The year 3570 marked the beginning of a new chapter for the world. It happened in the spring, during the month of Everi, in the country of Nothran. For most people, it was just another season. For our hero, it was the moment everything changed.
『 Irvar, Nothran — 26 Everi, 8:30 AM 』
"Honey!" a voice called from the kitchen.
"Yes, Noémie?" the man replied.
Noémie adjusted the belt of her blue dress—simple, but flattering. At thirty-six, she barely looked twenty-four. Her long golden hair was pinned up in a practical bun to keep her hands free. Getting up early for her husband and children was just part of her daily routine.
"You forgot to grab breakfast," she called out.
"Ah, I don't think I'll have time," he replied. "I have to catch the 8:55 train."
Noémie frowned. She hated wasting food.
"Sil-ves-ter…" she grumbled, annoyed.
Her husband appeared. At thirty-nine, he had aged like fine wine. His short black hair framed a surprisingly youthful face, without a single line betraying his fatigue. He wore an elegant suit, paired with a silver watch on his right wrist.
Sensing his wife's cold fury, he hurriedly wolfed down his grilled fish, then swallowed a few spoonfuls of tomato soup.
"See? You do have time!" Noémie teased.
A bit embarrassed, Silvester gave a nervous laugh. "Ha ha… You're right, sorry."
Noémie chuckled softly.
"By the way, I forgot to tell you something," Silvester said as he slipped on his jacket and hat. "I don't think I'll be home tonight. I'm taking the train to Nishtar; the boss says we need to meet with some important men."
Noémie adjusted her husband's tie, then asked, "When do you think you'll be back?"
"I'll probably end up spending three days at an inn in the capital," Silvester answered reluctantly.
Noémie looked down, a little saddened.
Seeing this, he quickly added, "I'm sorry. But hey, good news! After this job, I get a whole week off! We can take a trip with the kids, how does that sound?"
His wife's eyes lit up again, her face breaking into a bright smile.
"You should have led with that! Of course, that works for me, sweetheart."
Silvester glanced at his watch and headed for the door.
"I really have to go! Tell the kids I love them! And tell Kaelle she's going to be late if she keeps doing her makeup!"
Noémie laughed.
"Don't worry, go! Her classes don't start until 10:00 today!"
Silvester stepped through the door, then turned back to kiss his wife. In his rush, he dropped his brown felt hat without even noticing.
Noémie picked it up after he had already gone. With a tender smile, she placed it on her head.
"See you soon, my love."
Suddenly, footsteps echoed down the wooden stairs. Someone was rushing down at full speed.
"Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! I'm going to be late!" a female voice yelled.
Noémie turned her head and saw her daughter, Kaelle.
"Kaelle, what's wrong?"
Kaelle exclaimed, frantic, "Mom! I have to go meet Alphonse. His classes start at 9:30!"
Noémie gave a teasing little smile.
"Oh, your boyfriend?"
Kaelle was in such a rush to put on her long leather jacket that the hair tie holding her purple hair snapped. Without thinking, she replied, "Yeah! He's going to the city of Techlan for a while, for some kind of student exchange."
Then, realizing her slip-up, she corrected herself:
"Mom! Stop teasing me, please. Plus, my hair tie just broke…"
Noémie burst out laughing and handed her a ribbon from a drawer in the living room.
"Here you go, young lady. This green ribbon will look wonderful on you. Want me to make you something to eat?"
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Kaelle hastily took the ribbon and tied her hair into a ponytail.
"No thanks, Mom! I'm going to be so late. I have to catch the 9:10 train and run all the way to the academy!"
She slipped on her sneakers and threw open the door to sprint off. Noémie asked:
"Are you coming home for lunch at noon?"
Kaelle answered, her voice fading in the distance:
"Yes, Mom! I finish at noon!"
Noémie smiled.
"Noon it is, then! Say hi to Alphonse for me!"
Then she closed the door and murmured peacefully:
"She found herself a good boy… He's a very sweet kid."
Suddenly, a commotion from the upstairs bedroom caught her attention: thumping sounds and the shouts of children having fun. As she was about to go up, the sound of something shattering rang out. She frowned and took the stairs two at a time.
"Boys, I'm coming!"
Noémie quickly grabbed her rolling pin—the one she always used to make her homemade bread—and tapped it against the palm of her hand.
In the bedroom, a boy with round green eyes and long, wavy golden hair panicked.
"Shit! Mom's gonna kill us! You broke the vase Dad gave her!" he said to his brother.
The latter had short black hair, shaved on the sides. A single braid hung down on the right side of his head, while his amber gaze gave him a somewhat mythical look. A bit younger, probably around twelve, he shot back, pointing at his brother:
"But you're the one who broke it! With your 'kick flash laser'! I didn't do anything!"
The blonde boy, who looked about thirteen, grimaced.
"You shouldn't have dodged my move! You asked for a demonstration, and then you ran away, you dirty coward!"
The third boy, the smallest of the three, had a sly smirk. He brushed the red strands falling over his face out of his mouth and said:
"You guys are screwed, Vars and Itoî."
The two older ones replied in unison, screaming:
"You're screwed too, Uyan!"
