by L Travern
It didn't help when he found out after self-examination that such 'construct' had genes that could be used to limit or completely remove the ability to manipulate mana, which should be available to anyone. In fact, the 'mage genetics variant' further disgusted him now that he understood what it meant. With his literal eons of experience, he could easily conclude these genes were a means used by the World Sovereigns to determine who would be the ones in power, and who would be the sheep.
It was no wonder the selection screen had said this world was on the verge of collapsing, for twisting Creation itself had such consequences. At least he had got a good discount thanks to it.
For now, he could do nothing about it. In time, he would save this world and then, he would save the universe from the Cage that made these disgusting things possible!
...but only after he took a nap.
* * *
He was on his mother's arms. She was a beautiful lass, about twenty years old, with blue eyes and blond hair. A newborn's vision should be blurred, but he could perfectly see her due to this world's changed body.
She spoke something in a foreign language, tears rolling from her eyes. She seemed happy and longing at the same time. He did his best to smile to her.
Soon, sleep found him again.
That was the first and last time he ever saw her.
* * *
It didn't take him long to understand she had died. Moreover, with his limited brain curbing his thinking capabilities, it took him a few months of listening to the servants of his mansion to grab a hold on the local language, and a few extra months after that to learn the reason for her death.
She had died to a magical variant of cancer.
It wasn't fatal to anyone who could use mana, but she had only been a klutz, as people who weren't capable of manipulating mana were called. It was already considered incredibly lucky that she had managed to give birth to a healthy baby before passing away.
He felt saddened. For a young mother to die after birth without being able to see her child grow up was a heartbreaking thing indeed.
Even though he had lived long enough to literally see multiple stars born and die, and having a mother again after all this time would be awkward, she was his mother in this world. And she had been taken away from him in such a pitiful manner, a simple disease. Amid sadness, there was also rage for the World Sovereigns.
Such disease could only exist in the twisted bodies they had created. If not for that, she wouldn't have died.
The night he learned about it, he swore revenge just before he took another nap.
* * *
He crawled, walked, and started speaking at the right times for a baby to do these things. When he turned one year old, something he had been missing appeared before his eyes, the transparent white rectangle with fancy golden borders, filled with written content. The videogame-like window that people in this universe called the World's Writ.
It was written in a language that was directly added to everyone's minds so that they could read it.
HUMAN-VARIANT T-76620's critical age reached!
Setting permissions... Success.
Initiating overlay... Success.
He felt flabbergasted. His body was so unnatural that even the Cage didn't consider him a proper human, but a variant instead!
A moment after the World's Writ appeared, something changed inside him and the same text from the window appeared on the bottom left corner of his field of view. It was almost transparent, but he only needed to focus on it for it to become opaque. By willing it, he could even enlarge the text or change its location.
The text window had appeared only for a few seconds before disappearing, and he would be willing to bet that he was the first person to know that only at one year old would humans get access to the Will of the World, as the overlay was called.
His objective was freeing the Universal Core from the Cage that created this game-like system, but until then, he would use it. Just like a man in a capitalist environment required money to survive even if he didn't like capitalism, it was to his advantage if he used the tools available to him even if he wanted to get rid of them when the right time came.
Show Full Status, he thought of the name of the Heavenly Skill, as the system skills were named, and the World's Writ appeared before him.
Full Status
You're trying to access your Full Status for the first time.
Would you like to see the tutorial?
Yes, he thought. Although he had done so in his previous world, it wasn't like he had better things to do and this world's system might differ from his last one.
Full Status
Name: Matthew von Valdivia
This is your full name.
Real names are powerful things and you should do your best to hide yours.
In your lifetime, you can only change your own name once, except under special circumstances.
To change it, use the Heavenly Skill 'Change Name.'
Level: 1 — One Star Mage
This is your level.
The minimum level is 1, the maximum is 12.
Levels have names. Level 1 is known as 'Klutz' for those without mana-manipulating capabilities, and as 'One Star' for everyone else.
Since you have the mage gene and your level comes from your soul (more on that later), you're a One Star Mage.
To access the level name table, use the Heavenly Skill 'Show Level Name Table.'
Elements: —
This shows all the elements you can turn your mana into, besides Pure mana.
Body: 1
This is your body grade.
Your body grade is determined by the average of your physical attributes, rounded down.
All klutzes' bodies are limited to the first grade. Humans whose level come from their bodies (more on that later) are known as warriors.
Like levels, grades range from 1 to 12.
» Strength: 1 | Speed: 1 | Resistance: 1
These are your physical attributes and their respective grades.
Strength refers to how much raw power your muscles can deliver from a resting position.
Speed is how fast you can move.
Resistance is how well your body can resist physical attacks.
Their grades also range from 1 to 12, with klutzes being limited to grade 1.
