Reincarnated in the Astral World

Chapter 1: New Beginning

As Liam's life draws to a close, his thoughts are not of triumph or fulfillment but of a life marked by pain and regret. From his earliest memories, tragedy and death were his constant companions; his family was taken from him prematurely, and the ensuing torment at the hands of his captors left deep scars on his soul.

More broken than whole, Liam came to see death and violence as familiar entities. He learned to live this way, and driven by a thirst for vengeance, he honed his skills to unimaginable levels. By the age of twenty, Liam had become the world's most lethal assassin, and soon after, he completely avenged the deaths of his family.

But with his revenge complete, he found himself adrift, devoid of purpose. A life so brief, filled with death, left him with nothing more to pursue. In a final act of desperation, Liam attempted to end his life, hoping to reunite with his family in some ethereal beyond.

As he finished his recollection of his abyss, something felt wrong; he remembered his mother's face and imagined that she wouldn't have wanted such an end for him. She would have wanted him to find happiness, somehow.

And so, he tried. The most dangerous man in the world opened his heart to seek some semblance of love, only for life to strike him down harshly once more. As death approached, Liam's final vision is the tearful face of a young woman, a poignant reminder of the love and connection he yearned for but could never fully embrace.

His last thought, filled with confusion and despair, is a simple question: "Why?"

A life spent in the shadows, ending in a glimpse of something he could never quite reach - love, understanding, peace.

'Oh, she's a victim too…'

As Liam lies on the brink of death, the realization that the tearful woman is likely one of his many victims in his quest for vengeance dawns upon him.

Rather than feeling anger towards the grief-stricken girl, he musters the last of his strength to tenderly caress her face and wipe the tears from her cheek.

And in his final moments, Liam's thoughts turn to his mother.

'I'm sorry, Mom… I failed as a human being… I wasted your sacrifice.'

'Someone who deprived so many people of happiness doesn't have any right to seek it for himself,'

Liam harbors no anger towards fate or anything of the sort, only bitterness that his life had to end this way.

'I wish I at least had good experiences in this life so that I could die with happy memories.'

Accepting his fate, Liam embraces death willingly, as darkness begins to engulf his vision. Watching this, witnessing how a person who knew only violence and hatred ends his life in such a manner, even the coldest entity in the universe feels something stir within.

There's a moment of hesitation, and in that single second, another presence makes a plea — a plea so compelling that it cannot be refused even by the deities that govern existence.

"No, this is not the end!"

Liam hears those words, a voice so warm and loving... He can't tell if the voice is outside or is inside his mind, but he feels an overwhelming sense of familiarity, a connection that seems to transcend his current state. It's a feeling so profound and comforting that it overwhelms the cold embrace of death, giving him a faint sense of hope.

'Mom?'

Before Liam can grasp what is happening, the cold around him begins to dissipate, giving way to a pleasant warmth.

'What the?!?'

Liam is utterly confused; he had never contemplated what dying would be like, but this definitely seemed odd. He can't see anything, move, or speak, but he can feel a strangely familiar warmth enveloping his body.

And then he hears it...

*Thump*

*Thump-thump*

'I've heard this sound before... could it be?!'

Liam tries to make sense of what's happening, but a profound weakness hits him.

'So sleepy... I can't... sle-'

He attempts to stay alert, but it's impossible, and he falls into a deep sleep... a long and deep slumber.

_______________

Nine months later, Liam awakens, confused by his odd situation. He still can't see anything but darkness, and that cozy warmth is still enveloping him. He can feel his body again, although the movements seem awkward. However, in contrast, Liam can no longer think as clearly as before. It feels like there's a dense cloud in his mind.

The following events are even more shocking. He feels a powerful force pushing him, the incredibly pleasant warmth gives way to the familiar cold of the world. Liam experiences intense emotions and struggles to open his eyes, only to be blinded by the radiant light.

He feels so frustrated and upset, emotions he had always controlled very well. But now he feels compelled to let it out…

"UUUWAAAAAA!!!" Liam is startled by the sound of his own voice, the voice of a newborn baby.

"?????" A flurry of questions arises in Liam's mind, but he can't even understand them.

Then, as his eyes adjust to the light, he sees her…

'So beautiful!!!'

He doesn't even know what those words mean, but they instinctively arise in his mind. Like a divine angel, a beautiful woman with long blond hair and blue eyes appears in front of Liam. She looks exhausted and sweat is dripping down her gorgeous face, but she looks directly at Liam with the most loving expression he remembers seeing.

"A beautiful boy!!" The woman exclaims emotionally, with tears of happiness streaming from her face and falling on Liam. "I'm so happy!!!"

Liam doesn't understand what the woman is saying, but the deep love in her gaze is clear even to him. All the anger, pain, and emptiness that Liam has ever felt is still inside him, but the pure love of that woman drives away all negative feelings from his heart. He instinctively extends his tiny, adorable hand towards that angel, eager to accept all her love openly.

"My little boy..." The woman picks up little Liam in her warm arms, and he feels safer than ever. But then he hears a male voice, as excited as the woman's.

"It's a boy, hahaha!!!" The man exclaims in emotion. "I knew it!!"

Liam doesn't want to turn away, he doesn't want to stop feeling that soft skin on his face, those warm arms around his body. However, the woman willingly hands him over to someone else, and before Liam realizes it, he is looking at a tall man with light brown hair.

Liam has never been close to anyone, but his relationships with women have always been easier than with men. Yet, instead of the usual hostile looks he got from men, he is surprised to see big eyes brimming with tears again. This seems like a strong and brave man, but he doesn't hide how moved and happy he is to see the little baby in his arms.

"My son..." The man says words that Liam doesn't understand.

But then he says something with so much love and pride that Liam instinctively understands.

"Your name will be Arthur!"

"Arthur?" The woman muses aloud. "I like Arthur, it's such a beautiful name."

"But of course, it is," the man speaks proudly. "I'm sure our little Arthur will be a beautiful boy and then grow into a fine handsome man!"

"Oh my~~" The woman sighs, already used to the man's antics. "Are you already boasting about your son's appearance? What kind of father are you, Draven??"

"A proud father, of course," Draven puffs out his chest while holding little Arthur gently. "And you, Aria?"

Aria just shakes her head in disapproval of Draven's attitude, but she can't stop smiling; after all, this is a very happy day for her. In the arms of his father, Arthur is confused. The memories of Liam are still inside him, though they're covered by a thick cloud of darkness.

He can't access those memories, but somehow, he feels that it shouldn't be good to be in the arms of a man. That thought comes from the part of him that is still Liam, while the new part that is now Arthur feels very safe and loved being held by his father.

And so, it is the birth of little Arthur, the second chance of Liam, a new beginning in a new world, with a new family that loves him from the first moment they saw him…

"Wait!" But such a moment is interrupted when Draven notices something strange. "This..."

"What's wrong???" Aria panics at the first thought of her beloved son being in danger.

Draven is also worried because as he checks little Arthur's body to see if everything is alright, he sees a mark appearing on his lower belly area.

At first, he is happy and proud of his son because that mark is quite rare in their world.

Draven has a similar mark, an imposing golden lion on his back, while Aria has a gentle owl on her shoulder. These tattoos are called Nexuses, and they are essentially manifestations of very powerful beings. In their case, each of them can summon the creature corresponding to their tattoos to support them or fight alongside them.

And these rare creatures are called Astral Beasts.

Draven has his golden lion, which gives him incredible strength, and Aria can harness the mystical powers of her owl. So, naturally, Draven is thrilled to see that Arthur is awakening his Astral Beast so early.

But the shock comes when Arthur's tattoo fully appears...

"A pink heart?!?!" Draven is perplexed to see that.

A large pink heart on Arthur's belly, oddly close to his most intimate area...

"What does this mean?" Draven can only look at Aria with eyes full of confusion and concern.

Aria is a very intelligent woman, a result of her connection with her Astral Beast, but even she, who has read countless books in her pursuit of knowledge, has never seen anything like that.

"Whatever it is, it's good, right?" She smiles, still proud of Arthur. "After all, our son must be the youngest person ever to awaken a Nexus."

"Yes..." Draven tries to think positively, but then he looks at the strange pink heart again.

"But what kind of Astral Beast is a heart?!?!"

Chapter 2: Awakening

A year has passed since the birth of Arthur and almost two years since the death of Liam. The story of Liam is in the past now, just dark snippets that occasionally haunt the sleep of little Arthur. However, due to his parents' love and care, they are nothing more than bad dreams that do not affect him.

Due to the traumas that Draven and Aria experienced during their childhood, both are doing their best to be as loving and attentive as possible not to repeat their parents' mistakes. Little Arthur can say that they are doing very well on this journey, as they provide him with everything necessary for a child to grow as healthy as possible.

Draven and Aria not only spoil Arthur whenever they can, but they also feed him well, dress him in fresh clothes, and treat him with warmth and love. Perhaps due to remnants from Liam's past, even as a baby, Arthur is very well-behaved, is always cheerful and energetic, and only cries when the shadows of his past life haunt him in his sleep.

Thus, Arthur and his parents consider these days precious moments when only happiness is filling their lives. In such a healthy environment, little Arthur grows up without noticing time passing…

Two years, three years, and soon four years old; on his fourth birthday, little Arthur is no longer as little but a young boy with rosy cheeks and a cute smile on his face. Draven and Aria couldn't be happier with their child, given that their son is so healthy.

Little Arthur already knows how to read and write in the language of that region and is studying other languages with his mother. Not just languages, Arthur also studies mathematics, geography, and many other subjects. Aria is simply an endless well of knowledge who teaches him everything she can with the patience of a mother.

Besides studying and playing with his mother, Arthur also spends many pleasant moments with his father, strolling around the small village near their home, fishing in little streams, and working together to maintain the house.

