Life of Change

It's been a while. I'm three years old now. Let me repeat that: I AM THREE YEARS OLD. I reached that age a couple of days ago.

Like my first birthday, there wasn't a party per se, but all my family and some guests gathered in a hall of the mansion, I received congratulations from everyone, some presents and they explained to me certain things that would happen from now on.

Let's go with the good news. Did I already say I turned three years old? No? Well, I am three years old! Why am I so happy about it? Well, because at this age I am considered “self-aware”. Or rather, the correct way in this world would be to say that my soul/consciousness has “awakened” and there are now certain advantages I can enjoy.

For example, I have much more freedom! Now that I can walk, I can move almost anywhere without falling... if I am careful. And as long as I don't run too fast. I definitely haven't fallen and scraped my hands and knees... nor have I cried. I don't cry!

…

Ahem…

I've also finally given up diapers (not going to talk about that), and I can communicate more easily with the rest of the family and servants. It's still hard to speak well though, but I'll talk about that later.

Now that I've earned the opportunity to wander; with an escort obviously, at my leisure through a good part of the mansion's grounds, I've realized how really big the Baelian estate is. It takes me a long time to walk from one side of the property to the other. Yes, you can allude to the fact that I am small and my steps are short, but it is impressive nonetheless. I calculated that it could be about 400 meters (Basically, a quarter mile) from one side to the other at its longest point.

Yes, my home is absurdly large.

Taking advantage of my freedom, I have lately been taking solo walks through the gardens, the various halls, studies, and other parts of the house. I am familiarizing myself with the structure and the people. Although that may not always be the best thing to do. The truth is, having the freedom to go wherever I want doesn't mean I have to go wherever I want, which has led to some problems. But let's take it one step at a time.

I am currently on...

*drum roll*

The garden!

What, you expected me to be in my playroom from when I was younger? Well, no. I've graduated from that place. Well... not really, I still go there from time to time, but most of my day is spent elsewhere. I even have a proper room now! I can even entertain guests!

...not that I can do it right now, I'm still too young. But, when I'm 5 years old, ha! My tea parties will be legendary.

Back to the topic.

I was currently in the garden taking a walk through the flower beds that were in full bloom. This had become one of my daily routines since I was permitted to go on my own.

Of course, my cute exclusive (unofficial) maid, Ameli, is right behind me, making sure I don't hurt myself... or do any mischief. Which I definitely haven't.

Seriously, I don't do any mischief. The time I came home covered in mud was an accident, it wasn't because I thought it was fun to jump in puddles and fall in one that looked suspiciously shallow, but in the end wasn't at all.

It also doesn't count the time I got covered in feathers from sneaking- *cough cough* I mean, accidentally walking past the Ekus' stables and, completely incidentally getting to play with the chicks.

Anyway, Ameli, my pretty Ameli has grown up too. She has a more mature expression and has become especially good at her job. She gets things done before I even think to ask and is always prepared for any eventuality. Lately, though, I've noticed her a little stiff and more serious than usual. But I guess it's just because she needs a break. I should talk to Makila about letting her have a few days off.

Speaking of her, Makila has been a little down since Sarka returned to the academy. She left at the beginning of the summer after I celebrated my first year. We said goodbye to my big sister that morning amid tears. Mostly mine and Zenya's. But at least she would be back this coming year, so at least we would soon be able to see her again.

As I said, Makila was somewhat down since that time, though not enough to consider her sad. However, she sometimes looks a bit nostalgic when my sister's name is mentioned.

Makila has changed quite a bit from when I first met her. In some ways she's still the same as she always was, only now she smiles a lot more, talks more freely, and, of course, tends to flirt more with Mom whenever she gets the chance. This hasn't been much since Mom is busy most of the time, but at least Makila is much more open than before. Kind of surprising for an almost 60-year-old female.

Remember when I said how sometimes it's not the best when you can go anywhere? Well, once while exploring through the rooms, I opened one and found them very...tangled together.

One of those moments where your parents usually say they're “playing wrestling”, only here it took them a moment to notice my presence, it took me too long to realize what was going on and Ameli took too long to respond to the situation.

It was... an enlightening day... I didn't know the Valahs could be used in THAT way. But I'm not going to mention anything else about my mothers love life. Some things are better not to remember.

The point is that Makila looks so much happier since she showed herself as she is.

