"Fifty! Fifty-one, Fifty-two, Fifty-three!"
"Hey, Bel! What are you doing here? Training your body? Foolish."
"Pah! Cristy! Nothing! Please keep it a secret, please!"
"You know, you're my type and will never be able to use magic, so why do you refuse to date me? I don't get it."
This little shit! His hurtful comments were precisely why I didn't want to date someone like him, aside from the fact that I was still a forty-year-old man inside this tiny new body.
"It's because of those comments! I think you're wrong! I will be able to use magic. Just wait!"
"Aqua Splash! Okay then, bye, loser!"
Chris cast a spell on me and then left like he hadn't drenched me in water, making me all wet. Goddam bullying was awful, but even more so when it came from pretentious little kids like him.
And what was with him calling me a loser?! That was completely uncalled for! I know I'm weak and can't use magic, but what's wrong with training my body instead?! I heard some knights fought with swords, so maybe I could fight physically!
It wasn't wild to think that this was a fantasy world after all. Anything was possible in a magical world like this; maybe by sheer determination, I could even be the first to unlock some astounding power or technique that removes the magical dependency from this world!
I could be a pioneer for all they knew, even if it were hard to believe. Judging by my appearance, though, I wasn't suited for physical combat. My frame was not that of a warrior... yet!
In order to get the perfect warrior shape, I enrolled in a self-driven regiment that consisted of eating a bunch of meat and veggies and doing heavy exercises until my body couldn't continue.
It was taxing me mentally and physically, but I didn't care. It was personal now. I wanted to prove everyone wrong; I didn't want to be a loser! Not when I had such hidden potential; I only needed to push harder, that was all.
I soon got to my sixth birthday, and my parents celebrated me with a freshly baked cake. I knew they still loved me, but as more time passed, they both looked a little less enthusiastic about my future. They thought I would be useless in a world that depended on magic for everything.
Their negativity did not stop me, though; I kept training my body every day, kept my discipline up, and my morale was as high as a kite. I wouldn't accept a no for an answer. If magic did not hear me, I would make it so!
After I finished every workout and still had extreme pump energy, I tried to cast magic non-stop until I got tired. It had already been two years, and there was still no sign of magical powers.
All the other kids could already cast magic with just the spell name, not even the entire cast! I had to catch up. The feeling of being left behind was discouraging, but it didn't matter; I was sure I would be able to catch up.
My seventh birthday came, and there were still no signs of my magical dominance; maybe I wasn't training hard enough! I was already doing sets of hundreds for every exercise, so the next step was to try to do thousands!
My training intensified after my seventh birthday, and I was dramatically bulking up for my age. My arms had some muscle, while my thighs got stronger and robust. I was getting in good shape, but magic was still not coming.
My eighth birthday soon came, just when I was about to give up on magic; right on my eighth birthday, after an intense set of pull-ups, I could finally cast my first magical spell! I was able to summon an Aqua Splash!
Right after I achieved the milestone of casting my first magical spell, a strange message appeared in my field of view.
[Bug detected. An unauthorized user has used magic. All magicules around the user have been deactivated.]
What? No, I just got the taste of my first spell! Why do you say that? Why does the system say it's Bug!? No, come on, activate my power back. I worked so goddam hard just to cast this tiny splash of water. Come on, man!
[Unauthorized user has been permanently banned from the magical system. The system will provide no more support.]