2 Unrelenting Practice

In the following weeks, Art's days followed a strict routine

During the daylight hours, alone in his crib, Art dedicated himself to studying his family and learning their language. When night fell, he turned his attention to practicing magic until sheer exhaustion lulled him to sleep. As dawn broke, he would pick up right where he left off, halting only when he heard his mother stir.

Though he had adjusted to this routine, life as a baby was more challenging than it appeared. While Art was grasping the language, he dared not speak, fearful of alarming his parents. Restricted in movement, his days consisted of little more than observing his surroundings, eating, sleeping, and attending to basic bodily needs.

Thus, Art practiced and adjusted to his new life, trying not to dwell on the strangeness of it all.

A month had flown by since Art first levitated his toy, and his magical abilities continued to improve. Just the day before, he had managed to send a ball floating to the ceiling, holding it there for an impressive ten minutes—a far cry from his initial attempts.

The daily improvements in his control and magical capacity thrilled him. With each success, he gained a clearer understanding of how magic functioned in this new world.

Art came to realize that being a mage was less about operating a generator and more about serving as a conduit for magic. He wasn't generating power internally; rather, he was drawing from the magic suffusing the environment around him. The more he practiced, the better he became at storing, channeling, shaping, and emitting this external force.

The process reminded him of breathing: the more he exercised his magical 'lungs,' the more efficiently he could harness the ambient magic.

Though he couldn't gauge where he stood compared to other mages his age, Art knew he was learning. He was self-taught, relying on daily practice to refine his skill, and that alone assured him he was on the right path.

However, even with this much improvement, he was still dissatisfied and wanted more than the ability to levitate things... he wanted to wield other forms of magic. 

How cool would it be if I could blow up a mountain with an explosion?

Despite months of persistent effort, Art found himself unable to conjure fire or perform other magical feats by uttering anime-inspired incantations. He'd tried everything from 'Darkness blacker than black and darker than dark, I beseech thee, combine with my deep crimson,' to 'Avada Kedavra,' to 'I am the bone of my sword.'

In the end, Art was only left disappointed. Of course, this did not mean he would give up. He was convinced that his lack of success was due to inexperience. After all, it had only been a few months since he started learning magic. There was nothing he could do but continue training and try again at a later date.

Another month passed.

If I can't conjure fire out of thin air and all that cool shit, what if I channel mana into my body?

Lying in his crib and levitating multiple blocks into shapes resembling animals from tigers to dolphins, Art suddenly had the idea to channel magic into his body.

In many fantasy novels and anime series, magic always existed that could elevate one's body to superhuman levels. A few examples Art thought of were Hollowfication from Bleach and Kaio-ken from Dragon Ball Z.

Excited by the prospect of punching through walls and leaping higher than an Olympic athlete, Art immediately began channeling magic through his body. Of course, he couldn't proceed recklessly, lest he risk injuring himself or, in the worst-case scenario, causing an explosion.

Thus, Art had already formed, well, remembered a few theories to go about this.

One of these theories was how they used chakra in Naruto via chakra pathways. Although he did not have a chakra pathway, he did have something similar, his cardiovascular system that permits blood to circulate throughout the body.

If this theory worked, it was possible to circulate mana throughout his body, gain strength similar to Tsunade or Sakura, and maybe even activate his own eye technique. But it turns out that it was much more challenging than he initially expected. Certainly more challenging than just levitating a toy by sheer will and magic.

What Art needed to do was to guide the magic stored in his body into the vessels of the cardiovascular system. He had an idea of what he was doing, but doing it was more difficult than he thought. The mana consumption was high, and it was like threading a needle blindly while being under the influence of alcohol.

He spent several weeks mastering what he dubbed [Body Enhancement Magic], and even now, he was still prone to errors. Fortunately, these mistakes were relatively minor, leaving him bedridden for a day or two as if he had just gone through an intense workout.

But the results were well worth it.

[Body Enhancement Magic] appeared to increase Art's physical capabilities tenfold. For example, if he could normally lift 100kg, the magic seemed to allow him to lift 1,000kg. Similarly, if he could jump 100 cm, he found he could leap a staggering 1,000 cm.

But these figures were based on early tests and weren't accurate, more like rough estimates. He was eager to experiment further, but due to constant surveillance by his parents, he had to stop for a while.

Of course, Art could only blame himself. After he became bedridden while attempting to develop [Body Enhancement Magic], his parents grew deeply concerned. They were unaware that their son was learning magic, and were horrified to find him lying motionless on the ground, resembling a lifeless body.

So in response, they started taking him for nearly daily medical check-ups.

