Superstar 796
by Cristae—.
The day Grandma Wolf first met Chief Wolf, she passed on the name the baby’s parents had given—the name that had been passed down until now.
“Shall I call you by your name from now on?”
At the saber-toothed tiger’s words, Chief Wolf laughed.
“No. ‘Chief’ is good enough.”
Whether one had a name or not, whether one’s fur was white or gray, whether one’s eyes were red or yellow—
I was forever the youngest of the family,
“Chief! It’s the Flame Drake!”
“Shavel!”
“Let’s gooo!”
—because I was the Chief Wolf of this pack.
“So that was my past life.”
As I flipped through the Book of Life, the memories I had grew even more vivid. Yet, they still felt somewhat like someone else’s story.
How should I put it?
Like reading a diary I wrote in elementary school and suddenly recalling old memories?
But still, not quite feeling the same emotions as back then? Feeling like, “Why on earth did I do that!” and not quite understanding my younger self?
And that’s just for elementary school, or even just a few months ago.
“So of course a past life’s diary would feel even more like that.”
Seo-jun smiled as he gently caressed the cover of Albino Wolf.
“I’m doing well, Chief.”
This was long ago.
The time when “he” had just been born as the being called “Lee Seo-jun.”
Inside the unconscious of the “baby,” there were two entities.
The “past life self” in the form of a giant white wolf, and the “current life self,” small and round, not yet properly formed.
It was here that the future “life” would be decided.
If the giant white wolf self were to absorb the tiny current self, which wasn’t even a mouthful, the new life would begin as one who inherited the past life whole—like the “Fairy of the Baton.” But if the white wolf self quietly faded away, the new life would be lived by the “current self” alone, like most others.
For the small, round “current self,” it was a precarious moment. But this was the unconscious world, where no one could interfere or help. Everything depended on the will of the “past life self,” who had a strong sense of presence.
Fortunately, the past life self—the giant white wolf—merely embraced the tiny current self and gently swayed its bushy tail. The current self, unaware of the danger, simply followed the fluffy tail here and there.
The white wolf smiled.
It seemed like a very lively and cheerful little one.
“I suppose it’s about time we see what kind of race you were born into.”
“Race?”
At the white wolf’s words, the pale green self, who had been playing with the tail, turned its head (though it was round and didn’t show, it felt like it turned its head) and looked at the white wolf.
“That’s right.”
He hoped the bright child had been born as a good-natured monster, but that wasn’t something either the white wolf or the child could control. If the child had been born as an evil-aligned monster, they might not fit in or could die early.
Unlike the concerned look on the white wolf’s face, the young self simply seemed excited.
Before them, a new scene unfolded. The newly born body had opened its eyes.
“I opened my eyes!”
The young self, now in control of the body, exclaimed excitedly. At some point, two little dots had appeared on the pale green body. They were eyes.
“Look around you.”
“Around? Got it!”
Following the young self’s thoughts, the eyes and head moved. The white wolf followed along, looking around as well.
But with a view so low it seemed stuck to the ground, there wasn’t much to see. On top of that, the vision was blurry.
“Can you stand up?”
“Nope. My body won’t move…”
At the white wolf’s question, the young self groaned and tried. There was some wiggling from the limbs, but it felt like being tied down—he just couldn’t move properly.
“Hmmm…”
The white wolf, resting its chin on its two front paws, fell deep into thought.
It didn’t seem like he had been born as an animal or monster type that could move right after birth. He appeared to be born as one of the species that required more time to develop mobility.
“I suppose I’ll have to wait a bit longer to figure it out.”
“Then can I play with the tail?”
“Go ahead.”
The pale green self, now with bean-like eyes, squealed “Kyaaah!” and charged toward the swishing white tail. The white wolf couldn’t help but laugh.
“/Ah. Seo-jun is moving again./”
“/Even the way he opened his eyes was so cute!/”
“/He’s cute even when sleeping!/”
When the baby, wrapped snugly in soft white cloth, closed his eyes again, Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun, though a bit disappointed, smiled fondly at the peacefully sleeping baby Seo-jun.
