When Daniel returned to the orphanage, his mind was buzzing with excitement. He couldn’t stop thinking about one thing: he was in the Harry Potter world. Every part of his body felt alive with the realization, the truth of it hitting him harder than any punch he could throw. His heart raced as he sat down for dinner, his mind wandering while he mechanically shoveled food into his mouth. He wasn’t even tasting it.

Afterward, he trudged back to his room, still wide awake and full of energy. There was so much left to explore, so much he had to figure out. He glanced out the window, it was late, but his body wasn’t ready for sleep. Not yet.

'I'm in the world of wizards', he thought, a grin spreading across his face. His heart fluttered in his chest. This is real.

But then, a sudden thought gripped him, and his excitement faltered. 'And I have mana,' he continued, his heart racing even faster. “That means I can attend Hogwarts!”

He froze, the weight of that thought settling into him. “But… why haven’t I gotten a letter yet?”

His mind spun. It was the start of the summer holidays, the same time Harry had received his letter, wasn’t it? 'I’m eleven years old in this body. So… where’s mine?' He frowned, trying to reason with himself 'Maybe they haven’t sent it yet'.

His brain started working through the details. 'It’s 1991. That means I’ll be in the same year as Harry. And that means… the center of the plot.'

His pulse quickened, a sense of dread creeping in. “Dementors, Basilisk, Death Eaters… and… Voldemort.” He listed the dangers in his mind, his throat tightening with each name.

But then, something inside him shifted, his fear gave way to determination. “I need to start training,” he muttered aloud. The thought fueled him.

He stood up, and walked over to his desk. The wooden drawer creaked open, and he pulled out a small notebook. He flipped to a blank page, grabbing a pen, and began to write.

Training Plan for the Foreseeable Future:

After breakfast: Physical training until dinner.

After dinner: Magic training or reading books in the library for stats and future knowledge.

In between: Meditation to regenerate faster.

He looked at the plan for a moment, nodding to himself. There was something satisfying about seeing his intentions laid out so clearly. “Let’s experiment with magic, then,” he thought, sliding the notebook into his inventory.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Sitting down on the floor in a meditative pose, he closed his eyes, focusing on the mana inside him.

Slowly, he began guiding the mana to his leg, just like he had done when learning to throw a Power Punch. He felt the energy move, flowing down his body and into his leg.

Without hesitation, he threw a kick, hearing the familiar ding of the system notification, but he didn’t react to it yet.

Next, he focused on his shoulder, channeling mana to the muscle, and he slammed his shoulder into the air. Another notification. He didn’t stop, continuing to direct the energy to different parts of his body. Each strike, each move, came with the same sound, notification after notification.

[You have obtained the skill [Power Kick (Active) Lvl 1]]

[You have obtained the skill [Power Bash (Active) Lvl 1]]

The notifications kept piling up, but Daniel didn’t feel tired. He was too focused, too driven to stop. After a while, a new system window appeared.

[Do you want to merge your Power skills?]

[Yes / No]

His eyes widened. “You can merge skills?” he thought, a surge of excitement rushing through him. Without hesitation, he clicked "Yes".

[You have merged your skills and obtained [Power Strike (Active) Lvl 1]]

Daniel quickly opened the description.

[Power Strike (Active) Lvl 1 / MP: 10]

[- Increases the power of any close combat strike by 5%]

A pang of disappointment hit him. “It’s not much of a change,” he muttered, massaging his temples. But then, he reminded himself 'Focusing on one skill was better than juggling ten, especially when that one skill could do the same job as all the others combined'.

He closed the window, shaking off the disappointment and reminding himself of the progress he’d made. He could sense the power building within him. This was only the start.

He sat quietly for a moment, thinking about his next step. Taking the mana outside of his body seemed like the next logical thing to try. His heart raced with anticipation as he focused on his hand.

Slowly, he guided the mana to his palm. His fingers tingled as the energy swirled around them. He concentrated harder, trying to push the mana outside of his body.

He watched, wide-eyed, as small blue particles began to float from his hand, flickering like fireflies in the dim light of his room. His heart pounded in his chest. It was working.

But the excitement got the better of him. His concentration faltered, and the particles vanished into the air.

"No!" he muttered to himself, frustration bubbling up. He had been so close.

His head started to spin as his mana reserves drained low, and with the growing dizziness came the realization that it was late. He could barely keep his eyes open. Without another thought, he climbed into bed, his body sinking into the mattress. Almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, sleep overtook him.

The next morning, Daniel awoke with a renewed sense of purpose. He was eager to get started, his mind already focused on his training plan. He made his way downstairs to the cafeteria, feeling energized despite the short night of sleep.

As he picked at his breakfast, Daniel found himself chatting with Victor about the games they planned to play that day. He wondered if it would be possible to balance both training and playing, at least now, while his stats were still low, it should be manageable. But before he could dive deeper into the conversation, the caretaker appeared.

“Daniel, it’s your chore day today,” she said, her tone as dry as always. “After you eat, go speak with Miss Jones. She’ll tell you what to do.”

She walked off without waiting for a response, leaving Daniel to stare at his plate in disbelief.

His heart sank. His training plan was already broken. On the very first day.