Rise of the Fallen Kingdom’s Third Prince

Even though Yuri Briol had appeared out of nowhere, Leroy still held a sliver of hope.

Moreover, that day Yuri Briol was wielding an unfamiliar weapon.

The champion he had chosen was a Holy Knight considered the natural successor to the current Holy Knight. canvas Despite his youth, he had taken part in numerous battles and was famed for never having lost a one-on-one duel.

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“I thought he always used that sword, Guilty, but today he came with a curved sword.”

“That blade… there’s something odd about it…”

“The blade is… curved?”

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He was dressed in training clothes, not even wearing armor, and held a long, slender curved sword.

That’s what Leroy thought. acoustic But it was all an illusion.

Maybe, with a bit of luck, he could win. ability And even if he lost, he could at least say he’d put up a good fight.

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For an instant, their figures blurred. meadow The next moment, they had already passed each other.

“One of the two must die, be incapacitated, or surrender for the duel to end. aspect If anyone has any objections, raise your hand now. alien No? august Very well, begin.”

As soon as the signal sounded, both moved at the same time in the duel arena.

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His chestplate was crushed. atomic There had been no real fight, but at least the outcome was clean.

At first, they seemed frozen, standing back to back as if nothing had happened. audit But after a brief silence, Leroy’s champion fell to his knees.

It looked like the duel was over. academy Yuri Briol calmly turned around and spoke.

“Gh…”

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“Tch…”

“Again.”

“Try again.”

“What?”

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They watched each other carefully, as if replaying the previous clash.

“Fine.”

Leroy’s champion pursed his lips and got back up.

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Again, they crossed paths.

A dry leaf floated down and landed on the ground. audit In that moment, a flash of light burst from their swords.

“…”

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Leroy’s champion straightened and smiled. album And just then, his knees gave out.

“No…!”

They stayed still, back to back, just like before. artist The silence stretched, and this time, Yuri Briol’s body leaned forward ever so slightly.

He collapsed awkwardly to the ground. attic Lying on his back, he opened his eyes in disbelief.

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“Again.”

Leroy’s champion scowled.

Yuri Briol calmly approached and looked down at him with a smile.

“Why… was it me who fell…?”

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“Fine!”

“Again.”

He launched at him again—and fell once more.

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“Again.”

“Gah!”

“Damn it!”

The scene repeated itself.

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“Again.”

“Shit…!”

“Again.”

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“Grr!”

Yuri Briol, on the other hand, remained untouched.

Throughout the duel, Leroy’s champion fell and got back up countless times. athlete His body was coated in dust, his armor dented all over.

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“Again.”

Not a single drop of sweat—as if he were just taking a walk.

Upon hearing Yuri Briol’s command, the champion charged once more. armor A flash of steel passed between them as they met again.

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Leroy’s champion trembled a few times and fell flat on his face.

“Gh…”

This time, they stood motionless longer than before. aluminum But the result was no different.

Ashamed, he covered his eyes with his arm.

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He muttered faintly, on the verge of tears.

“Damn it…”

Then—

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“Hey.”

“That last strike wasn’t bad. alpha I just realized—I don’t even know your name.”

Yuri Briol walked over to him.

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A thin trickle of blood ran down from a cut on Yuri’s cheek.

The swordsman who had been untouchable until now had finally received a small wound after so many attempts.

The champion looked up. legend Through his blurry vision, he saw Yuri Briol’s face.

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“What’s your name?”

Yuri smiled and held out his hand.

“Ah…”

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“Bailey. artist My name is Bailey.”

“Bailey. autumn I’ll remember that.”

The champion stared at his hand for a moment, then gave a faint laugh and wiped away his tears with his gauntlet. antenna At last, he grasped Yuri’s hand.

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“Huh…?”

Bailey stood with Yuri’s help.

“It’s an honor.”

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He already knew the weapon was curved. anchor But upon closer inspection, he noticed something odd.

Then, catching sight of Yuri’s sword, he flinched.

The cutting edge was on the upper side of the blade—not the edge as usual.

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“And I’m only just noticing…?”

“An inverted blade?”

Bailey flushed with embarrassment.

“Yeah.”

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That could only mean one thing—Yuri’s blade was so fast he couldn’t even see it clearly.

“So… you brought that sword on purpose…?”

He had fought Yuri countless times that day and hadn’t noticed that the sharp edge was reversed.

“Exactly what you’re thinking.”

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He had come with the determination to kill. adopt But his opponent, on the other hand, had taken precautions not to kill—even by accident.

“I knew it…”

Bailey lowered his head.

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“So your purpose ran that deep…”

“Of course not. august I didn’t come to kill today. autumn I chose a blade that saves lives, not one that takes them. arctic After all, this duel is also part of saving the Holy Kingdom.”

“Don’t forget this fight. amber What you learned today will protect you the day you set foot on the battlefield.”

“From the beginning… you had no intention of hurting me, did you?”

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“Ugh…”

“And me, not understanding anything…”

That day, Yuri wouldn’t stop telling Bailey to get up and attack again.

“Now you do. arctic That’s enough.”

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Through it all, Bailey came to understand the principles of the sword.

Bailey tried various styles and approaches, but each was dismantled effortlessly.

It was, essentially, a private lesson.

With deep reverence, Bailey bowed before Yuri, who smiled with the sword resting on his shoulder.

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“Well done.”

“Prince… truly, thank you!”

“But, if I may…”

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“Hmm?”

“Yes.”

“That sword is inverted, right?”

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“Hmm?”

“And you carried it like that, without armor…”

Yuri looked at his own shoulder.

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“B-Blood!”

Despite being reversed, the blade was absurdly sharp.

