《Samuel's Tale》


 Prologue: Alone

    My Virtual Reality Headset (VRH) slowly flickered to life in front of me. Ecstatic, I quickly logged into Heroes and Magic, a small VRMMO only a handful of people played anymore. The reason so few actually played the game was obvious: it was old. Many newer and arguably better VRMMO¡¯s had been released over the last 10 years, but I could never bear with giving up on Heroes and Magic. I had too many memories with it.


    My character in the game was a powerful warlock. Master of all elemental magics, and even possessing several unique magics too, my character Samuel Omlin was the epitome of artillery fire. During the game¡¯s heyday, I was known as ¡°One Man Army¡± due to my overwhelming area of effect magics.


    Samuel¡¯s magic wasn¡¯t his only high point, either. His avatar was meticulously crafted. Old but not hunched, possessing a powerful physique and a beard unrivaled in all the land, you could say his visage was synonymous with the word ¡®Wizard¡¯. I had spent countless hours using avatar editors to make him as perfect as possible...


    And now I was going to have to say my goodbyes to Samuel. Heroes and Magic was officially closing their server tonight. My old guildmates and I agreed to get together for one final mission. In all the years playing, no group had ever cleared the final boss of the game. The Demon King, a 50 foot tall giant filled with enormous magical powers, had stood undefeated for 10 years. The reason was simple: only groups up to 20 players could enter his chamber at a time. Usually, by throwing enough people at a problem, it could be solved¡­ But Solomon Therin, the Demon Lord, was not such an easy foe. It was also worth noting that death in the game came with extremely severe consequences. Players would lose upwards of 10 levels, or about 150 hours of gameplay at the higher ends.


    It had never been worth it to try and kill the Demon King. It had never even been feasible¡­


    Until today. Before the final chambers we stood, a solemn 20. We no longer had anything to lose. With the game officially closing in 10 hours, we pulled out all the stops. We brought all of our strongest weapons and gear, even our paid items. We brave few stood on the edge of oblivion and laughed. This was our last adventure together. This was our last fight.


    We charged into the room screaming ¡°Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeroy Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenkins,¡± as per tradition.


    The battle was insane. One by one we began to perish. I had to stop casting offensive magic and resorted to healing spells once our White Mage Tarissa was hit with a stray fireball. The fight was going poorly. We had expected as much.


    We were being beaten, but the fire in our bellies couldn¡¯t be quenched by such a paltry ending. A rallying call cried out from Tyrion, our leader, and we cried out with him. I switched from healing and began unleashing every last drop of mana I possessed into single target nuke spells.


    ¡°For Elderon!¡± I bellowed as I unleashed my greatest and most powerful spell. It was a hidden class spell I had uncovered and never once revealed. It was the highest tier of magic. There was no wasted energy from the manipulation of elements. A raw sphere of pure magical power gathered at the end of my staff. The entire room began to shake from the sheer force of the cast.


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    The chant for the spell was long, but my allies were able to protect me while I channeled. After nearly 20 seconds I unleashed my attack. The sphere exploded outwards in a beam of raw mana, concentrated thousands of times over. The blast struck the Demon King dead center. His health bar dropped by nearly half. Cheers rang out. We knew then that we could win.


    The battle raged on towards its conclusion. Our Guild Leader, Tyrion, was the one to land the finishing blow. He used our Guild¡¯s greatest treasure, The Scroll of the Ancient King, a one time use item we had uncovered years ago and stored for only the grandest of emergencies. With the game ending, we decided there was no point to not use it. No one in all of Heroes and Magic had ever seen this legendary scroll used, for it was a unique one of a kind item. We lucky few, recording our game and streaming it on several sites across the world, were giving a show. From my private messages I was told over 3,000,000 people were watching the battle.


    With the Demon King defeated, the voice of the world resounded through all of Elderon announcing our victory.


    We rejoiced and, together, we partied late into the night. We all thought this wasn¡¯t a bad way to end the legacy of our guild: The Ancients. In fact, this wasn¡¯t a bad way to end our time with Heroes and Magic at all.


    The countdown timer to the game¡¯s deactivation began ticking in the corner of our screens. We came together, shedding tears, and promised to meet again in a new game¡­ But we all knew it wouldn¡¯t work out. We were splitting up for good here. These friendships we had forged over the last ten years were finally going to come to an end.


    ¡°Goodbye, my friends,¡± I whispered softly as the world went dark and I woke up again in the real world. I removed my VR helmet and wiped the tears from my eyes.


    I wheeled myself to the window and looked out upon the city below. The lights spread out below resembled fireflies in the dark.  I couldn¡¯t hold my sobs in anymore. It was really over. They were really gone.


    I opened the window; the wind was howling. My tears wouldn¡¯t stop as I looked out on the city beyond. I screamed aloud, letting my voice echo off the distant skyscrapers.


    I had no family. I had no friends outside of Heroes and Magic. I had nothing but my ratty apartment and an outdated VR headset.


    Perhaps, in my next life, I would be given better circumstances.


    With the last of my strength, I climbed over the edge of the railing. The wind rushed past me and whipped my hair around.


