IPHW 06

It had been two years since then.

You might say it passed in a blur, but life as a baby—eating and sleeping—was simple enough that time flowed just as quickly.

Crawling, standing up, flailing around, falling asleep…

Doing all of that in a baby’s body with no muscles was basically the same as being an athlete. I poured every bit of strength I had into my body, so I ended up collapsing into sleep every day. In truth, a baby really does live by doing its absolute best to eat, its absolute best to move, and its absolute best to sleep.

‘Don’t ever say babies are living the easy life again.’

The results might be minimal, but the feeling was like I’d won a medal. A life of exhausting myself every single day until I collapsed…

There was nothing I could do except move this small, powerless body, so I kept myself busy.

The only thing that made that simple, repetitive life bearable was my healing ability.

Mobile toys, be gone.

Repetitive, monotonous mobiles—be gone.

From now on, it’s the era of healing clay…!

For the past two years, with nothing else to do (it sounds kind of pitiful when I put it like that), I had been playing with this new toy until it was practically worn out.

I gathered it in my hands, kneaded it, sometimes shaped it into a bear and hugged it…

All the fine motor skill training I needed at that age was done with healing clay. It had a soft, dough-like texture with a faint shimmer, and it was perfect for developing hand movement.

Brain development, fine motor development—two birds with one stone!

Thanks to the healthy condition of Bailee, Maria, Ella, and even my parents who looked after me, I had never actually been able to test the full limits of the healing clay’s power. But now, I could gather faint traces of “ki” into small glowing masses with ease.

Filling my nursery with clay was now effortless. One time I tried in earnest, and I ended up covering the entire mansion—then stopped because it felt strange.

The amount of clay used to heal my mother had been about half the nursery… which meant I had grown quite a bit.

‘Saying “ki” feels weird, but I don’t have a better word for it.’

A force rising from within my body, something invisible.

I knew my naming sense was terrible, but I couldn’t help it since I didn’t know the correct terminology. It seemed like the healing worked through clay gathered using this “ki.”

My healing power was apparently neither magic nor divine power, but something else entirely.

‘Mother is a talent.’

It turns out my mother is a famous mage.

Since the day I poured that glowing mass into her and fell asleep, she had been trying to uncover the nature of my power.

She conducted secret research through her connections, but the result was one thing:

No one knew.

‘I guess it’s because I was reincarnated.’

That was the only explanation I could think of. Maybe it was a power I gained after regaining my memories when I nearly died. But I couldn’t exactly say that out loud, so I kept quiet.

‘I thought this was magic, but I guess not.’

Embarrassing.

My mother seemed worried that my power might come at some kind of cost, but all I used was a small amount of ki.

‘If I only lose a bit of stamina like that time I passed out, then it’s actually a good deal.’

I was now three years old.

Two and a half years since I was born!!

Even though I had been reborn as a baby, with the confidence of an experienced adult I had quickly mastered crawling, standing, and even walking! And at this point—

‘I want to test it!’

It itched! I wanted to go outside!

I stood up suddenly. In my mind, it was a dramatic, determined rise. In reality, it was a slow, wobbly motion. Ah, safety first, after all…

Step one: place my hands on the ground and extend my legs.

Step two: lift my hips and stand up!

If I connected the movements smoothly, it worked fine.

‘My head is still too big to just spring up…’

The humiliation of a three-headed-body ratio.

As I stood there, Ella noticed me.

“Lady Shana, are you bored of block play?”

“I don’t like it.”

I tapped the wooden blocks stacked in two layers and knocked them over. They collapsed with a crash. Ella murmured sadly.

“Oh dear… your father personally made those blocks…”

“I played with them. Now I don’t like them.”

My speech came out in a shameful lisp…

Even when I tried to pronounce properly, my sluggish tongue didn’t move the way I wanted.

Back when I was in my previous life, people even said I could’ve become an announcer. Of course, that was only my dad, who doted on his daughter. “Our Yeona could even be an announcer,” he would say proudly. Ugh…

“Shall I read you a book instead?”

“That’s baby books!”

“No, no! They’re very interesting fairy tales!”

“…You already read them all. I know them.”

I gave her a cold look.

Strict nanny Bailey, cute little Maria, and kind, meticulous Ella. I knew them better than anyone else in this world besides my parents. We had spent more time together than even my parents had.

Ella avoided my gaze and said carefully,

“Then how about an adventure story…?”

“I already memorized that too. I can recite it.”

“Long ago…”

Every story started the same way. It was always the same, endlessly repetitive beginning.

And it was always ridiculous.

Dragons, princesses, elves, dwarves—everything felt like fantasy mixed with over-the-top exaggeration.

But strangely enough, the stories Ella read softly at my bedside helped me understand this world.

At first I thought dragons meant kidnapped princesses, but then the story ended with, “And thus, the bones of dragons remain deep in the Kalanipe Mountains.”

I thought elves were just forest fairies, but apparently they actually lived in the woods.

Dwarves were introduced like, “This is a dwarf-made item!”

The more I listened, the less I could tell what was real and what wasn’t.

‘I wish I could just ask everything.’

Do dragons really exist? Where do they live? Where exactly are the elf forests? If dwarves made this, where’s the certification stamp? Can you even tell at a glance? Are beast-people real too? Does every animal species have its own beast form? Can they transform freely?

‘If only I could ask all of that.’

But in reality, I could only get as far as, “So drah-gons reeeal?”

And that was it.

Haa…

Ella and Maria laughed so much afterward that I didn’t speak for two days…

I really wasn’t mature enough.

“Our Lady Shana is so smart…”

“I don’t like compliments. So, magic…”

I’m curious! I’m dying of curiosity!

I was reborn in a world where magic actually exists!

My mother is literally a mage!

So why haven’t I seen even a glimpse of magic?!

Not even to learn it—just to see it!

“Absolutely not. My lady specifically said no difficult books!”

“How mean…”

I pouted. Ella tried hard not to laugh.

“If you really want to know, why don’t you ask your father?”

“Dad?”

“Yes. He could never refuse a request from you.”

Ella whispered this, her cheeks slightly red, as if she knew she was giving me a mischievous suggestion.

“But…”

What if my mother got upset?

I didn’t want to cause any conflict between them.

“And if you say you’re curious about magic, I think your mother would have no choice either.”

“…Really?”

“Yes! I guarantee it!”

If Maria said it, I’d be skeptical—but Ella’s words felt reliable.

“If you just say, ‘I want to see magic!’ with a smile…”

“…No.”

In my third year of baby life, I absolutely refused to act cute!

But the idea of asking my father instead of my mother did make sense.

“Where’s Dad?”

“He should be in the study right now.”

“Okay, I’m going!”

“Wait, Lady Shana! I’ll come with you…”

“No! I’ll go alone!”

“No, that’s not allowed!”

“Don’t follow me! Got it?”

“Ah, honestly…”

Ella stayed seated and waved at me. She knew I was safe anywhere in this mansion.

After I could walk and run, the entire mansion had become my playground. This was my territory. The baby of this domain was me.

‘I can run!’

The joy of running on my own two legs! At three years old, I had learned to be grateful for such a small thing.

When you know the frustration of not being able to stand or walk properly, gratitude is unavoidable…

I stepped forward with determination.

Plip.

Ah—why do even my shoes make sounds here?!