Shielded by Seals [Chapter 1] (Patreon)

ToC: https://www.patreon.com/posts/132353583

I woke up.

“Abuu…”

Tiny baby fists waved in front of me. My bowls constricted, barely bothering to consult me. Yet despite this indignity, I felt a bubble of excitement (probably not a second bowel movement, right…?) in my gut.

I have a Status Screen.

Status

Name: Osiris Scowl

Level: 1

Roles: None

Traits: None

Skills: None

“Abuuu!” I clenched a fist. The Status might be empty, but it was mine! Had this really happened? After a life of selfless dedication to pointless pixels, my hard labor has been rewarded.

Almost in response to my expression of resolve, another small screen appeared in front of me.

“Abu?” My eyes brightened. My first game-like notification! Wow, it really just floats, a blue box in the corner of your vision!

You have manifested your confidence. You have observed your Status Screen. ???? weakening…

You have unlocked the Special Role “Child”. Child is a mandatory Role of predetermined duration. You will remain a Child until your fifth birthday.

Please Note: Roles are the methods to grow in this world. They are previously formed contours, down which energy might flow. Pursuing them will gradually increase the power held within. Please earn Proficiency in Roles in order to improve them. Benefits will appear as the Proficiency Tier increases.

I looked again at the Status Screen, specifically at the Role line.

Roles: Child (Worthless, 1%)

As I observed, the percentage ticked up from 1% to 2%. Perhaps… to earn Role Proficiency, you have to act as that Role? Or, because this is a special Role, it just grows at a fixed pace…

Another notification flicked into existence.

Due to your early intelligence, Proficiency of your Role Child has increased! Proficiency +50%.

Due to your early conscious movement, Proficiency of your Role Child has increased! Proficiency +50%!

Your Role Child has reached a new Proficiency! Useless-> Basic. You have gained access to your Mana Pool. You have gained the Skill Emit Mana (Useless). 

My eyes brightened at the sudden acquisition of a Skill, but then I released a gasp. In the middle of my chest, I felt a tingling feeling that rapidly grew more intense. I rolled back and forth, my body almost outside of my control.

This… is Mana? Appearing in my body?

The sensation felt like being stabbed with an icicle. It felt like swallowing fire. 

Tears sprang from the corner of my eyes. I might have even begun to cry, but the worst of the sensation passed. The surge of energy within my body slowed. After several deep breaths to calm myself, I tried to make sense of the feeling; the Mana seemed to form a shallow puddle in my chest. I could feel slight ripples from the energy.

“Abu!” I tried my best to fist pump. Because this was a Skill. And a Skill opened that familiar fertile wonderland… grinding.

But it can’t just be grinding. I controlled my excitement and recalled my vow for a different sort of existence. This life… I need to live without regrets. I need to cross the hallway and knock on the door.

Yet despite those thoughts, my first response was to look again at my improved status screen. I felt a warm glow in my chest.

Status

Name: Osiris Scowl

Level: 1

Roles: Child (Basic, 5%)

Traits: None

Skills: Emit Mana (Worthless, 0%)

I blinked my wide eyes and stretched out a hand. Emit Mana! Show me your power!

Nothing happened. My hand remained fuzzy and inert. Several fingers were curled, resisting my vague efforts to straighten them for a more dramatic delivery. I stared at my hand. Baby eyes are surprisingly inefficient. My little fingers were just vague impressions-

A scarred face appears above me.

“Abu!” The scare mobilized the energy in my small body. The freezing/burning energy trembled. An invisible wave of Mana spread out in my chest cavity, a bulge that tingled my flesh. Without guidance and shaping, it soon vanished. Leaving me to stare in horror up at the face hanging above me. 

Long grey dreadlocks curled down from a face with burning red irises. A long scar marred the right side of the face. The man had a sizable paunch, likely made even more unflattering due to the angle. The man frowned down at me. “Tch… hello, parasite. You… resemble her.”

The man sighed and moved out of my vision. Several facts about my current life give me cause for alarm. Yet after expelling the Mana, albeit on accident, I find my eyes becoming extremely heavy. Despite my lifetime of all-nighters, for both work and games, I cannot resist the siren song of sleep.

I begin to snore. I am asleep.

*****

“Abu…”

I woke up with a yawn. I blinked my eyes; my young vision remained very poor at giving me more than a vague impression of the cavernous and shadowy environment around me. I rolled onto my side.

