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MillionNovel > Leon Greyrat: The Second Son – Mushoku Tensei OC > Chapter 3 – Learning

Chapter 3 – Learning

    Chapter 3 – Learning


    <span style="font-weight:400">— Leon —


    <span style="font-weight:400">Following Mama through the dense grove, she eventually found a fallen log to sit on, and as she took out her book, I sat down next to her, making sure I wasfortable for theing lecture.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“And this is… and here… okay! Ready to learn, Leon?” she asked after flipping through a few pages.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While she was inexperienced, at least she was earnest.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yep! I’m excited!” I said with a smile.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And that was no lie.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Good! But remember, Leon. It’s okay if you can’t do it immediately, okay? You have many years to learn,” she said, patting my head tenderly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I can do it!” I nodded.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Her eyes softened with a mix of affection and pride.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Fufu, if you’re so sure, then I’ll begin now. Ahem!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Taking onest look through the book, she then closed it before looking at me and raising her finger.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Right, so… first! Magic requires power to work, like how a campfire needs wood to burn. This is called mana, or magic power.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">That made sense.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“And the amount of magic power someone has is decided at birth, so… let’s hope you have a good amount!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">I hope so, too.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Uhh… then… there are three types… Yes! Three types of magic! And they are… umm…” Mama then opened her book once again as she seemingly forgot where to go next.


    <span style="font-weight:400">…This would be okay, right?


    <span style="font-weight:400">— Leon —


    <span style="font-weight:400">“And that’s the basics of magic!” Mama said proudly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">It was a shaky start, but she got there eventually.


    <span style="font-weight:400">At first, she needed to constantly check the book, but that wasn’t due to ack of knowledge, but rather her worry that she was teaching me the wrong thing or forgetting something important.


    <span style="font-weight:400">A performance anxiety, so to say.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But after she got into the role, she got increasingly confident, and showed off the intelligence that made her one of the few S-rank healers in the world.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Basically, as she had exined, magic required magic power, or mana, to work, and one could use magic in two ways.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The first was by incantations, which is when one recited a set of words to cast a spell, and was the mostmon form of magic.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And the second way was with magic circles, which was when one inscribed a pattern using special ink to cast a spell by pouring magic power into said pattern.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Mama didn’t really know how to use magic circles, and her book didn’t describe any either, so I would be sticking to incantations for the time being.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Not that I minded, though.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I didn’t exactly trust my toddler hands to do precise drawings, after all.


    <span style="font-weight:400">As for the types of magic, there were three main ones: attack magic, which, as the name implied, was meant to be used in battle; healing magic, which was used to heal others and create barriers; and summoning magic, which was used to summon things, again, as the name implied.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Delving further into it, attack magic was divided into four types: fire, water, wind, and earth, which allowed the user to cast spells rting to that element.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Thinking about it now… I think I might just call attack magic elemental magic instead.


    <span style="font-weight:400">It made more sense that way.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Healing magic also was divided into four types, those being healing magic, which healed injuries; detoxification magic, which purged poisons and disease; divine strike magic, which was magic that could harm incorporeal monsters; and protection magic, which was used to create barriers.


    <span style="font-weight:400">This one too was named a bit weird, as only two of the categories could be called ‘healing’, so I think support magic would be a better thing to call it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I won’t tell Mama that, though.


    <span style="font-weight:400">After all, she did try her best to teach me the conventional way.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But I did have a question…


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Mama… I’ve heard you said ‘Beginner’ and ‘Intermediate’ spells… what do those mean?” I ask.


    <span style="font-weight:400">In fact, I swear the others have used those words before, and Ghiine had also introduced herself as a ‘Saint’.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I initially thought it was just some kind of religious thing from her homnd, but thinking about it now, it was weird that she would hold that moniker when she abandoned her homnd.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Mama’s eyes widened at my question.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Oh! Rank titles! I can’t believe I forgot about that! Okay, so, these rankings are used for both swordsmanship and magic, and they are-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Oh boy, here we go.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Listening to her long-winded exnation, I think I finally got it… for the most part, at least.


