Chapter 20

This is the second part of the 9/17 entry.

Ain's tumultuous day had come to an end.

It started with the divorce scandal and ended with his arrival in Ishtalika.

Even after arriving, many things happened.

It was an incredibly intense day.

"I'm... so tired..."

"Hehehe, you did a great job, Ain."

"No, you did too, Mother?"

It was around 10 PM.

Since he had already slept after night study at the Heim, going to bed was a bit earlier than usual.

However, unable to bear the fatigue in his body, Ain entered the bed with Olivia.

"Mother, can I ask you something before I go to sleep?"

"Of course, what is it?"

"Then, first of all, am I... Ain, a human? Or a Dryad?"

Ain had been thinking about his own race. He looked like a human, but he was confused after being told that he inherited the Dryad racial skills.

"You are a 'half' born from the genes of a human male and me, a Dryad. You are half human and half Dryad."

"So, I was born from your womb, right?"

"Hmm... Well, let me see..."

Ain was treated as a half.

In other words, he was "half human."

However, there seemed to be a slight difference in the words that Olivia used to describe being born from her womb.

"Have you ever heard of terms like 'root division' or 'clump division'?"

"I've never heard of them. But if I understand the words correctly, it means dividing the roots and letting them sprout in a different place, right?"

"Yes, that's a good image to have. Ain's birth was exactly like root division. You did indeed grow inside my body, Ain."

"I see... So, you were born like a normal human, right?"

Ain grew inside Olivia's body.

Hearing this, Ain finally began to understand how he was born.

"No, that's not quite right."

"Huh?"

"Even though there were many midwives, I used hypnosis to hide them. I only revealed my Dryad body when it was time to give birth. Otherwise, I couldn't have given birth. If I had tried to give birth to a 15-year-old child, I would have had to remain a Dryad for a while."

"To be honest, I don't really understand why you're not in your Dryad form now... Why do you have a human body even though you're a Dryad?"

"Hehehe. I'll tell you that later? ...Ain, you were born from a small fruit that grew on a small tree that sprouted from the feet of my Dryad form. That small tree is your Dryad form."

Ain thought,

What? That's so fantastical, does something like that even exist? But then he remembered that this was a world where such things were possible, and he accepted it.

Well, it can't be helped, since this is a world with monsters, there must be many different ways to be born...

"That's... I can't really put it into words. It feels like a story from a world I don't know."

"Children conceived through union are born from the same place as humans, even when the mother is in her Dryad form. The only difference is that the Dryad's feet are wrapped in roots."

Even though Olivia said it was just a difference, it felt significant to Ain.

"I've decided to accept it as it is."

"You're a good boy, Ain."

"Then, why do you have a human body?"

"Since Dryads are half-fairy, hiding the roots is no big deal."

Ain thought, what a convenient world this is.

But since magic and monsters do exist, he had to accept it.

"Wouldn't it be hard to walk if your feet were roots?"

"Well, that's true..."

"I think you'll be able to grow roots like a Dryad when you get older, Ain."

"I guess I'm more human than Dryad, then."

"Yes, that's right. Even if you can't become a tree, it's not like it will cause any problems. In fact, having a tree body might be more inconvenient..."

Olivia spoke frankly.

In reality, there was nothing particularly special about having a tree body.

"Then, one last thing. Is it okay?"

Saying this, Ain's face became serious.

Until then, they had been lying in bed, but he sat up.

Olivia also sat up to look at Ain.

"Yes, of course, Ain."

"Mother, did you tell the Roundheart people... Father and the others, about my abilities?"

"...Yes."

"There's more. Mother was an excellent person. You were even able to investigate and find the Sea Crystals, which were a matter of life and death for Ishtalika, on your own."

"...Yes, that's true. I can't complain even if I'm resented."

Seeing Olivia nod quietly, Ain continued.

"Then why didn't you tell them! If you had told them..."

Ain wondered why she didn't do it.

Olivia had kept silent about the use of Ain's abilities and her own excellence.

"I'm sorry..."

"Yes, that's right. If Mother had explained this properly... surely..."

"...Yes. I think things would have been different for Ain too."

Olivia understood Ain's thoughts.

If she had taken a different path, the results would have been different.

Ain wouldn't have been abandoned by his father and could have lived a "reasonably" happy life in the Roundheart family.

"Me? No, it's not about me... What I hated was that Mother was also treated with contempt. I could have endured it, but I couldn't bear to see Mother treated that way!"

But Ain's thoughts were different.

For Ain, the most important thing was for his mother, Olivia, to be happy, and he had been working hard for that.

"Ain...? You're not angry?"

"Can't you see? I am angry! I was so worried about Mother... really."

"I'm sorry, Ain. I thought it would be better for Ain to come to Ishtalika rather than stay in that house. So, even though it made Ain suffer, I decided to do it this way..."

"Then, if you had let me live normally, I would have followed you. Even if it meant a forced return to Ishtalika or an escape from the Roundhearts."

"R-really?"

Mother is also a bit clumsy, Ain thought.

Ain loved his mother, Olivia, to the point of being pathological.

No one here knew the "reason" for this, but the feeling was genuine.

"Really... For someone as smart as Mother, couldn't there have been a better way for you to live without being treated with contempt?"

"But that would have taken more time... I thought it was better to do it quickly."

