In a daze, as if in a dream, when I woke up again, I found myself not lying in a pristine hospital, but in a house that seemed like it belonged in the countryside. The furniture around me was very simple, mostly made of wood. The only thing I got right was that I was indeed lying in bed, or more precisely, I was being held in the embrace of warm hands.
Blinking my eyes, I saw a handsome young man with golden messy hair in front of me, who looked to be around 20 years old. He was wearing clothes made of a low-grade material, probably linen, but because his face was attractive, he didn't look like a loser.
"%￥#%" (Darling, why isn't our son crying?)
The man spoke in a language I couldn't understand, which was really frustrating. Youngster, I'm at least 35 years old, your senior. Show some respect, could you? If we're going to communicate, the least you could do is speak Chinese.
"&%#￥@" (Darling, our son isn't crying... Is he dumb?)
The man anxiously said a few more words I couldn't understand, then lifted my left foot while I looked at him in confusion. As my head spun and my vision turned upside down, I saw the person lying in bed, holding me all along. It was a woman with long blue hair, around 20 years old, her damp hair pressed against her cheeks, making her look somewhat weak and yet alluring. She was very beautiful, with a melon-seed face and fair skin. In my opinion, she was much better than that Cang Lao Shi or Wu Tong Lao Shi... Wait, I don't even know who Cang Lao Shi or Wu Tong Lao Shi are!
As I marvelled at the beauty of the woman, I suddenly felt a pain in my butt, as if I had been slapped?
My anus was definitely facing the young man, which was why he slapped my butt... Wait a minute, why did he slap me? Where am I? Isn't this Earth? And wait, why am I so small? I'm a 35-year-old magician and almost wise sage!
"Smack! Smack!"
Hey hey, stop slapping, when are you gonna stop! And it's because you're not holding me properly, that's why my anus is facing you, isn't it!
It felt so unfair, I felt like crying... Tears gathered unnoticed in the corners of my eyes, my face twisted, with the expression of someone about to cry.
"*&**%￥" (Morlen, stop hitting him, the child seems like he's about to cry.)
"@#￥！#￥" (Really? If he cries, then it's fine. His lack of reaction earlier was probably because he's a little different.)
The young man put me back on the bed, and when he saw the teardrops in the corners of my eyes and my wrinkled face, he wickedly smiled.
My memory was still stuck in that moment when I was thrown away by a truck. Those two brats must have been saved, right? They were thrown so far and kicked so hard, it's impossible for them to be hit by a car again.
But how did I become a little baby? Oh... It seems kind of nice this way too. At least I've survived, and I have a new life. But why does this house feel so poor, using kerosene lamps and made of wood? Could this be in the countryside?
After a week, I still couldn't be sure whether I was in a different world because my nominal parents, the two young adults who stupidly smiled and cuddled me, could possibly be residents of some remote country on Earth. They had never left the house, and no outsiders had come. I hadn't seen any strange arts like Fighting Spirit magic. My new parents were just ordinary people. Mom, Lorna, held me all day and did housework, while Dad, Morlen, was a hardworking farmer, going out early and coming home late, toiling diligently and planting good crops.
When the couple went to sleep, they liked to put me between them, perhaps because Lorna had just given birth, they didn't have the sexual interest I was worried about. It made me feel a bit relieved... No, I don't expect it at all. I'm just more at peace, worried that these two will accidentally crush me while they're busy with their bed activities.
I've already figured out what name to use; I'll be called Moko. To defend my naming rights, I would always cry out in a vague voice 【MokoMokoMoko】in front of Lorna.
After a few days, it seemed to have an effect, as Lorna started calling me with 【Moko】as well.
Regarding this young couple, I felt that there was still much to be trained in them. But for now, I'm just a newborn baby who can't even speak. I'll worry about training and everything else later. Since the heavens have given me a chance to start over, I won't be alone for the rest of my life like in my past life. In this life, I'll definitely create a huge harem, using the advantage of my two lifetimes of memories to establish an unprecedented dynasty!Around the time I was five months old, a turning point in my fate appeared. Although Morlen and Lona, this young couple who were still immature as parents, they were genuinely good to me, treating me like a precious baby. This made me, who lost my parents in my previous life, once again feel the warmth of family.
But on that sunny morning, a family of three appeared that would change my life.
The man was a tall and strong man, at least 190 centimeters tall, wearing leather armor. He was a few years older than Morlen, with messy medium-length red hair and an unkempt appearance. He was quite good-looking and had the look of a tough guy. It was obvious at first glance that he was a powerful man, similar to Qiao Feng in terms of appearance and temperament.
This man's name was Rosca. He used to be a mercenary and now a formidable hunter. He came to see me specifically because he received a letter from Morlen. When he held me, I could feel the thickness of the calluses on his hands even through his clothes, which showed that he was a strong warrior. If we were talking about a game, Rosca should belong to the level of an elite monster.
