Exploring the Village's Nuance

A whole year has passed, and a lot of things have happened. Well, the same stuff occurs a lot of times, I mean. It all boils down to me waking up, gathering mana, drinking breastmilk, accepting love and affection, and going back to sleep - rinse and repeat.

It is a cycle of repetitious events that are tolerable and rather pleasant. It's a nice change of pace that differs from my previous life. So much so, that I had forgotten about the memories of the people in that lifetime ever existed.

However, what truly matters is the series of developments I have experienced. One of them was eyesight, and I had seen a lot of things. As my vision gradually became clearer, I started observing the interior of my home and the people who came to check on me.

It turns out that I was living in a tribal house and everyone looked the same because of their short height and blue hair. I don't know if this is genetic or not but damn, everyone is pretty much alike. 

Aside from my vision, I learned to move my limbs and orient myself upright. Because of this, I was able to crawl on the floor and later on, walk on my own two feet.

I used this opportunity to explore the house and take a glimpse into the outside world, which is a deserted area with little to no vegetation can be seen. That is, except for the crops that our neighbors worked hard to harvest.

Other than those two aspects, there's one more development I was still working on, and that is the mana gathering to which I devoted a considerable amount of my time.

I spent so much time accumulating that the Fabricated Conscience told me that I stockpiled half of the overall mana in the vicinity. I know it sounds like an exaggeration but believe me, I double-checked. 

Anyway, with all that said and done, the next objective given to me by the Conscience is the condensation and refinement of the mana I accumulated thus far.

To accomplish these steps, I was instructed to visualize and concentrate my mana through meditation. So, wish me luck in figuring out how to do these tedious steps.

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After two years went by, I managed to condense and refine a quarter of my stockpiled mana through diligent meditation and reserved visualization. Now that I have made some progress, it will be a good idea to leave the comfort of my home and explore the village.

As I stepped outside the entrance, the intense sunlight greeted my eyes, nearly blinding me in the process.

Geez, is this what I get for isolating myself indoors?

["Affirmative. Low exposure to sunlight results in increased light sensitivity."]

Damn... If that's the case, I should have gone outside more often.

After shrugging off the discomfort, I looked around and got a better view of the homes of our village, which were honestly just enormous shells repurposed as housing units.

Is it just me, or do these shells feel out of place as our home?

["Negative. The insulation and protection provided by these shells were the reasons why the people of this area used them as shelter."]

Even still, where do these shells come from?

["Answer. They came from the carcasses of Great tortoises."]

Eeh?! Are there really tortoises out there with shells this humongous?

["Affirmative."]

Well, I'll be damned. That's sound rather interesting.

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After learning the architectural origin of my home, I moved onward to check the crops of the village and investigate them up close.

["Oh my, Rokua. What are you doing here, sweetie?"]

Upon arriving at a small patch of vegetation, I received a telepathic message from a familiar person. Looking ahead, I noticed my mother gathering crops along with the neighbors. It is best to respond to her accordingly.

["Hello, mama. I'm just looking at plants."]

["Really? Come over here and have a better look."]

Hearing her request, I complied and approached her, but my presence got the attention of the women working beside her.

["My, my, are you Rowena's youngest daughter?"]

One of them asked me a question, so I nodded in response. After that, another one came to check and became intrigued for some reason.

["Of all of Rowena's children, this is the first time we've seen you go outside. So, what have you been up to, dear?"]

The woman asked a very tricky question. If I told them that I've been meditating for the past two years, they might assume I'm a strange child. I need to lie about this.

["I had fun playing inside, but now I'm bored. So, I went outside."]

["Hmm, is that so? Well, it is always nice to get some fresh air for once in a while. Enjoy your time here beneath the sun, dear."]

With that telepathic message, the woman went back to work with the other one, leaving me and my mother alone. She sighed wearily before focusing her attention on me.

["You seemed to have quite a conversation with those two, haven't you?"]

["Yes, mama. They asked questions about me."]

["That sounds interesting, sweetie. But you know what's more interesting?"]

["What is it, mama?"]

["Come here, I'll show you."]

Following my mother's instruction, I approached her and she picked me up. After that, she brought me closer to the foliage, and a creature with sharp teeth suddenly moved. 

