Chapter 2: Loen Belmont

Luke had been thrown into darkness and felt his consciousness slip away from him, but as the final moments of his consciousness waned, it returned, this time followed by the cry of a woman and the voices of other women speaking in a language he did not understand.

’What is happening? Where am I?’ His mind raced with numerous thoughts. His eyes slowly opened, and the light in the room settled, allowing him to take his first look at the situation that he was currently in. The first person he saw was an older woman, looking down at him with calm eyes.

’Who is she? Why am I so close to her? Did I get taken to a hospital or something? Am I alive?’ More and more thoughts ran through his mind as he lay there in her arms.

The woman looked up and smiled. "My lady, your son has already opened his eyes," she said with a bright smile. The room erupted into gasps of disbelief and shock. A baby a few seconds old had already opened their eyes.

Luke had no idea what was going on now. He could not understand what they were saying at all. He wished that he could...

[Activation Process Complete]

A voice suddenly rang in his head. It stunned him, and he immediately tried to react, but that only came out as a cry that was louder than the last one.

The woman very quickly wrapped Luke in soft clothes and handed him to his mother. Luke got a closer look at her. She was a stunning woman, with beautiful deep blue eyes and dark brown hair. She looked exhausted as sweat covered her face, but her smile made it clear that whatever had made her this tired was worth it.

"My son," she said, but even that Luke could not understand. For some reason, he felt it, and it made his cry stop as he looked at her with wonder.

’This woman, she is holding me. Did I... I get reborn somehow? Am I a baby?’

He wanted to toss the thought away as soon as he got it, but he could see what was happening, and he for sure knew that he was in her arms, surrounded by women who were dressed like they had helped her deliver a child. It was clear that a baby had been born, and that baby was him.

’Did I really get reborn?’ He asked himself, looking around the entire room. He tried to understand where he was and what time this was, but all the looking around burned his energy instantly, and he started falling asleep. But before he drifted into his sleep, he heard something else.

"The count is not coming, my lady. I’m sorry."

[...]

Day 27, the 11th month of the Vermillion Empire calendar, a day after Luke was born.

His eyes finally opened after a long nap. The first thing his eyes laid on was the white ceiling, beautiful and clean. He was inside a crib made of white polished wood with soft bedding inside.

’Hmm, this is pretty nice, I have to say. Soft bed, nice surroundings. I must have lucked out with my rebirth and gotten some kind of good life at least.

I did hear them mention a count. Does that mean I am related to nobility? Wait, that would also mean that I am in a time where nobility is pretty important.

Hmm, there is a lot to think about, but there is very little that I can do from the position of a baby.’

[Congratulations on your rebirth, Host]

The same voice from yesterday came again, and immediately Luke was stunned, but he did not cry this time.

"What are you?" He asked.

[I am a Special System assigned to Host to ensure that he can use his innate talent to the best of his abilities.]

Luke knew what a system was. A few books had them. They aided people that lived inside a story, the main characters or whoever needed them.

"I have a system?" He asked in shock.

A blue screen appeared in front of his eyes, showing the details that the system had for him.

[Name: Leon Belmont]

[Race: Human]

[Awakened Abilities: Magic Steal, Magic Dissection, Affinity Devourer]

[Mana: 100/100]

"My name is Leon? Tch, I guess it’s fair that I’d not get the same name to carry on.

Belmont, that name rings a bell. Where do I know it from?"

He pondered for a few seconds, and then suddenly, like a snap, he recalled it all.

"Belmont, the baron house that helped in the final stages of the war against the demons. Wait, wait, that can’t be right."

As he thought about it more, the way by which he had died flashed in his mind once again. He recalled how it had happened.

"Oh my God, did I get reborn into the story somehow?" His shock was massive.

"Wait, if this was the story, should the Belmont family not be a barony? Even for the human empire, I do not recall a barony having connections to a count.

Nobles were seen as gods among men and carried themselves as such. I have to find out what is happening here. Sadly, I cannot move at all. I have to find a way to move."

He looked at the two skills that he somehow had awakened.

"Can I get an explanation for these three?"

[Magic Dissection: This ability allows Host to break down every spell that he sees and study it in order to use Magic Steal to take away this spell.]

[Magic Steal: This ability allows Host to take away the magic of someone completely in its perfected form and render the person or being without Magic. It also allows the Host to steal a spell in a simple base form without completely taking it away from the person, as long as Magic Dissection is used to fully understand the spell first.]

[Affinity devourer: Consume the affinities of defeated opponents to increase your own affinity]

"Wait, what the hell?"

He read through three of them, and his mind was blown by what he was seeing.