Bright.

The brightness was blinding. Lights danced chaotically around my field of vision. Had someone put me inside a kaleidoscope? And on top of that, it was so incredibly loud. I felt lightheaded. Did I just hit my head or something? It took me a bit before I came to my senses.

Woah, it really sucks to be a newborn.

It felt painful at first, but when I finally regained composure, I reminded myself: This is your second chance at life. Please don't fuck this up.

I sure hope God doesn’t come after me.

My eyesight was still a bit blurry but less dazzling now. I decided to focus and look around.

No wonder it was so loud. In my first line of sight, two men were having a harsh conversation. One of them looked very angry. He furiously pointed a finger in my direction. The other one looked more like a doctor and took a rather defensive stance. My attempt to listen to what they were arguing about proved futile, as I couldn't understand a thing.

But only when something wet trickled down my face, I realized there was one more sound to be heard. A whimpering right above me. I looked up and was stunned.

I was held by a beautiful lady whose eyes were clenched, and she shed tears plentifully. Is that my mother? If so, I already love her. But why is she crying?

I really wanted her to get better. I instinctively reached my hand out to touch her face. The woman opened her eyes, and her expression shifted from shock to a combination of joy and relief.

Having such beauty stare at me so lovingly made me feel butterflies in my stomach. She happily announced something that made the two men cease arguing and rush to see me.

Did they think I was dead? That's entirely possible, as me entering the portal prematurely could have something to do with that.

Both men also appeared very happy, but I didn't pay much attention to them. I much preferred staying mesmerized by the heavenly appearance of the women holding me. Ironically, this seemed way more like heaven, than the place I'd been at just five minutes ago.

Well, except for one thing. My mother had horns. Big red, demon horns grew out of her forehead. Actually, they looked kinda cool.

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Suddenly I felt very exhausted. My eyelids began closing by themselves, so I didn't resist and drifted away into a deep slumber in my mother's embrace.

***

I woke up in a pretty neat-looking house. It was made out of wood, and its design gave off a very medieval feel. It was really cozy though.

I was in a cradle, so I couldn't look around too much. Besides that, the room was very dim, as the only light came from two candles situated on a desk near me.

I decided that it was the best time to familiarize myself with the system I was given. I looked to the upper-left corner of my field of view, and as expected, my status information appeared.

———

Health: 10/10

Mana: 10/10

Strength: 1

Agility: 1

Intelligence: 1

Defense: 1

Current level: 1

Exp: 0/100

[Notice: this is a simplified interface. You can also view the advanced menu]

———

Simplified interface? hmm, how to view the advanced one? System, show me the advanced menu.

Sure enough, simply asking for it in my mind was enough for some additional info to be revealed. Two lines grabbed my attention.

———

Race: half-elf, half-demon

Current modifiers: God's curse

———

Half-demon? Well, that at least explains my mom's horns. It's quite shocking, but honestly, I don't mind that. And It appears that my father is an elf. That’s a very weird combination, if you ask me. More importantly though, God's curse? What's that?

———

[God's curse: every point of damage you receive is increased tenfold. This can be erased by praying for 10000 hours (0/10000)]

———

"..."

you've got to be fucking kidding me…

This is terrible! Please tell me this is a joke. This will hinder my progress so much that it will take me a whole lifetime to get at least mediocre skills. There is no other way. I have to get rid of that.

If I were to continue living with the curse, I would have to pump ten times more points into my defense stat to make up for my lack of health points. This would also likely mean I have to get ten times more experience points if I want to progress normally. Is that even feasible?

I calculated that if I prayed for an average of eight hours a day, it would take me approximately three and a half years to complete the requirement for removing the curse. As I am still an infant, who only eats, drinks and sleeps, I can afford to dispose of so much of my time. Once I finish I could get to leveling up in a normal way.

But the question is: Do I want to pray to a God who's making fun of me and give him satisfaction?

Also, there is one more thing that's bugging me. I currently have ten Health points. The damage I receive is also multiplied by ten. This means that if I get hurt – no matter how slightly – I will be dead.

I need to figure out how to get exp. The faster the better. But can I even do anything with this frail body? For now, all I can really do is wait for my physique to develop. I guess praying is the most reasonable strategy after all.

Well, I should probably start right away.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily FUCK!

I am not doing that! I've sworn to myself I wouldn't bow to those with no regard for me. If I have to, I will get powerful against the odds. Whether it'd be with God's help, or against God's will. I will figure something out. But now I think it's time to cry. I'm hungry.