"Dinner is ready," Anna exclaimed.
"I made meat today just for you, Thorn, so you grow up to be a strong boy."
"Thank you, Mother," Thorn replied.
"You're welcome."
"Waiiiit—Thorn! You can speak?" Anna was flabbergasted.
The whole family turned their shocked expressions onto the little Thorn.
"Yes, Mother, I can," Thorn proudly remarked.
"Well then, if you can really speak, then what is this?" Anna took a handkerchief out of her pocket and showed it to Thorn, hoping Thorn's claims were true and not just a few words.
"This is a handkerchief, Mother."
The family's shocked expressions transformed into ones of astonishment.
"Thorn, Thorn, what is this?" Edward excitedly pointed at a candle.
"This is a candle, Brother Edward."
"Thorn, what is this?" Bram withdrew his rusty sword and showed it to Thorn.
"Father, this is a sword."
Squeeze!
Bram gave Thorn a big hug and spun around.
"Wow, my Thorn is a genius, a prodigy, learning to speak at the young age of only four months!"
"I love you, Thorn! Now I can go and brag to all the villagers about you."
"Hey! Go and sit at the table. Don't forget we have to eat dinner before it gets cold," Anna strictly reprimanded Bram and the kids.
"Thorn, can you really speak that well? We basically have similar skills in speaking, yet I am four years older than you. Not to mention, most kids only speak like that after reaching five years old."
"Yes, brother, I don't know why, but I can," Thorn remarked.
I clearly know why, but I will not tell him it's because my mental age is 61 years old.
"You will definitely bring honor to the family, maybe even become a rich scholar," Bram proudly exclaimed.
After that, the dinner continued peacefully with the family laughing and talking, finally doing it together with their youngest family member, Thorn.
"Sleep well, Thorn."
"Goodnight, Mom," Thorn said to Anna, while Anna extinguished the candle.
Whew, that was a tiring yet fulfilling day. All my efforts have finally paid off. I did expect a bit of praise from my family, but not to that extent.
Now that I finally know how to communicate, how should I use this skill that I worked so hard to learn?
Well, first things first, I should inquire about this world and its inhabitants, then about how exactly you obtain power, also about their level of technology, and about some general knowledge. After that, I should learn from my parents how to read and write. After finishing all that, I'll have to plan next on what I should do based on what I learned.
Okay, let's go to sleep for now and ask my parents once I wake up.
Thorn woke up and went to breakfast.
"Okay, Thorn, you should go and sleep; you're still young."
"Wait, Mother, I wanted to ask you and Dad something before I go to sleep," Thorn quickly spoke.
"What is it you want to ask, Thorn?" Bram asked.
"So I've been thinking, I'm very curious about this world, about its races, kingdoms, and many other things. Also, does magic exist, or how can I become strong and rich?"
"Wow, that's a lot of questions you've got there, Thorn. I guess geniuses are truly different. Anyway, don't worry; just sit tight and relax, and your mother and I will tell you everything we know, right, dear?"
"Yes, of course, anything for our cute, little Thorn."
"Ahem, so let me start," Bram announced.
"This world, its name is Maelir. There are many different continents in this world, most unexplored. But the one we are living in is called the Green Continent. Its name originated from the vast and captivating nature residing within it."
"Now dear, why don't you continue?"
"Of course," Anna happily responded.
"From what I know, there are four kingdoms in the Green Continent. The first one is the one that we are currently living in, the Grandbell Kingdom. This kingdom is renowned for its transcendental mages and swordmasters, having a very strong and balanced military."
"Then there is the Goldenheart Kingdom; it is arguably the strongest kingdom on the continent. It's prominent for its advanced technology and craftsmanship. Many people instead call it the Impenetrable Fortress due to the fact that almost no one in history has managed to break the kingdom's defenses. Oh, I forgot to mention, this kingdom is also the richest, its wealth greatly surpassing others. And in terms of military, it mostly consists of knights with incredible armor and weapons."
"Thirdly, we have the Martial Kingdom, a unique and distinct kingdom. It is often referred to as the Martial Continent. This is because its area is many times greater than other kingdoms. But this is just one of the few things this kingdom is famous for. It's known for its unique architecture, vastly different from other kingdoms in terms of style. Secondly, its military is very unique. The people within it are known as martial artists; they are known most for their skilled techniques and precision and their deep understanding of combat. But what's truly interesting is that they don't have similar techniques and systematic abilities like those of knights, mages, swordmasters, and so on. Also, they do have one commonly recognized king, but unlike other kingdoms, he doesn't wield absolute authority. And unlike other kingdoms where there are few to no factions, the Martial Kingdom consists of many. That basically sums it up."
"Lastly, we have the Astrafall Kingdom. This kingdom is similar to ours. It's also known for its military, but in a very different way. Its military power mostly consists of entities known as beast tamers. They can tame monsters, animals, or whatever and make them their subordinates; skilled ones can tame multiple at once and use their powers as they will. Although people at first thought it was a very weak kingdom and tried to invade it, they were deadly wrong about its might. These invaders underestimated this kingdom because of their bias toward beasts and how humans are mostly stronger. But what they didn't know was that when strategy is applied to those beasts, their combat power increases exponentially, especially when paired with a human. This kingdom has a pretty solid relationship with the Grandbell Kingdom because of its similar nature and monarchy."
"Wow, that was a lot of talking. Anyway, that sums it up for the kingdoms part. Now why don't we let Dad instruct you about the races of this world?" Anna tiredly suggested.
"Fine then, let me continue," Bram said, very happy to explain to Thorn, knowing kids this age don't ask such questions because they aren't as intelligent as him.
"So, races, huh. Well, of course we have humans, and then we have elves; they say they are very beautiful. Then we have dwarves; they are known to be excellent craftsmen. We also have orcs; they can also be categorized as monsters, but that's debatable. Also, they usually form tribes. Lastly, there are demons; they are evil beings. They are also enemies of all kingdoms. Aside from that, I don't know much more about them."
"I'm sure there are more races out there, but that's all I know," Bram said.
"Oh, I almost forgot."
"As for how you can become strong, that is—"