“Ah! You're so adorable, Edona!” Talaena was her usual overjoyed self while she played with my toy dolls along with me.
My mother, Niona, would normally be doing this herself, however, I noticed that she hadn't been around lately. I had a pretty good idea that this family was for the most part wealthy. You could tell just by looking at the expensive, lavish ornaments and the decor that was in place around the few rooms that I had been inside. It made me wonder who and what this family did to earn such money and status in the first place, my mind raced with dozens of potential theories. But there wasn't any point in dwelling on such things, after all, the house servants and Niona had never taken me beyond the few rooms that I had been in already.
At this point, I knew it would just be a waiting game and for the time being. I decided that it would be best to make the most of it while I could until I was ready to set my own plans into motion.
The door suddenly clicked open, before I could turn around to see who it was Talaena picked me up into her arms walking towards the whoever had just entered the room. Talaena shuffled my tiny body around in her arms, bringing me face to face with a boy that was no older than me by a couple of years. My attention was immediately drawn to his ears under his short jet black hair, they were pointed, reminding me of what I remembered from the manga that I'd seen in my previous life.
It suddenly made me wonder whether Talaena or even Niona my mother were similar. Before I even realized what I was doing, my small hand reached out towards Talaena, and it rummaged under her soft hair. She had noticed what I was trying to do, at first, I thought I may have angered her, but it was quite the opposite.
“Oh, are you interested in touching my ears?” The gentle smile on Talaena's face warmed my body down to the core, something that I had never experienced in my previous life.
Talaena flicked a lock of her hair behind her ear, and true enough, she had exactly the same type of ears like the small boy standing before us. Piquing my interest, I touched my own ears, realizing then that they were exactly like Talaena's. When I was firstborn into this world, I doubted whether I was still human any more, but finding this out resolved any doubt I had left. This must mean that there's more than just humans in this world. If I had to guess, the pointed ears must mean Derrian is some type of elf just like myself, but I can't be certain right now.
I felt as if the boy had a grudge against me for the last weeks since I had been born I was able to read a person's aura. Granted, I could only sense a miniscule amount of someone's aura, but enough to sense something at the very least. Looking at the boy, he suddenly averted his gaze from me, and I could see him grinding his teeth together as if trying to hold back the urge to burst into a fit of rage.
“What can I help you with, Derrian?” I was surprised just how calm and spirited Talaena seemed to be towards everyone, to be honest, I thought it was only because I was a baby and that I was simply cute. The boy seemed to act embarrassed before quickly returning to his aggravated persona that he had prior.
“I just wanted to spend some time with you…” the boy cleared his throat briefly, “… but I see that you're already occupied”.
Talaena nodded, she seemed to understand him, at least that was the impression she was giving off at the time. Again, Derrian looked at me with an all too clear look of annoyance plastered across his face, it was obvious that he didn't like the fact Talaena spent more time with me instead of him.
“Derrian, you haven't had the chance to properly meet your sister, have you?” At first, I didn't think much of it until it suddenly clicked with me what Talaena was actually talking about. It made me do a double take at Derrian, looking at him now, he definitely seemed to have Elinos' eyes. So this Derrian and I are siblings, but why he is acting in such a hostile way towards me? I might be wrong about it, but it most certainly seemed like he had more than just a petty jealously towards me.
Hearing the question, Derrian was taken aback, “O-Oh, I-I guess not, b-but…” before he could finish his sentence, Talaena cut in.
“In that case, now is the perfect time to formally introduce the two of you.” Talaena proceeded to introduce the both Derrian and me to one another, however, the former still didn't look thrilled about the ordeal. A few moments went by, with Talaena talking mostly to herself, as for myself I was still wrapping my head around all of this.
The door to the room suddenly clicked open shortly by my mother, Niona walking in. From her body posture and mannerisms, she seemed tired and frustrated, this was a first for me as she was usually a happy and cheerful person. I never once remembered her acting in any other way, then again I had been in this world for a few weeks, so I was much newer to everything that was going on around me.
“Welcome back, Lady Niona” Talaena's joyful persona already stood out in the first place, but it made my mother's current mood the more obvious comparatively.
Niona responded with a drained sigh, “To be honest, I don't feel glad even after excusing myself from the proceedings”. She immediately headed for the bed, sitting atop of the bed covers. I could tell just by looking at how she was moving that her body must have stiff and aching all over.
