Chapter 81: 81 Birthday.

When the date arrived, Jin and Silvia stood before the wooden door to the place where Iris and Nina lived. Both wore casual outfits, each holding paper sprinkled with various colors, awaiting the main star’s arrival.

The celebration atmosphere was palpable in the wide room, where flowers and paper chains hung on each corner of the walls.

“How was it, Jin?”. Silvia turned toward the boy, who closed his eyes.

A moment later, his ears twitched as he felt a slight vibration in the air. Jin’s eyes jolted open, and he lifted his gaze to the girl, whose expression melted, for this was the first time she had experienced this.

Her flushed cheek and tensed hands, which held the sprinkles, put a smile on his face.

“They will be arriving soon; prepare yourself.” Jin straightened his posture, and so did the girl. A moment later, they heard the door click.

’Here we go!’. Jin exchanged glances with Silvia, and both held their breath, witnessing the girl stiffened upon opening the door.

“Happy Birthday, Nina”.

Both loudly cheered by throwing their hands upward, letting the sprinkles fall like autumn leaves. The little girl’s large eyes gently reflected the sprinkles’ bright color.

“Big Brother, Jin and Big Sis, Silvia”.

Nina opened her stiffened mouth and glanced sideways toward them. She gulped her saliva and seemed to have forgotten to breathe.

Jin chuckled and saw Iris standing behind the little girl. Her expression glittered with tears that accumulated in her eyes.

He crouched to match Nina’s eye level and wanted to open his mouth, but the girl caught him first.

With tears that streamed down her cheek, Nina dived into his chest, sobbing.

“Thank you, Big Brother; I’m so happy.”

The girl’s finger curled tight and crumpled Jin’s t-shirt, but he didn’t pay it any mind and raised his palm to pat her smooth, silken hair.

Her emerald hair, which cascaded down, reminded him of the endless forest. True to her race as a descendant of noble Elves.

Nina separated as she turned to Silvia and jumped to her waist. “Thank you, Big sis, Silvia.”

“Fufu, you are welcome”.

Silvia has been staying in his father’s mansion for the past few days. Ireena, the state head maid, assigned Nina the task of tending to Silvia’s care while she was there.

Thanks to that, they became close enough to let Nina call Silvia Big Sis.

Jin pushed his body upward and shifted to the side toward the emotional elves. Iris bit her lips and averted her gaze high, holding the tears to mess up her face.

The way her body trembled and tightly clenched her fists showed just how wonderful the moment was, no matter how many years passed. Iris would carve this sight in her mind so she would not forget it for the rest of her life.

He calmly stepped out from the women’s stage and stood before the dining table.

“Uhum, everyone, are you ready for the surprise?”. Jin clapped his hands to gather others’ attention.

Once he saw the attention was on him, with a flick from his fingers, a layered cake popped out from his Item Box. It had two stacked sponged, covered by a white cream he made himself for the past days he experimented.

Sadly, it was just a simple one with no garnish or grandiose decoration, granted because Jin remembered that he had a terrible appreciation for art.

However, in this world that was still way behind in civilization and knew the baking process was for bread and cookies only, he thought it was a pretty good outcome.

’All that trouble was worth it’. Jin nodded his head, feeling rewarded by the expression of the others.

“Woah, wow, Big brother, what is that?”.

Nina beamed, her large eyes snapped open with twinkling stars and approaching his side. She tugged Jin’s clothes tight and leaned toward the white cake.

“This is called cake. It has a soft and sweet flavor. You would surely like it”.

“Soft, sweet?”.

The girl reached her finger forward to poke the white foam that enveloped the cake inside. She hesitated at first, but as she lifted her gaze and saw Jin nod, she put it in her mouth.

“Mmm!? It’s delicious”. Nina’s eyes widened, and she almost reached toward the thing again, but Jin caught her wrist.

“Not so fast; let’s slice open the cake and let the others enjoy it too.”

Jin glanced toward the two women standing near the entrance, their eyes narrowed in a mixture of confusion and curiosity. Nina spread her lips, revealing her white teeth, and dashed toward them, yanking both hands.

“Hurry up, Mother and Big Sis Silvia; it was amazingly sweet and smooth.”

When they returned, several plates were served near the cake, each representing the people who had celebrated this wonderful day.

Iris stood near Jin and stared at his side, “Jin, where did you get this?”.

“Well, I will tell you later”.

