Book 1 Chapter 12

[12]11

Leo approached Talatunia, his polearm dangling.

'He's a swordsman, yet he can wield such a weapon?'

Chelsea, who was preparing to assist Leo with magic from afar, looked worried.

Even to Chelsea, Leo's swordsmanship was amazing.

But it was a different story when the weapon changed.

'I wish he'd borrow someone else's sword…'

While Chelsea was worrying.

*Hum- hum- hum-*

As he approached Talatunia, Leo twirled his polearm with his fingers.

A considerable weight was felt.

A weapon that would be difficult for someone Leo's age to wield without the help of aura.

However, for Leo, who had trained beyond his physical limits since childhood, it was not a significant hindrance.

No, rather, this weight became a weapon for Leo.

*Hum-! Hum-! Humhumhumhumhumhum-!*

The lightly spinning polearm began to rotate at a terrifying speed.

Talatunia lunged with its mouth wide open.

*Fwah-!*

Gathering centrifugal force, Leo let the polearm slip from his grip and grasped the end of the handle.

Then he swung it with one hand.

*Thwack-! Splish!*

*Kyaaaaaaaah!*

The axe of the polearm, swung with a full swing, embedded itself in Talatunia's head.

The force gained from the polearm's weight and rotational motion became destructive physical power, shattering Talatunia's head in an instant.

While everyone was astonished.

Leo retrieved his polearm and immediately jumped.

Then, with both hands, he slammed the axe into its back.

*Quag-!*

*Kiiiaak!*

A piercing shriek.

Talatunia stabbed its own back with its long forelimbs.

*Fwah-!*

Leo, who had leaped away to quickly dodge the attack, took a light step.

'I can't use this for long.'

He quickly checked the condition of the weapon.

Although he had successfully landed a blow, the weapon was damaged by a single attack.

Aura not only enhances the attack power of a weapon but also preserves its durability.

"Chelsea!"

"Y-yes?"

"Use wind magic to send the weapons of the other examinees to me!"

Leo shouted while dodging Talatunia's attack.

"In such a fast-moving situation, delicate control is impossible! You could get hurt if you're not careful!"

"I'll catch them, so send them quickly!"

"Uh, what kind of weapons?"

"Any weapon will do! Hurry!"

At Leo's urging, Chelsea received the examinees' weapons and sent them with wind magic.

*Whirrrrr-*

A sharp scimitar and a heavy bastard sword flew towards Leo.

"Use whichever of the two is comfortable!"

*Thwack-! Hack!*

The axe blade of the polearm, which had struck Talatunia's head, broke.

Leo threw the handle backward, stepped back, and extended his hand.

'If I listen to the sound, it's a scimitar and a bastard sword?'

He accurately identified the type of weapon by the sound of its approach.

*Kyaaaaaaak!*

Talatunia tried to stab Leo with both forelimbs.

Leo jumped and spun in mid-air, dodging the attack.

*Tak! Tak!*

Simultaneously, he grabbed both weapons precisely.

A scimitar in his left hand, a bastard sword in his right.

Leo blocked Talatunia's forelimb, which was targeting his body, with the flat of the bastard sword.

*Zzang-!*

An immense shock resonated through his body.

"Kuh!"

Suppressing a groan, Leo was sent flying back and swung his left hand.

*Swoosh-!*

*Kyaah!*

In that short moment, Leo severed one of Talatunia's forelimbs and, recoiling, regained his stance.

Then he charged without hesitation.

Talatunia's defense itself was not high.

It was at a level where it could be cut with just strength, even with weapons not imbued with aura.

Yet, the reason other examinees' attacks were ineffective was simple.

The speed of recovery was faster than the speed of inflicting damage.

'Was the Ring of Life this troublesome?'

Leo chuckled and stepped rapidly.

He poured all his strength into his body, pushing himself to his limits.

His body, which had continuously surpassed its limits over time, responded to Leo's will.

Although he didn't use aura, Leo's movements were nothing short of miraculous.

Seeing this, the other examinees' mouths hung open.

Polearm.

Scimitar and Bastard Sword.

Claymore.

Dagger.

Longsword.

Spear.

Battle Axe.

As each weapon broke, Leo successively used the weapons of other examinees.

And he wielded them with ghost-like skill.

The sight was simply thrilling.

Regardless of the weapon's type, he displayed movements that were close to divine.

As if he could wield all the weapons in the world.

He faced Talatunia without the slightest hesitation.

His appearance was reminiscent of a god of war.

'At best, they're our age, but is it possible to fight like that with such a variety of weapons?'

'What the heck is that guy's identity!'

The examinees aiming to be knights' eyes widened.

Chelsea, who had been assisting Leo, also showed a look of disbelief.

At first, she thought of helping with magic.

But Leo moved too quickly.

A chaotic battle continued where magic could not be used carelessly.

So she worried.

But her worries were in vain, as Leo faced the terrifying monster alone.

The might of a great hero.

The man who, alongside the [Hero] Arion, had led impossible battles to victory on the front lines countless times, was enough to captivate people's eyes.

Even though a small mistake could lead to death, Leo was fearless.

Rather, he felt at ease.

'I was worried after fifteen years, but this feeling hasn't disappeared.'

His breath caught in his throat.

Despite that, he let out a laugh.

He relentlessly pressed Talatunia.

At one point, an attack grazed him, tearing his flesh.

But he didn't stop.

'Forward! Forward!'

A trial? Wasn't every moment a trial in the past?

