I hope you enjoy this chapter! About 5K words (4.8K)
PS: If you see any grammar errors or typos, you can leave a "*" on the paragraph, it makes it easier for me to find and fix them in the future.
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The skies turned as day and night passed. The seasons passed, and soon enough, nine more months had passed. It was a sunny day like any other. But today was a special day — the first day of the year, and the day his son would be born.
"Everything will be okay, everything will be okay, everything will be okay…"
Marcus, the future dad, could be seen pacing around the place anxiously as his wife went through labor. He couldn't keep himself steady, running around the place with his arms crossed.
He looked completely different from the "him" of nine months ago. Marcus' body was much "bigger", showing his big muscles, and he now had a thick beard on his face, much to the displeasure of his wife.
To some, he now resembled his father quite a bit.
"Keep it quiet, Marcus. Nothing will go wrong. We made sure to get some supplies from the city for today."
Several people stood around him waiting patiently. Two older men and two older ladies… those were their parents. They had all gathered together for the birth of their first grandson.
The other older men, far wider than the other, snickered, "Aren't you even more worried than him, 'dearest' in-law?"
"Don't provoke him Saphos, now's not the time for bickering. I don't want my first memory of my grandson's birth to be tainted by your bickering. And neither do I want to remember throwing the two of you outside." An older lady voiced out as she looked at her husband sharply
Her ears were a little odd… were those cat ears on her head?
The other lady agreed, "I agree. Sit down and wait. Neither of us wants anything to taint this moment."
""…""
The old men looked at each other before sighing. Even though it had been years since they first met, neither of the two had grown used to each other.
But they were adults, and they knew what had to be done. They sat down and prayed to their respective deities.
For the well-being of their collective family.
…
/Moments later…/
"… Waaa..."
Little cries were heard coming from upstairs, /Dash!/ Marcus immediately ran towards the room and waited for the doors to open. Soon after, one of the women tending to his mother opening, and there he saw it, his wife holding a perfectly fine newborn in her hands.
There was another woman on her side, cleaning the area and helping her adjust.
"R-Rubia…"
He wanted to cry but had to keep a strong man front. He needed to protect his family from the terrible monsters. His parents weren't the adventurers they once were, being much weaker from old age… But he was weak. Even if he wanted to, it was too late to train now.
He looked at his son, with small bits of dark hair, small hands, and silvery eyes. He was excited to see how he would develop, and at that moment, he couldn't help but bawl his eyes out.
He gave the baby back to his wife and went to fetch some things. Leaving the priest, herbalist and the doctor to take care of the baby. After all, this was just the start.
He came back soon after with a large bucket filled with hot water and some supplies, meeting his parents and his in-laws as they looked at their grandson with curiosity.
"… what do I do now?"
"After we clean the child, you have to nurse him for a while. After that we…"
As Marcus entered the room, he overheard his wife conversing with the doctors. While she had learned much over the months, she still needed reassurance… it was normal.
"Let's take this step by step. First, let's clean him so you can start nursing him. The rest from there is easy…"
With the supplies on hand now, they could continue with some minor chores. After a short talk with the priest, Marcus cleaned his face and went downstairs to talk with his family and some friends.
The child had been delivered successfully! Now it was time to continue the fight they had over the previous months…
To choose a name.
…
/Three days later…/
/Humming…/
The sun was strong, yet the breeze was pleasant… In the same room her child had been delivered, Rubia lay in bed with a white blanket over her body as she nursed her child.
Besides her, Marcus pondered deeply over their discussion, unable to come to a decision.
"… we have to come to a decision soon, you know? He needs a name so we can introduce him to everybody."
"I know… our parents have been bugging me for the past few days to see him…"
Rubia smiled, "How about Dionys Silver?"
"Hum…"
"Then Mellios Silver?"
"I like that one, but…"
"Fulmen Espes seems good too…" She added as she patted his head
Marcus frowned, "Rubia… why do you want to put "silver" on his name? Not that it's bad, but…"
"…"
The baby looked at the two of them in wonder as he stopped suckling. For a moment, he looked at Marcus with his big, beady silvery eyes…
"Ahhh! I can't decide. Marcus! Choose one for me!" She demanded as she had the urge to squish him, much to Marcus' worry
"Weren't you the one who said the mother should choose the name?" He asked as a bead of sweat ran down the side of his face
"I just can't decide! Look how cute he is! He needs a good name to represent his cuteness. Isn't that right?" She added as she toyed with him a little
Looking at the child's silent stare, Marcus gave in, "Sigh… Let's leave that for later. Today we are receiving guests, so we can ask them for help."
