The early morning breeze carried the scent of damp earth as it brushed gently across the garden.
Dew-covered roses swayed in the morning light. Crystal droplets rolled down their petals, refracting tiny glimmers in the sunlight.
Zenith held a copper watering can, ready to water the flower bed.
Her fingertips had barely touched the cool metal when the wooden door behind her was flung open with a creak.
A small figure burst out, wrapped in golden morning light.
His short little legs pumped furiously, scattering dew from the flagstone path as he raced toward the center of the garden like a young animal that had just learned to run.
"Rudeus! Slow down, or you'll fall!"
Zenith hurriedly put down the watering can. Her voice was full of exasperation, but she couldn't hide her deep affection.
Hearing his mother call, the little boy immediately stopped in his tracks.
He stiffened like a squirrel caught by the tail, then put his hands behind his back and slowly turned around, pretending nothing had happened. He walked over to Zenith, swaying with each step.
His emerald-green eyes sparkled as if filled with the starlight of the early morning.
"Mommy-"
He drew out the word, smiling mysteriously.
When he reached her, he suddenly held up the thing he had been hiding behind his back.
It was a small clay pot.
Its body was crooked and its lines uneven, but it had been carefully polished until it was very smooth. Clearly, its maker had put a lot of thought into it.
"I made this!"
Rudeus proudly puffed out his chest.
"It's a magic item I made with earth magic! It can pour out water that never runs out!"
"Wow-"
Zenith played along with an exclamation of wonder and smiled as she ruffled his soft hair.
"Our Rudeus is so amazing."
But she didn't take him too seriously. After all, he was only three years old.
The so-called "water that never runs out" was probably just a little water stored in the pot with a simple magical effect added.
But when she took the little pot and cautiously tilted it-
A stream of clear water immediately poured from the spout.
Splash-
The water flowed steadily onto the soil, quickly soaking a large patch of ground.
One minute.
Two minutes.
Three minutes.
Yet there was no sign of the water in the pot diminishing.
The clear water flowed without end, as if the pot were connected to an invisible stream.
The smile slowly vanished from Zenith's face.
In its place was disbelief and shock.
She crouched down and carefully examined the little pot in her hands.
She soon found an intricate magic circle on its base.
The lines of the circle were smooth and precise, nothing like the work of a child.
And embedded in the center of the circle was a magic crystal, polished round and smooth, giving off a faint blue glow.
Zenith stared at it all.
As a magician herself, she knew better than anyone what this meant.
Even with the help of a magic crystal, completing such a complex enchantment alone was far beyond what an ordinary magician could do.
And what was more-
The person who had done it was only three years old.
A surge of bittersweet emotion and pride rose in her chest, and her vision blurred before she knew it.
Her eyes reddened as she slowly opened her arms and pulled the little boy tightly into her embrace. He was still tilting his head, watching her reaction.
His soft blond hair brushed against her chin, carrying a warmth like sunlight.
Zenith buried her face in his hair, her voice so soft it seemed it might melt into the morning breeze at any moment.
"Thank you, sweetheart."
"Mommy really... really loves this gift."
Rudeus was a little bewildered by the embrace, but he happily wrapped his little arms around his mother in return.
"I'm glad you like it, Mommy!"
Zenith couldn't help laughing.
She gently wiped the moisture from the corners of her eyes and pinched his cheek.
Looking at the child smiling radiantly in her arms, she suddenly felt her heart soften.
This child could always touch the softest part of her heart so easily.
And whenever he did, she couldn't help remembering the past.
Remembering the confused and willful girl she had once been.
Her family home was in the Holy Country of Millis, in a noble house that had been passed down for generations.
To outsiders, such a background meant honor and prestige.
But to the young Zenith, it had been more like a splendid cage.
Her mother's ever-stern gaze.
The unchanging rules at the dining table.
Noble etiquette so elaborate it was suffocating.
Every day had been like a script written in advance.
