I take about three full steps before another wave of students starts pouring through the academy gates and into the front yard.

I barely make it out alive.

No matter how good they look, I do not want an encounter with a Raekol face to face yet. In those few moments, they were so close that I'm pretty sure I got to know them a lot more than I would if we were friends.

I decide to just rush to the relative safety of a faraway tree. I lean against the hard, rough trunk of a rain tree and retreat into my thinking space.

Liken Academy usually isn't this crowded during its first day. I know because I've seen it many times before. The students typically go in early for the opening ceremony. Yet, most of them are still here. Should I ask someone? My uniform might be the same, but I still don't know how to act or speak 'rich'. I don't want my cover blown already.

The other students are bound to find out, but I want to reveal my lifestyle on my terms not just because I mentioned that I walked to school instead of riding on horseback or having a servant carry me here.

Okay, I'm on my own. Is there anything significant about today? Or, maybe, anything significant about this year?

"Ah! The prince is here!"

The prince is here. That explains a lot—the increased number of students, the students hoarding the entrance. They were waiting for the prince.

To be more precise, this is the second prince that's blowing everyone's mind; Prince Malik Yauler, son of King Erik Yauler, second-in-line to the throne.

The Yauler royal family has been ruling Raekoft for almost two centuries now. Their bloodlines have birthed the most powerful mages in the continent. They spearhead research into magic which has also helped in making the Yauler royal family the most adept mages in Raekoft.

Notable achievements include creating the official magical spectrum, that arranges magical types with regard to all their different factors. It's all very complicated, but from why I managed to decipher, the seven types of base magic are arranged from easiest to control to hardest to control and from 'less shape' to 'more shape'.

Air, Fire, Earth, Water, Mind, Light and Dark.

Each type of base magic has multiple subsets. The further down the spectrum, the more subsets the magic has.

The possibilities of magic become vaster, the more we find out about its uses.

If I recall correctly, Prince Malik is an air mage. The magic with the least shape but is the easiest to control. Air mages excel in being able to control the sheer power of the air around them.

I recall a time when I met the young prince.

About seven years ago, I was wee young lad. A Lead General from the Raekoft army had come to the Dravus family shop.

Purpose of visit - to check the quality of arms. In a scenario where Raekoft were to go to war, the King requires as many blacksmiths as possible to help provide weapons and armour.

Thanks to my parents' skill in creating good quality weapons and armour, and their overall friendly aura, the general decided to spend the night in my little town. That's how I met little eight-year-old Malik.

Back then, I had no idea that the well-dressed little blond boy was the fucking prince, but he was surprisingly meek and even a little shy.

My neighbour, Kayla, and I ended up having a blast hanging out with him for a day. We got him into so many different kinds of trouble that our parents were scared Kayla and I would get arrested. We only found out little Malik was the prince after he left.

I got reprimanded by my parents for getting the prince in trouble. Kayla got teased by her parents for flirting with a prince.

Nowadays, stories of the prince are vastly different than the stories that Kayla and I have. Tales of the prince playing pranks on the royal guard, doing wacky acts in the capital public and, more recently, being an absolute lady killer.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

I choose to believe I made him that way.

I'm so proud of him.

Now that the prince is here, it will be an excellent opportunity for me to escape from the overwhelming group of students. I can quickly make it to the main building. It's not too far. I take a deep breath and emerge from the side of the tree, only to smack into a male student. He had bright blond hair that reached his shoulders and sky blue eyes that are currently glaring at me. There is even an entourage trailing him.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

His voice was low and threatening, but at least he wasn't screaming. He probably thinks I'm a fellow noble, so I need to use this to my advantage.

Take a deep breath, straighten your back and sharpen your smile.

"Sorry, my mistake," I say with a small bow and a smile.

"Of course, it was your mistake. What, you think this is my fault?"

He doesn't know I was a mere villager yet he's already a pain in the ass.

"I didn't say that. It was my fault" I say with a dismissive wave. I have to try to look as calm as possible. 

