Rudy's pushing himself a bit too hard.
I wouldn't blame him. He is dealing with the end of the world, after all.

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Please note that I do not own Mushoku Tensei or Fate.

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I was now seven.

My two little sisters, Norn and Aisha, were growing. And fast, not to mention noisy. They cried when their diapers were dirty. They screamed when they were hungry. And they sobbed for no damn reason whatsoever.

Before long, Paul and Zenith had nervous breakdowns. The only ones calm were Lilia and me.

"See?" She said, tending skillfully to the two girls, as usual. "Now, this is what childrearing is! Things with young master Rudeus were much too easy! You could hardly call that childrearing!"

I helped her by bringing and projecting anything she needed. As Lilia went to get something, I changed the babies' diapers.

Paul watched me, standing to the side and looking awfully embarrassed. To be honest, Paul was pathetic. At least Zenith helped feed the two. All he did was try and get back on his wife's good side. By "wife," I mean Zenith. Right. I forgot to mention. Lilia was also married to Paul now. They somehow worked things out with my help-can you idiots not rely on your seven-year-old kid for one moment?!-by disrupting my magecraft in the middle of the night. I was planning Sylphie's lesson, for god's sake! And I was the one who did the talking. The actual "adults" only disrupted my plans. Sylphie had to go a few weeks without lectures because I was too tired to teach anything during the day. I was so thankful for her patience in times like this.

You know, this is where I would start feeling sorry for the pathetic human that is my father and try telling some memorable stories to regain his honor. But I'm too mad and tired of him. So let's talk about the progress of my precious Fae.

Her magic studies were slow-like mine-but were improving nonetheless. She'd learned every Intermediate Rank spell I knew, though mastering them was another can of worms. It's still unimaginably impressive. To put that into perspective, people said it took someone years to get to Intermediate Rank. And that someone definitely isn't a six-year-old.

Her healing and wind spells were already Advanced Rank-though they were unstable and difficult to control. If she wanted, she could easily make a living as a healer. Though due to her timid nature around strangers, that would take a while. She was only comfortable around her and my family and only frankly opened up around me. Probably because I could protect her if she said anything offensive.

Was I spoiling her? Yes. Did I care? No. And she's so damn cute when she's happy! Why would anyone want to make that smile disappear? And despite what you all think, I'm not a simp, okay?! I'm only...protecting my treasured friend from the world's cruel dangers!

Ahem. Ignore that. Moving on, I taught Sylphie how to use the fancy staff I made for her. It wasn't attack-based-with her shyness, I doubt she'll get into any conflicts, let alone wars-but I included the lethal flowers just in case. And I distrust that was even necessary! If she keeps her pace up, her Mana Pool will be as big as Roxy's. Which only made the flowers even more deadly. However, she hasn't used the flowers yet. They were dangerous-I couldn't let her fool around with them. Though that wasn't the main reason. First, I wanted to teach her to transfigure the petals into knives or arrows for extra lethality. She might not know swordsmanship, but these jeweled Mana flowers more than made up for it.

Speaking of swords, I began using wooden ones in our spars, not the fragile branches I projected without reinforcement. Since Sylphie's skill increased, I could hold back less. When we first started, I used sticks that broke on impact. And even then, she couldn't hit me. Now, she won-hit me first-four times out of ten. I held back most of the time, but hey! Improvement. We focused more on blocking-her body wasn't exactly fit to wield a sword yet-and how to attack in between feints with magic. She needed to learn how to defend herself without the mystic arts. But if she uses up all her Mana, she'll go unconscious and die anyway. I'm preparing for when someone puts up a Bounded Field that dispels magic spells. They were common. I think my book listed ten or so different ones.

Right! Speaking of magic circles, I taught her to carve basic ones from her Mana. They were unstable-breaking after a single use-but it's a good skill to know.

Her Runecraft was advancing as well. It was the branch of magic we focused on. I'm proud to say Sylphie can finally carve a Rune in under five seconds. A significant improvement from the ten seconds she started with. Though the stability of her Rune Chains could use some work.

I'm beginning to see a pattern where all her spells fail because of stableness. Perhaps Thaumatergical Foundations should be the next lesson? I have no idea why I held off such an important lecture. Maybe I thought she was too young to understand? Oh, well. She didn't need to fully get it-just the gist would do.

