Book 1 Chapter 455

455.

The hero candidates cheered at the legendary hero's feat unfolding before their eyes. The great threat that had sought to destroy the world had now vanished before their eyes. They had literally witnessed a page of legend being written before their very eyes. Arion smiled, watching the hero candidates cheer.

"It's you, Arion, as expected!" Ar came running and shouted. Arion reached out a hand, looking at Ar's joyful face, beaming with a wide smile. "Thank you." "Huh?" "I was able to wake up when I heard your voice." At those words, Ar blushed, unsure what to do.

"Arion. What you just said…" As Chelsea asked hesitantly, Arion turned around and winked at her. At that, Chelsea nodded silently. "Ar, Chelsea. Let's go and tend to the injured now." "Yes!" Ar and Chelsea, having answered vigorously, returned to the castle.

It was a fierce battle that had continued throughout the night. While Arion was fiercely fighting Erebus, the hero candidates, though few in number, also had to withstand an onslaught of monsters comparable to a legion. As a result, there were many injured. Even the hero candidates who had been cheering in the joy of victory quickly came to their senses and tended to the injured.

Following Ar, who was running towards the castle, Chelsea glanced back. She saw Arion following behind, and Leo was walking beside Arion. Arion extended his right fist towards Leo, who was walking on his right. In response, Leo chuckled and lightly bumped his left fist against it. They looked like old best friends and comrades.

'Leo, my brother, really is… the Hero of Beginnings.'

Looking at that scene, she truly understood Arion's words from a little while ago.

Step-step-

"Kyle, I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I couldn't live up to your trust." Arion said, gazing at the sun slowly rising as it pushed away the darkness. "I pretended to be brave in the last battle. But the truth is, I was trembling. Because I had seen the future." "The future?" "Yes. I knew we would lose that battle. So I was going to tell everyone to run away. But if we ran, I saw a future where you and Luna would die." "…So you died in our place?" "Yes. And I gave up." "You never gave up until the end." "…" "You're not a burden or anything like that. We've never once stopped believing in you." Arion smiled at Leo's words. "I know now. Don't worry too much." "Does this look like worry? I'm scolding you for only realizing it now, you fool." Watching Leo speak with a scrunched-up face, Arion scratched his head. "If Luna were here, would she have just hit me once?" "Would it have ended with just one hit?" "Absolutely not."

Arion shook his head, bursting out laughing, and looked down at Brave, held in his hand. Brave had returned to its original, broken form. "A moment ago, Dwenno's flame flared up." "I know." He recalled Dwenno's flame, which had responded to Arion's aura. "Dwenno's will reacted to help you." Leo did nothing. Nevertheless, Dwenno's flame naturally flared up. Perhaps when Arion bravely intended to move forward, Brave tried to help its master. Although it was already a broken sword, it had used its creator's power to return to its original form for a brief moment, to fulfill its duty. "Dwenno's artifacts are like that, aren't they?" "Yeah." Artifacts that respond to the user's will. That's why Dwenno is called the God of Blacksmiths, and that's why Leo and Arion trusted him until the end.

Step-step-

The two of them had somehow approached close to the castle wall. Looking at Arion like that, Leo stopped walking. "By the way, how did you come back?" The divine power Leo had used to bring Arion out of the Hero's World was almost completely consumed. But because it wasn't completely depleted, he had no doubt that Arion would return. But he was curious about the method. Arion smiled at Leo's question. "I read the future." "The future?" "Yes. Thanks to clearly reading the future, I reached the realm of gods, albeit briefly. I think I gained divine power as a price for that." Leo clicked his tongue in amazement at Arion's words. He knew Arion was incredible. After all, in a long history, there would be no one who possessed mythical military power as much as Arion. But even so, he never imagined that Arion would go even further and touch the divine realm of future prophecy. "That's amazing, isn't it? So, what was the future you saw like?" "The future I saw didn't hold much meaning." "What?" "Because the future could be changed however I wanted, depending on what I did." Arion said firmly, looking at Leo. "So, Kyle. You just have to gather your strength and move forward." "Is that so? That's the hardest thing to do." Arion gave a wry smile at Leo's words.

