Chapter 402 - 394. Where the Blue Meets
Zein had wondered why the lake in this place was so clear. He wondered whether it had something to do with his mother’s power or the blessing from Frejya.
But he found out that there was nothing like that there; no mana stones, nor a stray shard, or even some unknown magical contraption. It was just the magic of nature, he gathered, and he liked that.
He liked that there was still something like a miracle in this world. Give him hope. Give him a realization that he could still hope.
It was true what his former Captain said; he should go out and see the world, because his pessimism came from the stagnation he experienced from staying only in bad places. Well, if it came down to it, Bassena was the one who told him to roam the world to find an answer.
Had he found it, though? What he had wanted to do with life.
Not something out of duty, but from desire. The stuff the future formed with. Not just the immediate future, but the full picture.
He had drawn some for his clan, for Ishtera’s name. But he couldn’t really say it was something he wanted for him. The future with Bassena...was something that was inevitable due to their relationship. But what kind of future did he want in that relationship?
It was a question that became more prevalent with the talk alluding to marriage that they had never really delved into, or the talk about imprinting earlier. He realized that he was no longer opposed to such ideas, but he also wasn’t sure if he would want it.
And then, there was also something else that he had yet to tell Bassena...
"What are you thinking about while making such a serious face?"
Zein felt a pair of warm hands on his cheeks, and looked up to see the esper’s curious face hovering above him. "Just..." he closed his eyes and leaned back slightly, propped on his arms against the warm dock. "The future."