After an unknown amount of time, the visions blurred and then I was back under the huge golden tree with little Nische in my arms. I found my self looking at his dark green innocent-looking eyes that are staring back at mine. It took some time for me to get my gears back.

    It is a totally different feel when you know exactly how the things that happened in the past were via inherited memories versus just reading through books. Since my memories were inherited from people who only lived till the great war in Eieneos, the details were incomplete and one-sided. Sёar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    As for Nische''s memories, it was vivid, detailed and it encompasses all angles and continued till the after effects of the great war and even the war of mystiques versus humans. Through my soul link with him, I felt every disappointment, sadness, fear, pain and betrayal that he experienced throughout all those ordeals he had to face mostly on his own. Now, he was left with only a seed, about a tenth of his original mana and only memories of the glorious realm he once created for beings that did not appreciate it.

    When I have finally calmed down from all the the things I''ve seen and felt through Nische''s eyes, all I could do was to hug the little boy tight in my arms. This time, he did not struggle but instead stayed still. He is still hiccuping and sniffing from all the crying he did a while ago but he was much calmer after showing me his memories.

    When the memories stopped, I saw a glimpse of fear in his eyes. Maybe he was thinking I would judge him or just like he said, I will think he was stupid.

    Honestly, I think it was kind of stupid but who hasn''t done something stupid or have sacrificed for people who ended up not being worth it so who am I to judge anyone. When he saw that I did not look at him with accusing or disappointed eyes, it helped him to calm down faster. We stayed in a hugging position for a few minutes.

    After we have both recovered from the shock of going down the memory lane of his life, the first thing I asked him was, "Were you hurt anywhere? Do you feel better now?"

    He answered, "That happened a long time ago. My injuries have fully healed. As for feeling better, a little bit. I still want to get my orbs and the two trees back. They are mine to begin with."

    I answered almost immediately, "I will make sure that happens in the near future." An awkward silence prevailed again between the two of us.

    We technically don''t know much of each other. We only share the same enemy and have aligned goals for this world at least. As for the soul link, I can say it was pre-arranged by my parents somehow just like those four sleeping beauties back at the palace.

    To break the awkward silence, I asked him one thing that I was very curious about with a mix of wanting to take a little revenge by teasing him, "When are you planning to see me in your adult form? Are you showing me this cute form of yours to encourage me to make babies with you? How would that even happen? Would you give birth to another golden seed and we will plant it in the ground and then wait for them to grow just like what I did with you?"

    The little boy snapped his head up and looked up at me with a beet-red face. His cheeks puffed as if he was bullied a lot. He then tried to sound angry but with his soft and cute voice, it wasn''t convincing at all. He angrily said, "I am a deity! I only took the form of the world tree to support this world. My children would look normal, of course. How can you even think I will get pregnant with seeds?! Are you stupid or do you just want to see me this flustered?!"

    I looked at him with an emotionless face for a few seconds which made the redness of his face further spread to his ears, neck and even the nape of his neck. He must have realized that I really asked the question out of curiosity and not to anger him.

    As I stared at his adorable and angry face, my thoughts wandered off a bit. Oh my heart. He''s really a cute and good-looking child. I don''t mind having at least half a dozen of these little Nisches. I then ended up laughing loud because of the last thought I had but after I did, he started struggling to get out of my embrace.

    Being tiny, he doesn''t have that much strength to get away from me so to make him blush even more, I started kissing each of his chubby cheeks, the small of his forehead and the crown of his head. I also decided to start kissing and sniffing his neck to get a whiff of his refreshing plant scent like how I see other women smothering their children with kisses. He smells like a mix of milk and honey with a hint of lavender. This is an addictive and relaxing scent combination that can clear one''s mind and relieve stress. I also wondered, Do all cute babies smell like milk?

    When I started kissing and sniffing his neck and the nape of his neck, his body stiffened and he started to shiver as he said, "St- Stop please. My body might be this young but this is just because of the little amount of mana I have. I- I am still a full grown adult! Stop! I SAID STOP!" He then started squirming with all his might as he tried to get out of my embrace.

    I laughed again and said, "Sorry. I totally forgot about that. I''ll just do it again once you meet me in your adult form. Hopefully, that''s in the near future."

    He looked at me with shock in his eyes and said, "I am not- I mean- That''s not what I meant!" I then giggled and said, "So, you don''t want my hugs and kisses. Oh... That''s too bad."

    I pretended to be sad as I loosened my embrace and placed him on the ground next to the tree. I quickly stood up from the ground and removed any debris that may have sticked to my clothes using my hand. I slowly walked away afterwards.

    He seemed to be stunned when I suddenly stopped holding him in my embrace and when I started walking away. With his short and chubby legs, he tried to stand up quickly though a bit wobbly.

    After finding his balance, he immediately started to run after me. Each of my step took about three of his so it took some time before he was able to catch up. When he finally did, he tugged at the hem of my clothes. I did not look back and simply continued walking at the pace I am currently going.

    He then tugged harder and many times to catch my attention. I then said in a cold voice, "What?" He then said, "I- I want your... hugs and ki- kisses. I don''t hate them."

    I stopped walking and then said in a serious tone without looking back at him, "Then you better show up quickly or else, I might have already forgotten you when you come out. I might have also changed my mind by then and I don''t want to give my hugs and kisses to you anymore."

    He then defensively said, "I am trying my best here! You''re my wife! Why will you not want to give me your hugs and kisses? You said you don''t mind having at least half a dozen children that looked like me!"

    I turned around and looked at him and as for him, he used his hand to cover his mouth as he looked away. I continued staring at him and asked, "You were reading my mind, huh? Did you enjoy invading my privacy?" I silently chanted a spell to block my mind from being seen through by any outside force.

    I pulled the hem of my clothes out of his hands and then walked away faster. I then told him, "I''m going back to the new world tree realm." He screamed and started running after me while saying, "You can''t be angry with me! I really did not mean it! I was only able to do it since you directed those thoughts at me and we have skin contact. Please!"

    I stopped walking, turned around abruptly and started walking quickly towards him with an emotionless face. He stiffened and his eyes were looking left and right as if looking for some place he could hide in.

    It was too late though as I was already standing in front of him after less than ten long strides from me. I placed my hands under his armpits and lifted him up and hugged him tight. He was surprised at first but hugged me back with his chubby arms and legs like a koala.

    I then whispered to him in a mischievous tone, "I am not angry but... instead of half a dozen, it will be increased to a dozen instead. You better prepare yourself well, Nische or should I use... Laerad."

    He did not answer my teasing but I felt his body stiffen and he seemed to have gotten heavier. His skin also felt feverish for some reason. Feeling worried, I looked back at him but instead of seeing a 5 year-old boy, I saw a more grown up version of him who seemed to be around 7 to 9 years of age. His face was blank and his eyes unfocused.

    His human form then suddenly started to dissipate into specks of light and then I found myself transported back out of his consciousness. When I looked up, the tree seems to have grown quite a few decades in an instant. I touched the body of the tree and tried to sense Nische inside. I was shocked to see that instead of a child, it was replaced by a young man, maybe in his early teens, sleeping in a fetal position inside. Did he just grow up suddenly?