And, since I mentioned Sarka.

Her girlfriend makes visits to the mansion from time to time. Mostly to meet Makila, who takes her to her private office and they talk for hours. I don't know exactly what the deal was between the two of them 2 years ago, but they seem to get along quite well. Nisire even stops by to say hello and play with me every time she comes over. She is a sweet girl and very friendly, I like her a lot. I wish she and my sister could be together without any more problems.

I even found out that Nisire was a knight's apprentice. Not a squire, but an apprentice. A big step for her and she came to celebrate with us when she was placed among the reserves. In other words, she is now officially part of the Order, she will not be sent anywhere but will undergo constant training. Pretty much the same as before, but now it's an official member. It was a very good day.

“Young lady, it's time for breakfast.” The sweet Ameli voice interrupted my thoughts, calling me to finish the morning walk.

The flowers were bright today, made even brighter by the morning dew that gave them an even more radiant appearance. I picked myself up off the ground as I nodded, and walked beside her, taking her hand as we made our way home.

The garden looked especially beautiful during the spring. Even though we were already close to the change of season. The heat was already starting to show and my clothes had adapted to that fact. I was wearing a nice blue summer dress with black shorts underneath. Mom had insisted that I wear them since that day with the mud accident. She didn't like my underwear getting dirty like that at all. She was pretty upset. So now I'm wearing these shorts that are good at repelling that kind of dirt. Kind of like a hydrophobic fabric. Very convenient and magical.

My walks in the garden were always shortly before breakfast. It is a habit I imposed on myself to keep my body healthy as I used to do in my old world. Although I did not know if they were really of any benefit to my current species.

In a few minutes, we finally arrived at the mansion, and quickly made our way to the dining room, where the family was already gathered around the table.

“Goo monin,” I said giving a small bow to the family, who were quick to return my greeting.

“Good morning my little star.” Dad greeted me, giving me one of his big, full-toothed smiles. He ate breakfast while going through some papers on the table. From what I heard, there have been some things going on in the empire that have been keeping him somewhat busy lately, going back and forth from the imperial palace.

Although he usually smiles when he sees me, his expression has become more serious. He doesn't often escape from his duties as he used to, which has been strange considering that Dad is, in short, a free spirit. I don't know what's currently going on in the political or socioeconomic environment of the empire, but if Dad could still afford to have a leisurely breakfast with us, then I don't think I should worry about it for now.

“Good morning honey.” Greeted Mom with her calm, motherly smile. She, well, it's a bit of a surprise to see her today. She's usually busy working on that pure mana stone project she had started with Aunt Karla.

The business had prospered enough to move on to its next phase. Or so I gathered. Lady Dilia, the girl who I still suspect is an elf, had accepted the proposal offered to her and almost every day she came to talk to Mom about different things related to that business.

The little I have been able to glean from all this is that they have had few setbacks, the profits have been considerable and they hope to create a small revolution in the magical items industry in the next few years.

I have no idea what that will mean for the future, but it may be a bit like the commercial use of computers, which ended up positively affecting a lot of fields.

The bad news about all this, and which is somewhat contradictory to Mom's original goal, is that she spends less and less time with me and Zenya. At least she has designated a few hours, one day a week to visit and be with me, but it feels a bit counterproductive to make this whole plan to improve my future and my sister's by abandoning both of us during such an important age.

I can't say I don't understand her, because I do, but my own goal of having a good relationship with my mother has been falling apart because of this, which has made me quite sad. I really wanted to have a childhood where I had a strong relationship with my mother.

My only consolation is that Mom never forgets important dates and whenever she tells me she will do something she does it without fail. I can always rely on her because of that.

Still, it gets lonely.

This reminds me, during my birthday she told me she was preparing a special gift, and she still hasn't given it to me. I wonder what it will be...

“Good morning my little Mishka.” Makila greeted me by getting up from her place and giving me a couple of kisses on my cheeks as she helped me sit next to her.

Kila, as I have grown accustomed to calling her out loud; as it is easier to say and makes me feel closer to her, has become much, much more cheerful as I mentioned before. And this is noticeable at the moment. For some reason I don't understand; not complaining though, she has started to wrap her tail around me whenever I'm close. Just like now.

I'm sitting in the chair next to her, and her tail has wrapped around my waist. The funny thing is that it's not just with me, she does it with Zenya when they are together. I have no idea what the impetus for that is, or what is the purpose, but since it's a fluffy, soft, warm tail, I'm never going to complain.

