Chapter 6

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“Aboo!” I vigorously flailed my hands in the air, reaching for nothing in particular. I felt like there was something I should be doing, but I couldn’t quite remember what it was.

“She’s been rather quiet recently. Finally…” the maid said.

Maids had been in and out, always muttering about something, but I couldn’t really understand what was going on.

Feeling bored, I put my thumb in my mouth. Whenever I suck on my thumb, my mind seems a little clearer.

“Ah-boo! Bwah.”

“Ugh, could you get any noisier? Keep it down.” The maid thrust something into my mouth. I absentmindedly sucked on the object as I wiggled my arms and legs in the air, gurgling with delight.

All of a sudden, I snapped back to reality. Memories of who knows how long flashed through my mind. Giggling stupidly even when scolded, flapping my chubby limbs in the air for no reason, and so on…

The pacifier. I needed to keep it in my mouth at any cost. Without it, time would just pass meaninglessly. How long has it been now? My mind refused to function properly if I wasn’t sucking on the pacifier.

I don’t have time to play around like this. I needed to practice my magic, gather as much information as possible, and then return to Sylopia to seek revenge and live out a full life in my new youthful body.

“You may be just a half-blood, but you’re still part of a noble family. Must be nice to have your needs covered without having to lift a finger,” the maid grumbled.

How would you like to be locked up in this filthy prison of a room? Even a pig being fattened up in a pigpen gets more than this! What was worse, this nursery was in a completely remote part of the mansion. Last time, it took forever to find the stairs and get down!

I thought about crying, but all that came out was odd sounds: Waah, aboo, or maybe a boo-bwah if I was lucky. Eventually, I just gave up.

Today I have to get this pacifier clean, no matter what. It seemed that its filthiness was starting to affect its efficacy. My mind wasn’t functioning quite as well as it had before.

Just the smell of the thing was nauseating. How long has it been left to collect dust? It’s not moldy, is it?

A magically charged body naturally rid itself of impurities. Magicians therefore rarely got sick or suffered minor ailments. But if their magic was not properly controlled or surged recklessly, it could manifest as a serious illness.

I should be cautious too. If magic suddenly surged through a baby’s body, it could cause significant damage.

“I hope you keep your little mouth shut today. I guess I should be grateful that this week was more peaceful than usual,” said the maid.

“Aboo!” Feigning ignorance of her words, I waved my arms and legs in the air then froze.

A week? What nonsense is this? It was unexpected news. Have I really been acting like a brainless idiot for an entire week without my pacifier? Eating, sleeping, and… pooping? That’s all I did, just eat, sleep, and poop?!

As the maid left, the door closed with a clack. I desperately put the pacifier in my mouth and readied my pose. I had decided to dub this the “the mana flow position.” It was the most comfortable way to exert force while shifting my strength into my lower body. But it looks a little… Let’s not think about it.

My body floated into the air. It seemed like my magic was a little stiff after going a week without use. My body wasn’t moving as I wished.

Groaning, I managed to safely land on the marble floor. “Bwah…” Sighing while keeping the pacifier in my mouth resulted in a funny sound.

The next hurdle was the door. Unlike last time, it was securely closed. I would need precise magic control to open it.

First, I’ll magically lift myself. If I grab the door handle, I can pull it down with the force of gravity. Considering my current baby body, it was definitely easier said than done.

I glanced from side to side, then positioned myself flat on my back. I lifted my arms and legs into the air and bent them slightly. Closing my eyes, I pictured the door in my mind and sent my magic flowing toward it.

“Hngh!” I groaned loudly. Sweat trickled down my small face. My magic was crawling up the door like a worm, inch by inch. Almost got it…

“Ugh!” With that, the handle was pulled down. I heard the lock release with a click and my eyes snapped open.

Yes, I finally opened it! Indeed, not even becoming a baby could stop my greatness. I gave the pacifier a few good sucks as a reward for myself. As I did, my nervousness began to melt away.

With the pacifier still in my mouth, I poked my head through the opened door. There was no one in sight. Finding the stairs again would be easy, since I had already been there once before.