* Soul: 6
This is your soul grade.
Your soul grade is determined by the average of your soul attributes, rounded down.
This is the higher graded between your body and soul, as shown by the asterisk. Because of that, your level is determined by your soul attribute with the lowest level, as shown by another asterisk.
» * Mana: 1 | Control: 7 | Resistance: 12
These are your soul attributes and their respective grades.
Mana, also called mana pool, refers to the maximum amount of mana you have at your disposal at any time. It regenerates passively over time, or actively by other means, like consuming the right substances or meditating.
Control is how well you can manipulate mana.
Resistance is how well your soul can resist non-physical attacks.
Matthew read everything without any hurry.
It wasn't a surprise that his soul resistance was 12, the max grade. His merged consciousness and willpower, which likely affected the control and soul resistance attributes, had been perfected in his eons of life, after all. The only reason his soul resistance was only level 12 was that his consciousness, willpower, and soul themselves were being suppressed by the Cage to the max grade allowed to that world, 12, else his soul resistance would have received an even higher grade.
His lack of control, which was only level 7, was a bummer, albeit expected. He had never manipulated mana before, and it stood to reason that he couldn't perfectly control it. In fact, it was already great that his understanding of energetic manipulation as a whole, and his great willpower, could boost his control that much.
All in
all, it wasn't a bad status. He closed and opened it again, now without the tutorial text.
Full Status
Name: Matthew von Valdivia
Level: 1 — One Star Mage
Elements: —
Body: 1
» Strength: 1 | Speed: 1 | Resistance: 1
* Soul: 6
» * Mana: 1 | Control: 7 | Resistance: 12
He considered changing his name since it was supposedly important, something he had never experienced before, but he didn't know if his family might need to know his real name to perform some ritual for his own good. What if they did, and his father found out that the one-year-old baby had changed his own name somehow? Therefore, it was better to postpone it.
And as much as he wanted to experiment with mana as soon as possible, he also didn't know if he would end up being exposed for it. The tall three catches more wind; there was safety in being unremarkable, as those who distinguish themselves attract attention, and the wrong kind of attention could be lethal. Until he got a better grasp on things and understood better the consequences of dabbling with magic, he would bide his time and take things slowly, rather than risk a calamity befalling him or his family.
To his surprise though, the day after the Will of the World became available to him, his grandfather visited. The old man entered his room and, as soon as he saw Matthew in the crib, he spoke.
"Well, boyo, it's time to stop lazing around and grow your mana pool."
Chapter 3 - Mana Pool
Chapter 3 - Mana Pool
"Ma-a po-o," Matthew pretended to be incapable of repeating the words, just like a baby. It stole a smile from the old man.
Matthew's grandfather was called Grand Elder Eminence Richard Firebringer. The Eminence in his name came from his level 8, just like Matthew was called a One Star Mage due to being level 1. His given name was Richard, and Firebringer was a moniker that had either been decided by him or given to him through different possible means, usually public recognition for something he had done. As for Grand Elder, that was his social standing in the family, which came from him being an Eminence.
Richard was in his late hundred and twenties. He was bald, had a long white beard, and was visibly fighting death on a daily basis.
From what Matthew had gathered in his first year of life, in this world, Eminences' natural lifespans went up to a hundred and twenty-five years. Firebringer only hanged on because he was using expensive medicine to prolong his life.
That was yet another consequence of the meddling with life itself from those in power. In the last world Matthew had lived in, Eminences lived up to five hundred years, but with the shitty bodies people were born with here, such vitality was reduced to one-quarter of its potential!
"Yes, boyo, mana pool," Richard said, and a white light appeared on his hand, quickly materializing into a tiny metal ring.
Check Item, Matthew used the common Heavenly Skill, and the World's Writ appeared above the ring in the form of a tooltip.
Check Item
Name: Mana-Sucking Ring
Grade: Higher Mortal Item
Thankfully, some item names were self-descriptive, especially when they were mass-produced. He had no idea why his grandfather would put a Mana-Sucking Ring on him, but there was so much love in the man's eyes that he didn't feel threatened.
In Aarons previous life, items were divided into four grades: Mortal Item, Magical Item, Artifact, and Relic. They were further divided into three subgrades: Lower, Higher, and Peak. It seemed this world followed the same rules.
As soon as his finger entered the ring, he felt his body and soul stir. Mana was pulled from the mana pool in his soul, taken into his body, sucked into the ring, and then, dispersed into the air. It should be a startling and scary experience for a baby like him, so he acted accordingly by widening his eyes.
Richard nodded, satisfied. "This is my grandson!" He said proudly. "Wait until I tell those old fools that you didn't even let out a cry of surprise, much less cried in fear when I put the ring on you!" He patted Matthew's head.