    While I fell, I immediately started to regret my decision¡­ But it was too late. Everything went black.


    There was no more pain. There was nothing. My mind started to ache in that void.


    Then I heard a sound. A soft Bump Bump. It was a heartbeat. A light appeared ahead of me in that black void. Voices filled my ears, but I couldn¡¯t understand their language.


    Then the light grew huge. It became blinding and everything turned to white. After several seconds my eyes adjusted and I was being held in the air by a woman in rough midwife clothing.


    Just like that, I had been reborn.

 Chapter 1: Early Years

    I adjusted to my new life rather quickly. After all, I was but a baby. When I was hungry I would cry. When I relieved myself I would cry. When someone did something I didn¡¯t like I would cry. All in all, it was a rather simple life now. I didn¡¯t mind it though, for I had something I¡¯d only experienced within game worlds before: working legs. It took me a while, but eventually I could even wiggle my toes! I wasn¡¯t born crippled!


    I don¡¯t know why, but I was able to learn the language of this world absurdly fast. Perhaps it was due to the malleable mind of an infant. I could only look at it favorably. My name now was Samuel Telven. I had apparently been named after some legendary wizard who lived a hundred years ago.


    At first I thought it was just a mere coincidence that Samuel¡¯s name as a famous wizard came up, but I soon learned different rather quick. My new parents, my first family in a long time, told me stories often to try and coerce me to sleep. Within those stories I quickly identified numerous adventures my old Guild and I had gone on.


    It was a strange thought, but I came to accept it in time. I had been reborn into the world of Heroes and Magic, the VRMMO. This, again, wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I tried, no such thing as a status screen popped up for me. While this may be the same world, it seems to have lost some of the conveniences of the game days.


    Time passed agonizingly slowly for me. Being too young to do much was an awful detriment. Perhaps, if I ever am given the chance to reincarnate again, I¡¯d ask to not regain my memories until I was about five years old. Still, there wasn¡¯t much I could do about it. I could only suffer in silence.


    My new home was a small farming village on the Southern end of the Elderon Continent. My father worked the fields and my mother sewed hemp for the village. Together they didn¡¯t have much time for me so the midwife was the one who essentially took care of my day to day needs. I was ¡®weaned¡¯ rather early and took to the offered bottles without trouble. The eagerness, it seems, surprised the midwife Matilda. While I was a mostly healthy male adult in my past life, I had no interest in an ancient woman¡¯s teat. It would have been much better if the midwife wasn¡¯t in her 40¡¯s. I could even settle for a 30 year old, but 40 was just too much for me to bear.


    Around after a year I had begun walking on my own. I was watched constantly and wasn¡¯t allowed to explore much, though. That didn¡¯t stop me from trying.


    I began talking around 14 months or so. I never used complex words or sentences. I just stuck to simple words like ¡°Hungry¡± or ¡°Sleepy¡±. Being able to communicate aided in the comfort levels severely. I no longer had a reason to cry either, so I stopped with that nonsense. All in all, I was a rather normal healthy baby.


    The only times I would see my parents were dinner and bedtime. They both worked long days. My mother was blond haired and beautiful. She looked to be in her late twenties but she had an honest face and blue eyes. My father was vastly different from her. He was short, standing at only about 5¡¯ 5¡¯¡¯, but he was stout and strong. His hair was black and his skin was darkly tanned. He was an honest man and a hard worker, and he was incredibly proud of having a son. He would often talk to me in spare moments about how I inherited his dad¡¯s features among other things. He was exceedingly gentle as well. He wasn¡¯t like most fathers who¡¯d throw their children as high as they could. Instead he was careful around me, as if he were afraid to hurt me.


    It turns out the reason he was always so gentle with me was due to his own strength. My father was so starkly different looking from the rest of the villagers I had seen because his ancestry carried mixed blood. He was one quarter beastman. Thankfully there was no such thing as discrimination here. In Farfield Village, the only measures of a man were how hard he worked and the honesty of his tongue.


    On my second birthday, my family packed a carriage and prepared for a trip. I was old enough to ask ¡°Where going?¡± without arousing suspicion. It seemed even Matilda was coming with us.


    ¡°Little Sammy, it¡¯s your second birthday. We¡¯re taking you to Caltross City to have your aptitudes measured. It¡¯s something every child must have done when they turn two!¡± Replied my father as he rubbed my hair. ¡°It¡¯s also a good excuse for your mother and I to take a few days off work. After all, we never did get to enjoy a honeymoon~¡±


    I wanted to gag as he made googoo eyes with mom. Though I was also excited. I had been wondering how I would live this new life in this new world. While I would have been fine becoming a farmer or tailor like my parents, inwardly I held a hope that my status would reflect a more adventurous occupation. This was the world of Heroes and Magic, after all. It would be a downright shame if I couldn¡¯t enjoy it to its fullest¡­ Though I¡¯d still be happy. Whatever God or Gods there are, they have given me a new life and a new family. They had answered my greatest wish, and so if I was destined to be nothing more than a farmer, I was fine with that. A farmer¡¯s life wasn¡¯t that bad either.


