"Oof." Reivan made a strange sound as he jumped face-first into his soft bed. He was all alone now since Valter had left to report to his father directly. The solitude undoubtedly made him much more comfortable, despite the knowledge that there were plenty of people who could peek in on him if they wanted to.

'I guess I'll just have to accept the fact that privacy is a scarce resource for royalty...'

This thought made Reivan shiver in dread. What would happen when he entered his teenage years? Raging hormones would likely make him horny twenty-four hours a day. Even in his past life, he couldn't resist attempting to release the tension — with little success, what with the constant bouts of pain.

But now? He'd never feel safe enough to even try.

'That's a problem for the future me. Right now? I'm a ten-year-old boy who knows nothing about that kind of thing!'

Still, Reivan decided to ask the Sword Star if there were any places the ancient warrior couldn't see into. Just for reference, of course.

Heaving a tired sigh, Reivan hugged a pillow while rubbing his feet together. Even if his body did not lack vigor, his mind had gone through quite a bit of exercise, making him feel more tired than he expected. Hopefully, a quick nap before dinner could fix that.

'But before that...'

He decided to pay a visit to the little voyeur in his soul.

[Glimpse of Eternity] has activated!

A semi-transparent screen floating in front of him was the last thing Reivan saw before his vision darkened.

----------------------------------------

"You're here."

Reivan opened his eyes when a droll, high-pitched voice entered his ears. A smile crossed his face as he looked at the source. "I missed you too, Kana-chan."

Karuna rolled her eyes as she leaned back on the posh armchair she was sitting on. "I was under the impression that you were tired."

"I am." Reivan looked around, noticing how normal the walls and ceiling were compared to the last time he was there. While casually observing the place — which was a carbon copy of his room — he moved to sit on the chair opposite the white-haired fairy. He parked his elbows on the table between them and cradled his face while grinning at her. "I was tired... but not tired enough to ignore you."

"Ugh..." She groaned as her face twisted into a grimace. "Why are you being so gross...? If you want something, say it. Whatever it takes to make you stop."

Reivan frowned and leaned back. "You're really rude, huh? I'm just trying to build a rapport since we'll be together for quite a while, y'know? I thought you already forgave me for that repeating movie thing..."

"I have forgiven you. My rudeness has nothing to do with that. I just find your previous demeanor disgusting. That's all." Karuna shook her head before grabbing a cup of tea from thin air. After she took a sip, she sighed. "So? What is it? What did you really want to talk about?"

His true intentions seen through, Reivan wasted no time. "I really did want to build a rapport. But I also wanted to get your opinion on Rolf."

"Why are you asking me about that scary guy...? I already told you about how fuzzy my memory is..." Despite her words, Karuna closed her eyes and tapped her chin, seemingly in deep thought. "I'm not completely sure... but I get the impression that someone like that old guy would be unrivaled in my world too. At the very least, I'm not confident that the strongest people I knew could beat him. Unless they ganged up on him, that is. But even then, Rolf could probably take a few of them out before dying."

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open in realization. She clutched her head while whispering to herself. "Wait a minute... How the hell am I so sure of that...?"

"Are you okay...?" Reivan asked in concern, his brows furrowed.

"I don't know..." Karuna grimaced. "But I feel like I almost remembered something. It would've been great if you weren't here to interrupt that."

"Wow. Sorry for existing, I guess?" He chuckled before manifesting a steaming hot steak from nothing. The steak cut itself into bite-sized pieces before one of them floated over to Reivan's open mouth.

'So good...'

Strangely enough, manipulating reality in this world came naturally to him now that his memories weren't messed up. He wasn't quite sure how to make complicated things like fragments of eternity, but simple things like making steaks out of thin air were easy.

'If fitness freaks back on earth knew about this, they'd be so jealous.'

He could eat anything as much as he wanted, and he would never get fat. Plus, he didn't even have to pay for anything or wait for it to get cooked, nor would he have to travel from restaurant to restaurant.

Reivan couldn't help but chuckle at his idle thoughts, eliciting a curious stare from the petite fairy.

"I see that you've gained quite a bit of control over this ability, despite how little time has passed," she commented drolly.

He carefully chewed his food and swallowed before replying, a smug smile on his face. "Oh, this? It's nothing. Just a steak. Pretty simple stuff, no?"

"I wasn't talking about that. And would you stop looking so proud over something so simple?" Karuna sneered before pointing at the tip of his nose. "I meant your form. Did you not notice? You're not in Ken's body anymore, but in Reivan's body."

'Oh, she's right...'

