Days passed after the strange incident in the royal training ground.
Although the instructors believed it was simply an accident caused by Saksham's massive mana, rumors still quietly spread among the young nobles.
"The prince's mana is abnormal."
"I heard the explosion destroyed three practice targets."
"No five-year-old should have that much power…"
But Saksham ignored the whispers.
Right now, he had something far more important to focus on.
Control.
Inside his private training room within the palace, Saksham sat cross-legged on the floor.
His eyes were closed as mana slowly flowed around him.
In his mind, the blue window appeared again.
STATUS WINDOW
Name: Saksham Singla
Age: 5
Title: Chosen of the Gods
Elements:
• Light
• Darkness (Forbidden)
Skills:
• Divine Understanding
• Elemental Control (Beginner)
• Dual Element Harmony
• Balance Control (Level 1)
Mana Capacity: 10,000
Saksham took a deep breath.
"Let's try again."
He raised both hands.
A small golden light appeared above his right hand.
At the same time, a small sphere of darkness formed above his left.
Unlike before, the two elements remained calm.
They did not collide.
They did not explode.
They simply floated there.
Perfectly balanced.
Saksham smiled slightly.
"It works…"
But suddenly—
CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!
Someone began clapping behind him.
Saksham immediately turned around.
Standing at the entrance of the training room was a boy slightly taller than him.
He had sharp red eyes and expensive noble clothing.
Behind him stood two palace guards.
The boy smirked.
"So the rumors were true."
"The prince is secretly practicing magic."
Saksham stood up.
"And you are?"
The boy crossed his arms proudly.
"I am Arjun Rathore."
"The son of the Duke of Rathore."
His voice carried clear arrogance.
In the kingdom, the Rathore family was the strongest noble house after the royal family.
Arjun stepped closer.
"I heard you caused that explosion during training."
"But honestly…"
He summoned a small flame in his palm.
"Everyone knows you only got attention because you're the prince."
The flame suddenly grew larger.
"My fire element is already stronger than most instructors say."
"So let's test something."
He pointed at Saksham.
"Fight me."
The palace guards immediately looked nervous.
"Young master Arjun, fighting the prince is—"
Arjun waved his hand.
"Relax."
"It's just a friendly duel."
Then he grinned.
"Unless the prince is scared."
Saksham stared at him silently.
Inside his mind, the system suddenly activated.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
New Quest Detected
Quest: Noble Duel
Objective:
Defeat Arjun Rathore without revealing the Darkness Element.
Reward:
• Skill Upgrade
• +500 Experience
Penalty for Failure:
Reputation Loss
Saksham sighed quietly.
"So even the system wants this fight…"
He stepped forward.
"Fine."
Arjun's grin widened.
The palace guards quickly cleared the training room.
The two boys now stood facing each other.
Five meters apart.
Mana slowly filled the air.
Arjun attacked first.
"Fire Shot!"
A small but fast fireball shot toward Saksham.
But Saksham simply raised his hand.
A shield of light appeared.
The fireball vanished instantly.
Arjun frowned.
"Not bad…"
"Then try this!"
Three fireballs appeared at once.
They rushed toward Saksham from different directions.
But this time—
Saksham moved.
His body stepped slightly to the side.
Two fireballs missed.
The last one was stopped by a small flash of light.
Arjun's eyes widened.
"You didn't even cast a full spell…"
Saksham slowly raised his hand.
A bright spear of light formed in the air.
The room suddenly felt heavy with mana.
Arjun instinctively stepped back.
"What is that…?"
Saksham pointed the spear forward.
"I think this duel is over."
The light spear shot forward like lightning.
BOOM!
It exploded right in front of Arjun, stopping only inches away from him.
The shockwave knocked him to the ground.
Silence filled the room.
Arjun stared at the floor in disbelief.
"I… lost?"
Saksham turned away calmly.
"Yes."
The system voice appeared again.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
Quest Completed
Reward Obtained
Balance Control → Level 2
New Skill Unlocked
Light Step
Saksham felt the new power flow through his body.
But behind him, Arjun slowly stood up.
His fists were shaking.
Not from anger.
From excitement.
He laughed.
"Hahaha!"
"This is interesting."
He looked directly at Saksham.
"Prince Saksham…"
"Next time, I will win."
For the first time since reincarnating into this world—
Saksham realized something.
His peaceful royal life…
was about to become much more complicated.
To be continued…