Special Story 1

“You told me you were busy preparing for the Monster Forest, yet have you done nothing but play chess every day?”

Graum asked Hayden in exasperation as his King was captured yet again. It was already his third consecutive loss, so his disbelief was only natural. Instead of an answer, Hayden responded with a slight, lopsided smirk.

Now grown to be roughly the same height as Graum, Hayden was the spitting image of his father in moments like these. It was almost startling to see how Caldeon’s already striking features could be refined into something even more beautiful.

“Are you done?” Graum asked, watching Hayden tidy up the chess pieces. Hayden’s finely drawn lips curved into a graceful arc. It was a smile that captivated the eye in a way entirely different from his earlier cocky smirk.

“As you said, I’m busy preparing for the Monster Forest. Arsen is probably waiting for me right now with bated breath.”

As a fragment of God capable of wielding both Holy Power and Black Mana, Hayden had been assisting Caldeon with monster subjugation lately. The entire Empire was on edge due to a new species appearing deep within the Monster Forest, accompanied by an unnaturally dense surge of wicked energy. Both Caldeon and Hayden were focusing all their nerves on uncovering the nature of this new threat.

“I shouldn’t have suggested chess,” Graum muttered. Hayden rose from his seat and shook his head.

“No, playing chess with you usually clears my head. It helps. Are you heading to the Spirit Village?”

“I should. By the way, where is Panz? I haven’t seen him.” Graum looked around, realizing the golden hatchling—usually perched on Hayden’s head or shoulder—was missing.

“I sent him to the Monster Forest. He’s on reconnaissance.”

Graum let out a small laugh, nodding. “You certainly make efficient use of a fellow who was once destroyed and then resurrected.”

Hayden let out a low chuckle. “He grumbles whenever I give him an order, but he’s generally good at everything he does.”

With that, Hayden walked toward the door and gave Graum a casual wave. Graum watched him go, a quiet smile playing on his lips.

***

[It is not a monster we need to worry about excessively. It is just that the ‘Mother Tree’ that generates the monsters has grown abnormally large this time.]

Panz, back from his scout of the forest, reported to Caldeon and Hayden. The two men, sitting at their respective desks, nodded simultaneously as they looked at the report instead of the hatchling.

“A monstrously oversized tree, eh? That will be a sight to behold,” Caldeon muttered, his brow furrowing in a look of pure distaste. Hayden smirked.

“At least you haven’t seen that tree actually spitting out monsters, Dad.”

Hayden remarked that because he was a fragment of God, he remembered things he hadn’t even personally witnessed with vivid clarity. He added that life could be quite draining when you’re forced to see things you’d rather not see.

“Draining? Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?” Caldeon let out a dry laugh.

“If you experienced it yourself, you’d think differen—”

Knock, knock.

The door creaked open, and Enria poked her head through the gap. The moment they saw her, Caldeon and Hayden both broke into identical smiles.

“Enria.”

“Mom.”

“Are you busy? Can I come in?” Enria asked, looking at Arsen rather than the two men. When Arsen assured her she was more than welcome, she stepped inside with a bright smile.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt, but I have some wonderful news from Rose.”

Caldeon stood up to greet her, asking what happened, while Hayden found himself staring intently at Enria’s stomach.

“About the Magic Academy Rose opened…”

“I think the truly ‘wonderful news’ is right here with us,” Hayden interrupted softly.

Caldeon, Enria, and Arsen all turned to look at Hayden at once. Hayden raised his head to meet Caldeon’s eyes.

“Did I just say that life is draining because I see things I don’t want to?”

“Hmm?”

“In this case, it’s actually a blessing.”

Enria tilted her head at Hayden’s cryptic words, but Caldeon, who had been staring silently at Hayden, followed his son’s gaze to Enria’s stomach. His eyes widened.

“Could it be…?”

“I’m going to be the one to name her,” Hayden declared.

Caldeon let out a choked gasp of emotion, bringing a clenched fist to his mouth. Enria looked at him, then turned to Hayden with a bewildered expression.

“Wait, Hayden? What are you talking about?”

“My little sister. She’s in your tummy, Mom,” Hayden said, pointing at her stomach.

In that instant, Enria and Arsen’s eyes flew open so wide they looked like they might pop out.

***

Following the news of Enria’s pregnancy, not only the Grand Castle but the entire North fell into a festive mood. Thanks to the success of her face mask business, the Northern citizens—now wealthier than those in the fertile South—began flooding the castle with gifts for the new baby as soon as they heard the news.

