The System Sent Me to Breed an All-Female Amazon Tribe

Chapter 415: I Thought She Was Falling In Love with Me

Sitting there on Marina’s balcony, with the morning air cooling my skin and the weight of her words heavy in my chest, I found myself hoping that I was right.

Because the alternative—that Marina’s mother had simply not cared enough to be present—was too sad to contemplate.

Impossible, actually. One won’t invest so much in children if they didn’t love them.

"I can tell from your words..." I started speaking, offering Marina a warm and genuine smile that I hoped conveyed the sincerity of my feelings.

I fought the urge to reach out and touch her shoulder for safety reasons:

For one thing, I did not want to overstep any boundaries she had not explicitly invited me to cross.

And for another, I had a sinking feeling that she might break my hand if I tried anything too familiar.

"I can tell you know your mother loved you guys very much. To her, that you and Deva grew up so mature and independent was all she wanted. She sacrificed her presence so that you could have a future. I think you guys should pay her a visit sometime. She deserves that much from her little girls."

Marina’s eyes widened just a little bit; a tiny, almost imperceptible reaction that I would have missed entirely if I had not been watching her so closely.

Her deep emerald irises seemed to soften for just a fraction of a second, a flash of vulnerability passing through them before she calmly looked back up to the tree tops afar, her gaze fixed on the distant canopy as if she were searching for answers among the branches and leaves.

Tsk. I thought she was falling in love with me back there.

For that brief moment, when her eyes had widened and her composure had cracked, I had allowed myself to entertain the fantasy that I had somehow broken through her bubble and touched something deep and emotional within her.

Well, not everyone is a winner. Rome was not built in a day.

And I better not lose sight of my goal here.

I am not trying to become her lover, I am trying to become her friend.

It is really disturbing that not only does she avert to intimacy, she kind of does not want to be in the same room as me.

Every interaction we have had before this one has been brief, somewhat professional, and utterly devoid of warmth.

She has kept me at arm’s length from the very beginning, and I have never been able to figure out why.

Looking at her again, in her green military-style intricate jacket and pale gown that flowed around her like water, she was one hell of a beauty, damnit!

The jacket was tailored to perfection, hugging her shoulders and torso in a way that was both practical and elegant, with brass buttons that gleamed in the fading light and subtle embroidery that spoke of craftsmanship and care.

The pale gown beneath it was simple but graceful, its fabric soft and flowing, catching the breeze and shifting with her movements.

Her auburn hair was soon tied in a bun behind her head, sleek and smooth, with not a single strand out of place.

It was the kind of hairstyle that spoke to discipline and control, the kind of look that said she was not the type to let anything, not even her own hair, get in the way of her composure.

But her bangs slithered in a curly line down her face, framing her features in a way that softened the severity of her style.

Her eyes were so dark that you might miss they are deep jade: a rich, vibrant green that only revealed itself in the right light, or when she was looking directly at you with that intense, unblinking gaze.

Her brown skin looked polished, smooth and flawless, as if she had been carved from some precious material by a master sculptor.

And those cheekbones; are those for real?!

They were sharp and defined, high on her face, giving her an aristocratic bearing.

Ah, I want to watch her forever!

By the way, the Zephyrian clan Amazons have similar—but not compulsorily the same—qualities: auburn hair and green eyes.

That is their defining characteristic, the trait that marks them as descendants of that particular clan.

But not every Zephyrian looks exactly the same. There is variation, as there is in any population.

Deva has a more lighter auburn hair which is close to brown, and she has light green eyes that are more reminiscent of spring leaves than the deep forest hues of Marina’s irises.

She is clearly Zephyrian by blood, but her features are softer and more subtle, less intense than her sister’s.

Marina has very deep green eyes and sun-bronzed auburn hair that catches the light in a way that makes it look reddish in certain angles.

She is also the picture of what a Zephyrian should look like, the ideal that others of her clan are measured against.

But... how come Sara meets those qualities too?

I had noticed it before, but I had never really stopped to think about it.

Sara has that same auburn hair, and that same green-eyed gaze.

Is it just a coincidence?

It could be random, though.

Heka and her sisters are Irinians; that much I know from what I have been told.

But then again, only Tamar has the silver eyes and raven hair noted for an Irinian.

The others have different features, colorations, and looks that do not fit neatly into the category.

That is actually strange considering Queen Irina did not even have silver eyes and dark hair herself.

The progenitor of the clan did not even possess the traits that came to define her descendants.

What a strange and interesting race the Amazons are.

However, the stereotypes are just that: stereotypes.

They do not capture the full picture or complexity of who these women are and where they come from.

"Does my face excite you so much?" Marina suddenly pointed out, her voice cutting through my reverie with dry amusement.