But speaking of Runes, the Primordial Runes I inherited from that druid's book began floating around my head on various occasions. And I don't mean "floating in my mind." Rather, they manifested as glowing symbols and danced around my head. Sylphie first discovered this when I engraved Kaunaz to melt snow, and copies of the sigil appeared and circled my head in wonky, shaky orbits. I tried seeing what caused this unnatural phenomenon, but the most I could discover with a Structural Grasp was that the book altered my brain somehow. And I already knew that. How else am I supposed to see the treasures of ancient gods?!

I noticed another symbol appear and fade in under ten seconds. It wasn't harmful and looked cool, but it was occasionally distracting. I sighed and pointed at the blackboard. Oh, you have no idea how much of a godsend it was. It saved so much paper!

"You okay, Rudy?" I heard Sylphie speak.

"Yes, I'm fine." I grinned, "Now, for this equation, we divide by 27 into both sides, then-"

...

One day, I was working on my sword practice with Paul, as I usually did.

I know I won't beat him this time. Or anytime soon, for that matter. If I used my best spells, I could defeat him without trouble. But I don't want to crush my father with space rocks.

That aside, I feel like I haven't improved at all recently. Mainly because of the limited space I have and the cramped environment. At least I could take comfort in knowing my body condition is improving.

As I mulled this over, Paul broke the silence. "By the way, Rudy." He started as if remembering something important. "About school...no. You probably don't need that. Never mind. Let's get back to training." He quickly broke off and brought his practice sword down as if nothing.

I wasn't letting that slide. "What do you mean, school?"

"There's an educational institution in Roa, the capital of Fittoa, where they teach things like reading, writing, arithmetic, that sort of stuff."

"I heard of it."

"Normally, you'd start going there around your age, but...you maybe don't need to? You already know how to read, write and do maths."

"Well, yeah." Yeah, no shit. I was the one who corrected everything in the family budget. Also, I graduated college with a Ph.D. in my past life, and my math grades were among the best. Not to brag or anything-I just wanted to point this out. I let everyone think Roxy taught me, though. So I kept my advanced calculations to a minimum. People would ask questions if they saw the truly complex equations I could write and solve. It made Roxy's reputation go up, at least. "I'm interested in school, though," I said. "There'd be other children my age. Maybe I could make some friends."

Paul swallowed as if he had a lump in his throat. "I mean...it's not that great of a place. Etiquette is just stuffy nonsense. Knowing history doesn't help, and you'll definitely be bullied. A bunch of local noble brats will be there, sure, but they get all bitchy whenever they're not number one. With a kid like you there, they'll probably form a clique and push you around. And my father was a marquis, so being even lower standing than I was, you'll be seen as even more of an upstart."

Seriously, he forgot one impactful detail. I know magic. I'm a God Ranked mage. How's a bunch of bratty imbeciles going to deal with chains that ripped apart the Red Wyrm Mountain Range? The facts Paul stated were quite specific. They one hundred percent came from personal experience.

"Really?" I asked. "I would've figured that noblewomen had pretty cute daughters."

"Let me stop you there. Noble daughters cake their faces thick with makeup, fuss obsessively over their hairdos, and reek of perfume. Sure, some of them are hot, but the bulk of them keep their bodies hidden underneath corsets, and even when you get one in bed and get her clothes off, they never get any exercise, so their bodies are all loose and blabby. Your old man's been tricked more than he'd like to admit." Paul had a distant look in his eyes as he spoke.

Well, that wisdom was absolute garbage. "Maybe I won't go to school..." Yeah, I still have plenty of things to teach Sylphie. And I'd be crazy to go to a place where I'd be bullied.

"Good call." Paul nodded. "If you ever feel like schooling, you can become an adventurer and delve into some labyrinths."

"An adventurer?"

"Yeah. Hitting up labyrinths is one of the best things to do. The ladies there don't wear makeup, so it's easy to tell who's beautiful. Their professions are also easy to see."

"I've read about these..." Labyrinths could be classified as a kind of Phantasmal Beast or Monster powered by a Mana crystal in its core. They started as regular caves, slowly maturing as the crystal collected Mana and grew.

"Ah. 'The Three Swordsmen and the Labyrinth,' right? Exploring a legendary dungeon like that is a sure way to get your name into history books."

"Isn't that only a fictional story?"

"Nope. People say the three great styles we've passed down through the generations were born inside that labyrinth."

