Book 1 Chapter 388
388.
The era of heroes began, and knights and warriors who wielded aura, as well as mages, advanced. Summoners were no different. Due to the influence of the Hero Record, more powerful individuals were born than in the Age of Gods.
‘Compared to the past, the current era certainly allows one to easily learn aura, easily access magic, and easily summon summoned beasts.’
The world had definitely progressed. However, summoners regressed in some sense.
‘Since two of the leaders of the three great mythical beasts disappeared, their vacant positions haven’t been filled.’
The Flame Emperor and the King of Pure White. In the fierce battle with Erebus, Lisinas and Kyle lost Kataru and Albus, who were their sworn allies. Both Kataru and Albus failed to leave successors, and as a result, by the current era, only the Fairy King remained among the Kings of Mythical Beasts.
‘Even he, Silrod, is known not to have made a contract with anyone for 5000 years, rendering him a king in name only.’
Seirun had once succeeded in summoning Silrod. But because Silrod could not leave the Fairy Land, the summoning was not officially known. The strongest mythical beasts that a beast summoner could summon, three of them, had vanished. It was literally a regression.
Leo was walking down the streets of Gardsron.
“Kyle!”
Someone called out to Kyle and approached him.
“Did you sleep well last night?”
“So-so. Did you find a place to sleep? Finding accommodation in Gardsron at this time can be tricky.”
“That much is easy. Do you know how many times I’ve attempted to conquer this world?”
At Rodia’s words, Leo let out a small laugh.
“By the way, I thought you’d be moving with Lisinas, but you’re moving separately?”
Rodia, who had attempted the conquest several times, knew well that Lisinas had gone to the allies who would join her on the journey.
“In the original history, I didn’t move with Lisinas at this time.”
“I always helped Lisinas and moved with her.”
Rodia crossed her arms and made a strange expression.
“Lisinas didn’t like it much, though.”
“Given her personality, if you helped her, she would have liked it, she would never have disliked it, would she?”
Leo narrowed his eyes.
“You didn’t, by any chance, do something strange in front of Lisinas while in my form, did you?”
“……”
At that question, Rodia fell silent. Seeing him avoid answering, Leo cracked his knuckles, and Rodia urgently cried out.
“B-but! It’s Lisinas! The King of Wisdom, Lisinas! You, Kyle, also know well what kind of being Lisinas is to the dragons!”
“What do I care? Do you think you’ll be forgiven for doing something strange with my body for a reason like that?”
“I didn’t do anything strange! Just.”
“Just what?”
“All I did was twist my body a bit, approach her intimately, and actively talk to her.”
Leo’s face turned menacing. Seeing that, Rodia added.
“And so I got scolded a lot by Lisinas!”
“How were you scolded?”
“She hit me?”
From Rodia’s perspective, she had merely expressed the joy of meeting the King of Wisdom whom she respected most in the world. From Lisinas’s perspective, the fellow who had been acting rebellious until yesterday suddenly changed his attitude and clung to her, so she couldn’t help but be startled.
“Especially when I looked at her with a flushed face, she hit me the hardest.”
“You deserve a severe beating.”
Looking at Leo, who spoke mercilessly, Rodia said as if she felt wronged.
“This is all because of you, Kyle.”
“Why are you blaming me?”
“You, Kyle, so cruelly failed to realize Lisinas’s feelings until the very end! Lisinas was so pitiful that I just…”
“……At a point when we had just become comrades, how could Lisinas have such feelings for me? And.”
Leo let out a deep sigh.
“Lisinas’s feelings, I knew them.”
“What?”
“But at that time, saving the world came first. Knowing that, Lisinas also didn’t directly tell me her feelings. I, too, knew but had no choice but to ignore them.”
“Kyle…”
Looking at Leo, who wore a bitter smile, Rodia’s face crumpled.
“Don’t tell such a ridiculous lie.”
“This damned lizard certainly has no lack of rude things to say, does it?”
“I certainly respect you, Kyle, but the person I respect most is Lisinas. To you, Kyle, who hurt her feelings, I can commit any amount of disrespect.”
“Oh, really? So you called me an idiot?”
“Even so, do I look like a dragon who would say something that rude?”
“You certainly do, you damned lizard.”
Leo, who growled fiercely, grabbed Rodia and repeatedly smacked his head.
The Great Hero who ended the Age of Disaster and the Heroes of Genesis who prevented the return of disaster. Receiving the respect of everyone in the world, countless heroologists and historians worldwide, regardless of race, naturally devoted themselves to studying them. Because they inevitably lived in different eras, their meeting was something that could never happen. But the Heroes of Genesis, through the Hero Record, transcended the wall of time and are evaluated as successors to the Great Hero. Many scholars often imagine at least once. What if the Great Hero and the Heroes of Genesis met in the real world, not the world of heroes? A heart-fluttering thought just by imagining it. Something that could never happen. But if such a miraculous thing were to happen, they would surely shed tears.
*SQUEEZE!*
“S-surrender! Surrender! I was wrong! I was wrong!”
With Leo in a headlock, Rodia urgently cried out in a pained voice.
