I still hear her lullaby even in my dreams…
Such a good dream…
Unfortunately, I woke up…
My baby eyes can only see the wooden ceiling, but I can tell it's already night.
The fireplace is still burning, so at least I won't freeze to death this time.
That's a good thing.
However, what am I supposed to do now?
I can only move my eyes to look around, and my limbs are too weak to even do anything.
Damn…
Being a baby…
Fu—
Never mind…
The room is dim. Though, it's kinda scary since it is snowing heavily outside. I tried to talk with my mouth, but all that came out is gibberish.
Bahhh bahhhh goo gooo—
This is very stupid. There are more problems to take into account, I speak in English, but I can't even use that language here.
However, I know babies can learn fast.
But I'm mentally challenged…
And it seems like I'm still at my infancy stage…
I'm going insane at this point…
Zzz
Zzzzz
Zzzzzz
There's… nothing… to… do…
Zzz
Zzzzz
Zzzzzzz
I'm hungry.
Wait…
Suddenly, I had a very bright idea. A baby has one thing going for them: every adult within a certain radius gets aggroed the moment I start crying.
Here goes…
WAAAHHH WAHHHH WAHHH!
I heard footsteps. The moment I heard the door open, I couldn't help but feel smug for a second, then I continued crying.
The maidservant is back, though she looked more exhausted than ever.
What on earth is she doing?
"?????"
"??????"
She said something, but I couldn't understand it. She isn't panicking this time, in fact, she is relaxed.
Wait…
Is this what I think it is? Brea—
I saw a bottle of milk in one of her hands.
Tch…
She cradled me again and softly placed the milk bottle on my mouth for me to suckle.
Suck… suck… suck… suck…
"????"
"????"
She sounded sad, but my interpretation is obvious: Why is the baby she's feeding so unenthusiastic while drinking milk?
It's fine.
The milk is fine…
Eventually, my sustenance is satisfied, and she cradled me for a bit.
What a kind lady.
But suddenly, someone came knocking at the door of the house.
The maidservant gently placed me back into the cradle to attend to the visitor.
I wonder who it is—she seemed to be in quite a rush.
Though, there's a possibility that I'm in an abusive household… let's just hope that's not the case.
That would really suck.
I heard voices coming from the living room—the visitor sounded like a woman.
I still haven't heard a man's voice; at this point, I'm starting to think I might be fatherless.
Once again, the maidservant returned and immediately fetched me from the cradle.
We walked out of my room and into the living room. I tried to gauge my surroundings, though it was difficult, our home isn't properly lit.
There's no fire inside the lamps? Huh.
How are they giving off light, then? There's no burning, no smoke, nothing. Just a steady glow, like a flame made of pure energy.
This is such fantasy bullshit… I'm too small to understand any of it.
I should reduce my swearing…
But I must say, our living room looks kinda decent. Stone walls, wooden flooring and ceilings, it's modest, to be honest.
I saw a couch facing the fireplace, multiple rugs, and, of course, a wooden table on the far right, with the same velvet curtains covering the house's windows.
That's great. We don't seem to be impoverished, especially if we have maid.
There seems to be no electricity, so the somber man reincarnated me into an era far too different from mine…
I'm expecting feudalism.
How cruel… very cruel. Super cruel.
My computer, the internet, the convenience of the modern world, do I have to hunt animals here myself?!
It doesn't help that the somber man didn't give me any instructions on how to reach him. He just dropped me off here without a single manual.
Somber man, if you're seeing this, I just want to let you know that I'm not into abandonment play.
Though I think too much, the maidservant suddenly halted her steps. We were near the door of the house. There, she gently handed me over to another woman.
As I laid my eyes upon her, I couldn't help but tear up, and this time, I cried for a completely different reason.
I don't understand… Somber man, why are you making me experience this?
The woman before me is beautiful, long black hair, pale skin like snow. She is about the same height as the maidservant, and she wore a more elegant, formal-looking black uniform.
I couldn't quite decipher her profession based on her attire.
That appearance… I couldn't help but raise my tiny limbs, just to touch her face.
"????"
"????"
The maidservant and the woman exchanged words, wondering why am I crying so much upon seeing her.
"????"
Then the woman spoke again, her voice… even her voice. I am happy to hear it again.
They don't understand. She looks exactly like my late mother.
I remember her lying on the floor, covered in blood.
Surrounded by her killers.
I was eight.
And now… she's here.
Happily holding me…
But I know this is a completely different person.
Yet, I wanted to be delusional, to believe this is really her.
Somber Man, what are you trying to say here?
I'm not sure whether to be angry or grateful toward you.
Regardless, as I stared at my new mother, she spoke quietly with the maidservant while cradling me.
I couldn't even care what they were talking about, but I did notice how exhausted and weary she looked.
After a few moments, they seemed to be discussing some kind of business, maybe even something government-related.
Then, her eyes fell on me.
"????"
"????"
Her voice is gentle, the kind a mother uses to calm her child. And then—I heard it.
"????"
"Arsen..."
That is the first word I recognized, and I understood immediately.
It is my name.
The same one I'd set during my login in Valhalla Online.
Somber Man...
Thank you.
Chapter End.