20 By The Way, I'm Not A Male

[Name: Aster Nilm

Title: None

Race: Meslatar

Stats:

32 Strength

35 Dexterity

55 Endurance

60 Magic

Skills:

Hunting (Tier 1), Cooking (Tier 1), Martial Skill-(Dagger Proficiency (Tier 1), Unarmed Proficiency (Tier 1))

Magic Skills:

Mana Management (Tier 1), Umbramancy (Tier 1)]

[Mana Management: To gain proficiency, grow your internal mana pool and claim mastery over it. (Progress to tier 2: 94%)]

[Umbramancy: To gain proficiency, master the shadow and the emotions within it. (Progress to tier 2: 85%)]

I squinted my eyes at the numbers, making sure I wasn't seeing things.

My stats increasing after fighting those monsters was normal I suppose, even though there's quite a jump especially in the magic stat. But the tier progression for these two skills increased by quite a significant amount in just one night.

Now that's definitely weird.

"Mommy… I feel like I grew a lot stronger last night compared to usual…" I muttered, looking up from my bowl of beaten butter and sugar.

We came back quite late yesterday and mother also took the chance to teach me the method on extracting Mana Crystals from slain monsters too. Because of that, we decided to take a break today which is why I'm with my mother in the kitchen early in the morning to bake cookies with her.

Mother smiled at me, "Ara, ara? That's normal of course. My little one wasn't fighting normal animals but actual monsters yesterday. So it's natural you would be able to get stronger than just hunting animals~"

That's not really what I meant but… I don't really know how else to explain this jump. Perhaps if I go and hunt more monsters I might find out why.

I was brought out of my thoughts when something was brought in front of my mouth.

I instinctively opened my mouth and that something was pushed into my mouth.

Ooooh! Chocolate!

Mother giggled like she had successfully pulled off a prank before returning her attention to our baking. At this point, it was simply adding the chocolate chips into the bowl before mixing them thoroughly.

Mother and I then rolled them into balls before putting them on a baking sheet. The fact that they look like chocolate chip ice cream makes it especially hard to resist the temptation of tasting them.

I managed to hold out until mother brought the tray to the oven, leaving it there to bake.

"Ufufufu~ Now we just need to wait fifteen minutes before we can enjoy it~" Mother giggled, untying the apron from her waist.

Uggghhh… I wanna eat them now… Isn't there a way to speed it up?

I let mother wipe my face that had been caked with flour with a cloth before she took off the apron from me. Honestly it has way too many frills for my liking but well, it functions well. It's not like it'll change the flavour of the cookies anyway!

After we finished cleaning and washing up, we still had about ten more minutes before the cookies were done. Thus, mother took me outside the house to enjoy the fresh air and the view of the ocean.

I looked out towards the waves crashing against the cliffs below us. From here, the sea stretched far beyond the horizon with no land in sight. Yet, I knew that beyond there lies the main land where the rest of the world was, a place I would very much like to explore once I am older physically.

"Mommy? When do you think I could explore the world?"

She turned to give me a smile, "Ufufufu~ Anytime my little one is ready to spread your wings, my child. Mama will definitely not hold you back."

I turned to her, "Even if I were to say I wished to go right now?"

"Ara? Then mama will pack our bags and fly you to the mainland right away!"

"Even if I say I wanted to go alone?"

"Ufufufu~ Then mama will prepare a seaworthy ship for you to sail wherever you wish, my child~"

"Are you not afraid that I might be hurt? Or maybe even… Lose my life?"

She reached up and patted my head, "My sweet, little one. You are my child. From the moment you are born, you are destined for greatness. This World will not be able to hold you back, thus Mama shall not hold you back as well. Just know that Mama will always support you, my little one. Mama has no doubt that my little one will stand at the top of this World eventually, but for now… Allow Mama to protect my sweet, little one~"

I paused, my mind returning to the night when I hatched.

"Mo… Mommy called me the conqueror of the stars. What does that mean?"

