The leaves rustled as the wind carried with it the soft hums of a child's. Tiana was leisurely sprawled on her back near a river stream. Her arms crossed behind her head and legs laid lazily spread without a care. The sun was warm on her pale skin while the air in the forest was fresh and clean. Sleep felt inviting and she would have gladly welcomed it, but there was something more crucial than an afternoon nap, which kept her awake. It was a golden opportunity that she couldn't miss. So, the timing needs to be impeccable and achieved without any mishaps.

  Tiana was about to hum another random tune she remembered from her previous world, when she suddenly fell silent. Her eyes fluttered open, revealing two sparkling green eyes, then she sprang up from her lying position and moved to crouch by the river.

  "Here we go~"

  She muttered under her breath while at the same time, raised both hands in front of her, palms facing each other. Tiana stared intensely at the flowing water before her and she slowly inhaled. As she exhaled, the water swirled. Then, a small pool of water rose. It swished and splashed as it remained levitating right above her hands. Heavy footsteps crunched on the grass and dirt behind her, followed by the gruff voice of a startled older man.

  "W-what are you..."

  At the sound of the older man's voice, Tiana jerked intentionally and broke her concentration which instantly made the pool of water dropped back into the river with a little splash. A tiny grin appeared on her lips as she counted to three. Then, she put on her best shocked expression and snapped her head around to look at the older man behind her.

  "Um..."

  Meanwhile, Orhen, a black bearded middle-aged man, was still processing what he saw as he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him when he discovered the small figure of a child, who seemed to be about four or five years old.

  Orhen had been born and raised in the village. Later on, he took over his father's workshop and had been working as the village's only blacksmith for almost a decade. At this time of the day, he would usually be sweating behind closed doors, hammering away new tools or fixing broken bowstrings for the hunters. Today, he just so happen to be one of the men who was asked to join the hunting crew. In the recent weekly meetings, where villagers entrusted by the present Tribe Elder to carry out important roles gathered, the Head Guard had reported traces of a bandit's hideout along the crossroads which lead to their settlement. Since what happened with Lana and Tiana's previous home, the Tribe Elder had been sensitive to any news regarding other villages that might have been afflicted by the same barbaric act. Currently, those who were informed of this piece of information were on high alert. Which was why, they had collectively agreed to assign more men with fighting skills during every hunting session, just in case things go awry and they had to face a group of bandits.

  Orhen and other village men were hunting and simultaneously on the lookout for any danger, when he heard a distant sound separate from what one would usually hear in the middle of a forest area. He left the group for a bit to seek out the source of the sound, but was bewildered by the sight of a little girl and a floating water. When the child turned her head to look at him, Orhen immediately recognized her face. He may not have interacted at all with the little girl, but he had seen them around before, and he did greet the girl's mother whenever she was down at the marketplace. Both of them were also quite well known for being the brave survivors of Willow Village's awful tragedy four years ago.

  "You are.. Tiana, right? Lana's daughter?"

  His bushy black brows furrowed as he examined the girl from a distance. Goggle-eyed and mouth agaped, she was clearly taken aback from the sudden intrusion by an unknown stranger. He noticed her hands trembled slightly, and Orhen couldn't help but feel guilty. He didn't mean to appear frightening to the little girl. Orhen relaxed his expression and spoke warmly.

  "Hey.. it's alright. I'm sorry if I scared you. I'm the village's blacksmith. Kids call me Uncle Orhen."

  He gave his kindest smile and it seemed to have worked. The little girl replied with an innocent smile and nodded. Although it might not be the best time to do so, Orhen was compelled to ask.

  "Tiana, you.. is your father an Elven Faery? Or maybe you know anyone in your family who has Elven ancestors?"

  He asked carefully, not to fluster the girl in any way. Tiana blinked naively at the older man's question. She truly had no clue what he was referring to. So, she tilted her head cutely and asked in a childlike manner.

  "What's an Elven Faery?"

  Orhen blinked twice and then scratched his black beard.

