There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL)
Chapter 102 - 99. Special Ticket

Chapter 102: Chapter 99. Special Ticket

"Allowing you to do it here is already beyond my quota of benevolence this year," Radia said calmly while sipping on his white wine.

Han Shin gasped at that, almost slamming the table loudly. "How can I use up that much already?"

"With that funding for that useless thing you begged me three months ago,"

"It’s not useless!"

"It’s useless if it doesn’t bring progress."

"Ugh--!" the birthday boy leaned into his fiancee with a sob, clutching his chest for his broken heart. Reina patted the man gently, humming to soothe the healer, and Zein watched this charade with deadpan eyes.

Bassena leaned closer and whispered to the guide with a quiet chuckle. "Get used to it."

"I’m used to the both of you," Zein shrugged, staring instead at his plate that suddenly got filled with food when he wasn’t looking.

"Don’t worry, don’t worry, I still get you that signed copy of prof. Happsam that you wanted," Selena said with a chuckle, and the dejected birthday boy get energized again.

"Yes! That’s my sister!" the healer laughed merrily again, before suddenly turning sharp toward Bassena. "You--where’s my birthday present?"

"Are you asking or extorting?" the esper grunted, but threw something across the table, which Han Shin deftly caught in the air.

It was a ring that was clearly made of magic conductor material, with rune engraving all over it. From the aura it gave them, it seemed to be an artifact, not a human-made one.

"I procured that from the Western Republic. It’s a hard find, so be thankful and don’t lose it."

The healer looked at the ring in his palm with widened eyes. It was a healing amplification artifact, that probably came out of the Tower of Apollo if it was from the other side of the continent. Bassena should either get it through an auction or private exchange, both of which would need a lot of resources.

Lifting his sparkling gaze, Han Shin gasped at Bassena, and responded dramatically. "Wow, Bas...in front of my fiancée and Zein?"

"Give it back," Bassena held up his palm in annoyance, and the birthday boy just cackled while putting on the ring.

With a slight ponder, Zein opened his commlink and sent something to the healer’s account.

At first, he had no idea what kind of gift he should give someone like Han Shin, who probably already received all kinds of birthday presents in his life. The man lived in the upper class of the green-zone, so it felt even more difficult to pick something. Not to mention he announced it just a few days before the actual date.

In the first place, the red-zone dwellers rarely gave birthday presents to each other. Being alive and surviving for another year was already enough as a gift. He would just use the money he saved to give the twins some allowance in the new year, when they celebrate their staying-alive-another-year day.

One day, though, the twins said they didn’t want any allowance, and instead asked for something else. When Zein recalled that, he decided to just give Han Shin the same thing the twins had asked him years ago.

"Huh, did you send me something, Zein?" Han Shin checked on his commlink, which garnered the other’s attention.

"Mm," the guide just nodded while continued eating his meat.

Bassena leaned closer again and asked in surprise. "You get him a present?"

"Really? You don’t have to, you know..." Han Shin paused as he opened the attachment that Zein sent him. After staring at it for a while, the black eyes widened, with almost visible sparkles. "Whoa...this is...real? I can really use this?"

"Mm," the guide nodded again.

"Anywhere?"

"Mm,"

"Anytime?"

Zein swallowed the food in his mouth before answering. "As long as I’m not in the middle of important work."

The healer gasped, clasping his parted lips with one hand. "Best gift ever!" he whispered dramatically.

"Even better than Reina’s?" Bassena tilted his head.

The fiancée in question, meanwhile, took a peek at Han Shin’s screen to look at the mystery gift, and gasped in the same manner, holding onto the healer’s arm.

"I’d rather have this one too..." Reina muttered before looking at Zein with the same glittering eyes. "Can you give one to me for my birthday too, Zein?"

"What is it?" Bassena narrowed his eyes, getting even more curious.

This time, even Radia couldn’t help but lean toward the healer to see what caused this couple to make a ruckus. When he saw the screen, the crimson eyes curled in a laugh. "I see..."

Zein just shrugged, never thinking that his simple ’gift’ could create such a reaction. It was just something he copied from the twins. Although, thanks to his superior assistant Alice, he managed to make it look nice and festive. To the frowning and impatient Bassena, Radia took the role of explanation.