"Really? Those guys were God-ranked swordsmen, right? And even then, they had plenty of trouble. I don't think I'd last five minutes." I was God-ranked as well. But Chains of Heaven required a large area to use. I doubt it would come in handy in a confined space.

"Hey, I used to poke around in labyrinths all the time. You'd be fine."

Paul began babbling about a story about some man teaming up with mermen-mermen? I must have heard wrong-along with their victory at the cost of several comrades.

Before I even had a chance to prosses everything, he moved on to the tale of an incompetent mage who accidentally fell into a labyrinth, joined a party that happened to have lost its own mage, and discovered his latent talents in the heat of battle.

I stopped listening halfway through, more focused on figuring out how to reinforce the pathetic Od output of my artificial circuits made from Phantasmal Beast nerves.

It felt like Paul had rehearsed this conversation before. Although, his dream was for me to become a swordsman, right? So it's obvious he'd plant these cool stories in my head. If I was some hot-blooded teen, I would have fallen for that.

Luckily for me, I am a magus. I'm completely uninterested in that kind of stuff. Except for the Mana crystals at the center, that would be a humungous power source. Besides, people tended to meet their ends pretty damn quickly in that book. Thankfully, the three main characters were the protagonists, so they couldn't die. They made it out unscathed.

"What do you think? Adventuring might be fun, yeah?"

"You can't be serious." Why the hell would I deliberately put myself in danger? I know exactly the type of life I want, and that's far from it. "I want to live a simple life in the countryside. Do magical experiments, maybe go to a magical school. Then I'll settle in a nice house, marry Sylphie, and have a few kids." I scratched my chin. "Maybe I'll marry more than one woman."

"Oho. I guess you really are my son!"

"Ideally, I'd like three wives."

"No kidding? Think you'd better stick to chasing one skirt at a time for now, though." Paul pointed behind me with agrin.

I turned around to find myself face to face with a sulky-looking Sylphie. Perfect timing, moron.

...

Later that night, I sat on my bed inspecting a small sphere-shaped magic crystal floating above a metallic box. A Mystic Code from my previous life, owned by Olga Marie Animusphere. I don't remember what it was called. "Chaldean" or something along those lines. Its original purpose was to check Earth's leylines and spiritual lands. Now, though, I recreated it to monitor the world's textures.

Why would I need this Mystic Code, you ask? I don't think I need it, but it never hurt to be sure. I have plenty of magic crystals, so wasting one on a planetary monitor won't be an issue. I wanted to finish it at my house, but Sylphie's lessons took longer than expected. So I brought it back here. I'll take it back to my house and permanently install it tomorrow. I placed the Code on my desk and backed up to inspect my work. "Alright...that'll do."

Walking to the window, I opened it, looking up at the sky filled with countless stars. A light breeze wafted through my hair, bringing the scent of blooming flowers and fresh grass.

I needed to make sure I was right about this. And I prayed to Akasha I was wrong. A hand was held up to the sky. Od passed through my circuits as I concentrated. With a swipe of my hand, the sky turned.

Innocent bystanders in their cozy homes would never have noticed, for there were no phenomena, aside from the spinning sky, to indicate I was manipulating the very Texture of the planet. No raging waves or lightning, not even a faint gust of wind.

Twinkling stars and glowing planets became streaks of white light arching across the night sky, and nebulae and distant galaxies blurred into a deep blue canvas. I waved my hand again. Everything froze as if time had stopped, though it was a momentary stillness. Once more, stars and other celestial objects flew across the sky, this time in the opposite direction.

I lowered my hand, and the night returned to normal as if nothing had happened. No meteors falling from the great beyond to crush Red Wyrms, no golden shields empowered by stars to block crimson flames. I was only testing my hypothesis, and the results frightened me to an unimaginable degree.

I changed an important detail when I modified Kirschtaria Wodime's thaumaturgical theory. Instead of moving the actual stars, I manipulated the Earth's Texture to align the starlight. The more stable the planet's Texture is, the harder it is to use this spell. The opposite is true as well. If a Texture is on the verge of breaking, it'll take barely any Od to change the layer of reality. The stunt I pulled a moment ago drained half my Mana Pool, but that was still far too less. I didn't even have to use an aria, though I used my Mana pathways to push the process along.

"This isn't good."

Even without turning on my observer, I knew something was drastically wrong. I closed the window after I did everything I needed to. Sighing, I walked briskly to my desk, where my planetary observer sat.

