The rest of the year went by awfully quickly, as the family happily greeted a new year.

  There weren't any major is during the st year after the kidnapping i.

  One of the few things that happened was, the prisohey had caught died soon after spilling everything he knew, but he didn’t know very mubsp;

  Someone had ahe event, who it was they didn’t know?, but they khat someone was out there aiming for the children.

  Another was that John, Marcus, Anita, and Rita took turns talking to Draco daily.

  They had all been adventurers in Orariood portion of their life, so they knew a thing or two about what he was feeling.

  They catered to his mental health while also teag all the children reading and writing.

  Rose was already made aware of the events that would be taking p the spring.

  It was currently still the beginning of wihe cold temperature wasn't ideal for the kids' training.

  She was fih it if Cir could get stronger and more successful thae husband.

  She had been sidered a part of the family along with her daughter for a while now, so she was fortable with them teag her.

  Another ihat happened during the past year was the Mark and Rose i.

  Mark had an enter with Rose when she was bathing; she had fotten to put the in-use sign up.

  It wasirely her fault; the other bathrooms were in use, and Mark didn't usually use the one downstairs, but that day he was running te for work.

  stru of the vilge walls had finally begun; the vilge was looking to expand into a towo the sudden influx of new residents.

  The nd was fertile and cheap; the only downside was that it was close to a monster-ied forest.

  Some people didn't mind it as there were retired adventurers living in the vilge, so security wasn't ent.

  After the i, there was this weird atmosphere between Mark and Rose.

  Most people in the house didn't seem to care about it, except Chise. They just couldn't see it from her point of view.

  She retty open about most things, but this weird atmosphere between her husband a friend didn't sit well with her.

  She could somewhat logically uand that emotions were plicated, but it still irked her heless.

  She had talked to her mother about it, but Rita gave her a reply that put her in a dilemma.

  She was told that she could just chase Rose and her daughter out or accept both of them and stop being paranoid.

  An option was to help Rose find a man of her own.

  They were all still quite young; Mark was around 27 years old while she and Rose were around 26 years old.

  She tried talking to Mark about it, but he said that there was nothing going on.

  She believed him for the moment because it was true; he hadn't done anything suspicious so far, but she could tell that there was something buddiween them.

  ………………………………………………………………………….

  3 more months quickly passed, and it was finally the month of April.

  The official training for the children was about to begin.

  It was a bright and sunny Saturday m in the vilge.

  The air was crisp, and the birds were chirping, signaling the start of a new day.

  In a rge open field, a group of 7 young children ranging from 3 to 4 years old eagerly gathered, awaiting the arrival of their beloved grandfather.

  It was still the beginning of the year, and most of their birthdays were towards the end.

  The sextuplets had theirs around August, Cir's birthday was in October, while Draco's was in December.

  Moments ter, an elderly man with a kind, chiseled fad a gentle smile approached the children.

  This was Marcus, a retired veteran adventurer in charge of the first sessions of training.

  "Good m, my little ones!" he called out warmly.

  "Are you all ready for your training session today?" Everyone cheered enthusiastically in response, except Drabsp;

  "Yes, Grandpa! We're ready!" they shouted in unison, boung up and down with excitement.

  Marcus chuckled and raised a hand to quiet them down.

  "Alright, alright, settle down now. Before we begin, I want to make sure you're all hydrated and ready to go." He gestured te basket nearby, filled with jugs of water.

  "Go on and grab a drink, then we'll start our warm-up exercises," he said.

  The children quickly obeyed, each grabbing a cup of water and taking greedy gulps.

  Marcus watched with pride, pleased to see their eagerness. Ohey had their fill, he cpped his hands together.

  "Excellent! Now let's start with some light stretg to get those muscles ready," he instructed.

  For the 15 minutes, Marcus led the children through a series of geretches, guiding them through eaent and ensuring they maintained proper form.

  Everyone followed along dutifully, their little faces sched in tration.

