Avoid The Lead!

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Taze heard his own voice and looked up to find himself staring down at 'himself'!

Or rather, his alter-ego looked down at him.

"All these years, you claimed to be a dormant part of me that could predict the future... But suddenly, you're claiming to be from my previous life? Lives?!" He directed an incredulous glare at the 'alter-ego', but the second Taze merely shrugged.

"Believe it or not, it's up to you. But don't blame me if you die by their hands." Second Taze began to pace. "I told you the truth because you're old enough to hear it. If not for me you would have been bedridden long ago!"

Taze had to admit the truth in his words.

In his first year at Elfsworth, he had met Celia again, and something had awakened within him- a small spark that had flared to life.

He had gone home feeling normal, but hadn't woken up the next day!

Rather, he had been trapped in a blank void, unable to even move, only to find himself in class the next day, with Celia's confused look directed at him.

It didn't happen again for a while, but one day, during a meal with the one nicknamed 'The Hidden Queen'...

"DON'T DRINK THAT!!!" A voice suddenly said, and he froze, glancing around in mild confusion.

"Tazeus, what's the matter?" Lady Flora asked. She was the sole concubine of the King, and her voice dripped with worry as she hurried over to Taze. "Are you hurt anywhere? Is the berry juice not to your liking?"

"Er... It's nothing, it's nothing!" Taze reassured her, glancing down at the cup in his hand.

He suddenly felt a premonition... Like an ill fate awaited him if he drank the juice, but he didn't want to upset Lady Flora.

For years, Lady Flora had been the closest thing to a mother for him, but two years ago, after he was named Crown Prince, she and Vitav suddenly refused to meet him...

After months of heartbreak, Lady Flora finally let him in, and Vitav finally began playing with him again.

So putting his fears aside, he drank the juice without further delay...

And he paid dearly for it.

For almost three years afterwards, he remained in bed, suffering from an illness no healing or poison mage could heal, and there was nothing he himself could do.

He could only lie there, and even when Lady Flora visited again and again, feeding him medicine which only made him feel worse and worse, he never wanted to believe she could do such a thing.

"How long are you going to cling to her?! She's not your mother!" The voice came again one day, and Taze had been so relieved to hear it!

But he shoved it aside. "Hmph! What do you know? Lady Flora cared for me while I was growing up!"

"Yes, yes... But what choice did she have? If she didn't attach herself to you, she and her little fair-haired disaster would have been sent off to a distant fortress to live as backups.

"And besides, won't a shepherd care for sheep and goats, but slaughter them for a feast?"

"You-!"

"You should calm down. Don't kill us in anger."

"'Us'?"

"You can think of me as your 'alter-ego'. I can predict the future. If you want to live and see that silly little girl again, then listen to me!"

The strange alliance began, and thanks to the alter-ego, Taze indeed escaped a cruel fate...

"You're merely a child, with no guile or pretense. If that woman finds out you aren't swallowing her poison, she'll find other ways to poison you.

"For now swallow only one gulp of the medicine, and secretly spit the rest out onto the handkerchief while wiping your lips. She will see your throat swallow, and the poison will give you the symptoms you need to fool her!"

"I'm not saying I believe you, but I'll give it a try!"

But then it worked!

A few weeks in, and Taze felt far better than he had in years!

"That means Lady Flora indeed hates me..." It was a sad conclusion, and tears gathered in Taze's eyes, but the alter-ego surprisingly consoled him.

"I detest her, but I must admit that she may not hate you. Everyone in life has selfish interests, and she's no different. The only way her little fair-haired leftover can have any worth, is if you're out of the picture!"

"Must you be so mean to our brother?!"

"He's not my brother. You're young and foolish. Vitav only cared for you when he had nothing to lose. He was comfortable in being the first prince, and he thought he was letting you win in those days, unaware that you were letting him win because you saw through him, didn't you? You knew how petty he could be, and - !"

"Enough."

"Why? Don't want to hear it? Father noticed you were hiding your strength, and threatened to send him away if you didn't defeat him, so you did. See how he acted? Do you really think it was his mother who kept him from you in those months after you became Crown Prince? It was his own pettiness and jealousy!"

"Enough!"

"Fine! But we're not done yet. There's something we need to do that you can't handle by yourself!"

"What are y-?!" But Taze felt a cold blackness wash over him, and he was in the void again.

This time, he only awoke after two weeks had passed, and learned that the East Wing, his wing of the Palace, had been closed off to everyone, except the King, a few Healing Mages, and the East Wing Servants.

Also, the library and Spell room in the East wing was now fully equipped!

"You've lost years of study, but you're a genius... Read and catch up!" The voice simply instructed.

"Also, don't keep any gifts given to you by anyone but father. Accept them to avoid suspicion, but have the servants burn them afterwards. You can trust the servants here..."

At first, Taze assumed his alter-ego was being too cautious... too paranoid...

But once, Taze received a rare and precious sceptre, lined with priceless fairy gems. He instructed the servants to burn it, but one of them was unable to resist the lure of the treasure and hid it away, only to die a few days later from a strange curse!

'That fellow was right!' Taze realized, wondering what length Lady Flora would go to eliminate him!

After that, Taze and his alter-ego swapped places when necessary, but as he grew to fifteen, and then sixteen, the alter-ego was getting weaker and weaker...

Back in the present, Taze shook his head. "That's why you're getting weaker as I grow!"

"Exactly. I'm not some alter-ego. I'm an essence from your past lives, but since I've altered your life's events, and you're approaching the year we always die, I'm slowly becoming obsolete."

"And you say I die at Seventeen?"

"Yes."

"Is that why you dislike Celia? Does she have something to do with my past lives?"

"Hmph. Try watching someone you love ignore your existence for twenty-five lifetimes!" His voice rose with each word. "And besides, she's the origin of the death cycle...

"Let me show you."

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At the same time, Celia sat within a magic circle, with a few crystals floating at her North, South, East, and West points.

"Shut your eyes and meditate." Master Sylva instructed, and she obeyed, assuming a meditative pose. "You've mastered the mind spells leading up to this, and have studied every mind theory to ease your journey." He continued as he paced round her.

"It's time to dive in and challenge your own mind, but you must be careful. I'm here to prevent any mishap I can, but there's only so much I can do from out here. So try not to get lost in your own mind."

He sighed. "Recite the spell now..."

Celia began reciting the mind spell in her head, while Master Sylva cast a spell around the room, fortifying it against entry, or any form of interruption. Then he cast another spell, which surrounded Celia in a round swirl of golden light.

"My own little form of protection." He said with a fond smile. "I have more than enough skill to become a member of the Magic Council, but no one was willing to accept my theories.

"Until you! Not only did you accept it, you've proven it true by Mastering magic outside your core magic." He sighed with a small hint of worry. "So good luck, my first and last student..."

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