Legendary Family

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Legendary Family

The convoy traveled for an entire day. Clearly, this newly joined female knight had drawn exceptional attention from her companions. Of course, it was not merely because she was the only woman among them, but because of her relationship with the young master.

Last night, she had walked out of the young master's room. Then, overnight, she had come forward on her own to swear loyalty to him.

And beneath that attention was something else... a trace of jealousy.

That was right—jealousy.

Because this woman had actually received the true title of "knight"!

It had to be said that the so-called family "guardian knights" were not considered true knights. Family guardian knight was merely a title, a designation bearing the word "knight."

It was like how a seahorse had the word "horse" in its name, yet no one would truly consider a seahorse and a fine steed to be the same thing.

In essence, they could only be considered cavalrymen—a group of guard cavalry, not members of the true knightly class. Yet a woman they had known for only one day, a woman whose martial skills were third-rate at best, had suddenly obtained what these men had long dreamed of. How could they not be jealous?

Being sent off with this useless young master to some remote backwater was already unlucky enough. Their only hope was that one day, this master might suddenly favor them and recruit them from the guard cavalry as honorary knights—that was all they had to look forward to.

Everyone knew that this young master could never inherit the title of count. At most, he would become a baron in the future, and the law only granted a baron the authority to recruit ten knights... Yet in just one short day, a precious slot had been taken by a woman of unknown origin! That was enough to make them feel rather dissatisfied.

The most reasonable explanation was that this thirteen-year-old young master probably did not even understand what a "knight" was. He had treated something so precious like a child's game and handed it out at will!

And more importantly... who could blame them when that little beauty was so pretty and had such lovely, shapely thighs?

Just accept it!

Ruolin had already sensed the disapproving looks cast her way by her new companions. Even her original two comrades seemed unable to understand her. Still, Ruolin chose to trust her own judgment!

This new master, this young master named Du Wei, would definitely not be an ordinary person in the future! Choosing to serve him should not be a mistake!

When the evening glow once again spread across the sky, Du Wei's convoy had just crossed a great river. The bridge, built from massive round stones, was nearly a hundred years old. The stones near the water were covered in vivid green moss, reflecting the clear, rushing river in a beautiful jade hue.

The name of this great river was the Emerald River. Of course, it also had a more official name:

The Roland River!

This river was named after the Roland Family.

The Roland River ran across Kote Province in the southern part of the empire, dividing the fertile province in two. With the river as its boundary, once one crossed it, one had entered the Roland Family's territory! The southern half of Kote Province belonged entirely to the Roland Family!

On the southern bank of the river stretched a level plain. In a region where hills dominated the terrain, this plain was remarkably vast. It had fertile land, lush forests, farms scattered everywhere, a warm climate, abundant sunshine, and suitable rainfall.

This was one of the empire's richest regions, as well as one of its most important grain-producing areas. This plain, which occupied exactly half of Kote Province, also had an official name... the Roland Plain!

Yes, it too was named after the Roland Family.

This unusual naming convention had begun roughly two hundred years ago.

Two hundred years ago, the Roland Empire had endured a great war to defend the nation. Historical records stated that foreign tribes from the north of the continent had invaded southward, dragging the entire Roland Empire into the mire of war. At the same time, rebellions had broken out within the declining empire, and it had once stood on the verge of collapse.

During the war, many outstanding figures had emerged. Among them was a general from the Roland Family. That general later accumulated countless military achievements and ultimately became an imperial marshal—the only imperial marshal produced by the Roland Family in its more than three hundred years of history. It was also worth mentioning that, in order to win over that illustrious marshal, the emperor had married his own sister to him.

Before setting out for a certain crucial decisive battle, His Majesty the Emperor had raised his riding whip and pointed toward the southern bank of the Emerald River, declaring:

"If you return victorious, then from this river onward, I shall grant you all the land south of it in Kote Province! Furthermore, this river and this plain shall bear your family's name from then on! Let this display the Roland Family's extraordinary nature and its outstanding contributions to the empire!"

Those words stirred the marshal's courage. He commanded that decisive battle brilliantly, ultimately won the war, and saved the empire's fate! At the same time, he won the emperor's promised reward!

After that, the Emerald River was renamed the Roland River! The plain in the south was also renamed the Roland Plain—two hundred years had passed since then, and people had even forgotten what the plain had originally been called!

Because every official imperial document and regional register clearly recorded the names "Roland River" and "Roland Plain."

Although two hundred years had passed, as members of the Roland Family, even these low-ranking guard cavalrymen could not help but feel their hearts swell when they crossed the river and set foot upon this plain!

It was a sense of belonging to the family, a sense of honor!

Look! This was Roland land! This was where the Roland Family's great ancestors had carved their name! Here, the great Roland Family had carved its name into the history of the empire—and into this land itself!

Inside the carriage, Du Wei felt the carriage slow down and heard a commotion outside. He pulled open the window and saw the knights ahead taking off their hats and cheering. The dejected air they had worn throughout the journey vanished from their faces. Everyone radiated heartfelt joy, glory... and reverence!

"We're home! The Roland people are home! We've returned to our own land!"

The cavalrymen cheered, and some even forgot discipline and galloped their horses back and forth. Their horses' hooves joyfully trampled the dark soil. Even their commander made no move to restrain his excited subordinates, merely sitting atop his horse and watching with a smile.

