World's Apart

I don’t know what to make of this. My brother is dead and I inherited his fortune. Eventhough I was born to a rich noble man, I never wanted riches. I preferred to be a farmer. Live is much simpler as a farmer compared to being a rich noble man. Unfortunately, with my brother’s death, I am forced to return to the city and become a noble man. I’m forced to retire being a farmer. I’m forced to take over everything my brother left behind.

Unlike me, my wife is rejoicing. She always wanted to explore the city and experience being one of those rich duchesses. I sighed at her stupidity. She didn’t understand the consequences being a noble. She didn’t understand the politics behind it. She didn’t understand that despite the smiles, the nobles were always plotting something against each other. It was a battlefield where no one was safe.

I don’t blame her for being naïve. She was not a nobleman’s daughter. She wouldn’t understand the dangers of being in a noble’s world.

Everyone thinks that being a noble is good and wonderful but they are all wrong. I would prefer to be an ordinary man than a noble.

And being born in my family made being a noble even harder.

Eventhough I was born a noble, I never really acted like one. I guess, I was never one in my heart. I didn’t like running the family business and socializing with the other nobles. Fortunately, I had an older brother. He handled everything that needed to be handled. I, on the other hand, preferred being in a stable and jousting all day long.

Unlike my older brother, I wasn’t knowledgeable or charming. Most of the time, I dressed like a peasant. My parents never really minded what I did. As long my older brother was here, I was off the hook. Honestly, I always feel sad for him. He always had duties, lessons and things to do. Unlike him, I was always free.

However, my brother said he liked living this way. He actually liked being a noble. He liked the dirty politics and all that. He said it was interesting and that it challenged him. I was not at all like him.

But my brother always thought that I was weak, a coward and spineless. He thought I didn’t dare to accept the challenging and interesting world of nobility eventhough I was born into it. But he didn’t understand that I was not him. I just wanted a free and happy life. Something a noble can never have.

And to make things worse is that my family is part of a “rose battle”. A battle for the underground throne where the winner will gain control of the underground world in all of the Kingdom of Andellia.

The winner of the “rose battle” would help the royal family take care of the underground world. All the demons and the underground world would have to respect the winner of the “rose battle” when they are in the Kingdom of Andellia.

Not only do I have to be a noble, I have to participate in this horrible battle against 2 other families.

The underground world and demons are an existence known to only a few and so, I cannot tell anyone about this other than my family.

To make matters worse, my decedents’ will inherit this burden of being a noble and a participant in this “rose battle”. Every hundred years, the “rose battle” will begin and it will only end when either the enemies head dies or withdraw from the battle. Unfortunately, I heard no one ever withdrew from the battle before. Perhaps, I will be the first.

And for this bloody battle, there are no rules. Anything goes.

I’m worried. I’m afraid. I was never really a nobleman. Can I really carry this burden well enough? Or will I run away like my brother predicted.

But in my brother’s will, he told me not to worry as I will have demons serving me and they will be loyal to me as they are loyal to him because they have pledged loyalty to our family when our family saved them many years before.

I sighed.

I was almost killed yesterday. An arrow was headed my way and it almost hit me but it didn’t. I am afraid. It must be because of the “rose battle”. The enemies are trying to eliminate me. Can I eliminate them? I don’t think I can. I mean, if I eliminate Richard Weisz or Mark Kurland, what about their family? Won’t their family be in grief as I am when my brother died?

I wished my brother didn’t die. I wish he was still alive. Then, he would able to handle this and I would be back at my farm.

I told my wife about this and she was very worried. Poor thing, I wished I hadn’t told me. Just like me, she wanted to return to our safe farm in the country. And I don’t blame her.

Just as I was going to pack, I imagined my brother’s voice. He was unhappy.

"You’re a coward. Run like you always do.”

I heard his voice play in my head over and over again.

What was I to do?

I wanted to run. But it seems that I can’t right now. My brother is dead and all his responsibilities have been inherited by me.

My pregnant wife looked at me, afraid.

“Everything will be alright.” I lied to her.

“Gerard, why can’t we just run?” She asked me.

“Because everything is different now.” I sighed.