After gaining the ability to walk, my routine became fixed.
First, I would wait until nobody was watching me.
Moments like the switching of shifts between maids, or when they ended up nodding off from sleepiness during late-night or early-morning shifts.
Using the powerful grip a baby was blessed with, I would stack my pillows near the crib's edge, then push a few over the side. After that, I'd climb over and fall safely onto the cushions. It was just a meter or so, so it wasn't anything dangerous… unless I fell head-first.
After safely escaping my prison, that's when my exploration began.
Of course, I've done this several times by now.
And I'm proud of the fact that they still haven't figured out how I keep leaving the crib. Erasing any evidence I left behind was my top priority after coming down, after all!
Anyway, after several rounds of going around the place, I figured out a few things.
The floor I was on wasn't the ground floor.
It was connected by a grand flight of stairs leading lower.
How many floors high? I had no idea.
Of course, I didn't dare go down a set of stairs with each step basically my crawling height. One misstep and I'd roll until I hit the bottom. Death would be swift in that case.
Bururu…!
Just imagining it sent shivers down my spine.
On this floor, my usual room, the nursery, as I called it, was to the left of my parents' room. That meant even if I was staying there, I could still hear their voices through the thin wooden walls.
Anyway, after their room at the end of the corridor was Father's office or study, whatever you call it.
I had been brought there once, so I could tell. And although it pains me to admit, Father's working figure was quite cool. No wonder Mother was head over heels for him.
On the other side, with the stairs acting as a separator, were a couple of vacant rooms. I was told they were for bigwig guests if ever they visited. Like other nobles and such.
Wouldn't it be dangerous, though?
The lord of the manor staying on the same floor as guests?
Well, setting security aside, those rooms were practically empty, so I found them boring.
"Today… this book…"
Thus, my way of passing the time was going through the books in Father's study. There were tons of books there, after all.
I enjoyed looking at the images and memorizing the characters of this new language, but… I still couldn't read properly. Of course, I could read a few letters and words since the maids would sometimes read storybooks to me.
However, it wasn't enough to read the complicated contents of the books here.
Studying the words, their meanings, and their usage was my priority. Looking for patterns, understanding how each word relates to another, and so on.
Lexicography, for short… No, was it lexicology? I forgot…
Anyway, I don't know if it's just a baby's memory being so powerful or something else, but everything I read, I could remember from start to finish.
Is this what they call photographic memory?
I'm not sure what I'm saying sometimes, since I'm not really an expert. I was just a college student working several part-time jobs to make ends meet. My grades were average at most, but I wasn't a flunky either. So I'm no genius.
Though if it's regarding light novels, isekai in particular, then I can answer anything you ask.
I was so into it that I even made my own to-do list in case I actually got isekai'd… Not that I made one for reincarnation, but… I guess I can still make use of it with a bit of appropriation?
"Young Master Rex! You're really here again!"
"Buh…?"
And a few hours later, just as I was starting to get sleepy again, a maid found me.
"Really, how do you keep leaving your crib?"
Without the ability to fight back, I was pulled into her soft embrace and brought back to my crib. I was definitely not enjoying her puffies during the ride, nope. After getting caught, the security always increased, so the chances of slipping out again that night were nil.
That meant tonight's adventure ended here…
Good night…
---
Days passed, turning to weeks. Then months.
And then, just as I reached six months old, able to walk steadily, speak clearly, and convey intent… not that I was revealing that fact yet, since I'm sure they'd clamor and call me a genius or something—
"Congratulations, Missus!"
"Congratulations, Madam and Sir!"
Good news (?) arrived at our household. Apparently, Mother was expecting again.
I wasn't surprised after having to listen to or watch their nightly activities for the past few months. Since Father didn't have any business outside the territory, luckily for him.
Thus, that day became a celebration.
And for the first time, I was brought to the ground floor, three floors down, and saw a few new faces.
Hmm…
As expected, all the maids here, even those who didn't work shifts watching over me, looked good enough that they were all in my strike zone. Not just their appearances, they all even had "big" assets with them. Yep.
Although I also learned why… and I felt down for a few days after watching Father "do" one of the maids, Celine, during her shift, with Mother joining in… a 3P, per se.
This…
I guess my reaction was just a cultural gap, but… I feel NTR-ed.
Not that Celine was mine, though.
Anyway, today's a celebration!
I'll enjoy it to the fullest of my capabilities!
Though I still couldn't eat solid foods yet, or drink anything other than milk…
As such, I enjoyed it in a different way from the others.
'Appraisal!'
I appraised every single person in the room, checking their names and abilities.
And to my surprise, the knight-looking guys were actually quite strong!
They had an average of C on their physical stats (STR, AGI, and END)! Although their magic stats (INT and MP) were low at E-, they were still quite good!
"Hmmm~?"
"…!"
And just as I appraised a foxlike woman chatting with Mother, her golden, sharp, alluring, beady eyes turned right toward me… I realized why soon enough.
---
Name: Krystal Lenners
Age: ??19 years
Title: Witch of the Black Forest
Status:
STR: C-, AGI: D, INT: A+
END: B+, MP: A+, LUK: C+
Skills:
Mana Detection Lv. 100 (max)
Mana Manipulation Lv. 100 (max)
Elemental Magic (Water-Attack) Lv. 100 (max)
Elemental Magic (Water-Defense) Lv. 100 (max)
Elemental Magic (Water-Support) Lv. 100 (max)
Elemental Magic (Wind-Attack) Lv. 100 (max)
…
Appraisal Lv. 100 (max)
---
It was the first time I'd seen max-leveled skills… and one having skills numbering over a couple of dozen at that!
"Little brat~!"
The woman, Krystal, chuckled as she poked my forehead playfully and whispered:
"Looking at a woman's status without permission… naughty naughty~!"
Of course, I could tell she was punishing me lightly for my "misdeed." Mother was confused about her words, though.
However… for some reason, I could feel killing intent when my attention turned to her age.
Why were there question marks there, anyway?
Was her age her complex?