Chương 28: Chapter 24 - My Childhood

Due to my creation as an NPC, I never actually had a childhood. I just had vague memories of what my supposed childhood had been like. … Maybe if Jake had asked about it more before I was transported to Placeholder, it would have been flushed out more. Who knows? Anyway, I guess I'm writing this because now, after literal centuries, it looks like I get to have one. Or, more likely, a horrid approximation of a childhood. … Yeah, this is gonna suck.

Excerpt from my journal Alder and his 9 shadows were approaching, and I was entering a panic. Alder. [Martial Artist]/[Hero]. His knuckles deal more than enough damage to one-shot me, even without their double damage against me specifically. The last 10 years as a [Hero] have also been pretty good to him. A completely unhelpful part of my mind thought as it recognized that he had filled out and become an imposing [Hero]. Or maybe that was because I was 4 feet tall. I couldn't be sure.

"Red eyes!" Shadow Leader called out.

"Secure the area in case of ambush!" Alias. Shadow Leader. Real name. Analulellia Glynsatra. [Elite Shadow Rogue]. She alone rendered the idea of running away fruitless. And at 20 HP, she wouldn't even need a [Backstab] to finish me. I started shaking.

"But… he's just a kid!" Alder said as they slowly approached me from all sides. My escape routes were closed off, and I backed up, trembling, into the obelisk. [Panic Button]. It's my only shot. I thought, then immediately second-guessed myself. No! If the demons found me like this, they would be the ones to kill me! My body gave a spasming hiccup. I have to use it. I have to use my trump card.

I desperately wanted to save it for the next [Hero] to ensure final victory, but it wouldn't matter if I died before I got to use it. I have to be fast and specific. I need to- My time was up. They reached me and… I burst out into tears. It was an ugly, wailing cry. And I tried to speak through it, but what I was yelling out wasn't even understandable to me.

"… Oath… [Hero]…kill…" And then, when that failed to get my point across entirely.

"I don't wanna die!" Despite all that, Shadow Leader still approached with her knife at the ready. Fortunately, my impromptu show was more effective on a different party member.

"Stop," Alder said as he put a hand in front of her.

"He's just a kid."

"He's a kid with red eyes," Leader hissed back.

"That means he's already allied himself with demons." Alder took her aside.

"And if he's that young, that means it wasn't his choice," he whispered back.

"Let me handle this." She didn't look pleased, but she nodded after a few tense moments. Alder turned back to me, but she immediately interrupted.

"Here," she said, tossing him a paladium coin. He looked at the coin and then back at her.

"He's a kid," Alder stated.

"And you are well aware of who and what we are fighting," Leader replied. Meanwhile, their back and forth had given me enough time to calm down. Paladium coin. Once that finds me out, I'm toast. I wished I had cast a [Disguise Self] before leaving the tutorial. That would have saved me from that entire predicament. Instead, I was prepping to take my chances with the demons in the Ashlands. It's just 10 years. I can bluff them that long. I thought as Alder approached, and he offered me the coin.

I reached out to take it… and then looked it all over. It didn't hurt. The Holy resistance I'd gained from defeating Mishael had rendered me immune to that amount of paladium. And so I quickly activated both my brain and my [Actor] levels.

"Umm.. thanks, mister?" I asked timidly, making sure that I was matching them and speaking virian this time.

"See?" Alder said, looking to Leader. She rolled her eyes. He turned back to me.

"Where are your parents?" he asked.

"Don't have none," I replied. His eyes softened a bit.

"Well, we'll get someone to take care of you, okay?" he said, and I nodded. Then, as a follow-up.

"What's your name?" I had a few options. I could lie. That would get caught by one of the three different truth-detection methods that the Hero's Shadow was employing against me right at that moment. I could evade the question or answer a different one by saying something like, "they call me Jake," since people have called me that before. Or, I could tell the truth… in a way that would maximize their pity the most.

"I'm… I'm…" I pretended to struggle to get the words out.

"Titus," I stated. That got a sharp gasp, and Leader even pulled her knife again before Alder stopped her and nodded for me to continue.

"I was named after the [Demon Lord]," I continued and then used my [Actor] levels to give a convincing, but actually faked this time, wail. And the best bit about that was that it was true. Due to the time loop shenanigans after the [Restart] ritual, I was, in fact, named after myself. From there I let them "calm me down" and then gave a broken story in between tears about how the children of the flame raised me.

That was obviously a lie, so I had to be very careful with my words that I let slip through so that I didn't actually make any definitive statements. Fortunately, they were smart enough to fill in the blanks of my entirely fabricated story and asked the expected question to let me legitimize it.

"The [Cultists]," Leader asked.

"Where do they meet?"

"There's… there's this place on the other side of town-" I started. Sorry, Children of the Flame Faroff branch. Looks like you get to die for me a bit sooner than expected.

"Let's get moving," Leader stated partway through my story. Alder looked surprised.

"We're taking him with us?"

"He's an informant now. We need to keep him safe," she replied.

"And this is no place to have this talk." She said as she gestured almost imperceptibly towards the crowd that was gathering. The other shadows dispersed, and it was soon just Alder, Leader, and me. We began walking briskly toward what I could only assume would be a safe location, and my short little legs were struggling to keep up. Alder noticed my struggle and scooped me up. I was expecting a piggyback ride, and I don't know if it was better or worse that he placed me on his shoulders instead.