Faced with a lobby so packed with presents there was no room to walk, Enria called for Chavel.

“Chavel, go to Dale and tell him not to accept any more gifts from the citizens. Tell him to send them back.”

Chavel nodded but asked why she was returning them when they were meant as congratulations.

“I can’t go around ‘plucking the liver out of a flea*,’” Enria replied.

[T/N: A Korean proverb suggesting someone who is being extremely petty or greedy by taking something from those who have almost nothing to begin with]

“Pardon? A flea? A liver?” Chavel tilted her head, unfamiliar with the proverb from Enria’s original world. Enria simply told her to tell Dale that she would accept their well-wishes in spirit alone.

Just then, the butler arrived to announce that Roseanne and Belona had arrived.

“Please prepare some tea on the second floor,” Enria instructed before hurrying toward the entrance. She beamed at her friends as they stepped inside.

“Rose, Beli!”

“Enri! Is it true you’re having a baby?”

“Congratulations! We heard Hayden said it’s a girl?”

Both women shed their cloaks and gloves immediately, showering Enria with congratulations.

“Hayden suddenly stared at my stomach and told me he was going to name her,” Enria laughed, leading them upstairs as she recounted how she first learned the news.

“Hayden can see things like that now?”

“That’s incredible. Does it just… appear to him?”

Belona and Roseanne marveled at Hayden’s abilities. Enria nodded, admitting she found it fascinating as well.

“You’ll have to be extra careful from now on.”

“You’ll need to watch what you eat, too.”

Enria nodded at their advice, but she suddenly found herself wondering about her friends’ situations. Belona, who had finally opened her heart to Rahar and married him, had been married for over three years now. Roseanne had been married for five. It seemed like time for both to have news of their own.

Roseanne had been tirelessly busy establishing free Magic Academies that weren’t tied to the Magic Tower, so she might have been delaying it. With the academy expanding from one location to three, she was busier than ever. Belona, too, was busy as the mistress of the Kaznaren household since Rahar became the head of the family.

However, since they had both been married for a while, Enria cautiously asked, “By the way… do you two have any plans yet?”

Roseanne replied that since she had delayed it for so long because of the academy, she was planning to start preparing now. Belona, however, looked a bit somber.

“It doesn’t always go according to plan,” Belona said. When Roseanne and Enria asked if she had been trying, Belona nodded and shared her situation.

“I think it’s because half of my soul was consumed. The child just won’t take.”

“But wouldn’t that be a separate issue from pregnancy?” Enria asked.

“Exactly. I don’t think that’s why it’s being delayed,” Roseanne added.

Belona sighed, explaining she had tried many times and even taken medicine, but with no luck. “Rose, you know how much your father wants a grandchild, right? Whenever he contacts me, eighty percent of the message is about a baby.”

“Ah, yeah… he’s the same with me.”

“Rahar and I have been trying for a long time,” Belona confessed. She admitted she hadn’t told Enria because it was a difficult topic to bring up with Roseanne being both her friend and her sister-in-law. “We’re both eating everything that’s supposed to be good for fertility. But I can’t help but feel like the cause is me….”

“Don’t think like that, Beli,” Enria said, taking her hand.

“She’s right. It could easily be my brother’s fault!” Roseanne added, both of them squeezing Belona’s hands in comfort.

Belona smiled at them. “Well, I’m sure one day I’ll have a beautiful little girl who looks just like me.”

“You want a girl?”

“Yes, I’d love a daughter.” Belona told Enria how envious she was and congratulated her once more.

Enria felt a pang of guilt. Had she known Belona was struggling so much, she might have shared her own news more delicately.

“Guys, I really didn’t mean to make the mood so heavy! I’m okay, really….” Belona insisted.

“Right! Today is a day to celebrate Enria’s daughter. Let’s not be gloomy. And Beli, you’ll have good news soon too.”

“Yeah! You should have one soon. Even if Hayden is a bit older, your baby can be great friends with the one in Enria’s tummy.”

Belona agreed, saying she would keep trying so that their three children could be as close as the three of them were. Hearing that, Enria briefly imagined a future where her daughter and the daughters of Roseanne and Belona grew up together as best friends, living happy lives.

The mere thought made her heart swell. Enria smiled radiantly and whispered to herself, “If that could happen… it would be truly wonderful.”