A thought stopped me. “Abu.”

Wait, why are my vocal cords so uncooperative?

“Abuuuu.”

“Aaaaabuu.”

“Abuuuuuck…”

In the end, I collapsed, exhausted from the effort to form words. Well, I was making progress. I believed I was rather freshly born, with only a little time spent as I adjusted to this new form. My brain knew how to speak, so it would only be a matter of time until this mouth became useful again.

With that thought satisfied, I flicked open my Status Screen again. My gaze fixated on one detail.

Skills: Emit Mana (Worthless, 10%)

As expected… I nodded. I stretched out a hand and tried to recall that sensation that had been scared out of me by the arrival of that scary face. Wait, was that man my-

Let’s not get distracted. I concentrated. With intent, I created the ripple. It flowed out through my body, concentrating down my thin arm, spreading into my hand. I felt small beads of sweat forming on my brow. This time, Mana buzzed through my fingers… and vanished.

Maybe… a slight distortion in the air? This Skill is a bit-

Due to your actions, your Skill Emit Mana has gained Proficiency! Proficiency +10%.

The sleepiness engulfed me. I collapsed on my side, my eyes closing.

*****

This time when I woke, I was delighted to discover my diaper had been changed. In addition, I had been moved.

“Abuu.” I rolled onto my side. 

The scary man glared back at me, only a short distance away. I froze, caught in his gaze.

The man snorted and focused in front of him. With a quill, he made several quick scratches on paper. He continued to do this for several seconds… and then kept going for several minutes.

With time, my fear waned. Is he really just… working with me lying here? No matter what world we are in, the pressures of being a parent are tough. Anyway, might as well-

I rolled over onto my side, meaning to test the limits of my baby mobility, but as I flipped sideways, my clumsy arm swung through nothing. My eyes widen as I realize I had been balanced on the edge of a desk. “Abuu!”

The man’s hand caught me. I felt a sense of reassurance, but then he flipped his wrist and rolled me onto the middle of the desk. Even as my heart pounded and I recovered from this casual treatment, the man placed several books around me, essentially hemming me in. He gave me a wicked glare, then returned to his note-taking.

“...” I felt unimpressed with the parenting of this world. Apparently, it is not a learnable Skill.

With nothing else to do, I controlled my energy to produce an Emit Mana… and promptly fell asleep. When I woke back up, the man was still working. I pointed my hand at the man and activated my Skill. It poofed out, aimed directly at his face. The little wisp of invisible Mana accomplished nothing, but I am pleased to strike back.

Also, at least… My eyes closed. This proves my naps are short… or this man is obsessive…

This time, when I woke up, my eyes widened at a notification.

Due to repeated actions while you possess the Role Child, you have earned a Trait!

You have gained the Trait Mana Hungry (Worthless): Once per full rest, when you empty your Mana Pool, restore a minute amount of Mana.

Please Note: Only the first Trait gained as a Child can be earned with reduced requirements.

It seems the opportunity to earn a Trait for cheap has been used… but regaining my Mana Pool when it empties? That seems very practical. I view the whole of my Status Screen, with the new addition.

Status

Name: Osiris Scowl

Level: 1

Roles: Child (Basic, 8%)

Traits: Mana Hungry (Worthless, 0%)

Skills: Emit Mana (Worthless, 30%)

I noted that the Child Role has increased without any notification; this confirmed it will passively increase. With that mystery solved, I flail my arms a bit to get more comfortable. Still in my book prison, I can’t do much. Then I focused.

My Mana stirred as I exerted my will. By now, the activation felt natural. A little bit of tingling Mana flowed out of me. I felt the tiredness arrive, but then it vanished.

Your trait Mana Hungry has activated. You gain a minute amount of Mana. Extra Mana disperses. Proficiency of your Role Mana Hungry +1%.

“Ah!” The wave of Mana invigorated me. But it seems that a ‘minute’ amount is still far more than my Mana Pool can hold. Fiery frost was dumped into my chest, but then seeped out through the edges of my Mana pool. My muscles contracted. Yet compared to the first exposure, the excess Mana felt…

Well, not refreshing, but… bracing?

I hummed to myself, considering the implications, then flinched when I noticed the man with the grey hair twisted and glared. Did he respond to the noise…?

