That particular enemy was an Elf encountered in the forest. On top of their natural physical prowess, they were notorious for using Nature Magic to sprout vines that could bind the protagonist’s party. They were a real pain to deal with, especially since they used other spells to command monsters as their subordinates.
(That guy’s Nature Magic was incredibly powerful... but it bothers me that mine has "Small" attached to it.)
It seemed safer to assume this was a significantly weaker version of the spell.
(Well, I might as well test it out. In a world teeming with monsters, if I can’t fight, I won’t even have the luxury of worrying about living a peaceful life.)
Determined, he repeated the words Wooden Magic Sword... Wooden Magic Sword... over and over in his mind, but there was no sign of anything happening.
Just as Ren was about to slump in disappointment, his eyes fell upon the bracelet.
Perhaps the Magic Sword Summoning wouldn’t trigger unless the bracelet was actually equipped? He moved his right arm closer, and the band snapped onto his wrist of its own accord.
Startled but encouraged, Ren thought Wooden Magic Sword... once more. Immediately, a rift tore through the empty air.
A wooden blade emerged slowly from the crack, as if being unsheathed from an invisible scabbard. It tumbled onto the shabby bed with a pathetic, muffled thud.
(It’s... tiny...)
The joy that had begun to bloom on Ren’s face instantly withered.
It should have been obvious, really. Despite being called a "Magic Sword," the thing was made of wood. Furthermore, calling it a "dagger" would have been an insult to daggers; it looked like a common kitchen knife at best.
(W-Well, my level hasn't increased yet... and I can at least use Nature Magic, I think...)
Suppressing his dissatisfaction, Ren picked up the sword.
He couldn't help but notice his body felt strangely heavy, and a dull ache throbbed in his head. Deciding it was just his imagination, he gripped the hilt tightly and moved his arm to take a practice swing—and that was when it hit him.
(Agggh... h-help...)
The headache he had tried to ignore exploded in intensity. The relentless, searing pain was far too much for an infant’s body to handle, and Ren lost consciousness instantly.
As he drifted away, the bracelet on his arm vanished.
◇ ◇ ◇ ◇
Several weeks had passed since the headache had knocked him out.
Looking out the window from his bed, Ren saw that the trees outside were now completely bare. Since he had first attempted the Magic Sword Summoning at six months old, he estimated he was now roughly seven or eight months old.
Calculating backward, his birthday likely fell sometime in April.
Then, one day, as Ren continued to grow...
(I think I finally have the hang of this.)
Ren allowed his expression to soften with a satisfied smile as he held the summoned Wooden Magic Sword.
Since that first disastrous attempt, he had summoned the blade almost every day—with the exception of the very next day, when the sheer terror of that headache had kept him from trying.
However, he hadn't been able to give up. When he eventually tried again, the second summoning hadn't been nearly as grueling as the first.
By the third and fourth attempts, the headache and physical exhaustion had become incomparably lighter.
(So that first time was just a case of mana depletion.)
Even in Legend of the Seven Heroes, characters who ran out of mana suffered a temporary drop in their stats. Ren concluded that he had fallen into the same trap.
(This world must be different from the game. Physical stats probably don't have a level concept. If they did, I wouldn't be able to explain how I'm getting stronger.)
Strength and endurance likely didn't depend solely on a level. While there were individual differences, those stats probably grew as the body developed—or, in Ren's case, by pushing his mana capacity to its absolute limit to force growth.
It was the same for muscle mass. In short, he had to put in the work.
(Even so, one of my plans has officially failed.)
Assuming this world followed the logic of the game, Ren had known several efficient ways to power-level. He had hoped to take the easy path to ensure a quiet life, but it seemed the world wouldn't be so kind.
He would have to put in the honest effort. Just as Ren let out a deep sigh of resignation—
"Ren? Are you awake?"
The door creaked open, and a well-built man stepped into the room.
Ren panicked, mentally commanding the sword and bracelet to vanish before they could be spotted. It was a trick he had only mastered recently.
"Oh, looking out the window again? Come here, Daddy will give you a closer look!"
As he said himself, the man was Ren’s father.
His name was Roy Ashton. He was a young man, the same age as Mireille, with a rugged, handsome face that complemented hers perfectly.
Roy scooped Ren up into his arms. As Ren looked up at him, Roy gave a bright, confident smile, showing off his white teeth.
"Take a look out there. Our Nameless Village is doing some fine frontiering again today!"
Turning "frontier" into a verb, Roy opened the window. The chilly breeze ruffled his short blonde hair.
(Yeah. Today is as much of a frontier as ever.)
Though it hadn't been specified in the game, Ren Ashton’s birthplace was the definition of the middle of nowhere—a tiny village with a population of less than a hundred. Simple houses were scattered across the rural landscape beyond the window.
"See that? That’s the forest over there."
Roy pointed toward a dense, overgrown forest. It looked ordinary at first glance, but a single, massive rock formation towered over the trees.
