I Hate Being The Protagonist

The two girls didn't know my identity until now, so why did they stare like that? I could've gone without telling them, but my cover is blown now.

The two girls were petrified, not wanting to do something which isn't in proper etiquette in front of the prince. They bowed, grabbing their uniforms in a polite manner. This isn't the right way, but I don't care about royal formalities.

"You don't have to bow," I comment, raising my arms up.

I ushered them inside, saying that I want to be treated like the rest of the kids. They were amazed because I'm not a stuck up royal kid like the rest of them, as I've always been more mature and understanding of others.

"So, your mother is Kleopatra??" one of the girls asks, her eyes shining in excitement.

"Yeah," I respond, wanting to say she isn't my biological mother, but knowing that that information can't be revealed.

Kleopatra revealed that I was adopted as soon as I could understand what that means. She was always honest and straightforward, a quality she wanted me to have. Of course, I consider her my mother, and look up to her as one would with their biological one.

"She is so beautiful!" the girl comments, dazed from thinking about my mother. "And the royal castl—wait! Your home is the luscious palace of black and golden fine-stone? The giant castle that overviews all of Eclipsia?!" she ecstatically squeaks.

I raise my hands, trying not to draw attention to myself. "Y-yes, but could you keep it down?”

If Kleopatra heard this girl's praise, she would be happy. My mother always cared about her looks, even though she preached that appearance is not everything in a person.

"So, what is the queen like?" she asks openly, curious about the queen that rules over the land this girl lives in.

"I would like to say that I know her the best, but my mother is as mysterious to me as she is to the rest of you. To me, she is a strong woman that can take on any task without complaining, a smart person that taught me many things, knowing stuff even my mentors don't know."

It looks like the girls were satisfied with the answer, since they looked at me with a big smile on their face.

I told the girls to refrain from telling the rest of the class about my identity, and my teacher was notified of this as well. If I could hide my identity, I could make real friends, and not fake ones which are there only for fame.

-

One year passed since I started schooling in the regular school.

"Alright class, today we'll be learning about multiplication. As you already know, numbers can be added together, or subtracted from one another. This time, we'll be talking about..."

I already know my math, since I was taught basic math in the castle. It was essential to know it for some spells.

I got to know my class well, making a few friends before I told them of my identity. My secret has recently gone out, since I knew which friends I could 'trust'. We were 8 years old, so I can't guarantee about the trust we made, but in my kid brain this was the right choice.

My mother and mentors gave me the green flag about revealing my secret, since I had the freedom of choice about basically anything. I was taught to think for myself, and would learn from my mistakes. Critical thinking and ration was something also carved into me from birth. If I made a wrong choice, I would feel it on my skin. My mentors tested me constantly, as my life was made to evolve me. I was forced to grow up faster than other kids, as the 'freedom' I had was a curse as much as a blessing.

There was this kid named Julie. She was my best friend you could say, the girl which knew my identity from the start. She always treated me as a friend and as an equal. I adored the fact she would make jokes on me and poke fun of the things I said. I was a witty kid, so I would strike back, but the undeniable grin would always sit on my face. The others would always give up or cover when I would strike back to their jokes with one of my own.

I was taught survival of the fittest, and that psychology remained embedded in my mind, even in a normal conversation. I always saw these kids as obstacles I had to cross, in order to attain harmony. The King mentality was carved into my soul, and I didn't even know it.

Julie was the only real 'friend' I had. I liked hanging out with her since she didn't cover in front of me like the others. Everyone respected me and hailed me as their leader, but Julie really saw me as her friend. At least from the outside.

I would only later find out that she was madly in love with me, and looked at me like I was some kind of god. She was like the rest of the kids, idealizing me because of my looks and strong personality, but showed a different face when talking to me. That facade made me want to hang out with her, in a friendly way.

The feelings she hid from me were one sided, which she knew. I don't know if I can feel love, since my mentality has been twisted as a result of my upbringing.

Anyways, Julie was the only friend I would take to the royal castle. She would always say she's excited to visit the golden palace, but her body would show otherwise. As any normal 8 year old, she would tremble horribly as a result of fear. When she met Kleopatra, she couldn't muster any words. Her extraverted nature shut itself when faced with royalty.

My mother was understanding of this however, and would treat Julie with kindness. At least her version of kindness, since my mother had a strong personality such as myself.

"You kids go downstairs into the garden. Oh, and don't wander around the meeting room!"

I nodded at my mother's words, knowing that she has important visitors from Eviansis. Since the 7 Hands leading it are the only ones in charge of politics, one of them should be a guest in this very meeting. 6 kingdoms merged into one, but 7 Hands lead Eviansis since one of the hands was brought from the 'hidden' kingdom. The hidden kingdom wasn't in the Overworld, most likely in another world. Perhaps it is in Hell or Heaven. Though, it wouldn't be hidden if all of the angelic and demonic races knew of it.

