Genius

Days passed since Liam's reincarnation, yet the clash between the dragon and the human kept replaying in his mind.

'In this world… a single human can actually fight against a beast like that and win? I must find out more.'

Meanwhile, his life as a baby was repetitive and quite dull, simply feeding, emptying his bowels, and sleeping.

Eve did most of the work, and Liam simply focused on his mother's tongue while learning how to crawl in between.

Not a minute passed where she didn't converse with him, be it words of warmth or playful remarks. Thanks to that, it didn't take long for him to learn the language she spoke.

'Ucladd is a monarchical city, split into a peasantry and aristocratic side. Although I haven't seen any nobles, my mother seems to warn me of them already.'

Liam remembered seeing a giant wall visible even from a great distance, which divided the wealthy from the poor.

Stern-faced armored guards blocked its giant gate, which luxurious carriages made their way through.

The townsfolk made a respectful gesture whenever they passed by.

'I guess status and wealth will always be important for humans.'

On the other hand, Eve was quite similar to her son in some ways.

She had no friends, nor family members Liam knew of.

Liam sympathized with her and knew he had to help her, but his feelings resembled more of obligation than it did love.

Besides that, there wasn't anything significant that happened.

Five months passed.

Currently, Eve took him with her during a short trip for groceries, giving Liam opportunities to sightsee and learn more of the world.

During the day, the streets bustled with men, women and children alike, a lively air surrounding the city despite its horrible conditions.

Despite the panic and shock that the dragon had caused around the city, the townsfolk had resumed their normal activities.

Eve was looking at a vegetable stand, inspecting the fruits and products, while a bored Liam was in her caring arms.

'A book stall!' Liam's glittering eyes fell on a middle-aged vendor selling dozens of books and manuals in the open.

He tugged at Eve's ear, grabbing her attention and pointing towards the book stall.

Eve had a surprised look on her face, before she looked at the direction her son was pointing.

"You want… books?" She asked, her brow raised in confusion.

Nonetheless, she complied, approaching the stall and inspecting the various books stacked atop one another.

Some had giant texts and illustrations on the front which explained their purpose, but Liam's eyes scoured for anything related to fantasy.

Eve picked up a few children's books and showed them to Liam, but his eyes were already fixed on three different covers.

Instantly, he started to point towards them.

Eve stared at the books her five month baby pointed at. Even the aged vendor had his mouth open in shock at that sight.

'Whispers, Myths and Legends.'

'Cultivation: The Art of Immortality.'

The cover had a robed figure sitting cross-legged with his hands on his abdomen, yellow colored streaks converging on that spot.

'The Thousand Year War.'

Eve had more than a few questions, and the books that Liam had chosen were thick in size and complicated in topic.

Eve shook her head and flashed him the children's book again, but Liam shook his head and yelled for the other three.

'This child… ever since birth, he hasn't cried, even when he fell down when attempting to crawl. Could it be… my son is a genius?'

With that thought, Eve couldn't help but gain some sort of pride. A moment later, she bought all three of them.

Bringing them back to their lodge, she instantly handed the books to him for play.

She obviously didn't think he knew how to read, let alone know what a book is.

However, Liam could already speak her tongue, and its writings were quite similar to the English language.

As Eve headed to the kitchen to cook, Liam instantly opened the books, starting with the cultivation one.

It was the thinnest out of all of them, and resembled more of a manual.

'Please don't tell me this is about farming!' Liam wished inwardly.

Staring at the first page, he instantly started to read the wall of text.

'Cultivation! The fabled path to immortality, allowing mere mortals to challenge existences beyond their imaginations. How can one achieve such power?'

'Through 'Ora', the miraculous world essence that gives any worthy being the chance to harness its groundbreaking strength. 'Ora' is all around us. In the air, in the ground, in everything.'

'Stealing this energy is a direct crime against 'The Opposition', its rightful owner. The Opposition is the ruling force that governs the very cultivation journey we tread upon. It is fair, it opposes, but does not oppress.'

Liam's eyes shone with a curious and joyous light. The book was satisfactory in every sense, yet still had vague descriptions.

'However, one simply cannot absorb this essence in its raw form; which is why our bodies have a certain organ to transform and safely take in 'Ora', known as the 'Core'.'

'This center of power is one of three, with the other being the Body and Sea of Consciousness. However, these organs require 'Techniques' to awaken.'

Only one line remained at the bottom of the page.

'Haha! Good luck getting those!'

Liam raised his brows, a bad feeling rising in his heart.

'What is that about?' He shook his head, before repeating what he just learned.

'This world essence should be similar to the 'Mana' in fantasy novels I've read. I'm too young to start leaving the house and finding out more, but my next goal is clear.'

Liam focused on the next book. It was only slightly bigger than the first.

'Whispers, Myths and Legends.'

He opened the first page, which had an illustration of a bald 'human' figure, their body covered with a large black cloak. Skin pale as ash, irises blood-red, a pair of razor-sharp fangs protruded from the corners of their mouth.

Liam's eyes widened as he read the text below.

'Vampires. Said to have evolved from blood leeches to bats, then a new existence entirely.'