Art was troubled by this as he had his training time shortened, but at the same time brought him closer to his parents, seeing how much they cared for him. It made him feel less sad about leaving his parents and friends back in his old world.

Was it worth it going through all this trouble?

Well, for Art, the answer couldn't have been any more obvious. It was a resounding fat fucking yes.

As someone who has lived in a world without magic, like most people in his world, one of his dreams was to have powers. Given the opportunity and talent to wield magic, it was no wonder he was willing to go through all this trouble, even if it meant getting severely injured.

Because of this, Art didn't want to show his parents that he could use magic. He was afraid they might stop him from using it. In fact, he thought it was safer to keep his abilities hidden in general. He did not know what was out in the world, nor did he want others to take advantage of his abilities.

Moreover, due to learning [Body Enhancement Magic],' Art's control over magic had advanced to the next level.

All of this might not seem like much, but Art was satisfied. He didn't want to rush things and preferred to continue training at a steady pace, lest something go wrong and he end up getting himself killed.

***

- 6 Years Later -

It was refreshing, like a good night's sleep. Art liked the feel of the blanket, which gave him a sense of comfort and security. He turned over to the side, wanting to lie in bed all day. Breathing in, he noticed a sweet and subtle fragrance permeating the air.

But this was soon interrupted when his mom opened his door and woke him up. What greeted him was sunlight shining through the windows, lighting up his bedroom. "So bright…" he muttered lazily, grabbing the blanket on his body and pulling it over his head. "… one more minute, Mom."

"He wanted to sleep a little longer, yet he was unable to. 'Art, it's time for school!' his mom said, opening the door to his room.

Art reluctantly pulled the blanket off his body, and there he saw his mom standing by the door, wearing an apron. "Okay, Mom," he said, yawning and getting up from the bed.

"Aren't you excited for the first day of your class?" Lilah asked.

"Not really."

"Well, too bad, you're still going. Now, hurry up and get ready."

"Okay, Mom."

Art reluctantly got up from his bed and walked to the bathroom. He turned on the tap and washed his face by the sink. Lifting his head, he grabbed a towel off the shelf and chanced a glimpse at the mirror. He lowered his head and then raised it back up.

(A/N: Photo)

In the mirror was a pretty boy with thin rosy lips, a sharp jawline, and a small, delicate nose. He grinned, and the boy in the mirror smiled back, revealing bright, pearly white teeth. Yet, these weren't the most eye-catching features the boy possessed. His unique eyes, colored in different shades of the rainbow, were what truly stood out.

"Waga nawa Art! Ākuwizādo wo... no, that sounds strange, Anyway I still can't get over how fucking cute I am. It's almost a crime."

Six years had passed, and this was now what Art looked like: a cute little boy with pink hair and strange eyes. He did not know why his eyes were like this and could only guess it was due to magic, more specifically, the use of 'Body Enhancement Magic.'

He could think of no other reason for his eyes' mutation... unless it was a hidden cheat skill given to him by the god who sent him to this world. He should have been worried about this, but he didn't particularly mind, as his eyes only enhanced his looks. It also wasn't harmful; even the doctor said it posed no harm.

"You little narcissist! Stop checking yourself out and come down to have breakfast!"

As Art was admiring himself, his mom's voice rang throughout the house. 'I wasn't!' he shouted back, embarrassed. "I- I was brushing my teeth."

Having been called out, he hastily brushed his teeth, just as he had claimed, before putting on his school uniform. His suit was entirely black, from top to bottom. The buttons and lapels of the suit, as well as the pockets, were bright gold in color. His gloves were black, fitting perfectly over his small, delicate hands. The suit was sharp-looking and well-fitted.

After Art was satisfied with his reflection in the big, sparkly mirror, he walked down the stairs and sat at the simple yet fancy dining table. Beside him, at the head of the table, his dad sat eating breakfast cooked by his mother.

Of course, being upper-class citizens, they could have had a servant or two to cook on their behalf, but his parents didn't want to live a lavish lifestyle.

Art grew up under the care of his mother and father. Over these past few years, besides training in magic, he had become fluent in the main language, Velarian, that his parents spoke, as well as some of his mother's native language, Ionian.

He learned more about his surroundings, including his father's occupation. He discovered that his father was a tailor who ran a store called Zalie's Expeditionary Outfitters & Haberdashery, a famous establishment in the north of Piltover. It supplied and designed clothing for the wealthy people of Piltover, and even clients from noble clans.

But the most important thing he had learned was that it seemed the people of this world had yet to harness the power of Brakern crystals, meaning hex technology had yet to be invented... or at least not publicly.

