Arclumina Kingdom The oldest country among the continent, and one of the two big countries with history spanning a millenium. And there is a lineage that has supported this country from the dawn of its founding until the present age of its glory.
「What are you doing! Get up and catch up!」
A certain training ground. A shout flies at a black-haired boy crawling on the ground. His clothes are tattered, and his whole body is covered in bruises. This isn’t training; it’s just abuse, but no one here criticizes it.
「Yes」
Ignoring the intense pain in his body from being beaten with a wooden sword, while roughly wiping the blood that oozed from the corner of his mouth, Soma Lindebauum stuck the wooden sword into the ground and stood up.
「Hah… Thinking this crap is my brother makes me want to cry. Do you really have the Lindebauum’s blood?」
「Sorry, Maurice-niisan」
Shrugging, he turned his gaze, mixed with contempt and anger, toward one of the two brothers he had, Marius Lindebauum.
With burning red hair and a fierce face, the body forged by daily training and the battlefield is like steel. At the age of mid-twenties, entrusted with the position of deputy leader of the Kingdom Mages’ Order, he is a highly capable person whose abilities are almost too much to compare with mine.
「No need for apologies! If you’re a Lindebauum, show it with words—or magic!”
Screaming, Marius-niisan extended his left hand forward, causing countless fireballs to appear behind him. He felt the killing intent contained in each one of them with his skin.
Sorcery. It is something that can be used by humans, even those of lesser existence, to imitate the unrepeatable phenomena that God brings about in this world. No one knows when, where, or by whom it was devised, and while not everyone can use it—even if it is a lesser version—when traced back to its origins, it is nothing less than the work of God.
And this Lindebauum family, from which I was born, was a prestigious magical lineage in the Kingdom of Arclumina, given the titles of the four greatest—strongest, best, and wisest.
「Try to endure this basic magic!」
I focused entirely on evasion with all my might, against theーBasic Sorcery 『Fireball』ー flying at high speed. Just as Marius-niisan said, if I were a Lindebauum, then this level of attack is not a threat. But for meー
「Kuh!」
The impact from the landing wave hits my back, and I am blown away. Pushing myself from the ground with my body, I managed to get back to kneeling. If I let my guard down even for a moment, I’ll be instantly showered with fireballs. Don’t stop, move your legs.
「ーI’ve told you, you’re a piece of trash」
「!?」
Just as I tried to take a step forward, Marius-niisan closed the distance in an instant “Oh no,” I thought to myself, filled with regret, and instinctively swung my wooden sword to fight back—but this wasn’t an opponent who would be fooled by such a half-hearted attack.
Even though I initiated the attack, Marius-niisan struck my chin with a sharp blow. Then, my body got kicked across the empty space and I rolled on the ground again.
「Dammit」
「That’s my line, you failure!」
In response to me clicking my tongue, Marius-niisan roared in anger and released all the fireballs waiting in the air at once.
Countering it would be impossible. Naturally, I can’t dodge them in time, and my whole body got engulfed in them. Explosive flames erupted. There was no way to fight against overwhelming violence, not even allowing a scream.
「Tch, how many times do we have to repeat this before you learn? Is your brain the size of a water flea?」
「Haa, haa, haa…」
Smelling my own flesh burning, I slowly got up. The pain had long exceeded the tollerable range. I wanted to turn my back and run away right now. But, running away will make me miserable, not even a loser. Marius-niisan will rejoice, gaining just-cause and he’ll come to kill me. There’s no feeling of brotherhood here.
『God’s truly unfair, isn’t he? You’ve got the greatest amount in mana among us, yet you have no shred of talent for the crucial sorcery」
「……」
Faced with the merciless reality and mockery, I bit my lips without any retort.
Even as the youngest brother, being born in the noble family of sorcery, Lindebauum, means that honor and a glorious future awaits.
Lindebauum’s name carry a great honor. That’s what they say, but in reality, the amount of mana I possess is not just the best among my siblings, but also among generations. Therefore, the expectations placed on me were huge, but I totally lacked the talent regarding sorcery to a fatal degree.
I can’t even activate basic sorcery, the act of reinforcing the body with mana. This is the worst nightmare, the first and yet the worst in the history of this lineage. And I’m the symbol of that nightmare.
『The shame of Lindebauum』
『The stigma of Lindebauum』
『The failure defiling the name of the Lindebauum house』
Scorned by the many, including family.
「You have no right to be frustrated when you’re talentless, try hitting me with an attack at least once!」
Maurice-niisan kicked my face. Then he kept stomping again and again, without mercy, against someone with the same last name as him.
「To think! That someone as useless! As incompetent! Is our brother! It makes me sick!」
「Guh, uu, uuuu….」
「You can’t even use sorcery properly! Even if your swordsmanship is a bit better, you’ve got no value apart from being a stud horse! What can you do with that?!」
I grit my teeth as Maurice-niisan speaks. My father, the head of the house, ordered me to have Maurice-niisan and Albert-niisan, teach me swordsmanship, to find some value in my lack of sorcery talent.
However, since I couldn’t wield magic with my sword like the two of them, and I could only make empty swings, I couldn’t even reach my brother’s feet in swordsmanship. Yet, I kept swinging the wooden sword every day. Because there was nothing else I could do.