Upon turning five, Arthur is given a grand party by his parents. All the people from the village are invited to celebrate his birth with presents and good wishes. Draven and Aria are definitely not ordinary people and, even though they chose to live in a small farming village, they stand out from the crowd.

In fact, Draven alone takes care of the entire village's security, and all the people in the region feel safe with him defending them from wild beasts and bandits. Aria is also greatly admired as she is a kind of scholar who, with just a wave of her fingers, can heal any wound and bring rain in times of drought, helping the entire population of the village.

Thus, due to how loved and respected Arthur's parents are, he is also born into the love of many people. And even though those people are just a few hundred farmers, Arthur is grateful for so much care and attention.

Arthur's party is the biggest event that has ever happened in the small village, which is named after the name of his family, Fletcher. That night, after turning five, Arthur is put to bed by his mother, who now starts to call him little boy instead of little baby.

Life couldn't be better… but then strange events start to happen. Perhaps due to Arthur's growth or some other cause, the cloud in his mind starts to dissipate little by little, and slowly, the night shadows start occurring more often.

Arthur is confused and scared by these nightmares, as they are very vivid and depict scenes of slaughter and carnage. Any child would be terrified by these visions, but Arthur starts accepting them as a part of himself, slowly assimilating the experiences.

However, he also realizes that he is slowly changing from within, and due to the fear of being rejected by his parents, he buries the memories deeply within his mind.

He tries to act as normally as possible, and while Draven doesn't notice anything wrong, Aria does. After all, how could a mother, let alone someone as perceptive as her, not notice how her own son begins to mature much faster than normal? But she is not troubled by this; after all, Arthur is a perfect son. She can always feel the deep love he has for his family.

Draven teaches him to be honorable and protect the weak, while Aria teaches him to be kind and respect the elderly. And Arthur ingrains his parents' teachings deeply in his heart as he has nothing to complain about from such an upbringing.

Four years later, at the age of nine, Arthur feels he has received a beautiful gift: his mother gives birth to a lovely little girl with blond hair and blue eyes like his. Draven is overjoyed, and Arthur shares the feeling with him as he is also very happy to have a little sister.

Liam had an older sister in the early years of his life, but she was taken from him along with his parents before he could understand how strong the bonds between siblings can be. Now, however, Arthur has a sister whom he can care for and love deeply, so life only gets better for him.

Two more years pass, two beautiful years during which Arthur and Draven can watch cute little Eve take her first steps, utter her first words… By the way, after saying "mommy", the second word little Eve utters is "brother", giving Arthur a playful advantage to use against Draven, who always grits his teeth in jealousy when he rubs it in.

Arthur also grows and matures a lot in those two years. Now at eleven years old, he has fully assimilated with Liam's memories, and he has a much better understanding of how incredible life in this world is, and especially, how amazing his parents are.

Draven helps so many people every day in the village region and the surrounding areas, facing dangerous animals and gangs of criminals. And he does all this without even once summoning the golden lion on his back, making it clear that he only needs a small fraction of his power to be a hero.

Yet, Arthur can't say for sure if his father is stronger than his mother; after all, Aria is not just an incredible mage, but her powers are also quite mysterious.

She spends her day giving her full attention to Arthur and Eve, but at the same time, she manages to keep the large house completely organized and still helps the people of the village. With her magic, she can bring objects to life for all kinds of tasks while giving all her care to her children.

During this period, Arthur also begins to socialize with the village children. In fact, Aria always took him to play with children his age when he was younger.

But since he matured faster than the others, it was difficult for Arthur to find interest in playing with the children outside while he had his cute little sister waiting for him at home.

The only thing that worries Arthur and his family is not understanding the meaning of his Nexus. That pink heart grows in proportion with Arthur's body and always seems dangerously close to his most private area, but there's still no sign that he has an Astral Beast.

Nevertheless, Arthur's life couldn't be better…

But then, once again, something happens to shake his whole world.

______________________________

"Ahhh, that was so good!" Arthur pats his belly and lets out a long, relaxed sigh as he lies down on the rug next to the fireplace.

"Indeed," Draven, also lying on the rug, exclaims with a contented expression. "Your mother is the best cook in the world!"

"Mom!" Little Eve says as she walks between Arthur and Draven, handing them small portions of the rice cake made by Aria, who, even though she could use her magic for anything, she always made their food with her own hands, putting all her love and care into it, and of course, a fair bit of mana too.

"Fufufu~" She giggles in her usual charming way. "You say that because I'm the only one who knows how to cook in this house."

"No way!" Arthur quickly responds. "Your cooking is the best, Mom."

Aria feels very proud upon hearing that and also because of how Arthur is turning into a fine young man. Draven is also increasingly proud of his son and extends his hand to stroke his blond hair.

"Listen to your old man, Arthur," he says in a fake wise tone. "If you ever find a woman who cooks as well as your mother, MARRY HER!"

"YEP!" Arthur responds in a tone as enthusiastic as Draven's and gives him a thumbs-up, causing both of them to start laughing.

"Huh?" Eve is happy to hear them laughing but doesn't understand the reason and looks confused at her mother.

Aria laughs, too, before casting a stern look at the father-son pair. "What's this talk about women? Do you two think of nothing else?!?"

Draven may be a powerful hero feared by legions of criminals, but he trembles just hearing Aria's voice in a tone slightly louder than usual. Arthur would like to say he's different, but he also loves his mother too much to want to make her angry, so both immediately fall silent.

"Good..." Aria can't help but smile. "Shouldn't you both be going to bed already? Tomorrow, you have a busy day helping the villagers fix the mill, right?"

"Yep," Arthur gets up and stretches his long legs before starting to climb the stairs.

"Hey, Arthur," but his mother throws another loving reprimand. "Take a bath before bed; no girl will want anything to do with you if you're smelly."

"Hahaha..." Draven can't help but laugh, until Aria looks at him with a cold expression.

Arthur smiles as he takes one last look at his parents before heading to the second floor. He doesn't waste time and heads straight for the bathroom; his mother arranges everything with magic, so the bathtub water is always clean and warm, while his clothes are always clean and fresh.

Arthur steps into the bathroom and quickly undresses, ready to jump into the bathtub. But before he does, he pauses to take a good look at his body. As just Arthur, he might not have noticed the differences between himself and other boys his age, but with Liam's memories, he sees how things are different. He is much taller than other eleven-year-old boys, which leads him to muse,

'It's probably due to Draven's genetics; he is also a very tall guy.' Arthur also notices that he is more muscular than a typical child his age. 'Maybe it's because of all the manual work on the farm?' he wonders.

As he wonders about his current physique, his gaze drifts to his heart-shaped tattoo and what lies below it.

'It can't be this big already!!!' Arthur can't help but feel embarrassed. Even though he has Liam's experiences, that was another life, and now, as Arthur, he feels like he's reliving those experiences all over again...

'I hope it's also due to Draven's genetics!' Arthur thinks before jumping into the bathtub.

"Ahhh..." The hot water covering his body leaves Arthur feeling very relaxed. But since he doesn't want his mother to come into the bathroom and give him a scolding, he quickly starts to wash himself. Everything proceeds as usual until he brings the bath sponge to his lower belly area...

Maybe because he's in a rush or simply going through puberty, Arthur washes that area with a lot of 'intensity,' generating a pleasurable sensation. Feeling this way is normal for boys his age and older, but then Arthur feels something moving rapidly through his body, especially in that particular area.

'Huh??!' He becomes very confused as he feels movement over his belly and groin. Arthur quickly looks down and notices something very strange.

'Gone?!?!' He's shocked to no longer see the heart-shaped tattoo on his lower belly area; it vanished as if it had never existed. He starts to panic and freezes, but then, a gentle breeze enters through the bathroom window, carrying a peculiar scent to his nose.

He will never forget that scent because it's so enticing, even rivaling his mother's natural fragrance. However, unlike Aria's scent, which warms Arthur's heart and soothes his soul, this new scent awakens his most primal and wild instincts.

Ignoring his body's natural reactions, Arthur slowly looks to the side, in the direction of the source of that scent.

And to his surprise, right there, is a beautiful girl with red hair and big yellow eyes standing right beside the bathtub. She appears to be about thirteen years old. However, she also appears to be…

'A naked little girl?!' Arthur averts his gaze before he can see anything beyond her arms. His mother's teachings are deeply ingrained in him, so much so that he swears he can hear his mother's scolding for peeking at a naked girl.

However, he soon gets over his shock and, realizing that there is an intruder in his house, acts on instinct. Without wasting time to think, he jumps on her and grabs her by the wrists, pressing her against the wall.

"W-Wha-" Before the girl can shout, he covers her mouth with his hand and looks deeply into her eyes with a cold and calculating gaze, making her shiver in fright. Once he is sure that nobody has heard the commotion, he whispers to her.

"I will release your mouth so you can talk; however, do not make any noise. If you understand, blink once." The girl seems to calm down and blinks as instructed, making Arthur release his hold on her.

He gazes at her with the same cold look, and starts questioning her. "Good. Now that you have calmed down, tell me who you are."

"I-I am.. I think I am what your parents call an Astral Beast," She points toward his groin while averting her gaze from his lower region due to her shyness.

Chapter 3: A Shy Succubus?

Arthur suddenly remembers all the times his mother was talking to him about Astral beasts. She taught him that there are two major sources of power that people can harness, the first being the power of lineages, such as Draven's and Aria's, which give them the potential for Warrior training or Magic.

The second, though much rarer, can overcome human limitations, such as talent and bloodline; that's the Astral Beast. Such creatures are connected to their masters through their souls, forming a bond during Awakening.

No one fully understands the Astral Beasts, and Aria is one of the most accomplished scholars in the area. She believes that Astral Beasts are the manifestation of their master's personality, talents, and lineage, just as Draven has a golden lion due to his heroic disposition and pride.