"Don't just shoo me off. Who do you think you are?" he mutters through gritted teeth.

Of course.

"I think I am myself. Does that answer your question?"

His face starts turning crimson in rage. Good, he deserves it anyway.

"Are you messing with me?"

"No, I told you the truth."

"Don't fuck with me, you—"

"I'm sorry, but I don't have time for this. I'm going to go ahead to the entrance ceremony."

I hurriedly sidestep the tomato-faced noble. I need to get away from this. Now. Suddenly, a steady hand grips my wrist resulting in me dropping my silver token.

"Don't weasel out of this you coward."

I need to get my token back. I wrest my hand away from the blond bitch and bend down to pick it up. That is until a guy from his stupid entourage picked it up before I could. He holds it up by two fingers as if holding an infectious piece of trash that he wants to show the rest of the cunts.

"Ooh...what is this-"

He doesn't get to finish the sentence as I snatch the coin the away from him. This encounter is playing 

"Was that a coin with a dragon on it? Interesting, did you have that made? I want it. " the blond bitch says with a sly smile on his face.

"If you're not going to hand it over, I could just take it—"

"Go fuck yourself."

I need to calm down. My magic is threatening to make an appearance, and anyone knows that that means you're practically begging for a fight. Blondie recoils from my crass statement.

"What was that? On what authority did you think you can say something like that to me ?"

"I don't care about your damn authority. What are you going to do? Glare me to death? You're doing a damn good job of that right now."

I turn to leer at him. I don't want to fight, but he crossed a line. His face contorts into one of pure rage. I can sense the power radiating off of him. Starting a fight now is a terrible thing but I'm not just going to take this. I'm all ready to defend myself.

All of a sudden, a strong gust of wind disrupts the both of us, nearly knocking me off my feet.

"Fighting already boys?"

The voice was loud and authoritative yet still felt playful. I notice the crowd around us and realise how much attention the mean baby and I were getting. I look around for the source of the voice before finding it.

Prince Malik. Son of King Erik. Second prince of Reakoft.

I steal a glance at him, and my stress releases just a tiny bit. He had messy, dirty blond hair, warm brown eyes, a small nose and thin lips.

He barely changed at all.

I turn to look at the blond on my left. The colour visibly leaves his face as he straightens his back. He turns to face the prince before doing a full bow.

"M-my Prince! I apologise for the disturbance, but I was trying to handle our little kerfuffle."

I fail to stifle my snicker. Kerfuffle? I immediately cover my mouth with my hand. My social life was fun while it lasted.

To my immense relief, the prince giggled his own.

"Okay, okay, what did you do now, Leon?"

"I'm sorry my prince but can I make my way to the main building?" I cut in. Maybe its because he still looks like little Malik, but I feel very comfortable around him. I should stop feeling this way.

"Why the rush? What's your name? I've never seen you around the capital before."

Shit. I can't lie to the prince. Please remember me. Please remember me. Please remember me.

"Ritz Dravus, my prince."

His eyes widen in surprise. Do I see this, right? Does this mean what I think this means? Impossible. It's too obvious. Too choreographed. What is the prince planning?

"Ritz? That's a surprise. How did you get here?"

Does little Malik recognise me? No, forget about that now. I need to take advantage of this

"I had to work for six bloody years, Malik. Kayla misses you." I say with the most confidence I've ever displayed in my life.

Sharpen your smile. Give him your best grin Ritz. The two of you are just friends meeting after a long time.

Everyone goes quiet for a moment. Even the wind stays silent out of fear of my life. Then, the prince lets out a chuckle. An honest, heartfelt laugh that warms me to the bone.

" It's been a while Rit! How've you been? "

" Pretty good. We have a lot to talk about."

" Sure, let's catch up. I'm sure your life has been a lot more interesting than mine."

He pats me on the shoulder and drags me away from the shocked audience. As we make our way to the main building, he suddenly speaks again in a low whisper.

" Thanks for giving me the chance to escape there. Sorry, I only remember you as the guy that knocked a tree down and blamed it on me. You use dark magic, right?"