Reivan looked down while wiping away the grease on his lips. Just as Karuna said, he was using the ten-year-old Reivan's body instead of Ken's adult body. Which explained why Karuna's eye level was somewhat higher than he remembered.

"This is a good thing." Karuna's pleasant voice snapped Reivan out of his thoughts. "You're no longer Ken. His story is over, and Reivan's story has just begun, so to speak. Your mental-form changing into Reivan's means that you've accepted this."

'Have I...? Have I really accepted it?'

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Reivan wasn't quite sure.

With a complicated expression on his face, he looked down at his plate, silently shoveling food into his mouth.

Perhaps noticing his mental conflict, Karuna cleared her throat and awkwardly said, "Well... Accepting that Ken's story is over doesn't necessarily mean that it doesn't matter anymore. Uhh... it's like a prequel to Reivan's story, y'know? Reivan's story wouldn't even be a thing without Ken. The past isn't going to disappear... it paves the way for the future. Your future. Or something like that... Dammit. I'm not used to giving pep talks... "

Reivan looked up and gazed at the white-haired fae. Seeing the faint blush on her cheeks, he couldn't help but smile. "Thanks, Kana-chan. You're pretty nice, you know that? If you were this nice all the time, more people would like you, y'know?"

"Stop calling me that. Call me Miss Karuna, or My Lady Karuna. Also, what the hell do you mean by 'more people'? We're the only ones here!" Karuna snapped, turning her head away while crossing her arms. "You're the only person who can come here. Which is really depressing, since I don't like you very much."

"Well, I'll just have to change that over time! Let's get along, Kana-chan!"

"Don't wanna. Go away."

For a while, Reivan continued throwing pointless banter at Karuna. However, as if she was a concrete wall, his efforts just bounced back. Still, he felt like they'd somewhat gotten closer, even by just a little.

'Just a little though.'

With a grin on his face, Reivan stood up from his seat. "I'll be going now."

"Finally. Best news I've heard all day." Karuna rolled her eyes before her gaze landed on Reivan. "Make sure to listen to that scary guy. Learn as much as you can from him."

"I was already planning on doing that."

"I'm serious." Her voice lowered as her brows knit together. "The things you want to do? Can't be achieved by being normal. That old guy? He's a monster. And the best way to learn how to not be normal, is from someone abnormal like that guy. Learn from him. Then, become better than him. Cuz from what I saw, even he can't bring people back from the dead."

Reivan let her words sink in for a few moments before nodding. "Yeah. I'll do that."

"Good."

"Thanks for the words of wisdom, Kana-chan. See ya tomorrow."

"Don't bother."

Snickering mischievously, Reivan's vision darkened once again.

----------------------------------------

[Glimpse of Eternity] has safely deactivated!

'Oh, that's new. Or did I just not notice it the last time...?'

Reivan yawned, shoving all useless thoughts aside. He was even more tired than before, most likely because he'd forced himself into using [Glimpse of Eternity] even when he was already mentally strained. Burying his face into the huggable pillow he'd been embracing, he prepared to sink into the peaceful realm of dreamland when the door to his room opened.

'Who is it...?'

He craned his neck to see, only to be surprised when he saw his father peeking in.

"Oh. You're still awake. Glad I made it." Rodin smiled as he entered the room. With steady steps, he made his way forward.

"Is there something...?" Reivan trailed off drowsily as he tried to sit up.

His father sat on the edge of the bed, placing a hand on Reivan's head. "You don't have to get up. I just wanted to give you something."

"Give me something? For what?"

"Why, for your birthday, of course!"

"But didn't you already give me all sorts of stuff for my birthday?" Reivan raised an eyebrow in confusion before listing off all the gifts he'd gotten. "The Soul Armament. The communication crystal thingy. Then, there's my guardian knight, Valter."

"Those are things you were meant to acquire, as a prince. But I realized that I haven't really given you anything as a father. Actually, I got the idea from Vianna... which is somewhat annoying since I thought I was supposed to be the considerate one." Rodin fished around in his inner coat's pocket before taking out what looked like a small wooden sculpture. "Here you go."

"Uhm... thanks..." Reivan received the gift in a daze. Before he even got to examine it closely, his father began hurriedly explaining.

"I actually thought long and hard about what to give you. But by thinking hard, I realized what a difficult endeavor it was to choose a suitable gift. Clothes, jewelry... material objects like that wouldn't really make for a good gift, seeing as you already have a lot of them. Weapons and armor wouldn't work either, since we have Soul Armaments. Books, which I know you love, were also out of the question, seeing as you now have full access to the royal archives. There were a few things that I thought were worthy candidates, but in the end... I chose to make something by myself. A hand-made gift, if you would."