Either way, it was mortifying. Just kill me now. I groaned internally, even as I kept up my act and pretended to be excited about being on top of a grown man's shoulders. Fortunately, I wasn't the only one who suffered from his tactical blunder.

"A horned child," I heard the whispers as we passed.

"I didn't know the [Hero] had a son."

"Neither did I. Wait. Isn't he unmarried?" I would have paid an exorbitant amount of gold to see the look on Alder's face as those rumors got passed around. Unfortunately, that was impossible, so I just had to make do with my imagination. We arrived at our destination after cutting down some alleyways and shaking any possible tails. Passphrases were exchanged, and I spilled the rest of the beans about Faroff's cult presence.

Then, I was left under the guard of one member of the Hero's Shadow as the others went to prepare for a raid. That would normally be a much more dangerous spot than being protected by the [Hero], but that might not have necessarily been the case this time. Ah. Good old safehouse FO-C. It's safe to say that I had an intimate knowledge of the Hero's Shadow's operations. I looked over at the door leading down into the basement. Enough damage reduction enchants on that that I would have a hard time breaking in myself.

I snorted. Except I would just [Blink] inside. I'm really glad no one else has picked up [Spatius] magic. The inside was also protected against locating magic like [Scry], so no one could find me there. It's a good thing the enchant only works one way. I've got my own [Scrying] to do. The only problem was that I had an audience. Good thing I know just how to get rid of him. I thought and couldn't help the grin that broke over my face.

"Uhh… excuse me," came the voice of the newest resident of safehouse FO-C. Shadow Keeper rolled his eyes. Stupid kids. He continued reading his book, hoping the kid might get the hint. Or that he would find some way to entertain himself.

"Uhh… excuse me, sir, what am I supposed to do?" the beastborn kid, with unsettling red eyes, asked as he peeked over the top of the guard's book.

"This is a safe house, not a daycare," he grunted.

"Find some way to entertain yourself. Pull some of your toys out of your inventory or something."

"Oh… uhh…" the red-eyed child mumbled, eyes downcast.

"The… uhhh… cult? I think that's what the scary lady called them. The cult never gave me any toys." He looked up.

"But if you have a spare training sword, I could use that. Or if there's anywhere with more space, I could practice my [Martial Arts]. I would spend the time memorizing the uhh…" the kid folded his hands and looked even more sheepish.

"[Demon Lord's] writings… but I don't think that's something I'm supposed to do anymore. Since he's the bad guy and all." By the blue text. Keeper swore internally as he looked up at the sheepish kid. The sheepish kid who was apparently being made into a brainwashed child soldier. [Cultists]. He almost spat but refrained since the kid wouldn't understand.

"You know what, kid? If you promise me to stay here and stay quiet, I'll go out and get you some stuff, okay?"

"Really!? Thanks!" The kid's eyes lit up, and Shadow Keeper was a goner at that point. He quietly locked up the safehouse and left the surprisingly polite child-cultist in the basement. He didn't inform Shadow Leader, though. She would not appreciate his truancy, and she had far too much on her plate with the night's upcoming raid. And that was the other reason for his misgivings. The raid was all hands on deck, and Keeper was the only one left guarding the safehouse.

That's why he simply convinced himself that he would make it quick. The poor kid had never had a childhood, and while just a few toys couldn't make up for that, it would be a start.

Night fell as Shadow Leader observed the movements of the Children of Flame from close range… and the safety of a high-level [Sneak] skill. His tip was good, but there are fewer of them than expected. She thought as she counted the umpteenth person slip into the decrepit tavern. Shadow Leader had a bad feeling about this. Something was off. A trap? Could they have a Speaker or a Fang here? She asked herself. That seemed like the most likely scenario, but the cult presence here seemed lackluster at best.

Speakers didn't generally lead such small numbers, and all the Fangs were accounted for in other cities. That means … Her eyes widened, and she prepared to call off the raid merely on her own judgment when that no longer became necessary. The Grandmaster: Safehouses FO-A, FO-B, FO-C, and FO-D are under attack. Retreat with your party and guard FO-C. The cult is after the child.

"Yes, Grandmaster!" she replied immediately.

"Party! With me!" she shouted, racing back toward the safe house.

"Other shadows. Engage." The others would be too slow to help, and her party would be more than enough. Without a word, Alder and the others raced behind her. They were almost too late. The front door to the safehouse was ajar, and when Shadow Leader rushed in, she noticed that even the heavily enchanted door to the basement was open.

"Please, no!" came a shrill voice from the basement.

"I don't want to go back!" Leader rushed down and saw five cultists surrounding the child. The lead one reached out to grab him... And was instantly slain as Leader's knife struck true with a [Backstab].

"Stay behind me!" Leader ordered as she drew her second knife and interposed herself between the cultists and the child. This was a job for Shadow Knight, not her. But she was the fastest in their party, and Shadow Knight was... not. Fortunately, her appearance was enough to stall the cultists. They had her surrounded, but they all hesitated. That was fine with her. It gave enough time for the second -fastest member of the party.

