Chapter 2 Mistakes

After finishing my final touches and sending my manifestation away. I immediately regretted some things I did. Though not truly important, I forgot to give him a name. Heck I forgot to give his "father" an name.

Now the first part can be amnesia, the last part if not jolted from him immediately could have severe consequences.

On not only my progress on my formation. He could be easily manipulated, information I may not receive may leak holes in my magic's backstory. The doubt in the validity of his memories and most importantly his loyalty to me can't happen either.

Good thing I imprinted the memories correctly otherwise I'd have to off that clone. Shame that'd be, that manifestation took like five hundred thousand units worth of mana. The sunk cost fallacy wouldn't allow that to happen willingly.

But really I could just leave him be. Five hundred thousand is a lot but is it enough for me to care about? Yes it is, if this world doesn't have mana in it I'm helpless again when I spend all all my mana.

And their too many valuable functions mana can be used in, movement, attack, support, defense magic is too big of a piece of my combat power to risk.

Both in value and my pride as a mage won't allow this. I must use this clone to greater my own power and potential. So I won't be between a calf waiting to slaughtered and a chicken's combat power.

That would be unacceptable to me in any situation. Without power, no man rules. Power is fear, power is combat capabilities, power is influence, power is money. Without any of these empire is just a pipe dream.

I may have been a terrible head of state, but I hadn't stayed emperor for that long without knowing these essentials of ruling.

The ones good at this was Charles and Verdonna, neither liked me for obvious reasons.

But, what would Charles do in this situation? He was always the one rushing to conquer. A natural born conqueror. Unlike Verdonna that took up the mantle and figured out she had a knack for strategy.

Yet what stayed same was the reason they hated me. I had accepted I deserved it.

But never mind that, Charles would just exploit it until he gets some benefits from it. It'll also likely work, it's not something I can attempt on the basis my charisma is different.

Verdonna would collapse the regime and pick up the pieces as basically pure profit. If this doesn't work well, there was always Charles and his strategy. I don't have the resources for either of these and I don't have my army supporting me.

It's a mild difference between the combat power, but no man rules alone, he needs council from his advisors, he needs men to occupy land and insure revenue.

Without people to occupy that area. The answer is they can't claim that area. Neither Charles nor Verdonna would choose to conquer without the support of their troops and lieutenants.

Their some of the main fighting force, without them, the other high level combatants would come in, and wreck the troops. Without the troops, what would we do if we win?

Nothing because no man rules his territory alone. Those that claim this has no agency or is a merely shell of what they once were.

But truly being a baby is boring. I can't cultivate growth within my soul, nor upgrade my mana count without resources. I can't eat anything tasteful. Even inscribing more spells is pointless being how many there are on my soul already.

I can't even play with my sister. She's in another part of the womb and only mostly developed. Feeling sorrow for what I have is not something I should do either. As of now I have better things to do. I need to think of ways to increase my power and my family's power.

But it is also somethings useless and whatever conjecture I come too, will most likely get toppled by my bad karma whos only purpose is my reminder of how many I wronged and how my wrong doing will skew my plans in a way that is purely negative.

But I haven't been even growing, my guess is my family's poor and doesn't farm or have enough money buy food. I should probably be fueling my growth, though it leads me to wonder, If had reset my karma.

What would happen? This wouldn't have worked out though, not that I can't do it but I feel too guilty to do that.

Still I should get to make some food. What could I make? I'm in a womb and I don't want alert people outside me. Maybe life force. No one besides necromancers have a great enough attunement to death and life to sense it usually.

I'm also a baby so it's either that or I stay awake during my growth.

I feel lifeforce will work well enough. Then, I should start growing myself because I decide on the resource I'm creating. Though I don't know how long it has been. It should be close to my birth so I will start finishing forming myself.

Cast out mana from my soul, form the structure of life force. Supplying it slowly and using time magic to accelerate my growth by a multiplier of about five. The shimmering lights, of blue, green and white passes unnoticed, no ones sees it.

But a servant sent to deliver a message, when he sees those lights unseen by anyone else. His body starts shivering and he slowly starts leaving the compound, letter handed in. He starts running after leaving.

Going back to the mother.

