—Oh, little Ars. I did not think you would wet the bed.

I opened my eyes, disoriented. I found myself back in my room, surrounded by familiar walls and furniture I knew so well. It had been just a dream, a vivid nightmare that I could still feel the cold sweat stuck to my skin.

My mother looked at me with a mixture of tenderness and amusement, as if I had fallen asleep and wet the bed without realizing it. The dream had been much more chilling than I thought, but at least my clothes were clean and dry. My mother must have changed them while I slept.

«Damn, I was scolded for wetting the bed. Although, well, I'm still a baby, right? I suppose wetting the bed is still forgivable at this age», I thought to myself.

A reflection appeared before my eyes that seemed like an angel's. It was the image of a baby with slightly disheveled white hair, intense sapphire-colored eyes, and a face with soft, healthy skin.

—So that's me —I mumbled to myself.

I had found an old hand mirror on a tool shelf in Atlas's office. Eager to have the opportunity to observe my own appearance, I approached and grabbed it with both hands. I found myself cuter than I expected.

After thinking about it a bit more, it probably shouldn't have been so surprising that I was more adorable than most people. After all, I was just a small child.

All human beings are infinitely cuter during their childhood years. Even the most rugged and bearded-looking men were once adorable little creatures, as could be verified by looking at their childhood photo albums.

—Yes... —I softly returned the mirror to its place.

I clenched my small hand and then opened it. I closed it again and reopened it. It was a tiny, soft, and chubby hand. My hand.

Two years had passed since I arrived in this world. It hadn't taken me long to learn to walk, and I could even speak, though with some difficulty. I had spent the last year constantly practicing how to stand and take steps, as well as learning new words and their pronunciations by talking with Adelaide and the other members of the house.

However, I still fell on my face occasionally. Probably because my head was disproportionately large compared to my tiny body. It could also have something to do with the fact that my field of vision, sense of balance, and muscles were still in the process of developing.

As an additional complaint, I still had a pretty low pain threshold. As expected, I cried every time I fell. But I was progressing, little by little. Perhaps it was the normal progress that could be expected of any child my age, but the advancement was undeniable nonetheless.

At the very least, I had overcome the crawling and crying phase to become someone who could have attended kindergarten or daycare. Therefore, I thought it was time to try my luck with the next challenge: learning magic.

With determination, I picked up the book I had secretly taken from the library. I sat on the floor and carefully opened it, my tiny hands barely managing to hold the heavy tome.

The book's title read: "Encyclopedia for Ascendants".

My eyes eagerly scanned the pages, absorbing every word like a sponge:

"While the power to manifest stellar energy is largely genetic, there are many cases where the children of Ascendants cannot feel the energy residing within them. Those without talent for ascending are destined to remain as servants, the lowest level of society, who can be trampled and manipulated, but those with talent can become 'Ascendants', going beyond the ordinary".

"Stellar energy is born from intense emotions that naturally flow through the body that all living beings emit".

"Turn".

"Ascendants control the flow of their stellar energy and accumulate this energy, allowing them to use it at will to greatly reduce the energy leakage from their bodies. This also involves controlling their emotions. Stellar energy itself is not easy to use. It is volatile, sporadic, and dangerous when not controlled, and is not visible to the human eye without special abilities".

"Similarly, stellar energy carries with it the desires and emotions of people, so it is often heavily influenced by mental and emotional states". 

"Turn"

"Pollutants are born from the blood and fluids of dead beings".

"Contaminants have a single objective: to feed. They need energy, which they use to continue growing and evolving. Their evolution has no limits, as long as they have sufficient energy".

I felt my head spinning with so much information. But I did not stop, eager to learn more about this fascinating world in which I had been reborn:

I see, there was much to learn, I should study more.

With that thought, I closed the encyclopedia and settled more comfortably on the floor.

Reflecting on what I had just read, this world seemed quite underdeveloped compared to the one I remembered from my previous life.

From what I could infer, there did not seem to be many technological advances. The only means of transportation seemed to be horse-drawn carriages, which varied in size for land use, and sailboats for rivers.

Carrying weapons was freely allowed and not really regulated, unless one visited the royal family or people with authority. Carrying weapons was something common and accepted in society, as long as one did not come into contact with royalty or figures of power.

In this world, several mysterious forces existed, and Ascendants could be classified into various main professions: Knight, Mage, Explorer, Warrior, Archer, Assassin, Sorcerer, and Healer.

There were more, like "advanced professions", but these were the least common. Those with whom commoners had more experience were Warriors. Warriors were Ascendants who had undergone rigorous training and had awakened their latent abilities. Their physical attributes far exceeded those of a normal human.

These Warriors not only possessed physical attributes several times superior to normal humans but were also experts in the use of various weapons and combat arts. The kingdoms of the common world, along with the nobility, were generally formed by Warriors who had reached a certain level of power and prestige.

I got lost in my thoughts, imagining what it would be like to become one of those powerful Warriors or perhaps even a Mage capable of controlling the mysterious forces of this new world. My small hands closed into fists, determined to discover my own potential and place in this society so different from the one I had known in my previous life. The sound of approaching footsteps brought me out of my musings.

The office door opened with a soft creak, revealing Adelaide's figure.

—Ars, you're in the office —she said with a sweet voice—. You should be sleeping, dear.

Adelaide approached me and lifted me tenderly in her arms, leaving the great encyclopedia of knowledge right where it was, out of my reach.

—I don't think it's normal for children to read encyclopedias, you know? —she added, tickling me while laughing at my expressions of surprise and giggles.

«I suppose learning about the world can take some time» I thought while Adelaide carried me back to my room.

I had managed to absorb a good amount of information before Adelaide and I began our intense game of cat and mouse. While laughing and running around the room, dodging Adelaide's playful hands, I continued reviewing the information I had read in the encyclopedia. The Ascendants, stellar energy, contaminants... everything seemed so fascinating and dangerous at the same time.