"[Thunderstrike]!" Alder shouted as he appeared on the scene. The two unlucky souls on Leader's right were in enough of a line that he punched through the first and took them both down with a single thunderclap.

"It's the [Hero]!" one cultist shouted. They both turned to flee... but Leader's [Backstab] didn't have to be melee. With only two sharp flicks of her wrists, the remaining cultists were downed... non-lethally this time. The Hero's Shadow was going to have some questions for them.

"Aw, 3 to 2. Looks like you win this time," Alder joked.

"[Hero], not the time," Leader stressed. And she was right. The trembling child behind her crashed into her leg and wailed.

"Don't let them take me back! Please!" And that was the last coherent word he got out before he devolved into blubbering. Leader would protect him... but a part of her wished that her training had covered how to deal with a distressed child.

The child eventually calmed down. After that, he had a lot of questions. Not all of which their oaths would allow them to answer. Fortunately, something came up that let Leader excuse herself. The Grandmaster: Shadow Leader. Report. After giving the nod to Shadow Sorcerer, she soon took all needed precautions. Did she feel silly covering her mouth to stop lip-reading when they were in a basement with no one around? Perhaps. But her training kicked in, and she did it anyway.

From there, she gave a succinct overview of the most recent happenings. After she was done, the Grandmaster continued. The Grandmaster: Our [Analysts] speculate that the child was an attempt to recreate the [Demon Lord] that was interrupted by the reappearance of the true one. The child is too dangerous to be left alone.

"Sir, there must be another way!" she blurted out, then cringed slightly as she remembered who she was talking to. If it was the Grandmaster's orders, then she had no choice. She would make it quick and- The Grandmaster: So, I have prepared transport for him. We are bringing him to HQ, the only place we can ensure his safety. Shadow Leader's shoulders sagged in relief.

"Of course, sir. My team is ready to move, and we can provide a safe escort back to Dryadal," she stated. The Grandmaster: Your team will not be in charge of protecting the transport. Your first priority is the [Hero]. We cannot allow that to slip.

"Sir, with respect, we can handle it," she protested. And with the old Grandmaster, she wouldn't have dared push so hard... but his replacement seemed to miss things. He seemed more fallible. He still knew far more than her, but compared to the old one who seemed near-omniscient, she couldn't help but feel underwhelmed. The Grandmaster: Shadow Leader, this is an order. You will make the handoff for transport and then allow them to do their job. With the [Hero], your team is too visible.

Your presence will put the child in more danger. She could have tried to argue, but in the end the Grandmaster was right... and it was an order.

"Yes, sir," she replied. And with that, she turned back to the group, where the child appeared to have recovered from his trauma and was chatting energetically with the party. She nodded to Shadow Sorcerer, and suddenly, the outside sound cut back in.

"- and she's getting secret orders from him?" the child asked.

"That's so cool!" Leader's eyebrow twitched.

"While I was receiving our next orders, tell me you did not give away Hero's Shadow secrets to a child," Leader stated flatly.

"Well, I mean, he's on our side, right?" Alder chuckled nervously.

"And he's even thinking about joining the Hero's Shadow!" It made no sense to restrict the [Hero] to the oaths since they were for his own protection, but this was not the first time that Leader wished he was... and she was sure it would not be the last.

"Listen up, we have our orders," Leader stated.

The drop went fine. Leader was positive they weren't tailed, and they even secured a body double for the child to throw off pursuit even more. Why then, as the carriage pulled away, guarded by the finest shadows in the organization (her party excluded), did she have such horrible misgivings?

Shadow Sword was driving the carriage through the deathlands. Why the deathlands? Well, the package needed to reach Dryadal as soon as possible, with as little chance of being followed as possible. No one else knew the route besides the Grandmaster, him, and the other 5 shadows being sent along as extra muscle. Sword initially thought that was overkill. Then he laid eyes on the package. Yeah, the cult is likely to throw a fit over this one. He thought.

He and the other shadows were escorting a miniature [Demon Lord] to safety… at least, that's what it sure looked like. He had no idea what the cult must have done to the kid. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Either way, he would be safe once they got to Dryadal's borders, assuming they got there in one piece. With only a few undead here and there, that shouldn't be a problem.

He hadn't even said it aloud, but he still cursed himself as he caught sight of a red cloak in the deadened underbrush on the side of what could only charitably be called a road. He immediately alerted the others through the party and felt them get ready. And then, the demon-loving cultists were upon them. Dozens of them. Arrows flew, alchemist's fire was spread, and the horses were slain within seconds. The other shadows moved to engage the cultists. Meanwhile, Sword swore and opened up the carriage.

"What's happening!? What's going on!?" his charge shouted in panic. Shadow Sword hefted him onto a shoulder like a sack of potatoes and took off running. The child's protection was their number 1 mission. And that meant getting him out of an active warzone first. If only it had been that easy. The shadow should have known that what the cult lacked in individual strength, it made up for in numbers and cunning. He was funneled into an ambush where a dozen crossbows twanged.

He could have normally dodged such an attack… but not with a child to protect. He had no choice but to cover the youth with his body and trust the armor all shadows wore underneath their cloaks. It took care of a good chunk of the damage… but certainly not all of it.

"Are you okay?" Sword asked the child. The young boy nodded in wide-eyed terror.