Aria, on the other hand, has an owl as her Astral beast, a manifestation of her calm, protective, and inquisitive personality. That made a lot of sense to Arthur, but he always wondered why his Nexus is a pink heart. After all, what kind of Astral Beast is that?

When Arthur finally sees some reaction in his Nexus, what appears in front of him is a cute little girl.

'it can't be..' He finds it hard to believe. 'Could she really be my Astral Beast? But all signs point towards it. The Pink heart, horns, little bat-wings, and tail with a heart-shaped tip. From my memories as Liam, weren't these beings called Demons? Not just any demons; she looks just like a Succubus.'

As Arthur muses in his thoughts, the little demon is looking at him calmly, as if waiting for him to finish, while hiding her private parts with her hands. Eventually, he awakens from his thoughts, remembering that he is in the bathroom where anyone can enter at any time.

"Hey, little girl, are you really my Astral beast?"

"I don't know!" She quickly exclaims with a cute and shy voice, seemingly as confused as he is.

Arthur tries to speak again. "I don't even-"

"I don't know what I am." The girl responds quickly. "I also don't understand why things are like this..." She looks downcast as she avoids looking into his eyes.

Arthur can feel a mixture of emotions in the tone of the mysterious girl. 'She seems really confused...and lonely?'

As Liam, he never cared about other people's feelings because all empathy was taken away from him from a young age, but Arthur had loving parents who taught him to have empathy for everyone in need.

"Everything will be fine," He speaks in a confident tone with a warm smile, deciding that there's no point in acting cold towards her anymore.

The girl instinctively smiles as she feels her heart warmer. 'His voice really calms me down…'

She starts to feel better, but then she notices that she is completely naked, turning red in embarrassment, and cannot help but shout.

"D-Don't look at me!!!"

Arthur tries his best to cover the little demon's mouth, however it is too late, as before he could even make a move to silence her, his fears came true.

"Arthur???" Aria's voice echoes through the hallway outside the bathroom.

"Mother?!?!" He responds immediately, struggling to hide his worried tone.

"Is everything okay?" Aria's voice sounds even closer and more concerned. "I heard a female voice..."

'I fucked up this time,' Arthur starts to panic while thinking of a solution.

"Uhh.. No.. there wasn't." He stammers a little as no excuses come to mind.

"Son?" Aria becomes really worried and heads straight to the bathroom.

Arthur doesn't like to hide things from his mother, but how is he going to explain this situation? He is aware that he is different from any other child his age, and adding up the even weirder Astral beast, he is afraid his parents might see him as a freak and distance themselves from him.

Doing the only rational thing his mind can think of, he whispers to the little girl, "You have to go back!"

"No!" The girl replies with a pleading look."I don't want to get back there alone..."

"I can't let my mother find you here, not now." He urges her again to return to his Nexus.

Contrary to his wishes, the girl turns her face away, acting stubbornly. "I don't care about your problems!"

Arthur really doesn't understand the girl. She seemed upset about coming out of his Nexus, and now she's upset about having to go back. But she also has a cute side, so he can't bring himself to hate her.

Arthur tries to search in his past memories for how to deal with a girl like that, but poor Liam has no such experiences to share.

'Think, think, think!!' Arthur tries to put his mind to work as fast as possible. "I got it!"

He looks directly into the girl's eyes as he pats her head. "Listen, little girl. This is only temporary. You can come out as much as you want in the future as long as it's just the two of us, but I really need you to hide for now."

The girl ponders for a few seconds, after which she replies. "Really?"

"Yes, now go, we don't have time!!" Arthur starts to feel irritated with how much coaxing the girl needs.

*Knock-knock* *Knock-knock*

The sounds of Aria knocking on the door feel like hammers breaking Arthur's heart, as if this didn't work, he has no more ideas on how to salvage the situation.

"Arthur? Darling??" Aria's voice echoes inside the bathroom as she starts to open the door. "I'm coming in."

Arthur sees the doorknob turning and sighs. 'It's over; she'll see me as a freak...'

Aria's entrance cannot be stopped, and as soon as Arthur sees his mother's beautiful face, he tries to put on the most honest and innocent smile possible.

"Mom?"

"Arthur??"

He is confused because he doesn't see any shock on his mother's face, just a little bit of confusion and concern.

"What happened?" Aria only sees Arthur in the bathtub with sweat running down his face, which is quite strange considering he should have taken a bath just now.

"Eh…" He looks around and doesn't see the girl anywhere. Even her smell has disappeared as if she was never there.

'My Nexus!' He remembers and looks down; then, he breathes a sigh of relief when he sees that the pink heart has returned to its usual place.

Arthur's reactions leave Aria very confused and curious. 'I've never seen him so nervous... what could have made him like that?'

She understands better than anyone how Arthur is much more mature than he should be at his age. He always acts in a calm and restrained manner, so seeing him in that state is very strange.

"Darling? Is everything okay?" Even knowing that something is wrong, Aria tries to act calmly to reassure him.

"YEP!" Arthur ends up exaggerating due to relief and exclaims very loudly.

"I mean, everything is fine, mother". He replies as he clears his throat.

Aria's gaze turns sharp like a hawk as she looks around the bathroom, analyzing everything carefully. Arthur becomes worried again, fearing her discovering something about the girl, and tries to think of an excuse. Then he remembers that his mother heard the girl's voice.

He quickly has an idea. "You also heard voices?"

"Voices?" Aria asks in a curious tone.

Arthur tries to maintain his innocent expression while feeling bad for lying to his mother.

"Yeah, I heard voices," He pointed to the bathroom windows. "I think it was a couple passing by on the street; the girl seemed to be quite upset about something."

Aria can't deny that his story seems very real, after all, the only open window in the house now is the bathroom's, so the sound of the voices could have come in through there, and she heard it even being far away due to her sharp senses.

"Hmm…" Yet, Aria feels her maternal instincts telling her that something is wrong. 'Why would my son lie to me?'

Arthur becomes very nervous, but now he can control his emotions and remains cool inside while smiling lovingly at his mother. He doesn't like lying to her, but a small lie is a valid sacrifice in order to continue having the life he has with his beloved family.

Aria can feel that something is wrong, but since Arthur seems fine, she doesn't have anything to worry about. So she looks at the window with a thoughtful expression. "The girl did seem upset; I think I heard her yell more than once."

Arthur can sigh with relief again. "I guess so." Aria then gives him a stern look. "Some men can only think about their selfish needs and don't treat their girlfriends well..."

"What??" Arthur can't help but think about the mysterious girl. He didn't do anything bad to her, but he hopes she isn't upset with him. Yet, Arthur fully trusts his mother, so if she is saying that it was the man's fault, it probably was.

"Arthur," Aria speaks in a loving but also solemn tone. "Promise Mommy one thing."

"Sure, mom." He replies as he looks into her gorgeous eyes.

"Never be like those men who mistreat women," She asks. "When you have your girlfriend, treat her like a Queen, and she will always treat you like her King."

Those words are etched in Arthur's heart and mind. After losing his family, the thing he fears the most is disappointing his parents. So he swears to his mother that he will treat women well even if he is unable to understand them.

"Sure, Mom!"

"Good boy," Aria lovingly smiles at him and kisses him on the cheek.

But then her gaze finds another thing out of the ordinary, and she can't help but comment. "Oh my, you're growing up so fast..."

Arthur understands why his mother is saying that and quickly covers his member with a towel. "Mom!?!"

Aria can't help but continue seeing him as her beloved baby and smiles teasingly. "What's the matter? Are you ashamed of your Mommy? After I washed your body hundreds of times?"

Thanks to Liam's memories, Arthur is more grateful than anyone to have such a loving mother, yet he can't help but feel extremely embarrassed by that situation. Aria enjoys her son's reactions, but she doesn't want to torment him too much and leaves the bathroom.

But not before leaving some words behind. "It's okay if you take a little longer in the bath; I bet you have things to explore there..."

"..." Arthur has no response to that.

He feels very good teasing and mocking his father, but Aria always manages to make him embarrassed. Well, that can't be avoided; that's a healthy relationship with his loving mother.

Chapter 4: My Sweet Succubus

After Aria leaves the bathroom, Arthur becomes calmer and lies down in the bathtub, letting the hot water wash over his body.

'I'm glad everything ended well…' He sighs, relieved.

With no one else to disturb his bath, he goes back to washing his body, but after seeing that red-haired girl, he can't help but think about her again. His attention is involuntarily drawn to his Nexus, the pink heart in his lower belly area.

'I wonder if…' He can't help but think if he touches his member whether that girl would appear again. Of course, he doesn't want to go through that trouble again, but the curiosity of seeing if it works gets the better of him.

'What if I... just a little…' That dangerous thought doesn't leave his mind.

'Don't touch it!' The girl's voice sounds loud and timid inside his mind.

'What?!' Arthur looks around, but he doesn't see the girl, just as his Nexus does not react. His mother would certainly have heard the girl's scream, but there is no sign of it, so Arthur is confused.

'Did I imagine it?' He looks at his Nexus again. 'Am I going crazy?'

'No, you fool!' The girl's voice sounds again.

Arthur seems to guess that her voice is coming from his mind, which is even weirder. 'Are you reading my mind?'

'That's not it,' The girl quickly responds, her voice becoming less shy and more normal. 'It's just that I can hear some of your thoughts…'

'Some thoughts?' Arthur is frightened by that idea; after all, he has locked away some dark memories inside his mind. The girl takes a while to answer, making him even more worried. 'Oi, oi, are you there??'

'Do you think I have any other choice??' The girl asks in a timid tone.

Arthur can't help but notice the girl's erratic response, which makes him think that she may have been scared by his earlier reaction to her appearance.

'I'm sorry about my earlier response, little girl. I didn't mean to scare you,' He addresses her in a kind and friendly tone. He just promised his mother that he would be good to women, so he wants to keep that promise as much as he can.

