Chapter 82

Ishtar had never been so excited.

... She's been accepted by Tiamat!

She is a goddess favored by all the gods, and has been pampered since time immemorial.

But this time is different.

This is her mother's approval!

Thinking of this, Ishtar almost couldn't help but hum a tune, but considering that the boy beside her was still resting, she held back.

"Speaking of which, Mother, why are you staring at me?" Ishtar suddenly noticed Tiamat staring at her and asked in confusion.

"No, what kind of bad idea are you plotting?" Tiamat hugged Lan Ze tightly, as if she were holding a pillow, and said warily.

"Huh?" Ishtar blinked. "I didn't intend to..."

"I mean, I didn't intend to do anything bad to Lan Ze," Ishtar said innocently.

"That kind of thing..." Tiamat said softly, "Is also forbidden."

This is her child; others can touch it, but they can't do anything to it.

"Huh?" Ishtar was clearly taken aback.

It was only then that she realized that her mother had simply agreed to let her stay in the room, but still forbade her from having anything happen between her and Lan Ze.

The last time was an accident, but Tiamat cannot allow another accident to happen.

"I understand." Thinking this, Ishtar couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. She sighed and said, "I won't have any bad intentions towards him tonight."

"Aaa." Tiamat then pecked her head in satisfaction.

Then, she immediately remembered something and said, "This matter cannot be told to Princess of the Root."

"Yes, I know," Ishtar nodded. "If that Imperial Princess knew, she'd be furious, wouldn't she?"

Tiamat gently shook her head. "That child is still young."

"We must protect her physical and mental health," Tiamat explained earnestly.

"My mother certainly knows how to make excuses..." Ishtar muttered to herself, chuckled, and said nothing.

She was already very content just sleeping while holding Tiamat.

As for Lan Ze... we can play with him slowly next time when Mother isn't around.

In the middle of the night, Lan Ze, nestled in Tiamat's arms, was woken up by the woman's suffocating presence.

He slowly opened his eyes and saw a pair of enormous human hearts blocking his face.

Hmm... The happiest thing in life is waking up to find your Mother of All sleeping next to you.

"I suspect my mother didn't listen to Aika's words at all, completely ignoring them..." Lan Ze muttered to himself.

When Mother of All Sajyou Manaka first moved in, she said that she wanted to sleep in her own room and absolutely could not wander around.

To this end, Sajyou Manaka even set up Magic Barrier at Lan Ze's door a couple of days ago.

Princess of the Root is a Magecraft genius and is quite confident in her Magecraft. She always believed that as soon as Mother of All enters Lan Ze's room, the Magic Barrier will automatically sound an alarm.

However, in reality, Tiamat easily used a wisp of Black Mud from the Sea of Life to suppress the Magic Barrier at the doorway, and then simply walked into the room as if it were eating or drinking, and went to sleep while holding her "baby".

As it turns out, your mother is still your mother.

Even though you're Magecraft, your opponent is still a complete Beast, so breaking a Magic Barrier is quite easy for them.

However, Sajyou Manaka was too confident and completely ignored these things. As a result, the little girl was sleeping soundly with her body pillow and didn't even know that Ereshkigal had left the next room.

"Never mind... this is fine too." Lan Ze suddenly muttered to himself again, letting out a satisfied sigh.

After all, it's warmer to sleep with someone on such a cold night.

Gazing at the enormous human heart, and then glancing at Tiamat's sleeping face, Lan Ze's stomach began to rumble.

"Hmm... I'm a little hungry."

"I'm so hungry I can't even get up to eat."

Lan Ze was a little helpless, so he leaned his cheek forward slightly to replenish his magic power, and only then did he feel less hungry.

"It still doesn't feel like enough..." Lan Ze muttered to himself, burying his face in Tiamat's arms.

In the dimly lit room, Tiamat vaguely felt something strange about her body. She slowly opened her eyes and then rubbed them, still sleepy.