The womb grows slightly larger, though mistaken for hunger, the woman leaves for some food. But back in her womb we can see a expanding baby, it's slow but much faster then average.

This body is enough for the time being, I'm not thrilled by the idea of this but though cheap. It was itchy. Really itchy.

It's okay though, I can start blessing my body. Just for a formation condensing mana into mist and start absorbing it naturally usually the best being the most low risk. The same can be done for lifeforce just condensing it more heavily.

But I will inscribe a mana absorbing formation so I can rapidly speed it up, should take two weeks or so. My mother will also absorb some, not that I'm against that. Birthing two children is not okay without any strengthening, consider it me giving her some help in this regard.

My body should be able to act as a vessel for ten percent of my mana. That's great, even if it's only instantaneous casting though with body instead of with soul. It can still put every mage under the sun to shame.

Though haven't achieved that level with soul casting. I can inscribe spells on my body to cast then instantaneously through my body having the mana necessary. I have reached the peak of both magic and power with this technique.

Though I hadn't had the most mana, I do have the most spells under anyone's arsenal and the greatest fast cast techniques.

But I should start purifying my soul, it's not going to fix itself, that was on my previous body. The only reason I died was it was a highly costly anti-magic and anti-demonic heirloom.

And it had a quintessential item for killing, a spear tip, it went through my throat. Truly without it really would be useless, my blessed body was still stronger then most cultivators. Only weapons of that quality could even pierce my skin.

But it'll take awhile so I really should put myself to sleep, that way being the womb won't be so boring another attribute of this action is how itchy I am.

That said I need to wait a bit more to start on this.

I can reminisce about the words of past God's Chosen. Those really annoying pricks.

This world doesn't seem to be like God's Chosen's description of their world, somewhere so advance all myths could be dispelled. But I didn't reincarnate there and opted to be random was my doubt about what I could do to to truly atone.

This isn't that, they can't detect the baby growing and if I do it slowly I won't be noticed.

But those God's Chosen never had to train. Riding on the blessing of a god distant from them only caring for their value as entertainment.

Those God's Chosen, they were hypocrites because it's too comfortable, and too blind to struggles. Thinking going through school and learning as if it was the worst thing they can experience. Not knowing anything about the struggles someone not blessed had to experience.

This coming from me may be hypocritical, but it's correct. I had difficulties, just not in the normal sense. Combat was a breeze, but it's not the combat it's the people you meet.

The training done to reach the top, the pain you endure because as soon as you reach out and tell people about this, the ostracization that results from this, the entirety of the school scorning you.

They had none of that everyone worshipping the ground they step on because everyone knows they are blessed. Clinging to him or her because they know about what they will do, the power they will achieve.

Thinking there are only heroes and villains, "white knighting" as one of the more intelligent put it. It's to glorify pretty females. Not just the unintelligent swine. Unintelligent females did it too, they did it to, "Copy their favorite MC."

They didn't even pay on the account of them being heroes.

That's no reason to slaughter all the men in the army and leave the pretty woman in that army alive, their your enemy why would you do this.

Who ever does it is sad and probably lonely without friends. Or really wanting to bang something. But that aside, they probably did it so that they seem chivalrous, in the most meaningless way. But at least some of the more intelligent ones realized they have a responsibility and does something useful. The times they stay like this is uncommon.

Most die because their not entertaining, gods smiting them and their power is stripped from them by gods on their mountains and in their heavens. Or go corrupt because they realize their power might be taken of away from them.

But I should stop dwelling on people that don't deserve it.

I'm done with all the formations set up, mana condensed into mist. Lifeforce into water. I can finally pulse the spell in my soul and...

He falls asleep, curling up like any baby would and sleeping in an unusual posture. Inside a bright green liquid, fog so thick you can't see past it clogs up the view,

Time passes, from past this we view a sleeping baby, large eyes, dark blue. His hair of the same color. Eyebrows relaxed like his life depended on it. His mouth curves up a little like he knows something you don't. Skin pale but not unhealthily.

But in the shadows, devils move they saw something unexpected a dark spirit master in future unrivaled, in preparation they reach for resources unseen, him as new hope for the Holy Spirit Cult.