And speaking of Zenya.

“Good morning, Tya.” I was greeted by my beloved older sister with... well, a much flatter tone than usual. Ah, don't get me wrong, it's not that anything has happened between us, we've actually gotten a lot closer. It's just... well, let me tell you everything that's happened while I enjoy my breakfast.

Shortly before Sarka left for the academy, Zenya and I were in my playroom playing as usual. She was making time while Sarka finished with her studies at the library, as she promised her that they would go out for a walk in the city in the afternoon. Seeing that our big sister did not show up yet, she went to look for her.

A short time later, she returned with an expression that was hard to understand. I almost thought Sarka had told her they couldn't go after all, but that wasn't the case. Zenya hugged me and was silent for a while, as she seemed to be thinking deeply about something. I didn't think too much of it at the time, so I just enjoyed having her with me.

When Sarka finally appeared, my sister let go of me and, with a complicated expression that worried me for a moment, immediately changed to her usual energetic smile and left with our older sister.

The day Sarka left, Zenya spent the whole day in her room. She asked for food to be brought to her room and I didn't hear from her until the afternoon of the next day when I learned that she was now the one who went to the library and locked herself in there reading various books. Kila, somewhat concerned, went and talked. I never knew what the two of them talked about, but after a few days, it was Dad's turn to enter the picture.

Zenya went to Dad and, again, they talked for a long time until she finally left the office with a relieved and determined expression. From then on, Zenya went to Dad's office every day and stayed there for hours until, when she finally came out, went to play with me.

It seemed like that would be our new routine, until last year when Zenya and Mom fought. Mom found out what Zenya had been doing and they argued. I couldn't hear more than a few words before Kila ordered Ameli to get me out of the room.

From the context, Zenya seemed to want to do something family-related, but Mom was adamantly refusing because of something I couldn't hear.

It took a couple of months of Dad and Kila trying to convince Mom to let her do whatever Zenya was doing, until finally, and for the third time, they both locked themselves in a room and talked for hours.

Again, I didn't know what they talked about, only that they had reconciled, but from that day on, Zenya changed completely. She became much more serious, she studied hard and, that childish and cheerful feeling was replaced by an aura of a “noble lady”. Not the best way to describe it, but that was the feeling I got.

She was still my dear sister, whom I admired very much, but she gained some... maturity? And sometimes she felt a bit distant. I didn't know what things she was thinking or planning, but, despite that attitude, she never stopped acting like my adored big sister, so there was nothing I could do but be patient and let her be.

Well, that concludes my report about my family. Time to talk about myself, right?

Let's start with the important stuff!

“Nita, finish eating.”

“Y-yesh, Kila.”

Well, I got so engrossed in Zenya's topic that I forgot to eat.

Back to what I was saying.

Good news, I'm three years old! And if you're wondering, yes, I'm going to repeat it until I get bored.

But seriously speaking, there have been some interesting things these last two years. As I said at the beginning, and I think you can tell, I still find it a bit difficult to talk. And it wasn't hard to figure out why after doing it more often.

I'm dumb. Well, no, but yes.

Let me explain.

I already explained that my teeth are very different, right? That has to do with it. Having 16 canines, fangs, or whatever you want to call them, is not easy. It's scary and it screws up your pronunciation. Especially when you're trying not to accidentally mutilate yourself while speaking. It's happened to me, I've bitten my tongue and the inside of my cheeks a couple of times, though never to the point of actually making me bleed too much. But, as you'd expect, it hurts. I mean, those are some damn teeth that can tear through flesh like it's freshly baked bread it's going to hurt!

And it gets worse.

My tongue is also responsible for all this. It's longer than a human's. How long? Well, I can reach a little above the tip of my nose. I don't know how long a human tongue should be on a girl my age, but I'm pretty sure that's not the normal measurement.

Combine both of those things with my mind being used to using a human mouth to speak and you have the answer as to why I have trouble pronouncing some words.

Never listen to those isekai where the MC is reborn as a non-human and speaks perfectly. They lie like politicians.

And really, it's not that my family, or anyone else for that matter, expects me at three years old to be fluent, but I would expect improvement in that when I should have gotten used to it by now...

Anyway.