After her gaze lingered on Lan Ze for a moment, Tiamat felt her previously drowsy mind clear up slightly. She lowered her head slightly, gazing tenderly at Lan Ze's face, and then reached out to gently stroke the back of his head.

Her red, starry eyes were filled with tenderness, and then she pulled Lan Ze into a tight embrace.

Only after a long while, when she felt the boy in her arms seem to have stopped, did she release her grip and whisper, "Aaa?"

Lan Ze raised his eyelids, glanced at Tiamat, and nodded slightly: "Aaa".

Tiamat smiled calmly, then got out of bed and carried Lan Ze off the bed.

As Tiamat got out of bed, Ishtar, who was fast asleep in the corner, came into view.

"When did Ishtar get here?!" Lan Ze asked in surprise.

Ishtar was fast asleep, seemingly oblivious to everything. After a while, she even scratched her stomach, completely unaware that the two of them had gotten out of bed.

"Aaaaa (Ignore her, let her sleep)" Tiamat said as the Spirit Garment vanished into thin air.

She gently pressed Lan Ze down onto the cool floor, a strand of hair falling onto Lan Ze's nose, carrying a faint fragrance.

Gazing tenderly at Lan Ze lying on the floor, Tiamat gently leaned down and kissed his lips.

Almost instantly, Lan Ze suddenly remembered something very important.

... It seems like all the magic he just painstakingly replenished is going to be wasted.

"Eh... Eh?!?!"

The next day, when Ereshkigal opened her eyes and saw Tiamat sleeping beside her, her eyes slowly widened, filled with disbelief as she stared at the woman sleeping next to her.

The Goddess of the Underworld had just woken up, her face blank with confusion, wondering "Who am I? Where am I? What happened?" She rubbed her face vigorously and then patted it gently. After confirming that she wasn't hallucinating, she suddenly sat up from the head of the bed.

"Why am I sleeping in my mother's bed?!" Ereshkigal murmured to herself, her eyes filled with surprise.

Then, she quickly noticed the boy lying next to Tiamat wearing virtual reality glasses.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Ereshkigal's face suddenly flushed red.

No, I'm not sleeping in my mother's room... This is the Divine Messenger's room!

It must have been that Goddess of Heaven who sneaked over last night while she was resting!

Ereshkigal immediately knew the answer in her heart, feeling both shy and curious.

She was shy because she had actually slept in the same bed as her mother and the Divine Messenger, and curious because she didn't know whether Ishtar had done anything with Lan Ze last night.

Just as she thought of this, Tiamat, who was asleep, suddenly made a small "Aaa" sound, then turned over and hugged Ereshkigal. When the girl's smooth face rubbed against Tiamat's heart, Ereshkigal's body slowly stiffened, and she shuddered.

No way... my mother actually hugged me! She actually hugged me?!

A voice seemed to be shouting excitedly in Ereshkigal's heart. She felt like a wild horse running freely across the grass.

After an unknown amount of time, feeling the woman's breathing gradually become even, she slightly turned her head and looked at Tiamat's sweet sleeping face for a moment. Then, a gentle smile appeared on her face, and she gently rubbed her cheek against Tiamat's soft, white skin before closing her eyes and drifting back into sleep.

"Father--King--!!"

As soon as Lan Ze opened his eyes, he heard the child's voice calling out, word by word. He turned his head slightly and saw a little girl with dazzling golden hair lying by the bed, gently pinching Lan Ze's cheek with her little hand, and wearing a cute smile.

"Xiao Mo... why did you come here?" Lan Ze, slightly more awake, sat up from the head of the bed.

He felt a little tired... That made sense; he had used up too much magic power last night, and even with Mother of All replenishing it, it would still take time to recover.

"I just saw another Father King!" Mordred said crisply.

Lan Ze was fully awake and asked, "You called her Father King?"