Unlike the empire's other families, the Roland Family had preserved an ancient tradition: the family's knights and warriors were recruited only from the people of its own territory!

A considerable number of the guard cavalrymen who had returned with Du Wei had been born on the Roland Plain! They were true subjects of the Roland Family, people whose families had lived here for generations!

By tradition, the Roland Family's private troops, its guard cavalry, and even the head of the family's personal guards were selected as much as possible from "their own people" of the Roland Plain! Every family head believed that this ensured the loyalty of his subordinates and strengthened their attachment to the family. For example, Alpha the swordsman—the current count's captain of the guards and young master Gabri's first martial arts instructor—had been born and raised on the Roland Plain.

These guard cavalrymen who had been exiled from the Imperial Capital alongside Du Wei had been unhappy about being driven out of the empire. Fortunately, the joy of returning home finally washed away the gloom in their hearts.

Sitting in the carriage, Du Wei watched the cavalrymen gallop about and shout happily. After a brief moment of thought, he immediately understood why. Then he smiled. "Made, have we crossed the Roland River?"

"Yes, my master." Made immediately rode up beside the carriage. There was also a trace of joy on his face. "We're home."

Du Wei glanced at Made. "Oh, Made, tell me—were you born in Kote Province as well?"

"Yes. Although I grew up in the Imperial Capital, my father was a native-born subject of the Roland Family." Made smiled as well. "My father served the Roland Family as a groom for his entire life, and I inherited his work."

After pausing, Made cautiously looked at the young master and lowered his voice. "My master, I must remind you of something... Um..."

"What is it?"

"I'm afraid what you said just now was somewhat inappropriate." A rare seriousness appeared on Made's face!

"What was inappropriate?" Du Wei smiled. "Go ahead and point out my mistake."

"You asked whether I was born in 'Kote Province.' That way of putting it is somewhat improper." Made studied his master's expression as he spoke cautiously. "Although the Roland Plain lies within Kote Province, when a true subject of the Roland Family speaks of his birthplace, we never say, 'I am from Kote Province.' A true subject of the Roland Family would only say, 'I am from the Roland Plain!' Every true subject of the Roland Family feels pride and honor from the bottom of his heart at being a Roland person! My master, so... when you speak to other subjects of the Roland Family in the future, please do not call them 'people of Kote Province.' You must call them 'people of the Roland Plain'! Otherwise, they may feel hurt by those words. And... you are the eldest son of the family head. You must not wound the feelings of the family's subjects with your words."

Seeing this former groom speak such words with such pride, even Du Wei could not help feeling a trace of surprise.

Perhaps... I have truly underestimated this family.

Looking at those joyful cavalrymen and the heartfelt pride on every one of their faces... only a truly great family could achieve something like this.

In that case, when the count in the Imperial Capital had discovered that his eldest son, in whom he had placed such high hopes, was actually an idiot, the disappointment and anxiety in the heart of a count burdened with the family's responsibilities, a father responsible for carrying on the family's glory, were easy to imagine.

Although Du Wei had once disapproved of the cold way that father had treated him, at this moment, he suddenly understood the count's feelings from the depths of his heart!

As a father, perhaps he could endure having a useless son! But as the leader of the family, he absolutely could not tolerate the family heir in whom such hopes had been placed being useless! Because he had to take responsibility for the future of such a great family!

Seen in that light, his decisive abandonment of Du Wei and his coldness toward him were all understandable.

For that brief instant, Du Wei lost himself in thought.

Seeing the dazed expression on the young master's face, Made was somewhat surprised. Since becoming Du Wei's personal servant, what he had seen was this: from the age of six onward, the young master had always worn a calm, composed expression, unmoved by favor or disgrace! When had his master ever shown such confusion and loss of composure?

"Um... my master, shall we continue on our way home?" Made asked carefully.

"Home... Oh, home." Du Wei answered instinctively. Then, all of a sudden, an unstoppable thought surged into his mind!

Home!

At that moment, a ray of light seemed to bloom at last in Du Wei's heart, which had been somewhat lost for so many years!

Yes, home!

For someone like me, who does not belong to this world, what I lack most is a sense of belonging to it! My indifference over these past years, my reluctance to express my feelings, even my deliberate suppression of certain emotions... the root cause is that I have never truly regarded myself as someone of this world! Because of that, in many situations, when facing many things, I have always looked upon this world as though I were merely a spectator, an observer... and that mindset has created the coldness in my heart!

Home... what a beautiful word.

And what I lacked now, was that not precisely a sense of belonging to this world?

For the first time, Du Wei, who had spent the past few years feeling indifferent toward everything, suddenly felt a strange anticipation deep in his heart for his imminent return to the Roland Family's ancestral estate!

Looking at those proud cavalrymen...

Hmm... the Roland Plain? Could he perhaps find a sense of belonging that was his on this land?

He hoped so!

Since truly returning home was already impossible, then... finding a new home for his heart, somewhere he could belong, was something he should do.

After all, since he had come to this world, life had to go on.

Accompanied by the last glow of the setting sun, Du Wei Roland pushed open the carriage door and stepped down. He left the dark, enclosed carriage, stepped out of the shadows, and stood beneath the beautiful sunset.

The rosy light fell upon his face as though it had swept away all gloom. At last, a smile appeared on the boy's face... and there was finally a long-lost emotion in his expression.

That emotion was anticipation!