    This world wasn¡¯t much different from the VRMMO that I knew. All the events in Heroes and Magic happened here 100 years in the past. With the Demon King defeated, most of the heroes and magicians of the world vanished. It is assumed that, with their purpose done, they returned from whence they were summoned. It was strange to think about, but also a bit invigorating. My friends and I hadn¡¯t just beaten a video game, we had saved a very real world. We had become true heroes without even knowing it.


    The trip to Caltross City only took a few days. It seems Farfield Village wasn¡¯t all that far from the rest of civilization after all. Caltross, however, was a place I recognized. In the game days it was called Albatross City. It was renowned for its large gray colored ramparts and massive reservoir nearby. There was a rumor during the game days that a massive sea monster lived in the reservoir¡¯s depths. I spent three days diving in that lake searching to no avail. I even invented water breathing spells just to do it.


    My family checked into a small Inn just outside the city walls. It was apparently much cheaper than staying inside the city. Plus this inn had the best horse stable, according to my father. He really did care for our old horse Sheila. I never much cared for the beast, though. She once bit my hand hard enough to draw blood when I was feeding her a carrot. Stupid horse. In my last life I thought they were majestic creatures, but now I knew the truth. They were just as smelly and mean as any other animal.


    In the end, I could only really get along with cats. They understood. They ignored me and I ignored them. It was truly the best relationship to have with any animal. Though I do think some goofy dogs are cute, I still think they¡¯re too much work. I couldn¡¯t handle having to raise one. I just don¡¯t have that kind of energy. Not to mention I¡¯ve never been able to take one for a walk in my past life¡­ Perhaps my opinion of dogs will change now that I can actually play with them? I¡¯ll leave that up for the future.


    Because it was late when we arrived, we stayed the night in the Inn. My parents stayed in a separate room while I slept in a room with the Midwife Matilda. In my heart I thanked the carpenters who built this inn for the walls were very thick, and not a sound leaked in. I was able to sleep comfortably.


    We left in the late morning the next day and crossed the city gates after a quick inspection from a guard. He was wearing leather armor, but not a lot of it. Despite the lack of thick armor, he still looked exhausted in the nearly noon heat.


    My mother took the midwife and went shopping. My father picked me up and put me on his shoulders. He wasn¡¯t very tall, so I didn¡¯t exactly get a great view of the city as we walked¡­ But I¡¯d never tell him that. This was the first time I¡¯d ever ridden on someone''s shoulders and it was rather enjoyable, to say the least.


    Together, dad and I made our way to a large castle near the center of the town. This was Caltross City¡¯s biggest attraction: The Heaven¡¯s Academy. A boarding school for nobles and the gifted. It was also the only location for 100 miles with a ¡°status stone¡±.


    My father walked through the winding halls as if he¡¯d traveled this way hundreds of times before. Eventually we found a small line of other children who, like me, appeared to be only two years of age. Each of them was accompanied by their fathers as well, though a few were accompanied by servants instead.


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    A kind man wearing thick blue-gray robes took the children and their guardians in the room one by one. The groups would then leave and he¡¯d take the next group in.


    The line quickly faded down until it was our turn. My father and I walked into the room and he handed the robed man a card. I quickly realized that the card was actually my citizenship record: my birth certificate.


    The inside of the room resembled a doctor¡¯s office from my previous life. There was a large stone bed in the middle surrounded by gadgets and other paraphernalia. Dad lifted me up and placed me on the bed while the robed man walked over with several objects in hand. One of which was a needle. Thankfully in my past life I had been subjected to enough blood tests to not scare at the sight or pain of the needle.


    ¡°Wow, he¡¯s a tough one isn¡¯t he. He didn¡¯t even flinch when we drew blood.¡± Remarked the gray robed man. Now that he was so close I was able to get a better look at him. His nose was a bit crooked and he looked to be in his 40¡¯s. His hair was a faded brown and the backs of his hands were covered in hair. Despite all that he had a rather gentle air about him. He seemed to be very kind.


    After administering several tests, the young man finally brought out the ¡°Status Stone¡±. It was a small rock, resembling a magic eight ball from my past life.


    The robed man then began to glow blue. I could tell immediately it was magical energy. The same appearance, the blue glow, existed in the game days too.


    ¡°Blue!¡± I couldn¡¯t help but remarking. At that, the gray robed man stopped what he was doing with a look of shock on his face.


    ¡°This child, can he see my magical energy?¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Asked my father.


    ¡°Little one, what did you see just now?¡± Asked the robed man as he looked at me.


    ¡°Glowing blue.¡± I replied, doing my best to keep my speech segmented like a child¡¯s even now.


    ¡°Mr. Telven, I think your child can see my mana aura.¡±


    ¡°Is that a good thing?¡± Asked my father in a nervous voice. It was strange hearing him speak without confidence.


    ¡°A good thing? That¡¯s a fantastic thing! It means his magical talent is, most likely, absurdly high. Come, let¡¯s use the status stone and see.¡±


    The magic eight ball was pressed into my hands and the robed man started glowing again. Then, all at once, I felt it. The feeling of magic power bubbled up within me. It was the same as during the game. It was that same tingling sensation from the pit of your stomach. My magical power had finally been awakened.


