Chapitre 3: Result of a minor change

Amidst all the hardship Chiron had been through throughout his life, being suffocated in his sleep was a new experience.

The air in his lungs tightened as his hands flared about. He had never wanted anything so bad as he did air at that moment. His lungs felt as though they would pop out through his throat.

He tried as hard as he could to push Aleen off, but how could the strength of a five-year-old rival the strength of a grown adult male? As the air slowly left his lungs, he couldn't help but be disappointed in himself; it was true that he did not like this world but getting killed the moment he had arrived was plain pathetic.

If only he was stronger, if only he had more strength. Maybe then, just maybe he could have had the ability to change his fate. Thinking to that point, he heard an announcement.

>>You have allocated ten points of major fate changed to Strength.<<

Immediately, he felt a wave wash over him, like a bucket of cold water, splashed on a dying traveler in the desert. Chiron's hands had already given up their struggle, and Aleen's pressure on his face had also lightened.

However, the moment the wave came over him, it was like his lungs were given extra time for survival. His body kicked once more into gear and Chiron used as much force as he could muster but didn't quite succeed in his goal. All he did was slightly hit two things. The first was the hand-drawn picture of the woman by his bedside and the second was one of Aleen's elbows, barely allowing him the opportunity to turn his head to the side and breath.

Aleen wanted to continue, but his attention was drawn to framed picture that had fallen to the ground. It seemed to him like she was looking directly at him, cautioning him.

The realization of what he was trying to do washed over him. He stopped.

Chiron bent over to the side coughing loud and hard.

Aleen waved his hand making all the Spirit Lamps in the room go off and he fled the room.

Chiron had never appreciated air as much as he did at that moment. He greedily took in as much as his small chest could enjoy.

Chiron laid back in bed, lungs still feeling the pressure from the assassination attempt. This was unbelievable to him. Mere seconds ago, he was truly half a step away from visiting the grim reaper.

"F**k." he cursed lowly, still breathing heavily.

Chiron was mostly logical as a result of the kind of life he had in the previous world or at least, he liked to think of himself as one. Even at that, he could not see the reason behind Aleen's actions. Chiron never had parents but he also had never heard of a father suffocating their five-year-old son in their sleep.

More so, he could not remember any time in the book when Aleen strangled the MC at age five. He tried thinking of the situation from different angles but the only conclusion he reached was that something was wrong somewhere.

He noticed a beeping at the corner of his sight. He willed and the system popped up again.

//FATE CHANGE SYSTEM//

>>STS<<

Rank= Nil.

Health= 10

Strength=15

Agility=2

Luck= -5

Spirit Energy= ??? (unusable)

Major Fate Changed= Nil

Minor Fate Changed=Nil

>>See how Fate changed<<

Huh!? That wasn't there before. Also, there are a few changes. I remember the strength was previously at 5 but now it's 15. Hmmm! It seems that was what gave me that wave of strength earlier on to struggle against Aleen. But the 'See how Fate changed' icon is definitely new.

As Chiron willed on the Icon: >>See how Fate changed<<, his view changed. He started seeing a vision of past events

Right after he had exploded in white light, he was carried back to that room for circumcision. Meanwhile, his father, Aleen sat in a corner devastated. Aleen only had two children with his late wife- a son who was five, and a girl who was two. He regarded them both to be his world and hoped for a great future for them. Especially for his son who would carry on his bloodline.

However, fate had dealt him a strong hand. His son had just proven to be a Tamashi, also known in the tribe as a Spirit Being. Some referred to the Tamashi as the physical manifestation of a curse and this curse only happened to this Clan called the Chikitsa once every generation. It was a result of something the ancestor of the clan had done long ago. Tamashis were born with highly insane spiritual energy.

Hundreds of years ago, becoming a Tamashi was considered a great honor, and their gift was used to further the agenda of the clan. However, in this cultivating clan, a Tamashi had a very specific cultivation method and this method was lost with an older generation of Tamashi some five hundred years ago. Without that specific cultivation method, a Tamashi was a walking disaster; a time bomb. Just like the sudden explosion of spirit energy that happened the other time.

Their only use was a relegation to be sacrificed as a technique to save the clan in case it was met with harm. Of course, it was a technique that was going to take the Tamashi's life.

Aleen became very devastated when he found out about this. It was supposed to be a proud day for him, his son was going to be introduced fully to the ways of the clan, but life was never fair. Now his son was a curse, a detested trash of the land.

While he sat in a corner in tears, a fat man joined him. A man popular in the community as Fatso and just like Aleen, he was an elder of the clan.

"Aleen, my good friend. In my opinion, I'd say it is better for the boy to meet the ancestors early." The moment Fatso said that, Aleen glared at him. His spirit energy slowly rose like the steam of a boiling pot.

"No! No!! Calm down, calm down. You know both of us are elders of the clan, but at the end of the day, you are still my childhood friend. It has been some years since the last Tamashi died, but I'm sure you remember all the suffering she went through. You will have to make a decision. It's either your son goes through such suffering or he is immediately reincarnated and lives a better life."

Hearing this, Aleen's Spirit Energy calmed down. Fatso tapped him on the shoulder and walked away. This happened two days prior and although it only seemed like a piece of advice in passing, the seed was already planted in Aleen's heart. A seed that his thoughts watered into a tree within these two days.

Watching this scene, Chiron frowned. According to the memory of the book, this was not supposed to happen. This meant that something changed and as he continued watching, he realized what it was that had been altered.

It was Fatso.

According to the normal timeline of the book, the MC exploded in a bomb of Spirit Energy within the Circumcision Shrine. Fatso was among those who were caught unprepared and therefore did not survive the blast. In this timeline, however, Chiron had only just transmigrated and in his confusion, ran out before the explosion occurred.

Chiron felt a cold shiver run down his spine. Just a minor change, as simple as saving one person's life had nearly cost him his own. Thinking this far, he could not help but imagine what other changes that one event had caused.

The room was now dark but the moonlight peeping in from a window helped him see the hand-drawn picture of the woman on the floor.

According to his memory, the MC always had a framed picture of his mother by the side of his bed. He was caught up to speed on what had happened; Aleen had wanted to send him to the afterlife since it was believed that if a child not yet the age of seven should die, he would immediately be reincarnated to a better life. But, he had seen the drawing which was of his deceased wife and was flooded with guilt.

That was why he stopped and ran out of the room. Even so, Chiron could hear low sobs coming from the room next to his.

But then again, there was always a silver lining in every storm. He was given ten points for changing fate and his luck which was previously -10 was now at -5.

Hold on, I nearly died and my luck only increased to negative 5. Doesn't that mean that something else is soon going to threaten my life again...?