Hextech, in the lore, was a newly emergent fusion of elemental, spirit magic, and technology used to create exquisite artifacts that could be wielded by anyone, not just those with a natural aptitude for the arcane. It harnessed the magical power contained within extremely rare Brakern crystals.

Art guessed that one of the clans, specifically Clan Ferros, had yet to publicize its discovery of what the crystals could do. Either that, or no one had yet discovered an effective way to harness the crystals' powers and make it popular across Piltover.

However, none of this mattered to Art. Maybe in the future, he could go out and kill some scorpions and sell their crystals for money, but for now, he was content. He could use magic and preferred spending his time practicing it rather than dabbling in technology.

A few minutes later, Art finished eating, satisfied. He put the dishes in the sink and said goodbye to his dad before walking to the entrance of his house to be dropped off at school, just a few blocks away. 

However, none of this mattered to Art. Maybe in the future, he could go out and kill some scorpions and sell their crystals for money, but for now, he was content. He could use magic and preferred spending his time practicing it rather than dabbling in technology.

A few minutes later, Art finished eating, feeling satisfied. He put the dishes in the sink and said goodbye to his dad before walking to the entrance of his house, where his mom and dad were ready to drop him off at school, just a few blocks away.

As he walked, he enjoyed the scenery around him, and before long, he arrived at the primary school entrance.

After giving his mom a goodbye kiss on the cheek, he entered the building and quickly found a seat. It was the one by the window, in the second row from the back – what some cultured men and women might know as the 'protagonist seat.'

However, not wanting to be the quiet kid or the loner of the class, Art knew he needed to make some friends. He turned to the person next to him and saw a kid with blonde hair and blue eyes, who, in his opinion, was 'ALMOST' as attractive as himself.

"Hi, I'm Art Truefall," Art said. "What's your name?"

"It's Ezreal Lymere," replied the blonde-haired boy.

"Did you just say your name was Ezreal?" Art asked, surprised. He nodded.

"By any chance, are your parents archaeologists?" Art inquired, a little taken aback.

Ezreal was shocked. "Wait! How do you know that?!"

"Ummm..."

Ezreal clicked his fingers and pointed at Art. "You must be a fan!"

Not sure how to respond, Art scratched the back of his head and said, "Yeah, guess you could say that…"

***

Intermission: Ezreal Lymere's Logs 1 

Monday, JAN 1, 979 AN

Mom said It's always good to have my own diary if I want to become an explorer in the future, but how do I start this?

Dear diary? Hello? Greetings diary?

Yeah, let's just go with the first one.

Dear diary,

Getting ready for school checklist:

√ Make the bed

√ School uniform (supplied by Zalie's Expeditionary Outfitters & Haberdashery, on Sapphilite Row)

√ Breakfast (Mhh, those waffles and eggs were pretty good, as expected from mom)

√ Brush my teeth (I think it's clean let me check. Yep, it's clean)

√ Backpack

I'm all set.

Now it's time to go to school!

___________________________

Tuesday, JAN 2, 979 AN

Dear Diary,

Boring, boring, boringgg!

The class was so boring!

I found what the teacher taught me was rather easy, and I had nothing to do all day in class.

If it weren't for my friend (his name is Art by the way), I would've died from boredom. Unlike the rest of the class who were still learning their ABC's, he was smart for his age even smarter than me who was always praised for being a genius and very athletic just like me and I was glad I had someone to spend my time with.

Yesterday, we spent our time playing this game Art invented called paper football. It was a game where you first fold paper into a triangle. Then, you hold the football in a flicking position and your friend should hold up their hands to replicate a field goal post. Flick the football and you and your friend would alternate turns.

For some reason, Art kept winning (is he cheating?), but I'll bound to win soon, no, I will practice today some more and win tomorrow.

___________________________

Wednesday, JAN 3, 979 AN

Dear diary,

Art and I had a bet that if I win, I would treat him to lunch and if he win, I would treat him to lunch this weekend.

I was confident I would win, but in the end, I LOST!

I don't know how, but I'm sure Art cheated. When the paper football was going to miss, it would curve every time and he would score a goal.

It was unfair. I swear I'll figure out his secret (for now I need to ask dad for some money).

___________________________

Friday, JAN 4, 979 AN

Dear diary,

I still can't get used to writing, I even forgot to write what happened yesterday. Actually, it doesn't matter, nothing much happened in school besides flirting with the girls.

Now that I think about it. Art doesn't really interact with girls, does he? What did he say again? It was something to do with the FBI?

Anyway, tomorrow, I'm going out with Art to have lunch, but do I have everything packed in my bag?

Mhh let's make sure:

√ Money

√ Water bottle

√ Tomorrow's clothes

Okay, we're good, time to sleep and wake up early tomorrow.