“Why do something wrong in the first place?”
Leo applied more force. Unable to bear it any longer, Rodia savagely pinched the back of Leo’s hand. Scholars could never even imagine such a scene. If they were to see this scene, they would surely wail, but in a different sense.
***
“So? Where were you going?”
“I’m going to find Albus.”
“Albus, you mean the last king of the pegasi?”
Rodia asked with a startled expression.
“That’s right. I’m going to make a covenant with him.”
“You, Kyle, made a contract with Albus only after Dweno joined, didn’t you?”
“That’s right. The reason I came to make a contract with Albus was after I heard about my mana characteristics from Lisinas.”
“……Purity.”
Rodia quietly spoke Leo’s mana characteristics. Mana that belongs to nothing. Mana that maintains absolute purity doesn’t lose its mana characteristics even when it awakens as aura, and doesn’t lose its mana characteristics even when converted into magical power. Even if sublimated into spiritual power, it returns to pure mana. Mana unrestricted by anything. Therefore, the only mana characteristic that can counter the Immortal Flame. The reason why Kyle, the Hero of Genesis, and Leo Flobe are the natural enemies of primordial evil.
‘The reason we… failed to subjugate Erebus.’
Rodia’s eyes sank. Leo ruffled Rodia’s hair.
“……?”
“Don’t blame yourself. You accomplished a great feat. I acknowledge that.”
“Those are truly glorious words.”
Rodia said, looking humbled.
“So, is there a King of Pegasi within Gardsron?”
“Yes. Led by him, the pegasi created their own territory within Gardsron.”
“I had no idea.”
“I didn’t know either until I heard it from Lisinas.”
‘Actually, I don’t necessarily have to go through the trouble of finding Albus; I can summon him right now.’
Leo stroked the back of his left hand. A mark of a contract was etched there. A covenant made by Kyle, not Leo Flobe. The covenant, made not with the body but with the soul, was revived now that he had come to the past. But Leo did not summon Albus. From Albus’s perspective, it was a contract he hadn’t made. If he were to forcibly enforce such a contract, the relationship could potentially go awry.
‘To subjugate Jormungandr, Albus’s power is absolutely necessary.’
Even in his previous life, he had barely managed to defeat this opponent.
‘I haven’t regained the strength of this era yet.’
Of course, Rodia was there, but that alone wasn’t enough.
‘What I didn’t have then but have now.’
That was knowing what would happen in the future and overwhelming experience.
‘I must mobilize everything I have to get even a little closer to my past self.’
“Kyle. I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“Lisinas was the strongest summoner in history, wasn’t she?”
“Yes.”
“But why didn’t she make a contract with a pegasus?”
Looking at Rodia, who asked with a puzzled expression, Leo replied.
“Lisinas said that the pegasi didn’t respond to her call.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know the details either. It’s not like I know everything about Lisinas.”
Just as he had a past he hid from his friend. Lisinas also clearly had a past she hid from him. Leo had no intention of digging into that.
‘However, there are parts I can guess.’
Leo, having thought that far, recalled something and paused.
“Now that I think about it, you. I heard you left a treasure vault in the land where you were born?”
“It seems the fact that I badmouthed you, Kyle, was told by Laruel.”
“Yes. I even made a contract. Because I suddenly came into the world of heroes, I couldn’t bring her along, though.”
Originally, Leo had only intended to scout and leave, so he hadn’t brought any summoned beasts. Because they would chatter noisily if he took them with him, he had left them at the inn.
“Laruel, that child is soft-hearted and too kind, but she has a strong will when it comes to doing what needs to be done. She will definitely be a great help.”
“Soft-hearted?”
“Yes. When she talks about how beautiful the world is, she’s really cute.”
Leo smiled wryly and recalled Laruel, who would constantly mutter, ‘The world is rotten.’ Although she had made a contract with Leo and was influenced by Elsy, her assertion that ‘the world is rotten’ remained unchanged. Seeing Laruel emitting a gloomy aura, Kirian was startled to the point of alarm, and Atti even covered Piora’s ears to prevent her from hearing Laruel’s words.
‘If you put her next to Elsy, it’s confusing who is the spirit of darkness and who is the spirit of light.’
Leo clicked his tongue.
‘Why are all my summoned beasts’ personalities so strange?’
Shaking his head, Leo decided not to tell Rodia how Laruel had changed.
“What exactly did you leave in that treasure vault?”
At Leo’s question, Rodia answered with a slightly stiff expression.
“I sealed Lisinas’s power.”
“Is it related to Lisinas’s unique magic?”
“Yes.”
Rodia slightly lowered her head.
“That power was too dark. It was clearly Lisinas’s power, but merely touching it made me feel like I would be consumed by deep darkness. Not only Seirun and I, but even Lumern, Azonia, and Damian couldn’t handle it. Because it was deemed too dangerous to wield carelessly, I sealed it in the treasure vault and told Laruel to reveal its location to someone worthy.”
Leo, who heard Rodia’s words, clicked his tongue.
‘So, it’s a power of Lisinas that even I don’t know about.’