  "Uhm.. right."

  He didn't take into account that the girl's mother may not have told her anything. In fact, the girl may not have been aware at all of what she just accidentally shown him. And if that's the case, Orhen was definitely not the best person to have such a vital conversation with. Not only was he less knowledgeable in regards to the rest of the world, the guidance he could give her was substantially limited as his understanding of mana wasn't as broad nor deep. Letting the little girl realize the origins of her ability could completely pivot her entire existence and everything she will come to be. After all, the ability to use mana in and of itself was rare, but to manipulate nature as she did? It was totally unheard of throughout the history of pureblooded humans. Naturally, Orhen came to the conclusion that the girl was partially of a special race, one powerful enough to grant her the gift of effortless control over her mana output at an extremely young age.

  "You shouldn't be here, you know. It's dangerous. Come on, I'll take you back to the village."

  Orhen gestured for the four year old to follow him, then he turned around and began retracing his steps toward the hunting crew.

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  "Why dangerous?"

  His steps halted. He looked back at the little girl's innocent inquiry. She was still standing by the river and haven't move at all.

  "Uhh.. hm.."

  Orhen raised a finger, trying to think of a suitable answer that won't terrify the little girl. He had always been awkward when dealing with children. If the girl ended up crying, he doubt he'd be able to comfort her well enough as a parent would. Orhen scratched his beard with the finger and decided on a simple solution.

  "That.. hm.. your.. mother. Yes. Lana, your mother, is looking for you."

  Tiana blinked. Orhen blinked as well. And they just stared at each other without a word. The silence was starting to make Orhen sweat for some reason. He prayed the girl wouldn't make a fuss or throw a tantrum and simply take his word for it.

  "But you just said it's dangerous, Uncle Orhen. Why is mother looking for me?"

  Orhen closed his eyes and cursed in his head. He forgot one peculiar trait of the little girl in front of him. One that he had heard a lot from Elder Hofsen, whom he often chatted with. Tiana, this four year old, was particularly bright for her age. But the problem was, she can also be quite a handful. He was reminded of how Elder Hofsen laughed his butts off as he recounted a story which happened a few days prior to their conversation.

  A travelling scholar who was staying at the inn for the night, was gloating and shooting his mouth, being obnoxiously loud and rude. His arrogant attitude made the atmosphere tense and uncomfortable for other fellow patrons as well as villagers who were simply there for some meal and a good time. The little girl, who was three years old at the time, ran to stand beside his table and had asked him something about one of his findings. At first, the scholar sneered at the girl, he even scolded the child and told her that kids shouldn't interrupt when adults were talking. But the girl mind none of it, and kept on prodding him with all kinds of questions. The more she spoke, the redder the scholar's face became. And then, she hit him with a final line, which almost made the scholar flip the table in anger. The old man didn't remember exactly what was said, but all he saw was how utterly embarrassed and defeated the scholar's expression was, while the people around them were snickering and listening to their exchange with interest. In the end, the scholar stormed out of the inn with his belongings and everybody else there cheered for the three year old. The child had a battle of words against a scholar, despite having difficulty articulating some words, and won. Although it ended well, Lana felt responsible for what happened, since Tiana did ultimately drove away a customer. She apologized profusedly to the innkeeper who lightheartedly laughed it off, and in addition, prevented her daughter from ever stepping foot inside her workplace.

  Orhen opened his eyes and looked at Tiana in a different light. He believed that if it was this little girl, then she should be clever enough to understand. Rather than trying to make up excuses, he decided to give it to her straight.

  "Hm.. the thing is, there are bandits lurking around here. You know they are bad people, right? They will kidnap you and harm you.. or worse. Anyway, if you are caught by them, you might not be able to see your mother anymore. So.. um.. you should go home and stop playing around here for now."

  Tiana was surprised at Uncle Orhen's change of attitude towards her. He was treating her like an older kid. The thought made her genuinely smile. She had wanted to continue teasing the middle-aged blacksmith, but instead, she just chose to be compliant.

