Ember never thought he would be so thrilled to be able to run again. He had always been quick on his feet, one of the reasons he was a starter for his team, but it was not exactly something he ever loved. The thrill of overtaking someone through sheer force, though, was something he could get behind.
After a couple of years in infancy, now that he could finally run, Ember did not miss any opportunity to sprint at full speed. If he had the Running skill, he would have already gained a few points in it. Regrettably, he did not have any skill slots to spare.
Now that he had learned that common skills could evolve into more advanced forms, he was more inclined to take them. It was a good thing he did not have to wait long. He was about 50 points shy of reaching Tier 2. A single step in any of his Copper skills could be the deciding factor. But now that all three had reached a respectable level of mastery, improving them further took weeks of effort.
He had some epiphanies while watching his sister practise; unfortunately, they did not share many skills in common. Ember reckoned that if he had access to private tutoring from someone proficient in all his skills, he would have already reached Tier 2. As it stood, especially with his mana skills, he often had to improve through trial and error.
Many times, he felt like sneaking into the training fields where his sister and the other boys and girls her age practised. His mother had taken him there a couple of times, though the experience had not been pleasant. Old men and women had probed and prodded him after learning he had advanced to Tier 1. Frightened, he had not uttered a single word, not that they were interested in listening to him. However, whatever they had seen in him, they seemed to have liked it.
Apparently, mana skills, even ones like Mana Sense, were quite rare among children. Advancing to Tier 1 was not especially astonishing; most children in House Blackstone were born at Tier 1.
Ember’s world had been turned upside down when he learned that a few children were even born at Tier 3.
There was little fairness in the world. At least he had managed to awaken his status at a young age, whereas the average age for that was around five.
Of course, those born at higher tiers had it much easier, as their chances of awakening a Copper-ranked skill were much greater.
Ember had gotten away with being seen as a prodigy in mana skills. His mother did not seem thrilled about the recognition, however. After he finally began to call her mom and express himself in slurred words, she had repeatedly told him to keep his skills a secret—at least until his father returned.
Ember had no idea why he needed to be careful around his relatives. But with how worried and cautious she was, he had no reason to refuse. He even kept his training discreet.
Well, not completely discreet. There was that one time he had almost managed to remove one of the light constructs from the wall, until she caught him red-handed. Then there was the time he experimented with the constructs in the bathroom, from the one that created water to the function that purged dirt and grime from the tiles. I might have broken a construct or two.
On another note, he was unsure what to make of his growing childishness. There had been several times when he threw tantrums for trivial reasons, even though he knew he was being unreasonable. Of course, there were also moments when he was completely in control. It was as if there were a clear dichotomy in his nature.
“Em, slow down. You gon’ fall.”
“Don’t worry, mom,” he shouted back as the wind brushed his cheeks. “I won’t fall over even with my eyes closed.”
He kept his eyes open as he rounded the blue-stone street. Sometimes he grew bored with how empty it was. There were supposedly thousands of members in the Blackstone clan, with many more outsiders. Regrettably, this part of the estate was reserved for direct descendants. Their neighbours were akin to this world’s equivalent of highbrow people. They seemed to look down on them for reasons that eluded him.
His mother attributed it to jealousy over his father’s success. Despite the clan’s size, there were fewer than a hundred full-fledged knights among their ranks. His father being at the forefront of the knights should have caused others to fawn over their family as much as they were envious of his father's rank.
But Ember had only gotten scornful looks. That might be due to his low tier.
Noticing a group of people ahead, he slowed down. They seemed to be approaching him, led by a man he found strangely familiar. Rain was walking alongside the leading figure, who closed the distance between them in a single stride.
Ember did not even have time to step back before the man crouched and lifted him. As he was hoisted onto the man’s shoulder, it finally dawned on him who this person was.
Sir Cliff Blackstone, Guardian Knight of the realm, and his father.
“Little guy,” his father said, lifting him into the air, “you seem to have grown half my stature in the time I was away.”
“Of course,” Ember managed to stammer.
It was an exaggeration. He had grown taller, but his shoulders barely reached the man’s knee.
Behind him, Rain rushed to join them, a slender bag slung over her shoulder, carrying her duelling swords and other training gear. She had come straight from practice and seemed to have already met their father on the way. Their mother joined them as well, her lips curling into a warm smile.
Without even putting Ember down, Cliff embraced her and kissed her.
“So what am I hearing about Ember being a prodigy?”
Rossana’s smile widened. “Let’s go home before we talk.”
His father carried him on his shoulder as they walked side by side, waving goodbye to his squadron mates.
“I thought you would make time for Em’s second birthday,” his mom said.
“I tried,” Cliff sighed. “Unfortunately, not everything is in my control. You wouldn’t understand the amount of incompetence—” He stopped, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Ohh abyss devour me! Sorry, I have already used that excuse too many times since we married.”
“It’s quite alright,” his mother replied.
“It isn’t, but at least this time I managed to get a long leave.”
“How long?”
“I won’t return to my duties until I prepare Rain for her trial.”
Rossana bobbed her head. “There are still over three years left for that. Are you staying that long?”
“What?” Cliff grinned. “Are you afraid you’d get bored of me?”
Rain let out an exasperated sigh at their blatant flirting, while Ember felt equal parts excitement and dread at his father staying with them. Excited because he would finally get to spend time with him, and worried because he feared his father might not like him as much.