"So they are coming today."
"There's nothing I can do… I wanted to introduce him with a name… but it should be fine to make this into a family gathering."
/Knock knock!/
"They're here… I'll go fetch them."
"Okay~… Say bye bye to dad~"
"…"
With a small smile, Marcus got up from his chair and went downstairs to greet the guests.
...
Not long after, Marcus entered the room with a small group of women before going downstairs to wait for more guests to arrive.
/Knock knock…/
"Rubia? Are you there?" One of the ladies asked softly as she knocked on the door
"Bribri? Please come inside and help me…"
/Creeek.../
They opened the door, entering the room, "Help me…" Rubia said while holding the baby
Truth is… she didn't know what to do… what did it mean to have a child, exactly?
"Sigh, Rubia… we already went over this multiple times, girl…"
From here on, it was just a long session of tutoring from the experienced mothers.
…
Meanwhile, their husbands could be seen playing some kind of board game downstairs…
"… is that normal?" Marcus asked as his eyes grew heavy
One of the husbands, a tall and muscular man with a thin lumberjack beard laughed, "HAHA! Be prepared Marcus, it was the same when my son was born. For the next few years, neither of you will be having a good night's sleep again."
"I'll have to agree with him on that. Even though my little girl is calmer than most babies, I still had many sleepless nights." Said another husband on the side as he adjusted his thin glasses.
"Sigh… I was ready for this. But I also don't want to lose my precious sleep... it's already hard getting things done as it is."
"That's what it means to be a father. Rather than resting, you put in twice the work while also taking care of a little bugger…"
At that very moment, the women finally left the room with smiles on their faces, 'Finally!' Thought Marcus as he took a deep breath. He wanted to remain by his wife's side, but they mercilessly kicked him out.
The husband with the glasses got up from his seat, "They're here. Time for us to go, Marcus."
"Sorry to leave you alone like this, pal. We'll see you later. I'll bake some nice bread for you tomorrow in commemoration for your child's naming ceremony." Said a plump man as he pushed himself off the seat
"Thank… you all even left some supplies… I-I don't know what to say."
/Smack!/
Another one of the husbands slapped his shoulders, "It's okay! You also helped each of us when we had our own! Thinking of that you sure were young then… a bit late but you still have many years ahead of you!"
"Be sure to ask for help when needed, okay?"
They all silently agreed, and with that, they met their wives as they reached the door.
With their final greetings, everyone left. Five wives with their five husbands.
…
"… Phew…"
After everyone left, Marcus went back to the room to meet Rubia, "Tomorrow, your parents are coming, right?" Marcus asked as he sat beside her, holding her hand
"Don't forget your's will be visiting too, dear... in fact, did you buy the…"
"Yes, I got all of it, but there's an issue I forgot to consider… What do we do about the house?"
"Pardon?"
"Rubia… I'm dead tired… I can't clean the house and do my job at the same time, much less cook and take care of the plants… I think I almost drowned one of them yesterday… and you know how my coking is…"
"..."
She remembered the bland food he had made her for the past few days… she should've taught him that when she could.
"Cough… I uh… I think we should ask our parents for help with this. Since you never liked the idea of a maid… and you won't be doing any shores for probably the rest of the month if not longer…"
"... They always destroy homes." Rubia added with conviction when he mentioned the maid
"Rubia… sigh… Those novels from the city you read don't depict reality! How many times do I need to talk about it?"
"Humph!"
"I... ahem… I will go make dinner and clean the house since I cleared my schedule for this week, but I can not do this for much longer. I need to go back to the forge before the week rolls by."
He got up and opened the door.
"Dear…"
"Yes?"
"Please don't drown plants."
"... I love you too… damn…" He said dejectedly as he left the room
She smiled, "... I love you too, idiot."
…
/The next day…/
"… He doesn't look like me at all." Saphos claimed as he looked at his grandson
"Thank God my prayers were heard. I've been praying every day for that."
"You want to fight Lington?! You're no gentleman yourself! Between the both of us, I'd rather he looked more like me than the twiggy vampire you are!"
"I just look thin because you're too damn wide. From afar, one might mistake you for a Minotaur if you're in armor!"
"You damned…"
/SMACK!/
"UGH?!"
/SMACK!/
"AGHH?!"
Their wives slapped them on their heads before they caused too much trouble, their faces equally tense as they held themselves back.
