Several weeks passed.
Peering out the window from atop my bed, I saw that the leaves on the trees outside had all fallen away. Since I first tested Magic Sword Summoning when I was six months old, I figured I was now roughly seven or eight months into my new life. Calculating backward, that meant I had been born in April.
In this world, everything was modeled after reality to keep things simple for the players, so a year consisted of twelve months and a day lasted twenty-four hours. My estimate of my birth month was likely spot on.
(I'm starting to get the hang of this.)
Clutching the summoned Wooden Magic Sword in my tiny hand, I let my face relax into a satisfied grin.
In truth, ever since that first attempt at Magic Sword Summoning, I had been summoning the blade almost every single day. I’d only skipped the very next day because I was so terrified of that excruciating headache.
But I hadn't given up.
When I finally plucked up the courage to try again, the second summoning wasn't nearly as taxing as the first. As I repeated the process a third and fourth time, I realized the resulting headache and physical lethargy were becoming incomparably lighter.
(So that first time really was just mana depletion.)
In The Legend of the Seven Heroes, any character who ran out of mana suffered a temporary stat penalty. I had simply fallen into that exact state.
(It seems that, unlike in the game, stats in this world don't follow the concept of levels. That's the only way to explain how I’ve grown.)
For instance, physical strength—and even attack power—didn't seem to depend on a numerical level. While individual potential varied, stamina and other traits grew as the body matured. Or, in my case, perhaps they grew by pushing my mana to its absolute limits. If I wanted to increase my attack power, I’d likely have to push my physical body to its limits as well.
In short, it all came down to hard work.
(Even so... one of my plans has completely fallen apart...)
I had been operating on the assumption that this world functioned exactly like The Legend of the Seven Heroes, where I knew all the most efficient ways to power-level. I’d hoped to take the easy path and live a peaceful life, but it seemed that wouldn't be possible. Recently, I’d developed a sense of just how much mana I could spend before things got dangerous, so my only option was to keep grinding away.
"Auu..."
That said, my body still wouldn't move the way I wanted it to. Frequent use of Magic Sword Summoning had seemingly expanded my mana pool, but I couldn't do much else. I wanted to learn the proper way to swing a sword as soon as possible, but my infant body simply wouldn't allow it.
(I suppose I have no choice but to focus on growing my mana for now.)
Just as I let out a heavy sigh, the door creaked open.
"Ren! You awake?"
A well-built man stepped into the room. In a panic, I willed the magic sword and my Bracelet to vanish—another trick I had recently mastered.
"Oh, look at you, you're wide awake. Were you staring out the window again?"
"Auu!"
"Good boy! Here, Papa will give you a closer look!"
This man was my father, Roy Ashton. He was a young man, the same age as Mireille.
(Those muscles are as incredible as ever.)
Roy had sharp, handsome features that complemented Mireille perfectly. As he lifted me into his arms, I looked up at him, and he flashed a bright, white-toothed grin.
"Take a look. Our Nameless Village is doing a fine job of being the frontier today, too!"
Using "frontier" as a verb, Roy opened the window. His short blond hair ruffled in the chilly breeze.
(Yep. It's the frontier, all right.)
It hadn't been detailed in The Legend of the Seven Heroes, but Ren Ashton’s birthplace was the definition of the sticks—a tiny, remote village with a population of fewer than two hundred people. Simple houses were scattered across the rural landscape visible from the window.
"See that? Over there is the forest."
Roy pointed toward a dense, overgrown woodland. It looked like an ordinary forest at first glance, but one massive, prominent stone formation towered over the trees.
"Dau?" I asked, pointing at it.
"Curious about that rock, are you? That’s Sword Rock. As you can see, it's a jagged thing that looks like a blade. It’s about an hour and a half's walk once you enter the forest."
The rock looked to be about the height of a ten-story building. I was staring at it blankly when a sharp gust of wind nipped at my cheeks.
"Dau!" I protested, trying to tell him it was cold, but Roy completely misunderstood.
"I see, I see! You like looking outside, do you?"
I realized it was hopeless and stared off into the distance. It looked like I was stuck staring at the countryside until Roy was satisfied. Just as I was about to give up, however, his tone shifted.
"But remember this, Ren. You must never, ever go into the forest past those fields. The monsters around here might be weak, but they'll still attack a little guy like you the moment they spot you."
His words immediately grabbed my attention.
(Monsters...?)
"Well, because they're weak, this village manages to scrape by. We get meat when we kill them, and the Mana Stones fetch a decent price. That’s how I manage to provide for us on my own."
(Mana Stones! That's it! Mana Stones!)
Besides training my mana through summoning, there was something else I could do. I needed Mana Stones to raise my Proficiency.
(I wonder if he'll show me one...)
I looked up at Roy with wide, expectant eyes. He noticed my gaze and blinked.
"What? You want to see a monster?"
I shook my head.
"Hmm... then are you interested in the Mana Stones?"
I nodded vigorously.
Unlike his earlier blunder, Roy caught on immediately and closed the window.
"Alright then! Papa will show you!"
Still holding me, he carried me out of the room. This was the first time I’d seen the house outside my own quarters, and it was just as dilapidated as my room. The wooden hallways were a dark, aged brown, and the color had faded significantly in several spots. It was a bleak sight, devoid of any decorations or fine furniture.
(Come to think of it, the Ashton Family holds the rank of Knight, right?)
This was knowledge I’d brought over from the game.
