(A/N: Why the fuck does life hurt you so much sometimes. Sorry about not really doing that much recently for everybody but as the saying goes, ‘Shit Happens.’ I’m dumbing all the chapters I’ve written so far on here for American in MCU and I’ll put the next chapter of Reborn into a magical world up. I need a break and I just gonna say it. My Girlfriend is in hospital, my best friends gone and to top it off my dogs went as well. I need to go somewhere and get drunk for a bit while occasionally seeing my GF. I’ll be back soon in a few weeks but for now I’m gone. Till we meet again. I’ll log on every now and then to check on comments but don’t expect to much.)

“Fine, it will be basic. I can however recommend what path of power you should take.”

He said as he led me the ominous sphere in the Dreamscape. Once I came close, he began to explain the basics of magic.

“Firstly, you as a person can be divided into three pieces. The Physical, the Astral and the Spiritual.”

He said this as he touched the now glowing blue sphere.

It divided into three pieces.

The first was a Lifesize manifestation of my eight-year-old body.

The second was a glowing orange sphere about the size of a fist. Surrounding it where what looked to be blood vessels but glowing an ominous orange.

The third was what looked like a clay doll but see through. It also had a similar blue fist sized sphere but located in the head rather than the thorax.

“These are the Physical.”

Pointing to the life like one.

“Astral.”

Pointing to the orange one.

“And Spiritual.”

Finally moving his arm to the blue one.

“The physical is the way that you interact with the world around you and acts as an anchor for the other two. The Astral is the Mana that has formed Around your body in a dimension close to this one that is pure energy. Things in this reality are affected and affect that dimension. When mana is manipulated, it is not actually appearing in this world but moving the mana in that dimension.”

He took a breath to allow me to process what I had said. Before he could continue, I asked a question.

“So, are there other dimensions with other energies.”

He just smirked at my hypothesis but continued with his explanation like he hadn’t heard my query.

“The different paths of power are the ways in which we manipulated mana. They can be runes, chants, rituals, etcetera. The natural mages who are awakened either in the ceremony or naturally are basically runes implanted on your Spiritual body that allows willpower to shape a certain aspect of mana.”

“Creating Affinities?”

He just nodded.

“The Spiritual body is the soul combined with the consciousness that has been built thorough experiences and emotions. That is the reason that when emotional Mages tend to become more volatile and powerful.”

“Then how do knights work?”

“Ahh…”

“They use their willpower to affect their own bodies and on occasion their surroundings. I will tell you this now. There are an infinite number of ways with which to effect mana.”

I pondered for a few moments before asking.

“I have to leave soon, don’t I?”

He just nodded and then said.

“I have slowed the time here to as long as possible you have a few minutes before everyone else will begin to wake up.”

If I only had a few minutes, then I had questions to ask.

“Then what are my abilities that you are meant to tell me.”

A look of realization appeared on his face as he realised, he had failed to tell me.

“Sorry, you have a grade 3 I think mana capacity. No Elemental affinity. And a weapon affinity for the sword. Also, I think learning soul arts would be worth the effort in the future.”

I just nodded as he told me this. I then asked as he began to fade away.

“Can I get back to earth?”

I didn’t really care if I couldn’t, but it would be nice to grab a few things.

“Maybe, you have the ability to if you look hard enough. I’ve paused time there for you until you have a way of traveling back and forth if that helps.”

He finished as he finally faded away.

…

My eyes opened as I looked at the dozens of kids all flopped onto the floor where they collapsed slowly standing up with unsteady steps. I pretended to do the same as I stood up. I began to walk to the closed doors and knocked. Once it opened, I walked out respectfully nodded to the head priest and walk out the doors to see our carriage parked there with multiple other carriages there as well.

I hopped in and took a seat next to anna as mother was reading a book.

“How long was I?”

I asked curious about how long I had been since to me it had felt like days of emotional torment.

“A few minutes, my dear. Twenty at most.”

She said while turning another page of her book. Anna had dozed off as the carriage then began to move back to the duke’s residence. I then thought to myself.

‘Why in the world would I go back. There I have no possibility of protecting those I love. Here I can become a god.’

…

[Four Years Later…]

I’m practicing in the garden with my sword. By, running mana through my body I can lift the sword with ease. It’s still in its sheaf as to make sure I don’t have accidents.

I lunge back and forth as I practice the foot work with each swing. For some reason I’ve take to it naturally and even though I hold back in front of others they keep saying how quickly I’m advancing. I don’t want to be the hero. But I must admit I find just practicing it exhilarating.

Mana ripples as with a downward swing my body sends mana along the blade. There’s a crackling sound as the blade cuts through the air more cleanly and reality bends a little around the cut for a split second.

I continue to free style practice move combos as I continue to attempt to dig these moves into my body instinctively. I’ve gained a bit of muscle but since my body ain’t in puberty, yet it is still minimal. However, my training style is more for flexibility than strength. I witnessed a bunch of fights, and it seems that the primary fighting style is fast movements while being fairly still and having a strong guard.

