Chapter 2: The Prince with Two Souls

Time passed quickly in my new life. At first, I was just a helpless baby, unable to do anything but sleep, drink milk, and cry when my body demanded it. It was frustrating, to say the least. My mind was sharp I still had all my past-life memories but my body was weak, too small to even lift a finger properly. But I adapted.

I learned the patterns of my new world, the routines of the royal palace, and the people who surrounded me.

The queen my mother, Elara Regalias was as kind as she was intelligent. She had a gentle demeanor, but I could tell that beneath that soft exterior was a woman of great wisdom and strength. Every time she held me, I could feel the warmth of genuine love. She wasn’t just a queen; she was a mother who adored her son.

The king my father, Alden Regalias was the opposite. A man of few words, but his presence alone commanded respect. He wasn’t cold, but he was distant, like a ruler who saw his child as both a son and a future heir to shape. His words during our first meeting stayed with me:

"Power is earned, not given."

That was the kind of world I had been born into. By the time I was six months old, I had already begun observing everything around me. Servants moved in and out of my chambers, knights patrolled the halls, and nobles occasionally visited to see the “prince with the golden eyes.”

Yes golden eyes. That was something unique about me in this life. While my mother had green eyes and my father had blue, I was born with a rare golden hue, shimmering like molten sunlight. It didn’t take long for me to understand what it meant. Magic.

In this world, magic was everything. And my golden eyes were proof that I possessed immense magical talent.

At first, I thought I was imagining things, but I could feel it the magic in the air, the energy flowing through me. It was different from anything I had known in my previous life. My body was naturally absorbing mana, like a sponge soaking up water.

I experimented when no one was looking. At night, when the room was silent, I would focus on the strange warmth within me, trying to control it. At first, nothing happened. But after weeks of concentration, I managed to make a single spark appear at my fingertip just for a second. That was the moment I knew. I wasn’t just reborn as a prince. I was reborn as something more.

One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, my mother carried me to the royal garden. The scent of flowers filled the air, and the warm breeze brushed against my skin.

“You’re growing fast, Kol,” she said, smiling as she placed me on her lap. “I can already tell you will be strong.” I simply looked up at her, my infant body incapable of responding.

She chuckled. “You’re so quiet. Most babies cry all the time, but you… You just observe everything.”

Of course. I wasn’t really a baby inside. I was someone who had lived an entire life before this. Then, my mother’s expression softened as she gently placed her hand on my chest.

“…And your magic.”

My heart skipped a beat.

“Even though you are still so young, I can feel it,” she whispered. “Your mana is powerful. Stronger than even your father’s. It flows through you like an untamed river.”

I blinked. So she already noticed? Before I could process this, a voice interrupted us.

“Your Majesty,” an older man spoke, bowing deeply as he approached. He wore elegant robes, and his silver hair was neatly combed back. His deep violet eyes held wisdom beyond his years.

He was the royal court mage Grand Magus Orlan.

“So, this is the young prince,” Orlan said, his gaze sharp as he studied me. “The one with golden eyes.”

I stared at him in return. He knelt before me, lowering himself to my level. “Prince Kol… Even at such a young age, your magic is already forming.”

I remained silent. Not that I had a choice I couldn’t exactly start talking like an adult yet. The mage slowly extended his hand, hovering it just above my forehead. I felt something like a gentle pulse of energy, scanning me. And then, his eyes widened.

“…Unbelievable.”

My mother tensed. “What is it, Orlan?” The mage took a deep breath. “Your son… His magic is not normal.”

She frowned. “Explain.”

Orlan hesitated before speaking. “Most people are born with a single mana core, the source of all their magic. Even the greatest mages only possess one.”

He turned back to me, his expression unreadable.

“But Prince Kol… He has two.”

A heavy silence filled the garden. My mother’s grip on me tightened slightly. “Two mana cores?”

“Yes,” Orlan confirmed. “It is something I have never seen before. His first core is already exceptional stronger than any child his age should possess. But the second one… It is something else entirely. I cannot even measure its full potential.”

I listened carefully, processing the information. Two mana cores? I didn’t fully understand what that meant yet, but I could tell from their reactions that it was a big deal. The mage stood up. “Your Majesty… The prince is a prodigy. No, he is beyond that. He may become the greatest mage this world has ever seen.”

My mother remained silent for a long moment before she finally smiled. “Then we must make sure he is ready for the future.” I could feel it. The expectations. The pressure.