"Right. Well, it's fine now. I think this is a difference in values. For me, Mother is important, and for Mother, I am important. That's all... I'll consider it a misunderstanding and forgive you this time. But not next time!"

When Ain said this, Olivia looked surprised but smiled with tears in her eyes.

"Yes. Thank you, Ain... I'm sorry."

"It's okay. But from now on, please consult with me about things."

To an outsider, Ain might seem like a very mature five-year-old, but people around him didn't find it strange, thinking he was just Olivia's child.

Olivia doted on him so much that she only thought of him as a smart child.

Ain was also considering whether to tell her about his memories from his previous life.

*

"This apple is really delicious. This is a fake Ripple magic stone, but the taste is even more intense, I think."

"Hehe, that's good to hear. Hey, Ain?"

"Yes, what is it?"

"Even though it's a weak apology, I'll tell you something good, okay?"

About 30 minutes after Ain expressed his feelings.

Unable to fall asleep, Ain was drinking tea with Olivia.

Of course, Martha had prepared it.

Next to Ain was a fake Ripple magic stone.

He already treated it like a snack, and the fresh scent and slight tartness of the Ripple were just right for refreshing his throat.

Ain picked it up and absorbed it.

"Something good?"

"Yes, something good. Ain, didn't you find the Dullahan magic stone delicious?"

"It was incredibly delicious."

The Dullahan magic stone, indeed, had a good taste like coffee.

But the quality of the taste was so moving that it felt like there was nothing to compare it to.

It was so sweet and addictive, almost like a drug.

"...In the ceiling of the audience chamber, there's an even larger magic stone embedded."

"A larger magic stone? What is it...?"

"A demon king."

According to Olivia, a demon king's magic stone was embedded in the audience chamber.

This was Ishtalika's greatest treasure and national treasure.

Its power was extraordinary, and it was placed there for the country's defense.

"A demon king!? That... sounds incredibly powerful."

"Oh, Ain? Is it just powerful?"

"It must be incredibly delicious!"

Ain was already thinking about the taste.

How delicious it would be, what kind of taste it would have... Would it be a main dish? Or a dessert? He was thinking about all sorts of things.

"But I'm sure Father would be angry if I ate it..."

"Yes, that's true. They also told me to stop when we were talking in the meeting room."

"It seems to have been defeated about 500 years ago. It suddenly appeared on the continent of Ishtal... The place is very far from here, though?"

"That's a long time ago. But a demon king, huh? I can't imagine it, but it must be powerful."

"It's said that half of Ishtalika's top experts died fighting it. I'm sure it would be incredibly delicious for Ain too... But, well, I guess it's not allowed, right?"

Hearing about the demon king's magic stone, Ain was thrilled, but he felt it would be too dangerous to eat.

It seemed to be the country's last line of defense, and if he ate it, even Silverwood would be furious.

"I'll just smell it next time..."

"You can't eat it unconsciously, okay?"

"I'll make sure to be full before entering the audience chamber."

"That's a good idea."

According to Chris, it was possible to control the absorption skill to some extent.

He was told that he would receive training for that.

For Ain, it was necessary training to prevent unintentional harm.

"By the way, Ain."

"Yes, what is it?"

"I'll allow you to have up to two people, like Crown and... hmm, one more person. Crown is smart and beautiful, so I think it's fine."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your future queen. As for me, well... I'll make sure to watch over you properly, okay?"

"Yes, of course I care about Mother, but why Crown?"

Suddenly, Olivia started talking about Ain's future wife.

She seemed to allow up to two people.

"But Crown is too low in status for me... Oh!"

"Status-wise, you're much higher, so don't worry about it."

"Indeed, that seems to be the case."

"The second person could be Chris... Hmm, she's a good girl and beautiful, but she's a bit clumsy... Well, let's think about it properly later. Good night, Ain!"

Olivia mentioned Chris's name but ended the conversation there.

Lying down, she seemed to be signaling that the conversation was over for the day.

"Crown, I wonder what she's doing now..."

Thinking about Crown, who was living far away on another continent.

She was an impressive girl from the first impression.

Beautiful and intelligent, she was very attractive to Ain.

*

"A child who grew up without knowing a mother's love..."

Before Ain was born in this world, in the white space where he spun the gacha, the god was thinking alone.

Ain's previous life was spent in an orphanage.

Although the memories of his previous life were almost erased, the desire for a mother's love remained unchanged.

"Even though it's pitiful, it's an abnormal and unusual love for a mother."

There was a reason why Ain's previous life was spent in an orphanage.

His mother died from excessive bleeding and low blood pressure after childbirth.

After that, the father, who found it painful to look at the child, abandoned parenting and sent the child to the orphanage.

"Perhaps it remained unconsciously. The desire for a mother... the feeling of regret..."

The mother who died giving birth to him.

Thinking about her, the desire to value her more than anyone else became stronger.

The god thought that this was how it happened.

"An infant couldn't possibly have such memories, and the current Ain doesn't have those memories either. There's no way he could know."

Still...

Still, the god couldn't help but think that Ain's love for Olivia was influenced by his previous life.

Whether it was due to some influence on his soul or because Ain himself was such a person.

The god, who had been watching over Ain until now.

Decided to continue watching over him.

The next part will start from Chapter 2.

I feel like this was more of a prologue. (It's quite a long prologue, though)

Thank you for your continued support.