Book 1 Chapter 287

"Let's break out," Ar said.

Kal showed the handcuffs on his wrist and replied,

"How are you going to break out when your mana is suppressed?"

Ar stood up.

"I'll break them and escape."

"That's not as easy as it sounds."

Kal revealed his anxiety.

Ar closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Saah-!

Ar's aura changed drastically.

His nails grew longer, and his fangs became even sharper.

Ar, with all his fur standing on end, opened his eyes.

His blue cat-like pupils glinted in the darkness.

Goooooo-!

Mana swirled around Ar's body.

"Grrrrr-!"

A low cat-like growl emanated from Ar's throat.

Seeing this, Kal's expression turned to shock.

"W-what is this?"

Dryana realized what was happening before her eyes and looked astonished.

"Shouka? Without a full moon?"

Kieeeing-! Bang-!

The mana seal suppressing Ar's power exploded, scattering debris in all directions.

"It's because I acted rashly that she was captured."

Despite being injured by the reckless use of mana, Ar didn't care.

"So, I'll save her no matter what it takes."

Kikikikik-!

Kal’s jaw dropped as he watched Ar forcibly bend the iron bars with his strength.

Watching Ar, Lunia said,

"I'm going too."

"I'm sorry, but I can't take someone who's been sealed with mana suppression."

The creator of the seal currently suppressing the party's mana was none other than Dwenho.

It was harder to break the seal with external force than to break it with one's own power from the inside.

Upon hearing Ar's words, Lunia unleashed her magic.

Hwaruruk-!

A strong flame erupted from Lunia's entire body.

Pung-!

"If you can do it, don't you think I can too? Eiran is my friend. I'll save her with my own hands."

"Alright. Let's go together."

Lunia looked at Kal and Dryana.

"You two follow after we subdue the guards."

Ar loosened his finger joints and looked at the prison door.

"Then, I'm going."

"Yeah."

"Uryaaaaaaah!"

Kwang!

"W-what!"

"It's an escape! They're trying to escape!"

As Ar kicked down the door and shattered it, guards rushed in to subdue the two.

"Move! Get out of the way!"

Ar sent the guards flying and charged forward, with Lunia following behind.

Hwaruruk-! Kagagagang!

Flame magic swept through the prison.

Watching their retreating figures, Dryana asked Kal,

"Those two are monstrous enough, but just how much more monstrous is Leo Flove?"

In response to Dryana's question, Kal sighed and replied,

"He's a monster beyond imagination."

Kal recalled Leo's appearance.

'What is Leo doing right now?'

***

Leo stared intently at Arion's golden eyes that were fixed on him.

He didn't like sparring with others.

A race that worships beastmen and strength.

Therefore, many beastmen lived lives of struggle.

And that racial tendency made beastmen a strong race.

However, Arion was a beastman unlike any other.

It wasn't because Arion was a coward.

He disliked getting hurt himself and hurting others.

'Too kind.'

Leo smiled bitterly as he thought of Arion.

Born too kind.

A hero who fought only for others.

That was the hero Arion.

'He doesn't seem like a bad person.'

Arion's senses told him so.

'Though I don't know his intentions.'

Since it was related to his disciple, he had no choice but to respond to the provocation.

Sreung-

Arion drew his sword.

'Brave.'

Looking at his sword, Leo also drew his sword.

'Come to think of it, I've never sparred with Arion.'

He had sparred with Luna and Dwenho many times, but never with Arion.

Arion, who disliked fighting, was reluctant to spar even with his friends.

'I was more of the one who stopped him from sparring rather than sparring with him.'

Kai was the one who stopped Luna, the most aggressive of the subjugation team, from attacking Arion.

'Also because the outcome was obvious.'

Arion was a natural genius in martial arts.

Although Kai was skilled with all weapons at a master level, he knew all too well that no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't defeat Arion.

He who had reached the ultimate of emptiness.

That was the hero Arion.

'It's not for nothing that he's worshipped as a god of war in later generations.'

In Leo's eyes, Arion was truly like a god of war.

Leo drew his sword.

Sreung-

'Because he's like that.'

Hwaruruk-!

Flame aura was generated on Leo's sword.

Arion's expression was tense.

'It should be fine to go all out.'

Kagagagang-!

As Leo swung his sword, a wall of flame soared high into the sky.

Hwaak-!

Arion swung his sword, deflecting Leo's sword strike.

Even though his attack was so easily nullified, Leo didn't care and closed the distance to Arion.

Pabababap-!

As Leo approached with an aura step, Arion raised his left hand, which was not holding a sword.

Seeing Arion, Leo unleashed all his aura and accelerated his body.

Kwaak-!

Leo jumped and used Arion's grasping left hand as a support to propel himself upwards.

Chaeeng-!

In an instant, Leo was behind Arion and swung his sword.

However, Leo's sword was blocked by Arion.

Arion doesn't know Leo.

On the other hand, Leo knows Arion all too well.

Arion's breathing and habits during combat.

And even his openings.

Leo, who had fought alongside Arion countless times on the battlefield, saw through Arion's every move.

That's why the previous attack was also an attack that perfectly caught Arion off guard.

His breathing was disrupted, and the timing was completely lost to Leo.

Yet, Arion blocked Leo's attack without much difficulty.

It wasn't simply because Arion was overwhelmingly stronger than Leo.

'Super senses.'

Arion's technique of finely adjusting his aura to push his senses to the extreme.

Leo also used this technique.

'As expected, the original is on a different level.'

