Chapter 3
[Baby’s Day (2)]
«Today at 2am, there was a goblin attack corresponding to the 7th level monster in Marronnier Park in Daehangno. The Marronnier Knights Clan, who received the report, quickly subjugated the monster, but the attacker, Ms. Kim, and three others were taken to a nearby hospital.
The Mana Management Bureau assumed that the monster had infiltrated from the outskirts of Seoul, and announced that they would explore the monster’s entry and exit routes.»
I see. At this time of year, there are still insufficient measures against monsters.
Eunha woke up early in the morning watching morning news.
The Knights of the Marronnier Knights were on the scene, battling goblins, and the subtitles on the bottom of the screen mentioned monsters from other areas.
Even before the regression, it was not uncommon for monsters to sneak into urban centers, or for monsters to appear on busy streets without warning.
However, it wasn’t as frequent as it’s been reported.
People have only been utilizing mana for a decade at most.
Mana is a power that touches the very foundation of life. The power to make a heart beat with just a tiny amount can bend even the laws of the world.
Mankind, who was only focused on utilizing mana, made mistakes and suffered the consequences.
Creatures born in a world where the laws of nature are twisted are sometimes beyond the norm.
Humanity realized too late that they had created their own enemy, monsters, that threatened their very existence.
A foolish and foolhardy act.
The 1999 Destruction, the worst event in human history.
On the eve of the 21st century, monsters emerged simultaneously from around the world and destroyed everything humanity had built in a single day.
There was nowhere safe from the monsters, not even the sky, the ground, or the sea.
No country was safe from the monsters.
South Korea was no exception, barely able to fight back after the monsters ravaged half the country and wiped out a third of its population.
The surviving humanity began to train players to defeat the monsters and build walls to protect against the threat.
However, the barriers did not inherently protect humanity from the monsters. The walls were meant to prepare for monster attacks, but they did nothing to prevent monsters from being born within the walls.
Monsters came from the ubiquitous mana in the atmosphere.
In the absence of a fairy with the power to disperse mana, countermeasures against monsters were inadequate.
«…If it’s Maroni Park, it’s near our house.»
«That’s right, I’ll have to be careful.»
«Don’t wander around too much at night. Have Euna come home as soon as she finishes kindergarten.»
«Yeah, I’ll do that.»
My father said, adjusting his tie. He was running late, but apparently he still had time to listen to the morning news after all the fuss he’d been making this morning.
«Are you also coming back early today?»
«Of course! I’ll be here after work, just wait!»
«You’re really something.»
Father winked with a menacing expression while putting on his shoes.
Even though he was his father, he didn’t look the least bit like it.
Mother gave him bread to eat, reminding him to eat breakfast even though he was running late.
«Oh, Eunha, are you here to see Dad off to work?»
His father spotted him just in time.
Turning away from the news, Eunha was caught right in the middle of it.
«Ouch, ouch.»
Ugh, that stung. Did he shave properly this morning?
«Hahaha! Dad really likes Eunha too!»
Unaware of his feelings, his father was perky in the morning, and as if rubbing his face wasn’t enough, he kissed him on the cheek and left for work.
«Be careful, and don’t go near Maroni Park..»
You never know when or where you might be attacked by a monster.
It wasn’t unreasonable for her to worry about him.
«Then Eunha should go back to sleep, right?»
«Awww~»
Sleep again. I don’t like sleeping.
«If you throw a tantrum, the neighbor will say, ‘This kid!’»
«Ew!»
There was no way he was afraid of the neighbor. He’d been around players with big personalities until the day he died.
I wonder when they’ll learn to understand me.
The newborn’s body was uncomfortable. He slept half the day, his baby food was no more substantial than the calorie bars he’d been eating before his regression, and his range of movement was limited because it was dangerous.
I should have learned to talk instead of crawl.
«Lullaby, lullaby, my baby Eunha~»
Damn, before the regression, I could go days without sleep.
I couldn’t get over my mother’s lullabies.
