Res shouted out in glee when he found the perfect spot for some relaxation on top of the royal garden’s wall. It divided the garden from the rest of the palace and was overgrown with moss. “Today was a nightmare. Less than five hours of tranquility - Time to remedy that.”

With a contented sigh, he closed his eyes and laid down on the soft moss. Once again, he was comforted by the black abyss of his mind, alone with his thoughts. The striking of the palace bell tower made him sit upright, which had him scrambling to avoid falling.

“What the …? Do the bells need to ring right before I have a revelation? I was so close to understanding why we experience pain.”

Dazed, he realized that the sun had already descended to the rooftops. There were no servants rushing about on the gravel pathways, nor nobles. With a groan, he remembered Vincent telling him about the initiation ceremony.

”Never mind. Thanks, gong, for waking me up. It would have been too much of a hassle if I had missed the initiation ceremony.”

Grumbling, Res rolled off the top of the moss-covered wall and landed on his feet with a thump. Any other young noble would have been hysterical about their initiation ceremony. It was the fateful day when one’s capabilities with the power known as aether were evaluated. In the court, magical talent was an indicator of a pure bloodline and so determined success to a high degree. Only a small percentage of the population could use aether and even less could harm people with it.

With some talent, one could channel aether into the world to power simple artifacts. With more talent, one could learn techniques that manifested force outside your body. From what he knew about the ceremony, one would put their hands onto a crystal. Then you would mentally live through extreme hardship. Magic within the crystal then evaluated your talent. Depending on your talent, you received resources and training.

Particularly talented individuals could join the elite palace guard. They provided their members with advanced aether channeling techniques. A sizeable income and fame made it popular with lesser male nobles. Apart from that, the elite palace guards had techniques that ranged from fireballs to poison clouds.

If you were suicidal, one could even partake in the king’s tournament. In contrary to other kingdoms, the position of the king was not hereditary. At least on paper. Every time a king died, a magical tournament would determine the next king. The fact is that the royal family has won the tournament since the founding of Trianon. Going through their selective inbreeding was the only amusing subject in the academy.

Res only hoped that he didn’t turn out to be a magical prodigy or something. Thinking about the hassle, he once again adopted his usual hunched posture. After strolling through the now empty avenues, he arrived at the primary entrance of the palace. With a sigh at the inevitable lecture from his mother, he entered the foyer.

In contrast to the deserted garden, the foyer was filled with chattering nobles. “I heard the prince might have the potential to be S++ Ranked. One day, he might even be as strong as the king who is an S++ Tier too.”, one noble whispered. “I will be lucky if my boy has B- or A-Tier potential.”

Before Res could ask for directions, a female cry resounded through the hall: “Res, there you are. We have searched for you for over 2 hours now.”

His mother, Cassandra van Coventry, emerged out of the crowd. Today she had such a thick layer of powders on that Res feared it would flake off. When she saw Res’s casual clothing and the pieces of moss and dirt all over him, she stopped dead in her tracks. After her shock abated, she dragged Res into a side entrance of the foyer.

When they were out of sight, she exploded: “Why do you show up in those rags? Our family honor will be sullied for the next five years!” She continued to fumble around with his shirt and picked several pieces of moss out his hair. “Have you rolled yourself in the sewers? Never mind. The instructions for the trial have already begun. You will bring even more dishonor to our house if you don’t attend at all.”

At that moment, Res determined that living without his family wouldn’t be as bad as he had thought. “True, I won’t have the funds anymore, but being free of the family honor would be well worth it.”

His mother didn’t utter any words of encouragement as she shoved him in an adjacent room with tens of young nobles. Behind him, the door slammed shut and Res stumbled into the room. His momentum made him stumble towards a young woman, so he tried to change his trajectory. Too late, he realized that he was about to crash with a well-built elite palace guard.

Before Res could ram into the elite guard, he vanished in front of his eyes. He caught himself and saw the elite guard reappeared five meters apart from him. The black-haired elite guard was clad in a red army uniform and had golden accolades on his chest. The whole room was flooded with an oppressive aura of fear when the elite guard saw him. Young ladies dropped unconscious to the floor like flies while others tried to flee.

The Elite Guard spoke in a low voice: “You dare touch me?”

