The Holy Empire of Pharseille.

A bright, burning sun hovered over the capital city of Delna. The streets were choked full of people. Peddlers and Pedestrians alike shuffled in and out of storefronts and plazas. A strange combination of barbeque and confectionary filled the air.

To those unfamiliar with Delna, one might assume that there was some sort of festival taking place, but that would be wrong. For the proverbial ‘heart of the continent’, this was only another normal day.

Adjacent to Delna’s famous All-white cathedral, there existed a heavily-guarded temple. This temple did not look like a temple. Instead, it was reminiscent of Earth’s brick and mortar buildings. It had over six floors, seventy-three rooms, and a large courtyard.

Somewhere within the temple, a lone figure walked through the halls. His footsteps were drowned out by the hustle and bustle of the temple interior. Knights in shining armor and Clergymen dressed in white continually passed him by. Some gave him a simple parting nod, while others immediately bent their waists upon seeing him.

The difference between both groups lay in whether or not there was a red and white emblem pinned to their chests.

After a while, the lone figure’s footsteps stopped. He stood before a giant oaken door. He exerted some strength and forcibly opened the door.

The sight inside was rather odd.

It was a bedroom. A child’s bedroom, to be exact. The room was decorated in lace, while various stuffed toys and fluffy pillows lay scattered across the ground. The overall motif was the color pink. Everywhere he looked, there was pink. Pink bedsheets, pink curtains, and pink carpets. Everything was pink.

For those in Lull, pink was not a very easy color to acquire. Pink dyes could only be found within the western parts of the continent. The west was a place populated by barbarians, vampires, lamias, and other races not recognized as ‘man’ by the Orthodox church. Acquiring pink was a timely and exhausting process.

In short, pink was the informal symbol of wealth.

Suffice to say, this was not just any children’s bedroom. It was an expensive children’s bedroom.

Near the center of the room, there stood a pink round table. The table was made out of a material resembling plastic. It only measured up to an adult’s shin, but it was the perfect height for toddlers and small children.

He briefly inspected the room. “Only two this time, huh?”

There were two little girls seated by the short table. One had messy black hair that covered most of her face, while the other sported platinum locks and pigtails.

Standing in the corner of the room was a stoic old man dressed in a black and white butler’s uniform. He remained still and unmoving, almost like a living statue. The man did not even dare to blink.

The lone figure breathed out an inaudible sigh. No matter how many times he visited, he couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by the flamboyance of this bedroom.

With one last shake of his head, he entered the room.

“Fel, you’re finally here.” The child seated at the head of the table happily called out. She was the blond girl with pigtails. Looking closely, she was dressed in a light pink dress.

“Sorry, I was late. Father wanted to play with me.” The newcomer, Fel, nonchalantly stated. Fel was a small child with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was dressed in a simple blue tunic. Right now, he looked cute, but he had the makings of a handsome man.

“I see… it sounds hard being royalty.” The pigtailed girl replied. Despite her words, she herself was of noble lineage. To Fel, her response sounded just a tad bit hypocritical.

“Well, we can’t all be like you, living life without a single care in the world.” He retorted. “For one, how the heck can you hold these tea parties every day? Most people don’t even come during most days. Have you ever considered doing it weekly or something?”

“What are you saying?” The girl’s face contorted. She looked genuinely appalled by Fel’s sudden remark. “You know it’s always been my dream to play around like this. Don’t you see this in movies all the time? Children playing house and having afternoon tea parties.”

“It’s currently noon.”

“That’s beside the point.” She quickly responded. “In the past, my childhood wasn’t very memorable, so this time around, I plan to squeeze out everything this shitty adolescence has to offer and if that means having tea parties every day, then I’ll have tea parties every day! I want to live a childhood with absolutely no regrets!”

“Childhood, huh?” He felt somewhat disgruntled by that word. No matter how you looked at it, the childhood that she spoke of was not a real childhood. After all, the person inside the body of this little girl was a burnt-out, twenty-something-year-old office lady from Earth.

When he pictured a full-grown woman playing around with plastic tea cups… a cold shiver ran down his spine. The fact that she currently looked like a child only slightly lessened the impact.

“Besides, this isn’t just a tea party.” The girl suddenly said with a somewhat pouty smile. “It also acts as a strategy meeting.”

Fel unconsciously rolled his eyes. Exactly what sort of strategy meeting could we possibly have? It’s only been three years since we got here. No matter how accomplished we may get in the future, right now, we’re nothing more than children.

At such a young age, their respective freedoms were very limited. The impact that their current selves could have on the world was laughable.

Fel sat in one of the seats. He momentarily stared at the black-haired girl. She wordlessly stared back. He couldn’t help but feel that her eyes seemed particularly… lifeless.

“Jives, get the crown prince another set please.” She raised her nose in the air and waved her hand.

“Certainly, madam.” The butler curtly responded before he left the room.

“His name’s not Jives, you know,” Fel commented after seeing the man leave. In truth, he recognized the old butler. He used to work for the royal family, that is until he was transferred to the Temple grounds over half a year ago.

