The result was obvious. Both of them eventually found themselves lying on the island shore.
Leona was the first to stir. She frowned, trying to figure out where she was, when an old man approached, relieved to see that they were finally awake. He explained that he had been helping move injured people who had washed ashore, and introduced himself as the chief of Geral Island.
Apparently, the island's ship had been stolen recently, and for some reason, fragments of it had washed ashore along with several people. He added that they had managed to contact the main island and that things were slowly stabilizing again.
Leona and Rean exchanged looks. So the demonic beasts really had been taken care of.
When the old man asked if they knew what had happened, Leona explained that ether criminals had boarded the ship and attacked them, carefully leaving out the part about demonic beasts. The chief believed her and assumed the criminals were the cause of all the chaos. Still, he was relieved that everyone had survived. Leona decided it was best to let him keep believing that.
Then came the bad news. There was no ship available to take them back yet. One had been requested, but it wouldn't arrive until the next day. And since the inn was full of injured people, the two of them would have to share a room.
Both of them froze internally. So this was the strand-them-together plan the gods had cooked up.
Leona immediately cursed the gods again. Scene Crafting Artisan proudly commented that it was a timeless trope in every dimension, while another god joked that it was a shame the ship had conveniently stopped running.
Since there was no way out of it, Leona quickly assessed the situation. Rean was obviously exhausted, but so was she, and she wanted a soft bed just as badly. For a brief moment, she considered settling it with arm wrestling, then downgraded the idea to rock paper scissors while shooting Rean a challenging glare.
Rean, meanwhile, could tell she was already plotting to claim the room. Still, after everything she'd done that day, he decided he could survive sleeping outside for one night. More importantly, he didn't want to reveal yet another embarrassing side of himself.
That was when Leona suddenly asked if he could swim.
Rean immediately sensed danger, and sure enough, she suggested they just swim back to the main island. If he didn't like it, he could stay behind alone. She even warned him that staying overnight together on a tiny island might lead to who knows what.
Before he could respond, Leona dove straight into the water. Then she waved at him cheerfully and said that if he couldn't swim, he could sleep there and leave tomorrow. Rean panicked and shouted for her to at least cast a temperature regulating spell if she was serious, then hurriedly cast one himself.
Degenerate Power Warrior was completely amazed. He'd never seen anyone choose a two-hour swim just to escape a forced romance setup. Another god jokingly asked if they could wish for a scene where the two blushed after catching glimpses of each other through soaked clothes. But another god immediately shut that down, saying it was asking too much from those two.
In the water, both of them fought for endurance and to protect their own chastity once again, while the angel teared up and apologized to them.
They eventually made it back, but by then it was already night. Both of them complained non-stop, saying they felt like they might collapse any second. Leona still couldn't believe Rean had actually followed her. And when she finally looked at him properly, she realized something unexpected. He was more muscular than she thought.
Rean caught her staring and immediately asked what she was looking at, adding that they should go to their separate rooms. Leona flustered instantly, denying everything and insisting she was leaving anyway.
She turned to go, only to notice the angel following her. Leona asked if the angel wasn't leaving too, and the angel replied that she was. Then Leona noticed what she was holding.
The angel explained that when demonic beasts lose their power and get sealed, they revert to their original stone form. She had retrieved it earlier from the sea. Leona nodded, but pointed out that the angel looked like she wanted to say something else.
The angel bowed deeply and thanked both of them for defeating the demonic beast that day. Leona brushed it off cheerfully, saying it was nothing, and reminding the angel that she'd promised they were going to save the world.
That was exactly why the angel looked even more embarrassed. She admitted it was also the reason she was excited about the idea of amazing people like them having a child. Then she quickly turned away, muttering that she needed to go gather divine power, because it apparently took an absurd amount of it just to bring two people together.
Leona stared at her, completely confused. When she looked down, she realized there was something in her hand. High-grade holy water. She laughed softly, realizing it must have come from the angel.
It turned out the cute angel really did feel bad for dragging Leona and Rean into that mess, and this was her awkward way of apologizing.
The next day greeted Leona with perfect weather and a rare sense of peace. She felt refreshed enough to take a casual walk around the dorm, enjoying the quiet, right up until fate ruined it on schedule.