The study room door slowly opened.
"Haruwiko-chan, come in!" Soffie said happily.
"Wow... so this is the study room." "It's actually my first time entering here."
"That's because you're always sleeping," Sappeh teased immediately.
Haruwiko's cheeks turned slightly red.
(Mind talking)
(Yeah... I do sleep a lot...)
(But I'm not actually sleeping.)
(I've been training inside Soul Paradise with Bakunawa-san.)
(And thankfully... I finally completed my training with Bakunawa last night.)
"Sappeh-chan, stop teasing him," Soffie scolded gently while patting Haruwiko's head.
"Look, his face turned red."
Then she smiled warmly.
"Come on, Haruwiko-chan. Take a seat."
Sappeh dramatically opened a book.
"Alright, Haruwiko-chan." "The two of us are strict teachers, so prepare yourself!"
(Few hours later...)
"Clack".The sound of a book closing echoed through the room.
"Hey! Sappeh, Haruwiko, Soffie!" Lala's voice echoed from downstairs.
"Lunch is ready!"
The three children quickly headed downstairs.
Meanwhile, Cecelion happily smiled while eating.
"Lala-san, Darling, your cooking is delicious as always."
Then he noticed Soffie and Sappeh's exhausted expressions.
"...Hm?"
(Mind talking)
(Why do those two look emotionally destroyed?)
(Was my son really that difficult to teach?)
"Oy, Haruwiko-chan," Cecelion laughed.
"Look at your sisters. You didn't ignore their lessons, right?"
Soffie suddenly started tearing up.
"Papa... you're wrong..."
Sappeh is holding her self to shed a tears .
"Onee-chan, don't cry!" "If you cry, I'm going to cry too!"
"Hey, hey, calm down," Carmela interrupted.
"What actually happened?"
Soffie sniffled.
"The problem is..."
"...Haruwiko-chan already knows how to read and write now."
Silence filled the dining room.
"...Eh?" Carmela blinked repeatedly.
"In only two hours?!"
Sappeh nodded rapidly.
"We really don't know how it happened!"
"At first we only taught him alphabet pronunciation."
"But he memorized everything incredibly fast,"
Soffie added.
"So we tried writing random words on paper to test him."
"At first it looked like he didn't understand,"
Sappeh continued, "so we patted his head to encourage him..."
"But somehow..."
"We both fell asleep..."
"And after we woke up,"
Soffie finished weakly, "Haruwiko-chan was already reading the guardian tattoo book Mama gave him..."
Carmela stared blankly at Haruwiko.
"...Ehhhh..."
"That's... amazing..."
"But how are you sure he can actually read and write already?"
"It's only been two hours."
"Also... why are both of you crying?"
Soffie lowered her head dramatically.
"Because after seeing how talented our little brother is..."
"We came to a terrible conclusion..."
"...We might be adopted."
"HEY!" Carmela immediately smacked the table lightly.
"That conclusion makes no sense!"
"You two clearly came from me!"
Then she sighed before looking back at Haruwiko.
"Still..."
"If you really learned everything that quickly..."
"...Can Mama test you after lunch?"
Haruwiko quietly nodded.
(Mind talking)
(It's not that Mama completely believes me...)
(But honestly, I understand.)
(I'm only three years old.)
(Anyone would think this is strange.)
(Though to be fair... this world's language is surprisingly similar to the ones from my previous lives.)
(But if I don't pick that card my original skill from my first past life, or I don't remember any of my past life's did I be able to learn that quickly?...)
A few minutes later-
"Lala-san, could you bring me some paper?"
"Yes, Master." "Please wait a moment."
Lala quickly left the room.
Haruwiko suddenly looked toward Carmela.
"...Mama."
"Hm? What is it, Haruwiko-chan?"
"Mama.... don't actually believe I learned how to read and write already... right?"
Carmela immediately waved her hands nervously.
"No, no, you misunderstood!"
"I just... want to confirm it properly, hehe..."
(Mind talking)
(Okay, maybe I really don't believe it yet.)
(He's only three years old...)
(How can someone learn reading and writing in just a few hours?)
(Still... Soffie and Sappeh aren't good liars...)
(So maybe...)
Lala returned a few moments later while carrying several sheets of paper.
"Master, here are the papers."
"Thank you, Lala-san," Carmela replied with a nod.
Then she turned toward Haruwiko with a serious expression.
"Haruwiko-chan, I'm going to write questions related to reading and writing."
"After that, you'll answer them."
"If you answer everything correctly, then Mama will truly believe that you already learned how to read and write."
She paused briefly.
"But if you can't..."
"...nothing bad will happen."
"Though Mama might feel a little sad if the three of you lied to me."
Haruwiko's body stiffened slightly.
(Mind talking)
(This is bad...)
(If I get even one answer wrong, Mama might stop trusting me...)
(And my sisters could get blamed too.)
(I need to answer everything perfectly.)
He quietly took a deep breath.
Carmela narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Also-no helping him." "No coaching, understood?"
Everyone immediately nodded.
"Yes, Mama..."
"Understood..."
Carmela placed the papers down on the table.
"Haruwiko-chan." "It seems like you're ready."
"Then let's begin."
(An hour later...)
"...Ah..."
Carmela stared blankly at the last paper in her hands.
"Haruwiko-chan... what is... ah..."
Her eyes spun slightly.
Then-
Thud.
"HOY, DARLING?!"
Cecelion immediately rushed forward.
"Oi! Wake up!"
Lala panicked as well.
"Young Master... WAKE UP!"
(Hours later...)
Carmela slowly opened her eyes.
"...Mm..."