They had somehow arrived right in front of the castle. Leo stopped abruptly. "Arion, this time, while subjugating the fragment of Erebus…" "Kyle, my Hero Record fragment. Can you give it to me for a moment?" Arion interrupted Leo and spoke. Leo, with a puzzled expression, handed over the Hero Record fragment. Arion, looking down at his fragment, took a deep breath. And then he approached the castle.

"It's Arion!" "Arion!" "O Hero!" The hero candidates sent cheers towards Arion. Arion entered the castle that Melina had created. Leo also followed behind him. Hero candidates swarmed around Arion. Especially the Azonia students, many of them even shed tears.

"Everyone." Arion opened his mouth. "Thank you for not losing courage and fighting well, even in a desperate situation." "It would have been impossible without you, Arion." "Because you, Arion, gave us courage, we were able to fight!" At the hero candidates' replies, Arion shook his head. "Courage isn't something you receive from someone. Everyone has it right here." Arion gently tapped his chest and smiled. "Even if I weren't here, you would have fought against Erebus unyielding." At those words, the students wore touched expressions. "So, thank you very much." "Huh?" "What do you mean by…" "For allowing me to feel at ease." Arion gave a gentle smile.

"Just like the heroes 5000 years ago who fought alongside us in that era. Like the heroes of creation and the heroes who protected that era 3000 years ago. Now I know that you are here." "Arion…" "Now it's your turn." At the great hero's words, the hero candidates held their breath. Everyone instinctively knew. That the end of the miraculous moment was approaching. "Can we do it?" At that moment, Banir, the former student council president of Azonia, asked. "Can we dare… do it like the heroes of the Age of Calamity and the heroes during the Calamity's Reappearance?" The hero candidates who had encountered a thrilling calamity today could not shake off that overwhelming despair. Moreover, even Arion, who had defeated the fragment of Erebus, would soon disappear. It wasn't just Banir. Most of the hero candidates present here would likely feel the same way.

Arion, who had been contemplating Banir's question, turned to look at Leo. And then he said, meeting Leo's eyes. "It will definitely be very difficult from now on. There will be people you cannot protect, and you will also become frustrated by continuous trials." After Arion smiled at Leo, he looked at the hero candidates. "But you will still accomplish it. Because you are brave people." Conveying the words Leo had once told his younger self to the young hero candidates. Arion spoke powerfully. "I guarantee it." At those words, everyone clenched their fists tightly.

*Whoosh!* With those last words, golden light poured out from Arion's body. "Ugh?" "Arion?!" Everyone squeezed their eyes shut at the dazzling light. "Ugh?!" Ar was also about to cover his eyes. "Ar." "Arion?!" Ar opened his eyes wide. Arion, who had stroked Ar's head, handed over the broken Brave. "This sword always gave me courage. Although it's broken… I hope you have it." "Are you… leaving?" "Yes." Arion wiped away Ar's brimming tears and murmured. "My friends must have felt this way." "Huh?" "Trustworthy, but… on the other hand, I'm worried. Everyone must have been distressed." "What…?" "I'm just saying you're like my younger sibling." Arion smiled gently and took a step back. "I'll be waiting." Arion said to Ar. "For the day we stand on the same stage." Arion, who had cheered him on, turned his back without regret. No more words were needed. "Yes!" Because that spirited cat would run without hesitation.

The last place Arion headed to was where Leo and Melina were. The two of them were not affected in the slightest by the light Arion emitted. Leo said, watching Arion approach him. "Arion. You can remain in this timeline." Leo said with a worried expression. That face was similar to the expression Arion had made earlier when looking at Ar. "While subjugating the fragment of Erebus, you gained divine power. You can find whatever you want to do here…" "I've already found what I want to do, Kyle." Arion shook his head. "If I continue to stay in the present world, I'll be wasting that power." At Arion's resolute words, Leo clenched his fist.

"Moreover, as you know, my Hero Record fragment is already at its limit." Arion looked at the Hero Record fragment he had received from Leo a moment ago. A fragment that had almost burned away. It was a fragment that wouldn't be strange if it crumbled at any moment. Probably, if Arion disappears, the fragment would also burn away and vanish. "Keeping me in this world in this state will consume a lot of divine power. Please use that power someday when you completely subjugate Erebus." "…" "Kyle, as you know, there are things I can't do, and you can't either. Someday, when the power of Licinas, Luna, and Dwenno is needed, that power will make a path. So you must never waste it recklessly." "But…" "Don't worry about me." Arion gave a wry smile. That smile, somehow, strongly resembled Leo's. "I can't be a younger sibling who only causes worry forever, can I?" Leo gave a bitter smile at Arion's words. "We'll meet again." "Yes." Leo nodded.