Time passed.
Until his vision became clearer and his body more mobile, the white wolf occasionally checked with the young self to see what kind of species he had been born as.
“You can move pretty well now, right?”
“Yeah!”
“Then let’s try lifting your front leg first. Right front leg.”
“Right?”
The white wolf lifted its large right front leg.
“This one.”
“Got it!”
The young self energetically lifted his right front leg. Then, in his field of view appeared a chubby, apricot-colored, stubby (but long from a baby’s perspective) something.
“Wow! My front leg!”
“That’s not a leg, it’s a hand.”
As the young self waved his right hand in amazement, the white wolf chuckled.
Just then, familiar voices could be heard.
“/Seo-jun must be awake. Gasp! He discovered his right hand!/”
“/Camera! Get the camera!/”
“/So cute!/”
He didn’t know what they meant, but they seemed delighted.
“Now the left hand.”
Unless something was unusual, it should look similar to the right, but it needed to be checked.
“Left hand!”
At the white wolf’s words, the young self swiftly raised his left hand.
“/Aaaah! He discovered his left hand too!/”
“/Our son is too adorable!/”
Kyaaaaah!
Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun collapsed to the floor as baby Seo-jun raised and waved his two stubby arms in the air. Of course, they didn’t forget to keep the camera rolling.
“Today let’s check the lower body.”
He could’ve been born as a humanoid race like an elf or dwarf, but there was also the chance he was a monster with a humanoid upper body and a non-human lower body—like a snake, slime, or horse.
“Lower body!”
“Can you lift your right leg?”
“Yup!”
The young self lifted his right leg high. Like the apricot-colored hand and arm, a plump, human-shaped leg appeared.
“Left leg!”
The smart young self lifted his left leg even without the white wolf’s prompt. The left leg was also a chubby, human-shaped leg, nothing unusual.
“Doesn’t look like there are any webbed toes…”
Hmm.
Maybe he had a tail, like a dragonkin or beastkin.
“/Gasp! Seo-jun discovered his foot!/”
“/I’m gonna die from the cuteness…!/”
They got all flustered and noisy even at the baby’s slightest movement, but he decided to leave them be.
The white wolf spoke.
“Can you see your tail?”
“Yeah! I can do it!”
The young self stretched out his short arms. Then, he grabbed both feet, which were lifted high into the air.
‘I wish I had a tail like Chief too!’
With that thought, the young self raised his head with effort. He tried to curl his body forward to see his bottom, but his baby body hadn’t developed enough to manage it yet.
“…No good… too hard…”
Exhausted, the young self flopped over. The white wolf laughed.
“Then let’s try again next time.”
“Okay!”
Maybe because his current form had become somewhat clearer, the pale green orb of the young self began to change into something resembling a human baby. It was a sign that the young self had matured quite a bit.
The day the white wolf had to leave wasn’t far off.
If he stayed too long, like how the ‘God of Cooking and Commerce, Parvita’ had influenced the ‘Gourmet Orc,’ he might end up unintentionally affecting the young self far more than necessary.
‘I still want to at least tell him what kind of species he is, and which Library of Life he should choose…’
The red eyes of the Chief Wolf—who had now naturally included the young self in his pack, a true master of ‘love for family and the pack’—were filled with worry and concern.
Unaware of the white wolf’s worries, the baby’s mom and dad were covering their mouths to keep from laughing, watching their adorable son as he tried to grab his feet and wiggle his bottom, only to fall asleep mid-effort.
“/Did you get it on video?/”
“/Got it!/”
Of course, even then, they didn’t forget to record the moment.
“/Look, Seo-jun! Here’s your friend!/”
It was a mirror.
Seeing a large, clear mirror, it seemed like a place with quite developed technology.
The white wolf, who had been considering using a pond or puddle to reflect the body if nothing else was available, was satisfied as he looked into the mirror alongside the young self.
And then, the red eyes of the white wolf widened in shock.
“…Was it a bee?”
“Bee!”
