#too bad laios didn't see it

[c-tepx]

i only noticed it on the second read but marcille really just randomly decided to DIY tiny felted izutsumi.. from izutsumi hair

basically.

[my-fancy-hat]

HE DEADASS CONFESSED BRO

[saccharinescorpion]

i've been debating on whether to post about this but what the hell, it's relevant both to today's episode and the topic of people trying to smooth over the flaws of Dungeon Meshi characters.... so, uh, remember what i said yesterday about Laios forgetting the basics of human decency when interacting with Izutsumi

i was intially worried about people reading this scene in uhh certain ways but was thankful to see most fans were chill with it... before i realized that. uh. maybe people were being a little too chill

okay............ so,

1. for the record: i believe that it is clear from what we know about him and what we know about the entire series as a whole that, yes, Laios didn't have "untoward" intentions towards Izutsumi in this scene. there's even an aside in Izutsumi's profile in the Adventurer's Bible that says as much. he likely saw it in basically the same way Falin did when she was observing the reproductive organs of the caterpillar in that one scene. FOR THE RECORD this excuse would basically never fly in real life, but for Laios, it actually honestly makes sense... he has a habit of ignoring people's boundaries, he gets ahead of himself when it comes to learning about monsters... he didn't have bad intentions, no, but it doesn't change the fact that he's an adult man (not a [my face contorts with a great pain] "curious boy") who was being really invasive about a teenage girl's body. it was weird. it was 100% weird, lmao, i don't think fans are "lacking media literacy" by saying "uh yeah that was kind of creepy and inappropriate of Laios"

2. and i also don't think it's villifying ND people to say that. if i were to be honest, i would argue the whole "he's just a curious boy :(" thing is a lot more offensive to neurodivergent people. Laios clearly knows about the concept of bodily autonomy- he felt weird and bad about touching Marcille and Senshi in "intimate" ways just to heal them. literally one scene after this one he expresses embarassment about accidentally touching the leg of (who he thinks to be) Marcille. he very obviously possesses the capacity to understand why it would be inappropriate to observe a stranger's body like they were an animal. i can accept the explanation that his monster curiosity temporarily overpowered his "oh actually maybe i shouldn't try to get up close and person with this teenager who i literally just met," but that doesn't change that he had to be restrained from doing that. i'm not even saying he's a "bad person" or anything because of this scene- i just am baffled at the idea of fans being presented with the slightest bit of messiness (he was creepy to a young girl, however unintentionally) and jumping to try and "justify" it (he's just silly, he's socially awkward, he's autistic, he's a Curious Boy) and even mock others who rightfully point out that that was uncomfortable behavior. Laios was creepy to Izutsumi. he didn't mean to, but he did (and to be quite frank he was lucky to get off with a smack from Chilchuck and a blindfold)

3. "I would also ask" excuse me?

[dunmeshistash]

People are so weird about acknowledging that Laios and other characters have bigoted beliefs. It's either 'nooo they are not bigoted, they are perfect little angels who cannot do a thing wrong' or 'in a modern au Laios would be a trump supporter/right-wing supporter' because they still see this whole thing in black and white. Good people can hold racist beliefs and they can unlearn them too, this doesn't automatically mean they are Bad Unredeemable People for having flaws. This mindset prevents soo many from acknowledging their own flawed beliefs because 'only BAD people are racist, i am a GOOD person therefore I am NOT racist'.

People have trouble to admit these flaws in themselves. "Racist people are evil and inhuman I'm not evil nor inhuman so I can't be racist"

Admitting you were wrong is the first step into becoming better, having racists beliefs doing racists things specially if you didn't know better doesn't mean you're evil, it means you have space to grow and not repeat those mistakes, that's true for characters and for real people.

I'm mixed and I'm queer so I've suffered quite a bit from people with bigoted views, didn't make me into someone who couldn't do bigoted things towards people like me and towards other marginalized groups.

In dungeon meshi lots of the characters are both victims and perpetrators of racism, nobody is perfectly good nor perfectly evil

[thechekhov]

Dungeon Meshi Quick Reacts: CH38

Rip to these promising mages. I assume they will not survive this massacre.

IS that where her lungs and kidneys are? Because like. She's huge. Her entire body is behind her. Do you really think she'd keep her vital organs in the little human bulb on the front?

I mean, he has a point. What are you going to do? Fight off more hoardes of dragons?

oh noooo, Kabru.... too bad. That's so unfortunate.... anyway.

It's curious that Laios only got knocked away. He was just as likely to have had his head squished like a grape.

Guys, this is absolutely not the time to be concerned for her privacy.

Yes, queen. Free the tiddy. Murder everyone in this dungeon. I support women's rights and women's wrongs.

.......that's. One way to do that. I guess.

.......what's that rock about.

Oh, I see. That's convenient.

This guy dungeons! Maybe he even dragons.

So we got north (tallmen? dwarves?) and then the easterners.... and now the elves of the west?

He's going to give her to the Americans?! ಠ_ಠ

To be fair, at least they HAD a plan. And they executed it. It's more than you did. I don't mean to point fingers but... at least they... ya know... did something.

Kabru's like 'no, no, hang on, I need to hear what batshit fucked up thing this dude is going to say next, this is important'

Laios is so stressed he broke character.

Then again, maybe it's healthy to let them slug it out a bit. Get it out of their system.

It's true. They wore fitbits and everything.

...hey, hold on a second.

Now hold on a minute.

Damn, this is. Kind of even worse because. I guess I could have guessed that Toshi was just pretending to be polite, like you do. Cultural differences.

But the painful thing is, Laios doesn't seem surprised. He just seems resigned. He's been told before that he's difficult to get along with. To the extent that he doesn't even consider Marcille and Chillchuck his friends? Even though they arguably both care about him? But because Toshiro didn't bother to be deadpan about him being a bit odd at times, Laios thought it meant that was fine.

And that kinda hurts. Like damn. Laios just wanted to make a true connection. And I can't really blame Toshiro either, he was just trying to keep the peace but. Damn.

Free her! Let her do her illegal magics! She deserves it! （︶^︶）

Thoughts:

Senshi just being annoyed about that one last harpy looking for scraps.... like "shoo, this ain't the time"

That gnome seems genuinely nice. I'm sorry Falin squished his pet undyne.

Kabru hugging his..... mage? Girlfriend???? Seems very...one sided. Kinda feel bad for her.

Laios and Toshiro still going at it, I see. Get it allout, boys.

Uhhhhhhhhhh ninja girls.