☆
«Woo….»
What time is it now.
Her mother must have fallen asleep while singing him a lullaby. Eunha quietly crawled out of her arms so as not to wake her.
Lunch had just passed.
It was time for Euna to return from kindergarten.
Until then, he was free.
He left the living room and decided to crawl all over the house. He even went to the kitchen, a place he normally wouldn’t be allowed to go.
«Ugh.»
Sure enough.
A bluish glow by the refrigerator.
I had neutralized it just a few days ago, and it still looked like this.
I’d heard about the monster in Maroni Park and thought it might have affected my home, and I was right.
I reached out and grabbed the bluish energy.
The mana wriggled to escape my grasp, but quickly dispersed like a tangled thread unraveling and dissolved into the air.
Phew.
Ninth-ranked mana at best.
Nevertheless, Eunha remained stunned as he felt his strength drain from his body the moment he released the omnipresent mana.
I don’t have enough mana.
Mana exists everywhere in this world, even in small amounts, and it means that one can restore their mana by collecting the mana that is dissolved in the air. This is also why monsters are sometimes born. If the accumulated mana in a household is not properly managed, monsters can appear.
Of course, considering the scale of the dissolved mana, an adult could probably take care of them easily. However, managed mana calls in more mana, and monsters call in more monsters. So, it cannot be ignored just because it is small.
Better to deal with them whenever I saw them.
«Ugh.»
Even before the regression, he had suffered from a lack of mana in his body many times. Fortunately, his sense of mana management and speed of mana recovery were overwhelming, but he couldn’t use attacks with great firepower.
So, after regenerating, he would save up his mana whenever he could. Even though I had used up all of my mana on a day like today’s, I still needed to increase my body mana during my growth phase.
Of course, the reason I needed to increase my mana wasn’t to become a player.
There was no longer any reason to defeat monsters. All my anger and hatred for monsters had been resolved in my previous life.
Moreover, my parents were alive now.
Even in my new life, I didn’t want to live a life where I hoped to die.
But a world where mana was a part of power.
He had to increase the mana in his body if he wanted to live in this world at all.
«Ugh….»
Ugh, dizziness.
I couldn’t take any more mana in this body; I’d pushed it as far as it could go, it seemed that I had gone a little too far.
In the end, he collapsed on the ground, unable to hold on any longer.
«Abu….»
It’s because of my age. My age.
It didn’t occur to him to get up from the floor.
The world was spinning like he was drunk
Let’s just go back to sleep.
My mother will carry me to bed later….
«I’m home~!»
I heard the front door swing open.
Euna had returned from kindergarten. I heard her running down the hallway, making a lot of noise.
«Eunha, what are you doing there?»
«Oh….»
«Yeah, it’s your sister!»
No, That not.
Come on, get me to bed.
Or call my mother.
«Uh-oh. When did he get here?»
His mother woke up at the sound of Euna’s voice and was surprised to find him sprawled out in the kitchen.
«I told you not to come in the kitchen. Tsk!»
The mother makes the sound with her mouth.
Her lips curled up at the sight of her scolding her baby.
«Oh my.»
«Aww, how cute~!»
The two of them let out a small sigh.
They look like a mother and daughter.
By the way, I wonder how much mana she has in her body.
Eunha’s curiosity was piqued, so he decided to check Euna’s mana.
And the result was─.
Huge.
An enormous amount of mana was flowing out of her body uncontrollably. If she had been unconsciously leaking mana since she was young, how much would she have accumulated after she stopped growing?
The reason why mana is so ubiquitous in my house is because of my sister’s mana….
It was a jaw-dropping amount of mana.
However, unconsciously leaking mana could also be a factor that harms one’s health because the body cannot absorb all the mana.
I needed to help Euna manage her mana before it became a problem.
Oh no, again.
Ugh, my head.
«Oww. You must be tired.»
«Mom, is Eunha sleeping?»
«Yep. Can we be quiet so Eunha sleeps?»
«Yes!»