If consumed by a mana-awakened individual, an Elemental Seed would amplify their affinity to their chosen element. It would deepen their bond with it and grant far greater control over it. Even a small improvement in elemental control could mean the difference between life and death in battle.
But an Elemental Seed offered far more than that. Those who absorbed one often experienced dramatic surges in raw power which saw their fighting strength increasing severalfold.
But very rarely, something even more extraordinary happened.
There was a chance, however small, that the Elemental Seed could trigger the awakening of a unique attribute, a mutation of the user's natural element which could grant them a one-of-a-kind ability.
Rumors spoke of an Earth Mage who had devoured a single Elemental Seed during a regional war. From that day onward, every spell he cast had become impenetrable.
His walls, his golems, his armor… Everything he summoned was said to be several times tougher than any spell of its class.
They called his passive ability Extreme Hardening, and with it, he turned the tides of entire battles alone.
Kaero gulped in excitement.
He had the privilege of consuming one in his previous life when he was in his late twenties, but he wasn't lucky enough to trigger the birth of a passive ability. But still, that Elemental Seed had allowed him to break through 2 small grades from Low Grade C Rank to High Grade C Rank smoothly in one fell swoop.
Such a massive growth would usually take ten years. But he did it in an instant!
He owed a huge chunk of his past life's achievements to that Elemental Seed.
It would change things massively if he was able to somehow collect a bunch of Elemental shards, combine them into an Elemental Seed and then consume that Elemental Seed.
All at a much younger age this time around.
His mana veins were still fresh and his potential far from being tapped out.
If he consumed the Elemental Seed soon, the difference in growth would be enormous.
Kaero was sure he could easily surpass his peak in his previous life!
He clenched his fist in excitement. He would win that Elemental Shard this time.
For sure! And with sufficient strength, he would be able to protect humankind better, especially… Lyra.
Ah, Lyra, my beloved.
He could still hear her words. "I do not regret loving you… I am happy… Happy…"
I can't wait to see you! I can't wait to hold you in my arms once more. To gently caress your hair.
This time, you will truly, truly be happy! I swear of it!
Let me recall, where would you be at this time? I was thirty seven going on thirty eight. You were twenty nine.
I went back twenty years. So you…
…
… … …
NINE YEARS OLD?!
The joy of future reunion froze in his chest as the truth struck him like a hammer.
God damn it!
That's right.
You are still nine years old!!!
I… I…
Damn it!
I am not a paedophile!!
I am not in love with a nine year old!
For the record, you were eighteen when I fell in love with you.
Eighteen!
A fully functioning adult!
You even had your driving license already.
I am not a paedophile!!
But… but…
You're still nine years old now…
Aghhhh. What a mess.
God damn it.
Kaero was distressed.
He was not a complicated man to begin with. He lived his life in a straightforward manner. Well, as straightforward as being shameless allowed anyway.
But still… How should he maneuver his moral sinkhole?
He loved the adult version of Lyra utterly and completely.
Yes, even more than growing strong. Even more than his duty towards humanity.
He finally realized that.
He even paid for that realization with his life.
But here in this timeline, she was still utterly and completely… underaged!
So is he a paedophile… or not?
He clearly wasn't previously. But now…?
Aristoteles… Plato… Shakespear…
You greatest thinkers the world had ever seen. I don't think you guys ever had to wrestle with this sort of conundrum, right?
So why do I, a simple man who can't even pass my Trigonometry Test, have to deal with this shit?
Damn it!
I don't care. I love her. I won't do anything to her now. I won't even say it. I will just… be her friend! And wait for her to grow up!
Damn it!
That sounds exactly like what a paedophile would say!
Screw it. I won't meet her until she is sixteen! In some countries, sixteen is legal… right? Africa? The Amazon Rainforest??
I need to wait for seven years.
Kaero sighed deeply as his head pounded heavily once more.
His overwhelming passion and excitement at the thought of reuniting with Lyra dimmed considerably.
Seven years…
So be it.
I shall be a good man. I shall wait.
Seven years!!
In the meantime, I will pursue power with everything I have.
I will utilize all my knowledge of the future and secure for myself absolute strength!
Kaero sighed again.
He's thirty eight years old in spirit, eighteen in body, and apparently thirteen in self-control.
His thoughts and emotions were fluctuating too much. One moment he felt like a seasoned commander, and then a split second later, a lovestruck teenager.
"It's probably puberty hormones." Kaero thought glumly. "What the heck… of all the times to start over, it had to be the most chaotic season of my life."
After cleaning up his motivations and steadying his mind, Kaero's thoughts turned to sorting out the various shortcuts and treasures and events that he could avoid or hasten.
It was a lot, and it made Kaero extremely excited.
If he could achieve them all, he was certain that within ten years, humanity would be able to defeat the demons!
The first big disaster he had to help humanity avoid was…
The Plague of 2052!
It was next year!
At that moment, something stirred near him.
He noticed a figure with crimson hair, slumped forward in a sleeping position, her head resting lightly on the edge of his bed.
"Emily? So you finally brought me to the infirmary huh?" Kaero chuckled lightly to himself.
"Uh." Emily groaned lightly and sat up.
"Hey sleepyhead." Kaero gave her a smile.
They were rivals in class previously, both of them more powerful and shrewd than most of their classmates, both aiming and going hard for the top spot in class.
But going through a horrifying life and death experience together had the effect of destroying superficial things like petty in-class rivalries.
Between them, there existed a closeness that only brothers in arms could ever experience.
They were well and truly… comrades.
"Kaero! You're awake! Thank goodness. How do you feel? Can you still feel your mana?" Emily sprang up and asked Kaero anxiously.
"Feel my mana?" Kaero repeated her question with a raised eyebrow.
He tried to circulate his fire mana in his body.
But to his surprise, he could do it much, much more easily than before!
His control over fire mana had exploded exponentially!
And not just that, he could feel that the quality of his fire mana is much purer than before.
His eyes widened in shock and disbelief.
Did I just… reach the boundary of Mid Grade D Ranked Fire Mage… Just like that?
The level up for each grade within each rank was supposed to take two years at minimum. So from a Low Grade D Rank to a Mid Grade D Rank, Kaero was supposed to do so in 2 years, possibly even 3 years.
What sort of leveling speed is this?
I… I like it very much!