Tears of the Kingdomexpands on the world we explored inBreath of the Wild, taking us back to a familiar Hyrule where islands now float in the sky and giant chasms lurk beneath our feet, housing demons you’re probably best running away from - at least, at the start.

Understandably, that means when the tutorial came to a close andthe world opened up, many went back to the places they were most familiar with, like Kakariko Village. And if you did, you might’ve spotted some diary entries hinting at a bubbling gay romance.

Tauro on the left and Calip on the right

An older man by the name of Calip, who we first met in BOTW, has written a few notes that we can sneakily read. Yes, it’s a breach of privacy, but in a game where people aretorturing Koroks,I think we can let this one slide. In those notes, Calip writes about a new character (another historian/researcher) called Tauro, a hot hunk, and we find out that he’s the entire reason Calip joined the Zonai Survey Team (thanks,Kotaku).

“While Tauro and I were taking a break, he asked me, ‘Hey, Calip, what attracted you to join the Zonai Survey Team?’ A little flustered, I answered that I heard its research division was led by a brilliant man by the name of Tauro,” the diary reads. “Because of you, essentially. I meant it sincerely, and in my heart, I longed to continue… ‘You’re not like these other dullards, you know. You immediately grasp the breadth of my vision.’ Of course, no such things passed my lips.”

While Calip doesn’t outright say that he loves Tauro and is a loud and proud gay man, the way he writes about Tauro says it all. What “attracted” him to the team was this brainy beefcake, while he finds himself flustered by him, even ending on the tease of “lips”. Clearly, there’s more to his attraction than the usual mutual respect between scientists - Calip is a ‘lil fruity.

Many have read into theZeldaseries before and found their own expression of queerness, like Link being genderfluid or Tingle being gay. However, this is the first expression of gayness in the series that borders on undeniable. Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma came out to say that Tingle is “not gay”, and while he did say that he wanted Link to be “a more gender-neutral character”, he also added that he “is definitely a male”. Hopefully, Calip is only the first step in a gayer future for the series, opening the door for more characters to embrace their queer side.

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