"Alright." I carved the magical symbols that acted as the keys for this Mystic Code to function, "Please be wrong."

The metal cube shook as Od passed through it, and magic circles surrounded the jewel floating above. Suddenly, the magic crystal gained height, flying about one and a half meters above the bronze cube. Light exploded, filling the entire room. I covered my eyes, my eyes not used to the sudden brightness that rived the sun.

The light vanished a tick later. A planetary model of the Earth floated above my desk, about the size of a beachball. Wait. I'm not on Earth, am I? I got reincarnated into an alternative world. Magic circles and Runes spun above the bronze-made cube, stabilizing the projection of my home planet. I moved my hand away from my face, ready to start inspecting this world.

"What the hell?!"

A stable Texture-on my planetary monitor-should be one uniform color, having no deformities except the various landmasses living beings thrive on. When a layer of reality is cracking, if the planet has multiple Textures, the world beneath will start to show through the cracks as blotches of color that stick out like a sore thumb. The globe that spun above my desk, however...

"Why are there so many cracks?!"

White fissures and crevices were littered on the sphere of pure green. One looked large enough to rival the Grand Canyon in my original world. They were leaking something-it looked fluffy, white, and had the consistency of clouds. The white smoke poured from the cracks like water falling down a waterfall.

"Okay, this can't be right." I swiped my hand, making the projected planet spin faster. "Restart."

The green and white globe dimmed to black before its original color returned. This time with even more white. I restarted the Mystic Code five more times, yet it gave the same conclusion each time-this world is on the brink of collapse.

"Umm...uh...this must be defective. I must have made a mistake in my calculations..." I rummaged through my closet, pulled out the piece of paper I wrote my estimations, and proceeded to rewrite everything. And I got the same result. "Maybe the magic crystal cracked? No, I checked that already. Were the magic circles carved wrong? They can't be...I reviewed them ten times before. Maybe those cracks are mountains? And the misty stuff leaking out from them are clouds? Ah, what the hell. There aren't that many mountains on this planet. Not to mention, if that mist were clouds, no sunlight could ever get through."

Great. Just fantastic.

This reality wasn't going to last long. With so many cracks, I doubt it'll survive another century. I kneaded my forehead. Why do I feel old again? It's like this young body of mine suddenly aged a few decades.

"Alright. No more denying it. The planet's Texture is about to collapse. Let's figure out what that white stuff is first, then I'll see how to repair those gaps in reality."

Time for another deep dive into my closet of junk. For some goddamn reason, my closet back home was like a trash heap. I never got around to cleaning it as I was too busy doing everything else. And Lilia couldn't do it because I used magecraft to make it look like an ordinary wall.

Okay. Enough complaining about my own mess. I pulled out a spare map I stole-ahem...borrowed from my parents. Closing the closet door shut, I scribbled a few astronomical symbols onto the bronze cube. They faded away as the beachball-sized planet flattened out into a map. It floated down and settled on my table. I overlapped my own parchment-made map with it. I wiped my forehead and stepped back to properly examine everything.

"Let's hurry this along. The night is short."

I spent a decent amount of time tracing the white cracks in reality, seeing if there was some kind, any kind, of a pattern. I even teleported to my house to grab a few geology books, grabbing some equipment while I was at it.

After a few hours of swiping my hand at an astral map while flipping through several books at once using magic, I reached my only logical explanation. The white cloud-like substance leaking from beneath the Texture of reality was Mana, simple as that.

I plopped onto my bed, covering my face with my hand as I thought about this recent discovery.

"I guess this explains why some areas have denser Mana than others."

The larger the crack, the more Mana leaks through, causing Mana density to be different all over the globe.

But that leaves one question. Where in hell is so much Mana even coming from?! If I had to guess, it's similar to Earth's Textures. Where a "Reverse Side of the World" rested beneath the primary layer of reality. A Texture with much more Mana than this reality we currently live on.

Wait. When I first discovered my cozy home in the middle of the woods and ransacked the chests for magical jewels and other valuables, I faintly remember an old book. It didn't have any enchantments to protect it against time, nor were any magic circles carved onto its cover to keep away prying eyes. It was just an ordinary book. That's why I didn't have a deep impression of it. In fact, it was probably the only book from my house that I hadn't at least skimmed through its contents. Though right now, I was desperate, so I'll take whatever I could get.