Res had pulled back part of his mind into the dark abyss in which he thought about the world. In a measured tone, he replied: “I apologize. It seems there must have been a misunderstanding between us two. Please continued explaining the rules.”

“You arrive too late, attack me, and then want me to explain the rules? You are lucky if your family doesn’t disown you after I tell them about this incident.” Res searched the room and found Vincent cowering behind several crates.

The Elite Guard only smiled when he saw Res’s searching look: “No one will tell you anything. We wouldn’t want the royal family to waste cultivating resources on filthy peasants, wouldn’t we? Everyone, form a line with the peasant at the back. Your pitiful result will make the prince’s potential tier look even better.”

All the young nobles scurried into position, and Vincent flashed Res a guilty smile. He appreciated the gesture and smiled back. A side door opened and, one by one, the nobles went out onto the stage in front of the entire court. In the center of the stage stood an ornate wooden box with a white crystal propped on top.

When the nobles touched the crystal, it flashed in the color representing their potential. Res had heard that the first challenge to determine one’s rank was some sort of maze. Apart from that, he was clueless. ”I should have come earlier after all.” He sighed. “Ahh, life goes on. There is nothing I can change now.”

Most of the nobles ranked: E - (the power of an average man) D – (the power of a soldier) C – (the power to defeat ten soldiers). Although there was the occasional case of someone with B – (the power to capture a guard station). A Tier (the power to capture a castle) powers received applause.

When Vincent touched the crystal, it turned out that he had S-Tier potential. The crowd oohed and aahed and general excitement filled the air. His potential would barely allow him to join the elite palace guards, but it was still rare. The potential tiers weren’t set in stone and Vincent could reach S+ Tier with some training.

Finally, it was Res’s turn, and he strode up to the crystal, ignoring the amused insults. Wanting to continue relaxing as soon as possible, Res slapped his hands on the smooth crystal.

With a lurch, Res found himself sitting in a pitch-black room. A booming voice greeted his disoriented self: “Brave one, find the exit to this labyrinth as fast as possible.”

Res waited for more, but clarification wasn’t forthcoming. He strained his senses to pick up anything, but the only thing he could feel was the smooth stone floor. When he deduced that nothing would attack him, a contented grin settled on his face. “The trials must have lasted for ages. Yet, everyone immediately took off their hands as soon as they touched the crystal. Heavens! This is paradise. There are no interruptions, no time passes, and my body doesn’t demand nourishment. I have infinite time to think!”

Res settled down in the most comfortable position and retreated to the black abyss of his mind. A nervous clearing of a throat interrupted a train of thought about his mother: “Hehem. Brave one, find the exit to this labyrinth.”

He ignored the booming voice and continued meditating. Res had already lost track of time, but the booming voice now inquired once again: “Can you even hear me?”

Res still didn’t bother answering. The voice continued talking: “Is something wrong with the interdimensional transmission? No, that can’t be. The Diatomic Nebulae would repair themselves if something went wrong. Is it the …”

Only wanting to be left in peace, he answered: “Yes, I can hear you and No, I don’t want to solve your stupid labyrinth. I am happy where I am.”

There was a moment of silence, then the voice shouted: “Are you serious? You don’t want me to test you? But … But … But you can’t!”

“Yes, I can.”

“But … But it doesn’t work like that. I am going to run out of power if you stay here.”

Res was horrified at the thought that this paradise would be taken away: “How long can you last?”

The being stuttered out: “If I tell you, will you go? I will even radiate a white glow. You would get the treatment of an S+ Tier.”

“No”

“Would you do it if I tell them you are an S++ Rank?”

“No”

“S+++ Rank?”

“No”

“You drive a hard bargain. Fine, I will show them that you are a god-tier. The power to destroy humanity. Sounds tempting, doesn’t it?”

“For the last time, no. I like it here.”

“But what is so special about my maze? Don’t you want to experience battle and the feeling of soft breasts?”

“In here, it is dark and I can think. If you have nothing more to say for yourself, then stop talking.”

The male voice adapted a smug tone: “Fine, I can win this battle of attrition. I doubt you can endure staying for over two hundred years.”

A smug smile spread across Res’s face at the mention of two hundred years alone with his thoughts.