Book 1 Chapter 114

"Do you think this world is worth saving?"

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said."

Elsie stared at Leo with a blank expression.

"Is there any reason for this world to continue to exist?"

"Well,"

Kyle scratched his head.

"Can't we just think about that after we save it?"

***

He recalled past events from a long time ago.

It was after the Erebus Extermination Squad had taken on the form people remembered when Kyle first met Elsie.

After Rhys had drawn Kyle into an impossible journey.

Luna, Arion, and Deweno joined one after another, and the group of 'Great Heroes' known to the world today was formed.

And shortly after, the group encountered Elsie.

There were three members in the Great Hero group who possessed the aptitude of summoners.

Kyle, Rhys, and Luna.

Among them, Luna had no talent as a spirit user.

Kyle could handle both summoned beasts and spirits, but he was no match for Rhys.

So, they expected Elsie to form a contract with Rhys.

Moreover, as Rhys was a black dragon, he would have been the best contractor for Elsie, a shadow spirit.

But to everyone's surprise, it was Kyle whom Elsie chose.

'I never heard the reason why she asked that question before the contract, or why she chose me.'

The contract between Kyle and Elsie did not last long.

This was because Elsie perished in the battle against the Necromancer King, Hell Kaiser, not long after the contract.

"Black Rabbit! What are you doing standing still?"

Arga approached and asked with a puzzled look.

"No, it's nothing."

'I'll have to talk to Elsie later, slowly.'

It wasn't the right situation to talk with Elsie right now.

Besides, Leo meeting Elsie was a story from a year from now.

And Leo wasn't even Kyle.

The elf girl, who appeared to be the oldest, handed over the bowls, and Leo and Arga accepted them.

"Could you give us one more bowl?"

"Yes?"

"I think that man over there also needs to eat something."

"Yes!"

At those words, the elf girl smiled brightly and handed over another bowl.

As Arga portioned out his share, Leo also added food to Agon's bowl.

"Mister. You eat too!"

Arga approached Agon and offered him the bowl.

At those words, Agon looked back and forth between the bowl and Arga.

"Why are you doing that?"

Seeing Arga slightly flustered, Agon gave a bitter smile.

"It's nothing."

Agon took the bowl and sat down in a corner of the open space, and Leo and Arga sat down in front of him.

"You two are from outside."

At those words, Arga paused for a moment.

'More precisely, from the future.'

Unable to say that directly, Arga nodded obediently.

"Yes."

"In that case, it would be best to leave this city quickly."

"Yes?"

Arga's eyes widened at the sudden remark.

"I know you're not just simple refugees. With your skills at your age, you would be valued anywhere."

Agon, who saw through Leo and Arga's abilities, wore a troubled expression.

"There are many places besides this city that will value your skills."

During the Age of Calamity, it was a time when they desperately needed talented individuals with greater power than now.

It couldn't be helped, as strong forces were essential to defend against Tartarus's attacks.

"We can't do that."

"Why not?"

"As I said, Arion sent us here."

Arga's ears and tail perked up as he watched Leo eat the stew.

"Right, you said Arion sent you here? Where is he now?"

"You don't know where Arion is either?"

"I don't know. That foolish disciple of mine. He's been silent for half a year already."

At Agon's words, Arga's eyes widened.

'Disciple?'

Agon's words were a shock to Arga.

Hero Records only documented achievements as heroes.

Therefore, very little was known about the past of the Great Heroes.

As all the Great Heroes were figures from 5000 years ago, documents about their previous actions were also difficult to find.

Thus, Agon being Arion's teacher was enough to excite Arga.

It was a moment of discovering new, previously unknown history.

"Mister! Were you Arion-nim's teacher?"

Seeing Arga ask with sparkling eyes, Agon let out a deep sigh.

"Yes, I'm the teacher of that good-for-nothing fellow."

"Arion-nim is so amazing!"

"What?"

Seeing Arga with sparkling eyes, this time it was Agon who was taken aback.

"You raised a noble, great, and brave warrior, yet you call him good-for-nothing… Even humility has its limits."

Seeing Arga praising Arion with a bright smile, Agon looked bewildered, and Leo covered his face.

"Miss, I think you are mistaken."

"Yes?"

"My disciple is not noble. Nor is he great or brave."

Arga's mouth dropped open.

"Of course, he has immense power unbecoming of his age."

Agon let out a deep sigh.

"He's a coward unbecoming of his power. The reason Arion left Leysar was because he was afraid of fighting."

Arga, flustered by the harsh reality, said,

"Ah, I see! The Arion I know and your disciple must be different people!"

Arga fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a photo of Arion.

"Your disciple isn't someone who looks like this, right?"

Agon looked at the photo and said.

"No, he is indeed my disciple."

"Lies."

"What did you say?"

Arga backed away.

"Th-that's impossible. It can't be! Arion-nim! That Arion-nim can't be a coward!"

Arga ran away crying, "Waaaaaah!" and Agon asked,

"Why is your friend acting like that?"

"She has an illusion about Arion."

'I guess it's understandable to be shocked.'

Arion had been the pride and honor of the beastman race for thousands of years.

To the beastmen, Arion was a great warrior and a symbol of courage.

He was so respected that there was a tradition of offering prayers to Arion when facing battles where their lives were at stake.

To think that such a person was actually a coward in actual history would have been a tremendous shock to Arga, who aspired to be a hero.

Moreover, the world of heroes is actual history itself.

Knowing this keenly, she fled, denying reality.

"He has an illusion about Arion, you say? How peculiar."

"She was saved. By your disciple."