    <span style="font-weight:400">In this world, there were seven ranks that described one’s battle strength.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Those being: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Saint, King, Emperor, and God, in that order.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While Mama didn’t understand how the ranks worked in swordsmanship, she was able to exin roughly how it worked for magic.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Typically, spell rankings were proportionate to the amount of magic power needed to cast it, though there were exceptions, like detoxification magic, where it was more about the range of spells than the power, as ones were needed for specific diseases and illnesses.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But for magic, the more mana that was needed for a spell, the more skilled one needed to be in order to cast it and control it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">So, even if someone was born with a crazy amount of mana, they wouldn’t instantly be a King-ranked magician, though they would have the potential to.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But, in short, the rankings went like this: Beginner was basic mana maniption; Intermediate was advanced mana maniption; Advanced wasplex maniption, usually with arge area of effect; Saint wasrge,plex, and with elemental magic, usually affected the weather.


    <span style="font-weight:400">King, Emperor, and God rank went further inplexity and scale, but for an Intermediate-ranked mage like Mama, it was difficult toprehend, especially since she had never seen such magic being cast in person.


    <span style="font-weight:400">What was interesting, however, was that for most adventurers, Advanced and Intermediate-ranked spells were all that were needed, as controlling the weather was not usually useful for anything but wars andnd maintenance, like watering fields.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Though… it would be pretty sad for someone at the pinnacle of magic to be used as a watering can.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I pity whoever ended up like that.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I think I get it now, Mama. Can… can you teach me a spell now?” I asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Please don’t make me pull out the pleading face again.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yep! But… don’t get discouraged if you can’t do it, okay? It’s fairly rare for someone to be able to use magic, much less someone so young,” she said kindly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I got this!” I assured her.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Fufu. If you’re sure. I’ll first teach you the most basic healing spell, <i><span style="font-weight:400">Healing</i><span style="font-weight:400">.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Well, that’s quite a simple name.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“This is only able to heal wounds that would heal naturally, such as cuts and bruises, but it’s useful to stop blood flow and prevent infections. So? Are you ready?” she asked while taking out a knife.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I nodded my head in excitement.


    <span style="font-weight:400">She then poked the tip of her finger, letting the blood bead as I watched with a sickening feeling of disgust.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Blood… Mama… that day… Mom-


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Leon? Are you okay?” Mama asked, halting my train of thoughts.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Y-Yeah. I’m ready!” I said, shaking away the bad memories.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Okay… Remember this chant, alright? Ahem! <i><span style="font-weight:400">Let this divine power be as satisfying nourishment, giving one who has lost their strength the strength to rise again - Healing</i><span style="font-weight:400">.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">A green glow is then emitted from her hand as the cut on her finger began to close, and with a wipe on her pant leg a momentter, it was as if the injury was never there.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“See that? Now, do you think you can try?” she asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yeah! Can I… have the knife?” I said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Nope! You’ll have to practice on Mama for this one!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">She then did a simr process as before, causing me to flinch as the de pressed against her finger.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I don’t know why I felt so ufortable this time, as it was such a minuscule wound, something she had gotten multiple times while cooking.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Was it because of the bad memories? Was it because it was intentional? Or was it because that she was hurting herself for my sake?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Well… I’ll just have to make the owie go away, won’t I?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Now, how did it go again?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ah, that’s right!


    <span style="font-weight:400">“<i><span style="font-weight:400">Let this divine power be as satisfying nourishment</i><span style="font-weight:400">-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Weird.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I could feel this… energy, concentrated at my core, slowly moving through my body and into my arm, like blood flowing through my veins.


    <span style="font-weight:400">It was hot, yet not ufortably so.


    <span style="font-weight:400">More like a warm cup of tea.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“-<i><span style="font-weight:400">giving one who has lost their strength the strength to rise again - Healing</i><span style="font-weight:400">.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Finishing the chant, I felt the warm, blood-like sensation flow into my hand before radiating outward, creating the same glow that Mama did.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And, just like before, her small cut healed up, appearing as though it was never there a momentter.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Leon! You did it! Uuu~ You’re a genius! My little Leon is a genius!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Mama then picked me up before smothering me with her admittedly bountiful chest.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Urk-!


