A year has passed since the birth of Arthur and almost two years since the death of Liam. The story of Liam is in the past now, just dark snippets that occasionally haunt the sleep of little Arthur. However, due to his parents' love and care, they are nothing more than bad dreams that do not affect him.
Due to the traumas that Draven and Aria experienced during their childhood, both are doing their best to be as loving and attentive as possible not to repeat their parents' mistakes. Little Arthur can say that they are doing very well on this journey, as they provide him with everything necessary for a child to grow as healthy as possible.
Draven and Aria not only spoil Arthur whenever they can, but they also feed him well, dress him in fresh clothes, and treat him with warmth and love. Perhaps due to remnants from Liam's past, even as a baby, Arthur is very well-behaved, is always cheerful and energetic, and only cries when the shadows of his past life haunt him in his sleep.
Thus, Arthur and his parents consider these days precious moments when only happiness is filling their lives. In such a healthy environment, little Arthur grows up without noticing time passing…
Two years, three years, and soon four years old; on his fourth birthday, little Arthur is no longer as little but a young boy with rosy cheeks and a cute smile on his face. Draven and Aria couldn't be happier with their child, given that their son is so healthy.
Little Arthur already knows how to read and write in the language of that region and is studying other languages with his mother. Not just languages, Arthur also studies mathematics, geography, and many other subjects. Aria is simply an endless well of knowledge who teaches him everything she can with the patience of a mother.
Besides studying and playing with his mother, Arthur also spends many pleasant moments with his father, strolling around the small village near their home, fishing in little streams, and working together to maintain the house.
Upon turning five, Arthur is given a grand party by his parents. All the people from the village are invited to celebrate his birth with presents and good wishes. Draven and Aria are definitely not ordinary people and, even though they chose to live in a small farming village, they stand out from the crowd.
In fact, Draven alone takes care of the entire village's security, and all the people in the region feel safe with him defending them from wild beasts and bandits. Aria is also greatly admired as she is a kind of scholar who, with just a wave of her fingers, can heal any wound and bring rain in times of drought, helping the entire population of the village.
Thus, due to how loved and respected Arthur's parents are, he is also born into the love of many people. And even though those people are just a few hundred farmers, Arthur is grateful for so much care and attention.
Arthur's party is the biggest event that has ever happened in the small village, which is named after the name of his family, Fletcher. That night, after turning five, Arthur is put to bed by his mother, who now starts to call him little boy instead of little baby.
Life couldn't be better… but then strange events start to happen. Perhaps due to Arthur's growth or some other cause, the cloud in his mind starts to dissipate little by little, and slowly, the night shadows start occurring more often.
Arthur is confused and scared by these nightmares, as they are very vivid and depict scenes of slaughter and carnage. Any child would be terrified by these visions, but Arthur starts accepting them as a part of himself, slowly assimilating the experiences.
However, he also realizes that he is slowly changing from within, and due to the fear of being rejected by his parents, he buries the memories deeply within his mind.
He tries to act as normally as possible, and while Draven doesn't notice anything wrong, Aria does. After all, how could a mother, let alone someone as perceptive as her, not notice how her own son begins to mature much faster than normal? But she is not troubled by this; after all, Arthur is a perfect son. She can always feel the deep love he has for his family.
Draven teaches him to be honorable and protect the weak, while Aria teaches him to be kind and respect the elderly. And Arthur ingrains his parents' teachings deeply in his heart as he has nothing to complain about from such an upbringing.
Four years later, at the age of nine, Arthur feels he has received a beautiful gift: his mother gives birth to a lovely little girl with blond hair and blue eyes like his. Draven is overjoyed, and Arthur shares the feeling with him as he is also very happy to have a little sister.
Liam had an older sister in the early years of his life, but she was taken from him along with his parents before he could understand how strong the bonds between siblings can be. Now, however, Arthur has a sister whom he can care for and love deeply, so life only gets better for him.
Two more years pass, two beautiful years during which Arthur and Draven can watch cute little Eve take her first steps, utter her first words… By the way, after saying "mommy", the second word little Eve utters is "brother", giving Arthur a playful advantage to use against Draven, who always grits his teeth in jealousy when he rubs it in.
Arthur also grows and matures a lot in those two years. Now at eleven years old, he has fully assimilated with Liam's memories, and he has a much better understanding of how incredible life in this world is, and especially, how amazing his parents are.
Draven helps so many people every day in the village region and the surrounding areas, facing dangerous animals and gangs of criminals. And he does all this without even once summoning the golden lion on his back, making it clear that he only needs a small fraction of his power to be a hero.
Yet, Arthur can't say for sure if his father is stronger than his mother; after all, Aria is not just an incredible mage, but her powers are also quite mysterious.
She spends her day giving her full attention to Arthur and Eve, but at the same time, she manages to keep the large house completely organized and still helps the people of the village. With her magic, she can bring objects to life for all kinds of tasks while giving all her care to her children.
During this period, Arthur also begins to socialize with the village children. In fact, Aria always took him to play with children his age when he was younger.
But since he matured faster than the others, it was difficult for Arthur to find interest in playing with the children outside while he had his cute little sister waiting for him at home.
The only thing that worries Arthur and his family is not understanding the meaning of his Nexus. That pink heart grows in proportion with Arthur's body and always seems dangerously close to his most private area, but there's still no sign that he has an Astral Beast.
Nevertheless, Arthur's life couldn't be better…
But then, once again, something happens to shake his whole world.
