电视剧上海王

“Did you hear the news?”

“What?”

“I heard that the Hector Kingdom crossed the border and attacked the Southern Front. According to the merchants coming from the south, the situation was bad. I was worried that I could be conscripted for it. Men who aren’t yet in their 50s should perform their national duties in case of an emergency, remember?”

“Eh. Even if the Kronos Empire attacks, nothing will happen, so why would we be called if Hector attacks?”

Cairo was a warring nation. Those who heard the news that the Kronos Empire attacked the west from time to time didn’t care much about Hector’s threat. Moreover, due to the Central Government, Cairo’s capital was more important than any other nation.

The people in the capital who treated other regions as outskirts didn’t feel as though it was a crisis when the south was attacked, to the extent that there was a saying passed down from generations to send people only to the capital. But, because the nobles cared about it, there was an indirect aftermath of the war.

“They can’t raise taxes just for the war budget. How can this country not have a peaceful day? If I had been born a member of the Kronos Empire, I wouldn’t have been this anxious. The plight of a small country is truly pitiful.”

They only murmured over a passing conversation at that time, and they continued to live a normal life that was no different from other days.

But, they didn’t know that the Hector Kingdom crossed the border with ten thousand troops, and Cairo’s hero was born in a very unfavorable situation when the rear positions were captured. If they knew that Roman Dmitry defeated Butler, the 5-Star Swordsman, they would have been more shocked. Yet, that news didn’t reach the capital.

When people were spending their normal days at that time, a gust of wind from the south was slowly approaching the capital.

At that time, on the same day, in Cairo Royal Academy’s Class D, the last practice match was being held for the Swordsmanship Test.

“Next up, William Castro and Lauren Dmitry.”

The professor called the students. In an instant, joy and happiness were divided. William Castro and his friends burst into laughter with confidence, while Lauren Dmitry sat alone thinking.

William Castro was infamous in Class D. With a promotion to Class C almost confirmed, Lauren Dmitry knew that he had no chance of winning here. But, what could he do? The professor had called for the two, and if he didn’t go through, he would be expelled.

Beep.

“Start.”

The signal was given. William Castro rushed ahead as if waiting for it. He was confident he could win this battle.

Lauren Dmitry was unable to react to the opponent’s attacks.

Tatatk!

It was a one-sided fight. Lauren Dmitry was busy defending against the wooden sword, which attacked him from all directions, and William Castro showed off the swordsmanship he had learned.

Lauren Dmitry’s face began to get drenched in sweat. Lauren was just 165 cm tall, which was short for men, and he couldn’t handle being physically overwhelmed.

William Castro was 188 cm tall. He was a giant compared to Lauren. Knowing he was going to win, he began swinging his sword back and forth at Lauren. Then…

Pak!

“Ack!”

The wooden sword pierced his back. It was the attack that ended the match.

Lauren Dmitry, who had been unilaterally toyed with for 5 minutes, screamed and fell to the ground. He couldn’t raise his head.

Seeing him groan and clutch his back, William Castro mumbled in a low voice so the professor wouldn’t hear.

“Moron.”

Smirk.

And stepped back.

Lauren couldn’t look up at William, but he knew his friends were cheering. The humiliation didn’t end there. Announcing the duel’s result, the professor spoke in a cold voice,

“Lauren Dmitry. What did I say in the last class? Your biggest problem is that you do not have the mindset of a swordsman. It is like a guy who entered the academy to learn the sword and decides to close his eyes before even looking at the opponent’s sword. Pathetic. If the test shows the same performance as today, it would be better to prepare to head down to Class E.”

Class E was for those who were under the age of 15. If that happened, it would be obvious how people would look at the 18-year-old Lauren.

He clenched his fists. Lauren Dmitry didn’t have the courage to scream or the strength to get up.

The duel was over. Lauren, who was relaxing in the break room, held his breath while watching William and his party enter.

“Uh?”

“Lauren is here,” they said.

William Castro picked up his belongings and deliberately talked loudly so that Lauren could hear him.

“I mean, it is amazing. I had a chance to meet the Class S senior in the past, and Rodwell Dmitry senior was so amazing to watch that I admired him. At that time, I wasn’t so familiar with the world, so I thought the Dmitry family was all great.”

Rodwell Dmitry—a name recognized by people in the capital. Due to his rapid advancement to Class S, people naturally paid attention to Lauren, who was of the same family.