With golden butterflies trailing behind me, I teleported to my house.

My body reappeared and fell on my silk bed, along with the sound of my Bounded Field activating. If intruders attempted to teleport into my house, they'd be spat out a few hundred meters away from the barrier.

I got up from the bed with a flop and brushed away any wrinkles my cloak contained, rushing downstairs to where I organized all the books I had. Flipping a light switch to shed some light into my home, I stopped in front of a large bookcase.

It was made of dark wood, with swirly designs carved onto the sides and legs. Despite only having a few books, I got one of the largest bookcases they had for sale. The various magical tombs and storybooks I had didn't even fill one-fourth. Did I mention how rich I was getting by selling Mystic Codes?

"Hmm...where did I put that...?" My fingers rang along the covers of the books, eventually settling on an old leather cover. "If my memory is correct, then this is it."

I pulled the book from its spot between magical tutilage textbooks. I never got a good look at this book with a cover made from plain old leather, though it was so worn I could barely even read the title. The pages had long since taken on a yellowish hue, and the once smooth leather cover seemed to fall apart with a mere touch. There was a rusted metal button on the front cover, probably sewn for a strap to clip in, though that must have torn off sometime before. It looked like this diary-looking thing was the oldest book in this house. I squinted my eyes, managing to make out what the title said, if only barely.

"Enuma Elish?"

I don't know much about mythology-compared to the people who study it. I recognized this name effortlessly, though.

"The Mesopotamian creation myth?"

No, it probably wasn't that. The chances of that tale of creation existing here are slim to none. My hypothesis is that this only shares the same name as the Mesopotamian creation myth of my world. Or did someone reincarnate before me and pass this story down to later generations? For the book in my hand to be this old, he must have lived thousands of years before me.

Speaking of reincarnation. How did I reincarnate anyway? The border separating parallel worlds are unyielding, and the ones between alternative worlds are even more so. Unless the Wizard Marshal decided to pity me, reincarnating here should be impossible.

I shook my head. Why I reincarnated doesn't matter. I got a new life here. A family, a few friends, and maybe, just maybe, a future girlfriend or wife if I'm lucky. It was leagues better than my boring life at the clocktower doing nothing but burying my head in Astromancy reports. Though...

"I still miss the Clocktower."

What I wouldn't give to be in another Modern Magecraft Theory lecture held by Lord El-Melloi II. I wish I could tell them I was all right...

Never mind that! Time to read this and see if coming here was a waste of time!

...

It wasn't a waste of time.

It took me the rest of the night to absorb every bit of information, and I wasn't disappointed. I'll have a severe headache today, but it was a necessary sacrifice.

I won't go over the entire contents of the book. If I did, it would take a day. So here's the gist of it.

In the un-recordable times, before the world we lived in existed, there existed the powerful "maker of worlds," known as the God of Creation. He felt he was slowly dying and would not last for eternity, so he tasked himself to create one last world before his time ended.

However, he realized he didn't have enough power to build a stable world. The new world he created was severely deformed and unbalanced.

To counter this, he decided to create another world. Yet it ended up as another distorted reality that could collapse any minute. He kept going until he finished making six worlds.

The Dragon World, Demon World, Beast World, Ocean World, Sky World, and Human World, with the seventh Void World of Nothingness at the center.

The God of Creation stuck the six worlds together and finally achieved stability. Yet he still wasn't content. The God of Creation decided to carefully manage the worlds until the inhabitants could settle and stabilize.

With his remaining strength, he divided his body into six alter egos and descended into their respective worlds. They became respected as "Gods" by each world's inhabitants.

At the creation of his new six-sided world, The God of Creation ceased to exist, and from him came the new Gods that became known throughout the Six-Faced World.

Many chapters afterward told the adventures and deaths of the six Gods, yet none mentioned a God of Evil. In fact, the stories all depicted the God of Dragons losing his wife-a daughter of the God of Man-because of his own recklessness and going into a blind rage that destroyed all the worlds besides the Human World.

Also, for some goddamn reason, the book was very biased toward the God of Man. He was painted as the hero in every legend after the God of Creation's death. An entire chapter was dedicated to how he mourned his dead daughter! Sure, if the husband of my own daughter killed her, I'd mourn her too. But I wouldn't dedicate an entire chapter of my autobiography to it! Okay, maybe I would, but that is beside the point.

