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Chapter 3 - A Mischievous Baby

I hate milk. I have always hated milk and will always hate milk. Day in and day out, milk has been the only thing on the menu and Adam was sick and tired of it. Today he decided that regardless of what the maid tells him, he won't drink a single drop of milk not that he can understand her anyways.

This world's language was not very easy to learn as each syllable was a different word with meanings that changed according to the pairing of the words. Maybe it was because of his poor language talent in his previous life, Adam had a really hard time in learning this language.

Regardless of whether he can understand the language or not, using his superior intellect, he vaulted over the railings of the crib with a toy when his mother nearby was sleeping and walked right out of the room. His strength can be considered unnatural at this age by Earth standards but none of the people in this household found it weird.

Outside the bedroom, he entered a short hallway that had 3 other doors. Opening each one, Adam identified his mission target: the kitchen. Taking full advantage of his small stature, he snuck past bags of coal and barrels of water towards the back pantry. His small eyes lit up in delight as a room full of different ingredients was revealed to him.

Meat jerkys hung from the overhead beams out of reach while the shelves that stored the different spices loomed at the sides. The only accessible ingredients was the multicolored fruits and vegetables but that was enough. Sniffing and nibbling each ingredient, he soon made his way through all of the ingredients he could get his hands on.

Preparing to start making a salad, he was about to search for a bowl but he was faced with an angry looking maid. Soon Adam knew why she was so angry. The next moment, he felt like his stomach was being diced to bits and he barfed.

The maid lifted Adam up and rushed towards the bathroom bringing some particular herbs hanging on the wall with her. Sometime later, Adam recovered his consciousness and woke up in the arms of his mother. He knew that his adventure had unsuccessfully ended but he did have valuable takeaways from this experience. Never eat anything before knowing what it is. Not even if it is put together with food ingredients.

Later on, Adam would know that some of the sweet strawberry like berries he ate needed to be blended with a really bitter herb in order for safe consumption. Even so, the sweet strawberry like berry and herb mixture was used as animal feed.

This failed adventure did not dampen his spirits though, Adam attempted to reduce his boredom and snuck into the living room searching for books but accidentally spilling the contents of a lamp onto the floor setting the carpet on fire which was quickly put out by the maid. His third attempt at escape was quickly halted by the now alert maid and the door was finally put on lock.

These adventures all failed but Adam did catch a glimpse of something spectacular. On his visit to the living room, he climbed onto a table and caught sight of something magical outside the window. The sky was very low and dome shaped. It was a deep golden color and flashed with mystical runes.

'It must be a magical barrier!' Adam thought. He was so excited at the thought of magic that he did a little tap dance on the spot leading to the spilled lamp incident.

'Magic! Magic! Magic! I must learn magic!' As a person that was hopelessly addicted to novels and manga in his previous life, magic can be just about the most enticing thing in existence. His dreams of soaring through the sky shooting beams of light from his hands decimating the enemy resurfaced in his mind.

But then again, what could a baby his age do? Adam spent his days in the crib listening to his parents talk to him. His personal adventures was put on a temporary pause and he resorted to meditation... at least he attempted to. Eventually, Adam grasped the most basic vocabulary and understood much of the simple sentences spoken to him. He theorized that the reason why babies learned anything so fast was because they were simply too bored.

On one morning when his father was just about to leave the house, "I want to go outside." Adam spoke. He wanted to give his parents a surprise so he waited a very long time without speaking until he had enough vocabulary to form sentences. Looking at the expression on his parents faces, Adam felt an immense satisfaction as childish as it may be.

Coming back to their senses, Jonathan his father asked his mother "Can I take him to work today?" only to be met with a firm rejection.

"Don't you know how dangerous guard duty is? Recently Old Sam next door carried his grandson back on a stretcher. Going to work with you is absolutely forbidden. I will allow Jenna to take him around the neighborhood." said Maria.

Jenna the maid stood forward and picked up the excited Adam and dressed him up for the day. After finishing breakfast which by now had a sweet bread pastry aside from milk, Jenna took out a stroller with Adam inside and out the door they went.

Unable to contain his excitement, Adam freed himself from the stroller and stood behind the handles on the back as if riding on the back of a shopping cart back on Earth. Feeling the breeze against his face, he saw a relatively clean neighborhood with little one-story houses lined up along the sides. Looking up again, Adam saw the golden dome and asked Jenna, "What is that up in the sky?".

Jenna looked up with a reverent expression and said, "That is the grace of the God of Light. It protects us from the bad monsters outside."

Adam thought to himself, 'There are gods in this world? What about magic? I really want to know the system of cultivation in this world. I'll ask mom when I can learn magic and if there is any schools around that teaches it.'

Around the neighborhood the pair strolled. Sometimes, a few neighbors would leave for work and greet Jenna. Occasionally, some kind old ladies would gather around and give Adam some candy. Eventually they arrived back home, Jenna went to prepare for lunch and do some laundry. Adam stood by the window waiting for his father to come home while his mother sat by the table knitting some little pieces of clothing.

Adam tried asking his mom about magic and was told that she dabbled in the holy arts while his father practiced vital energies which strengthened the body. She did not know much about magic and suggested that his father might know more. Adam couldn't wait to find out more about magic.