“But, so what? For that, there is a limit to being born in the world. People call it a miracle that someone like Rodwell Dmitry was born into the Dmitry family. The truth is, it is quite natural to go back and forth from the bottom like that. Isn’t that right? There is nothing we can do with the limitations of birth, but it is like trying to do something we cannot.”

Lauren bowed his head. He acted as if he couldn’t hear them, but his face continued to turn red. It was like this every time. Being Rodwell’s younger brother, the shadow was thick. Lauren Dmitry had a fragile personality and couldn’t say anything since he entered the academy.

“No fun.”

“I know.”

Was it because he lost interest? The topic changed.

“But is it true that Roman Dmitry defeated Homer?”

“I assure you that it has to be a rumor spread by the Dmitry family itself. Dmitry is a descendant of a wealthy family that rose to power. How would they deal if the eldest was famous for being a jerk? His reputation would have to be so bad that they would need to spread rumors. Two miracles do not happen in one family. Look, you can tell by looking at Lauren Dmitry.”

Again, the arrow of comparison continued to fly. It was always the same. The third son of Dmitry—Lauren Dmitry gulped back his emotions. It was a hard day for Lauren Dmitry.

The class ended, and Lauren Dmitry went out into the streets. If he didn’t breathe fresh air, it felt like his emotions would explode.

‘…. Is the news about brother Roman true?’

Roman Dmitry’s shocking actions were known even in the capital. Defeating Homer at the age of just mid-20s was staggering, and people said a new miracle was born within the Dmitry family.

The problem was that Lauren Dmitry, of the same blood, couldn’t accept it. Contrary to popular opinion, some people were saying that Roman could be stronger than what the rumors said, but thinking about the past, he was sure that couldn’t be the case.

Dmitry’s fool—it wasn’t a nickname given for nothing. At least, it was what Lauren Dmitry remembered of his brother, who lived without a worry about the world.

‘I remember that Brother Roman isn’t a bad person, at least not to me. But, as William said, if someone asks if it is true that my brother managed to do that, I am not sure if I could say yes. Anyone who saw him would know it was a lie. I don’t know why Father spread such rumors, but Roman was drunk on the day I left home too.’

There was one time when Roman was also normal.

At that time, he trained hard on his own to meet the expectations of the family, but when he realized that he wasn’t as talented as he thought and that Rodwell was a genius, that was the moment his status as eldest son fell to the ground.

Roman Dmitry began to deviate from his normal life. He could understand because he knew what it felt like to be compared with Rodwell. So he tried to get closer to Roman, but had no desire to become like him.

“Ha!”

He sighed.

And it was then that, from afar, people flocked, making a commotion.

Whisper.

‘What is happening?’

He wanted to forget his complicated thoughts at that moment. As he stepped through the crowd, people lined up on either side, waiting for someone.

“Is that really true?”

“I am sure! My relatives live in the south, and they miraculously defeated them and reclaimed the south when it almost got taken by the Hector Kingdom. Do you know what is even more insane? In the process, Roman Dmitry did really absurd things!”

“Roman Dmitry? The youngest ranker who defeated Homer?’

“Yes, it is still unconfirmed, but there is a saying that he defeated the Hector Kingdom with just 200 troops. Not only that, there are testimonies that he defeated Butler, the 5-Star Swordsman of Hector, in the battle of great warriors, but I didn’t believe that yet as it sounded surreal.”

The people around him were saying things. Lauren’s eyes widened. He heard about the war with Hector. The academy had many kids from noble families, and he overheard them when they were talking. But even though he defeated the Hector Kingdom, the details were too shocking.

‘Is it true that they are talking about the Brother Roman that I know? Brother Roman defeated the Hector Kingdom with just 200 troops, and as if that wasn’t enough, he also defeated Butler of the Hector Kingdom? This is too much!’

The rumors were exaggerated. Defeating Homer itself was unbelievable. Meanwhile, hearing the news from the south, Lauren Dmitry didn’t know how to react. He was shocked.

“Get out of the way!”

“They are the heroes of the south! Open the way!”

The reason people flocked was to welcome the triumphant soldiers. At the sight of the guards raising their voices while walking in front of them, the people were cheering. Among the people walking, Lauren felt too dumbfounded. Until his eyes widened at the sight of a man moving ahead in the front on a stylish horse.

“… B-brother Roman?!”

Roman Dmitry appeared in front of his eyes with cheers from people who looked very different from his own memories.