"Close your eyes. I'll be right back," he said softly as he laid the child gently on the ground. And then, he got to work. The adamantium sword, after which Shadow Sword derived his name, appeared and cut down the next bolt that was shot in his direction. Then, Sword released a smoke bomb at his feet. He wished the cultists hadn't wisened up and started attacking in broad daylight. Fighting was so much easier when he could slip through the shadows.

Instead, he made do with the decreased visibility of the smoke as he did his grisly work. He appeared behind one unsuspecting cultist and stabbed him through the chest, killing him with a single blow. Then, he pivoted and swung at another, who blocked it with his own sword. However, the other sword wasn't made of adamantium. It chipped and warped as Shadow Sword kept up the assault, and the cultist backpedaled. He slipped up for only one second, but that was enough for Sword to land three strikes.

That was the quality of soldier he was facing, and he could face down at least 10 with no issue. The only problem is there were more than that. They started regrouping, and the smoke soon ran out. And then, with coordination that implied an [Enhanced Party], they covered each other's weak spots as Shadow Sword tried to take them all on single-handedly. He did it, but at a heavy cost. While he could have easily gotten away, that would have meant leaving his charge to them, which he could never do.

So, in the end, he stumbled back toward the boy. Victorious, but with low HP and numerous burn conditions from several lucky tosses of alchemist's fire.

"We've got to keep moving," he said with a raspy breath.

"Come on," he said as he held out a hand. The boy sighed, and his countenance suddenly aged dozens of years.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that's not going to happen," the boy replied. And then, a wicked staff with a dark red orb at the top appeared in his hands. Sword's heart raced. Even though the [Demon Lord] hadn't been seen for centuries, he knew what that staff was. Sword wouldn't make it out alive… but he could at least warn the others.

"[Emergency Message]!" he cast.

"The boy is-" The boy, no… the [Demon Lord] snapped his fingers, and the spell fizzled. And then he spoke the final two words Shadow Sword would ever hear.

"[Hell Blaze]."

Shadow Leader was doing a routine patrol around the [Hero's] campsite. They were traveling up to Pumil based on a potential lead on the [Demon Lord]. Then she got a message. The Grandmaster: Leader, we've received… unfortunate news. She was about to find a safe place to reply, but he forestalled that. The Grandmaster: There is no need to reply, and I am not certain I would want to know the words you would have for me after this. The Grandmaster: The boy… was taken…

and the route was known only to the highest levels of leadership.

"That means," Shadow Leader whispered as she stiffened. The Grandmaster: We have a leak at the highest level, which should be impossible. Trust no one, Shadow Leader. Keep the [Hero] safe. In the meantime, we'll keep hitting the children of the flame. We'll get him back. And with that, Shadow Leader relaxed. After all, the boy's fate was in the hands of the Grandmaster. Things would work out just fine.

Things were working out just fine… which was unusual for me. After the children of the flame's raid, I didn't stick around. As soon as I was free and clear of the last of my minders, I used Singularity to cast a [Teleport To Beacon], targeting one of the many different beacons I had available. This one was in… Dryadal. Why go toward the Hero's Shadow's home base? Well, it was the one place I was sure that they wouldn't think to look for me.

And I wanted to avoid the escalating war that would be coming as they fought tooth and nail over a child that they thought was in the other's possession. I reappeared in a building that was luckily abandoned and then cast a quick [Disguise Self]. I debated a lot of different disguises. I could turn into a young elf, I could pretend to be a dwarf, or I could even stretch the limits of the spell and make myself tall enough to pass as an adult. Instead, I kept it simple. I changed my eyes from red to blue.

Yeah, I could have gotten more fancy, but I wanted something that would stand up to the most intense scrutiny, and changing anything beyond eye color meant that my disguise would likely be outed if someone touched the changed part. The other reason was that it was simple, and I wanted simple because I would probably be stuck with that disguise for 9 more years. Actually, maybe not. I thought. I wonder if Besti still does that whole "you're an adult at 15" thing. Shaving off 3 years would be nice.

I resolved to go and check that out, but in the meantime, I had to figure out how to act like I was actually a 9-year-old kid. A kid this age should be… oh. I thought for a moment, and my mood deflated. Well, I didn't think about that. Maybe I should pretend to be an adult anyway? In the end, I made up my mind. No, it's probably the safest place I could go, honestly. And no one would ever expect to find the [Demon Lord] there.

I made sure I had my cover story straight, summoned a dave that I clutched in my arms to match appearances with said story, and then went straight to my destination… Saint Sarah's Mercy Orphanage. I wonder how many things in Dryadal are named after Sarah. I wondered idly as I knocked on the door that evening. I heard excited chatter coming from inside, and after a few moments and another knock, a slightly heavyset elven woman answered the door. Putting on my best "poor lost orphan" voice, I spoke in bestian.

"H-hi. I'm Trevor, and this is Dave," I said, gesturing to the slimeball.

"Can I please have a place to stay?" She cocked her head in confusion, and I mentally celebrated. Jackpot.

"Sorry dear, I don't speak… whatever that language is," she said softly in elvish.

"Do you speak elvish?" Then she frowned.

"And where are your parents?"

"Umm… no. No. Elvish," I replied in my best butchered elvish.

"Parents?"

