My mother picked me up and began gently rocking me, as if she still thought I was three days old instead of an adult mind trapped in a compact body.
Then she asked with genuine curiosity,
"Why didn't you bring Elaine to meet Erond?"
Elaine?
New name detected. Maximum attention activated.
The elf named Adele answered with a gentle smile, though there was a hint of concern in her eyes.
"She wasn't feeling very well, so we left her with her grandparents."
Grandparents.
GRANDPARENTS.
Wait.
I have grandparents?
Since when do I have grandparents and nobody introduced me yet?
This is a serious violation of my rights as a grandchild.
I always wanted grandparents.
Grandparents give you food behind your parents' backs, defend you when you get scolded, and—if I remember correctly—always think you're perfect.
I need to investigate this later.
My mother gently squeezed my arms affectionately.
"That's a shame… I hope she gets better."
"Yes, our princess will recover," Adele said confidently.
Princess?
Okay.
We have a princess named Elaine.
She is sick.
And apparently important enough for everyone to be worried.
My father and Elarion exchanged a look.
The kind of look filled with history.
"I never thought the day would come when we would have to fulfill our parents' promise…" Elarion said with a nostalgic tone.
Promise?
What promise?
Nobody promised me anything.
I should be consulted.
I'm small, not irrelevant.
My mother responded with a calm smile.
"Yes… soon we will become one family."
Silence.
My brain froze.
One.
Single.
Family.
Wait.
No.
Don't tell me.
Don't tell me that—
I looked from one adult to another.
All smiling.
All calm.
As if they hadn't just dropped the biggest bomb of my short existence.
What do you mean "one family"?
Could someone explain this to an extremely confused and unjustly not-consulted baby?
Then a terrifying possibility appeared in my mind.
Elaine.
Princess.
Promise.
One family.
No way.
I…
I have a fiancée?!
I hope she's pretty.
I was pulled from my thoughts by my mother's excited voice.
"Erond, show them your magic."
Of course.
What mother doesn't like showing off her child like a rare masterpiece?
If she could, she would probably put a sign on me that said:
"Look, unique model."
I sighed internally and focused.
Now it was easier than before.
It was no longer like trying to grab smoke.
It was like feeling the world's breath.
Everything was there…
The particles.
Invisible.
Silent.
Waiting.
I didn't force it.
I guided it.
I focused on a single dry leaf my mother was holding between her fingers.
Instead of thinking about "creating fire," I thought about movement.
About vibration.
The molecules began to shake.
Slowly at first.
Then faster.
Faster.
Until—
Fsshh.
A small flame appeared at the tip of the leaf.
Small.
Delicate.
But real.
My mother didn't move.
She trusted me completely.
I heard a gasp.
Not from her.
From Elarion.
"Incredible…" he murmured, his eyes fixed on the flame.
Adele covered her mouth in surprise.
My father…
My father was smiling.
Not the smile of a king.
But the smile of a father.
Pure pride.
The flame lasted only a few seconds before disappearing, consuming part of the leaf.
Enough.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Not with fear.
With admiration.
I, on the other hand, could only think about one thing.
If they reacted like this to a leaf…
They are definitely not ready for when I discover explosions.