"No," Mordred shook his head, bowing his head with some regret, "My mother won't let me acknowledge my other Father King right now."

She didn't know the reason, but since Morgan le Fay had said so, she would do as he said.

Besides, with his Father King still around, he won't be too lonely.

Lan Ze smiled, patted Mordred's head, and said with a smile, "Now is not the time to acknowledge each other. There will be opportunities in the future."

Hearing Lan Ze's words of comfort, Mordred rallied, gave a strong "hmm," then thought for a moment, picked up a chessboard from the table beside him, and asked, "By the way, Father King, what is this?"

Lan Ze glanced at it and said, "This is called Chinese chess. Let me teach you how to play."

"Good!"

Mordred nodded, and the two began playing chess, with Lan Ze instructing Mordred as he played.

After a moment, Mordred scratched his head in frustration and said with a troubled expression:

"Chess feels so complicated."

Lan Ze simply smiled and said, "Everyone's like this at the beginning. Whether it's you or anyone else, everyone needs a learning process, so there's no need to be discouraged."

"I see." Mordred said thoughtfully, and the troubled look on her face disappeared.

She began to frown, staring at the chessboard, deep in thought.

Just then, the door was suddenly pushed open quietly, and Lan Ze subconsciously looked up.

Artoria stood in the doorway, her dazzling blonde hair and shapely, sexy figure captivating. Her gaze swept over Lan Ze, and then lingered on Mordred for a moment.

The little girl rested her chin on her hand, her face deep in thought, seemingly unaware that someone was standing outside, completely absorbed in the chessboard.

"Who is this child...?" Artoria asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Our child," Lan Ze said jokingly.

Artoria, who had just exuded a mature and sophisticated aura, blushed slightly, spat out a curse, and said, "Don't joke like that!"

I'm serious... Lan Ze thought to himself.

"Are you teaching this child to play chess?" Artoria then asked.

"Hmm," Lan Ze nodded slightly, then patted Mordred's little head.

"Little Mo, let King Arthur teach you how to play chess."

Mordred snapped out of her reverie, first glancing at Lan Ze, then following his gaze to the tall woman standing to the side, her eyes widening in surprise.

Another Father King?!

Then, Mordred immediately gripped the sheet tightly with her little hands, lowered her head, looking somewhat embarrassed, her heart filled with both anticipation and trepidation.

She worried that this "Father King" would reject her; although the mischievous child was naughty, she still longed for her Father King's approval.

No... Mordred doesn't even want recognition right now; she just wants to be able to speak with her Father King. That would be enough for her.

After hesitating for a long time with her head down, she raised her head as if she had made up her mind and looked at Artoria, warily and expectantly trying to figure out King Arthur's expression.

If the other "Father King" suddenly shook his head and refused her at this moment, she might run away immediately and then reappear in front of Artoria after a very long time, after she has completely forgotten about this matter.

Artoria noticed Mordred's uneasy gaze. She glanced at Lan Ze instinctively; the boy was looking at her gently and nodding slightly.

After a moment of contemplation, Artoria's lips curled into a sensual smile, and she said:

"Okay... it's good to relax a bit."

"Let me teach you how to play chess."

Upon hearing Artoria's reply, Mordred's previously stiff body slowly relaxed. Only then did she suddenly notice that her heart had started beating very fast... Even after sparring with Agravain, her heart had never been beating this fast.

Suddenly, she felt a warm hand on her head.

Mordred raised her head slightly and saw the boy sitting opposite her. She saw encouragement in his eyes.

Mordred remained silent, gazing at the man quietly. After a long while, she suddenly whispered, "Thank you, Father King."

The voice was very soft, so soft that no one could hear it at all, but those crystal-clear eyes remained fixed on Lan Ze.

Mordred, born as an android, grows at an extremely rapid pace. Due to the short period of her growth, she doesn't have many memories. However, this seemingly insignificant event will remain forever in her mind, sealed deep within her memory.