There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL)
Chapter 273 - 266. The Northern Lake

Chapter 273: Chapter 266. The Northern Lake

Among all of the safe zones in the continent, it was said that the Northern Lake Temple was the most beautiful.

Just like its name, there was a huge lake with clear water and a sparkling surface reflecting the sunshine. Small, floating white flowers adorned the lake while blossoming trees surrounded the body of water.

In the middle of that huge lake, was a big, lush tree that could be seen from the moment one stepped into the safe zone. It was from between its roots that the lake water came from, and it was around the gigantic trunk the Temple was sprung, stood atop the canopy of branches and carved into the side of the tree.

If the Temple of Mago had an outer and inner sanctuary, the Temple of Frejya had a lower, middle, and peak sanctuary. The building was made of beautiful, white timber, seemingly carved without any nails or joints. Vines and ivy climbed along the pillars and the walls of the Temple, with colorful flowers sprouting here and there.

Zein had to admit he stood stunned for a while when he arrived at that place.

He had no idea what method those three ’priests’ used to teleport them all the way from the Eastern Federation to the Northern Alliance, but he was there in just a blink of an eye. It almost felt like using the portal in Mortix, but with a less nauseating effect.

Still not as nice as Bassena’s shadow blink.

Haa...Zein couldn’t help but sigh the moment his mind wandered toward his esper.

Honestly, it sucked. He made a promise to visit this place with Bassena, but now...he couldn’t even find out how the esper was doing right now because his commlink got deactivated instantly in this place. No external devices worked in this place.

He didn’t even know the extent of Bassena’s injury. He hadn’t seen Han Shin fully heal the man. What if the esper had an internal injury so bad he couldn’t get healed from it? He was practically clearing a black gate dungeon with only two scouts and one surveyor, goddamnit!

And what would happen once the esper woke up and found out Zein was being taken away by the Temple in another country?

"But this is right," Zein muttered, trying to convince himself.

Yes, this was right. He only got away with challenging the Temple of Mago because the Saintess herself was acting problematic and attacking him. The Temple of Frejya, on the other hand, never did anything to him. Rejecting the Goddess’s invitation? People would have a field day dragging him and Trinity through the mud for it. And he didn’t think Radia would be able to salvage the situation.

Besides, it was just an invitation. He needed to clearly say that he didn’t want to be a Saint, anyway. And...

They supposedly knew something about his mother’s family.

Deep inside his heart, Zein hoped--just a tiny, teeny little bit--that they might know where his mother’s remains were.

"The Lady is ready for you, Sir," a priest came--younger this time, and different than the three people earlier. This one wore a light blue robe too, but without a golden lining.

The priest glanced at the clean white clothes and beautiful deep blue robes that they provided for Zein, which were still sitting neatly on top of the drawer, untouched. They had suggested Zein to clean himself and change his clothes, but Zein only did the former.

He wasn’t trying to be rude or rebellious; Zein just didn’t feel comfortable being in a foreign place without the black uniform and the combat coat his lover, friends and guild gave him.

"I’m not changing," Zein said, and the priest blinked once before bowing slightly and pointing outside politely.

They were being very cordial and understanding, to be honest. Perhaps because Zein was the guest of the Goddess, and technically, he was a ’Chosen One’ so to speak. He might even be their Saint by the end of the day, as far as they knew. So the priests had been very polite to him from the moment he arrived at the base of the big tree.

They ushered him to the peak sanctuary from the get-go, putting him in one of the guest bedrooms for high-level clients. But he still had to climb higher to where the most important members of the Temple resided, including the current Saintess and the Medium.

Obviously, it was the Medium he would meet.

The priest told him to enter a big, cocoon-like structure hanging from one of the tree’s branches by strong vines. When he crossed the bridge and climbed the steps leading into the room though, he didn’t feel any swaying; a testament to how sturdy the whole structure was.

Still not a place fit for the faint heart, since he could easily spot how high he was. The scenery was superb though, something Zein didn’t mind at all. But it also reminded him of the promise he made with Bassena; of the house they would build on the cliff overlooking the sea.

And once again, he steeled his heart before opening the arched door.

Unlike the Temple of Mago, the Medium this time was a young woman with light hair and blue eyes. For a second, Zein was frozen, and his mind flew to the picture he had been secretly looking at every now and then; the picture of his mother.

