A tall woman walked into the room, humming softly as she moved towards the cot Damon was in.

"How's my little Prince doing?". She smiled at him, picking him up and out of the cot and cooing at him as she did so. It was his mother.

Queen Ariel was a woman in her late twenties who had a plain yet captivating beauty. She had long blonde hair that was almost golden in color, and deep green eyes. She had a slim figure, despite having recently given birth, and she wore an elegant dress and minimal but beautiful jewelry.

As Damon looked up at his mother, he couldn't help but think that it was odd seeing his mother looking as regal as this. In his previous life, he had gained consciousness of his reincarnation and the memories of his first life at around the age of five, before that he was just a regular child and had no recollection of what she had been like when he was a baby.

Five years was not much time, but they had been a cruel five years for his mother. At the age of three, as was tradition, his constitution had been checked and he had been judged as a cripple. As potential cures for his mana veins failed, and it became clear that he would be unable to gather the mana for awakening, his mother's standing had fallen. By the time he had recalled his first life and realized that he had been reincarnated, they were living in an estate on the outskirts of the capital, and whilst his mother still had access to dresses and jewels, they were barely of the quality one would expect from a lower noble, much less a queen.

It seemed that things were not so bad now, but a quick glance at the room showed that they were not great either. The room was kept neat and clean, but it bore the marks of economic restraint. Damon saw the mismatch between the grandeur of the architecture and the subpar quality of the furniture. The bed chamber had towering arches and intricately carved moldings, and yet the wooden furniture was worn with age, and the upholstery was faded in color.

He clenched a chubby fist in irritation. It was a clear sign of the struggle his mother faced under the shadow of the first queen's influence.

His father had spent much of his youth away at war, and power had settled in the hands of the first queen. It looked like she was still being cautious at this time, but he knew that her grasp on the kingdom would only grow at time went on.

Well things would be different in this life. He had a lot to figure out, but he was sure of one thing. He would not roll over and take the abuse. The one thing that he was sure of was that the attitude of "conformity and fitting into society" that he had carried over from his time on earth had been disastrous. Too late had he realized that in this world, compromise was seen as weakness.

"Come on in children, he's awake." His mother called out, looking towards the door.

Damon did his best to turn his head towards the shuffling of footsteps. Two children walked into the room; both were around 10 years of age.

The first was a young girl who had an innocent look about her. She had flowing golden hair that was tied back in a pony-tail and green eyes that were a shade lighter than his mother's. She wore a simple yet neat uniform, a symbol of her future servitude. Behind her walked a boy who was tall for his age. He had a serious look about him and had plain brown hair that was cropped short, and plain brown eyes to match. He wore a training tunic that had patch sewn into it at the shoulder. The patch carried a crest of a shield with a crown above it – the sign of royal squire.

Damon remembered them very well and felt a pang of sadness as he looked at them. Lucy and William. It was a royal family tradition for a maid and a bodyguard to be assigned to each child after their birth. Typically, children around the age of ten would be selected. These kids would go through their awakening, and then grow and develop by the side of the young royal – able to serve in their full capacity by the time the royal came of age. Lucy had been his personal maid and William his bodyguard in the previous life.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Under the machinations of the first queen, Lucy had been dismissed from the royal court and she had been replaced by one of the first queen's people. William, on the other hand, had died in mysterious circumstances after he showed notable talent in his late teens. Damon understood that both had likely been approached by the other side, and their loyalty to him had led to their downfall.

His mother introduced them with a warm smile, "These two will be looking after you, my sweet Damon. They are here to ensure your safety and well-being."

Lucy walked over, a curious look on her face. She was clearly less than impressed by what she saw. "He doesn't really look like you, aunt Ariel."

"Lucy!" Admonished William.

"What? I just think it's a shame". She said, oblivious to the faux pas of the way she referred to the queen.

"I apologize on her behalf your majesty; we have only just started etiquette lessons." William bowed to the queen.

Damon's mother smiled at them. "It's quite alright child, she is my niece after all."

Whilst the bodyguard was selected purely based on talent, the maid was often hand-picked by the child's mother, and it was often the case that she would select a younger relative. If Damon recalled correctly, Lucy was not his mother's direct niece, but was rather a distant member of her family - the Marlow family. He had never learned of the circumstances that brought Lucy to be so close with his mother. Lucy had been fired shortly after Damon had gained consciousness of his reincarnation, and his mother had been assassinated shortly after Lucy had been fired.

"Yes, your majesty" said William, bowing again, as Lucy stuck her tongue out at him.

William was a serious, stoic boy. It was clear that he was still not comfortable around nobles, which made sense as would have only recently been selected as a royal squire. Still, Damon knew that William would grow up to be invaluable. After his mother's death, William had stuck around, becoming a resolute supporter of Damon even as his faction crumbled after her death. Alongside his loyalty, his ability had also been great.

To be selected as a royal squire in the first place, William would have had to have passed a series of physical tests and show a natural sense for combat. This was the best way to gauge how good an individual's starting stats would be upon awakening, and good starting stats were often a sign of future progress.

Damon was aware that the selection was tampered with by the first queen, as a commoner like William was unlikely to be selected despite his talent. This had backfired on her, however.

Upon awakening, William has proved to be talented beyond his indicating stats. He had progressed through levels rapidly despite his resources being limited by the first queen. In the end though, he had passed away under mysterious circumstances, but it was clear that he had been assassinated.

Damon was tempted to use True-Sight to assess William but decided against it. His mother had been a mage, and she would recognize the movement of mana if he tried it. He set the thought aside for now, after all, he would eventually get a chance to have a look.

His mother shook her head at William and gestured for him to rise.

"The two of you will be around Damon and I for years to come, there is no need to be so stiff. You can simply call me Lady Ariel." She said.

"As you wish you majesty Lady Ariel." Said William, bowing again.

At this, Lucy rolled her eyes, but Damon's mother let it pass. She looked down at Damon and stroked his hair.

"He has the same black hair and black eyes as his majesty. Things couldn't have turned out better."

Lucy frowned as she looked at Damon, obviously disagreeing, but held her tongue.

His mother was right, of course. As a child of the second queen, it was to his advantage that he had inherited the jet-black hair and pitch-black eyes of his father's family. More-so because his elder brother had inherited the red hair of his mother's family. It was small detail, but he knew that it was something that always irked the first queen. In a fight for the throne, even the insignificant details could become important. And in this life, Damon fully intended to fight for the throne.

His thoughts were disturbed by Lucy, who had taken to cooing and making faces at him. He fixed her with a plain, expressionless look, hoping to dissuade her. He may be a baby, but he would not be babied!

A low rumble from his stomach foiled his plans.

"In some ways, maybe it was better to gain conscious later" Damon thought to himself, as his mother began to loosen her dress to breast feed him.