"My father?" Confirming the old man's words, I asked. As far as I know, White doesn't know what his parents looked like, and I don't really know how to feel with this delicate topic being discussed with me instead.
The old man looked at me with a soft smile, before sighing. "I don't know what happened, but it's like you've drastically matured in a short time," he said before closing his eyes and looking at his glass, "I think, you're ready for the truth."
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A few days since the war has ended, the news of the hero, Luck Whitefield, and his sister, Stella Whitefield's, death became widespread. As a band of heroes, they were beacons of hope for those who despaired, but they were nothing more than dreamful children who simply wanted to venture into the world. An innocence, admirable even for the eyes of gods.
Regardless, after their death, they were called "The Valliant Ones" and were mourned by those they have saved. For a father, however, it wasn't the proudness of having his son admired by many that I felt, but anger. Anger that stemmed from the weakness of those he had to save and sacrifice himself for.
I cannot let my emotions get to the best of me, yet just the condolences of the people who were saved by my son were enough to break my already shattered heart. The hatred for the people grew, and before I knew it, I had come back to the land where it had all begun.
This mountain was his hometown, our hometown where the memories of him overshadowed the hatred towards the weak. In the end, both my body and mind refused to return to the capital, and thus, decided to stay and live here quietly.
One snowy night, however, an automaton carrying a baby of white hair and fair skin visited me. Although I didn't know their purpose, I pitied the baby who was sleeping soundly, even against the cold of the winter night. Letting the two in, I asked the automaton regarding her reasons for coming here, to which she responded by saying that even she herself doesn't know.
However, she knew that the child of snow-white hair was the child of my son.
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"Is that why you named me White? Because of my hair?" I asked the old man whilst keeping a playful tone. He gawked at me with a brow raised, "Not even surprise your father's the hero?"
"Well, considering my powerful magic, even a regular bystander can tell that it's not normal," I reasoned out. Actually, I don't know how to feel about this as "I" am not White, and although he is still a part of me, it seems that even he doesn't have much reaction to this matter.
Though I admit that his father being the hero is pretty surprising, my father is an emperor of a continent. It honestly made me feel like fate's playing a trick on me or something, but that doesn't matter since this world is more enjoyable than my previous one.
"Besides, knowing something like this wouldn't change anything," I said with a confident smile, "it's not like I'll parade myself as his son, right?" The old man eyed me suspiciously with an exasperated look on his face, before breaking his expression with a burst of loud laughter. "That is true," he said as he wiped small tears of laughter out of his eyes, "you've really grown, White."
"Hmm, but how did you confirm that I'm father's child?" I looked at him curiously. Since the existence of automatons is widely known, it might be also possible that there are already DNA tests in this world, but how can a secluded mountain like this have those tests, to begin with.
The old man shook his head before shifting his gaze to Sophia. "She had the gift I gave Luck," the old man pointed out. Noticing that she's the subject of our attention, Sophia let out a breathless sigh as she took a pendant out of her pocket.
"That's the gift," the old man said. I eyed the pendant closely and soon remembered that it was the pendant I accidentally stepped on during my first day in White's body. As evidence, even the crack I left was still there.
"Now that you know, I want you to promise me one thing, White," I shifted my attention back to the old man who spoke in a low and solemn voice, "don't become a hero, okay?" so he said.
Honestly, I don't intend to become one, as it sounds like more trouble, and I'm not just going to take on another responsibility after deciding to leave one. Right now, all I want is freedom, and the ability to protect these people. With a soft nod, I made sure to soothe the old man's worries, "You don't have to worry about that."
To which the old man responded by returning to his usual jolly self. Soon, breakfast came and the others also woke up. We talked about unimportant conversations over breakfast, and although unnecessary, it was a memorable feeling that made me look forward to our next meetings.
But before we knew it, it was already time.
"I wouldn't be going with you since I'm still the guardian of this forest," Velxia said, "so don't you just die randomly in the celestial reality, all right?" His voice expression was indifferent, but his worries were etched in the words he spoke.
Hearing this, the old man rubbed the back of his feathery head which made Velxia shiver. Although he looked scared for a moment, he quickly regained his composure from that surprise. "So, what about your sword?" Master asked me.
"I heard from grandpa that the town below the mountain has many smithies, so I'll just grab one there," I responded to master. Although I could just ask him for a sword, his swords didn't really fit my sword style, and using a sword that's not suited for your sword style would just be a mess.
To my surprise, master sighed and took out a sword from his dimensional bag. "Here, take this," he said as he stretched out a thin sword with a fine handguard, similar to that of a rapier. Reaching for the grip of the sword, I unsheathed it and gave it a light swing.
"This is amazing," I complimented the blade. The weight and size were just right for me, and the blade wasn't thick as a longsword, nor was it thin as a rapier. It was the perfect blade for my style.
"Thank you, Mr. Renard," placing my hand on my chest, I gave out a small bow in appreciation for his gift. Although he may not like formalities, I think a gift like this deserves my utmost gratitude. Contrary to my belief, however, he just laughed it off like it was fine.
Next was Kayla. Although her lips were trying to smile, her teary eyes were betraying her. "I guess, you're more of a crybaby than I was, huh?" I said playfully. "I-it's not like that!" She stuttered as she aggressively wiped her tears. "Next time we meet, I'll be stronger!" Although she kind of looked funny at the moment, there was definitely determination in her words.
Letting out a small chuckle, I responded to her proclamation, "I'll be expecting that, then." Hearing my response, she wiped the small tears escaping from her eyes with her arm and smiled as she did a thumbs up.
"Hmm, take care, White," the old man, who had been watching my interactions from my side, said as he gave me an embrace. "Yeah, I'll miss you too, grandpa."
"Are you ready, White?" Sophia asked me. She wore a grey raincoat similar to mine, but instead of a giant zipper in the front, it was a ribbon and garter, but unlike my size, her's was a little smaller, revealing her forearm and lower thighs. Luckily, she wore travel boots like me, thus only a few skin can be seen.
I know that she's an automaton, but I can't help but oftentimes think otherwise. "How many times have you asked me that again?" I asked back, to which she simply smiled and nodded.
"I'll see you guys next time," With a wave of a hand, I followed after Sophia who walked before me. "Are you sad?" Sophia asked, keeping her sights straight ahead. "I have no reason to be." After all, this is not a goodbye, but the start of my journey across the lands, worlds, dimensions, and realities.
"Well then, let's see what this world has to show us."