Reflected in the mirror, the baby’s body lying on the floor looked mostly human, but on the back, there were yellow and brown honeybee stripes and tiny white wings.
“/Hrk. It’s a little early, but I’m glad I bought that bee cushion!/”
“/Too cute…!/”
As usual, the parents were smacking the floor and causing a ruckus with their incomprehensible exclamations, which the white wolf ignored as he sighed.
“I’ve never seen this kind of species before… but I don’t know everything. So you’re a bee, little one.”
“Bee!”
“You’ll have to practice flying later.”
He had said that with a smile, and it felt like just yesterday.
But now, the white wolf was speechless at the reflection of the baby in the mirror.
A starfish with only its face poking out lay flat on the floor.
…Weren’t you a bee…?
“I changed,”
said the young self, flapping his arms and legs with a surprised expression. In response, the starfish in the mirror flapped its pointed four limbs, proving it wasn’t a mistake.
“…Guess you’re a starfish now, little one.”
“Starfish!”
Maybe it was a species that transformed from bee to starfish.
Such a species might exist… but the white wolf didn’t claim to know every monster in every world.
“/Flapping Seo-jun is just too cute!/”
“/There’s not a single outfit that doesn’t suit our Seo-jun!/”
And a few days later.
“/This time, it’s an angel outfit, son!/”
“/Aaaaah!! Seo-jun tilting his head is too adorable…!/”
Seeing the angel wings, the pure white clothes, and the golden ring above the head in the mirror, the white wolf gave up trying to understand.
“…So it was just clothes.”
The white wolf, who had only interfered at truly critical moments to avoid influencing the young self too much, had been completely fooled.
To be fair, the white wolf had never once seen such utterly impractical clothing. In the deep forests, only hunters, soldiers in leather armor, or knights in plate armor ever appeared.
‘And the ones who look like parents are wearing normal clothes, too.’
If he had simply looked at the parents, he could have quickly figured out the species. But the white wolf had dismissed that possibility early on. Because—
‘They’re human.’
Human.
They were human.
A being he had never once been born as, even through countless reincarnations—“he” had never been human.
So the white wolf had considered that maybe they weren’t biological parents, or they had used polymorph magic, or were perhaps androids serving as caretakers.
‘But still…’
The white wolf looked at the young self.
Two hands and two feet. Rounded ears.
No wings. No tail. No webbed toes. No scales.
Now clearly possessing his own body, the young self was, to anyone’s eyes, completely human.
“Little one. You’re a human.”
“Human? I’m a human?”
The young self’s eyes and mouth widened in surprise. He knew it too—that “he” had never been born a human before.
“That’s right.”
At the white wolf’s firm confirmation, the young self blinked in confusion.
“Then which Library should I go to?”
The Library of Good and the Library of Evil.
Which one did a “human” belong to?
It was a crucial choice that would determine the course of the life ahead.
The white wolf recalled the young self’s parents. Even to the white wolf, the two humans looked kind, and their love for the baby was obvious.
“Go to the Library of Good.”
“Library of Good?”
The young self blinked his big eyes, and the white wolf nodded with a smile.
“That’s right. Learn the basic elven breathing technique, too.”
Then he stood up and rubbed his face against the young self’s. The young self laughed joyfully at the soft white fur.
“Treasure your family. And those who become part of your pack.”
The white wolf passed on what he had learned in his own life to the young self.
“Then you’ll be happy too.”
The young self, who had been happily embraced by the black nose of the white wolf, now hugged it back with his tiny arms, his expression tinged with sadness.
“You’re leaving?”
“Yes. It’s time for me to go.”
The white wolf smiled gently and nuzzled the young self’s face again. The young self giggled once more.
“Stay healthy.”
“Okay! Goodbye!”
With that bright farewell, the white wolf’s body began to glow. Then, like a mirage, like mist, he gently dispersed and slowly flowed into the young self. The memories the white wolf carried seeped into him.
And so, the young self—
“Thank you, Chief.”
—became “Lee Seo-jun.”