Book 1 Chapter 480
[Indeed, that is happening in the northeastern part of the continent right now.]
Mel let out a deep sigh.
[Regarding the Justice Guild, it is my oversight. I failed to manage them and have tainted your eyes and ears, Leo-nim.]
“There’s no need for you to apologize to me,”
Leo said indifferently.
Early morning.
Leo was communicating with Mel.
The autumn dawn was quite chilly.
Leo sipped tea brewed with herbs he picked from the forest.
[Shall I mobilize other hero guilds or Lumern?]
“No, doing so might risk sparking a civil war. After all, Justice is a massive power. It’s not good to move officially.”
Leo possessed enough power to dismantle the Justice Guild.
At Leo’s word, the shadows of the world would move, no matter what.
Furthermore, the Dragon Lord was practically Leo’s spokesperson.
However, even so, there would be no escaping damage.
Especially for those who couldn’t think normally.
‘While the Necromancer King is still alive, it’s best not to engage in actions that harm ourselves.’
“Simply exposing their true faces will be enough to achieve significant results.”
Mel nodded at Leo’s words.
“What’s most urgent now is managing the hero’s tombs scattered across the world.”
[Yes, if it becomes known that the Necromancer King is reviving heroes as undead, the world will be plunged into great chaos.]
“It would,”
Leo sighed deeply.
Since ancient times, the undead were objects of great disgust and contempt for the living.
But what if heroes who had their names on the Hero Records became undead?
‘That hero’s honor would be tarnished.’
If that hero left no ties to the world, that would be the end.
However, if the hero’s descendants formed a faction, the problem would escalate.
The honor of their ancestors would be dragged through the mud.
‘That in itself would cause immense division in the world.’
Leo sighed deeply.
‘We need to find a way to protect the honor of the fallen heroes.’
Leo narrowed his eyes.
“In the worst-case scenario, which hero would become an enemy?”
[The worst is Tamus, the Knight of the Underworld. Especially considering that the land where Leo-nim is now was once ruled by him… perhaps the Necromancer King’s goal is to resurrect him as a fallen hero.]
Leo wore an expression of bewilderment at Mel’s serious voice.
“Is the Knight of the Underworld that formidable? I heard he was jealous of the Heroes of the Great Awakening and refused to cooperate?”
Leo wore an expression of bewilderment.
“There’s hardly any record left of him either.”
It wasn’t unusual for a hero’s record to be lost, as countless heroes from the past had their records erased.
Leo, who didn’t know much about what kind of hero Tamus was, couldn’t help but be puzzled by Mel’s serious reaction.
[Before the Heroes of the Great Awakening emerged, he was the most powerful hero in the world at the time. Leo-nim, you know that, right?]
“Yes.”
[He was actually so powerful that Rodia considered him a candidate for the Heroes of the Great Awakening. He was also a hero who accompanied Rodia when she conquered the world of Licinus.]
“Rodia?”
Dragons were beings who chose heroes.
And Rodia, whom Leo had met directly, was extremely intelligent.
She was a wise dragon befitting the name of Licinus’s successor.
If Rodia had moved together with him, his skills were certainly confirmed.
[Indeed, it is recorded in Rodia’s writings that he possessed strength comparable to the Heroes of the Great Awakening during the Advent of Calamity.]
“How did such a hero end up turning his back on the world’s threats?”
[It is said that the Knight of the Underworld conquered the worlds of the Great Heroes but never received any conquest rewards.]
“He stood by and watched the world’s threats for such a reason?”
[…It wasn’t just for that reason.]
“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 writings from the Dragonia library, accessible only to Dragon Lords.
‘This is different from the writings I saw before. Is it like a diary?’
The writings Rodia had written before had a strong feeling of being records, filled with power.
‘Full of pretentiousness. That arrogant lizard.’
Leo recalled Rodia he had met before, clicked his tongue, and opened the writings.
He quickly read through the contents.
Before long, a story related to Tamus, the Emperor of Tarim, began.
‘A spirit sorcerer? And one who wields countless spirits.’
Before being a knight, he was a powerful spirit sorcerer who led a knight order composed of spirits through the weapons the heroes used in their lifetimes.
‘His abilities are similar to Licinus.’
Leo was impressed.
It seemed that Rodia considered Tamus a candidate for a hero who would save the world for this reason.
However, beyond the parts related to his power, there were many concerning contents.
[Just as Licinus first accepted Kyle as a companion. I also accepted a human as my first companion by chance. However, he was different from Kyle. Kyle had a rough personality, but… Tamus possesses arrogance and a cruel disposition. Can I guide him to the right path?]
Rodia’s greatest concern was Tamus’s disposition as a hero.
Later, the Great Warrior Azonia joined Rodia, followed by the Comet Mage Seirun.
Then came the Indomitable Demian.
