Minily was in complete shock. The day had already been weird and then the System dropped this on her. Her daughter which she somehow knew was named Mily and her son, Ken, who was a couple years younger came in the house like a hurricane. Seconds passed and then they went upstairs to their rooms. Shoes and bags were everywhere. The only interaction she got was them yelling while going up the stairs.

  Her mind feeling was telling her to go after them, but she had to take a seat and breathe. One of the things she swore to herself when she got her class was that she would never have kids. It wasn’t that she disliked them or anything. It was quite the opposite in fact. She adored children. The only reason she swore them off was because she would never do to a child what her parents did to her. Being a class chosen and a pirate at that wasn’t the safest profession. There was a chance that if she had children, she could die and leave them all alone. Now she was facing something that truly terrified her.

  Of course, she knew they were echoes of some other children that the System had conjured up, but still. Them calling her mom had cut into her farther than any sword could. Her soul was under attack, and the panic was her soul telling her to flee. She was never ready for this when she walked in that door.

  The mind feeling was practically screaming at her now. When it got too loud, she stood and walked up the stairs to tell her children they needed to wash up for dinner.

  “But mom, I’m not hungry yet.” Mily was sitting on her bed drawing with a sky-blue colored pencil.

  “Sorry sweetie, but you need to eat so you can do your homework after.” The System was practically feeding her dialogue. It was the only way she could do this.

  “Fine. I’ll go get washed up.”

  Her nine-year-old daughter ran out of the room. To her surprise, Ken was much easier. He didn’t fight back at all.

  Downstairs she was finishing up dinner when they finally sat themselves at the table. Moments later Drackenn walked in and joined them.

  “This looks delicious honey. I’m starving!”

  “Thanks. I had some help with the recipe. How was your day?”

  “Great! I ended up being extremely productive.” He turned to the kids. “How was school?”

  “Good! I learned a lot in history class, and I got the best grades on the math test in my class.” Mily said with pride.

  “Teacher’s pet!” Ken said and then stuck out his tongue in between bites. “The teacher let us play outside for an extra thirty minutes today! We thought she forgot about us.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  “Be nice to your sister, Ken.” Minily said shakily. In fact, her whole hand was shaking at how painful this was. This is what she wanted as a child. What she wished for day in and day out in the orphanage.

  “Honey, are you feeling any better?”

  “Of course! Just peachy. I got a lot done today.”

  “Well, I’m glad to hear it! Sounds like we all had a good day. I was thinking that we should all go out on my father’s boat this weekend. Wouldn’t that be fun?”

  “Yes!” Ken answered without hesitation.

  “I guess. Can Esika come? I wanted to hang out with her.”

  “I don’t see why not. Make sure her parents call and let us know that it’s okay though.”

  “Alright, daddy! Thanks!”

  “Minily, what do you think?”

  “I think it sounds like a splendid idea. You’ve always been great on boats.”

  Drackenn laughed. “Okay, that was one time! When are you going to let that go?”

  “Yeah dad, if Esika comes, you aren’t allowed to steer again. We almost died!”

  “Wow, someone is clearly overexaggerating. We barely scraped that other boat.”

  This got a laugh from the kids and Drackenn himself. Minily stayed quiet silently having a war within her mind. How was she going to get through this trial?

  ***

  Two years passed and Minily found herself loving this mundane life. She got to see her children grow and every night they sat down to have dinner with each other. Her husband ended up getting the promotion that he wanted and was coming home with a smile on his face. She loved seeing that smile. She loved waking up next to him. She loved the family time they had together. She loved this love.

  For the first couple of months, she had gone to visit Lily and her mother at the hospital. This was to help them through a hard time and to help herself face this new reality. Seeing them reminded her of the past and that helped ground her. She told Lily more of the things that she wished she had been told as a child, such as the positive affirmations she tells herself now. When the girl’s mother died, Minily wept with her until the next day. Then she talked Drackenn into adopting Lily.

  She was sixteen years old, but even two years in the system could be rough. Besides, Mily loved having Lily around. It was the big sister she never had. She quickly became family to everyone and now they were seeing her off to college.

  It was an incredibly sad day, but also, she was filled with pride to see one of her girls going off to become a fine young woman. Lily had helped her so much when she felt lost. That helped her to be a better mom to her other two children. She would never forget her.

  After they said goodbye, they had a family day to make it easier on Ken and Mily. They had ice cream and went to a movie theater. She was really enjoying the comforts of this generated world. It started to feel like reality. A better reality. That night she said goodnight to her children and said that she loved them both. Drackenn was waiting for her in their bed, and they cuddled up to sleep after a devastating day. He still was able to go right to sleep which left her up and thinking.

  Even without a class, stats, or status, this life feels significant. I wouldn’t trade my feelings for my family or those moments I see their smiles for anything. I also love the adventure my previous life affords me. That ability to protect your own with true strength is unparalleled. In this reality, I have love instead of power. They are both significant. No, it’s deeper than that. All life is significant. I’m significant.

  With that thought her tear blurred vision went black and when she could see again, she was in an empty white space.