Book 1 Chapter 279

The next morning.

Leo opened his eyes to the rising morning sun.

*Hwaak-!*

Kal also jolted up from the bed, scratched his belly, and yawned.

"When did you get back?"

"Two hours ago."

"Wow, so you only slept for about two hours? Can't you sleep?"

"Not really. I can go for days without sleeping."

"I feel it again, but you really are a physical monster."

Kal shook his head in disbelief.

At the beginning of his first year, Leo was evaluated as weaker in terms of strength compared to the top students in other departments.

However, there was something he was best at, and that was his inexhaustible stamina.

In the actual Knight Department physical assessment, Leo never once lost first place.

And second place was Chen Xia.

'Even though Celia and Duran are gritting their teeth and training, Leo and Chen Xia are still first and second, right?'

Knowing how hard Duran trained every morning and evening since they started sharing the same dormitory, Kal could only shake his head in disbelief.

'He made such a fuss about building a training room when the dorm was being built.'

Kal recalled the training room located in a corner of the Noble Dormitory and shook his head.

Since students from the Knight Department in the same dormitory also used it frequently, he ultimately thought it was well-built.

'Even female students from other departments use it occasionally.'

Of course, the main reason female students from the Magic or Summoning departments went to the training room to lift dumbbells, which was unlikely for them, was to see Duran.

Thinking that far, Kal poked Leo's side, who had finished getting ready to go, with a mischievous smile.

"By the way, Leo. Going out late at night to meet a girl for two consecutive days. Did anything happen?"

"I just studied magic, so what could have happened?"

"These honor students! They don't know the romance of being a student! The romance of being a student!"

Kal grumbled and ate breakfast.

Today, as yesterday, they were looking for a smith that suited them in the Great Hall.

After breakfast.

The dwarf students were already waiting for the other Hero Academy students in the Great Hall.

Amidst this.

"Huh? Isn't that the dwarf who only made replicas yesterday?"

"He's standing there instead of going into the Great Hall."

"That's a bit unfortunate."

Driana was displaying weapons and armor away from the Great Hall.

However, no Hero Academy student approached Driana.

Rumors about Driana had already spread among the students of other Hero Academies.

A blacksmith who only copied the weapons made by Dwenno.

Regardless of skill, no student wanted to commission weapons from such a student.

Every hero candidate wanted to have weapons made specifically for them.

Of course, if they could obtain Hero Weapons or genuine items as conquest rewards through the Hero World Conquest, everyone would covelace Dwenno's creations.

But what Driana made was merely a fake made by a later person.

Even the weapons displayed on the shelves were from Dwenno's weapon catalog.

As such, while glancing at Driana, the hero candidates from Lumern, Seirun, and Azonia all entered the Great Hall.

It was when Driana was staring intently at them.

"Why do you only make replicas of Dwenno's weapons?"

"Uh, huh?!"

Startled by the voice from behind, Driana jumped up in fright.

"You startled me!"

Driana looked up at Leo, who was standing behind her, and said.

Seeing Driana like that, Leo reached out to one of the spears displayed on the shelf.

Judging by what was displayed here, they were Dwenno's weapons, but Leo couldn't recall them.

'It must have been a weapon made for one of the heroes of Guardsron.'

Leo casually spun the spear in his hand with a light *whirring* sound.

It was a heavy-looking spear, but Leo handled it with ease.

Seeing Leo like that, Driana said.

"As expected, your skill matches your boast of being able to handle all weapons."

Driana, with her arms crossed, said.

"The reason I only make Dwenno's weapons? It's simple. Dwenno's weapons are perfect."

Driana held a sword from the display in her hand, her eyes filled with ecstasy, and rubbed it against her face.

"Look! This beautiful form, close to a work of art!"

"I understand even less. Are you saying you admire Dwenno as a blacksmith? Your way of speaking is also imitating Dwenno."

At those words, Driana's eyes widened.

