Barely two years had passed since their reincarnation. Their legs and hips had developed enough for them to walk.
They had also started speaking the language of this world with some fluency.
Rudeus managed to string a few words together.
Daiki limited his vocabulary, probably to avoid standing out.
'Could it be...? No, shut up, I'm going to live seriously this time. What did I lack in my previous life?' Rudeus thought.
Exercise, studying, technical skills, a job.
As a baby, he couldn't do much. Nothing beyond burying his face in someone's chest when picked up. Every time he did, he caught his older brother's gaze. It clearly said he shouldn't do that, but he tried to deny it out of fear.
'That black-haired kid looks at me like he's judging me. It shouldn't be like that, right?'
As a baby, exercise could wait. So he decided to learn how to read using the books around the house.
Books were expensive, or maybe Paul and Zenith just weren't avid readers. There were only five books in total. For Rudeus, who had owned thousands of books in his previous life, this was hard to believe.
'I see. Five books in total. This probably points to a low literacy rate. Books are luxury items.' Daiki simply filed the information away.
Still, five books were enough to learn how to read.
From then on, it became a common sight to find the two brothers sitting together in the living room, each with a book in his hands.
Rudeus flipped through the pages with genuine interest.
Daiki simply absorbed the information.
The language's grammatical structure closely resembled Japanese. That, coupled with a baby's fresh brain, made learning easy. Even though the characters were completely different, the underlying logic felt familiar.
"Look, honey. They have their books again. Together, like brothers." Zenith looked radiant.
"Yeah, I see them. They're inseparable." Paul said.
"They really are." She rested her head on Paul's shoulder.
Despite being so different, they were also very close.
"Honey, Dai is always so quiet, but Rudy babbles from time to time. Don't you think they're like night and day? The calm one and the expressive one." Zenith noted.
"Maybe." Paul stroked his wife's head.
"Is that all you have to say?" Zenith asked, clearly worked up.
It was true.
Rudeus had started speaking using isolated words.
Daiki remained silent most of the time, simply observing and listening.
'It's too soon. If I speak too well, which comes naturally to me, it'll draw too much attention. Pretending isn't my strong suit.' Daiki was being paranoid again, but that was what he thought every time he felt the urge to form a complete sentence.
Rudeus watched his older brother and raised an imaginary eyebrow.
'The way he turns the pages isn't normal. Does he even understand what he's reading?'
Although Rudeus was curious, he had other plans.
'My brother is reincarnated too. That much is obvious. But who was he? Why is he like this? So different from me?' Rudeus thought.
Daiki felt Rudeus staring at him, but he didn't stop reading.
He considered talking to him. Confirming his suspicions. Yet something held him back.
What was it?
He wasn't entirely sure.
Caution.
Fear.
The possibility of his brother hating him, or simply looking at him with indifference because he wouldn't understand a thing.
'And besides.'
Daiki turned another page.
'What would I even tell him? Hello, brother. I reincarnated too. Do you also remember dying? That makes no logical sense, at least not right now.'
'Never mind. First I'll learn everything I can. Then I'll figure out what to do with him. Yeah, that's what I'll do.' Rudeus sighed and opened his book again.
They only needed to memorize vocabulary. Paul helped by reading a few passages out loud a few times.
It was a revelation for Rudeus. He never imagined he would actually find studying fun. Then again, if he thought about it, memorizing information for a video game wasn't much different. Why wouldn't he enjoy this?
For Daiki, it was purely about efficiency. His brain processed and stored information. It wasn't something he felt particularly proud of, but he used it regardless. It was a useful skill, and everything useful had to serve a purpose.
Once they knew how to read, the books became much more interesting.
Traveling the World.
Ecology and Weaknesses of Fittoa Monsters.
A Magic Manual.
The Legend of Perugius.
The Three Swordsmen and the Labyrinth. Those were all the books they owned.
Daiki read the magic book three times. He couldn't care less about the rest.
There were only three major types of magic.
Offensive magic to attack the enemy.
Healing magic to heal others.
Summoning magic to call or summon something. Just those three. Simple as that.
Rudeus thought there should be more variety. However, according to the book, magic had historically developed around warfare. Outside of combat or hunting, it hadn't seen much use.
