I believed that when you died, you would disappear completely. At least, that's what I thought...but I was wrong. There are rare occurrences where people, after waking from near-death experiences, would exclaim strange things.
I could feel the warmth of hands touching me, but I couldn't remember anything about myself—who I was, why I existed, or what was happening in this world. My last memory was of my mother giving me a crown with spikes. I wore it, and blood poured from my head.
That's the only memory I retained. Why did she give it to me? How did I die in my previous life? Did I do something terrible? Perhaps I was cruel in my previous existence, and this was my experience after death.
I didn't understand. I still had consciousness. Maybe these were just flashes of my previous life appearing before the complete end. And right now, I could feel the warmth again. Well, this must be the end after all...
After what felt like twelve minutes, I wondered: Why is this taking so long? What's happening right now?
"Congratulations to you both, sir and madam! He's a healthy boy..."
Wait, I'm born? So the sound I heard was my mother's scream, not my past memories?
Normally, anyone would think, "Well, I'm a baby now," but I didn't feel that way. For some reason, I felt incredibly relaxed, as if after a long period of tension, I could finally sleep peacefully. This sensation gave me a chill of experience. I just wanted to sleep peacefully...
But it seemed peace wasn't in my dictionary. I didn't know who that person was who appeared out of nowhere, but he hung me upside down and slapped my bottom. Why? I guessed he was a doctor. If anyone had dared to do that to me in my previous life, I would have killed them mercilessly and hung them in the street.
I wanted to cry, though I didn't understand why—and then I started crying like a baby. Well, I was a baby, and I couldn't do anything besides poop.
This was the hospital room. I had zero hope in this life. Seriously, there were only some candles in the room for light.
I examined the hospital room closely. One thing I appreciated was that the ladies here were incredibly beautiful. One lady who continuously talked to my mother—the main doctor who helped deliver me into this world—was particularly stunning.
I had to admit, her eyelashes and lips were so beautiful. "Gorgeous" wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Then I realized something: I had no sensation in my body and no impure thoughts in my mind. I only had three feelings—sleep, eat, and poop.
Perhaps it was due to this child's body, but the sensations I felt were almost maternal. When this lady picked me up and held me, I felt a smooth sensation I couldn't explain with words...
I realized why babies are so attached to their mothers.
Suddenly, I heard a voice: "Hey baby, I'm dada! Say dada!"
I had zero time to process that this person was my father, and I had a question for him: How could a newborn baby possibly speak "dada"? Was he crazy or something?
He suddenly took me in his lap, and I became worried. I looked at my mother and the sweet doctor for help. My mother said, "Honey, he was just born. How can he say anything?" Well, I had zero belief in this life.
I noticed my father's hair was silver, and mine looked the same color. My father suddenly handed me back to my mother and went to complete the necessary hospital documents.
One thing I strangely noticed was that this hospital had no electric bulbs. What happened? Were the bulbs fused, or was this such a poor hospital that they couldn't afford bulbs? I didn't think so. Then what was happening? Maybe this was the 1600s or some era where bulbs hadn't been invented yet.
When my father returned, I understood very well why all the ladies in the hospital looked at him. He was so handsome, with a muscular body and charismatic presence.
If I had to score my father, I'd give him a 9/10. My mother wasn't ugly either—she was one of the most beautiful ladies in the entire hospital, second only to the doctor. I felt a strange urge to protect my mother from this beautiful lady doctor who might steal my father.
But looking at my father, I could understand why he was so excited. He looked so happy, his face beaming with joy.
Next, the lady doctor came and spoke to my mother: "Don't worry about the baby. He's healthy."
My mother started to respond, "But doctor, you know when babies don't cry after birth, it means they're dea—" She was about to cry, but my father interrupted.
"Don't worry, our baby isn't weak. He's strong," he reassured her.
The doctor nodded in agreement. "Yes, he's healthy and in fine condition. You may go home after a few days of observation."
After a few days, I realized that my home was not small. Guards were posted outside, which made me think my father must be an important figure, though I didn't know what work he did. Perhaps he worked in the king's palace, but I couldn't be sure.
Several maids worked in our home, confirming I was born into a wealthy family.
When I first saw the house, I didn't think it was particularly large, but the inside was spacious—not like a palace, but somewhere between a royal palace and a normal house.
"Honey, are you going to work?" my mother asked.
"Yes, sweetheart, I am," my father replied.
"Please don't kiss in front of Arthur," my mother cautioned.
"Well, Arthur is just a baby..." my father countered with a grin. "Can we continue?" He proceeded to kiss her. "Smooch, smooch, smooch."
Eww, so disgusting! Please stop! If you both want to do that, go to your room, not in front of me! I had gotten used to it, though, as my parents did this in the middle of the night too...
One thing I wanted to fix was the problem of having zero control over my body. I pooped several times a day—ah, that was a problem I needed to solve. Well, I couldn't do anything about it. I tried several times to grab things, but I failed each time.
However, there were some great things about being a child. If you flip a coin, there are two possible outcomes—the same applied to my situation.
I had several benefits of being a child. I lived like a king! My mother and the maids took such good care of me. When I needed to urinate or poop, they changed my diaper. My mother gave me breast milk, and it was delicious—seriously, I had zero ulterior motives; I genuinely meant that.
One thing was certain: if you ever met an angel, you'd probably meet my mother, because she cared for me so much and took such good care of me. After a few days, I realized I had been born into a decent family.
My parents, Lyra and Kiarles, were good people who took excellent care of me. This was the feeling I had chased for my entire previous life.
Each night, my father would come home looking exhausted but strangely happy. Daily, he would leave with some documents and papers, dressed like a gentleman in a coat and watch. He looked like a rich person going to work, but I still couldn't figure out what he did.
Ten guards followed my father each time he went to work, so maybe he did something important for the kingdom.
After finishing work, he would take me in his lap and say, "Hi, baby! You look so cute. Did you miss me?"
I thought I didn't, but strangely, I did. If no one was near me, I would start crying—perhaps it was natural instinct or something else. Well, I had lots of things to learn about this world.
"Madam, my work is complete. I will go home," announced one of the maids.
"Yes, you may leave," my mother replied.
This maid was one who cared for me greatly. "Hi, baby! I'll come tomorrow!" She would kiss me whenever she had the chance. She always took such good care of me that sometimes I thought she might be my original mother.
Well, my father went to take a bath, and I didn't know—or perhaps I did know—why mother also took a bath with him.
I learned something about this world: it wasn't normal. Here, people hunted monsters, and there were kings, queens, and noble houses. I wasn't fully aware of all the details yet.
I observed that my mother gave 100 copper coins to the maid as her salary, which was enough to run a household. So I assumed that 100 copper coins was equivalent to 30,000 in currency from my previous life. Copper was the lowest denomination.
My father earned gold, and 1 gold cost 1,000 copper. I knew now that I wasn't born into a poor family.
With each passing day, I learned something new about this world and how it functioned. My control over my senses and body increased gradually.
One thing still puzzled me, though: why wasn't there any technology in this world? I needed to find out.