A Crusader with System in the Middle Ages

The familiar towers of Pisa City came into Rolando’s view, and he slowed his horse’s pace.

His current Status was not good, but he maintained his composure nonetheless.

He had been riding hard for three straight days. He hadn’t even dared to stop along the way, because stopping could have meant death.

Yes, he had been hunted for three whole days.

Not for himself, but for his brother—his elder brother—and for his family, for the bank.

Just a few days ago, he had accompanied his elder brother, Giacomo de’ Lanfranchi, and several members of the Pisan Governance Council on an inspection tour of Pisa’s subordinate cities.

However, on the way back, they were ambushed.

His brother Giacomo was injured in the attack. To save him, Rolando chose to lead a portion of their men to draw the bandits’ attention, allowing Giacomo to escape safely.

Of the original party of twenty, only three remained, including himself.

He felt sorry for those who had lost their lives. He had done it for his brother, but they had died for someone they barely knew.

Rolando firmly believed that no amount of Silver Coins could ever compensate for the weight of a human life.

Therefore, those who survived had to live in a way that honored the dead.

As he neared the city gate, a sharp-eyed guard recognized him. The guard quickly ran to his side, took hold of his horse’s reins, and helped him dismount.

”Lord Rolando.”

”Have you seen my brother, Giacomo? Is he back in Pisa?”

”Lord Giacomo arrived in Pisa last night.”

”How is he? The bandits wounded his abdomen with a Sword.”

”We’ve already summoned the best doctors in Pisa. But I don’t know the specifics of his condition. Perhaps you should go see for yourself.”

”Alright, thank you for your trouble. Take care of my horse.” Rolando pulled a Silver Coin from his pocket and tossed it to the guard.

Then, with his attendants in tow, he ran toward the Lanfranchi Mansion.

Pisa City was more clamorous than ever, as more and more people had nothing to do. There were peddlers, beggars, dockworkers, thieves looking for an opportunity, old prostitutes unable to work in the brothels, foraging dogs, hissing geese, and even a few stray pigs that had escaped their pens and were running wild in the streets.

After navigating the chaotic streets with difficulty, Rolando entered the familiar mansion.

The mansion’s courtyard was packed with people, livelier than ever before.

This made Rolando’s heart tighten. He wanted to see his brother as soon as possible, but he hadn’t taken more than a few steps before someone called out to him.

It was his friends. Most of them were from families with long-standing ties to the Lanfranchi Family, and Rolando had known them since he was a small child.

”God be praised, Rolando, you’re alive!”

”You don’t look dead, just like you’re still sleeping off a hangover.”

”We’d already decided. If someone had killed you, we would have definitely gotten revenge for you. Without Rolando de’ Lanfranchi, we’d have to tell ourselves dirty jokes.”

”And those weird sets of lewd pictures. To be honest, though, I surprisingly liked that one set,” another person added.

”I think you were just worried there’d be no one left to pay for your drinks,” Rolando said with a laugh.

”Someone said you killed people,” one of them said.

”I had to. I had to survive first. I could think about everything else later,” Rolando said with a shrug.

”You might not like hearing this, Rolando, but that was both brave and foolish. You need to learn to think like a banker. It’ll help you live a long life, or at least a little longer.

I can’t even remember how many times this has happened in the last ten years. You have to think about yourself. You should marry a girl, have a child of your own, and stop being your brother’s shadow. He’s the elder son and the heir; he should be able to handle his own affairs,” one of his shorter friends said, tilting his head.

”Giacomo can’t handle it all by himself. I’m just helping out a little,” Rolando said, rubbing his nose.

”A little help? The kind that gets you killed? God won’t always be watching over you. Think about yourself for once.”

”I’m not doing it all for Giacomo. It’s for myself, too. Giacomo and I have the same goal. We’re just working together to make it a reality,” Rolando stressed.

”Oh, Rolando, you make it sound like we’re still living twenty years ago, back when we were just little tykes who could barely hold a pen. You’re not joking, are you?”

”Do you remember the story of my great-grandfather?” Rolando asked suddenly.

”Of course, of course, you’ve told it a hundred times. A hundred years ago, your great-grandfather came to Pisa with nothing. The head of the Wool Merchants Association took him in and protected him while he was still a serf. After he made his fortune in the wool trade, he adopted the association’s motto as your family’s motto.”

”I can even recite it from memory: ’Let us help one another and believe that the public good is greater than private gain,’” the short friend said with a shrug.

”Does anyone even remember that Pisa is a Repubblica?” Rolando asked, looking at his friends.

”But Pisa has always been this way. Besides, the Wool Merchants Association in Pisa went out of business thirty years ago. Before we were even born, Rolando.”

”Just because it’s always been this way, does that make it right? A King used to rule Pisa. If the Pisa of the past was different from the Pisa of today, then the Pisa of the future can certainly be different from the Pisa of today as well.

Other than that, what else is worth fighting for? What is Pisa now? A game played between nobles? And what even is a noble?