“Lord Elinos must be having a hard time trying to convince them” Talaena's comment suggested that this has been an ongoing problem before I arrived here.
Niona loosely massaged her bare shoulders, almost looking like she was considering removing her extravagant red dress to make it easier to do so, before realizing that Derrian was here. As if reading her master's mind, Talaena offered to give Niona a massage, the servant girl sat next to her master on the bed and quickly began kneading out the sores in her master's muscles along her shoulders and back. As the two of them sat there on the bed I noticed Niona looking at both me and Derrian her expression proposed that she was content with watching the two of us interact with one another.
Derrian with me in hand, walked over to the bed once he reached the side Niona picked me up out of his hands and me upon her lap as Talaena continued to knead the muscles on mother's shoulders. The look on Derrian's face seemed to suggest that he was relieved not to have to do with me any more, at least for the time being anyway. This begged the question as to why he was acting like this, considering we're siblings it made me wonder what made him feel like this.
As I was looking at Derrian with mild interest, I suddenly remember about his ears my suspicions about Talaena was already answered, however, since seeing Niona it made me wonder if she too was the same as Derrian and Talaena. I looked up towards Niona whose hair tied in a ponytail and I could see that she too has pointed ears just like Derrian I then turned my attention to Talaena, but her hair covered the ears underneath.
So many questions continued to still cloud my thoughts with each day adding more atop the already hefty pile that has been building these last few weeks. I was so preoccupied just now with everything that I only just realized that Derrian was trying to ask about my father, Elinos.
From what I gather with their conversation, Derrian wanted to spend time with Elinos, however, Niona was putting across the point that he couldn't as Elinos was too busy to make time for anything else, at the moment. Hearing this seemed to make Derrian upset or maybe disappointed for the most part, but he tried his utmost to hide his feelings, but it was clear Niona and Talaena knew how he truly felt. When I heard this it made sense and also explained as to why I had barely seen Elinos seen the day I was born.
“Hopefully Lord Elinos will reach an agreement with the other Lords that are present today” Talaena speaking her mind as she stood up after finishing with her task. Upon hearing her comment, I could see a sad smile appear on Niona's face, it was clear that doubts filled her mind.
“Somehow I doubt it will be that easy”. Standing up, Niona wandering around the room holding onto me in a cradled position, looking like she was lost in deep thought.
It was obvious that whoever had visited the mansion this afternoon were putting stress on Niona as far as I could tell anyway. Yet without knowing more, it would be hard to know just how bad this truly is, I decided not to dwell on it too much seeing that I really couldn't do anything in my current condition. For the last weeks, I have grown fond of Niona she was kind and caring to a fault, resembling the ideal mother which made me wonder about my birth mother back in Japan.
My memories were still all over the place, I could remember things such as Tokyo back in Japan. But if I tried to think about my parents or siblings, if I had any for that matter, it would come up as a blank slate. It made me appreciate what I had here even more, my mother Niona along with Talaena and Sylna who both did just as much to look after me. In a way, it was like having three mothers, which I have to admit brought a slight touch of warmth to my core.
You're probably thinking that I'm a horrible human being, well I guess I'm not human—anyway, as far I was interested I wouldn't remember no matter how much I tried in the first place. Talaena started to use baby talk on me. Obviously, to her, it was completely normal, but to me, it was awkward knowing that what she was saying was complete nonsense while also having to pretend that it's entertaining.
It was hard having to try to act the part of being a newborn baby, after all, I couldn't let them figure out that I've had a previous life before this one. If they did find out now, there was no telling what they would do to me, so my best chance of living was to try to keep this bit about myself under wraps for as long as possible.
Everyone was in their own little world, Niona and Talaena were attempting to entertain me for the most part, while Derrian seemed to wander off to the far end of the room reading a book that at least half his height. Now that I think about it, he couldn't be much older than me by a few years.
A few moments later, there was a gentle knock at the door. Talaena immediately put her body in motion, moving towards the door before opening it. I couldn't see who it was, but from the sound of their voice it wasn't anyone I knew yet it most definitely a woman on the other side of the door frame.
