Six Months Later
"Congratulations on turning half a year old! You're growing into a big boy!" Vekros cheered as he tossed the baby into the air, catching him effortlessly with magic.
Arth let out a joyful laugh. "No matter how many times Grandpa does this, it never gets old! No wonder babies love it so much."
Six months had passed since his reincarnation into this world, and a lot had changed. The most obvious transformation was physical—he had grown a little over half a foot since birth. Though still small, his body had become much stronger. He could now move his limbs with more control, albeit a bit clumsily. No longer confined to simply lying in people's arms, he had gained enough strength to roll over, grab objects at will, and even kick his legs around. Walking was still a distant goal, but he had recently unlocked the crawling perk, which made getting around a little easier.
The second major improvement was his grasp of language. He had become surprisingly proficient at understanding conversations, though some advanced words still tripped him up when they were casually thrown into discussions.
'It's not as boring anymore now that I can actually understand what people are saying. The first few months were absolute hell. I swear, I finally understand why babies cry when they're left alone—it's ridiculously dull! Now that I'm a certified pro at being a kid, I don't blame them. In fact, I kinda feel bad for them,' Arth mused internally.
His rapid progress in language could largely be credited to Vekros, who often brought him visual novels. It was just a response to his apparent interest. Whether Vekros read to him or simply left the books open for him to stare at, his curiosity had done the rest.
And, of course, there were the toys. Vekros had made sure he never ran out of things to play with, and for that, Arth was grateful. The last three months hadn't been nearly as dull as the first. Playing with toys had become a source of entertainment, and honestly, no man—regardless of age—could resist the charm of good old-fashioned toys when given the chance.
"You've become quite the chunky boy, Arth," Mila cooed as she breastfed him, gazing at him with adoration. Despite the warmth in her eyes, she couldn't help but let out small moans during their breastfeeding sessions—an effect of his bloodline.
"The fatter you get, the rounder you become, and that's just too adorable for me to handle," she said, gently caressing his chubby cheeks.
Mila had grown deeply attached to him over the past few months, and there were two major reasons for it. First, he was unbelievably adorable—almost unnaturally so. And second, his charm. Being a lust demon came with its own set of innate advantages, even from infancy. His presence had an effect on people, drawing them in like moths to a flame.
As their bond grew, Mila often told him about her life, sharing stories of her past. Through these, Arth learned a great deal about her tragic history. She was once a simple girl from a small village, living a peaceful life with her sick, elderly mother. But that life was shattered when the local lord took notice of her beauty. He had her forcefully taken, and when she resisted, he gave her a cruel choice—submit to him or watch her mother be killed and still be taken. With no real option, she gave in to his demands and let him have his way with her body.
Her suffering did not end there. After using and impregnating her, the lord discarded her like trash and ordered her execution. She barely managed to escape with her life, wandering from village to village, homeless, starving, and with a newborn to care for. It was during this time that Vekros found her, begging on the streets with her infant in her arms. He offered her a job, and from that moment, her life took a turn for the better.
'Grandpa did the right thing by killing that bastard!' Arth thought bitterly, cursing the soul of the dead lord.
Originally, Vekros had only intended for Mila to be a wet nurse for Arth and nothing more. However, everything changed the day he read her memories. After learning about her horrifying past, he didn't hesitate—he simply looked her in the eyes and asked, "Do you want revenge?"
Her answer was immediate.
The very next day, the entire bloodline of the local lord was found dismembered and put on display at the village crossroads. Every single one of them, down to his unborn children of his wife, was wiped out. But Vekros didn't stop there. All of the lord's accomplices—those who had enabled his crimes—were also found hanging from trees, one by one, their lifeless bodies swaying in the wind with various torture marks that the river of blood flow through the village road.
Arth's mind drifted back to the moment Mila had first told him about her past. He remembered how she cried, how the pain in her voice cut through him like a blade. And yet, despite everything she had suffered, he—who had the mind of an adult—had once looked at her with lustful thoughts.
'Thinking about her that way… I feel disgusting.' Regret churned in his heart.
But that was enough dwelling on inconsequential things.
Well, over the past three months, he had learned a great deal, but the most shocking revelation of all came from Vekros himself. Arth knew from the beginning that his grandpa wasn't a normal undead; he knew that he might be a lich, and he was right about but that wasn't it until he learned about his past. It left him glad that this was the guy who had saved him and increased his admiration to be like him by multiple folds.
Every time the old man carried him around, reading him stories or singing lullabies, he would slip in pieces of his own past as life lessons. And through those lessons, Arth had come to learn about himself and Vekros.
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Well, if anyone was wondering why I wrote two chaps about him growing up that's because it would have felt odd if I simply time skipped and without mentioning how he grew up... I wanted to put more stuff about his first six months but you know that should be enough to give yall basic understanding. There's lil bit of info that I will put in next chap and that will be all and than we will progress with main story.