Berikut terjemahan Bab 1 cer
"Are you blind or what?!" shouted a young man as he shoved another boy to the ground.
"Tch... Filthy bastard! You got my clothes dirty," he spat toward the boy on the ground, then walked away.
The boy who got pushed was named Aslan. He had a handsome face, black hair, stood about 168 cm tall, and had striking red eyes. He was the illegitimate son of the emperor. At first, Aslan didn't know this—not until he was taken from his village ten years ago. Back then, he was only six years old. His mother had died when he was still very young, and he had been raised by his uncle ever since. Life in the palace hadn't been kind to him.
The emperor had three official wives—one empress and two consorts. Each of them had one son. The first prince was Johan. Smart and cunning, Johan was the emperor's eldest son, though his mother wasn't the empress—she was the emperor's third wife.
The empress's son was actually the fourth prince (since the third was Aslan), and his name was Hans—the same guy who just spat on Aslan. Unlike his brothers, Hans was reckless, impulsive, and completely untalented. People often underestimated him and thought he was no match for his older brother. Most of his days were spent lounging around with his mother. At a glance, the only thing he had going for him was his good looks.
The second prince was named Simon, and he was incredibly gifted. Unlike Johan and Hans, Simon's mother wasn't of noble birth—just like Aslan's. She used to be a servant in the palace. Simon was the only brother who never looked down on Aslan, though they weren't close either. Simon was always training, and when he wasn't, he spent his time taking care of his sickly mother.
There was a heated debate happening in the palace over who would inherit the throne. The issue stemmed from the fact that Hans, the empress's son and supposed heir, was clearly incompetent. Many nobles and lords supported Johan instead. They claimed he deserved the throne as the oldest son, even though his mother wasn't the empress. Still, their support wasn't too open, since Hans's mother came from a powerful noble family—powerful enough to shake the empire.
But that wasn't even the biggest problem.
The real issue was the emperor himself. He didn't seem to favor Johan or Hans—instead, he appeared to lean toward Simon. Though it wasn't officially confirmed, this caused an uproar. After all, Simon's mother was just a former servant. The idea that the nobles might one day have to bow down to the son of a servant was insulting to many of them. They feared that the emperor might rewrite the laws just to make Simon the next emperor.
Aslan, however, had no part in this political mess. And that's what confused him. He didn't understand why he had been brought to the palace in the first place. He didn't feel like his presence would affect the ongoing debate at all. No one cared about him. Even when he was bullied or humiliated, no one stepped in to help—not even the emperor. It was like he didn't matter at all.
After what had just happened, Aslan headed toward the stables. In all his years at the palace, he only had one friend. They'd only met once, but it felt like they really connected. Her name was Grace—the daughter of a wealthy merchant. Her family's wealth rivaled that of some nobles, and even a few aristocrats treated her with respect. Their first meeting had been pure chance. Grace was originally invited by Hans, but once she arrived at the palace, she found herself drawn to Aslan instead. That, more than anything, was the reason Hans hated Aslan so much.
It was Grace who introduced Aslan to the concept of the world's core energy—something called Tors. Tors is the life energy created by living things. Every living being produces Tors, but not in the same quantity or quality. At first, no one even knew this energy existed. According to legend, the first person to ever use Tors was the founder of the empire. He discovered it by accident and could only harness the energy from his own body. He eventually passed this knowledge down to his children. Over time, others learned how to use Tors too. They even discovered how to absorb the Tors energy spread throughout nature—produced by trees, animals, and other life forms—and make it their own. Most noble families now had their own unique techniques passed down through generations.
Since Grace couldn't share her family's secret techniques, she taught Aslan a basic energy gathering method typically used by mid-level soldiers. But because their time together was so brief, Aslan only learned how to absorb Tors energy—not how to actually use it.
"Hey Gogo, have you eaten yet?" Aslan asked one of the horses. When the horse saw him carrying hay, it got excited.
"Out of all the horses here, you eat the most, but you're still the skinniest," Aslan said with a laugh, giving the horse a friendly pat.
"This place is the best. Peaceful, quiet..."
Aslan sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes. He began gathering the Tors energy inside him, claiming it as his own. He had managed to collect quite a bit over the years—but he couldn't use it. Every time he tried to absorb it into his body to strengthen himself, it failed. And when he forced it, it only brought pain. So, he stopped trying.
He once tried releasing the energy, but that felt like a complete waste. It was like spilling water he had worked so hard to collect. The moment Tors energy was released, it scattered quickly. He would have to start from scratch again.
The only thing that actually worked was channeling the Tors into objects. Usually, anything he infused with Tors became harder—though not always. Still, that was all it did. He could make glass as tough as stone, but that didn't mean much. It was like throwing reinforced glass at a wall. Sure, the glass wouldn't break—but the wall would still be untouched. No matter how much Tors he used, if he didn't have the power to back it up, he'd never be able to break through.
To be continued...