I looked at the blue screen in front of me, a thrill of excitement bubbling in my chest. My future, with this thing, felt limitless. It wasn't just a fantasy anymore; it was a tangible, glowing interface promising power, adventure, and an escape from the mundane reality I'd just left behind. The possibilities swirled in my mind, a chaotic symphony of anime tropes and game mechanics. My very own cheat system. This was it.
"Nice to have you as well, System. So, what's next?" I asked, my voice echoing slightly in the vast, empty space around us. I half-expected a dramatic fanfare, maybe a congratulatory message from the universe itself. Instead, the blue screen remained calmly professional.
[Master needs to modify my functions. Please note that initial functions won't change anytime soon, and you can't directly modify them beyond a certain limit... But rest assured, that limit is quite large.]
"Then I want you to be the Infinite System Of Infinity," I declared, a grin spreading across my face. My mind raced, pulling from every overpowered protagonist I'd ever encountered. "You will be able to upgrade yourself infinitely without limits, and I will earn exp points for anything I do. Since you're an infinite system, you should be able to give me exp points from infinite types of work, and everything will cost only 1 point, no matter what." I leaned back, metaphorically, feeling quite pleased with my demands. Who needed balance when you had infinity?
[That's within range, Master, as my capabilities are truly infinite. However, your request for everything to cost only 1 point creates a significant strain. It is possible, but you will be limited to starting in only two worlds instead of the default one thousand.]
"What!?" My jaw dropped. One thousand worlds down to two? That was... a significant downgrade. My grand plans of conquering a new reality every Tuesday just crumbled. I stared at the screen, a flicker of genuine disappointment crossing my face. A thousand worlds! Think of the loot, the power-ups, the sheer bragging rights! But then, a more pragmatic, and admittedly lazy, part of my brain kicked in. "Fine, fine. As if I could juggle a thousand worlds from day one anyway," I grumbled, though a part of me was already calculating the possibilities within just two. It was still a massive upgrade from my previous 'zero worlds' situation. "Proceed, I guess."
[Please pick any two worlds from your memories and their timelines.]
"Although you keep saying 'worlds,' what does that mean exactly?" I asked, genuinely confused. "I mean, won't I just be reborn in a single new world? Like, a fresh start, one universe at a time?" The concept of multiple worlds felt a little abstract, even for someone who'd just been meteor-ed into a ghost.
[Master, you will be born into one world, but you will also be able to travel to and exist within many parallel worlds. While you are actively present in one, time in the others will be frozen until you choose to focus on them again. This allows for strategic progression across different realities, ensuring you can return to any world at the exact moment you left it, without missing a beat or allowing events to progress without your presence.]
"Really?" My eyes widened. That was... actually pretty cool. No more worrying about missing key plot points or letting villains get too strong while I was off grinding in another dimension. This opened up entirely new avenues for exploitation. "Then I pick 'I was reincarnated as the 7th prince' as the 8th prince, but name me Zevion. Make me just one year younger than Lloyd and his brother. As for the second world, 'Overlord.' At the starting of the game, as the owner of Yggdrasil." My choices were made with a mix of strategic brilliance and pure fanboy glee. The 7th Prince world offered a chance to mess with a magic prodigy and probably gain some early power, while Overlord... well, who wouldn't want to be Ainz Ooal Gown, but with an infinite system?
[Are you sure, Master? While possible, these choices sound like they will restrict you heavily.]
"I am sure of it," I affirmed, dismissing the System's concern with a wave of my non-existent hand. Restrictions? Pfft. That's what an infinite system was for, right? To break them. "As for my appearance... just make me random." I didn't want to spend eons customizing a character. Random was fine. Less effort.
[Master, you can also receive a starter benefit with a permanent random negative curse... Will you try it?]
A curse? Now that was an unexpected twist. My internal monologue immediately started listing pros and cons. A permanent negative curse sounded like a pain, but a "starter benefit" could be huge. And "random" meant it could be something hilariously inconvenient, or genuinely debilitating. "Sure, as long as it's truly not too much," I hedged, trying to sound nonchalant. "Okay, start it. I'm ready. I can't wait for it!" The anticipation was killing me. This was it. The real beginning.
Suddenly, the void around me twisted. It wasn't just a feeling; it was a visceral, nauseating sensation of being stretched, pulled, and compressed all at once, as if the fabric of reality itself was being funneled into a pinhole. I felt as if I was sucked into some black hole, a heavy, overwhelming drowsiness assaulting me. My consciousness flickered, then faded.
"..."
The next sensation was soft. A gentle rocking. A muffled cooing sound. I slowly opened my eyes, blinking against an unfamiliar, soft light. My vision was blurry, unfocused, but as it cleared, I found myself staring up at a canopy. A very, very small canopy. And then, the realization hit me: I was in a cradle. A soft, plush, ridiculously comfortable cradle. And surrounding me, peering down with expressions ranging from doting to professional, were several women in elaborate maid uniforms.
