I heard everything and nothing all at once, a symphony of sounds too vast for human comprehension. Yet I had no ears to hear or flesh to feel. There was only me, stripped of all but my essence. Time lost meaning. It could have been moments or eons before I realized I was no longer alone.
A presence emerged, vague and humanoid but with no discernible features. Its form shimmered like a mist caught in faint blue light. It had no face, no distinct gender, just the faint impression of arms and legs.
It hesitated, its outline flickering as though startled by my existence. Then, with a fluid motion, it gestured to something unseen. Another figure materialized beside it, identical in form but with a slightly brighter glow.
The first being pointed toward me, its garbled, static voice echoing as it spoke.
“What is an Elf’s soul doing here?”
The second figure tilted its head, studying me like a curious puzzle. Its reply was in the same distorted tone.
“I don’t know, but it’s clearly an infant’s soul. Look at the color and brightness.”
Infant?! I bristled at the term, an indignation rising from deep within me. I tried to speak, to argue, but no sound came. Of course, I couldn’t speak—I had no mouth, no body. How did ghosts communicate with the living, anyway? The thought lingered as I noticed something unusual: my form.
I was glowing, radiating a light so intense it bordered on blinding. Unlike their faint blue luminescence, I shone a pure, brilliant white, like a miniature sun. It felt both alien and natural at the same time.
The first figure turned back to the second, its tone sharper now.
“Someone messed up! This soul is overdue. If we don’t send it now, the child will be stillborn—and who knows what consequences that could have for the Maker’s plan?”
“I authorize the request!” the second figure said hastily.
I tried to object, to tell them they had it all wrong. I wasn’t an Elf’s soul! But before I could think of how to communicate, I felt the compression around me intensify. I was moving again, the two beings disappearing from sight. At the very edge of perception, I thought I heard a collective sigh of relief.
Warmth enveloped me. I was submerged, surrounded by a comforting wetness. It lasted only a moment before pressure surged around me, squeezing, forcing me through an unrelenting tunnel. Suddenly, I choked, my lungs filling with liquid. I coughed and screamed, the water burning as I expelled it.
The air around me was cold and sharp. I tried to open my eyes, but the effort was too much—they felt impossibly heavy. Pain throbbed through my small, fragile body.
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Then I felt hands. Soft, gentle hands cradled me before passing me to another pair, equally careful and warm.
Voices spoke around me, their words incomprehensible—a melodic language that sounded more like a soothing wind chime than speech. The hands holding me rocked me gently, their embrace calming.
I’ve been reborn.
The thought hit me like a thunderclap. The strange beings, the hurried journey—they had sent me here. I wasn’t human anymore. Exhaustion overtook me before I could think further, and I surrendered to the void of sleep.
When I awoke, I was wrapped in the softest material I had ever felt. It was too smooth to be cotton—perhaps silk? My eyelids felt lighter this time, and with effort, I opened them to a blurry world of muted colors.
Above me was a face so beautiful it defied description. She looked down at me with eyes full of love and wonder. Her features were delicate yet regal, her skin glowing faintly in the soft light of the room. I noticed her pointed ears and gasped inwardly.
An Elf. My new mother is an Elf.
She smiled radiantly as she realized I was looking at her. Her lips moved, and her voice was music, though the words were still unintelligible.
A tall, lean man entered the room, his movement swift and graceful. He embraced my mother, his features equally striking—sharp and symmetrical, his physique flawless. He kissed her passionately, and I averted my eyes, feeling like a voyeur in my own story.
That must be my father.
As they spoke, my mother glanced away, her expression shifting to one of calm concentration. She seemed to focus on something invisible, her fingers subtly twitching. A moment later, her posture straightened, her exhaustion melting away.
What was that? It was like she had accessed some kind of hidden interface, tweaking herself like a character in a game.
A sudden thought crossed my mind: Do I have one too?
As if responding to my curiosity, a transparent screen appeared before me.
Name: Juren Knollen
Level: 0
Traits:
- Elven Swiftness
- Elven Talent
- Elven Longevity
- Elven Spirit
HP: 5
MP: 3000
MP Regen: 240/min
Stats:
- Strength: 0.3
- Endurance: 0.3
- Agility: 3 (0.3 x 10)
- Intelligence: 30
- Wisdom: 24
- Charisma: 1 (+50)
- Constitution: 0.3
I froze, stunned. My mother leaned closer, her eyes full of concern. I forced a giggle, and she immediately relaxed, kissing my forehead.
Juren Knollen, I noted, examining the screen. That must be my new name. My level was zero—no surprise, as I was an infant. Five health points felt pitiful, but again, fitting. My strength, endurance, and constitution were barely measurable, which also made sense.
But my intelligence and wisdom? Those were astronomically high for a newborn. Was it because I retained my memories? Or were Elves naturally this gifted?
Then there was my agility. At first, I thought it was 0.3, but the screen revealed a racial modifier.
Elven Swiftness
Agility multiplied by 10 per point.
Elves are the fastest race, their speed unmatched.
The realization left me uneasy. This racial trait made Elves absurdly quick, far beyond anything I’d imagined. My gaze moved to my Charisma stat, noting the +50 in parentheses. Another prompt appeared.
Blessing of the Goddess of New Life
All babies and adolescents gain a temporary +50 Charisma.
So that’s why babies are so cute.
I laughed inwardly at the absurdity of it all, then turned my attention to the remaining traits. With a mental command, I prompted the screen to reveal more.
What I read next left me speechless.
How do ghosts speak to humans then? I was asking myself. While I was thinking about that, I noticed that I did glow quite brightly like a small sun. Instead of a light blue glow, I was pure white light. "What the hell," I thought.
. So she really is an Elf?, I questioned. Spending several minutes I studied her appearance, So this is my new mother.
Well, that must be my father, I thought.
What the heck was that? I asked myself curiously. It's like she was able to see information about her body from an invisible screen and make changes that affect her through it. It's like she has access to... a games status screen! I wondered if I had one.
Must be why babies are so damn cute! I mentally noted. My regular stats were beginning to make sense, but my intelligence and wisdom didn't seem to be right. Curious I noticed my other traits. I commanded mentally for my status to show them to me. What I read next surprised me.