Chapter 8: In the Blink of an Eye (2)

Louis’s first form of self-inflicted torture was refusing to eat.

“Come on, Louis, time for dinner!”

“Nope! I’m not hungry.”

“What…?!”

Of course, it wasn’t that he had lost his appetite. He knew eating would make him sleepy once his stomach was full.

And secondly…

“Louis, you need your bath!”

“I don’t want to today.”

“…”

The second refusal was taking baths. The warm water made him drowsy. Additionally, any physical activity tired him out, so he minimized movement as much as possible. Being near the bed tempted him to lie down, so he avoided going within five meters of it.

Louis employed various methods to resist sleep. By day three, his face looked gaunt and haggard. Naturally, Genelocer wore a worried expression.

Seeing Louis’s condition deteriorate further, Genelocer forcibly grabbed the protesting baby who refused food and fed him formula from a bottle.

Genelocer brought the spoonful of baby food close to Louis’s mouth.

“Come on, my sweet boy. Open up!”

As the spoon neared his face, Louis’s eyes widened momentarily, but he mustered extraordinary patience and turned away.

“Mmmf!”

“Eat your mama, Louis! You need to eat.”

“Mmmmph!”

Louis kept his lips tightly sealed, refusing the food even as it touched them. Genelocer, who usually wore a perpetual smile, grew increasingly frustrated with this repeated behavior.

“Louie! Are you really going to be like this?!”

”…”

“Why are you doing this?”

”…”

Seeing his son stubbornly keeping mum infuriated him. As someone born with four attributes, Louis required several times more nutrients than other children. Refusing meals would hinder his growth.

Meanwhile, Louis was going through his own agony.

I’m starving to death here too!

His stomach kept growling for food, and he felt like he might accidentally eat something if he stayed any longer. Ultimately, Louis decided to flee.

“I’ll eat later!”

Although he said “later,” it was clear that he wouldn’t be eating at all. Genelocer watched with a heavy sigh as Louis refused the meal once again and ran off to his room.

“Ohhh… I wonder what’s wrong with him?”

Unaware of his father’s concern, Louis flapped his wings quickly toward his sanctuary. Once inside, he leaned helplessly against the wall.

“Ahhh… My blood sugar is low.”

This was day three of his forced fast. He felt so faint from hunger that his vision blurred, and he desperately wanted to fly straight to bed. In fact, the stuffed rabbit on his pillow appeared to wave its hand welcomingly at him.

“No!”

Louis slapped both his cheeks to snap himself out of it. The stinging pain jolted him awake momentarily, but it didn’t last long.

Nod, nod.

Yawn…

The accumulated fatigue from recent days weighed heavily on his eyelids as they slowly drooped shut.

Startled, Louis jerked his head up.

“I-I almost fell asleep.”

The fear of potentially dying in sleep instantly woke him up again.

“A-a way to…!”

He hastily rose and rushed toward the towering pile of books that had grown even larger since he started raiding Genelocer’s library. It now stood several times taller than Louis himself.

“A method to not fall asleep… Or at least something to alleviate my exhaustion! Yes, there must be a way… No matter what others say, this is a fantasy world.”

In this world, imagination could become reality. This was precisely what fantasy worlds were all about—making the impossible possible. Louis pinned his hopes on that potential.

The books he read contained legends and myths related to sleep or information about divine magic and talismans. Much of it went over his head, but with extraordinary focus, Louis diligently analyzed every piece of material.

There’s no time left!

He didn’t know how much longer he could endure the Hibernation Chamber. He had to find a solution as soon as possible. As time passed, the pile of books next to him steadily grew, yet Louis couldn’t tear his eyes away from them.

After several more hours…

Nod, nod.

Louis’s small head began bobbing up and down repeatedly.

Thud.

“Eep!” Louis yelped as someone grabbed his shoulder, startling him awake. He scanned his surroundings and spotted Genelocer standing there with a radiant smile on his face.

“You scared me!” Louis exclaimed indignantly.

In response to Louis’s protest, Genelocer simply smiled gently, though he looked somewhat weary for some reason.

He chuckled warmly at Louis. “Did you sleep well?”

“No, no, I wasn’t sleeping! J-just resting my eyes a bit!” Louis vehemently shook his head, insisting that he hadn’t been asleep.

Then, Genelocer held out a small box toward Louis.

The Genelocer held out a beautifully wrapped box to Louis.

“…?” Puzzled, Louis peered at the package right under his nose. “What’s this?”

“Ha-ha.” With a cheerful laugh, Genelocer handed it over and then made a shocking revelation.

“We’re celebrating our son’s hundredth birthday.”

“…Excuse me?”

“And for safely completing your first hibernation cycle!”

“…Huh?”

Louis’s jaw dropped as he accepted the gift commemorating both occasions.

In conclusion, Louis had indeed completed his first hibernation cycle—a whole century!

I’ve fallen asleep and woken up to find class over before, but…

This wasn’t just missing one lecture due to dozing off. He’d closed his eyes for only a brief moment, yet a hundred years had passed.

