Book 1 Chapter 304

"Wow, it's really a mess. A real mess."

In Demian's ward, Kal, dressed in patient clothes, clicked his tongue while reading a newspaper.

"It's a natural reaction. The Giant King, who hasn't shown himself for thousands of years, has appeared. Yam-"

Lunnia said, eating an apple that was neatly cut into the shape of a rabbit on the table.

"You have surprisingly good dexterity."

As Driana said, piercing an apple with her fork, Arg glared at her.

"What do you mean surprisingly? Surprisingly?"

"But it's really pretty."

It was when Eiran admired the rabbit-shaped apple, looking as if it would be a waste to eat it.

*Grind-*

The door opened, and Leo entered.

"Did you get treated well?"

"You need to rest for a few more days."

Leo, who answered Kal's question calmly and took a bite of the apple, muttered with a dark face.

"A tragedy of mutual destruction among kin."

"What are you talking about?"

Leo, who looked at Arg strangely, sat down next to Kal with a thud.

Kal folded the newspaper and muttered.

"By the way… it was amazing."

"That's right."

They knew the Great Hero was amazing.

In fact, except for Driana, they had actually witnessed the Great Hero's exploits.

But this was the first time they had shared so much time together, hearing and learning so much from the Great Hero.

"Among the conquerors who conquered the worlds of the Great Heroes, I don't think anyone learned anything from them like we did."

Arg also crossed his arms and nodded.

"Come to think of it, Leo, you didn't see Master Kyle again, did you?"

"Kyle? What are you talking about?"

"We met Master Kyle right before completing the conquer of the Hero's world."

"Phoo! Cough! Hacked? Cough!"

At Driana's words, Leo choked.

Eiran, startled, patted Leo's back.

Leo, who finally calmed down, asked.

"You saw Kyle?"

"Yes, Master Kyle was also amazing. He easily dealt with the flames of Erebus. Wow… seeing him up close was truly astonishing."

Kal muttered, recalling the events at the time.

"It was also amazing that he summoned Pegasus as a mythical beast."

At Lunia's muttering, Arg crossed his arms.

"His swordsmanship was also perfect, without any superfluous movements."

Driana nodded, "Mmm-hmm."

"Finally, the magic used for the final blow was also beautiful."

Kal clicked his tongue.

"I thought, 'This must be what a truly perfect all-rounder is like'."

Eiran smiled brightly.

"Yes! It was just like you, Leo!"

'Of course. It was me.'

"Leo is far from catching up to Master Kyle."

"No matter how great the black rabbit is, Kyle is a Great Hero, isn't he?"

"It's a shame you didn't see him; he would have been a great role model."

At the words of Lunia, Arg, and Driana, Leo let out an inner chuckle.

'That's me, you guys.'

"By the way, are you in the ward for the duration of your exclusive contract with Smith?"

Kal rested his clasped hands behind his head and leaned back deeply on the sofa.

"I have to get a thorough check-up and write a report about what happened in the Hero's Record."

Lunia also sighed softly.

"Just thinking about having to see the faces of those annoying teachers makes me annoyed already."

"You've definitely chosen your path as a delinquent student."

"Huh? Complaining?"

"How could I, older sister?"

When Lunia asked with a faint smile, Kal hastily shook his head.

He thought he might get hit if he teased her unnecessarily.

"Speaking of the exclusive contract with Smith."

Driana put on a serious expression.

"This incident made me think a lot. I said I respected Master Dweno, but what did I do… I didn't do anything. So I've come to reflect on a lot."

"Did you also reflect on claiming that the weird junk you made was art?"

"Be quiet, you foolish cat."

Driana glared at Arg and cleared her throat.

"Meeting Master Dweno this time, I learned and felt a lot."

Driana looked down at her small palm.

"I've clearly realized what I can do with these hands, and what I should do."

Driana said, clenching her fist tightly.

"If you allow it, I want to become your exclusive Smith."

"It would be an honor for someone as outstanding as Ms. Driana to become our exclusive Smith!"

"Although he's a pervert, his skills are certain."

"Above all, it's a skill recognized by Master Dweno."

Eiran, Arg, and Lunia nodded.

Driana smiled as she looked at the three of them.

"Thank you. Then, let's write the exclusive contract."

