(2 years and 1 month after Reincarnation)
[Kyrielle's POV]
(The next day)
After the stunt yesterday, I found out that magic exists here in this world. I also found out that this world has a rich history involving magic, lying in wait for me to discover. And within the storage room there's a chest that contains books that details those exactly! I can't help but feel extremely tempted to try and read the books inside....
The problem is, after I made a mess inside and injured myself, mom forbade me from entering the storage room again and locked the door up.
If I want to enter the storage room again, I would need to 'borrow' the key to the door and sneak out the books inside the chest to my room so that I could read them at my leisure.
The plan is to grab the key from the living room and then wait for the perfect opportunity to sneak into the storage room when mom's busy with attending to customers, when she doesn't have enough time to see me.
I waited for a while in the living room as I studied language with a book.... until a customer walked in.
She looks young, about 25 years old? She's fair skinned, has white long hair, and her eyes are pink colored... it's almost glowing and it gives off a sense of magic.
She's dressed in a white robe that has light pink lines at the ends, and the robe has a hood which she wore over her head.
This is like a long sleeved robe dress that ends slightly above the knee. She wears white boots as well that ends in the middle of the calves... She's really fashionable.
"May I help you, miss?" Ghyse asked without waiting while mom is busy at the counter with making potions.
"Yes, I want to order potions."
"Very well, miss. Please wait a moment."
Ghyse went to the counter, and searched inside a box for something. The white lady waited for a while before she looked at me directly in the eye and smiled at me.
"Hello, cute little girl." She said with a kind face.
"H-hello...."
Her eyes are intimidating! Couple that with the fact that she's a beauty, I can't help but avert my gaze whenever she looks at me....
Oh wait, I'm supposed to be sneaking into the storage room right now. This is the perfect chance because everyone is distracted!
I sneaked up to the drawer in the living room and tried to grab the key that's on top of it.... The problem is I'm too short to reach it.
I looked around for tools that I could use to get it... It was then when I saw my winter coat hanging on a coat stand. Seeing that, I had an idea.
"Aha!"
I grabbed the coat on one end and threw it above the shelf, covering the key. Then I pull the coat down... The coat dragged the key along with it and dropped onto the ground. I successfully got the key to the storage room and I carefully put the coat back on the clothes stand in the living room.
"...?" As I did all those, the white lady stared at me with a puzzled look. I didn't dare to look at her in the eyes, so I made my escape to the second floor.
I quickly climbed up the stairs while I still have time... The white lady watched my every movement quietly without saying anything.
Her looks and eyes are just too intimidating... I could feel goosebumps whenever I looked her directions, and she's staring intensely at me while I stole the key.... My shy little boy (girl) self is acting up today.
As I climbed up the stairs, I heard Ghyse talking again.
"Sorry for the wait. Here's a receipt for the order... shall I write it down for you?"
"Sure, thank you."
"No worries. Can I have your name?"
After a slight pause, the white lady answered.
"You may be surprised but... it's Lynn Howard."
"Lynn Howard you said?!" Ghyse shouted out in surprise.
"W-what?! Who did you just said Ghyse?!" Mom was surprised as well.
As I moved up the stairs I can no longer hear the conversation any longer. I wonder why Ghyse was so surprised at the lady's name....
Well, no matter. I am a man on a mission, I can't be distracted!
I stood in front of the storage room's door and looked around to make sure that no one is around.... I stealthily opened the storage room and then went inside.
The shelf that I bumped into has been rearranged exactly like before, the glass shards and unknown potions were cleaned up as well. But my objective here isn't to check up on those, it's to take the books!
I went up to the chest and opened it the same way like I did before, by climbing into it and pushing open the cover from the inside.
Hmm, which book should I take for now? I think I'll go with this "History of the Great Demon War and the Battle of Creimland" that details the war between humans and demons. And then I'll take that 'Basic Magical Textbook' to research on magic as well...
If this world has magic of course I'm gonna learn it! Back in my world there wasn't anything even remotely similar to magic so it is natural for me to be curious about it!
This time I'll be careful whenever I'm casting magic as well.
Anyway, I closed the chest quietly and then grabbed the 2 books. I turned around quietly to walk towards the door in order to sneak out. But then...
