TAMWSFB 03

Chapter 3

 My Brother’s Warm Hand and the Fluffy Savior

That said, I can’t truly solve anything unless my Mana Overflow is cured.

Children born with Mana Overflow are rare.

That’s because when a baby inside the womb possesses far more magic than the mother, the mother herself ends up in a pseudo–Mana Overflow state.

And then, when it’s time to give birth, the strain on the mother’s body becomes immense.

That’s why most babies with Mana Overflow don’t survive to full term, and even if they’re somehow born, both mother and child often lose their lives in the process.

My mother also passed away during childbirth, and I myself was in a near-death state from the very beginning.
Thanks to the doctor who continuously cast healing spells on me while monitoring my condition, I barely managed to survive.

If the Mana Overflow is mild, it sometimes resolves naturally as the child grows.
And if you have family nearby, they can siphon off a little of your excess magic, which helps you survive.

But in cases like mine—where the baby is born nearly lifeless—
even if we survive, our bodies can’t handle the growing magic as we age, and we die before reaching adulthood.

In Gran Avere, the hero, Abel, also suffered from Mana Overflow.
When he was little, he was so frail he could barely sit up in bed.

But one day, he was called by the Holy Sword sleeping in a cave behind his village.
Inside that cave grew golden lycoris flowers whose pollen he inhaled—
and that miraculously cured his illness.

In other words, that cave with the Holy Sword contains the perfect antidote!
…But I’m still a baby, so I can’t exactly go crawling off on a quest just yet.

I’ll have to wait until I’m a little older.

Until then, I need to do everything I can to avoid triggering an episode.

That means… I must not get too excited when I see my brother Serios.

“Reti, please get well soon.”

B-but—my oshi is just too adorable!!

My brother’s slender, beautiful hand gently squeezes my tiny fingers.

I can’t quite remember what good deeds I did in my previous life,
but whatever they were, this must be my divine reward!

Can I just… never wash this hand again?

Dear gods, Buddhas, and creator of this world—thank you so much for reincarnating me here!
Every single day is pure bliss!

The adult Serios-sama with the expressionless, cool face is wonderful,
but this younger version—his cheeks still soft and round,
his silver hair shining smoothly,
his ice-blue eyes wide and innocent—

It’s like the gods gathered every ounce of cuteness in the world to craft this perfect, beautiful boy.

How am I supposed to not get excited looking at him?!

In short: I’m basically dying of happiness every day.

In the novel, Leticia was only ever described as “Serios’s deceased little sister.”
Could it be… that she actually died because she got too excited by how handsome her brother was…?

No way. That can’t be it. They were real siblings, after all.

Still… dying from “getting too excited over my favorite character” in both lives? That would be beyond pathetic.

And besides, I want to appreciate my oshi for much longer.

So I’ll just have to train myself—get used to him, so I don’t get too excited!

“Nii—”

I squeeze my brother’s hand back as best I can.
He beams with joy, his face lighting up like the sun.

Aaaaaaahhhhh—

So precious!
Too precious!!

“Reti, did you just say ‘nii’…? You mean me?”

“Nii-ni! Nii!”

Yes! My dearest big brother!

I’ve been secretly practicing this!
I finally get to show you—yay!

Just wait a little longer, and I’ll be able to say “Onii-sama” properly!

“Ahh, Reti, I’m so happy!”

As if my feelings had reached him, my brother’s face blossomed with a full smile—
and then he hugged me tightly.

Hiiiieeeee!!

My oshi—my beloved oshi—is hugging meeeee!!

Ah—

I could feel the magic in my body start to surge—
swelling, swelling—about to burst—

N-no… I have to… suppress it…!

“Reti? Reti! Doctor Robert, Reti is—!”

I’m okay…
So please… don’t cry…

When I next opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was my brother Serios.

I let out a deep, trembling sigh of relief.

Thank goodness…
For a moment, I thought I’d died and been reincarnated again somewhere else.

I’ve worked so hard to be reborn into Gran Avere—
I have to value this life. That’s rule number one.

“Nii-ni…”
“Reti, thank goodness…”

Ah… his soft, flawless cheeks look a little thinner.
He must’ve been worrying about me the whole time.

Just like in the novel—such a caring brother.

While I was quietly moved by that, my brother placed something against my face.

It was fluffy, like a puffball—but touching it made a cooling sensation spread through my skin, calming the heat in my body.

“No, Reti. Your magic is surging again,” he said gently.

“Uu…?”

“This will help. It’s a fluffball that absorbs magic.”

He showed me a small white ball of fur—
and in the middle of it… was an eye.

Wait—our eyes met.

“…!”

We both stared at each other, wide-eyed.

Where have I seen something like this before…?

Ah! I remember now!
It looks just like that famous little soot-creature from the national movie about forest spirits and sisters!

Same fluffy ball shape, same big round eyes—
just a color-swapped version!

“I finally got it for you,” my brother said. “Please take good care of it.”

I later learned that this “fluffball” was actually a type of spirit that only lives in dragon nests, feeding on the dragons’ immense magical energy.

Because they’re so rare, they’re incredibly valuable.

To think Serios-sama went through all that trouble to get one for me—
Thank you, my dearest brother!
I love you forever! I’ll stan you for life!!

And I’ll take good care of this fluffball too!

“Nii!”

I smiled brightly and accepted the pure white fluffball from my brother’s hands.