At age three, most royal children are still learning to read or being gently introduced to etiquette and posture.
I was preparing for war.
The night I touched the Codex of Dimensional Ascension marked a turning point. My body remained that of a toddler, but within, I now held the schematics for technology that could bend time and reshape matter. My interface evolved accordingly:
[System Update Complete.]
[New Feature Unlocked: Blueprint Engine – Tier 0]
[You may now design basic magical-tech hybrids.]
[Mana Efficiency Algorithm Online.]
Yet all of it would be useless if I didn't survive the next ten years.
That became painfully clear on the night the assassin came.
It was supposed to be a peaceful spring night. Aetherra's twin moons were full, bathing the capital in silver glow. The royal family had retired early. I had just finished mentally reviewing a theoretical fusion design based on mana-core containment principles.
Then my senses screamed.
[Warning: Mana fluctuation detected nearby.]
[Stealth spell detected – Grade C.]
I blinked once, eyes open in the dark. The system traced the distortion in real-time.
A cloaked figure, crouched near my window, holding a dagger laced in dark alchemical venom. Their mana signature pulsed erratically—professional, but not elite. Possibly hired. Not a political rival from the great noble houses. Too crude.
This was a message.
And it would be a mistake.
[Skill Installed: Flame Spark]
[Mana Cost: 5]
[Do you wish to cast? Y/N]
This was the spell from my first birthday grimoire—the simplest known elemental attack.
I focused. The system guided the flow of mana from my core to my palm, which glowed faintly beneath the blankets. The dagger drew closer, the assassin now inches from my crib.
I whispered: "Yes."
[Casting Flame Spark… Success.]
A bead of fire formed in the air.
Not a flame.
A bullet.
Compressed to maximum density through micro-aether shaping principles I developed by combining thermodynamics and sigil scripting.
It launched silently—a perfect, invisible sniper round made of plasma.
The assassin never even screamed. Just dropped.
Dead.
I stared at the corpse in the shadows.
Not with fear.
With curiosity.
[Combat Encounter: Victory]
[Bonus EXP Gained for First Kill]
[You have gained 1 Level]
[You have gained 5 Stat Points]
[Stat Points Available: 11]
I finally opened my Status Panel and made my first allocations.
STATUS PANEL
Name: ???
Age: 3
Race: Human (Aetherborn)
Class: Unawakened
Level: 2
Stats:
• Strength: 1
• Agility: 2 (+1)
• Mana: 19 (+9)
Stat Points Remaining: 0
Traits:
• Retained Memory (Earth)
• Genius of Two Worlds
• Royal Bloodline (Ardyn & Lira)
• First Blood
Skills:
• Flame Spark (Modified)
• Blueprint Engine (Tier 0)
I burned the body with my second cast. Left no trace.
In the morning, when my parents checked in on me, they found a sleeping child surrounded by the gentle scent of lavender wards.
But deep inside, I knew the game had begun.
Someone wanted the prince dead. Before I could awaken. Before I could become a threat.
Too late.