I was beginning to think the God of Man wrote this on his deathbed after he defeated the God of Dragons as a way for everyone to know how he saved their asses.

I sighed. I suppose this is expected from a god. They're immortal, so they don't have human worries like us. Most gods were killed because of their own arrogance in the legends of my world. I suppose it's the same here.

But never mind that. I'm guessing the seven "worlds" mentioned in the story are Textures. Now that I know only two textures remain-if the book is accurate, anyway-I can think of a plan.

Wait. Oh, who the heck am I kidding? I don't even have the slightest idea of a plan. How can I, a mere human, stabilize an entire reality? That would require power akin to the counterforce. My Mana Pool is humungous compared to regular mages, but it isn't even close to the energy of a planet!

My shoulders sagged. I think I now know how the magi of the Atlas Institute feel. I heard from my professors that they constantly invent weapons to prevent the end of the world. What a thankless job. But if they can create the Seven Taboos, I can fix this world.

But...they had access to the Supercomputer Tri-Hermes. To a magus, information is everything. Without it, I'm lost. Maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to find something that can substitute the Supercomputer of the Atles Academy, though the chances are against me.

I closed the book, tucking it under my arm. I won't be putting this back in my bookcase-I need it to formulate a plan. I should buy a few history and geology textbooks during my next trip to Roa. Perhaps they'll hold the keys to my predicament.

I stood up from my sofa in the living room. If I get home quickly, I may have time to catch a few winks-and the sun's coming up.

Hahahaha.

Today's going to be so grueling.

...

...

I wanna die.

Why can't my soul be sent back to Akasha to be recycled?

I started teaching Sylphie how to read the stars. The Bounded Field in my living room that shows the exact positions of the stars even during the day is a help in this. I know she's got a lot on her plate, but predicting the future could be vital-even if it's limited.

Unfortunately, I wasn't in my best condition right now. Seven nights were spent searching for a solution, yet every time it came up as a blank. Today marks the eighth day without sleep for little old me. You can see why I wanna die now, right?

Sylphie and I were lying on my sofa in the living room with the Bounded Field activated. All the windows were covered to produce a dark atmosphere akin to the night sky. Combined with the spinning stars on the ceiling, it was a miracle I hadn't fallen asleep.

Even now, as I'm telling Sylphie about the constellations in the sky, my mind is still on how to fix the world.

"So, there are these con-sta-la-shens in the sky that represent things? And they can tell your future?"

"Yep. It took thousands of years for humans to learn to read the stars, though."

For Sylphie, it must be hard to wrap her head around. Using the stars to deduce the future is a foreign concept here. I may be the only one capable of using Astroomancy in this world. I hope to find a way to use Astromancy using my Mana Pool, though that's a project for another day.

I paused my lecture for an abnormally long time.

"You've been acting weird lately, Rudy," Sylphie muttered.

Hmm? She's sharper than she looks.

"Ahaha. My parents said I was weird since the day I was born." I laughed, dodging the question.

"That's not what I mean. You look so tired. It's like you haven't been sleeping."

Wow, this girl catches on quick. Well, there's no use lying about it.

"That's because I haven't slept for a week."

"Huh?" Sylphie looked at me like I was joking for a second before seeing I wasn't. "B-but you can't do that! My mom says it's not good for you!"

"Hehehe. Sylphie's mother really cares about her. Fufu..." I chuckled. "I can live through it. Don't worry." I pointed at the star map, letting it focus on a constellation with three stars that formed a belt. "Let's put that aside for now. Why don't I tell you the story of Orion and Arte-"

...

Sylphiette

...

I'm lucky. I know I am.

I was born with green hair, a color that means bad luck. Even then, I had parents who were willing to love me.

Life wasn't easy for us. We weren't nobles, so we didn't have anything too fancy. Yet we still could live comfortably. I had trouble making friends with the other children, so Daddy and Mommy cut my hair and hid it behind a hood. I stopped wearing clothes that little girls my age were supposed to and wore shorts to better escape. Daddy and Mommy tried everything they could, but nothing worked.

...

I still remember the day I met Rudeus. It was around the beginning of spring. I was bringing Dad his lunch-one of the few things I enjoyed doing-when some of the neighbors' kids started throwing mud at me.

