The world he woke up in seemed to be medival at first; but slowly he could understand; not everything was as it seemed to be. He was called Eswin now. The time as a baby was worse, than what he remebered. Only a few things mattered. His mother, Edrinna, always kept him with her. His father was a guard of this city and together they lived in a big house, relativly speaking, in a small alley. In some ways it was a dirty life. In others it was a lot more pure. Maybe it genetics maybe it was because his parents alway were joyful, but maybe just he actuality just slept much. But it was a happy time. It was true, getting breastfed was something he needed to get used to it wasn't as if he really controled his body, he wasn't even sure, if this was his body or if his soul simply snatched it.

Those were the things he feared the most. He never liked living but other people he knew did. Ironically it was him who got a second chance, not those other life-loving-fools, which was not an insult but a fact. He knew he was a fool too; yet the difference was, he was not life-loving, at least not his life, that is. maybe that was the problem.

And the days went by while he could use his head more than his body. Yet his will was strong. It was one of the greater paradoxes he encountered: He didn't like to live, yet by instict he strifed to survive. He often questioned it. The whole thing that encountered him. Yet he had learned to accept it. It was a weakness yet it was there.

His first tries to crawl were a fools errand. He was bored nontheless. When the milk ran dry and he had to eat his first baby foods. A mild purree of vegetable he once again had to adjust to those custom. He didn't like to be fed. Things changed fast from the first words he could say. He wasn't fluent or anything and he wasn't nearly as motivated as web novels often stated. What made him learn and and train his language was his boredom.

He knew he had a lifetime in front of him and yet he also knew his origin and had long since learned, this world or at least this kingdom?, probably, had it's own strict hierarchy and he was certain to be part of it's lower spectrum; maybe not the lowest, but not higher than the more civil of the population. His father began early to tell tales of the glorious king and his family. How the late king gifted this house to his own grandfather personally.

He was two years old, when his mother got pregnant for the second time. It was there where he was confronted with magic for the first time. And that was something which always intrigued him.

It was merely a weak diagnosing spell but the healer used it many times. It was also the first time he really couldn't hold his curiosity. "What are you doing?"

"Examining your mom, little man"

"That's obvious, no I mean those little lights you use to examine mom!" Her reaction was being a little shocked. This particular healer helped his mother two years ago with his birth, it was her expertise and she knew exactly how old Eswin was. Yet his words were refined. She knew some babies his age could speak some words, but a whole and correct sentence; this was not heard of by her. But she took a breath and then smiled again; gladly answering the question of the curious little boy. "That is magic, dear", she said.

"How does it work?" "Eswin, boy", his father interrupted, "we are here for your mother and I have to work my shift in an hour. We don't have time, daddy tells you tomorrow, okay?"

The healer smiled simply. She wouldn't charge her parents extra because their son asked about things that shouldn't be asked outside of the royal academies where they tought it. Especially since it was a mere toddler that asked.

Yet the crown asked to be informed if something like this happened and a guardsman could easily loose his job only because of a investigator of the academies said that he didn't disciplined his child correctly.

It wouldn't have mattered really. The healer knew this little guy would be told that it was forbidden to speak about the magic outside of the academies. She knew that he asked because he didn't know about these things, yet she knew better than not to report this incident.

As a licensed mage, even if only of the lowest order, she would be questioned regularly about events such as this.

This is why she filed the report in detail hoping it wouldn't have a detrimental effect on the married couple and it's children.

But this incident was something that had flipped a switch inside of Eswin. He wanted this power. He knew he would likely abuse it if he could do magic, yet it would be a wish-of-life-comes-true situation. Magic making the impossible possible with nothing but a mere thought.

He knew it couldn't possibly that easy but maybe one day... It was the beginning of an obsessive behaviour. Even after his father told him, he couldn't ask questions about magic he never forbade researching it. Even though it was most likely forbidden as well.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

He first tried using meditation to control whatever those powers were he wanted to command. He didn't even know how to meditate, but he was two years old; he had time. Thirteen day went by without any progression without so much as an hint about the origin of the forces the healer commanded. Then he tried to differ. Tried to feel what was different to this life considering his first one. There would be a difference for sure! Yet he probably he had just forgotten or simply lacked in talent regarding what he wanted the most.

