Ch. 1 <> The Beginning of a New Life <>
>>>Please record five wishes for your next life...
<>
(1)-I wish to have a record of everything I've ever experienced, able to be intuitively accessed at any time, with the records starting from the day I was born in the life before I was asked to fill out this prompt
(2)-I wish to have the same body type as I did before I died, with the most important points being that I am human, and that I have the same gender
(3)-I wish to have a greatly reduced need for necessary human functions such as food intake, water intake, and time to rest, but not be incapable of performing such acts as other humans would
(4)-I wish that when others try to inspect or analyze me or my abilities, they see me as any other person would reasonably see me, and not be able to gain insight into abilities they wouldn't normally be able to tell I had
(5)-Could you please give me some cool ice power? Thank you for giving me another chance at life, I'll make sure to treasure it.
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There was no word or character limit so I could put as much as I wanted in all of the text boxes. I figured it wouldn't be bad to be specific about what I wanted, that way there would be no room for misinterpretation. As for my last wish, I didn't really need anything grand, I just wanted something cool. I had dreamed about what power I would want if I were to be reincarnated in another world before, but if I'm going to be honest, I don't think being all powerful makes for a great story. Sure there's an appeal to being omnipotent, but having such a power just feels too empty. And if I'm going to mention the very last part at the end, obviously if this prompt appears in front of me it's not going to be something that just always existed, someone had to have created it, so of course I must be thankful. My last wish was essentially just my good will towards the existence in control of my reincarnation.
And that's where my story begins I guess. It's time to find out what the chicken wanted to see on the other side.
* * *
>>>Step (2) in progress...
>>> Wish (1)
...Confirmed<
...Acceptable without modification<
...Implementing...
>>> Wish (2)
...Confirmed<
...Acceptable with modification within the set parameters<
...Specifying parameters...
...Implementing...
>>> Wish (3)
...Confirmed...
...Reassessing...
...Confirmed<
...Acceptable with modification within the set parameters<
...Specifying parameters...
...Implementing...
>>> Wish (4)
...Confirmed<
...Acceptable without modification<
...Implementing...
>>> Wish (5)
...Confirmed...
...Reassessing...
...Reassessing...
...
...Manual input required<
...Contacting...
...
...Contact established<
...
...Manual input in progress...
...
...Constitution: [Winter's Heart]
^200% affinity to Ice Attribute
^Ability to absorb Ice Attribute
^Affinity to all other base attributes cannot increase beyond -50%
^Skill: [Temperance of Snow]
^Immune to mental corruption
^Skill: [Icy Veins]
^Able to cast Ice Attribute magic by substituting the catalyst with your body
^Skill: [Nemesis of Flame]
^impact received from Fire Attribute is decreased by an amount equal to your negative affinity and impact dealt to targets with 40% or higher affinity to Fire Attribute is increased by the same modifier
...<
...Manual input complete<
...Balance check bypassed<
...Implementing...
>>> Wish (1-5) Confirmed
>>> Step (3) in progress...
...
* * *
I’ve just turned 14 years old a few days ago. I was born as the second child and first daughter of Marquis Citron. When I was reborn, I was granted the abilities I wished for, but due to the way I phrased my first wish, I was unable to recall my past life until I was 5 years old. It happened when Mom asked me if I could remember what I had for breakfast one week earlier. Even as an adult I used to struggle with that kind of information recollection so of course I would struggle as a child. This time though, I felt inside me that I could pull out my past like I was reading a book, so I did. However, in doing so I pulled out far more than I was expecting. I accidentally pulled out memories of my past life as well. Imagine it like I was trying to pull a picture book off the shelf, but I accidentally pulled the entire bookshelf down on top of me. I ended up bedridden for two weeks while I briefly scanned through my past life. When I read what happened after my death I understood the situation for the most part. However do keep in mind that I was still just a five year old child. I didn’t really feel the weight of having a second life until later when I decided to really comb through my past life and understand who I was then, compared to who I am now. Eventually I reached the conclusion that I wasn’t quite the same person, but I couldn’t say I was a different person either. Either way, I learned that I should treasure the second chance I was given.