Uyan, eight years old, eyes wide, protested:
"Why? What did I do?"
Itoî crossed his arms, looking triumphant:
"Maybe the console you played on until 4:00 AM last night?"
Suddenly, Uyan pricked up his ears. His mother's footsteps echoed in the hallway, getting closer, growing heavier… It sounded like a titan about to break down the door. The little boy gulped.
"Alright, okay, we're screwed."
Then he took a deep breath, and a mischievous smile stretched his lips.
"Just kidding. YOU guys are screwed."
The other two, trembling as they heard the footsteps of death approaching, slowly turned toward Uyan. Simultaneously, they stammered:
"Huh…?"
"MOM! MOM!!"
The door flew open. The two older boys, panicked, hugged each other and huddled on the bed.
Noémie looked at the pieces of the vase scattered all over the room—some had even managed to embed themselves in the wall. An impressive feat!
"Alright, who did this?"
She gripped her rolling pin tightly, first resting her gaze on the two terrified culprits. The boys were shaking like leaves, glued to each other. Then she turned her head to the right, where little Uyan was crying.
"Come on, Uyan, tell me what happened."
Uyan kept crying, sniffling loudly, then answered in a trembling voice:
"W-w-well, actually, Itoî and Vars threw the vase at me, and… and then I dodged it and it broke!"
Itoî and Vars clenched their fists, the same thought burning in their minds:
What a little bastard! Uyan, you just wait…
Noémie shifted her gaze back to the two troublemakers. She raised the rolling pin, ready to smash it against the floor in anger, but stopped short, afraid of hurting them.
"Boys, that was a vase from Dad. It was actually the first gift he ever gave me when we moved here, to the Joliotte neighborhood. We have a pretty big yard; you can play outside as much as you want. So, no more fooling around in here. You could have gotten hurt. The vase doesn't matter, but you do."
Itoî and Vars nodded, crying.
"W-we're sorry, Mom! We promise we won't do it again!"
With a smile on her lips, Noémie motioned for Uyan to go over to his brothers, then took all three children in her arms.
"I love you, boys. You are my pride, my family, and my little babies."
Smiling, she floated out of the room. Then, two seconds later, she pushed the door open a crack, frowned slightly, and added one last thing:
"Uyan, I know they didn't throw the vase right at your face. No more lying, okay?"
The little boy replied, sweating:
"Y-Yeah, sorry, Mom…"
She gestured for the boys to leave the room.
"I'm going to clean up this mess. Go play outside in the yard, and enjoy the gentle spring breeze. By the way, lunch is ready, help yourselves!"
The boys nodded and left the room, then went downstairs, chatting:
"Hey, what are you playing, Uyan?" Itoî asked, intrigued by his little brother's screen.
"War Before Life. It's a strategy game where you have to lead the sol—"
His brother cut him off, shrugging and rolling his eyes to show his disinterest:
"Meh, your thing looks like crap."
Uyan curled up as if he were sulking and went down the rest of the stairs without a word of retort.
"There he goes! He's gonna sulk all day now," Vars sighed, used to this kind of scene.
Once downstairs, the children arrived in the living space: on the right was the large kitchen, where Noémie was serving lunch, and on the left, the living room. The two rooms weren't separated by a wall. To prove he didn't care about his game anymore, Uyan tossed his console onto the couch.
Vars ran straight to the table, sat down, and banged his silverware against the wood like a starving child:
"Food! Food! Food!"
Noémie sighed, motioned for Itoî and Uyan to sit down as well, then took off the lids and served everyone a bowl of rice and a grilled fish.
Uyan stared at the fish with disgust. He clearly didn't like this dish and turned to his mother:
"Mooom… Don't we have anything else besides fish, please? I don't like it…"
"No, sweetheart, you need to eat a balanced diet. But if you finish everything, you'll all get a dessert."
The three boys asked, eyes sparkling with wonder:
"A dessert?! Which one?"
Their mother smiled before answering:
"A little chocolate cupcake with hazelnuts from the Akala forest!"
The kids jumped for joy and ate at top speed. Mouth full, Uyan turned to Itoî:
"M-my shtuff ishn't rotten!" he mumbled, cheeks puffed with rice.
Itoî frowned, perplexed by this gibberish:
"Huh, what? I can't understand a thing!" he retorted, spitting on his little brother's face in the process.
Uyan dropped his spoon, frantically wiping his face and his favorite Cyber-Man t-shirt. He swallowed his bite and shouted aggressively:
"Goddammit, Itoî! You spit all over my face!"
Noémie, who was busy doing the dishes, frowned at the boys:
"Boys, no cursing! And stop talking with your mouths full."
The three replied in unison:
"Yes, Mom!"
They finished their meal.
Noémie then served the three plates, each with a cupcake. The kids devoured them in less than two seconds.
"Thanks for the meal!" they said, smiling at their mother.
Noémie smiled at her sons and gave a slight nod:
"You're welcome, my loves."
The children's eyes lit up. It was a beautiful day for the Strauss family. This peaceful scene with their mother felt magical, much like the ray of sunlight piercing through the window above the sink, or the lush green garden calling out to the children to play. What could possibly happen to them? Happiness isn't something you lose easily. Right?