Master Dewford was hated for his position. He was the uppermost enforcer of the Royal Academy of Sherhall and most time a maybe a little to thorough. Very much so if it was about trivialities; most often about people that spoke about magic. Because he was that thorough since he had this post such things happened seldom.

What he read in this report of a healer in the lower market district, it made him speechless. A toddler asked about magic and was very interested in it. He felt like he was taken for a fool and was angered by it. He took his official robes and went down towards the district, where he waited for a patient to be healed before he demanded to see the healer. The beautiful healer, all healer were beautiful by default at least in the healthy way, was a woman near forty years. She was one of the better practitioner around if not cause for her knowledge than because of her motivation. She did it not for the money or for the improvements in the art of magic; no she worked here foremost because of the people.

She bowed when he stepped into the room. Even if she did not now exactly who he was, she did know about the robes and she hoped he wouldn't have come because of that. "You filed a report!", Master Dewford stated. Her answer was a "Yes" affirmed by a nod.

"I put on my official robes to be let through but why I am here is personal. Is somone paying you to put up such a report?"

She knew he wove a spell to be able to confirm a deception; something enforcers always did when they "talked" to someone officially. Yet she told nothing but the truth. "...I knew him since he war born; helped him literally to survive cut his umbilical cord when he was save! It was one of the hardest deliveries I helped with. I even used a detection spell on him! I am sure that he is not some changling or worse!"

Master Dewford nodded. He didn't like to be fooled. It didn't mean he liked to be wrong either, yet he had name and address of the couple and he would simply fine them for the question the boy had asked.

So he went down the alleys. He didn't knew the man was a city guard but he knew, when said man left the house. Master Dewford watched; his official robes faded into invisibility an he only wore his classical mages gown. He watched the man. The family something he did never really understand yet had accepted it as something most people yearned for at some moment in life. It was really endearing watching them and their child.

He observed from afar. He new he would have gone to far, if he really fined them for something so low. It was more about image.

He didn't know why he came the next day again watching them. The mother doing the chores the father leaving and the boy. Well that child was weird. He wasn't an expert at rearing children but the standartised movements that boy, Eswin was his name, he believed, did seem to be a standartised training more than it seemed to be the flailing of some boy who actually was two.

Master Dewford knew he had better things to do. He knew watching the life of a married couple with an innocent yet weird child was wrong. Than again he loved the interaction between them. He knew it was not only the little boy being weird it was also him being weird.

Eswin trodded around when his mother didn't watch. She didn't like it when the toddler walked away but he had to explore what little he could; of course in front of him was a whole new world! One with magic in it! No he wasn't a maniac at all. Not in his last life not in this one. For magic he was going to be more than that.

Yet this time he wasn't trodding to explore. He had seen a person standing near his home again and again and again, as if he was watching.

Thinking about it walking there as a toddler an simply asking the man was a stupid idea. The whole thing was: Eswin didn't think about it, he simply did, because being watched by some creep made it harder for him to concentrate.

Master Dewford watched the couple saying good bye. He always wondered how it felt or... a sudden tugging let his eyes wander down to where he stood. A little boy was there grabbing his robes. "Why are you here?", he asked. And then the Master heard "Eswin! What are you doing?"

The weird boy stood there staring at him while his mother came towards him. "I am sorry; my son sometimes can be a little weird", she said. The boy made a grumpy face. "He is watching our house for days now!", the boy said again.

"Yes, because you intrigued me", Master Dewford said, "I am an enforcer for the Royal Academy of Sherhall and you are it's youngest offender!"

He was grinning while he said it. "You were watching my parents kissing! If you had watched me I wouldn't have..."

"Eswin! Please be quite", said Edrinna. "You want to fine us for it?", she asked. "No", he said, "but I maybe want to talk to your son sometime in the near future!