It's been another six or seven years. Let's say about six and a half.
I was fourteen and the last child of Alarick Lightbane still in the house.
Maren and Jakob had both left for Astar and Acomet Academy when they were about fifteen.
You could choose to live at the academy, and both of them chose to.
I'd choose it too when it was my time, which was coming very soon.
This world placed enough faith in those around that age to handle themselves responsibly.
Legally speaking, you were an adult at around fifteen.
You could drink, work, marry, and die for the army around that age - or at least, humans could.
Asolar had opened up more to the world, shedding a long period of semi-isolationism.
Not that Asolar didn't trade and negotiate with other countries - it just liked to keep it at a minimum.
King Deimos did a lot to open it up.
The manor felt a little empty without them around, especially Maren.
Jakob was an intellectual, and I did miss him and the way he talked to me about the newest thing he'd learned or read, but Maren was usually loud and lively.
Although it would be great to see them more often, leaving would mean I'd be seeing less of Dad, Master Orrin, and Miss Marie.
My lessons didn't stop. If anything, they intensified.
Having no one else to teach, both became far more relaxed. Orrin was mostly just a guy who was around because Grandpa Gregorio didn't want him teaching me, and without having to wrangle Maren, Marie was far more lenient with me, since I wasn't as bad as her.
I wondered if Maren and Jakob felt strange having to leave all of it behind.
Maren? Probably not. She wasn't the sentimental type.
Jakob? Definitely. I can still remember him almost crying when he left.
That was something else I realized in this world.
It wasn't just that women were stronger than men and had little magical power compared to them.
Societal expectations were also reversed. Women were the workers and the grunts. They were usually the main providers in a household.
I guess that's why most of the girls here were also rougher than boys.
Men were the caretakers of the home. Family and such were the number one priority if one didn't take up a career or strive to become a mage.
That extended to relationships and dating too.
Women chased, and men were the gatekeepers of relationships.
Beauty - especially fashion and makeup - were things mostly only men cared about.
This was a world of amazons and twinks.
I really had to get used to that.
I wondered if, in my father's and Sera's relationship, Sera had initiated it. After thinking about it, the reverse in their scenario didn't sit well.
Some guy hitting on a widow shortly after the passing of her husband?
I really hoped it wasn't like that.
I, myself, wasn't the epitome of beauty, but I passed as at least a six out of ten. Or at least, that's how I saw myself.
I'd gotten taller but was still a bit short for a boy my age, though I had a more toned physique. But if I got more muscular, that wouldn't be a plus.
One thing I received, like a gift from God, was lighter and more vibrant hair.
It was a strong violet now.
My girls, on the other hand, barely changed. It had been ten years since I found and "resurrected" them. They should've been about twenty now, but they looked like teenage girls.
To be honest, they looked my age.
I'd had my suspicions, and time confirmed them.
They aged slower.
Even taking their races into account - which most matured at about the same rate until fifteen - they aged slower.
About half of what was expected.
Humans continued on as I knew it. That must mean that, if things continued as they had, Catherine would live to almost two hundred.
Dwarves, which I'd researched for a long while to confirm Elizabeth was one, would live to about four hundred.
And elves - well, let's just say Juliet would be fifteen for a long time. I thought that was kind of a bad thing, but I think many would disagree.
The way I was living, I'd die of a heart attack in my thirties.
I didn't sleep much, and sometimes, when I rested for too long - not doing anything with Shadowboon - a sort of dread loomed over me. I made it a habit not to rest for extended periods.
That meant I did "something" about every three months to make sure I was safe.
Maybe it was just mental illness from experiencing death, then the threat of it, and then the trauma of being reborn. Who knows?
Living a quadruple life was good when it came to creating stories.
Caleb Lightbane, the Prophet of Light. Edward Shadowboon, the Child of Darkness.
Anyway, I tried not to dwell on it too much.
For now, I was fourteen and a half.
One evening, while I was having dinner with my father, he said - more emotional than usual - "You'll be leaving soon."
It wasn't a question.
"You wouldn't know, but your mother would be proud of you. She'd be proud of you all, just like I am."
I didn't know what to say.
"The world out there… it doesn't treat boys gently. Not the way it treats girls."
I frowned. It was weird to hear. "I can handle myself," I said.
"I know," he replied immediately. "That's what worries me."
He hesitated, then continued, choosing his words with care. "You're kind. Thoughtful. There are women and girls who will see that as a sign. Some will see it as something to use."
I didn't know what to say.
"You don't owe anyone affection," he went on. "Not because they're stronger. Not because they pursue you. Not because they say you should be grateful for the attention." His voice was steady, but there was something protective beneath it. "You're allowed to say no. You're allowed to choose. Girls your age only think about one thing, so don't be tricked or forced into something you don't want."
I nodded. What did he think was going to happen? That I was going to be raped?
I wasn't just some weak and submissive twink to be used.
If I was going to be anyone's boytoy, it would be with my consent.
The conversation must've been awkward for my father too.
He cleared his throat, trying to regain some composure. "Just… be careful."
"…Alright."
We ate in silence after that.
That night, I lay awake longer than usual.
Not thinking about the academy or harassment I might have to live through - not really. It didn't matter that much to me, honestly.
What kept me awake was everything I wouldn't be able to manage from there.
The girls.
Distance changed everything. Even with my magic, the journey would be much longer.
From Lightbane Manor, it took less than ten minutes to reach their settlement, but from Astar, it would take considerably more time. Even if I could cut it down to just one hour, it would be too long.
At least they had a real home now. There was a storehouse now, an outdoor kitchen, and a well. All thanks to Maybelle.
I'd be leaving more behind too. Whether I wanted to or not, I was a big part of the scene in Endil.
Not many people knew me personally, but they'd heard about the father of the three girls who ran around Endil.
The girls had built a reputation as do-gooders.
Fixers. Problem solvers.
Lost animal? Ask the girls.
Lost child? Ask the girls.
Something broken? Ask the girls.
Something strange in the woods that shouldn't be there? Ask the girls.
They didn't charge for it. Not really. Most of the time, they took whatever the villagers offered in return - food, a bit of money, services, or discounts at shops. All of which they used.
To the girls, it wasn't charity exactly. It was closer to compulsion - a shared understanding that if they could help, then they should.
That made me proud. I taught them to do right on their own.
And because of all of that, they were known.
Which meant I was known too, even if only in passing conversation - their father, spoken of like an angel.
But if - or rather, when - I left for the academy, I wouldn't be there for them anymore.
If anything happened, I wouldn't be there to help or reassure them.
They were strong and tough, but that didn't mean I was okay with them getting hurt or in danger.
No parent would be.
If there were accidents, bad luck, or any trouble they didn't know how to deal with, they wouldn't be able to look to their father.
Their slow aging wasn't just physical - it affected their mental state too.
Even if biologically they were twenty, in every other sense they were still barely teenage girls.
Crap. What was I going to do?