I finished eating and Ameli came over to wipe off any food residue left on my face, even though there was usually never any. I'm a well-mannered girl... even if the concept is a little different from what I understood on Earth. We'll talk about that another day. Right now, it was time for one of my favorite things since I turned my glorious three. Lessons with Kila!

“Ready for today, Nita?” said Makila getting up from her chair. My other parents were already gone; including Zenya who followed Dad to his office. Now it was just Kila, Ameli, and me.

I didn't have to get up by myself, as her tail; surprisingly stronger than it looked, did it for me, gently putting me on the floor. I quickly took her hand so that we could go together to her office where we normally conducted these lessons.

This was part of those changes that were to come when I had my third birthday. The Makila, according to the traditions of the Atenosia, was the one who was in charge of teaching the children, so this was her responsibility.

But what did they consist of?

A lot of things. For example, giving me basic language lessons, something that normally wouldn't happen, but I'm slower than other kids. It's my mouth's fault that I can't speak properly. Hmph!

I am also taught basic things related to my race, my parents' race, some customs and traditions, and things related to self-awareness. As I said, very basic things that as a child I have to learn. In short, they are teaching me common sense. And I couldn't be happier that this kind of thing is being done.

How many times have you seen your generic isekai protagonist, reborn and doing the most out of common-sense things in their new world, or even the old one? It's as if they never had any common sense to begin with. I was a bit sick of seeing the MC suddenly learn that magic exists and in less than two pages cast a nuke-level fire spell and think that was the “normal” thing to do in that world, or even substandard.

I don't know what the hell the authors think sometimes when they do that....

We advanced through the corridors to Makila's office and entered immediately. The room was still as normal as ever, with bookshelves with some books and documents, few decorations on the walls, and the central desk near the window with many papers stacked on it. The sofas are to one side, for receiving guests, and the only out-of-the-ordinary feature is a small chair to one side of the desk.

“Go and sit-down Nita, I'll be with you in a moment.”

At her command, I quickly went to that chair and sat down expectantly. Kila is a very good teacher, but quite serious about it. If I make a mistake or say something wrong, she has the patience to slowly correct me, no matter how many times she has to repeat herself.

I followed her with my eyes as she reached for a notebook on one of the shelves, opened it, and checked the notes inside. She nodded to herself and walked back towards the desk, where she sat down and looked at me with a soft smile.

“I already taught you about the days of the week and the months. Last time we went over the names of the family's races and some of the servants.” Makila hummed thoughtfully, touching the tip of her nose with her index finger; a habit I noticed she had when she was thinking deeply while relaxed. Then she nodded to herself again, having come to a decision. “How about we go over them to see if you remember correctly, and then we can practice your pronunciation a bit?”

I nodded in response, ready for this little surprise “test”. I took a deep breath, getting ready to begin.

“Okay.” Kila smiled as she stood in front of me. “So, tell me what each day of the week is called.”

I quickly remembered the names and quickly answered. “Da fis day, Misaa, Da sego-”

“Nita. what did I tell you?” Kila interrupted me and immediately threw that question out with a slight frown.

I tried to think what she meant and quickly realized.

Oh... I lowered my head in embarrassment at the realization. “Ponance well...”

“Correct, pronounce well. Let’s try again.” Kila crouched down in front of me, placing herself at my eye level. In a soft, sympathetic voice, she encouraged me “It's okay if you take your time, but try to pronounce each word correctly, so you can get the hang of it. okay?”

I nodded, ready to try again as she asked. “The, first, day, Mi-sa-ra” I pronounced the first sentence as best I could while staring at Kila, waiting for her approval. She nodded, urging me to continue. “The, second, day, A-le-mis. The, third, day, Di-ari-sa...” I paused, realizing a faint sign on Kila's face that told me I made a mistake about something. I went over the third day again in my mind, until I remembered that it was Diarika. I nodded to myself and tried again. “Di-ari-ka?”

“Very good Nita. You're doing well, keep going.”

“The, fourth, day, Su-ran-da. The, fifth, day, Ni-vha... Ni-va-ra. And, the, sixth, day, Se... Ce... She... Kila, how you say last?”

Kila started laughing at my attempt to pronounce the last word but quickly signaled me to say it with her.

“Ze.”

“Zhe?”

“No, no. Look and listen, Ze. ZE.”

“Z-ze”

“Good. Now, phi.”

“Phi.”