    <span style="font-weight:400">Those things… they were dangerous.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I felt like I was going to suffocate one of these days.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I needed to get bigger, and fast.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Squirming out of her grasp, I looked down at my hand which had just performed, at least by my previously held standards, a miracle.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Magic… it really was amazing.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Mama… could I try again? Please?” I pleaded, looking up at her.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Practice makes perfect, after all.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Of course! Here-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Wait. Can I be cut this time? Please?” I asked, ready to bring out my ultimate begging technique if needed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While I was confident in healing her injuries now, I still didn’t want her to be in pain for me, even if it felt like nothing to her.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I… hated seeing her hurt.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I don’t know…” she said hesitantly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“But Mama, wouldn’t it be better to know how the spell affects the target? And there’s no better way to know than this, right?” I said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Did I believe that?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Not really.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But it sounded logical, so hopefully, she would agree.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...Fine! But I’m making the cut, okay? And no whining about Mama hurting you afterwards!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I promise I won’t!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sess!


    <span style="font-weight:400">As the edge of the knife pierced my skin, I ignored the stinging pain as I closed my eyes, focusing as I began chanting the spell.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“<i><span style="font-weight:400">Let this divine power be</i><span style="font-weight:400">…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">…Shoot, Ipletely forgot the rest.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But the warmth in my chest… if I could just grasp it… and push it forward…


    <span style="font-weight:400">Come on, Leon. Picture it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The cells of the body replicating perfectly, orderly, all working together to mend the wound with eachyer of skin, from the dermis to the epidermis, and all the severed capiries.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Make it-


    <span style="font-weight:400">“L-Leon…!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Hearing Mama’s quivering voice, I opened my eyes just in time to watch the glow emitting from my hand subside.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And the cut… it was healed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“M-Mama! I did… it…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">My voice slurred as I was overwhelmed with a wave of intense fatigue, before I suddenly felt my knees buckle, sending me falling to the ground.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Luckily, I was caught a secondter by the shocked Mama as my heavy eyes began to close, my vision quickly fading to ck.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Damn… it seems that I passed out.


    <span style="font-weight:400">— Zenith Latreia —


    <span style="font-weight:400">Catching Leon’s unconscious body, I felt my mind finally clear from the haze of shock.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He… just did that, didn’t he?


    <span style="font-weight:400">No, obviously he did.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The proof was right there in hispletely healed finger, his skin as soft and smooth as usual.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But… casting magic without an incantation?


    <span style="font-weight:400">That was only possible for the most seasoned of mages, and even then, it was extremely rare, something akin to a legend.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I guess… my Leon was that much of a genius, huh?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Combing my hand through his smooth, golden hair, I couldn’t help but frown at his sleeping face.


    <span style="font-weight:400">It seemed that his limit was two spells, so… not that much at all.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But… maybe it was because he used magic without an incantation?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Or… it could be that he was still able to grow the amount of his magic power.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Generally, one’s amount of mana was determined by birth and inherited from one’s parents, but in some rare cases, there have been people who grew their reserves over time.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Well… if it’s Leon, then I could easily see him being thetter.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He was just that special, after all.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Thinking about it now, our party had really changed since he came into our lives.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The Fangs of the ck Wolf had turned from a party with admittedly good chemistry, to a true family.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And it was all because of this cutie.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Truly… he was a blessing.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Absolutely something granted to us by Millis himself.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Wait, no! I needed to tell the others!


    <span style="font-weight:400">Fufu, we had another healer! And one that I taught myself!


    <span style="font-weight:400">Even if he could only cast a couple of spells, it was still useful.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And knowing my boy, he would definitely be eager to help out.


    <span style="font-weight:400">After all, he was such a determined and mature kid.


    <span style="font-weight:400">And yes… Leon was my boy. Without question.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While at the beginning, I took him in as my own out of a sense of guilt for that woman, guilt for not being good enough to heal her and not being there earlier, but whether it was his natural charms, or simply my instincts as a woman, I couldn’t see Leon as any other’s child but my own.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Everyone! Guess what?” I said, walking past the treeline over to the main camp.


    <span style="font-weight:400">As the others were likely to be rowdy, I decided to teach him in the small forest grove next to our camp, where my instructions were unlikely to be interrupted.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While monsters might have been a worry somewhere else, we were in the golden ins of the Kingdom of Asura, and fairly close to the capital too, so any would-be enemies were regrly culled by the kingdom’s knights.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I also separated from the group in order to protect Leon’s innocence… but I had a feeling it was already toote for that.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ideally, he would grow up remaining as sweet as he is now, but if he ever takes after everyone else’s bad habits… I’ll just have to teach it out of him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? So early- What happened?” Paul said, his casual expression instantly shifting to a serious one as he spotted the unconscious Leon in my arms, making my heart flutter.


