“You don’t have to take it all yourself,” Vonda said, holding her husband’s hands, as the pair, near nude, embraced one another.

  “There is no way…” Adam leaned in to kiss his wife’s lips, feeling the roughness of her lower lip against his own, before squeezing his wife’s hands. “It’s a husband’s romao take all the pain for his wife.”

  “It’s a wife’s romao ease her husband’s worries.”

  “I know you’re romantic, my darling, but right now you shouldn’t seduce me, because…”

  “Adam…”

  “Vonda…”

  Adam had taken advantage of the situation to have Vonda sit upon his p, though it wasn’t required for the Awakening. However, how could he not want to embrace his wife tenderly when they were about to spend a few hours together, out of sight of anyone else, other than perhaps Baktu.

  ‘You better not be watg!’

  Mana: 25 -> 15XP: 19 500 -> 18 500Health: 112 -> 62Exhaustion: 0 -> 1

  Mana: 15 -> 5Health: 62 -> 29Exhaustion: 1 -> 2

  “Did you two have fun?” Lucy asked as the pair returned ohey were done embrag one another whilst half nude, each feeling exhausted after hours of su activity.

  “A gentleman ells,” Adam replied, while holding his wife’s hand.

  Vonda refrained from rolling her eyes, instead squeezing her husband’s hands gently, feeling how cold they had bee.

  Adam’s entire body ached, the heat having run through his body like a fire, while his Mana had drained into his wife, beginning to unlock certain capabilities for the woman.

  100 Mana.

  That’s how much he o expend for him to Awaken his children and wife. Each time, he would assist them over the course of the day, once before lunch, and once a short while after. He had decided to plete it this way to reduce the days required, allowing himself to unlock the abilities over the course of five days, allowing him to rest another five.

  Adam didn’t ask Bell why he only needed 2 000 XP to Awaken his children with his magid to allow them to ent the same way he did, or why it was only 1 000 XP for his wife. Though he didn’t speak to Bell ofterusted Bell that much, because of all the entities in the world, Bell was the one who uood the most when it came to how far Adam would go for his children.

  Bell had been there from the very beginning, and, Adam assumed, would be there once he was gone.

  Adam tio Awaken his wife, though midway through, there was another important matter to deal with.

  “What? What do you mean?” Adam asked, holding the girl close to his chest. “W? I’m always w! Shouldn’t I take the day off in order to spoil my Inakan?”

  Inakan cackled lightly against her cousin’s chest as the half elf held her, the girl clutg at his shoulders as they hugged.

  “We must take her for to the family estate,” Arokan said. “Inakan, e.”

  Inakan gnced back over her shoulder, blinking through her gsses. She looked up towards Adam, her eyes filling with mischief. The girl thought deeply about who she wao cause mischief to most.

  “Inakan, e,” Otkan called, and the girl quickly scrambled away from Adam trandmother.

  “Nana!” She climbed ontrandmother’s p, huggiight, before she was whisked away to the shared estate.

  “Where are you going?” Lucy asked, feeding Jirot a cucumber from her hand, though the girl had offered it to her brother first, before he shook his head, allowio bite into the food.

  “I o go give my gift.”

  “You already have a gift.”

  “What about sed gifts?” Adam replied.

  “…”

  “For ohat was a good reference.” Adam smiled sadly, before he made his way to the Kan family estate.

  He reappeared several times to the Kan family estate, even after spending his time Awakening his wife, each time with the same excuse that he hadn’t given all his gifts. Adam left a little after the joke became stale, as the fifth time he had appeared, he didn’t give a gem worth ten gold, but a gem worth fifty, causing Arokan to smile, for it was quite the Adam joke. Repeat a joke so many times, it bees unfunny, before subverting it slightly.

  None of the Kan family ruined his fun, for the little joy that gifting Inakan gems brought Adam softened his expressions each time, even as tired as he was.

  It was after he had Awakened his wife, the half elf forced himself up from his bed. Even with Lokat’s medie, the half elf still had enough Exhaustion to keep him in bed for most of the day. However, today was today.

  “No,” Maygak said, clutg Adam’s cht. “Bed.”

  “Maygak, how you say that to me?”