Anyway, he eventually grumbled and focused back on the note taking. Although I wondered exactly how much time passed, I tried not to be too bogged down; this body wasn’t great at long term thinking. Like most other things, expending mental energy made me sleepy.

I ran a brief experiment, post activation of the Trait. Probably ten minutes passed without incident. When I don’t activate my Skill again, I don’t get sleepy. I nod my enormous baby head; It is worth noting that the sleep imperative comes from an empty Mana Pool. With Mana Hungry filling me back up, I can persist for longer-

I activated my Skill for a second time. Or I can get some extra grinding, once per day.

Due to your actions, your Skill Emit Mana has gained Proficiency! Proficiency +10%.

I fell asleep…

…and wake up an indeterminate amount of time later. I almost yawn and release an Abu without thinking. Twisting on my side, the grey-haired, red-eyed man remained hard at work. Shrugging, I activate my Skill-

Due to your actions, your Skill Emit Mana has gained Proficiency! Proficiency +10%.

Your trait Mana Hungry has activated. You gain a minute amount of Mana. Extra Mana disperses. Proficiency of your Role Mana Hungry +1%.

Wait what? I focused on the Status Screen, looking again at my Trait explanation. My eyes sparkle with realization. I just skimmed right over it, but full rest… its satisfied by a nap?! Or I suppose it’s possible that babies are born without horrible traits like insomnia, light sleeper status, and sleep apnea that have kept me from full rest in my first life…

My eyes burned with vigor. The boredom vanished. If Mana Hungry activated every time I sleep, and an empty Mana Pool made me exhausted... Isn’t this perfect? And already, I anticipated with pleasing expectation what happens when my Emit Mana grows to 100%…

I activated my second Emit Mana. Sleep obliterated my consciousness. When I wake, I remained between the books, on the desk next to… the figure who seems increasingly likely is my father. (After all, who would pay a scarred man to nanny a baby?) I activated Emit Mana for the tenth time-

Due to your actions, your Skill Emit Mana has gained Proficiency! Proficiency +10%.

Your Skill Emit Mana has reached a new Proficiency! Worthless-> Basic. You can activate the Skill more quickly. You can emit a slightly more potent form of Mana. Your Mana Pool deepens.

Your trait Mana Hungry has activated. You gain a minute amount of Mana. Extra Mana disperses. Proficiency of your Role Mana Hungry +1%.

For increasing Role Proficiency while a Child, the Role Child has gained Proficiency! +25%.

Before I could even read the notification, my Mana Pool shuddered. Suddenly, I flashed back to the stinging pain of a tattoo, except this sensation comes from the depths of my chest; from my Mana Pool, the bottom energy became acid. It ate down, growing my Mana Pool. And not by a small amount.

As far as I can tell, my Mana Pool doubled in size.

My eyes glowed as I considered all the implications that had been revealed to me.

I’ve reincarnated in a world with magic. Already, I am conscious, as a baby, in a world that possesses Proficiency for Skills. I have years of grinding to get an advantage on my peers. Not only for the base Skills and Traits, but improvements in these also will boost my access to Roles, a boundless land of benefits I cannot wait to explore. Excitement surged in my heart. Imagine how I would have dominated the online ladders, at least for a time, if I had several years' head start of grinding in games…

I activate my Skill, excited for the new Proficiency. Yet a I start when a blue spark flies from my fingers. “Abu?”

“Parasite, I will rip out your tongue,” The man growled.

I side-eyed him, because he missed the bit of Mana I shot out; truly, while he is working, nothing gets through to him but noise. Alright, let’s keep my mouth shut.

I observed my Mana Pool: it is now half depleted. My cheer faded, just a bit. Because rather than a monumental growth in my Mana Pool… what probably happened was I previously possessed one ‘unit’ of Mana. My available Mana did double… but that simply brought me to two units. 

I shook my head, but took advantage of the extra energy. Because my Mana Pool had deepened, I shot out a second Emit Mana spark. Right as I fell back to sleep, I looked at my new Status.

This is the beginning. My eyes glowed. By the time we reach twenty- no, ten years old… won’t I be unstoppable?

Status

Name: Osiris Scowl

Level: 1

Roles: Child (Basic, 34%)

Traits: Mana Hungry (Worthless, 3%)

Skills: Emit Mana (Basic, 4%)