In response, the blonde girl shrugged her shoulders. “It was a toss-up between Jives or Sebastian. Sebastian seems a bit too cliché, don’t you think?”

Fel rolled his eyes. After a while, the man known as ‘Jives’ returned with another set of plastic cups and cutlery. The one he had given to Fel was blue instead of the normal pink.

Even though he was three, he was already proficient in using silver cutlery and porcelain plates. Eating and drinking out of plastic… for a crown prince, it seemed just a tad bit degrading. Still, he could do nothing about it. This too was a part of this girl’s obsession. Instead of using real cups and tableware, she insisted on these plastic knock offs. It was all a part of the childhood immersion.

“Alright, now that I’m here, can we get this party started? First of all, who’s in attendance today?” His gaze specifically drifted to the black-haired child. This was his first time ever seeing her, but since she sat on this table, then without a doubt, she was one of them.

“Don’t you think that’s a bit premature?” the blonde girl commented. “I was hoping to wait for a few more to trickle in.”

Fel scoffed. “You really think other people will join?”

“Fine, fine. I officially declare the start of today’s tea party.” She admitted defeat and ceremoniously waved her hand in the air. A few seconds later, the butler left the room and closed the door behind him. With that, she nodded to herself and continued, “Those in attendance include: Anastasia Bellemere, Duke Bellemere’s loveable daughter and Hero. Crown Prince Felmor Herman, also Hero. Lastly, Evelyn Pennon, Princess of Merrack Kingdom. She’s a hero too.”

It was a meeting for the otherworlders of Lull.

The moment Fel heard Evelyn’s title, his eyes immediately narrowed. He suddenly recalled a recent memory.

He had heard of the incident from his father. Merrack was a kingdom located in the eastern parts of the continent. It was rumored that Merrack and its nobles conspired with the Pagans. As a result, the kingdom was razed to the ground. The Orthodox church even went as far as to uproot and execute the former kingdom’s nobility.

It was then later discovered that the Princess of Merrack was also a hero. After the kingdom’s fall, she was taken in by the church as the Pope’s adopted daughter.

“I see…” Fel nodded to himself. “So, it was Miss Evelyne. Excuse me for my rudeness. I don’t think we’ve met yet, but I’m Fel.”

Even though he was speaking with a fellow Earthling, he still couldn’t help himself from talking in such a polite manner. It was the end result of all the painstaking years of etiquette class that his new father had forced upon him.

“If you ever need anything, just come find me. I can’t say about other places, but within Delna, I hold some weight.”

“…” Evelyn did not respond. After five seconds, she eventually gave a vague nod.

From the side, Anastasia let out a sigh. “Don’t mind her too much, Fel. Eve over here’s a bit of a loner. I only just recently got her to come out of hiding.”

He nodded understandingly. If all the rumors were true, then this girl experienced quite the traumatic event. What’s more, it happened almost immediately after she arrived in a new world. Her standoffish nature was normal. Also, it wasn’t like she was the first person he had ever met with that sort of personality. Within the eight otherworlders, there was one more who acted somewhat similar to her.

“She might be a bit cranky too, so watch out,” Anastasia added. “I’ve been taking her along with me for the past week or so, so she’s kind of tired.”

“… You seriously forced her to attend all these ridiculous tea-parties, day in and day out?” He widened his eyes in surprise. He himself only ever attended once a week. He couldn’t imagine going on the daily.

“Hey, don’t call it ridiculous!” Anastasia shouted. “If I don’t do this, then this girl won’t ever have the chance to meet with all the other kids. How else is she going to make friends?”

“Alright, alright, I won’t say it anymore.” Although he often berated her, Fel had to admit, Anastasia’s tea parties really were an effective means of communication.

In truth, he didn’t really interact all that much with the other heroes. The only notable exception to this was Anastasia, a person who went out of her way to be outgoing. She was the only one out of the eight that actively talked to her fellow reincarnators. Naturally, she was also the person that Fel was most familiar with.

Also, he was the crown prince. His days were very busy. You’d think that being three years old would afford him some leeway, but that wasn’t the case at all.

He only ever interacted with the others during times like now. As much as it pained him to admit it, Anastasia’s tea parties really were like secret strategy meetings. He heard this sort of thing would change in the future. When their training begins, they’ll have more chances to interact with one another, but until then, Fel had to satisfy himself with a life of solitude and freedom.

“So, who has she met so far?” He asked.

“Well, the usual faces.” Anastasia shrugged her shoulders. “You know how everyone is. They’ll cycle through here every once in a while, but it’s hard to establish a date for everyone to come together.”

“I see… going by ‘the usual people’, I’m guessing she still hasn’t met those three yet, huh?”

Contrary to his expectations, Anastasia shook her head. “You should have come yesterday. That problem child came by.”

“…”

There was only one person who Anastasia called a problem child. Lewin Stehle. He was born from a commoner’s family, but to heroes, that hardly mattered. Lewin was a rather arrogant fellow. On their very first meeting, he straight up told everyone about his special ability. Among the eight otherworlders, he was part of the two people that actually dared to do so.