Accompanying Rosca was his beautiful wife Anna and their adorable 4-year-old daughter, Nicole.
When Rosca's family came, they had to pass through a mountain road. During lunch, Rosca said that he encountered bandits on the mountain road, who were likely to be the private guard acting as bandits for the nearby lord. Nicole excitedly added on to Rosca's words, describing how he drove away those bandits. Anna delicately picked out the bones from the fish for Nicole and Nicole said she wanted to feed her brother, so she used a fork to feed the fish to me.
Should I eat it? Nicole is so cute, but I don't have teeth yet. I'm not even six months old, will I be able to digest fish?
While I hesitated, Lona smiled and said that babies shouldn't eat fish yet. Nicole reluctantly swallowed the fish, then energetically ran to Lona's side and poked and pinched me with her fingers. If it were an ordinary kid, they wouldn't understand how enjoyable it could be to be picked on by a little girl like Nicole. So, under the slightly worried gaze of Lona and Anna, I wasn't shy at all. Instead, I grabbed Nicole's fingers and put them in my mouth to nibble on.
I wasn't taking advantage, I was just getting revenge for her poking me.
On the other side of the table, Morlen complained to Rosca about the increasing taxes levied by the tax officials in recent years.
The two grew up in the same village. However, after Rosca learned Fighting Spirit, he went outside the village to become a mercenary, while Morlen, because he couldn't learn Fighting Spirit, had to stay in the village and become a farmer. Fortunately, Morlen was handsome and married a beauty like Lona, so he could be considered a winner in life.
"Fighting Spirit?" I, who was silently learning the language of another world, heard this thrilling term. Is this really a different world? In my excitement, I didn't know that it was precisely because of Rosca's arrival that brought destruction to this new family, no, it wasn't Rosca's fault, but those guys who pretended to be bandits in the territory. It was the lord who allowed his subordinates to do as they pleased!
The fake bandits driven away by Rosca didn't give up. Or rather, they were waiting for an opportunity to retaliate against Rosca. Naturally, there would be people skilled in tracking in the military, and they followed in the footsteps of Rosca's family and found our home. They suddenly attacked at night and killed Morlen, Lona, and Anna.
When the incident happened, Nicole received a warning from Rosca. Nicole was only four years old, petite, and I was still just a baby. Nicole cleverly hid me in the closet. As adults, Morlen and the others had no place to hide, and they were suddenly attacked. With just a moment's encounter, they were killed.
Hiding in the closet, Nicole cried softly while covering my mouth with her hand, so that I wouldn't make any noise to attract the bad guys outside.
Rosca's roaring voice mixed with the sound of clashes of weapons continued for several minutes. When the closet door was opened, Rosca appeared in front of us, wearing what was supposed to be a white sleeveless nightgown and large shorts, holding a sword full of notches, covered in blood, and panting heavily.
This powerful man single-handedly killed a team of fake bandit soldiers...
"Daddy, where's mommy?"
"Anna..." Rosca threw down his sword, squatted down on the ground in pain, his face full of pain and regret. This tough guy's expression now looked strange, as if he was on the verge of collapse mentally.
So Morlen and Lona really did die? It's okay, even though they were my parents, we had only been together for less than half a year, so I'm not sad at all. But why do my eyes feel a bit warm, and why is something dripping from the corners of my eyes..."How...how could this happen..." Rosska, who was utterly hopeless, saw the tears on my face. His body trembled, as if he had witnessed something impossible, and he exclaimed in astonishment, mouth agape: "Kid...you felt it too..."
How could I pretend not to know that my parents died? Although we had only been together for five months, and my soul was younger than his by more than a round, they genuinely treated me well, and they were the parents of this body I am in now. Without them, there would be no me. And now, because of your appearance, they're gone, gone! Tell me, should I be sad?
But what I know is that I can't hate you, and I shouldn't hate you...
I tried hard to stretch out my hand and make a tight fist, but my tiny fist had no strength at all, either in appearance or reality, and even just making a fist tired me out a bit...
Maybe my fist-gripping action gave Rosska strength, because this man took me from Nicole's hands. As soon as he held me, the scent of blood emanating from Rosska assaulted my nose, causing me to sneeze uncontrollably, which frightened Rosska into hastily returning me to Nicole.
Seeing how cautiously he treated me, I really couldn't bring myself to hate him.
"We need to go, we absolutely can't let those greedy hyenas discover that we're still alive..." There was no time to mourn for the deceased, not even enough time for a proper burial. Rosska stood up and searched for something to start a fire, and then he set my house ablaze, along with Mullen, Rena, Anna, and the dead soldiers.
My house was a standalone dwelling outside the village, with no neighbors nearby. This fire would destroy all traces. From now on, no one would know what happened in this remote cottage.
