Chapter 2. One Year Old. Cozy Family. [RotDE] (Patreon)

One year later, inside a small but cozy medical clinic, a brown-haired woman was looking at some herbs with a little child on her lap. The child had beautiful raven black colored hair, and her round face and large red-colored eyes looked attentively at what the woman did.

The woman called Salia Dravory was a medical practitioner. She knew many types of spiritual herbs combinations and how to create medicines with miraculous effects for her town.

At that moment, she was creating an ointment to heal wounds.

Her hands deftly mixed the herbs in a concoction. She used a rock vase with controlled flames below it. Of course, it wasn't something difficult as she wouldn't risk something going wrong with the one-year-old on her lap. Moreover, just in case, she had a band tying the baby around her waist to avoid any accidents.

Salia saw the child reaching out and grabbing one of the herbs close to her and shaking it. Knowing that it was harmless, she just smiled and continued with the slow preparation.

"Mama, mama!"

The child's babbling reached her ears, and Salia lowered her face to nuzzle with her face. "You are so clever, little Tatyana. You already know how to call me~."

The one-year-old girl's beautiful and innocent ruby eyes curved into crescents, and she kissed Salia's cheek loudly. Salia lowered the flames below her concoction and freed her hands to hug the little child and rain kisses all over her face. "You are so cute, baby."

The little girl laughed, repeating the same babbling as if to ask for more kisses.

Salia happily played with her until she needed to pay attention to the medicine she was creating. Then, she continued her concoction for another fifteen minutes.

The smell of the concoction didn't spread as much because of the cleverly built ventilation system, leaving behind a soothing fragrance. Occasionally, she checked on the baby to ensure everything was okay.

The child on the woman's lap still couldn't string proper sentences, but she could blabber some words and understood how to ask for things or give something her stepmother pointed out.

"Tatyana, give me [Rose Petal Dew]."

The woman waited and saw the small child look at the things on the table, finally picking up a rosy crystal bottle. "Ose? Ose?"

The woman grabbed the bottle with a laugh. "That's right, Rose Petal Dew. Ah! How can my baby be so clever~."

In that manner, each time the woman pointed at an herb while saying its name, the child's small hands would grab it clumsily and wave it toward the lady, making baby sounds.

Sometimes, they would slip from her immature grasp, but with reflexes that would scare an average person, the woman would always catch them instantly.

Salia continued to caress and kiss her head full of black hair, praising her lovingly.

Suddenly, the woman felt the little child in her lap pulling her robes softly as she blabbered some words. She looked down with a tender smile and asked, "What does my baby want?"

"Mama, hungry, hungry!" The little child made gestures to her mouth and blabbered some more barely understandable sounds, but Salia understood her perfectly. "Does my child want to eat~? Let's get you something to eat. We can't let this tummy empty for too long, right?"

The woman put out the fire since she had coincidently finished and sat the child on the table.

Then, feeling playful, she lifted the small brown grabs of the child, and blew a raspberry on the round white stomach of her baby.

The funny sound and ticklish sensation made the small child giggle cutely, hugging her mother's head.

The woman also laughed and said, "Do you like it, little Tatyana~? Then mommy will give you more~."

*Brrr.*

Little Tatyana's exotic red eyes curved into beautiful crescents as she patted the stepmother's head while giggling. The woman also laughed with her.

After five minutes of playing with her, she heard a knock on the door. The woman stopped playing with Tatyana and picked her up between her arms.

"Enter."

The door opened, and a young girl stepped through it. Although the person who entered was another child, she was much older than Tatyana, being ten years old.

She shared the mature and gentle woman's light-brown hair with brown eyes. The child's facial features were also very similar to the woman's, clearly showing that she was her biological child. "Mom, when are we going to eat?"

Then, the young girl saw Tatyana and pouted. "Ah! You are playing with Tatyana again without telling me! I also want to play with my little sister!"

The woman smiled and placated her child, hugging her over the shoulders. "You two have asked the same thing, hahaha. Little Tatyana just told me that she was hungry and wanted to eat. Come, let's go to the dining room."

The young girl scrunched her nose and said, "Don't lie to me, Mom! How can she ask you about anything? She still can't even talk properly!"

The woman said with a smirk, "You are underestimating your little sister! Look."

She then turned toward Tatyana and asked, doing gestures with her hands, "Is my baby hungry? Do you want to nom-nom?"

Tatyana saw her mother's gestures and also did them, blabbing, "Hungry! Nhom-hom! Hom-nhom!"

The big sister looked with wonder. "Wow! She is so smart! The other kids at her age can't even say one word yet!"

Salia's lips arched, showing a gentle but proud smile. "Of course. Whose little sister do you think she is? Her big sister is so smart; the little sister must also be smart, right?"