Is it another servant of this mansion? I thought it was only Sylna and Talaena, but I guess I was wrong. I tried listening in on the conversation, but I couldn't catch all of it. From what I could tell, it seemed that the guests that were visiting us today had just left, from the reaction on Talaena's face upon hearing the news, she seemed quite relieved, as did Niona. Talaena gave her response before closing the door. I could hear the sound of soft footsteps on the other side fading in the distance as the next few seconds went by.
"I hope Elinos was able to get through to them" Niona muttered under her breath, almost not expecting Talaena to respond to her off the cuff comment.
"Lady Niona, I have full faith in Lord Elinos, after all, I wouldn't be here now if it weren't for you both saving me back then..." Talaena paused for a brief moment, a hand placed over her chest, looking like she was reminiscing that very memory "...again, my Lady, I have no doubt that everything will come through in the end!"
Niona looked like she couldn't quite find the words to respond with, I could tell just by looking at the expression upon her face
She moved towards the door ready to leave with both Derrian and Talaena in tow while she still cradled me in her arms. As we left the room, I glimpsed two people coming towards us. At first, I couldn't tell who it was, after all, the lighting in these rooms and corridors were considerably worse than anything I had seen in my previous life. When they emerged under the veil of light from a nearby brazier I instantly recognized them to be Elinos and Sylna while being accompanied by a group of people that looked to be fitted with sets of full metal armour with each of them holding onto a spear and shield.
"I don't think I have been more tired in my entire life" Elinos off the cuff comment invoked a small laugh from his lips as for everyone else they knew as did I that he was only trying to curb the tension within the mansion.
"I take it that they continue to preach the same stance that they have kept to ever since all of this has started?" Niona asked, yet I could tell from the tone of her voice that she long knew the outcome beforehand.
"Unfortunately, yes." Elinos moved closer towards Niona and myself before placing his hand upon my head. Looking up at him, I could see a soft smile, but behind that smile I could tell it was filled with mixed emotions. With everything happening today, it was obvious that something has both Elinos and Niona concerned, to put it lightly.
A shadow shifted behind Elinos and the soldiers that accompanied, moving closer towards us, at first, I thought it was someone that was a threat to us until the brazier nearby lit up the silhouette of a man. Their hair was tied in a ponytail. The flames from the nearby brazier revealed the gray streaks amongst their black hair, so it was surprised to see that they were older than both Elinos and Niona. The healed scars upon his face showed that he had clearly since some form of combat in his time, and judging from the noble attire that he adorned, it was obvious had an important role with the noble family that I have been born into to.
"My Lord, I hate to be so invasive at a time like this, but it is about time that we make our way to the capital Allnenor..." this man having dropped to one knee before he addressed Elinos, stood up "...after all, the King has summoned you personally."
Elinos had clearly let the matter slip from his mind, as he let out an awkward laugh in response. I glanced around at Niona, Talaena and Sylna to see that they were all not surprised by Elinos' reaction, however, they still laughed it off in good nature, as did the man standing beside Elinos.
"Thank you, Jorfire, for reminding me." Jorfire, the man who appeared from the shadows just moments ago, nodded in response before taking a step back.
Elinos turned to face Niona, then me, hunching over to kiss me upon the forehead. He then stepped away with his back facing us, ready to leave when suddenly Derrian, who called out to him. To be honest, I had completely forgotten he was nearby, as he hadn't said a word for some time.
"F-Father! Do you really have to go?" Derrian moving towards Elinos, who had been quiet for all this time. His small hand grasped the end of a long cape that hung freely down the back of Elinos.
Turning back to face his son, Elinos knelt down to be at the same level as Derrian's height. "I'm sorry Derrian, but I have to answer a summons from the King regardless of the circumstances."
Upon hearing that response, it was obvious to me that Derrian wasn't satisfied and seemed that Elinos noticed it too. Sighing, Elinos continued to explain himself, "Listen Derrian, one day you'll understand the responsibilities that come with being a part of the noble class in this country, but still, I promise that I'll try to give as much of my time as possible when I can."
Derrian seemed to accept Elinos' explanation for the most part, and it would seem that was enough for Elinos himself to feel slightly more relieved, as I could see his stiff posture loosening ever so slightly as he stood up.