The girl takes a while to answer but does so in a much calmer tone, seemingly appeased by his apology. 'All right, I can forgive you since you did not know who I was.'

Arthur has many questions, but he knows he can't simply demand answers from the girl, or she might distance herself from him right after he managed to build a friendly rapport with her.

So, he tries a more indirect approach. 'Do you know anything about what's happening to us?'

'No,' She responds quickly.

'I see…' Arthur goes silent as he keeps thinking about the situation.

After a few seconds of silence, the girl speaks to him again. 'I don't quite understand what's going on, but I think it's like the Astral Beasts that Aria mentioned.'

Arthur was also thinking about that since his Nexus disappeared after she materialized. But he is more interested in the familiar way she used his mother's name. 'Do you know my mother?'

'I was here all the time.' She seems to be trying to be friendly, so Arthur feels that this is a good start in their relationship.

'What does all the time mean?' Arthur is worried about her words as it would mean she has been spying on his entire life since day one.

'Yes,' She says in a tone that becomes increasingly shy. 'W-we- w-wee- we have a…' Her voice becomes lower and lower, and in the end, it sounds like an almost inaudible whisper. '..bond!'

Arthur still doesn't understand anything about his relationship with the girl and how she stays in his Nexus, but he can't help but smile at the way she easily gets embarrassed. How bad can it be to be bonded to such a cute little girl?

'Not bad at all!'

"..." The girl doesn't react to Arthur's affirmation, and silence returns to the bathroom. Arthur wants to talk more to her, but he doesn't want to stress her either, so they both enjoy the silence.

In the end, he smirks and tries to tease her. 'So... if I were to touch…'

'Don't touch! it!!' The girl exclaims shyly and concerned.

Arthur cannot help but raise his eyebrows in shocked amusement and try counter. 'Do you want me not to touch my own body?'

'Exactly,' The girl responds as if it were obvious. 'Or you can't stop touching yourself, like a degenerate?'

'I'm not a degenerate!' He quickly exclaims. Though he can't help but appreciate her vicious quip to his teasing attempt.

The girl doesn't say anything else, and Arthur has to take the lead. 'Oi, you were talking about touching only where the heart is, right?'

'No,' She responds quickly, but her tone becomes shy as she continues. 'You can't touch any part in that area, especially... that... thing... and you definitely can't feel good there in any way!!'.

How could Arthur not understand what the girl means? But that seems both absurd and hilarious.

'That's impossible, you know,' He replies with a raised eyebrow. 'I mean, how do you expect me to... pee, for example…'

'Can't you do that without using your hands?' She asks as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

'I don't want to do it sitting down like a girl,' Arthur affirms with conviction. 'And doing it standing up is complicated... it will be messy.'

But the girl also seems determined. 'That's not my problem.'

Arthur grits his teeth in irritation at her irrationality as he tries to argue, but she doesn't let him. 'I'm serious; if you feel good... and summon me, I will beat you up.'

'I'm sure the scene from earlier would just repeat itself,' He speaks in a calm tone, unbothered by some little girls' threats.

'Do you want to bet??' She asks provocatively.

Arthur is not afraid of the girl, but besides the promise he made to his mother, he also doesn't want to harm a little girl out of pettiness. Since he can't win an argument with her and get some answers now, he just gives up trying to talk to her for the moment. He also can't stay in the bath much longer or his mother might come back and make him go through more embarrassing moments.

So he finishes the bath, gets dressed, and leaves the bathroom. The rest of the night goes as usual, and Arthur goes to bed after reading a little more about Astral Beasts in one of his mother's books. From time to time, his thoughts wander to that little girl he met earlier in the bathroom. He hopes that their little banter made her more open to talking to him.

However, Arthur's body is quite tired after such a day, so he slowly falls asleep. His vision gets dark, and he almost blacks out, but a strange sensation in his lower belly area wakes him up. He can't help but feel amused and wonder about the purpose of the little girls' clandestine appearance.

Arthur is lying on his side, and she appears lying on her side as well, face to face with him. Unlike before, she is now wearing a black lingerie that covers her intimate parts. He smiles at seeing her, but her blushing face becomes redder, and she seems to be getting nervous.

"I won't do anything-" Arthur quickly speaks out loud.

The girl quickly covers his mouth and whispers in his mind. 'Don't make noise, or your mother will hear!' The girl exclaims in his mind but without making any sound in the room.

'Alright,' Arthur replies mentally, and the girl seems to have heard him because she removes her hand from his mouth. He keeps looking at her, waiting for the girl to state her purpose or start talking, but she stays quiet.

He becomes curious about her clothes and asks about it. 'Where did this lingerie come from?'

'I just imagined it...' She feels shy because she chose such a sensual suit. 'I've seen Aria wave her wand and create clothes with magic so many times. I just tried it, and my energy took the form of these clothes.'

He just looks at her cute face, but even that quickly makes the girl uncomfortable. She understands that he must have questions, so she tries to say something.

'I just didn't want to sleep alone…' Her shy tone and the cute way she plays with her hair while speaking makes Arthur smile fondly in amusement.

'How cute,' His reaction to her antics was heard by the girl, who couldn't help but smile proudly as if she had achieved something.

But then her shyness takes over again, and she can't handle Arthur's curious gaze any longer. The idea of turning around and leaving her back exposed to his gaze doesn't seem good either, so she can only think of one solution.

'Can you turn around?' She asks him in a pleading tone.

'Why would I do that?' Arthus frowns in confusion, unaware of the little girl's inner struggles. She would like to be able to control her emotions better, but she simply can't handle the embarrassment.

'If you don't turn around, I'm leaving.' She tries her luck at pressuring him.

'Sigh, alright, alright,' Arthur sighs in defeat and turns around, not wanting to make the girl feel uncomfortable. He saw the loneliness in the girl's eyes and couldn't help but imagine how she felt being stuck in his Nexus for so many years with nobody to talk to.

Due to this, he feels a desire to protect her arise within him. So, even if she makes some unreasonable demands, he will indulge her a little bit for now until she can open herself to him.

Sometime after he turned around, Arthur realized something. 'Oh, you know my name, but I don't know yours.'

'I don't have a name.' The girl responds in a neutral tone, with a subtle shade of sadness. 'Or at least I don't remember having one,'

Arthur feels sorry for her, and the desire to protect her only grows in his heart.

'That's not good; I need a name to address you in the future.' He replies in a concerned tone.

'I don't…' The girl seems about to refuse but stops to think about something. Arthur is quickly learning how to deal with her and finds that being calm and patient with her seems to make her more open to cooperate with him.

As he is waiting for her to continue her thoughts, she asks him. 'Can you give me a name?'

'Me?' Arthur is taken aback by the request. He thought she would choose a name on her own, so he wasn't prepared for it.

'Don't you want to?' He feels like she's pouting behind his back, finding her reaction cute. He knows he has to think of something quick, or the good development of their relationship might be affected.

'Nyx!' He exclaims mentally.

'Nyx?' The girl asks, confused.

'Your name. Don't you like it?' He asks.

She wonders about that and ends up liking how Nyx sounds, but the most important thing is that it was Arthur who chose that name, though she won't tell him that.

'It will do,' She tries to speak in a calm and neutral tone, but she sounds shy and happy instead.

'I'm glad you liked it.' Arthur smiles upon hearing that, and she blushes even more.

After a few more seconds of silence, he speaks without turning around. 'Good night, Nyx.'

He can't see her, so she does not contain the urge to smile and even speaks to him in a softer tone.

'Good night... Arthur.'

They both fall asleep after that, feeling comfortable next to each other. Unlike the usual visions of Liam's dark life, Arthur surprisingly has good dreams this time.

__________

*Knock-knock* *Knock-knock*

Arthur wakes up to the sound of his mother knocking on the bedroom door.

"Time to wake up, darling." Aria's sweet voice sounds from the other side of the door.

He tries to get up as usual while opening his eyes, but something strange happens, and he feels something heavy and warm on his body.

He opens his eyes quickly and sees Nyx lying on top of him. 'Huh??'

She also wakes up and opens her eyes.

'WHAAAA?!?!' Shocked, she exclaims in his mind.

The sound of the doorknob turning and the door opening reaches Arthur's ears.

"Coming in..." Aria's voice follows.

"No!" Arthur shouts to his mother at the same time he sees Nyx's body turn into pink smoke, which turns back into a pink heart in his lower belly area.

Aria enters the room and sees Arthur in bed with a surprised expression. "Anything wrong, darling?"

He breathes a sigh of relief. "Sorry, Mom."

Aria is confused, but then she notices the big tent in the blanket in front of Arthur.

"Fufufu~!" She smiles lovingly. "You woke up so energetic today, baby."

Arthur is very embarrassed by that situation, but he just lays his head back on the pillow and sighs. He can't help but think that the following days will be full of such events, but also smiles thinking about the little girl.

Chapter 5: Boosted

After sleeping the whole night cuddled with Arthur, Nyx has an extreme reaction. She becomes so shy that she refuses to talk to him for the rest of the day. While she struggles to deal with her feelings as she hides in Arthur's Nexus, he walks around the house with a spring to his steps.

Arthur is really happy with the progress he had with Nyx. However, before he goes downstairs to have breakfast with his family, he has to take a shower. He doesn't mind wearing Nyx' strawberry scent but his mother would notice it as soon as she hugged him, and things would get difficult to explain.

Now that Arthur thinks about it, he can't help but feel concerned. 'How didn't she notice it in the bedroom?' Despite being so loving and kind, Aria also has an overprotective side that can turn her into a fierce lioness at any moment. Also, her intelligence is nothing to scoff at, and Arthur understands that point all too well.

'Maybe she knows more than I realized...' He wonders.

But as nothing can be done about it now, Arthur takes a nice shower and then goes downstairs to meet his family. Everyone is in the kitchen, his father playing with Eve while Aria finishes preparing breakfast.

