Book 1 Chapter 519
519.
Thump- thump-
Unemotional footsteps echoed through the grand lecture hall used by the second-year students.
It was none other than Hallind, known as the 'Wailing Wall of Lumen'.
At his appearance, all the second-year students looked tense.
Today was the day for a special Heroics class.
The person leading that class was Professor Hallind.
As they advanced to their second year, the second-year students' encounters with Hallind had definitely decreased.
But even so, Hallind was still a figure of terror for the second-year students.
It was at that moment, as all the second-year students wore tense expressions.
"Karl Thomas."
"Yes, sir!"
*Jumped up!*
At Hallind's low voice, Karl jumped up from his seat.
"Wake up Eliza Hergin next to you."
At those words, Karl flinched and looked to his side.
There, Eliza was nodding off like a sick chick.
Normally, Eliza would openly sleep in other professors' classes, or not even come if she was tired, but in Hallind's class, she listened diligently.
This was because Eliza also feared Hallind.
"Eliza. Wake up."
Karl cautiously spoke to Eliza.
But Eliza showed no sign of waking.
"I'll give you three seconds."
Karl, startled by Hallind's words, placed his hands on Eliza's shoulders and shook her.
"Eliza! Wake up!"
Startled by his words, Eliza opened her eyes.
And as her eyes met Hallind's, her face turned pale.
Hallind looked at Eliza and smiled coldly.
"What on earth are you doing at night that makes you doze off during class?"
"Th-that is…"
"There won't be a next time."
"Yes, sir!"
Watching Eliza jump up from her seat and answer, Hallind stood in the center of the podium.
Eliza, now seated, covered her face.
'I haven't been able to sleep properly at dawn for days, so I can't focus.'
Five days had passed since Leo's training began.
Since then, Eliza hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep.
She endured the power of the Essence of Thunder throughout the dawn.
After training, she refined her spiritual power through meditation.
Afterwards, she trained her body.
Classes, too, could never be skipped.
Sleeping openly was fine once or twice, but she couldn't just not attend classes indefinitely.
No matter how tired her body was from training, allowing her grades to drop because of it was absolutely unacceptable given Eliza's personality.
If it were simply studying and training without sleep, Eliza wouldn't be pushed to such extreme fatigue.
But accepting the Essence of Thunder was an act that consumed immense spiritual power and physical strength.
It was literally a situation where she was pushed to her mental and physical limits.
In that situation, Leo offered no advice, but Eliza didn't mind.
It was what she wanted, and she intended to do it her way.
As Eliza massaged her temples, trying to somehow ward off fatigue, Karl handed her a fatigue recovery potion.
"Drink it. It's specially made. It'll help you wake up a bit."
"Thank you. I'll pay you later."
"It's fine, it's a service."
Karl smiled faintly.
"You're my regular customer, after all. And a friend too. You gotta help when someone's having a hard time."
"Friend?"
Eliza furrowed her brow.
"Do you think of me as a friend?"
"Same school, same year, same dorm, what else would you be but friends? And a future VIP customer!"
As Karl gave a thumbs-up, Eliza scoffed.
"Karl Thomas, it seems you wish to die, engaging in idle chatter."
"Ah, no sir!"
At Hallind's remark, Karl's face turned pale.
Eliza, glancing at Karl, fiddled with the potion bottle in her hand, then scoffed, "Hmph!"
In the meantime, only silence permeated the grand lecture hall.
All the students focused on Hallind.
Today's special Heroics class had been announced suddenly.
All major, minor, and elective classes were canceled, and all second-year students gathered in the grand lecture hall.
Due to such an unexpected situation, their curiosity was immense.
With everyone's attention on him, Hallind opened his mouth.
"What's been happening in the world recently…"
*CRASH!*
"You all must know about the situation! Everyone is keeping quiet, but a grave situation has occurred!"
The grand lecture hall doors burst open, and Sedgen interrupted Hallind.
Hallind looked at Sedgen and said.
"This is my class, isn't it? Professor Sedgen."
"The second-years are my responsibility! It's right for me to lead the class, isn't it? You should go teach the first-years!"
"I understand that this class is my responsibility, regardless of the year?"
"I officially protested that!"
"When the results come out from the faculty meeting, then you may return. Celia Zerdinger, Duran Moira."
Hallind, befitting an honor student, called out the names of the two Knightry Department students in the front row.
"Remove him."
"Professor Sedgen. You shouldn't do this."
"We will escort you outside."
Celia and Duran politely bowed to Sedgen, then grabbed him and led him out.
"What on earth are you doing?! Weren't you my beloved students?! Are you going to act as Hallind's stooges now?! Ugh! Let go! Let gooooo! How could you do this to me?!"
The second-year students were not flustered by the now-familiar sight.
With Sedgen gone and the lecture hall quiet, Hallind continued his class.
"What is the most serious issue in the current situation?"
At Hallind's question, students raised their hands.
"Karl Thomas."
"It's Professor Sedgen intruding again."
"Come out, bow your head, and prostrate yourself."
"I'm sorry."
"Come out."
Karl made a tearful expression and received his punishment next to Hallind.
"Karl is quite amusing, as expected."
When Aileen said this to Chelsea with a laugh, Chelsea's eyes widened.
"Karl? Who's that? I don't know anyone like that."
Chelsea openly treated Karl as a stranger.
Meanwhile, Hallind called on the student who raised their hand fastest after Karl.
"Nella Carven."
"It's the fact that the previous heroes are being resurrected as undead."
