Wake up.

………….

Hello? Wake up.

………….

Oh my god. WAKE THE FUCK UP!

….What?

About damn time.

"Ugh. What is-....Holy shit. Why does my head hurt so much?" It felt like there were miners drilling holes in my head. The headache was killing me, so I reflexively tried to hold my head with my right hand, but I froze. Despite the throbbing headache, I was able to clearly make out a baby’s hand. A hand that belonged to me.

I think you have more pressing matters than a simple headache.

"What do you mean?"

For starters, don’t you find it odd there’s a voice in your head that doesn’t belong to you?

"Oh yeah."

…..

…..

Are you not curious about it?

"I’m just waiting for you to introduce yourself."

Bruh. Well, I’m your system. You know, the one from your deal with ol’ Death?

A system?.....A system. Soul magic. This world of magic. My three conditions in my deal with Death. My reincarnation. "Is that why I’m a baby?"

Not just any baby either. You were just born yesterday, so you’re like right out of the oven.

"…..What? Are you fucking serious? Do I have to wait 3 years just to even move on my own?"

Look on the bright side. You can sleep and do nothing for those 3 years.

"Okay, it’s fine. I can make do with this. System, tell me about the world I’m in."

No.

…….

……..

"No? What do you mean “no”?"

Cuz I don’t feel like it.

"System, I order you to describe the world I’m in to me."

And I order you to shut up and let me rest.

"I…I can’t believe it. Not only am I reborn as a baby, a baby that was born just the day before, mind you, I now also have a system that won’t even listen to me. Death, why have you done this to me?"

In all fairness, you never asked Death for an obedient system.

Could you please shut up?

My fault.

"Actually, hold on. Why do you need to rest? You’re a literal ai. You don’t even have a physical form."

Mentally, duh.

"I’m about to mentally strangle you if you say something dumb like that again."

Such a struggle talking to cranky babies. I pity parents all across the world.

"This is it. This is my end."

Alright fine. I was just messing with you. Consider it a test, one that you failed miserably.

"I give zero fucks about your dumb test. Just tell me about this world, and the situation I’m in."

Does someone have a dirty diaper?

"I swear to God I’ll-"

You are currently presiding in the world “Zarvendia”. You live in the small village “Lurindell”, in the province of “Therandor”, in the kingdom “Myrkwind”. You are Beric Bome. You are the youngest of three children to Lucan Bome and Merrol Bome. Your older brother, the oldest of the three, is Arthur Bome. Your older sister, the middle child, is Elaine Bome.

"System, status."

I think you have something to say to me first.

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

"What now?"

It’s a two word phrase. A phrase that you would use to show your appreciation, ahem.

……

……

"….Thank you."

You’re welcome. But anyways, here it is.

A light blue rectangular screen popped up in front of me. On the top left was what I assumed to be my current body, a fat baby. Above it was my name, Beric Bome, and the words “Level 0” right before it. Below my body was a description of me. Silver hair, black eyes, light tan skin, 2 days old, the basic characteristics. Going lower, was an empty box, with bolded words at the top saying “Weapons”. The right side of the box was where my stats were. In total, there was strength, speed, stamina, endurance, durability, and mana. However, there were some that were locked. They still had a place within my stats, but they were blurred out, as if it was possible for me to unlock them in the future. But, there was one final stat that I was puzzled by. Right under mana was the stat “soul rank”. "System, what’s soul rank?"

In this world, souls and mana are inherently connected. The purer and more efficient one's soul is, the greater their mana reserves become, along with an increase in the potency and efficiency of their spells. The purity of souls is ranked according to the amount of impurities present, and this is reflected in their coloring. For example, the lowest soul rank is “Abyssal Void,” which is what you have. The highest tier possible is “Celestial White,” though this has only been attained by legendary heroes of the past who have since ascended to the realm of the gods. The center of the soul, known as the core, contains your mana reserves. Surrounding the core are impurities that block “mana currents.” These currents are responsible for distributing mana throughout the body and directly influence the performance of spells. The greater the number of mana currents, the stronger the spell's output. Purifying the entire soul allows more soul currents to stem from the core throughout the entire body. The outside of the core contains impurities that block soul currents, causing the soul to change color. As more impurities vanish from the soul, the core begins to resonate, emanating a brighter color with each tier. The remaining impurities interfere with this coloring, and eventually, as the impurities are entirely removed, the soul achieves its highest possible state, represented by the absence of color—attaining the peak of purity for a mortal soul.