"A mom and dad?" I looked like I was thinking hard and then shook my head.

"Parents… no. No parents."

"Oh, dearest me, a poor orphan from another nation. How in Heaven did he get here?" she asked herself, almost too softly for me to hear. Then, turning back to me, she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have room for any more. All of our beds are full." It was my turn to cock my head and not understand. Or at least pretend not to understand.

"No beds left," she tried again.

"No beds." Unfortunately for her, my feigned ignorance knew no bounds. I looked at her uncomprehendingly for a moment and then tried to introduce myself again.

"Trevor," I said, pointing at myself. Then, holding up the slimeball.

"Dave."

"Nice to meet you, Trevor. I'm Miss Silvyr," she replied. And then, when I proceeded to look confused, she simplified it down to the level I had.

"Miss Silvyr," she said, pointing at herself.

"Miss Silvyr," I replied. Then, setting Dave down gently, I put my fists together and gave her a martial bow.

"A pleasure to meet you," I said in bestian.

"It's nice to meet you as well… at least, I think that might be what you said," she replied. And then, we were once more stuck in an awkward standoff. Eventually, the woman gave up and gestured for me to enter.

"I guess we'll just have someone double up for the night," she muttered as I followed behind her.

"I can't just leave the poor boy alone in the dark." I walked behind her and immediately noticed that they weren't as well off as I expected based on the size of the building. Several parts seemed unmaintained, and I grimaced slightly as I realized I was adding to the poor woman's burdens. She took me to the dining area, which had several large tables all filled to the brim with kids up to their early teens. As soon as I entered the room, there seemed to be a collective gasp. Immediately, I was surrounded.

"Miss Silvyr, Miss Silvyr! Why does he have horns on his head?"

"What's your name? And what's that green blob?"

"Is that a monster!? It's going to eat us all!" I pretended to be overwhelmed…which took a bit less of my [Actor] levels than I expected, if I'm willing to be honest. Then, I decided to introduce myself again.

"Trevor," I pointed at myself.

"Dave," I gestured to the monster. That caused a new round of animated chatter, but thankfully Miss Silvyr came to my rescue.

"That's enough, children. Finish your meal, and then it's time to get ready for bed," she said. After that, with my vast command of the elvish language, I managed to turn down dinner. Mostly by just saying "no food" whenever it was offered, with a shake of my head. … I mean, I was starting to feel bad about the endeavor, and there was no way I would steal a serving from a starving orphan if I could help it. Soon after, Miss Silvyr herded everyone off to bed.

"Sudryal, I'm afraid you're going to have to double up for the night," she said to one of the younger elves. He pouted for a moment but then nodded.

"Okay. I don't want to, but I guess Trevor needs someplace to sleep." In the meantime, I had already prepared myself for "sleep." I had pulled a blanket out of my inventory, laid down next to the unlit fireplace, and cuddled up to my dave in lieu of a pillow. Miss Silvyr tried to get me to share the bed, but I mostly stood my ground by just repeating "no bed" with a shake of my head. Eventually, she gave up, but I swear I could see the heartbreak in her eyes as she watched me "sleep" on the floor.

And that was the main reason I went with that. I wasn't going to sleep. And it would make things way more awkward if I accidentally woke my bedmate up when I snuck off later in the night. And [Sneak] off I would. I had secret organizations to run, people to [Advanced Scry] on, and [Messages] of all types (normal, advanced, delayed, and advanced delayed) to send. I did so up in the attic, where I would have a lower chance of getting caught, and it soon turned into my nightly routine.

I always made sure to [Sneak] back down before I was caught, and I also left some extra junk in place of myself under the blanket so that it would take a close inspection to catch me. That proved to work much better than it should have, and I could get away with it basically my entire time at the orphanage. Not that everything there was smooth sailing…

It was the next morning, the first full day that I stayed at the orphanage. All the kids were outside playing in a field, and most of us were playing a game similar to soccer. I decided to hold back because my [Martial Arts] and [Athletics] experience translated into a lot more knowledge of how to move my body, even my 9-year-old one, and I didn't want to stand out more than I already had. I ended up doing so anyway, just not in the way I thought I would.

A ringing sound from inside immediately brought our games to a halt.

"Alright, children!" Miss Silvyr called from inside.

"Chore time!" Without thinking, I frowned.

"I don't wanna do chores," I mumbled in bestian. … And that refrain was also picked up by the rest of the children. They all started whining, complaining, and some even burst out crying. It was enough caterwauling that the elven matron even came outside with a puzzled look.

"Children, what's gotten into all of you?" she asked. And that was enough for me to really examine their behavior… as well as my own. They were all behaving the same way, acting like spoiled brats, and apparently, they didn't do that before I got there. I was pretty sure I knew how to fix the problem. I immediately sat down cross-legged, to the confusion of all present, took an unnecessary deep breath, and entered the Mindscape.

"Yes!" the childish version of me cheered as a game console spawned once more.

"No," I replied as I snatched it out of his hand… and both childish bodies looked at each other.

"So that's how it is," I muttered.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," the other me said as he nervously backed away. He turned to run… but it was my mind. He stood no chance of escape. I quickly caught my doppelganger and slammed it into the ground. Meanwhile, the Mindscape was starting to shake, which likely meant that someone was trying to get my attention from the outside. I ignored it.