"Ufufufu~ As Mama has said, this World will not hold you back. Soon enough, my little one shall go beyond and reach for the stars themselves~"

Hmmm? I'm not sure if this is a metaphorical expectation or she's actually expecting me to be able to go into space eventually.

While I was still wondering about that, mother suddenly picked me up in her arms and cuddled me.

"Does my little one wish to explore the world already?"

I quickly shook my head, "I want to, but I know I am not ready yet… At this time, if I were to go out into the world, I would be swallowed up. That is not the state I wish to be in."

"Ara, ara? In that case, Mama shall do her very best to prepare my little one!"

That's right, if I want to be able to explore the world for interesting stories to write and eat all the delicious desserts and cakes I can get my hands on, I need to be able to stand against any adversary this world might throw at me.

Yes, until then, I will have to train myself, temper this body of mine until even if a giant truck were to be dropped from space, I can punch it away!

"Ara, I think it's about time the cookies are ready~"

Oh! Cookies!!! Finally!! Let's go, mommy!!

I practically leapt off mother's arms and dragged her back into the house, watching impatiently as she pulled out the tray from the oven with her magic.

Ahhhhh~ The smell is already so heavenly!! And just look at them!! These round little cookies with little chocolate chips embedded in them… Ahhhh!! I can't wait!!

Mother raised her hand and casted a spell again, creating a wave of cold air that quickly cooled down the cookies on the pan.

She then picked up one of the cookies and presented it to me, something I received quickly and bit right into it.

Ahhhh~ This is heaven~ The way the chocolate melts in my mouth… Mmmmnnn!!!

"Here is more, my little one~"

"Yayyy! I wuv you mommy~~" I cried out, taking all the cookies she offered for me.

Ahhhh~ These are soooo good~ I wanna stay here forever~

Nom nom nom nom…

Hmm? Oh… There's no more cookies… Noooooo…

Mother wiped my mouth with a napkin while I was despairing over the fact that there were no more cookies.

"Ufufufu~ My sweet, sweet little one~ Were the cookies nice?"

"They were very nice, mommy…"

"Ara, ara? No need to be sad my little one, we can make more later on~ In fact, my little one's birthday is coming soon isn't it? Ahhh~ Time really flies, before I know it, my little one is already two years old!"

That's right, in just a few more months I will turn two, officially catching up to the looks of my current body.

Hopefully I could get my Umbramancy to tier two before it comes and I get my new boons for the new year. With any luck, I might get some good ones that will help me increase my proficiency skills faster!

Mother wiped the cookie crumbs off my face. "Now, does my little one have anything you'd like as a birthday gift? Mama will do her best to get it!"

I thought about it for a moment before shaking my head, "There's nothing I need, mommy. I'm happy just spending the day with you."

"Ahhhh! My little cutie!! You're the absolute cutest little thing!!!"

Can't say I didn't expect such a reaction, but it's true that I didn't really need anything, at least not right now.

If I didn't have my [Screened] to let me write notes in it, I would have asked for a journal but I don't need that anymore.

In fact, I think it's high time I start recording down my daily stuff just so I don't forget them. I should start it today.

"Oh! Mama knows! Does my little one want a dress? Mama thinks my child would look beautiful in a dress! Perhaps it's a good time for mama to teach my little one how to dress up?"

I paused…

I think it's a little bit late to mention this… But I actually picked the futa option in the gender choices…

Hey! Best of both worlds right?! Even though it's hard to tell now since my body still resembles that of a two year old, but I have my feminine features too!

Besides! I'll get boobs and a nice ass! Judging by how mother looks, I have a very bright future to look forward to! Plus an extra package between my legs too! Who's gonna say no to that?!

Ah, but just so you know… I only like girls, though I can be convinced if it's another futa too~

As for that dress… Erm… I guess… I can try that… I'm still wearing pants now but I heard skirts actually feel… Nice…

I still like girls though!