Book 1 Chapter 380

380.

Dobella.

The only lush green city in Ellehem, where most of the land is desert.

Although it originally had the conditions to be the most developed city within Ellehem, Dobella was one of the most underdeveloped regions in the country.

This was due to Dobella's geographical location.

No matter how lush the vegetation, if that vegetation belonged to the Forest of Monsters, it was a curse, not a blessing.

In a forest with infinite vitality, monster attacks are constant.

If the monster attacks were not stopped, it could escalate into a crisis not just for Dobella, but for the entire nation.

The central government of Ellehem continued to provide financial aid to maintain Dobella as a defensive line.

However, that was the extent of the central government's support.

The Ellehem royal family did not care even if the entire country fell into distress.

From their perspective, Dobella was nothing more than a white elephant, and they merely provided minimal financial aid to ensure Dobella did not collapse.

They offered no further management.

Naturally, mercenaries constantly flocked to Dobella.

The lives of mercenaries engaged in life-and-death battles with monsters were characterized by a strong 'one-shot' mentality, seeking quick gains.

As a result of such mercenaries, the city's naturally neglected public order deteriorated.

Even in Ellehem, which had descended into chaos, Dobella's situation could be said to be even more severe.

Amidst this, outside Dobella's city walls.

_Ujijijijik! Kung-_!

A giant tree fell.

_Gwooooooh!_

"Oh, Ogre?!"

Mercenaries screamed in horror at the appearance of a group of Ogres, a high-ranking monster.

The monster at the top of the food chain in the Forest of Monsters is the Troll.

While Trolls are undeniably formidable monsters, they can be easily subjugated by experienced mercenaries.

However, Ogres are fundamentally different monsters from Trolls.

Their skin was tough enough that even a normal steel sword couldn't pierce it, and their strength was powerful enough to easily hurl a giant boulder.

Overwhelming durability and strength.

They were a nightmare for ordinary mercenaries.

At the appearance of monsters not originally present in the Forest of Monsters, numerous mercenaries panicked and retreated.

_Stomp-_

"They all boasted about relying only on themselves, didn't they?"

A girl, sighing, stepped forward among the retreating mercenaries, facing the Ogres.

Unlike the battle-hardened mercenaries, a beautiful girl _sreung_-drew her sword.

_Hwaruk-_!

Flames surged from her body.

_Hwaak-_!

The fiery aura bisected an Ogre that was charging towards the girl, Martina.

_Kwoong-_!

The Ogre, split in half and dead, collapsed.

"Ohhhhh!"

The mercenaries who witnessed it exclaimed in admiration.

Then a golden flash gleamed.

_Kwagagagak-_!

The blonde girl, who darted through the Ogres at incredible speed, landed on the ground and spun around.

"Woohooooo!"

The mercenaries' cheers grew louder.

But their cheers did not last long.

"Both of you are quite good."

The girl holding a rapier, Celia, approached the Ogres with a faint smile.

Celia elegantly swept her hair back and tightened her grip on the rapier.

_Tak-_!

"Shall I finish them off?"

_Hwarureuk-_!

From her body, high-temperature flames, incomparable to Martina's, shimmered.

At the appearance of one of the strongest students from Lumen's 2nd-year Knight Department, the mercenaries let out desperate screams.

"Lady Celia!"

"Please, don't step forward!"

"Aaaargh! It's a disaster that turns everything to ashes!"

Celia's face crumpled as she watched the panicking mercenaries.

"Senior Celia, there's no need for you to step in. Martina, same goes for you."

_Goooooh-_!

A golden aura enveloped Aina's body.

"Here… I'm enough on my own."

_Kwak-_!

Aina's foot dug into the ground.

As she bent her knees, she charged towards the Ogres at invisible speed.

As Aina's sword flashed, the Ogres' heads flew off.

"W-well, the lineage of a Sword Saint is indeed different."

"At such a young age, she's cutting off Ogre heads as if slicing tofu."