The big sister puffed her chest with a big smile. "But of course! I'm also teaching little Tatyana how to play! That way, she will grow into a smart girl!"

The woman praised her sincerely, "Good job! Loreia, If you keep teaching her, I may consider lessening your study time a little bit to let you play with her."

Loreia's smile became more prominent, and she patted her chest. "Leave it to me! I will make my little sister the most intelligent girl in the town. Of course, right after me! Hahaha."

The woman laughed and guided her children toward the dining room. Her mouth had a constant, gentle, and satisfied smile. What more could she ask for than having her two children get along with each other?

Knowing that they were so close only brought joy to the mother.

Meanwhile, Loreia asked Salia. "Mom, can I carry her?"

Salia didn't say no but warned. "Be careful. She is getting heavier."

Loreia said confidently. "Don't worry, I'm very strong!"

Salia didn't deny it because she had fed Loreia with many gentle medicines to make her grow healthier and stronger than an average child. Using her knowledge for her family was a normal thing to do.

Loreia would be as strong as a 13-year-old boy if she had to compare her. Carrying a one-year-old was very easy for her.

When the little bundle of softness fell in her arms, Loreia felt satisfied. Unlike most of the people in the town, who had healthy, tanned skin because of the Sun, her little sister had a beautiful white complexion.

Moreover, her facial features, even if she was just a child, showed cuteness above any other child Loreia had ever seen. 'Little sister will probably become very beautiful.'

"Little sister, say big sister."

"Buh Sistah!"

"Oh!"

"Say, I love you!"

Little Tatyana blinked two times and spoke, making a sound that didn't really come close to what Loreia wanted. Of course, she didn't give up and guided her. "Repeat after me. 'I'."

"I?"

"Very good! Now, Love."

"Luv."

"Haha, good enough. Now, you."

"You?"

"Perfect. Now, all together. I… Love… You!"

"I uv you!"

"Hahaha, again! I… Love… You!"

"I luv you!"

Loreia laughed happily and kissed Tatyana.

Salia looked at them, her eyes filled with laughter. 'I hope they always get along like this.'

Walking together toward the house, time flew by, and they arrived shortly after. The town was not significant, with about 150 people, or 30 families, living there.

It was surrounded by a tall fence to guard against ruthless nature and had wide farmlands. There were also three families with animals like chickens and cows.

There was also a town mayor, who could be considered the richest since he had connections outside the town.

The clinic and house were separated by a few hundred meters.

Meanwhile, Salia's family, while not as wealthy as the town mayor, were relatively well off. Salia's medicine was very profitable, and the husband also worked as a hunter and a farmer, giving them a steady source of meat.

Their house was neither too big nor too small. Behind their home, they had a considerable plot of land. Plenty of vegetables were planted there, with a section dedicated to medicinal plants.

Their living house had two floors with four bedrooms, two baths, one kitchen, and one living room. There was also a basement and a hut holding farming and hunting equipment outside.

This hunting equipment consisted of bows, spears, and swords. All handcrafted.

When they arrived at their house and made it to the dining room, a tall, muscular, and relatively handsome middle-aged man waited for them, placing the food on a wooden table.

He had light brown hair and honey-colored eyes, defined facial features, and thick eyebrows. His skin was tanned because of working in the fields, but overall, he was well-groomed and clean.

A good match for Salia.

When he saw his family arriving, he smiled playfully. "Three beautiful girls appearing in this room at this hour? What do you three beautiful girls want from me!? Even if you are hungry, I won't give you anything! I'm protecting this food for my family!"

The big sister laughed and ran toward him; Salia had taken Tatyana from her a few minutes ago.

Loreia hugged his side and said proudly. "We are here to steal your food! Even if you don't want to, you must feed us until we are satisfied!"

The man picked the big sister up, making her burst into laughter. "Oh no! These foodies are so unreasonable that they would steal my family's food! Should I have made even more?"

Salia looked at this while shaking her head, but the love in her eyes was unmistakable.

She gently approached and kissed him with a gentle look. "Maybe not more, but I hope you did the food delicious enough~. If not, you must clean the dishes tonight, Terrance."

The man kissed little Tatyana's forehead, making her giggle because his short beard felt a little prickly. Then, he commented. "Of course. If this beautiful and young Lady is not satisfied, how can I be a good husband? I'm sure the three beautiful ladies, Salia, Loreia, and Tatyana, will like it."

After their playful greeting, they all sat down.

Little Tatyana was on her father's lap, being fed by him. Salia, the mother, was seated beside him, and Loreia was in front of them.

Their days were peaceful, and their life was relaxing and fulfilling.