"Eek!!"
"Wah!... Kyrielle?!..."
I was surprised and shrieked when I saw Ghyse standing in front of the door. It seems that Ghyse was surprised by my presence as well... She recomposed herself and asked me calmly.
"May I ask how did you got in here?"
"Umm... I stole the key... "
After a brief awkward silence, Ghyse replied.
"I see... at least you are honest about it... But I'm afraid I'll have to tell madam about this."
I pretended to cry and spoke in the cutest voice possible to beg for compassion... I'm really a scum aren't I? But I don't want to be grounded so I have no choice! I'm still scared of my parents after all!
"Nyooooo! Pwease don't tell mom about it! I'm only here because I want to read the books! If you tell mom she'll never let me read books ever again!"
I learned that in my past life if I disobeyed my parents they would get angry and lock me up. Sometimes my dad would even hit me for it....
"You just wanted the books?... That's no big deal at all. Next time you want something, you must ask for it, it is not good to steal for things okay?"
....She's not even angry about it? And she even decided to help me out of her own accord?
"You can't enter this room by yourself because it's dangerous. If you want to get the books in the chest, you can ask me or your mother to help you. You can have the books and read them in the living room, but I will still tell her about this."
"Okay... I'm sorry.... "
I handed her the key, and Ghyse patted my head after sighing again. She took the herbs that she came up for. She carried the herbs and also me down stairs.
This is the first time she has ever carried me.... Maybe she doesn't dislike me at all.
Ghyse sat me down on one of the living room's couch and went back to the counter.
"Ghyse, I heard some commotion up stairs... Did something happened?"
"Yes, Kyrielle sneaked into the storage room because she wants to read the books there. "
"Oh? I thought I put the keys somewhere Kyrie couldn't reach... but she can have the books, I don't see a problem."
....She's not angry as well?
Unlike my past, my new mom won't yell at me simply because of something like this.... A person like me, a bully and a failure of a person, wasn't just given a second chance in life but also two great loving parents to top it off....
Something in the back of my head awakened seeing this... I suddenly remembered a major detail about my past life.... about why I was an outcast in my school.
___________________
Back in my old life, I was never allowed to even do anything against my parent's will, and I'd be punished heavily for doing so. Being the second son of the family, I was always compared to my better elder brother who never disobeyed them.
I became a bully just because they told me not to.... But I knew that my parents had nothing to do with it, I'm just trying to put the blame on them....
I hated my parents.... But I also liked them.
One day when I am in my third year of middle school, an accident happened. One of my little prank of throwing a pen at a girl in my class went terribly wrong.
"Hey, Satori! Look over here!"
"What is it Taki?! Are you going to pick a fight agai-"
I threw a pen at her head, intending to hit her forehead as she turns around... But my aim was shit...
'Stab!'
"Ahh!!! My eye!!!"
Blood flowed out of her eyes as if it was a hole in a water tank. The pen had impaled right in her eyeball.
"Oh shit.... Oh shit.... I didn't mean to...."
"Someone call the teacher!"
"Taki-kun, what did you do?!"
"You stabbed Satori-chan with the pen...?"
"No... I didn't meant it.... It was an accident...."
That was no accident. That was stupidity.
_______________
Of course, the school called my parents for it and after that I was given a pretty severe beating.... After that incident, I planned to apologise to her, but she never showed up at the school anymore. She was afraid of the school... Afraid of me. I had ruined someone's life over a prank.
His parents showed up after about 2 weeks and gave notice about transferring their kid to another school... I went to the teacher's office to find them because I just can't do nothing.
___________
(Sometime in the past...)
(Taki's POV, 15 years old)
"Excuse me... Are you two the parents of Uzumaki Satori?..."
"You... You are the one who blinded my daughter's eye right?..."
I could see her father's fist trembling in anger, as if he's about to burst out in any moment.
"....Yes."
"You bastard!"
He raised his hand and as he was about to slap me...
'Grab!' His wife grabbed his arm.
"Honey, don't! He is still just a child, his parents are the one who should be punched instead... Let it go..."
