Chapter 4: The Tenfold Path [1]
Alex POV
Sensation returned to me not as a flood, but as a violent collision.
First, the pressure. A suffocating, crushing weight that squeezed my entire being.
Then, the cold. A sharp, biting drop in temperature that felt less like air and more like icy needles pricking every inch of my raw, sensitive skin.
And finally, the noise.
"Waaaaah!"
A shrill, tearing sound erupted from my throat. It wasn't a choice but was a reflex of my own or a desperate way to demand for oxygen.
My lungs, inflating for the first time, burned with a fire that eclipsed any pain I had felt in my previous life.
I tried to stop. I tried to speak, to say, "I don't cry," or "Where am I?" but my vocal cords were useless.
They vibrated uncontrollably, producing only that piercing wail.
As I see these unknown strange people looking at me.
"He is out! The heir is born!"
"Quickly, wrap him! The Duchess... is she alright?"
Voices , Loud, booming, and chaotic. They assaulted my ears, which felt irrational..as I was sensitive at this moment.
As I was looking around, I saw a lady bring a cloth and wrap it around me.
Then, a sudden warmth of the soft, velvet cloth that was wrapped around me, scrubbing away the cold fluids of my birth.
The tactile sensation of the cloth was overwhelming as I could feel every individual fiber of the fabric against my skin.
Then I looked up at the person who was holding me, I don't know why but my cry stopped.
The lady who held me looked around 40 to 45 years old, she must be the maid of this household.
As I was staring at her for a brief second the maid also looked down to me and our eyes contacted each other for a brief movement.
Then I look in another direction and close my eyes.
"He's beautiful, my lady," a soft, trembling voice cooed. A maid, likely.
I felt myself being lifted,and was passed from rougher hands to gentle, trembling ones.
"Oh, Garrick... our son..."
The voice was weak, barely a whisper, yet it cut through the chaos of the room like a silver blade. It carried a warmth that the blankets couldn't match.
I forced my eyes open. My infant retinas struggled to focus, the world swimming in a haze of light. But slowly, shapes coalesced.
As I opened my eyes I saw the face of this woman.
She is a beautiful lady with her hair a shine of silver glowing faintly even in the dim light—a trait of her High Elf lineage. Her skin was pale, almost translucent, but her eyes... They were pools of deep, vibrant emeralds.
I know her ,Lillian Reinhart . She is my mother in this world.
As I was mesmerized by my mother beauty but I have feel a gaze on me from the side . Then I shift my eyes to next person who was standing beside the bed.
On her side was a man so large he seemed to block out the ceiling. He had a beard like a lion's mane and shoulders that could carry the sky.
This person is Garrick Reinhart. My father and the Sword King.
"He has your eyes, my love," Lillian whispered, her finger tracing the curve of my cheek. Her hand was cool but for me it was her love.
"And he has your spirit," the giant rumbled. His voice was a deep bass that vibrated in my tiny chest. "Our son. Our heir."
He reached out a hand that had enough strength to crush stone, calloused from decades of gripping a hilt but now he was gently brushing my forehead.
"Welcome to the world, Alex. Alex Reinhart."
As his hand touched my forehead, the world seemed to freeze. The crisp, digital chime sound resonated directly within my skull, bypassing my ears entirely.
[Ding]
[System Integration Complete.]
[Entering Dormant Mode to preserve Host sanity...]
[Pre-Awakening Buff Applied: 10x Gain.]
[10x Gain: For the next 3650 days, all efforts, training, learning, understanding, and even nutritional intake of the Host will be multiplied by 10. One year of effort is equal to ten years of results.]
The blue, translucent screen hovered in my vision, clearer than the faces of my parents.
I stopped starring.The sudden silence in the room was palpable.
Ten times.
My infant brain, previously drowning in sensory overload, suddenly snapped into focus. The fog lifted and the lights stopped blurring my vision.
Also the sounds separated into distinct frequencies that disturb me before were gone , it's like I have got full control of my body.
I looked at the blue screen and turned my head to look at my new parents.