"Indeed. Do you also know why it's a serious matter?"
"Because it could shake the very foundation of the Age of Heroes, which has continued for the past 5000 years."
Hallind nodded, watching Nella answer in a heavy voice.
"That's right."
Hallind narrowed his eyes.
"5000 years ago, after the great heroes subjugated Erebus and ended the Age of Calamity, the world finally achieved peace. In that process, the gods who left the earth gifted the world with the Hero Record. Since then, those who accomplished great deeds recognized by the gods became heroes and maintained the world's peace and order."
At his words, all the students nodded.
Because that was something everyone knew.
"Heroes are noble individuals recognized by the gods. Is there anyone who denies this?"
At Hallind's question, all the second-year students shook their heads.
It was an absolute truth.
"If that's the case, then why are the heroes of the past resurrected as the undead by the power of the Necromancer King, turning their blades against us?"
"……"
At those words, everyone fell silent.
A person deemed noble by the gods is reduced to a weapon for the Necromancer King, who seeks to destroy the world.
If so, was that person truly noble?
The foundation of the Age of Heroes is 'Heroes'.
Heroes are agents of the gods, chosen by them.
After preventing the return of calamity, such an atmosphere became even more prevalent.
Those who lead the world.
But what if those individuals, in reality, weren't worthy of being agents of the gods?
The current era might seem glamorous at first glance.
The appearance of the Brave Arion and Luna, the progenitor of the Nebula.
The subjugation of the Erebus fragments and the victory over the Necromancer King.
The world's attention is focused on the new miracles of the Hero Record.
But it is also true that behind that, doubts are sprouting: 'Are heroes truly agents of the gods?'
The seeds of doubt create cracks in faith.
And cracks lead to collapse.
"The reason for this special Heroics class is connected to these events."
At Hallind's words, the students wore serious expressions.
Then Abad raised his hand.
"Ask your question, Abad Lewellyn."
"Professor Hallind, what do you think about the current situation?"
"As you all know. Just because someone is a hero doesn't mean they are absolutely good and righteous."
Hallind clicked his tongue.
"But most people have believed that even so, heroes possess noble 'convictions' worthy of being recognized by the gods."
"That's why they were chosen by the gods."
"Yes. But having worked as a professor at Lumen for a long time, I have felt doubts."
Hallind scanned the students and said.
"Namely, 'Is the gods' choice truly correct?'"
"What?"
"Students who seemed unfit to be heroes became heroes. And students who shouldn't have become heroes ascended to the position of a hero."
"……"
As a Lumen professor, it was an incredibly dangerous statement.
Though it's called an era without gods, gods undeniably exist.
Furthermore, though it's said there are no followers of gods, it is an era where heroes exist, representing the will of the gods.
Blasphemy.
It was an act of blasphemy against 'heroes,' those who lead the world.
Even if it were a professor at a Hero Academy.
Even for Hallind, who had mentored countless disciples, it was a statement so severe that if it leaked outside, his professorship could be in jeopardy.
It was when the students gulped nervously.
"There are also fools who babble that if someone became undead, that too is the will of the gods."
Hallind said coldly.
"However, there has been a recent change in the Hero Record."
"What kind of change?"
"It has recently been revealed that there are individuals whose records have been erased from the Hero Record, thereby losing their hero qualifications."
"……!"
"……!"
Everyone wore shocked expressions.
The erasure of records from the Hero Record.
It was an unprecedented major event.
"Is there a student who can explain what this means?"
At those words, the students exchanged glances.
It was too shocking.
Then someone raised a hand.
"Leo Flobe."
At Hallind's call, all the students' gazes turned to Leo.
"The rights they enjoyed because they were heroes. The sins that weren't questioned because they were heroes. The responsibilities they didn't bear because they were heroes—they will now have to bear them."
Leo spoke as if making a declaration.
"Since the gods' choices have been revoked, more people will lose faith in their selections. The existing system could collapse, and a new order might emerge. And…"
"And?"
"Only 'true' heroes will remain."
At Leo's answer, Hallind curled the corners of his mouth.
"You seem quite confident, Leo Flobe."
"I wasn't particularly interested in the gods' choices to begin with."
***
Scratch- scratch-
A dark underground space.
A beautiful being, difficult to discern whether boy or girl, dressed in splendid pure white clothes, was diligently writing something in a large book.
They filled each large blank space.
Soon, the child, having finished writing, stepped back a pace.
*Whoosh-!*
Then, the words written in the book vanished from it as if evaporated.
The child scratched their gray hair.
"I don't understand. Why do the records keep getting erased?"
They wore an expression of confusion.
Then, their face distorted.
"Stop yapping, it's hurting my ears! What? Why do I only listen to Pibua's requests? Did I arbitrarily record someone as the successor to the progenitor of the Nebula? Lunia El Rundia! I didn't record her! It was automatically written into the Record System! You all know! That damn monstrosity is making the Record System go haywire!"
The child yelled into the air.
"What? Leo Flobe? Who's that? I don't know any hero with that name!"
The child, irritably closing the book, walked, thump- thump-.
The space the child was in was peculiar.
It was like a colossal library.
"Seriously! If it's so frustrating, why don't they become librarians of the Record System themselves!"
The child, about to leave the library, stopped.
The very first bookshelf of the Record System.
On the bookshelf, which had clearly burned away and disappeared, several books had somehow appeared.
"Huh?"
The child wore an expression of shock.
"How is Kyle's story still continuing?"