There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL)-Chapter 744: Side Story 4. Endless Journey - 27

People who awakened during childhood went through a lot of stuff. Familiarizing oneself with the changes in the body and mind and understanding one’s new roles in society was more bearable when one was older.

The earliest hurdle they had to face was the body transformation. The forming of a mana core in an esper body and the corrosion vessel inside a guide was not an easy process. The stress it brought to a child’s body was even harder. In this regard, the twins were rather lucky.

Not because they did not experience it. They did--they were unconscious for three days, not including the night they collapsed. But they were lucky that they immediately fell unconscious from the exhaustion of using mana for the first time.

During those three days, they had high fever and seizure episodes. There was nothing wrong with their body except a few bruises and lacerations from the incident, and Han Shin healed those immediately. However, there was nothing they could do about the fever and the seizure.

Like a butterfly creaking out of their cocoon, the twins had to go through it alone. All Zein and Bassena could do was make sure the twins did not bite their tongues during the seizures, cooling down their body temperature, and praying that their sons could go through everything quickly.

As people who had to go through awakening pain alone, Zein and Bassena knew how hard it was. But even when they knew and prepared for it, their hearts broke seeing the choking sound coming from their seizing sons’ throats. When everything finally stopped the night before the twins woke up, Zein was the one who broke down and cried first.

It was the first time he had cried again ever since he heard his mother’s story from Sherry and Ria.

Naturally, he did not let the twins go home until they went through all physical checkups.

Thankfully, the twins had built a good constitution since their early days by playing boisterously all the time and joining their fathers’ daily exercise. They were perfectly healthy, and even the child counselor said there was nothing wrong with them mentally.

With great relief, they returned home after the child counselor cleared the twins. But that was only the beginning of their journey. As new awakened, they had to be registered with the government and Sentinel Association--a new experience for Zein. They spent some time in Trinity measuring Kar’s mana and then made a long journey to the Northern Alliance to visit the Temple of Frejya.

Normally, Asa would receive his blessing from the Temple of Mago, but Frejya insisted on this. Apparently, the Goddeses had made a concession that the guides from House Ishtera would always belong to the Temple of Frejya--even if Zein had been cooperating with the Temple of Mago.

Oh, well...Zein did miss his little sister who was dying to meet his children.

"My niece and nephews!"

The Saintess of Frejya welcomed the children with a big, tight hug. The children were confused at first, because they had never met this older sister who insisted on being called Auntie--unlike Aunt Rina, who always asked to be called sister instead. But it didn’t take long for them to warm up to her bubbly personality, and they were all ushered to the Sky Garden.

Even Bassena.

"Really?"

"You’re Brother Zein’s imprint, so you’re a package with him," Elena winked playfully, before taking Asa’s and Lucy’s hands while they climbed the Temple while skipping.

"She never changed," Bassena chuckled. He offered his hand to his oldest and surprisingly, this time, Kar took it.

"I’m glad," Zein smiled, patting his boys on their cheeks, and walked in the middle of the group.

It had been a while for him too, being there. It weirdly felt like home, with the priests greeting him as if he was only there ten days ago instead of ten years ago. Cloudy did not change too, jumping to his arms the moment he stepped into the Sky Garden, before jumping to his daughter who was squealing in delight.

Together with Elena, Zein entered the inner section of the garden, holding Asa’s hand. The medium had been waiting under the tree, and he had a conversation with the Goddess for the first time in a while.

[Three, huh? Quite fertile, are you?]

"My son is here," Zein hissed.

[Ease up a little bit] the Goddess scoffed. [Hello there, little one]

Asa, who was usually energetic, hid behind his Dada shyly, prompting Elena to laugh heartily until the Goddess pulled on her ear like a naughty child. That actually helped Asa relax and giggle in response. After a few light conversations, Asa was no longer afraid to go to the tree and received the blessing through Elena.

Zein did not tell him, and it would only a few years later when Asa found out that he was the only guide receiving a blessing in the Goddess’s special territory--and how special it was.