Oh good lord, what the heck is that?!

["Answer. It is a—"]

Actually, don't answer that. Get that thing away from me! 

Because I was weirded out by the creature, I flailed my arms like crazy in hopes for it to back off. However, it was unfazed, so I squirmed even harder as if my life depended on it.

["Oh my, what's wrong, Rokua? Why are you freaking out?"]

["Put me down, mama! I don't like that thing! It's creepy!"]

["Fufufu, it's okay, sweetie. Look, this is just a friendly Treant."]

Reluctantly, I turned back to see my mother reaching her hand at the creature, and for some reason, its vines slowly wrapped around her fingers, seemingly not harming her.

["See, it won't hurt us and will only protect our crops from pests."]

As she explained the creature to me, it became clear that it was harmless and beneficial to the vegetation, forming a symbiotic relationship with the village.

Knowing this, I attempted to reach it in the same way that my mother did, and lo and behold, the Treant gently wrapped its vine around my arm.

["Amazing..."]

["I know right, but it's time to move on, Rokua. I still have work to do."]

["Okay, Mama."]

As my mother put me down, I bid her and the other village women farewell, waving my hand at them. They waved back as I turned around and walked away, ready to explore the other areas the village could offer.

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Arriving on a hill with multiple stone columns scattered around, I noticed a group of children playing together. Among them are a bunch of familiar faces I knew for quite some time.

["Brothers, sisters, over here."]

Calling telepathically, I was referring to my elder siblings. They noticed my transmission and waved at me enthusiastically. 

["Look who finally decided to come out of the hobbit hole."]

["Hey Roshi, be nice to Rokua. She just got here."]

["He had a point, Roksan. All she had done all day was sitting on the corner of our home and doing absolutely nothing."]

Hearing their unfiltered telepathic message, I couldn't help but feel sad. I indeed spent most of those two years meditating to condense and refine my stockpiled mana. But at the end of the day, my only interaction with my siblings was during breakfast and dinner.

["Hey, Roego, what's going on over there?"]

Suddenly, a wide telepathic message caught our attention along with the sound of footprints approaching our direction. We all looked at the source and found two more familiar people.

["Brother Roichi! Sister Rokani!"]

["Oh my, isn't that our youngest sibling, Rokua?"]

The two eldest siblings, Roichi and Rokani, acted as the mediators and guardians among the six children. They always protect us from harm and will break off any disputes, especially if it comes to my other three older siblings, Roksan, Roshi, and Roego.

["What seems to be the problem here?"]

Roichi's question hangs in the air as my three siblings seem reluctant to admit anything. That is until Roksan stepped forward and spilled the beans.

["Big brother, these two are saying bad things about Rokua."]

["Hold on, Roksan, I'm merely stating the facts. Roshi, on the other hand, bullied her."]

["Oi, don't just throw me to the wolves like that. Besides, I'm just saying the obvious here."]

The three argued telepathically before Roichi came to mediate the situation.

["Alright, alright, break it off, you three. Let's not embarrass ourselves in front of Rokua."]

After he separated them, they averted their eyes away from one another. Because of that, Rokani stepped in and reasoned with the three. 

["Hey, guys, instead of quarreling, why don't you guys just play with Rokua? After all, it's her first time being outside the house."]

With those words, Roksan, Roshi, and Roego looked at each other before fixing their gaze on me, who was just watching the scene quietly. Moments later, they sighed and responded.

["Okay, fine. Let's give Rokua the benefit of the doubt."]

["Agreed, let's just forget she was a hermit once."]

["You two are insufferable. Rokua, just ignore their remarks."]

I nodded at her, and later on, they invited me to play a game of pass the ball. We toss a small leather ball and whoever fails to catch it will chase the other players and tag them. It's quite a nice concept and I enjoyed the game a lot.

"Wachaz duin? Kann ich spielen?"

Suddenly, in the middle of the game, a voice called out to us. Not a telepathic message, but rather a physical one. We all turned to see a small girl with two braids standing before us.

["Who is she?"]

["I don't know. Possibly a neighbor's child."]

For everyone in the area, she's just someone's kid from the village. But for me, I know exactly who she was. It was in the manga I read. The main character of that story, Roxy Migurdia.