After the memorable gift from Nyx, Arthur heads to the bathroom for his usual morning bath. But not before changing the sheets of his bed.
In the last three years, he has never failed to wash his body well to remove Nyx's scent, and he has also only spoken to her through mental communication.
Thus, not even Aria, being so smart and observant, could imagine that he had been sleeping with a girl since he was eleven.
But on this particular day, Arthur comes down for breakfast with an extra sparkle in his eyes, and Aria immediately recognizes it.
"It's not possible..." Aria wants to believe that her son is still an innocent angel, but the sparkle in his eyes is unmistakable.
"Mom?" Arthur notices that something is wrong, which makes him concerned.
"How could I not notice it?" Aria thinks out loud before running up the stairs.
Arthur realizes that she is heading towards his room, so he goes after her. "Wait, mom!!"
But Aria does not stop; she enters Arthur's room and starts rummaging through everything, looking for any sign of her suspicions.
But there is nothing there that could link Arthur to Nyx or any other girl, leaving Aria very confused.
She can feel that something is wrong, but there is no evidence, so there is no culprit.
Her sharp gaze scans every millimeter of the room and always ends up coming back to his bed, specifically to the clean sheets over it.
"Did you change the sheets today? Why?" She asks Arthur.
Arthur hates lying to his mother, and it's not easy because she can detect his lies very easily.
So he learned to tell only part of the truth. "I think I woke up very excited today, you know... the other sheet was smelling, and I took it off."
It's impossible to talk about such a subject with his mother without getting embarrassed, so Arthur doesn't try to contain his emotions and lets his face blush naturally.
"Hmm..." Aria can see that he is telling the truth. "But why do I feel like he's still hiding something from me?"
"If he were with a girl, I would know," she wonders. "There's no way she could leave the house without me noticing..."
Without any evidence, Aria sighs and hugs Arthur. "Sorry, son, I think mommy is becoming a senile old woman."
Arthur feels even worse for making his mother doubt her own sanity. But he still thinks that telling about Nyx would bring more problems than they could handle.
"You're still very young, Mom," he tries to cheer her up.
Aria smiles but then looks at him with expectant but also sad eyes. "And you're growing up faster than mommy can keep up..."
"I guess so," Arthur responds honestly because he also feels how his body has matured over the past few years.
"Look at you... you already look like a young adult," Aria has to stand on tiptoes to pinch Arthur's cheeks because he is already taller than her.
Aria thinks about something and speaks with a loving tone. "You must want to do young adult things, too, right?"
Before Arthur can answer, she continues. "That's okay, just promise mommy you'll talk to me before bringing girls home."
"I will," Arthur can promise that without any weight on his conscience. After all, he can't bring Nyx home because she's always been there, and he doesn't think about bringing any other girl either.
Aria makes him bend down and places a tender kiss on his forehead. "Today is going to be your birthday, so everyone is coming, including the Carpenter's daughter..."
Arthur can't help but feel embarrassed again. Talking about girls with his dad seems pretty normal, but with his mom, it doesn't.
"She is already nineteen, so I don't like to imagine you two together..." Aria speaks honestly. "But I guess it's normal for boys to be interested in older girls, so it's okay."
"I get it, I get it!" Arthur can't take any more of that weird conversation and nods quickly to his mom.
"Alright," Aria leaves Arthur and starts walking towards the door. "Remember, be responsible and kind."
"Yes, Mom," He quickly responds.
It seems like Aria is done, but then she turns around and starts to make signs with her fingers in the air.
That's an enchantment that Arthur is used to seeing his mother do to take things out of nothing, or rather, from a treasure storage that she has.
Only powerful mages can do it as easily as Aria, and in an instant, she makes a beautiful box adorned in her hands appear.
"Mommy thought about only giving this to you when you turned fifteen," Aria sighs and hands the box to Arthur. "But it looks like the time has come a little early."