“Ras.”

“Ras.”

“Ze-phi-ras.”

“Ze-phi-ras.”

“Very good.” Kila praised me as she stroked my head. Pronouncing some words well was difficult, but with a teacher like her, I could take my time to learn it the right way.

Now, you may ask, what was all this for? Well, as Makila said, it was to help me with my pronunciation. And obviously to see if I was able to remember things correctly. From what I understood, children in this world are taught from a very early age, with great care and attention, hoping that they can interact with the world quickly, but also as good as possible. Surprisingly, even among commoners, there is a very high literacy rate. Why do I know this? Something Kila mentioned on the first day.

She stood up and walked to the desk where she picked up some papers that were on top of it. Then, organizing them, she showed me the first one.

“Nita, can you remember where the name Miltara comes from?” The first picture was a depiction of the biggest sun in the sky. A drawing of a large, yellow sun.

I nodded remembering that lesson. “Mil-ta-ra, is the home, of Er-ka. It's in Mita, big, sister.”

“Very good, that's right. Perfectly done, Nita.”

The days of the week seemed to be one of the most common ways to teach children because they represent the names Erka and Erias have used throughout history. Both are the Pillars that are most associated with children. For some reason that was the main reason why this method was used. However, it also had to do with the fact that the names seemed to have a good balance of difficult to pronounce and easy to remember.

Miltara is the name of the home built in Mita, where Erka is said to live. Alemis was the first name by which Erka was known when the pillars still walked among mortals. Depicted as a slender woman, with brown skin, long golden hair tied in a braid with several ribbons adorning it, and bright white eyes. Diarika is the first name with which she was registered in written form, and that, over the years, was changed until it remained as Erka. The image that Kila showed me was its written form.

In Erias' case, Suranda, which, as with Miltara, is how the home Erias inhabits in Sura is known, is the smallest star and of a bluish hue.

What? What do you mean I never mentioned that? Well, now you know. Mita is a yellow sun, and Sura is a small sun of bluish hue.1

Nivara, the name she used while traveling the world with her sister, is depicted as a thinner and smaller woman, her skin is paler than her sister's, loose wavy hair of a silvery white, with eyes of an almost ethereal light blue. And Zephiras, her first written version that ended up evolving into Erias, as she is currently known. And again, the image Kila showed me was its written version.

With each thing Kila showed me, I had to say the name and where the name came from. Both she and Ameli; who, by the way, yes, she was with us, would applaud and congratulate me with every guess I made.

Finally, as we were about to move on to the next thing, there was a knock at the door, and one of the maids announcing herself.

“Madam Fiana, I am Felia, I bring some letters for you... and also for the young lady.”

For me? Who could write me a letter?

Raising an eyebrow, curious as I was, Kila nodded to Ameli who quickly allowed Felia to enter the room. The girl gracefully advanced to us, holding a few letters in her hand which she immediately handed to my second mother. After giving us a salute, of course.

There were about 4 letters that she read on the spot, placing them on the desk as she finished them. It seemed like they were nothing urgent, as there was no change in her expression, but by the time she got to the last one, she opened her eyes wide, and then looked at me with a mischievous smile, almost as if she had come up with a way to tease me. I was very curious, so I got up from my chair, and, when I took the first step...

“Nita, no. What have I told you when we're here?”

“...” I immediately sat down again. Kila had told me that, as long as I was taking these classes, I had to remain seated until she instructed me otherwise. Something to do with etiquette. “Keep seat unti Kila says,” I replied before sighing somewhat annoyed. It felt a little unfair.

“You don't have to be mad about that,” Kila said with a small laugh. “It doesn't do you any good to hurry up and see it if you can't read it anyway.”

“...” I had to admit she was right about that; and, while I hoped to learn soon, that didn't take away my desire to see it.

“I'll give you the answers later, you may go Felia.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

Felia curtsied, gave me a discreet good bye, and left immediately. Makila approached me with the letter in hand and I noticed something very important about it that made my eyes widen in surprise, as well as excitement.

“Oh? Have you noticed who the letter is from?” she asked with some mischief in her voice. Her expression revealed that she was ready to tease me at any moment.

But that didn't matter to me, I nodded without a second's hesitation. That letter was one I didn't expect to receive but wanted to receive. That Heraldic seal was one that I recognized very easily; it was the coat of arms of the Nazzik house.