Reborn In A Perverse Monster World! My System Adapts To Everything!

Chapter 130: A Lingering Presence.

Jason walked through the cottage door, Lirael cradled gently in his arms. The baby’s mismatched eyes blinked curiously at the new surroundings, her tiny fingers reaching for the wooden beams above. She cooed softly, a sound so pure and joyful that it seemed to fill the entire cottage with warmth.

Ylva and Mae stood in the center of the room, their expressions shifting from curiosity to something far more guarded the moment they saw Tauriel standing behind him.

Mae’s eyes narrowed first. She had never met Tauriel, but she could feel the weight of her presence—the power coiled just beneath the surface, the centuries of experience, the unmistakable aura of someone who had once ruled with an iron fist. Still, Mae knew right away that the baby belonged to Jason. The resemblance was undeniable. The shape of her face, the color of one of her eyes, the way she tilted her head when something caught her attention—it was all Jason, distilled into something small and new.

The baby was like a mini him which would make sense considering she was his child.

Ylva’s jaw tightened. Her claws extended slightly, then retracted with visible effort. Her green eyes locked onto Tauriel with a mixture of suspicion and barely contained fury. Theelf who had tortured Thalion. The woman who had marked him. The woman who had tried to use Jason for her own purposes. Ylva’s tail flicked once, twice, a sign of her rising agitation.

Tauriel met her gaze without flinching, though it cost her something to do so. She had expected this reaction. She had prepared for it during the long nights of travel, rehearsing what she would say, how she would defend herself. But now that she was actually here, standing in the presence of the females who had earned Jason’s trust, all her carefully crafted words felt hollow and useless.

Jason walked right up to Ylva and Mae, a wide grin spreading across his face, unbothered by the tension in the air. He held Lirael out like a trophy, his pride impossible to miss. He was completely at ease, as if the weight of the world hadn’t been pressing down on him only moments before.

"Look," he said, his voice soft and reverent. "This is Lirael. My daughter."

The baby looked at Ylva. Her tiny face scrunched up for a moment, as if she was trying to figure out who this furry creature was. Then, she smiled—a wide, toothless grin that lit up her entire face. Her tiny hands reached out, grasping at the air, as if she wanted to touch Ylva’s fur.

Ylva’s anger melted instantly, dissolving before she could even decide to hold onto it.

Her claws retracted fully. Her tail, which had been rigid and tense, began to sway gently. She reached out a hesitant hand, her fingers brushing against Lirael’s cheek with a tenderness that seemed to surprise even her.

The baby giggled, a sound that seemed to echo through the cottage like music.

"She is so fluffy..." Ylva muttered, trying her best to sound unaffected. But her voice betrayed her, softening at the edges. Her eyes glistened, and she looked away quickly, pretending to examine a crack in the wall. Ylva had no experiences with babies despite being pregnant herself but this was why she had suddenly developed a soft spot.

It could be her maternal instincts as well acting up but either way, Jason wasn’t worried for a second that they would reject the baby.

Jason laughed. "She’s a baby, Ylva. Not a rabbit."

"I know!" Ylva grumbled, but she couldn’t stop herself from smiling. She reached out again, this time letting Lirael grab her finger. The baby held on tightly, her grip surprisingly strong.

Jason turned to Tauriel, his expression gentling. "Tauriel, come here. Ylva will help you get settled."

Tauriel stepped forward cautiously, her body tense, braced for the hostility she had been certain was coming. She opened her mouth to speak—to apologize, to explain, to beg for some sliver of understanding. Her heart pounded in her chest. She had faced armies without flinching, battled mages, tortured prisoners without a flicker of remorse. But this moment, standing before Ylva, felt more terrifying than anything she had ever endured.

Ylva cut her off before she could find the words.

"You don’t need to apologize," Ylva said, her voice flat. She turned away, her arms crossed, her tail flicking. "I don’t like it. But it happened. And the baby is..." She paused, her voice dropping to barely a whisper. "C-cute."