"I had my suspicions," I thought as I pinned my clone and started choking it out.

"I doubted that even an 8-year-old version of me would act that immature. So, what are you? Selfishness? A prototype of Pride?"

"Choking… can't… hurt me," it forced out. I laughed.

"Maybe if I cared about your HP, but this is the Mindscape. What matters most is the concept." It struggled and beat at me uselessly, but I didn't let go.

"And I think I've figured out yours," I continued.

"Being a child can be associated with a lot of things. Joy. Innocence. Purity. Potential for growth."

"Doesn't… sound… evil to me," it grunted.

"Also short-sightedness. Selfishness. Tantrums. But all of that would be… passable… for a potential [Demon Lord] form if not for the final piece of being a child." It thrashed at me uselessly.

"Weakness." I leaned in a bit closer.

"And this close to my goal I can't allow even a hint of that."

"Don't!" it urged.

"If you get rid of me, if you get rid of your childhood, something worse will take my place!"

"I'm well aware of that," I said with a hint of tiredness. And so, with no fanfare and little struggle, I choked the conceptual life out of it. And as I said, I already knew what would take its place. It was an old friend or maybe an old poison that I had simply gotten used to. System: Wrath Form Set I saw red for the briefest of moments, and then, with a deep breath, I opened my eyes.

"I told you he wasn't dead!" one of the other orphans shouted immediately.

"But he wasn't breathing!"

"He was holding his breath, duh! It's bestian medi… medi… medication!" I got up and bowed to them apologetically.

"I… sorry," I said in broken elvish.

"Sorry." And then Miss Silvyr got there with the [Priest] that she had frantically run to get, and I had to repeat the same thing. Though, I did throw "very sorry" in there a few times to try to get my point across. From there, my time at the orphanage smoothed out. I fell into the same daily routines as the others, except during playtime I no longer wanted to play with the other children. Which, given my true mental age, just made sense.

I instead spent the time "medicating," as the other children called it, to work on some ideas I had. It would have been a largely unexciting and unfruitful time if not for the events of a certain day.

I had finished my chores early and was going to ask Miss Silvyr what she wanted me to do next. However, when I found her, she wasn't alone. She was talking with two men dressed in white robes with paladium ornaments.

"-it's even less than last month, and we barely scraped by!" she whispered, in obvious distress.

"Is this all the church can spare?"

"You have been given what you have been given," came the reply.

"With the war on demons raging, be grateful that you even have this much." She sighed and dipped her head.

"Yes, your holiness. Our orphanage is grateful for your patronage as always." Wow. I thought as I watched the men leave with a hint of smugness to their steps. When did the church grow into being such a bag of dirks? In the meantime, it wouldn't do for the orphanage to close down. I mean, I had put a lot of work into my cover story there.

"Miss Silvyr, Miss Silvyr," I said, tugging on the hem of her dress.

"Yes, Trevor, what is it?" she asked as she turned to me. I held out a 100-gold coin for her.

"Oh, Trevor, sweety," she said, kneeling to get on my level.

"I can't take your money."

"Take!" I replied, pushing it at her.

"No, sweety, I can't," she replied.

"Take, take, take!" I stomped my foot and used my [Actor] levels to fake the beginnings of a tantrum. Pretending not to speak the language yet also made it much more difficult for her to argue.

"Okay, okay," she laughed.

"You win! But at least a part of this is going toward your own bed, okay?"

"Okay," I nodded. Then, from across the street, I noticed something odd. A pair of men looking in our direction and whispering to each other. They quickly dispersed after I looked their way, but I didn't overthink it. After all… what kind of scumbag would plot something bad towards an orphanage? I thought with a chuckle.

The answer was those scumbags. I was in the middle of my usual late-night [Scrying] session when I heard a sound coming from the orphanage's front door. I immediately moved my [Advanced Scry] downstairs.

"We go in, we threaten the kids, we take the money the church gave her. In and out," one of them whispered. They all nodded and pulled out knives as they forced the door open.

"Give us the money or the kids get it!" their leader shouted as they ran into the dormitory. It would be dangerous to fight them with only 20 HP to my name, but I didn't care. I saw red. They're threatening children. I seethed. Taking only a second to devise a plan that wouldn't immediately out me as the [Demon Lord], or get me killed, I [Blinked] downstairs underneath my blanket. I popped out, wand pulled from inventory, and I started blastin'.

"Fire, strike my foes, [Fire Bolt]!" I cast, taking the leader in the chest and downing him instantly.

"Earth, rock my foes, [Earth Bolt]!" The second cast flew true, and a bolt of rock downed another. My [Air Bolt] and [Ice Bolt] left only one remaining, and he charged at me. I was out of bolt spells… but not out of projectiles.

"Non-lethal!" I shouted as I punted the dave that had shared my blanket for weeks. The remaining idiot slashed at the dave… but that didn't deal anywhere near its 50 HP. It kept going, hit him in the chest, and he was down in the next few seconds. I approached the men and nudged them with my foot, trying to ensure they weren't playing possum, but they all seemed out cold. I nodded in satisfaction as Miss Silvyr came bursting into the room.

"Stay away from-" she cut off midsentence as she saw me holding a wand and nudging a downed man with my foot.