"No loud words or swearing near the child. I promise you one thing: if his first words are, in any shape or form, resembling what you two speak daily, I will personally rip your tongues out."
"… Isn't that just as bad…?"
"HUM??? Did you say something, dear?" She asked as her eyes narrowed into slits
"Not at all, my dearest Ullia. Marcus, have I, your father, said anything?"
"…"
'Don't drag me into your conversation, old man!'
"Ahem… have the two of you chosen a name? They do say that picking a name early brings good fortune." Lington's wife said as she clasped her hands
"Well… we did!" Rubia said with a smile as she held him closer, "His name is…"
…
The seasons cycled, and soon enough, it had been well over a year since the child had been born.
In a house on top of a hill. An old, burly man could be seen cutting firewood with a large axe in hand. To him, the axe was quite small, but for any ordinary person, it was larger than a war-axe!
/Swing!/
/Thump!/
A casual swing with one hand was more than enough to slash through the wood, and sometimes, even the stump underneath it.
/Crack!/
"Urg… I cracked the damn stump again… I'm losing control of my own strength…"
'Getting old… I never thought…'
"SAPHOS!!!"
"?!"
A banshee's scream echoed throughout the hill… "Just how long are you going to keep your sorry ass out there?! Come back here!"
"… for a moment there I thought I was back at…"
Saphos mumbled something before putting his ax on the side and entering the house.
Inside he saw his "beautiful", or should we say, once beautiful wife…
"What is it you need?" He asked after he took a deep breath, preparing to face the greatest and most consistent challenge of his life
His wife's mood swings…
"Go fetch, little Silver. It's almost time for dinner." She replied from the kitchen nearby as her long furry ears peeked through the side of the door
"Dinner?"
Saphos looked at the clock and saw 16:40… It wasn't time for dinner, not even damn close…
"… Old woman. At this rate, you are going to turn him into a ball! Just how much food are you cooking for him?!"
"#!! For the last time, I'm not coking that much food! I..."
/Chattering!…/
"Sigh…"
Meanwhile, somewhere inside the house...
"… give me a break…"
'They are at it again. For an even more worthless reason… But this is fine, I like this carefreeness.'
The one who thought this was none other than the baby in the office room down the corridor!
'I do agree with him, though. She feeds me far too much… I'm not a pig.'
/Flip…/
He flipped through the pages of his book, resuming his study, '… it's still hard to take it all in… to think I would be reborn… once again?'
'It seems there's something wrong with me. Or perhaps this is the natural state of the universe… in either case, my "soul" or whatever holds my memories has once again made its way beyond the confines of space-time, leading me to another land.'
'There's no way to tell if this will happen again… so I won't live expecting it to happen a fourth time. Besides, I don't want to live a life of neglect. I want to embrace what I currently have… and not lose it this time.'
'That said, of all words I once thought of going… to think this world would be my destination. My memories of my first life are thin and almost gone, but throughout my early life I spent much of my time writing my experiences, and those memories are still clear to me.'
'One of the few moments of entertainment I had during my youth in Rapture was exactly writing about the fiction worlds I once came across. Not only was I known as one of the greatest researchers of my time, an inventor of technology and more, I was also known as a great novelist who made countless works…'
'It's just a coincidence that one of those very words ended up being the one I was reincarnated into… quite a pleasant one, to say the least.'
'The world where gods live among the mortals...'
/Flip…/
He flipped his book again, and this time, the hand-drawn picture of an enormous tower was shown on the page, drawing his attention.
'A few months ago, not long after my first birthday, "I" was playing with a doll on the ground when I had a moment of enlightenment. As I pictured things with the doll in hand, a question formed inside my head… Who am I? I thought all of a sudden.'
'Those words triggered my "awakening", causing the memories of my past two lives to come crashing down… now that I think about it, this moment isn't that different from when I first awakened back in my previous body… just far earlier than I would've expected.'
He clutched his head with some frustration, 'Although not all of them have returned, I know a lot about my first and my second lives… in fact, I have the belief that the missing memories are mostly that which I have forgotten.'
'Soon enough, I may end up recollecting not only all of my past life but also events I had long forgotten from my first one. This gave me many thoughts, some of which I had also long forgotten… the brain can forget and filter knowledge, but what about the memories I've carried between lifetimes? Can they also degrade and be forgotten?'
