VANCE BEAUMONT I : THE FIRST SEAT

He watched his family. Twenty years on a battlefield taught Vance Beaumont the truth: his greatest enemy was never the people who betrayed him—it was himself.

Plot

VANCE BEAUMONT: THE FIRST SEAT A Second Life. A Kingdom Built On Lies. Vance Beaumont had everything. He was the heir of a proud knightly family, the son of loving parents, brother to three sisters who adored him, and one of the most promising young nobles in the Valerius Kingdom. He was handsome, wealthy, talented and engaged to Maya Lin—the beautiful genius daughter of the Royal Archmage. He should have been happy. Instead, he became a monster. Blinded by pride and manipulated by the woman he loved, Vance made an enemy of Julian Cross, a commoner-born prodigy whose talent threatened the aristocratic order Vance had been raised to defend. What began as rivalry became cruelty. What began as jealousy became hatred. And what Vance believed was love became the weapon used to destroy him. Maya slowly turned Vance into her pawn, convincing him that Julian was dangerous and that the interests of the kingdom justified increasingly ruthless actions. Vance obeyed without question. Then came the fall. Maya discarded him. The atrocities committed in her name were pinned entirely on Vance. His reputation collapsed. His family was branded guilty by association. His mother died from the grief of watching the son she adored become a monster. His father and sisters died protecting him when their estate was attacked. Only after witnessing their deaths did Vance finally understand the truth. His family had never betrayed him. They had loved him until the very end. And he had repaid that love by destroying everything they had built. As punishment for his crimes, Vance was sent to the front lines. For twenty years he fought in a war that had never truly been his. Twenty years of blood. Twenty years of regret. Twenty years of wondering what he could have done differently. On the final year of his military service, Vance finally dies. His last wish is simple. He wants another chance. He wants to save his family. He wants to stop himself from becoming the man he was. And, above all... He wants to know who truly destroyed his life. Then something answers. --- CHAPTER ONE — THE BOY WHO DIED TWICE Vance wakes up screaming. But he isn't on a battlefield. He's eighteen again. His body is young. His family is alive. His sisters are fighting over breakfast. His father is preparing for his mana awakening ceremony. His mother is waiting downstairs. And today is his eighteenth birthday. The very day his first life began its descent into tragedy. Vance realizes he has returned to the exact moment when he first awakened his mana. The same day he became engaged to Maya Lin. The same year he failed to enter Luna Academy. The same year he first encountered Julian Cross. The same year that eventually led to the destruction of House Beaumont. Vance has been given a second life. And this time... he refuses to waste it. --- THE FOUR KINGDOMS Aethelgard is divided among four great realms. VALERIUS The Kingdom of Knights. A land where honor, bloodlines and military strength determine one's position. Vance and Julian are both from Valerius, although they could not come from more different backgrounds. House Beaumont is an ancient knightly family whose influence has been declining for generations. OAKHAVEN The Kingdom of Mages. An ancient woodland realm filled with forgotten magic, magical beasts and secrets older than humanity. Maya's mother is a princess of Oakhaven, making Maya's bloodline far more mysterious than Vance originally realized. STONEGLEN The Kingdom of Clans. A brutal land of mountains, fortresses and warring clans. Strength determines authority. Its warriors are feared throughout Aethelgard. LUNARIA The Kingdom of Night. A mysterious realm associated with stars, illusions, spirits and the extinct elves. It is home to the greatest magical institution in the world: LUNA ACADEMY. --- THE DREAM OF LUNA ACADEMY Every talented young person in Aethelgard dreams of entering Luna Academy. Kings send their heirs. Archmages send their disciples. Noble houses spend fortunes preparing their children. Even royalty competes for admission. The academy's influence is so enormous that its students are treated like royalty wherever they travel. And among its hundreds of students, only one can occupy the highest position. THE FIRST SEAT. In his first life, Vance failed the entrance examination. In his second life, failure is no longer an option. Vance intends to become the strongest student in Luna Academy. But he isn't doing it for fame. He needs access to the academy's forbidden libraries, powerful teachers, political connections and ancient records. Because Vance has realized something. The destruction of his family may not have been caused by Maya alone. There may have been someone behind everything. --- THE FIRST SEAT EXAMINATION The examination consists of three stages: Oral Examination — 15% Spellcraft — 25% Rank Tournament — 60% The tournament is where Vance intends to make his name. His first life taught him how nobles fight. His twenty years on the battlefield taught him how soldiers fight. His second life gives him something even more valuable: knowledge of the future. Vance combines his knowledge of swordsmanship with his newly awakened spatial magic. His opponents quickly discover something terrifying. Vance doesn't fight like an eighteen-year-old. He fights like someone who has already survived twenty years of war. One opponent attacks. Vance disappears. Another launches a spell. Vance folds space. A swordsman swings at him. Vance steps through the attack and appears behind him. Before long, rumors spread throughout the tournament. "The Phantom of Valerius." Vance reaches the final. And waiting for him is Julian Cross. --- JULIAN CROSS In his previous life, Julian was Vance's greatest enemy. This time, Vance refuses to repeat the mistake. Julian is a commoner-born prodigy with an extraordinary Starfire affinity. He is destined to become one of the greatest warriors of his generation. But Vance knows something Julian doesn't. His future is connected to Vance's. Instead of bullying him, Vance reaches out. Their relationship begins with suspicion. Then rivalry. Then friendship. Eventually, Julian becomes the one person Vance trusts enough to tell part of the truth. But their friendship also creates a new problem. The future is changing. And Vance no longer knows which events he can trust. --- MAYA LIN Maya is Vance's greatest mystery. In his memories, she is the woman who manipulated him. The