This wasn't a fever dream. I was really here and I was the son of the strongest swordsman and the smartest administrator in the kingdom and I had a cheat code that defied the laws of physics.
A tiny, toothless smile spread across my face.
"Look! He's smiling!" Garrick bellowed, his face splitting into a grin that made him look less like a Sword King and more like a giddy child. "He knows! He was born in a Reinhart family so of course he will laugh!"
With that Garrick let out a laugh, " hahahaha"
Lillian gave him an angry look , which made Garrick pale in an instant and he shut his mouth.
All the maid let out a chuckle seeing their Lord's embarrassing situation.
Lillian gives a sigh of reaction seeing her husband like that , then looks at my face . "He is happy because he knows how much we love him."
She bent down her head and gave me a kiss on the forehead.
No, Mother. I'm smiling because I'm going to break this world's power scaling into tiny little pieces.
I know It sounds like crying but I am the damn author of this world and I knew every big event that happened after 15 years when the main plot starts with Ethan joining the Academy, where all the main cast gather together, build connections, allies and some enemies.
Before I could think more my mother stuff her boobs nipples in my mouth to drink and as a natural reaction my mouth automatically started sucking milk out of her. It was really embarrassing for Alex to do this but it was out of his control as his baby instinct kicked in.
[Ding ]
[ 10× gain Actived ]
[Ding]
[ Host feeding on maternal milk — Sustenance gained | Growth in progress ]
Hunnn~ I momentarily stopped sticking as the system message came to mind , this means that drinking milk can accelerate my growth.. if it is then it is awesome.
So without wasting any time I started to sucking and this time I am doing it on my own, I don't care any more about embarrassment.
__________
(Third POV)
Lillian who was feeding Alex frowned for a moment and Garrick noticed it.
Garrick directly asked her " Is everything okay", he didn't ask just because of her reaction , the real reason was because of the complications of her pregnancy.
________
[ Flashback 10 Months Ago ]
In the evening as Garrick came out of his bath he see wife was standing in front of the window and from the look of it she was in deep thought.
So Garrick went to her , then he placed his hand on her shoulder , which brought Lillian snap out of her thoughts.
Lillian turned back and looked at her husband's face which was full of concern for her , which made her smile.
This smile let go of his worry, then Garrick also joined his wife to see the view outside of the window.
Both of them look outside to see the garden below the mansion and the moon up in the sky. They were enjoying the view as no one spoke.
But Garrick asked the question " Dear what you were thinking here "
Lillian didn't say immediately but look up at sky and stare at the moon and answer to Garrick questions " I am just an unfortunate women "
Garrick was taken aback by her answer but he didn't cut her off and wait for her to complete her explanation.
Lillian " Today at Royal Family Birthday Party of Second Prince , many noble ladies bring their heirs to the party and they introduced to me "
" But I was...after 10 years of marriage I didn't give a birth to any heir, will this great family Clan stop in our generation."
Garrick looks at her , he can see how much grief she went through in the past ten years, when they got married and when she got pregnant for the first time.
He still remembers how happy she was at that time but good times didn't last long as she went through miscarriage, but one time miscarriage can be understood but three times it became unusual.
So they went around the kingdom to find the cause and cure of it but they didn't get the answer, until they went to the Holy Kingdom to talk with the saintless there.
After arriving there, they were greatly welcomed there because of their status. There they finally got the answer they were searching for and the answer they got was a curse from a Demon on Lillian .
This curse was placed when Garrick and Lillian were in their youth, as they traveled as Adventure around the kingdom and made their names.
And in their many adventures they faced quite a number of Demon , High Demon, even General Level Demon and according to the saintless one of these demons placed a curse on Lillian that made her pregnancy miscarriage.
As we got to know the cause, we were sure to get the cure of this curse but to our disappointment this was not a normal curse where killing the caster will make the curse disappear but this curse is an artifact of Divine level , so only breaking that artifact can dis-spell this curse. Even holy and divine magic can't completely surpass this curse.
(To be Continued)
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