Today is my 3rd birthday, and I am finally allowed to roam free from my house. Earlier the only way I could escape the confines of this house was when my parents took me outside, but no more! My parents seemed to have caught on that I am smarter and stronger than an average child, likely due to me being caught at 2 years old while reading one of dad’s grimoires. Still, the good news is that if I don’t speak like a child, they won’t catch on that I am actually 33 now. I really enjoy this new life, it is simple and relaxing, and I have not a care in the world.

Crap. Did I just raise a flag? I hope not.

Anyways, thanks to me being able to roam freely within the village I can finally go to a pace no one can see and begin practicing my main powers. Or at least, I would like to. Father seems intent on teaching me his Fire Magic so I can be a powerful Fire Mage in the future. I know that there is the saying that if you train someone in something from 3 years of age they will be a master of it by adulthood, but I don’t want to waste this time learning how to make a lighter-sized flame. I want to make my Mobile Suit Golems!

“…so, do you understand?”

My father was giving me a lecture while I wasn’t paying attention. Time to play the ‘3-year-old mind’ card.

“Not really…”

Dad sighs and contemplates something. He is probably used to teaching the older kids or adults.

“Okay, try closing your eyes imagining a fire in your mind. It is hot, and it flickers, and it burns. Focus your senses and hold your hand open in an upwards facing open position. Now picture the fire you are imagining to be hovering just above your open palm. Focus your Mana into that image of a flame.”

Dad, those are overly complex instructions to give a 3-year-old child….

I focus hard.

Fire; like a Bunsen Burner. Oxygen, Nitrogen, Hydrogen. The various chemicals in the air combine in a precise mixture. Inject heat and…

“MY WORD!”

I open my eyes and in my palm is a brilliant flame nearly 4 times the size as the one dad makes.

Oh, crap. I did something too extravagant. I cut off the flow of Mana in a hurry and look at dad.

“Honey! Our son is a genius!” (Tom/ Dad)

Dad isn’t scared but thrilled. I am not sure whether I should consider this better than the alternative. No, it probably is. Mom walks in from another room.

“What you mean, honey?”

“Our son just used his first spell, and it was bigger than mine! Sure, it was only for a few moments, but it was huge! Even as a veteran Adventurer I haven’t seen an Ember spell that massive and to top it all off, he did it without a chant!”

Wow, adventurers exist here, and dad was one of them.

But I wonder, how powerful is he compared to other people? I mean, his title is ‘Fire Magic Genius’ but if I can make a flame that big with such little effort… How does dad normally make a flame?

Just to make sure I am not missing anything, I decide to check my status.

{Status!}

Name – Arkhan

Age – 3 Years

Level – 1

Titles – Reincarnator, Orator, Wunderkind

Job – Mobile Suit Golem Master

Health – 100,000

Mana – 600,000 -> 599,994

Stamina – 100,000

Strength – 100

Perception – 100

Endurance – 100

Charisma – 100

Intelligence – 100

Agility – 100

Luck – 100

Active Skills

Status (1 Mana) Appraisal (1 Mana) Ember (5 Mana) Generate Mobile Suit Golem Lv. 1 Generate Mobile Suit Golem Equipment Lv. 1 Customize Mobile Suit Golem Lv. 1 Mobile Suit Golem Hangar Lv. 1

Passive Skills

No Chant Magic Casting All Language Mastery Writing Mastery Mathematics Mastery Science Mastery Conceal Status Mana Control Fire Magic Affinity

Wow. I know I haven’t checked my stats in 2.5 years, but just wow.

I know mom and dad are excited, but it is time to play a card.

“Mommy, daddy, are you mad? I don’t want to leave here! Don’t send me away!”

Let’s see if my parents can withstand the sorrow of a scared child!

“No, no! Don’t worry, we would never send you away, darling! We’re just surprised that you have this much talent! It’s a good thing, I swear! Daddy is just very happy that you are so gifted, that’s all.”

Good, objective number one is complete. Now for a test of the waters.

“Can I try training with magic on my own? I want to do so somewhere when I won’t hurt someone by accident… Is that bad?”

“No, of course it’s not bad sweetums. Daddy has lots of things to do, so he may only be able to train you once a week. I’ sure he wouldn’t mind if you go somewhere where no one can be hurt and train by yourself!”

“That’s correct. I have other duties besides teaching the art of Fire Magic, so if you want to train on your own then please do so. I encourage all my pupils to learn as much as possible whenever possible. I will look forward to your progress. Just, one thing. Don’t stray too far from the village and always be back before sundown. The world is a dangerous place. Just last night a small group of Goblins attacked, and daddy had to help fend them off.”

Goblins, huh? Sounds like canon fodder to me. With my stats I should crush any Goblin I see! Not to mention that once my Mobile Suit Golems are mass-produced, the Goblins will be finished in no time!

It seems mom and dad want to celebrate my learning my ‘first’ spell. I saw ‘first’ because I already knew a couple, but I couldn’t find the time or place to use them. From now on, I am going to go as far away as I can go without making my parents angry and run my powers through the wringer to find out just what I can do.

Hey, I have an idea.

“Daddy is there a way to speed up Mana recovery?”

Dad is looking at me funny. Did I say something I shouldn’t have?

“I didn’t expect you to think this far ahead… There is a way, but no one has ever done it as while it is sound in theory it has been impossible in practice.”

“How?”

Dad closes his eyes and pauses. He opens his eyes and looks at me with a serious expression.

“It is very risky, very dangerous and no one who has attempted it has lived to tell the tale. Are you sure you want to know?”

I nod vigorously.

“Alright. From what I know it involves making your body like a colander. By that I mean that Mana is like water and your body is like a colander. Spells are the release of that stored water to the outside world but using them leaves you drier than before, right? Well, the world around us is filled with Mana, so of course it would gradually enter your body and you would automatically regenerate over time, right? The theory is that if you make your body so open to Mana that it can freely come and go from you at any time, you would gain a great increase in the speed of Mana Regeneration. But know this; if the body takes in too much Mana it can be painful at best or deadly at worst. So please don’t try it! When I was an Adventurer, I saw what happened to people who tried to forcibly draw Mana into themselves. It wasn’t a pretty sight.”

I think the problem they might have had was that they had their Mana Pools already filled when they tried it and that their Mana Pools were the size of dad’s. My MP is in the hundreds of thousands, so I should be better off.

Well, I will see if my hypothesis is correct tomorrow. If worst comes to worst, I may be reincarnated at second time.