Arthur opens the box and his face gets even more blush when he sees the content. There are many small packages of fabric similar to the plastic of Liam's world.
"You know what they are, don't you?" Aria shakes her head, clearly a little angry. "Did your dad tell you?"
Arthur nods because Draven really did talk to him about that two years ago. He still remembers his father's words: Protection so that you can be with a woman without having babies.
In this world, they call that a love ward, but in Liam's world, it was a condom, so Arthur understands what it's for and how to use it.
"Well," Aria isn't really upset that Draven is teaching such things to Arthur even though he is young.
"So you know how to use it, right?" She asks. "Or do you still have any doubts?"
"No doubts, no doubts!" Arthur quickly exclaims; after all, he doesn't want to talk to his mother about condoms.
"Good," Aria smiles. "Also, try not to use them all so quickly, but when you need more, come to me, and I will make more for you."
Arthur can't imagine how embarrassing it would be to have to ask his mother for more condoms to be able to be with Nyx.
But he also knows that only mages make them, so the only options are to find another mage to make them or buy from traveling merchants who sometimes pass through the village, and such things are expensive.
Arthur looks at the box full of dozens of condoms and can't help but be so happy to have such a good mother.
"Thank you, Mom!" He smiles at Aria because, despite her always creating embarrassing situations, she does her best for him.
"Mommy loves you, darling," Aria strokes Arthur's hair and then leaves the room.
Arthur looks at the box of wards and can only think about using them with Nyx, but she can't even talk to him now because of the morning episode, so that dream seems very distant.
But he is determined to shorten the distance between them, and apparently, only her shy personality is an obstacle.
With his mind full of thoughts about how to improve his relationship with Nyx, Arthur continues enjoying his fourteenth birthday.
As every year, Draven and Aria throw a big party, both for him and for little Eve.
That is not only to celebrate the birth of their children, but also for the benefit of the village population, who love such events.
The Fletcher village is not so small in territory, having many large farms, but its population is very simple and lives basically with things produced only in the village.
Arthur's family is clearly the richest in the village, but this is due to Aria selling items that she produces with magic to traveling merchants who pass through the village.
Draven could earn a lot of money if he accepted it from the farmers who always try to pay him for taking care of everyone.
But his morals and good heart do not allow him to accept more than food and abundant resources in the village; after all, he does not need money to take care of his family's basic needs.
Yet, Aria sells her magic items to be able to buy useful things like magic materials and rare resources that can't be found in the village, in addition to clothes and jewelry as well.
As today is Arthur's birthday and he already looks like a young adult, she makes him wear his most beautiful clothes, a set of fine white and red linen with golden ornaments.
Thanks to his more-than-perfect appearance, he looks like a fairy tale prince, and the girls can hardly walk after passing by him because of how weak their legs become.
Aria notices that, but she still makes him greet all the guests at the entrance of the house, which is very large, by the way.
The guests gather inside the house and mainly in the back garden, where they participate in typical games of their culture, dance, and talk a lot about all kinds of things.
Aria makes a lot of food using her rare ingredients, then everyone is very satisfied, the party is a success as always.
Today, in particular, the girls are even more excited because Aria seems to have allowed Arthur to have a girlfriend.
Dozens of girls implore their parents to ask for Draven and Aria's permission, but they refuse to do it for fear of offending the Fletchers.
No matter how well Draven and Aria treat all the people in the village, the farmers instinctively feel that they are not on the same social level.
They don't understand how a couple like the Fletchers ended up in such a simple village when they clearly have the potential to be the King and Queen of whole kingdoms.
But as they are very kind to everyone and help the village a lot, the farmers are very grateful to them.
And while it's okay to accept their help and participate in their parties, none of them considers the idea of their daughters marrying a promising young man like Arthur.
Arthur hates that kind of thinking just as Liam hated it in his past life, especially now because Draven is always teaching him that no person is better than another just for being born with a powerful lineage.