"How did you know I imitate Dwenno's way of speaking?"

"Because you're imitating Dwenno's speech and intonation exactly as they appear in books. And your speech was different yesterday when there was all that commotion."

"Hmm hmm! Your observational skills are quite impressive!"

Driana, whose speech had changed, gave a somewhat embarrassed smile.

She seemed to be ashamed.

"You copy the weapons Dwenno made and even imitate his way of speaking, so why did you give up on being a blacksmith?"

In Leo's opinion, Driana had given up on being a blacksmith herself.

And that thought was not wrong.

"It's because I can never become like Dwenno."

Driana let out a faint laugh.

"It's no exaggeration to say that Dwenno's level of weapon-making has reached the highest realm."

Respect appeared on Driana's face.

"Most of the genuine weapons left by Dwenno are now old. Some are almost broken and no longer function as weapons. But…"

"But?"

"The moment they are held in the user's hand, they become more powerful than any other weapon. No matter their condition. You probably don't know how amazing that is!"

Driana hopped up and down in excitement, her face flushed.

'Just a moment ago, she was imitating a wise old man, but now she's like a kid her age.'

"It's literally reaching the realm of gods!"

As someone who had handled Dwenno's weapons countless times, Leo knew how extraordinary Dwenno's weapons were.

'Both I and Arion have broken Dwenno's weapons multiple times.'

But that was only after the battle was over.

They performed their functions perfectly until the battle ended.

There were no instances of them breaking.

The weapons stored in Demian's armory now were no different.

Even though they had been neglected and left on display for at least hundreds, and up to thousands, of years.

The moment they were held by a worthy individual, they performed their role.

It was literally the work of a god.

"When I was young, I wanted to be like Dwenno. Other students in Demian feel the same way. They want to be like Dwenno."

Driana smiled faintly.

"That's why I gave up on making weapons."

"Why?"

"Because I can never become like Dwenno."

She imitated his speech and actions as described in the literature, but Driana thought.

She could never reach the same level as Dwenno.

"Demian and other Hero Academies are different."

Driana looked at the display shelf.

It was filled with the replicas she had made.

"Students from Seirun and Azonia don't have to be directly compared to Luna, the progenitor of the nebulae, and Arion the Brave."

Driana looked at Leo.

"Your Lumern doesn't get compared to Kyle, the Hero of Beginning, does it?"

"Even if they wanted to compare, Kyle is a hero whose existence as a real person was only recently revealed."

"That's true. Anyway! The Dragon race doesn't have to be directly compared to the King of Wisdom, but we Demian students are different."

Driana picked up a weapon.

"We are directly compared to the weapons made by Dwenno and our own weapons. So we always realize. That we can never reach that level."

"So you gave up?"

"In my childish days, I said I wanted to be like Dwenno. But now, the more I grow as a blacksmith, the more I realize. My capabilities as a smith."

Driana shrugged.

"I want to be the best! That's why I gave up on the path of a smith early on."

"You might get expelled from Demian?"

"There's no other way. I gave up on the path of a smith."

'This type is new.'

Everyone in the world aims to be a great hero.

However, no one truly thinks of surpassing a great hero.

They are merely left as objects of admiration and longing.

But Driana seemed a little different.

After admiration and longing, she seemed to have wanted to become a smith who surpassed Dwenno.

'And she gave up, thinking she could never reach the same realm as Dwenno.'

Leo looked at the spear in his hand.

He could tell just by swinging it.

Compared to Dwenno, his skill was clumsy.

But that was only when compared to Dwenno.

Driana was an amazing smith.

'If it were Dwenno, he might have passed down his blacksmithing techniques.'

But unfortunately, Leo was not a blacksmith.

Therefore, he had no techniques to pass down.

'Even so, making replicas of Dwenno's weapons like this means she still hasn't let go of her lingering attachment.'

Leo wanted Driana to pick up her hammer and anvil again.

