What the heck?
What's going on?
Why can't I see anything?
Didn't I get into a car accident? My head hit an iron pole, and then my life started flashing before my eyes.
And why did Shen Ji feel like his head was being squeezed, pressed from front and back until it was about to explode?
It was extremely uncomfortable.
Suddenly, there was a crisp 'bang', like a plunger being pulled out of a toilet.
“Frø! 'S isk... 'S isk ø sketh!”
(Madam! He's... he's out! It's the young master!)
“Herrogh! 'S isk en gshundek Vueb!”
(My lord! It's a healthy boy!)
It sounded like people were talking around him, babbling, but the pronunciation was too awkward; he couldn't understand anything.
Shen Ji suddenly felt much colder, and his eyes seemed to be stuck together, unable to open, just a blur of red.
“Herrogh!”
(My lord! Look!)
Before Shen Ji could figure out what was happening, the world began to shake.
“Gøt! Gøt!”
(Good! Good!)
“Herrogh! Naa dörf Chyndalik so røørk!”
(My lord! You can't shake a baby like that!)
And after that voice appeared, the world stopped shaking and became stable.
He felt like he was being held by another person...
When he finally managed to adapt to the light and open his eyes, Shen Ji immediately saw a blonde woman leaning on the bed, covered in sweat, with damp hair on her forehead, smiling bitterly at him...
...Huh?
Who are you, beautiful lady?
“Yi ya~ Yi ya~~”
Shen Ji tried to speak and raise his hand, but it came out as baby talk, and he reached out his hands towards her.
Hearing his own voice, the beautiful woman opposite him seemed to laugh even more happily.
Shen Ji was stunned, and after seeing his incredibly tender hands, he quickly understood what was happening.
He... had transmigrated and been reborn, hadn't he?
This beautiful woman in front of him... was his new mom?
“Frau, sîch froh!”
(Madam, congratulations!)
Shen Ji still didn't understand, but he felt someone reaching out and picking him up again.
Soon, a rather handsome Western man appeared in front of him. He held Shen Ji in his arms, smiling happily, and poked his face with a finger.
“Weso schint er so grüschplig?”
(Why does he look so wrinkled?)
“Herro, alli Chindli sind eso!”
(My lord, all babies are like that!)
This was his surrogate father?
He looked Western and quite handsome.
Shen Ji fell silent.
His mood hadn't even recovered from the moment of his divorce, and he didn't expect...
Sigh...
It was fate.
He hadn't expected to shake off Su Sui and start a second life in this way.
He had directly reincarnated!
By the way, why did the furnishings in this room look so un-modern?
Why didn't he go back to the past?
When others get divorced and reborn, it's always something like 1979, 2002, 2012. Where did he end up?
Europe? Renaissance? Middle Ages?
Where was the goddess?
Shouldn't being run over by a mud truck result in a goddess sending enhancement buffs?
Shen Ji didn't have time to think much; his surrogate father quickly handed him back to the blonde woman on the bed.
Before he could even say “yi Ya Yi ya,” his pea-sized eyes saw the blonde woman voluntarily taking off her upper garments.
He was instantly stunned, completely unaware that he was being forcibly brought closer.
Was he going to be breastfed right after birth?
No—
*
Shen Ji lay in the cradle, squinting his eyes, staring at the various wooden carved toys hanging above him.
Some sunlight streamed into the bedroom from the window, and light and shadows danced mottledly above his head.
It must have been an afternoon in autumn.
Even though the afternoon sun was a bit strong, it wasn't harsh; on the contrary, it was especially gentle.
He was still a bit dazed.
So this was... rebirth?
Looking at the completely unfamiliar ceiling, what he felt most was a sense of emotion.
Emotion for his previous life, for his past life...
But as the saying goes, wherever you are, you're alive, right?
If he became a child, so be it.
If he was reborn in the West, then so be it.
He had to look forward, right?
For the next few months, Shen Ji adhered to the principle of sleeping more and eating more “food,” hoping to grow up and walk as soon as possible.
Through patient observation, he figured out his surrogate parents' names.
His father was Edwin von Klaist.
Just call him Old Ai, it's simple and easy to remember.
Old Ai seemed to be a minor noble, the territory's governor.
This should be Europe, right?
As for why he said 'should be,' it's because he couldn't understand the language spoken here at all, and he couldn't yet determine if it was Old English, or a Germanic or Slavic language branch...
Further observation was needed.
There was plenty of butter, steak, fine wheat bread, and tea in the house.
Grapes and wine were most abundant.
His mother's name was easier to remember, “Seranya.” She was a housewife who enjoyed cooking and baking, and seemed to be the daughter of some foreign noble.
Shen En didn't know his mother's full name, only that there was a “Shenn” pronunciation in the middle of her name.
