Then he saw on the three side—three kids circling a smaller one like hyenas. Pointy ears, black hair, clutching something fluffy to her chest. Elf girl. Getting shoved.

  "Hand over the horse, freak."

  Leo's stomach twisted. 'Not again.'

  He walked up quiet. One bully noticed.

  "Beat it, shrimp."

  Leo ignored him, eyes on the kid gripping the girl's arm. "Let go."

  The bully puffed up. "Or what?"

  Leo sighed. He lifted one finger. "Do you guys even know who my dad is?"

  One of the kids whispered to his friend, "Hey, his father is Caden."

  "Wait, what really?"

  "Hey, hey, let's go." The other one whispered.

  Leo sigh for a moment and offered the girl a hand. She stared like he'd grown horns, then took it.

  "You good?"

  She nodded, shaky. Dusting off her skirt, she pulled a ratty stuffed horse from behind her back—stitches popping, one eye missing.

  Leo took it like it was made of glass. Inside 'Of course it's a plushie. Kids are predictable.'

  He handed it back. "Guard it with your life."

  She hugged it tight. "Thanks…"

  Turned to leave—

  "Wait!" She bounced. "Why'd you help?"

  Leo shrugged. "Dad says if someone's getting picked on, you step in. Doesn't matter if they're a stranger."

  Her face lit up like he'd handed her the full moon. "Be my friend?"

  Leo's brain crashed. "Uh—sure?"

  "Really?!" She grabbed his hand, shaking it like a pump. "I'm Lyra!"

  "Leo. Cool. Don't expect me to carry that horse."

  'Wow seems like I made my first friend here this was easy' Leo thought.

  They wandered the village paths until the sky turned orange. Lyra asked why he wasn't scared of her ears.

  Leo blinked. "Why would I be? They're just… ears. Pointy ones. You're still a kid just like me of course."

  She went pink. He didn't notice. Later they spend a lot of time by wandering around in the village.

  Sun dipped. "Where's home?"

  She pointed a houses from the place they we're standing but Leo wasn't able to see as there we're many more houses. "Right there."

  Leo exhaled. "Good."

  Lyra giggled and skipped off. "See ya, Leo!"

  He waved, already rehearsing the story as he was going back to home he didn't realize the time.

  'I think I should tell Caden and Selene about my new friend they would be happy that their Leo makes his first friend.' Leo thought.

  Walked in to Caden and Selene on the couch, tea steaming.

  "Hands," Selene said without looking up.

  Leo scrubbed, came back, shoveled stew like a starving raccoon.

  "So?" Selene asked. "Village survive you?"

  "Met an elf girl. Lyra. Bullies were stealing her plush horse. Scared 'em off."

  Caden leaned in, smirking. "A girl, huh?"

  Leo frowned, mouth full. "Yeah? She's nice."

  "Sure, sure. Friend. Just make sure to marry her"

  Selene swatted Caden with a dish towel. "He's five."

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  Leo kept eating, cheeks warm. He got the joke, but pretend not to understand the stew tasted better than usual.

  Later, in bed, he stared at the ceiling.

  'First friend. Lyra. Pointy ears, plush horse.'

  He smiled into the dark. Tomorrow, he'd sneak her an extra cookie from the bakery.

  Flower fence or bust.

  As Leo and Caden were finishing their meal, Selene suddenly paused. Her hand drifted to her mouth, slow and uncertain, before slipping down to rest on her stomach. A faint, startled look crossed her face—so small that only someone who loved her would notice.

  Caden noticed immediately.

  He dropped his fork. “Selene? What’s wrong?”

  She gave a soft smile—gentle, but touched with a surprise she hadn’t had a moment ago. “I’m… alright,” she said, though her voice hesitated just long enough to steal Caden’s breath.

  His eyes widened. He leaned forward. “Wait… Selene… are you…?”

  Her smile blossomed into something warm and glowing. She nodded. “Yes. I’m pregnant.”

  For a heartbeat, the world froze.

  Then Caden shot up from his chair, laughing with pure joy as he wrapped Selene in a tight hug, lifting her as if she weighed nothing. Selene laughed softly against his shoulder, her hands resting on his arms.

  Leo blinked, trying to process the sudden words. “So… that means…” His eyes widened. “I’m getting a little brother or sister?”

  Selene turned, her eyes warm. “Yes, Leo. You’re going to be an older brother.”

