I don't know how long I slept, but I felt great after waking up.
The sun was still shining outside, so I just assumed I had slept a whole day.
I got up feeling energized and walked toward the mirror to admire myself, but something was different.
'My hair... It's back to normal.'
My hair was once again blonde, the pale white now gone.
'I kinda liked the white, though it looked cool.'
I decided not to dwell on it and headed out of the room, a smile plastered on my face because now everything was different.
I walked through the mansion calmly, with there no longer being an imminent threat of death, I could now fully appreciate the interior.
"This place is actually quite nice, huh, Fractus?"
The mansion was truly large, and walking around, I realized I hadn't even explored half of it.
And just as I was walking...
-grrrrr
My stomach growled, making me realise another thing.
'How long has it been since I last ate something?'
Food.
I had completely forgotten food even existed.
But at least now I had something I was searching for.
The kitchen.
------
After looking around for a while, I found the kitchen.
It was pretty big. Stoves, fridges, cutlery, and so on. You know the usual things you would find in a kitchen, except for one thing.
"There's no fooooddd!!!"
Okay, I was exaggerating.
There was food, but to be precise, just vegetables.
Let me paint a picture for you.
Imagine being all excited to eat because you've had a long day at work and you finally get home, greet the wife and kids, sit down at the table, and the woman brings out a plate of carrots.
Only carrots!!
You'd go ballistic, right?
But me? I sucked it up and ate it anyway.
"Beggars can't be choosers," I said as I felt something roll down my cheek.
------
After that masterchef-level meal, I decided on my next location.
Walking through a familiar path, I was met with a large set of doors that read.
-LIBRARY-
Yes, I had decided to go to the library. There was still a lot that I didn't know, and where else would you get information than a library, especially since I didn't have a phone.
I stepped into the library and began walking around. I noticed there were books scattered across the floor, probably caused by the statue.
I continued to walk section to section. Honestly, I didn't know what to look for; the sections varied from literature to history to...
"Magic?"
Or more accurately, the...
-MAGICAL STUDIES AND HISTORY-
This section was probably the largest of them all, consisting of hundreds of books, but if there was one good thing I could say.
"It's English."
Yes, everything was in English, which eased my worries that there would be some other world language I couldn't understand.
And yes, I know there was already evidence that it would be English, like the sign I read earlier that read in English, or the fact that the basta- no guy was speaking English.
But come on, I know you'd also assume there would be some incomprehensible Latin bullshit in another world.
Anyway, despite the books being in English, they made no sense, for example.
"Mana conglomeration of reversed circle synthesis"
Like, what the hell does that mean!!
That was also the first words on the first page of the book.
Regardless, I eventually found some books that would help me and went to a nearby desk, taking a seat.
The first ones title was...
-BASIC MANA PRINCIPLES FOR CHILDREN-
I frowned.
------
Unsurprisingly, I could understand what the book was saying.
It explained the basics, such as the fact that mana comes from nature and that humans can use mana through our mana core, which absorbs mana from the atmosphere and cleanses it before it can be used, sort of like a filter.
It also explained the hierarchy of human cores.
Once you can sense mana, you are an initiate.
Once you can utilize mana, you are a 1-star.
At 2-star, your mana core expands, allowing for faster cleansing and absorption. This is also where the majority of the human population is at.
And this goes all the way to the pinnacle, 10-star. There are only 5 humans currently at that level. The Emperor, The Southern Grand Duke, The Sword Saint, The Witch Of Calamity, and The Hunter King.
The book described them as humanity's protectors and hope, but I found it hard to believe.
I concluded that I must be a 1-star since all I could do was utilize mana.
I then moved to the next book...
-SO YOU'VE BECOME A 1-STAR-
The cover depicted an old man winking with a thumbs-up, which oddly pissed me off.
The book's information, however, shocked me.
From what the book said, once you can sense mana, you should be able to feel your mana core naturally absorbing mana from the surroundings.
I, however, felt nothing, no mana core.
I continued to read.
The book stated that a human's mana core is located in their abdomen.
I concentrated mana toward my abdomen but...
'Nothing?'
I felt nothing there.
I didn't notice yet, but I was sweating all over.
I continued to read.
Until one sentence...
-Humans are the only species with mana cores-
'This...'
"N-no... it can't be."
I don't know why, but I began looking around, my eyes darting in every direction until finally landing on a familiar old computer.
I walked up to it and saw my reflection.
My hair had once again become...
'White'
------
It took me a while, but I calmed myself and sat down, deciding it was best to continue reading before jumping to conclusions.
This time it was a history book.
-BASIC HISTORY OF THE VALDRIS EMPIRE-
I mainly took this book because I couldn't find any other books about any other empire's history, so I just assumed this must be the empire I'm currently in.
The book stated that about 900 years ago, humanity was split into many different kingdoms, and despite being of the same species, they constantly waged wars on each other, shedding unnecessary blood.
"Classic human actions," I commented.
Until one day, a different race attacked the humans whilst they fought each other, taking advantage of their weakened states, they rampaged through human kingdoms, causing massacres worse than ever seen before.
They were demons.
Strangely, my heart began to beat faster at the mention of demons.
Regardless, I continued to read.
After the devastating attacks, humans were left even more vulnerable than before. That's when a single man appeared like a ray of light.
He was the Founding Emperor of the Valdris Empire and humanity's savior. He single-handedly gathered the remaining human forces and warded off the demons.
He then built the Valdris Empire alongside his closest companions, stating that the empire would forever be the home for all humans.
Basically, he was an amazing guy, but that isn't what caught my attention; what caught my attention was the description of the demons.
It described them as humanoid figures with horns, red eyes, and...
'White hair.'
I immediately got up and rushed back to the magic section, looking for any book related to demons.
When I couldn't find anything, I tried looking at different sections in the library and came across the section.
-DEMON MAGIC STUDIES AND COUNTERS-
It was a small section showing the fact that humans didn't know much about demons.
I took out a random book and read.
Finishing that book, I then read another book.
And another.
And another.
Until...
"Haaaaa..." I sighed.
It was obvious.
I was a demon.
Or at least had demon qualities.
I had no mana core, my hair was white, the only difference being my eyes remained green, and I had no horns.
But the fact that I had these qualities that no other race had meant one thing.
I was a Half-blood
Half demon, half human
And trust me, I didn't just randomly come up with this conclusion. All the books I read explicitly stated that only demons had white hair, no other races, humans, elves, or dwarves.
I didn't mind the idea of not being human, but part demon? Everyone hates demons. Especially humans.
"Haa... Fuck" I swore at the thought of the challenges I would face as a Half-blood. Discrimination I could handle, but there would be, without a doubt, people who would try to kill me just because they hate the idea of a human and demon offspring.
I got up and decided to leave the library.
It began to feel a bit stuffy in there.