  "Thank you for warning me, Uncle Orhen. I will be careful."

  Orhen was somewhat taken aback. The four year old was speaking in a mature and calm manner, but based on the stories Elder Hofsen had told him, Orhen simply accepted it. Besides, that fact didn't really rattle him as much as what he saw a few minutes ago. Actually, it made sense that a girl with a special ability to make water float, would have been special in other ways too.

  - - - - -

  The walk home through the forest was quite treacherous. Maybe not so much for adults, but certainly for a four year old. The tall, overgrown grass was up to her shoulder, tickling her neck every so often. Vicious bloodsucking insects saw her as free banquet and greedily feasted on her sweet nectar. On top of that, one of her straw shoe almost slipped off a few times because it got stubbornly stuck in the muddy ground. Tiana was uncomfortable, itchy, but most of all, she was getting sick of how long the hike took. If it was up to her, she would've made her way back in under five minutes by agilely jumping from tree to tree. Tiana let out a frustrated sigh as she straggled behind Orhen.

  Orhen and Tiana went down a shallow slope and after trekking for some time, finally got out of the forest onto a clear path. They were on the gravel road towards the village when Orhen, who was walking ahead of Tiana, slowed down to a stop. He turned around to face the child whose steps had also came to a halt. She watched curiously as Orhen knelt on one knee in front of her, so he was at eye-level with the toddler before he spoke.

  "Tiana, does your mother know about your ability?"

  He asked with a serious tone. Tiana pouted and shook her head.

  "No.. mommy doesn't like me doing dangerous stuff."

  Orhen hummed as he pondered for a bit, then told her the very words Tiana had been anticipating.

  "Do you want to learn more about it?"

  The little girl's green eyes sparkled with joy.

  "Yeah!"

  Orhen's eyes curved into a smile and he let out a throaty chuckle.

  "That's settled then."

  - - - - -

  Tiana had her hands clasped behind her as she kicked a small stone and watched it roll away to a stop on the patch of grass. She looked up to see the middle-aged blacksmith scratched his cheek before knocking on the door for the third time. After waiting around for a bit, he turned to face Tiana with a sheepish smile.

  "Uh.. I guess the Tribe Elder is out. Sorry. I'd wait here with you, but I told the men I'd be back soon. So.. um.. I have to go now."

  Tiana was ready to throw a tantrum like a child her age would if that's what it will take to force the blacksmith to stick around and fulfill his words. Though he never promised her anything. Fortunately before she ended up embarrassing herself, right at that moment, she saw a familiar figure in the corner of her eyes, strolling over in their direction.

  "What are you doing here standing on my doorstep? Orhen? Aren't you scheduled to help the hunting crew this morning?"

  Elder Hofsen's tone had a slight edge at the end and he frowned as he gave Orhen a stern look. The old man was obviously displeased to see him loitering about instead of working. Orhen instantly took notice and panicked.

  "Yes, Elder! I was with the others, I swear! It's just..."

  Orhen's voice trailed as he looked down at his side and Elder Hofsen followed his gaze to where Tiana was standing, patiently waiting for him to acknowledge her presence.

  "And you, Tiana?"

  Tiana shifted her gaze towards Orhen, then on her feet and shrugged. Orhen placed a hand on her shoulder and explained it all in a short summary.

  "I saw her in the forest. She can make water float! Uh.. I think she should talk to you, so.. here we are."

  Tiana stared up at the old man expectantly, while the old man stared down at Tiana with a complicated expression. He sighed in resignation as he moved to unlock the door, then gestured with one hand to follow him inside before he stepped over the threshold. Orhen bent down, cupped his mouth on one side and whispered in a hurry.

  "Don't worry. The old man is sort of grouchy because we're interrupting his afternoon nap. But he's nice to kids, so you'll be fine."

  Orhen gave him a small nudge forward. She looked back as she walked inside, and the blacksmith gave her a nod, then hurriedly left to do his job.