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"Ahhh, that was so good!" Arthur pats his belly and lets out a long, relaxed sigh as he lies down on the rug next to the fireplace.
"Indeed," Draven, also lying on the rug, exclaims with a contented expression. "Your mother is the best cook in the world!"
"Mom!" Little Eve says as she walks between Arthur and Draven, handing them small portions of the rice cake made by Aria, who, even though she could use her magic for anything, she always made their food with her own hands, putting all her love and care into it, and of course, a fair bit of mana too.
"Fufufu~" She giggles in her usual charming way. "You say that because I'm the only one who knows how to cook in this house."
"No way!" Arthur quickly responds. "Your cooking is the best, Mom."
Aria feels very proud upon hearing that and also because of how Arthur is turning into a fine young man. Draven is also increasingly proud of his son and extends his hand to stroke his blond hair.
"Listen to your old man, Arthur," he says in a fake wise tone. "If you ever find a woman who cooks as well as your mother, MARRY HER!"
"YEP!" Arthur responds in a tone as enthusiastic as Draven's and gives him a thumbs-up, causing both of them to start laughing.
"Huh?" Eve is happy to hear them laughing but doesn't understand the reason and looks confused at her mother.
Aria laughs, too, before casting a stern look at the father-son pair. "What's this talk about women? Do you two think of nothing else?!?"
Draven may be a powerful hero feared by legions of criminals, but he trembles just hearing Aria's voice in a tone slightly louder than usual. Arthur would like to say he's different, but he also loves his mother too much to want to make her angry, so both immediately fall silent.
"Good..." Aria can't help but smile. "Shouldn't you both be going to bed already? Tomorrow, you have a busy day helping the villagers fix the mill, right?"
"Yep," Arthur gets up and stretches his long legs before starting to climb the stairs.
"Hey, Arthur," but his mother throws another loving reprimand. "Take a bath before bed; no girl will want anything to do with you if you're smelly."
"Hahaha..." Draven can't help but laugh, until Aria looks at him with a cold expression.
Arthur smiles as he takes one last look at his parents before heading to the second floor. He doesn't waste time and heads straight for the bathroom; his mother arranges everything with magic, so the bathtub water is always clean and warm, while his clothes are always clean and fresh.
Arthur steps into the bathroom and quickly undresses, ready to jump into the bathtub. But before he does, he pauses to take a good look at his body. As just Arthur, he might not have noticed the differences between himself and other boys his age, but with Liam's memories, he sees how things are different. He is much taller than other eleven-year-old boys, which leads him to muse,
'It's probably due to Draven's genetics; he is also a very tall guy.' Arthur also notices that he is more muscular than a typical child his age. 'Maybe it's because of all the manual work on the farm?' he wonders.
As he wonders about his current physique, his gaze drifts to his heart-shaped tattoo and what lies below it.
'It can't be this big already!!!' Arthur can't help but feel embarrassed. Even though he has Liam's experiences, that was another life, and now, as Arthur, he feels like he's reliving those experiences all over again...
'I hope it's also due to Draven's genetics!' Arthur thinks before jumping into the bathtub.
"Ahhh..." The hot water covering his body leaves Arthur feeling very relaxed. But since he doesn't want his mother to come into the bathroom and give him a scolding, he quickly starts to wash himself. Everything proceeds as usual until he brings the bath sponge to his lower belly area...
Maybe because he's in a rush or simply going through puberty, Arthur washes that area with a lot of 'intensity,' generating a pleasurable sensation. Feeling this way is normal for boys his age and older, but then Arthur feels something moving rapidly through his body, especially in that particular area.
'Huh??!' He becomes very confused as he feels movement over his belly and groin. Arthur quickly looks down and notices something very strange.
'Gone?!?!' He's shocked to no longer see the heart-shaped tattoo on his lower belly area; it vanished as if it had never existed. He starts to panic and freezes, but then, a gentle breeze enters through the bathroom window, carrying a peculiar scent to his nose.
He will never forget that scent because it's so enticing, even rivaling his mother's natural fragrance. However, unlike Aria's scent, which warms Arthur's heart and soothes his soul, this new scent awakens his most primal and wild instincts.
Ignoring his body's natural reactions, Arthur slowly looks to the side, in the direction of the source of that scent.
And to his surprise, right there, is a beautiful girl with red hair and big yellow eyes standing right beside the bathtub. She appears to be about thirteen years old. However, she also appears to be…
'A naked little girl?!' Arthur averts his gaze before he can see anything beyond her arms. His mother's teachings are deeply ingrained in him, so much so that he swears he can hear his mother's scolding for peeking at a naked girl.
However, he soon gets over his shock and, realizing that there is an intruder in his house, acts on instinct. Without wasting time to think, he jumps on her and grabs her by the wrists, pressing her against the wall.
"W-Wha-" Before the girl can shout, he covers her mouth with his hand and looks deeply into her eyes with a cold and calculating gaze, making her shiver in fright. Once he is sure that nobody has heard the commotion, he whispers to her.
"I will release your mouth so you can talk; however, do not make any noise. If you understand, blink once." The girl seems to calm down and blinks as instructed, making Arthur release his hold on her.
He gazes at her with the same cold look, and starts questioning her. "Good. Now that you have calmed down, tell me who you are."
"I-I am.. I think I am what your parents call an Astral Beast," She points toward his groin while averting her gaze from his lower region due to her shyness.