'A magic system strictly limited to warfare. It had high potential but degraded significantly. Now it seems to have zero use in daily life.' Daiki processed this information with clinical interest.
Using magic required mana. According to the book, everyone is born with a set amount, and increasing it is impossible.
Rudeus thought like a gamer.
Daiki, on the other hand, thought more in terms of ki or chi, but with a verifiable physical basis.
There were two methods to activate magic.
Verbal incantations or magic circles.
In the past, magic circles were the most common.
Simple incantations took between one and two minutes to recite.
Everything changed when a mage shortened the incantations, allowing simple spells to be cast in just five seconds. Since then, chanting had dominated offensive magic.
'Five seconds! That's actually manageable in combat. I'll have to practice a lot to reduce my casting time.' Rudeus read this with enthusiasm.
Daiki, however, focused on something else.
'Oh, I get it. Both are just interfaces for channeling mana. That much is obvious. But are incantations or circles truly necessary? It might just be a matter of mental focus. The book doesn't mention it, though.'
When Rudeus read that mana capacity was fixed at birth, he grew worried.
In an RPG, you gain magic points by leveling up, but that wasn't the case in this world.
The book claimed that a person's mana barely changed as they grew up.
'That barely leaves a tiny margin. What's going to happen in my case?' Rudeus wondered.
The magic book stated that mana was hereditary. Even though he was hopeful since his mother could use healing magic, it still worried him.
'My parents are competent, but I have a feeling my genes won't help me much.'
Rudeus decided to test the simplest spell.
'Alright, let's see.'
The book included magic circles and incantations. Since incantations were currently the standard and he had nothing to draw with, he opted to chant.
Incantation length increased with the power of the spell. Sometimes, larger spells even required magic circles as well. But for what he wanted to do, there wouldn't be any issues.
Rudeus waited until his parents were busy.
Paul had gone out to train in the garden, and Zenith was preparing dinner in the kitchen with Lilia.
Hiding in an empty room with his book, he stared at the pages. He completely failed to notice his older brother spying on him through a cracked door.
"Just as a test. Let the great protection of water be where you desire. Pure murmuring stream, gather here now. Water Ball."
Then it happened.
A sphere of water formed out of thin air just above his fingertips.
It was the size of a fist and hovered in place.
"Oh! It works!"
Splat.
Rudeus lost his concentration, and the sphere fell.
"Oh."
Rudeus stared at the puddle with a mix of excitement and disappointment.
'The book said this spell shoots a ball of water, but it just fell. Does the spell deactivate if I lose focus?'
"Focus. Focus."
He recalled the exact sensation he felt when the water sphere formed and aimed forward once again.
First, he created the mental image.
"In. Out." He took a deep breath.
He channeled the energy from his feet and head down to his right hand. Then he released it, as if spitting it out through his palm.
"Haaah!"
At that exact moment, another water sphere materialized.
"O-oh. Huh?"
Splat.
Once again, the water sphere plummeted to the ground the second he lost his focus.
'He didn't use the incantation this time. I was right.' Daiki felt a surge of interest.
'Huh? I didn't use the incantation. Why did it work? If magic can be done without chanting, what's the point of the incantation?' Rudeus noticed it too.
His mind quickly analyzed the situation.
Perhaps the incantation automated the spell.
Like driving an automatic car instead of a manual one.
"Reciting the incantation activates the spell automatically."
Rudeus sighed.
"Let's try again."
However, an odd wave of exhaustion washed over him.
"Am I out of mana? After only two? How ridiculous. Maybe I wasted a lot of mana because I'm a beginner."
He tried to cast one more just in case. Extending a trembling arm, he suddenly collapsed.
Daiki stepped into the room and checked on his brother.
He sighed in relief when he saw him breathing.
"He pushed himself too far. What an idiot. Still."
He picked up the book, read the incantation, and memorized it instantly.
"I'll only cast one. Just to verify."
He extended his right hand and closed his eyes.
"Let the great protection of water be where you desire. Pure murmuring stream, gather here now. Water Ball."
At first, nothing happened.
'Hmm, what could it be?'
Then he felt something strange coursing through his body.
'There it is. That's it.'
And just like that, a sphere of water appeared.
