Chapter 114: Returning Home in Glory (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 114: Returning Home in Glory (1)
Cairo's great victory.
It was a monumental triumph.
But while the people of the south cheered with wild enthusiasm, the atmosphere in the capital of Kairos—far removed from the front lines—was entirely different.
"Did you hear the news?"
"What news?"
"Word is the Hector Kingdom crossed the border and attacked the Southern Front. The merchants coming up from the south say it's looking grim. I'm worried about conscription. Anyone under fifty has to serve in an emergency, right?"
"Oh, give it a rest. Nothing happened even when the Kronos Empire attacked. You really think they'd draft us just because Hector is making a fuss?"
Cairo was a nation forged in war.
For citizens accustomed to endless reports of the Kronos Empire assaulting the Western Front, the Hector Kingdom's invasion barely registered as a threat. Furthermore, the presence of the Central Government gave Kairos an inflated sense of self-importance compared to the rest of the country. An old saying had been passed down for generations: To succeed, one must go to the capital. Viewing other regions as mere backwaters, the capital's denizens simply couldn't grasp the true peril facing the south.
All they worried about...
...was the indirect fallout.
"I just hope they don't hike up the taxes to fund the war. This damn country never has a quiet day. If only I'd been born in the Kronos Empire, I wouldn't have to live with this anxiety. Being a citizen of a weak nation is truly pathetic."
That was the extent of their concern.
With a passing grumble, they went about their daily lives as if nothing had changed.
They had no way of knowing.
They had no idea the Hector Kingdom had crossed the border with a force of ten thousand. They didn't know that a hero of Cairo had been forged in the fires of a desperate battle after the rear base had fallen. If they had known that Roman Dmitry had slain Butler, a 5-Star Swordsman, the sheer shock would have left them utterly dumbfounded.
But for now, the truth of the south had yet to reach the capital.
As the citizens went about their mundane lives, a storm from the south was steadily closing in.
* * *
Meanwhile, within the Cairo Royal Academy.
The final practice spar before the swordsmanship exam was underway in Class D.
"Next up: William Castro and Lauren Dmitry."
The moment the professor called their names, the reactions were night and day.
William Castro and his cronies burst into confident laughter, while Lauren Dmitry, sitting alone on the sidelines, turned deathly pale. William Castro was a notorious figure in Class D. With his promotion to Class C practically guaranteed, Lauren knew he didn't stand a chance in the spar.
But what could he do?
The professor had already called him out. If Lauren didn't want to be expelled, he had to step up and fulfill his duty as a student.
Tweeet!
"Begin."
The signal was given.
William Castro lunged forward aggressively, as if he had been waiting for this exact moment. The fight was decided before it even began. Lauren shrank back, completely overwhelmed, unable to mount a proper defense against the onslaught.
Clack!
Clack, clack, clack!
It was a completely one-sided beating.
Lauren frantically tried to block the wooden swords raining down from all directions. William, on the other hand, moved like a fish in water, freely unleashing the swordsmanship he had honed at the academy. Barely any time had passed, yet Lauren's face was already drenched in sweat. Standing at a mere 165 centimeters with a frail build, he simply couldn't overcome the sheer physical disparity.
Before him, the 188-centimeter-tall William Castro looked like a giant.
Lauren knew he was being toyed with, but he was helpless to stop it, dragged around exactly as his opponent intended.
And then—
Thwack!
"Argh!"
The wooden sword slammed brutally into his back.
That was the end of the match.
After being unilaterally battered for nearly five minutes, Lauren let out a painful cry and collapsed to the floor. He couldn't even lift his head. As he clutched his back and groaned, William leaned in and sneered, his voice too low for the professor to catch.
"Pathetic loser."
Smirking, William turned and walked away.
Lauren didn't dare look up, but he could hear the mocking cheers of William's gang.
And the humiliation didn't end there.
Staring down at the result of the spar, the professor spoke in a frigid tone.
"Lauren Dmitry. What did I tell you in our last class? Your biggest problem is your complete lack of a swordsman's mindset. You entered the Cairo Royal Academy to learn the blade, yet you squeeze your eyes shut instead of tracking your opponent's strikes. It's truly pathetic. If you display this kind of performance during the actual exam, you had better prepare yourself for demotion to Class E."
Class E.
The remedial class meant for children fifteen and under.
If he was demoted, the ridicule an eighteen-year-old Lauren would face was painfully obvious.
He clenched his fists tightly.
But... Lauren had neither the courage to shout back nor the strength to overturn his reality.
* * *
The spars concluded.
While resting in the lounge, Lauren held his breath as William and his gang swaggered in.
"Oh?"
"Look who's here. If it isn't our dear Lauren."
They sneered.
As he packed his belongings, William spoke loudly, deliberately ensuring Lauren heard every word.
"You know, it's really strange. I had the chance to meet the Class S seniors a while back. Senior Rodwell Dmitry was so amazing that just watching him left me in awe. Back then, I didn't know much about the world, so I thought maybe the Dmitry family was actually something special."
Rodwell Dmitry.
It was a famous name in the capital.
Thanks to his rapid promotion to Class S, people naturally kept a close eye on Lauren, expecting greatness from the same bloodline.
