There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL)-Chapter 440 - 433. A Palace Hospitality

The murmurs, which had once quieted down, started again. They were all coming from flabbergasted faces, including the government official.

Strangely enough, Zein saw two faces that made no shift in their faces; that of the Queen, and a young woman standing by the side. From her clothes, Zein presumed she was one of the princesses.

"Quite rude, aren’t you?" the King said in a mix of annoyance and amusement, like someone talking to a naughty kid.

Bassena replied dryly. "It’s rude to force someone on their vacation to come somewhere."

An even louder murmur, perhaps because they weren’t used to the King being talked back. Zein had no idea what the custom in this kingdom was, but he knew enough that people who held absolute authority always wanted others to give them the utmost respect. As the leader of the nation, as well as the head of the only Old House in the country, the King must never receive any opposition.

But the King wasn’t Bassena’s King.

"Hey, look here," the esper let out an annoyed sigh. "I’m not here on a diplomatic mission or whatever, so if you want me to lick your feet like a politician, just forget it."

A collective gasp could be heard, as well as the offended expression on both the King’s and the government official’s faces.

"Just spit out what you want and be done with it; I have a reservation to attend."

The King, whose vein had started to bulge, asked disdainfully. "With whom?"

"With my dinner," Bassena replied nonchalantly.

Another noisy murmur, another angry glare, and Zein was sure the King was about to stand up in indignation to lash out at his nephew, but the Queen gently caressed the King’s arm, whispering something that Zein couldn’t hear with a beautiful smile that slightly warmed the King’s angry gaze.

Huh...

Zein glanced at Bassena, who still looked annoyed. But if the esper was looking at Zein now, he would almost look like the King--with the same bronze skin, platinum blonde hair, and amber eyes.

No matter how much Bassena denied it, they truly shared the same blood.

At that time, the expressionless princess that Zein had seen earlier spoke. "Father, why don’t we bring this to the reception room? He’s a family, after all--no need for all these formalities."

Bassena scoffed. "Pardon me, but...did you just call me family?" he raised his brow. "Am I even in that family registry? Didn’t I already reject that offer?"

The princess didn’t look fazed and just stared at the King with a trained smile. "Father?"

The court went silent once again, as if people were holding their breath to wait for the King’s reply. Zein felt it was silly, but also fascinating.

"Fine," the King finally said before standing up with the Queen holding his arm. "Let us move."

The royal couple turned and walked down the dais toward a door on the side of the hall, being followed by the royal guards. For a second, the Queen glanced at Bassena and Zein; she smiled and nodded slightly, before talking with the King again. Behind them was the Princess, as well as a quiet young boy who Zein reckoned was the Crown Prince.

"Hmm..." Bassena narrowed his eyes. "She’s going to be harder to face."

"I don’t think so," Zein patted the esper’s back to praise him for holding back. "At least...I don’t think she has any plan to let you stay. It’s obvious that she doesn’t like you, though."

"Haa..." Bassena took a deep breath and expelled it harshly. "I’ll only tolerate whatever this is for the next hour."

Zein smiled. "That’s rather generous."

"I’m maturing," Bassena grinned, and he received a head pat as a reward.

"Good boy."

"Hehe..."

* * *

From the airport to the palace’s reception room, Zein had observed the citizens of the Southern Kingdom. Most of them had tanned skin, either from the scorching sun or a genetic trait. But none of them had platinum blonde hair or amber eyes.

Except for the royal family.

The King, the Prince and the Princess, as well as the direct bloodline of House Rakai. In the palace, there were the King’s younger sisters and their children, who were also present in the reception room.

What a strong gene, Zein chuckled inwardly. Bassena’s look was pretty unique in the Eastern Federation, but here, he perfectly blended. No wonder the kingdom recognized him when he started to become famous.

And funnily enough, the way Bassena acted right now was like an estranged cousin who got fed up with the elders of the family.

"Now can you tell me what you want?" he said in a demanding voice after many minutes passed by handing out refreshments without any substantial talk.

Very mature, indeed. Zein chuckled behind his teacup. He was enjoying the warm spice emanating from the tea, completely letting Bassena handle his own battle.