Leo needed to sharpen his senses keenly to use super senses.

But Arion was different.

As natural as breathing.

He used super senses as if replacing his original senses.

A realm beyond technique.

Furthermore, his intuition became so sharp that he could move his body to predict the future.

'No wonder he's the strongest martial artist.'

Leo also activated his super senses.

Along with it, he deflected Arion's sword, which was moving to subdue him.

Seeing that, Arion's expression showed surprise.

Tak-!

Landing on the ground, Leo chuckled as he felt a sting on his cheek.

'It's amazing, but he's a monster.'

Sixteen years since his reincarnation.

During that time, Leo worked hard to grow his physical vessel.

Leo's vessel was too small to contain Kai's power.

Fortunately, it was a superior vessel to his previous life, so his growth was unhindered.

'But that doesn't mean I neglected my techniques.'

He continued to hone his martial arts through practice, and he constantly researched new spells.

For summoning, he continuously thought of techniques to make better use of his summoned beasts.

If he returned to his body from his previous life, the current Leo would be stronger than the Kai of his previous life.

But despite pouring so much effort into it, he couldn't surpass Arion in swordsmanship.

'Equal level. No, Arion is slightly superior.'

Leo gripped his sword.

Even now, Arion was not in his prime, nor was he in his Shouka state.

Yet, he couldn't catch up to Arion in swordsmanship.

The pinnacle of martial arts, reached the ultimate.

Leo gripped his sword, looking at the hero Arion.

'Well, I wasn't planning to fight him with just swordsmanship.'

"Sword mage?"

Arion's expression showed surprise.

'He looks about the same age as Berckia, at most.'

Berckia was also a skilled individual far beyond his peers.

Looking at his swordsmanship, Leo's skill far surpassed that of Berckia.

And on top of that, magic?

Hwaruruk-!

Ornate flames and magical flames enveloped Leo's sword.

Leo readjusted his sword and gripped it tightly.

Tak-!

Hwaruruk

"Fiora."

As Leo muttered, Fiora, who had been curled up in his school uniform pocket, poked her face out with a 'piyak-!'

She looked like a fat chick, but she was still a phoenix.

Woong-!

As Leo activated his spiritual power, Fiora's contract mark appeared on the back of his hand.

Hwarururuk-!

The contract mark, which had swallowed Leo's spiritual power, then spewed out flames.

It was Fiora's flames.

Seeing that, Arion's eyes widened.

'Summoning magic too?'

"All-Class?"

Arion's expression showed astonishment.

"Another All-Class besides Kai?"

It was inevitable that he would be surprised.

Arion knew better than anyone how special the power of an All-Class was.

In fact, throughout history, there had been only one All-Class.

Kai.

Yet, a new All-Class had appeared.

And a phoenix at that!

Just as Arion was looking incredulous.

Hwaruruk!

Fiora transformed into a flame and settled on Leo's sword.

Kwaaaaaaaaaa-!

Fiora, embedded in the sword, swallowed the aura and magical flames.

Kwaaaaaa-!

Phoenix wings were created from Leo's sword.

It was the technique with the strongest power Leo could currently use.

"I'm going."

As Leo raised his sword, golden aura erupted from Arion's sword.

Kagagagang-!

A giant pillar of flame and a pillar of golden aura clashed, sweeping through the surroundings.

Hwarruk-!

The surrounding forest caught fire.

Leo controlled the flames and gathered them into his sword.

Then, pointing his sword at himself, he looked at Arion, who was standing unharmed, and chuckled.

The hem of Arion's clothes was slightly singed.

"Terrifying power."

Arion wiped the cold sweat from his brow.

"For such power, you're remarkably unharmed?"

Leo further intensified the heat of the flames imbued in his sword.

"One more time."

Kagagagak-!

Watching Leo spew flames, Arion felt a strange emotion.

Arion, who disliked fighting.

But now he felt his heart pounding.

It wasn't because he enjoyed the fight.

It was because he glimpsed the shadow of someone in Leo's appearance.

'Kai.'

Though their appearances were completely different, the boy before him reminded him of his friend.

Seeing Arion like that, Leo further amplified his power.

This attack was the last one.

'This fight wasn't in vain.'

The technique he was currently using was a fusion of three abilities, based on summoning.

It was a new technique he had created after his reincarnation.

As such, there were points that needed refinement, which he found through this battle.

'I can handle drawing out more of the phoenix's power, can't I?'

Leo felt the power of the phoenix emanating from the back of his hand.

Leo poured stronger spiritual power into the contract mark.

Momentarily-

Hwaruruk!

White flames ignited.

Leo's eyes twitched.

Arion also looked surprised.

Pure white flames ignited in Leo's hand.

'What is this…?'

Leo's expression hardened.

Piyak-?

Even Fiora, embedded in the sword, felt bewildered.

Clearly, these were not Fiora's flames.

Fiora could not produce pure white flames.

But these were undeniably phoenix flames.

And… as far as Leo remembered, there was only one white phoenix.

'The bloodline of the King, which disappeared at the end of the Age of Calamity.'

The moment that thought reached him.

Hwarurururuk-!

White flames erupted from Leo's hand, and a bird with white feathers tinged with red appeared.

"Katariou!"

Arion's expression showed shock as he saw his friend's sworn associate.

Leo also looked with disbelief at the sworn associate of Lysinus who responded to his summon.

[…What are you, human?]

Katariou narrowed his eyes.

[Why do you have my contract mark? I never made a contract with someone like you?]