Three months.
That's how long I've been here in the Library since Brakos offered me the second chance I didn't know I needed.
It's hard to describe what that means when time isn't exactly linear in this place. Days and nights exist, but they don't follow the sun or moon. Brakos says the Library sits outside of normal time—a narrative anchor, he called it. Whatever that means, it's been enough for me to find a rhythm. Wake, study, talk with Brakos, eat, read more, maybe laugh a little, maybe cry a little, repeat.
It's been quiet. Peaceful. Strangely comforting.
And it's given me time to prepare.
I've learned more in these three months than I did in years of school. Not just about the world I'm going to, but about myself. Who I was. Who I want to be. And who I'm going to have to become if I'm going to survive?
The world I'll be reborn into is called Primus. The Primordial World—capital P, capital W. According to Brakos, it's not just any world in the multiverse. It's the world. The only one where Primogenitors—the race-creators, world-shapers—can exist.
If I want to walk that path, it has to be Primus. No exceptions.
But Primus… is weird.
It exists in what Brakos called a temporal flux.
While most worlds in the multiverse sit side-by-side on a stable timeline, Primus doesn't play by the rules. From outside of Primus, one day it could be the present. The next? Two thousand years in the past. Or next week.
It just shifts. No one on the world itself notice as time passes normally for them. But from an outside perspective, like Brakos's, the world is always in motion. Floating between moments.
And, because Brakos happens to be the Primordial Spirit of Time, Stories, and Knowledge. with his authority over time he can cheat, A little.
He calls it "creative placement." I call it "the temporal version of insider trading."
Basically, he's going to place me in the safest possible time. An era of relative peace, far from the eyes of danger, and especially far from the Holy Kingdom of Solaria—a nation that hunts down Primogenitors like it's a divine sport. Humans and elves mostly. Worshipers of the sun god, Sol.
Not a fan club I want to join.
Brakos promised me I'll be born well away from their influence. Remote. Peaceful. Somewhere I can grow up without worrying about them coming and finding me until I can control my powers properly and hide.
Even the town I was born into is simple. A border town, mostly dwarves and beastmen, with the occasional elf or kobold passing through.
My future parents—yes, Brakos already picked them—are local adventurers.. My father is a skilled swordsman and blacksmith, while my mother is a fire mage and researcher on ancient magic with a reputation for cooking spicy food.
I'm definitely inheriting some chaos.
Knowing I'll be born to parents who can handle a fight and still raise a kid right? That's more than I could have asked for.
I asked Brakos once why he didn't just send me to the present. Why not just throw me in the deep end, right in the middle of the world's current chaos?
His answer was simple:
"The dawn of a new era is coming, Jack. You need to be ready for it—not caught beneath it."
Whatever that means, it sounded serious. So I've been preparing.
Brakos gave me access to books that imprinted knowledge directly onto my soul—but only in small doses. Any more, and my essence would start to fracture. Soul overload. Not fun. So we made a schedule.
In the meantime, I've spent every day preparing.
I've read about:
Spirit types, abilities, species, their typical personalities, domains, average personalities, lost information, summoning rituals and possible contract terms.
For example:
Wind spirits are chatty.
Earth spirits like long-term commitments.
Fire spirits want challenges.
Water spirits will judge you like a passive-aggressive aunt.
Lightning Spirits and smart and fast and will make you feel slow.
Light spirits are peaceful and helpful, but also egotistical.
Shadow Spirits and more loners and quiet, but are also wise and can offer good information if you get on their good side... if they have one.
This isn't a universal thing, though. Many do differ from the things listed above.
Magic signature suppression, so I can hide my aura and avoid detection, especially once I have my awakening and unlock the books and spirit magic.
Soul strengthening, so I can grow stronger and become harder to kill while also reinforcing my connection to the spirits
I've also worked with Brakos on finalizing the Draconic Book, the magical artifact that will seal my Primogenitor powers until I'm strong enough to access them.
It's more than just a container—it's a living interface between me and my future race. Everything I design, every evolution or trait I unlock, will go through that book. And every major trait requires a corresponding quest to earn it. No free rides.
Brakos also helped me create two auxiliary books: the Notebook and Appraisal book.
The notebook is bound to me and magically protected. It works like a journal and research log. I can take notes, document spells, spirits, enemies, plants, social customs, make plans, dccumant all the information I get from appraisals and so on.
A bonus is that no one else can read it, even if they try, unless I give them permission.
The appraisal book is a cool one. When I cast the [Appraisal] spell on an item or person, the results will appear in the book, neatly recorded. It'll help me keep track of what I encounter, how rare materials work, and maybe even analyze other people's magic. Like a database I built myself.
It does have a limit that the appraisal is not instant and can take some time, hours or even days, but this does allow for more accurate and extensive information.
Primus itself is fascinating. It's a high-fantasy world, yes, but with patches of modernization. Cities use magic stones for plumbing, heating, and lighting. Transportation is largely animal- or cart-based, but teleportation circles exist for guild elites and nobles. No phones, but long-range communication happens through magical crystals. Brakos calls it "a medieval society with cheat codes."
The people? Even more diverse.
Elves live in ancient forest cities, dignified and secretive.
Dwarves build sprawling mountainholds, craft amazing machines and weapons and brew alcohol so strong it could knock out a dragon for a few hours.
Beastmen—never call them demihumans, that's considered an insult—are as varied as nature itself: Wolves, Cats, Lions, Monkeys and so on, weirdly that are all mammals.
Then there are dragons, fae, lizardmen, kobolds, and dozens of races throughout the world.
Oddly enough, races with transformation powers like werewolves don't exist yet.
When Brakos told me that, I dramatically gasped.
"No fluffy friends?!" I exclaimed, half joking.
He nearly spat his tea out laughing. "Not yet," he wheezed. "But... eventually."
"I'll make them myself if I have to," I joked. "Fluffy justice will prevail."
It became a running joke between us. Now every time I finish studying a new monster classification, I sigh dramatically and ask, "But where are the wolves?"
Brakos always grins. "Coming soon."
(Author's note: This last part was purely AI-generated. I did not write this, but I love it all the same.)
Brakos is... a good friend. Which is weird to say about a timeless, cosmic librarian, but he is.
He never made me feel small, even when he easily could have. He listens to my ideas, respects my weird jokes, challenges my theories, and encourages my ambitions. He's not just guiding me—he's supporting me. Not as a mentor. Not as a god. As someone who genuinely wants to see me grow.
I think he's lonely, in his own way. A being of near-limitless power who chooses to limit himself just so he can enjoy life's surprises.
I get that. More than I want to admit.
This new life… It's not just a second chance. It's the beginning of something huge. And I want to earn it. Every spell, every spirit contract, every page of the Draconic Book—I want it to mean something.
In a few days, Brakos will perform the ritual. I'll be reborn. My memories will be sealed until my mind and soul are strong enough to bear them again. I'll live as a normal child for a while. Just Jack, son of adventurers, blessed by the spirits.
No one will know what I really am.
Not yet.
But when the time comes…
They'll know.