As soon as Draven sees Arthur, he smiles and hugs his son. "Good morning, son."

"Good morning, father," Arthur smiles and lifts little Eve into his arms. "Good morning to you too, little bug."

"Brother!" Eve exclaims cutely and boops Arthur's nose with her tiny fingers.

Everything seems perfectly normal, but Aria can notice the slightest changes in her son's demeanor.

"Don't you seem a bit too excited today?" she asks in a casual tone, as she squints at him.

'She knows!' Arthur panics at the thought that his mother knows about Nyx, but thanks to his assassin experience, he manages to stay calm on the surface.

"How could I not be with such a lovely family?" he replies with a genuine smile on his face.

"Hahaha!" Draven laughs proudly. "That's my boy."

Aria smiles lovingly, but her sharp eyes analyze Arthur like a hawk watching its prey, making him gulp.

"I know you're a very good boy, but there's something more you're not telling Mommy," she approaches Arthur and circles around his body as if searching for a hidden illness.

That makes Arthur both relieved and worried. "I think she doesn't know yet... but if things continue like this, she'll find out eventually!"

"Mom..." He tries to appear as innocent as possible. "There's nothing wrong with me."

Aria looks deeply into his eyes. "Ah, I knew it; it's a girl, isn't it?"

'WHAT?!?' Now Arthur starts to freak out. 'Am I gonna get caught for the wrong reasons?' He tries to stay calm on the outside but ends up instinctively shaking his head.

"Don't try to hide it from Mommy," Aria speaks confidently. "You have this aura around you,"

'Aura? Is that what gave me away??' Arthur cries inside as he was just feeling happy that he was getting closer to Nyx, not what his mother thinks.

"Oh," Draven seems to have thought of something. "I know what's happening."

'You don't.' Arthur feels like facepalming seeing Draven's wiseman expression

Aria looks at Draven, and he quickly explains. "Today, we are going to fix the Carpenter family's mill, and their eldest daughter always brings a food basket for Arthur when we are around."

"That girl?" Aria asks in an annoyed tone. "Isn't she already sixteen? What does a girl that age want with my little boy?"

Draven can't help but smile proudly. "Don't blame the girl for being interested in our Arthur; after all, he inherited the perfect physique from his father and the stunning beauty from his mother."

Aria doesn't like how Arthur is maturing too quickly and becoming less and less her innocent little boy. She wants to be able to enjoy his childhood even more, but Draven keeps encouraging him to start looking for girls already, and this makes her worried.

Draven also feels frustrated because no matter how hard he tries to be a good father to his son, Aria only seems to get more distant from him.

"So that's it?" Aria casts her eagle gaze at Arthur again. "Are you like this because of that girl?"

Arthur doesn't want to lie to his mother, but he was delivered a way out on a platter without having to mention Nyx, at least for now.

"Well..." He thought that girl was cute, even for his high standards due to growing up with a stunning beauty like his mother. Although his thoughts also wander to Nyx, who is very cute for a little girl, with her golden eyes and little horns.

Aria finds his reaction strange, as he is frozen in thought with a pondering look on his face, especially due to such a simple girl, but she thinks it makes sense since he only knows people from the village.

'Maybe it's because her body is mature like that of a young adult?' she wonders.

But of course, the reactions Aria is seeing in Arthur are due to different reasons, making her misunderstand. She still suspects that something is wrong, as her maternal instincts are never wrong when it comes to her children.

But once again, Draven intervenes to help his son. "Leave the boy alone, Aria."

She gives him a fierce look, and Draven almost backs away in fear. "I mean, everyone can see that he's very mature for his age, probably like a fourteen-year-old boy already..."

Aria isn't buying the idea, but Draven continues. "So let him enjoy these moments; after all, when he grows up fully, he may fall in love with a woman as it happened to me, and then he won't have eyes for anyone else ever."

Draven really tries his best, but Aria just shakes her head. She disagrees with him about some things but doesn't let such things reach Arthur and Eve, so they don't suspect anything.

"Okay..." Then she looks at Arthur with a loving expression. "Mommy can't stop girls from being interested in you, but you have to promise me that you'll be responsible." She continues, "You can act as mature as you want, but you still have four years ahead to become an adult, so until then, you have to control yourself."

Arthur understands what Aria means; in that world, boys are considered adults at fifteen and girls at sixteen. But that's only the law, because even at those ages, they are still considered just young adults.

"I won't disappoint you, Mom," Arthur promises. He wants to be a good son to repay the love and care that his parents have given him, so he tries to listen to them as much as possible to not upset them.

Aria hugs him and strokes his hair. "I know, my son."

Arthur can breathe a sigh of relief for keeping his secret. He hopes to be able to tell his parents about Nyx at some point, but he simply can't do it now because of the fear that his parents might think of him as a freak for how different he is.

So he tries to be the best possible son, hoping that when it's no longer possible to hide Nyx's existence, it will not matter if he is different from others.

After breakfast, Arthur goes with Draven to the Carpenter farm to rebuild the large windmill that was knocked down by the wind. The farmers in the village are simple people, and to rebuild such a large windmill, they would need ten men and probably a few days.

But Draven can do that job in a day alone, and he enjoys helping the village folks, which is always appreciated by the honest farmers. Arthur does his best to assist his father, and the task isn't really difficult since his body is filled with energy after last night's sleep.

But he notices that it's not just his mood that is boosted; in fact, his whole body seems stronger than ever. He's slightly stronger, his agility has improved, and his senses are sharper; everything seems better after meeting Nyx.

As a result, Arthur ends up being much more helpful to his father than Draven could have imagined, completing the task of rebuilding the windmill before midday. This is a reason for Draven to be even prouder of his son, but it's bad news for the Carpenters' daughter, who tries to get closer to Arthur whenever possible.

To avoid suspicion, Arthur also approaches the girl named Margaret. She could certainly be considered a young beauty with great potential in Liam's world, so showing some interest in her is not difficult at all.

Arthur doesn't want to hurt the girls' feelings, so he doesn't try to give her false hopes and just acts friendly with her while keeping a healthy distance. After Draven encourages him to accept the snacks prepared by the girl with care, the two head home in time for lunch.

Arthur begins to wonder if his closeness with Nyx is the reason for his increase in power, so he doesn't notice how enthusiastic Draven seems. After a serious conversation with Aria, Draven calls Arthur to the backyard, leaving him curious.

"Son," Draven speaks in a proud tone. "You know your father isn't as smart as your mother, right?"

"..." Arthur is confused, even though he agrees mentally.

"I mean, I wasn't born with abilities similar to your mother's," Draven explains. "I don't have the gift to control mana and perform magic."

Arthur simply nods and continues to listen to his father's words attentively.

Draven looks at his son with a regretful expression. "And you take after me in that regard more than after your mother."

"I understand," Arthur studied with his mother about that, and she explained that he wasn't born with the potential to be a great mage, although his mana isn't weak either.

Draven can see that his son isn't disappointed, which makes him even prouder and relieved.

"Don't worry, Arthur," he says confidently. "We may not be incredible mages like your mother, but we can be incredible in our own way."

Arthur doesn't doubt that; after all, his father is a hero admired by everyone in the village, and even his mother acknowledges his strength.

"I let your mother handle your education until now," Draven explains. "She wanted to teach you the importance of knowledge because it is truly necessary..."

Draven smiles, and his expression looks nostalgic. "I wouldn't even be here if it weren't for your mother's brilliant mind. But in the end, we are what we are," His eyes shine with golden sparks. "We are descendants of proud warriors, and our strength is our honor."

Arthur respects his father even more because of his honesty. He's not ashamed to admit how incredible Aria is, but he also acts with confidence and pride.

Draven runs his fingers over the hilt of the sword that is always sheathed at his side. "We can't run from who we are, and we shouldn't; in fact, we should embrace the power that runs in our veins."

Arthur nods again. He learned from Aria about the power of lineages, and he shares the lineage of powerful warriors with Draven. Until now, his father had never talked to him about such matters, so Arthur can't help but feel excited.

Draven sees the sparkle of anticipation growing in his son's eyes and is almost moved to tears. However, he maintains a serious and proud expression. "I don't want you to stop studying with your mother, but from now on, I will train you to be a warrior as well."

"Yes, father," Arthur responds excitedly.

As Liam, he only found some peace when he learned to fight and kill, and even though, as Arthur, he has overprotective parents and a peaceful life, he can't help but want to be strong here as well. He doesn't wish to be strong to oppress the weak but to protect the family he loves so much, which now includes Nyx as well.

Draven can no longer contain his excitement and starts laughing loudly. "I'm sorry for keeping you away from a sword until now, but that was so you could have a healthy childhood."

"But you're already so mature and strong..." He is truly proud of his son. "So from now on, I'll teach you everything about being a warrior."

After such motivational words, Draven takes a small package from his back. It's wrapped in cloth, but by its shape, it's not hard to guess what's covered in it.

"Take it, it's yours," Draven tosses the object to his son.

Arthur catches it in the air and is pretty sure of what it is due to its weight. He quickly unwraps the package and finds a beautiful small sword inside. The sword has only a forty-centimeter silver blade, but it looks so sharp and shiny. Also, the sword's hilt is small and very comfortable.

Arthur holds the sword in his hand, and even though it's heavy, it feels perfect. It's very natural for him to hold a blade; after all, blades were Liam's specialty as an assassin. In a few seconds of swinging the sword, Arthur quickly gets used to its weight, and it feels very natural to have it, as if it's an extension of his arm.

"A custom-made sword for me?" Arthur looks at his father with eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you so much!"

Draven is so shocked to see Arthur handling the sword with such natural ease that he can no longer hear anything else. He was sure that Arthur would like the sword because it's in their blood, but he still expected his son to take at least a few weeks to get used to the weight of the blade.

"Hahaha..." He laughs happily and proudly. "You really are the best son, Arthur!"

