Chapter 1: A second birth that the world doesn’t need

YEAR AD135, MONTH OF STUDENI, DAY 17

The sound of someone crying enveloped my surroundings—warm and soothing. Amid the sobs, I heard words I had never known before. I tried opening my eyes. In front of me stood a woman I didn’t recognize. She smiled at me through her tears and gently stroked my head.

That touch felt so calming… so warm, it made me want to cry. It had been so long since I’d felt the warmth of another human being. This feeling… it made me happy. But not long after, a powerful drowsiness overwhelmed me. I drifted back into a deep sleep.

When I awoke again, something was beside me—soft… warm… like that woman’s touch. It turned out to be a small black creature with dark yellow eyes. It had a long tail and a furry body. For some reason, it loved sleeping near me. The woman came again. She would always shoo the creature away from my side.

“Sinhart, good morning.”

Those were the words I always heard from her every morning. I didn’t understand what she was saying, but from the way she bathed me, fed me, and spoke to me, I knew… she was gentle.

Days passed. It might have been a very long time since I first opened my eyes. Now I could crawl, stand, even walk. Her reaction? She looked so happy. She seemed to enjoy watching me grow.

One day, the black creature didn’t come home. The woman looked worried, searching every corner of the room. That night was cold, with heavy rain pouring down. Thunder rumbled, flashes of lightning peeking through the door’s gap.

I wondered to myself why water was falling from the roof. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Then came a deep voice I had never heard before. The woman opened it. Standing there was a man—a face I’d never seen. He smiled warmly at me.

But my gaze went straight to the black creature in his hands. Soaked, its furry body shivered. I thought it hated water, but somehow it had gotten drenched.

Once inside, the creature shook its body repeatedly, spraying water onto the floor and walls. Then, without a word, it slowly walked to the corner of the room where its bed was and lay down, just like always—sleeping from noon to evening.

Meanwhile, the woman and the man seemed familiar with each other. They talked for a moment, then hugged. The man stepped toward me. I just stared at him quietly… and he lifted me gently. Strange… even though it was raining heavily outside, his body wasn’t wet at all. It was as if the rain hadn’t touched him.

“Sinhart, father’s home.”

I opened my eyes. My face was wet… it turned out the black creature had woken me by licking me. Its name was Ki—I only learned that after hearing the people in the house call it so. Then the bedroom door opened, and the woman appeared.

“Sinhart, you’re awake already?”

Her name was Fyna. Since the first time I saw her, she had always smiled at me. She took care of me willingly, without a single complaint. At some point, my small mouth had begun calling her “Mother.”

“Take a bath first, then we’ll have breakfast together.”

My stomach growled with hunger. I quickly went to bathe as instructed. I didn’t know since when I had begun to understand their words. I had tried recalling how everything began… but still couldn’t. It felt like it had been such a long time since then.

After bathing and dressing neatly, I walked to the dining room. This house wasn’t too big, but not small either. There was one bathroom, two bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a living room, and one room that was always locked.

Mother said that room wasn’t used and was dirty. She forbade me from going there because it might harm my health. When I arrived at the dining room—

“Good morning, Sin,” Father greeted while sitting, “Morning, Father,” I replied.

He was my father. His name was Cris. His body was large and strong. I admired him deeply. He was someone I looked up to and wanted to imitate. One day, he came home carrying game he had hunted. I was amazed at how he could catch it. I struggled even to catch Ki.

“Morning, Father. Where’s Mother?” I asked. “She’s in the kitchen preparing breakfast. Come on, let’s sit and wait,” he answered softly.

I was only a little taller than the chair legs, so climbing up still took extra effort. When I struggled to get on the chair, Father helped me. “Thank you, Father,” I said.

Mother had always taught me to say thank you whenever someone helped me. It had become a habit.

I heard the clatter of plates. I turned toward the sound. Mother came carrying a bowl of soup. “So, breakfast today is Huangga Soup. My favorite. Thank you, Fyna,” said Father.

I looked into the bowl. There were many pieces of Huangga vegetable inside. I wondered what was so good about Huangga vegetables. They didn’t taste sweet at all.

“Mother, doesn’t this soup taste strange? Huangga vegetables come from dirty soil,” I asked. “You’ll like it, Sinhart. Just try it. You’ll get addicted,” Mother replied.

“Sin, you mustn’t speak like that to your mother who prepared this breakfast. Your mother always makes delicious and healthy meals,” Father gently scolded.

After Mother and Father said that, I decided to try the soup. It wasn’t bitter, but not sweet either. I didn’t know what the flavor was, but it tasted… good. The Huangga vegetables mixed with the broth didn’t taste bitter at all. In fact, it was very delicious.

Actually, Mother didn’t know I had once tried Huangga vegetables in secret. I had seen them raw in the kitchen. Out of curiosity, I tried them before they were cooked. They were bitter and unpleasant. But after being turned into soup… the taste was completely different.

I admired Mother. Cooking could transform something unpleasant into something delicious. “This is actually really good,” I said at last. Warm steam from the soup filled the room, making that morning feel even more comfortable.

I looked at Mother’s small smile, perhaps unaware that I was learning something new from a bowl of soup. After breakfast, Father looked at me and smiled.