"From them..." she trailed off. I looked up at her.

"Uhh…" I started.

"Miss Silvyr, Miss Silvyr!" an excitable orphan boy said as he raced up to her.

"You should have seen it! The bad guys all came running in, like, rawww, give us your money or else! And then Trevor popped up and was like, kpow! Shoots him with fire! And then the next bad guy with a rock! Then the third and the fourth with ice and… I don't know; the last one was invisible! But then, when he was all out of spells, he kicked Dave like a soccer ball!" He paused his excited rant and looked at me and the ball of slime.

"Is Dave alright?"

"Come," I ordered Dave in bestian. It hopped in my direction, and I scooped it up. Then, switching to elvish.

"Dave… Okay." I gave the boy a thumbs up. Then my attention was returned to the downed men and Miss Silvyr, who looked flabbergasted.

"Umm… Sorry. I sorry," I stated.

Obviously, Miss Silvyr wasn't mad about me taking down a bunch of orphan-robbing thieves. No, she was shocked because I had made one slight miscalculation in my takedown of the enemies. It would be impressive for a 9-year-old to proficiently cast a single bolt spell, much less be able to cast 4 separate ones back-to-back in a combat situation. … I may have slightly forgotten what normal was supposed to look like. However, that all ended up working out in my favor.

With my status secured as a promising mage, a few doors opened for me. First, my maximum mana-enhancing wand meant that I could work as a [Trainee-Alchemist], which paid decently well. That was doubly true since I already knew what I was doing (the money went back into the orphanage, of course. I didn't need it). Second, I got the option to participate in what essentially amounted to a [Trainee-Wizard] course at the local adventurer's guild. … I honestly couldn't believe that Dryadal still had them if I was honest.

I was so used to Gram, which had gone full military and completely replaced their adventurers. The class was a snoozefest for the most part, and it was almost not worth mentioning, except for a single line in a session that changed everything.

The lecturer was droning on about… something inconsequential. I think it was the control needed to cast tier2 spells successfully? Anyway, I was busy compiling my list of spell schools and what I knew about them in order to use the time for something productive. I started with the elementals. T1 [Ignis] – Heat and fire spells. Mostly the latter. Soft-capped at level 5 T1 [Frigis] – Cold and ice spells. At level 3, could use some work T2 [Temperis] – The combination. 0 T1 [Terris] – Earth spells.

And something about stability somehow? 4. Might be approaching the limit of my talent. T1 [Aeris] – Air spells… and instability spells? Not really sure what the latter could mean. Level 3. This must be close to the limit of my talent too. I've used [Hurricane] several times, not to mention the elemental ritual that took out the island. If that wasn't enough to get this to the softcap, I don't know what I'm missing. T2 [Stabilitis] – The combination. 0. T2. 5 Explosivis? – Unsure on name. Explosion magic.

It has to be in here somewhere and this is the only spot that makes sense. 0 T3 [Elementalis] – All of the above. Sam's claim to fame. I'm quite a ways off now that I look at it. Probably won't be able to get to this in time before my prophesied doom.

"Teacher, I heard that practicing on live targets gets skill levels faster than just doing normal practice. Is that true?" one student asked.

"Why yes, it is, but it's not quite that simple I'm afraid," our lecturer replied. Of course, it levels faster, and yes, it's that simple. I rolled my eyes and continued marking down the next section. Harder time casting the spell equals more XP. Just take a look at the [Restart] ritual. I tuned out the conversation and went to work on the next section. It was honestly one I didn't know much about. T1 [Animae] – Healing spells. Capped at 1. Probably because healing spells still give me the heebie jeebies.

T1 [Mortae] – Death magic. 0. Never bothered actually learning any myself despite having two liches in my head. That's a huge missed opportunity, but I could never have known I would need anything besides [Temporus]. T2 [????] – 0. Given that one-half of this pair is banned, and [Necromancers] aren't usually prolific healers, I guess it makes sense that the combo isn't common knowledge. T1 [Evalescae] – Buff spells. 0. Had to look the name of this one up. It seems like it's really unpopular.

Given that [Haste] is disastrous for people who don't spend a ton of time getting used to it, I guess that makes sense. T1 [????] – 0. I'm assuming this one is debuff spells, but it is, for some reason, even less popular. I guess that's because most parties would rather the enemy be dead than slowed down. T2 [????] – 0. No clue on the combo T2. 5 [????] – Given the internal structure of a summoned dave, I can only conclude the 2. 5 tier has to be summoning magic.

Or I guess creation magic if [Create Food] is any indication. I should have a boatload of experience waiting for me if I can ever unlock the skill. T3 [????] – 0. Good luck having anyone get this. They would have to be a master healer, necromancer, buffer, debuffer, and summoner. Yeah, not sure even I will have the time to pull it off.

"-so, the primary concern is with your own safety," the lecturer stressed.

"While a [Warrior] may be capable of going out and fighting any number of dark wolves, a few at a time, of course, the average mage cannot. It takes concentration and practiced spellwork to cast under pressure and- Yawn. I thought. I also thought the lecturer was making [Warrior] sound much easier than it actually was, but it wasn't like I would correct him. I moved on. At least the next section was less depressing than the previous one.

