The Serpent Prince

The first thing Alex Lorian remembered was the warmth. It wasn't the cold, clinical warmth of an office heater or a cup of coffee hastily grabbed on the way to work, but something deeper and more alive—a comforting pulse that surrounded him like a cocoon.

His consciousness floated in that warmth, disjointed and hazy. He had no sense of self yet, only scattered pieces of a life long gone. Slowly, awareness sharpened, and with it came the sharp, disconcerting realization:

I died.

The memories came in fragments, like shards of broken glass. The hum of fluorescent lights in a crowded office. The muted noise of a television playing in the background of his one-bedroom apartment. The relentless ping of emails. He remembered the ache of monotony, the sense of being just another cog in an unremarkable machine. And he remembered how it ended: a sharp pain in his chest, a final gasp, and then nothing.

How much time had passed since that moment? He couldn't tell. But now, here he was. Alive.

The warmth faded slightly, replaced by other sensations. He could feel his body now, but it wasn't right. It was small, fragile, completely alien. His fingers didn't respond to his commands, and his breaths came in shallow, involuntary gasps.

A voice broke through the haze—a woman's voice, soft but strained, with a lilting accent that sent shivers down his spine.

"Look at him. The youngest prince… he's perfect," she said, her tone trembling with exhaustion and relief.

Youngest prince? The words didn't register fully. His eyelids fluttered open for the first time, and the world came into view in blurred, golden tones. Above him stretched an ornate canopy, gilded with patterns of phoenixes and dragons. It shimmered like sunlight on water, impossibly intricate and otherworldly.

A second voice joined the first, this one deep and commanding.

"He has the Lorian eyes," the man said. Pride resonated in his tone, tinged with something colder—an expectation, perhaps, or a challenge.

Lorian? The name tugged at something in the recesses of his mind, but it remained unfamiliar.

Then it happened.

A faint glow appeared in his vision, a floating window of translucent light. The edges shimmered faintly, like the surface of a still pond kissed by moonlight.

[Welcome to the Lorian System.]

His newborn body couldn't react, but his mind reeled. Words floated in the center of the glowing screen, simple and direct, yet incomprehensible in their implications.

A system? Like the ones in those fantasy novels?

The text shifted before he could dwell on the thought.

[Initial Objective: Survive infancy. Reward: 1,000 points.]

[All other functions are locked.]

The bluntness of the objective chilled him. Survive. As though the system believed that even this simple act wasn't guaranteed.

The glowing screen disappeared as quickly as it had come, leaving Alex alone with the sounds of his new world: the woman's labored breaths, the quiet shuffling of attendants, and the faint hum he now recognized as magic.

The Palace of Loria

The years that followed were a surreal blend of discovery and frustration. Reborn as Alexander Lorian, the youngest prince of the magical Lorian royal family, Alex quickly realized that his new life was both a blessing and a curse.

The palace, Arctis, was a marvel of magical engineering. Towering spires reached toward the sky, shimmering with protective enchantments. The halls were lined with enchanted tapestries that depicted battles long past, their figures shifting and moving as though alive. The library alone was enough to overwhelm any scholar, its shelves stretching endlessly and packed with tomes that whispered secrets to anyone brave enough to listen.

From the outside, Alex's life seemed perfect. Tutors arrived daily to teach him the Lorian family's ancient magical arts, alongside classical education in history, politics, and diplomacy. He learned to read by candlelight that never melted, to write with quills that inked themselves, and to study under the ever-watchful eyes of portraits that commented on his progress.

But life in the palace wasn't as idyllic as it seemed.

His father, King Alaric Lorian, was a towering figure of stoicism, with an ironclad belief in discipline and strength. His two older brothers, Cedric and Adrian, were living testaments to their father's ideals—brilliant, powerful, and ruthless in their pursuit of excellence.

By contrast, Alex was seen as the runt of the family. His quiet demeanor and soft-spoken nature were a source of endless scrutiny. His brothers mocked him for his lack of raw magical talent, and his tutors regarded him as a curiosity—diligent but uninspired.

What they didn't know was that Alex had a secret.

The Lorian System

The system, his silent companion, rarely interfered but always nudged him forward. At first, it had been little more than an abstract concept, with cryptic objectives that seemed almost condescending in their simplicity.

[Objective Completed: Survive infancy.]

[Reward: 1,000 points.]

When he turned eight, the system finally offered him something tangible: access to a status screen.

"System," he whispered one night, staring into the flickering firelight of his chambers. "Show me my status."

The glowing screen appeared again, its faint hum as comforting as it was unsettling.

[Name: Alexander Lorian]

[Age: 8]

[Attributes: Strength – 2, Intelligence – 4, Magic – 5, Charisma – 3]

[Available Points: 1,000]

[Skills: Locked]

[Abilities: Locked]

The system was infuriatingly restrictive, but Alex quickly realized its potential. By carefully allocating his points, he enhanced his magical aptitude, surpassing children twice his age in precision and control. His tutors, once dismissive, began to show him wary respect.

But even as his talents grew, Alex felt the walls of the palace closing in.

The Letter from Hogwarts

It was the summer after Alex's eleventh birthday when the opportunity he had longed for arrived.

The letter came on the wings of an owl, its parchment sealed with the unmistakable crest of a lion. Alex tore it open with trembling hands, his heart racing as he read the words:

"To His Royal Highness, Prince Alexander Lorian,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Hogwarts. He had read about it in the palace library—a school steeped in legend, where the great Harry Potter had defeated Voldemort.

When the letter was presented to the king, Alex held his breath.

"Why would he go to Hogwarts?" Adrian sneered. "Lorian tutors are the best in the world."

Alaric silenced him with a glare. "The British Ministry of Magic has extended this invitation. It would be foolish to ignore such an opportunity."

Alex's heart leapt. This was his chance—his escape from the gilded cage of the palace.

"I want to go," he said, his voice steady and resolute.

For the first time in his new life, Alex was about to step into a world that promised freedom, danger, and a destiny he was only beginning to uncover.