As I grew up, I heard the story of my birth many times. My parents were returning home from the Royal Capital Antasma through the Eminal Pass, which runs through the center of the Vilifaus mountain range. Although this pass takes a significant amount of time, it is normally very safe and commonly used for sightseeing. However, on the day before the winter solstice, Dec 20th, a snowstorm blew in, trapping my mother and father in a cabin at the peak of the pass together with their personal guards. The next day, on the day of the winter solstice, my mom went into labor. I was born at midnight, a month and a half earlier than I was expected. My parents despaired when I entered the world as a stillborn. They prayed over my body that I would be revived and live healthily. Then, when they had prayed together for thirty minutes straight, all the doors and windows in the cabin blew open and the snowstorm entered as if it had been invited. Ten minutes later, I cried and the snowstorm disappeared, leaving no trace, as if it never happened in the first place.
My parents love to tell this story about me whenever they get the chance. It doesn’t help that I was apparently blessed by the snowstorm, having an unprecedented level of Ice Attribute Affinity. When I was only 3 years old, I was able to cool down water till it started to freeze, simply because I didn’t like drinking lukewarm water.
When children turn 4 years old they are given an “Attribute Affinity Test”. This test is basically just touching a special glass orb known as an “Affinity Orb” and seeing what happens to it. For fire, it would become warm and you would see a small flame inside, for wind, it would start shaking slightly and you would feel a small breeze on your hand, and so on and so forth. If you have multiple attribute affinities, then the result can change, but usually the result is fairly simple. As a high ranking noble, my family was able to take the test with a personal instructor, rather than at a public facilitation. When I placed my hand on the glass ball, although it was expected to a certain extent, it instantly froze over with a thick layer of ice, going even beyond any expectations my family had. Even after I let go, the orb didn’t unfreeze. Only once the instructor thawed it out with fire magic did it slowly lose its coating of frost. As time passed, I learned more about my affinity to the Ice Attribute. I was taught about magic theory and practiced with the instructor. Once I started practicing magic we learned that I was unable to use any magic other than ice magic. At first the instructor was confused, but when he mentioned it to my parents they just used that as another chance to tell the story of how I was born. However, when thought of alongside the story of my birth, my inability to use magic without the Ice Attribute actually does make sense.
And now here I am. Sitting in front of the mirror while my maid, Madelyn, brushes my hair. I like to keep my hair short, ending just above my shoulders. My hair is white with light pink fringe. I’m quite tall, slightly taller than I was in my previous life around this time. I’m already 5’11”, with a little more room to grow. I think I slightly embarrass my mom because I don’t really give off the ideal dainty noblewoman vibe. It doesn’t help that I very much dislike wearing overly restrictive clothes and end up wearing a short sleeved shirt and pants or a long skirt, rather than the overly frilled dresses that are common here. I’ve been a good daughter though and properly learned all of the “noblewoman” things mom has taught me such as etiquette and embroidery. Even still, my real interests are more tomboyish and I enjoy learning swordsmanship and doing physical activities, although I never really liked horseback riding. I'd rather just run to where I want to go than be sitting down the whole time.
After Madelyn is done with my hair, I quickly change out of my pajamas and head downstairs for breakfast. At the table waiting are my father, Pomello, and my older brother, Aaron, talking about today’s news.
“Hey Dad, what’s for breakfast today?” I ask as I take a seat next to Aaron.
"Good morning sweetheart, we will be having eggs and bacon with toast when your mother and Emily come down for breakfast. Now to continue as I was saying Aaron, the Freesian Empire’s heroes are a thr...”
Every day before breakfast, whoever arrives at the table first will chat with dad about news from inside the kingdom and foreign affairs while waiting for the rest of the family to take a seat at the table. Usually the arrival order looks something like this: my dad, Pomello; my older brother, Aaron; me, Lemon; my mom, Eileen; and lastly my little sister, Emily. Speaking of my name, apparently I was named Lemon because of a weird tradition in our family. The head of the main family will always name their second child after a fruit in the citrus category. Not even the first child but specifically the second child. Pretty weird huh.
Aaron is 15 right now and is attending the Royal Academy in the Capital. He returned on holiday about a week ago. I’ll be going to the Royal Academy as well next year when I turn 15. The Royal Academy is the best academy in the kingdom, made for nobility and talented commoners. I even get to enter during the same year as the second prince, Kendrick Centelpen. Emily is the youngest of us, being currently 10 years old.
