There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL) novel Chapter 45

Chapter 45: Chapter 44. Where Farewell Bidded

"Oh, we’re canceling the dinner?"

"No, that’s not quite it," Han Shin waved his hand immediately. "You can continue with it if you want, since the provisions were already sent anyway."

Initially, they had planned to hold a banquet—well, a Unit’s dinner to be precise—after the expedition ended. It was a token of gratitude like usual, a tradition of formality held by the expediting company to commemorate successful enterprises.

The moment they sent a message to the base, informing their departure from the Deathzone, Naomi immediately called Mortix division in area 14 to send a provision truck, filled with fresh logistics and food ingredients.

The initial plan was for them to stay another night to hold the banquet and then came back the next morning. But a change of plan needed to be made because the researchers were anxious about the shard, and they would like to reach a proper laboratory as soon as possible.

"You can still have all of those ingredients, Captain. We just can’t participate in it," Han Shin shrugged with a wide smile. As a Chief Researcher of Trinity himself, the healer also shared Eugene and Anise’s enthusiasm about their finding.

Agni looked at the fidgeting researchers near the van, who seemed to be ready to jump inside and go at any time. But they also seemed to be busy looking around, as if searching for someone.

"I trust that Naomi already finished all the necessary agreements?" Han Shin turned to look at Mortix’s representative, who nodded with a confident smile on her face.

"All the agreed equipment arrived last week, and the additional bonus settlement would arrive this afternoon with the promised logistics," Naomi turned to the Captain, who nodded in agreement.

"Yes, it’s a pleasure of mine to have Mortix and Trinity here," Agni smiled, glancing at Ron who was bidding his farewell to Sierra and Balduz. "I’m glad you return my crew safely."

Han Shin crossed his arm smugly and smirked. "Do you think anything bad could happen with Bas present?"

Agni just smiled subtly, refraining from any comment about ’anything can happen in the Deathzone’ and swept his gaze around the compound instead. "Speaking of Sir Vaski, I don’t see him anywhere?"

Instead of a concrete answer, he received a sigh from the healer, followed by a scoff. "You might also notice your guide is nowhere to be found."

Agni raised his brow at that. "Well, Zen is the type that always slips away once the job is over," he titled his head then. "So I gathered they’re together somewhere?"

"Together...together...of course they’re together," Han Shin pursed his lips like a sulking child, mumbling in annoyance. "Acting like he was getting dumped or something...what’s that all about if they would just act like nothing’s happened?"

Agni looked at Naomi with a raised brow and a silent question, but she just shrugged with the same confused look.

The same confused look was also apparent on Zein’s face, somewhere near the headquarter’s gate, as he gripped the Black Pearl’s hilt. "What do you mean I can take it?"

"I told you I don’t even use it, so isn’t it better in your hands?" the esper replied nonchalantly, as if giving out a high-grade artifact was as easy as sprinkling candies. "It’s not like you don’t want it."

Zein stared at the esper’s smiling face with narrowed eyes. He stood there wordlessly, just staring into Bassena’s face until the esper shifted his gaze and chewed his inner cheek nervously.

"Fine, I just want you to have something that might remind you of me..." Bassena admitted finally, scratching his neck like a timid schoolboy.

Even since that morning, his confidence in wooing Zein was plummeting to the ground. He thought big like willing to chase the guide from the scratch again, but honestly, with him having to go back to Trinity and Zein still refused to end his contract with the Unit...

The anxiety of having something totally out of his control was even more apparent when it was high time for goodbye. Bassena felt like Zein might just forget about him again, just like before.

It was so ridiculous for someone like Bassena Vaski to think that people would forget about who he was. But Zein wasn’t just any people, and he did forget about Bassena once before.

"Heh..." Zein actually chuckled, tapping the dagger on his palm. But he stopped just a second after, pressing his lips again. "You can’t summon yourself through this right?"

He looked at Bassema suspiciously, and the esper had no idea whether he wanted to laugh or cry. "You know very well it consumed blood. I wouldn’t be struggling with that trap formation if I could just teleport through that."

"Eh, who knows..." Zein shrugged, and Bassena felt like it was safe to laugh a little bit.

"...if I said I’ll visit you—"

"No."

Zein looked up, staring straight at the amber eyes. "I might not know much about the world, but I know enough that you have a lot of work to do," he saw Bassena press his lips in admittance and continued. "I won’t say anything if you come here for another expedition or work that is highly related to the reclamation project. But if you come here just to see me, I will not come out to meet you."

Bassena bit his lips, and Zein could see that dejected puppy look from this morning was back. He turned his head to stare at the glum marsh and the dark jungle, eyes hardened. "That reclamation project, I want it to succeed."

The esper stared at the older’s face, the deep blue eyes dancing with cold flame, alive, lighting some spark of hope inside Bassena’s heart. "So you’ll come?"

But contrary to Bassena’s wish, the guide shook his head. "I don’t know," he said, "but I’ll cooperate regarding the shard at least."

Bassena couldn’t help but feel disappointed. But the spark of hope was still there, behind the unsurety of the guide’s answer. He didn’t cave, but he didn’t reject it also.

"...then," the esper took a step closer, hands itching to reach for Zein but he held it in. "Is it alright for me to ask it again after your borderland contract ends? Can I come to visit you then?"

The amber eyes suddenly gleamed with new determination. It was quite something to see that kind of look thrown at someone rather than a boss monster—as if Zein was something akin to that.

Like a mountain to be climbed.

It was quite adorable, honestly. "Sure," it made Zein want to answer positively, and his hand was raising reflexively.

But he paused before his hand raised any higher than Bassena’s shoulder. The hand moved back down swiftly, but not before it caught the esper’s keen eyes.

"I’ll earn it again," Bassena smiled, eyes blazing with determination.

"Earn what?" Zein turned his head again, looking at the esper with confusion.

But instead of answering with words, the amber eyes stared at Zein’s hand, before shifting his gaze to the blue eyes. With a smile, he raised his index finger and tapped on his cheek.

"That," he said in a low voice that felt almost like a whisper, as if he was making a secret pledge, that Zein couldn’t help but scoffed.

"How annoying," he shook his head. "Waste your energy for something else."

Bassena’s smile didn’t falter, nor did the determined gaze within his eyes. "It’s not a waste for me."

"I don’t think people could forget about someone like Bassena Vaski easily." _{ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com}