14 Time Flies

Eight or so months later...

"19!"

"..."

"Come on!...20!"

"Thud!"

An anvil drops to the ground as sweat drips into the dirt.

"Finally!"

'I could barely do 5 when I started, and now I'm doing sets of 20.'

Lucian comes into view as sweat covers his shirtless but muscular body. Over the past eight months, his body has quickly adapted to a new training regime, with his strength explosively increasing each day. His physique is now comparable to a child-sized Greek god.

'Status'

Name: Lucian

Current State: "Fledgling"

Race: Half-Breed

Titles: "Diligent Learner"

Corruption Index: 0% Lv2

Health: 100%

Strength: 17

Dexterity: 16

Constitution: 12

Intelligence: 16

Charisma: 12

Perception: 12

Magic: 12

'My strength and Dexterity have naturally increased at a pretty quick rate, though they're now plateauing. I haven't gained a stat point in the past two months. Maybe this is the limit of my body right now. I need to find a solution to increasing my other stats. I still haven't found a way to increase three of my stats. I would think Constitution is increased by endurance training, but there's been no progression even when I run 10 miles a day. I can't help Charisma since I only talk to people when I'm out with Layla or customers. For magic, I will have to wait until I start my mentorship. I can barely crackle a bolt of lightning in my hand, but that night I was able to cover my entire body without a thought. Maybe the Marquis will be able to tell me why. Now there's just perception, and that's a goddamn mystery.'

'I think my focus for right now should be on improving my top 3 stats. Strength and Dexterity are extremely useful for fighting. Additionally, Intelligence is ridiculously strong; I can now maintain two streams of thought at once. I can't imagine the limitless possibilities when it hits 100, but that's so far away since I've run out of books to read.'

"Are you done yet!?" Layla impatiently shouts at him, putting on the best puppy eyes she can muster.

Lucian breaks from his thoughts, turning to Layla. Her wheat blonde hair blows as she sits on a barrel, waiting for him to finish training. She wears a green dress with a ruffle on its bottom. Her looks have continuously improved since their first meeting. She now looks like a child model, her cute expression and the wind flowing through her hair accentuating her looks. Lucian takes a mental picture of her to remember when he thinks back on their deep bond that has grown with the passing months.

Layla has spent nearly every day with Lucian since the events of that night, almost as if she is attached at his hip. She spends most days watching Lucian training before getting impatient and begging him to play with her. Playing mostly entails prodding her ego with compliments and engaging in childish activities. Surprisingly, this doesn't bother him that much as it reminds him of the times Julie would spend babysitting him as a child.

"I'm finished now, so don't give me that look!" Lucian replies with a stern look before smiling at her.

"Bang!"

The front door of Lucian's house slams shut, cutting the conversations short. Siegfried sprints toward Lucian, looking as if an atomic bomb just went off.

"Y-y-y-your m-m-mother!" Siegfried shouts.

"What?" Lucian asks, confused at what he's trying to say

"Ch-Child!" Siegfried answers.

Lucian's eyes go wide at his answer.

"Oh god! Take a breathe and tell me what you need." Lucian exclaims.

Siegfried takes a deep breath in as exhaling through his nose before continuing.

"Go inside and make sure your Mother is alright. I need to find Madeline for the birthing." Siegfried says.

Layla's eyes go wide at birthing, finally realizing what's going on.

"Madeline! She's with my Mother right now! I can take you to them!" Layla interjects.

"Thank god, her shop is closed right now. I was worried I wouldn't be able to find her!" Siegfried joyously responds.

"Lucian, go inside. Me and Layla will bring the Midwife. Just make sure your Mother has everything she needs."

Lucian nods.

"Got it."

The group splits up and starts moving towards their battle stations.

"LUCIAN! DON'T FORGET TOWELS AND LOTS OF THEM!" Siegfried shouts from the street as Lucian enters the house.

Lucian's mind runs a million miles a minute as he jogs toward the stairs.

'What do I need. What do I need... Towels, rags, water. Shit! I can't think of anything else! This outdated world really needs a hospital for this, not me!'

Lucian grabs everything he can think of in massive quantities before running into his parent's bedroom.

Lilith's face is beet red as she lays on the bed, a pool of liquid underneath her. Busy hyperventilating, she barely notices Lucian behind the mountain of linens he holds in his arms.

Lucian drops the supplies near the bed.