    <span style="font-weight:400">That shift in demeanour… that earnest protectiveness… those were some of the things that made me fall in love with that unscrupulous man.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The others, noticing the situation, also immediately get to their feet, with Ghiine snarling in anger and worry.


    <span style="font-weight:400">She really was like a big sister to him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Don’t worry! He’s fine! He just used up his mana, is all!” I said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The tense atmosphere immediately disappeared as the party all began to show expressions of shock.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“‘Used up his mana’... does that mean-?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yep!” I said proudly, cutting off Paul. “Leon is now a Beginner-rank healing magician!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ah~ I could already feel my cheeks hurting from my wide smile.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“That’s amazing, Zenny! I knew you were a good teacher,” Lina said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Mhmm! And that’s not all… he cast <i><span style="font-weight:400">Healing </i><span style="font-weight:400">without a chant!” I said with enthusiasm.


    <span style="font-weight:400">This second revtion sent everyone into a simr state of shock.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Actually, it was more than the first time, which made sense.


    <span style="font-weight:400">A child as young as Leon casting magic put him in the realm of ‘talented’, but doing it without an incantation… that ced him in the realm of ‘genius’.


    <span style="font-weight:400">No, even further than that.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Bullshit.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">I sent Paul a cold re.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Could this man not calm his mouth for a second?


    <span style="font-weight:400">And how dare he think I was lying!?


    <span style="font-weight:400">“A-Ah, I mean, I’d love for him to show me himself, is all! Haha!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">That’s better.


    <span style="font-weight:400">However, the man certainly still needed some more training.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“If it’s true, it seems that Leon is destined for great things, eh? But… are you sure he’s asleep from mana loss?” Geese asked. “Could be something wrong, right? And I don’t think you would let him use so many spells that he’d use all his mana up.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Hmm… I was certain it was the case, and that Leon simply had a small amount of mana, or perhaps bad efficiency, but I guess it never hurt to find out.


    <span style="font-weight:400">cing my hand over Leon’s forehead, I cast one of the basic detoxification spells that checked for abnormalities in the target, and finding none, I shook my head.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“As I thought. I guess Leon just has a-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">I cut myself off as I felt the spell tremble under my control.


    <span style="font-weight:400">That… was not normal.


    <span style="font-weight:400">In fact, I had felt something off with my mana for a couple of days now.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Zenny? Is something wrong?” Lina asked with concern.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Nothing. It’s just… give me a second,” I said, waving her off.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Putting my hand onto my chest, I cast the same spell on myself, and instantly, I sensed something that brought me to tears.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Oh… oh my god!


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Zenny?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">I… I…


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I’m… pregnant,” I said through tears, looking toward Paul with a wide-open mouth.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Seeing him facepalm, however, did not instill in me confidence that he would keep his promise.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ignoring the pang of anxiety, I looked down at the sleeping toddler in my arms, smiling as he snored softly into my chest.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Leon… I hope you’re ready to be a big brother.


    <span style="font-weight:400">No… knowing you, you’ll be the best big brother one could ever have.


    <span style="font-weight:400">— Information on the Six-Faced World —


    <b><i>Types of Magic</i></b>


    <b>Attacking Magic / Elemental Magic:</b>


    <span style="font-weight:400">Fire: Generation and maniption of heat and fire.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Water: Generation and maniption of water and ice.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Wind: Generation and maniption of gases.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Earth: Generation and maniption of dirt and minerals.


    <b>Healing Magic / Support Magic:</b>


    <span style="font-weight:400">Healing: Heals injuries.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Detoxification: Purges poisons, diseases, and status effects such as inebriation.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Divine Strike: Harms incorporeal monsters and spirits, kept secret by the Divine Priest Fighters and unknown to most magicians.<span style="font-weight:400">


    <span style="font-weight:400">Protection: Used to increase one’s defences and create barriers of certain characteristics, such as nullifying magic activation.


    <b>Summoning Magic</b>


    <span style="font-weight:400">— Leon —


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Leon~ Wake up, sweetie~”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Hearing the soft feminine voice, I slowly opened my groggy eyes.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Shoot… I… passed out?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Thest thing I remember was… casting healing magic. Without an incantation, too.


    <span style="font-weight:400">That… wasn’t supposed to be possible, at least not without a magic circle or something simr.


    <span style="font-weight:400">That feeling of the warmth, how it travelled up my arm, and how I pictured my skin being healed… could that be it?


