Yo. The Library of Van Shi Tong.
Three pairs of eyes watched with bated breath as a massive green bud slowly began to unfurl, as if in slow motion. The spacious room, once filled with empty space, was now engulfed in greenery.
"I hope it's a girl!" I silently prayed. I have nothing against boys, and I wouldn't shortchange my bloodline, but... I really want a daughter! It feels like, even from my past life, I've always wanted a girl. She'd be an extension of my woman, a new piece of her and ... Or am I just biased?
"For the child's safety, we can examine them imdiately..." Van Shi Tong was already scheming in his mind, eager to touch the new, unexplored life.
Over the next few seconds, the outer layer of the bud began to dissolve into the air. Soon, Driya herself appeared. With her eyes closed, held by vines, she cradled sothing—or soone—in her arms.
"Everything seems fine," I thought with imnse relief, finding no visible issues.
"Driya," I whispered, afraid to take the first step.
A second later, she opened her eyes, filled with confusion and bewildernt. But in an instant, they were replaced by happiness and love. Her gaze fell on the precious bundle in her arms.
"Co closer," she whispered, carefully rising.
Gaya and I, as if enchanted, cautiously approached, trying to glimpse the tiny spirit-child. I had no doubts about the nature of my child. I could clearly sense the active, uncontrolled bursts of energy—earth, water, and nature—interspersed with a heavier life force.
"A girl!" I wanted to shout it at the top of my lungs, but for now, I kept it to myself. In Driya's arms lay a little girl, about three years old, super sweet and adorable. Her tiny face was a copy of Driya's, except for her bright green hair. Her skin, however, was unmistakably human. In the future, she'd surely be one of the most beautiful girls, embodying the best of both human and spirit. Her most striking feature was the large flower resting on her head. Pink petals and a circle of yellow tubes, like a daisy, reminded of an earthly anemone—or windflower—though I hadn't found its equivalent here.
"What should we na her?" I asked Driya quietly, embracing her from behind, my eyes fixed on our daughter. I couldn't get enough of her... The doubts about my competence or responsibility that had plagued earlier now seed so foolish. For this little one, I'd strive to be the best parent.
"You na her," Driya replied.
"Should I na her after a female character from Japanese ani?" The girl was almost an exact copy of Celine from *Love Troubles*. As I thought, she opened her eyes, curiously exploring her new world.
"Let's call her Celine," I said confidently. Even her smile and big eyes reminded of that adorable girl who radiated love pollen. I couldn't resist and took Celine into my arms. At that mont, her tiny nose sniffed cautiously, and only after recognizing as soone close, she snuggled into .
Van Shi Tong, realizing nothing would happen today, congratulated us on the new addition and left. Gaya stayed with us for a while, occasionally shooting envious glances at Driya. Sotis her eyes would fall on , filled with thoughtfulness—sothing I'd seen before... Just like how Jun once looked at . Only after an hour of fussing with the child did she retreat to her quarters.
"How have you been feeling all this ti?" I asked Driya through our spiritual connection, careful not to wake Celine.
"It felt like I was sleeping..." she replied, gathering her thoughts. "So inner warmth enveloped my body. Then the warmth ford into a ball, which soon beca our daughter," Driya said, her words dripping with positive emotions.
Celine slept between us, her tiny body touching her mother's. It seed they were still exchanging energies, like breastfeeding, where the child still needed a piece of the mother.
Driya herself was on the final stretch, nearly reaching the level of an Ancient Spirit. She was just a step away from that realm. Soon, she'd be stronger than , which made incredibly happy.
For the next couple of days, I spent all my ti with my daughter. I cuddled her, tried to teach her things, played with her, did everything to make her happy. It was clear she wouldn't start talking right away, so I'd have to teach her everything. But she already knew how to send her emotions through thought-speech.
"Sh-sh-sh," she hissed like a kitten whenever we tried to dress her. She refused to wear anything. We'd tried every piece of clothing imaginable, from shorts to loose dresses. From the start, we knew it was a futile effort, but her reaction was too adorable. Her furrowed brows, "fierce" gaze, and the threateningly raised flower on her head created a scene I desperately wanted to paint.
Gaya was with us the whole ti. Sotis I thought she even stood outside our door at night, just to reunite with our daughter as soon as possible. Even Driya, Celine's actual mother, seed to pale in comparison to Gaya. She was a natural mother, and perhaps not without reason the world had given her the symbolic na of a mother goddess.
"Want more?" I asked Celine when she approached again with outstretched arms, her big ani-like eyes fixed on .