"How do souls become pure then?"

There are three main ways to purify the soul:

* Meditation: By meditating and focusing on the essence of the soul itself.

* Condensation: By condensing the soul and forcefully removing any impurities, “crushing the soul, squeezing out the impurities.”

* External Assistance: By using outside factors, such as divine herbs or the blessings of gods, to aid in the purification process.

However, your soul magic would allow you to achieve this at a much faster rate.

"How so?"

Typically, people in this world are not capable of fully sensing their soul. The only way to determine their soul rank is by meditating and focusing on detecting impurities within their soul. Although they cannot see the soul itself, its outline is visible and reflects the soul's color. By observing this outline and any impurities present, individuals can ascertain their soul rank. Generally, raising one's soul rank is a slow and arduous process. It can take months to clear enough impurities to reach the next tier. This process imposes significant mental and physical strain and carries the risk of failure, which may lead to the accumulation of additional impurities. When meditating, one must concentrate completely on the essence of their soul, which poses a risk of intrusion by external entities such as wandering spirits or imps that could invade the soul currents. Condensing the soul is even riskier, as it involves forcefully removing impurities and carries the potential for irreparable damage. If not done with utmost care, it could permanently alter the soul. Divine herbs, which aid in purification, are rare and typically found only every few years. They usually grow in areas saturated with mana residues, such as remnants of past battles or the remains of mana-blessed creatures. Additionally, gods seldom answer personal prayers from the general populace; only heroes have historically received direct responses. In summary, while meditation is the most viable method, it is both slow and hazardous. However, your situation is different. With your soul magic, you can actually see your soul, which allows you to easily detect impurities and identify weak spots more quickly, thus preventing any malevolent spirits from invading. Furthermore, you can see the souls of others, using them as frameworks to understand and improve your own. Yet, there is one final factor that makes you exceptionally proficient at upgrading your soul rank.

"Holy yappington. Could you really not have just said that in a more condensed format?"

…..

…..

Do you not want me to explain? Because I can stop and let you figure it out on your own.

"I apologize for my careless remark."

You also need to know this. Generally speaking, soul magic is an untouched topic. Not many know about it, and even fewer have used it. There are no spells or uses that have been discovered yet. It all depends on your creativity and dedication to figuring out how to wield soul magic properly. That being said, Death did tell me about one use that he knows about. A use that he believes not only are you able to do, but a use that will help you exponentially.

"Well now you got me all excited. What is it?"

*plays drumroll*

"….Really?"

You are able to absorb the souls of dead beings. *fanfare sounds*

….

…..

"I uh…I kinda figured that out already."

….What?

"That was sort of my whole reason for wanting soul magic. I wanted to absorb other souls to strengthen my own."

…..

……

Look man. I’m just the messenger. I don’t know what I’m doing here.

"Don’t worry about it. I wasn’t expecting too much from you anyway."

You piece of-

"Anyway, what now? I can barely move my limbs, so I’m stuck in this prehistoric crib for the next 2 years. 3 if I’m a late bloomer."

It only makes sense for you to begin training your soul. Meditating would be your best option.

"Don’t I need someone else’s soul as an example?"

Just call for your parents.

"Uhhhh ... .I don’t know if maybe you forgot, but I can’t…talk. After all, I’m a baby."

Beric, Beric, Beric. It is precisely that you’re a baby that you are capable of calling for your parents. All you need to do is to start crying.

"Huh. That's a good point." So, I did. I genuinely had no idea on how to cry like a baby, but I guess my body took over as I began to bawl my eyes out. Oddly, this gave me a question. "System, why didn’t you…awaken me yesterday? You know, when I was born?"

I didn’t wanna deal with you awakening in the body of a crying baby, so I just waited for you to calm down.

Honestly, I couldn’t blame him. My own cries were beginning to annoy me.