The Baby Who Regressed Refuses Childcare - Chapter 3
On a sunny morning in February, the director of Evehill Orphanage, Ann, was in a good mood. “It’s a perfect day, even from the very start.”
Even Tom, who was notorious for sleeping in, woke up early today and neatly made his bed. The soup made in a rush turned out just right, and I felt satisfied with the glimpse of my reflection in the mirror while washing up.
“Is it because it’s a special day?”
With a contented smile, she raised her head.
Beyond the large window that occupied one side of the orphanage’s living room, the hills, still covered with snow, stretched out.
On top of that, a long line of carriages could be seen in the distance.
“Wow, it’s really Duke Longton!”
A three-year-old named Lulu grabbed Ann’s apron excitedly, her face beaming.
Ann gently stroked the child’s head before picking her up.
“You’re right; Duke Longton is picking Lia up today.”
“Wow, wow, older sister Lia must be really happy!!”
Lulu eagerly looked around for Anellia. However, among the children gathered in the living room, there was no sign of Anellia. “That’s strange.”
Ann’s expression shifted to concern.
The children about to be adopted usually couldn’t contain their excitement, not only on the night before but also on the morning of their departure. Being glued to the window in the living room was entirely expected.
However, Anellia was nowhere to be found.
“Is she in the garden?”
Ann headed towards the kitchen and glanced out the back window at the backyard.
But Anellia was not there either.
“It must have been because she seemed uncomfortable…”
Anellia’s adoption had been arranged a month ago.
When you gently informed her about this fact, Anellia seemed elated as if she could leap for joy.
She ate her meals well, slept soundly, and energetically played during playtime.
She even explained to the other children at the orphanage what kind of family the Longton Duke’s household was going to be.
That was the Lia who suddenly changed a fortnight ago, crying out of nowhere during dinner.
“I didn’t show it, but my heart was certainly confused,” Ann sighed secretly.
Well, she wasn’t just any other child; she was Lia.
She was different from the average child.
“Once I became a teacher, I didn’t notice any of that.” That kid, yeah.
She was certainly special.
“Oh my, duck stew with spinach…? Teacher, this is a crime!”
Anellia was quick with her words.
How astonished I was by how a much smaller and skinnier child could piece words together so fluently compared to her peers. And that wasn’t all.
“Teacher, there are no books in the playroom!”
“No books? Are the books crammed on the bookshelf magic books that only the teacher can see?~”
“Ugh, it’s not like that; there’s no book for Lia to read.”
After devouring text after text within the orphanage, she would continue reading until she memorized it all.
Due to Lia’s actions, Ann had to frequent the town’s used bookstores countless times over the past two years.
There was even a time she had to bring the child along after persistent prodding.
Inside the bookstore, Lia wandered around with big, shining eyes, searching every nook and cranny.
But just before leaving the store, she shyly held out several thick books to Ann.
“What’s this, Lia? A Basic Magical Alchemy Dictionary?”
It was not a fairytale or a picture book but a book of magic itself.
A mystical ability once known as sorcery in ancient times.
According to the founding myth of the Empire, Taranta’s ancestors were sorcerers who inherited the blood of God.
However, with the passage of time, the sorcerer’s bloodline grew thin, and modern people could no longer use magic.
That didn’t mean magic had completely disappeared from the world.
Although the process was extremely complex, using magic circles, one could perform limited magic.
There were only two institutions in the continent that researched and published these magic circles: the International Magician’s Tower and the Imperial Academy of Alchemy.
The book Lia held was a textbook on magic circles authored by the Imperial Academy of Alchemy.
“Ha, haha, it might be a little difficult for our Lia to understand this book. How about you let the teacher select a different one?”
“…One. The goal of Alchemy is to standardize the production of the materials needed for magic research.”
“Lia?”
“…Two. Alchemy is based on all the magic circles consisting of straight lines and curves with defined slopes!”
“…Lia.”
“…Three. Alchemy is classified as a sub-discipline of magic, and the most fundamental value is…”
“Yeah, Lia! Got it.”
That day, Ann bought several books, including The Basics of Magic Circles, Basic Alchemy, and Advanced Magic Studies, even though she couldn’t comprehend them at all. When they left the bookstore, they didn’t know that the shopkeeper was watching them with enlarged eyes, as if about to pop out at any moment.
A few weeks later, a letter bearing the Longton family’s seal arrived at the orphanage.
“You want to adopt Lia?”
