Book 1 Chapter 480

480.

[Indeed, something like that is happening in the northeastern part of the continent right now.]

Mel sighed deeply.

[Regarding the Justice Guild, it is my fault. I failed to manage them and ended up sullying your eyes and ears, Leo.]

"You don't need to apologize to me for that."

Leo said calmly.

Early morning.

Leo was communicating with Mel.

Autumn mornings were quite chilly.

Leo sipped tea brewed from herbs he had picked in the forest.

[Should we mobilize other hero guilds or Lumern?]

"No, if we make a mistake, a civil war might break out. After all, Justice is a huge force. It's not good to move officially."

Leo had enough power to bring down the Justice Guild.

No matter what, a single word from Leo would mobilize shadows across the world.

Moreover, the Dragon Lord was effectively Leo's spokesperson.

But even so, there would still be casualties.

Especially if those involved were incapable of normal thought.

'It's best not to do anything self-destructive while the Necromancer King is still active.'

"Just exposing their true colors will be enough to achieve results."

Mel nodded at Leo's words.

"The most urgent task right now is managing the hero tombs scattered across the world."

[Yes, if it becomes known that the Necromancer King is resurrecting heroes as undead, the world will be plunged into great chaos.]

"That's true."

Leo sighed deeply.

Since ancient times, undead were objects of great revulsion and contempt for the living.

But what if a hero, who had their name on the Hero Record during their lifetime, became undead?

'That hero's honor would fall to the ground.'

If that hero left no ties in the world, that would be the end of it.

However, if the hero's descendants formed a power, the problem would become significant.

Their ancestor's honor would be dragged through the mud.

'That alone would cause immense division in the world.'

Leo sighed deeply.

'I need to find a way to protect the honor of the heroes who have become the undead.'

Leo narrowed his eyes.

"If we consider the worst-case scenario, which hero would become an enemy?"

[The worst is Tamus, the Knight of the Underworld. Especially considering that the land you are currently in was once under his dominion… perhaps the Necromancer King's objective is to revive him as an undead.]

Mel's serious voice made Leo look puzzled.

"Is the Knight of the Underworld that formidable? I heard he was a guy who didn't cooperate because he was jealous of the Heroes of Genesis, didn't I?"

Leo wore a puzzled expression.

"There are hardly any Hero Records left for him either."

It wasn't unusual for a hero from the past to have no records in the Hero Record, as countless heroes' records had been lost.

As Leo didn't know much about what kind of hero Tamus was, he couldn't help but be puzzled by Mel's serious reaction.

[You know, Leo, that before the Heroes of Genesis rose to prominence, he was considered the strongest hero in the world at that time.]

"Yes."

[He was a hero so powerful that Rodia herself considered him a candidate for the Heroes of Genesis. In fact, he was a hero who accompanied Rodia when she conquered Lisinas's world.]

"Rodia did?"

Dragons were beings who chose heroes.

And the Rodia Leo had met directly was very intelligent.

She was a wise dragon, worthy of the title of Lisinas's successor.

If such a Rodia moved with someone, their skill was certainly proven.

[It is actually recorded in Rodia's memoir that he was a hero who possessed enough power to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Heroes of Genesis during the reappearance of calamity.]

"How did such a hero turn his back on the world's threat?"

[It is said that the Knight of the Underworld conquered the worlds of great heroes, but he never once obtained a conquest reward.]

"He just stood by and watched the world's threat for such a trivial reason?"

[…It wasn't just because of that.]

"Then?"

Mel hesitated for a moment, then opened a small warp gate and sent a book to Leo's location.

It was one of Rodia's memoirs, kept in the Dragonian archives, viewable only by the Dragon Lord.

'This is different from the memoir I saw before. Is it like a diary?'

The memoir Rodia had written before felt strongly like a kind of record, full of effort.

'It was full of pretense. That arrogant lizard.'

Leo clicked his tongue, remembering the Rodia he had met before, then opened the memoir.

And quickly read through the contents.

Before long, stories related to the Emperor of Tarim, Tamus, began.

'A spirit summoner? One who commands countless spirits?'

Before being a knight, he was a powerful spirit summoner, leading a knight order made up of spirits, using the armaments heroes used in their lifetimes as a medium.

'It's a similar ability to Lisinas.'

Leo was impressed.

It seemed this was why Rodia had considered Tamus a candidate hero to save the world.

However, apart from aspects related to his power, there were many entries expressing concern.

[Just as Lisinas first accepted Kyle as a companion, I too accidentally accepted a human as my first companion. But he was different from Kyle. Kyle also had a rough personality, but… Tamus possesses an arrogant disposition and a cruel nature. Can I guide him on the right path?]

Rodia's biggest concern was the hero Tamus's personality.

Later, she was joined by the great warrior Azonia, then the comet mage Seirun.

After that came Demian the Indomitable.

Unlike the worrisome disposition of the Knight of the Underworld, Rodia's party grew stronger and stronger, conquering many hero worlds.

