"Uhg, it's so hard!" A young child complained, falling onto his back in a fit.
"Oh? Failed again, huh?" An older man chuckled from afar. The sound of liquid sloshing in a glass bottle could he heard just under his laugh.
"I don't get it. Everyone else can do it, so why can't I?!" The kid shouted towards the sky.
Already, tears were filling up in his eyes. For the better part of an hour, the child had been in the training area practicing his Esper Abilities. While the others in his class discovered their talents and already progressed in level, he was the only one left behind.
"Do you want a hint?" The old man asked with a warm chuckle.
Getting angrier, the kid got to his feet and shouted back at the old man. "I can do it myself, dad! I don't need help!"
No matter how angry the kid got, his father kept a calm demeanor as he gulped down the contents of the bottle. Walking up behind the young man, the father gently placed his left hand on his child's shoulder to speak in a warm, loving tone.
"Not everyone can use their abilities so quickly. You know that your mother and I were slow to pick up on ours, right?" He asked, messing up his son's hair.
"Wait, really?" The child finally giggled, seeming a little happier.
"Yes. We both struggled to find our identities in this world just as you are. Would you like to know our secret?" The man asked, spinning the kid around while kneeling down.
Though his father reeked of alcohol, it wasn't unpleasant by any means. In fact, with a strange twist, everyone in his family found it comforting. He never got angry at them, never threw a fit. In fact, he never seemed to get drunk no matter how much he drank.
"How did you do it, dad?" The kid asked with the best puppy eyes he could manage.
"There are two steps." The father started explaining as he turned his son around. Placing his hand on the child's diaphragm, he continued. "First, to feel your energy well up here. Think of it as a ball that would continuously spin clockwise."
Closing his eyes, the child listened intently to his father. Slowly, he started to gather his Spirit under his father's palm. The process took a full 10 minutes to complete, but he was able to form a ball the size of his pinkie tip.
"Oh, I feel it!" The child exclaimed excitedly, making a few hops.
"Good, just like that. Now, I want you to use that ball as your core. Manipulate the Spirit in your body towards your hands while thinking of what you want to conjure. For now, imagine a ball of light." The father's voice broke the child's excitement, making him calm down.
Nodding, the son breathed a few deep breaths before holding his hands up. Once more, he focused on the lessons his father was teaching while closing his eyes.
Slowly, the Spirit in his veins began to move, crawling up the arms to his finger tips. It wasn't until he felt enough had gathered before imagining a small ball of light. The first image that came to mind was the lightbulb in his room. Though bright, it glowed a warm yellow that made it easy on the eyes to look at.
"See? I told you you could do it." The father chuckled and pat the child's head, breaking him out of the trance.
Opening his eyes, he found a light began to glow dimly between his hands. His excitement grew immensely, turning around to hug his father.
"Thank you, dad! Thank you so much!" The child sobbed, pressing his wet cheeks against his father's chest.
"If you practice just like this, you'll soon be able to do what your classmates can do. Everyone has potential, son, remember that." The father spoke softly, patting his son's back. "Now, let's go back to your mother and show her your new trick."
"Okay!" The child giggled while nodding against his father.
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"I suppose it is the same, just as Hefnia said." I chuckled as I looked at the orb of light floating above my palm.
A melancholic smile spread over my maw as the memory faded to the back of my mind. No matter how much I struggled, Dad was always behind me every step of the way. When he passed, he bad left a book behind for me to continue my studies. Though the rest of my siblings also got one, he seemed to have put a lot more effort into mine.
"I hope my grandchildren are properly learning this technique." I chuckled softly as I looked around the stone walls.
Before going outside, I had decided it was best to explore my new home. Just outside of what seemed to be my bedroom laid a hallway that connected to various rooms. All of which was much larger than me.
The ceiling itself stood at 5 times my own height, with each room being the same. The first room I encountered was the library, just across from my bedroom. A ways down were two more entrances leading to a workshop and kitchen. Though it was a bit archaic, the sight was more than welcoming.
"It feels surreal, seeing such old equipment." I sighed as I looked at the wooden desk of the workshop.
Even without Scan, I could tell that everything here was enchanted one way or another. Magic proofing, tremor proofing, even an enchantment on every wall that boosted both health and Mana regeneration.
"This place is almost to perfect to raise children in." I sighed with a shake of my head.
Coming to the end of the hallway, I was greeted with a larger room than any of the others. Far above on the ceiling was a sculpted depiction of various large creatures looking down towards the center of the room. Their eyes sparkled from the numerous gems etched into them, as if anticipating for something to happen.
Following their gaze, I eyed the center of the room to find a ramp leading down. My claws scraped the stone as I stepped down the ramp into the darkness. Sending the ball of light to the center of the large hole, I made it hover down to the bottom to meet me at the end of the ramp.
There, I was welcomed by soft moss tickling my toes. More murals of stone Kaigen looked forward in eternal guard towards the center of the large area I found myself in. There, at the center where my light orb hovered, was a pedestal filled with various large eggs.
Each step I took towards them brought a tightness to my chest. The same tightness as whenever my wife was about to give birth to my children.