Chapter 6: Wonderful Gift

After receiving his first sword, Arthur is eager to train with his father. But before he realizes it, the sword flies out of his hands. Of course, that's Aria, waving her fingers and using her magic to take such a dangerous weapon out of her son's hands.

Draven started making that sword when Arthur was only a few weeks old and it is not only filled with sweat and love but also rare and powerful materials. Despite being small, the blade is so sharp that it can cut bones and even stones as if they were butter as long as the person wielding it has the necessary strength.

Also, it is precisely because of the training that Draven always wanted to force on his son that Aria started to get upset with him. That has nothing to do with training sword skills but the morals and principles that Draven wants so much to ingrain in Arthur.

So even allowing Arthur to start his training, Aria does not want him to go around swinging such a lethal weapon without knowing how to handle it responsibly. Thanks to his memories as Liam, Arthur is much more responsible than his parents can imagine. But he tries his best to act like a normal child and obey his parents.

So he gladly accepts to train with a wooden sword, which Aria enchants with her magic so that he can use it with all his strength. That day, Arthur and his father train until night in the garden, and at bedtime, the tired Arthur is rewarded with the sight of a wild Nyx appearing.

They look at each other for a minute before he turns around and sleeps, and as before, she instinctively hugs him after she falls asleep, and he wakes up smelling like strawberries.

The next day Arthur studies with his mother, plays with his little sister, does some manual work, and uses the rest of the time to train with his father. Draven is increasingly impressed with his son's innate abilities and the speed at which he learns his teachings.

Liam was a prodigy of the kind that never existed in his world, and with just one blade he could face dozens of soldiers armed with fireguns. And it becomes clear to Arthur that he can do the same this time also, but now his potential is literally infinite due to the world he was born into.

Yet, Arthur is only eleven years old, and even though he seems to be fourteen, he has a long way to go to master the use of the sword like Liam did and then aim to reach his father's level, as he needs to rebuild all the muscle memory first.

He really can't understand how strong and skilled Draven is with the sword because he restrains himself to the maximum during training, always focusing on teaching Arthur at his own level. With this routine, Arthur spends his days happily. He tries hard to do everything perfectly, so he always ends up going to sleep exhausted.

But he enjoys every second with his mother, with his sister, with his father, and also with Nyx, even though at that moment he is always sleeping, his body certainly enjoys it.

The days turn into weeks and the weeks into months, and in the blink of an eye, Arthur finally turns twelve.

His parents throw another big party in celebration, and he receives many gifts, including a gift from Nyx, which is a clumsy hug and a kiss on the cheek, making him overdose on sugar.

Despite being disappointed that their relationship does not seem to be evolving, Arthur understands that Nyx is different from other people, and has learned to take every small step as progress.

He also learned from his mother that some people in this world can live extremely long lives the further they grow in power. His parents are a good example since they seem to be about thirty years old, but in fact, they are already over a hundred and have not yet lived even a tenth of what they can.

So Arthur is not in a hurry to improve his relationship with Nyx, letting things flow naturally. He also promised his mother that he wouldn't do anything bold with a girl yet, so he is content with being patient in that regard. Thus, Arthur spends his days fully focused on absorbing Aria's knowledge and training with Draven.

Time keeps passing quickly, and after another year, the results of Arthur's efforts become increasingly obvious. He grows taller, stronger, faster, and smarter. His sword skills reach such a high level that Draven starts teaching him to use other weapons.

Arthur continues to give his best, and two more years pass quickly.

During that time Aria and Draven teach many things to Arthur, and as a good son, he learns everything, always focused to the maximum. With his fourteenth birthday approaching Arthur already looks like a young adult of sixteen. Thanks to Draven's genes, he is an impressive 1.8 meters tall, with his blonde hair close to reaching his shoulders.

Due to all the training and hard work, he has developed muscles, but all of them are in perfect proportions for a warrior, creating an extremely attractive look, with the final touch being his beautiful blue eyes that can make any girl and even adult women blush and fawn over him.

Thanks to Aria's genes, Arthur's face is perfect, making him one of the most handsome and attractive young adults. He does not act arrogant due to his achievements and looks, but he learned from Draven to be proud of himself, especially for things that are the result of his hard work.

So Arthur walks side by side with his father, like two proud lions, as they are admired by everyone in the village.

Some things remain the same for Arthur, such as the way Aria treats him as her beloved little boy, his relationship with Nyx, and how adorable his little sister is, now six years old. He doesn't mind being treated like a child by his mother and is always available to play with his sister.

Nyx has also grown in an even more impressive way than Arthur. If, when he met her, she looked like a 13 year old little girl, now she looks like a 17 year old young woman. Her skin is softer, her red hair is longer and more vibrant, her eyes are sharper and clearer, but the biggest changes happened to her physique.

She has grown to be 1,6 meters tall, with curves in all the right places. She has medium-sized breasts, a narrow waist, followed by long legs with sensual thighs and a round perky bottom, although she still loses in size to Aria by a decent margin. Her pure strawberry scent has evolved to the point of being an aphrodisiac, stirring deep desires in Arthur, which he can barely control as of late.

His desires have pushed him to grow closer to Nyx and try to evolve their relationship, as he has grown fond of her presence in his life over the years, and he can no longer imagine not having her by his side.

Due to her shyness and insecurity, he always felt like she was putting up a wall between them, even though Arthur can tell that she feels the same way as he does. On account of being too young to make a move, he has let her be so far, but he won't let things with Nyx continue that way.

He is determined to be bolder with Nyx for their own good, even if it means risking his secret being discovered by his parents and having to deal with her shy and timid personality.

With these thoughts in mind, Arthur wakes up on the morning of his fourteenth birthday.

____________

He doesn't open his eyes immediately and stays as still as possible because he feels that pleasant weight on his body.

'Is she pretending?' Arthur wonders why Nyx continues to lie over him even after he has woken up. She learned to always feel when he is about to wake up and returns to his Nexus before then, leaving her scent on his body as the only proof of having been there.

But now, on his birthday, Nyx doesn't disappear as usual.

'Maybe a birthday present?' He thinks happily.

"..." But Nyx continues without reaction.

Arthur doesn't know what to think. After three years of sleeping with Nyx, she always acted like a scared rabbit whenever he tried to get closer to her. Her perception also improved a lot, so she always knew about his intentions.

So now this situation is very suspicious. He doesn't know if she's holding back to let him get close to her or if she's really unconscious. In both options, he can already see her freaking out and returning to his Nexus at his first move.

'It's so hard!!' Arthur doesn't want to move and spoil that moment, but at the same time, he can't continue like this. He doesn't know how it was before because he was sleeping, but now his member is extremely hard and erect between Nyx's thighs.

'Think of something else, something else...' Arthur tries, but not even his incredible determination can help him stop thinking about Nyx's sensual body.

Just that is enough to drive Arthur crazy, but Nyx's body has other features that add to her attractiveness and uniqueness. Her cute tail with a heart-shaped tip has grown quite long in the past year while her small bat-like wings are still very immature on her back.

Arthur researched a lot in the thousands of books in his mother's library since he met Nyx, but he never found anything that could indicate what she is, nor any mentions of the Demons described in the books from Liam's world.

She is unique to this world, an exotic beauty of the most seductive type possible that only he can see. And now she is lying on top of him, semi-nude and apparently unconscious.

'How can a man resist this?!?!' Arthur screams in his mind, but thanks to his experience in the last three years, he can choose which thoughts she can hear. He managed to behave until now, but all his desires accumulated, becoming impossible to contain.

The 'unconscious' Nyx seems to feel that something is about to happen, or rather, is already happening, and she moves on Arthur's body.

"No!" He is afraid she will wake up and disappear, so he opens his eyes.

But to his surprise, she just changes position, which ends up making everything harder for him, as now her belly is literally pressing his groin. Nyx also turns her beautiful face towards Arthur, her eyes are closed, and she seems to really be sleeping comfortably.

"How can you be so beautiful?" He can't help but think. He really can't believe that shy little girl has grown to become so deadly.

When awake, she is hot as a demon, but sleeping, she looks beautiful as an angel and arouses in Arthur unholy desires. He always wanted to touch her body and feel her skin, along with her cherry shaped red lips. She almost let him do it on his previous birthdays, but shyness won both times, and she ran away at the last moment. So now he wonders if this is her third attempt to let him touch her.

'But why is she lying over me?' He can barely breathe due to Nyx's cute and soft belly pressing over his underpants. Waves of pleasure radiate from that area to his entire body, making him feel as if his body was being electrified.

He can't even think straight, but he really wants to touch her and can't miss that chance. So, determined, he moves his hand towards Nyx's face.

'Don't wake up, don't wake up, please!' He slowly stretches his hand towards his goal. But then he sees something that freezes him on the spot.

That is Nyx's lovely tail that rises and starts to wag excitedly.

'So fucking cute!!!' Arthur can't handle that sight, feeling overwhelmed by the contrast of Nyx' alluring beauty and the cuteness of her tails. Its adorable movements are like the cherry on top, making Arthur's situation harder and his little brother even harder.

Nyx also moves her body slowly and rhythmically on top of him, her belly caressing his groin in a way that makes him twitch and burst in pleasure, which, due to its size, ends up spilling over her belly.

'WHAT?!?' She 'wakes up' immediately and sees Arthur's smiling face painted with pure satisfaction as he breathes heavily with his eyes closed.

Nyx's expression quickly changes between surprise, embarrassment, anger, and excitement? There are so many emotions in her beautiful bright eyes that Arthur can't even begin to understand them.

Even as he is submerged in the feeling of his first experience in this lifetime, Arthur can predict what will happen next.

"Don't go-" He tries to ask Nyx to stay.

But it's too late; her shyness takes over all the other emotions, and she disappears in a cloud of pink smoke, returning to his Nexus. Nyx leaves Arthur stunned with the surprising sight of his clean lower belly area, which should be impossible after the mess he just made.

