478. Adam’s Fault

478. Adam’s Fault

Adam returned to work right away, not wanting to give the Great Elders a chance to find any excuse to use against him. He continued enchanting the weapons for the Iyrmen to complete.

“What is this?” Adam asked, shocked, staring at his twins who were on all fours, their heads pointed up towards their father as he returned from work. “No! You cannot do this! This is not right, not right!” Adam hoisted the pair up into his arms. “How could you do this to daddy, you silly little babies.” Adam kissed their foreheads all over. “You should stay small and cute forever. Why do you need to crawl?”

Jarot remained silent, but he nodded his head from nearby. Even if Adam was a fool, he was also right whenever it came to this topic.

“They are growing well,” Sonarot said, smiling as Adam continued to pepper them in his kisses, causing his triplets to rush over towards him for some affection too. “It may be time for them to eat solid food.”

Adam’s despair hung in the air as he embraced his children. “How can you do this to me, Jirot? Jarot? How?”

‘Cringe,’ Nirot thought, wondering how Adam could dare to be sad about his children growing well. She shared a look with her cousin, who bowed his head simply, agreeing with her thought.

“You truly are close with your children,” Morkarai, the Fire Giant Prince, said, sipping some alcohol from beside Jarot. blinked. ‘Did he just pop out from nowhere?’ He thought back to when he arrived at the estate. No, there was a general blob to his periphery around his twins. “Good evening, Lord Morkarai.”

“I see you are well,” Morkarai said, smiling at the Half Elf.

‘Damn. Why did he have to see me being cringe?’ Adam sat down opposite Morkarai, holding his twins who stared up at their father, their eyes trailing across his familiar features. “I see you’re doing pretty well too.”

Morkarai nodded. “I have been enchanting for some time. I hear you’ve been crafting too.”

“Well, you know, the Iyr asked me to assist and so I assist.”

“We are similar in that regard, one might suppose,” Morkarai said, speaking further with his eyes.

Adam smirked, winking at the Giant. “I suppose that is one way we are similar.”

Morkarai poured Adam a drink. “I have never seen anyone as close to their children as you.”

“You can’t blame them, Lord Morkarai, for their children certainly weren’t as cute as mine,” Adam stated, as though it were fact.

“I suppose we cannot blame them if that is true,” the Giant said, staring at the two children, whose eyes fell onto his form, admiring his fiery red beard. “May I hold them?”

“I can’t believe you would try and steal my children right in front of their greatfather,” Adam said, shaking his head lightly.

Morkarai exchanged a look with Jarot for a moment, who took baby Jarot from Adam, allowing Morkarai to pick up Jirot. He held the baby carefully, holding the back of her head with one hand, and her entire body with the other. She was so tiny, much tinier than even Human babies, though they were growing quickly, rapidly approaching the size of the other Iyrmen babes around.

“Do you find it difficult to raise the children?” Morkarai asked.

“How can I find it difficult when everyone else is doing the hard work?” Adam asked. “I don’t breastfeed them, I don’t entertain them in the day, I barely change their clothies.”

Morkarai could hear the slight guilt within Adam’s voice. “You work hard every day, Adam. You should not forget it.”

“You must return before the festival,” the Family Elder said. “It is expected of you.”

“I know what is expected of me,” Jarot shot back. “Unlike you and those brothers of mine.”

Adam sat between them awkwardly, keeping a hand on Jirot’s leg, mostly to centre himself. He kept whatever thoughts he had about Mulrot within his mind, not wanting to curse at the old woman. She was still Jarot’s wife, and Jurot’s grandmother, so he couldn’t think poorly of her, even if she rejected his kids, which she had every right to do.

“Jarot...” Mulrot said, staring down at him. She sighed, before motioning a hand, calling Churot back to her.

“Goodbye, cousin Adam,” Churot said, before they left, leaving the aura of awkwardness behind.

Adam sighed, wondering if the boy would get into trouble for calling him a lower case cousin.

“How awkward,” Strom said, floating down towards the group.

“Baba,” Lanarot called, before rushing over to him, tripping into the snow, before picking herself up to cover Strom in snow.

“What a big girl you are now, Lanarot,” Strom said, lifting the girl up. The old man was the thinnest Adam had ever seen him, though he still held his typical grace. Lanarot smiled, pointing at the wall near them, before babbling and laughing at her joke.

“Of course she’s a big girl, she’s...” Adam frowned. “No, what am I saying. Lanarot should also stay small and cute forever.”

“You should have Dwarf children,” Strom said. “I’ve been told they stay quite small for some time.”

“Really?”

“They grow slow, but well,” the old Emperor said, sitting down near them, with Lanarot on his lap.

“Papa,” Lanarot said, pointing at Adam, before looking up to Strom.

“That’s right, it’s your papa,” the old man said, before noting the awkwardness on Adam’s face. “It’s the Rot families fault for not recognising the boon you are.”

“Is it really their fault?” Adam asked.

“Well, it’s your fault a little too...” Strom ruffled Lanarot’s hair. He noted how the triplets remained some ways away, narrowing their eyes at him. ‘After all I’ve done for you, you’re still going to look at me like that?’

Konarot held onto her siblings, taking them away from Strom’s gaze. She formed a wall of snow which they could hide behind.

Adam sighed.

“It’s always your fault, Adam,” Strom said. “You’re always making a mess in the Iyr.” The old man smiled wide with mischief. “I’d have to try hard to make the mess you made.”

“What do you mean?” the Half Elf asked, obliviously.

Click banner for Patreon!

It's always his fault.