But the King tilted his head with a frown. "Shouldn’t you be the one to tell me?"

"...what?"

Zein too, raised his brow. Bassena swept his gaze across the room, but the other ’cousins’ only gave him a blank look as if they knew nothing about it. Perhaps they didn’t. He shifted his gaze toward the high-ranking officials in the room; the King’s adjutants.

"What are you even talking about?"

"Oh, come on," the King leaned back on his chair and crossed his arms. "Aren’t you here to ask for reinforcement?"

Bassena blinked and made a dumbfounded face. "Excuse me, but are you dumb?"

"How dare!" the adjutants and some of the more hot-blooded cousins stood up as if Bassena had just attacked the King.

"No, because...do any of you feel any excitement from us for coming here?" Bassena looked at them confusedly. "Do any of you hear one word of enthusiasm coming from me?"

Not once; not once since he stepped inside the palace’s compound had Bassena shown anything but annoyance on his face. There was a scowl, and he clearly had talked to the King as rudely as he could without jeopardizing jail time.

He swept his gaze across the room. "Anyone?"

"Ahem," one of the adjutants, the one with the highest rank, replied. "People don’t usually feel excited when they’re asking for help."

"No shit," Bassena scoffed. "But do we look like we need help?"

"Why else would you come here, then? You’ve never come here once since that last meeting, and then you suddenly come here when you’re about to do that...project of yours," the King said with an arched brow.

Ah, now Zein understood. So they thought Bassena was in desperate need of support, and was going to offer help in exchange for his loyalty--or his homecoming, more like. But if someone as strong as Bassena were to be reinstated as a Prince, how many people in the palace would come to support him?

How then, would the current Queen, the mother of the Crown Prince, feel? Or perhaps...someone else who was eyeing the throne.

As expected, when Zein was glancing at the Princess, her eyes were trained on Bassena.

"I was landing in Udra," Bassena said with a clenched jaw. "Isn’t it clear enough that I’m here for vacation?"

The King and the adjutants made a dubious face.

"Look here--" Bassena sighed. "If I’m here to ask for...help or whatever, ugh--" he rolled his eyes as if the notion of asking for help was as insulting as failing a low-rank dungeon. "Then I would go here, to the Capital. Isn’t that more logical?"

"You can just try to mask your real intention--"

"Oh, for fuck’s sake!" Bassena ruffled his hair in frustration. "Why would I sleep in a resort in that ca...wait, why do I need to explain myself to you?"

He raised his head and tilted his head, feeling the whole thing get even more and more ridiculous. Why did he need to explain that he didn’t need help? It wasn’t like he expected anything from them.

"You called me here to see what my objective of coming here is? All I need to do is show you," he stood up with a spiteful scoff. "Come, Zein. This is too ridiculous."

Zein shrugged put his cup back on the side table and followed the esper toward the door. It hadn’t even been fifteen minutes since they entered the room--pretty nice.

Obviously, the King wouldn’t take the continuous insult his lost nephew gave him. "Who said you can go, young ma--"

"Who?!" Bassena turned with a glare and a slight pressure in the air, purely from his suppressed rage. "Who said you could just call your kingdom’s visitors forcefully to the palace?!"

"Now look here--"

"Oh, shut up!" the cups on the table slightly vibrated. None of them cracked, fortunately. But Bassena’s wall of patience was already broken. "I’m trying to act nice and see what it is that you want, but what? You’re wasting our time for that ridiculous assumption of yours?! No, wait--you ruin my date for this?! Fucki--"

"Sena,"

Bassena took a breath and exhaled slowly. "Hah! Let’s go, Zein."

"Wait--are you telling me you’re really here...for vacation?" the one who asked this time was the Princess.

Basse just groaned impatiently in response so it was Zein who provided an answer.

"I’ve never seen the sea."

"...oh."

Zein smiled at the Princess, who was looking at them in contemplation. "Well, I hope the sea is a cleaner place than this one."

"Hey no--"

"Hey?" Bassema turned again, glaring at one of the King’s sisters. "Did you just call my patriarch ’hey’?"