Aww, doggo.

Last question: Where did the cat go?

Senshi: I can fix that.

Are you all worried because he's finally making sense?!?!

Laios and he punched their singular braincells into several new ones, it seems.

F./....Falin... please give the caterpillar some privacy........

My man, maybe lead with that............

I can't believe Marcille was potentially more forward about her feelings.......

"his pupils are dilated" yes, thank you sherlock. You've finally realized what everyone else who meets Laios feels almost immediately. he's a monster freak club card carrying member. Welcome.

p.....pubby......

As long as he was also inside the dungeon with them.... yes.

The issue with Kabru isn't that he isn't trying his best. It's that Laios isn't trying at all.

On a scale of one to Kabru, how badly do you react to being offered a food you don't want to eat?

......oh no. He's so pathetic it's funny. He's growing on me.

Absolute morons, the pair of them. Immovable object meets unstoppable force. The funniest combination ever. Ghost type and normal type pokemon, forever throwing moves at each other that will never hit. Laios thinking he's made a friend. Kabru just barely stopping himself from killing Laios. Best comedy pair. Tom and Jerry in a can.

Anyway. What a great manga.

[ghostofdiamonds]

alright having watched the first half of dungeon meshi here are my impressions of the main cast + a couple other funky little guys.

overall: they literally seem like an actual dnd party from a campaign. my headcanon is that when falin died, the dm asked her player if they wanted to make a new character and the player created senshi.

laios: himbo. BIG himbo. I love him. I know he was concerned for his sister but it sometimes felt like he was more excited about eating monsters than saving his sister. I don't even think Falin would blame him she seemed pretty excited too when she found out they were eating monsters. also not to diagnose people with autism but like. if he's not autistic I have no idea what he is.

marcille: I love this girl. she's gay as fuck and I love her. she was least open to eating monsters but by the time they reach Falin she's acclimated to it. she does magic by the book yet she specializes in forbidden magic. her main combat spell is blowing things up. she's an icon.

chilchuck: this is a man who knows what he's about. middle aged man in a union who got paid upfront. you think marcille is the normal one but I'm pretty sure it's actually chilchuck. AND YET he grew to care about the party and will go back down to the dungeon with them.

senshi: SOMEONE GET THIS MAN A COOKING SHOW STAT. imagine that you study a super niche thing for years and one day you're minding your own business and you hear someone say "aw man we're all out of options guess we've gotta do *very niche thing you specialize in*. That was Senshi. he'd been waiting his whole life for this moment. I just KNOW he was having the time of his fucking life down in the dungeon with them. he's living his best life with people who appreciate his cooking and I love that for him.

falin: absolute sweetheart. deserves better in every way. can the universe give this girl a fucking BREAK and also a girlfriend (*cough cough marcille*). she seems normal at first glance but I feel like she's just as crazy as her brother.

kabru: MY BOY. loved his design ever since I saw him in the opening. he and his party are so bad at staying alive oh my god. I can't wait to see more of him.

namari: okay I didn't like her for abandoning Falin but I get it money is tight. if nothing else I respect her for apparently (according to my friend) being bisexual and crushing on the twins she works with.

[bonefall]

Not sure if this is the place to ask or if I should go to Bonebabble, but ooh, Dungeon Meshi mention! I love what you said about low-empathy and apathy, I think I’ll use that in ny own characters.

I wanted to ask why you think Shuro is autistic. I’ve seen a lot of people say it so there must be a reason why, but I don’t think it’s really obvious to me? Like with Laios, autism/neurodivergence is so integral to his story, so it’s deeply obvious. I love the way he’s written! But we don’t see a lot of Shuro, so I’d like to hear more of why people see the tism in him.

@bonebabbles is the better place to send these in the future but it's chill! The vibe right now's loose since we're all coming down from the heaviness of Mooncourse lmao

Honestly, I feel a little 'tism in a lot of the cast of Dungeon Meshi. As a very autistic writer myself, it kind of has a vibe like it was written by someone who's autistic and so it gets peppered into all of her characters. It's something I notice a lot in my own art, too.

But like, when it comes to Toshiro... I can't stop thinking about him. He makes me want to chew the furniture. With every passing day I become less normal about him.

glossary because I had a lot of thoughts about Toshiro Dungeon Meshi i guess. Oh my god this got long

He reminds me of some people I know

His culture clash is very relatable to me in an autistic way

He has a rigid commitment to his values and morals

Miscellaneous Autism Moments

THE LAIOS FIGHT

in conclusion

He reminds me of some people I know

He reminds me of certain autistic men I've met from affluent families. The type who both is taught to repress and mask their own traits, yet also not to be incredibly mindful of the emotions of other people. Because of their status, they don't have to learn how to work out interpersonal conflict because the majority of the people around them are servants or family. People who would never go away if they didn't like you.

So, his vassals have to learn to talk to him and how to carry out his orders. Not the other way around. As a result, Toshiro has a bit of unearned confidence about his leadership abilities and communication skills. NOT in a way that is smug, DO NOT misunderstand me; just in a way that overestimates his own judgement. Maybe he has encyclopedic knowledge for talking to other nobles offscreen, but when it came to his own team, he was ignoring a lot of the good advice they gave him about taking breaks.

Yes, Toshiro is from a high-context culture-- but his communication issues are bad with everyone.

ESPECIALLY his vassals, people he calls family, from the same exact culture as him. They're worried about him, most of them are desperate for acknowledgement, they'd do anything for him, and he doesn't address this until AFTER his brawl with Laios!

His culture clash is very relatable to me in an autistic way

Toshiro knew he was going somewhere that was going to be a melting pot of mostly western cultures. He knew the manners were going to be different, and he came alone, not in a group where he was only interacting with his own people.

Yet he NEVER adjusted his own social behavior.

I'm American and my partner is British. When I first went, I had no idea why they were offering me so much tea. I thought I was being polite by following them into the kitchen, thinking they wanted to move the conversation over there. My partner quickly fixed this by explaining that when someone offers you tea, they're taking a short pause in the lull of a conversation to be a good host.

I am autistic. What someone else might have just figured out through getting an awkward look, I had to be told directly. There are a lot of little things like that.

Toshiro feels like what would happen if the opposite was happening, an autistic person from a high-context culture coming to a low-context culture. He can't properly express discomfort. It's not JUST Laios, King of Autism, that he's having issues talking to. Neither Marcille nor Chilchuck know that "Shuro" is a mispronunciation, and they had no clue that he disliked Laios THIS much.