"Mom, are you okay!?" Lucian asks worriedly.

"I'm fine. Look at you bringing so many towels." Lilith whispers with a chuckle between ragged breaths.

"Dad is with Layla finding the Midwife. They should be here soon. Everything is gonna be okay." Lucian tells Lilith with a worried look hidden by a smile.

Looking over his Mother, thoughts mill through his head.

'I hope everything really is okay. I've read that many mothers died in labor before technology improved. I can't let something like that happen to her. I've never had a real family before her...'

"Lucian...don't worry," Lilith says, reading his mind as she looks at his facial expression.

Lucian gives her a solemn nod.

"Can you bring me a towel and clean up this mess." She asks.

Lucian jumps up from his position on the bedside, grabbing a few towels and mopping up the liquid on the sheets, then placing towels underneath Lilith's legs.

"Thank you, honey." Lilith says, stretching her hand out towards him.

Lucian lowers his cheek to her hand as she caresses his cheek after a few moment's Lucian takes her hand in his as he continues watching over her.

Lilith's breathing rapidly increases as her back arches with each contraction.

'Where the hell are they? Things are only getting worse. I don't know how long she can wait...'

Lilith's grip tightens around Lucian's hand with each passing minute.

"Ooof!" Lilith gasps for air as pain spikes in her lower back.

"Honey...I think I may need your help."

'No, no, no, this is too fast! She can't go into labor now! I have no idea what to do!'

"Guh!"

The sounds of another contract erupt from Lilith.

'Shit shit shit. Think Lucian. Think. I've only seen this watching those crappy hospital sitcoms with women. What did those actors do?'

Lucian holds Lilith's hand tighter, his knuckles white from the pressure.

"I'm here, Mom. Just hang in there!" Lucian says, making his best impression of a doctor.

Lilith's breathing rapidly increases as another contraction surges forth.

"You're doing great, just a bit more." Lucian coos.

The contractions continue, each coming on faster, as time slowly passes and Lucian's hand begins to go numb from his Mother's painful grip.

Lilith's labor finally reaches a climax. Exasperated breaths are forced from her as pain riddles her features.

'I need to help her deliver, or she could die.'

Lucian rushes to the end of the bed, preparing for the worst.

His eyes go white at the sight before him.

A wave of nausea rolls through Lucian's stomach as he attempts to regain his balance from almost fainting.

'You could fit a bowling ball in this thing. I can barely look without feeling like I'm going to throw up.'

Another contraction ensues, pushing the infant's body further.

Lucian slaps his cheeks hard.

'Get your head in the game. She could die.'

"I can see the head! I need you to push a little more, mom!"

Lilith takes a few breaths before straining herself.

"Uuhh!"

The infant is now fully crowned as Lilith screams in pain.

'She needs to control her breathing, or this will only get harder.'

"Mom, listen to me closely, okay? I need you to take a deep breath in, hold it for a second, and then push your hardest as you exhale."

Lilith nods her head as sweat drips down her cheeks.

She takes a deep breath in.

"Guhhh!"

"Great job! Just keep doing that, okay! We're almost done!" Lucian says, urging his Mother on.

An eternity of minutes passes as the labor nears to a close with each breath.

After one last push, it finally ends. Soaked in sweat and tears, Lilith collapses onto the bed from exhaustion.

Lucian holds the infant in his arms, doing his best to cut the umbilical cord with a small knife he carries at his side. Doing his best to tie a knot to still the bleeding.

Infant screams resound through the room as Lucian collapses into a nearby chair from sheer mental exhaustion.

'It's finally over. I don't know how much longer I could've lasted.'

He takes a deep breath as a feeling of relief cools his nerves.

'I guess this is my little brother or sister?'

His eyes drift.

'Sister.'

"Wahh!" The infant's cries continue.

Lucian's arms begin to rock his little sister back and forth out of instinct.

"There, there. Don't cry. You're gonna be okay." Lucian coos as his voice begins to crack, a lump forming in his throat.

His eyes meet hers.

Her cries come to a halt as their gaze meets.

"Your big brother is here, so don't worry." Lucian coos again, cracking further.

Her little hand reaches for Lucian's face.

Lucian lowers his head.

Her tiny fingers grip at Lucian's cheek as drops of water flow onto them.

"I'll never let anything hurt you."

Lucian's eyes burn red as conviction grips his features.

"I promise."