The morning sun rose over the Imperial Palace. Theon’s eyes slowly opened. A gentle knock came from the door before his personal maid walked in.
"Good morning, Your Highness," she said with a bow.
"Your tutor is here." Theon looked at her in confusion.
"Tutor?"
"Yes, Your Highness," the maid replied with a smile. "Every member of the Imperial Family begins their formal education at the age of five."
"What kind of lessons?"
"Royal etiquette, history, geography, politics, economics, diplomacy, magic theory, swordsmanship, monster studies, and military strategy." Theon’s eyes widened.
"...That many?" He fell back onto his bed. "Argh..."
"I thought I could finally live a carefree life in this new world..." "And now I have to study again?" He let out a deep sigh.
"I’ve always hated studying." A familiar face suddenly appeared in his mind.
"Evelyn..." "You were always there to help me whenever I got stuck." His expression turned lonely. "You disappeared two years before I died..." "I hope you’re safe... wherever you are."
As Theon was still lost in thought—
BANG!
The bedroom door burst open. Captain Voss marched into the room with a booming laugh. "Hahaha!" "So you’re finally awake, Your Highness!" The maid jumped in surprise.
Theon almost fell off the bed from the sudden entrance.
"C-Captain Voss?!" The captain laughed even louder. "I’ve come to resume your sword training!" Theon pointed at himself in confusion.
"...Sword training?"
Before he could say anything else,The Captain casually lifted him onto one shoulder.
"Come on! Let’s go!"
"W-Wait! Put me down!"
The maid let out a helpless sigh.
"Captain... could you please use the door properly next time?"
Captain Voss chuckled. "Hahaha! Where’s the fun in that?" Still carrying a protesting Theon over his shoulder, he strode out of the room, leaving the maid shaking her head with a tired smile.
The Captain carried Theon straight to the Imperial Training Grounds. As soon as he was set down, Theon looked around, searching for a way to escape. Instead, all he saw were knight trainees sparring with wooden swords, Imperial Guards standing on watch, and instructors shouting orders.
Theon sighed inwardly.
"I’ve never held a sword before..."
"Oh well... I’ll just spar with him. Once I beat him he’ll surely let me go early," Captain Voss tossed him a wooden sword. "Catching it is the first step, Your Highness."
Theon caught it without thinking.
The moment his fingers wrapped around the hilt... Something clicked. It wasn’t magic. It was muscle memory.
The years of athletic training from his previous life blended with the swordsmanship this body had learned since childhood. Before Theon could make sense of it
Captain Voss charged at him. "Here I come!"
Theon instinctively stepped to the side.
CLANG!
Their wooden swords collided. Captain Voss’s smiled and said
"Interesting... Come on, Your Highness! Show me what you’ve got!"
The fight continued. Theon combined the footwork and balance from his past life with the swordsmanship knowledge this body had inherited. To everyone’s surprise, he suddenly charged straight at the captain.
Everyone knew one thing anyone who rushed the Captain head-on would usually be defeated in an instant.
However, they also knew the captain would never seriously harm an Imperial Prince.Theon swung his wooden sword toward the Captain’s head, making it seem like that was his true target.The Captain immediately raised his sword to block.
But at the very last second, Theon suddenly crouched low and slid beneath him. In one smooth motion, he swung his wooden sword upward, hoping to catch the captain off guard.
However, the Captain was a veteran who had survived countless battles.
The instant he realized Theon’s true intention, he twisted his sword with a quick movement of his wrist and blocked the attack. Seeing that his plan had failed, Theon quickly jumped back several meters to rethink his strategy. The captain stared at him in surprise.
That was a professional move...
He smiled.
"He’s truly a prodigy after all."
Theon took a deep breath before making his final move.
He charged forward once again, keeping a proper swordsman’s stance. Just as Captain Voss prepared to strike, Theon feinted an attack.
The captain reacted to the fake.
In that split second, Theon burst past him with incredible speed, appeared behind him, and gently pointed his wooden sword at the back of The Captain’s Neck.
Silence filled the training grounds. Everyone around them stared in shock.
The Captain blinked for a moment before bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"Excellent!"
"Tell me, Your Highness... "What made you improve so much?"Theon scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Maybe... surviving death awakened my hidden potential."
Captain Voss nodded with a grin. "Hahaha! That would explain it."Just then, an elderly man dressed in neat butler’s attire walked onto the training grounds.
He cleared his throat.
"Your Highness."
"It is time for your etiquette lesson."
Theon’s smile vanished.
"...No."
He slowly took a step back. Then another. Suddenly, he turned and ran. Unfortunately... The butler was faster.
He grabbed Theon by the collar before he could escape.
"Running away from your lessons again, Your Highness?"
"It seems I’ll have to drill proper etiquette into you today."
Theon cried out dramatically.
"Nooooo!"
The Captain couldn’t help but laugh so hard he nearly fell to the ground. From the balcony of his study, the Emperor watched the entire scene unfold with a faint smile on his face. "He is improving, Your Majesty," the Imperial Guard said with a gentle smile.
"It’s only a matter of time before the Seventh Prince becomes a fine swordsman." The Emperor nodded quietly, his eyes never leaving his son.
"I certainly hope so."
The rest of the morning passed in a blur.
Theon learned noble manners, dancing, table etiquette, greetings, and diplomacy. By the end of the lesson, he looked completely exhausted.
Sword training?
Easy.
Etiquette?
Impossible.
The Etiquette lessons ended. Theon set off toward the Imperial Archives to study more On magic.
On the way, he passed the Emperor, who was leaving his study.
Theon bowed. The Emperor nodded, looking proud.
"I hope to make you proud, Your Majesty," Theon said.
The Emperor smiled and walked on.
He turned and headed towards the Archives.
As Theon walked through the palace corridors, he overheard a group of maids whispering among themselves.
"...That’s him..."
"...The Frost Prince..."
Curious, Theon stopped and walked over to them.
"What were you talking about?" The maids froze in panic.
"O-Our sincerest apologies, Your Highness!" One of them nervously stepped forward and bowed.
"When Your Highness was only two years old, you froze half the Imperial Palace."
"Since that day, many people have called you..."
"...the Frost Prince." Theon stood there in silence. "So... this body was already a genius?" He slowly looked at his hand.
"No wonder my mana pool is so enormous..."
After dismissing the maids, Theon continued toward the Imperial Archives.
Once inside, he began searching through shelf after shelf for books on magic. There were thousands of them. Books on Magic Theory, Elemental Studies, Runic Engineering, Monster Magic, Ancient Civilizations. Theon’s eyes wandered across the endless rows of books.
Then something caught his attention. One shelf stood out from the rest. It was covered in dust, as though no one had touched it for years. Among the old books, a single ancient tome stood upright.
Its leather cover was cracked with age, and a pale blue crystal was embedded in the center. For some reason...
It felt as if the book was calling to him. Without thinking, Theon slowly reached out and picked it up.
Written boldly across the front in silver letters were the words:
Tome of Eternal Frost
The pale blue crystal embedded in the center gave off a faint glow, as if it had sensed his presence. Theon stared at the book for a moment before slowly opening its first page.