I even think it's kinda telling that Toshiro felt the most comfortable with Falin out of the rest of the party. The hyper-empathetic autistic girl who goes out of her way to accommodate others.

He has a rigid commitment to his values and morals

A strict, uncompromising moral compass is a hallmark of autism. It's everything Toshiro does!!

When Falin was eaten, he bolted off to assemble the best team he could think of. He believes that love is sacrifice, so he pushes his body and his family to the limit to try and prove how much he loves Falin. Chilchuck freaks out when he finds out that Laios told him about the dark magic, because "HE'S THE WORST PERSON TO TELL!"

LIKE, YEAH! HE SURE IS!

Maizuru also explains that from a very young age, he's been incredibly compliant. He never asks for anything, he's always been a bit sickly and uninterested in eating. He always tries to be on his very best behavior, even if that means not asking for accommodations he might actually need.

In fact, the only food he seems to LIKE eating is what Maizuru makes him. To the point where she ended up getting pulled into the kitchen even when she was on a "mission." Senshi makes a cute comment that it's "love" that Maizuru puts into those meals, but... what if it's actually because she knows the textures and flavors he likes?

Miscellaneous Autism Moments

There's so many little moments that are so incredibly autistic to me.

He sees Falin with a bug and he proposes right on the spot. The other characters are like, "oh that's just how they act in the east" but no the fuck it is not. They don't even know "Shuro" is a mispronunciation, how the hell do they know anything about eastern courting traditions?

I know EXACTLY what happened. I'm beaming you this information directly from the truth.

Toshiro was TOLD that you're supposed to 1. make your proposals a surprise, and 2. you will know the right one when you see them, and NO ONE elaborated any further because he comes from a high context culture. He popped that question the first time both of those boxes were ticked off.

In coming from a high context culture, what he does is strictly follow rules and conditions he was taught.

And that's absolutely why he handed Laios that bell. Because he does care about him and the party, and he's taught that doing these acts of service is a show of that... and he didn't even think ahead to the fact the bell was going to be ringing constantly.

And yet. In spite of that, he ALWAYS keeps it near him.

Before it clicked and I realized why, I used to think Toshiro was kind of an asshole for running off to get his vassals without even telling Marcille and Laios about his plan. Like... how could you not know they were going to do something drastic? The three of them were the Falin Fan Club and he was the most normal member of it. It's so obvious to me that Laios (brother) and Marcille (""Gal Pal"") were going to get themselves in danger.

So how could you just run off like that without telling them? Even if lack of supplies meant they couldn't go back in, how could you just leave them worried sick in the town, thinking you abandoned Falin?

And then it hit me. The man just has low empathy.

There WAS no malice, just like how there wasn't malice in how he was pushing him and his vassals to the limits, just like how there was never malice against Laios. It simply didn't occur to him like that.

He's never been taught to consider the thoughts and feelings of others very deeply and they don't come naturally. He's still compassionate. There's a reason all of his vassals love him!

But THAT'S WHY he never put himself in Laios' shoes, or anyone else's. Empathy does not come naturally to him. All of his good behavior is as a result of his moral code, NOT empathy.

So with that said, why does he love Falin so much? Aside from the wonderful, positive traits he lists when he's asked? I mean, what's really deep down at the core of why he finds these things so lovely?

Well... Falin and Laios are not all that different from each other, to the point where Toshiro gets gently ribbed in a bonus chapter about how if one of them was a girl, Shuro might have loved Laios instead. He waxes poetic about the ways she's different from most women, how she's not afraid of things like insects, her compassion, her face, her laugh.

These are all things Laios does too (in fact in one of the panels where Toshiro is appreciating Falin, she's trying to check if a caterpillar is a male or female), but Falin's personality expresses in a more subdued and introverted way. Closer to how Toshiro is, as a person. So... I think it's because he relates to her.

To both Touden siblings. But Laios makes him see things he doesn't want to.

THE LAIOS FIGHT

We established that Toshiro has a strict commitment to his values, he probably has low empathy, and even taking his cultural differences into account he's bad at communicating.

So then, why was one of his complaints against Laios' obliviousness that he "knows he doesn't mean anything by it, and that makes it worse"? Isn't that kinda specific when you think about it?

If you're neurodivergent, I want you to think back to points in time where you dealt with people who have the same issues you do. Autism, ADHD, PTSD, DID, whatever. Did you ever have a moment where they did something harmless or mildly inconvenient, definitely as a result of the same exact thing you have, and you just... HATED it?

You HATED it even more than you would anyone else doing the same thing. You probably know your response was disproportionate. But YOU don't do that THING they did. Or if you do that, it's less bad somehow. Or you used to do that but don't anymore and it reminds you of when you did.

If you're reflective, you might have realized it might be internalized ableism. I feel like that's a huge part of why Toshiro finds Laios SO. ANNOYING. Laios is like this stupid, idiot, blundering caricature of things Toshiro has been taught to avoid, which violate his moral code. Shuro comes from a place of so many more rules and subtle cues, and it's like Laios doesn't respect any of them.

What STARTS this fight, causes Laios to finally hit back after being smacked, shoved, and shouted at, is being told "YOU'RE NOT TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY."

It's so obviously wrong! Laios, who ran back into a dungeon immediately? Who Toshiro himself called rash? This is NOT a logical conclusion to make about Laios or his party. I think it came from frustration that Laios "does things the wrong way." That it's projection, stemming from that low empathy.

He's not like Kabru in the same chapter, who's desperately trying to get a read on Laios' inner workings and failing. Shuro's just extrapolating his own feelings onto him, because he's recognizing that same "sense" within him. If TOSHIRO didn't follow the rules he sets down for himself, that's not "taking it seriously."

Toshiro follows the rules. Laios does not.

...and Laios is FREE.

He's open and honest in a way Toshiro can never be, not as a noble, not as an easterner, and not as an autistic man. Hell, Laios was ALSO a noble, he gave that up! Threw that away, and then came back to his village and took Falin away from it. If Laios is acting like an idiot, he's acting like an idiot who does everything Toshiro has ever wanted to do. Laios cannot mask and Toshiro resents that.

One of the things Toshiro even explicitly says he HATES about Laios is the fact he's willing to be a burden on other people. Maizuru said earlier that he's NEVER made a "selfish request" before-- but Laios can just open his mouth and ask for help, feeling no shame, just as he did in this chapter when he asked him not to tell the Island Lord about the dark magic.

