### Chapter 1 – The Day Death Gave Me Homework
My name was—if we're being technical—Emmanuel.
Just Emmanuel. No fancy last name, no tragic backstory worth a movie. I was seventeen, lived in Port Harcourt, spent most days scrolling novels on my phone, dodging assignment deadlines, and dreaming about being anywhere but stuck in traffic or failing another math test.
Then the truck came.
Not even a dramatic anime-style "Truck-kun" moment. Just a stupid delivery van that hydroplaned in the rain. One second I'm crossing the road with earphones in, listening to some lo-fi beats; the next—black.
I expected lights, maybe angels, or at least the classic "You died. Game over." screen.
Instead I woke up choking on silk sheets that smelled like roses and old money.
My body felt... wrong. Smaller. Lighter. My hands were pale, fingers long and delicate like they'd never held anything heavier than a spoon. When I sat up, long silver hair spilled over my shoulders and into my face.
Silver. Hair.
I scrambled to a gilded mirror across the room.
Staring back was a boy about fourteen, beautiful in that creepy porcelain-doll way. Huge violet eyes, skin like fresh snow, delicate features that screamed "noble tragedy." He—I—was wearing a frilly nightgown that probably cost more than my family's rent.
A soft, mechanical chime rang in my head.
[Daily Quest System – Bound Successfully]
[Host: Seventh Prince Lysander Valtoria]
[Former identity: Emmanuel (Earth) – Discarded]
[Current status: Reincarnated as the "Useless Seventh Prince"]
[Affinity: None detected. Mana pool: 3/1000 (Pathetic)]
[Talent evaluation: Trash-tier (F-)]
[Family evaluation: Disappointing spare heir. Likely to be poisoned or married off by age 16.]
[Mission objective: Survive. Preferably thrive. Bonus points for not dying embarrassingly.]
I blinked. The screen floated in my vision like augmented reality, semi-transparent blue text only I could see.
A second chime.
[Daily Quest Issued!]
Quest 1: "The Prince Who Can't Even Boil Water"
Objective: Successfully make a cup of tea without burning the kitchen, poisoning yourself, or crying.
Reward: +5 Mana, Basic Mana Sense (Lv.1), 50 Silver coins
Failure Penalty: -10 Favorability with Head Maid Clara (she already hates you)
Time limit: Before breakfast (45 minutes remaining)
I stared at the quest.
"...Seriously? My first day as a fantasy prince and the system wants me to do chores?"
A knock at the door made me jump.
"Prince Lysander? It's time to rise. The Crown Prince has requested your presence at morning practice again." The voice was crisp, female, and dripping with the kind of politeness that means "I despise you."
I knew that tone. I'd heard it from teachers who already decided I was a lost cause.
I cleared my throat. My new voice was soft, melodic, annoyingly pretty. "I... I'll be out soon!"
Panic set in. I didn't know how to be a prince. I didn't know how to make tea. I barely knew how to make instant noodles without setting off the smoke alarm back home.
But the clock was ticking.
I threw off the covers and ran barefoot across cold marble to what looked like a fancy kitchenette attached to the bedroom (because apparently royalty had personal tea stations). Pots, herbs, a crystal kettle that glowed faintly—everything screamed magic.
I grabbed a teapot, filled it with water from a silver pitcher, and tried to remember every tea video I'd ever skipped past on TikTok.
The system chimed helpfully.
[Tip for pathetic hosts: Water + tea leaves + heat = tea. Do not set yourself on fire.]
"Thanks, jerk," I muttered.
I found tea leaves in a porcelain jar labeled "Moonblossom – Seventh Prince's personal blend (do not touch – Crown Prince's orders)". Great. Stolen tea.
I dumped some in, waved my hand at the kettle like I'd seen in anime, and whispered, "Heat up... please?"
Nothing.
Right. Mana = 3.
I focused, imagining a tiny spark. My palm tingled. A pathetic wisp of blue light flickered... and died.
The water stayed cold.
Thirty minutes left.
Desperate, I grabbed a silver spoon and started rubbing it furiously against the kettle like I was trying to start a fire with friction. Sparks flew—actual tiny magical sparks.
The system pinged.
[Creative problem-solving detected. +1 Intelligence (still trash).]
The kettle finally warmed. Steam rose. I poured with shaking hands.
The tea looked... greenish. Smelled like grass and regret.
But it was tea.
[Quest Completed! "The Prince Who Can't Even Boil Water"]
Rewards granted: +5 Mana (now 8/1000), Basic Mana Sense (Lv.1), 50 Silver coins added to inventory]
[Hidden achievement unlocked: First Chore Done Without Adult Supervision]
[Bonus: +3 Favorability with Head Maid Clara (she's mildly impressed you didn't burn the curtains this time)]
I exhaled so hard I almost passed out.
The door opened without another knock.
Head Maid Clara—tall, silver-haired, terrifying—stepped in, eyes narrowing at the steaming cup in my hands.
"You're... drinking tea? Voluntarily?"
I nodded, trying to look princely. "Yes. I thought... it would be good for practice."
She stared for five full seconds. Then, miracle of miracles, the corner of her mouth twitched upward. Not a smile. But close.
"The Crown Prince is waiting in the training courtyard. Do try not to faint this time, Your Highness."
She left.
I looked back at my reflection. The useless seventh prince. Mana 8/1000. One cup of stolen tea under my belt.
But I was alive.
And I had a system that gave homework instead of instant power.
Maybe—just maybe—I could turn "trash-tier" into something worth reading about.
I set the teacup down, straightened the frilly nightgown like it was armor, and whispered to myself:
"Day one. Survive breakfast. Then survive the rest of my life."
The system chimed one last time.