I believe pretty firmly that it's really only the stylization that makes Chilchuck's age as ambiguous as it is, and that it'd be a lot easier to tell in real life.
and after a serious-ish comic here's a little bit of bullshit
Don't talk to me if you think Marcille is straight
so throughout Dungeon Meshi Thistle is trying to find Delgal. that's explicitly why the red dragon exists
but Thistle isn't just looking for Delgal, afterwards they're going to do something together. by this point Thistle is too far gone to remember what exactly that is, but it's important enough to him that the desire hasn't fully been devoured
in Thistle's house he has everyone's bodies set up around the family dining table. this is very likely the exact same table from his flashback since just behind Delgal you can see an identical hearth, log stacks, and tree painting in the present day home. Thistle is very into keeping things preserved after all
in fact the dining table is so important to Thistle it's one of the last things he remembers as the Winged Lion eats the last of his desires
after the Winged Lion eats him Thistle is left alive but fully catatonic. though the closing chapters Yaad is taking care of Thistle and trying to get him to wake up. when he finally rouses it's in response to hearing the Golden Kingdom kids calling for "his majesty" (Laios) to come eat with them
CONCLUSION: Delgal was late for dinner. after Thistle found him they were going to have a nice family dinner, just like they had been doing for decades
big brother duties are never over
We need less "shy, anxious, always second guessing" Apollo in fanworks, and approximately 400% more of whatever the hell this is.
god i really thought you people were lying about laios and kabru just for the sake of pretending like there is a gay little thing going on when its questionably textual at best but this shit is for real fascinating. unprecedented. master manipulator kabru playing both sides operating behind six layers of sublimated yaoi to obsessively plot laios' downfall. and on the other side of the coin notable Grade A Grass-Fed Freak laios touden experiencing a completely normal crush on the first pretty man to demonstrate polite interest in his passions and hobbies. i can only imagine laios is gonna be out here milking minotaurs like 'hm. if kabru was here now...i wonder if he would enjoy this too..... that would be nice (:' whilst kabru is pacing a deep furrow in the cobblestones clear on the other side of the dungeon vowing up and down that he will commit to sucking laios' dick meat clean off the bone if it might bring him one step closer to seeing his head on a pike
losing part of you
the most underrated dungeon meshi panel imo. he wants to beat his ass so bad
there is an IMAGE in my HEAD and i cannot DRAW IT. hatred and rage.