And then, after they literally come to blows, Toshiro tells Laios some incredibly brutal things, revealing he's NEVER been his friend and he has resented him this whole time. This actually sits with Laios well into the later chapters, but the fight ends and then they're just CHATTING FRIENDLY LIKE IT DIDN'T MATTER.

More honestly than ever before, because Toshiro is returning the effort. He eats some food (the narrative's metaphor for making connections). He thanks his vassals for the first time. He talks about how he wishes he'd told Falin about all the things he adored about her when he still had the chance.

I have to take the panels of his response right out of the manga actually because this little expression here is so subtle, but so meaningful.

(Read <- <- <- that way)

Look at the way that when Laios makes that genuine movement, assuring him with passion that he will be making sure Falin receives this message, Toshiro's gut response is annoyance. But then it softens and he pauses, like he's reconsidering what his response is going to be.

To admit that he envies "this side of Laios" is also admitting that the earlier fight was based on envy.

Laios was like this the WHOLE time. Making these grand speeches about his plans, what his party's been doing, how Toshiro needs to eat something and take a nap. He's ALWAYS been like this. It was Toshiro's mindset that changed.

In conclusion

Something I really like about Dungeon Meshi is HOW MANY of its characters can be read as autistic. Laios is just the most obvious one, with his special interest in monsters and inability to read social cues being central to the plot. His is a more "well known" expression of autism-- it's rare you get characters whose masking is central to their characters.

But it's really refreshing to see characters like Kabru, Falin, and Toshiro. Autistic people are rare enough in popular media to begin with, but we NEVER get characters whose autism intersects with their trauma, gender, and culture quite like these three.

[magicians-abode]

"A slip of the tongue"

[Chilchuck Tims x gender neutral reader]

Warnings: none ‐ fluff ahead - one suggestive comment

At some point during the group's adventuring themselves deep into the dungeon once again, although he wasn't sure when, Chilchuck grew accustomed, in a way, to the way you treated him so differently from the rest.

You always liked to tease him and compliment him. Not like you didn't compliment the others. But you seemed to have a knack for sparing all your attention for when he was near you.

And despite his own rules of not mixing his personal life with work, he found himself sighing in annoyance at himself when he noticed how everyday he'd expect, almost too happy for his own liking, a compliment from you.

Today was no different for everyone. They'd been wondering through the halls of the fourth floor when Marcille's stomach rumbled, catching the attention of everyone.

—Sorry... so much walking is making me hungry again— she huffed, knowing damn well that Senshi would probably make them stop to cook another hearty monster based meal.

—Yeah, me too. After all, we've only had those coinbugs today as a snack. They were tasty but not that filling— (y/n) said as they placed a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. Everyone agreed to keep walking a bit more and then they would stop to eat properly this time.

And when they reached to that point, Senshi murmured something about "keeping the young ones well nourished" and he got to work on the cooking.

Chilchuck offered to help by peeling something he didn't remember the name of right now, and (y/n) couldn't help but stare as he worked skillfully with his hands.

—Those hands would be good with a partner— they mumble to him as they decide to sit by his side. The comment makes his hands falter for a quick moment, and he looks up at them perplexed.

—Don't go around saying things like that!— he huffs to them, a spark of a blush blooming on his frowning face.—That is so inappropriate...— he mumbles with embarrassment as he goes back to peeling, and (y/n) doesn't bother containing the giggle that erupts from them.

—You're so handsome when you blush, you know that?—.

—I'm not blushing— he denied the fact— and yes I am handsome, you don't need to tell me.— Despite his own embarrassment, he didn't pass the opportunity for playful or teasing banter. That's just how he was. And that's just how they loved him.

Marcille watched them and nudged Laios, excited as if she were reading another one of the chapters on her romance novels. Laios just smiled and went back to watching Senshi cook, more interested in the food than in their companions flirting with each other.

Marcille was glad she had something else to pay attention to beside the monster cooking in front of her that she had to consume later.

—You took your gloves off...— (y/n) noticed, paying that much attention to him.

—Well I wouldn't want to... contaminate the food— he mumbled. (y/n) looked at his hands, and then at the gloves, and then at their own hands. They wondered if he wouldn't mind if they just...

Slipping the finger-less gloves on one hand and then the other, the leather cold to the touch, they gasp in an exaggerated manner just to catch his attention.

—They're so comfy— they close and open their hands, and Chilchuck turns their head to see what they were talking about.

—What is–? Hey! Who said you could borrow my gloves?— he forgets the knife and the food he finished peeling and goes to grab their hands— you desperately want to be me that much?— he chuckles teasingly, observing their fingers. —honestly they don't look half bad on you— he places the palms of his hands softly against (y/n)'s, looking at the difference.

—Oh my spells, just kiss already!— shouts an incredibly happy Marcille as she watches them interact in such an adorable way, interrupting their moment.

Chilchuck scoffs, looking away but not letting go of their hands— as if— he mumbles pretending to be upset by her "stupid" comment. In reality, his heart pounded in his chest as the idea flashed on his mind, igniting a blush on his cheeks once again.

—Ouch, you think I'm that ugly?— they pout playfully, placing a hand over their chest in fake hurt.

—I–! stop it!— he tsked, his eyes flying to look at them—I never said that!— he admits aloud.

His cheeks flush further in realization, even his ears going red at his slip.

—Aww— Marcille and Laios watch from the sidelines, amused by how they joked with each other.

—Thank you— (y/n) mumbles to him, sort of embarrassed by the sudden compliment as they watch Chilchuck cross his arms.

—Whatever...— he stands up and walks to where Senshi is, faking sudden interest in the food that was almost done.

His heart beat wildly inside his ribcage, and the thought that, maybe growing closer to one party member wasn't that bad, crossed his mind to stay there for a while.

[littlelightfish]

We alredy know what's Chilchuck's worst nightmare. What if I told you that it was canon?

His daughters have alredy been eaten. His wife was eaten too. His family are all dead. His worst nightmare has come truth. And he for sure feels like it's partially his fault, because it's the Winged Lion doing, yes, but who helped Laios get here? Chilchuck. And who's daughters and wife are now dead because of it? Chilchuck's. The suggestion of recreating them tells us that they've alredy been eaten. The way he says it makes it feel like it's too late. They're dead. Because of him. Of his actions. Of his job. The irony of it all is actually quite cruel. He makes a union so he can prevent bad things to happen to his race, to his family, and then, and he works at the union. And now, because of his job, he got them all killed.

