After I noticed the floating fireball in front of me, I instinctively tried to cancel the spell. But instead of extinguishing like I expected, it spun out of control. The damn thing fragmented—splitting into little flames that scattered like sparks across the wooden floor.
Tch—magic recoil? I didn't even put that much mana in!
"Leon?! Stop! Domain of Holy Light—Dispel!"
Before I could panic any further, my mother dashed in. Her voice echoed with a strange authority. In the next instant, light—pure, blinding light—flooded the entire room.
FLASH!
Everything turned golden and white. It was beautiful… and terrifying. I felt warmth—no, healing—wrap around my tiny body. Even the tension in my limbs melted away.
With a single flick of her wrist, the floating flames vanished like they never existed.
Seriously… just who is this woman?
She picked me up in a flash, inspecting my body with wide, frantic eyes.
"Are you hurt, Leon? Did you get burned? Look at me—are you okay?"
I blinked, dazed from the aftershock, and gave a little nod. It was the best I could manage with this tiny body.
"You understand me?" she asked in surprise, her expression softening.
"Buhh…" I let out a small grunt. That was about as articulate as I could get right now.
She sighed in relief, but there was a tinge of scolding in her voice. "You shouldn't try using magic on your own, you know? You're still a baby. Your mana flow isn't stable yet. You could've seriously hurt yourself."
I let out a low whine, almost apologetic. Yeah… she was right. I got careless.
But how the hell was I supposed to resist experimenting when I literally have a system with glitched-out magic skills glued to my soul?
Then again… she's not wrong. I might've fried myself if she didn't step in.
To show I got the message, I leaned forward and gave her nose a gentle peck. It was embarrassing, but hey, subtlety isn't something babies get to have.
She blinked, stunned. "Leon… was that an apology?"
I gave her another tiny nod.
"Haha… Oh, my sweet boy." She smiled, then smothered me in kisses. Forehead, cheeks, nose… it didn't stop. This woman had love to spare, I'll give her that.
It reminded me of my mother from my previous life.
No matter what pain I went through, she always made it bearable with warmth like this.
CRASH!
The door burst open.
"Allaria! I felt your domain—what's going on?! Is Leon alright?!"
Father. That was his voice—sharp, alert, battle-ready. A man who knew how to respond in a crisis.
He rushed into the room, scanning everything with glowing red eyes, clearly ready to incinerate something.
"Allan, it's okay," Mother—Allaria—said with a sigh of relief. "Our son just… showed us a glimpse of his power. He conjured a flame and almost lit the house on fire."
Wait, hold on. His name is Allan?
And hers is Allaria?
Could they sound more like a power couple if they tried?
"Eh? Fire magic? Wait… don't tell me he inherited my attribute?"
Father approached and looked down at me with an amazed expression. "And I got here too late to see it, huh."
"Leon's only a month old, yet he already managed to conjure a floating fireball," Mother said, her voice filled with equal parts pride and exasperation. "It destabilized near the end, but still…"
"Only a month? Already showing affinity? That's… impressive," Father muttered, then leaned down to gently ruffle my baby hair. "Good job, kid."
They began to talk about me like I wasn't right there.
"He even responds to what we say. He nodded earlier when I asked him if he was hurt," Mother explained.
"Seriously?" Father asked, turning to me. "Leon… do you know who I am?"
I blinked and slowly nodded again.
"Oho?! He really is a smart one!"
"Mama," I tried to say. Then, "Papa."
The two of them froze like statues, then suddenly turned into walking emotional messes.
"Did you hear that?! He called us mama and papa!"
"Hnnn—my son! My little genius!" Father laughed proudly.
My cheeks were being pinched, my hair tousled—yup. The full treatment.
Look, it's not like I didn't appreciate it… but even I have limits. My tiny body can't handle being the center of attention for that long. I eventually passed out mid-cuddle.
Still, before sleep fully claimed me, I heard them talking.
"The control he showed… that was no fluke," Mother said while having dinner with Father. "He's not just some magically gifted child—he's exceptional."
"Mm. If this continues, he might outgrow us in no time," Father replied, stroking his chin. "We'll need to be careful not to overtrain him… but also not to hold him back."
"Agreed. I'll help him master magic. You can introduce him to swordsmanship when he's older."
"Ah… do you really think he'll want to wield a blade?"
"Why not? You always say your sword's too big, but that didn't stop the girls in our old party."
"You have a point."
Excuse me? I'm right here.
Are they planning to raise me into some overpowered hybrid battlemage already?
Ugh, whatever. That's future Leon's problem. I'm still years away from training age, so for now, I'm going back to sleep.
...
...
"It hurts…"
…What?
"It hurts so much…"
That voice… a girl?
I opened my eyes—or at least, I thought I did. Everything around me was pitch-black.
"Help me…"
There it was again.
I turned around—or maybe my consciousness did—and saw a faint light ahead. A flicker. Barely there.
The voice came from that direction. It sounded young… fragile… broken.
"It always hurts…"
Who are you?
Why do I feel like I know this pain?
I reached out, instinctively, but the space between us felt infinite.
Just what is this place?
And who is she…?
--