Of course, the other ‘dumb idiot’ was Fel.

“…” After a few seconds of silent contemplation, he suddenly looked up. “Hey, Anna. How do you get along with that guy?”

“What?” Anastasia furrowed her brow.

“I mean, isn’t he a bit difficult to deal with?”

“Well, he certainly is difficult to be around some times, but I’m used to it.”

“You're used to it?”

“That’s right. If you consider my past life, then I’m quite experienced with dealing with people like him.”

Anastasia’s previous occupation as a saleswoman really did come in handy sometimes. She could keep conversations going with ease, even if they were one-sided. She also possessed the amazing ability to coolly deal with even the most annoying of guys. Compared to her, Fel had been a high-school student before he died. In terms of life skills, he really didn’t have any.

“Besides, it’s good to have powerful connections, you know. That child’s ability, isn’t it kind of broken?”

“It certainly is…” Fel nodded in agreement. He then shook his head and sighed. “Speaking of which, am I like that too? A powerful connection?”

Anastasia smiled. “You definitely are. You and Evelyn over here.” She patted the black-haired girl’s shoulders. “The crown prince of the world’s strongest Empire and the adopted daughter of the Pope. If anyone ever dares to bully me, I’ll definitely come running to you guys.”

Such cheeky words flippantly leaked from her lips.

“…” For a moment, Fel felt the corners of his mouth twitch. Sometimes her honesty really did surprise him.

Quickly changing the subject, he asked, “What about the other two, have you heard from them, recently?”

Anastasia bitterly shook her head. “You know how those dufuses are. Mister Gloom and Doom is still very much a shut-in. I haven’t seen him since the first meeting. As for Rivel, that child spends his days locked up in the library. He says he’s studying, but I honestly think he’s just looking for porn. That kid has a very thick ‘pervert’ aura around him.”

“R-right… I can’t really imagine Rivel doing anything but studying though...”

“Well, he’s a lot like Lewin, in that regard. Those two are obsessed with being a hero.”

The attitude towards their role of hero differed greatly from individual to individual. A few were zealous in their aspiration, while people like Fel simply accepted things at face value.

Rivel was a man obsessed. Like Lewin, he was another person who attracted attention. It was as Anastasia had said, he really did spend most of his time in the library. Since the library was where they housed all sorts of magic books and grimoires, Fel’s current prediction was that Rivel possessed a really strong-magic based ability.

Thinking of those two, a contemplative expression suddenly blanketed his face. “Being a hero… I wonder if I can do it properly?”

In response, Anastasia smiled. “Rather than being a hero, you should worry more about being a proper crown prince. Have they decided on your fiancée, yet?”

“W-what?”

“Isn’t that how it usually goes? They set up the princes and princesses with engagements from an early age.”

Fel awkwardly laughed. “That’s not the case. You watched way too many movies.”

In truth, for any other member of royalty, that’s probably how it would have normally gone. Unfortunately, Fel’s position was special. He was not just a crown prince, he was also a hero.

“Rather than a crown prince, I would have preferred to be a farmer or something.” Recalling back to all the hardships that he had endured in his short three-years of life, he couldn’t help but comment.

“Well, don’t be so glum. Isn’t your ability pretty strong too?”

“My ability…” That God, he had given each person a special ability. The ability was based on the wielder’s compatibility and it was unique to each person. Fel’s ability, it could be considered strong.

“Certainly, it’s strong, but…”

“What is it?”

A long bout of silence passed, before he shook his head. “A bad feeling. I have a bad feeling.”

“About your ability? It sounds pretty convenient, though?”

“No, not that.” Fel shook his head. “Just, something else… I have this vague feeling that something bad’s going to happen.”

“Hmmm…” Anastasia tilted her head and scrunched up her face. She was hard at thought. Eventually, she opened her eyes. “You’re worried about the ninth, huh?”

“The ninth?”

“Yeah, the ninth reincarnator.”

“…”

“We haven’t heard a single thing about him since we arrived at this world.” She helplessly sighed. “He was taken away by that scary fellow from back then and God specifically told us that he’ll definitely come back as an enemy. An unknown adversary… that sort of thing will always bring fear into a person’s heart.”

Is that really it, though? Fel did not say anything. Whether Anastasia was right and he really was worrying about the ninth reincarnator, or whether his worries stemmed from something completely different, he did not know. Even if he thought about it some more, the answer would not come.

Anastasia interpreted his silence as a confirmation. She attempted to give the troubled young boy some words of encouragement. “Don’t worry about it too much. Even if he is an enemy, he’s still in a similar situation to the rest of us. No matter where he is in the world, right now, he’s only three years old. As long as we grow stronger than him, we won’t have to worry about a thing. After all, don’t we outnumber him eight to one?”

Fel reluctantly nodded.

Still, he kept quiet. His head was lost in a cloud of thoughts. He took a sip of his tea and fell into quiet contemplation. Almost immediately, he furrowed his brow and glared at his cup. This wasn’t tea, it was juice.