He doesn't even know how his daughters are until way later, I don't even know if in the manga they send letters to him during the feast, because I know they don't go to said feast. So Chilchuck doesn't know if his girls are alright until, again, way later. We know they don't die because, well, there's this comic of them going to meet Laios, the new king. But if not for that, who could tell us they didn't die on the monster appearances? I can imagine that after the feast Chil went stright to check on them. Because he loves his daughters, and he cares for his wife. He sucks at communicating it, yes, but he does.

He doesn't want to risk his family's safety. But he, unknowingly, unwillingly, indirectly, did. He got them eaten by those demons because he helped his friends achieve his goal. Because he cared about Falin and wanted her to be human again. Because he cared about Laios and didn'twanted to see him loose his sister. Because he cared about Marcille, Senshi and Itsuzumi. He cares so much about everyone and wants to help everyone (in his own way), that he doesn't think that the result would, inevitably so, be the worst outcome for him. The one in wich work and private life get mixed together. His job as a member of Laios's party ended dragging his family in, despite his best efforts. His job ended up, not only endangering the whole word with demons, but his family. His four precious girls. It ended up almost killing them (probably it killed them for some time because getting eaten by those demons works wierd).

Worst part? He didn't have the time to be mourn over what he 100% sure thought was the complete loss of his family. He was in a hurry to survive himself, so he pushed those sad feelings and tried his best to help who he had left. Later on he finds out that the demons spitted out people. And he seems shocked with some kind of surprised relief.

He looks how everyone that got eaten was alive. And he can't quite either believe it nor understand it. He is really confused. So they didn't die? Are my daughters ok? Is my wife ok? Did everybody survived? Are they alive? He dares to hope that they're all ok and pulls into a box his feelings again, saving it up for when he has the time to be overwhelmed about this all. He has a feast, trying not to worry, but worried sick. Then he goes home and checks on them.

Give this poor man a break and a beer...

[rue-dixon]

This panel is on my mind 24/7. I want more context, I want a mini comic from Kui about it so bad. Also it's hilarious how this is the only time we actually see his daughters in the canon manga.

We probably won't get any more context about it since it most likely wasn't a real situation that happened and just an example. But I wrote a short fanfic inspired but it anyways.

Falin adjusted the glowing lantern next to her, making sure she could see the party clearly as she sat up against the cold brick wall. She shivered from the brisk air before pulling the blanket tighter over her shoulders to combat it. Amber eyes grew heavy as they carefully combed over each of her sleeping party members peaceful forms.

Despite all these uncomfortable conditions, she never minded taking watch for her companions. It made her grateful, able to be useful to them. As well as providing them a good night's rest. Shuro's protests of taking her shifts for her began to get tiresome, however, she appreciated his consideration for her wellbeing. 

The night went smoothly, no disturbances until rustling from the smallest sleeping bag caught her attention. Curious,  Falin sat up, however she was certain it was nothing to be alarmed over. Watching as Chilchuck rolled around in his sleep. Normally, this would not bother her, but something inside her silently told her to keep a watchful eye on the half-foot. 
As she did so, she noticed how seemingly innocent shifting turned to restless tossing and turning. Her worry solidified when his steady breaths turned to small whimpers, and his face contorted and scrunched in an unpleasant way. 

Nightmares. She thought, this had happened to Shuro the other night as well. The area they were traveling in seemed to be infested with them. No matter, Falin knew how to deal with them easily. Firstly, she crawled over to where her older brother lay asleep. Gently shaking his shoulder, whispering to him. 

"Brother... brother... please wake up." 

With a soft groan, Laios' eyes fluttered open. Seeing his sister looking worried above him caused him to sit up. 

"Falin, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm alright, it's Mr. Chilchuck, he seems to be having nightmare troubles. Will you watch over me while I go into his dreams?"

Laios turned his attention to Chilchuck now, who lay a decent distance away from the group. He was always like that, kept his distance, and kept conversations to business purposes only. Not that anyone minded, his sore attitude about everything didn't make him the easiest to get along with. 

"Yeah, sure, of course." Laios stretched, yawning before he sat up. Following his sister to Chilchuck's bedroll. 

Falin carried her pillow under her arm, before gently placing it on top of Chilchuck. Moving it long ways so it wouldn't cover his whole body. She laid her head down, but gently and just on the edge of the pillow. Not wanting to put too much weight on his small, relatively thinner body. 

"We should be fine, but keep an eye out just in case, okay?" Falin smiled to her brother, her eyes already feeling drowsy. 

Laios nodded, "I got it."

Chilchuck began to break out into a sweat. His teeth grinding together as his body trembled. Falin could feel it through the pillow, which only heightened her worries. Saying a small prayer in her mind that would hopefully bless her with the gift of sleep faster, before finally closing her eyes. 


_____

 

Man, I'm tired, Chilchuck thought to himself. His boots crunched against the gravel path as he walked the short distance from the main road to his house. The last job he had just finished went sour, causing the party composed of majority strong races to storm out on him. Angry that all the chests he had unlocked for them were empty. Claiming he was holding out on them despite having no reason to. What idiots. None of that mattered now, because he was home.

Although the house he was approaching wasn't the home he created with his wife and three children. It was the home he had grown up in, the one where he lived with his two younger brothers, his mother, and his alcoholic father for a short period of time. The place where his older sister and brother would visit once a year with their own children. However, that realization did not make its way to Chilchuck's mind. It was home. Plain and simple. 

As he approached the door, he felt his stomach drop as he saw a small heap of blue and white fabric laying on the door step. The front door ajar, and the figure lay halfway in. 
The backpack he carried dropped to the floor as he rushed to her side. His wife. He hadn't needed to see her face to know it was her, the black curls that accompanied the soft blue dress was enough evidence. 
He called her name, but got no reply in return. Dropping to his knees, he reached to hold her, to see what had happened. The blood seeping from her stomach was pooling around them, staining his hands forever as he demanded what happened. 

"No..." her voice raspy as she could barely keep her eyes open to look at him. 

"Wh-what? No- what do you mean no?!" His voice was a blend of panic and rage as he spoke. Confused and now angry as she tried to push him away. Chilchuck had always known he wasn't the world's most perfect husband, but he was not cruel enough to warrant any thought from his wife that he might've been the reason she currently lay in a bath of her own blood. 

"The girls..." she managed before choking, couching as blood sputtered from her once pink lips. Now drained of color following the rest of her already naturally milky skin. Her body resembling a talking corpse.
With a shaky and weakened hand, she lifted her finger to the door. 

All at once, everything clicked into place. The girls. My daughters. My babies. 

