3. Growing Antics
Life as an elven prince wasn't easy. Between his father's expectations, his mother's overprotectiveness, and his system's relentless assignments, Eryndor often found solace—or chaos—in his relationships with his siblings.
And, of course, his system made sure to spice things up at every opportunity.
One sunny morning, Eryndor sat cross-legged in the royal garden, pretending to meditate. His eldest brother, Celyndor, loomed nearby, radiating discipline and order as he oversaw Eryndor's "training."
"You must learn to focus your mana," Celyndor lectured, his voice calm but firm. "An elven prince must have mastery over his magical core before all else."
Eryndor nodded solemnly, though he wasn't listening. His attention was entirely on his system, which had just popped up a new task:
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Channel your mana into creating a magical fart to disrupt Celyndor's lesson.]
[Reward: Unlock Skill: "Magical Flatulence," +2 Humor.]
[Failure Penalty: +1 Lecture from Celyndor.]
Suppressing a snicker, Eryndor concentrated. He visualized the mana flowing through him, his hands twitching with focus.
"Good," Celyndor said, impressed. "Now, release it gently—"
Brrrrrrrpt.
A loud, magical-sounding fart erupted from Eryndor's position, followed by a faint shimmer of golden sparkles. Celyndor froze mid-sentence, his expression torn between shock and disbelief.
"...Did you just use mana to—"
Eryndor, ever the actor, put on the most innocent face he could muster. "It slipped?"
Celyndor pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering something about "future generations being doomed," while Eryndor celebrated internally.
[Quest Complete! Reward Unlocked: Magical Flatulence.]
Eryndor did not see the need to train, why would he? He was a prince of an esteemed kingdom. He was practically untouchable.
Elantha, Eryndor's older sister, was the only one in the family who truly understood him— or rather, his chaotic tendencies. She wasn't above encouraging his antics, especially if it meant getting under Celyndor's skin.
One afternoon, Elantha whisked Eryndor away from another boring lesson. They sneaked into the palace kitchen, where the royal chefs were busy preparing an extravagant feast.
"I'll teach you how to steal pastries," Elantha whispered conspiratorially.
Eryndor's eyes sparkled with glee. He already had a system task lined up for this exact moment:
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Successfully steal a pastry without getting caught. Bonus: Feed it to one of the maids in a suggestive manner.]
[Reward: Unlock Skill: "Rogue's Charisma," +1 Agility, +1 Lewdness.]
Elantha distracted the head chef with her charm while Eryndor played his way to the counter. His small hands grabbed a cream-filled tart, and he darted back to safety with surprising agility.
"You're a natural," Elantha praised afterwards, ruffling his hair.
But Eryndor wasn't done. Spotting a young maid nearby, he toddled over, holding the pastry up to her with wide, innocent eyes. "For you, miss," he cooed, his voice dripping with babyish charm, one of his skills.
The maid blushed furiously, her hands trembling as she accepted the tart. "Y-you're too kind, young prince."
"Kind my ass, I was just admiring those wonderful boobs you got there." He smiled in a lewd manner.
[Bonus Achieved! Quest Complete! Reward Unlocked: Rogue's Charisma.]
Elantha doubled over in laughter, whispering, "You're going to be a menace when you grow up."
"I already am," Eryndor replied smugly.
As Eryndor's antics became more daring, the system upped its game, assigning him increasingly ridiculous and lewd tasks and the young prince was all but excited to partake in them.
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Compliment one of the palace guards on their "shiny armor" in an overly flirtatious tone.]
[Reward: Unlock Skill: "Sweet Talker," +1 Charm.]
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Convince Celyndor that Elantha taught you a forbidden spell. Bonus: Make him panic.]
[Reward: Unlock Skill: "Gaslight," +2 Manipulation.]
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Sneak into the bathhouse and observe palace life from an "alternative perspective."]
[Reward: Unlock Skill: "Stealth Peeper," +2 Stealth, +1 Lewdness.]
Eryndor gleefully tackled each task, sometimes succeeding with flying colors, other times landing in hot water. But being the prince made him untouchable, he could usually get away with a light warning.
One evening, the Sylvaren siblings gathered in the family sitting room. Celyndor was reading an ancient tome, Elantha was practicing archery indoors (much to the servants' dismay), and Eryndor was busy plotting his next prank.
"Celyndor," Eryndor piped up, his voice full of faux curiosity. "What's that spell you always practice in the courtyard? You know, the one that makes things explode?"
Celyndor frowned. "You mean Ignis Flare? Why?"
Eryndor tilted his head innocently. "I think I saw Elantha using it on the garden flowers."
Celyndor's book snapped shut, his eyes went wide. "She what?"
Elantha who had been actively eavesdropping choked on her laughter. "I would never—!"
But it was too late. Celyndor was already marching toward the garden, muttering about irresponsible use of magic.
As soon as he left, Elantha shot Eryndor a wicked grin. "You're evil, you know that?"
"I learn from the best," Eryndor replied, his system chiming in:
[Quest Complete! Reward Unlocked: Gaslight.]
Eryndor was too full of himself to check the reward. He rarely even looked up his rewards. His status had caused his degenerate nature to grow beyond control.
Despite the lighthearted chaos, Eryndor couldn't ignore the system's darker undertones. Late one night, it assigned him a cryptic task:
[Quest Alert!]
[Task: Discover the secret of the forbidden wing of the palace.]
[Reward: Unlock Hidden Feature: "Path of Shadows."]
Eryndor frowned, feeling a chill run down his spine. The system had never given him a task this ominous before.
"Hidden wing? Where the hell is that?" He asked the system. "How on earth did I even trigger this?"
For now, he pushed the thought aside. He had plenty of mischief to make before tackling any serious quests.
After all, what was the point of being reborn if not to enjoy every moment?