He shrugged off the Elves’ question while unaware that Silvia, who captured the scene with a calm expression, slipped from his sight.

“…”.

“Nina, come here; let’s slice the cake together.”

“Um”.

Jin led the girl who held her first knife. They sliced the cake and connected the knife tips to create a triangle. Nina was told to give the first slice of the cake to the person she held dear the most, and Iris was the one she gave.

“Here, Mother.” Nina held a plate and looked at her mother with an expression that almost broke into tears. “Thank you for always being there with me.”

Iris snatched the plate, put it on the table, and wrapped her arms around Nina’s small, trembling body.

The golden light that peeked through the window caressed their figures like a painting in view while they sobbed in each other’s embrace.

“No, Nina, I’m the one who should be grateful to you for appearing in my life”.

For Nina and Silvia, who were unaware of the situation the two were in. Iris’ words were heard as nothing but a simple heartfelt gratitude.

However, her twisted expression, clouded by massive guilt and joy, colluded in her eyes. Jin averted his eyes and silently hoped that both could find their closure.

“Hihi, me too, mother.” The girl’s small hand reached out and muttered, “You are the best mother I have, and I love you.”

“…Nina, thank you”. Iris dived her face toward the little girl’s shoulder as she couldn’t hold the overflowing emotion.

The winter sun witnessed their family bond, making the celebration one of the most memorable Chapters in their lives.

***

After the heartwarming parties, Jin and Nina were lounging on the sofa. Their breaths were soft, and their eyes were closed, too tired to continue.

Iris and Silvia sat in the dining room and sipped the steaming tea in their cups to wash away the sweetness that lingered in their mouths.

They exude a trained gesture and elegance within their conduct, which shows their social standing.

Silvia broke the stillness in the room by putting the cup back on the table and said, “I’m surprised Jin could make a cake”.

“Mm? You know about it?”. Iris brows raised as she stared at the cake, which still stood as a mountain.

“Yes, recently I heard there was a certain Merchant in the capital who created the same thing called cake.”

The silver-haired girl traced her finger around the cup tips, reminiscing about the news that she usually pushed away, but it now intrigued her a lot because of the action of a single boy.

She glanced at the sleeping boy who curled together with Nina on the sofa.

“Um, Lady Silvia, may I ask you something?”.

“Hmm? You can call me Silvia just fine”. Silvia raised her hand and looked toward Iris, “What is it?”.

“Alright then,”. Iris’s words got stuck in her throat. Her grip tightened around the cup before continuing, “Can I ask about your encounter with Jin and how you could put your trust in him so much?”.

“Sure”.

The mood shifted as Silvia’s clear answer pounded her calm heart, speeding up the beat. A continuous thumping loudly rang in her ears as she heard the stories.

Silvia’s experience flashed before Iris’s eyes. It started with her talent, which pushed her to the brink of despair. Then she met Jin, and her life turned upside down like a mysterious switch had been flipped on, the silver-haired girl continuously told the stiffened Elves.

Their adventure led to the discovery of a Dungeon. When the incident of being stranded at the North Pole reached Iris’s ears, her body shivered at the vivid image of the cold and oppressive feeling of facing a dragon.

’I see. I understand why Silvia trusted Jin; No, it was not only about trust…’. Iris’s eyes pried deep into Silvia’s azure eyes, watching her melted expression when discussing Jin. Her lips parted in a warm smile as she concluded, ’… She was giving her whole life to him’.

Iris’s face clouded as she felt a tightness in her chest area. She reached out but found nothing strange in it.

“How about you, Iris?”.

“Huh? Me?” Iris’s heart leaped to her throat after being pierced by a wild arrow. She exhaled and started to open her heart a bit. “For me, it started with a certain foolish brat…”

She began to tell her stories, and both girls shared the same common tales. The kindness he showed saved both, binding them together into this place.

They shared other stories, not just about Jin, the things they like, food, clothes and what they usually do.

“Iris, you know, I’m planning to stay in this town for a while”.

Iris blinked and leaned forward, “Yes, what of it?”.

Silvia brought her palm close and asked the elves before her.

“I’m interested in becoming an Adventurer, so can I join your party at that time?”.

“Sure, no problem; let’s register tomorrow or whatever time suits you best.”

“Yes”.

The two were absorbed in their talk and unaware that the boy hiding behind the sofa had a smile, hearing them deepen their relationships. ’Good for you guys…’.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep