In the courtyard of the Arc household, the wind swirled gently, tugging at Caline's short violet hair. She stood with one foot forward, arms slightly raised, mimicking her father's stance.
Ryu stood before her, arms crossed, eyes narrowed with curiosity.
She was only six years old, but her balance, her reaction speed—
It wasn't normal.
> "Try again," Ryu said calmly.
He lightly flicked a pebble toward her. It zipped across the air like a bullet.
Whoosh!
Caline shifted her weight and dodged with the clean grace of a trained fighter. Her footwork had no wasted motion. Her eyes had tracked the stone the moment it left his hand.
> "That's the sixth one you've dodged," Ryu muttered, rubbing his chin. "Did your mom teach you when I wasn't looking?"
> "Nope!" Caline grinned. "I just… see where it's going before it goes."
> "...What?"
He crouched, placing a hand on her shoulder.
> "Caline, do it again. This time, don't think. Just move when your instinct says to."
Another flick. This time faster.
She moved before the stone even left his hand.
---
Reina Watching from Afar
Reina stood by the doorway, watching quietly, arms folded. A gentle pride touched her expression, but also concern.
> "She's even faster than you were," she whispered to herself.
Ryu walked over to her, expression unreadable.
> "Her awareness… it's not just instinct. She's processing the moment before it happens. Like she's reading ahead in time."
> "Precognition?"
> "Something close. But it's still raw."
---
Gift or Curse?
That night, as Caline slept peacefully with Mina reading her stories beside her, Ryu and Reina sat under the stars once more.
> "If she continues like this, she might awaken by age ten," Reina said quietly.
> "And if she awakens… that spark in her might grow into something dangerous."
> "You're afraid," Reina said, looking into his eyes.
> "I am." Ryu looked away. "Not of her. Of the world that might demand things from her."
> "Then let's make a world that won't."
They held hands.
---
Next Morning
Caline woke up, stretching and yawning, and asked innocently:
> "Daddy… when can I fight monsters too?"
Ryu smiled, crouching beside her bed.
> "Not until you can beat your mother."
> "Huh?! But she's scary!"
> "Exactly."
They both laughed, but Reina, just outside the door, smirked knowingly.
> She won't take that long.
--