Draven and Arthur really hate such things, but no matter how good they are to the people in the village, they only see them with more respect and admiration, which increases the gap between them in social aspects.
So, those poor girls can only look at Arthur from afar and imagine how good it would be to be his girlfriend because their parents don't want to offend Draven and Aria.
When it comes time for the birthday boy to dance with the guests, a common custom in the farmers' culture, they all hold their daughters back.
A strange silence destroys the happy atmosphere of the party, and Draven can't help but feel ashamed.
But then Arthur walks up to one of the simplest families among the farmers and bows respectfully to them.
"May I have the honor of dancing with your daughter?" He asks in a respectful and friendly tone.
The patriarch of the family almost panics as he sees the Fletchers as the most honorable royalty ever, so he quickly tries to bow lower than Arthur.
"No, my friend," But then Draven appears and prevents the poor man from bowing. "We are all equal here, so let the young have fun."
That farmer can't change the opinion built in a lifetime, but as the Fletcher family doesn't really seem to care about social differences, he tries not to think about it just for now.
To the girl's delight, her father lets her dance with Arthur, and he makes her feel like a princess in a fairy tale for a few minutes.
Some people fear that Arthur is not as noble as Draven and may be thinking of using the simple girls as servants, just like most nobles do.
But he treats all the girls at the party with great respect and gives each of them an unforgettable dance.
Draven is proud of his son because Arthur can already break stupid social barriers more easily than he can.
"How did we end up making such a good son?" He asks Aria.
"What good son?" Aria shakes her head and speaks in a fake upset tone. "I said he could have a girlfriend, and a few hours later, he's making all the girls in the village fall in love with him..."
"Hahaha..." Draven couldn't be prouder of his son.
On the other hand, Aria can't help but be a little jealous; after all, her little boy is becoming a young adult, and it won't be long before he starts thinking about leaving her to explore the world and create his own family.
"Oh..." Little Eve can't help but admire her big brother even more and feels jealous of the girls around him. Of course, she's also going to ask for a princess dance next.
After the memorable gift from Nyx, Arthur heads to the bathroom for his usual morning bath. But not before changing the sheets of his bed.
In the last three years, he has never failed to wash his body well to remove Nyx's scent, and he has also only spoken to her through mental communication.
Thus, not even Aria, being so smart and observant, could imagine that he had been sleeping with a girl since he was eleven.
But on this particular day, Arthur comes down for breakfast with an extra sparkle in his eyes, and Aria immediately recognizes it.
"It's not possible..." Aria wants to believe that her son is still an innocent angel, but the sparkle in his eyes is unmistakable.
"Mom?" Arthur notices that something is wrong, which makes him concerned.
"How could I not notice it?" Aria thinks out loud before running up the stairs.
Arthur realizes that she is heading towards his room, so he goes after her. "Wait, mom!!"
But Aria does not stop; she enters Arthur's room and starts rummaging through everything, looking for any sign of her suspicions.
But there is nothing there that could link Arthur to Nyx or any other girl, leaving Aria very confused.
She can feel that something is wrong, but there is no evidence, so there is no culprit.
Her sharp gaze scans every millimeter of the room and always ends up coming back to his bed, specifically to the clean sheets over it.
"Did you change the sheets today? Why?" She asks Arthur.
Arthur hates lying to his mother, and it's not easy because she can detect his lies very easily.
So he learned to tell only part of the truth. "I think I woke up very excited today, you know... the other sheet was smelling, and I took it off."
It's impossible to talk about such a subject with his mother without getting embarrassed, so Arthur doesn't try to contain his emotions and lets his face blush naturally.
"Hmm..." Aria can see that he is telling the truth. "But why do I feel like he's still hiding something from me?"
"If he were with a girl, I would know," she wonders. "There's no way she could leave the house without me noticing..."
Without any evidence, Aria sighs and hugs Arthur. "Sorry, son, I think mommy is becoming a senile old woman."
