Settling Down, a New Family!

Since he couldn't count on magic for the time being, he could only rely on himself.

Jiang Bai rubbed his aching temples and glanced at Erza, who was watching him anxiously from his side. A plan formed in his mind.

His greatest assets right now were his harmless appearance as a six-year-old child and his status as an orphan.

They were the perfect tools for playing pitiful and winning sympathy!

"Grandpa Village Chief, could you take me to see him, Erza?" Jiang Bai put on the air of a well-behaved, sensible child.

"Okay!" Erza asked no questions. She took Jiang Bai's hand and led him outside.

The two walked out of the simple wooden house, one behind the other.

Jiang Bai followed her, taking the opportunity to look around the village called Rosemary.

The village was small, with dozens of wooden and stone houses scattered in an orderly fashion. Thin wisps of cooking smoke rose from the rooftops, and the air was filled with the scents of food and firewood.

Villagers came and went along the road, greeting Erza warmly whenever they saw her. When their gazes fell on Jiang Bai, they regarded him with friendly curiosity.

It was a peaceful, simple village.

Soon, Erza brought him to a somewhat larger wooden house.

An old man sat in a rocking chair outside the door, a pipe between his lips. His hair and beard were white, and his face was lined with wrinkles, but he was still full of vigor.

"Grandpa Village Chief!" Erza ran over to him.

The old man smiled kindly when he saw Erza, then turned his gaze to Jiang Bai behind her.

"Oh? Our little hero is awake?"

Jiang Bai knew it was time to put on a show.

He lowered his head and, in a timid, uneasy voice, delivered the story he had prepared long ago.

"Grandpa Village Chief, I... my mom and dad abandoned me. They didn't want me anymore, so I ran into the forest all alone..."

By the end, his voice had acquired just the right hint of a sob, and his eyes had turned red at precisely the right moment.

This routine was one of the survival skills he had honed through the rough and tumble of life in his previous life. Used with a child's body, its effectiveness increased exponentially.

The village chief looked at his pitiful expression and was just about to offer a few words of comfort.

Unexpectedly, Erza reacted faster than he did.

An orphan herself, she clearly felt a deep kinship with Jiang Bai over his story.

She let go of the village chief's sleeve, walked over to Jiang Bai, and seized his cold little hand.

"It's okay!" Erza's eyes were unusually earnest. "They don't want you, but I do! From now on, I'll be your friend!"

Then she turned to the village chief and said firmly, "Grandpa Village Chief, let Jiang Bai live with me! There's an empty room at my house he can stay in!"

The village chief took a deep draw on his pipe and puffed out a string of white smoke rings.

Looking at the two children before him, both sharing the same plight, a trace of pity flashed through his aged eyes.

He was silent for a moment before finally asking, his tone growing more serious, "Child, Rob and the others said you killed that blood wolf. Can you tell me what that power was?"

As the village chief, he was responsible for the safety of all the villagers.

He couldn't afford to be careless with a child of unknown origins who possessed the terrifying power to kill a blood wolf.

Here it came.

Jiang Bai's heart tightened. He knew this was the final test.

He didn't lie. Instead, he chose to give the most honest answer.

He raised his head, met the village chief's eyes, which seemed able to see into people's hearts, and said frankly, "I don't know what that power was. I only know it appeared on its own when I was about to be eaten. But now... I can't use it anymore."

He was telling the truth. The splitting headache he had suffered when he tried to use magic was still fresh in his memory.

The village chief silently studied his eyes, as though trying to determine whether he was telling the truth.

After a long while, the grave expression slowly faded from the old man's face, replaced once more by kindness.

He nodded.

"I believe you."

In Jiang Bai's eyes, he saw not the slightest trace of lies or malice, only the purity and honesty a child should have.

"Since Erza has said as much, you can live here from now on. You two should get along well, like family."

With the village chief's permission, a radiant smile spread across Erza's face.

Holding Jiang Bai's hand tightly, she skipped toward home.

"This is wonderful, Jiang Bai! Now I have family too!"

She looked back at Jiang Bai, her scarlet hair gleaming in the setting sun and her eyes shining like stars in the sky.

"Simon and Kagura are friends who live far away. But we'll be living in the same house, so from today on, we're family!"

In Erza's simple understanding, only those who lived under the same roof were family.

And at last, she had her first family member, someone besides her friends.

Hearing Erza say, "We're family," Jiang Bai was absolutely delighted.

Erza!

She was one of his favorite female characters from watching Fairy Tail in his previous life!

Strong, beautiful, and a little airheaded at times, she was the perfect goddess.

Now, not only had he transmigrated to her side, but through a strange twist of fate, he had also become her "family" and was about to begin the childhood-friend life he had always dreamed of.

This start was an absolute jackpot!

But...

Jiang Bai glanced at Erza skipping ahead of him, still not fully grown, then looked down at his own short little legs. A thought born of a strong desire for self-preservation rose from the bottom of his heart.

Both of them were only around six years old. To avoid having the legendary Great River Crab God rain down divine punishment and obliterate them both, he had to hold firm to his bottom line.

Yes, marriage has to wait until we're adults!

Until then, I'll build up our bond and be a pure, upright, caring "family member"!

The two returned to Erza's home, a clean and tidy little wooden house.

Erza excitedly pushed open the door to one of the empty rooms. Inside were only a bare wooden bed and a few odds and ends.

"Jiang Bai, this will be your room from now on!"

Like a cheerful little bird, she picked up a rag and enthusiastically began helping him tidy up.

Jiang Bai watched her energetic figure from behind, warmth stirring in his heart. He joined in, and together they cleaned the room from top to bottom.

Just as they were laying fresh hay and animal hides on the wooden bed, someone pushed open the door to the house.

"Erza, we came to play with you!"

A boy's somewhat muffled voice rang out.

Immediately afterward, two small figures walked in.

In front was a black-haired boy who was a little sturdier than others his age, with a stubborn look on his square face. It was Simon.

Following behind him was a somewhat timid-looking little girl with shoulder-length hair. It was Kagura.

"Simon! Kagura!"

Erza waved happily when she saw her friends. "Come over here! I'll introduce you to my new family member!"

Simon and Kagura walked over curiously and peeked into the room.

When Simon saw Jiang Bai and heard Erza say "new family member" and "live together," the smile on his face froze.

Children might not yet understand a concept as complicated as "liking" someone, but in Simon's simple understanding, Erza was his most important, one-of-a-kind friend.

But now some boy had suddenly appeared, not only winning Erza's approval but also going to live with her!

The look Simon gave Jiang Bai instantly turned hostile.

It was the wariness and hostility of someone whose most beloved toy was about to be taken away, like a young beast whose territory had been invaded.

Kagura, beside him, had no such complicated thoughts. She simply peered out from behind Simon with her big, dark eyes, studying this new older brother, who looked a little older than her and was very handsome, with curiosity.