Book 1 Chapter 451
“What in the world is happening inside?”
Rienia shouted, sounding frustrated.
The wall of black flames soaring before them made it impossible to see what was happening beyond it.
Seeing this, Torua raised his staff.
Woong-!
A giant spike of light was generated by Torua’s magic.
Kwah-!
Torua sent the magic towards the wall.
Hwah-!
However, the black flames swallowed Torua’s magic.
Seeing this, Torua’s eyes twitched.
“I’ll try.”
Runia chanted a spell.
Hwa-reureuk-!
White flames ignited all over her body.
Kwah-!
The white flames that wrapped around Runia’s body intensified their heat.
“Miss Runia?!”
Eiran called out to Runia urgently.
Hwa-reuk-!
Runia, whose fiery red hair had turned pure white, gritted her teeth.
The flames of the Flame Emperor, which burn oneself to annihilate impurities.
The flame given to Runia by the last Phoenix King, Katariu, was the most noble flame in the world.
Burned by the flames, Runia completed her magic.
“Flame Emperor!”
Hwah-!
It was as if a white sun had appeared.
A giant sphere of flame appeared on Runia’s palm reaching towards the sky.
Runia threw the sphere of flame towards the wall of black flames.
Pajijijik!
The black flames and white flames mingled.
But then a great repulsion occurred, pushing each other away.
The flames burned fiercely as if opposing powers had met.
Hwah-!
But soon the black flames swallowed Runia’s flames.
Kwaga-!
An explosion occurred, incomparable to anything before.
“Kek-?!”
Everyone covered their eyes and bowed their heads from the immense flash and the aftershock of the explosion.
Kuoooooong-!
The sound of the explosion echoed as a lingering resonance.
However, the wall of black flames remained intact.
“Damn it!”
Runia, her hair returned to its original red, shouted harshly, clenching her fist.
She gripped it so hard that her fingernails dug into her palm, drawing blood.
She felt a burning pain all over her body due to the burns.
But Runia looked at the wall of flames with resentment.
‘What’s this about being the next student council president! What’s this about being Luna’s successor!’
Recently, Runia had been excited.
As a member of the Lundua family, who had a contract with the Phoenix, she had inherited the power of the Phoenix King, which had long since disappeared.
Furthermore, she was evaluated as the successor of Luna, the progenitor of the nebula, following the mage of the comet, and even received recognition from Dragon Lord Melina.
Therefore, she thought she had gotten a little closer.
But it wasn’t.
‘It’s far.’
The distance to Leo was still immense.
‘No, I already knew that!’
She knew that no matter how strong she became, there was a gap she couldn’t bridge.
So she ran with all her might to chase Leo’s heels.
It wasn’t the distance between Leo and herself that angered Runia.
‘I am incompetent!’
She knew what Leo’s goal was.
It was to defeat Erebus.
A grand goal that she could not even imagine.
However, being so praised by those around her, she had become overconfident.
She was sure she would be of help to Leo in future battles.
In fact, Runia had experienced battles with Erebus three times until now.
The first was in Luna’s world.
The second was in Deweno’s world.
The third was in Seirun.
And by obtaining the flames of purification in the second and third instances, she thought she had gained the power to fight Erebus.
‘It was a mistake…!’
What she had faced was merely a fragment of Erebus.
She realized that fact painfully now.
Seeing Runia’s clenched fist tremble, Eiran urgently grasped her hand.
“Miss Runia, take care of yourself! You’ll break your body…!”
“Now is not the time to worry about my body…!”
“Listen to Miss Eiran, Runia.”
Melina appeared before Runia.
“If you damage your body by using too much power, you won’t be able to help. No, you’ll be a burden.”
At Melina’s words, Runia bowed her head deeply.
Seeing Runia like that, Melina smiled bitterly.
“I’m not asking for much from you all now. I just want you to lend a little strength to Lord Aron’s fight. The same goes for you, the graduates.”
“Are you saying we don’t have the right to stand on this battlefield yet?”
To Torua’s question, Melina nodded.
“To be frank, yes. The reason I recommended you all to Lord Aron was only for a little support.”
At Melina’s words, everyone bowed their heads deeply.
Seeing them like that, Melina said,
“Don’t be discouraged. Rather, I am the one who should apologize to you.”
“What?”
“You are all still young.”
Melina said resolutely.
“Even if you have graduated. Even if you are the best students. You are bound to be inexperienced. You are not heroes, but hero candidates.”
Melina took a breath.
“It is entirely my responsibility to have sent you, who are not yet prepared, to the battlefield in an attempt to increase the probability of victory, even slightly.”
Melina turned around with a twirl.
“So it’s not your fault. In fact, you did very well. From now on, leave it to me, an adult.”
Melina clasped her hands together.
Silver mana began to surge from Melina’s body.
Seeing this, the hero candidates shivered.
Her silver and black mixed hair rippled.
Soon, the silver mana turned black.
Melina chanted a magic spell.
“Nihil.”
Hwah-!
In an instant, the wall of black flames disappeared.
“Amazing.”
Torua’s mouth fell open.
The magic of Lisinas.
In this world, there were only two people who could use this magic.
Leo, the hero of the beginning, was the first, and Melina, who inherited his mana, was the second.
The flames of black fire disappeared.
Erebus’s gaze, which had been facing Leo and Aron, turned to Melina.
-It wasn’t just a petty creation. Did it inherit the power of a foolish being through the Record System?
Ku-gung-!
Erebus’s gaze turned to Melina and the hero candidates.