Soon, while I’m busy ignoring the world politics my older brother and dad are talking about, Mom and Emily enter together. After saying good morning to the two, we begin eating breakfast. As I stuff my face with food as fast as etiquette allows, Mom talks with Dad about local news and the current state of the territory. Since it’s all fairly boring and I’m not even the heir of the house, there’s no reason to pay attention to that conversation. I content myself with eating my food and chatting with Emily.
“How are your magic studies going Emily? Is it fun?” I ask before I shove more food in my mouth.
Emily sighs, “Not really, teacher keeps talking about how fire magic interacts with earth magic or something and it’s super boring.”
Seeing a chance to get Emily interested in magic I respond, “Well, you know, if you combine fire and earth magic you can do cool things like make glass. Do you see the chandelier above us? That was made with something similar to the combination magic your teacher was talking about.”
“Really? Something so boring can actually make something so pretty?” She asks as she stares up at the intricate glasswork.
“Mhmm, rmlly.” I speak with my mouth full of food once again. After taking a pause to swallow, I continue, “There’s also a bunch of other cool things you can do once you learn higher magic theory, but I will concede that it can get boring at times.”
“You really know a lot of things huh!” She exclaims with stars in her eyes.
“Haha, I do have a pretty good memory.” Although it’s not exactly my memory since it’s more like a record I can just go back and read, but I don’t need to say that.
After talking for a while more and finishing our food, we all get up from the table to go do our various tasks. Since Aaron is on vacation and doesn’t have anything specific to do, I’ll drag him to the practice area to spar with me for a while. Dad has some head-of-the-household things to do or something, Mom has a tea party or something that’s happening today that she has to prepare for, and Emily has various studies to do such as history, etiquette, and magic theory and practice.
* * *
Now that we’re in an open space, I can have fun with Aaron, although I vaguely remember him disliking when I dragged him out like this in the past. First we need to decide on what weapons we’ll be using. Because I enjoy using most weapons I usually end up sparring with a sword since that’s what’s most common overall. Aaron also uses a sword so I’ll match him as usual. We’ll be using wooden training swords since there isn’t much reason to just spar with deadly weapons. If it were a duel, increased stakes might mean something, but if it’s just to have a bit of fun, no one would want to risk their life.
For sparring and dueling, if it isn’t explicitly mentioned, magic is normally allowed, but since Aaron isn’t especially good at magic and I’m pretty overwhelming to face off against without a good magic foundation, I usually limit myself to just my physical attributes or enhancement magic at most.
“Ey~ Ready to go?” I ask in a casual tone as I pull out an old silver coin.
“Yes. We can start when the coin hits the ground as usual.” He nods curtly.
At his cue, I toss the silver coin into the air between us. I hold my sword ready to parry as I watch the familiar coin fall. The moment the coin touched the dirt, Aaron rushed forward. Contrary to his normal appearance or demeanor, Aaron’s quite aggressive when it comes to battle. Not overwhelmed by his assault, I brush off his strikes as fluidly as I can, trying to direct his attacks to the side, rather than stop them completely.
For a short while, it might look like he has the upper hand, but due to attacking in succession so much, he tends to leave numerous openings. He’s gotten much better than he used to, when I was able to easily sneak in a jab to his stomach or leg, but even now there are numerous small openings that I could catch if I were fast enough. If I were to do that though, I wouldn’t be able to defend myself from his inevitable strike afterward. That’s why I usually wait a bit longer to see if I can throw off his pace by stepping forward as I parry, to try and create an opening to strike him that won’t also get me hit in the process.
After a few minutes of back and forth involving quite a few attempts to break the pace of the fight, I end up winning simply because I have more stamina. It doesn’t really feel great to win like that since it doesn’t really feel like I won because I was more skilled than him, but I guess you could say I won in maintaining a better body than him. Aaron is more of a desk person than a grass toucher like me after all.
Aaron sits down in the dirt, breathing heavily as I go to pick up my coin. It’s the coin I’ve used for all my sparring and dueling thus far, so it holds a special place in my heart.
“How do you have such a huge amount of stamina, sis?” Aaron asks as he relaxes on the ground.
“I mean I usually just have fun doing things outside like training with the sword, practicing archery, messing around with throwing knives, or just helping the maids with chores around the house. I don’t really do anything in particular but I do enjoy moving my body so doesn’t it make sense that I’d have more stamina than you when you sit at your desk all day?”
