Chapter 67 - 067: First day

Anaria slowly opened her eyes.

For a few moments, she simply stared at the ceiling, trying to remember where she was. Her body felt heavy, weak, and sore in places she didn’t even know could hurt.

Then she remembered....The birth and her child

Her eyes widened slightly, Anaria immediately tried to turn, searching the room.

Before she could move too much, the herbal woman noticed "Don’t get up yet."

Anaria stopped and looked toward her. The older woman was sitting nearby, preparing a small bowl of herbs.

"Where’s my baby?"

"She’s here." The herbal woman pointed toward the small baby bed beside the sleeping area.

Anaria’s shoulders relaxed when she saw the tiny bundle resting there.

She stared for a moment, She was really there. Her baby

The thought still felt strange.

She couldn’t have thought in as hundreds years that she would be able to become a mother nor being able to give birth at her age but now she is real

Anaria slowly smiled "Can I hold her?"

"Not now"

Anaria frowned "I just want to hold her"

"And you just gave birth," the herbal woman replied calmly. "Your body needs rest."

Before Anaria could argue, the door opened.

Kenai entered first, followed closely by Rylan and Kai.

All three immediately looked at her.

Kenai walked straight toward the bed "How do you feel?"

"Sore."

"Are you thirsty?"

"A little."

"I’ll get water."

"I can get it," Kai said quickly.

Rylan had already picked up the cup of water.

Anaria stared at all three of them "I said I’m sore, not dying."

None of them looked convinced.

Kai came closer and carefully touched her arm "Are you sure you’re okay?"

"Yes."

Kenai looked at the herbal woman as if asking whether he should believe her.

The herbal woman sighed "She is weak, but she is stable. That’s what matters."

That seemed to calm them slightly.

Anaria looked toward the baby again.

The herbal woman finally picked the baby up and brought her over"Here."

Anaria’s arms opened immediately.

When she was placed against her, Anaria became completely still.

The tiny baby bear moved slightly, making a soft sound before settling against her.

Anaria looked down at her.

Her tiny face was still slightly wrinkled from sleep, her little hands curled close to her body.

Anaria gently touched one of those fingers "So small," she whispered.

Anaria carefully adjusted the blanket around the baby and smiled.

"You’re really just like your dad"

Kenai, Rylan, and Kai stood nearby in silence.

For once, none of them seemed to know what to say and Anaria didn’t mind.

She was too busy looking at her baby.

Kenai was the first to ask to hold her.

He looked almost hesitant when Anaria passed the baby to him.

It was strange seeing the village leader standing there with such uncertainty. He supported her carefully, one hand beneath her head and the other around her tiny body.

For several moments, he said nothing.

He simply stared "She’s so small," he finally murmured.

Anaria smiled.

"Were you expecting her to be big"

"It’s not like that." But he kept looking at her.

The baby moved slightly in his arms, and Kenai immediately adjusted his hold, becoming even more careful.

Anaria watched him quietly.

The same man who could command an entire village now looked completely helpless in front of a newborn.

Eventually, Kenai passed her to Rylan, Rylan took her without saying anything.

He was much quieter than Kenai, but Anaria could see how carefully he watched every movement.

The baby opened her tiny hand and caught one of Rylan’s fingers.

He paused

Anaria almost laughed " Is your first time holding a child"

Rylan looked down at her hand as though he couldn’t believe what had happened.

"Kinda of."

Kai chuckled "She already likes you."

Rylan didn’t answer, he just continued staring at the girl’s tiny hand around his finger.

Then came Kai’s turn.

The moment she was placed in his arms, his entire face changed.

"Look at her."

Anaria raised an eyebrow"We’re all looking at her."

"No, look." Kai smiled at the baby and gently moved his finger near her little hand.

The child moved again.

Kai laughed softly "She’s moving."

Anaria shook her head "She’s a baby, Kai."

"I know but still"

He looked completely delighted anyway.

Anaria watched the three men around her daughter.

Kenai had been overwhelmed while Rylan had been quietly fascinated and on the other hand kai couldn’t hide his happiness even if he tried.

Anaria felt something warm settle in her chest.

The herbal woman cleared her throat.

"Enough."

The three men looked at her

"She needs to rest."

