rebirth

**Tokyo, 26th February 1995**

*Tokyo Metropolitan Hospital*

In a quiet hospital room, a man tenderly cradled a sleeping infant, his face lit with a soft, proud smile. As he approached the woman in the bed, he spoke gently, "Kaori, how are you feeling? Thank you for all your hard work."

The woman, appearing weak but radiant, replied with a faint smile, "Dear, I'm fine. Could you please hand me our child?" As the man carefully passed the baby into her arms, a tender smile graced her tired face. The baby, now in his mother's embrace, opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings, making curious sounds. The woman's heart swelled with love as she gazed at her newborn son.

"Hikaru, what should we name him?" she asked.

The man pondered for a moment before responding, "Let's name him 'Yumehiko.'"

The woman nodded in agreement. "Kurotsuki Yumehiko—it's a good name. 'Prince of Dreams,' hehehe."

As the parents discussed the name, the baby—now with a fully awakened consciousness—thought, *So I've been reincarnated. It seems the gods didn't scam me. At least I'm Japanese now. I can understand the language, probably thanks to my extensive anime and manga watching. But speaking will take time.*

The woman, noticing the baby's intense focus, chuckled and said, "Dear, it looks like our child might be a prodigy. He seems so serious, almost like he's contemplating his future."

The man, though initially startled, soon relaxed and said, "It doesn't matter whether he's a prodigy or not. We'll love him the same."

The woman smiled warmly. "You know, your caring nature was one of the things that made me fall in love with you."

The atmosphere in the room shifted, and the man moved closer to his wife. The baby, feeling the shift, mentally shut his eyes. *I don't need to witness this.*

A few days later, in a high-rise apartment in Tokyo, the family of three was engrossed in a movie. The baby, although just a few months old, watched intently with an adult-like wisdom in his eyes. The parents, absorbed in the film, didn't notice this extraordinary attention. If they did, they would surely have believed their child was a genius.

When the show ended, the father said, "It's time for Yumehiko to sleep."

The mother carried the baby to the bedroom, fed him, and after a goodnight kiss, left the room.

*Being a baby is quite tedious,* Yumehiko thought as he lay in his crib. *If I had known it would be this monotonous, I might have asked the gods to seal my memories until I could move around. Well, there's no use dwelling on it now.*

With a mental command, a 3D panel materialized before him:

---

**Name:** Kurotsuki Yumehiko

**Age:** 2 months

**Race:** Human

**Constitution:** 01 (20 for an adult male)

*Constitution includes strength, agility, endurance, spirit, dexterity, etc.*

**Curse Energy:** 05 (20 for normal mortals; every mortal has curse energy, though non-sorcerers lack control)

**Curse Technique:**

*Ethereal Essence Drain:* Allows the user to devour dreams and emotions from the surroundings.

**Skills:**

1. Infinite Growth (Max lvl)

2. Probability (-)

**Points:** 10

*Points can be used for constitution or skill level increases.*

---

Yumehiko reviewed his panel with a sigh. *Points are hard to come by; I've only earned 2 points after a month of effort. But with time, once I master this technique, I'll be able to devour the emotions and dreams of all Tokyo—or even Japan. For now, I'll focus on developing a well-rounded skill set.*

He resolved to focus first on curse manipulation and physical skills later. *Swordsmanship is essential—a man's romance, after all.*

*To achieve my goals, I need to improve my curse manipulation to at least Gojo's level. The more curse energy I use, the better control I'll have. Learning curse energy concealment and then increasing my curse energy levels will be crucial. For now, I'll work on mastering curse manipulation and keep my expectations realistic.*

**Six months later**

A child was seen intently focusing on a blue flame in his hand, controlling the energy with newfound skill.

---

**Name:** Kurotsuki Yumehiko

**Age:** 6 months

**Race:** Human

**Constitution:** 04 (20 for an adult male)

*Constitution includes strength, agility, endurance, spirit, dexterity, etc.*

**Curse Energy:** 30 (20 for normal mortals; every mortal has curse energy, though non-sorcerers lack control)

**Curse Technique:**

*Ethereal Essence Drain:* Allows the user to devour dreams and emotions from the surroundings within 20 km (E)

**Skills:**

1. Infinite Growth (Max lvl)

2. Probability (-)

3. Curse Manipulation (F)

4. Sense (F)

**Points:** 03

*Points can be used for constitution or skill level increases.*

---

*It's disheartening to see how slow my progress is,* Yumehiko mused. *Six months of hard work and I'm still far from where I want to be. But with 30 points in curse energy, I'm making headway. I've invested 25 points in curse energy to ensure I can control the minimum required amount.*

He reflected on a missed opportunity: *I should have asked the gods to make curse energy a passive ability running 24/7. That would have made things easier. But I'll have to work with what I've got.*

To optimize his technique, Yumehiko planned to:

1. **Improve Curse Manipulation:** Elevate it to at least B rank.

2. **Develop Cursed Spirit Regeneration:** Evolve this skill to enhance curse energy regeneration.

3. **Learn Reversed Curse Technique:** For future energy conservation.

*Expanding my reach will require more energy, and the dream of devouring all of Japan's emotions seems far off. For now, focusing on Tokyo and improving my control is more feasible. With my current abilities, I can use the technique for 10 minutes twice a day, but I need to work on extending that duration.*

*This path won't be easy, but perseverance will lead to strength. It's time to set my plans in motion and advance step by step.*