The King

### *THE BLACK ROSE AND THE SHATTERED OATH* #### *Chapter 1: The Loser Has No Right To Love* _[Aethelgard Capital - Year 847, Age of Chaos]_ I spat a mouthful of blood onto the marble floor of Volcano Academy. Three ribs, probably broken. All thanks to "my fiancée." Lisa Oxynya. A name as beautiful as a gemstone, but with a heart as hard as obsidian. The Oxynya House worshiped Dark Magic. Her father, Marquess Grack, had fought alongside my father through life and death in the g******e War ten years ago. The two men swore that if they survived, "Our children shall wed." A foolish oath. "Lisa..." I struggled to my feet, leaning against a pillar. Before me stood Prince Ather, his Holy Sword Sanos still dripping with blood—my blood. "Why?" Lisa stood behind Ather, her arm linked with his. The black silk dress of House Oxynya only made her skin look paler. She didn't look at me. She looked at Ather's sword as if it were a god. "Why, Vincent?" Ather smiled. His voice was warm as honey, but his eyes were cold as ice. "Because your fiancée got on her knees and begged me. She said, if I broke the legs of the Von Rose family's dog, she would be mine." My heart didn't hurt. Strange. Betrayed, yet no pain. Maybe because I never had any illusions. I, Vincent Von Rose, son of "Beggar Count" Richard. My domain was nothing but ash, my people nothing but bones. What right did I have to keep a black rose of House Oxynya? I had no magic. No combat skills. The Black Rose crest had withered since the day my father lost a leg in the g******e War. And Ather? He was the heir to the Sword Saint, Athur Sanos. One in a hundred years. At sixteen, he cut a Terra Dragon in half. The people called him "The Saint Incarnate." A cripple fighting a god. The outcome was clear from the start. "Vincent Von Rose," Ather sheathed his sword. That _click_ pronounced the death sentence on my honor. "You carry the blood of a loser. Your father lost in the g******e War, lost his entire legion. Now it's your turn. Losers... have no right to keep a rose." Laughter erupted around us. That's how the nobles of Volcano were. They loved the smell of a fallen man's blood. Lisa finally spoke: "Vincent... I'm sorry. I was born to stand beside the strongest. House Oxynya cannot be tied to a ruined house. His Highness Ather will end the war. And you..." She paused, "...you can't even protect yourself." Damn. That hurt more than the beating. I should have screamed. Should have sworn revenge. Should have yelled "Traitor." But I just found it funny. Because she was right. I wiped the blood from my lip with the back of my hand. I looked straight at Ather, not at Lisa. Because the moment she told him to beat me, Lisa Oxynya had already died in my heart. "Your Highness, the Holy Sword," I said, my voice hoarse. "You are right. The loser has no right." I staggered past him and picked up the torn betrothal contract from the ground—the one Ather had ripped up before he beat me. "Therefore, I, Vincent Von Rose, unilaterally annul the betrothal with Lisa Oxynya. From today, the Black Rose has no ties to the Obsidian." "How dare you?!" Ather glared. He didn't expect the dog he just beat to dare throw away the bone first. "Why not?" I smirked. My ribs screamed in pain, but I stood straight. "For a loser like me, keeping a betrothal with the lady of House Oxynya is the real insult to her. Letting her serve the Holy Sword with all her heart... isn't that better?" That sentence was like a slap to Lisa's face. Her face went from white to green. She understood my meaning: "I disdain to take a woman who trades her body for someone else's punches." "You...!" Ather stepped forward, his killing intent exploding again. But this time, I didn't dodge. "Kill me, Your Highness," I stared straight into his eyes. "Kill the son of the 'Beggar Count.' Kill the last war hero of the g******e War. Let the entire capital see how great their 'Holy Sword' is, that he won't even spare a cripple." He froze. He didn't dare. The reputation of the "Holy Sword" was what he treasured most. Killing me here would make him a "tyrant." "Get the hell out of the Academy, you country bumpkin," he gritted out each word. "This place doesn't house trash." I turned away. Didn't look at Lisa even once. Why look at a dead person? The moment I stepped out of the Academy gates, it began to rain. Rainwater mixed with the blood on my face, salty and bitter. I tilted my head to the sky, letting the rain wash away the stench of rotten nobility. That was when it happened. The back of my right hand—where the Holy Sword Sanos had cut me—suddenly burned. A tattoo surfaced beneath my skin. It wasn't the Black Rose crest. It was a black rose wrapped around a broken sword, emanating purple mana. Forbidden mana. The mana of the "g******e King"—the one who had been sealed by the first Sword Saint, Athur Sanos, a thousand years ago. A voice whispered directly into my mind, colder than the rain: _["Do you desire power, child of the withered rose? Sign a contract with me. I will give you the power to make the world kneel."]_ I looked at the tattoo. Looked back at the magnificent Academy behind me. In there were Ather, Lisa, and all the people who had just laughed in my face. I had nothing left to lose. Honor? Torn. Fiancée? Sold herself. Domain? Only ash. The only thing left... was hatred. "I sign," I said to the void. Blood and rainwater dripped from between my fingers. "Not for Lisa. Not for the throne." I clenched my fist, letting the thorns of the black rose pierce my flesh. "But because of this debt... House Von Rose will make the entire Kingdom pay in full." Purple mana erupted, swallowing me whole in the downpour. And from that day, Volcano Academy lost a trash noble. The world gained a new g******e King. _[End of Chapter 1]_ ---