Driana took out a contract and a pen from her pocket and distributed them to the five people.

"Alright, alright, all you have to do is sign in the last signature box."

As Driana pointed to the signature box on the back page and spoke, Lunia, Arg, and Eiran were about to sign without much suspicion.

Seeing that, Kal exclaimed in horror.

"Hey, hey, hey! What are you guys doing!"

"Huh? We're about to sign the exclusive Smith contract…"

"What if you sign without reading it properly and there's a strange clause?"

"Huh? Ms. Driana would never deceive us, would she?"

"A noble young lady is naive."

Kal shook his head, muttering.

Meanwhile, Lunia and Arg narrowed their eyes and turned the pages of the contract with a rustling sound.

And upon seeing the clause in the last article, they glared at Driana.

"What is this?"

"It's a clause about a model contract for my artistic activities."

"But why is it a nude model?"

"The form you were born in! Isn't the pure form the most beautiful form! Especially Lunia! Since Master Dweno personally selected you as a nude model, I have a duty to express your naked body as art and inform the world…!"

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

Lunia, her face bright red, tore up the contract with a *buck-buck-buck-buck* sound.

Arg also tore up the contract with a *zzik-* sound.

Eiran's face was flushed.

"Be grateful to me."

Kal also said, tearing the contract in half.

Watching them, Leo let out a deep sigh.

'Are these guys really growing up?'

***

It was on the last day of their exclusive Smith contract period that Leo and Kal left the ward.

On their way back to the dormitory, Kal let out a deep sigh.

"In the end, I've completely missed the entire semester's schedule. It's a miracle I can attend the final banquet. I thought I'd have to stay in Demian for a few more days!"

Kal made a disgusted expression.

"That's how much there was to talk about from conquering the Hero's world."

It was truly an unprecedented situation.

During the Age of Calamity.

It was truly amazing to have personally experienced the Battle of Guardesron, one of the largest battles.

Not only Dweno, the protagonist of the Hero's Record, but also fellow Great Heroes, Arion and Kyle.

Even Berqia, one of the greatest figures of the elves, appeared in this Hero's world.

As there had never been a Hero's Record with such a large number of great figures from the greatest races appearing, the experience of Leo and his group held immense academic value.

Sedjen, who overheard their conversation, said.

"You both went through a lot. Especially you, Kal. You suffered the most."

"Well, Professor Sedjen helped me."

The most attention received in this investigation was none other than Kal.

It couldn't be helped.

Kal's conquer reward was Dweno's alchemy book.

In other words, it was Dweno's knowledge itself.

Unlike Leo, who announced that he had no conquer reward, considering the other party who obtained items made by Dweno as a reward and the resulting commotion, Kal's reward was shareable.

As a result, people of all races began to covet Kal's conquer reward.

It was then that Sedjen stepped in.

'The rewards obtained in the Hero's world belong to the conqueror themselves, and the right to decide what to do with them rests with the conqueror. Those who know this better than anyone are now pressuring a young student to share his conquer reward? Even though Kal himself hasn't even confirmed the contents of the alchemy book yet! It's not elegant. Be ashamed!'

At Sedjen's truly angry outburst, a Sei Run investigator said.

'Knowledge only gains value when it is shared. Moreover, that student has such poor grades that it wouldn't be strange if he were expelled from Lumern at any time. Don't you think this reward is too much for such a student?'

'In alchemy, Kal student shows more outstanding skill than any other second-year student at Lumern. Moreover, during this Hero's world conquer, Master Dweno recognized him and even taught him alchemy directly. Hero's Record also bestows conquer rewards that are deemed appropriate. Don't you think that statement is enough to disparage Master Dweno's choice and the intentions of the Hero's Record?'

Sedjen, who retorted with a cold expression, continued to block all pressure on Kal.

"To be honest, I was moved."

"It was only my duty as a professor. That conquer reward is entirely yours. Unless you choose to share that knowledge of your own will… Lumern will stand by you and protect you."

"Professor Sedjen!"

"Kal student!"

Leo shook his head, watching the beautiful master-student relationship between the professor, who had recently been shouting that Halind's wicked henchman was stealing his wallet with his evil tongue, and the student, who was contemplating how to steal more money.

"In any case, I'm glad it wasn't Halind or Riina who was in that position."