But it was probably a good thing for him not to know, because he was already feeling conflicted about becoming a guide. The Goddess seemed to realize it as well, and she told the kid kindly. [I’m not doing this so you will dedicate your life to be a guide] the Medium patted his head. [I just like your father]

Asa laughed, easing his anxiety a little bit. He thanked the Goddess and ran back to his father and siblings.

The Goddess gazed at the outer garden then, staring at the little girl bouncing around with a white rabbit and other immortal animals. [It’s a weird feeling] she smiled wryly while talking inside Zein’s head. [I could feel his soul, but it’s a different person I see]

"Do you want to talk to her?"

[No] the light blue eyes curled. [Not yet, anyway. I’m afraid my presence will trigger something and mess with her head. Maybe once she’s old enough]

"Oh, does that mean she’ll be here again?" Elena clasped her hands in excitement.

"I’ll see what I can do," Zein shrugged, but coming out of Zein’s mouth, it was basically a promise already.

Elena clapped excitedly, insisting that they should spend the night--or more--in the Temple. Even using her work as an excuse.

"I have guiding appointment this afternoon, so I won’t be able to play with the children much, thus--" she pointed at the one birthing them. "You have to stay longer so I can play with them."

"Are they tax or something?"

"It’s your fault for never visiting me for ten years--hmph!"

Zein could only chuckle helplessly when the girl--the Saintess--turned around and tossed her short hair. And just like that, they ended up spending the night in the room Zein always used when he was there.

Fortunately, the children were beyond excited about sleeping on a tree. They spent a lot of time looking down from the balcony that Bassena had to tie their waist with his darkness to prevent any accident.

"But, it’s quite nice," Zein smiled while lounging on the couch, enjoying the fruit his husband had just peeled. "It’s the first time we’re going somewhere with only the five of us."

"Well...if you put it like that," Bassena shrugged.

Indeed; with the boys in school and Lucy still trying to keep her mana inside, it was hard for them to go anywhere new. This place, nestled on top of a tree surrounded by a huge lake, was like an upgraded version of the Guardian Tree, and the children loved every part of it. They even didn’t mind the different kinds of food they had to eat there.

And when the children together with their only princess in the middle, Bassena took about a hundred pictures just on that.

Elena did not lie about being too busy to play with them. She only came to have dinner together and then vanished again. But then, she came back first thing in the morning to have breakfast with them and immediately whisked the children away with Cloudy, to play on the side of the lake and cruising around the Temple.

"To think someone would voluntarily babysit them before we even ask," Bassena said while wiping the invisible tears from his eyes.

"It’s more like playing together," Zein chuckled. "I still can’t believe she’s a Saintess already."

"Well, you have known her since she was a little girl."

Zein looked at the young Saintess who, rather than a long flowy robe, wore a jumpsuit and energetically played on the waterside with the children, creating an impromptu theatre. The first time Zein met her, she was only as tall as the twins. "Time truly flies, huh?"

"Thinking about the children growing up makes my heart heavy," Bassena sighed.

"But this is only our start," Zein patted the esper’s cheek. "Now that they had all awakened, we have to teach them all kinds of new things."

And they had to make sure the children wouldn’t grow up to be arrogant, condescending sentinels like many before them. They were the new generations, the ones that would shape the future and the directions of how espers and guides should behave.

Of course, the children didn’t have to realize such a burden early on, but that was why their parents should do even better.

"Heeey--what are you doing?" Elena waved at the two fathers just standing and watching without doing anything. "Come here and be the final boss!"

Pfft--Bassena chuckled and walked forward, conjuring his children of darkness. "Here comes the Demon King."

"Kyaaah!" Lucy laughed and ran away with her brothers holding her hands tightly. It was so fun playing with someone new! Oh, she wished she could play with a lot more people, pretending to be knights and fight the bad monsters--not her handsome Baba.

Yeah, like how she swung dozens of swords inside the strange dreams she had these days.