He wanted the girl, who resembled Dwenno, to aim for Dwenno again.

'Dwenno would be genuinely happy if he knew someone like this existed.'

Even though he wanted to be remembered as an artist, not a smith, he also had pride as a smith.

'Crucially… now that Dwenno is gone, a blacksmith who can make powerful weapons is desperately needed.'

Leo narrowed his eyes.

'Giant King Gias is still active.'

A monster with an unimaginably massive body.

It was a 'disaster' in itself, something to be processed.

During the Age of Disaster, he was a monster with overwhelming physical power, to the point where a single wave of his hand could obliterate a city.

However, contrary to his awe-inspiring power, the Giant King was also a very cautious commander.

The fact that he had never acted outwardly in the past 5,000 years was a glimpse into his caution.

Unlike the Monster Queen who freely spread disaster and the Necromancer King who plotted wicked schemes.

He simply remained silent.

'Crucially, he is Tartarus's armory.'

During the Age of Disaster.

If Dwenno was in the subjugation force, the Giant King Gias was in Tartarus.

He, who created all sorts of disaster-inducing weapons, was also the opposite of Dwenno.

'Well, in terms of blacksmithing skill, Dwenno was overwhelmingly superior.'

But now that Dwenno is gone, it's uncertain if there is a dwarf who can forge weapons to counter Gias's weapons.

'How do I change this girl's mind?'

It was when Leo was contemplating.

"So I thought. If I can't surpass Dwenno as a smith, I'll surpass Dwenno as an artist!"

Leo looked at Driana with surprised eyes at her confident declaration.

Currently, there is no record in any literature related to Dwenno that describes him as an artist who admired beauty.

Yet, Driana declared she would become an artist who surpassed Dwenno.

"Why an artist out of the blue?"

"You can tell just by looking at the weapons Dwenno left behind. Dwenno must have been an artist who admired beauty! Otherwise, he couldn't have made such beautiful things!"

It seemed that her self-proclaimed status as an artist was also influenced by Dwenno.

'Amazing. To grasp Dwenno's tendencies just by looking at his weapons.'

Leo was impressed.

Seeing Leo like that, Driana said.

"I got inspiration from you. Actually, I could have gotten more inspiration if you were my nude model… but I sculpted you as a substitute."

Driana wore a confident expression.

"I bet you'll want to be my model when you see this!"

"That won't happen, but I am curious."

When Dwenno sculpted Lisina and Luna, he created sculptures that looked as if they were alive.

Leo always said that Dwenno's sculptures were more beautiful than the originals.

Of course, at those times, Lisina and Luna would lash out with kicks and punches.

Driana took out a clay sculpture of Leo from behind the display shelf.

"Here! Look! My artwork!"

"…"

Leo looked at the misshapen sculpture in Driana's hand.

"It's a monster I've never seen before."

"A monster! This is a sculpture of you! Although I reinterpreted it with my artistic sensibilities! How is it? Isn't it cool?"

Driana proudly presented the so-called Leo sculpture to Leo.

Upon receiving it, Leo felt an indescribable sense of displeasure and fell into thought.

'Where in the world does this look like me? I think I could make a better one even if I made it with my feet.'

Dwenno used to look at Kyle with pity, saying he was cursed with art.

What would Dwenno have done if he had seen the weapons made by Driana?

'He would have smiled kindly, encouraged her, and taught her blacksmithing techniques himself.'

That's how exceptional Driana's talent was.

But conversely, if he had seen this?

Leo, after contemplating, reproduced the action Dwenno would have taken.

*Wheeeek-! Crumb-!*

The clay sculpture of Leo, which Driana called a misshapen figure, was mercilessly crushed.

"Seriously, I think it's better for you not to become an artist. So quit it and pick up your hammer."

'Don't insult art! If you call this art, then quit!'

Dwenno might have become furious and yelled all sorts of curses, shouting, "Quit it!"