'If I can't even stop this insignificant bug, those guys will laugh at me in the afterlife!'

This is nothing compared to a trial!

*Crack-*

"Tch!"

He heard the sound of the longsword he was holding cracking.

The weapon had reached its limit already.

In the short span of 5 minutes, dozens of weapons had already broken.

Just as Leo was about to ask Chelsea for the next weapon.

"Leo! I'm ready!"

Hearing Celia's shout in his ear, Leo grinned.

"Hup!"

Then, with all his might, he leaped away from Talatunia.

*Fwah-! Goo-ooooooh-*

And as if to switch out.

Celia leaped up, wielding a Flame Storm imbued with a maddening heat.

The heat was suppressed by a powerful wind.

"Stop! Die! You insect!"

*Kwaaaaaaaaah!*

As she swung her sword, a storm carrying a blazing inferno was unleashed.

The powerful storm tore Talatunia's body to shreds.

The suffocating heat mercilessly burned Talatunia's body.

Talatunia writhed.

The power of the Ring of Life granted the spider infinite life.

But soon, the power of destruction surpassed the power of regeneration.

*Fwoosh-*

The flames died down, and Talatunia vanished, turning into ashes.

*Thump-!*

A golden ring fell to the ground.

[Alby's World: Prologue - Forest of Monsters has been cleared.]

A message appeared before his eyes.

Celia collapsed on the spot.

"It's… it's over."

Tilting her head back, Celia let out a deep sigh and looked at Leo.

Leo, wounded all over, stood panting.

'He really held off that monster for 5 minutes.'

It was astonishing.

Moreover, he stood proudly despite suffering the most.

Celia, who struggled to get up, approached Leo with a smile.

"Leo! You worked hard…"

"Amazing! Truly amazing! You were like a hero from a legend!"

Chelsea approached Leo, jumping up and down with her hands raised.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. I'm aspiring to be a Battle Mage, so I need to practice close combat too. If you enroll in Lumern, could you teach me?"

After seeing Leo's fight, Chelsea, her previous resentment gone, chattered excitedly.

Celia, who approached her side, said,

"There are no skills to teach to a woman from Rwalin. Heh heh-"

"Why are you interfering, Zerdiger?"

Celia and Chelsea began a small argument.

Ignoring them, Leo moved his body.

His whole body screamed, but he ignored it and picked up the ring Talatunia had dropped.

Then, a small golden light burst from the ring.

Along with it, a fairy appeared.

Leo's eyes trembled.

A familiar fairy.

It was Silode, the successor to the Fairy King.

He looked up at Leo without a word.

"Hey… Silode. Do you remember me?"

Leo asked in a slightly trembling voice.

He hadn't met Silode since Luna's death.

However, Silode smiled once without answering and disappeared.

"…"

Leo smiled bitterly.

This was the world of heroes.

The Silode who had appeared now was a fake.

'He seems to have successfully become the Fairy King.'

Alby must have obtained the 'Magic Eye' from Silode in return for defeating Talatunia and recovering the Fairy King's treasure.

Leo looked around.

Suddenly, cracks began to appear in the world.

The cleared Hero's World was disappearing.

'Well, it's over.'

Leo took a deep breath.

Soon, with a bright light, the world collapsed.

In that fleeting moment.

[Clear Reward: Covenant of the Fairy King]

"What?"

A reward that should not have been given was given.

***

Center of the continent.

Lumera City, the central city of the world.

A historic city that has been with Lumern for 3000 years.

An old man stroked his chin at the top of the city.

"Hooh. The Western Region's exam seems to be over."

"As expected of Duke Alby. It seems to be finished already."

"That friend of mine is efficient."

The old man chuckled.

Although he was well over a hundred years old, no one in this world could ignore him.

Sword Saint Kallian Veidyan.

He was a hero among heroes who had reached the pinnacle of the sword.

"Let's see. Hooh? You accepted quite a few!"

"Really? That's unlike Duke Alby! How many are there?"

"Forty."

"…"

Kallian said calmly.

At his words, the woman's eyes trembled.

"Is… is that a lot?"

"Of course. It's a lot. I expected around ten."

Elena clutched her head.

Forty new students for the Western Region.

While other regions admitted a hundred students, only forty for the Western Region.

It was as predictable as the sun rising that protests would flood in from all the families in the Western Region.

"Don't worry too much. It's better than ten, isn't it?"

"True. It is. It's better than ten. Hahaha."

Elena, the secretary to the principal of Lumern, laughed through gritted teeth.

"Who is the top student, Celia or Abad?"

"It's a tie."

"A tie?"

"Yes. Celia and Abad are joint top students. They say it was impossible to determine who was superior."

"As expected."

Elena's eyes lit up.

"And one more thing."

"There's more?"

"There's a recommendation for a freshman representative."

"Duke Alby?"

Elena was surprised, as Alby, who was stingy with his praise, was recommending a freshman representative.

"Is it Celia Zerdiger or Abad Rwalin?"

Normally, the freshman representative recommendation comes from the top students.

Kallian answered Elina, who asked with interest.

"His name is Leo Flob."

"Someone other than Celia and Abad?"

Seeing Elena's bewildered expression, Kallian smiled and looked down at the report.

Name: Leo Flob (15)

Subject: Knightsmanship.

Reason: Talent of a Hero.

'Duke Alby himself picked him, calling him a talent of a hero. I'm curious what kind of student he is.'

Kallian stroked his beard and chuckled.

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