Arthur feels even worse for making his mother doubt her own sanity. But he still thinks that telling about Nyx would bring more problems than they could handle.
"You're still very young, Mom," he tries to cheer her up.
Aria smiles but then looks at him with expectant but also sad eyes. "And you're growing up faster than mommy can keep up..."
"I guess so," Arthur responds honestly because he also feels how his body has matured over the past few years.
"Look at you... you already look like a young adult," Aria has to stand on tiptoes to pinch Arthur's cheeks because he is already taller than her.
Aria thinks about something and speaks with a loving tone. "You must want to do young adult things, too, right?"
Before Arthur can answer, she continues. "That's okay, just promise mommy you'll talk to me before bringing girls home."
"I will," Arthur can promise that without any weight on his conscience. After all, he can't bring Nyx home because she's always been there, and he doesn't think about bringing any other girl either.
Aria makes him bend down and places a tender kiss on his forehead. "Today is going to be your birthday, so everyone is coming, including the Carpenter's daughter..."
Arthur can't help but feel embarrassed again. Talking about girls with his dad seems pretty normal, but with his mom, it doesn't.
"She is already nineteen, so I don't like to imagine you two together..." Aria speaks honestly. "But I guess it's normal for boys to be interested in older girls, so it's okay."
"I get it, I get it!" Arthur can't take any more of that weird conversation and nods quickly to his mom.
"Alright," Aria leaves Arthur and starts walking towards the door. "Remember, be responsible and kind."
"Yes, Mom," He quickly responds.
It seems like Aria is done, but then she turns around and starts to make signs with her fingers in the air.
That's an enchantment that Arthur is used to seeing his mother do to take things out of nothing, or rather, from a treasure storage that she has.
Only powerful mages can do it as easily as Aria, and in an instant, she makes a beautiful box adorned in her hands appear.
"Mommy thought about only giving this to you when you turned fifteen," Aria sighs and hands the box to Arthur. "But it looks like the time has come a little early."
Arthur opens the box and his face gets even more blush when he sees the content. There are many small packages of fabric similar to the plastic of Liam's world.
"You know what they are, don't you?" Aria shakes her head, clearly a little angry. "Did your dad tell you?"
Arthur nods because Draven really did talk to him about that two years ago. He still remembers his father's words: Protection so that you can be with a woman without having babies.
In this world, they call that a love ward, but in Liam's world, it was a condom, so Arthur understands what it's for and how to use it.
"Well," Aria isn't really upset that Draven is teaching such things to Arthur even though he is young.
"So you know how to use it, right?" She asks. "Or do you still have any doubts?"
"No doubts, no doubts!" Arthur quickly exclaims; after all, he doesn't want to talk to his mother about condoms.
"Good," Aria smiles. "Also, try not to use them all so quickly, but when you need more, come to me, and I will make more for you."
Arthur can't imagine how embarrassing it would be to have to ask his mother for more condoms to be able to be with Nyx.
But he also knows that only mages make them, so the only options are to find another mage to make them or buy from traveling merchants who sometimes pass through the village, and such things are expensive.
Arthur looks at the box full of dozens of condoms and can't help but be so happy to have such a good mother.
"Thank you, Mom!" He smiles at Aria because, despite her always creating embarrassing situations, she does her best for him.
"Mommy loves you, darling," Aria strokes Arthur's hair and then leaves the room.
Arthur looks at the box of wards and can only think about using them with Nyx, but she can't even talk to him now because of the morning episode, so that dream seems very distant.
But he is determined to shorten the distance between them, and apparently, only her shy personality is an obstacle.
With his mind full of thoughts about how to improve his relationship with Nyx, Arthur continues enjoying his fourteenth birthday.
As every year, Draven and Aria throw a big party, both for him and for little Eve.
That is not only to celebrate the birth of their children, but also for the benefit of the village population, who love such events.
The Fletcher village is not so small in territory, having many large farms, but its population is very simple and lives basically with things produced only in the village.
