Book 1 Chapter 114

【114】113.

'Do you think this world is worth saving?'

'What does that mean?'

'It means exactly what it says.'

Elsie stared directly at Leo with an expressionless face.

'It's whether this world has a reason to continue existing.'

'Well…'

Kyle scratched his head.

'Couldn't we just think about that after we've saved it?'

***

He recalled a long-past event.

When Kyle first met Elsie, the Erebos Expeditionary Force had already taken on the form people remembered.

After Lizinas had drawn Kyle into what seemed like an impossible journey.

With Luna, Arion, and Dwenon joining sequentially, the group known to the world as the 'Great Heroes' was formed.

And not long after, the group encountered Elsie.

There were three members in the Great Heroes' party who possessed qualities as summoners.

Kyle, Lizinas, Luna.

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

Kyle could handle both phantom beasts and spirits, but he couldn't match Lizinas.

So they expected Elsie to form a contract with Lizinas.

Furthermore, as a black dragon, Lizinas would undoubtedly have been the best contractor for Elsie, a shadow spirit.

But defying everyone's expectations, Elsie chose Kyle.

'I never did find out why she asked that question before the contract, or why she chose me.'

Kyle and Elsie's contract didn't last long.

This was because Elsie disappeared shortly after the contract, during a battle with the Undead King, Hel Kaiser.

"Black Rabbit! Why are you just standing there?"

Ar approached and asked with a puzzled face.

"No, it's nothing."

'I'll have to talk to her slowly later.'

This wasn't the right situation to talk to Elsie.

And Kyle meeting Elsie was a story for a year from now.

Moreover, Leo wasn't even Kyle.

When the elf girl, who seemed to be the oldest, handed over bowls of porridge, Leo and Ar accepted them.

"Could you possibly give us one more bowl?"

"Pardon?"

"Because I think that man should eat something too."

"Yes!"

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

As Ar ladled out her share, Leo also added some food to Agon's bowl.

"Sir! You should eat too!"

Ar approached Agon and handed him the bowl.

At her words, Agon looked back and forth between the bowl and Ar.

"What's wrong?"

Agon gave a bitter smile, looking at the slightly flustered Ar.

"It's nothing."

Agon took the bowl, found a spot on one side of the clearing, and sat down, with Leo and Ar sitting in front of him.

"You lot, you're from outside."

At his words, Ar hesitated for a moment.

'To be precise, we came from the future.'

Since she couldn't say such a thing outright, Ar nodded obediently.

"Yes."

"Then you'd better leave this city quickly."

"Huh?"

At the sudden words, Ar's eyes widened.

"I know you're not just simple refugees. With that skill at your age, you'd be treated well anywhere."

Agon, who had seen through Leo and Ar's abilities, wore a complex expression.

"There are many places besides this city that would appreciate your skills."

During the Age of Calamity, it was a time when people desperately sought individuals with greater power than now.

This was inevitable, as strong combat power was essential to defend against Tartaros's attacks.

"We can't do that."

"Why not?"

"I told you. Arion sent us here."

Watching Leo speak as he ate his porridge, Ar perked up her ears and tail.

"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. There's been no news from him for half a year already."

At Agon's words, Ar's eyes widened dramatically.

'Disciple?'

For Ar, Agon's words were a shock.

Only heroic achievements were recorded in the Hero Record.

So, little was known about the Great Heroes' past stories.

As all Great Heroes were figures from 5000 years ago, documents about their previous activities were also hard to find.

Therefore, the mention of Agon being Arion's master was enough to excite Ar.

It was a moment to learn a new, previously unknown piece of history.

"Sir! You were Arion-nim's master?"

Agon sighed deeply, looking at Ar who was asking with sparkling eyes.

"Yes, I'm that good-for-nothing's master."

"Arion-nim is amazing though!"

"What?"

Looking at the sparkling-eyed Ar, this time it was Agon who became flustered.

"A noble, great, and brave hero, yet you say he's good-for-nothing after raising such a person… Excessive humility isn't good."

Agon wore an incredulous expression watching Ar praise Arion with a bright smile, while Leo covered his face.

"It seems you're mistaken, young lady."

"Pardon?"

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

Ar's mouth fell open.

"Of course, he possesses incredible power for his age, but."

Agon let out a deep sigh.

"He's a coward, unfitting of his power. The reason Arion left Reisaar was because he was afraid of fighting."

Ar, flustered by the harsh reality, said:

"Ah, I get it! The Arion-nim I know and your disciple must be different people!"

Ar fumbled and pulled out a photo of Arion from her pocket.

"Your disciple doesn't look like this, does he?"

Agon looked at the photo and said.

"No, that's definitely my disciple."

"Lie."

"What did you say?"

Ar stepped backward.

"Th-that can't be. That can't be! Arion-nim! There's no way Arion-nim could be a coward!"

Watching Ar run off, crying and stomping, Agon asked:

"Why is your friend acting like that?"

"She's a kid who has illusions about Arion."

'Well, it is shocking, isn't it?'

For thousands of years, Arion had been a figure of pride and self-respect for the beastkin race.

To the beastkin, Arion was a great hero and a symbol of courage.

He was a revered figure, so much so that there was a tradition of offering prayers to Arion when one's life was on the line in battle.