But he soon saw the hair and eye color were of different shades than the one Lucia had. The blue was paler, and the hair was of darker gold, almost like luscious caramel. It was just a rare color to be met in the Eastern Federation, so he was a bit stunned because it instantly reminded him of his mother.

And the pale blue eyes were already glowing. She didn’t look as expressionless as Mago’s Medium though--rather more cheeky, by the way she was smiling at him.

[Please take a seat and pour yourself a drink]

More talkative too, even though the voice still sounded like it was echoing, as if they were inside a narrow cavern. It sounded like she was far away and close by at the same time, almost as if they were talking through multiple link calls.

Zein took a seat in front of the small round table. There was a bottle of wine and two glasses there, as well as a plate of fruits and cheese. The place looked like one of the tearooms Radia took him into, with nice arched windows overlooking the beautiful lake and the field of blooming trees.

He took a seat just like she asked, but did not pour the drink. Not only because he just came out of a hangover a few hours ago, but also because he didn’t trust her. Yet.

"Why do you want to see me?" he skipped all pleasantries he learned from Radia and just shot straight. "Why did you suddenly flash that mark on me?"

To her credit, she didn’t look annoyed or offended by his arguably lack of manner. And she answered with a similarly nonchalant, straightforward answer.

[To protect you]

Obviously, Zein did not expect such an answer, for he responded with a frown. "What?"

[What would people think if it’s only the mark of Setnath coming out?] her beautiful eyebrow arched, and her lips curled. [This way, people will only remember about my mark, since I even go as far as sending my Templars to fetch you]

Zein couldn’t help but raise his brows. That was...actually made sense and helpful. He had no leeway to think about it before, but she was right--what would people think if they saw the mark of Setnath?

Forget about the people who were after the ’Vessel’--even other parties might get intrigued by it. Association, government, and perhaps some other shady groups. They would surely investigate it, and now that people also knew he was an Ishtera, they might be able to draw a conclusion through old records of the Templars of Arms Master.

It was kind of hard to accept it, but yes--the Goddess did protect him with this action of inviting him to the Temple. Which begot the real question;

"Are you really going to make me a Saint?"

The glowing blue eyes flicked at the guide, and she put on a sweet, beautiful smile. [I would be happy if you would]

"No."

She let out a crisp chuckling sound that bounced around the room. [It has always been like that with your family]

Right away, Zein felt like his heart froze. He could not lie--this was the main reason why he accepted the invitation, to chase the trace of his mother. So even though he had willed himself to not show any emotions, he couldn’t help the instinctual reaction of straightening his back, frowning and leaning slightly forward.

"My ancestor..."

The Goddess let out a sigh, and twirling her wine glass in her hand. [I had always asked them to be my children, but alas...they refused] she said, looking at the transparent liquid in the glass. Zein understood that by children, it meant that she actually asked them to be her Saintesses. [’I have another task’, they said. ’I have to get married and give birth’, they said]

She pursed her lips, the regret was transferred well on the girl’s face. Well, that was to be expected. The Saint and Saintess belonged to the Temple, and--theoretically--belonged to the mass, to the needed. They couldn’t get attached to a person, especially an esper, in risk of getting imprinted. It was rumored that the Saint or Saintess could never get imprinted.

But Lucia’s ancestors had an objective of birthing the vessel of Setnath, so they could never bind themselves to the Temple. And while yes, it was a duty, wouldn’t it be better if they gave birth to someone they loved and happily married to?

Just like Zein’s parents.

[I gave House Ishtera my blessing so they could protect your ancestors, and yet...]

The regret turned into sadness. [I had given them permission to call themselves ’Templars’, I had given them a blessing so the heirs always had a stronger constitution and awakened as a defender, I had bestowed the first Patriarch the title of Paladin, and yet--]

Her voice turned higher and higher until she stopped to take a deep breath, turning down the flash of emotion, returning her face to that of serene water just like the lake outside.

[Humans...] the glowing eyes stared into the distance, forlorn. [They are so pitiful and hateful at the same time]

Zein...couldn’t refute that. He witnessed firsthand, probably too much, of that pitiful and hateful aspect. After all, he was the very product of the misery it brought.

But if there was something he despised more, it was the Celestial Beings.

Looking straight at the glowing eyes, he asked dryly. "Is that why you couldn’t care about the rest of us?"