So his name didn't change much; he was called Shen En (Shenn).
Since he was reborn, he might as well call himself Shen En.
Shen En, Shen En, Shen En.
He called himself that continuously in his mind for several days, finally barely adapting to the name.
*
“Young... Young Master! Don't run around! If you get hurt, how will I explain it to Madam?!”
A few months later, Shen En turned one year old.
In this year, he confirmed that he had no goddess's favor for buffs, nor any transmigration system for cheats, but he could finally crawl as he pleased.
Since he could move, he certainly wouldn't be content with the status quo. He often crawled up and down in the house, wanting to see if there were any books he could read and learn from. His little maid, Annie, who took care of him, would always complain, “The Young Master is so active!” and then pick him up from the desk, where he had spent half a day climbing, and put him back in the cradle...
Shen En: “I really am *&@!”
He couldn't get any information now; he couldn't understand the language, and he couldn't read the words.
At most, he could only peer out the window at the vineyard.
The specialty of their territory seemed to be wine.
The European region, as small as a sesame seed, produced wine in countries like France, Germany, Italy, and Portugal.
So, where exactly was this?
*
One and a half years old.
Mountains, wheat fields, lakes, terraced vineyards, and pointed houses built with half-timbered walls.
This was Shen En's impression of Klaester Territory.
A typical medieval landscape.
Backed by mountains, with vineyards and wheat fields interspersed.
From a geographical and climatic analysis, this place should be similar to the Upper Rhine region of Alsace, France.
Shen En would occasionally hear the word “Ymferrakh” from his father's mouth.
He spent over half a year trying to understand it, and it seemed to mean “God-given iron-fisted rule.”
A simpler translation would be “Empire.”
Could it be the Holy Roman Empire?
Very likely.
When he wrote novels, he researched Western history to make the background setting resemble the Middle Ages.
The Upper Rhine region belonged to the Holy Roman Empire for a long time in the Middle Ages, only becoming part of France after the 17th century, which fit quite well.
Although Shen En never saw a church in the territory, he found it a bit strange.
In addition, the class system here was as severe as in medieval Europe.
Shen En wanted to play with the older children in the territory, but they always avoided him, nervously calling him “Sir.”
As a modern person, Shen En was really unaccustomed to it.
He always felt isolated.
There was nothing he could do.
Without playmates his age, he spent his days secretly listening to his parents talk to learn pronunciation, occasionally going to sit by the lake under a tree.
The lake was connected to the village river. Although it didn't resemble his hometown's Clear River at all, every time Shen En sat alone by the lake until dusk, seeing the sky dyed red by the sunset, he would always recall a certain shadow.
No, why was he thinking of her!
He wished he could be far away from her!
It was also in this month that Shen En accidentally discovered Seranya's belly had grown, likely indicating another pregnancy.
Regarding this, Shen En could only say that his parents were in excellent health.
*
Two years old.
As his brain grew, his thoughts became increasingly clear.
And the older he got, the greater Shen En's desire to see and understand more things to pass the time.
After understanding some of the language, he began to try asking his mother for books to learn more of the local language.
Seranya curiously followed the direction of his little waving hand and, for the first time, brought a storybook and placed it in front of Shen En:
“Does Xiao En want Mama to read to him?”
To make himself act like a child, Shen En just repeated in childish syllables, “Book, book...”
Seranya was very patient. After settling him comfortably beside her, she picked up the book and read a passage to him.
Shen En listened for a moment.
No.
He couldn't understand it at all.
*
Two and a half years old.
His younger sister, Ya Yi, was born.
She had big eyes, beautiful skin, and smelled of milk.
But to Shen En, his sister was just a troublesome little bug who cried and fussed and constantly needed her mother to hold her.
The only consolation was that she seemed to quite like her brother, giggling whenever she saw him from her crib.
Thanks to his sister, Shen En also passed a good amount of boring time.
Most importantly, he had a playmate.
*
Three years old.
Perhaps it was due to transmigration, or perhaps a new brain.
Shen En felt his mind becoming sharper, and memories of his previous life began to become clearer.
As a result, Shen En learned faster and faster, and liked reading more and more.
Having learned most of the language, Shen En gradually realized that this seemed to be... a magical, otherworldly realm.
Because all the books basically mentioned keywords like “mage,” “magic,” “witch,” and “demon race.”
Shen En was both a little excited and wanted to sigh.
Because he specifically asked his mother and found out that magic indeed existed in this world, but it was monopolized by the upper echelons and had nothing to do with small nobles and small places like theirs.
After all, there wasn't even a monastic order here.
There wasn't even a single basic magic codex in their home.
Sigh!
Magic!
Something he couldn't even dream of in his previous life had actually become a reality here!
But he couldn't even catch a glimpse of it here!