"But what do you know? I completely forgot that there are limits to one's birth. People call it a miracle that a genius like Senior Rodwell was born into a family with zero pedigree. In reality, scraping the bottom of the barrel—like a certain someone we know—is what's actually normal for them. Isn't it pitiful? Struggling so hard when your lowborn limits mean you'll never amount to anything."
Lauren lowered his head.
He tried to act as if he couldn't hear the mocking words, but he couldn't hide his beet-red face.
It was always like this.
Rodwell's younger brother.
The title cast a deep, suffocating shadow over him. Already possessing a weak and timid personality, Lauren had only grown more withdrawn since entering the academy.
"How boring."
"Yeah, seriously."
Perhaps losing interest in their silent victim, the gang changed the subject.
"By the way, is it true that Roman Dmitry defeated Homeros?"
"I guarantee you, that's just a rumor the Dmitrys spread on purpose. They're just a family of parvenus who stumbled into wealth. They had to do something about their eldest son—the infamous Fool of Dmitry. With his reputation in the gutter, they must be desperately trying to salvage his image with fake rumors. Two miracles don't happen in one family. I mean, you can tell just by looking at Lauren over there."
Once again, the poisoned arrow of comparison flew his way.
It was always like this for the third son of the Dmitry family.
Lauren forced down the lump rising in his throat. Today, more than ever, he felt utterly exhausted.
* * *
After classes ended, Lauren wandered out into the city streets.
If he didn't get some fresh air, he felt like his suppressed emotions would finally explode and suffocate him.
'...Is the news about Brother Roman really true?'
Roman Dmitry.
His shocking exploits had reached all the way to the capital.
Defeating Homeros in his mid-twenties was an incredible feat, and people were already whispering that a second miracle had been born in the Dmitry family. The problem was that even Lauren, who shared his blood, couldn't bring himself to believe it. People speculated that Roman might actually be a hidden master, contrary to his public reputation. But anyone who knew his past knew that was absolutely impossible.
The Fool of Dmitry.
He hadn't earned that nickname for nothing.
The brother Lauren remembered was a complete scoundrel who lived without a single care in the world.
'The Brother Roman I remember wasn't a bad person—at least, not to me. But just as William said, if someone asked me if he really defeated Homeros, I couldn't confidently say yes. Anyone can see it's a lie. I don't know why Father would spread a false rumor that could be so easily exposed. Even on the day I left home, Brother Roman was completely wasted.'
There was a time when Roman was normal.
Back then, he had trained hard in his own way to meet the family's expectations. But the moment he realized he lacked talent, Rodwell's genius had begun to shine. In an instant, the eldest son's status plummeted to rock bottom. Roman began to stray, eventually becoming known as the Fool of Dmitry.
Lauren understood him.
He knew exactly what it felt like to be compared to Rodwell.
That was why he had tried to get along with Roman in his own way. Still, he had absolutely no desire to end up like him.
"Haaah."
He let out a deep sigh.
Just then, a commotion broke out in the distance as a massive crowd began to gather.
Murmur, murmur.
'What's going on?'
Eager for any distraction from his complicated thoughts, Lauren walked over and pushed his way through the throng. People were lined up densely on both sides of the street, clearly waiting for someone.
"Is that really true?"
"I'm telling you, it's a fact! I have a relative down south. They said that just when the Southern Front was about to completely fall to the Hector Kingdom, our forces miraculously pushed them back and reclaimed the front lines. And do you know what gives me goosebumps? Roman Dmitry played an unbelievable role in the whole thing."
"Roman Dmitry? The youngest ranker who defeated Homeros?"
"Yeah! It's not officially confirmed yet, but rumor has it that Roman Dmitry repelled the Hector Kingdom with only two hundred soldiers. Not only that, there are eyewitness accounts saying he struck down Butler, the Hector Kingdom's 5-Star Swordsman, in a Great Warrior Battle! It's so far beyond common sense that even I'm having a hard time believing it."
Hearing the frantic chatter around him, Lauren's eyes widened in shock.
The war with Hector.
He had heard about it.
Since the academy was filled with the children of Central Government officials, he had occasionally overheard his classmates discussing the kingdom's political situation.
But still...
Even putting aside the miraculous defeat of the Hector Kingdom, the details of the rumor were simply too absurd.
'Are they really talking about the Brother Roman I know? He defeated the Hector Kingdom with only two hundred soldiers? And on top of that, he killed Butler, a famous ranker of Hector? This is going way too far.'
The rumors were ridiculously exaggerated.
He hadn't even believed the story about Homeros, let alone this new fairy tale from the south. Lauren had no idea how to react.
His shock was abruptly cut short.
"Make way!"
"The heroes of the south are arriving! Clear the path!"
The reason the massive crowd had gathered...
...was to welcome the Triumphant General.
At the sight of the vanguard guards shouting to clear the road, the citizens erupted into thunderous cheers.
Amidst the roaring crowd, Lauren stood completely dazed.
His mind was a blank slate.
Then, his eyes widened to their absolute limits as he caught sight of a man riding a magnificent warhorse at the very front of the procession.
"...B-Brother Roman?!"
Roman Dmitry.
Looking vastly different from the pathetic scoundrel in his memories, Roman appeared before his very eyes, bathed in the glorious, roaring cheers of the capital.