"With a father like this, you'll definitely grow up spoiled," I shook my head, picking her up and releasing my version of nature energy—a blend of earth, water, and life force. For so reason, she loved absorbing it. It probably benefited her developnt. I hadn't delved too deeply into her energy yet, afraid of doing sothing irreversible. But according to Van Shi Tong, everything was fine.
"No, you can't hurt the fox," I said sternly, though I was thrilled by my daughter's actions. Good girl, avenging her father! Lately, she'd taken to grabbing the tail of the Spirit of Knowledge's assistant. The fox spirit had also fallen under her charm, letting her do whatever she wanted. What could I say? Even Roku, Yuki, and Wan sotis "zoned out" to enjoy Celine's amusing monts. Perhaps only Van Shi Tong was immune, but even that was questionable... The torn pages of so books went unntioned by him. A clear sign!
We thought she'd start speaking first, but no—she began conquering. Or rather, manipulating. The elents obeyed her, doing whatever she commanded. With her tiny reserve, she intuitively perford techniques at the master level.
"She's definitely my daughter!" For the first ti, I felt fatherly pride watching her "creations." The entire library beca her playground. With water, she'd flood the room, splashing happily among floating manuscripts, as if the Owl forgave Celine for everything. Another ti, she left traces of her tiny hand along the stone walls. Now, you'd often find a beautiful flower in the middle of an empty corridor.
As soon as she stopped drawing energy from Driya, we were able to examine her more thoroughly. No bad news, but plenty of good... She had three sources! Specifically, sources of water, earth, and nature, which allowed her mischief. Plus, her life energy source was also at a good level.
"Ap-chi," she sneezed cutely, shooting golden pollen from her flower.
"Ah, my cuteness levels are off the charts again," I thought. Maybe it's ti to consider another child? Kaya has been eyeing other little kids for a while.
No one was bothered by her nudity anymore... We'd gotten used to it. But it seed we'd forgotten who her mother was. As soon as Celine started actively using her powers, she imdiately grew one of the dresses we'd tried to put on her.
"Who's so pretty?" Apparently, our over-the-top reaction to her created outfit birthed a future fashion industry giant...
She began changing her outfits daily, sotis combining things that didn't match, yet still looking perfectly suited to her.
Driya started helping with plant magic. I'd stopped trying to create anything on my own, not wanting a repeat of that "ear" incident. So, I only copied what Driya showed . And yes, even that wasn't easy. Gaya herself didn't understand so aspects—after all, she preferred more classical techniques in this field. Once again, I failed to create sothing acceptable, and frustration flashed across my face.
"Here!" Serious Celine squatted beside , handing an exact replica of the ear Driya usually created.
"Thank you," I smiled, accepting the gift. Seeing I was no longer upset, Celine patted my shoulder like an adult, as if saying, "Don't worry, there's still ti."
I couldn't take it anymore and quickly pulled her into my tender embrace. Another round of cuddles began.
"Pa!" she said sternly, which ant, "Let go!"
"I think I'm starting to understand my mom..." she too loved bothering with affection as a child. Celine had learned to speak simple syllables like "pa," "ma," and "na," infusing them with various anings, masterfully complenting them with her pose or tone.
"Yo, she doesn't like that," said Celine's eternal savior. Gaya, it's your duty as my child's guardian to allow the coddling! But of course, I stayed silent, releasing my daughter.
Putting on a very upset face, I peeked at Celine with one eye. She didn't last long... Quickly toddling over, she planted a kiss on my cheek before running back.
In her mind, it was a sort of comforting compensation. It amused her—this adult-child behavior. It seed sothing reflected in my eyes, as she quickly dragged Gaya away.
A few days ago, Van Shi Tong reminded about training. And indeed, I shouldn't neglect my developnt. Recently, I'd ntioned that the gravity room and lava baths were no longer as effective. Progress was there, but it was asured in fractions of a percent. I needed sothing new.
Analyzing all my developed aspects, I realized I'd been neglecting bones, organs, tendons, and ligants. I decided to start poisoning my body with various strong toxins, "disabling" my second chakra. Let my body fight on its own, growing stronger. I'd use life energy to limit the poison's effects. Later, the Spirit of Knowledge presented a new room—one designed to break my bones. I never thought I'd agree to such a thing, but apparently, I don't know myself very well. Power demands sacrifice, but I still can't get used to the sound of my bones cracking.
I learned to train my tendons and ligants on my own. Fortunately, I didn't need Van Shi Tong's help for that.
"Only Celine loves Daddy," I "complained," receiving pats and attention from her. Yes, I'm playing unfairly, but soon she'll understand more and won't fall for it. So, I'll take advantage while I still can. And yes, Gaya, you can stop giving those judgntal looks—I'm too "thick-skinned" anyway.
I can boldly call this period one of the best, if not the best, in this life.
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