"Mmm... I really need to fix this place up soon..." Roy muttered with a wry smile as the floorboards let out a loud, agonizing groan. He looked down at me and spoke as if sharing a life lesson. "I’m attached to this place since I inherited it from my parents, but I think it’s finally hitting its limit. Well, I’ll consider repairs if the village ever strikes it rich. Remember this well, Ren: a poor Knight has no money to spare."
He was explaining my situation for me quite helpfully.
(Papa, you really shouldn't be telling a baby about our financial struggles.)
So, to summarize: the Ashton Family was a line of frontier knights, and the current head, Roy Ashton, had inherited both the title and this mansion from his father. I’d thought the title of Knight was only for a single generation, but it seemed things worked differently in this world.
(Oh, something smells good.)
The aroma of roasting meat tickled my nose. Roy followed the scent and pushed open a door at the end of the hall.
"Mireille! I brought Ren!"
Beyond the door was a kitchen. It was an old-fashioned space where more than half the floor was made of packed earth, and a door led directly outside.
"Wh-Dear?! What are you doing bringing Ren in here so suddenly?"
"Well, you see, the boy said he wanted to see a Mana Stone."
"He did no such thing! Honestly, you!"
Actually, I did, I thought to myself.
Roy carried me over to the earthen floor where Mireille was working. There was a stone sink and a small, soot-stained hearth. Mireille stood before it, looking exasperated.
"Goodness! I was carefully timing when to let Ren out of his room! You're always like this, just doing whatever pops into your head!"
"A-Always is a bit much... I'm not that bad!"
"Yes, you are! It was the same when we were five! We talked about going out to the fields together for the first time, and you just went off and did it by yourself!"
"Guh..."
I found the glimpse into their past quite heartwarming. Since I was already growing attached to this world and my new life, having parents who got along was the best I could hope for. Roy was clearly a bit henpecked, but that was a minor detail.
"...So, did you really just bring him here to see a Mana Stone?"
"Yeah! Of course!"
"Haa... honestly. You’ve always been a sword-crazy idiot, obsessing over fighting monsters and collecting Mana Stones. You probably just had an auditory hallucination because you wanted Ren to be like you."
I did a little mental fist-pump. This was perfect. If my father was a skilled swordsman who enjoyed collecting Mana Stones, he would be a massive help in my future growth.
"H-Hallucination or not, we'll know if we try! Come on, let me borrow the Mana Stone from the one I got this morning!"
"Fine, fine. I've already finished butchering it, so help yourself."
Roy handed me over to Mireille and walked to a corner of the kitchen. There, I saw a mud-stained pelt with a semi-transparent stone resting on top of it.
(Is that... a Little Boar pelt?)
The name surfaced in my memory. It was the name of the very first monster the protagonist fights in The Legend of the Seven Heroes—a creature that looked much like a wild boar.
"Thanks to Papa hunting monsters, we have money and meat to share with the rest of the village. Mama respects him a lot for that," Mireille said softly. "But Ren, don't grow up to be a boy who only cares about swords and stones, okay?"
(Haha... no promises.)
I couldn't give her an honest answer, so I just gave her a weak smile. Mireille seemed happy enough with that.
"I’m back! Here, Ren, this is a Mana Stone!"
Roy returned triumphantly, holding the semi-transparent stone I’d spotted. Up close, it had a faint green tint and a natural beauty that rivaled a gemstone. It was roughly the size of a man’s palm. Roy pressed it into my tiny hands.
(Ooh... So this is a Mana Stone!)
Looking at the stone gripped in my hands, I couldn't stop myself from grinning. Mireille, who had been so sure Roy was imagining things, looked on in shock and let out a long sigh.
"He really is your son."
"What's with the sigh?"
"...I was just realizing that, after my husband, my son is going to be obsessed with swords and stones, too. Oh, honestly! Ren, don't wiggle so much, it's dangerous. I'll put you on the table so you can look at it."
I apologized to her in my head as she set me down on the nearby table. She kept a close eye on me, making sure I didn't roll off.
"Still..."
"Hmm? What is it?" Roy asked.
"I suppose it might be a good thing for the Ashton Family that he’s interested. Maybe one day he'll be brave enough to protect the village from monsters, just like you."
Despite her complaints, Mireille clearly admired her husband. Roy laughed boisterously at the praise, his face flushing with pride.
I, however, wasn't really listening to their conversation.
(Heh heh heh... time for some Proficiency.)
I secretly summoned my Bracelet and smirked. But as the seconds ticked by, the Mana Stone didn't react at all.
(I thought for sure the Bracelet would just absorb it...)
A sense of unease settled in my chest. I fearfully glanced at the Crystal Ball on the Bracelet.
『This Mana Stone cannot be used.』
The message left me reeling with disappointment.
(Does that mean...?)
Two possibilities came to mind. First, only specific types of Mana Stones could be used for Proficiency. Second, I could only use Mana Stones from monsters that I had defeated personally.
(I have a feeling it's the latter.)
The skill description from my previous life had mentioned that the types of magic swords could be increased by fulfilling specific conditions. I’d assumed those conditions involved certain Mana Stones—perhaps stones dropped by boss monsters would unlock new blades.
(If that's the case, then the latter makes the most sense.)
If I could use any Mana Stone, I could just buy my way to higher Proficiency. To prevent that, the system likely required me to hunt the monsters myself.
(They really aren't going to make this easy for me...)
Just like I’d thought recently, I wasn't going to be allowed to grow without putting in the work. I dismissed the Bracelet, let go of the Mana Stone, and watched it clatter onto the table. I flopped onto my back in a starfish pose right there on the table, letting out a disgruntled "Auu."