Guld Hildis was, for better or worse, an utterly ordinary man.
Born as the second son of the Hildis family, he was raised with a noble’s education.
He also trained in swordsmanship, just in case.
His ability was above average.
He wasn’t a genius, but he possessed a fair amount of talent.
That was all.
He had no other outstanding gifts, nor any special abilities.
He was a plain, ordinary man.
However, Guld himself didn’t mind that.
Just because he was ordinary, his parents never treated him unfairly—they loved him just as much as his gifted older brother.
They were kind to him.
Since his brother, who was ten years older, was set to inherit the family, Guld felt no particular pressure.
He believed that one day he would simply assist his brother.
The turning point came when Guld was ten years old.
The brother who was meant to inherit the house died in an accident.
There were no other children.
Guld became the successor…
and inherited the family.
At first, there were no problems.
Though he was inferior compared to his genius brother, he didn’t have to govern everything on his own.
It was only natural to rely on capable people for support.
The Hildis household had abundant talent, and they were able to firmly support the young new lord.
Even his retired parents returned to offer advice and assistance.
Thanks to that, things went smoothly at first, but…
That was all.
They could barely maintain the status quo, and the territory failed to develop.
The town, once lively when his brother had been alive, grew eerily quiet.
Before long, people began voicing certain thoughts.
"Why did the brother have to die?"
"Why was Guld the one who remained?"
It wasn’t that people were dissatisfied with Guld.
They simply couldn’t abandon the thought of what if his brother were still alive?
And so, without meaning to, those words slipped from their lips.
Those unconscious blades of words tore into Guld’s heart.
It was then that Guld was, for the first time, compared to his brother.
And in doing so, he was made painfully aware—more than he ever wished—of his own weakness.
They wouldn’t acknowledge him because he lacked power.
They longed for his brother because he lacked power.
Because he lacked power…
Before he realized it, Guld had begun to crave power.
He came to mistakenly believe that if only he had power, he would be acknowledged.
From then on, all Guld thought about was becoming strong.
All he considered was how to obtain power.
And then—
One day, those who called themselves the Alliance of Dawn made contact.
They were a suspicious group, but they possessed an extraordinarily tempting item: a demon sword.
A weapon that granted its wielder power beyond human limits.
Of course, there were risks…
But if he could gain power, that didn’t matter.
He didn’t care about the risks.
Having made that judgment, Guld negotiated with the Alliance of Dawn and obtained the demon sword.
Thus, Guld acquired power.
The strength granted by the demon sword far exceeded his imagination.
Even A-rank adventurers were no match for him.
Guld, who should have been ordinary, now surpassed everyone.
He had gained power.
After finally fulfilling his long-cherished dream, Guld took his next step.
What does someone who gains power do?
That is—
They display their power and force others to submit.
With power, anything is possible.
You can make people move as you wish.
No one would ever again say,
"Why didn’t the brother survive?"
Yes.
Power itself is justice.
…On that day, a fatal error occurred within Guld’s heart—
yet no one, not even Guld himself, realized it.
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