Becoming 5 Years Old

World Era 1895.

Tingle-

The moment I flicked my finger, the small water cup that had been in my sight was rising into the air. The water inside the cup sloshed, but miraculously, it didn’t spill over. As I moved the cup this way and that, I then made it gently descend back onto the table.

‘Good. I’m growing properly.’

A feeling of considerable satisfaction filled me. I was greatly pleased with my own growth. I have now turned five years old. During that time, along with my developing body, I had been steadily improving my superpower. One might say, what kind of growth is just lifting a water cup? But what you see isn’t everything.

‘Controlling the water inside the cup too… it’s much harder.’

I had to be able to precisely control not only the cup but also the water inside. With this level of ability, compared to the past, it was not only considerably faster but also a frightening rate of growth. In fact, even now, I could lift the weight of a fairly average person into the air without any trouble.

‘I could lift them up and drop them to kill them anytime.’

If others knew that a child possessed this level of power, they would be quite terrified at how dangerous it was. An invisible, intangible force binding a body and making it float in the air. This kind of ability was something that hadn’t appeared in this world.

‘There’s something called magic in this world, isn’t there?’

The power of magic existed here. It was different from superpowers, a power that manifested abilities through mana as a medium, and it was said to actually create flames, wind, and even electricity. It was truly astonishing, but realistically, the number of mages was said to be quite small.

‘Did they say the utility of magic has greatly declined?’

According to what I read in books, the power of magic was said to be considerably behind compared to the past. There was a time when the world was led by mages, but that had long since faded. In the present day, the steam engine supported civilization, and it was an era of projecting military power through guns and cannons.

Although I didn’t know everything completely, it wasn’t as if the power of magic wasn’t used socially at all. It was being used to some extent in daily life. For example, if you lit the candle in the round metal candlestick that was currently in my sight, it was said that magic would manifest to make the candlestick shine even brighter.

For reference, offensive magic was also powerful, but there was a time constraint in using it, and even the range was said to be short. If you were in a place where bullets were raining down, using magic would be no different from asking to be killed.

‘Compared to that, my superpower is an instant activation. Still, I do want to see magic once.’

Just because I was only the ninth prince didn’t mean I could just summon mages and watch them use magic just because I wanted to. The number of mages worldwide was small, and those who existed were adapting to reality, focusing on developing things like reagents or inscribing magic onto everyday tools.

Suddenly, I remembered the moment I realized I was a prince, which was when I had been reincarnated and could barely understand the language being used around me after properly recognizing my surroundings. To think that I, who had lived on Earth, was born into the considerably blessed status of a prince in another country. I had thought it was something to celebrate.

‘I was disappointed the moment I realized the reality and that it was just a pretty facade with no substance.’

The status of being a prince was only outwardly glamorous; there was no real substance to it. I held the status of the ninth prince. With this ranking, I was positioned far behind in the line of succession to the throne.

‘Still, I have my superpower.’

What gave me some comfort was that my power from my previous life had carried over, and I could still use it, and it was growing much faster than it had in the past. I had a feeling that if I didn’t have this ability, the reality would have been truly hopeless.

‘With just my superpower, well, at least I wouldn’t starve to death, right?’

I wasn’t planning on doing bad things like robbing banks as I did in my previous life. If I did that, too much attention would be drawn to me. In fact, my very first thought was to hide my ability as much as possible. It was because if I carelessly used an unfamiliar power in this world, I could be seen as strange and end up being exploited.

‘Back when I was ignorant, I got caught by some nasty bastards and was used a lot. A person needs to know how to hide their strength.’

I was planning to hide my superpower until the moment I became an adult. That’s why I hadn’t even told my mother and was training alone to improve my skills. If she had known from the beginning, there was a high possibility she would have looked at me like a monster. I had already had such an experience in my childhood in my previous life.

‘My father looked at me like a monster. Of course, it wasn’t my mother from my previous life, but still, you never know.’