Ember was no prodigy, not by a long stretch. Only he knew the effort behind his skill mastery. If anything to go by the disdainful looks he'd gotten from others, he didn't like his chances.
But then, Cliff Blackstone seemed nothing like Ethan’s father, though both were absent parents. To give him some credit, Ember did not want to draw comparisons with his past life.
As his gaze lingered on the man, he noticed him pulling items from thin air, stacking them into a pile taller than himself. Where were they coming from? Did class ascension come with an inventory system as well?
His father smiled at him, noticing his curiosity. “Although I have missed both of your birthdays, I did not forget to bring gifts.”
*****
Cliff laughed at the little guy’s antics. At such a young age, he already had quite the eye for things.
All the stuffed toys and expensive clothes he had brought to make up for missing him didn’t seem to catch his interest—until he showed him a wooden, spider-shaped mana construct.
It was a Tier 1 construct, though its price was a handsome amount. He had brought it thinking of his daughter, hoping it would help her train her mana skills, but since the little guy liked it so much, he could only do his due diligence and get Rain something else.
Ember examined the construct as though it were a delicate flower. If what he had heard about his mana skills was true, he had probably sensed the mana charge inside the construct and liked it for that reason. As for when he would be able to manipulate it, that could take half a decade.
“Why is he getting such expensive stuff?” Rain complained, a box in hand. “While I am only getting this old amulet?”
“Well, I was thinking of getting you a full set of gear in preparation for your trial,” Cliff smiled. “But then I remembered I didn’t know if you would even like your old man’s style. So I thought, why not bring you along to buy them?”
“Really?” the little girl beamed. “When can we go? Can we go today?”
“How about the day after tomorrow?”
. . .
After the children went off to play with their new toys, Cliff cast his wife a look, creeping closer to sit next to her.
“So,” he said, pulling her palm into his, “how have you been?”
“Not bored, to say the least.” She clasped his hand. “If not Rain, Ember keeps me busy with one thing or another. You won’t believe what he’s up to at this age.”
“What’s all the talk about Ember being some mana prodigy?” Cliff finally asked. “I’ve already noted that he has advanced to Tier 1. When was that?”
“He was seventeen months old back then.”
Cliff nodded, making a quick calculation. “He must have managed to level up Mana Sense to a good level to prompt the advancement.”
It would take at least the seventh level in Mana Sense, along with some help from a common skill, to meet the requirement. Cliff could not help but whistle. While 300 evolution points were not a lot, it was quite incredible to get Mana Sense to +7 at such a young age.
Cliff himself had only managed it after he was almost Rain’s age, but his talent for mana was rather poor. Most of his aptitude lay with the sword.
“It’s odd, though,” he mumbled. “Someone with a high affinity for mana is usually born at higher tiers. Sometimes even at the Iron rank.”
Those born at the bottom had to spend years carving their way up, and yet most never reached anywhere near the Silver rank. The cutoff was cutthroat. Unless you planned your skill acquisition appropriately, many times you would meet a dead end at Tier 3. Even some sufficiently talented individuals in his squadron had faltered at the third star, not to mention his wife, who had been stuck there for years.
“What are you thinking?” Rosanna asked, leaning into him.
“Wondering when would be the right time to talk about all this to the little guy.”
“I say not anytime soon. I already took him once to meet his grandfather. Your father wanted to throw him into one of those mana chambers before he could even crawl properly.”
Cliff suppressed a laugh. “That wouldn’t be as bad a thing as you imagine.”
Rosanna met his gaze with a challenge, urging him to say more, and Cliff acquiesced. But of course, it didn’t end there.
“Some time after you left, the people in charge of the resources relegated Rain from the Tier 4 chamber to a Tier 2 one.”
Cliff raised an eyebrow. “What? Why?”
“Saying something about her not meeting the skill level criteria and whatnot,” Rosanna said, anger seeping into her voice. “It was all nonsense. At least your father sorted it out after I managed to get word to him.”
“I’ll go talk to him about it later,” Cliff said, making a mental note.
“Oh, did I forget to mention that you might have another brother soon?”
Cliff raised an eyebrow and snorted. After ten such siblings in the last two decades, it wasn’t surprising anymore. “Oh, I also seem to have forgotten something.”
With a wave of his hand, he brought out a jewellery box from his inventory.
Rosanna eyed the box before lifting her head to look at him in silent contemplation.
“Did you really think I only brought gifts for the children?”
With a bit of mana manipulation, the fine velvet box slid open, revealing a sapphire necklace.
“May I, my lady?”
He stood on one knee, presenting it towards her. Rosanna allowed him, though a blush crept from her neck all the way to her ears, despite bearing two children.
“Of course, my good sir,” she said quickly, turning to offer the back of her neck.
Cliff gently moved her braid, fastening the chain around her neck. Breathing in the scent of her hair, he was about to brush his lips against her neck when both of them heard a shout.
“Mom, Dad, you need to see this!”
The moment passed, and both of them exchanged a look.
“Let’s see what the kids are up to.”
Out in the courtyard, they found the two children—Rain standing behind the little boy, who seemed to be in deep concentration as a thread of his mana connected with the spider construct.
Under Ember’s control, the spider moved step by step. With only a single thread of mana controlling it, the task was monumental. But the little guy was managing just fine, steadily guiding it around.
Cliff craned his neck towards his wife. “You never mentioned my son is this prodigious.”
Rosanna still had her eyes on the boy, sweat beading down his forehead. “I never knew.”