*
After some more time, his sister turned one and finally learned to crawl.
His mother was still the same with him; knowing her son loved books, she would tell him and his sister fairy tales every day.
Shen En was still willing to listen to fairy tales. Although childish, they weren't useless; they allowed him to recognize many more words.
“Ya Yi is asleep now, Xiao En. How about we talk about dragons today?”
“Mhm.” Shen En tried his best to nod, making himself look like a cuter child.
“Then come quickly, come into Mama's arms.”
“......”
Seranya smiled beautifully and beckoned him closer.
He was only three; he couldn't show independent behavior from his parents yet, could he?
Shen En had no choice but to lean into Seranya's embrace... His mother had a strong scent of rosemary; she must have baked too much bread.
“Once upon a time, over 1,400 years ago, dragons ruled the entire world...”
Seranya narrated to Shen En, pointing at the picture book, line by line, sound by sound.
“Once upon a time, the moon looked shattered because there was a silver-scaled dragon in the sky reflecting the light. It was majestic and formidable. Every year, when the moon was fullest, it would fly down to forage.
“And each time it arrived, it would make the earth weep, the forests wail, and the seas dry up. Everyone in the world—all humans, all elves, all demon races, all magical beasts and animals—feared it. They all said it was more powerful than the most terrifying witch of the past, a world-destroying dragon!”
As she spoke, Seranya even held the child's hand and pressed it onto the proud, towering image of the silver dragon in the picture book, with an exaggerated expression.
“This dragon could flatten ten cities with just one breath!”
“So... so powerful!”
Shen En pretended to be amazed, curious, and scared, making Seranya beam with laughter.
Although it was still a bit strange, Seranya had taken care of him for so many years that he really couldn't bear to act too cold.
Otherwise, she would end up like when he was weaned, crying secretly in a corner, feeling that her son no longer needed her.
“Xiao En, are you afraid of dragons?” Seranya asked, pointing at the silver dragon image in the picture book.
Dragons?
He used to not believe such things existed in this world.
But if magic existed, why couldn't dragons exist in this world?
And then all sorts of beautiful elves, beautiful fairies, beautiful dragon girls, beautiful demon races...
Shen En was actually a little excited to encounter these creatures he had never seen before.
So he asked his mother, a little curious and a little scared, “Does... does this world... really have dragons?”
To his surprise, Seranya actually began to seriously consider the question, pinching her chin, and recalling for a long time, “Hmm... probably not anymore.”
What did “probably” mean?
“...Prob-probably?”
“Because they basically all died out over 1,400 years ago,” Seranya said as a matter of course, then thought for a moment, “Now, ninety-nine percent of them are probably gone. If there were any left, they would definitely be captured by the Church and those guys in the Arcane Tower.”
Over 1,400 years ago?
The Church? Arcane Tower?
...Why did that sound so familiar?
So he stammered and asked Seranya again:
“Mom, why did the dragons all die out?”
“Because dragons are very, very bad villains! They specialize in eating people! They eat an entire city's worth of people in one breath!”
Seranya deliberately bared her teeth and claws to scare him, while laughing strangely, “Back then, there were too many dragons, and humans lived extremely, extremely hard lives, always enslaved. Once the dragons were hungry and there was no food, each region had to offer countless people, and they had to be infants your size, because they were tender!”
Mom, aren't you afraid of scaring the child by saying that...?
“The first emperor of the Empire, over 1,400 years ago, in the year 1322 of the Dragon Flourishing Era, gathered the strength of the entire world, assembling countless people, a total of one hundred thousand, ten thousand, one hundred, and twelve! Then, uniting with thirteen nation-destroying Archmages, eighty-eight Divine Judgment Paladins, three Sword Gods, and three Demon Kings, they together drove out the Dragon race that had threatened the world for over a millennium!”
Damn!
Shen En's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but blurt out his native accent in his heart.
Of course, he wasn't scared by the story.
But why was this story's background so similar to his novel, the magic codex, that he had set up?!
Shen En recalled carefully.
Not quite right.
It wasn't just similar; it was identical!
Shen En grew a little anxious, no longer bothering to pretend to be a child, and pressed on:
“Then, what was that emperor's name?”
“He had many long titles. Some say he was the incarnation of the Sun God Helios, others say he was the Son of God. Some even say that the Dragon God died because they were too cruel to humans and angered the gods of the world...”
Seranya thought for a moment again, “I'll pick the simplest one to tell you. People then, and even now, because he ground all the defeated dragon's spines into steel powder to cast the Iron Throne and the Twelve Bronze Pillars to transmit for eternity, they all called that Your Majesty—
“The Iron Dome Emperor!”
“......”
Shen En's heart immediately skipped a beat.
This truly was identical to the setting he had written!
.......