  Leo tried to look composed, but his thoughts whispered, 'Damn, Caden… you really are a real man.' He failed completely to hide his grin.

  Caden nudged him with his elbow, his grin impossibly wide. “You better get ready. I’ll need my best warrior to help out.”

  Leo puffed up proudly. “I got this!”

  The rest of the evening was filled with laughter that spilled into every corner of the house. Caden kept humming happily, Selene glowed more than ever, and Leo felt something warm grow inside his chest—a feeling he hadn’t known in his previous life.

  Later that night, the house grew quiet. Leo lay in bed, hands behind his head, staring at the wooden ceiling. His mind replayed everything.

  “Everyone here has two main skills… and the rest we can just learn but not on full potential. Simple, but so different from Earth that's what I understand till now.”

  He thought of Selene’s smile, Caden’s teasing, Lyra’s cheerful voice, and the peaceful village around him.

  “I never thought… I’d actually get a life like this.”

  His eyes drifted shut, and sleep gently claimed him.

  Morning sunlight slipped through his curtains, warming Leo awake. He stretched, yawned quietly, and jumped to his feet. A new day.

  He helped Selene prepare breakfast, laughing when she teased him about almost dropping plates. Caden arrived a minute later, as always, ready to inhale food and joke about everything.

  After breakfast, Leo studied—the history of kingdoms, the basics of mana, a little reading. Then he followed Caden outside with his wooden sword. The crisp morning air was perfect for training. Caden taught him new moves, and Leo matched them with surprising precision.

  By afternoon, Leo wiped sweat from his forehead, breathing steady.

  “Leo!”

  He turned.

  Lyra was running toward him, smiling brightly… but something about the way she said his name made him freeze.

  It was the exact same voice he’d heard during that strange moment—the day he got that headache, that whisper from the future.

  “Wait… Echoes of the Forgotten is supposed to show the past. Then why did it show this…?”

  Lyra tilted her head. “Leo? What’s wrong?”

  He blinked and masked the shock with a smile. “Nothing! Just tired.”

  But inside, gears were turning.

  “So this skill… it’s unfinished. Or it’s hiding something.”

  For now, he pushed it aside and walked with her.

  Later, after playing and exploring, they lay on the soft grass, watching clouds drift above them.

  “Hey, Lyra,” Leo said, “who are your parents? I never met them.”

  She smiled proudly. “My dad’s the leader of the village. My mom helps him a lot.”

  Leo whistled. “No wonder you’re always confident.”

  'That's what I want to say but she's really not a very confident girl'

  Lyra giggled.

  “Hey, what do you want to do next?” she asked.

  Leo glanced at the forest. “Want to check inside?”

  Lyra stiffened. “T-The forest…?”

  He quickly softened. “It’s okay. We don’t have to.”

  She relaxed, but still pouted. Leo laughed.

  “How about I tell you a secret instead?”

  Her eyes sparkled. “Yes! Tell me!”

  He leaned closer, lowering his voice. “I am gonna have a brother or a sister soon.”

  Lyra gasped. “No way!”

  “But keep it secret,” he said. “Just between us.”

  She zipped her mouth shut with her fingers. “Promise!”

  Leo closed his eyes and focused. Mana flickered, misbehaving—then suddenly clicked.

  His eyes glowed.

  A vision exploded in front of him—

  Smoke.

  Screams.

  Flames swallowing the village whole. Everything he loved… burning.

  Leo jerked back with a sharp breath. Sweat ran down his temples.

  “Leo?” Lyra whispered. “Are you okay?”

  He forced a smile. “Yeah… just dizzy.”

  She believed him—her heart was too innocent to doubt him.

  He pointed at the sky. “Look! That cloud looks like a duck with a sword.”

  Lyra burst into laughter.

  But Leo’s mind was miles away.

  “What the hell was that?”

  That night, lying in bed, the thought repeated in his head like a heartbeat.

  To stop that future… he needed power. More than a child should have. More than any adventurer could dream of.

  Void Reclaim.

  A dangerous ability. Absorbing skills could change him. Break him. Twist him.

  But it was also the only path strong enough to protect everything.

  'Whose ability should I take? Which power will help me stop that vision?'

  He drifted into sleep with that question weighing on him.

  The next morning, he woke with clarity.

  “I should absorb the skills of monsters. Their abilities are strong… and unique.”

  If he mastered swordsmanship, magic, and Void Reclaim early… maybe he could change fate.

  He smiled to himself as he stood up.

  A new resolve was born.