And towards the other candidates far away in the castle, defending against the assault of his creations.
-Indeed, it seems that many have come to harbor futile hopes by being swayed by the sweet talk left by the foolish being over 5,000 years.
“Lord Lisinas was not a foolish being, Erebus.”
Melina said in a chilling voice.
It was a frosty demeanor she had never shown before.
“Lord Lisinas is the great king of wisdom who led the world to salvation.”
-They are just grand titles. King of Wisdom, Hero of the Beginning.
Erebus said in an emotionless voice.
-All they need are a foolish being and a surviving hero.
Goooooo-!
A terrifying flame flickered in Erebus’s hand.
As if all previous attacks were child’s play.
A mass of flame containing unimaginable destructive power flickered.
-Hero, if those petty creations are the hope you speak of, I will remind you how insignificant that hope is.
Kwah-!
Erebus slammed the fireball onto the ground.
Kugugugugugugugu-
Along with it, an earthquake occurred.
The ground shook violently.
Tzhe-k- Tzhe-che-k-!
The ground cracked.
Kuhwa-!
Kreoooooo-!
Monsters poured out of the cracked ground endlessly.
The monstrous beasts with only the will to slaughter in their eyes let out roars and charged towards the castle.
Seeing the endless advance of the monsters emerging from the cracks, Ultar’s face contorted in shock.
“What is this?”
“It’s almost a legion!”
Rienia exclaimed, her face pale.
The current advance of the monsters was similar in scale to the army of the Monster Queen seen in Seirun last year.
“It seems to have created a legion-level force.”
Melina said flatly.
The hero candidates looked weary at the sight that defied common sense.
The scale of the monsters that appeared now was comparable to Silatuna’s legion.
Of course, it might not be superior in quality, as Silatuna’s legion had many high-ranking demons.
However, the ability to instantly create a legion-level force led by a legion commander was awe-inspiring.
Moreover, the number of monsters was still increasing.
Seeing the sight, Melina, after a moment of consideration, looked at Leo.
When their eyes met, Leo nodded, and Melina said,
“Everyone, return to the castle and prepare to repel the monsters’ advance.”
“Yes!”
“Then what about Erebus…?!”
“Let’s leave it to Lord Aron and Leo Frove.”
To the hero candidates’ questions, Melina replied with a smile.
As the hero candidates nodded and were about to leave, Erebus sneered.
-You insignificant creations, pay the price!
Kwah-!
As Erebus swung his arm, the air split.
Along with it, countless black hands reached out and attacked the candidates.
Seeing this, Melina swung her hand.
Flash-!
Light generated from a silver magic circle sent the black hands summoned by Erebus flying away.
However, they couldn’t block all of Erebus’s attacks.
The black hands that survived the attack relentlessly targeted the candidates.
Ultar used the power of Pegasus to eliminate all of those hands.
Torua blew them away with magic, and in Runia and Eliza’s case, Eiran repelled Erebus’s attacks with the sword of animus.
Seeing this, Erebus’s eyes twitched.
“Don’t underestimate them too much.”
Leo sneered at Erebus.
“These are the children I chose, the ones who personally tore you into six pieces.”
Hwah-!
Leo created distance between himself and Erebus.
“Do you think your crude attacks will work?”
-You dare call my power crude?
“Yes. Through our brief fight, I learned quite a lot about you.”
Leo’s red eyes glowed.
“First. You have revived, but you are not in a complete state. You are even disconnected from your first revived fragment. You have no memory of the first fragment.”
This was significant.
5,000 years since Erebus was sealed.
And 3,000 years since the first fragment was sealed.
In this time, the world had continuously grown stronger to oppose Erebus.
This wasn’t just the advancement of Aura, magic, and summoning.
Erebus was ignorant of the world’s potential.
“If you had the memories from 3,000 years ago, you wouldn’t have rushed in so recklessly.”
Leo sneered at Erebus.
“Second. You possess a power specialized in the authority to create demons and monsters.”
He was convinced after seeing him create a legion just now.
In terms of that authority, there was no significant difference compared to a complete Erebus.
This meant one thing.
“Compared to other fragments, your combat power is weaker.”
Of course, it was only weaker compared to other fragments.
As a fragment of primordial evil, its combat power was formidable.
‘If it weren’t for Aron, I wouldn’t have been able to handle it with my current strength alone.’
Therefore, this fragment had to be defeated here, by any means necessary.
The moment the fragment before him gained control of Tartarus.
Powerful legion commanders would be created.
“Third. Your power is not in a complete state.”
The stronger flames burn.
And the Erebus before him was a flame that had just begun to burn.
As such, its firepower was weak.
To Erebus, this world was like firewood.
As he burned the world, Erebus’s power would also grow.
‘The fragment that revived 3,000 years ago burned for a long time.’
And it is still burning.
Leo narrowed his eyes.
Seeing Leo like that, Erebus smiled.
-Don’t worry, it’s enough to finish you all.
“Is that so?”
-Yes, if the companion you summoned with the Record System was someone else, you would have been defeated by you again. But as the hero. You will die.
“Nonsense.”
Leo replied coldly.
-You overestimate the hero. Isn’t that right, hero?
“Don’t be ridiculous! Kyle won’t die. I… will definitely defeat you!”
-Yes, try and struggle!
Goooooo-!
Black flames erupted from Erebus’s body.
Aron gritted his teeth as he saw the flames engulfing him and activated his hyper sense.
At that moment.
Kwaga-!
Erebus’s black flames engulfed Aron.
Aron’s face turned pale in the black flames.
‘…Hyper sense…!’