At that point, I'd long since gotten used to it. I was faster, so I could easily outrun the bullies. But couldn't let go of my dad's food. So I shriveled up into a ball and hid like a coward. I wonder if that's what I would have been doing today had I not met Rudy-crying in the corner of a room.

I did think much about him when I first noticed him hiding behind a tree. Nobody ever stepped in to help me. They were only on-lookers. Rudy called them "Spec-tae-ters" or something. But he started throwing mud balls at the kids bullying me.

"I'm no ally to the demons. I'm an ally to the weak."

He said that with a sternness that resembled Dad's when I did something naughty.

The bullies didn't listen to him, even when he gave them many warnings. My father told me I was a clever girl, so I knew what the look on Rudy's face at that time meant. It was scary-like the rare times when Dad argued with Mom.

Swords covered with fire flew toward the mean kids. They were fast, faster than my dad's arrows when he was hunting. Just as I could know Rudy's face, I also knew the bullies'.

They were scared. They were going to die if they were hit. I was about to shout for Rudy to stop, but the swords didn't kill the mean kids. They stopped just before that.

The bullies left after that. The swords were gone, too.

...

I was scared of Rudy at first. Though that feeling didn't last long at all.

He washed my face with warm water and went with me to give Dad his lunch.

I followed him everywhere after that. I was his student, and he was my master. Dad once joked that I was a duckling following her mother. I didn't mind that. We were friends. I've never had a friend before. Rudy didn't mind my green hair, either.

...

Rudy was smart. I knew as soon as he started teaching me. If I didn't understand something, Rudy could explain it so clearly that I would get it quickly. Even when something wasn't in the textbook, he could do everything and more. In fact, Rudy never even looked at it. That's how smart he is-he memorized a whole book.

...

Rudy thought I was a boy at first. I realized when he asked, "Y-you're a girl. Aren't you?" on a night when a storm blew outside. It felt awkward for a few seconds, though that went away quickly.

I'm afraid of storms and lightning and thunder most of all. The rain was so heavy that night I had to stay with Rudy's family, so Mom and Dad weren't there to protect me. Luckily, Rudy was by my side. He held my hand until I went into dreamland.

...

Lots of stuff happened after that, and I found out Rudy had his own house. He also began treating me more gently. He gave me a dress and a hairclip. They're my most treasured gifts. I never let them out of sight. Magic and Science classes got harder, though Rudy made sure I understood everything.

...

I knew Rudy was strong. Strong, kind, and clever. Though he keeps surprising me more and more.

He took me on a "field trip" to a remote village. I don't get why he calls it that-we weren't going to a field. When I asked him, he smiled and said, "A distant memory, that's all."

It was fun, and I learned a lot. Like if you play music, your magical abilities get stronger!

Though that changed when the Red Wyrms came.

Daddy told me stories about them, and before seeing them in person, I thought they were myths-like the fairy tales told by my mother to make me fall asleep.

Their roars sounded like thunder.

I was scared. I wanted to go home, hugged by Dad and Mom. I wanted to return to Rudy's home and listen to his weirdly specific stories while curled up at his warm bedtable. Where I knew I'd be safe, with the arms of my loved ones hugging me, never letting go for a moment.

Rudy was scared as well, I could tell from his face, but he hid it behind a fake smile so I would feel safer. That alone made me feel better. And he protected me, just like all those other times.

He chanted a long spell slowly, so I used wind spells to buy him time-just like he asked me to. I tried my best to protect the villagers as well.

A mountain broke in the distance. It was like when someone threw a stone at a window, and the glass flew everywhere. The bits became chains that held the dragons in place while long spikes killed them.

Rudy covered my eyes when that happened, but I still knew.

A few dragons got away, though. They burned away the chains that slithered toward them. They looked like the snakes my parents warned me to stay away from.

Rudy looked like he was in pain. He threw up blood from his mouth after he muttered something. I knew I should have stopped him, but if I did, we'd die.

I'm weak. I'm not as strong or smart as Rudy, so I only stood there, trying to buy him time.

He spoke in a language I'd never heard before.

Magic circles formed in the sky behind us. Rudy began teaching me to carve circles and Runes a few months ago, but I wasn't good at it yet. However, the ones he taught me were small. Comparing them to the ones he made in the sky at that time would be like putting a grain of sand next to a mountain.

They seemed to be made from stars.

When they shattered, I was almost sad to see them go.