In an instant he was back on his feet, practically tearing the door down with how fast he entered. Looking around, the whole house looked like it had been raided by orc soldiers that had just returned from war. Dread filled Chilchuck, making his chest pained and heavy as he began to search the house. It was not long until he found what he was searching for. 

His three daughters, only teenagers by half-foot maturities, lay motionless on the carpet of the common room. Blood painted the walls like a toddler's personal art project. Cracks and chunks from the material itself had somehow gone missing. However, the first thing he noticed about the crime scene, besides the obvious, was the giant ax lodged into the wall above his kin's head. An ax he knew well to belong to one of the dwarfs in the party that had been enraged with him just a few hours before. 
Nevertheless, revenge or who the culprit was was not on his mind. With a limped stride, he made his way to them. Shaking, pained breaths wracking through his body. His knees giving out from the shaking, having to force himself to crawl the rest of the way. 

Cuts, bruises, gashes, and what looked to be broken bones littered their once flawless, lively bodies. Streams of blood poured from each of their mouths. Flertom had the most blood on her light-colored dress, slowly seeping into the fabric like a sponge, turning it an unsettling scarlet color. Iconic, her favorite color had been deep red since she was a baby. 

"Mei... Fler... Puck..." His eyes widen as his voice broke and cracked. 

Unable to take all three of them in his arms, he moved them so each of their heads fit nuzzled into his lap. No tears found their way to his eyes, the panic and pain felt like it had halted all bodily functions permanently. 

Trembling hands gently caressed their necks and lower jaws. Testing each pulse as he had done with careless adventurers many times before. Never in his life could he have dreamt of using the technique on his own children. Let alone in their own home, when their biggest crime was simply being of his blood. The cause of their horrid deaths being that he loved them, and that people knew how much he loved them. 

Dry sobs broke from him as two delicate fingers moved from girl to girl. Ending at the end of the line with Puckpatti, the realization that he felt nothing under the pads of his finger tips settling. Not even with his heightened senses could he feel even the slightest breath of a pulse. 

A strangled cry filled the room as he hunched over. His body draping over them like a blanket. As if he were protecting them from the world, something he had failed to do. Failing to do the most basic promise as a father to his children. Clutching at their clothes in fists as if that would somehow ground him. 

The love of his life as well as his babies, the most important things in a thousand lifetimes to him, were just stolen from him. All because of some greedy adventurers who didn't like that he had not rained riches upon them. Something that was not even his fault, they were the dimwits who went against his advice and traveled down passages of the dungeons that had been rummaged through hundreds of times over the years since this dungeon had been founded. 

As he mourned, a snowy white dove entered from above. Landing on the floor in front of him. Seemingly purposeful about where it chose to stand. Out of the way of any of the blood and gore around them. Chilchuck slowly looked up, his eyes painfully red as he continued to heave. Him and the peaceful bird made eye contact, part of his felt like it was speaking to him. However he didn't understand what exactly it was saying, but when it rose in the air once more, his previous grief seemed to momentarily subside. 
Pulling himself to his feet, he felt inclined to follow. With shaky steps, he followed the dove. Reaching out with a limp hand as if asking it to come back. He was not sure why he felt inclined to follow it, his family had just been slaughtered, but here he was chasing a bird like a mindless fool. 

Stumbling to keep up, the pretty dove led him out the door. He was so focused on the dove itself he hadn't realized how far they'd gone. Until everything seemed to be melting together around him. Colors mixing together before falling away completely, leaving behind a white void. The white light around him grew brighter and brighter, his skin feeling warm and hyperaware before-

 


He woke up. With a heavy gasp, Chilchuck rose. Inhaling sharply, causing him to cough. He hacked as he looked around the dimly lit campsite. The sight of Falin rising as well, after just lying on his stomach, had only confused him more. Beating his chest before finally catching his breath, he cringed as he realized how sweaty he was. Causing his whole body to be locked in a constant chill.

"What-what the hell.." he called coughing, looking to Falin and Laios. 

Without a word, Laios reached under Chilchuck's pillow, pulling out a handful of the clam-like dragons known as nightmares. Before tossing them under his shoe and crushing them. 

"Nightmares." Laios sighed, "must've slipped in your pillow when you went to grab water."

Chilchuck groaned, his head falling into his hands as he rubbed his temples. Just great. He knew how Falin dealt with nightmares, therefore, he knew she saw what had happened. The idea that this newer party he had recently contracted with now possibly knew of his family did not ease his racing heart in the slightest. Only causing the possibility of his nightmare becoming a reality. Sitting there, taking a moment to catch his breath. Logic quickly settled his mind. All three of his daughters were grown and out on their own. Each far away, living their own lives. As for his wife, she was also long gone. Off to live with Flertom, whether it was a break or a wordless breakup, he still wasn't sure. However, now was most certainly not the time to dwindle over his strained marriage. 

"Thanks.." he muttered, refusing to look Falin in the eyes, partly due to his own shame at the forced show of pure vulnerability. 

"Of course." Falin smiled her signature, heart melting smile. 


________


The group walked down the long hall way. Laios talking Shuro half to death in the front. Namari trailing behind, bickering with Asivia about something Chilchuck didn't bother to tune into. 
Him and Falin walked side by side a short way towards the back, now would be a better time than any. He thought to himself before clearing his throat to catch the young woman's attention. 

"Uh- Falin?" 

Falin looked down at him, "yes?"

A tingling heat already found his cheeks as he looked to the side, trying to ignore it.
"Um.. do you remember what you saw in my nightmare last night..?"

She nodded, "somewhat. I remember the massacre, but not many of the details, like the women's features or the home. I am truly sorry you had to endure that. I should have noticed your discomfort sooner." 
The sincerity and guilt in her voice only made Chilchuck more uncomfortable. Coughing again, he put on a voice as if to fake some sort of confident authority. 

"Uh well. If you could, not discuss what you saw. I would really appreciate it." 

Falin stared at him for a moment before smiling again with her pure smile. 
"Of course. In fact, consider the incident completely forgotten." She chirped before turning back to the path. 

Chilchuck exiled softly, that was easy. However, this was Falin. He hadn't expected less. Now if it were Marcille who had gone into his dream, he thought he'd rather deal with the entire dream by himself and gladly let the clam feast upon his fears. Honestly, if he were forced to share that scaring mental image with anyone in this particular party, he would've chosen Falin anyway. He believed her words she had spoke to him a moment ago, she would not tell another soul. It seemed even if she did so, it wouldn't be much help to use against him anyway.
Relaxing, in a more contempt state now, he couldn't help but still feel a small pang in his heart. Despite how awful the nightmare was, it had made him realize something about himself. Working nonstop constantly, he never really had moments to himself. Which never gave him a clear moment to think about just how much he missed them.