"Dabu?" Ren asked, pointing at it.
"That's Sword Rock," Roy explained. "As you can see, it's as sharp as a blade. It’s about an hour-and-a-half walk once you get into the woods."
The rock looked to be at least ten stories high. As Ren idly gazed at it, a sharp gust of wind brushed his cheek.
"But listen to me, Ren. You must never go into the forest past those fields. The monsters around here are weak, but they won't hesitate to attack a little guy like you."
Then, Roy said something that caught Ren's attention.
"Well, it's thanks to them being weak that this village survives. We get meat when we hunt them, and we can sell the Magic Stones for coin. It’s the only way I can make ends meet on my own."
(That’s it! Magic Stones!)
In addition to expanding his mana pool, there was something else he could be doing. He needed Magic Stones to increase his Mastery.
(I wonder if he’ll let me see one...)
As Ren was secretly plotting, Roy suggested they take a walk and carried him out of the room.
The interior of the manor was just as dilapidated as Ren’s bedroom. The dark brown wood of the hallway was faded and worn, and the place lacked any kind of decoration or furniture that might have made it feel like a noble's home.
"Mmm... I really need to fix this place up eventually..." Roy muttered with a wry smile as the floorboards groaned under his weight. "I inherited this ruin along with the Knighthood from my old man, but it's reaching its limit. Well, I'll think about repairs if the village ever makes a profit. Remember this, Ren: a poor knight doesn't have a copper to spare."
As Roy said, House Ashton was a knightly lineage in charge of this frontier village. Ren had assumed the title of Knight was non-hereditary, but it seemed things were different in this world—or at least in this country.
(But Dad, this really isn't the kind of thing you should be telling a baby.)
Roy eventually stopped at the end of the hall and pushed a door open.
"Mireille! I’ve brought Ren!"
The room was a kitchen. More than half the floor was packed earth, and it had a rustic feel with a door leading directly outside.
"Oh, honestly! What are you doing bringing Ren in here so suddenly!?"
Mireille was standing by a stone basin on the earthen floor, near a small, soot-stained hearth.
"Well, it seemed like Ren wanted to see a Magic Stone—"
"There's no way he knows what that is! Really, you..."
I actually do, Ren thought.
Mireille, however, was convinced it was just another one of Roy’s whims. She let out a long sigh and shot her husband a skeptical look.
"Haa... you’ve always been a sword idiot. Ever since we were young, you were always off fighting monsters and obsessing over Magic Stones. You’re just projecting your own hobbies onto him."
"W-Well, we can find out soon enough! Here, let me borrow the Magic Stone from the one I caught this morning!"
"Fine, fine. I’ve already finished butchering it, so do what you want."
Roy handed Ren over to Mireille and hurried to a corner of the kitchen. There, Ren saw a mud-stained pelt with a translucent stone resting on top of it.
(Is that... a Little Boar pelt?)
That was the name of the very first monster the protagonist fought in the game. It looked almost exactly like a common wild boar.
"Ren, listen. It’s thanks to your father hunting these monsters that we have money and meat to share with the village. I respect him for that, I really do... but please, don't grow up to be a man who only cares about swords and stones. Okay?"
Ren couldn't exactly make that promise. He gave her a weak, dry smile instead, which she seemed to take as a positive response.
Roy returned triumphantly, holding the translucent stone.
"Here you go, Ren. This is a Magic Stone."
He let Ren’s tiny hands grasp the object. Up close, the stone had a faint green hue; it looked like it would be as beautiful as a jewel if someone took the time to polish it.
Ren’s face lit up as he clutched the stone with both hands. Mireille, who had been so certain Roy was delusional, looked on in shock before letting out another short sigh.
"First the husband, now the son... They're both infatuated with Magic Stones."
She sighed again, but her smile was warm and indulgent.
◇ ◇ ◇ ◇
A short while later, Roy carried Ren back to his room.
He had let Ren keep the Magic Stone as a makeshift toy. Ren beamed, thrilled that he was finally going to earn some Mastery.
He eagerly summoned his bracelet.
(Wait... what?)
Nothing happened.
Minutes passed, but the status remained unchanged. Ren stared intently at the bracelet in confusion.
Finally, text flickered into existence: This Magic Stone cannot be used.
(Could it be...)
Two theories immediately sprang to mind. Either he could only use stones from monsters he had defeated himself, or he needed a specific type of stone.
He suspected the latter was a condition for unlocking new Magic Swords, which meant the former was likely the reason he couldn't gain Mastery.
(...I see how it is.)
If he could use any stone, he could just buy his way to max Mastery. To prevent that kind of exploit, the system must have been designed to require stones from his own kills.
(They really aren't going to let me take the easy way out, are they...?)
Faced with the realization that he would have to do his own dirty work, Ren flopped back onto the bed. He stared up at the ceiling, his tiny face filled with a level of existential weariness no infant should ever possess.