[Master, you have gained magic talent and infinite energies as a reward, and a permanent curse of weakest illusion. This curse makes you appear like a weakling no matter what you do. However, with your infinite energies currently unsuppressed, you actually look like an absolutely terrifying monster. It is recommended to suppress your energies, as many higher power levels can feel them from you, despite the illusion.]
I quietly listened to the System's calm, informational tone, but ignored its advice for a moment. A baby. I was a baby. And apparently, a terrifying one. My tiny, pudgy hands were surprisingly responsive. I pointed my minuscule baby fingers above at the ornate ceiling, a mischievous thought forming in my infant brain. I was going to cast a magic that would put even Lloyd, the supposed prodigy, to shame. Just because I could.
I quietly focused on my newfound energies, feeling them surge within me, vast and untamed. It was like trying to hold an ocean in a teacup, but somehow, I molded and compressed it. The energy coalesced at my fingertip, forming a tiny, almost imperceptible black ball. I shot it at the ceiling.
It flew slowly, almost lazily, a dark speck against the pristine white. It touched the ceiling, and then, with no sound, no flash, it simply extinguished from existence. Not just the ball, but the section of the ceiling it touched. A perfectly circular hole, as if a cosmic cookie cutter had been applied. But it didn't stop there. The tiny black ball, or rather, the void it created, kept flying upwards, through the roof, into the sky, where it then imploded. Not a violent explosion, but a silent, beautiful implosion that created a perfectly spherical, impossibly deep hole in the very fabric of the sky above the manor. It was a masterpiece of destructive elegance.
After looking at it with immense satisfaction, a smug little baby smile probably on my face, I started compressing all my infinite energies deep inside me. The terrifying aura receded, and I felt a wave of exhaustion wash over me. I drifted off to sleep, ignoring the looks of pure, unadulterated terror and jaw-dropped astonishment on the faces of the maids around me. They were probably thinking about how to explain that to the Prince.
The next day, I was captured alive by a one-year-old kid... You guessed it right, it's Lloyd. The little magic frantic himself.
Well, I mean, I did do that ceiling thing to let them know I'm better than him, to establish dominance, you know? But... you can't blame me now! You guys should understand it! How good it feels to defeat a main character from the anime you watch, don't you?! Especially when they're a tiny, adorable, but still incredibly annoying, rival.
Anyway, while I did say I was captured alive, I don't mean like I was imprisoned or Lloyd put me inside a barrier with some complex spell. Well, he did try to cast a few monster-level barriers, but I quickly deconstructed them with a thought. So, he captured me by physically grabbing me. With his actual, unmagical, one-year-old hands.
Yeah, that magic nerd is using physical touch without any magic... The indignity! I, Zevion, wielder of infinite power, reduced to being manhandled by a toddler.
I felt bad, plus now the maids were here, cooing and thinking along the lines of, 'Oh! How cute, both of them look so cute together,' or 'Aww! Their love for each other is so strong,' or just general brother nonsense. They clearly didn't understand the complex power dynamics at play here. This wasn't brotherly love; this was a strategic defeat.
I'm 100% sure this nerd came to me to teach him what I casted yesterday. He probably sensed the raw power, even if he couldn't comprehend the method. He was already trying to poke and prod my aura, the little genius.
Oh! And yesterday's commotion had been morphed into something like God has blessed the 8th prince. Apparently, a perfectly spherical hole in the sky was a sign of divine favor. Go figure. That also reminds me...
(Hey System, wasn't I supposed to go to the Overlord world as well?) I thought, mentally poking the blue screen in my mind's eye.
[Of course, Master, you can go anytime you want.]
(Okay, let's go to that world. I don't think I can do much right now as I was just born yesterday, plus I just need to keep dealing with Lloyd and nothing else for at least a few years, so... yeah, let's go.) I reasoned. What was the point of being a baby if I couldn't immediately start building my empire? Lloyd was cute and all, but I had bigger fish to fry. Or rather, bigger dungeons to conquer. I needed to get to Nazarick.
[Alright, Master.]
I felt as if time around me had frozen... No, it's the entire dimension that has stopped. The maids, Lloyd, the very air in the room – everything became utterly still, like a photograph. It was an unnerving, profound silence, deeper than any I'd ever experienced.
Damn, it's terrifying... I mean, come on, why do I even know that?! And it's actually terrifying!! My meta-awareness was a double-edged sword sometimes. Knowing the mechanics of reality-hopping didn't make the actual experience any less unsettling.
As I wandered in thoughts, suspended in this temporal limbo, I slowly felt dizzy as I closed my eyes and fell asleep. The sheer mental effort of comprehending dimensional travel, combined with being a newborn with infinite power, was apparently too much for my tiny brain.
I don't know if it's because I'm a baby, or I'm just tired from doing this, but I'm sleeping now. And honestly, after all that, a nap sounded pretty good. Maybe I'd wake up as a powerful undead overlord. Or maybe still a baby. Either way, I was out.
Good night.