'Where did it…' Arthur is confused for a second before the only possibility comes to his mind.

'Nyx... did you… my…' He starts to ask, but then she surprises him again.

'Don't ask!' Those are the only words he will hear from her throughout the whole day.

And so Arthur begins his fourteenth birthday with such a wonderful present.

Chapter 7: A Perfect Gentleman

After the wonderful experience with Nyx, Arthur heads to the bathroom for his usual morning bath, not before changing the sheets of his bed. In the past three years, he has never failed to wash his body well to remove Nyx's scent, and he has also only spoken to her through mental communication.

Thus, not even Aria, being so smart and observant, could imagine that he had been sleeping in the same bed with a girl since he was eleven. On this particular day though, Arthur comes down for breakfast with an extra sparkle in his eyes, and Aria immediately recognizes it.

'It's not possible...' Aria wants to believe that her son is still an innocent angel, but the sparkle in his eyes is unmistakable.

"Mom?" Arthur notices that something is wrong, which makes him slightly concerned.

"How could I not notice it?" Aria thinks out loud before running up the stairs.

Arthur realizes that she is heading towards his room, so he goes after her. "Wait, Mom!!"

But Aria does not stop; she enters Arthur's room and starts rummaging through everything, looking for any sign of her suspicions. Finding nothing suspicious that could link Arthur to a girl, leaves Aria very confused.

She can feel that something is wrong, but there is no murder without a body. Her sharp gaze scans every millimeter of the room and always ends up coming back to his bed, specifically to the clean sheets over it.

"Did you change the sheets today? Why?" She asks Arthur with a penetrating gaze, trying to see through his soul.

Arthur hates lying to his mother, as it's not easy because she can detect it very easily. So he learned to lie by omission. "I think I woke up very excited today, you know... the other sheet was smelling, so I took it off."

It's impossible to talk about such a subject with his mother without getting embarrassed, so Arthur doesn't try to contain his emotions and lets his face blush naturally.

"Hmm..." Aria can see that he is telling the truth. 'But why do I feel like he's still hiding something from me? If he were with a girl, I would know,' she wonders. 'There's no way she could leave the house without me noticing...'

Without any evidence, Aria sighs and hugs Arthur. "Sorry, son, I think Mommy is becoming a senile old woman."

Arthur feels even worse for making his mother doubt herself. But he still thinks that telling about Nyx would bring more problems than he could handle right now.

"You're still very young, Mom," He tries to cheer her up, though he is being honest.

Aria smiles but then looks at him with expectant but also sad eyes. "You're growing up faster than Mommy can keep up with..."

"It seems so," Arthur responds honestly because he also feels how his body has matured over the past few years.

"Look at you... you already look like a young adult," Aria has to stand on her tiptoes to pinch Arthur's cheeks because he is already taller than her. She adopts a pondering stance and speaks with a loving tone. "You must want to do young adult things, too, right?"

Before Arthur can answer, she continues. "That's okay, just promise Mommy you'll talk to me before bringing girls home."

"I promise, Mom," Arthur can promise that without any weight on his conscience. After all, he can't bring Nyx home because she's always been there, and he doesn't think about bringing any other girl either.

Aria makes him lean towards her and places a tender kiss on his forehead. "Today is going to be your birthday, so everyone is coming, including the carpenter's daughter..."

Arthur can't help but feel embarrassed again. Talking about girls with his dad seems pretty normal, but with his mom, it feels awkward.

"She is already nineteen, so I don't like to imagine you two together..." Aria speaks honestly, showing her worry. "But I guess it's normal for boys to be interested in older girls, so it's okay."

"I get it, I get it!" Arthur can't take any more of this weird conversation and nods quickly to his mom.

"Alright," Aria leaves Arthur and starts walking towards the door. "Remember, be responsible and kind."

"Yes, Mom," He quickly replies.

It seems like Aria is done, but then she turns around and starts to make seals with her fingers in the air. That's an enchantment that Arthur is used to seeing his mother do to take things out of nothing, or rather, from a dimensional storage that she has. Only powerful mages can do it as easily as Aria, and in an instant, she makes a beautiful box adorned in her hands appear.

"Mommy thought about giving this to you when you turned fifteen," Aria sighs dejectedly and hands the box to Arthur. "But it looks like the time has come a little earlier than expected."

Arthur opens the box and blushes furiously when he sees the contents. There are many small packages of fabric similar to the plastic of Liam's world.

"You know what they are, don't you?" Aria shakes her head, clearly a little angry and disappointed. "Did Draven tell you?"

Arthur nods because his dad really did talk to him about that two years ago. He still remembers his father's words: Protection so that you can be with a woman without having babies. In this world, they call them love wards, but in Liam's world, it was a condom, so Arthur understands what it's for and how to use it.

"Well," Aria isn't truly upset that Draven is teaching such things to Arthur even though he is young, she just feels a little frustrated that it happened so early.

"You know how to use it, right?" She asks. "Or do you still have any doubts?"

"No doubts, no doubts!" Arthur quickly exclaims; after all, he doesn't want to talk to his mother about condoms.

"Good," Aria smiles. "Also, try not to use them all too quickly, but when you need more, come to me, and I will make more for you."

Arthur can't imagine how embarrassing it would be to have to ask his mother for more condoms to be able to be with Nyx. But he also knows that only magic craftsmen can make them, so the only options are to find another mage or buy from traveling merchants, in which case they are expensive.

Arthur looks at the box with dozens of condoms and can't help but be happy to have such a good mother.

"Thank you, Mom!" He smiles at Aria because, despite her often creating embarrassing situations for him, she always tries her best.

"Mommy loves you, darling," Aria strokes Arthur's hair and then leaves the room.

Arthur looks at the box of wards and can only think about using them on Nyx, but she can't even talk to him now because of the morning episode, so that dream seems very distant. However, he is determined to shorten the distance between them, and apparently, the only obstacle is her shy personality.

With his mind full of thoughts about how to improve his relationship with Nyx, Arthur continues enjoying his fourteenth birthday. As it happens every year, Draven and Aria throw a big party in the village, both for him and for little Eve.

That is not only to celebrate the birth of their children, but also for the benefit of the villages' population, who enjoy such events. The Fletcher village is not that small in territory, having many large farms, but its population is very simple, living with things produced only in the village.

Arthur's family is clearly the richest in the village, but this is due to Aria selling items that she crafts with magic to traveling merchants who pass through.

Draven also could earn a lot of money if he accepted it from the farmers who try to pay him for taking care of everyone. However, his morals and good upbringing do not allow him to accept more than food and resources in the village; after all, he does not need money to take care of his family's basic needs.

Yet, Aria sells her magic items to be able to buy useful things like magic materials and rare resources that can't be found in the village, in addition to clothes and jewelry as well.

As today is Arthur's birthday and he already looks like a young adult, she makes him wear his most luxurious clothes, a set of fine white and red linen clothes with golden ornaments.

Thanks to his very handsome appearance, he looks like a fairy tale prince, and the girls can hardly walk after passing by him because of how weak their knees become. Aria notices it, but she still makes him greet all the guests at the entrance of their large estate.

The guests gather inside the house, mainly in the back garden, where they participate in typical games of their culture, dances, and talks about all kinds of topics.

Aria makes a lot of food using her rare ingredients, making everyone very satisfied, turning the party into a success as always. Today, in particular, the girls are even more excited because Aria seems to have allowed Arthur to have a girlfriend.

Dozens of girls implore their parents to ask for Draven and Aria's permission, but they refuse to do it for fear of offending the Fletchers. No matter how well Draven and Aria treat the people in the village, the farmers instinctively feel that they are not on the same social level.

They don't understand how a couple like the Fletchers ended up in such a simple village when they clearly have the potential to be the King and Queen of whole Kingdoms.

But as they are very kind to everyone and help the village a lot, the farmers are very grateful to them. And while it's okay to accept their help and participate in their parties, none of them considers the idea of their daughters marrying a promising young man like Arthur.

Arthur hates that kind of thinking just as Liam hated it in his past life, especially now because Draven is always teaching him that no person is better than another just for being born from a powerful lineage.

Draven and Arthur really hate such things, but no matter how good they are to the people in the village, they only see them with more respect and admiration, which increases the gap between them in social aspects.

So, those poor girls can only look at Arthur from afar and imagine how good it would be to be his girlfriend because their parents don't want to offend Draven and Aria. Case in point, when the time comes for the birthday boy to dance with the guests, a common custom in the farmers' culture, they all hold their daughters back.

A strange silence envelops the happy atmosphere of the party, and Draven can't help but feel ashamed. At that moment, Arthur walks up to one of the simplest families among the farmers and bows respectfully to them.

"May I have the honor of dancing with your daughter?" He asks in a respectful and gallant manner.

The head of the family almost panics as he sees the Fletchers as the most honorable royalty ever, so he quickly tries to bow lower than Arthur.

"No, my friend," But then Draven appears and prevents the poor man from bowing. "We are all equal here, so let the young have fun."

That farmer can't change the mindset ingrained over a lifetime, but as the Fletcher family doesn't really seem to care about social differences, he tries not to think about it just for now.

To the girl's delight, her father lets her dance with Arthur, and he makes her feel like a princess in a fairy tale for the next few minutes. Some people fear that Arthur is not as noble as Draven and may be thinking of using the simple girls as servants, just like most nobles do.

But he treats all the girls at the party with great respect and gives each of them an unforgettable dance. Draven is proud of his son because Arthur can already break stupid social barriers more easily than he can.

"How did we end up making such a good son?" He asks Aria.

"What good son?" Aria shakes her head and speaks in a fake upset tone with a pout. "I said he could have a girlfriend, and a few hours later, he's making all the girls in the village fall in love with him..."

"Hahaha..." Draven couldn't be prouder of his son.

