Chapter 3: Goal
Ember was extremely keen when he accepted the skill, not because he feared he had chosen the wrong one. He noted that each time he gained a skill, a strange current would course through him. The skills were probably something more complex than mana, but he was almost certain mana was involved somewhere.
So he concentrated entirely on Mana Sense to perceive anything extraordinary. To his dismay, the sensation was too ethereal and instantaneous. Before he could even glimpse it, it disappeared somewhere into his body.
Ember was not too disappointed, as a similar feeling did coalesce whenever he gained a point in a skill. He would have multiple chances to detect it.
Anyhow, with the new skill, he would have more opportunities to peek at the mysteries. On that note, he had not chosen Language Acquisition.
There were two reasons why he had picked Meditation over it. Firstly, Ember did not believe Language Acquisition would magically help him understand everything once he got the skill, despite mana being part of the equation. He would have to level it up to the third or fourth step, perhaps even further, to understand day-to-day words.
Secondly, he refused to believe he could not learn the common tongue without a skill. Although his experience was meagre, Ember could tell that skills were not unfathomable. The common ones definitely were not, but they did augment whatever they were meant for.
He had no clue whether they could make someone unintelligent into a genius, though that was not his concern.
By his estimate, it would have taken at least three or four months for him to get Language Acquisition to a level where he could understand the local language. And in that time, he would probably be able to meet the requirements for advancing his race.
Another reason for choosing Meditation had been its calming effect and how it resonated with his mind. All his other skills—be it Active Recall, Focus, or especially Mana Sense—required a high amount of mental energy. So if Meditation could rejuvenate his mind more quickly, would that not mean he would have more time and energy to work with?
Knowledge is power, but so is magic.
Considering how much significance his father seemed to give Meditation, it could not be the wrong choice.
With the four skills, Ember fell into a rough schedule. In the morning, he would meditate with his father. Then he would alternate between his common and Copper skills until his mind was exhausted. He would recover his mental energy through meditation again in the evening, followed by a strenuous session of Mana Sense, specifically focusing on the light constructs embedded in the wall.
He was still unable to make out much of their mysteries, but the challenge only made the practice worthwhile. He would keep at it until he was exhausted beyond reason and then go to sleep quite early in the night. New skills or not, being an infant meant his need for sleep was insurmountable. He slept for almost sixteen hours a day.
Other than Mana Sense, Meditation was the hardest skill to master. It took four days and nine long sessions for it to gain another point. Well, all the brainrot he had consumed had to have some horrible effect. Who could have believed that brainrot had gained transcendence across dimensions?
The next level came only a couple of days later, indicating he was right to take Meditation over Language Acquisition. But then he saw his sister getting personal lessons from his father. The girl was not even fully appreciative of it, always running away within half an hour to meet her friends. A sense of envy crawled up his chest unbidden.
And it was not just for magic. After spending so much time with them, he had learned that they were good people. Ember could not deny how much his life depended on them, and with that dependence came a sense of attachment.
His elder sister was eight or nine, brimming with childish energy, but that spontaneity was expected at her age. His mother was more like an old-school housewife. While she did have an air of mana coalescing around her, it was far weaker than his father’s. It hinted that she perhaps had a Class of her own and was only taking it easy to care for him.
As for the man, he still hadn't found a flaw in his character. After their morning meditation session, his father would play with him for an hour. Even Ember himself got tired, but his father showed not even a hint of boredom. He would also rush to heal him whenever Ember got hurt through his miscellaneous shenanigans.
Every time that healing mana coursed through his body, his Mana Sense would tingle. That became evident a week later when he acquired another level in the skill while being healed. Ember swiftly pulled up his status page, praying to the disembodied god of the system. He was glad to see that he was already halfway towards advancing his evolution.
Then one morning, he woke up and found his father swathed in white-clad, knightly armour, a sword on his back.
He's leaving? When will you be coming back? He wanted to ask the question, but he had no way to. Even his little goo-goo gaga only drew a smile from the man as he took him in his arms, drowning him with kisses.
Stop that already, he growled inwardly. I am not even good-looking.
Well, despite both his parents being gorgeous, he was still a little baby, and babies tend to take some months to look cute. As far as he was concerned, he was ugly as muck.
After expressing a few words that eluded him, his father was gone.
Yeah, don’t you worry, Ember said inwardly. I will practise my skills well and will advance before you return.
Unfortunately, to his dismay, stagnation hit him like a sledgehammer.
Ember was at a loss. It had been a whole week since he had gained a point in any of his skills. Both Focus and Active Recall stopped improving once they reached the ninth level. At that stage, his focus was almost impeccable. He could concentrate on anything. If he had something similar in his previous world, it would not be wrong to say he could have become some sort of scientist, discounting personal disinterest, of course.
Meditation slowed down at seven as well. As for Mana Sense, God help him, because Ember could find no way to improve it. It had been two whole weeks, and he had seen no visible progress.
Day or night, whenever he had time, Ember stared at the bulbous lights until tears rolled from the corners of his eyes. But that hardly helped.
And now that his father was gone, he could not even take the shortcut of observing mana when he was being healed.
Who could have thought magic was harder to learn, that it should be largely kept out of the grasp of an infant? But such common sense did not matter much to him. He still kept at it. If Mana Sense did not work, he would move to Meditation and his other skills.
A whole month passed, and in that time, Meditation reached eight, and he finally acquired another point in Mana Sense. Opening his status page, Ember found little change in his attributes, though his eyes fixed unflinchingly on the progress tab.
Ember Blackstone
Human - Tier 0 (Progress: 226/300)
Class: N/A
Titles: N/A
Mana Foundation: Unformed.
Attributes:
Class Skills:
General Skills: [Skill Slots: 6/6]
Boons:
Affiliation: House Blackstone - Seynhold (Tier 5)
Just two more points in Mana Sense, and he would have enough EPs to advance. But to his dismay, he was already cutting into the time he had set for his advancement. Perhaps he was not as talented as he had thought. But Ember could put in the hours. The problem had always been the same—he did not have enough energy to train for long. Other than Meditation, all his other skills exhausted him within minutes.
Learning all this, a sensible man would have curbed his ambition. But such thoughts did not even cross his mind. Though dismayed, he carried on, wishing for his father to return the next day.
He did not. But on a lonely evening, he found his sister healing the bruises she had received from her sword practice.
A spark emerged in his eyes. Perhaps there was still a chance of meeting his goal after all.