I was no longer just a prince. I was now something far greater. A being with two mana cores. A magic genius in a world that revolved around power.

The days following Grand Magus Orlan’s discovery were anything but ordinary.

The entire palace was buzzing with whispers. Servants exchanged hushed conversations, noblemen cast curious glances during court meetings, and even the knights who patrolled the halls seemed more aware of my presence. It wasn’t every day that a prince was declared a prodigy no, something beyond a prodigy.

Two mana cores.

I still didn’t fully grasp the significance of it, but I could see its weight in the way people reacted. Even my father, King Alden, who rarely expressed emotion, called for a private audience the day after Orlan’s revelation.

I was carried into the grand throne room, the heart of the kingdom’s power. Towering marble pillars lined the hall, and at the far end sat the king himself.

He was clad in regal black and gold robes, his piercing blue eyes locked onto me the moment the guards escorted me in. My mother walked beside me, holding me securely in her arms.

The moment we approached the throne, she gently placed me down on a soft cushion before kneeling herself.

I sat there, trying my best to maintain composure despite being in the body of a literal infant.

King Alden studied me for a long time. His expression was unreadable, but I could sense something behind those sharp eyes curiosity, perhaps even expectation.

“So,” his deep voice rumbled, “this is my son.”

It was a simple statement, yet it carried the weight of a king acknowledging his heir. Mother nodded. “Orlan has confirmed it. Kol possesses two mana cores.”

The king leaned forward slightly, his gaze never leaving me. “What does this mean for him?”

Orlan, who stood at the side, took a deep breath before responding. “Your Majesty, it is difficult to say. No recorded history speaks of someone with two mana cores. But if I were to speculate…”

A brief pause.

“He may surpass all mages before him.”

A heavy silence filled the room. Even the guards standing at attention near the entrance shifted slightly at those words.

King Alden exhaled. His expression remained neutral, but I could tell he was deep in thought.

“Then we have no choice,” he said. “Kol’s training must begin as soon as he is able to walk and speak.”

Mother frowned slightly. “Isn’t it too early? He is still just a baby.”

“No,” Alden said firmly. “If he is to wield great power, he must be shaped into someone who can control it. If left unchecked, it could consume him or worse, make him a target before he even realizes his own potential.”

His words made sense. Even I, in my past life, understood that power without control led to disaster. If I was to survive and thrive in this world, I needed to master my magic before others tried to use it against me.

Mother sighed, looking down at me with a soft expression. “Very well… But I want his training to be supervised carefully.”

Alden nodded. “It will be done.” Then, he turned his attention back to me.

“Kol.”

I blinked. It was the first time he had addressed me directly.

“You will be strong,” he declared. “Stronger than anyone in this kingdom. And when the time comes, you will decide what kind of ruler you wish to be.” His words lingered in the air, settling deep within me.

I clenched my tiny hands into fists. In my past life, I was just a poor student, discarded by those who hated my talent. But in this life… I would carve my own destiny.

The days turned into weeks. I continued experimenting with my magic in secret, testing the strange power that pulsed within me. It was difficult controlling mana was like trying to grab water with my bare hands. It slipped away if I wasn’t careful, but the more I practiced, the more I could grasp.

I learned that my first mana core functioned like a normal one, providing me with elemental magic fire, water, wind, and earth. But the second core… that was different. It felt deeper, more ancient. Every time I tried to tap into it, my body trembled with an unfamiliar force. It wasn’t just magic. It was something more.

I didn’t know what it was yet, but I had time to figure it out. Then, one night, something happened that changed everything.

I was lying in my crib, gazing at the ceiling, when I felt it. A presence. Not the servants, not my mother or father, and not Orlan. Something else. The air grew heavy, and a chilling sensation crawled down my spine. I turned my head slightly and my breath caught.

A shadowy figure stood at the edge of my room. It was barely visible, like a silhouette against the darkness, yet I could feel its gaze locked onto me. A voice, deep and ancient, whispered in the air.

"You… are different."

My heart pounded.

"Two souls. Two cores. A fate not written in the stars."

What was this? The figure didn’t move, but the air around it seemed to distort, as if reality itself struggled to contain its presence.

"Prince Kol… the world will either fear you… or bow before you." The shadow vanished, melting into the darkness like it was never there. I stared at the empty space where it once stood, my mind racing. What had I just witnessed? Was it a hallucination? A warning? Or something else entirely? One thing was certain. My rebirth wasn’t just a second chance at life. It was the beginning of something much, much bigger.

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