"She's more terrifying than the monsters."

Celia squinted her eyes, watching the whispering mercenaries.

Aina was perceived as a terrifying presence among the mercenaries in just one day.

This wasn't simply because she subjugated monsters with overwhelming power.

Zeldinger's flames were a power far more suitable for dealing with multiple enemies.

In terms of the number of monsters subjugated, Celia was superior.

Yet, Aina became an object of fear because she constantly radiated killing intent.

She didn't even care about getting blood on herself.

Even though she was a hero candidate, the sight of a young girl, drenched in blood, inappropriately beheading monsters like a butcher, was enough to send shivers down one's spine.

Aina, who annihilated the Ogre group in an instant, shook the blood from her sword and sheathed it.

_Stomp- Stomp-_

Celia sighed, watching Aina approach, covered in blood.

The mercenaries discreetly avoided Aina's gaze.

"Aina, you're too impatient."

"…"

"Why are you like this, anyway? You're the best among the first-years."

"Unless I'm recognized by Senior Leo, none of that has any value."

Celia knew that for some unknown reason, Aina was excessively obsessed with getting recognition from Leo.

'I should talk to Leo.'

It was then that Celia sighed.

"Ladies! Thank you very much!"

Someone who appeared to be the mercenary leader approached with a wide smile.

"Thanks to you ladies, our mercenary company earned a month's pay in a single day."

"Ah, yes."

Celia had come to Dobella with her mentees, Aina and Martina, to explore the Forest of Monsters.

Celia had sought out and contracted a mercenary company that had been active in Dobella for a long time and had a decent reputation.

As they had been active in Dobella for a long time, they had their own system and were well-versed in the geography of the Forest of Monsters, which was helpful for the exploration.

The payment was the corpses of subjugated monsters.

Mercenaries in Dobella receive their pay as proof of the subjugated corpses.

That was also why the mercenaries screamed when Celia was about to step forward.

Celia's flames completely incinerated monsters, making it impossible to obtain corpses.

Since merely guiding the hero candidates with overwhelming strength could earn them income, the mercenary company enthusiastically welcomed the three.

"You're saying you saw Ogres for the first time today?"

"That's right! I've been a mercenary in Dobella for five years, but this is the first time I've seen Ogres!"

'Indeed. This is clearly an unusual situation.'

It was when Celia squinted her eyes.

_Kugugugugugugung-_!

The earth began to rumble.

"W-what is it?"

"Monsters are moving in large numbers."

Celia said, her senses sharpened.

"Money just keeps pouring in!"

The mercenary captain grinned widely.

"Well, I don't think that's entirely the case."

"Huh?"

It was when the mercenary captain was flustered.

_Hwaak-_!

"Hello, Celia."

"Hmph. So it's Celia."

Avard and Duran emerged from the bushes.

Behind them were their mentees, Fritz and Habiden, and their mercenary company.

"Oh my! Senior Celia. You were here?"

From the sky, Shasha, the top student of the first-year Summoning Department, appeared riding a giant eagle-shaped high-level phantom beast.

Beside her stood her mentor, Worreden, with his arms crossed.

Avard and Duran had the same idea as Celia and had hired a mercenary company.

They had then come towards Celia's location while searching for a good spot to subjugate monster groups.

Celia pouted.

Unlike her, who had a flame attribute, her peers could leave monster corpses, so they could fight as much as they wanted.

"It's another opportunity to earn income."

Celia said primly to the mercenary captain.

The mercenary captain then adopted a serious expression.

"Lady Celia, it's your turn to step up!"

"Pardon?"

"The rule among mercenaries: no matter how much we hunt together, the one who discovers the prey first takes all the pay. Even if we help, we won't get a single penny in the end. And if we avoid a fight, we'll only get cursed at."

"So?"

"If you can't have it, burn it!"

"…"

In the end, it meant burning everything rather than toiling for someone else's benefit.

Celia sighed and readjusted her grip on her sword.

"Burn it all down!"

