Happy 2nd Birthday, Leon!!

Today, many people have gathered at our house. I'm finally two years old. Time seems to move so slowly when you're an infant—those two years felt like forever. After my mom saw me use fire magic for the first time, she immediately told everyone in town. She was so excited that she even told my father, of course. She gathered all the neighbors to watch me cast the spell.

But when the neighbors were inside our house, waiting eagerly for me to perform, I simply passed out from exhaustion. Since then, I haven't shown anyone my magic again.

Over these two years, I've become fluent in their language. I found out that my mom's name is Stella Ishtar, and my father's name is Gustav Ishtar, while I am known as Leon Ishtar.

My father, Gustav, is a former brawler in the hero's party. Brawlers are fighters who use their fists and bodies to attack enemies. He's also a master swordsman, spearman, and shield fighter—basically, he can use any weapon. People once called him Berserker Gustav.

As for my mom, Stella, she's a former mage from the same hero's party. She's an expert in the three basic elements: Wind, Fire, and Water.

After the hero died during the Great Demon March, their party disbanded. My dad then proposed to my mom, and they decided to live in a far province on the human continent.

As a two-year-old in this world, I've already achieved some remarkable things. I can read and write in their alphabet and language, unlike most other two-year-olds who are still sucking their thumbs. I spend my time reading my mom's books. She's a talented author who documented all her adventures with the hero's party. The title of her book is Defluxit Stella—who names a book after themselves, right? But as I read it, the story is actually pretty interesting. It's like reading a fantasy novel about the rise and fall of the hero, Alex. Though the later parts are a bit cringey, since my mom and dad fall in love during the story, and it shifts from Alex's tale to their romance.

Beyond the story, the book contains valuable knowledge about magic, potion recipes, and instructions on how to cast spells. There are also detailed descriptions of the demons and monsters they fought. It's a fascinating piece of work.

According to the book, there are four basic elements: Water, Fire, Wind, and Earth. There are also two special elements: Dark and Light. Light is an element typically blessed by the gods to certain individuals. It can be used to boost physical strength and amplify magic. Dark element, on the other hand, is often associated with demons and a few humans. It's also called the "cursed element" because it feeds on the user's lifespan. Demons don't mind using it because they typically live for thousands of years.

Both Light and Dark elements can enhance physical abilities and magic, but Dark element comes with a cost to humans.

Every day, I try to practice casting spells, but my body is still weak, and my mana depletes quickly after casting just two or three spells.

The secret to casting magic in this world is surprisingly simple: imagination and visualization are the keys to controlling and creating elements. For example, if I want to create a ball of dirt, I need to visualize the dirt forming into a ball—like a planet, or anything that resembles a dirt sphere. Then, I release a fraction of my mana into the ground, connecting it with the natural mana in the earth, commanding it to form the ball.

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It's like a communication process. I, the sender, use my mana to send a visualized message to the element. The element, as the receiver, responds by forming the shape I commanded.

In simpler terms, your mana is like invisible limbs that manipulate objects outside yourself, but the object must contain natural mana. The four basic elements are rich in natural mana, which allows mages to control them. In theory, mages can control anything with natural mana, including humans and other living beings—but there are limits.

Natural mana has its own will or compatibility. A mage born with mana blessed by Water God can easily control water but may struggle to control fire. If the fire element's mana rejects the mage's command, it won't work. This process is far more complicated than it seems, and honestly, it's giving me a headache just thinking about it.

Anyway, it's my birthday today—I shouldn't overthink things like this. Our family is quite famous in this town since my father works at the local guild. That's why so many people are here today: adventurers and a few close neighbors.

But this doesn't feel like a kid's birthday party. Everywhere I look, I see drunken adventurers, and even my father is already tipsy.

Suddenly, my father picks me up and shows me to his friends.

— "Here's my son! You... kno-ow what he is? A magus! He's a magician!" —

He can't even speak clearly.

— "Now, Leon, son... sho-ow them..." —

This is such a drag. Maybe I should show them something so they stop bugging me. I'll just demonstrate what I've been practicing recently.

I imagine a perfect sphere of dirt. I raise my palm, and a ball of dirt forms in the air. Then, I focus on making the dirt boil and emit fire.

Everyone was shocked, including my father. He didn't expect that I could really do magic like my mother told him.

This is the first time he's seen me use magic, but they'll probably forget about it later since they're all drunk.

After I finished creating the flaming ball of dirt, everyone at the table started clapping and congratulating my father.

Unfortunately, before I could dispel it, I accidentally dropped the flaming dirt ball on the table. As soon as it hit the solid surface, the ball exploded—blowing up the table and setting the house on fire. Chaos erupted as everyone ran outside. my dad's quick reflexes saved us from the explosion.

I didn't expect the spell to be that dangerous. It was just a small ball of dirt and fire—why did it overreact like that?

Then, my mom stood in front of the flames, raising her hand. Suddenly, the fire lifted into the air, gathering into a massive fireball as it sucked up the remaining flames from the house.

Once she had absorbed all the fire, my mom dispelled the fireball, and it vanished into the air.

She managed to save about three-quarters of the house, while my father and his friends collapsed onto the ground, drunk.

Stella slapped my father awake.

— "Hey, wake up! What just happened?" — she demanded.

She glanced at my father's friends, and they scattered like terrified rats, running away from her as fast as they could.

She then picked me up and, with one hand, tossed my father back into the house. The sheer strength she has—throwing a hundred-kilo man like he was nothing but a rag doll.

She's definitely terrifying. How did Gustav survive this for years? Right now, she's scarier than the Demon Lord.

Stella walked inside, and Gustav groggily woke up.

Suddenly, flames enveloped her hand, transforming into a fiery blade. Without hesitation, she swung at Gustav, aiming for his neck. Was she really going to kill him?

Gustav, still half-asleep, managed to dodge, his face confused. He lashed out with a kick, but Stella reacted instantly, using wind magic to push him back before the kick connected. Gustav flew into the wall with a thud.

What the hell is going on? I slipped outside, trying to avoid getting caught in the middle of this insane brawl.

Gustav recovered, launching himself toward Stella, but still clearly drunk, he slipped and face-planted into the ground.

Stella wasted no time. Three orbs of flame appeared beside her, circling ominously. She raised her hand, and the ground beneath her boiled. A massive pillar of fire shot up from the floor.

Gustav narrowly dodged the pillar, but the flames engulfed more of the house.

House damage: 60%.

As Gustav dodged, the two remaining orbs beside Stella shifted to an icy blue. In the blink of an eye, a towering ice wall appeared, cutting off Gustav's escape route.

She was casting spells effortlessly—like breathing. Mixing elements to create something far more dangerous than simple fire or wind magic.

House damage: 90%.

Suddenly, an old man appeared at the door, watching the chaos with an amused look.

— "What an energetic family you've got there, son," — he said, glancing at me.

Energetic? They're trying to kill each other!

He chuckled softly. — "This brings back memories... The strongest mage in the hero's party, reaching the peak of magehood... Invoke!"