The move from the city had been a significant change, and I could still remember the stress that had filled our home during those initial months. My parents had been on edge, constantly looking over their shoulders with caution. Even as a small child, I had sensed their anxiety, the tension in their voices, and the worry etched on their faces. But this too lessened over time.
The change in the mana around us had been palpable to me, a constant reminder of the upheaval we were experiencing. The denser mana had helped fill the new baby star in my chest, which also contributed to its replenishment by generating mana on its own.
Playing with my mana had led to unexpected developments. I found that my skills could level up with practice. My [Mana Manipulation] skill had reached level 5, and my [Sense Mana] skill had climbed to level 10. This led to a new and unexpected development—I received experience in levelling up skills. The more I worked on my skills, the better understanding I gained of how the whole system worked.
Not all skills give the same amount of experience. [Mana Manipulation] gave 100 EXP times the level it reached, whereas [Sense Mana] only gave 50 EXP times the level. This led me to rank them in different categories, with [Sense Mana] in Tier 1 and [Mana Manipulation] in Tier 2. However, I needed more information and more data points to make a solid conclusion. This part of my new life engaged the engineering part of my mind and helped mitigate the boredom of my first months in the new house as a baby.
Another surprise was that with the experience gained from levelling skills, I myself could also level up. Every level-up gave me 10 unassigned stat points, and probably assigned stat points as well, but I could not for the life of me remember my initial status, except I knew Magic made a massive jump after I formed my star.
LV: 5 Experience: 229/305
Vitality: 9
Endurance: 4
Strength: 2
Agility: 2
Senses: 3
Mind: 26
Magic: 25
Clarity: 2
Status Points: 50
Skills: [Sense Mana] (5), [Mana Manipulation] (2)
While trying to add more wisps of mana to my core, I found that after it filled completely, I could not add any more. Determined to understand my abilities better, I began to experiment with moving my mana within myself. This felt almost impossible as I could not move the little star that resided in my chest.
What if I try and peel off small flakes like how I built it in the beginning, just in reverse?
Focusing on the small star in my chest, I tried to isolate a wisp on the surface of my star. It felt like staring into the sun and trying to see grains of sand there, but I did not give up. That perseverance came with additional level-ups in my [Sense Mana], which made it progressively easier to isolate a single wisp. Slowly, a small wisp separated from my star. My excitement at my success caused me to lose focus, and the wisp shot back into my star where I lost track of it.
Stolen novel; please report.
Each consecutive try brought better results and more levels in both of my skills until I could remove a wisp of mana and move it around inside my body.
What now? I thought. My mother uses healing through her hand! So I moved the wisp to my hand and tried pushing it out of my fingers.
"Skill obtained: [Expel Mana]”
The realization that I could now absorb, control, sense, and expel mana was amazing. This exhilaration was also fueled by the extra experience that the new skill gave.
Continuing my experiments, I emptied my entire core of mana one day, only to find myself exhausted. I spent time capturing wisps of mana to refill my core, and in the process, while in a deep state of focus, I discovered the skill [Meditation]. Entering a state of meditation allowed me to draw wisps of mana to me automatically. The discovery also changed the way I ranked my skills, as [Meditation] only awarded 10 EXP per level. I now had [Meditation] as Rank 1, [Sense Mana] as Rank 2, and [Mana Manipulation] and [Expel Mana] as Rank 3.
My mother had started actively teaching me in secret after the move, perhaps sensing that I was different from other children. She would treat me as a normal baby around others, but when it was just our family, she would always try to actively teach me. She began with language, and in a few months, I was fluent in our new mother tongue, though I could not speak it until my vocal cords developed more. But my mother and I could communicate almost fluently without words.
“Aerorae,” my mother said during one of our lessons, “you must keep your abilities and mana core secret. Do you understand? It is very important that you keep it secret. Nod if you understand.”
I nodded.
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The village had eventually become our home. My father, Mìcheil, had quickly become friends with Jörg, the village chief, and my mother had formed a close bond with Silvia, Jörg's wife. I often saw my mother and Silvia talking almost daily, their conversations a mix of laughter and serious discussions. The chief's son, Elias, who was a year older than me, had also become a familiar presence in my life. We often played together, exploring the forests and fields around the village. Observing Elias helped me a lot in refining my mannerisms and acting to seem more like a normal child.
One day, I asked my mother about the different tiers of skills. She explained patiently, "Skills are categorized into five tiers: Basic, Novice, Advanced, Expert, and Master. Each tier represents a level of proficiency and complexity."
"Why are some skills harder to learn than others?" I asked.
"Basic skills are the foundation," my mother replied. "They are simple actions or observations. As you progress to Novice and Advanced skills, they become more specialized and require more precise control and understanding. Expert and Master skills are rare and require years of practice and exceptional talent."
“And how does a person's level work in relation to experience?” I asked.
“It is a quarter more difficult than the previous level,” my mother answered, confirming my own observations.
I nodded, absorbing the information. I enjoyed these lessons with my mother, finding comfort in the knowledge and structure they provided. Later that night, I wrote down my calculations and equations on a piece of paper my mother had given me. I looked them over one last time before hiding it under my bed.
image [https://i.imgur.com/GTE4Pzk.png]