  "Very good, all of you!" Marcus praised when they had finished.

  "Now, who's ready for our first activity?" he asked.

  "Me! Me!" the children shouted, hands shooting up in the air.

  'Ugh, this feels so childish, but I should just py along si works, and everyone seems to be having fun,' Draco thought.

  Marcus couldn't help but chuckle at their enthusiasm. He thought that sihey were very young, they would be against training.

  "Alright, alright, settle down. For our first training exercise, I mean game, we're going to work on your rea speed and agility." He gestured to a colle of colorful painted wooden balls nearby.

  "I'm going to stand in the middle, and I want you all to spread out around me. When I call out a color, the first oo grab that color ball wins a point. Sound fun?" Marcus yelled cheerfully.

  He and the others had talked about how to ehe kids in training, and the result was that they o turn it into a fun game.

  Everyone eagerly nodded, quickly arranging themselves in a circle around their grandfather.

  "Excellent. Alright, get ready..." Marcus sed the group, a mischievous glint in his eye.

  'This will be easy, and it seems fun too,' Draco thought.

  "Blue!" Marcus called out. Everyone sprang into a, darting towards the balls and snatg up the blue ones as quickly as their little legs could carry them.

  Laughter aed shrieks filled the air as they peted against one another.

  Marcus watched with a proud smile, calling out different colors and encing them as they pyed.

  "Great job, Michalis! Keep it up, Eleni! Wonderful, Drad Dimitra " he made a mental note of which of the children were quicker on their feet, making a pn to tailor the uping exercises accly.

  After several rounds of the came, Marcus called for a break.

  "Alright, my little warriors, time to catch your breath. Let's grab a snad some more water, then we'll move on to the activity," he said.

  Everyone happily plied, swarming around the food basket and grabbing their favorite sandwibsp;

  Marcus joihem, handing out fruit slices while engaging them in casual versation.

  "So, how are you all enjoying the training so far?" he asked, taking a sip of water.

  "It's so much fun, Grandpa!" excimed Dimitra, a bright-eyed girl with green pigtails.

  "I love the games aing to run around," excimed Cir.

  "Yeah, and I'm getting really fast!" added Vasileios, puffing out his chest proudly.

  The other children chimed in with simir ses, their faces beaming with joy and aplishment, except one person.

  "I know it's easy for you now, but you won't think that when yrandma Anita's and Grandpa John’s turn es around. I really pity you, so enjoy things now," Marcus whispered into Draco's ear, seeing his unamused face during training.

  "Are you being serious, Gramps? Is it that bad, and why only me?" Draco questioned.

  "Well, for one, you have a stronger body, meaning that you take more punishment. Is what Anita said excitedly with a creepy ugh?" Marcus replied.

  "Sigh, I don't mind. I o get stronger anyway," Draco said.

  "You won't think that from year. Those two are really strong and somewhat crazy" Marcus said cryptically befetting up.

  ‘Just how crazy is the training going to get?’ Draco wondered.

  "I'm so gd to see that you're all enjoying this, my dears. Now, are you all ready for the challenge?" Marcus said, switg up quickly.

  They nodded eagerly, finishing up their snacks and chugging dow of their water.

  "Alright, the's get started. This game is going to test your strength and endurance," he said.

  Marcus led the children te log that had been positioned horizontally a few feet off the ground.

  "I want you all to take turns trying to lift and carry this log from oo the other. It's going to be tough, but I know you do it," Marcus cheered.

  One by ohe children stepped up to the log, gripping the rough bark and straining to lift it.

  Some managed just a few steps before setting it back down, while others were able to carry it the full distance.

  Marcus offered encement and guidance, adjusting the height of the log as o aodate their varying sizes and abilities.

  After several rounds, the children were huffing and puffing, their little faces flushed from the exertion.

  Marcus could see the fatigue setting in, so he called for another break.

  He instructed only Draco to tinue since he wasn't that exhausted.