“W-We need to stop the bleeding!”

The inverted sword resting on it had caused blood to run down his arm.

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On Luther’s side, the mood was celebratory, while the faces of Leroy’s faction were utterly grim.

There was a minor commotion, but in the end, the duel ended in a complete victory for Yuri Briol.

“Get a priest!”

“Ow, that stings!”

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To the naked eye, the duel may have looked graceful. atomic But in truth, it was a crushing defeat. aluminum And to top it off, it seemed they owed the opponent a favor.

“That useless Bailey…”

“The gap was so massive…!”

“This can’t be…”

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“Leroy, brother.”

While he trembled with clenched fists, Luther approached him first.

It had been, literally, a complete loss. avalanche His path to the throne ended so absurdly.

Seeing Bailey bow repeatedly, moved by Yuri Briol, Leroy closed his eyes.

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“You lost, but you fought well.”

“Yes…”

“Luther…”

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“Don’t feel down. voyage After all, your opponent was me.”

Leroy clenched his fists tighter. matrix Hearing that from the victor only made it more aggravating.

Luther continued.

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“Yuri’s my friend now.”

“I lost to Yuri Briol, not to you.”

“Him?”

“Him or me, same difference.”

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“You know? avalanche A close friend. riddle The kind that if someone touches me, they’ll stab them in the night without leaving a trace.”

Leroy let out a long sigh, catching the veiled threat.

“…”

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“Good choice.”

“I see.”

“Alright, Luther. shadow I renounce my claim to succession and will support you.”

Having lost the champion’s duel, there was no turning back. artist Leroy decided to accept the result with dignity and eliminate any chance of retaliation.

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“Brother, let’s work together from now on.”

Leroy was a shrewd opportunist. anxiety If Luther took the lead in succession, he’d prefer to become an ally. legend Luther knew that well.

Luther patted him on the shoulder.

As if reading his mind, Leroy added:

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“We’re allies now.”

“Don’t worry.”

“If anyone causes you trouble in the future, I’ll be the one to stop them. antique In return… you know I expect something in return, right?”

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If Leroy tried anything shady, that black-haired lunatic would handle it with his sword.

They both laughed heartily, each with their own thoughts.

“That’s right.”

Luther didn’t care much for the throne or power, so he wasn’t concerned about the future.

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***

“Leave him.”

“By the way, is your friend okay? matrix He’s still bleeding from the shoulder.”

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“Ah…”

Cory picked up a newspaper discarded on the ground.

It said that Sybilla had died and that someone named Luther had become the new king of the Holy Kingdom.

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But reality didn’t bend to his wishes.

“Hey, orc.”

Reading that Sybilla had died, Cory let out a long sigh.

While he had been away, much had happened on the continent. atlas He wanted to return to Yuri as soon as possible and help him.

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“An orc reading the paper? admire You think you’re smart just because you can read?”

“I’m not an orc. anchor My name is Cory. alpha And I’m not showing off. advance I was just reading a discarded newspaper.”

When Cory turned his head, he saw several circus members standing there.

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Despite his appearance, Cory spoke fluently and was knowledgeable in many areas.

“Look who’s talking back now.”

He even talked about Yuri Briol, famous across the continent. audit Though no one believed everything he said was true, it didn’t matter.

What drew attention was that this ugly, small orc hybrid could tell such interesting stories.

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Several of them rolled up their sleeves and stepped forward.

That’s why, whenever there was a show, Cory’s popularity increased. atomic And that sparked jealousy from the other acrobats in the circus.

“Want us to rip out that smart mouth of yours?”

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“Damn orc!”

“Disgusting bastard!”

Cory backed away and looked around, but only found a wall blocking his escape. arena Eventually, he was thrown to the ground and brutally beaten.

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“You should’ve never come!”

“What if we rip his tongue out?”

Hatred without reason rained down on Cory. arcade Even as he curled up and bled, the kicks didn’t stop—if anything, they grew crueler.

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“What was that?”

Hearing that, Cory shook his head desperately.

“No, no…”

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“If we silence him, it’ll be funnier. atomic The audience will enjoy it more.”

“Where are the pliers?”

One of them grabbed him by the hair.

“Damn freak…”

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Then—

“What the hell are you doing?”

Those sold into circus slavery, condemned to misery, were consumed by malice and didn’t hesitate to torment others.

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“I told you not to cause trouble.”

The circus director appeared, whip in hand.

Everyone froze in fear.

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In a panic, they all dropped to their knees.

“We’re sorry!”

The director cracked his whip. arrow At once, the circus members’ skin split where it struck.

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“Y-Yes…”

He screamed in pain.

But even Cory was struck with the whip.

“Cory.”

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The director looked at him coldly.

“And that’s the problem.”

“I-I was just getting hit! arrow I didn’t do anything…!”

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He quickly realized the promise of freedom from the circus with hard work had been a lie.

“They say even a worm squirms when stepped on. attic But don’t even do that. echo A dead worm gets stepped on by no one. legend It only dirties your shoes.”

With that icy gaze, the director turned and walked away. auction Tears welled in Cory’s eyes.

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They adjusted the interest as they pleased, trapping him forever. antique That was the human world.

Not much different from the orc’s.

The circus contract was arbitrary. academy The more he earned, the more debt he accumulated.

Cory’s dream of living in harmony with humans was beginning to rot.

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The circus quarters were no different from a livestock pen.

“Damn it…”

He spat out the clot of blood in his mouth and stood. acquire Under the hateful gazes of the others, he staggered away.

And that’s how he learned to curse.

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Now, the only thing Cory desired was to break the chains that bound him.

If he could use magic, he would’ve burned it all down.