She had even felt that she had to breathe according to a prescribed rhythm.
Finally, one night.
She secretly packed a few belongings and fled that suffocating home.
She wanted to become a carefree adventurer and see the world outside.
She wanted to leave her own footprints across the continent, like the heroes in stories.
But reality was far crueler than she had imagined.
A noble young lady who couldn't tell one direction from another or even hold a sword steady could hardly get anywhere in the Adventurers' Guild, where all sorts of people mingled.
She had been cheated out of money, robbed of her luggage, and had even nearly lost her life.
That day, several men with ill intentions had cornered her in a dark alley, and despair had nearly swallowed her.
It was then.
A figure stepped in front of her as the setting sun shone through the mouth of the alley.
Brown hair stirred in the evening breeze.
The sound of a sword being drawn rang out, clear and sharp.
The thugs were soon beaten and sent fleeing in disarray.
Then the young man turned around and gave her a casual smile.
"Hey, little lady."
"Want to join our party?"
At that moment.
She thought she saw a hero from a story.
Only later did she learn that the man named Paul was actually a womanizer through and through.
But love in youth never took so much into consideration.
He would pick flowers for her by the roadside.
He would clumsily bandage her when she was hurt.
He would tell her adventure stories from all across the continent by the campfire.
And little by little, she fell for him.
In the end, she gave him everything she had.
And then-
She got pregnant after just once.
When she found out, she panicked.
She knew Paul had been with many women before, and she was afraid she would become just another one of them.
But to her surprise-
Paul didn't run away.
The next day, he left the adventuring party of his own accord.
The man who always seemed so carefree wore a look of seriousness she had never seen before.
"From now on, you and the child are my everything."
There had been no grand declarations when he said it.
Yet Zenith remembered those words for the rest of her life.
The days that followed weren't easy.
They traveled everywhere in search of a place to settle down, budgeting carefully to make ends meet.
Paul worked until late at night every day, often coming home too tired to even eat.
But Zenith felt completely at ease, because she knew she had chosen the right man.
Later, they came to Buena Village, where Paul became the village's garrison knight.
With a stable job at last, they built a house of their own.
They planted flowers they liked and planned for their future.
She had thought their happiness would continue like that.
Until that day...
After examining her, the best doctor in the village became unusually grave.
"My lady."
"The child in your womb... shows very faint signs of life."
"My preliminary judgment is that it may be..."
No... no!
I don't want to hear it!!
"Stillborn."
Boom-!!
At that moment, it was like a bolt from the blue.
Zenith felt as if the whole world had lost its color.
Stillborn.
The word was like an icy blade piercing her heart.
From then on, she lived in despair every day.
She often sat by the window in a daze for hours, touching her belly and silently weeping.
Paul tried everything he could to comfort her. He made her all kinds of delicious food, told his awful jokes, and even hired someone especially to look after her.
But none of it helped. Her world seemed to have collapsed.
Then came the day she went into labor.
Agonizing pain swept through her body, and her consciousness gradually faded.
And just as she was about to slip into darkness-
A loud infant's cry suddenly rang out.
"Wah-!"
The cry was strong and powerful, like a clap of thunder breaking through the long night.
Zenith's eyes flew open, and tears spilled from them instantly.
She saw Lilia bring a tiny baby to her.
The child was wrinkled, his little face red as he waved his fists and cried loudly.
But in her eyes, it was the most beautiful sight in the world.
Candlelight shone through the glass, its gentle glow falling on the baby's face like a blessing from the gods.
At that moment.
She felt as though she had come back to life.
It was a miracle!
The most precious gift fate had given her, and a treasure she was willing to protect with her life.
Zenith lowered her head and looked at Rudeus, who was nestled in her arms.
Her lips curved into a tender smile.
No matter how many years passed, she would never forget that day.
The child who should have lost his life had finally come into this world.
And he had become the sun that lit up her life...