For Ar, who was still dreaming of being a hero, hearing that such a figure was a coward in actual history must have been a tremendous shock.

Moreover, the world of heroes was actual history itself.

Knowing that fact so keenly, she denied reality and ran away.

"Having illusions about Arion, you say. That's unusual."

"She was saved. By your disciple."

"What did you say?"

"It's not just her."

Leo set down his porridge bowl and stared intently at Agon.

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

He recalled his friend trembling in front of a fight.

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

Although from Agon's perspective, it was a story of the distant future.

Arion saved the world.

"He… grew that much in the last half-year?"

Agon was surprised.

A look of pride appeared on his face.

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

Hearing his son praised, he couldn't help but be happy.

"I don't think we should leave her like that, so I'll go get her."

Leo stood up from his spot to go get Ar.

A little distance away from the clearing, Ar was looking at Arion's photo and muttering.

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

"Can't Arion be a coward?"

"Ack?!"

Ar, who had jumped up and then landed like a startled cat, shouted.

"Y-you startled me!"

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

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

"Not at all. It could happen."

For beastkin, the word 'coward' was akin to an insult.

Furthermore, calling a deified hero a coward was tantamount to insulting the entire beastkin race.

Even if actual history dictated it, people would naturally get angry if they heard stories contrary to their common sense.

But Ar's reaction was strange.

She had a deeply disappointed look, as if she had lost her way.

The once confident Ar now seemed somewhat intimidated.

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

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

Ar looked at Arion's photo, her tail drooping.

And she spoke in a voice tinged with melancholy.

"When I was little, I was an incredibly timid coward."

"That doesn't suit you at all."

"Don't rain on my parade when I'm feeling sentimental!"

Glaring at Leo once, Ar fell back into reminiscence.

"When I was little, I was an incredibly timid coward."

'Starting over from there, are we?'

Watching Ar try to regain her emotional flow, Leo let out a hollow laugh.

"To me, my father always emphasized."

'You must be the best! My daughter, Ar!'

"Every day was a terrible, grueling succession of days."

He recalled the heavily-muscled cat beastkin they had met briefly.

"That man certainly seems like he would have been very strict."

"I told you not to rain on my parade when I'm feeling sentimental!"

Ar, whose tail and ear fur were bristling, let out a deep sigh.

"I always wanted to give up. Every time, my father would tell me. That my name was taken from the name of the Hero, Arion-nim."

A name taken from the greatest hero.

"When I heard that, I somehow felt courageous. So I tried to become like Arion-nim."

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

"To become like the noble, great, and brave Arion-nim… who never shrinks back in any situation."

The only image of Arion the young girl knew was the one she saw in fairy tales.

Ar's tail wagged softly again as she recalled the old memory.

"But to think that Arion-nim was a coward…"

Leo chuckled, watching Ar's tail droop again.

"It's simple."

"What's simple?! This is a complicated problem for a teenage girl!"

Watching Ar shriek, Leo said:

"That coward saved the world."

"…!"

"It might be different from fairy tales. But I don't think that's a reason to be disappointed, do you?"

Leo spoke about the Arion he had seen.

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

Leo smiled.

"Shouldn't he be respected even more?"

Ar widened her eyes and looked at Arion's photo.

The dignified appearance in the photo was clearly an image created by people of later generations.

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

Ar's ears perked up and her tail wagged gently.

"When I heard that, I think I like Arion-nim even more!"

Leo clicked his tongue, looking at Ar who was shouting with a flushed face.

"She's totally gullible."

"I told you not to rain on a girl's sentiments!"

Leaving Ar, who was shrieking 'Ack!', behind, Leo returned to the clearing.

In the clearing, children were cleaning up.

Leo's face darkened slightly at the sight.

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

The clearing Leo remembered was a massive graveyard.

This was because all the children Agon was caring for had already perished from the plague by the time Kyle's party arrived.

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

Leo, who had been wearing a bitter expression, suddenly felt something strange.

'Wait. Plague?'

From a timeline perspective, Kyle, Lizinas, and Luna would arrive in Reisaar a month later.

'It was said that by the time we arrived in Reisaar, everyone in the district except the Sky Guardian had already died from the plague.'

Even the strongest plague wouldn't typically kill this many children in just one month.

Thinking up to that point, Leo recalled a past event.

'Aren't you going to persuade the Sky Guardian further?'

'No. His will is already broken.'

'A broken will can be rekindled, can't it? It's a pity to leave behind such a formidable person.'

'Luna. As you said, a broken will can be rekindled. But…'

Lizinas wore a dark expression.

'Someone consumed by hatred cannot save the world. Let's look for someone else.'

After that, they met Arion, and Agon blessed the expeditionary force's path.

So he had simply dismissed those words at the time.

'Could there be something to it?'

It was then that Leo's expression hardened.

"My, my. This place is still quite messy."

An somehow arrogant voice was heard.

Leo turned his head.

And upon seeing the face there, he scrunched up his own.

Leo also knew this person.

The man who, in the distant future, refused to help the expeditionary force before their battle with Tartaros.

But then, when the expeditionary force was winning successive victories, he joined as if nothing had happened, coveting their achievements and pretending to be a hero—a piece of trash.

The lord of Reisaar,

'Rebaiton.'