But how am I still alive?

Before falling asleep, he had been constantly under threat of death, so waking up safely after a hundred-year slumber was hard to believe.

“Does it mean they won’t kill me while I’m asleep?”

That thought only added more confusion to his mind.

He tried to kill me at every turn before, but now he just lets me be? It’s impossible to predict his next move.

Regardless of how it happened, Louis had survived. That was what mattered most.

However, there was one thing bothering him.

“My father… Why does he look so frail?”

For Louis, only moments seemed to have passed, but regardless, it had been a hundred years since he last saw Genelocer, and during that time, his father appeared to have aged dramatically. Although Louis still felt unfamiliar with this man, Genelocer was undoubtedly family. Despite his constant nagging, Louis couldn’t help but warm up to him due to the love he received from his father. Thus, seeing Genelocer looking unwell worried Louis greatly.

“…Is something wrong with your health?” Or perhaps Genelocer was looking haggard due to Louis’s antics? The thought tugged at his heartstrings.

I should start listening to him from now on.

Unsatisfied with how he had behaved before going to bed, Louis resolved to be more obedient and heaved himself up off the bed. After a hundred years, he loudly called out using Genelocer’s preferred nickname. It felt slightly embarrassing, but it was the only gift Louis could give his father right now.

“Daaaaad! I’m hungry!”

“Just wait a little longer! Almost ready!” Hearing his immediate response brought a small smile to Louis’s face as he quickly left his room.

Later that night, Genelocer returned to his room and took out a thick book from his shelf. The luxurious leather cover, intricate decorations, and gilded title revealed its identity:

[Louis’s Parenting Diary]

As he opened it, confusion spread across Genelocer’s face.

“Oh, he filled it already?”

The diary, about eight inches thick, had no more space for additional entries.

“How time flies…”

Seeing every page meticulously filled brought a sense of calmness to Genelocer’s eyes. Although a hundred years might seem long to others, witnessing Louis grow made it feel precious to him. He gently caressed the cover before flipping open the first page.

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, January 1st 」

Our child with Valentina was born today. A healthy baby boy weighing 2.6 kg. With white scales resembling his mother and beautiful purple eyes, we named him Louis, just as Valentina had suggested. Louis, our son. May you grow up strong and healthy.

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, January 5th 」

I taught Louis basic language skills and common knowledge. Although I felt a bit disappointed not to hear more of his adorable cooing sounds, I eagerly anticipated the day he would call me ‘Dad’. However, Louis’s first word turned out to be ‘Mister’.

When he asked, ‘Who is Mister?’, it nearly brought tears to my eyes.

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, January 10th 」

Louis now speaks well and has become quite adept at crawling around.

Although Louis resembled any other hatchling of his age, I was concerned about him occasionally mumbling incomprehensible words. Nonetheless, aside from that, he ate well and enjoyed playing, which reassured me. He particularly loved books, carrying them around with him every day.

It seems like his intelligence is inherited from me!

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, January 17th 」

Today, Louis asked my name for the first time. Overjoyed, I immediately told him. However, Louis appeared shocked by it, causing me to feel equally stunned.

…Is my name really that strange?

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, February 3rd 」

After being struck by lightning during our outing, Louis had been feeling quite dejected for some time. But now, he has regained his spirits unexpectedly. Suddenly, he expressed a desire to learn something new.

I had assumed Louis would be intelligent since he loved books, but I didn’t expect him to seek knowledge so quickly. It made me both happy and slightly disappointed, as it seemed he was growing up faster than other children. Still, this was the first time my well-behaved son, who never threw tantrums, had asked for something. I couldn’t possibly refuse him.

Therefore, I decided to determine Louis’s attributes tomorrow. Once we knew his attributes, we could decide what to teach him accordingly.

But what attributes might our son possess? Although attributes are inherited randomly, as his father, I hoped he would have darkness attribute like me. Alternatively, inheriting Valentina’s lightning attribute would also be great.

I eagerly anticipated tomorrow.

[February 4, 3090 Dimensional Energy]

Our son is a prodigy!

Four attributes! prodiogy, Just like me!

「 Dimensional Energy Year 3090, February 13th 」

I’m starting to see signs of Louis entering his first hibernation period soon.

Karlos’s twins entered their hibernation phase last month, about a month earlier than Louis, so it seems to be around the same time for him as well.

The most crucial aspect during this long hibernation is nutrition… However, my son doesn’t eat much. For some reason, he neither plays nor interacts but spends all day reading books in his room.

It can’t help but worry me. I’ve tried coaxing, persuading, and even scolding him, but he’s stubborn just like someone else. It’s clear that Louis inherited Valentina’s stubbornness.

Flip, flip.

As Genelocer reminisced over the past while reflecting on Louis’s growth, an uncontainable smile graced his face.

Flip, flip.

His hands continued turning the diary pages, gradually moving back in time to entries documenting Louis’s hibernation periods.