    I immediately circulated the little magic power through my body and the eight ball went crazy.


    ¡°Your son¡¯s status records him possessing the class of mage, wizard, and elementalist! His magical power is already at eight Degrees! Mr Telven, you must immediately enroll him in our academy. In fact, if you¡¯re willing, sell him to me and I¡¯ll raise him here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not selling my son!¡± My dad objected loudly.


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m terribly sorry. I got a bit carried away,¡± replied the robed man as he took the eight ball from me and set it on a desk nearby. ¡°Let me rephrase that. Let me sponsor your son here at our academy. He has almost matched a level 1 mage in power at the age of two. Your small village doesn¡¯t have the resources necessary to bring out his latent talents, but here at Heaven¡¯s Academy we can easily train him and raise him to be an excellent mage.¡±


    ¡°Are his magical prospects really that good?¡± Asked my father.


    ¡°Yes. Exceedingly so. If I had to give an estimation for it, he¡¯d be in the top 1% of children his age easily. I¡¯ve only ever seen one surpass him in my lifetime, and that child went on to become an S rank adventurer by the age of sixteen.¡±


    The two continued their conversation for a while, and I used that time to ponder on what was happening. My magic, something I had been trying to reach for the last two years, had suddenly ignited within me. I could feel it. It was a terribly small pool compared to my time as a legendary wizard in the game world, but I knew magical power could grow through continual use. I continued to circulate the mana in my body. The feeling was like a euphoric rush to me. It was something I had been longing for while trapped in that small body for a long time.


    ¡°Come come, we must go meet the Headmaster Salza. She will want to see this for herself.¡±


    It seems the conversation between my father and the robed man, whose name I still hadn¡¯t learned yet, finished. My dad didn¡¯t look overly convinced, but at the prospect of meeting the Headmaster a veil of sweat formed on his brow. This was the first time I¡¯d ever seen him nervous before. He hefted me onto his shoulders as we walked, in order to keep pace with the robed man who was nearly running in front of us.


    It took about ten minutes traversing the massive castle-like campus before we arrived at the Headmaster¡¯s office. Along the way we passed several hundred blue robed youngsters and a few gray robed elders. It seems the uniform for the school was rather simple, but that wasn¡¯t a bad thing.


    We were led into the Headmaster¡¯s office. The room was rather robust and filled with bookshelves. Two huge arching windows were on the far end, letting an abundance of light in. Sitting behind a large mahogany desk in the center of the room was a white haired elderly woman.


    ¡°This had better be good, Bruce,¡± snapped the woman as she put down the ledger she was writing in.


    ¡°It is Ma¡¯am. This child here has been tested by the status stone and has three classes: Mage, wizard, and elementalist already. Not to mention his magical power is at 8 Degrees and he can see mana auras.¡± Replied the robed man who I now knew was named Bruce.


    The old woman took her glasses off her face for a moment and rubbed them on her shirt. She seemed to be in shock at what was reported.


    ¡°There must be come kind of mistake with the stone,¡± replied the Headmaster. ¡°This level of statistics and such, we¡¯d surely have heard of any child born with these kinds of gifts from the soothsayers.¡±


    ¡°Test him yourself, Ma¡¯am. He clearly saw my magical aura earlier. Even now I can feel him circulating his magical power. If you were to try, I¡¯m certain you could even have him demonstrate up to a rank 2 spell immediately,¡± said Bruce.


    ¡°Child, come here.¡± Called the old woman. I complied with her demands. She picked me up from my armpits and set me on her desk, letting my legs swing over the side. Despite how she looked, her hands were filled with an incredible strength. This woman was high leveled¡­ Well, assuming levels even exist. Perhaps they were just a construct for the players in the old game. I surely didn¡¯t remember any NPC speaking about levels during my time exploring.


    The Headmaster placed her hand on my forehead for a moment and I felt her magic power begin to penetrate me. Then she started chanting a spell¡­


    This was where things truly took a strange turn. Her chant wasn¡¯t in some strange ancient language, it was in English. It was entirely in English.


    ¡°Oh spirits that be, grant me the power to see this child¡¯s STATUS!¡± Cried the woman.


    It was a chant I recognized. It was a chant from the game era¡­ This meant¡­ That the chants would undoubtedly be the same as from the game era to now! That meant my entire library of memorized spells could be used!


    ¡°Goodness, this child is the genuine article!¡± Cried the old woman as she looked down at me with a smile. Then she pointed to my father. ¡°You, your child will be staying here at our academy from now on. We will be giving him a full scholarship. Be proud. We will also be sending a stipend to you and your wife every month to use to come visit him.¡±


    My father had a look of bewilderment on his face. He clearly didn¡¯t know what to do or say. Eventually he gave a small bow and replied, ¡°Thank you, Ma¡¯am.¡±


    Just like that, I had become a student at a prestigious magic academy.

 Chapter 2: Growth

    My father was antsy about having me stay at the Academy, but my mother was completely gung ho about it. She was ecstatic.