Celia shook her head at the shout from behind.

***

That evening.

Celia sat in a tavern in the center of Dobella.

In front of her sat Avard, Duran, and Worreden, whom she had encountered in the Forest of Monsters earlier that day.

"So."

Duran, arms crossed, wore a cynical expression.

"What's the reason you called us together, Worreden Tyden?"

It was none other than Worreden who had organized this meeting.

"I felt the need for information exchange."

"Hmph. Unusual. For you to ask for cooperation."

"This mission practical is not a competition."

Avard said with a faint smile.

"You felt the need for cooperation, does that mean you found something unusual?"

At Celia's question, Worreden pulled out a dark red orb from his pocket.

Avard, seeing it, stroked his chin.

"It's a Golem's core."

"A Golem was roaming around the Forest of Monsters today. This is what I got after dealing with it. Avard Rurwalin. You'd know which era this belongs to, wouldn't you?"

Avard, nodding at Worreden's words, reached for the magic core.

Meanwhile, Worreden looked at Celia and Duran and said,

"My mentee and I scouted the skies above the Forest of Monsters for the entire day today."

Worreden had not hired a mercenary company separately but moved independently with Shasha.

Hearing that, Celia tilted her head.

"Weren't the skies above the Forest of Monsters difficult to approach by flight due to strange air currents? I heard that butter also gave up, saying it was too troublesome."

"Spirit users and mages are fundamentally different. If a wind mage controls the surrounding atmosphere, a spirit user can dominate it."

"So, what are you trying to say?"

"As soon as I scouted the Forest of Monsters, I discovered that an unusual situation had occurred in the forest. Many monsters that don't exist in the Forest of Monsters appeared. You all probably know this."

"Yes."

"And all those monsters exhibited characteristics of monsters from the southern regions of the continent."

Even among Ogres, those from the northern regions and southern regions exhibit different characteristics.

"Are you saying it's a Hero's World from the southern regions?"

As Celia tilted her head, Worreden narrowed his eyes.

"That's not all."

"Then what is it?"

"The appearing monsters each possessed characteristics from different eras."

Monsters are intelligent creatures.

Among them are monsters with high intelligence.

They have their own cultures, and these cultures are revealed through the monsters' armament status.

Therefore, the armament status of monsters subtly differed by era.

The appearance of monsters with various characteristics in one place.

That implied only one thing.

"Are you saying there might be more than one Hero Dungeon?"

It was then that Worreden nodded at Duran's words.

"I found out which era this Golem's core belongs to."

At that moment, Avard said with a confused expression.

"Which era's item is it?"

"When I analyzed the basic magic formula composing the core, it's an item from before the Age of Heroes."

"What?!"

Everyone's eyes widened at Avard's words.

"Are you saying it's an item from the Age of Disaster?"

Celia asked urgently.

"It is an item from the Age of Disaster, yes. But I can't guarantee that this core came from 5,000 years ago."

"What do you mean…"

"The activation magic formula that drives this core's magic is from 3,000 years ago. I've never seen or heard of such a thing. We'll need to investigate further, but it's a major discovery that could overturn the magical academic world."

***

_Hwaak-_!

With a bright flash of light, the girl slumped onto the ground.

In the very heart of Dragonia.

The girl frantically looked around to assess the situation.

Then she saw the words [Conquest Failed] before her eyes and let out a hollow laugh.

"…So this is it."

The girl, Rodia, nodded and stood up.

She knew exactly where she was.

Her childhood.

It was probably the very first page of her Hero Record.

The day she first confirmed the infinite potential of the Hero Record.

Rodia reached out her hand to the undivided, complete form of the Hero Record.

The page of Rishinas, the Great King of Wisdom, was open.

Rishinas's heroic tale, Rodia's favorite.

The page she had tried to conquer countless times because of it.

But ultimately, the page she could not conquer.

Rodia knew why.

It was because of the absence of just one person.

"Kyle-nim. Wouldn't he be the only one who can conquer this world?"