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Chapter 10

Father was silent for a while. Instead of urging him, I spoke first.

"Hey, Father."

"…Yes."

"Sometimes I think of Mother. When Vasha braids my hair, or when you read to me…"

Those were also things Mother used to do for me when she was alive.

"But sometimes I feel a little regretful. That I have so few memories with her."

"…Rowel."

And sometimes I felt sorry, too. For the past when I hadn't fully faced Mother's love from the very beginning.

"I know you, my brothers, and everyone else are careful about mentioning Mother in front of me. I also know it's because you're all worried about me."

I often noticed people looking at me with tender eyes. I knew why, too.

To others, I—Rowena von Valentine—was a child who had lost her mother at just four years old and had been bedridden for a month from grief.

Having fully accepted this life only two years ago, the loss of Unis had been a shock greater than anything else. Especially because that loss came from an accident.

Despite my mature mind, my young and fragile body was easily swept away by emotional turmoil.

I remembered how Father had cared for me day and night during that time.

Even Kizef and Werner, who had lost their mother at the same young age, worried about me.

It wasn't that I disliked it. I knew that those around me acted that way because they were concerned for me—the child who had fallen ill after Mother's funeral.

But…

"But now I'm okay."

"…Rowena."

I let go of the blanket I'd been fidgeting with and looked up at Father.

Then I continued, clearly and deliberately.

"Sometimes I miss Mother, and sometimes I'm sad… but that's only natural, isn't it? Right?"

Grieving for someone you can no longer live with was the fate of those left behind.

I, who had been sheltered by those around me, was no exception.

In fact, who knew that better than me—the one who had left all my bonds five hundred years behind and was living in the present?

Father was silent for a long time, then finally let out a sigh-like laugh.

"Yes. As you said, grieving is… only natural."

He murmured as he gently stroked my hair.

His low voice seemed to carry a certain heaviness.

Seeing him like that, I smiled brightly.

"So let's do it together from now on. Missing Mother, grieving—all of it."

The reason I'd brought up this seemingly sudden topic was because I knew that sometimes Father's eyes when he looked at me sank with profound sadness.

I deliberately yawned, pretending nothing was wrong, and leaned against Father.

"Yes. From now on, we'll do it together."

The answer that came eventually was gentle, kind, and reassuring.

At the same time, I felt that Father's weary shoulders had become a little—just a little—lighter.

---

Calips quietly watched Rowena, who had fallen asleep, breathing evenly.

The room, lit only by moonlight filtering through the curtains, was dark, but darkness was no obstacle to him.

So he easily noticed that the corners of Rowena's sleeping eyes were slightly red.

In truth, he had known all along that Rowena had been on the verge of tears.

Though she'd tried to sound bright, she couldn't hide the trembling of her breath or the shimmer in her eyes.

He had pretended not to notice because Rowena clearly didn't want to show her tears.

"…"

Calips reached out to brush her slightly swollen eyelids, but stopped—afraid that his calloused, rough hands might harm her delicate skin.

He had only learned after his first child, Kizef, that a child's skin was so fragile; without care, it would easily redden or bruise.

And Rowena, being smaller and more delicate than his two sons, always required extra attention.

So he simply gazed at the sleeping child's face without touching her.

She seemed to have grown so much, yet was still so small—and impossibly mature for her age.

'What secret do you hold…'

He had a vague sense that Rowena was no ordinary child.

Though he still wasn't sure in what direction that uniqueness lay, he knew that occasionally brilliant glimmers appeared around her, and that from a very young age, Rowena had grieved and yearned for something with profound intensity.

Yet Calips never asked her about any of it.

Not because he didn't care, and not because he wasn't curious.

But because he loved Rowena as his child, and so he would wait until she was ready to speak.

He was her father.

His role was simply to be a steady pillar, ready to support her whenever she chose to confide in him.

Calips had always waited in the same place—by his children's side—for that day to come.

"…Sweet dreams, Rowel."

Rising without a sound, he left the room with a farewell so soft that the deeply sleeping child wouldn't hear.

The door closed.

Flutter—

Four glimmers of light descended beside Rowena.

Gently, carefully.

---

It was an exceptionally refreshing morning.

Sometimes there are such days—when from the moment you open your eyes, you just have a feeling that today will go well.

Today was exactly one of those days.

'Wow. I feel great.'

To wake up feeling this refreshed…

For someone like me, who slept late and usually needed someone to wake me, it was quite remarkable.

"Yawn."

I let out a clear, unlingering yawn and sat up.

One by one, the spirits who had been in their spots gathered around me.

Kahn, the water spirit, in the form of a blue wolf the size of a hunting dog.

Tero, the earth spirit, in the shape of a brown squirrel a bit smaller than my fist.

Selly, the fire spirit, taking the form of a rather haughty red fox.

And finally, Rani, the wind spirit, in the shape of a small green lark.

"Mmm, did you sleep well? I haven't spent much time with you lately… sorry."

I stroked each spirit in the order they came.

Though they still stayed by my side without materializing, I couldn't deny that the time we actually spent interacting had decreased compared to my previous life.

Back when I was Roel, we did everything together.

"I can't keep it a secret forever, but…"

Still, announcing outright that I was contracted to all four elements felt a bit much…

"Sigh. Having too much ability is a problem too, huh? Right, guys?"

I lamented playfully, and Kahn licked my cheek with his tongue.

"Ahaha. Are you comforting me? Thanks, Kahn."

It was a peaceful morning.

But that peace was soon broken.

The moment Rani flew over and brushed against my cheek, I rejoiced at the scene unfolding before my eyes.

"Isid…"

At the end of the wind path Rani showed me—there, finally, was a trace of Isid, whom I had searched for so desperately.

---

My desire to go to Isid right away was overwhelming, but my circumstances wouldn't allow it.

"Oh, what do I do…"

After barely eating breakfast, I came back to my room and clutched my head.

Alright, let's sort this out.

I'd found Isid's whereabouts. Using Rani's power, long-distance travel was easier than pie—though with my still-small body, I might get a bit of a headache, but that was unimportant. However, I was only six years old, not even seven yet.

Yes. A six-year-old who couldn't even go outside without a guardian. That was me.

'This can't be. I found Isid, but I have no way to get to him…'

Even if the travel time itself was nearly zero, meeting Isid and explaining the situation would take a fair amount of time.

If I estimated the bare minimum at about an hour…

"…I definitely can't go during the day."

Running through my daily schedule in my head, I slumped over the desk in defeat.

If it had been a few days ago, when both Kizef and Werner were away from the estate, I might have somehow managed it with great difficulty—but now it was absolutely impossible.

If I'd known this would happen, I should have made a habit of going outside more…

Eventually, I concluded that I'd have to slip away at night, when everyone was asleep.

'I wish night would come soon…'

Time always drags when you're waiting for something.

After staring at the clock hands with impatient eyes dozens of times, the night I'd been longing for finally arrived.

"Ah, that was exhausting, really…"

I nearly fell asleep to Father's voice.

"If we ever run out of money, I could sell Father's voice recordings…"

Still drowsy, I spouted nonsense. Hmm, but it actually sounds plausible?

After one final check of my surroundings, I called Rani.

"Rani. I'm counting on you."

Chirp—

Rani, calling softly only for me, landed on my shoulder. As I closed my eyes, a warm breeze soon enveloped my entire body.

Whoosh—

When I opened my eyes again, I was standing in the middle of a familiar forest.

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