This morning the long awaited information about my condition arrived on my nightstand.

My father left a note detailing the order I should use to tackle the rather thick tomes.

From the first chapter of the book I read, I was starting to make sense of the magical world I now lived in.

The world in the beginning existed in a fractured form, there were seven spheres corresponding to the great races. The Human Sphere, the Beastman Sphere, the Dragon Sphere, the Demon Sphere, the Angel Sphere, and the Elven Sphere.

The Central Sphere was inhabited by travelers and settlers from the six spheres that managed to find it after crossing the Great Void that separated the spheres.

Magic and the martial styles didn't exist then as they did now. Mana was wild and the effects it brought about were chaotic, a rare few were capable of still wielding great power with it. The long forgotten Demon Lords, the Heroes, the Saints and the Beings of Purity.

Then a human man descended upon the shattered world. He claimed himself a mere human, yet he alone was able to build the pathways that permanently connected the seven spheres.

Several of the non-human nations declared this human 'god' an existential enemy. All of them were destroyed, no mention of their names exist in historical records.

In response to his actions the remaining nations, human and otherwise, began to worship this human 'god'. Soon after, another human 'god' appeared. Many believed he was brought in by the world as a balance to the current destructive human 'god'.

All notions of a coming battle between the human 'gods' ceased, when the human 'god' claimed the new 'god' to be his son.

That was how the Church of the Ruling Gods began to address these man 'gods'. The Father God, and the Son God.

I almost burst out laughing when I reached this line in the text. It wasn't from a disdain of religion, rather it was a shock at the similarity of what used to be preached in my old life. I quickly continued reading after the momentary absurdity I witnessed.

A decade passed before the Father God observed the formation of a church that began the sole worship of himself and his son. The Father God felt pity on the world and asked "Why do all of you seek a god figure from me? I'm just a human." The Father god sighed before he asked his next question which became the catalyst for the world as I knew it for the past few years I spent in it.

"If you want an idol to worship, a guiding hand to lead your world, why has no one asked me to teach them how?"

The first reaction from the various people he asked, including the several remaining noble families of each respective race, was a plea for him to teach them.

I didn't see a mention of a second reaction to his question, I would've expected at least some sort of resistance or disbelief, but I moved on.

The Father God accepted several acolytes from the great races. The Father God called on his son to aid him in his teachings to his true followers.

To his angelic followers, he taught them the Divine set of magic.

To his demonic followers, he taught them the Demonic set of magic.

To his draconic followers, he taught them the Elemental set of magic.

To his human followers, he tasked his son with teaching them the Sword styles.

To his elven followers, he tasked his son a second time, to teach them the Ax styles.

To his beastmen followers, he tasked his son a final time, to teach them the Spear styles.

To his favored followers, all of which were human, he taught them the Chaos and Cosmic set of magic. This admitted favoritism for humanity was not accepted kindly by the non-human followers.

For this criticism alone, the Father God unveiled his final interference onto the world. The seats of the Ruling Gods.

He created a system of merit that automatically awarded the champions of each great race a seat, then the rest were seated by the level of mastery over their style or set.

The purpose of the seats was three-fold.

Firstly, the seats allowed those in them to decide the fate of the world, taking away the monopoly of power the Father God and Son God appeared to have maintained.

The second was to assuage the anger of the followers by allowing them to compete against each other to obtain a higher seat than the one they received. This would be done by a test of combat, first to concede or die would lose their seat and grant it to the victor.

The final purpose of the seats was to find a true 'god' among the sorry populace the Father God saw within the inhabitants of the seven sphere world.

He proclaimed, "Personally, as a human I prefer humans. If you'd like, the strongest of you so called gods can challenge me and prove that you are beyond what man is capable of. That you are a veritable god in your own right."

The fear the newly seated gods had from the war against the Father God over a decade ago remained etched in their minds; none of the Ruling Gods chose to challenge the Father God.

The Father God and the Son God left the world ever since, and although there were only thirty seats, the Son God was stated to hold the first seat and his father the zeroth seat, making the total 'true seats' to number thirty-two.

So he just kicked everyone's ass and civilized the world, then left, that's pretty funny. I thought.

That was it for the first chapter of the tome covering the Church of the Ruling Gods' creation. I would read the entire tome in one sitting if I didn't have sword training to do before it was time for Father's lesson.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

It was the standard affair of draining almost all of my effective mana pool for close to an hour. However, things were different this time, I had the sense to condense the water spell I had normally just been ballooning into a massive sphere of water. I imagined the water pressure would be much higher and the flow of it would be cyclical visually.

I let the swirling bowling ball-sized orb go down into the drain. The sound it made reminded me of the noise a deep sea mine made in those action films I previously grew up watching.

"What was that? What happened?"

"I, uh, the water ball blew up."

The look on my father's face was in state between distress and excitement.

"How?"

"I condensed it after I made the large water ball I usually make. It started spinning around inside and then I just let it go and then it blew up."

"Huh, did you do that on purpose?"

"The blowing up part or the condensing it?"

"Yes, Fred, did you condense it on purpose?"

I've thought about doing it multiple times before today but it was now that the spell followed my desire.

"Yeah, I didn't think it would work."

"Could you try replicating what you did? Walk me through it if you can."

"Well, like I said I conjure up the big ball of water that I usually make, then I started thinking about what it'd be like if it was squeezed into smaller bubble."

As I spoke the intricate and reflexive manipulation of mana that I had been practicing over the course of the year, started to display the fruits of my labor.

As I did before, the water condensed into a tight sphere of pressure and intense potential.

"Don't drop it in the drain just yet, can you try to loosen it a little?"

"Sure."

I imagined the ball unwind itself slowly like a droplet that accumulated more water to the point of being ready to drop if any more was added.