Then, I was kicked in the tail and gasped for breath. But, Marius-niisan didn’t ease up on his sadism, and stomped on my face repeatedly.
「Tell this dumb brother of yours, Soma. What else can you do apart from letting me blow off some steam?」
「Gahaa?!」
「Hahahaha! You sound like a crushed frog! Show me more, you trash!」
Marius-niisan raises his wooden sword with a hearty laugh. This blow will hurt, my bones might even break. Thinking as if it was someone else’s business, I just wait for the blow to come down.
「ーーThat’s enough, Marius-niisan」
A dignified voice echoes, and my brother’s deadly blade stops where it was. At the same time, ice crystals sparkle and fall.
「We’re having a sibling training. Don’t get in my way」
Marius-niisan turned his head with a murderous glare at the person who appeared behind him. With sorcery activated faster than a blink of an eye, my brother’s legs were frozen in ice.
「Which part of it is training? Isn’t this too harsh?」
It’s a woman’s voice criticizing Marius-niisan in a quiet voice, suppressing her anger, and showing no fear.
「Fiona-neesan…」
Pulling back from the thread of consciousness that was about to snap, I got up.
The flowing silver blue-hair reflects in my vision. Her eyes contain the color of a blue-sky and a beautiful face. A peerless beauty, like a goddess of compassion depicted in paintings had emerged.
Her name’s Fiona Lindebauum. My only ally in this world where being oppressed is thenorm, and the only one who poured love for me instead of my parents since childhood.
「You’re overprotective of Soma, Fiona. Why don’t you treat your big brother the same way?」
Marius-niisan calmly asks his blood-sister while purposely showing a leecherous smile. In response, Fiona-neesan glares at him but her expression remain unchanged.
「Please keep your jokes in sleep. Also, put your wooden sword away. If you insist on continuing thisーー」
As she declares “you’ll face me instead”, a wave of serene mana surges from Fiona-neesan Seeing this, Marius-niisan shrugged as if his excitement had cooled down and he puts down his wooden sword.
「Hah, of course I’m joking. Geez, don’t act like the guardian of this rotten brother of ours forever」
「Soma’s our family. Why would you do such horrible acts?」
「Isn’t that obvious? Becausae he’s useless as a Lindebauum. He’s not even useful as a trash!」
Saying that, Marius-nii enveloped his entire body with killing intent not befitting for addressing family. If it were someone weaker, they’d immeidately lose consciousness being exposed to this pressure. I gritted my teeth and endured the fear.
「Lindebauum has no place for useless people. You should think about that」
Leaving a dismissive remark, Marius-niisan left. Knowing what that meant better than anyone else, I picked up the wooden sword, and continued my clumsy practice swing.
「W-What are you doing, Soma? Your body’s worn out already, you can’t continue~」
Even though I’m seriously injured, I keep training, so Fiona rushes over and hugs me from behind to stop me. While I’m grateful to the only family who was concerned about me, I still continued swinging the wooden sword.
「No, I told you. You don’t have to do anything, you don’t have to get strong!」
「Soma…」
I’m persecuted by my family. Marius-niisan harrases me. I find my weakness miserable, pitiful. Crying won’t change reality.
I’ll create my own place. If sorcery doesn’t work, then with my sword. I’ll work hard to overturn everything with these hands. Then someday, I’ll be recognized as a member of the Lindebauum house. Believing that, I beat my aching body and continued to trainー
「Soma Lindebauum. I hereby banish you from our house today」
「Huh」
That night. At dinner, where the family has gathered for the first time in a long while.
A single word, coming from Ozwell Lindebauum, the head of the house, and also my father, put my dreams and hopes to the gutter.
My vision blurred. For a moment, I can’t tell if I was sitting or standing. It hurts to breathe. How do you breathe again?
「W-Wait! Father! What do you mean you’re banishing Soma? Are you serious?」
「Of course. And Sofia, This is already decided. No one’s allowed to overrule this」
「Well, Fiona’s the only one to complain about that」
Marius-niisan smiled mockingly.
「Too bad, that’s goodbye Soma. Well, good luck outside」
Cecilia-neesan muttered as if it were someone else while fiddling with her wine glass.
「…………」
Then, Albert-niisan continued to eat in silence, looking uninterested.
I knew. Of course, it’s obvious. Only Fiona-neesan is my ally in this house. But, they could’ve covered for me at least.
「Someone who can’t use sorcery at all should’ve been executed for putting a stain on the Lindebauum house. And yet, you’re being sent away instead」
And so, you should rejoice. Be grateful for our boundless mercy, we’re not taking your life. Anger well up in the vessel that had become empty in despair.
「You’re leaving tomorrow morning. You’re forbidden from entering the Lindebauum house and using our name from then on. Do you understand, Soma?』
「…Yes」
Lacking the desire to eat anymore, I stood up and returned to my room. I feel Fiona-neesan’s voice, but my mind and body refused to understand what she’s trying to say. Then, Marius-niisan’s laughter and my family’s indifferent expressions were seared in my brain and would not leave.
This post is automatically published by Translation Assistant and Translation Assistant Publisher.