She was the only one who treated me warmly and took care of me. Sadly, she passed away early, and I couldn’t bear to stay at home, so I ended up running away and falling into a bad path.

‘That’s all in the past.’

While I was thinking this, I saw the maid Leni, who knocked gently and entered. I heard that she had been with my mother even before she married my father the King, and now she was attending to both me and my mother.

Frankly speaking, she was the only one who attended to us in this small palace.

“Prince Ian, were you playing well?”

“Yeah! I was playing well.”

“Wow, you stacked the blocks really well? How did you stack them so high?”

On the floor of my room, blocks were already neatly stacked up, forming a tower as tall as me. Naturally, I had created a situation where I could secure time for training by making the blocks stack up neatly with a flick of my finger.

“I did well, right?”

Her appearance, with her hands on her hips asking if she had done well, was full of innocence. Of course, contrary to this behavior and tone, the thought, ‘I’m dying here,’ couldn’t help but come to mind. I had to deliberately act more like a child to avoid suspicion.

“Of course. You did very well.”

“Can I knock this down now?”

“Yes, you may.”

“Hiyah!”

He walked straight up and pushed the tower of blocks, causing it to collapse. Amidst the crashing sound, he, who now lived under the new name Ian, couldn’t help but think, ‘I can’t even do this right.’ To constantly show a childlike appearance, he had to keep displaying these childish actions.

“Ah, right. Prince Ian, this evening there’s dinner with the royal family. You need to get dressed nicely from now to attend it, so you should prepare.”

“Okay, I got it.”

Inwardly, he wondered if it was already that time, and as if he couldn’t help it, he put on an innocent expression that said, ‘I still don’t know about grown-up things,’ and had no choice but to spend time getting dressed as Leni led him.

‘Ugh, do I have to see those rude bastards again?’

He had brothers in this reincarnated life. Eight of them, in fact. They were of various ages. Every single one of them was not only rude but also always tried to be superior. So, did he just let it go? Of course not. He often played pranks on them without getting caught.

It was common for them to trip while walking, and he would deliberately cause expensive works of art to fall and break, leading to them getting scolded. Of course, it was a solitary, satisfying revenge, so his brothers, who were always eager to catch him doing something wrong, probably had no idea why they kept getting paid back.

As he tried on the clothes Leni had prepared, there was a surprisingly large variety, unlike what one would expect for the ninth prince. Made of luxurious fabric, the texture felt so soft against his skin, it was quite pleasant. Moreover, the jewels attached to the clothes were no joke.

‘Just looking at the usual appearance of the royal palace, I can tell how extravagant things are.’

The royal family of this country was truly extravagant, and the extravagance of the nobles was also considerable. How did he know? Even though he was just a prince, he could attend royal parties, and from what he saw there, he could tell how much everyone indulged in luxury.

‘Still, I’m glad the country I was born into is rich.’

The Polia Kingdom, where he was born, was an island nation with a fairly large island as its territory. It had maintained its position well, located in the southwest of the continent for quite some time. As a result, he had heard that the population naturally increased, and resources became abundant.

He had heard that they even engaged in piracy against the continental nations in the past, but in any case, perhaps because they rode the waves of the times well, when the New Continent located west of the mainland was discovered, they were able to advance there and, through good coordination with the empires, even acquire some colonial territories.

Naturally, many things plundered from the colonies gathered in the mainland kingdom. The royal family and nobles who obtained these things were said to hold lavish parties. Although not an empire, it was one of the most powerful kingdoms, maintaining its position as a relatively strong nation and living prosperously.

‘If one of my brothers’ offspring becomes king later, will they give me even a small share?’

He was still a prince, so he thought they wouldn’t just let him starve. In fact, even the clothes and items currently provided to him were expensive things of considerable value. This was possible because a kind of royal dignity maintenance allowance was given monthly.

“Oh, you look so wonderful. There are no princes as handsome as Prince Ian.”

“Really?”

“Of course. You are so handsome!”

‘Honestly, even though I’m young, I am quite good-looking.’