Unlike the concerning disposition of the Knight of the Underworld, Rodia’s party grew stronger by conquering many hero worlds.
However, unlike the others who received conquest rewards from the worlds of the Great Heroes, Tamus never received any 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’s reaction at her first meeting with Lumern was quite excited.
More so than when she met her other companions.
“Wait a moment.”
Leo, sensing a certain emotion from the text, lifted his eyes from the writings and looked at Mel.
“Is it possible that Rodia… likes Lumern?”
[Yes. It seems she fell in love at first sight.]
“Really? Does Lumern know that?”
[Rodia’s writings are kept in Dragonia. When I read Lumern-nim’s writings, it seemed like he was aware of Rodia-nim’s feelings. So he was very perplexed.]
“Why was he perplexed?”
[Seirun-nim also had feelings for Lumern-nim. Isn’t it romantic?]
Leo let out a dry laugh.
“Indeed, it must have been perplexing. Given Rodia and Seirun’s personalities, they would have actively pursued him.”
[No, they did not pursue Lumern-nim.]
“Did they play coy for some reason? Well, our deceitful lizard and the rowdy elf were quite the actors too.”
[That is… Rodia-nim and Seirun-nim. I don’t think they accurately knew what their feelings for Lumern-nim were. Only Lumern-nim noticed.]
“……”
Leo’s face turned murderous.
[Leo-nim?]
Mel looked bewildered.
‘No, so these two, who couldn’t even understand their own feelings, let alone others’, dared to call me an idiot or a fool?’
Recalling the two who glared at him, accusing him of not understanding Luna and Licinus’s feelings, Leo ground his teeth.
“These damned girls! I swear, next time I see them, I’ll shave their heads and make them bald.”
Mel flinched as Leo growled.
Calling the Heroes of the Great Awakening ‘girls’ and threatening to shave their heads.
These were immense words that only a Great Hero could utter.
Leo ground his teeth as he continued reading the writings.
The content that followed was thus:
‘The Knight of the Underworld had feelings for Rodia and was jealous of Lumern. Critically, because of that incident, he deviated from the party and was expelled… and refused to help in the decisive battle against Erebus?’
Leo let out a dry laugh.
‘Is this guy completely insane?’
At a moment when the fate of the world was at stake, he turned his back out of mere jealousy.
‘How selfish can this bastard be?’
With an expression of disbelief, Leo closed the writings.
[Afterward, the Knight of the Underworld became enraged as the Heroes of the Great Awakening far surpassed his fame and people mocked him. He eventually died in a duel with Lumern-nim, attempting to kill him, resulting in his decapitation. The Tarim Empire, to conceal the flaws of its founding emperor, concealed this fact and requested Dragonia to erase the Hero Records related to the Knight of the Underworld’s final moments.]
It seemed the Heroes of the Great Awakening, despite everything, hoped that the Knight of the Underworld, who was once their comrade, would be remembered as an honorable figure in later generations.
‘Well, by now, he’s completely a target of ridicule.’
Leo recalled his 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 merely a coward who turned his back on the world for his own safety, despite possessing immense power.
An understandable treatment, in a way.
‘But it certainly makes sense that someone with this personality would fall and join forces with the Necromancer King.’
As Leo narrowed his eyes, thinking of the Knight of the Underworld, a tremor swept through the air.
A strange aura swirled.
Leo tilted his head back and looked up at the sky.
‘The aura of the Necromancer King.’
Realizing the nature of the aura, Leo narrowed his eyes and stood up.
[Leo-nim?]
Mel called out to Leo in bewilderment.
“It seems we have a guest.”
“More precisely, he likely thinks of you as the guest.”
Leo turned his head at the voice that came from beside him.
“Archduke of Dirge.”
“It’s been a while, Leo Flov, or rather.”
Artkahn bowed deeply to Leo.
“Kyle, the Hero of the Beginning.”
Leo raised his hand.
“Appearing before me means you wish to die, doesn’t it?”
A formidable aura flowed from Leo’s body.
Artkahn narrowed his eyes at the overwhelming killing intent.
‘I came here on Hel Kaiser’s orders to gauge the Hero of the Beginning’s power to some extent.’
The power Leo was currently exuding was on a formidable level.
‘The current generation’s Legion Commanders would be easily subdued.’
Even Legion Commanders who hadn’t gained divine power were still demons who instilled fear in the world with their strength and large numbers of subordinates.
Artkahn lowered his head.
“I would like to have you socialize with Kyle… but today, I am merely an escort.”
“An escort?”
“There is someone else who wishes to meet you. You could consider him a distant junior of yours.”
[All who dwell in this land, hear me.]
At that moment, a colossal voice echoed in the skies above the capital.
[I, Tamus, the master of Tarim and your master, have returned. Kneel and pay homage immediately!]
The oppressive voice shook the entire capital.
Looking up at it, Leo spoke.
“I’ve never had a junior like that.”