans to get more servants at this point, so he considered it a moot point.

Caroline laughed at their exchange.

“It’s nice to see you two get along at least.”

Thio coughed. “Metts, Madam Caroline was thinking of sewing and embroidering while bed-bound.”

“Say no more Master! Leave it to me! I’ll get whatever she needs!”

“Very good. It’s too late in the day to start a new project, so fetch whatever she requests tomorrow.”

“Understood sir!”

“You are dismissed.”

Metts gave a salute and smartly marched out of the room.

Once he was gone, Caroline commented: “He seems like a nice kid. How old is?”

“Fourteen I think.”

“That’s… that is young.”

“Ah… better off than me at that age.”

Caroline thought for a moment. “I guess that’s true. You started working at 12 didn’t you?”

“Hm.” He’d walked over and pulled up a stool. “We should get these bandages off you.”

She gave him a scandalized look.

“I’m not going to take all of them off.” He rolled his eyes. “What kind of man do you take me for?”

Seeing her uncertain face, he sighed.

“I’m not into freshly wrapped mummies.”

She glared at him. How rude! She punched him, or tried. It had no power to it at all and barely dented the cotton of his shirt.

They both stared at each other. Looking defeated, she stuck out an arm.

“Fine.” She grumbled.

After unwrapping her hand, Thio paused.

“Hm… It looks like there’s left over medical salve under the wrapping. I’m going to get some warm water and a cloth to help wash it off. Give me a moment.”

He promptly stood up and left.

While he was gone, she looked at her hand. While there was some discoloration from the salve, a great deal of it was just bruising. It looked pretty bad. Those curses must have really put her body through the ringer. And if her hand was like this, what did the rest of her look like? A slight shudder ran down her spine at the thought.

He came back with a pitcher, large bowl, and a towel on one hand.

She reached for the towel, but was denied.

“I’ll do it.”

“But I can——”

“No.” He was so firm in his rejection that she didn’t talk back.

Bah. She thought sourly. That’s the military life for you. Get use to bossing people around.

Thio continued unwrapping her arm, periodically whipping off the salve residue as he went. The farther up the arm he went, the higher his eyebrows went up.

“There’s quite a bit of bruising.” He spoke hesitantly.

“Yeah… I noticed that too. Hopefully it’ll be gone by the end of the week though.”

“…the… the scarring is pretty extensive too..”

She looked down at her arm but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

“Naw, those are old scars.”

He stared at her blankly for a moment and then blinked rapidly.

“What do you mean old scars?”

“Huh? I’m a close range fighter,” She gave some weak air punches. “Boxing is my specialty. Of course I’ve got scars.”

“You… hit monsters… with your fists?” There was a slight hint of hysterical disbelief in his voice. It was only in that moment that he realized she’d never once specifically stated what her fighting style was in their letters.

“Y—yeah.” Sensing something was wrong, she started explaining herself: “I use spiked brass knuckles and arm guards, so I’m not defenseless! A lot of these scars are from when I first started, you know? I made a lot of rookie mistakes, was a little too slow. I’m fast now, almost impossible to hit. Even that big snake had problems, so.. Eh… why’s your face like that?”

The more she talked the darker Thio’s expression became.

Grinding his teeth, he spit out. “Are you saying… that when you fought that giant ancient snake… YOU WALKED RIGHT UP TO IT AND JUST STARTED PUNCHING?!”

The last part was shouted, causing her to jump.

“Eep!” Was all she could say.

He was shaking and holding his forehead as if suffering from a severe headache.

“You—that—how——” He dropped his hand, rendered speechless for a moment.

“E—even if you say that, I did give it the finishing blow.” She tried to grin cutely, but stopped at his furious glare.

Grabbing her by the arms roughly, he shook her. “Caroline promise me you’ll never do that again!”

“It’s not like I wanted to do it in the first place! I was tricked!”

“PROMISE ME.”

“I promise, I promise!”

He stopped shaking her and his body sagged.

“How can you be so careless?” Thio’s voice cracked and his face twisted in anguish, he let go of her arms. “Y-you should have died under those curses. If I hadn’t brought you here, you would have died.”

“I—I’m sure it wasn’t that bad—”

“It was that bad! You had a Timed Death curse on you. It was counting down to an instant kill.”

Her eyes rounded. “That’s… uh… I guess that’s pretty bad.”

“So you’re finally understanding, huh? Even an expensive Civilian Doctor wouldn’t have known how to cure that curse. If I wasn’t in the military, if I didn’t know a good Mage Healer, you’d be dead.”

“It’s… it’s a good thing you’re a Mage then.” She smiled weakly.

He grunted, still a little angry.

Caroline reached out and squeezed his hand.

“Thank you Thio. Thank you for saving me.”

He exhaled at her touch, the anger from worry a hard ball in his stomach.

“You should quit being an Adventurer.”

She immediately withdrew her hand, frowning.

“Excuse me?”

“Just quit. This isn’t the first time you’ve come close to dying is it? I only found out about this time because I decided to visit on a whim. How many times before this have you almost died and never said anything?”

