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Zalpa made herself as small as possible in the roomâs corner while the married couple indulged in that sweet moment. A rare smile even formed on her face. After all, the little girl she had cared for so long ago had just become a mother.
Little Yeza had returned in Liizaâs arms, and Khan hugged them both, his eyes alternating between his daughter and the scene as a whole. Liiza wasnât in her best state due to her disheveled hair, dried up sweat, and more, but Khan believed she had never been more beautiful.
However, as much as Khan wished for it, the cozy moment couldnât last forever. He had actually already played the happy family for too long. Liiza and the baby needed to go through Zalpaâs inspections, and Khan had to deal with the mess outside.
Little Yeza woke up while Khan had those thoughts, crying loudly. Liiza rocked her, trying to calm her down, but her scolding gaze eventually fell on Khan.
"[She is perceptive toward your warmth]," Liiza explained. "[You ruined it and made our daughter cry]."
Khan opened his mouth in surprise, holding back a gasp while not knowing what to do. He half-panicked, only for Liizaâs scolding expression to turn into a playful smile.
"[Kiss me and go]," Liiza reassured. "[Weâll be fine here]."
"[Using our daughter to tease me]," Khan sighed, dramatically shaking his head. "[How devious]."
Khan leaned in for a kiss, which Liiza welcomed, and her smile widened when he reached for the baby afterward. He kissed her, too, before whispering sweet words. "[Papa loves you both]."
Liiza couldnât help but bite her lower lip, and Khan ended up shooting a meaningful glance at her once he straightened himself up. He truly wanted to play the happy family a little longer, and his self-restraint was waning quickly.
"[Hurry before I jump on you]," Liiza scolded, seemingly looking out for her own self-restraint. "[Weâll be here once you are done]."
That didnât exactly help Khan, but he mustered his resolve and stepped away from the bed, performing a grateful Niqolsâ bow to the figure in the corner before approaching the roomâs exit.
"[Khan]," Liiza called when Khan was about to open the metal door. "[Iâll be fine with whatever you choose. You couldnât have made me happier]."
Khan exchanged a meaningful glance with Liiza before nodding and finally leaving. Liiza stared at the metal door, heaving a sigh when it closed, lowering her gaze to her crying daughter.
"[Papa never comes back soon]," Liiza revealed, rocking Yeza, "[But he might make an exception because of you]."
Little Yeza cried a bit longer but eventually calmed down, falling asleep. Liiza kept rocking her, but a tinge of shyness joined her loving smile.
"[Zaza]," Liiza called, her glowing gaze still on the sleeping Yeza. "[When you are done smiling, could you check how long I have to recover before I can jump on my husband properly]?"
Sadly for Khan, he had far more serious matters to solve on that blissful day. An idiotic smile was plastered on his face, but his mind had already gone to darker topics.
Despite the recent enlightenment, Khan was still Khan, and the situation remained serious. Actually, the slightest threat felt like the gravest issue in the universe now that his daughter was born, and that peril was there. It had been there for almost two weeks.
Soldiers welcomed Khanâs exit from the outpostâs main structure, stopping whatever they were doing to perform military salutes. They wouldnât dare to ask questions, but Khanâs idiotic smile was quite self-explanatory. Yet, they wouldnât say anything until he made the official announcement.
"I have a daughter," Khan announced, not halting his steps to address the surrounding soldiers. "You can update the family."
A series of "Congratulations!" and "My Prince" resounded in that isolated environment while a few soldiers scurried away, heading toward the various consoles in the area.
Khan didnât stop at those praises, either. He headed straight for the exit in the outpostâs dome, and its dark glass opened upon his arrival, revealing changes he had only heard or read in reports.
Most of the improvised camp had been abandoned. Khanâs forces had moved inside the outpost once it landed, but some activities still happened outside.
The landing area was still there, featuring some human ships neatly parked to save as much space as possible despite the lack of need for such arrangements.
The workshop was also outside and active, with technicians dealing with the repairs of Khanâs special ship to get it up and flying as quickly as possible. It would probably take them a few more weeks to complete the task, but Khan welcomed that break, especially now that his daughter had been born.
As for the areas past those two sites, they now featured a wall of mana-enhanced metal, shields, and alien ships that created an encirclement all around the outpost. Some long rifles also stood among that barrier, pointing directly at the dark dome.
Khan had fought in actual and far greater wars, so that display hardly affected him. It was rather too minute and limited to act as a worrisome encirclement, but his camp wasnât any bigger or fancier, making it quite fitting for the situation.
Typically, the other side of the encirclement would have assumed defensive positions accordingly, but Khanâs forces completely ignored it, and the two weeks had made them dull to it. Only one exception existed in that trend, and the various charred holes around him confirmed his performance.
Wayne sat at the campâs edge, right before the encirclement. The grey sand around him featured various clues about the spells or bullets that had tried to reach him, only to fail miserably due to his troublesome element.
As for what stood on the other side of the encirclement, Khan had sensed them before even laying his eyes on them. An array of cold, dark bodies stood behind the metal encirclement, sending their eyesâ white and red light toward the camp.
Khan had delayed that moment as much as possible, but the matter was unavoidable now. It was time he dealt with the Niqols.