He had become five years old (starting from zero, so it had been six years since birth), and his features, along with his red hair and flawless white skin, made him think he was handsome enough to be called a pretty boy.

‘I’m really glad I don’t look like the King. What would have happened if I had resembled the King instead of my mother?’

He resembled his mother, not the King, who had a more masculine face shape, so his jawline and face shape were beautiful. After reincarnating, he felt that this was the most fortunate and satisfying thing about himself. He wasn’t badly looking in his previous life either, but now he was extremely satisfied.

“Now, let’s hurry. The Dowager Queen will be waiting.”

“Okay, let’s go.”

Having finished dressing, they immediately left the room, and when he came out, he saw his mother waiting in what seemed to be the living room. At this sight, Ian ran to his mother like a child and hugged her. At this, Ian’s mother, Emily, smiled brightly and said,

“Our Ian, you look so wonderful today too.”

“Do I look wonderful?”

“Of course, you do. Our Ian is the most handsome in the world. Hohoho.”

With her green hair neatly gathered up and wearing a dress, she looked quite beautiful. Moreover, she wore jewelry with gemstones on her neck, ears, and fingers. Perhaps because of this, she looked even more beautiful.

In fact, she didn’t usually dress up this excessively, but since it was a gathering of the queen and concubines, she had dressed elaborately because she would be compared if she didn’t. In fact, among the royal family, the appearance of these two, mother and son, was quite ordinary, not particularly outstanding.

All the concubines were beautiful, and all the children were handsome or pretty, so they just blended in as one of the royal family members. If someone from the outside were to see them, they would probably just see them as one of the many royal concubines and princes.

‘Still, my mother is the prettiest.’

Perhaps it was because he was her son, but even though the queen and all the other concubines were said to be beautiful, he thought his mother was the most beautiful in his eyes. Blood is thicker than water, after all.

“Mother is also the prettiest! Much prettier than the other Madams!”

“Hoho, thank you. But you mustn’t say such things in other places, understand? Only here.”

“Yes!”

Emily had no choice but to warn her son to be careful with his words, fearing that he might be taken advantage of. Of course, Ian knew this well, so he had no intention of saying such things elsewhere. His goal as a prince within this royal palace was to live smoothly, develop his abilities, and quickly become an adult and independent.

‘I’ll feel so much better once I get out of this damn royal palace.’

Looking at the era, it seemed to be around the late 19th century based on Earth’s standards. Although it was a slightly different world where magic existed, it was similar. Given such a world, he felt there was nothing he couldn’t do.

If he utilized the knowledge he had from his previous life, there would be ways to make money, and he thought there were plenty of ways to make money using his superpower as well. Thinking this, he moved with his mother towards the main palace, and one thing was certain: even the path they walked on was incredibly luxurious.

Even the path leading to the main palace was made of marble. The moment they entered the interior of the main palace, guarded by the royal guards, an even more splendid sight unfolded before them. Along with the marble floor covered in red carpets, everything, from the walls to the ceiling, was filled with elaborate patterns.

Glimpses of gold could be seen on the walls and ceiling, making one wonder if they were all gilded with gold. But his mother had told him before when they passed by that they were indeed gilded. Even the sculptures and crafts on the walls showed the height of extravagance.

It was such a lavish sight that one might wonder if the country would go bankrupt. After moving through this spectacle, they arrived at the door to a dining hall filled with ornate designs.

Even the door, with gold-leaf patterns on a white background, was incredibly extravagant. Passing through the door that was opened by the royal guards guarding the entrance, a vast space came into view. And the sight of an orchestra already seated on one side playing music could be seen.

Amidst this scene, people could be seen sitting around a long table. They were all concubines, princes, and princesses. Everyone’s gaze briefly turned to the two of them, but they soon lost interest and turned away, conversing separately.

At this, his mother gently pushed his back from the side and said,

“Let’s go and sit down quickly too.”

“Yes.”

With his reply, the two of them, mother and son, immediately sat down at the seats on one side.