Arion looked at Melina and said. "Melina, help Leo a lot." "Yes, Arion. I will do my best to assist Leo." "Good." Arion, who also patted Melina's head, climbed onto the castle wall. *Whoosh!* Soon, the golden light disappeared. Everyone looked around, searching for Arion. "Oh! There he is!" Then they discovered Arion's back, standing on the castle wall with his back to them. As everyone watched Arion. Arion, still with his back turned, raised his right hand and gave a thumbs-up. And then, turning around, he spoke with a confident smile. "I will return!" Leaving those words behind, Arion disappeared with a bright light. Everyone stared blankly at the spot where Arion had vanished. And then soon… "Woooooah!" Everyone let out a powerful shout.

With his arms crossed, Leo, who leaned his back against the castle wall, wore an incredulous expression. "He's finally putting what he learned to use now." "Huh?" "Just talking to myself." Closing his eyes, Leo recalled old memories.

***

"You want to know how to always inspire trust in others, like me?" Luna, with her arms crossed and a triumphant expression, raised her head. Looking at Luna like that, Arion, still a boy, said. "Luna isn't always trustworthy. She's usually not. Only during battle…" "What?!" Luna's eyes widened in annoyance at Arion, who was calmly stating the facts. Arion, flinching at that, shrunk his neck and said. "…Always trustworthy." "Of course, of course!" Luna, once again wearing a triumphant expression, said. "Lady Luna's special lecture on inspiring trust! The first step! Make a confident expression in any situation!" "A confident expression?" "A prime example is that unique, annoying, rude smile of Kyle's." "Kyle makes an annoying, rude smile?" "You know it, right? That kind of expression." Luna gave a wry smile. "Ah! I think I know what you mean!" "Right? Annoying, isn't it? Rude, isn't it!?" "Who are you calling annoying and rude?" "You." At Luna's words, Kyle tried to give her a light punch on the head. But Luna was not one to be easily caught. Watching Luna cleverly dodge, Kyle, frowning, asked. "What are you doing?" "I'm learning from Luna how to inspire trust in others." "From her? Why don't you learn from Dwenno instead?" "Are you saying I'm worse than that pervert?" Luna flared up and pounced on Leo. Kyle, pushing Luna's face away with his palm, said. "So, assuming I learn to smile. What's next?" "If you've learned a confident expression, next it's important to strike a pose. After dazzling people with a spectacular presentation, you just need to strike a cool pose and deliver a plausible line. Let me show you." Luna, putting on a cold expression, swept her hair back and said. "Be prepared, I have arrived." And then she gazed at Kyle with deep eyes. At that, Kyle said to Arion. "Do you know what they call that?" "What do they call it?" "They call it 'striking a ridiculous pose'." "You bastard!" Luna, glaring, tried to hit Kyle with her staff. Kyle quickly ran away. Screaming and yelling, Luna chased Kyle, swinging her staff. Watching them, Arion took out a mirror and tried making a solemn expression or striking a plausible, cool pose. Arion in his boyhood found Kyle and Luna's expressions and poses quite cool. "What are you doing, Arion?" At that moment, as Licinas approached and asked, Arion smiled brightly. "I was imitating Kyle and Luna. I also want to be someone who inspires trust in people like them." "You are already a trustworthy person, Arion." Licinas smiled gently and said. "But…" As Arion was about to say something, Dwenno spoke. "Let me give you one piece of advice, Arion." "Okay." As Arion nodded, Dwenno gestured with his chin. Luna was somehow choking Kyle, and Kyle was pulling Luna's ear. "If you follow those fools, you'll become the same kind of fool." "Who are you calling a fool? Pervert." "Who are you calling a fool! Perverted old man!" Leo and Luna ran over and hit Dwenno on the head. "Fools have sharp ears, don't they?" Staring intently at the bickering trio, Licinas said. "Arion." "Yes." "You must never become like that. Understand?" Looking at Licinas, who wore a somehow sorrowful expression, Arion nodded.