“Yeah, yeah, I do a lot of reading and deskwork, I get it. Rub it in a little more won’t you? But I feel like you should at least perform your etiquette properly. I know they’re used to it now, but when you first started helping out with chores, the housekeepers nearly died of panic. You need to keep in mind how you interact with people.”
“I know my etiquette, okay? I just specifically choose to ignore it when it doesn’t really matter all that much.” I retort, looking away (definitely not out of guilt).
He sighs, shaking his head, “And that’s what I’m worried about. You never think it “really matters all that much” ever. Well, I guess there’s no point in me nagging you about it. Just be careful okay? We aren’t royalty, and there are some people from the outside that will take discourtesy extremely personally.” He looks at me pointedly, “I worry about you, you know?”
“...Yeah. I’ll think about it.” I murmur, looking at the ground to avoid his gaze.
Standing up, Aaron says some final words before he leaves, “Alright, you’ve had your fun, now it’s time for me to get back to assisting Father with his work. I’ll talk to you at dinner ‘kay?”
“M’kay, see you then.” I reply, waving as he leaves.
As Aaron walked away, I thought about what he said. I do have a bit of a tendency to think that etiquette doesn’t really matter. There are a few obvious occasions when etiquette matters like when you’re meeting royalty or a higher noble. But since we’re a marquis family, most nobles are below us, rather than being equal or above us. Well, either way, I do feel bad for making him worry about me so maybe I really should work on my etiquette. ...Starting tomorrow.
Aaron’s Diary
xx/xx/xxxx
It's been about half a year since I left for the Academy. I've been through good and bad events, but I'd say it was a mostly positive experience. When I left, I was fairly concerned for my parents since they would have to deal with my troublesome sister without my help, and after seeing her again I've confirmed that my fears were valid. Even as a child, Lemon would always simply go where her feet would take her, whether that be deep into a forest or out onto a high cliff. Even more exasperating is that she can easily return home from any of her expeditions whenever it suits her. One time I even got lost in the woods trying to find her, but when she eventually stumbled upon me, she took me home immediately.
As far as almost any activity goes, although she's definitely not as good as the experts, she's able to enthusiastically pick up any task. She enjoys doing new things so much that she even does the maids' chores every once in a while.
It's hard to dislike her for it, but Lemon really has little sense of the fact that she's a noble, and if that continues she'll have a hard time later. She seems to think that if she's not the heir to the family name she doesn't have to worry about it. I don't really want to take her happiness away from her but if she wants to go to the Academy in a year then she'll have to learn to maintain her etiquette. There are various dances and balls held during each year, and the students who attend are expected to have proper conduct. There's even tests on your proficiency as far as etiquette goes.
Everyone who has heard the story of Lemon's birth knows that she's special. Even I can admit that. She has a healthy body, powerful affinity, and a (questionably) sharp mind.
Lemon is extremely active, doing things like climbing, running, and acrobatics simply because she thinks they're fun. She practices magic every day, saying that she likes to observe how her ice affinity interacts with other affinities. And lastly her mind…
Lemon easily has the best memory of anyone I know, but it's a bit interesting how she recalls information. For a few things, she's able to recall it off the top of her head like anyone else. But if it's even slightly complicated then she'll take at least half a minute to speak. Even still, no matter how long it takes, Lemon will be able to recall almost anything you ask her to, even if you ask her what she did one year ago today. Although that might take her thirty minutes or so to respond.
At the same time, Lemon seems to be completely oblivious to how other people see her. Her interpersonal skills are basically non-existent. If someone says something she takes it literally until proven otherwise. If you don't explicitly say something to her, she won't understand. And even if you do say explicitly what you mean, if it's not in the realm of her understanding, she'll simply say "Okay" and move on. This was particularly a problem when we were on a family outing and Lemon was scolded for climbing a tall cliff face. During the scolding she just had a blank face, not understanding the problem, so when she was told not to climb the cliff anymore she instead climbed a tree taller than the cliff.
Even though she might be a bit slow sometimes, she’s still my sister and I want the best for her. She seems to be really looking forward to attending the Royal Academy, so she might have a higher sense of urgency if I tell her that she won’t be able to go if she doesn't act properly.
If there’s one thing I’m glad about it’s that Emily knows when to listen to Lemon and when to ignore her. If anything, Emily seems too mature for her age, but maybe that’s just because Lemon seems too childish.