"What?"

"It's not just her."

Leo put down his bowl of stew and looked intently at Agon.

"Of course, Arion is a coward. I know that better than anyone."

He recalled a friend who trembled before a fight.

"But he saved many people in places you don't know. I am also one of the people he saved. So, you can be proud of your disciple."

Although it was a story far in the future from Agon's perspective.

Arion saved the world.

"Did that child… grow that much in the last half year?"

Agon was surprised.

Pride appeared on his face.

Although he had spoken ill of him, Arion was like a son to Agon.

It was natural for him to be happy when his son received praise.

"I don't think I can just leave him like that, so I'll go get him."

Leo stood up to retrieve Arga.

A short distance away from the open space, Arga was murmuring while looking at Arion's photo.

"Arion-nim was a coward, I can't believe it. Something is wrong."

"Is it wrong for Arion to be a coward?"

"Hyaak?"

Arga, who jumped up and down like a startled cat, shouted.

"Y-you startled me!"

"There's no need to be so surprised."

"Black Rabbit! Don't you have any thoughts about Arion-nim being a coward?"

"Not at all. It can happen."

To beastmen, the word 'coward' was an insult.

Furthermore, calling a deified warrior a coward was tantamount to insulting the entire beastman race.

Even if it were true history, one would naturally get angry upon hearing stories contrary to their common sense.

However, Arga's reaction was strange.

Her expression was somewhat deeply disappointed, as if she had lost her way.

Arga, who had been so confident, seemed somewhat intimidated.

"Is the fact that Arion was a coward really that shocking?"

"Arion-nim's story gave me courage."

With her tail drooping, Arga looked at Arion's photo.

And in a voice tinged with melancholy, she said,

"I was terribly timid and cowardly when I was young."

"That doesn't suit you at all."

"Don't dampen my sentimental mood!"

Glares- Arga glared at Leo once and sank back into her memories.

"I was terribly timid and cowardly when I was young."

'Starting from there again?'

Watching Arga regain her emotions, Leo let out a wry laugh.

"My father always emphasized to me."

'You must become the best! My daughter, Arga!'

"It was a series of terribly difficult days, every single day."

He recalled a cat-like beastman with immense muscles whom she had met briefly.

"Certainly, that man must have been very strict."

"I told you not to dampen my sentiment!"

Arga, whose fur on her tail and ears bristled, let out a deep sigh.

"I always wanted to give up. Whenever that happened, my father would tell me. My name is Arga, named after the warrior Arion."

A name taken from the name of the greatest hero.

"Hearing that, I don't know why, but I felt courageous. So, I tried to become like Arion."

So as not to be ashamed of the name 'warrior'.

"Noble, great, brave… Like the Arion who was never intimidated in any situation, who was always confident."

The Arion known to the young girl was entirely the image from fairy tales.

Recalling the past, Arga's tail began to wag again.

"But that Arion-nim was a coward…"

Seeing Arga's tail droop again, Leo chuckled.

"It's simple."

"What's simple! It's a complex issue for a teenage girl!"

Kyaa! Seeing Arga scream, Leo said,

"That coward saved the world."

"……!"

"It might be different from a fairy tale. But I don't see any reason to be disappointed."

Leo spoke about the Arion he had seen.

"That coward was the most courageous when everyone despaired. That's why the gods call him a warrior."

Leo laughed.

"Shouldn't we respect him even more?"

Arga's eyes widened as she looked at Arion's photo.

The dignified appearance in the photo was clearly a depiction created by later generations.

But the fact that Arion was a warrior, that he achieved great deeds, remained unchanged.

Arga's ears perked up, and her tail wagged.

"N-now that I've heard that, I think I like Arion-nim even more!"

Seeing Arga shouting with a flushed face, Leo clicked his tongue.

"She's completely impressionable."

"Don't dampen a girl's sentiment!"

Aaaah! Leaving Arga shouting behind him, Leo returned to the open space.

In the open space, the children were cleaning up.

Seeing them, Leo's expression darkened slightly.

'Come to think of it, are all these children going to die from the plague?'

The open space Leo remembered was a giant graveyard.

The children Agon was taking care of had all died from the plague by the time the Kyle's group arrived.

As Leo, who knew history, it was painful to see this place.

While wearing a bitter expression, Leo suddenly felt something strange.

'Wait. Plague?'

Chronologically, Kyle, Rhys, and Luna would arrive in Leysar in a month.

'When we arrived in Leysar, it was said that everyone in the district, except for the Guardian of the Azure Sky, had died from the plague.'

No matter how strong the plague was, it was strange for so many children to die within a month.

Thinking that far, Leo recalled a past event.

'Aren't the Guardians of the Azure Sky trying to persuade him more?'

'Yes. His will has already been broken.'

'Will can be revived, you know. It's a shame to leave behind someone like that.'

'Luna. As you said, a broken will can be revived. However…'

Rhys said with a dark expression.

'A person who harbors hatred cannot save the world. Let's find someone else.'

After that, they met Arion, and Agon blessed the extermination squad's path.

So, he let that remark slide at the time.

'Could it be, there's something going on?'

It was when Leo wore a grim expression.

"This is indeed a messy place, as always."

A somewhat arrogant voice was heard.

Leo turned his head.

And upon discovering the face there, he scowled.

Leo also knew the person.

The man who refused to help the extermination squad when they requested assistance before their battle with Tartarus in the distant future.

But when the extermination squad was triumphant, he joined as if nothing had happened, sought fame, and acted like a hero, a trash.

The lord of Leysar,

'Leviton.'