Last time, I chose to head for the fountain because the pond seemed too far, but it hadn’t gone so well. I’m not falling for it this time. I’ll go straight to the pond. Ponds were typically located near a garden, so it seemed best to look for a place with a lot of vegetation. I’m getting this disgusting thing clean this time around.

With determined eyes, I scrambled toward the stairs. Fortunately, no one appeared to be coming up to this floor.

I quickly stuck my butt and legs out and descended to the bottom of the steps. It was easier than I thought to go down the second time. Each time I went down a step, I held on to the upper step with both hands while feeling my way down to the lower step with my legs.

Going down backward seemed scary at first, but it was quite manageable. I carefully crawled down the steps one by one, and I was on the ground before I knew it. Just like last time, I scampered behind the pillar and cautiously looked around to avoid being caught by the maids.

I’m determined to clean this pacifier. The smell was unbearable. Sucking on it was supposed to help me think, but it was starting to make me feel dumber—not that it was a predicament anyone could understand.

Leaning against the pillar, I looked around the corridor. Of course, I was on all fours since I couldn’t stand upright with my wobbly legs. If only I could use magic, then none of this would be such a big hassle.

My magic… It had taken me ages to reach my previous level. How did I end up like this, as a baby…? If I had restarted as a six-year-old, I might understand. But why an infant, of all things?!

The hallway was silent. I quickly darted out the mansion door, which seemed to always be left open.

That way! This time, there was no hesitation. I couldn’t bear this filthy, dust-covered pacifier any longer.

As I crawled across the stone floor and reached the bushes outside the mansion, my arms and legs ached. Ow… I’d heard that babies shouldn’t crawl on hard surfaces. I couldn’t understand how they felt until now, though. I really got the short end of the stick being born into a noble family as a half-blood.

The pain in my knees and palms gradually eased as I crawled onto the soft soil and grass outside. Unfortunately, the grass then started to sting.

Don’t worry. You’ll become the world’s strongest magician. I just needed to make the Klaunes and the Hayren empire kneel before me. Even if I was stuck in this body, it was all a matter of course.

I felt my confidence rising to snobbish heights. Actually, maybe I’m still being too humble.

I proudly patted my cheek with my dirty hand and then quickly slipped into the brush to hide, just in case someone was out and about to notice me. Although there weren’t many people around during the day, there might be the occasional passerby. Right now, however, there were no signs of anyone on the path leading to the garden.

Maybe I should make this my hideout and pacifier-cleaning spot. It was quiet and secluded, which was perfect.

Now that my knees hurt less, I crawled faster into the bushes. As I made my way through, I saw a clearing and a pond. It was like the garden of a grand castle, with flowers blooming everywhere.

I found it! Finally, there was water within reach. I scrambled toward the bank of the pond, happy to finally be able to say goodbye to the smelly and dusty pacifier.

A dragonfly buzzed past my face. I could swear it scoffed at me. I must be hearing things. No matter how wild my baby imagination could get, there was no way I could talk to a dragonfly. Maybe I was feeling insecure about being extra sensitive and slow.

When did I become such a bundle of insecurity? My mind wandered in odd directions as I pondered it.

The dragonfly flitting above the pond definitely seemed to be taunting me. You little… I reached out and grabbed a small pebble, throwing it with all my might at the bug.

Plop!

It fell straight down. My toss couldn’t have been more pitiful.

I sat there in silence, still watching the dragonfly. Why does that buzzing bother me so much? I grabbed whatever was near me and flung each object into the pond one at a time.

Plop, plop, plop, plop!

“Argh!” I cried in frustration. Am I really this weak? I can’t even make a tiny bit of an arc!

Ultimately, I grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it in front of me. It flew into the pond, clouding the once-clear and pristine water and creating ripples. The dragonfly continued to flutter around, carefree.

Wait… What about a targeting spell? If I could compress the air and blow it toward that little pest, I could knock it out of the air. Unfortunately, my magic didn’t seem quite strong enough for that yet.

I stared at the dragonfly for a while, then sighed deeply.

Well, at least I’ve finally found water. At last, I could clean the pacifier.

With joy in my heart, I reached out, pacifier in hand. Almost there… Almost…