"Adam, let's play crocodile," Julie demands, running into the garden.

Crocodile was a game we invented where we would jump on rocks in our giant fountain. The fountain had a golden statue of a winged god Ra. The statue was of 5, 4 of which were displayed in the shade to our right. They were behind the garden's columns, ready to activate when my mother whistles. If she were to whistle, the statues would come alive, cracking from their stone shell. The 5 gods were machines made by the finest artificers in the world, with the sole purpose of defending my mother.

I couldn't sense any aura coming from these beasts, to which my mother hit me with her classic "You'll know why one day."

I hated when she wouldn't explain some things, like the books she hid from me. The royal library had anything I wanted to read about, except the important stuff.

"Woah watch out, a rhino hit you!" Julie says while pushing me into the water.

I fall into the fountain, feeling the cool water envelop my body. I jump out of the water quickly, scaring Julie by doing so.

She slips from her rock, falling towards the water. I freeze the fountain, grabbing her body so she doesn't smash into the ice.

"You okay?" I ask.

This would probably be a core memory for her, as a prince saves her from falling by holding her in his arms. I lift her up and shake my head to dry it off. She exits her daze, covering her face with her hands.

She remains silent for a few moments, after which she opens her mouth.

"Adam, I have to tell you something. For the longest time, I've-"

"Save it for later, the guards are gone!"

I knew what she wanted to confess, but I wasn't in the mood to talk about that. The guards were gone for the meeting, and this was a once in a lifetime chance. The secret treasury was unguarded for the next 30 minutes.

I grabbed Julie with me, and ran through the halls. I hid my aura along with Julie's, passing by the guards and my mentors to reach the basement. I ran through the 4 basement floors, reaching the last one. The secret treasury. It could only be accessed by having permission to do so by the queen. I had the permission because I had to get something from the meeting room yesterday, and the same permission applies to this treasury.

I put my hand on it and the door opens.

"What are you doing here young majesty?"

My mentor Siski was here. That's good, I can fight against him. There were 2 mentors I couldn't win against, no matter how hard I try. It's like there is an impenetrable wall dividing us. No matter how strong I got, I couldn't lay a single scratch on them. Siski was different, thank god.

The other 2 mentors were with my mother, in the meeting room, or just outside. Whatever the case, my mother and the unbeatable mentors were too occupied to see me do this.

"I'm sorry Siski," I say as I get into a battle stance.

"You think you can win, young majesty?"

Siski isn't a pushover. His fists could shatter mountains, and he knows how to cast spells that could eradicate cities in the blink of an eye, at least he claims so. He's a skilled mage as well as a martial artist. That aside, he was my ethics teacher for some reason. Proper morals were taught by Siski, a man that can fight off an army.

"I know this doesn't fit the moral compass," I exclaim, warping space around my fists.

"Curiosity is the mother of bad decisions, but I don't blame you young man. Your curiosity will surely bring you to great heights. Still, I have to deter you from entering this room," Siski says as he disappears.

To Julie, his body vanished into air and appeared behind me. His ice hammer conjured quickly and swung down on me.

I block it with my hand, shattering it on contact.

"Magnificent reaction time, young majesty. It looks like your fighting mentors taught you well. To be able to wield spatial magic to such an extent while being 8 years old..."

He used a spatial spell himself, trying to counter my own. I negate his attempt, appearing above him and pointing my finger at his head. Moving faster than him, I revealed my true abilities, an arsenal that only one mentor knows about.

"Go to sleep."

The mind invasion spell works only on weaker opponents. It's sad that I have to defeat my mentor like this, but I didn't want to cause any damage.

"Let's go," I tell Julie.

She couldn't believe what was going on. She couldn't sense aura, thank god–but she just saw the two of us vanish into thin air 2 times, and cast 'high-level' spells.

She never saw me fight, and this was the first time I unveiled my magic except maybe making tea with fire magic. In school, it is forbidden to use magic, so she could only see it outside. I suppress my aura, since it could seriously damage others, knocking them out in an instant. It wouldn't straight up kill someone, but I was on that path. The difference between myself and my peers was astronomical, to the point that highly skilled mages would fall short when facing against me.

-

As Julie and I entered the treasure room, the door shut behind us.

Good, now nobody will suspect us. The room was full of artifacts, weapons, statues of gold, chests, old vehicles and such things. I was amazed by the arsenal of weird and abstract things that this treasury had.

"Sunsword, from Grey"

"Grey, as in 'King Grey', one of the 7 Rulers!? The legendary kings and queens that Ruled over the Overworld until we were born!?"

"Yeah, those are the ones... I mean if you ask me, they are overhyped by the public. If they disappeared, they aren't so powerful, are they?"