"Is it because of my title?" I muttered as my titles popped up in my mind.
Shaking my head, I walked up to the eggs to find a sheet of paper laying next to a silver egg wrathed in black. A sigh left my maw as the meaning was pieced together in my mind.
"I'm not that dumb, Hefnia. Just having this paper infront of it was enough." I clicked my tongue in annoyance, bringing the light down to read the paper.
I know that you are not dumb, my child. Beyond that, I ask that you hatch this Kaigen first. As the matter is between the Gods, I cannot tell you the reason until you have raised your Authority. In order to raise your status, the Kaigen must be raised properly. All related information will be in the library.
I pray for your success,
Henia.
P.S. Make sure to sculpt the baby for me~
All I could do was chuckle at Hefnia's request. Just by our quick exchange, I could already deduce what kind of personality she really had. Though that made the matter between Gods that much more questionable.
"If Hefnia is not allowed to tell me, then it must be serious." I pondered while glaring at the paper.
Setting it aside, I decided it was best for the egg to be close by. It would be a problem if there were complications with the hatching, after all.
Picking up the large egg, I held it close to my bare chest and made my way back up the ramp. From there, I would stop in the kitchen first for a meal.
"Thankfully, she had left a lot." I awed at the numerous jars placed on the floor and shelves of the kitchen.
Off to the side, a wall was carved out to make a seperate storage for food. Judging by what Hefnia said, there was only supposed to be a few weeks of food in this room.
"I doubt she was joking about that. Could it be..." I stopped as I looked down at the egg clutched in my arms.
Given its size, the baby Kaigen would be born as big as a cat. Since they hatched from eggs, it was doubtful that they needed milk in the early stages of growth.
"Which means I need to learn how to hunt quickly." I sighed softly as my mind raced with different scenarios on how things could go wrong.
Scanning the room, I eventually found a pot filled with salted jerky. I found that everything was salted or preserved in brine one way or another. Given the archaic way it was set up, there was little hope for proper refrigeration.
"Hopefully one of the books can teach me how to enchant things. I'm not about to scrounge for a salt mine to preserve everything." I spoke to myself through a piece of jerky stuck to my mouth.
After reaching the library, I awed at the multitude of shelves that lay inside. The whole cave was made up of three floors filled wall to wall with them. Most of the books laid on wooden shelves while the rest sat in stone divets that acted the same.
I then noticed a table with another sheet of paper. Setting the egg on a chair, I read over the note while wondering around the shelves.
Within this library is a special enchantment most commonly used by this world's inhabitants. Simply find the pedestal with the crystal ball to pour your Mana into. After that, imagine the kind of information you need. The relative books will find their way to the table for you to read. Once you are finished, just leave the books where they are and the enchantment will put them away for you.
With love,
Hefnia.
A small smile found my lips as I read the note. Coming up to the magic ball, I followed the instructions and poured a little Mana into it. The first thing I had to learn was how to hatch the egg, so I focused on this thought first.
Almost immediately, the thuds of books landing on the table broke my concentration and made me turn around. There, I found two leather-bound books laying side by side.
"Well isn't this convenient." I awed, coming back to the table.
Sitting down next to the egg, I opened the smaller book first labeled 'Introduction to Kaigen' and read it over. It wasn't until I had finished the large piece of jerky in my hand that the first chapter was finished.
"To sum it up, Kaigen are similar to Humans of my old world. None of them look the same so there are no sub species. Even if a Kaigen is red, that doesn't mean they will be proficient in Flame Magic. Their strengths are also unique to each individuals personality." My mutterings continued as I flipped the pages.
"If the Kaigen is studious, focus on Magical training. Athletic, physical training. If calm and shy, Life Magic. This list just keeps going, huh? I suppose the Kaigen being the God's favorite being wasn't a lie after all. They gave me just about all the information I need to raise each one."
With a chuckle, I closed the book and pushed it aside. It would only be useful one the eggs hatch, so it was better to learn how that process went first. I then opened the second book labeled 'Caring for Kaigen.' Thanfully, the first chapter was on how to hatch them.
"Let's see here. The first step in hatching is to make the egg comfortable. By using Scan, you can see the preferred environment of the egg. It seems even where it is hatched does not effect the personality of the Kaigen." I sighed, leaning back in my chair and turning to the egg.
"Scan."
『Kaigen Egg
Preferred Environment:
Bed of the Kaigen Mother.』
"Oh? This one wants to be a Momma's child, hmm?" I teased the egg as I poked its shell.
Memories of my first born son clinging to my wife flipped through my mind. Back then, there wasn't a moment of peace for her. Nor I, for that matter. As a baby, it was almost impossible to hold him without my wife being in the room.
"Ah, those were the days." I chuckled as I continued to read the book.
From there, I learned everything from hatching the eggs to how to imprint on them. Thankfully it was simply a matter of who they saw first. I was half expecting to need to offer a drop of blood to fully tame the babies.
"The problem is their first meal. After imprinting, they need to consume the core of a monster. The higher level the core, the more easily the baby's Mana will stabilize. Though if the core is to strong for the baby, problems will arise." I groaned and rested my head on the table.
"This is going to be harder than I thought..."