Calla's mother, Mariana, was beautiful.

Her hair was a light blond color, unlike Calla's which was white, and she had a pair of gorgeous grey eyes that he had inherited. Her form was slender and the dresses she wore highlighted her modest curves. In the novel, she was described as a cold person that didn't even have the decency to cry for the loss of her only child. 

In contrast, Calla's father had darker skin and brown hair with hazel eyes that always seemed to smile. Calla's father was a couple of years older than his wife and had some grey mixed in with his hair, but he was still undeniably handsome and masculine. Honestly, Cale had to wonder where the white-haired pale-skinned way too feminine Calla had come from.

The best he could hope for was probably an unmentioned previous marriage, right?

With the way that they looked at each other in the lounge, he just couldn't picture Mariana being unfaithful. Or maybe Calla was adopted. He really hoped the answer was something simple; maybe he just looked like a grandparent or something like that.

The last thing he needed was more drama.

Mariana looked away from her husband and caught sight of Cale staring at them. She smiled gently at him and Cale was hit by her ageless kind of beauty full force. "Darling, I heard from Harald that you're advancing very fast in your studies. He was most appalled the first time he left, but he seems much more satisfied now."

Cale nodded distractedly, his thoughts more focused on the upcoming test his tutor had assigned him. It was a pain. "Yes, I think I'm doing much better."

"So, you will be ready for school? You don't have to go if you don't want to, you can be homeschooled, you know? It's alright with us. We just want you to be healthy." Mariana hurried to explain and showed a worried face, her husband nodding along and agreeing with her.

Cale smiled pleasantly at them. "I want to go to school, mother."

Mariana's eyebrows furrowed as she bit her lip and frowned. "If you're absolutely sure, dear. But know that you can come back anytime, for any reason."

"Thank you, mother." Cale made sure his smile was warm because truly, Mariana was a very kind woman and he was grateful, even if he didn't see her as his mother. And she didn't deserve to be worried about her son if he started acting strange. Not if she never had a chance to see him again.

Calla had died just a few weeks before he was supposed to graduate from the best magical academy in the country together with the protagonist. Once school started, Mariana may never see her son again. And Cale wasn't cruel enough to make it a bad memory.

Hopefully, once school started, he could be more himself. And if he managed to avoid the poisoning and not die, then any changes once he got back could be blamed on something or other that happened at school. Or just graduating.

It was for the best, really.

Mariana smiled at him and lightly hit her husband on the shoulder. "Isaac, you say something as well. Don't be all quiet."

The man nodded and said, in a deep voice, "Just make sure to be careful, son."

Cale smiled politely back. This was the first time he'd met Calla's father and he never showed up in the novel aside from the funeral. He had no idea what kind of person he was. "Thank you, father, I promise to do my best."

The man smiled back.

Cale reached to the table in the middle of them and took a white plate with a chocolate cake on it. He had discovered this treat just a few days earlier and he was already caught by it. It was delicious and reminded him enough of home that it helped cure the homesickness that occasionally hit him. 

He grabbed ahold of the spoon and started to gratefully eat it. After a whole day of studying, this was really a deserved treat. The tea he drank with it wasn't something that he was used to — he never drank it in his world — but he had to admit that it fit quite well with the strong chocolate taste.

It was amazing, how some things could transcend even space and time.

Chocolate was truly a universal thing.

He closed his eyes in sheer happiness at the taste. Would it be rude of him to ask the chef for the recipe?

But then again, he was the young master, so they probably wouldn't be able to refuse.

In any case, it was delicious.

Calla's parents joined him in eating the mouthwatering cake and Cale let his thoughts drift again. It was a habit that he really needed to break.

Another world, another body, another life.

Cale took another bite of the cake and savored the flavor. He wasn't sure what the right reaction was supposed to be in a situation like this. In manga, the characters always seemed to accept it awfully fast and then go on adventures exploring the new world. Sometimes getting harems and OP powers as well. Or should he pretend that this was all a dream, and ignore anything that said otherwise? What was the right response?

Scream and pretend that anyone could hear him?

Don't be ridiculous.

Cale had no intention of just accepting all this without a breakdown or two, but he couldn't have them now. And furthermore, if his body was dead, he had nothing to go back to. He had no desire to die, so if that was truly the case, the only thing to do was to make the best of what he had. Another body, another life, another world.

It still kind of seemed like a terrible joke.

He opened his eyes again and looked at Calla's parents. They acted like people, their expressions were as vivid as anybodys. It didn't feel like he was in a book. It didn't feel like he was just acting out a script; his words were truly his own. It raised his hope that he would be able to avoid his death. The question was how? The male protagonist was Calla's cousin, so he would probably be drawn into the conflict whether he died or not.

At least Calla's parents were kind.

As he watched Calla's parents flirt with each other, very obviously still in love, he wondered if he should be more concerned than he was. But it had been a few weeks now and he was finally starting to get used to it. He didn't get lost nearly as often anymore and he had even gotten better at walking in the heeled boots. 

It wasn't like he didn't miss his home, his world, his body, but he also understood that he couldn't just stop functioning because of this. He liked living, thank you very much. 

But maybe he should be looking desperately for a way to return home. Maybe he should spend all his focus, not on studies, but on searching to find out if anything like this had ever happened before. Maybe he should tell Calla's parents the truth in hope that they would help him in order to get their son back.

There are so many things that he should probably do instead of relaxing and eating cake.

But he wasn't and he was alright with it if that meant that there was something wrong with him.