Chapter 31: The Fussy Old Man (2)
Axan turned toward him and answered first. "I’ve repaired most of the barrier around the settlement."
"How could you repair the barrier?" Elder Vax asked with a deep frown. "I thought the Voryn Stones could no longer help you. Where did you get the aether energy needed to do that?"
Axan answered without showing any emotion on his face. "Our parents left some Voryn Stones for us," he replied. "They aren’t as powerful as the ones I normally use, but they’re still useful. Better than having nothing at all."
Elder Vax looked surprised by the answer, but before he could say anything else, Cerus quickly stepped in.
"And you don’t need to worry about the beasts either," he said with an easy smile. "Axan and I have spent the last few days hunting most of the dangerous ones around the settlement. We cleared out quite a few of them, so things should be safe for a while."
Maeve had never expected that they had been planning this journey from the moment she first showed signs that her health was getting worse.
But if they wanted to help her, they first had to make sure nothing would happen to the settlement while they were gone.
"I’ve spent years training the warriors here," Ikarus said at last. "If they can’t protect this settlement just because I’m not around, then all of that training was meaningless."
Elder Vax fell silent for a moment after hearing the triplets’ words. Then he finally said, "I still don’t think it’s a good idea for all of you to leave the settlement together."
"We don’t have a choice," Axan replied. "We share the same mate, and we have the same blood. The Tomb of Heart will only recognize Maeve as one of our people if all of her mates enter the tomb with her."
Elder Vax frowned before turning toward Ikarus. "Leader, I’ve already checked her condition and calculated everything," he said. "As long as we force her to keep eating, she should be able to survive until it’s time for her to give birth."
Ikarus widened his eyes and suddenly felt the rage in his heart explode. "Force her to keep eating?! What exactly are you trying to say, Elder Vax?!"
His anger became even more visible as his golden eyes blazed like burning flames. He straightened his back and stepped closer to Elder Vax.
"Even if she survives until the due date, there’s a very real chance that she could die during childbirth!" Ikarus snapped.
Elder Vax swallowed hard under the pressure of Ikarus’s glare. Still, he refused to back down.
"The child is what matters most, Leader," Elder Vax said firmly. "As long as we have at least one child from you, our people will have hope for future generations."
"Elder Vax!" Cerus was the one who shouted at him. He stormed forward and grabbed the elder’s clothes so hard that the fabric nearly ripped.
"She is our mate!" Cerus shouted. "Just because we’re desperate for children doesn’t mean we’re willing to let her die for it!"
Maeve, who was lying on the cart, watched their argument without saying a word. To be honest, she had thought that everyone in the Azuryn Tribe truly adored her, but after a while, she realized that some of them saw her as nothing more than a savior who was supposed to fulfill her duty.
Elder Vax was one of those people.
From the very beginning, he had stated that Maeve should be the triplets’ breeder, and that she would be useless if she could not do that.
Maeve understood that she would eventually need to contribute something to this world if she wanted to avoid being erased by the system. Still, hearing someone openly treat her like a breeding tool felt unsettling.
"For someone who wants my blessing so badly, you don’t seem to like me very much, Elder Vax." Her sudden voice shocked everyone around her. Slowly, Maeve sat up straighter on the cart.
"If you truly believe my life is worth less than my child’s," she continued, "then what makes you think I’d be willing to let them be born into this world?"
Her words silenced everyone.
The triplets even widened their eyes because the last thing they wanted was for Maeve to make a reckless decision because of something that stubborn old man had said.
Ikarus immediately said, "Maeve, we—"
Maeve cut him off and did not take her eyes off Elder Vax. "This might be my first time becoming a mother," she said calmly, "but even I know it would be foolish to bring children into a world where people like you exist."
Her voice remained soft, but every word hit harder than a shout. "People who keep asking and asking from their only hope, while never caring about the price that hope has to pay."
Those words immediately threw Elder Vax into complete silence because it sounded as if she was trying to make her mates realize that Elder Vax could become a threat to their future offspring.
"L-Leaders, that’s not what I meant!" he said in panic and desperation. ""Please believe me. I only want what’s best for our tribe."
"That’s exactly what you meant," Axan replied coldly.
His expression didn’t change, but the sharpness in his eyes made Elder Vax instinctively take a step back.
"We have done everything we can to keep this settlement safe while we’re gone. We’ve repaired the barrier, cleared out the nearby beasts, and made every preparation we could think of." His voice remained calm, but somehow that made his words feel even harsher. "None of the warriors have a problem with our decision, so why do you, Elder Vax?"
Elder Vax opened his mouth, but no words came out, but Axan didn’t give him the chance to answer anyway. "If you truly doubt our ability to protect this settlement that much," he continued, "then why don’t you find a place you consider safer and hide there instead?"
