Gaela opened her eyes and gazed at her child. Seeing his adorable sleeping face, she couldn't resist the urge to caress it.
The young mother gently traced Davin's features with her fingers, as if wanting to etch his delicate face permanently into her memory.
But as she continued, a sudden thought wiped the warm smile from her face, replacing it with a frown and a look of anxiety.
Her heart began to race as her worst fear crossed her mind.
'Did my power affect him?' She placed a trembling hand on his tiny belly and channeled her mana to scan his body thoroughly.
After several tense moments, she finally exhaled in relief, her smile returning.
'Thank goodness.'
Gaela snuggled with her baby a little longer before slipping away to bathe. A few minutes later, she returned, a towel wrapped around her body as she hummed a soft tune while drying her hair.
Her peaceful moment was interrupted when she noticed her mischievous husband trying to wake the baby. She sighed, deciding to ignore him and focus on drying her wet hair.
"Wakey, wakey," Ray whispered as he gently shook Davin's tiny hand.
"Come on, little warrior… your awesome dada is here!"
"Where did you sleep last night?" Gaela asked, raising an eyebrow.
"On the couch…" Ray replied with a sheepish grin, while scratching the back of his head. The previous day, after a long chat with Jenny, he had accidentally dozed off on the couch.
"You can't be serious," Gaela sighed once more as she walked towards the bed. She stopped a few inches from him, took his right hand, and spread her power into it.
"I didn't break it, did I?"
"Nope… but I think it cracked," Ray said with a frown, recalling how she had nearly crushed his precious hand the day before.
"Sorry about that," she said, her voice trembling as she tried to stifle a laugh. His pouting expression was just too amusing to resist.
"I can't believe you think it's funny! I almost lost my hand!" Ray grumbled while glaring at her.
His outburst was the final straw, and Gaela burst into laughter, her joy echoing through the room.
Seeing her laugh so freely made Ray's frustration melt away. Instead of protesting, he smiled. He knew how much she had struggled to control her magical power over the past nine months in order to protect their baby.
It had pained him to see her so tense and rarely smiling during that time.
"Now what are you thinking about?" Gaela teased after noticing the grin on his face.
"You," Ray replied before pulling her onto his lap.
He then wrapped his arms around her, and tucked a stray strand of her silver hair behind her slightly pointed ear before pressing his lips over her small pink ones.
She didn't resist, letting him take the lead in their tender kiss.
[Soul integration complete!]
When they finally parted, Ray smirked mischievously as his gaze drifted to her chest.
"Is it just me, or have they gotten bigger since the last time I saw them?" he said while reaching out to remove the towel covering her.
"How about I have a closer look."
"I just had our baby yesterday, you bastard!" Gaela protested, with her face flushed as she tried to fend off his wandering naughty hands.
"And for your information, they belong to Davin now," she added with a pout, which only made him chuckle.
"Fine…" Ray relented, for now. He then turned his attention to their son.
"Good morning, little champ," he said softly, his voice filled with affection. Gaela immediately followed his gaze and found two small golden eyes staring back at them.
'Who the hell are these two weirdos? And why are they staring at me like that?' Dave thought in utter bewilderment.
He had just woken up, only to find Gaela and Ray in the middle of sharing an intimate kiss.
[They are your parents, host.]
'Huh? Parents?' Dave stared at the couple, who were now gazing at him with adoration.
'How is this even possible!?' His confusion deepened as the silver-haired woman broke free from the man's embrace and crawled toward him on the bed.
'No. No, no, no. This can't be right. I never saw my dad and my mom died when I was eleven! I—even remember her last words as she laid on her death bed—'
'Wait a minute—I was in the warehouse… with James and his goons, then darkness—Did I die?'
'Nah… I think this could be the side effects of the drugs James used on me. They are really some strong shit!' He thought with a wry chuckle, and tried to move but his arms and legs wouldn't budge.
'I can't even move! Just what did he inject me?'
[You've reincarnated, host. Welcome to another world.]
Dave fell silent upon hearing the voice that wasn't of the people around him. It echoed in his head, smooth and unfeeling.
Despite the fact that a strange voice was talking to him in his head, what he found more unsettling, was the weight of its words.
'What do you mean reincarnated?' Immediately questions slammed into his heads like freight trains. Was this some afterlife? A second chance? Or some shitty, all-too-real dream?
He lay there perplexed as the beautiful woman scooped him into her arms, holding him close.
Her stunning face came into clearer view—a small, delicate frame with golden eyes that seemed to captivate him. Her long silver hair shimmered, enhancing her radiant beauty.
'Are all women in this world this beautiful?' Dave unintentionally thought in a smitten state.
[I doubt it. Your mother seems to be a rare one.]
"Good morning, Davin," Gaela said with a warm smile.
'Davin? Who the hell is D—?'
[Your name.]
"I think he's hungry," Ray remarked as he leaned closer.
"How do you know?"
"Just look at the way he's staring at you. He must be starving!" Ray said, as if he could feel his son's plight.
Gaela rolled her eyes but loosened the towel and let it fall to her waist, revealing her chest. She then gently offered a nipple to her son.
'…' Dave—or rather—Davin motionlessly stared at the pink nipple, now inches away from his face.
[Don't overthink it, host. You should nurse in order to grow]
'Huh!? And who the hell are you?' Davin's tiny mouth naturally opened to accept his first meal in a world which he doesn't yet know its name.
[Oh, forgive me for not introducing myself earlier. I am the ??? System!]
'System what now?' Dave asked the mysterious voice in his head as he sate his hunger.