Instead, I’ve been attempting to build a style for evasion instead. So, when training my muscles instead of doing heavy weights and pushing my muscles past there maximum lifting capacity, I have some weight and push my muscles past there maximum stretch through a various number of movements.

Hopefully, I won’t eventually become a human pretzel. Not that I have anything against pretzels. As I’m in a guard position preparing to thrust, I hear the shout of a maid saying.

“Master Lashonda, Come. There’s someone you need to meet.”

I place my sword against a wall halfway back to the house and head inside. When I get to the reception hall, I notice that mum, dad, and Anna are all there. Also, there is a man a few inches taller than father who is hugging mum as she lets out tears of joy. Anna then shouts while looking at me.

“Big Brother, this is Little Brother.”

The man who looks like the younger version of father unhooks mom and turns to me while getting on one knee and says in a caring tone.

“It’s nice to meet you, Ash.”

I act as nonchalant as I can since while I know him through letter, I have never met him.

“Same.”

I say as I just decide to hug him. He smells like a mix of father and beer. Exactly how I imagined it. He then looks at my necklace and speaks.

“I didn’t expect you to still be wearing that?”

I just shrug as I say.

“It was the only thing I had to actually see about you.”

He just smiles as dad says.

“Since we’re all here we might as well have dinner early.”

Once at the dinner table the Philip begins to go on about all his adventures in the north. He eventually gets to one which Is what will be the highlight of tonight.

“There was this one inn in a small town which was right against the walls. I had just found some company for the night when this massive troll decided to smash through the walls and collapse a side of the inn.

So, that was the time when I fought a chief troll while in the nude with a cheering audience member.”

As soon as those words had left his mouth it seemed as though he instantly deflated as mum had a look of shock on her face and father had a look of contempt. I was holding back my laughter because I understood exactly what he meant. The whole situation had become even funnier when the staring match between Phillip and dad was headbutted by anna.

“What do you mean company for the night?”

I burst out laughing at that but quickly stopped as I realised, I might attract attention. All three adults turned there gaze away from each other as if trying to avoid the awkward problem that has arisen. Me with my big mouth couldn’t hold back from saying.

“Well, dear sister. When a man and woman love one another very much, they b…”

I was about to continue as everyone turned their head to the opposite end of the table from father and we all noticed Grandma Levia sitting there with a soup spoon in her hand giggling. She has a habit of just appearing out of nowhere and then disappearing. I’m beginning her to suspect she has some kind of illusion or spacial magic since no matter how close I follow her when she walks off, I always lose her.

…

After much begging from Phillip, he managed to convince father to let him take me hunting. I was oblivious to this and was just kidnapped from my room before dawn. He said my struggle was like that of a bear, but judging by his strength and the fact I almost exhausted all my mana I’m proud of myself for the fact when all out I could go as strong as a bear though that didn’t seem to do much.

We went about a three-hour ride from the estate, and this was one of the first times I was out without at least a few bodyguards. It felt weird with it being just me and him. We eventually found a deer. I pointed at it, and he said we were after something bigger.

He had given me a necklace that made my footsteps silent so the only thing I could here was the odd animal and my heartbeat since the wind was almost still. We walked for about half an hour before we found whatever he was looking for. I almost pissed myself when I saw it.

He then whispered to me that he had sensed it and was going to kill it but wanted to let me witness it since I was a still a battle virgin. That was what he called it. He unsheathed his sword and raised his tower shield as he in only a few steps covered about a hundred metres.

His shield impacted the side of the Hob Goblin as it awoke from its sleep. I was still frozen solid as images of those things entered my head. I watched him spar with it for a few minutes as if toying with it. My mind was fighting over whether to pass out or run away.

‘Fuck.’

That word just kept repeating itself in my head. I knew it was stupid to not at least take cover, but it was as if I couldn’t move. No, I was going to be in far more dangerous situations than this in the future. I had been isekai’d. It was inevitable that I was going to almost die multiple times and even maybe one day actually die to one. A hob was one beast that I would have to take on many times in the future.

I took a deep breath as I darted for cover. I watched him slowly work his way around the hob in circles as if mocking it. I’m guessing, he wasn’t even using mana. He’s definitely a battle junkie.

I the heard a rustle behind me as I instinctively drew my sword. With the pommel I blocked a club that was heading straight to my chest. The leverage caused my sword to jet out and stab the poor goblin in the nuts. My blade hummed as the blood touched its blade for the first time in generations.

The goblin crumpled to the ground in a whimpering mess as I instinctively raised my sword and stabbed it in the neck, cutting its artery and windpipe. I stood there watching as the goblin instantly collapsed like a puppet with the strings cut. I slowly saw the pleading look in its eyes as the blood ran out onto the ground.