"Lying in Partner's arms like this, feeling the afternoon sun and the gentle breeze... it's a very nice memory! I want to treasure it properly!"
Cyrene opened her eyes, slightly raised her head to look at Caelus, and said with a smile.
"There will be more and more memories like this."
Caelus said so.
"Every moment and every second spent with Partner is a precious memory, all worth recording and treasuring."
"Won't that be a bit too many?"
"How can someone walking the Path of Remembrance complain about having too many memories?"
Cyrene smiled, then stood up from Caelus's arms. With her back to the sky and the sun, she reached out her hand to Caelus, who was leaning against the tree, and said with a laugh, "Partner, let's dance together!"
"Your height only reaches my chest. The difference is quite large. It might be a bit troublesome to dance."
"Then... Reality Marble, unfold!"
The world belonging to Cyrene once again covered the surroundings, and this time, she did not do so to change from Mem to Cyrene, but to undergo further growth from her Cyrene form.
Cyrene, or rather, Demiurge.
She slowly floated in midair, her attire looking like an elegant gown, yet also like a pure white wedding dress worn for someone.
A ring fell from nowhere into Caelus's palm.
The beautiful woman with long pink hair smiled and reached out her hand.
"Partner, put the ring on for me. Let us sign our eternal contract!"
Caelus looked at the grown-up Cyrene before him, stood up from the ground, and then placed the ring on the ring finger of the woman's left hand.
Seeing this, Cyrene opened her mouth slightly and said with some surprise, "Ah! Has Partner finally seen the light?"
"In ancient Rome, this symbolized the conclusion of an eternal vow. But do not expect too much. Although I now understand what love feels like, I personally do not have the so-called emotion of love yet. So, the road ahead of us might still be quite long, and it might take a long time before I truly love."
"However, our fates are essentially one, and we will always have each other. We will walk eternally on this journey. From that perspective, I think there is no problem with us making this vow."
"Does... does this count as 'marriage first, love later'?"
"If marriage is understood as a vow for two people to be together forever, then that is how it is."
"I'm so happy!"
Caelus and Cyrene's hands clasped together, and within this Reality Marble, they danced a dance that belonged only to the two of them.
Warm sunlight broke into pieces and scattered across the emerald green grass, golden light flowing through the veins of the grass blades and casting mottled shadows on the ground.
Cyrene danced gracefully on the soft meadow, her long pink hair fluttering with her movements like a mass of pink clouds being pulled apart.
The corners of her eyes curved into a gentle arc, and her lips rippled with a happy smile. Her eyes were filled with an overflowing love that needed no words. Every turn and lift of her hand was as light as a butterfly dancing among flowers in spring.
Caelus held her hand, moving in coordination with her dance steps. His gray hair was plated with a layer of pale gold by the sunlight, but his face remained as calm as ever. In his dim golden eyes, there seemed to be no emotion at all. Only when he held her hand was there a trace of imperceptible steadiness in his movements, forming a sharp contrast with Cyrene's vivid smile, yet outlining a strange harmony in this warm, sunny meadow.
The two had never danced before, but at this moment, every rise and fall, every rotation between them fit perfectly, as if they could feel each other's thoughts and anticipate the other's next move.
Their eyes were locked together, each reflecting the other's figure. At this moment, there was only each other.
Even the birds in the sky couldn't help but stop for them, halting their wings as they flew toward an unknown destination and landing on the grass.
A passing herd of deer also stopped their migration, watching the dancing pair. Although they didn't understand the meaning, the beauty within was enough to mesmerize them.
When the dance ended, Caelus held Cyrene's waist with one hand while the other held her hand high. Cyrene's body leaned back, her entire weight resting on the hand with which Caelus supported her.
Gazing at each other like this, the atmosphere seemed to have reached its peak. Cyrene looked at her Partner and closed her eyes somewhat dreamily. She was a bit shy, but also tilted her head slightly in anticipation, waiting for the deeper contact that was about to come.
Caelus, however, looked with some confusion at Cyrene, who had closed her eyes and tilted her head with a heart full of expectation. Why did she look so expectant? Wasn't the dance already over?
Just then, the time for the Reality Marble ran out, and Cyrene suddenly shrank back into her teenage form.
Cyrene looked at her Partner, who hadn't moved closer at all, and sighed helplessly.
"Did you want me to do something just now?"
"No, I wasn't expecting anything just now, okay?"
Caelus fell into thought, then recalled the scene at the end of the waltz between the swordsman couple from before, where the two kissed.
So that was it. At the end of a dance, it should indeed conclude with that.
Under Cyrene's slightly startled gaze, Caelus hooked her chin with his hand, and then his face rapidly enlarged in her eyes.
Cyrene's entire body went limp. If Caelus had not been holding her, she might have collapsed onto the ground.
From the initial shyness to her later immersion, Cyrene could feel Caelus's scent in every breath.
Hmm? Does a person of Nihility really have a scent?
Perhaps it was the enhancement of memories and emotions, but in any case, Cyrene could indeed feel that unique scent of her Partner.
The two remained in their kiss for nearly an hour before separating. Cyrene was still a bit reluctant, and once she realized what they had just done, she immediately hid herself in shyness again.
Caelus touched his lips and recalled the pleasant but indescribable fragrance he had felt from Cyrene just now.
As expected, those works weren't wrong. Girls really do have an inexplicable fragrance.
Caelus decided to treasure this memory well. This was a memory belonging solely to him and Cyrene, a treasure belonging to the two of them that could not be shared.
"Next, it is time to deal with the remaining Sin Archbishops. Oh, and the White Whale, the Black Snake, and the Great Rabbit."
He felt as if he had cleared all the later bosses for the original protagonist of this world, Subaru.
Caelus thought so, then looked at the notebook in his hand. Recording stories as a bystander was indeed a good experience, but if he participated and tried to change something, it seemed like an equally good feeling.
For example, in the original Holy Grail War, if there had been no interference from him, many people would have died. Fuyuki City would have suffered an unprecedented fire, many would have lost their lives, and many children would have been left alone.
Many would have ended in tragedy, unable to reach a happy ending. But under Caelus's interference, while not perfectly flawless, it was a world where people were happy.
"I should also try to join the story."
Perhaps it was the change brought by love. His originally empty and hollow heart began to gradually feel enriched with the filling of memories.
(To be continued.)