The first thing he felt was cold.
Not the cold of snow or ice—but the kind that soaked into your bones. The kind that said, You are new here.
Then came sound.
A loud cry. It took him a moment to realize… it was his own.
So… the spell worked after all, he thought. I'm alive… again.
His vision was blurry, everything was bright. He couldn't move well. His arms felt short, his legs soft. His mana—his once-mighty sea of power—was now just a tiny spark, flickering weakly inside him.
He had been reborn.
"Look, dear! He's beautiful!" a woman said through tears. Her voice was soft, warm. He felt her arms wrap around his small body. "Our son… our Eiden."
"Eiden Valtz," the man beside her said, placing a hand over the baby's head. "Welcome to the world, little one."
So… this is my new name, he thought. Eiden… Valtz.
He tried to speak—but only a small whimper came out. His mouth didn't move how he wanted. He felt helpless, but also… curious.
It's strange, he thought. I used to command stars. Now I can't even hold my head up.
Still, Arkanos—no, Eiden—didn't panic. This was expected.
He had cast the forbidden spell: Chronos Loop, a ritual that could send his soul into a new life. It was dangerous. Most who tried were lost forever. He thought it had failed… but clearly, it hadn't.
The room around him was warm, lit by strange glowing lights. Not magic. Technology. The walls were smooth. Machines beeped softly in the background.
This wasn't the world he once ruled.
It was something new.
---
Days passed. Then weeks. Eiden listened, watched, learned.
His parents, Alan and Mira Valtz, were kind. Simple people. Not nobles, not mages. Just loving parents who thought their son was a quiet, smart baby.
He didn't cry much. He didn't fuss.
He was always watching.
---
By the time he was six months old, he could understand their words.
By one year, he could walk on shaky legs.
By two, he was reading simple books.
His parents laughed, called him a "genius."
But they didn't know the truth.
Inside this small body lived the soul of a man who once destroyed armies with a wave of his hand. A man who rewrote magic itself.
But that man had also lost everything.
---
One evening, as the sun set outside their small home, Eiden sat alone by the window.
He stared at the stars. They felt familiar.
He closed his eyes… and reached inward.
Mana.
He searched for it, like an old friend. It was faint—but it was there. Like a seed buried in dirt.
He smiled.
With deep breaths, he began to meditate.
Slowly. Carefully.
If he rushed, his body would be harmed. He had to rebuild everything from the ground up.
This time, he thought, no shortcuts. I won't become the same monster I once was.
This time, I'll grow slowly… quietly.
I'll live.
---
Years later, when asked why he chose the sword over magic, he would give a simple answer.
"Because everyone was looking at the wrong path."
But on that quiet night, in that small home, Eiden Valtz was just a boy staring at the stars… hiding a fire that once burned down kingdoms.
And no one—not even the heavens—knew that the Mad Archmage had returned.