Re-planning

"Slow down, young prince! If you use too much mana too fast, you risk frying your mana circuits!"

"Ahh, sorry. It seems I got a little too carried away there." I apologize while slowing down my mana usage.

"You've been like this for five days now. Do you mind telling me why you keep doing this?"

Everett looked at me with a stern look. Huh, what a weird face for a him to make. No, I shouldn't think like that. He seems genuinely worried for me, so I should try and calm down.

"I just want to get stronger fast."

There we go, a perfectly logical excuse for why I'm acting like a maniac. He should find that answer to his satisfaction.

"Hmm, okay. Just don't overdo it. If the prince were to die during my training, I might get executed."

"I see." So that's why he's acting like that. I mean, that's understandable, but he was way too honest. It kinda hurts my feelings a bit.

I adjusted my output of mana to a safer rate and continued. I need to gain more power fast. I have to save Stella..

I continued the training for the rest of the day, taking it slow, being careful not to fry my mana circuits. I did a few light stretches before preparing to leave. The maids came to pick me up, as usual, to take me back to my room. I haven't noticed it much, but those two must be my designated maids for the time being. I've seen them whenever it was time to escort me.

Hmm, perhaps it would be a good idea to learn their names? But, I don't think I need to learn the names of a couple of minor characters. They never showed up in the novel, so they will likely be switched out by my tenth birthday. Then again, six years is a long time to go without learning someone's name.

"Young master, we are to pick you up."

"Ah, yes. I am on my way."

I began walking towards the two. I looked over to see Everett walking over to the second maid. She had short, sky-blue hair and blue eyes. It seems she had a medium-sized chest and looked to be in her early twenties. I wonder what he wants?

"Hey Liara, do you want to grab a drink with me after you're finished with work?"

"Ugh. For the third time, no. I don't want to go with you to some shady bar and get drunk." The blue haired maid, Liara, rolls her eyes at the advances of Everett.

"Aww, but it'll be fun."

"No!" She looked away from Everett with her arms crossed. Her face seemed a little reddish as she turned, but Everett didn't notice. Everett looked deeply disappointed and started to walk away.

"Alright, then if anyone needs me, I'll be at the tavern."

"Come, young master, we will begin taking you now." Liara turns with the other maid and begins escorting me to the study room.

Wait a minute. Everett seems abnormal. If it were Everett in the novel, he would have attempted to flirt with the other maid. It's not like she isn't his type. He has gone after all kinds of women, be it a large chest or a small one. Truly a man of culture, if I do say so myself.

Not only that, but he called her by her name. When has he ever called a woman he just met by her name? Wait, how the fuck does he know her name?

I sigh from the confusion, not trying to think about it any further. I felt somewhat bad as we were walking. These are actual people that I'm just writing off as characters. I should take the time to learn their names. To think that Everett the womanizer knows about one of my maids more than me…

As I think about that, a searing pain could be felt in my head. Although I did my best to hold my composure while walking, the maid beside Liara noticed my abnormal behavior.

"Y-young master! Are you alright?" She asks, her hazel eyes showing a glimpse of concern.

"Yes," I sigh while leaning on her, "yes, I should be fine."

She looks at Liara for a moment then looks back to me, "How about you take the rest of the day to rest, alright? You've been overworking yourself lately, you need proper rest."

I hesitate for a moment, but I agree to her suggestion, not wanting to argue with this splitting headache. She smiles triumphantly before changing direction with Liara and escorting me to my bedroom instead of the study room.

"Honestly, young master, you're only four years of age, why are you pushing yourself so hard?" The maid pouts while leading me by the hand.

"Esther…" Liara turned to the maid and frowned, "You shouldn't pry, it's rude."

"B-bu–" Esther's words are cut short by a stern glare from Liara, telling her to drop it. She droops her shoulders slightly. Feeling bad I brush against her to try and cheer her up. I look and smile and, as expected, her face flushes red and her heart melts.

Despite the pain in my head, I smile, satisfied with her reaction, and with finally learning their names. I felt disappointed in myself for trying to write these two off as simple 'characters'. They're actual people, with feelings and backstories. And here I am trying to take the moral high ground over the protagonist. For shame.

After we finally arrive at the entrance to my bedroom, Liara and Esther bid me farewell and I make my way inside, the pain in my head burning even more. I grip my temple as I collapse on the bed. The pain is practically unbearable, it feels as if someone is etching something on my brain with a burning pen.

After what feels like an eternity of me writhing on my bed in pain, it finally subsides. I hastily try to control my breathing as I feel my consciousness slip. Before I can realize it, I had passed out completely.

—-------------------------------------------------

[New Skill Acquired]

I awoke to Liara and Esther getting me out of bed to be bathed and dressed. How much longer must I suffer through this torment? Speaking of torment, it seems like my headache has gone away thankfully.

After the two finished getting me ready, they led me to the training room. I drowsily cast a fatigue removal spell on myself as we walk. My tiredness begins quickly fading, and I'm able to remember hearing a notification about a new skill before waking up.

I put my hand to my chin in confusion, thinking about what it could be about. We finally get to the training room and open the door to see Everett waiting patiently on a bench he created, reading? That's interesting, but what catches my eye isn't that he's reading a book, although that's part of it, it's that there's a floating prompt above his head.

"Young master! Good morning, I hope you're ready for some hard work today!" His enthusiasm makes me nauseous.

He turns his head to Liara who is beside me, but she quickly averts her eyes, crushing Everetts soul a little. These two definitely have a history…

As I begin practicing my mana expansion, I glance over at the sunken Everett once more. He looks to be formulating a plan on how to talk to Liara. I then take another glance at the prompt above his head. It seems like nobody else can see it but me.

The prompt reads out, 'Understanding of character: 70%. Would you like to view character's backstory?'

Uncertain, on what to do, I contemplate while training my mana capacity before making a decision.

Why the hell not?