The heavy tension in the corridor outside the master bedroom was thick enough to choke a lesser mage.
Cassian Draven, a man who regularly decimated enemy lines without breaking a sweat, was currently failing to maintain his composure. He paced a trench into the marble floor, his hands running frantically through his dark hair.
"The mana fluctuations are too erratic," Cassian muttered, his voice a tight whisper.
"If the infant draws too much, her core could destabilize. I should go in there."
He took a half-step toward the heavy oak doors.
"If you go in there, she's going to hit you with a localized combustion spell," a calm voice piped up from the floor.
Cassian paused, looking down.
Neo sat against the far wall with his knees pulled to his chest. He analyzed the ambient energy leaking through the doors out of habit. The magic was turbulent, hot, and heavy. High-tier mages faced immense risks during childbirth because a newborn's forming core instinctively leeched energy from the mother's reservoir. If Cassian breached the room with his own massive aura, the resulting pressure clash could be disastrous.
"She specifically threatened to turn your boots to ash if you interrupted the senior healer again," Neo reminded him pragmatically.
"Sit down, Papa. You're making the guards nervous."
The four elite knights stationed at the ends of the hallway shifted uncomfortably, clearly terrified their Duke was about to spontaneously ignite from sheer anxiety. Cassian let out a ragged groan and slid down the opposite wall, burying his face in his calloused hands.
Beside Neo, Nora remained perfectly still. Her dark velvet dress stood in stark contrast to the pale marble. She wasn't pacing. She was busy suppressing her own monstrous aura.
Usually, her presence felt like a freezing gravity well, but right now, she had compressed her energy into a tight, quiet sphere to avoid disrupting the fragile mana environment of the hallway. Her cold fingers were securely locked around his hand.
"You're warm," she muttered, leaning her head against his shoulder.
"You're freezing," Neo replied. He pushed a thin, highly controlled thread of refined mana through their joined hands to stabilize her temperature.
Nora's eyes fluttered shut, a microscopic sigh of relief escaping her lips.
An hour crawled by. The only sounds were Cassian's heavy breathing and the muffled, frantic murmurs of the healers inside.
"Waaaaah!"
Then, a sharp gasp echoed from the bedroom, followed by a piercing, healthy cry.
Cassian slumped against the wall, the tension leaving his body in a rush. But before he could even stand, a second cry joined the first.
"Waaaaah! Waaaaaah!"
Cassian froze. Neo blinked, his analytical mindset stalling for a fraction of a second. Two distinct, overlapping wails. One was high-pitched and furious, while the other sounded like an annoyed grumble.
The heavy doors creaked open. The senior healer stepped out, looking entirely drained but ecstatic.
"The Duchess is resting. She is healthy, though her reserves are completely empty." Her smile widened.
"The heavens have blessed the Draven House. A healthy boy and a healthy girl."
Cassian didn't even process the words before he shoved past her into the room.
Neo felt a tug on his hand. Nora tilted her head toward the open door, her violet eyes curious.
"Let's go," Neo said.
Inside, the room smelled of burnt medicinal herbs and clean linen. The magical light crystals had been dimmed to a soothing amber glow. Sylvia leaned against a mountain of pillows. She looked exhausted, her white hair clinging to her damp neck, but a fierce, triumphant light burned in her blue eyes. Cassian was already on his knees beside the bed, burying his face in the blankets.
Sylvia held two small, tightly wrapped bundles. She spotted Neo and smiled. "Come meet your family, Neo."
Neo climbed onto the edge of the mattress. He peered down at the two squished, red faces. The bundle on the right had a tuft of jet-black hair and was currently letting out a grumpy squeak.
"Caelum," Sylvia whispered.
The bundle on the left had a patch of snowy white hair and was still fussing loudly, her tiny fists waving in the air.
"Lyra."
Neo analyzed the situation. Twins. The original storyline never explicitly detailed the siblings, only that the Emperor's forces eventually hunted them down to eradicate the bloodline. The variables had changed. There were two targets now instead of one.
Looking at their fragile, breathing forms, Neo felt a profound sense of responsibility. The distant threat of the plot wasn't just text on a screen anymore. It was these two infants.
He reached out. Little Lyra's waving hand bumped against his finger, her tiny grip surprisingly strong. She stopped fussing, letting out a quiet huff.
"I'm going to take care of you," Neo said quietly. It wasn't a child's promise; it was a calculated vow. He would tear the capital apart before he let the Imperial executioners near this room.
A shadow fell over the bed. Nora stood on her tiptoes, staring at the bundles with clinical fascination.
"Don't be shy, Nora," Sylvia said gently.
Nora reached her pale hand toward Caelum. But as her fingers neared the baby's face, the ambient temperature dropped. Caelum shivered, his face scrunching up as the latent mana irritated him.
Realizing her aura was hurting him, Nora frowned. She closed her eyes.
Neo watched in amazement as she performed a brutal feat of mana control. She forcibly dragged every ounce of her leaking aura backward, sealing the pathways in her Dantian. The oppressive pressure vanished instantly.
Opening her eyes, she reached out again, her skin now a normal temperature, and poked Caelum's cheek. The baby yawned and leaned into the touch.
Nora looked up at Neo, a tiny, triumphant smirk pulling at the corner of her mouth.
"Show-off," Neo muttered.
Cassian laughed, wiping his eyes.
"Gods, I have to protect four of you now. The Empire isn't ready."
Neo looked at his expanded family and the young Calamity currently examining his brother.
He had Decided that he will give Every Ounce of him in order to Protect them.