"Waa… wa… waa…" The sound of a baby crying echoed in the air, but despite this, the baby himself didn't really want to cry.
It was just an instinctive reaction of his body; if anything, he felt ashamed to cry, after all, inside this baby was an adult.
Fratley opened his eyes, finding himself in a completely new world. The last memory he had was inside a falling airplane. 'Is this the so-called transmigration like in those novels I read?'
Despite crying, his eyes started to wander around. The room was made of wood and planks. He could see a simple wooden chair and desk.
Looking up, he could also see a lamp lighting the room. 'This place seems to have electricity. I wonder, does this world have magic too?'
But just as his mind wandered, a voice disturbed his thoughts. "Congratulations, Emily, your son is born healthy."
Fratley turned his gaze upward. A beautiful face appeared. She had dark eyes and short hair, but based on her appearance, she didn't seem like a nurse. If anything, her clothes looked more like what a mercenary would wear.
It was a shirt with jeans, padded with some kind of Kevlar. If Fratley could turn his gaze further, he would also see a knife holster tied to her thigh.
"Cut the crap, Jane. Check his traits now."
"Alright… so impatient," Jane replied while carrying Fratley toward Emily.
Another face appeared in front of Fratley. This time, it was his own mother. She had long golden hair, her beautiful face covered in sweat, but her gaze was stern. "I hope you have good traits, Fratley, or this world won't be so kind to you. Maybe it's better if you weren't born."
"Damn, Emily, that's your son, your first child. How could you talk to him like that?"
"Because he's my son, Jane. You know what kind of world we live in. Especially for him and me, our situation is not good."
"A deserter from the Arcon Empire… I know, I know. But don't worry. Randy has accepted you into our settlement. Now you're one of us, and we will never give up on you."
"Well, I hope so…" Emily said in a tired tone, but her gaze never moved away from Fratley.
Deep down, she knew her situation was far more complicated. As the stepdaughter of the Duke, she had been abandoned by the entire family.
In retaliation, she fought back and stole a large amount of Psychalite, a special drug monopolized by the Empire. With this drug, she struck a deal with Randy.
"Come here, sweetie. It'll just hurt a bit," Jane said in a sweet voice while bringing some kind of device toward Fratley's arm.
Seeing it, Fratley's crying intensified. If before it was just instinct, now he truly cried from the heart. The device was massive in his eyes, easily ten times the size of a normal syringe. The body was completely made of metal, while the needle, though normal in thickness, was quite long.
"What the hell is that!? My new mother, help me please!!!" Fratley cried out loud, but to Jane and Emily, all they heard was "Waaa… waaa… waa…"
Without any hesitation, Jane stabbed the needle straight into his chest. The process was almost instant, but to Fratley, it felt like an eternity. He could feel the needle move past his flesh and reach his heart.
At that moment, he truly feared for his life. If the needle pulled blood, wouldn't it drain him completely with that size?
But thankfully, the needle only seemed to take a sample. He didn't feel any pull. Instead, he heard a beeping sound.
"Let me see… wow, the result is good. Seems like the gene implantation was a success. He's got some of the Hussar traits," Jane said with surprise.
Feeling impatient, Emily took the syringe from Jane's hand. On the side, there was a panel showing Fratley's condition and traits.
[Blood: B-]
[Trait: Fast Learner, Slothful, Psychic Harmony, Psychopath]
[Gene: Fast Wound Healing, Superclotting]
Most people wouldn't understand the terms, but not Emily. "Fast Learner means he can learn things twice as fast as average. Psychic Harmony means he has talent to be a mage…
But dammit, why do you have this trait? I know it, your father's a bad influence!"
"Didn't you just say what kind of world we live in? I think having 'Psychopath' has its merits.
It means he has far less empathy than average. Mixed with his Hussar gene, fast wound healing, and superclotting, he can be our elite soldier."
Emily turned her gaze toward Jane. "Who said I complained about 'Psychopath'? That trait is from me.
Who do you think killed his father? It was me.
That bastard dared to lay a hand on me just because my family arranged our marriage! What a dumbass!
What I don't like is Slothful! How could my son be a sloth!?"
Jane's lips twitched at hearing that. 'Slothful' meant one was prone to being lazy. But for someone like Fratley, with those traits and genes, she didn't feel it was a problem. After all, it was clear he would be a fighter in their settlement.
So what if he played around and slept all day?
As long as he fought when the settlement needed him, then it was fine.
Meanwhile as both Jane and Emily talk about Fratley future, the man in question Is starting to feel despresed.
'My mother killed my father? And both of us were a psycopath!? The hell!
Just what kind of world I born into!? Well at least I have talent to become a mage, this is good seem this world does have magic…'
Fratley start to imagine what kind of word he was born into, it seem to be a modern magical world, while his mother and him is on the run. Little did he know that the world he born into is far more crazier than he think.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Suddenly a loud bell is ringing, both Jane and Emily expression changed. Both of their gaze hardened just like a veteran.
"It's three ring, we have a raid, seem they still haven't given up." Jane said as she already begin to make a move. "You should hide, your body is still recovering."
But Emily already stood up, her body is weak, her leg is shaking, but her movement have no hesitation in it. "I'm a mage, a lightning mage, even with this body I can fight. As I said to randy, I will pull my weight."
Jane let out a sigh, she know how hard headed Emily was, "Alright suit yourself. But fight from the distance and attack if necessary."
Rather than wasting time debating, she prefer to just allow her do what she want. In the end her settlement only have six people, counting both of them. Having Emily help despite her condition will still be helpful.
Emily gave a nod, then began walking toward her dresser. She pulled her robe upward and started wiping the blood off her body. Her movements were swift as she put on a set of light armor.
The armor was sleek, matte black, woven from some strange fabric that Fratley had never seen before. On the chest was a thin plate designed to protect vital points without sacrificing speed.
Emily then raised her hood, hiding half her face. But it wasn't just for concealment, as a mage, the hood also helped her focus.
She walked toward Fratley, a newborn baby who hadn't even spent an hour in this world. "Since you have fast wound healing, I think there should be no problem. Just keep your mouth shut, Fratley."
'Eh… wha!? What are you doing, Mother!?'
To Fratley's surprise, his mother tied him to her body, right in front of her chest, effectively bringing him into battle. Fratley tried to wail and cry in protest, hoping she'd come to her senses and place him back in his crib.
Just who in their right mind brings a baby into a fight? And tying him in front like this, if someone shoots, wouldn't he be hit first!?
He had just come into this world, he didn't want to die again. But no matter how much he struggled, Emily didn't budge. She looked down and said with a warm smile, "My little psychopath seems to cry a lot. Don't worry, you'll get used to this soon."
She snapped her fingers. At that moment, the surrounding air crackled with mysterious energy. And in the next instant, no matter how hard Fratley cried, not a single sound came out.
"NO!!! I still want to live!!! Let me down, Mom!"