Tauriel blinked, taken aback. She had expected a confrontation, a fight, maybe even violence born from old wounds. But instead, she found something closer to acceptance. Ylva had chosen, however reluctantly, to let go of her anger for the sake of the child. For the sake of Jason.

Mae stepped forward next, her voice gentle and warm in contrast to Ylva’s gruffness. "You must be hungry. Jason cooked."

Tauriel’s eyebrows shot up in genuine surprise. "He cooks?"

Mae leaned in conspiratorially, a mischievous glint sparking in her eyes. "Don’t tell him this, but the food isn’t quite as good as he thinks it is."

"HEY! I HEARD THAT!" Jason called out from across the room, his voice loud but carefully controlled, mindful not to startle the baby still nestled against his chest.

Tauriel couldn’t help herself. A smile crept across her face—the first genuine smile she had felt in months. The tension in her shoulders began to ease, like a knot finally loosening.

Jason rejoined them a moment later, Lirael now wearing a tiny crown made of wildflowers. The petals were mismatched, the stems woven together with clumsy care, but the baby seemed utterly delighted, her tiny hands reaching up to touch the flowers. She babbled happily, her mismatched eyes wide with wonder.

"Tell me," Jason said, his voice softer now, more serious beneath the warmth. "How long have you been looking for me?"

Tauriel’s smile faded slowly. She looked down at her hands, suddenly finding them very interesting. "Over nine months."

Jason’s eyes widened. The timeframe added up too neatly to be coincidence. Nine months. It matched the age of the baby. And it meant that she had been pregnant since their single night together. His mind raced, calculating, processing the implications.

"That’s..." Jason trailed off, his mind still racing to catch up. "That’s a long time to carry a baby alone."

"I know," Tauriel said quietly, guilt threading through her voice. "I was reckless. I should have been more careful. But I didn’t know, not at first. Not until the queen told me."

Jason sighed, the sound heavy but not unkind. He reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, steady and warm. "You found me. That’s what matters now."

He tilted his head toward the other room, a silent invitation, and Tauriel followed him without a word, grateful for the chance to step away from the others’ eyes.

Once they were out of earshot, Jason’s expression turned serious, the playful warmth draining from his face. The sharpness that replaced it belonged to a man who had faced gods and demons.

"I have been hearing news of things occurring outside of the designated area for quite some time," he said, his voice low. "How bad is it?"

Tauriel’s eyes met his, searching. "You knew?"

"I am one of the most wanted beings in existence," Jason said, his voice dry, almost amused despite the gravity of the conversation. "But that doesn’t mean I don’t keep tabs on what’s happening outside these walls."

Tauriel nodded slowly, gathering her thoughts. "There have been strange things occurring. More dungeons are opening up than anyone can track, spawning monsters never seen before. Creatures that shouldn’t exist by any law of nature. Magic that shouldn’t be possible given everything we understand. The world is changing, Jason. And not for the better."

Jason exhaled, the breath heavy with something close to resignation. "It is just like I suspected it would be."

"Rest up," he said after a moment, his voice firm but kind, the edge of command softened by genuine concern. "We’ll figure this out together. You don’t have to carry it alone anymore."

But even as he spoke the words, he felt something lingering just outside his barrier. A presence, faint and indistinct. Familiar, and yet not quite. It hovered at the edge of his senses, barely perceptible, but undeniably there.

"Were you followed?" Jason asked, his tone sharpening.

Tauriel shook her head instinctively, then paused, her brow furrowing as doubt crept in. She had been so focused on finding him, on simply reaching the cottage in one piece, that she hadn’t paid close enough attention to whether anyone might have trailed her through the woods.

"I’m not sure," she admitted, frustration creeping into her voice at her own carelessness.

Jason was not angry. He did not immediately assume this was some elaborate setup. He simply nodded, already calculating his next move.

"I will go check it out," he said, already turning toward the door. "Rest. You’ve earned it."