"I really can't understand how you're getting so far ahead of what I've been teaching you. There's just no other explanation."

"I think I just have a really good imagination."

I laughed nervously, I don't know if that's really it. I assumed it was a combination of my child-powered imagination with years of accumulated scientific knowledge, that had led me to being able to conjure up the magic easily.

"No it's not that simple, I'm already aware that you're a genius mentally. There's no question about that. However, you're mana potency is far and above what your mana capacity could handle just a day ago."

"What does that mean?"

"The way you've been casting spells is so efficient the addition of more power or changing its physical shape without dispelling it forces the spell you've conjured to move on to the next tier. A year ago you couldn't pull that much mana out at once without exhausting your entire pool, but you've reached the point where that much mana isn't a problem. I just didn't think it would happen so soon."

"Heh, does that mean I can move on from just casting the same spell all day?"

"Yes, it certainly does."

I looked around to see some disappointed looks in the faces of my older siblings. It hadn't occurred to me that in the time I've caught up to them they've hardly advanced at all.

Zeus was with us because he hadn't learned the elemental magic set yet. He had some training with the cosmic set my father was highly regarded in but it proved too complicated for my brother to master before learning the elemental set.

Vanilla and Luca don't hold a candle to either me or Zeus, this was the lesson time that had been meant for their steady progress.

Today, Father asked me to stay behind after everyone else finished the training they were tasked and headed for dinner.

"Fred, I don't want to pressure you or force you to do something you'd rather not."

"What is it Father?"

"Would you like to be in your older siblings' class? I don't mean Logan and your older sisters, I mean with Kraimer and Darvy."

I wouldn't get to see Zeus and the others as much anymore if I accepted. I'd have to be up and ready in the morning to learn magic rather than train with the sword.

I had the opportunity to start getting lessons that were much faster paced and at the same time get to understand what level my older brothers were operating at.

I didn't miss a beat.

"Yeah I'd like that."

"Great, I'm glad, but a fair warning my son. I'll have to be a lot more thorough in checking your knowledge because the spells we'll get to learn require that level of thinking. Are you still up for it?"

"I already said yeah. I've been going through history books on my own already, I don't mind adding something on top of that."

"That's good to hear, come here."

My father held me in his arms, I hugged him back.

"If you like we could go to the city Tomorrow. I still need to have you pick out a present."

"I want a sword."

"Really!?"

"Mhm."

"All the same, we'll still need to go and request the bladesmith to make you a good sword. You want one that looks like mine?"

"Yeah."

My father laughed a deep laugh, I remembered back to the days in my old childhood when my father and I would sit together and watch 80's movies.

Tonight I had a dream. A fading void swallowed me whole but did little to nothing to strike fear into my mind. In the end I was instantly at the door to the witch's cozy retreat.

"Not to be rude or anything but that was hardly a nightmare."

"Hah! It's not my fault you're not even a teensy bit afraid of the dark. I am running out of ideas you know?"

"I wouldn't actually. As for the fear of the dark, I live next to a dark forest with trees more frightening to trip onto than simple darkness could ever replicate."

"I don't know where you live."

"Aren't you a Dreadtree too?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your father, we share a last name, don't you have the same one?"

"What of it?"

"It's a reference to the land, were you never at the castle?"

"I did live in a castle for a long time but I was too sick to leave bed, and the windows were never on the outside of its walls. My father had left a garden in the courtyard for me to stare at from my bedroom window."

I ached a little thinking about the courtyard garden being torn up to make room for the training field.

"I see. Even though we've seen each other for over a year, we still hardly know each other."

"That's true, we've had quite a few nights where we simply sit and enjoy the serenity of this room. However, I don't believe you have many fascinating things to say. You're still a child after all."

"Hey. That's not true, well I guess you never even bothered to ask after the first night."

"What about the first night we met?"

"You remember how I had on an old man's face?"

"Yes that was pretty strange, but I assume it has to do with your grandfather being someone you want to be right?"

"I never knew either of my grandpas, they're all dead."

Ironically this hadn't been any change from my old life, I never met my grandparents from either side of my family and they died before I could even wonder about them.

"My apologies, I'm sorry for guessing. Why did you have the face of an old man?"

"You don't have any way of telling someone else a secret even if you wanted to right?"

"I don't think so, but if it's a secret you'd like me to have. I'll promise not to tell another soul for as long as I continue to exist."

"Alright, I trust you. That was my old face, I used to be another person before I woke up as a baby in this world."

"You're playing a prank on me, aren't you?"

"No, I swear, I was just reading about this condition myself. It has something to do with the Ruling Gods and their will on the world."

"I'm familiar with the Gods, but I'm not aware of what that has to do with you."

"I don't get it either, but it's complicated like I told you last time."

"Right."

"Anyway, the how doesn't really matter. I'm telling you I have the memories of another life, one where I lived long enough to be an old man and then died."

Teresa made of a face that seemed between confusion and disgust.

"I don't really know if I can consider myself as being more of the old man or the little boy."

"Which are you once you're outside of our little talks?"

"I'm the little boy obviously."

"Then you're a little boy, what else is there to say. Was there something about your memories you believe interesting enough to tell me?"

"Maybe. For starters, there is no magic in my world, just machines and tools."

"Only machines and tools? What are those good for?"

Teresa proceeded to adjust herself in her comfy seat to listen to my tales of Earth. I would tell her about the machine suits developed for enhancing the body and helping the disabled. I told her about the internet and its explosive advancement within the time it took for me to become an adult. I also told her about the wars that were waged, and the advancements that led to a discovery of a new material of lightweight super metals. I didn't have enough time to tell her about the reason I became one of the first moon colonists.