Claude watched Antares scribbling on a piece of paper, tiny fingers moving in uncoordinated circles. It resembled a magic circle—if one squinted hard enough—but it was clearly the work of an unsteady hand.
Still, there was a strange intensity in the boy's focus.
Beside him, Sophia sat with her hands resting on her lap, offering soft encouragement as she watched her son with gentle eyes.
Keira's words echoed in Claude's mind: "Your children hear, learn, and understand everything—even when they're still in the womb."
He wondered... did Antares already grasp what was happening around him? Did he understand his mother's situation? What would he think about it then?
Claude frowned, memories flashing behind his eyes—his first life, this life... both had been marred by bitterness and pain.
That was why he'd made a promise to himself: his children, even if they were destined to one day fight over the throne, would at least have a childhood free of cruelty.
