Riddler! Grandpa... tell me clearly!
Rhode's hand wandered over Mira's belly, finally slipping inside her clothes and circling around her navel.
Mira pulled his hand away disdainfully, "What are you doing? It tickles."
"I'm curious..." Rhode put his ear against her, "Could it be because of the pregnancy, that one person becomes two, and that's why the magic power surged?"
"Where are you getting these ideas from!" Mira's face turned bright red, "It's only been... our first time was just recently, how could it be this fast? Besides, I've even had my..."
Mira was too shy to finish, so Rhode received a slap on the back.
This slap, infused with newly erupted magic power, was quite painful; anyone else would probably be down.
"Hiss... seems like it," Rhode struggled to reach back and massage it.
He calculated; for him, it had been six years and one month, but for Mira, only a month, factoring in the cycle...
Although Rhode had been working hard, no matter how accurate the shot, one would probably see results next month or the month after.
"It's over, my scapula is almost broken, help me rub it."
"Let it hurt!" Mira left him to wash up and prepare breakfast.
Rhode stopped worrying about it for now; there was something important to do today.
...
Before them lay a wasteland, within view were mounds of earth covered in weeds, some with stone markers, others with wooden plaques.
Mira led Rhode to a couple of small mounds connected together.
The plaques in front were so decayed that they were illegible, but barely discernible were the names 'Richard' and 'Pauline' on them.
"Is this the place?" Rhode asked.
"Yes." Mira gently nodded, kneeled down, and softly caressed the ruined plaque, "Dad, Mom, I'm sorry for not visiting for so long. Elfman and Lisana are doing well, and I... I got married."
Rhode kneeled beside her, placing the camellias and daffodils they had painstakingly found in the morning — the best they could do for the season, luckily Mira said her mom would like them.
Mira talked a lot about Elfman and Lisana, then clung to Rhode's arm, introducing him to her parents.
In his position as son-in-law, Rhode respectfully detailed Mira's accomplishments, almost praising her from head to toe, thanking them for raising such an outstanding daughter.
"I promise to..." In his nervousness, Rhode nearly repeated his wedding vows.
He continued, "Of course, Elfman and Lisana will also be with her to take care of..."
Mira always looked at him with gentle eyes, and after he finished, they bowed together, promising to bring Elfman and Lisana to visit in the future.
The two stood up, Mira gazed at the grave and tombstone, and Rhode suggested, "How about moving them to Magnolia?"
He had heard that Lucy's mother's grave had been moved, and this shouldn't be considered offensive.
But Mira gently shook her head, "Dad loves it here, and Mom likes being with Dad."
Rhode thought for a moment and then said, "Then... should we gather some stones to refurbish it and carve a new marker?"
This time Mira nodded.
The two cleared away weeds, fetched stones from a distance away, and neatly piled them up the hill.
Then they found a large piece of suitable bluestone, and due to the lack of suitable tools, had to flatten it with magic, with Mira chiseling the letters.
Their work lasted almost a full day, finally burying the marker together, bowing several times, and then descending the mountain.
At the foot of the mountain, Mira spontaneously suggested, "Let's check out the church next."
Rhode nodded, "Sure, which way?"
Mira pointed in a direction, and after a few steps, she suddenly hugged him from behind.
Rhode placed his hands over hers, softly asking, "What's wrong?"
Mira hugged him tightly, whispering, "Thank you for coming back with me."
"If fulfilling a husband's duty warrants thanks, then you'll have to thank me for a lifetime to come."
Mira emotionally responded, "Then I'll thank you for a lifetime."
Rhode turned around to embrace her, leaning down to kiss her lips.
'If the "First Magic" and "Magic Root Source" that the second generation sought with such desperation truly exist, then they must be "Love."
All magic originates from "Love," which can be as weak as a whisper, or powerful enough to overcome everything. At first glance, it seems easily attainable, yet it proves elusive.'
——Lucy once expressed this sentiment, reportedly something her mother had once said.
Rhode seemed to vaguely understand the reason behind Mira's magic surge.
However, compared to this moment's happiness, those thoughts could be set aside.
...
Charred rubble littered the ground, the wooden structures long turned to ash, some remnants stayed on the shattered floor, some had flown around, covered by dust.
A ruined bell lay askew on the ground, its material indiscernible from the color alone.
It was this bell's presence that assured Rhode that Mira hadn't mistaken the place.
This was the church where demons once appeared.
The couple had rushed over before dark to investigate, growing colder as they approached.
Initially, they thought it was due to the impending nightfall causing the temperature drop, but it seemed abrupt.
Mira led Rhode around the ruins, past cracked steps and toppled pillars, towards the location of the 'Holy Altar' in her memory.
And then, they saw ice.
An entire room of silvery ice crystals.
"It's excessively cold," Rhode summoned Warm for Mira to hold as defense and warmth, closely observing this small silver world.
The roof appeared to be missing a corner from outside, but inside it was completely frozen, the remnants of the ceiling and walls coated in a thick layer of silver, making the previous patterns indistinct.
Rubble, ashes, and everything scattered on the ground were all frozen together with the floor, covered in a layer of solid ice.
And in the altar's position was the upper half of a suspicious creature, tightly connected with the altar, as if it had grown there, frozen before it could fully emerge.
The ice crystals seemed to fit the creature's body perfectly, making it resemble a statue.
Judging by appearance, it was undoubtedly a demon.
Mira tapped a stone covered in solid ice with her shoe, but the stone didn't budge.
She applied more force, and the ice began to crack.
"It's very hard, not ordinary ice," Mira said, "Regular ice magic shouldn't reach this hardness and temperature."
Rhode used standard flame magic on the floor for a few seconds, yet the ice crystals remained unchanged: "Granny An mentioned a seemingly powerful man visiting this village, right?"
"That was last year," Mira emphasized, "If that person did this, then his magic is extraordinarily strong."