Chapter 2

*****

'Haiz, might as well learn how to use my body to fight, I'm starting to regret not taking those sessions with that musclehead...' he thought depressingly as he firmly held his small snake-like transport, a 'train' and it was made of a petrified slime solution, or 'plastic', on his small hands, while sitting down with his baby butt sitting flatly on the soft carpet and playing with himself.

He had no idea how it should help him to learn more about this world, but maybe his curiosity would pay him off with good things after this short moment of entertainment.

But... right now, he needs to stay like this for a while, not until he can learn an acceptable amount of knowledge about this world, starting from these... toys!

***

As it turns out, even toys can help him immensely at learning this world's difference on the previous one he lived for a long time. At first he had the least interest in even touching these... odd things that his mother put in front of him while having an expression(eyes sparkling like it has the sun on it) that puts too much... pressure on him, but then later he started to 'play' with the toys not because he was forced, the toys actually help him to slowly comprehend the world that he now was living.

'Hmm... so these blocks contain a letter that I can read.' Sapphire looked at the small group of cuboid objects with letters and numbers patched on its 'faces', he had no clue to what the 'letters' meant, but the numbers were at least comprehendible, with only slight difference to the other world's numerical system.

'Then this was the same as the transport that mother and Prez drove us with.' it was a small toy with wheels and can move independently just by pushing it slightly, though it looks like it was a different kind of 'transport' since no one was pushing the car they used as they went back home.

Well, he sure was surprised at how complex the knowledge in this world was compared to his previous ones, there are a few similarities but not that much.

For example, instead of having magic to keep the wares safe or to perform the chores, his mother does it manually, something that he found odd for someone who worked as a part of 'theatre'. Usually there is someone to do these things for those who had at least some power over the society, and there were no commoners allowed to work in a theatre, that was usually composed of individuals with backings or came from wealthy families.

His mother, neither did the odd man, Prez, looked like one.

And based on how extravagant looking the interior of the house and them living literally a few metres above the ground, he could say that his family was a wealthy one.

Though, where was she working at? Were that place... safe?

'That's a question for another day, but for now, let me inspect this beauty...' he looked at a plastic knife with curiosity and wonder, can this cut him if he's careless on handing it? This small and shoddy 'weapon'?

'Of course it can't, though I really want to try if it could hurt me... or my siblings.' Sapphire thought in curiosity, not that he has the intention to leave a deep gash or irreversible wounds on himself or to his siblings, but having flesh after decades of not having any of it was surprisingly a subject of wonder to his ever-so-curious mind.

It was a weird feeling, to regain his 'humanity' after being a 'monster' for so long, something trivial such as emotions and 'morals' that he had forgotten once he became what he was once before this, made him conscious of everything else that he discarded for the sake of 'optimal' perfection.

The sense of vulnerability because he now has no access to magic, the sense of fragility caused for him yearning to be in his former body, it was withered and unfeeling, the numbness that he became associated with along with his 'title'. But his interest in those things had decreased for a bit, suppressed by his curiosity of experiencing what his 'new' body can give to him.

Specifically, eating tangible foods and sleeping.

'Being one of "His", I had no privilege to experience those things. And even if I could use [Fleshomancy] to have the chance to have it, I'd refuse to practice that kind of wasteful and unstable magic.' his mind flew in the distant memory, where it was his early years of being under "Him".

"Him" is a very troublesome person who would even take himself on a bloody battle field, 'die', and fool everyone with his extremely cunning ways of deception and betrayal.

"He" was strong, charismatic, intelligent, and perceptive, but lacked the sense of patriotism to his allies and subjects, and even Sapphire himself had no idea why he sided with the guy.

'But surprisingly, no one had ever thought of overthrowing "Him", even me or Klein and we both are greedy bastards.' it was not out of fear of "Him" taking everything they have, or perhaps he was the only one who is greedy but didn't really care at what would happen to his kingdom and himself, Sapphire knows that Klein would even dare to humiliate a God by stealing their wives out in the open area for everyone to see, such a man of lust and greed, it was the opposite of him, a being of laziness and pragmatism.

One likes the workings of flesh and pleasure, and the other were interested at nothing except of the very essence of all beings.

Klein was a horndog who would put his 'stuff' at anything, nothing can stop him if he put all his focus on one goal, which was obviously a hole.

And the former him(Sapphire) doesn't even need to touch the body to send it to hell or heaven, as the machinations of soul was his expertise, he knows where the most painful and the most sensational part could be, after all souls had a link to their designated physical body, that is a universal truth he believed.

'Well, I was called the [Soul King] for a reason. Even something like a system protecting a transmigrator's soul can't stop me from "dissecting" it.' and goodness was that memory so insightful to his project of soul travelling, which is technically the same as "reincarnation" and "transmigration", but the only difference was that he can control and decide it's location.

'But then I was suddenly flushed in here without knowing who sent me to this world, so much for having the [Soul King] title.' it was a bitter statement for him, he lost everything that defined him as the "[Soul King]", and that grand name became a joke because of his... carelessness.

Yet, even though his "feelings" differ on what thoughts he has, there was no negativity at all.

'Should I be angry?' Sapphire thought in confusion, it was a logical assumption that he should be enraged at his "losses", but instead he felt elation and relief to what had happened to him.

'Why am I like this? How come I've been feeling like this? Did... Did my [Soul Code] change?' The more he had thought about it, the more confused and annoyed he became, to the point that he started scratching his head.

Then, a soft voice called out to him(?).

"Hmm? What's wrong, Aqua? Why are you scratching your head?" Sapphire felt his mother's hands pulling him in the air on the back, and with a turn, he saw a mesmerising scenery.

His mother, looking clueless to him, her mouth was in the shape of "O" and is looking at him with her starry amethyst like eyes, it was mesmerising, and there was a pair of captivating elongated six pointed stars in the middle of her irises that kept him entranced at the sight.

"Itchy-Itchy? Mommy will take it away from ya~" she softly caressed his head and started scratching his head, that caused his spine to tingle and made him purr(?) in delight. It made him feel an unfamiliar feeling, like someone had given him marshmallows coated with sugar, or when he had reached a breakthrough on his research of souls, it was... warm and soothing.

'Uh... Wait? How come I am purring? I'm not a cat? Why is her touch making me like this? What should I feel?' confusion attacked his brain, but somehow all those have just flown away from his mother's touch, and turned him into a melting puddle of slime.

And slowly... he felt his eyes drooping, the strings of sleep pulling him down to its greatest comfort, he tried to stay awake reluctant to miss to observe everything he might be feeling.

He tried to wake up...

.

.

.

.

"Are you contented now, Ruby? Mama's putting you to sleep now." he heard his mother's words before the shift of weight came and ended, with him laying down in the soft mattress of his crib, it was the last thing he had observed before dozing off...

"Hmmhhmhm..." it was very weird, that a touch from a living being made him like this.

But...

'But...'

'Something like this... ain't so... bad...' he thought before the darkness swallowed his consciousness, with his mother's words and warmth protecting him from nightmares and silly dreams.

*** TBC ***

~ "Stray" Thoughts ~

***

"But Ai... that's not Aqua... That's Sapphire."

"One(Ichi)-One(Ichi)? wasn't that Eleven? And why are you telling that to a child?!"

"Haiz, That's Sapphire... not Ruby..."

***

"..."

'That's not me, Ai.'

"..."

'That's not Ruby, Ai.'

***

"..."

'But that's not nii-chan, mama?'

"WABA?!?!"

'Hey! That's not me! MAAAAA!'

***