[dimdiamond]

I have so many mixed feelings on Toshiro (aka Shuro).

Like he has the DADDY issues ever. Laios has too but Laios is in the opposite direction of "I'll never make my father proud, I can as well do my thing" while Toshiro is still trying to follow his father's wish and demands.

Like he couldn't care LESS about his servants. He doesn't treat them badly but he barely treats them. Does he even know their names? (Yes, it's because of daddy issues but at some point we have to stop accusing the parent and start to see our own faults)

Like he was just a boy who liked bugs and getting dirty. And then saw Falin who liked bugs and didn't mind getting dirty and thought "if I take her as my wife and my dad meets her and finds her interesting then maybe he will finally find me interesting too".

Like he showed more than necessary interest for another human being and he made it his whole character (oh, yeah, I'm the one who loves Falin, look how long I can go on sacrificing my needs for her SHUT UP YOU'RE DOING IT BECAUSE YOU FEEL GUILTY AND HOPELESS NOT FOR FALIN'S SAKE).

Like he had ONE person to find him interesting and he couldn't be sincerely thoughtful towards him. Yes, I know how it is to spend time with someone you find boring and have no connection but it is unfair to let the other be in the dark and I am the one who is in wrong here, not the other person, no matter how much they irritate me. Do I think Toshiro finally snapping and fighting with Laios is a good thing for both of them and their future friendship? Absolutely. Do I also find it cruel towards Laios? Absolutely, the boy becomes even more insecure after that, Toshiro could handle it better.

Yes, it is a cultural thing as well and I am aware Asians and, specifically for this character, Japanese have different approach in socialising and what is proper and acceptable, and I see how Laios and Toshiro show the clash between ignorant white man and Asian man that suffers from it, but we can't ignore that there are other Asian characters who don't act like him. Izutsumi? Rin? Heck, even Kabru could be considered! Others too! Even Toshiro's brothers and family! They're all different characters thar deal with their identity and their own trauma and experiences in their own way (and let's not forget they're not the focus of the story so we can't know everything about them or how they would react to everything or even their thoughts).

Could Toshiro be neurodivergent as well and had learnt to mask? It's very possible and it would make sense in many aspects of his character!

Is he a bad guy? No, of course not! Has he made mistakes? Many, of course! Has he shown good qualities? I doubt Laios party would consider him a friend if he hadn't and after his fight with Laios he gives the bell to Laios and still wants to help in whatever way he can.

As most of dunmeshi characters, he falls too close to reality and he gives me mixed feelings- even relating to him some times! But I can't deny the fact that, although an interesting character and rightfully liked by many fans, if I met someone like him irl I would dislike him.

[enigmasong]

TBH, I think this has been something that's been building up in Laios for awhile too.

Laios has massive trust issues and likely runs these kinds of scenarios for all the people he tries to get close to in his head ad nauseum.

"He's about the only person who'd call me a friend"? The dub used that phrasing as well. It's a pretty self-deprecating way to put it, like Laios can't fully bring himself to feel like Shuro actually means it.

And, while I didn't clip it because I didn't feel like it came across in the panel as well as it did in anime, when Laios is telling Shuro about how they've been eating monsters, he's spiraling; he's laughing maniacally because he's afraid.

He's afraid of crossing lines he can't see and the rejection that might come with it. And, given the way Shuro so willfully misinterprets that moment to be Laios just being some dumb gobber, it's not hard to imagine he does that with other times Laios is open about his insecurities (intentionally or not).

Like this little bit here?

'We're friends already, aren't we?' The Toshiro vision here shows a smug and certain Laios, callously ignoring Shuro's bad vibes, but he could've legit been asking.

Toshiro clearly doesn't see other people as people, as my previous post touched upon. Toshiro Vision cannot be trusted.

Yeah, Laios did definitely bring a lot of issues into this relationship, but he is very aware of his traits that can be a problem with other people and actively tries to deal with them.

Shuro just makes it really hard because he's the one who refuses to talk.

[icycoldninja]

Hi!!! Thank u for doing my Persephone request it’s really 👌

Can I request another one with the same four bois with fem reader who’s like Laios (he’s a character from Delicious in dungeon) she has a big strong appetite for monsters even demons. Whenever they go out to hunt, she always insisted on going along and she carries a big backpack with cooking supplies

They didn’t understand why at first until when she successfully killed a demon and cook it right in front of them, and even offers a plate to them. They’d be reluctant at first obviously 😂 but when they took a bite and it’s actually really delicious

— 🍊

Yes, absolutely!

Sparda boys + V x Laios-like!Reader headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-You know this man loves to eat; he's got the appetite of ten men.

-Now, he found it a bit strange that you take this giant rugsack full of cooking supplies with you whenever you guys go on missions, but he didn't question it. After all, he carries around a magic hat and two giant bazookas, so who is he to judge?

-The literal last thing he expected was to see you cooking a demon you just killed over an open fire, humming a tune and seasoning it like it was just a steak.

-He was a little repulsed when you offered him some, but being a man who can't refuse food, regardless of it's origins, Dante eventually accepted your offer.

-Dante discovered that the way you cook demon meat makes it the tastiest dish ever. He loved it so much, he started bringing demons home for you to roast.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil only eats the finest of meals, that is, meals you prepare for him.

-Since he can't cook for himself and only trusts you to prepare food for him, he will readily eat anything you make.

-He was rather confused when you offered him a plate of demon meat you just cooked up in the middle of the road, but he trusted your cooking and took the food.

-To his surprise, grilled demon meat was delicious. Vergil had to admit, when prepared by your skilled hands, it was better than gourmet meat.

-He might ask you to make it again the next time you go on missions together.

□ Nero □

-Nero is a very picky eater who, to this day, will only eat chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes with lots of cream, and alphabet spaghetti O's.

-He doesn't like fancy foods, no matter what people say they taste like, and won't eat anything dubbed "gourmet".

-He thought your giant backpack with cooking utensils was ridiculous, until he saw what it was for.

-You slayed and killed a demon right before his eyes, then cooked it. Nero couldn't believe what he was seeing, why were you cooking a disgusting demon?!

-Then you gave him a plate of the demon meat, which he tried, and thought it was not bad, at all. He likes it, despite his picky brain trying to tell him it's gross.

