Chapter 108: Reuniting with family.

Chapter 108: Reuniting with family.

Over the next few minutes, my mother would continue to repeat a series of actions. First, she would look at me, as if to make certain that it was really me that she was hugging. Then, she would bury her face into my shoulder, before backing up to look at me again.

It seemed that, even after all this time, my mother still deeply cared for me. After she had calmed down, mom put a closed sign in front of the bakery and led me to our living room, which hadnt changed a bit since my departure. It felt like years since I had been here, even though it hadnt even been a full year. I guess something about the repetitiveness of my life at home had made my adventurous life seem more lengthy?

Should you really be working in that state, mom? It looks like my little sibling could be born any second now! I chastised.Follow current novels at novelhall.com)

Oh dont start acting like your father, Arthur! Hes been nagging me to stop working since my first month. These days, he wont let me leave the bedroom unless hes around. Since he needed to do some deliveries today, I thought Id prepare some of the pastries in advance. Now that you are here, why dont you tell your father that you were the one to make them? Im sure hell be happy! she said, in an attempt to hide her work from my father.

I shook my head with a smile. There was no way I would help her cover up for her actions. This close to the birth of her child, I couldnt let her work herself to the bone. The thing was, when my mom started working, she wouldnt stop unless someone forced her to. I empathised with my fathers plight.

So dad will be back in a few hours, then?

More like a few minutes. There werent that many deliveries to do today, relatively speaking.

I hummed, secretly excited to surprise my dad.

Speaking of, how has business been while Ive been away?

At this, my mother sighed.

Decent enough, though we had a rough patch near the end of my pregnancy. Your father is having a difficult time getting all of our orders done on time on his own, losing us some customers as a consequence. Still, after your stunt in the royal tournament, all of a sudden everyone wanted our bread. Your father has been run ragged over the past few weeks. I cant wait to get this little troublemaker out of my body! she complained, though I could tell that she was secretly very fond of her soon-to-be born child.

Dont worry, mom. Ill help dad out for the next few weeks. Afterwards, though, Ill have to focus on my training.

My mom opened her mouth, presumably to thank me, but we were interrupted by the sound of our front door opening. From the bakery, I heard my dads voice call out.

Ari, why did you close the bakery already? We probably missed out on some sales! he said, as he entered our living room. When his eyes fell on me, he paused. For a moment, he stood as still as a statue as he stared at me with a disbelieving look in his eyes.

Then, he broke out into sudden laughter.

Arthur, youve returned! Of course you have! he said as he threw what he was carrying to the side and sat down next to me. He threw his arm around my shoulders and gave me half of a hug, messing up my hair.

Youve let your hair grow out, I noticed. You probably had a lot of girls coming up to you in the capital, little man!

Fine, as long as it makes you happy. My father said gruffly.

It does. I replied with a smile.

We talked for another few hours. By the time I fell onto my old bed, the sun had long since set.

-Scene transition-

Over the next few days, I helped my dad out with deliveries around town. This turned out to be far more tedious than before, since everyone now recognised me not as Arthur: the bakers boy, but as Arthur: the tournaments finalist.

Everyone was acting like they knew me well and like they were owed a private account of my journey. I didnt want to act impolite either, since my parents would still be living here after I left in a few months. That meant that I had to entertain each of their requests as best as I could, which took a lot of time. The only reason I even finished my deliveries by the end of the day was because my stats allowed me to traverse the town at record speeds. By the end of each day, I was totally exhausted, mentally.

I took it easy as far as training went, these days. Instead, I reignited my efforts to explore my mental state using mental palace. The first time I entered it since the tournament, I noticed something strange.

To begin with, my wooden shack was still there, thankfully. On top of that, my little forest had survived my period of neglect, and even expanded a little. A few rose bushes had joined my group of plants, though they remained on the outskirts. I wasnt sure what they signified, but they were there.

As for the 'strange thing I mentioned, there was a black ball. No, really. A black ball had appeared in my mental space. The undulating ball of smoke remained floating above my shack. It didnt react to my touch and stayed still, for the most part. Something about the ball was captivating. Maybe the way it flowed into itself was what caused this, or maybe its deep black colour was what fascinated me.

For a moment, I panicked, thinking that the black ball represented the abyss. Then, I calmed down. There was no way this ball was connected to the abyss. Most likely, this ball was my essence! My [Blackened essence], to be precise.

Since it didnt seem to be harming my mental space, I just ignored it and continued to meditate for a few hours, before hitting the hay.

Like this, a few weeks passed, until one morning, everyone in the house woke up in a panic, except for my mom, ironically.

Het water had broken.

My father and I rushed her to the towns clinic, where the healer was thankfully free to support my mothers birth. A few older ladies joined the healer to help with the birth and shooed my father and me out of the room, where we waited nervously.

After a few hours, we heard the loud cries of a new-born baby, which made me feel a sense of relief that I couldnt describe with words. My father rushed into the room first and I hurriedly followed him. Once inside, we found my mother with a small bundle in her arms. She looked worn out and exhausted, but the happy glean in her eyes was unmistakable. Mom handed dad the bundle, who then handed it to me a few minutes later. Like this, I met my little sibling for the first time.

Its a girl. My mom said proudly.

I nodded. Seeing the tiny, vulnerable little thing in my arms, I made a pledge to myself. I wouldnt let anybody hurt my little sister, for as long as I lived.