But unlike others who received conquest rewards from the worlds of great heroes, Tamus ultimately received no conquest rewards.

Amidst this, a decisive event occurred.

[Today I met a human named Lumern. He is a hero who conquered Kyle's world alone.]

Rodia showed a quite excited reaction at her first meeting with Lumern.

More so than when she met her other companions.

"Wait a minute."

Leo, seeing a certain emotion emanating from the text, looked away from the memoir and at Mel.

"By any chance, Rodia… likes Lumern?"

[Yes. She seemed to have fallen in love at first sight.]

"Really? Does Lumern know about that?"

[The memoirs of the Heroes of Genesis are kept in Dragonia. When I saw Lumern's memoir, it seemed he was aware of Rodia's feelings. So he was very troubled.]

"Why was he troubled?"

[Seirun also had feelings for Lumern. Isn't that romantic?]

Leo let out a hollow laugh.

"He must have been troubled, indeed. Considering Rodia and Seirun's personalities, they must have courted him quite actively."

[No, neither of them courted Lumern.]

"Were they being uncharacteristically demure? Well, our fraudulent lizard and tomboy ear-wearing elf were quite demure too."

[Well… Rodia and Seirun. It seems they didn't quite understand what their feelings for Lumern were. Only Lumern noticed.]

"…"

Leo's face turned grim.

[Leo?]

Mel looked flustered.

'No, then these damn girls, who couldn't even understand their own feelings, let alone someone else's, dared to call me an idiot or a moron with such outrageous words?'

Remembering the two who had glared at him, blaming him for not understanding Luna and Lisinas's feelings, Leo gnashed his teeth.

"These damn brats! Next time I see them, I'll shave their heads bald!"

Mel shrank her neck, seeing Leo snarling.

Calling the Heroes of Genesis "brats" and threatening to shave their heads.

These were truly incredible words that only a great hero could utter.

Leo gritted his teeth inwardly as he continued to read the memoir.

The subsequent content was as follows:

'The Knight of the Underworld had feelings for Rodia. And he was jealous of Lumern. Crucially, because of that incident, he strayed from the party and was eventually kicked out… and refused to help in the final battle with Erebus?'

Leo let out a hollow laugh.

'Isn't this guy completely insane?'

He turned his back when the fate of the world was at stake, merely blinded by jealousy.

'Just how selfish is this bastard?'

Leo closed the memoir with a look of utter disbelief.

"It's said that after the Heroes of Genesis far surpassed his fame and people ridiculed him, the Knight of the Underworld became enraged. Afterward, he fought a duel to kill Lumern and ended up losing his life with his head severed. The Tarim Empire concealed this fact to hide the founder emperor's disgrace and requested Dragonia to erase the Hero Record related to the Knight of the Underworld's demise."

It seems the Heroes of Genesis also wished that the Knight of the Underworld, who was once their comrade, would at least be remembered honorably by later generations.

'Well, by now, he's completely an object of ridicule.'

Leo recalled the image of the Knight of the Underworld.

He had heard some of Lumern's students mock him as the 'Twisted Knight of the Underworld'.

In this era, he was a being of immense power, but merely a coward who turned his back on the world for his own self-preservation.

In a way, he deserved such treatment.

'But indeed, with a personality like that, he could easily fall and join hands with the Necromancer King.'

It was then, as Leo narrowed his eyes, remembering the Knight of the Underworld.

Goooooooh-!

An ominous energy surged.

Leo tilted his head back and looked up at the sky.

'The Necromancer King's aura.'

Realizing the nature of the aura, Leo narrowed his eyes and stood up.

[Leo?]

Mel called Leo, flustered.

"It seems we have a guest."

"To be precise, he probably thinks you are the guest."

Leo turned his head at the voice from beside him.

"Grand Duke of Funeral Rites."

"It's been a long time, Leo Flobe, no."

Artkan bowed deeply to Leo.

"Hero of Genesis, Kyle."

Leo raised his hand.

"Appearing before me means you want to die, doesn't it?"

Gooooooh-!

An ominous aura emanated from Leo's body.

Artkan's eyes narrowed at the formidable killing intent.

'I came to gauge the extent of the Hero of Genesis's power under Hell Kaiser's command, but.'

The power Leo currently exuded was formidable.

'The current generation of Legion Commanders would be easily subdued.'

Even if a Legion Commander who hadn't obtained authority was merely a strong demon with many subordinates, they were still beings who plunged the world into fear.

Artkan lowered his head.

"I would like to engage with Kyle… but today I am merely a guide."

"A guide?"

"Someone else wishes to meet you. You can think of him as a distant junior of yours."

[All who dwell in this land, hear me.]

At that moment, a colossal voice resounded over the capital.

[I, Tamus, the master of Tarim and your master, have returned. Kneel and worship me now!]

The voice, imbued with oppressive power, shook the entire capital.

Leo looked up at it and said.

"I never had a junior like that."