Time was a strange thing down here.
There was no sunrise. No sunset. Just the soft blue glow of water filtered through layers of stone and moss. If it weren't for Seek's occasional notifications, he might've lost all sense of hours, days, anything.
But he was used to that, honestly.
He used to stay in his room for days without noticing.
Now his room was a rock.
Progress?
Maybe.
He floated lazily inside Rocky, his new home. The structure was a little uneven, waterlogged, and filled with the earthy scent of river sediment, but it was his.
More importantly, it was quiet.
He liked the quiet.
For the first time since reincarnating as a glowing dot, there was no danger. No giant bugs. No weird creatures crawling too close. Just stillness.
And the hum of mana flowing through the water.
He'd been trying something new — something that didn't involve eating everything he saw. He was listening.
To the current.
To the subtle shifts in temperature.
To the distant vibrations from far-off things moving upstream.
It was… peaceful.
And kind of addictive.
"Seek," he murmured, "what's this feeling?"
[You are sensing mana flow. This is a natural instinct developing in response to your core stability.]
"Feels like I'm… part of it."
[You are.]
That answer hit harder than he expected.
He wasn't just floating anymore. He was starting to belong.
Not as a monster. Not as an invader. But as something real. Something that could settle, learn, grow.
Maybe that's what it meant to start becoming… alive again.
He stayed like that for a while. Listening. Letting the world talk without interrupting it.
The mana in the water moved like wind in a forest — soft currents brushing against his surface, pulling in and out of the cracks in the rock around him. He imagined it like a breath. The world was breathing.
And he was finally breathing with it.
[Core Synchronization: 2%]
"Huh."
[New Development Unlocked: Passive Mana Absorption Lv.1 – Absorb surrounding mana slowly over time.]
"Now that's nice," he whispered.
It wasn't flashy.
It wasn't powerful.
But it was stable.
And for someone who used to drift through life with zero goals, zero energy, and a computer screen as his only companion… stability felt like a miracle.
He spent the next while experimenting gently.
Not pushing. Just observing.
He tried floating closer to the stone walls — and realized his mana interacted differently with moss than it did with stone.
He passed through a tiny stream of bubbles — and noticed a change in the pressure of energy flow.
He even sat still long enough that a tiny shrimp tried to sit on him before freaking out and zooming off.
"…Sorry, buddy."
For once, he didn't eat it.
That felt like growth.
He started naming things.
The round pebble near his entrance? That was Steve. The weird spiral shell with moss on it? That was Grandma. The little patch of glowing algae? Neon Bed.
They didn't respond. Obviously.
But naming them made them feel real. Like neighbors.
He even gave himself a name.
Not his human one.
That name felt like it belonged to someone else now. Someone who played games and ordered instant noodles and never looked people in the eye.
Now, he was just…
Dot.
Simple. Fitting. Honest.
He liked it.
"Seek," he asked later, "how long do you think I can stay like this?"
[Indefinitely, if you don't draw attention.]
"Does that mean it's okay to just… be for a while?"
[More than okay. This is your beginning. Not your war.]
He liked that.
It was the first time someone — or something — told him it was okay to go slow.
To build.
To be.
He found something strange on the edge of his domain a few days later.
A crystal.
Tiny. Blue. It pulsed faintly, almost in time with his own mana.
He approached it cautiously.
[Material Detected: Lesser Mana Crystal]
[Effect: Can be absorbed for a one-time energy boost or refined for long-term core expansion.]
That gave him pause.
"What would you recommend?"
[Refinement is slower. But better for long-term growth.]
He stared at the crystal.
It wasn't going anywhere.
And neither was he.
"Alright. Let's refine it."
[Initiating Mana Crystal Refinement. Estimated Time: 7 Days.]
He laughed.
Slow growth it is.
He kept observing.
Watched a beetle crawl along a mossy rock.
Saw a school of tiny fish dart through a patch of glowing weed.
He even discovered that if he pulsed his mana rhythmically, some of the smaller creatures nearby would pause and tilt toward him like they were listening.
"I'm like an underwater street performer," he said.
[Your mana signature is becoming more distinct. Local fauna may begin to recognize your presence.]
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"
[Depends who notices first.]
That night, or what he assumed was night, he practiced a new technique.
Mana compression.
It was difficult. Like trying to hold a wiggling water balloon in place using only your thoughts.
He wasn't good at it. His energy kept leaking out the sides.
But each time, it leaked less.
Little by little, he shaped a tiny sphere inside himself. Not a skill. Not an attack. Just practice.
Discipline.
He never had that before.
Now it felt like a quiet strength growing inside him.
Not flashy. But real.
[Core Synchronization: 4%]
[Skill Acquired: Mana Pulse (Basic) – Emit a gentle wave of mana to interact with nearby materials.]
He tested it.
The pulse rolled outward like a soft breath.
Nearby moss glowed slightly.
Water shimmered.
The shrimp from before peeked out from behind Steve.
He smiled.
Maybe he wasn't just surviving anymore.
Maybe he was becoming part of this world.
And maybe, just maybe, it was okay to take it one pulse at a time.