    ¡°Our son is going to be a mage!¡± She cried out from time to time. I was a bit taken aback by her actions, but they weren¡¯t completely unjustified. It seems, since the Great Disappearance, mages and powerful warriors have become rather uncommon. Most of the general populace were regular humans and few, if that, ever went beyond city or town walls.


    They attributed adventuring and magic with a certain romance. It could be called human nature, I guess. We naturally desired power and a better life for our children. My new mother was no different.


    I was a bit excited as well, to be honest. With my magic power awakened, I could finally begin training and using spells again. With my vast knowledge, I could eventually regain the same level as my game character had. Perhaps I could even rebuild my old guild, make new friends, and go on adventures too.


    I¡¯d definitely need to be more careful than during my game days, though. I highly doubt I¡¯ll get any revives if I die¡­ Though, since I¡¯ve been reincarnated once, it seems like death really isn¡¯t the end anyways. I genuinely wonder why I was able to keep my memories.


    My parents and Matilda left Caltross the next day, entrusting their two year old son to the Academy. I¡¯d be lying if I said I didn¡¯t cry at our parting. After so long, I finally had a family¡­ And now I had to give them up. Well, at least they promised to visit once a month.


    And so my training began¡­


    At only two years old I wasn¡¯t quite old enough to join the regular Academy, where the kindergarten class only joined together at 6 years of age, instead I was forced into the preschool level course which consisted of daily exercises, learning letters and speech, among other things. There was plenty of playtime as well, but I wasn¡¯t exactly attracted to playing make believe with other children. My body may be young, but I still had my dignity.


    Perhaps the most valuable things I learned in these preschool years were the meditation techniques. Back in the game of Heroes and Magic, meditation techniques didn¡¯t exist because players only needed to level up off monsters to increase their magic power and levels¡­ Here, in reality, there was no such thing as leveling up. Instead there was only the culmination of training, study, and experience. Basically, there was no way to Power Level. While this was unfortunate, it didn¡¯t limit me much. It seems, due to my talent being discovered young, my foundations were going to be rather strong. Not to mention my knowledge of an insane number of spells, including ones even my teachers and the Headmaster had never even heard of before, would give me a great edge over the competition.


    My body continued to grow as I aged and I focused on studying and meditating. My parents kept their promise and came every month to visit. The Headmaster herself would greet them like they were special guests and even have a campuswide dinner in their honor.


    My magic power continued to grow as years passed. At three I was equivalent to a second rank mage. By age five I could match most rank 6 magus. When I was finally old enough to enter the Kindergarten class at six years, I had more magical power than most of the professors in the Academy.


    I was treated like a celebrity wherever I went, and people would point or stare as I walked past. I was allowed to skip several grades¡­


    Despite all of this, I was never very happy. Being considered such a ¡®talent¡¯, my life was horribly lonely. None of the other students would get near me, for fear of my status or other such.


    If I didn¡¯t have the mental fortitude of an adult, I¡¯d have probably broken down by now. Instead of sulking, I absorbed myself in the study of magics. I became a hermit and a truant, since most of the classes were beneath me. I¡¯d only attend to pass the exams and then leave. The professors never said a word against me, either. They¡¯d try to ramp up the difficulty on my exams as much as possible to ¡°teach me a lesson¡± about my confidence, but even their hardest problems were solved simply by my experience and understandings.


    I was on pace to graduate the Academy by my tenth birthday, and my magic power continued to rise higher and higher.


    Perhaps the greatest of my ¡°studies¡± was learning that all spell chants in this world were simple phrases in English. I could speak English fluently due to my past life, but even the foremost researchers in the field knew a few words of it in this world. This gave me unparalleled understanding of spells and their framework.


    Eventually I learned that by modifying spell chants with other english words, I could change their effects too. Through this I could even invent my own. By chanting a phrase in english and applying magic power with your body, you could create spell effects I never even dreamed of back when I was playing a simple VRMMO.


    The first spells I invented were soundproofing, healing, and anti-poison incantations. I published my soundproofing spell as a thesis paper in the Academy, cementing myself as an unparalleled genius. Few, if any magicians had ever invented a spell before.


    I received invitations from massive clans, families, and organizations every day to join them. My fame had even reached as far as the Royal Capital, because I was invited to take part in a Magician¡¯s Expo there.


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    I declined everything. I was living my life only for two things: my family and researching magic. I became entranced by the possibilities of spells.


    Despite my hermit-like nature, I became outgoing and friendly every month when my mother and father would visit. Often they¡¯d bring along my new little sister and brother. My sister was born nine months after my very first enrollment at the Academy and my brother was born two years after her. They were adorable and I swore in my heart to protect them in the future.


    Finally, after years of study, my tenth birthday came along. I was officially graduating from Heaven¡¯s Academy with a perfect GPA. Though many professors had stood in my way before, every single one of them now acknowledged my strength.


    My graduation became a huge ceremony against my will. Standing on a stage in front of the thousand other students and several hundred important persons from the city, I was prompted to give a speech.


    It was at this moment, despite having a speech already written up, I had an idea. I remembered a famous scene from a book in my past life where a man, using a magic ring, disappeared in front of a grand Audience as a way to say goodbye.