Kenai reluctantly returned to Anaria’s side.

The herbal woman began explaining what Anaria needed during the next several days "Plenty of sleep. Nutritious food. Medicine when needed. Don’t walk around unless necessary, and don’t try to do too much."

Anaria listened "And someone should stay close to help with the baby."

"I can do that," Kai immediately said.

"All three of you can help," the herbal woman replied. "But she also needs quiet."

Anaria almost smiled. That was probably the first instruction they would struggle to follow.

Then a familiar sound entered her mind.

[Check up Complete.]

Anaria blinked.

[Congratulations once again, Host.]

[Mother and child are stable.]

She smiled faintly.

Then another panel appeared.

[Push Gift Received.]

[Reward: Recovery Essence ×1.]

Anaria mentally acknowledged it.

"Never knew, you could give me a push gift but thanks any ways"

The System didn’t respond

The herbal woman looked at the three men "Now, all of you out. She needs sleep."

Kenai frowned "But—"

"Out."

Rylan obeyed first.

Kai hesitated.

Anaria looked at him "Go."

He sighed and followed the others.

As he reached the door, Anaria looked down at the baby in her arms.

"Ana."

Kai stopped "What?"

Anaria looked up.

"Ana. That’s her name."

Kai’s face immediately brightened.

"You named her?"

"Yes."

He smiled.

"Ana."

And then he hurried after the others.

Outside the room, Kai found Kenai and Rylan waiting.

"She named her."

Kenai looked at him.

"Already?"

"Yeah, she is the mother."

Rylan repeated it quietly "Ana, a part of her own name."

Kenai smiled "It’s a nice name"

He opened the door again and stepped inside.

Anaria looked up.

"Are you forgetting anything"

"Kai told us about the name"

"Is it not okay by you" Ananria asked staring at kenai’s face

Kenai came closer and crouched beside her "Ana is a good name."

Anaria smiled "I thought so."

"You need to rest now."

"I know already."

Kenai carefully took Ana from her and placed the baby in the small bed beside Anaria.

Before leaving, he leaned down and kissed Anaria’s forehead.

"Sleep."

Then he left. The herbal woman followed him, closing the door behind them.

Finally, Anaria was alone. She stared at the ceiling for a moment.

Her body still felt sore.

She didn’t want to spend several days feeling like this.

"System."

The familiar panel appeared.

"I don’t want to feel like this anymore."

The System displayed the Recovery Essence information.

Anaria looked toward the small bottle that had appeared with the reward.

She picked it up and drank it.

Warmth spread through her body, the deep soreness began to ease and the heaviness in her limbs faded.

Her strength returned little by little, and the worst of the pain disappeared.

It didn’t make her feel as though nothing had happened.

She still felt tired and knew her body needed recovery.

But she at least felt much better.

Anaria carefully sat up Then she stood.

Her legs were slightly unsteady, but they held.

Her first thought was Ana.

She immediately turned toward the baby bed.

Ana was awake.

Anaria smiled.

She remembered how newborns needed frequent feeding from her previous life.

At least she still remembered this much.

She carefully picked Ana up and settled back down with her.

The baby made a tiny sound before relaxing against her.

Anaria looked down at her daughter "So this is my life now."

There was no fear in her voice, only a quiet wonder.

She had spent weeks preparing for this child, dealing with danger, pain, and everything else that had come with the pregnancy.

Now all of that felt distant.

For the first time, there was nothing she needed to solve.

Nothing she needed to fight, she simply had Ana in her arms.

Later on, the door opened.

Kenai, Rylan, and Kai returned carrying food and water.

They stopped when they saw Anaria sitting up with Ana.

Kai immediately frowned "You were supposed to be resting."

Anaria rolled her eyes "I am resting."

Rylan looked at her carefully "You are not"

"I said I’m, so don’t stress it out "

Kenai glanced at her before saying anything "You still need to follow the instructions, you can carry the baby later, for now rest up" then he walked closer and looked down at Ana.

"I just want to hold her for some time, it won’t take much," Anaria said.

Kenai placed the food beside her "We know but firstly eat."

Anaria looked at the three of them.

She had a feeling these first days were going to involve a lot of people telling her what to do.

Still, when she looked down at Ana again, she couldn’t bring herself to complain.