"It works."
It shot straight forward and dissolved into thin air.
"Huh? Why did mine shoot forward while Rudeus's just splashed? Well, the book does mention it has to be launched."
"Oh, Rudy. If you're sleepy, go to the bathroom first and then to bed, alright?" Zenith scolded.
Rudeus woke up. He had passed out from mana exhaustion and ended up wetting the bed.
'I have so little mana. How demoralizing. Still, even with just two water balls, it all depends on how I use them. I need to practice launching them instantly for emergencies.'
Daiki said nothing that night.
'Not yet.'
He quietly watched Zenith scold Rudeus while she changed the sheets.
'I don't understand. He couldn't launch them, but I could.'
They were twins with the exact same genes. The difference shouldn't be that massive.
Unless they were fundamentally different.
The following day, Rudeus waited until he was alone again.
This time, he didn't use the incantation.
A sphere appeared. Then another, and another.
He cast four spheres without any issues, only feeling fatigued on the fifth.
'Huh?'
Based on his experience from the previous day, he knew he would pass out if he cast one more.
So he decided to stop there.
'Six at most. Double compared to yesterday. Why could I do twice as much today? Maybe it was because I didn't chant. I don't know. Maybe it'll increase again tomorrow.'
A few days passed.
Rudeus kept practicing in secret, always stopping right before passing out. Meanwhile, his capacity grew every single day.
Eleven times.
Then twenty-six.
'The limit increases by using mana. Damn liars! What do they mean mana is fixed at birth?'
The book was either lying or withholding the whole truth.
Daiki Greyrat's Perspective.
It was strange.
My mana capacity was naturally higher from birth, but it didn't seem to increase.
Whenever I tried to reach my limit, I never felt any fatigue.
What could it be?
It wasn't that I could keep going forever. I simply hit a wall where I could no longer cast.
I didn't feel tired, nor did I pass out. Yet, I couldn't push my body past that threshold to expand my capacity.
I looked at my hand and generated a water ball.
I moved my hand from side to side.
In my past life, I could control the four elements.
No, I didn't control them. It was a form of communication with spirits.
However, this was entirely different. It was my own effort that kept the sphere anchored to my hand instead of flying off.
Or perhaps this body I occupied naturally possessed talent. I wasn't certain.
'Ah.' Accidentally, I tripped and stumbled right into the room. The water ball in my hand dropped to the floor.
Splat.
Rudeus stared at me in surprise, looking as if he wanted to hide his book.
"H-huh? Were you watching?" he asked.
"A little," I said.
Rudeus sighed, his face showing clear relief. I interpreted the reason as a probable "at least it's not Paul and Zenith."
"And why were you watching? Are you interested in magic? Oh, right, the water on the floor."
I decided this was the right moment, so I cleared my throat.
"君もそうなんだろ"
Then I repeated it in English.
"You are one too, right?"
He froze completely, clutching a hand over his chest.
Did he think I was crazy?
But the most obvious answer was that he understood me perfectly. Even if he didn't speak either of those languages, he would recognize them.
"Yeah, I'm reincarnated too. Wow, everything I thought about you turned out to be true," Rudeus replied in Japanese.
I sighed and spoke.
"You had problems with your siblings in your past life, didn't you?"
"What? How? Why would you jump to that conclusion?" He snapped his head up.
"You always avoided getting close for some reason, so I just assumed. Is it true?"
"Yeah, something like that," Rudeus said, glancing at me and then back at his book.
"I get it. If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I just wanted to know," I concluded.
Rudeus stared at me for a few seconds.
"This is crazy. Who would have thought? I think I'm going to lose my mind. Twin reincarnates. What are the odds of that?"
"According to my past self, impossible. This could still be a dream, Rudeus."
"Well, I hope it isn't. I already promised the universe I'd take full advantage of this opportunity."
We stayed completely silent for a good while. We needed time to process what had just happened.
Rudeus spoke first.
"Well, what do we do now? I mean, we both share a massive secret. What's the next step?"
I thought about it for a moment.
"Keep practicing. Learn. Grow. Keep acting like kids, even though it's a monumental task."
"Together, bro...brother?" Rudeus asked.
"I suppose so, Rudeus."