"What would have happened if it were them?"

"Halind would have cursed the person talking nonsense, and Riina would have thrown a punch immediately."

Sedjen shook his head.

"If you're old, you should act like an adult. Why are they still so immature?"

'I think the most immature among the three is Professor Sedjen.'

Kal muttered to himself, but didn't say it out loud.

He thought there was no need to spoil the warm atmosphere unnecessarily.

Thus, under Sedjen's guidance, the two arrived at their assigned dormitory.

As the door opened, the eyes of the students gathered for the banquet at the entrance all focused on the two.

"It's Leo and Kal!"

"What?"

"Leo oppa! Kal!"

"Welcome back! Kaaal!"

Led by Chelsea, students who were in the same class in their first year rushed over.

Other students they were acquainted with also gathered around.

"We heard you were badly injured, are your injuries all healed?"

"Leo-doryeong, how are you feeling?"

Chloe and Chen Xia asked with concern, and Leo chuckled.

"I'm almost healed."

"Leo oppa! You're really amazing! Conquering Master Dweno's world this time! There's no student who has conquered multiple Great Hero worlds like Leo oppa!"

Chelsea jumped up and down, happy as if it were her own achievement.

"How was it? Master Dweno and Lord Arion?"

Cellia also asked with shining eyes.

Everyone was eager to hear stories about the Great Heroes.

Arion, evaluated as having the strongest military power.

And Dweno, who was more of a shield protecting his team members than a great blacksmith.

For the students of the Knight Department, their heroic tales were enough to make their hearts pound.

Meanwhile, Abad greeted Kal, who had come to the dormitory, with a smile.

"Welcome, Kal."

"Abad, you're the only one who welcomes me like this. I thought the others would give me a more enthusiastic welcome too."

Kal muttered in a touched voice.

"Hmph. Did you think we would treat you specially just because you conquered Master Dweno's world?"

Eliza, sitting in her usual fancy chair, tidied her nails and scoffed.

Duran also said in his characteristic arrogant voice.

"You have an overinflated sense of self, Kal Thomas. Don't you think so too?"

"Um… well… yes?"

"No, I've been waiting so long to hear the story…"

"Shh, shh. You'll get on their bad side if you do that."

The Noble students whispered among themselves.

Abad chuckled as he watched them.

"How was it? Master Dweno and Lord Arion?"

"How should I tell the story?"

Kal, with his arms crossed, glanced at the students in the same dormitory and smiled.

"Do you want to hear it? Gather around. I'll tell you what I saw."

At that, Eiran and Duran flinched.

"W-we're not particularly interested."

"We already know enough about the two of them through literature."

Eliza and Duran lifted their chins.

However, other students thought differently.

They subtly glanced at the two of them.

"If you want to hear it, don't mind me. I'm just not really curious."

"Hmph. It's natural to be curious about stories of the Great Heroes. Well, I'm not."

At their words, the Noble students gathered around Kal.

"Then!"

"Hey! Kal! Tell us a story!"

"Hmm~ Where should I start? Should I start with the story of Lord Arion blocking the Giant King's attack with a single sword swing?"

Duran's body trembled.

Eliza sneered, watching Duran.

"Oh my? You pretend not to be interested, but you seem very eager to listen?"

"Who would care about the words of a commoner like that…"

"Or should I tell you about the Phoenix King, the contractor of Lord Lisinas? Hey! Have any of you seen the White Phoenix?"

"I-is the feather of the Flame God truly pure white?! Hmph?!"

Eliza, who unintentionally asked again, covered her mouth.

Abad said, watching her.

"Don't try to maintain pointless pride and just listen to the story together."

"Right~ Duran! As a student of the Knight Department, how can you not listen to the stories of Lord Arion and Master Dweno!"

"Eliza! Hurry up and come!"

The Noble students called to the two.

Eliza stood in front of Kal with a prim expression, and Duran stood next to Abad.

Sedjen smiled as he looked at the noisy second-year students of Lumern.

'Our students will gain a lot from this.'

"We'll hear the details at the banquet, but Leo student and Kal student, you two should go up and prepare for the banquet. You must show the elegance of Lumern students to students from other schools until the last day."

At Sedjen's words, the students reluctantly let go of Leo and Kal.

The last schedule at Demian was coming to an end.