    This world had no such thing as invisibility or teleportation spells, I had crafted some of my own but I was reluctant to test the teleportation one since a mistake could fuse my heart with a rock or something stupid¡­ But I knew my invisibility spell would work.


    So I gave a short speech. I ripped famous speeches I knew of from my past world, including ¡°I have a dream¡± and ¡°ask not what this school can do for you, but what you can do for this school¡±.


    It was going rather well, but then, as I finished my last line, I decided it was time to unleash my grand plan¡­ I was going to disappear!


    ¡°And so it is with great honor that I bid you farewell, Heaven¡¯s Academy.¡­ Great spirit of the Zephyr, hide me and all I own from view!¡±


    Immediately, I vanished from the stage. Well, I didn¡¯t really vanish. I just turned invisible. The crowd burst into an uproar and cries rang out. The professors looked bewildered¡­ The only person it seems I didn¡¯t fool was the old Headmaster. Her eyes followed my invisible form like a hawk. She was probably using a magic sensing spell. Still, overall it was a fun success. Or at least I thought so¡­


    I was slammed into a wall. ¡°Why!? Why would you pull something like that? Do you have any idea what kind of terror passed through the crowd when you chanted a spell they¡¯ve never even heard of and then vanished?! We almost had a riot! You stupid stupid child¡­ You incredibly smart stupid child.¡±


    The Headmaster¡¯s mouth was flinging spit and harsh words at me, but my incorrigible smile wouldn¡¯t fade.


    ¡°I just thought it¡¯d be fun,¡± I replied with a sheepish tone, trying to sound like I was owning up to my mistake. It was pretty obvious I¡¯d do it again, though.


    It seems the Headmaster finally began to calm down. She put one hand to her forehead and sat in her chair. ¡°You know, I sincerely want you to stay here and teach. What do you think?¡± asked the woman.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t particularly mind it,¡± I replied, ¡°but I desperately want to go out and see the world. I want to explore. I¡¯ve spent so long studying, reading, writing, and whatnot.¡±


    She took a deep breath and sighed. I thought I heard her mutter something about boys being boys under her breath. ¡°If you wish to become an adventurer, I can give you a letter of recommendation. I doubt any guild out there will believe you if you tell them your name without some kind of proof¡­ And please, at least talk to your parents first. You may be as strong as a rank 10 magus, but there are others out there much stronger than you. Not to mention the fact that you¡¯ve never been in a real fight before. Your future is bright as a researcher. I don¡¯t know how you do it, but you seem to be able to make new spells intuitively. Imagine if you marketed scrolls with the spells on them! You¡¯d be the richest man in the entire Elderon Continent within a year.¡±


    I took the recommendation letter and left the Headmaster¡¯s office for the last time. I quietly made my way to my dormitory room where my parents were both waiting. They had hoped, now that I graduated, I would be coming home to spend some time with them. I hadn¡¯t told them my plans to go off to become an adventurer on the frontier yet¡­ And I was dreading it.


    It had only taken me 10 years to become a rank 10 magus. I wasn¡¯t quite at the level of my previous game avatar, but I could cast almost every spell I knew. There were only 11 ranks of spells after all. Ranks 1-10 could be cast by equal level magi, but Hidden class, the 11th rank, could only be cast by a Master Magus¡­ I wasn¡¯t quite there yet. A single rank 10 spell drained my entire pool of mana.


    Still, I had enough now to make my way. Many people and organizations had invited me, seeing how bright my future would be¡­ But I had decided what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to become an S class adventurer. I wanted companions. I missed my friends. Being revered as a ¡®genius¡¯ only further served to segregate me. It pushed me away from the others. I had spent such a long time alone. I missed Tyrion. I missed everyone from The Ancients.

 Chapter 3: The Beginnings of an Epic

    My parents and I enjoyed a relaxing carriage ride home to Farfield Village. I had visited home a few times over my years studying, but never for more than a few days. This time was going to be different. I had, after discussing my plans with my parents, been convinced to at least take a month to unwind with the family. Of course, my parents were terrified when I mentioned my desire to become an adventurer. It seems that it¡¯s not exactly a well respected occupation to have here.


    Of course, with my parents busy work schedule, it wasn¡¯t exactly the most family oriented vacation as I hoped it would be. Instead it more or less amounted to me babysitting my younger siblings. Matilda, it seems, had retired and now that the Academy was going to stop sending a stipend to my family, they were going to need to really buckle down and get ready for some rough poverty filled roads ahead¡­ Well, they would have if I wasn¡¯t there.


    It seems my parents, like most commoners, didn¡¯t quite see the novelty or usefulness of magic. In a small town where nary a wild monster, beast, or demon roamed it only made sense that they had no sense of value in regards to magicians.


    The biggest reason for this was the incredibly unvaried and boring spell list most magicians had. Almost every magician in the world, bar an exceptional few, only knew a small library of spells to use in specific situations. I was in the vast minority in regards to my understanding of magic.


