Chapter 8: Mother and Daughter

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"Haah..."

Meteos sighed dreamily as he gazed out the window from his seat inside a cabin of the train running on a railroad track overlooking the ocean. The sparkling blue sea from the sunray reflected by the waves, the sight of seagulls flying over the ocean, and the white sandy beach. Meteos will never be able to get enough of this sight. There's one thing missing, though.

On the first day of Augustusmens (Month 8), after finishing their business in the capital, Meteos and Walman returned to their hometown by train to spend the summer vacation. As the colorful buildings of Leiden came into view, Meteos' smile grows wider and he turned to his side to wake up the napping Walman.

"Hey, wake up. We're home."

"Nggh...? Are we there yet?" Walman said groggily as he rubbed his eyes.

"Not yet, but look."

Meteos pointed with his chin as he spoke. The sight of their hometown gradually becoming closer made his friend smile as well.

"Only one year away from home, yet feels like an eternity..."

"Ha? There you go, speaking like an old man again."

Meteos blinked, really?

Then he remembered that as a reincarnated person, he is mentally 136 years old. Deciding to divert the conversation, he began to glance around before speaking to Walman.

"Uh... Never mind. By the way, Walman... do you think about this magic train?"

"It's okay, I guess?"

"What about its speed?"

Both of them began their talk about trains to kill time.

"No way, do you really think a train can run for 300 kilometers per hour? That's as fast as a Heavenly Vessel!"

"If the technology is advanced enough, it's possible, don't you think?"

"Well... that's cool... but won't that thing will shake like an earthquake when running that fast? And what about turning?"

The discussion continued between the two prospective engineers.

One hour later, they arrived at the Leiden Station. As the train stopped beside the platform, Meteos and Walman stepped out of the wagon with a big smile on their faces among the disembarking passengers. Not only that, their parents are also present to greet them. After exchanging hugs and heartwarming moments, they began to depart for their respective homes.

"See you later, Walman, Mr. and Mrs. Falkenhausen." Meteos bowed politely to his friend's family.

"And William, Marie, if you have any free time, come to our house." Roderick, Meteos' father, said.

Hearing that remark, the corner of William's mouth quirked slightly as he replied.

"Of course, my friend. See you later."

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Augustusmens 17, 1614 Central Calendar, 09:00

Another uneventful day for Meteos as the summer approaches its peak. He already finished the outline of his project for the next year and for Meteos, who found enjoyment in drafting blueprints or tinkering in machinery, having nothing else to do gets boring pretty quick. So he decided to take a walk to his favorite spot at Leiden Harbor, the bench facing the ocean that Meteos visited every once in a while.

He also brought a notebook that he received as a gift on his sixth birthday in this second life. Its red cover had already begun to show signs of wear and tear, and its pages were full of memos, numbers, and occasionally crude drawings from the things he learned in his previous life. Since it was his first notebook, Meteos had grown attached to it, and he kept it with him to read even though he already memorized all of its contents. As Meteos was about to turn the last page of his notebook, a pair of hands suddenly slipped over his eyes.

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