  Maygak gred up at the half elf. She turo her elder sister, Kavgak, who gred up towards her cousin.

  “Bed!” Kavgak said, pointing to where he had e from.

  “Okay, okay…” Adam peeked down to Faygak. “Do you wao leave too, my Faygak?”

  Faygak bli Adam, the girl smiling shyly, befiggling and hiding her head against her elder sister’s, Tavgak’s, arm.

  “Even though you’re the ones being so naughty and growing up when I told you to stay small, I’m the one in trouble?” Adam asked, before reag into his tunic, withdrawing a pair of vibrant e gems. “Hmph! Since you’re both so naughty, I’ll only give you one gem!”

  “If you think Maygak is naughty…” Jogak joked, with Lavgak smirking at her husband’s words.

  “I will ask Taygak if Faygak is naughty,” Kaygak said.

  “I’m sick so I wasn’t thinking,” Adam replied, handing the girl the gems, g their hands over the gems so they didn’t swallow them. “You two. Make sure you have lots of fun a all the dessert you today, okay?”

  “Okay,” Maygak assured, reag up to rub the back of Adam’s hand. “Kaza Adam?”

  “Yes?”

  “Sleep time now.”

  “Okay.” Adam returned back to his bed, groaning in pain, but smiled. He reached up to cover his eyes, uo get their smiles out of his face. ‘I’m sorry I ’t do more for you, my adorable little cousins.’

  When it was Mokan’s birthday, the boy sat with Adam, allowing the half elf to feed him. Adam was mostly recovered from Awakening his wife, but still held some Exhaustion. However, his brow wasn’t throbbing quite as harshly, and his body wasn’t ag quite as terribly either.

  “Inakan,” Adam called.

  “Kaza Adam!”

  “I need you to do me a favour?”

  Inakan sat up taller. “I do it. I am very good at doing favours, kaza.”

  “That’s why I trust you to do this one favour the most.”

  The Kae uood how dangerous Adam was when Inakan and Mokan appeared at the extended family estate.

  “Huh? You only bring one gift for my papa?” Inakan asked, raising her brow towards an aunt of hers. She hugged her younger brother, rubbing his back gently. “Mokan, is okay, because I love you so much.”

  The various Iyrmen each looked to Arokan for support, but the woman did her best to not burst out in ughter. Halikan also decided to let the matter go, only because most of the Iyrmen found it hirious, and because Inakan only poked fun at the adults, as Adam had requested.

  Meanwhile, at another family estate, little Dagek went around showing off his amber to his family, while his father made sure he didn’t try to eat it. Danagek also enjoyed his time at the shared estate, the boy drinking from his granduncles cup of water.

  Dogek wiped the boy’s face ohe boy was done drinking, fixing his hair, allowing Dao return back to pying with the ek children. The old man’s eyes fell upon Dagek, one of the you of his brrandchildren.

  Tonagek limped down to sit at a table, tired from all his walking. His arms were still partly ag from swinging his bde that m, having taken the opportunity of his you son’s birthday to push himself.

  “He looks so much like little Tono,” Dogek said, looming over his nephew from the side.

  “He does,” Tonagek agreed.

  “Tono was chubbier.”

  “He was.”

  The pair watched ek that day, the boy smiling shtly, unaware of the danger outside of the Iyr at his age, just how it should be.

  That evening, Adam sipped his medie, thanking Logak again. It on seeing Arokan, the half elf sighed, allowing Inakan to return back to her mother for bed.

  “You like to cause trouble?” Arokan teased her daughter, brushing the girl’s hair before bed.

  “Mama, you e me. Jaygak is my cousin, Jirot is my niece.” Inakan shrugged, though she held a slight pout, as though expeg to get into trouble. Arokan held her daughter close, doing her best not to cry from holding in her ughter, nor the surging adoration she held for her adorable children. ‘Amokan! When will you return to me?’

  Adam was thankful he no longer held as much Exhaustion the day, especially when he could spoil three children.

  “You think Damokan and Kalokan protect you from me, do you?” Adam asked Alykan, who bit into her sandwich, before holding it up to her cousin. Except, it wasn’t for Adam, but the girl who pouted within Adam’s arms, but as Minool he sandwich, she leaned in for a bite.