He then turned back towards Jorfire and the soldier escort. As they all began to move, the sound of metal making heavy thuds and rustling against one another was loud at first, but it soon started to fade and eventually go completely silent as Elinos and Jorfire disappeared into the dim darkness. It left an uncomfortable silence in the atmosphere between all of us until Sylna finally broke the deadlock.
"Would you care for some tea, Lady Niona?"
"Yes, that would be great Sylna"
***
It was already dark with the bright shining full-moon glaring through the tall stained-glass windows from outside by the time we arrived in the dining hall. Yet my eyes were drawn to the elegant furniture of the long rectangular table with a dozen of stylized wooden chairs that were clearly masterfully hand-crafted by a master woodworker.
Looking around the room, I could see more women dressed in the maid servants clothes that both Sylna and Talaena wore, each of them dotted around the edge of the room. However, I also spotted a dozen men dressed in butler attire dotted among the servant maids. My observation from earlier seems to be right about there being more servant maids, but I am surprised to see men among them. Are they servants as well, or entirely separate in social status to the women? I guess that's something I could find out at some point in the future. No point dwelling on it now.
Niona must have briefly conversed with both Sylna and Talaena while my thoughts were preoccupied because I caught the last few words of their conversation before the latter vacated the dining room. I returned to observing my surroundings, and now that I thought about it, was rather uncomfortable having so many men and women spread out on the edge of the dining room. All of them, standing perfectly still with their heads angled slightly towards the finely cut and crafted wooden floor panels.
I heard Niona sigh, so I turned my head up to look at her. Niona's eyes were closed at the time, but when she opened them, she looked slightly shocked. I guess she wasn't expecting to see her own daughter show mild interest in her current situation. A second later, her mild shock was replaced with a soft smile as she hunched over me ever so slightly while gently hugging me.
Hearing a low scoff in the distance, I turned in the direction of where it came from to see Derrian sitting across the table from me and Niona reading the same book he had taken from the bedroom. I spotted his grimaced glance, quickly turning away from me, pretending as if nothing had happened. I dreaded the years when I'll be old enough to have to interact with him, but for the time being I just wanted to enjoy what I had now.
Seconds went by when I suddenly heard something that sounded like a welder torching the surface of a metal sheet, at first, I looked around confused until my eyes laid upon the table before. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, something invisible was burning in a straight line slowly upon the wooden, polished table. Looking up at Niona and then across towards Derrian, I soon realized that they hadn't a clue what was happening in front of them.
Am I imagining this? Or am I the only one who can see this? To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if I'm slowly losing my mind, after all, so much in explainable things have happened to me over the last few weeks that it's almost become second nature to me. I noticed that whatever this thing was had started to put together a sentence, after a few moments it stopped, leaving something etched upon the surface of the table.
Hello Edona, or should I call you Kagome?
Kagome? Is that my real name?
That's not important right now.
W-What do you mean it's no-
All you need to know is that I'm here to help you if you're willing to cooperate with me.
How can I even trust you? When I don't even know who or what you are.
Right now, I'm the reason that you're even alive in the first place, and I'm the only one that can keep it that until you're strong enough to defend yourself.
Right now, I think can handle things myself. Things don't seem so bad at the moment.
Ha. Trust me, you'll be regretting those words soon enough, you haven't even seen a slither of what this world can do to those that are unprepared. Upon reading those words, a heavy feeling suddenly emerged in my stomach like I was about to be sick, thankfully I wasn't, but regardless, it didn't feel nice. Just thinking about what this entity just said, and what he truly knows about this world, sent a shiver down my spine with a response like that.
If it's worse than what you're saying. T-Then w-what am I supposed to do? I'm just a baby right now.
Stay low and don't tell anyone that you're an Otherworlder, just act normal. For the time being, your family will protect you. Once we hit a new juncture, we'll work from there.
Can you give me a little more to work off?
I need to cut the connection, or they'll trace my location. Remember, don't mention to anyone that you're an Otherworlder, and don't draw unnecessary attention.
Hey wait!
I got no response, and now my head thumping from with a headache after being told of this so sudden from someone or something I don't even know. It hurt my head even more as I tried to come up with an answer to all this. Whoever that was clearly knew what was happening, whether they were directly involved was up to speculation on my part. I decided for the time being not to dwell on it, as much as, it frustrated me, but it wasn't like I was going to figure it out anytime soon. All I could do was take their advice to not make myself stand out in this world as much as possible.
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