“Er..” She couldn’t deny that she’d purposefully left out the details about some of her riskier Requests. He was something of a worrier, so she’d long ago decided to sanitize her Adventuring so not to upset him.

“That’s what I thought.” Grabbing her arm and squeezed it, a fearful look in his eyes. “Caroline, this isn’t right. You’re reckless, and it’s going to kill you some day. As a woman, you shouldn’t be—”

Caroline bristled. “What’s being a woman got to do with it?”

“Everything! It’s not normal for women to fight, to risk their lives, to be scarred and not care. It’s the man’s job to—”

“I don’t care if it’s normal. I love my job! I’m not quitting!”

“No, you need to quit.”

“How dare you! You’re not my father, I don’t have to listen to you!”

“I may not be your father, but I am your husband.”

“ON PAPER!”

“It’s not just on paper.”

“Oh, oh, NOW we’re really married? Now that you want to boss me around? If you think for one moment—”

“No, that’s not what I meant.” He pulled her forward and kissed her. She was so surprised she didn’t resist. “It’s not that you’re a woman, it’s that you’re MY woman. I’m saying I love you. I love you and I can’t stand the thought of you getting killed. Please Caroline, listen to reason. Please.”

Caroline open and closed her mouth soundlessly.

Her mind was blank.

Had he just— Did he— Wha———at?!

“I… you…” She fiddled her fingers and then balled her hands into fists. “Even if you say you love me, I’m not going to stop being an Adventurer.”

“Caroline…” He reached out to touch her, eyes pleading, but she leaned back.

“You know… you know Thio.” She gave a shaky breath, eyes tearing up. “I’ve been on my own for years now. I’ve done well, really well. I’m a nationally recognized Adventurer. Yeah, I almost died. But you know what? I saved my party members. Me. By myself. And all the times I risked my life before, it was to save someone. I never went halfway! And do you care? No. It’s all about what YOU lose. Other people’s mother, fathers, sisters, brothers… who cares about them, right?”

She’d started crying freely. “You know what? Screw you. I don’t care if it’s “common sense” or whatever. I’m not going to change just because everyone in this country is damned selfish. If I see someone in danger, I’m going to help them. Even if I’m at risk. I don’t need a Guild membership for that.”

“You love me? Really? How about proving it by helping me instead of using your confession to manipulate me into doing what you want.” Using the palms of her hands to wipe off her tears, she covered herself with the blankets, laying down. Back facing to Thio, she sniffled angrily, “Go away, you jerk.”

“Your bandages—”

“I DON’T CARE.”

The muffled sound of sobbing could be heard under the layers of blanket.

Thio sat there, his heart a mess. After a while, he picked the pitcher, bowl, and towel and left.

——

Metts cheerfully came down the stairs the next morning to get breakfast. He was startled to see his Master’s slumped form at the kitchen table. His long hair had fallen out of it’s braid and was covering his face in tangled black strips, while he sat in a wrinkly set of pajamas. There was also no breakfast started. (Which was the real problem, as far as Metts was concerned.)

“Master are you alright?” He ran over, worried he’d have to make something. His cooking skills weren’t up to par yet, he’d only moved out of his parent’s home two weeks ago after all.

Thio sighed, a deep bone weary sigh that lasted overly long.

“Metts.”

“Yes Master?”

“I think I’m hated.”

“Eh? Why?”

“I am selfish and manipulative, is what I’m told.”

“Isn’t everybody?”

Thio sighed again and leaned forward on the table, until his forehead touched the woody surface.

“So she was right about that too, huh?”

“Who was right about what?”

“Caroline.”

Metts eyebrows shot up. Oh! O——h! He knew what this was! Yes, he’d seen it before! This was a—what did they call it?—a couples feud!

Patting Thio on the shoulder, he comforted. “Did you and the Madam get into a fight?”

He could almost see his Master sinking further into the table.

“Aw… Master, it’s okay. You just need to smooth things over.”

“How? She hates me now!”

“Well, just say you’re sorry for whatever you did.”

“But I wasn’t really wrong either.”

Metts’ face strained as he tried not to get impatient. If Thio was going to be this stubborn, it wasn’t just breakfast that was in danger. Every meal was at risk.

“Master… My father once told me that you can’t ever win a fight with a woman. Instead of winning your argument, win her heart.”

Thio turned his tired face towards Metts. “What’s that even mean?”

“In Dad’s case, he double down on “expressing love” as he called it.”

“Expressing love?”

“Yep, it was disgusting. He’d bring home flowers that were just weeds, cheap sweets, and say the cheesiest lines. He’d be extra helpful, but he just got in the way. He’d hug Mom, and kiss her, and grab her—”

“Ah!” Thio raised his hand. “I get the picture. And that worked?”

“On my Mom it did.” He looked thoughtful. “Though I think she was on to him. She told me once that she thought he was funny, so she couldn’t stay mad at him for long.”

“Your family is very… wholesome.”

“Eh… I dunno about that, there’s a reason they have 10 kids you know."