    <span style="font-weight:400">An image and control of the magic power in my body? That was all that was needed?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Then… why was it said that casting magic without an incantation was basically impossible?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Was I special?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Or was it some sort of intellectual stagnation, where everyone was taught to use incantations, and the world conformed to that idea?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Hmm… I’ll have to do a bit more practice before I can be sure.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“There. Are you awake now? No headache or anything?” Mama asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I shook my head in response.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“No, I’m fine. Just a little sleepy,” I said, rubbing my eyes.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Still? You’ve been napping for a few hours now,” she said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Really?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">I was asleep for that long?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Darn… I’ll have to remember not to run out of magic when I have something important to do.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Though, seeing that the sun was beginning to set behind the rolling green ins, it was true that quite a bit of time had passed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Looking around, I noticed that the rest of the party was packing their stuff up, which wasn’t unusual, but past that… there was a weird atmosphere in the camp.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Mama… what happened?” I asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Mama’s face formed aplicated expression as she looked down and rubbed her belly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Huh?


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well… you see… it seems like you’re going to be a big brother,” she said, her lips curling into a grin.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ignoring the warmth that blossomed in my chest, I sent a re over to Paul.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Mama would be out ofmission as a healer, and likely stop working as an adventurer after this… but what would that womanizer do?


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Don’t worry about him, Leon. He… he said he’d keep his promise.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Turning back to Mama, I saw that her face was radiating happiness, her cheeks flushed with excitement.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I guess… we’re going to be a family now. A real one,” she said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">A family?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Like… me, Mama, Paul, and the baby in her belly?


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...I see,” I eventually said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While I wasn’t exactly ted to have Paul as a father, at least he was keeping Mama happy.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But… despite the seemingly happy news… I couldn’t stop the knot from forming in my stomach.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Her joyful expression as she caressed her stomach felt like a reminder that I… wasn’t her child.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Even if she always called me ‘her baby’, it… wasn’t exactly that way.


    <span style="font-weight:400">So it’s only natural to be worried, right?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Anxiety and insecurity battled to control my thoughts as questions about the future swirled in my mind.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Would I be reced? Overlooked?


    <span style="font-weight:400">No… I could handle those things.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Especially if it was to give care to the new life in Mama’s belly, but… I wouldn’t be able to handle being unloved or abandoned.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I… needed Mama.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“M-Mama… are you fine, keeping me-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Don’t you even start that,” she interrupted with a frown. “You’re my son, Leon. It doesn’t matter if I never birthed you.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Her expression calmed as her hand ran through my hair.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Besides… you’ll be there to help me out, right? You know healing magic now, after all,” she said, pulling me in for a hug.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Okay…” I said through watered eyes, burying my face in her chest.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“There, there… Paul, dear? Do you have anything to say to your son?” she asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? Well, I’m kinda busy right now-”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Paul,” Mama snapped.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Alright, I get it.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Hearing his steps get closer, Mama then tapped my back, signalling me to look at the man.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Umm… I know you aren’t as close with me as you are with Zenith, but… I’ll try to be a good father, alright? And hey! Now I’ll be able to teach you swordsmanship without adventuring getting in the way! Isn’t that cool?” he said, finishing his words with a charismatic thumbs up.


    <span style="font-weight:400">…I guess that’s fine.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Okay,” I said with a nod.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“W-What? ‘Okay’? That’s it? I just poured my heart out to you!” he whined.


    <span style="font-weight:400">All you did was said you’ll be a father and teach me swordsmanship, was that really the epitome of his emotional intelligence?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Actually, scratch that.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Knowing the man, not counting whatever magic he used to rope in such a kind woman like Mama, it probably was.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But aside from that…


    <span style="font-weight:400">“‘Without adventuring getting in the way’... are you retiring?” I asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Paul then released a sigh before looking over at the other party members with a mncholic smile.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well… you see, I have this cousin nearby who offered me a job a year back. I’m just hoping that the offer is still avable,” he said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">A cousin? From his old family?


    <span style="font-weight:400">So a noble house position… and with his strength, it was probably something like a knight or a guard.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Afortable life, perfect for a young family.


    <span style="font-weight:400">But… what about the family here?


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Aren’t you the leader, though? What will happen to the party?” I asked with worry.


    <span style="font-weight:400">His smile then fell, transforming into a sad frown.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well, you see… it will have to disband.”
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