    Magic has three main parts. The Aria, or chant, is the first. The chant uses English to set a ¡®direction¡¯ for the magical power to operate. I¡¯ve learned by trial and error the more vague the chant, the harder the spell is to invoke. The second part is the magician¡¯s imagination. One must fully imagine the effects of the spell in order to bring them about into reality. If the magician¡¯s imagined spell and the Aria differ by too large of a degree, the spell will misfire or fail to cast at all. Finally, there is the user¡¯s allocation of magical energy, or mana if you will. By applying the correct amount of mana to the correct locations in a spell, it¡¯s control, power, and size were all directly affected. Needless to say, if the mana allocation differed too much from the Imagined Imprint and the Aria, the spell would fail as well.


    With all that said, though, if one could manipulate the Aria, magical power, and imagined effect, they could theoretically create any effect they so desired with magic. That¡¯s right. There were zero limits. At least, if there are any I haven¡¯t found them yet.


    Teleportation magic was possible, though I was too afraid to test it on myself until I found a patsy to use first. Invisibility magic, fire magic¡­ Hell, space and time magic were possible too; I wasn¡¯t ever going to test magics that change something fundamental with the universe, though. What would happen if I try to stop time and I end up getting frozen in place for eternity or some other dumb thing happened?! Not to mention the sheer volume of mana it would take to use spells of that nature. Invisibility alone cost nearly half my available pool.


    I realized quickly that healing magics, something this world doesn¡¯t seem to posses much of, are actually rather simple with some basic understanding of human anatomy. I¡¯m no biologist, but even I could heal most wounds rather quickly. Of course, there was a large risk of accidentally changing organs around among other things if I wasn¡¯t careful.


    In the end, most cool magics ended up being far too terrifying to mess with for me. Particularly anything that modifies the body. What if I accidentally changed myself in some way and found that I lost all my mana!? Even without these awesome magics, though, I had plenty of utility on something as simple as a farm!


    I proved my worth to my father on the first day when I crafted a spell to make his plow automatically till the field on command. I could have just outright plowed the field with my magic, but how would that help my parents out after all? Once I leave, if they didn¡¯t have a way to recreate my magic then they¡¯d end up in a mess! So, instead of taking care of everything, I decided to stick to enchanting their equipment and tools.


    I crafted a spell on a needle set in order to create a pseudo sewing machine for my mother. This increased her work speed nearly 100 fold without adding any extra effort on her part. I then enchanted all of my father¡¯s farm tools to make them incredibly lightweight and gave them the ability to ¡°buff¡± the wielder''s stats by a considerable degree.


    One downside to magic, though, is the fact that it seems to degrade over time. My enchants are strong enough though that they¡¯ll probably last at least 100 years on their own, so I don¡¯t think my family has to worry¡­ Unless my little brother¡¯s son¡¯s son in the future decides to keep working on the farm here¡­ Or if their tools are stolen. On that thought of theft, I included an enchant that makes it so anyone without my father¡¯s blood relation or his express permission can lift any of the tools I¡¯ve enhanced. I am shameless enough to admit I had a certain God¡¯s hammer from my old world in mind when I designed that spell. Still, it worked rather well.


    I think my parents figured out why I had suddenly decided to become over helpful because my mother began talking about how adventurers are nothing but rabble rousers, troublemakers, and deviants at every opportunity. She continually talked about how the Heaven¡¯s Academy offered me a role as a lecturer/researcher too.


    I didn¡¯t think badly of her for this. Her mindset isn¡¯t the same as mine, after all. She doesn¡¯t know about the romance of being an adventurer, the joy of hunting powerful monsters with a group of friends, or the feeling of finding hidden treasures or spells! I can¡¯t blame her. How could I? Her reaction and thoughts are only natural for a human living in this world, particularly for a human living in this tiny corner of this world.


    Farfield village was, essentially, the southernmost human settlement in the Elderon Continent, after all. South of Farfield was a haughty mountain range that separated the village from the sea. The mountain range itself was home to strange magical beasts, but they never strayed past their territory and were rather generous with humans.


    It was far easier to get to the ocean from Caltross due to the river they built their city on. It cut out the only path through the Southern Reach Mountains for nearly 400 miles. It was another reason Caltross held such powerful influence among the smaller townships and lordships in the nearby area. Caltross was the only place where seatrade could come in.


    Back in my game days, I had explored most of the Southern Reach Mountains due to rumors of rare potion materials existing there. While those plants did exist in the end, I only ever found two of them. The time spent versus the reward gained was rather lopsided. Spending weeks to find a few rare plants was much less profitable than just grinding regular quests.


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    I passed my days in Farfield fairly peacefully. I ended up helping the town out with some simple things such as digging a new irrigation canal and such, but it wasn¡¯t anything too serious. The other villagers were quite happy though. Hopefully I¡¯ve implanted a better opinion of mages in their hearts.


    Finally, after a month had passed, it came time for me to leave. I had a comfortable amount of reserve money, but I opted out of riding a carriage. I have legs and I intend to use them. Walking every day on my journey was just one part of the training I planned. It wouldn¡¯t be very good it I arrived at the Frontier as weak physically as I am now. While my magic is great, all it would take is a slightly fast monster to tear me from limb to limb.