'Oh. So Father carved this himself...?'

A smile crossed Reivan face as he fiddled with the tiny piece of wood.

"Unfortunately, I'm not the most artistically inclined person, nor did I have a lot of time to learn... so I could only make that. Luckily, most of my work today consisted of meetings and whatnot, so I could do it under the table while talking."

Reivan brought the wooden gift to his face, staring up at it. It was crude, obviously made with amateurish craftsmanship. If someone had been peddling the thing on the streets, nobody would even think to buy it — except for the few kind people who would buy it out of charity for the peddler.

Still, Reivan couldn't help but like it.

"Thank you, Father. I love it." Reivan's fist wrapped around the wooden sculpture as he held it to his chest, a smile on his face as he looked at his father.

Rodin chuckled while scratching the back of his head. "Well, that's good. If that's the case, it was well worth the effort."

"Mhm." The young prince nodded, raising up the gift and looking at it from multiple angles. "How'd you know I love dogs?"

The king stiffened. His gaze darkened as he stared off to the sides. "It's a wolf..."

"...huh?"

"It's a wolf," Rodin's smile twitched as he repeated. "Aizen's flag has a wolf in it, remember? Wolves are the symbolic animal of Aizen. It's because of the animal's tendency to form packs..."

"Oh..."

"That's why I tried making a wolf. It's a wolf, Rein."

"Ah... yes. I'm sorry...." Reivan's lips curled into an awkward smile as he nodded repeatedly. "Maybe it's because the lights are dim. I was late to realize... hahaha..."

Rodin heaved a weary sigh as he stood up, his shoulders sagging. "No. What did I expect, picking up woodcarving all of a sudden? It's a given that I cannot compare to the artisans of our kingdom with a single day's experience under my belt."

"That... that's true..." The young prince hesitantly agreed. "Practice makes perfect, Father. You'll get better with time..."

"Correct." The king rolled his shoulders back and stood confidently once more. He clenched his right fist and raised it to his chest. "I wasn't a competent king from the start. It took hard work and dedication to reach my current state. Working hard is something I'm good at. If I practice enough, maybe seek guidance from an experienced craftsman, I will eventually excel at this as well."

"Yes..." Reivan wanted to retort that as the nation's king, Rodin was already quite busy, but decided against it. It wouldn't hurt for his father to get a hobby to potentially relieve stress. Also, Reivan knew that the man was smart enough to manage his time well, giving more time to matters that had to be prioritized — like matters about the Outlands. "Plus, maybe it's because I was thinking about asking for a pet dog that I thought the sculpture was a dog."

"Hm?" Rodin turned back to his son, an indecipherable expression on his face. "You wanted a pet dog...?"

"Well... I was thinking about it. But then I realized I probably wouldn't have a lot of time to take care of one. I'll be busy training, studying, and all sorts of other things, I assume."

"That's true. You are going to be quite busy soon." The king crossed his arms and nodded knowingly. "But still... a pet, huh? I think you should wait til you see your mother's... present. If you still want more to take care of after that, we'll talk about it."

'Again with Mother's gift... Just what the hell is it? I have a really bad feeling for some reason...'

Reivan frowned but let it go. He knew that nobody would willingly go against his mother's intentions, so he would just have to wait for the "surprise".

"Well, I have to go now. This kingdom isn't going to run itself... well, it will, but I need to be the grease to make things go along smoother, I suppose." Rodin leaned forward and ruffled Reivan's smooth grey hair.

"Mhm. Good luck." Reivan smiled as he watched his father cross the room. As Rodin's reached for the door, Reivan called out. "Thanks for the gift, Father. I'll take care of it. Forever."

"Hah. It'll eventually decay and turn to dust, my son. With any luck, you'll outlive it." The king turned around and leaned on the doorway, his blue eyes regarding his son with a warm gaze. "Do you like it that much?"

The young prince smirked. "Wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."

"Hoh...that's good, then." Rodin grinned and turned to leave. But just before he closed the door, he said, "I was thinking of giving you your own Sky Arc if you didn't like my gift. Luckily, I no longer have to go to the trouble."

'What...'

"Ah, Father, wait a minute..." Reivan jumped into a sitting position, but the door had already slammed shut before he could say anything. "Dammit."

It seemed like his nap wouldn't be as peaceful as he initially thought. With a hint of regret — really, it was just a tiny smidgen — Reivan roughly lay back on the head and closed his eyes with a frown on his face.