Cecelion immediately leaned closer.
"Hey, Darling." "Are you alright?"
"...Yes... I'm fine..." Carmela Replies
She slowly sat up before looking around.
"Where are the kids?"
"Oh, Soffie and Sappeh are with Lala-san right now," Cecelion explained.
"She's teaching them about the history of magic and creatures."
"And Haruwiko-chan?" Carmela calmly ask
"He's already asleep in his room." Cecelion calm replayed
Carmela stared quietly at the ceiling for a moment.
"...That child is unbelievable..."
"He answered every single question perfectly."
"Reading." "Writing." "Grammar." "Even sentence structure..."
"He answered everything like it was nothing."
Then she slowly looked toward Cecelion suspiciously.
"...Hey."
"What herbs were you giving me while I was pregnant with Haruwiko-chan?"
"Were they secretly magical or something?"
"Eh?" Cecelion blinked repeatedly.
"No, of course not."
"They were just normal herbs recommended by the doctors and Lala-san."
"They're the same herbs you drank when you were giving birth to sappeh-chan and Soffie-chan."
Then he crossed his arms thoughtfully.
"...Wait."
"I caught YOU saying something on your stomach when Haruwiko-chan is still on your belly, that is forbidden magic spell right, so Haruwiko-chan becomes a genius by that?"
Carmela burst into laughter.
"Of course not it's just an lullaby."
"And even if magic like that existed..."
"...I'm pretty sure it would be considered forbidden magic."
Cecelion laughed as well.
"You're right."
The two continued laughing softly together.
Meanwhile-
Inside Haruwiko's room.
Moonlight quietly entered through the window.
Haruwiko stared at the blue dragon mark on his left hand one last time.
(So this thing really is different...)
Slowly-
He closed his eyes.
And before long-
His consciousness drifted away.
"Soul Paradise."
A massive ocean of stars stretched endlessly across the sky.
Cold wind brushed against Haruwiko's face as he stood upon the floating black water.
Not far away-
A giant dark dragon lazily rested nearby.
Golden eyes slowly opened.
"Oh?" "You're finally here."
"...Oy, Bakunawa-san."
Haruwiko immediately raised his left hand.
"You placed this tattoo on me, right?"
Bakunawa blinked in surprise.
"...Wow."
"How did you figure that out?"
"Because I tried saying the names of every guardian tattoo written in the book."
"But this one never disappeared."
Haruwiko narrowed his eyes slightly.
"And even though your scales are dark..."
"...you're still technically a water dragon."
Bakunawa suddenly laughed loudly.
"As expected of my partner."
Then the dragon grinned proudly.
"But tell me first." "Do you like it?"
"That mark is proof of our friendship."
Haruwiko stared at him blankly.
"...Of course I like it, you jackass."
"But answer my question first."
"How do I hide it?"
"Simple," Bakunawa replied casually.
"Just say my name once."
"...Bakunawa."
The blue dragon mark instantly disappeared.
Haruwiko's eyes widened slightly.
"...It vanished."
"Say it again."
"...Bakunawa."
The glowing dragon mark immediately reappeared.
"And if you say 'Bakunawa Tenkai,'" the dragon added proudly, "you can temporarily release one hundred percent of its power."
Haruwiko stared at him suspiciously.
"...That sounds dangerous."
Bakunawa laughed again.
"Only a little."
Haruwiko sighed softly.
"...Thanks for telling me."
Then he hesitated for a moment before speaking again.
"But can I ask another question?"
"What is it?" Bakunawa reply
"...How is Goddess Marcea doing?"
Bakunawa tilted his head slightly.
"And why are you asking me that?"
Haruwiko looked away awkwardly.
"...Because last time you said, Highness gave you permission to freely travel between Sou station and my soul paradise so..."
"And..."
"...ever since I became closer to my sisters..."
"...she stopped calling me for conversations."
Bakunawa stared at him silently for a moment.
Then he chuckled softly.
"She's fine." "She's just busy right now."
"But don't worry."
"Maybe after six months, you'll be able to talk to her again."
"...I see."
Relief quietly spread across Haruwiko's chest.
"...Can I ask one more thing?"
Bakunawa nodded.
"What exactly are guardian tattoos?"
The dragon let out a slow breath.
"...You really like rushing your studies, huh?"
"...Sorry."
"I don't want excuses."
Bakunawa crossed his arms before finally explaining.
"Guardian marks originally came from powerful spirits defeated during the Age of Chaos in this world."
"After their deaths, their powers became guardian blessings for future generations."
"But there's a special type called a Seal Mark."
Bakunawa pointed toward Haruwiko's left hand.
"Like yours."
"Seal Marks are created from living spirits."
"When activated, we temporarily lend our divine power to our partners ."
"They increase mana strength, physical resistance, and magical power."
"Very useful during battle."
Haruwiko quietly looked down at the glowing mark again.
"...I see."
Then he hesitated briefly.
"...Last question."
"Did Goddess Aqua or Her Highness leave any message for me?"
Bakunawa suddenly looked thoughtful.
"Hm... actually, yes."
"Five months from now, we'll be leaving this house for a journey."
Haruwiko blinked.
"...A journey?"
"Apparently." "But Highness didn't explain where we're going."
Bakunawa grinned excitedly.
"Though before we leave..."
"...we're supposed to meet two new companions."
Haruwiko slowly laid down on the ocean floor of his Soul paradise.
A journey.
New companions.
A world waiting outside.
For some reason-
His chest quietly filled with excitement.
"...I'm actually looking forward to it too..."
Before long-
His voice slowly faded away into sleep.