NOVEL WEB Chapter 5: Bastard Update
Ty's days passed at a tranquil, unhurried pace, each one blending into the next with the kind of ease that only came from routine. It wasn't until Greta began fussing with unusual energy that he realised, a full year had gone by since his arrival in this strange new world.
"Phew... Greta sure can be a handful," Ty thought with a mental sigh, flopping onto his crib, utterly drained.
Night had fallen, and his tiny body felt heavier than usual, weighed down not by fatigue alone but by the aftershocks of celebration. Greta, ever spirited and far too cheerful for someone so young, had taken it upon herself to celebrate his first birthday or as she called it, his "birthing day."
She'd baked a modest cake, topped with a single candle, and had sung songs with unabashed gusto, her voice lilting through the house like the melody of spring. The food she prepared was warm and hearty, a comforting contrast to the chill of the evening breeze. And then, there were the games.
Greta, in her eccentric way, decided that since Ty could crawl, they could play a game of chase. She would pretend to pursue him, and he, on all fours, would try to escape.
At first, he hadn't budged, sitting in place with his cheeks puffed like a pouting balloon, silently watching her crawl and beg for his participation. Her over-the-top pleas should've embarrassed her, but no, she seemed delighted to act the fool for him.
Eventually, Ty gave in, unable to resist her relentless enthusiasm. He began crawling across the floor as fast as his limbs would carry him, pretending her playful growls were the threat of a true predator.
As silly as it seemed, it was… fun.
And later, when the laughter had died down and the evening wore a sleepy cloak, Greta sat him on her lap, helped him blow out the candle, and cut the small cake. They shared it together, piece by piece.
For something so simple, it was inexplicably delicious. Ty, a self-proclaimed connoisseur of desserts in his past life, gave it a silent 10 out of 10.
It was humble... but filled with warmth.
This was, without question, the best birthday he'd had since his parents' death. And more than that, even with his so-called father of this world still alive, it felt more meaningful than any he'd had before.
And it was all thanks to Greta.
'She's so young,' Ty mused, 'yet she didn't hesitate to be saddled with me.'
She looked to be in her early to mid-twenties. Youthful and undeniably beautiful, Greta moved with the refined grace of a lady and the quiet discipline of a maid. Her uniform, modest yet fitted, accentuated her figure, a small detail not lost on Ty, even in his infant body.
To think someone like her ended up as his personal caretaker… He couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt.
'Sigh... Not even a single word from him on my birthday of all days.' Ty brooded.
Not a card. Not a message. Not even a glance.
'Bastard or not, this is just too cold,' he muttered inwardly, clenching his invisible adult fists in his baby-sized hands. 'Damn you... Gaius Arkwell. Do you hear me? Damn you!'
If he had the physical ability, he'd have been shouting those words out loud. But alas, while he could already form structured thoughts and inner monologues, his vocal cords still betrayed him. The best he could do was babble nonsense, an indignity he now actively avoided by staying silent.
And then…
[Notice! Enough Experience Points Gathered]
'Uhu?!'
A translucent bluish screen materialised before his eyes. It shimmered with faint pulses of light, floating in mid-air like some augmented reality overlay.
[Character update in progress...]
'What the heck is this?!' Ty thought, wide-eyed and alarmed.
This was not a dream. He wasn't imagining things. The screen was there, clear and unmistakably real. Something was happening, something supposedly impossible.
[Character update complete! Character profile unlocked]
[Input command word to access character profile: ______ ]
'Hold on…' he murmured mentally.
There was no denying it anymore. This wasn't just some hallucination brought on by cake-induced sleepiness. This was structured, coded, interactive, and unmistakably game-like.
Command word? What kind of... system is this?
Trying to play along, Ty began brainstorming possible commands. A childish idea popped into his head, fueled by the earlier rage.
'Bastard.'
[Notice: Would you like to set "BASTARD" as your command word?]
"Y-Yes…" he thought, hesitantly.
[Granted! The word "BASTARD" has been set as a command word]
…
…
…
He waited.
No additional messages followed.
"So, what now? Do I just say 'bastard' or—"
The moment the word crossed his mind, the screen flashed again.
[Tyberius Arkwell]
True Name: Ngth'rel Varkhud (Lifespan: 100 years)
Race: Vaylun (Unawakened)
EP: 00,000 | 00,000
Force Core: Unawakened
Magic: Unawakened
Talent: Unawakened
[!] [!]
[Player Ranking]: 319
'O~kayyyy... This just got a hundred times weirder.'
He scanned the profile carefully. Even if much of it looked like gibberish, one word stood out like a beacon. Vaylun.
'That's... that's the sub-race I picked during character creation in Reincarnated Online,' he thought with disbelief.
He didn't know all the details, but he knew enough to recognise the name. Vaylun, a rare sub-race in the game, is categorised under the list for the sub-human racial option.
His heart thudded in his tiny chest.
'No way... Could it be?'
The thought was dangerous. Too strange to speak aloud. But the evidence was mounting, undeniable in its implications.
Unless his eyes deceived him, that status screen confirmed what his mind dared not believe.
He hadn't merely reincarnated into a random fantasy world.
He had been reborn as the very character he created in Reincarnated Online.
"Ah..." A short laugh slipped through his mind.
Ahahah... And then another.
'Ahahahaha!'
He couldn't help it. The laughter kept bubbling up, unbidden, manic, incredulous.
"This—this changes everything!"
In that moment, Tyberius didn't care about the unanswered questions. Not about how or why. Not about his past life's pain or his absentee father.
Because now… the rules had changed.
And he was no longer just a baby, no longer just the designated bastard he thought he was.