  “How you catch my kaka?” Jitool asked.

  “Your sister is fast, but I am faster,” Adam replied.

  Jitool gasped, gng towards little Jirot and Jarot, before biting into her sandwich. ‘Kaza is so ‘mazing.’

  “Daddy, why you are holding kako?” Jirot asked. “She must eat.”

  “Well, you see, if daddy lets her go, she might run and choke. So he o hold her until she’s doing.”

  “Oh! Choking is not good.” Jirot allowed her father to hold her aunt, the girl her brother a bite of her potato. Jarot took a small sniff, but pulled away.

  “Jazool, do you think you’re safe because you’re sittio Larot?” Adam asked, the girl looking up at him.

  “Sef,” the girl firmed, chewing her baked potato.

  “Well, he is a little scary too, but he’s still my handsome boy.”

  “Kaza, you will read?” Jazool asked, her eyes expet.

  “I’ll read to you when you e back, but only if you accept my gift, okay?”

  “Okay,” the girl replied. The girl looked at the gem. “I do not want gem. I want kaza read to me.”

  “I’ll do both.”

  The girl pouted, causing Adam to back away, handing the gem to her father instead.

  Somehow, the Kan family knew peace that day, but it was not the Kan family which Adam intruded upon that day.

  “My granduncle said I could spoil Rowajin!” Adam said.

  “What right does yranduncle have to allow you to spoil my Rowajin?” Mojin yawowards the half elf, his eyes filling with life for a moment.

  “Wow! Just because he gave up the position of your Family Elder, doesn’t mean you treat him like that!” Adam gasped.

  Mojin raised his brows, his eyes darting over to his father, before he smirked slightly. “Fine, but you should at least draw your axe.”

  “You’re not the one I’m going to draw my axe fht now,” Adam replied simply, and with his words, the temperature dropped. He stepped up to the little girl, whose hair was braided, her wide eyes staring up at the half elf. “I hear you py with Alykan a lot.”

  The girl smiled, looking up to her father, who smiled back at his girl. “Yes.”

  “Do you like pying with Alykan?” Adam asked, while the girl responded with a nod. “Good. I’m sure she’s very happy to be your friend.”

  “I like being her fend too.”

  Adam’s eyes narrowed slightly as he smiled. He reached into his tunic. “Do you know what this is?”

  “Amber!”

  “Yeah?”

  “My kaka bring me amber.”

  “Uwajin?”

  “She is e home?”

  “Where is she?” Adam asked.

  “She is w in foat.”

  Adam frowned slightly. “She didn’t e?”

  “No. Kaka is gone.”

  “Okay. I’ll tell her to e back, okay?”

  “Okay!” Rowajin smiled wide, the girl’s eyes darting to her mother’s, the woman flushing slightly with embarrassment.

  “I’m sorry. I should have told your kaka to e back before. Will you five me?” Adam asked, holding the girl’s hand within her own.

  “Okay!”

  Adam’s heart still sank. “Your sister is very strong.”

  “I know! My kaka is the stu!”

  “That’s right!”

  Mana: 25 -> 22Spell: Sending

  “What the hell are you all pying at? Return home immediately so you spend time with your siblings on their birthdays.”

  ‘We are at the fort to protect it,’ Uwajin’s sleepy voice came back.

  Mana: 19 -> 16Spell: Sending

  “Nirot! You all o e back right now. It’s my fault for not notig, but you should have known to e back already!”

  ‘We o defend the fort,’ Nirot replied.

  Mana: 16 -> 13Spell: Sending

  “I don’t care what you think you o do, you all o e back immediately.”

  ‘It is the Iyr’s request of us.’

  Adam inhaled sharply, gng aside to the Iyrmen looking at him casting spells. However, it was thanks to Rajin’s presehat the half elf remained unbothered by the nearby Iyrmen. ‘Damn it. I must have been out of my damn mind to not notice.’

  “What is the matter?” Rajin asked, his voice low, barely a whisper.

  “The kids will want to see their elder siblings, but I’m told the Iyr requested them to stay at the business.”

  “Hmm,” Rajin replied, slowly nodding his head. Then again, Adam could message him.

  Adam might be depressed and grieving, but he still knows what's up.