'Well… I'll likely figure that out soon, but I can already tell that some irregularities are appearing within my memories. It could be that I'm just remembering key events I had long since buried due to the exposition in such an unusual event, but then again… why not think of the more magical approach?'
/CHATTERING!/
"… they're still at it?"
'Sometimes I wonder if they truly love each other… they constantly bicker and most of the time it's due to me. Just come to a consensus on how to raise me already…'
'Speaking of that, when I first regained my memories, at first, I thought I had been reborn in some outcast village. But as time went on and I was introduced to other characteristics of this land, I soon came to believe I had been reborn in some medieval-style world.'
'The idea of restarting from zero… no, less than zero, was quite annoying at first, but it isn't anything I couldn't overcome. The issue, however, would be reaching the same state I was in before. Without Plasmids, there's only so much I can do on my own.'
'At the very least, I soon realized I had retained the unusual characteristics of my past life's body. My memorization and comprehension were still there, and both helped me process most of my memories quite easily.'
'From there, it went through as one might expect from someone in my circumstances. I focused my energy on learning the language and soon enough I had begun to read books to understand this world… secretly of course.'
'I'm just a one-year-old right now. Before I was four… there's a stark difference between my starting conditions. But I couldn't remain still either.'
'The moment I came into my grandparents' home and realized they possessed a small library, I knew what I had to do… I took the habit of playing around the house, and soon enough I locked myself inside their office. After a while, they just began leaving me be as they went to do their things, giving me the chance to sneak a peek at their collection.'
'That was a few months ago… Even though I couldn't read most of the words at first, I knew enough of them to build the bigger picture.'
'The moment I saw this picture... the drawing of the Tower of the Gods, Babel… that was when I knew where I was. And as expected, it took me no time to come across more confirmation.'
'The name of the city where the tower of the gods resides… Orario.'
/Flip…/
He flipped the pages again, 'Despite all this time, I can still hardly believe it. It's almost as if until yesterday I was a young adult, and all of these memories are nothing but a movie I watched… But I know that's only my delusion.'
He shook his head, 'This is my third life. No matter how much I believe otherwise, my very thoughts are marked with the looming shadows of my second life. Perhaps my current thoughts and way of thinking are closer to my first life due to the way my memories were transferred, but that changes little in the grand scheme of things.'
'It does make me feel far younger than I should've been though… Tche! Who am I kidding? I was a young man trapped in an old man's body. Now I'm just an adult trapped in a toddler's body… at least I'll soon get back to my real age.'
/Thud…/
He closed the book and went towards the kitchen, knowing they would soon call him.
/CHATTERING!/
'I can not read while they argue… if I don't stop them, they'll end up doing this all night long. So, for the sake of their well-being and the health of their marriage, I'll have to step in.'
'My family is quite interesting, a rarity albeit not an oddity... at least not in the grand scheme of things… All of my grandparents are actually adventurers. According to them, third-class adventurers.'
'In other words, they were all Level-2 before retiring. Back in Orario, where adventurers are so numerous their numbers tend to increase despite the daily tolls of death and forced retirement, such scenarios may be common, but here all the way in the countryside weeks away… that's almost akin as seeing a pink star in the sky.'
'Only my parents aren't adventurers, and this was a choice made by themselves. Adventuring is a bloody and dangerous job that has a high death rate; it's not the kind of thing their parents wanted from them, otherwise they wouldn't have cast out their past achievements and settled in some remote village in the middle of nowhere.'
'On that note, what even is a "Level"? Taking it directly from the documents I read… there are literal gods among men. Long ago, approximately a thousand years ago, they descended from the infinite Heavens above and gave their blessings, Falna, to the mortals below.'
'This blessing allows people to grow beyond their limits and collect 'Excelia' by many means, growing their power so they may step closer to the realm of the gods… albeit none have actually achieved in reaching them, despite the gods claiming their blessing serves such purpose.'
'There are multiple interpretations of this… but the clearest description I've formed so far is that Excelia is essentially experience points that can be obtained through actions, such as by fighting monsters or even something as mundane as brewing potions.'
'Once enough Excelia is collected and their deity deems their follower worthy enough to advance, that's when they undergo a Rank-Up and reach the next level… Simple enough, no?'
'There are more gimmicks to this. For example, the gods can present their blessings to mortals so they can visualise them, allowing them to vividly understand and grasp their progress in a way they would've otherwise been unable to.'
'This visualization is called Status. It's nothing but Falna being displayed as numeric values and words so that the moral man can understand it. There are many interesting details about oneself that can be found within their Status, but that's another story.'