Arthur's family is clearly the richest in the village, but this is due to Aria selling items that she produces with magic to traveling merchants who pass through the village.
Draven could earn a lot of money if he accepted it from the farmers who always try to pay him for taking care of everyone.
But his morals and good heart do not allow him to accept more than food and abundant resources in the village; after all, he does not need money to take care of his family's basic needs.
Yet, Aria sells her magic items to be able to buy useful things like magic materials and rare resources that can't be found in the village, in addition to clothes and jewelry as well.
As today is Arthur's birthday and he already looks like a young adult, she makes him wear his most beautiful clothes, a set of fine white and red linen with golden ornaments.
Thanks to his more-than-perfect appearance, he looks like a fairy tale prince, and the girls can hardly walk after passing by him because of how weak their legs become.
Aria notices that, but she still makes him greet all the guests at the entrance of the house, which is very large, by the way.
The guests gather inside the house and mainly in the back garden, where they participate in typical games of their culture, dance, and talk a lot about all kinds of things.
Aria makes a lot of food using her rare ingredients, then everyone is very satisfied, the party is a success as always.
Today, in particular, the girls are even more excited because Aria seems to have allowed Arthur to have a girlfriend.
Dozens of girls implore their parents to ask for Draven and Aria's permission, but they refuse to do it for fear of offending the Fletchers.
No matter how well Draven and Aria treat all the people in the village, the farmers instinctively feel that they are not on the same social level.
They don't understand how a couple like the Fletchers ended up in such a simple village when they clearly have the potential to be the King and Queen of whole kingdoms.
But as they are very kind to everyone and help the village a lot, the farmers are very grateful to them.
And while it's okay to accept their help and participate in their parties, none of them considers the idea of their daughters marrying a promising young man like Arthur.
Arthur hates that kind of thinking just as Liam hated it in his past life, especially now because Draven is always teaching him that no person is better than another just for being born with a powerful lineage.
Draven and Arthur really hate such things, but no matter how good they are to the people in the village, they only see them with more respect and admiration, which increases the gap between them in social aspects.
So, those poor girls can only look at Arthur from afar and imagine how good it would be to be his girlfriend because their parents don't want to offend Draven and Aria.
When it comes time for the birthday boy to dance with the guests, a common custom in the farmers' culture, they all hold their daughters back.
A strange silence destroys the happy atmosphere of the party, and Draven can't help but feel ashamed.
But then Arthur walks up to one of the simplest families among the farmers and bows respectfully to them.
"May I have the honor of dancing with your daughter?" He asks in a respectful and friendly tone.
The patriarch of the family almost panics as he sees the Fletchers as the most honorable royalty ever, so he quickly tries to bow lower than Arthur.
"No, my friend," But then Draven appears and prevents the poor man from bowing. "We are all equal here, so let the young have fun."
That farmer can't change the opinion built in a lifetime, but as the Fletcher family doesn't really seem to care about social differences, he tries not to think about it just for now.
To the girl's delight, her father lets her dance with Arthur, and he makes her feel like a princess in a fairy tale for a few minutes.
Some people fear that Arthur is not as noble as Draven and may be thinking of using the simple girls as servants, just like most nobles do.
But he treats all the girls at the party with great respect and gives each of them an unforgettable dance.
Draven is proud of his son because Arthur can already break stupid social barriers more easily than he can.
"How did we end up making such a good son?" He asks Aria.
"What good son?" Aria shakes her head and speaks in a fake upset tone. "I said he could have a girlfriend, and a few hours later, he's making all the girls in the village fall in love with him..."
"Hahaha..." Draven couldn't be prouder of his son.
On the other hand, Aria can't help but be a little jealous; after all, her little boy is becoming a young adult, and it won't be long before he starts thinking about leaving her to explore the world and create his own family.
"Oh..." Little Eve can't help but admire her big brother even more and feels jealous of the girls around him. Of course, she's also going to ask for a princess dance next.
