It was only after Queen Bethsha made sure that her son was smiling again that she finally realised that Kai hadn’t come back alone. There were other people, other than the guards, that entered this room, and Queen Bethsha realised that these must be the mages that rescued Kai. Queen Bethsha quickly began to get to her feet and turned to the guests while talking.
"I’m sorry for not acknowledging you earlier. I am Queen Bethsha, the ruler of – R-Richard?"
Queen Bethsha had been taking her time to look over everyone in the room as she spoke, but the moment her eyes landed on Jason, they widened in shock, and she felt her words die in her throat! This was impossible! The person that Queen Bethsha was seeing in front of her couldn’t be her husband! There was just no way that was possible! But at the same time, she couldn’t help but think that this was exactly what her husband would look like if he were just a few years younger! Queen Bethsha found her feet moving against her control as she slowly made her way down the stairs and began to head straight towards Jason. Her eyes were stuck on his face, and Jason raised a brow when she stood right in front of him and raised her hand to trace it over his jaw.
’How is this possible?’
Queen Bethsha was looking at an exact carbon copy of Richard! If this man grew out a beard and cut his hair a little, then there would be no difference between him and Richard at all!
Someone suddenly pulled Queen Bethsha’s hand away from Jason’s face, and Queen Bethsha turned to the left and blinked in surprise when she met Gina’s intense glare. Gina forced a smile on her face and spoke.
"Please try to keep your hands to yourself, your majesty."
Queen Bethsha tilted her head at Gina in confusion, and she felt anger rising in her chest when she heard the way Gina spoke to her, but her attention was pulled away when she heard Jason speak.
"Gina, it’s fine. I understand why she’s so shocked. Hello, stepmother. It’s a pleasure to meet you."
’He even sounds like him!’
This thought suddenly crossed Queen Bethsha’s mind as she felt more shock pass through her, and Jason was surprised when he saw Queen Bethsha’s eyes growing wet! Bethsha didn’t realise until this moment just how much she missed her husband, and hearing his voice again was enough to almost bring her to tears! Bethsha quickly used the back of her hand to rub her eyes, and she smiled at Jason in that kind way that only a mother could. At this moment, Bethsha was certain that Jason was related to Richard. Even if Jason could fake Richard’s physical appearance, there was no way he would be able to fake the Avaran Essence that was inside him. Bethsha knew that this boy was her son’s half-brother.
"It’s been a long time since I met any of my husband’s other children, and this is the last way I thought I would eventually meet you. Tell me, what world are you from? Who’s your mother?"
Jason answered with a calm smile.
"My mother’s name is Mira Marc. She’s a chef from a world known as Earth."
Queen Bethsha blinked in surprise when she heard this, but then she put her hand on her chin and tapped it gently while muttering, ’Earth, Earth, Earth.’ Like she was trying to remember something. This went on for about three seconds before the Queen suddenly snapped her finger as she came to a realisation!
"Oh, now I remember. Queen Fiona told me about her a few years ago when she went to visit Richard. Your mother is the youngest wife, isn’t she? The thirteenth. I’ve been meaning to visit her for a while, but my responsibilities have been keeping me away. I heard that your world only just discovered mana. I hope the transition wasn’t too difficult."
Jason was a little surprised to see Queen Bethsha referring to his mother as the youngest. From what Jason could see, Queen Bethsha looked far younger than his mother, and her son Kai looked younger than Jason. How in the world was his mother the youngest wife? Queen Bethsha could almost see the gears turning in Jason’s head, and she smiled as she spoke.
"You’re probably confused about my appearance. My people are very long-lived, and we age far more slowly than most other worlds out there. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you that I just celebrated my three hundredth birthday a few years ago, would you?"
"Three hundred?"
Jason was obviously shocked, and Bethsha couldn’t stop herself from chuckling when she saw his eyes widen slowly. It was always amusing to see other people’s reactions when they learn just how old she really was! Most of the people on Vanta were far older than their appearance, and the reason for this was that their physiology was related to the great beast of the ocean that could live for thousands of years without aging. In fact, Kai might look like he was only still a child, but he was somewhere in his early sixties.
Jason was even more shocked when Queen Bethsha said this, and Jason realised that he had been seriously mistaken earlier. Jason really thought that Kai was his younger brother that he had some sort of obligation to take care of, but it turned out that Kai was actually the older one between the two of them. But then Jason looked down as Kai came over and took his mother’s hand while smiling up at her, and Jason realised that the slow aging wasn’t the only thing that the Vanta went through. It turned out that their minds also developed at a much slower pace than other races, so even though Kai was in his sixties, he still had the mind of a six-year-old.
’That means he’ll have the mind and appearance of a ten-year-old after a hundred years. I don’t even know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.’
This thought crossed Jason’s mind, and Jason felt the hope he had been feeling from before slowly evaporating. Jason had a lot of hope when he first saw Kai because he thought that this would be a clue he could use to find his father. If Kai was only six years old, then it would mean that his father was on Vanta at some point during that ten-year gap since he last saw him. But right now, Jason realised that the chances of something like that were much lower.
Jason just shook his head with a smile as he saw Queen Bethsha ruffling her son’s hair with a wide smile, and he decided not to allow his shock to last long as he reached over and brought Gina closer for a proper introduction.
"Queen Bethsha, this is –"
"Queen? Please, none of that. You’re a prince as well, and you’re the son of the man I chose for myself. You shouldn’t be calling me by my title. Call me mother."
Jason blinked in surprise when Queen Bethsha suddenly interrupted him to say this, and for a moment, he thought about refusing since he wasn’t comfortable with getting that close to people he had just met, but the no-nonsense look on Queen Bethsha’s face told Jason that he didn’t really have a choice. This was Jason’s family, and he had no reason not to want to get closer to them, so he swallowed his discomfort and smiled.
"Mother, I’d like to introduce you to my fiancée. This is Gina Fey. We’ll be getting married soon."
Gina had a nervous smile on her face as Queen Bethsha turned to her, and Gina bowed her head and apologised for her earlier action. Queen Bethsha looked Gina over like she was trying to figure out whether or not she was a good fit for her son, and after a few seconds, she finally reached over and pinched Gina’s cheek softly.
"You have quite a temper on you, young lady."