'As for my level and abilities… only a deity can provide me with those. And to do that, I need a baptism, but that would mean joining a Familia.'
'A Familia is simply a group made up of adventurers and sometimes civilians headed by a God or Goddess. It is the most common type seen in these parts… because not all gods follow such patterns. They tend to be fickle and do whatever they want, so the further you go from Orario, the more extraordinary structures you'll begin to find.'
'With their divine consciousness, it's never possible to predict what a god may end up coming up with.'
'Now… joining a Familia is… easier said than done. Much less finding a deity, most mortals will never ever come across one in their lifetime. I won't be coming across one anytime soon… and perhaps that's for the best.'
'My grandparents are part of a Familia, although retired. Despite decades passing, the immortal gods they once served likely still linger in Orario, waiting for their children to return…'
'My parents, on the other hand, aren't part of any Familia… although I heard that my grandparents have been putting pressure on them so they join one of the agricultural Familias here in the countryside.'
'Even if they'll never train, the mere fact of receiving a blessing strengthens the body and allows it to slowly accumulate power. Nothing may change in a few months, maybe years… but if they keep working, perhaps in a decade or two of work, they'll have accumulated enough achievements to become slightly better than most, providing them with a retirement life most wished they had.'
'I'm deeply interested in the gods and their powers. So much so that I cannot wait to grow old enough to pursue them. Regardless, right now, I have better priorities, and growing up healthy and strong is one of them.'
'Besides… the harder I work and the stronger I become, the better my Status will be once I do get a blessing. It is inevitable that I'll be blessed, so why not make the most of my time until I do so?'
/Creak…/
He opened the door to the kitchen and focused.
In a childish and cute tone, he reached out to his grandparents, "Hungy." he proclaimed as he waited on the ground.
""…""
/Silence…/
"Tsk… you win, old bag." Saphos said as he looked away in frustration
Ullia did not give him a second glance as she reached old to Silver, "Oh dear, come here, sit. The soup will be ready soon."
"Soup?"
'Not this again…'
He walked to her and tried to sit on the chair, but it was too tall.
/Grab!/
"Here we go little man." Saphos said with a small smile before he patted his head with a wide smile
"Thanky..."
'Despite their flaws, they seem to truly love each other… at least they work together quite well most of the time.'
Silver soon cleared his thoughts. It was time to eat.
…
About an hour later after he had already finished eating, Marcus arrived at the house.
/Knock knock…/
"Father, mother. Is everything fine?"
/Creack…/
Opening the door, Ullia snickered at her son, "How couldn't it be, brat? Didn't you say you had things to do? Why are you here?"
"I finished my commission earlier than expected, so I came here to fetch him up."
"... You can leave him here for a few more days. It isn't a problem to take care of a little boy… Take this time to rest or whatever you do in your free time." Saphos added from the back with his arms crossed
"How about you go there and make another one? I'm sure Lington and Misty wouldn't mind having their own to raise."
But at his words, Marcu's expression darkened, 'Look at this old man. He doesn't even have the audacity to admit he likes him… at this point he might as well adopt him.'
"Look, although I would love some rest, this isn't my decision to make; it's Rubia's. So would you kindly give him back to me? I can talk with her about sending him here again for a few days later…"
"Tche! Look at you! You only want to free yourself from him!" Ullia snickered as she accused Marcus with her right finger
"What?…"
"Indeed! Ullia is right! You don't care about him! Leave and never return!"
/Bang!/
The door was closed right in his face, leaving Marcus there in shock.
"These two…"
Marcus didn't say anything else and just left, feeling dejected.
"Father... I'm really sorry…"
At the same time, Silver followed the situation unfolding all the way from the second floor, 'They sure are loud… it's almost as if they're screaming next door.'
'I've noticed it in the past few days but my senses seem to be well beyond those of a toddler my age, if not those of a human in general.'
'In fact, can a baby's brain even support this level of complex thoughts? Could it be something similar to what happened to me in my previous life?'
'Perhaps I'll get some unusual "perk" each time I reincarnate… or they're just loud.'
He picked the next book. It was a thin book with several images associated with words and how to spell them.
He had been reading such for the past few weeks so he could master the language. If there was one thing he knew, was that within a year he would master this foreign and borderline alien language!
'There wasn't much to adapt between my first and second lives given the similarities between worlds, from their culture to the language. But here, everything's different.'
'Mastering it all… will take some time.'
...
/Four years later…/
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