"....Tsk... Don't talk to us or my daughter again, or I'll sue your family for real."
"Umm... madam-"
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending you, little brat. I won't seek anything from you, but don't push your luck."
They both turned around to walk away, without even batting an eye at me.
"Um!... Can I ask to see Satori-chan again?..."
"Just stop! Our daughter doesn't want to see your face! Can you understand that we want you to leave our family alone?!"
I... I just wanted to apologize properly....
_____________
After that incident, my parents grew distant to me. Sometimes they would try to mediate our relationship by being somewhat understanding but in the end something would happen to put us at each other's throat again and again and again. We never got along better.
When I entered highschool, news has already spread that I was a delinquent.... No one wanted to be my friend because of my reputation. Senpais of the higher grades would even pick on me for that.
My parents thinks that I'm a scum, and I thought so too..... It hurts even more when I know that I can't help the girl named Uzumaki Satori at all... I have to forever live with this guilt inside of me.
School life was terrible, so I retreated to video games and the internet. I was lonely and exhausted, but no one came to my side, not even my parents.
As there's nothing to look forward to in school, I naturally started to skip some classes and cared little for school which further worsened my reputation. My grades dropped following that, and frequently phone calls were made to my parents about my performance and behavior at school. Things continued like that for almost 2 years.
I thought that my high school life was gonna end like that as I was already a third year.... That is until one day, a school trip was announced. A group of classmates invited me to join them... I don't know why but a trio of two boys and one girl made an effort to get along with me.
I was so glad that someone actually showed interest in me... I thought I could give it my best and go on this school trip as a nice person... but karma striked back. It always does...
On the day of the trip, we went on a bus and the trip was to go and visit Kyoto, driving us all the way from Tokyo. As the bus was driving uphill, something must have happened, as that was he last thing that I remembered about my past life.
That something has now brought me here to this alternate world.... was it a punishment from god? Or a salvation? I would never understand it myself.
I don't really know what happened, all I know is that as I sat in my seat, a bright flash of light and a loud explosion suddenly happened. What came after that is me waking up in an ambulance with blinded eyes and broken limbs... I must've died on the way to the hospital.
It might even be a possibility that everyone in my class died as well.... since I heard the paramedics talking in the ambulance implying that they are in fact dead.
Though I'm only an aquantaince with the other 15 classmates I still felt sorry for their death... it feels like I have something to do with it, and that they were caught in my punishment.
______________
Remembering so many bad memories put me in a depressed mood.... Before I know it, my eyes started tear up as I started to wipe tears off my face.
"E-eh?! Kyrie why are you crying?! Does it still hurt somewhere?! Are you hungry?! Was mama too angry at you?! Did Ghyse bully you?!"
"Thank you mama... thank you for treating me so kindly..."
Mom is confused as to why I said that, and it's definitely not for the reason she thinks it is. Not that she would fully understand even if I explained how grateful I am...
"...Of course, you are my one and only, cutest daughter after all! If I am not kind to you, then who else will?"
She pulled out a napkin from her pockets and wiped the tears off my face. Then, she grabbed my face with both of her hand to kiss me on the forehead.
'Smooch!' Ouch... she's gonna suck my face off at this rate....
"Alright Kyrie, mama will have to continue working now. I'll play with you later, so don't cry now!"
"Mmnn... sniff..."
She stood back up and went back to the counter to continue brewing potions.
Maybe with a new life like this, with loving parents like Thomas and Katherine, a caring aunt like Ghyse, even I can live out my life in full again.... Words alone cannot explain how grateful I am for this, this is exactly what I wished for when I was in my old world... back when I was an outcast of society.
"Madam, that sentence is still a bit too cheesy for you to say."
"I can do it because I'm a mother, unlike you who's still single!"
"I'm trying my best okay?! It's just that no men around these parts are interested in me...."
"Oh don't worry, the clown college are full of people who'd date you-"
"That's going a bit too far, madam."
"Oops, forget that I said anything."
The only way to honor the kindness of my new parentd, is to live my life to the fullest... That's right!
I gently slapped myself in the cheek to cheer myself up.
"Alright!" I'll try my hardest to live out my life to its fullest then!
(Chapter end)