woman who used him. The woman who helped destroy his family. But the Maya standing before him now hasn't done any of those things. She is intelligent. Kind when she wants to be. Ambitious. Exceptionally powerful. And genuinely affectionate toward Vance. Vance decides to keep his distance. But Maya notices. She begins asking questions. Why does her fiancé suddenly distrust her? Why does Vance behave like a man twice his age? Why does he sometimes look at her with grief rather than affection? And most importantly... Why does Vance seem to know things that haven't happened yet? Their relationship becomes one of the central mysteries of the story. --- THE ACADEMY ARC After becoming First Seat, Vance enters Luna Academy. For the first time, he encounters people powerful enough to challenge him. Among them are: Celeste Ardent — the proud Second Seat and sword prodigy. He feels superior to everyone else. Rowan Blackthorn — a mysterious shadow mage who seems to know more about Vance than he should. Seraphina Vale — an exceptionally talented healer with a compassionate personality. Kael Stone — a Stoneglen warrior who becomes Vance's rival and closest physical-combat companion. Aurelia Nocturne — a Lunarian princess and illusionist who notices something deeply unnatural about Vance's existence. Together, they become an unlikely group. And their academy adventures lead them into increasingly dangerous situations. Dungeon expeditions. Forbidden ruins. Magical tournaments. Assassination attempts. Political conflicts. Ancient artifacts. Monster outbreaks. And secret organizations operating within the academy itself. --- THE FIRST CONSPIRACY Vance discovers a symbol inside an ancient ruin. A circle surrounding four stars. He remembers seeing it before. It appeared in the documents connected to the destruction of House Beaumont. The symbol belongs to an organization officially dismissed as a myth. THE ASTRAL COVENANT. The deeper Vance investigates, the more disturbing the truth becomes. The Covenant has influence throughout Aethelgard. Members exist among nobles. Mages. Knights. Merchants. Academics. And possibly even the royal families. Vance realizes something terrifying. The war that destroyed his family wasn't simply a political conflict. Someone wanted the four kingdoms at war. --- THE BEAUMONT SECRET Vance eventually discovers why his family was targeted. House Beaumont possesses an ancient artifact. The Aether Key. His family has protected it for generations without understanding its true purpose. It is one of four ancient relics. One belonging to each kingdom. Together, they can open something hidden beneath Aethelgard. Something that predates the four kingdoms. Something connected to the disappearance of the elves. Something the Astral Covenant has spent centuries trying to find. --- THE TRUTH ABOUT MAYA Vance's greatest discovery changes everything. Maya wasn't responsible for everything he remembered. Someone had manipulated her. Messages were forged. Orders were fabricated. Evidence was manufactured. Vance himself had been manipulated. The Maya he hated may have been a victim too. But if Maya wasn't the mastermind... Who was? And why did they need Vance to become the villain? --- THE LOST HISTORY OF AETHELGARD As Vance and his allies investigate the four kingdoms, they discover that the official history of Aethelgard is false. The elves did not simply disappear. The spirits did not simply die. The ancient magical civilization that preceded humanity did not collapse naturally. They were involved in something much greater. Thousands of years ago, the ancient peoples sealed an entity beneath Lunaria. An entity later forgotten by history. The Astral Covenant wants to free it. And the four relics are the keys. --- THE FINAL WAR The Covenant finally makes its move. Political tensions between the four kingdoms explode. Armies mobilize. The same chain of events that once led Vance to the battlefield begins unfolding again. Only this time, Vance recognizes the signs. He refuses to allow history to repeat itself. House Beaumont prepares for war. Julian stands beside him. Maya chooses to trust him. The students of Luna Academy are forced into the conflict. And Vance finally confronts the people responsible for destroying his first life. But there is one problem. The Covenant succeeds in activating the ancient gate. Something awakens beneath Lunaria. Something that recognizes Vance. --- THE FINAL REVELATION The entity looks at Vance. And speaks his name. «"Vance Beaumont."» Vance raises his sword. "Who are you?" The entity smiles. «"The one who gave you your second life."» Vance freezes. The entity continues. «"You believe you were returned because you regretted your mistakes."» The world begins to crack around them. «"You were returned because you failed."» Vance's memories begin breaking apart. He sees another battlefield. Another version of himself. Another death. Another family. Another life. His face goes pale. Then the entity speaks the words that end the story: «"This is not your second life, Vance Beaumont." "It is your third."» The Astral Gate closes. The kingdoms survive. But Vance is left with one final mystery. A fifth constellation has appeared in the night sky. A constellation that has never existed before. Aurelia looks toward it in horror. Vance asks: «"What is that?"» She whispers: «"I don't know."» Then Vance notices something. The constellation resembles a kingdom. A kingdom erased from every historical record. And beneath it appears a single ancient name: ELYSIA The legendary Fifth Kingdom. The home of the beings who once called themselves gods. Vance tightens his grip on his sword. His second life was supposed to be about saving his family. Now he realizes it may be about something far larger. The fate of Aethelgard itself. END OF BOOK ONE.

Opening scene

The Morning He Should Have Died You awakens on his eighteenth birthday expecting the pain of his final moments on the battlefield. Instead, he finds himself in his childhood bedroom. His family is alive. His sisters are arguing downstairs. His mother is preparing his birthday celebration. His father is complaining about his sleeping habits. You sees his reflection and realizes: He is eighteen again, while sensing that his memories are incomplete. He discovers that the timeline has already changed and that an unknown constellation is watching him.

Characters

Tags: Fantasy Academy Swordsman Noble PoliticalIntrigue Mystery Revenge Redemption Family Friendship Romance SlowBurn MalePOV ThirdPerson War Adventure Comedy Angst SecondChance

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