The two boys looked at me all confused, but rushed towards my direction. The old gardener followed them close behind.
"Greetings, My Lord," they bowed in front of me. "Is there anything we can help you with?"
Looking at the two boys, I suddenly sensed something. I couldn't tell or describe what it was but it felt so miniscule that it might as well have been my imagination.
The boredom must be getting to my head. Ignoring the imaginary feeling, I spoke.
"There is, in fact, one thing. From this instant, both of you are relieved from your gardening duties. Instead, your job would be to follow me around, constantly praise me, laugh at my jokes, and beat up anyone I point towards. Do you understand?
The boys hesitatingly nodded, although I could see clear confusion behind their eyes. That was fine; they would learn in the meantime.
"Alright, now let's take a tour of the castle." I turned around, channeling as much of my Young Master as I could. I had finally gotten some lackeys, now all I had to do was find some chum to discipline. I began walking and the the boys followed.
--
This plan was flawed from the beginning; I sighed, plomping down on one of the garden chairs. As it turns out, no one in the castle wanted to make trouble with the young prince. I had already taken two tours, and all people had done was bow to me with reverence.
"You, praise me." I pointed at one of the boys.
"Uhm," the boy hesitated before speaking. "Prince Orion's brilliance is like a star. Even the way you sit down is inspiring."
I looked at the boy with a deadpan expression and let out a sigh. Even the fake praises had begun to lose novelty.
"What are you doing here, Orion?" A sudden sound caused me to straighten up in my seat. Looking around, I saw Mother with a bunch of maidservants walking in my direction.
Damn it, did she have to find me now?
"Why are you not attending your lessons with Teacher Borin? Did you skip out again?"
I froze in my spot and pointed my finger towards Mother, all the while giving a desperate look to my lackeys. Alright this was the time to show your usefulness. Go, do it now.
Unfortunately, my lackeys didn't move. Instead, they were shaking on their feet at the mere sight of their Queen.
"Useless," I cursed under my breath.
Mother was closing in on the other side. Seeing no way out, I tried to run, only to realize my body had been frozen solid.
"What the Void."
Mother had arrived, standing mere feet away from me. She took one look at the boys and ordered. "You are dismissed."
As if someone had breathed air into them, the two boys looked at each other before hurriedly scampering away.
"Why aren't you in the class?" Mother spoke.
The hold over my body loosened, and I instinctively lowered my head. "I am awakening my core tomorrow, so I wanted to have a rest day."
Mother didn't speak anything, and instead stared at me. I know what she was going to say, that I was a Valthorian prince, that people looked up at me and that everything about me needed to be perfect.
But the conversation didn't go as I had expected.
"Don't bully the servants anymore." She spoke with a somewhat softened expression. "Go to your room and ask Lyra, to brew you some Vernia tea. Also, sleep early at night; tomorrow is going to be a big day for you. Make sure you are properly rested."
Saying so, she turned around and began walking away.
Wait, was she not going to punish me? I couldn't help but give her a dumbfounded look.
This was a confusing situation for me. Was she worried that I was nervous about tomorrow?
Looking around, the two boys had already left. I thought of bringing them back, but what's the point?
"I might as well take her advice." Deciding so, I walked away to my room.
---
Sun was already up by the time I got up the next day. I usually had the habit of waking up early and doing some mana manipulation exercises, but considering that I didn't have to do those anymore and the fact that I had decided to take my mother's advice to heart, I had allowed myself to sleep in.
I still had time left before I was supposed to meet with Father. Still, considering how big of a day today was, I decided to hurry up and get ready.
Getting up from my bed, I rang the bell on the desk beside my bed.
Soon, Lyra entered my room, carrying a tray of my breakfast.
"Good Morning, My Lord. She cast a glance toward the unmade bed. "I see you slept in today," Lyra spoke while putting the tray on the table in front of the sofa. I, too, followed her and sat in front of the table.
"Yes, today is really important, so I figured I should be well-rested," I replied while hurriedly putting the eggs in my mouth. If teacher Borin could see the way I was wolfing down my food, he would have a heart attack.
"I see. Should I prepare your clothes for you?"
"Yes, and keep them light; I might need to change after I reach the arena, and I don't want to go through the hassle."
Lyra nodded, walked away to my wardrobe, and began browsing through it, picking up my outfit.
While she was doing so, I hurriedly finished my breakfast and jumped in the bathroom to take a quick shower.