Rudy fell over. He was too tired to continue standing. I ran to hold him up. Once he said falling asleep in the snow will kill you because of something called "high-per-thir-me-ah."

I wanted to cry when I looked carefully at him. He was so hurt and weak that he couldn't even lift his head. I cast Healing on him and it helped a little, though he never noticed.

I will never forget what I saw that day. I've never ever seen so many shooting stars before. There were so many that it looked like rain.

When it was all over, nothing remained of the dragons. I helped Rudy get rid of the dust in the air because he was too weak to do it himself.

We left the village after the kind elder called us "gods."

...

After being close to Rudy for so long, I knew what kind of person he was. He was kind. Very kind. He often helps the farmers harvest wheat or brings water for the neighbors' flowers. But never once have I heard him complain about something.

That's heartbreaking. It's so sad that Rudy has to hide all his troubles to not worry me. He's done so much for me but never asked for anything in return.

He's too kind.

I know he's not sleeping to help another person-that's the kind of person he is. Or maybe something is bothering him, like when your parents are fighting, and you can't do anything except hope they make up.

But...who will be by Rudy's side when he can't go on anymore?

...

Rudeus

...

"No!" Sylphie was glaring at me. No, it wasn't that. It's more like...the worried gaze of a stern mother. Although it looked like she was pouting on such a young face. "I-I learned that Rudy's kind. Very kind. He often helps the farmers harvest wheat or brings water for the neighbors' flowers. R-Rudy's taken such good care of me. But I also learned he doesn't take care of himself!"

My eyes widened.

Huh, Sylphei wasn't like this. She's typically so timid and sweet, a girl I must protect with all my heart. But...

Oh...right. Sylphie opened up to me a long time ago.

"Remember that time? When you first flew me back to your home?" Sylphie looked like she was in tears. "I was so scared because of the thunder, but you held my hand and made me feel safe. Something similar is happening to you now. I know it. So don't be afraid, okay? I'll be here with you. And I'll hold your hand as you did for me."

A weird feeling swelled in my chest. It swirled around my soul and heart. Ah... So this is a teacher's pride. What a pleasant yet odd feeling. I suppose that was the final straw that broke the camel's back. All the frustration and fear I'd been holding back rushed through my body like a flood. Yet one emotion still dominated them.

"Hic." I chuckled, smiling.

Sylphie noticed my eyes were wet, and my face suddenly became red. "Ah! Um...I'm sorry! I won't do it again! So please don't cry!"

"It's alright. Shhh. Don't worry about a thing. You did nothing wrong." I held her closer to my own body.

I ran my hand along her once green curls, now white because of a hair clip I made her. It felt so smooth.

'Can I...keep her? Please?'

"I'm just so happy. Happy and proud you care about me so much."

"Of course I care about you, silly. I'm going to stay with you forever!" Her innocent voice left a mark on my soul.

That's it. I'm going to protect this precious Fae until I die. That I swear on Akasha. I won't let anyone so much as lay a hand on Sylphie.

But now? We're currently in my soundproof house, with a Bounded Field no one can hope to break through. So I'll let down my guard for once and bask in this warmth.

"I'll never leave you as well, okay?" I told her weakly.

She didn't seem to hear me, though I caught her cheeks reddening.

"Let's get you to bed, okay?"

I nodded. Weakly and subtly.

I let Sylphie lead me to my bed on the second floor. Collapsing onto the silk sheets, I had to use all the effort this child-like body could muster to stay awake. I didn't realize how sleepy I was until my guard went down.

Snuggling into the blanket, I felt Sylphie lie down next to me. I hugged her body like I would a body pillow. She didn't appear to dislike it, so I didn't let go.

"Can you stay with me for a while, Sylphie?" My consciousness was flickering, like one of those old, broken TVs.

"Okay. I won't leave until you wake up, okay?"

"Hehe..." I chuckled. My mind was darkening. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"

Calm breathing and Sylphie stroking my hair. I fell asleep in that peaceful silence. I hadn't slept so well in ages, though there was one thing I almost forgot. It was fuzzy, and my memory was incomplete. I wasn't sure if it was a dream, but I heard something before my consciousness vanished.

"Rudy..."

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Ha! BET YOU ALL DIDN'T EXPECT THAT!
I made the texture weak so the teleportation incident would break reality! Bwahahaha!
So, what do you all think?
Anyways, Please like, share, follow, and comment.
As always, good luck with your game of life.