Chapter 4

Darkness.

"Ugh, I still don't like this darkness. How do these little munchkins even sleep all day?" Adriana thought in frustration. This new life was nowhere near what she expected.

Her dream of an exciting and adventurous new beginning had been put to a halt.

"That scamming piece of mirror—it expects a BABY to save its great master, huh? If it was that sure, it could've put me in some STRONG body."

Before she could think any further, her tiny body betrayed her. Exhaustion took over, and she found herself drifting into unwanted sleep.

She had no idea how much time had passed—her little body dictated everything now.

Adriana stirred as a strong hand lifted her up, pulling her into a warm embrace. A deep, energetic voice filled the room. "C'mon, little one. It's time for your sunny bath."

Adriana, still half-asleep, couldn't understand a word. She tried to say, "Just five minutes more," like any 18-year-old, but all that came out was a faint cry.

Her vision was blurry, making it hard to see, but she knew this man was her father. It wasn't logic—it was instinct.

The warmth from his hands was unlike anything she had ever felt in her past life. Safe, firm, and strong. The sensation alone made her forget the irritation of being woken up.

Her tiny mouth moved instinctively, her thumb slipping between her lips.

"Wha—what am I doing…?" she thought, unable to believe her actions.

But sleep still pulled her down, her thoughts sluggish, making it impossible to resist.

Armin watched this scene with a wide grin. "Aren't you so adorable? Just like your mother whenever she acts like a baby in my arms."

A sharp voice came from another room. "Did you say anything, honey?"

Rias.

Armin's confidence immediately crumbled. "No, no! I was just saying how cute our daughter is—just like you! What else could I mean?"

Rias let out an amused hum. "Mmm? Aren't you being unusually sweet today? Are you sure she isn't a split copy of you? With the tantrums she threw when she was born, huh? Definitely your blood."

Armin gasped. "No way! Look at her nose—it's exactly like yours."

"Her cuteness is from you."

"No, from you!"

The sweet exchange continued as Rias reached for the baby. "Hand her over to me, and don't try to ruin her sleep, honey."

Armin sighed, clearly reluctant to part with his daughter but knowing better than to argue. "I'll just go and train since I am not needed here." He walked away, pretending to sulk.

Rias gazed softly at Adriana, her blue eyes filled with warmth. "Look at you, sleeping so peacefully. Just like your father."

Adriana hoped to drift back to sleep after being freed from her father's embrace, but her mother had other plans for her.

Rias carefully cradled her and began gently rubbing her back. The soothing motion, meant to relax her, only annoyed her further.

"Stop waking me up. I just wanna sleep."

A little whimper escaped her lips, then a full-on wail.

"This… crying again?..."

Rias let out a soft sigh but was not the least bit fazed. Instead of trying to calm the baby with words, she tried something else. A soft sound exited her mouth as she began humming a lullaby.

The moment this tune entered Adriana's ears, something strange happened. A feeling she couldn't explain settled deep inside her.

The lullaby wasn't just calming—it felt familiar. Even though the words were foreign, the melody carried something warm, comforting… and nostalgic. Rias's voice was gentle, smooth, and soothing, weaving into the air like a soft embrace.

"This voice… feels so safe…" Adriana's cries faded without her even realizing it. Her tiny hands, which had been curled into frustrated fists, loosened as warmth filled her little body.

"There you go, sweetie. Mama's lullaby always works." As she said this, a memory etched deep inside her resurfaced—her own mother singing this lullaby to her.

As she let out this thought, Rias whispered, as if speaking to herself rather than the baby, "You know, your grandmother used to sing this to me too."

After that, Rias took out a wooden basin filled with warm water, knowing her baby would need a bath soon.

The days passed, and the golden sky outside the wooden house became covered by a white embrace of cold. At first, it was just light and dark to Adriana. Snow piled up against the window, its soft glow illuminating the room at night. But slowly, she started noticing more. The way the flakes drifted down, melting against the window. The cold seeping through the walls, making the blanket around her feel warm.

Then, the first buds sprouted, white replaced by soft green and the gentle sound of rain tapping against the roof. She could figure out more—the blurred shapes hovering over her slowly taking form. Her mother's soft blonde hair, her father's broad shoulders. Their faces were still hazy in her mind, but she could recognize them through the warmth she felt when her father held her. Her mother's soothing lullaby whenever she cried.

By summer, the air was filled with heavy warmth and the scent of wet earth after a storm. Sunlight streamed through the wooden house. She followed it with her eyes. Her body was still weak, still clumsy, but she could move with intent now—kick, grasp, react. And more than anything, she could see clearly now.

The blur had faded. Her mother's blonde hair, blue eyes, and a voice that gave calmness to her heart. Her father's sharp features and deep black eyes that softened whenever he looked at his adorable daughter.

"It's beyond boring here—no phone, novels, or games." Adriana felt at least entertainment had been good in her past life.

Lying in her crib, looking out the window in boredom, she saw the dark sky with a blue moon hanging above, bathing everything in its strange, otherworldly glow. She had seen it before every night, but only now did it truly sink in how unnatural it was. The moon back on Earth was pale, white, and familiar. This one was deep, vibrant blue… and a little too eerie.

And it wasn't just the moon. The air itself had a strange feeling. It was vague, like an itch at the edge of her awareness. Now, as she lay still and focused on it, she realized—it wasn't the temperature or the scent, but something deeper. Something she couldn't quite pin down. It wasn't heavy, it wasn't light, it just existed, surrounding her… pressing against her.

A word appeared in her mind. Mana?

"This weird tingly sensation is mana? Because of course, I'm in another world, fated to save some 'Great Master.'" Adriana chuckled dryly.

As she was lampooning, a strange feeling crawled up her spine.

"This creeping feeling… why now, of all times…?"

Adriana knew it was her strong intuition showing its worth again, as it had a few times in her previous life. It was subtle at first—like a pull, an invisible thread tugging at something deep inside her.

Then, pain.

It suddenly spread through her tiny body like ice. A cry tore from her lips—it was instinctive.

The room stirred. Heavy steps rushed across the wooden floor. Her father's warm hands lifted her up, murmuring soft comforts. Her mother leaned in, looking for the reason behind her cries. This concern should have soothed her… but it didn't.

As her mother rocked her gently, trying to lull her back to sleep, she heard it.

A sound—faint and deliberate. Not the wind. Not the settling of wood.

Armin listened carefully, his brows furrowed. "Something is sneaking outside…" he whispered.

His body tensed as he carefully took each breath, his gaze shifting toward the window, where the blue moon cast its glow across the glass.

And there, somewhere in the shadow beneath the thick trees, stood something.

Watching.

"I barely started my life." Adriana thought bitterly. As the creeping sense brought her doom yet again