After a moment, he turned and pointed at the maid currently taking care of Matthew. "You! Listen well! You're not, under any circumstances, to remove this ring from his finger! Do you understand?"
"Yes, Grand Elder," she said submissively.
"No! You don't!" He raised his voice. "You're a klutz and you have no idea how important it is! Do you know what pubescence is?"
Her eyes widened at his sudden outburst. "N- No, Grand Elder," she said fearfully.
"It's when boys’ and girls’ bodies start developing in a more mature way." His explanation was crude, but not incorrect. "Mages are special. The more mana we use before we reach pubescence, the more our mana pool develop. After we hit it, it's incredibly hard to increase our mana pools even a little. Wait, you know what a mana pool is, right?"
She gulped. "Yes, Grand Elder."
"Good. So, listen well. This ring forces him to use mana. The more mana he uses, the better. If you take the ring off him for even a second, you'll be putting his entire future in jeopardy. And you can imagine how unhappy the Valdian Family would be towards a klutz who crippled a mage, can't you?"
Before, she had been feeling a bit fearful, but when she heard about the Valdian Family unhappiness, she instantly paled.
"Y- Yes, Eminence."
"No, you don't!" He yelled. "Your life won't be enough to pay for it! Your family, friends, colleagues, everyone related to you in any way, even your damn pets will face torture and death! You'll wish you were never born! Do you know how creative torture can be when we put a little magic in it?"
Tears were forming in her eyes. "No, Grand Elder."
"And you want to keep ignorant of it, don't you?"
She nodded repeatedly as if her very life depended on it. "Yes, Grand Elder!" She almost yelled.
"Good." He nodded. "Do. Not. Remove. The. Ring. Not for any reason, no matter who may order you otherwise, or how much good you may think you're doing. Even if you're sure the ring is killing him, just keep the damn thing on his finger. Got it?"
"Yes, Grand Elder."
"Good, good. Tell everyone in this household. No, wait. I'll tell everyone myself. Lass, don't you dare mess with my boyo. People will offer you riches to do it, but believe me, no amount of money can save you or your family from my wrath." His eyes widened as if he had just thought about something. "Speaking of which, it's time to bring the servants' families to the mansion so they can't be used against the boyo." He sighed. "A mage's job is never done."
He patted Matthew's head one last time with a warmth that was unlike the way he had just acted with the maid and left the room. The maid immediately started sobbing.
Matthew felt pity for her but being the source of her issues, he found it sensible not to bring focus to him by trying to be funny or cute. Instead, he looked at the ring.
The amount of mana it had taken from him was pitiful. He focused on his mana pool, a kind of ethereal ball the size of a sand grain in his soul, and saw that the amount taken wasn't even a tenth of what was in there. It took the ring over an hour to take another bit of mana, and by then, his mana pool had already been filled for the past fifty minutes, since people's souls automatically took mana from the environment.
Deciding things were moving too slow and that he knew the limits of his own body and soul better than any ring, he took the improvement of his mana pool on his own hands. If he had a time limit increase to his mana pool, pubescence, he would make the most out of it.
He touched the mana in his mana pool with his will, and pulled almost everything from the inside, soon releasing the mana in the air. Immediately, the World's Writs appeared.
New element learned!
Element: Pure
Pure mana is the most basic kind of mana and won't be listed in your Full Status.
Attribute improved!
Attribute: Mana (Soul)
Grade: 1 > 2
You have leveled up!
>
Level: 2 — Two Stars Mage
His level was directly linked to his mana pool. As soon as its grade increased, his level followed suit.
Inside his soul, his mana pool enlarged only by a bit, but its quality took a great leap. He speculated that it could now hold a hundred times as much mana as before! Due to his sudden usage of his mana without having ever used it before, it was a painful process, as if he had overworked a muscle, only it got stronger instantly, without the need to rest to repair it. The reason the ring took so little was probably to avoid scaring the baby by making the process much slower and the pain imperceptible.
He had no time for that though, and immediately determined that he would always wait until his mana pool was ninety percent full before emptying it to the ten percent mark, which he determined was the safe threshold for him to not faint from the exhaustion.
And so, his boring 'training' started.
* * *
He became a Three Stars Mage two months later, and a Four Stars Mage four months after that.
That rate of growth surprised even him. Prepubescent mages had it ridiculously easy in that world and giving such a useless Mana-Sucking Ring to them was nothing short of crippling a kid's growth.
His family was really just from some small nation like he had selected, or they would never forgo a kid's power growth for any reason, much less something like comfort. Babies would be babies, and there was no reason to avoid scaring them. On the contrary, the sooner a kid got used to having their mana going through their souls, the sooner they would get used to it and learn to ignore the sensation, no matter how scary or painful it might be at first.