Chapter 26: Fifth birthday

In the dining room, at Lucien's home, was a table full of delicacies. There were desserts and sweets and different flavored drinks. 

Mikaela's eyes lit up at the sight. His tongue salivated in longing but he restrained himself in respect of the host of this meal, his Aunt, Bianca.

Lucien was seated at the corner, not bothered any bit by the food aroma seducing his nostrils. In his hand was a book he was immersed in. 

Mikaela couldn't make sense of why one would want to learn to read, only to spend his whole day reading. It was a mystery to him.

His sight returned to the food on the table. There was a variety of roasted meat, boiled and fried vegetables, rice, potatoes, and stews. 

The desserts included jelly-like cakes, strawberry and passion tarts, chocolate cookies, moose ice cream, and cream-filled bread. 

Several juices were available; Apple juice, orange juice, lemonade, and milkshakes. 

All these were preserved at optimal temperature with magic.

Mikaela was once again impressed with Bianca's talent.

He hadn't seen this in the village so he thought it was because his aunt was very talented. So talented she could invent new tasty treats at every event.

In truth, most of these were things stored in special spatial bags so that they could remain in the same state they were in for as long as a century. Bianca had a talent for making food but not desserts or juices. This was a trick she used on the children's special days. At the very least it wasn't a complete lie if she didn't say she made them.

"Auntie, the food looks so good~" Mikaela ignorantly praised, "Thank you for making this for us."

He believed in saying thank you and sorry whenever possible.

"...hm."

 His attention was completely focused on the food and he failed to see the awkward, frozen look on Bianca's face. 

Lucien peeked from his book and thought,

'Dummy.' 

He had long put one and one together after hearing the story of the outside world. He believed he hadn't seen his mother learn to make desserts and it wasn't something one could be good at by reading books. Similar to how he couldn't be good at magic by reading books.

He got back to his book and pretended not to have seen anything.

Observing from the side, Merlin let out a subtle smile that made Bianca glare back at him. His smile didn't diminish at the cute act.

The family sat and had their dinner. They were bulging full after stuffing themselves as much as possible. Bianca's cooking skills had truly improved. But that was not the end of the meal.

As the saying goes, anyone has a second stomach for desserts. A new round of stuffing began. They stopped only when they were full-full.

There was a short silence to savor the taste before the adults began their conversation.

"This is the right time to start teaching the children how to read and write, right?" asked Bianca.

Her estimate was based on her upbringing. 

"No, it should have started a while ago. It is best to start when they are three." Merlin chimed in.

"What? Really?" Mitchell was flabbergasted. 

'Big families are no joke,' he thought leisurely.

"Is that so? Then, we should start as soon as possible. There is a lot to learn after all," said Bianca. "Where should we start? I can take over teaching them," she added.

Merlin's piercing emerald eyes glanced at her and said in thought,

"I believe, language and reading practice for Mikaela and grammar and comprehension for Lucien. They both need to learn how to write. Afterward, it is all about the syllabus from the books," he said.

At the mention of studying, Mikaela could feel a headache coming from a mile away. His lips were trembling in an attempt to say something but failed to in the end.

Lucien thought it was fun to see how his mother taught. 

'Father is already horrible at being a teacher, what about Mom?' he thought secretly.

He was looking forward to it.

He loved reading, so learning more words was a plus for him. He glanced to the side to catch Mikaela's pale face and thought it was going to be fun.

'Now, let's see when you have time to bother me.' he thought sarcastically.

"What about the training we talked about?" asked Mitchell.

"Hmm?" Bianca felt like she had forgotten something important. "What training?"

"Dear, he means, the breathing method, mana sensitivity training, and Medicine baths." Merlin kindly reminded her.

Her eyes lit up with understanding. 

"Do you have the formula ready, Honey?" asked Bianca.

"Yes, Anette left it among her documents. She also found the best breathing method for Mikaela," said Merlin.

"Oh, she was working hard while also doing the research. She even had time for this as well…" Bianca suddenly sounded downcast. Her voice was slightly low and lacked energy.

She seemed to realize how much effort Anette was giving. She ought to do something more as well.

"Yes, she did so since she was going through every useful material. Anyways, the medicine bath is split into three. The first is a simple cleansing bath, the second is a meridian opening bath and the last is a strengthening bath. Mikaela can only handle the first one now. The rest, at seven and ten years. I assume it is because of the pain brought about by it." Merlin went to to explain the basic information of the medicine baths.

"I see. I will handle the concoction, Honey." Bianca smiled but her eyes held no warmth.

Merlin wondered what had ticked her off this time. She was still a mystery to him.

"Then I will adjust the training for Kaela after the treatment," Mitchell said to even out the atmosphere.

"Lu, you will also have special training this winter," said Merlin, with a firm voice.

If Mikaela was previously the only one with a grave expression, Lucien now had one too. The children felt like their free time was now dwindling. It was a catastrophe.

With a dark expression, they stared at their parents' conversation in agony.

'Can we survive this?' they thought. 

Their stomachs constricted at the thought. Imaginary stomach aches assaulted them as the food churned and stirred.

Bianca glanced at them, she smiled in solace at their predicament. 

"Don't worry kids, everything will be done with moderation. You won't be too tired with a healing spell from me," said Bianca sweetly.

She had no idea she pushed them down the edge. They no longer saw hope in the need for a healing spell to survive.

Having noticed the children's mood worsening she clapped her hands and brought out her trump card.

"Now is the time for presents, boys." She said in cheer.

(┬┬﹏┬┬) Poor kids~