On the other hand, Aria can't help but be a little jealous; after all, her little boy is becoming a young adult, and it won't be long before he starts thinking about leaving her to explore the world and create his own family.

"Oh..." Little Eve can't help but admire her big brother even more and feels jealous of the girls around him. Of course, she's also going to ask for a princess dance next, as is her right.

Chapter 8: Love Game

Arthur finishes dancing with all the girls at the party, and even though they have no hopes of becoming his wives, they make memories they can cherish forever. With that, the party comes to an end and the guests start returning to their homes after thanking the Fletchers for their hospitality.

After the rest of the families leave, only the Carpenters remain, who have a closer relationship with Arthur's family, probably due to Draven and Aria thinking he is interested in their eldest daughter.

Margaret is nineteen years old and is considered by everyone to be the most beautiful girl in the village in that age range; after all, no girl can compete with the growing beauty of sweet little Eve.

Still, the eldest daughter of the Carpenters does not seem like a simple peasant and could even compete with nobles in beauty as well as elegance. Her mother has raised her in the best possible way so that she can have a promising future, probably serving some kind-hearted noble.

Of course, such a dream is almost impossible since nobles like Draven are extremely rare, and most of them see people like the Carpenters as trash. But Arthur is clearly like Draven, so the Carpenters can't help but have some hope for their daughter.

While they talk to Draven and Aria, Margaret goes to Arthur, who is currently giving the last dance to sweet Eve. She enjoys the scene of Arthur gently spinning Eve in the middle of the garden, a lovely scene of sibling bonds.

'He is also so loving…' Margaret knew that Arthur would be the most perfect man ever since he was still eleven years old, so now she is even more sure of it.

Arthur notices the girl looking at him with bright eyes. "Margaret? Is everything okay?"

"Ah, yes," She smiles gently at him. "Our parents are saying goodbye, so I came to say goodbye to you too..."

She always seems shy when talking to him, but thanks to Liam's memories, Arthur is very good at noticing when people are lying. And that seems to be the case with Margaret.

Arthur knows she doesn't do it out of malice but simply tries to appear cute and reserved to get his affection. But she has already started a losing battle because Nyx is not only the most beautiful girl Arthur has ever seen but she is also naturally cute and adorable.

Yet, Arthur is aware of Margaret's feelings and does not want to hurt the poor girl. So he stops dancing with Eve and gives her a tender kiss on her forehead. "Go see if Mom needs some help, sweetheart."

"Mm!" The cute little girl runs into the house, obeying her big brother.

"She is so adorable!" Margaret speaks honestly, but she can't hide her intentions reflected in her eyes.

"She is indeed," Arthur smiles proudly; he loves his sister just as he loves his parents.

But after saying that, a strange silence begins to arise because Arthur has nothing to say to Margaret. However, she is determined and makes her fake shy expression again. "Hey… did you like my gift?"

"Gift?" Arthur looks at the big gifts table and sees dozens of colorful boxes there. All the farmers brought gifts for him, and he hasn't had the time to open them all yet.

Margaret runs to the table and picks up a small red box with a white, fragrant bow.

"Here," She hands the box to Arthur.

Since the box is very small, fitting inside his hand, he wonders what it could be. The box is also very light, and when Arthur opens it, he finds only a piece of paper with a kiss mark from lipstick. He picks up the folded paper and opens it, on which it's written in red ink: Free Kiss.

'This girl is bold!' He can't help but think when he sees the expectant smile on Margaret's face.

"Thank you," He speaks in a gentle tone and smiles at her kindly.

But she seems disappointed. "This isn't quite the reaction I was expecting..."

"Margaret..." Arthur doesn't quite know how to handle that situation. She seems like a really good girl, and he can't deny that he is attracted to her beauty and nature.

But every time he got close to Margaret, Nyx would spend days without talking to him. As his relationship with her seems about to improve, he can't risk ruining it by being selfish enough to try and have two girlfriends at the same time.

However, Margaret doesn't seem willing to give up. "What's wrong? Don't you find me attractive?"

"That's not it," Arthur speaks honestly. "You are beautiful."

"So what's the problem then?" She asks, impatient and dejected. "I don't see you looking at any other girl... maybe you like... men?"

Arthur doesn't even need to wonder about that question because the feelings that Nyx awakens in his body make it clear that he likes girls. But he does wonder if telling Margaret that he is gay could make her suffer less from the rejection.

"I-" Arthur tries to speak, but he is not quick enough.

"Don't lie to me!" Margaret almost shouts in a serious tone. "I know you're not like that; I've seen you peeking at my body... you'd like to touch me, wouldn't you?"

Again, Arthur can't say anything before she continues. "But if you're not willing... maybe... is there another girl? Someone I don't know?"

He nods with a regretful expression. "I'm sorry."

Margaret sighs, relieved. "I almost thought there was something wrong with me. But if that's the case... well, if I were her, I'd like you to refuse other girls too, so I can't hold that against you."

Arthur appreciates Margaret for that, which makes him feel even worse for rejecting her. But then she surprises him.

"Ehh... so, maybe you can talk to her..." Margaret makes her usual shy expression. "And if she doesn't mind, I could be your second."

"My second?" Arthur is confused at first but then he remembers studying with his mother about the customs of their world. It's not uncommon for men and women to have multiple spouses, and in the case of men, their women can even be classified as main wife, secondary wives, concubines, and even mistresses.

Arthur feels flattered by Margaret's willingness to be his second wife, but he has no interest in making a harem now. He is still trying to overcome Nyx's barriers, and he's sure that he would be satisfied with only her. But he also knows that saying this to Margaret would only hurt her feelings, so he uses his tactic of the half-truth to delay it.

"I will talk to her, but I can't promise anything," He uses the gentlest tone he can muster.

That is enough to make Margaret show a radiant smile. "Thank you so much, Arthur!"

Arthur is happy for Margaret, but then the girl uses that moment to launch a surprise attack, trying to kiss him.

Due to all his training in the last few years, but especially the lineages of Draven and Aria, Arthur's senses and agility are incredible. He can see Margaret's movements in slow motion when he focuses deeply enough, and an idea comes to his mind.

Since she is being so bold as to try to steal a kiss from him, he won't mind playing with her a little. Thus, Arthur doesn't fully dodge Margaret's attack, but just turns his face a bit to the side, letting her kiss land on his cheek and not on the mouth as she had planned.

"Ah?!" Margaret is surprised at Arthur's speed but happy to have managed to kiss his face at least.

And just as Arthur expected, he feels a pulse in his Nexus. Nyx does not appear, but she clearly has an intense reaction to Margaret's kiss, though he hopes she won't react too badly.

"Margaret..." Arthur speaks her name in a regretful tone. "I have to talk to her before anything else."

"I'm sorry," She replies sadly, with deep longing in her voice. "I can't contain myself when I'm close to you."

"I see," Arthur understands what Margaret means because he feels the same with Nyx. But he managed to restrain himself for three years thanks to his determination.

Margaret realizes that she went too far this time, so she leaves after smiling at him. "I'll wait for your answer!"

Arthur can't do anything for her right now, so he turns his attention back to Nyx. 'Oi, did something happen to you? I felt something strange in my Nexus just earlier.'

'Nothing happened!' Nyx exclaims in his mind in the coldest tone he has ever heard her use to date. 'Nothing at all! I don't care if you kiss any stupid girl; it has nothing to do with me!!'

Arthur doesn't know whether to laugh or cry from hearing Nyx being so upset; it's evident that she's burning with jealousy on one hand, but that also means that she is possessive of him on the other.

He let things flow naturally for three years, and nothing changed, so now he goes on the offensive with everything to provoke her reactions.

'What kiss are you talking about? Were you peeking at us?' He smirks teasingly.

'Stupid Arthur!!!' Nyx screeches, even more upset by his remark. 'Don't talk to me anymore!'

Arthur finds Nyx's shy and jealous reactions extremely cute. But he knows he needs to handle her carefully, without pushing her too hard but also without backing off. For now, though, he leaves her alone and enters the house, searching for his parents.

"Good job, son!" Draven gives him a thumbs-up sign with his proudest expression.

Aria shakes her head at Draven, but throws a gentle smile at Arthur. "I saw Margaret leaving with an expectant smile on her face; are you two getting along well?"

"I tried to be kind..." Arthur speaks honestly.

Aria understands how he feels just based on his eyes, which doesn't have that special glow, leaving her confused.

'If that wasn't because of Margaret...' Aria can't help but wonder. 'Then who is she?'

She keeps her thoughts to herself and strokes Arthur's hair. "Don't worry, when you find the right girl, you'll feel it in your heart."

Aria may have a possessive side and want to keep Arthur always close to her, but in the end, she wants the best for him and for him to be happy, even if it means leaving her in the near future.

Arthur has already found the most perfect girl, but there is still a lot of work ahead until he makes her his good wife.

"Got it, Mom," He replies to his mother, returning her smile with a warm hug.

Afterwards, Arthur says goodnight to his father and gives a warm hug to his little sister before climbing the stairs, planning on his next step with Nyx.

"Good night, big brother..." Little Eve exclaims as she watches him rush to the second floor.

Unlike him, Eve is a normal child; well, as normal as it's possible when being the daughter of people as incredible as Aria and Draven. And besides the love for her parents, Eve also loves her brother very much and has a strong admiration for him.

On the second floor, Arthur takes a quick bath and goes to his bedroom. His day was quite hectic, so he lies in bed and closes his eyes. He doesn't sleep yet, but spends half an hour with his eyes closed without making any movement, just waiting silently until…

'Hey...' Nyx's curious voice sounds in his mind. 'Why didn't you kiss that girl?'

Like an innocent rabbit that falls into a hunter's trap, Nyx does exactly what Arthur expected. Now, if he plays his cards right, he may be able to improve his relationship with her before the end of the night.