Towards the beginning of light

One and a half years had passed since my first encounter with Fluf in my father's study room.

Since then, I'd been constantly learning new things from her. It became clear that Fluf could not only understand my inner monologue, but we could also communicate directly through our minds—like telepathy. She told me she was once a highly powerful spirit beast who ruled over vast skies and land, her mana was so immense that she could wipe out an entire kingdom on her own. Still, I couldn't help but doubt her words especially considering the soft, velvety tone she used when making such bold claims.

She claimed that her mana core had been destroyed by her enemies—whom she promptly refused to name, no matter how many times I asked. She always ignored the question, brushing it off and continuing as if she was worried about something. According to her, the destruction of her core had shattered it into four separate fragments. To protect herself from the spirit beasts hunting her, she had no choice but to take refuge in the body of this fluffy creature.

I couldn't help but empathize with her, in the sense that I'd also gone through something similar. If what she had said was true, it was honestly embarrassing to compare the strength I had to hers. So, in a manner befitting a king, I offered her a deal: she would teach me everything she knew, and I'd help her recover her lost mana cores.

She looked at me with contempt and said,

'Why should I trust an infant who can hardly even walk?'

I let out a small sigh. She wasn't wrong about what she'd said. Despite having the knowledge and years of battle experience from my previous life—and the mental capacity of an adult I was still, physically, just a baby. I had once believed I was second to none in swordsmanship and Fon Aura. But that arrogance had long since crumbled. After my journey guided by that glowing feather—and the time I spent with my parents, I'd come to understand something: power alone meant nothing. I had accomplished nothing.

I exhaled turning around with a wave of my tiny hand, and began crawling toward the door.

"Okay! Wait! Wait, you took that seriously? Of course I know you're no ordinary human. No infant has the ability to speak through thoughts and I can't ignore the massive amount of mana inside you. Who... who are you?"

I had no intention of revealing my true identity, but I couldn't completely lie about it either. Fortunately, she seemed satisfied when I said, 'I don't know, maybe I'm a prodigy?'

I had never felt such impotence after saying such an embarrassingly decisive line.

_________

From what little I'd seen, weapons in this world were freely allowed—like giving candy to toddlers, no one seemed to care if you strapped a sword to your hip. Which meant I could too. Of course, only if my mother allows it, that is. I'd soon be swinging a shiny one myself. I tried reading a book… but reality hit me like a nuke, I couldn't understand a single damn word on the page. Thankfully, I now had Fluf as my walking encyclopedia. Eventually, I'd learn about the political system too.

In my previous world, we once used only advanced weapons like guns, machines, and nukes to conquer countries. But everything changed after a catastrophic natural disaster. It shifted the balance of power, and the use of Fon Aura became widespread among humanity. Since then, conventional weapons could no longer harm us—at least not effectively—until the art of Aura Breathing was discovered. Our old world stopped being ruled by hypocrites sitting on thrones with no real strength. Instead, those who mastered swordsmanship and the Aura Blade rose to power and claimed the right to rule.

Unlike the system in my previous world, here things were different, from what Fluf had explained, which I quietly pieced together, was simple. At the top sat the royal family—a King or Queen. Royal blood carried authority, but not without a constant power struggle underneath. The nobles beneath them were split into various ranks—Dukes, Marquesses, and so on—same old fat nobility people had the authority. Titles were either inherited through bloodline or, in some rare cases, earned though achievements or loyalty.

The Crown handled external diplomacy, kept traditions alive, and showed up at parades looking all shiny and holy. The Blade Court, made up of high ranking knights and generals, controlled military matters and border security. Then there was the Arcanum—scholars, mages, and spirit beast researchers, they oversaw after the magic academies, and nurtured young souls, it was like my old school, where students were given privilege according to their talents.

I didn't think much about it, since I wouldn't be able to join an academy anyway it seemed only Royals were allowed to attend one.

Soon, I began my journey toward learning the most fascinating thing about this new world.

Magic!