T1 [Deprendio] – [Identify], [Scry], [Appraise], and other goodies about detecting things. 5. Oh, it looks like I finally soft-capped it. T1 [Obscurio] – Illusion magic and magic designed to stop [Deprendio] magic. All the years as a [Stage Magician] really paid off. 5. T2 [????] – I'll have to check an obelisk. I should finally be able to buy this one. 0 T1 [Communicatio] – [Message] and other communication-type spells. 5. All the delayed messaging must have paid off. T1 [????] - What the heck is the opposite of communication? Silence? No one seems to know. I have a sneaking suspicion that Gram's top-secret government ops have figured something out on this one, but good luck finding out from them. 0 T2 [????] – 0. No clue on the combo. T2. 5 [????] – I struggle to think what kind of combo this could be. Earth + Air + Fire + Water = Explosion. Life + Death + Buff + Debuff = Creation/Summoning. Electricity + Magnetism + Space + Time = Gravity. So… This could be anything. Wait.

The fey have some type of magic that charms people, which doesn't seem like it would fit anywhere else. So… emotion magic? Or something? 0 T3 [????] – Honestly, I think I have a shot at this one. I have 3 of the T1s softcapped already, so this could be doable… if I have enough skill points and can figure out what the 4 th T1 is and what spells fall under it.

"What about fighting captured monsters?" the student continued asking questions.

"That runs into similar drawbacks. Fighting something that is unable to fight back leads to-" Easier kill, less XP. Yada yada. I thought and continued my listing. And finally, the magic schools that may as well have just been for me. The "forbidden" ones, whose drawbacks I mostly just ignored. T1 [Electricus] – Electricity and lightning bolts. Definitely my favorite damage school, even if it hurts me to cast it. 5. I can't believe I never got around to upping its cap, but I guess I was preoccupied.

T1 [Magnetismus] – Magnetism, but not lame earth magnetism, according to Tim. Can attract anything if I make the right spell. 0. Never got around to making a second spell with it. Even though I messed around with it quite a bit trying to make [Teleport Beacon]. T2 [ElectroMagnus] – The combo. 0 T1 [Temporus] – Time magic. From a level point, my main spell school. If only it wasn't so expensive to use, and if it could be used more offensively… 10. T1 [Spatius] – Teleporting and pocket dimensions. 7.

I Think I'm capped on my talent on that one, which is too bad. Even so, this school has been good to me. I would be dead many times over without [Blink], and I don't miss the traveling I did before [Teleport]. T2 [SpatialTemporus] – The spell school where I discovered you can get the combo higher than an individual part. 8. Probably capped out on that one now, too, if all my studies and pocket dimension creations haven't budged it. T2.

5 [Gravitus] – Haven't unlocked it yet, though I have used it a decent amount with [Invert Gravity] and even to set some guiderails for the [Restart] ritual. 0 T3 [Impermissus] – The catchall for all of the "forbidden" magic. This one is definitely doable. Just have to get gravity, magentism, and [ElectroMagnus] under control. I concluded my list… Just as the lecturer was finishing off answering questions.

"-in conclusion, that means that the following things impact the growth rate of magic skills. The mana used-" Duh.

"-the difficulty of the cast, with the creation of new spells also vastly increasing skill growth-" Who wouldn't realize that?

"-and significance of the applied effect, determined partially by the number of targets and their levels." My internal mocking stopped. Wait. What?

"We also know, due to some studies that tracked the growth rate of Gram's mage corps, that fighting against monsters is only the second best source of experience," the lecturer took on a stern tone.

"However, a battlefield between the nations is not a place you should endeavor to be. It is a place that forges high levels, but the risks are far greater. You're much more likely to survive and, therefore, reach a higher level if you do not risk yourself in such a foolhardy and unnecessary way." He moved back to the lecture after that, the tangent finally complete. But I didn't hear any of the rest of the class. Based on the targets… Frick! Why didn't I realize that? I asked myself.

Is the reason I missed that because I seriously didn't think gamey enough? I groaned. Okay, maybe class was worth coming to after all. I grudgingly admitted only to myself. There was no way I would tell the blowhard up in front that… especially since I took entirely the wrong point from his lectures.

I had made my plans, and the day of my 15 th birthday was approaching. I confirmed that the Bestians still did the coming of age ceremony at 15 for anyone who wanted it, and I had planned to travel there as soon as my birthday hit. Without thinking much about it, I let those plans slip to Miss Silvyr, and she got a thoughtful look on her face. I didn't think much of it, even when she asked me to wait a few days before I headed out after I turned 15.

I was in a time crunch, but a few days wouldn't be too big of an impact. Her surprise was that she brought the ceremony to me. Some of the Bestians on a trading trip stopped by and did the ceremony, and Trevor supposedly became Trevor Smith. … Which meant my fake identity took my last name from Sarah, who took it from Jake. It was a weird feeling realizing that I knew those two personally when they had been elevated to near-mythical status.

Either way, I was touched by the care Miss Silvyr showed for me as I left, and I couldn't help but feel the knife twist as she told me that I was destined for great things. If only you knew. I thought as I waved goodbye to the orphanage for the last time. I made it out of sight, strapped my armor back on, and then prepared to kick my plans into high gear. First, get levels. Second, make perk points useful. And then third… I nodded grimly. War.