“After breakfast, do you want to accompany Father fishing?” he asked.

Fishing? I was curious… Sometimes Father came home very late. I had once asked Mother about it and she said Father was fishing at the nearby lake.

“Why are you inviting me to go fishing?” I asked.

“If you don’t come, you’ll regret it. Outside the house is the best place for children your age to learn and play,” Father replied.

Questions filled my head.

Is the place far?

Is fishing fun?

Will I spend the whole day until night just fishing?

Mother joined the conversation with a soft smile.

“It’s better if you go along, Sinhart,” she said, stroking my head. “You’ve only been reading books at home and rarely going out,” she continued.

Father glanced at me again, this time with a warm look. I caught a glimpse of the window—as usual.

Outside, Mother often watered the plants. The yard was wide and green, with several houses I had never visited. I sometimes saw unfamiliar faces, and Ki… he often strolled leisurely on the rooftops, free to go anywhere. Though I felt a bit afraid, I was also curious.

“Alright, Father. I want to go,” I finally replied, my voice firm as if my heart had decided. Father chuckled. “From now on, every time Father goes fishing, you’ll want to come along.”

After that, Father prepared the fishing gear and I got dressed appropriately to go out.

Creak… clack…

The sound of the door’s hinges opening made me a little nervous. When the door fully opened, the first thing I saw was the tree leaves swaying gently in the breeze.

I stepped out, and the first thing my feet touched was the house terrace—the surface made of dark-colored stones, soft underfoot. I didn’t know what kind of stone it was, but from its color and texture, I felt it wasn’t the ordinary kind I often saw in the yard.

Father gave me a pair of footwear kept inside the “termas”—a storage for shoes usually found in houses. I knew because I’d seen a similar “termas” on the terrace of the neighbor’s house across the street.

After putting on my shoes, I walked over to Father who was already waiting at the edge of the terrace. He carried a bucket and fishing tools. I didn’t know what they were made of, nor how to use them. Maybe I’d understand once I saw fishing for myself.

We passed the yard gate and stepped onto a narrow path. After a few minutes of walking, we passed several houses. Some people greeted Father warmly, saying, “Good morning.” Father returned their greetings with a smile and a small nod.

I could only smile back—I didn’t know what to say. All I wanted was for those people to think of me as a friendly child. Because whenever I smiled, Mother or Father always looked pleased.

“We’ll reach the lake soon,” Father said.

When I turned back, the houses in the distance had shrunk and were beginning to disappear behind the trees. I realized the houses weren’t as big as I thought when seen from far away.

I turned my gaze forward again, focusing on the path ahead. That was when I saw a woman with a child coming from the forest, stepping onto the main road.

Beside the woman was a creature I had never seen before. Its shape was similar to Ki—four-legged with a tail—but its body was much larger. On its back was something that made me wonder.

We finally crossed paths. At that moment, I quickly looked away. The woman smiled at us. “Good morning, Mr. Cris. Heading to the lake?” greeted the woman whose name I didn’t yet know. “Morning, Mrs. Elowen. Yes, we’re going fishing at the lake. The weather’s nice this morning,” Father answered with a friendly smile.

I turned my gaze to the child holding the woman’s hand. Our eyes met—it felt like he had been looking at me for a while. Maybe I had been too busy observing new things ahead to notice him watching me.

He smiled at me. “This is a horse. Its name is Sorrel; it runs very fast,” he said, moving closer to me and pointing at the large creature.

I looked at him carefully. His hair was long, falling over his shoulders. His eyes were round, with long, curved eyebrows. He was slightly taller than me.

“Wow, Sinhart has grown. Last time I visited your house, you were still being carried. Now you can walk outside on your own,” the woman said with a smile.

I tried as hard as I could to remember who this woman was, but no matter how much I tried, the only memory that came up was the moment I first opened my eyes.

“Oh right, Sinhart hasn’t met them yet. This is Elowen and her child, Ceryn,” Father said, gesturing toward the woman. “M-my name is Sinhart Sevilla. M-my father is Cris and my mother is Fyna,” I tried speaking for the first time, my voice caught in my throat.

“No need to be shy, Sinhart,” the woman said with a warm smile. “Auntie is Elowen Myld, and this is Auntie’s child, Ceryn Myld. Ceryn, say hello to Sinhart,” she continued.

Ceryn took a small step forward and extended his hand to me.

“Sinhart, nice to meet you. My name is Ceryn. I like looking at flowers, and… my dream is to talk with flowers.”

I hesitantly but happily accepted his hand. “Nice to meet you… my name is Sinhart. I like flowers too. The blue ones…”

For some reason, talking to him felt easier. Maybe because we were the same age, I felt more comfortable despite my shyness.

“If we both like flowers, then we can be friends.” He held my hand with both of his and smiled widely. I could see his teeth through the gap in his lips.

But… what actually is a friend?

I was still curious—what is the purpose of being friends?

“Let’s be friends,” I finally answered.

“If we’re friends, I can show you a secret place full of beautiful flowers!” he said excitedly, then shook my hand upward, making my hand lift along with his.

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Thank you for reading this :3