"It’s a ’play’ ticket," the man said with another chuckle, and added as Bassena frowned even deeper in confusion. "It said that the holder of the ticket may ask our dear guide to accompany them anywhere, anytime, to do anything they wanted for one time."

"What?!"

"Ahahah!" Selena clapped her hands at that. "A ticket for a one-time date with a beautiful man, huh? I wouldn’t say no to that too!"

Bassena grumbled and muttered about how he wanted that ticket too, despite being the one who spent the most time with the guide outside of work. Zein wanted to laugh at that, and just tapped on the esper’s cheek lightly before getting back to his dinner.

Despite acting like he was annoyed and jealous, however, Bassena looked at Han Shin with a relieved smirk on his face. "Well, at least he seemed to be happy," he muttered quietly, in a voice that only Zein could hear, as the others stood up to bring the birthday cake to the table.

"Why? Doesn’t one usually happy when having a birthday party?" Zein tilted his head inquisitively at the esper’s rather bitter smile.

"Yeah, but it’s also the day his mother died, so..." Bassena shrugged. "He usually went to the grave in the morning, and depending on how things go, his mood might fluctuate."

Zein didn’t say anything. He had no idea how it felt. His parents always felt like strangers to him, people that obviously exist but had nothing to do with his life. Even after he knew more about Lucia, he couldn’t really tell what kind of emotions he kept regarding that.

But even so, he was also glad that Han Shin looked fine. It got him thinking about the older brother though, and he glanced at Radia because of it.

But it was impossible to pry something just from the guildmaster’s expression, so he just decided that it wasn’t his business. Also, Han Shin and Reina just came back with a blazing birthday cake, giggling like a pair of chaotic teenagers.

"...is that slathered in liquor?" Zein asked as the flaming cake arrived in the middle of the round table.

"Yeah..." Bassena smiled sheepishly, and they sighed together, followed by a chuckle.

Well, what could they do? Whatever the birthday boy wanted, they thought.

But it turned out the birthday boy also wanted a second round, so they moved to a sitting room and the next thing Zein knew, there was already an assortment of liquors on the table.

So this was what the guy meant by after party.

Obviously, Zein had no idea what those liquors were, or how potent they were. There were so many of them, and each bottle had a different shape and label--and by the description, different flavors and scents too.

Bassena wasn’t amused, and Radia just chuckled like a father looking over his naughty children. But the sisters duo was a certified alcohol enthusiast, and Han Shin was a certified party enthusiast. So soon, Zein was drowned in the festive vibe and dared himself to try a sip of everything.

Just a sip and nothing more.

He knew those spirits in the red-zone and borderland were the cheapest kind, that they tasted like shit, and were only good for getting drunk. But these liquors in front of him were all of high quality. Some have very nice scents about them, and tasted so much more than just bitterness.

At one point, Radia even took out something from his collection, and the three most enthusiastic people cheered loudly. This time, even Bassena couldn’t help but gulp. Radia put the beautifully crafted bottle in Zein’s hand, and the guide stared in wonder at the iridescent colors of the liquid inside. When he read the label and the neat description, his eyelashes fluttered in bewilderment.

It seemed that the liquor was brewed by putting a block of mana stones in each batch, infusing the mana contained inside into the water until everything dissolve.

Everyone took a shot then, even Zein--who promised himself to only have a little sip of each kind earlier--and their faces were filled with bliss.

Zein didn’t even want to know how much this bottle cost--no, even how much this single shot cost. From the way Bassena reacted, even Zein’s new wealth wouldn’t be able to get him one, probably.

They drank and talked and made merry, and Zein didn’t even realize that he had fallen asleep on the couch at some point. When he woke up, the three enthusiasts were passing out in various places in the room. Radia had retreated after that single ultra-expensive shot, bringing back the bottle with him.

From the big grandfather clock in the corner, it wasn’t midnight yet. Zein moved his muddled head here and there, sweeping the whole room, but he couldn’t find Bassena anywhere.

Dazedly, Zein stood up and wobbled out of the room, following a trace of familiar mana. He followed it to the stairs, where he took step by unsteady step until he reached the top, and saw the esper crouching in the corner with his long legs folded to his chest. His usually imposing figure looked small and adorable in the dark, cold corner, with a pair of amber orbs staring at the floor.

Zein walked closer bit by bit, and crouched in front of the esper. With a smile, he brushed the now messy platinum strands from the esper’s face.

"What are you doing here alone, cutie?"