    Magic certainly couldn¡¯t undo bodily harm, after all¡­ Well, maybe it could, but the mana needed and the time to create such a spell with all the necessary testing would be absurd. I certainly was not going to offer myself as a guinea pig. One screw up and I could accidentally turn myself into an undead or something.


    My parents were still adamant about me staying, but they weren¡¯t able to stop me. They knew they weren¡¯t able to stop me, too. To them I may be a 10 year old child, but inside I¡¯m far far older. While I cherished my time having a family, I also missed my independence. The open road was softly calling to me. My thirst for adventure needed to be quenched.


    And so I left. I packed several days worth of food and water in a pack and started walking towards Caltross.


    Of course, this first trip taught me a very valuable lesson¡­ Walking long distances sucks. Well, if I didn¡¯t have magic it would suck far worse though. I easily cured any blisters, fatigue, and such with magic. I even enchanted my cloak to increase my endurance.


    The road was long and dusty. The warm weather continually parched me and I ravenously attacked my water supply. Thankfully, even as arid as the weather was, water was still abundant in the atmosphere so I could refill my canteens through magic.


    The second major problem of walking the road quickly popped up as well¡­ It was boring. With no companions to talk with or things to do, I ended up silently thinking of new spells or ways to test spell concepts.


    It took me about a week and a half on foot to reach Caltross. I was making great time, all things considered. Still, the trip was only three days by carriage¡­ Was this bullheaded resolution to walk across the continent nothing more than a waste of my youth in the end?


    No.


    I could not afford to waver. My determination was far too sound for that.


    I stopped at the small inn that I had stayed at with my parents all those years ago and rented a room for three days. I had decided that, after the agonizing journey here, it would be far nicer to have a bed under me for a change. That¡¯s not to say I was uncomfortable camping outside. I was able, with magic, to make rather appropriate campsites for myself¡­ But it¡¯s still a matter of principle, in the end. There is just an intrinsic difference between camping out and staying at an inn.


    I ate a rather hearty meal and slept soundly on the night of my arrival.


    My greatest mistake, though, was not hiding my face or identity. Staying in an inn where the innkeeper knew my face and name was foolish. I was rather famous in Caltross, after all. The speed of rumor was also something I hadn¡¯t experienced much, considering my lack of contact with others. I woke up the next morning to the jabber of a crowd. It seems a gaggle of students from the Academy were lined up outside the inn, waiting for me for some reason.


    I found myself scowling while looking out the window at the gathering. I recognized quite a few of the children, and even a few professors were mixed in here and there. I wasn¡¯t about to let the paltry gathering outside ruin my morning though. Using magic I cleaned myself from head to toe before doing the same to my clothes. I quickly dressed myself in my traveling tunic, trousers, and cloak and made way for the lower floor of the inn.


    The innkeeper gave me an odd glance as I descended the stairs¡­ As did the rest of her patrons.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve already seen, but there¡¯s quite a group out there looking for you, little Sam.¡± Said the woman as she quickly brought out a plate with my breakfast on it. I sat down at one of the tables and started eating without replying. I¡¯m certain the annoyed expression on my face was rather clear. ¡°Seems like they all want the same thing, too. They want to know how to do that disappearing spell you pulled off at your graduation. I had to beat them out the door with my broom to keep them from crowding my business,¡± said the woman as she poured a glass of orange juice for me. It was a far cry from the coffee I had been hoping for, but it did satisfy my sweet tooth.


    ¡°They will get no such thing from me,¡± I replied coldly before finishing my meal. It was the truth too. Spreading an invisibility spell around would be the epitome of dumb. Just imagine how much power such a thing could have in the wrong hands. I was truly regretting my mischievous nature at the graduation ceremony. It wasn¡¯t like me to do such a thing. I wondered if, perhaps, my mental age was reflecting the age of my body. Such a thing seemed farfetched... but also quite possible.


    ¡°Well, you can go and tell them that yourself. I¡¯m not going near them. With a bunch of magicians in one place, no telling what could happen. Just know if my inn gets damaged in any way I¡¯m holding you responsible,¡± said the innkeeper. She herself wasn¡¯t necessarily a cold person, but having a riotous crowd outside her establishment had her on edge. ¡°And if you skip out on the bill, I¡¯ll charge it to your parents.¡±


    ¡°You should charge it to the stupid Academy,¡± I replied under my breath before standing up. I quickly brushed a few crumbs off myself and readied my mind. It was going to be annoying to face this crowd, but I had a plan. ¡°Oh, and it looks like I¡¯m going to be leaving your inn today for good. I originally paid for three days, is it possible for me to get a refund for the two I¡¯m not¡­¡±


    ¡°No refunds,¡± interrupted the woman with a smirk.


    I sighed and grumbled under my breath. Then, I started casting spells. I had originally planned on dispelling the crowd¡­ But considering the innkeeper¡¯s rudeness, I figured I¡¯d let her deal with it on her own.


    Grumpy because I had planned on resting for three days in the city, I set off for my next destination. On a midsummer day on the outskirts of Caltross, in broad daylight, Samuel Telven vanished without a trace.