● V ●

-V is open minded and ready to eat pretty much anything, the only problem is that he doesn't get the opportunity to eat often.

-He appreciates you cooking for him and readily eats everything you prepare for him.

-He saw your giant backpack with cooking utensils and thought it was silly, until he saw what you did with it.

-You killed a demon and began cooking it over an open fire, quite happily too, as if you did this every day.

-Upon eating your creation, V had to admit that grilled demon had to be the best meat he'd ever tasted.

[gothiethefairy]

pls talk about your thoughts re: how marcille treats falin

okay, spoilers to you anime-only fans bc this is stuff from the manga.

marcille has this toxic devotion to falin. she doesn't see anything wrong with falin because in marcille's eyes, she's an angel. sure, falin has a few quirks here and there, but that's what makes falin so ~different~.

she puts falin on this high pedestal because of how lonely marcille has been for so long, due to her odd aging for being half elf. marcille didn't have a lot of friends growing up so of course she's gonna latch on to the next person who is kind to her.

falin didn't have any friends growing up either besides laios. she wasn't that popular with her villagers and she wasn't either with her schoolmates at the magic academy. she's ecstatic to have a friend, who is also a girl like her. she was p young when her and marcille became friends.

but sometimes, i get the feeling, marcille doesn't always respect falin? it could be her elven upbringing, but she does tend to coddle falin sometimes. like i said, her always going "oh falin, you're such an angel." or even, "you're still a kid in my eyes!" when falin was pointing out she's too old to be sharing a bed with marcille because she's not so small anymore.

like yeah we all get distracted by the famous bath scene, but it's also a turning point of their friendship. marcille just used illegal magic to bring falin back from the dead, and refuses to tell falin about it. and falin knows marcille did something forbidden, and she's waiting for marcille to fess up about it. so when marcille is brushing it off, you can see that falin is disappointed.

i'm not saying marcille is a bad person for this. it's just something she needs to overcome. she needs to come to terms that falin is not perfect.

who knows if that will ever come into fruitation in the future. but hey, that's what fanfiction is for lol

[dunmeshistash]

The thing about Laios as well, is what if Kui genuinely didn't intentionally write him to be autistic? It's impossible to know how much she does or doesn't know about autism or if that was ever something she was directly considering in the process of making him. People have been joking (?) about how angry they'll be and how they'll lose faith in her as an author if she says she didn't write him to be autistic and it feels like it's putting really pressure on her (with no knowledge of her personal life and experiences in a culture that stigmatizes autism greatly) and putting autistic fans in a bad situation no matter what happens, because ableists aren't suddenly going to be any more positive about it if she says he is and if she says he's not or doesn't give an answer then that'll just embolden more people to be hateful, especially if people do react badly to that. With the way people have been getting really invasive about Kui's sexuality for ages now, too, I'm worried about how entitled people feel to her living up to their idea of her as a person and that the same kind of parasocial treatment could happen over this.

I'm autistic and think Laios is an autistic character regardless of if Kui would describe him by that word and that it's important to discuss that in a positive light. I don't think that's any less the case even if she does say directly that's not how she wrote him. But it feels like the pressure on her to confirm it is a situation that could go very badly in a lot of ways.

Kui has written about mental health in other situations, more specifically she has a whole one shot that uses being a werewolf as a metaphor to being a special needs child and one which compares socializing to a rythym game because it feels so hard to the main character. (Edit: Oh yeah the werewolf one is a little... idk how much I agree with it, it's negative about medication use so you might want to not read it)

I think is HIGHLY unlikely it wasn't on purpose, there's details about Laios that have no need to be there otherwise like the fact he has texture issues

tbh I think it's a little rude to imply she wrote a perfect autism representation by accident?

People are overreacting as usual about whether she admits it out loud or not tbh. I see it as them having no respect for her as a real person only wanting the image they have of her to fit.

[room-surprise]

Hi, hope it's ok to ask some stuff about your thoughts on mithrun (not sure if it got asked before). But do you think mithrun and his brother might've had a good relationship the beginning? Like when they were really young, maybe even before mithrun noticed the different treatment his parents did to him and his brother. Also do you think that the former mithrun was really in love with that elf? Cause after reading mithrun's part in the adventure bible I'm starting to have a few doubts, esp since that chibi look a like of the elf in question is being described as untrustworthy. Like maybe former mithrun was only into them cause his older brother also seemed to fancy them?

It's always fine to ask me stuff! Though I might not always have time to answer, I love seeing people's questions!!!

I don't know if you've read any of my fics, but I do go into what I think Mithrun and his brother's relationship was like as children in both "Show Me How to Get Off the Ground" (College AU) in chapter 2, and the short fic "A (Fairy) Phone Call Between Brothers."

In summary: I think when they were very young, Mithrun didn't realize that there was something "wrong" with his brother. He was just his best friend, his playmate, they spent all their time together and so of course they were very close. Just the two of them living on a big country estate, while a plague raged through the population - not a lot of chances for play-dates with children outside of their family.

Once Mithrun was old enough to get sent away to boarding school (so around 50 years old - 10 in human terms) he quickly realized that being like his brother (disabled) meant being cast aside and discarded... So he started to put distance between them, and the older they got the colder Mithrun was towards his brother.

I think that Mithrun felt guilty and ashamed for abandoning his brother (similar to how Laios felt guilty for abandoning Falin)... and the fact that his brother kept acting like they were loving siblings made the guilt even worse, and turned it into anger and resentment.

As for the mysterious elf (gender unknown) that Mithrun and his brother were both interested in... No, I don't think Mithrun ever truly loved them. Like you said, Mithrun thought that the snake spouse elf wasn't trustworthy, so I assume that means he thought they were a gold digger. Somebody that was only interested in Mithrun and his brother because their family is very wealthy.

I think Mithrun ignored his own desires (wanting to date, or have sex with the snake spouse) because he thought they were a bad match, that his parents wouldn't approve, or that they were dangerous to his social status...

So when the magic mirror showed him his brother happy with the snake spouse, Mithrun was overwhelmed with jealousy and regret. He worries about if he misjudged the snake spouse. What if they were actually wonderful, and now Mithrun has missed out on the love of his life because he thought he was too good for them? And now his brother has them instead?

I think Mithrun's story is complicated, and Kui tends to suggest things rather than explicitly tell us what happened, so there's a lot of things to speculate about, and different ways you could read it all.

Thanks for writing to me and asking! It was fun to answer <3