Book 1 Chapter 578
578.
When Kal opened his eyes, a pitch-black darkness enveloped his vision.
‘What is this?’
Kal held his breath and tensed his entire body.
Even as a failing student, Kal had somehow managed to follow Lumerne’s educational curriculum.
As such, the world of heroes was as familiar as it could be.
That’s why he could easily tell that the current situation was an unexpected one.
‘Is this Lord Lumerne’s world?’
Kal quickly assessed the situation without letting his guard down.
‘Didn’t they say the Heroes of Creation trapped Erebus in their world? And in that process, all Hero Records of the Heroes of Creation that could be used as escape routes for Erebus were discarded.’
Only one Hero Record of Creation remained intact.
The one that contained Erebus.
‘The fact that I’ve entered Lord Lumerne’s world means I’ve entered through one of the fragments of a discarded page.’
Kal broke out in a cold sweat.
‘Leo definitely said that it was himself who appeared in the present world as Lord Seirun before, right?’
And the fragment of Erebus that appeared then was said to be a part of Erebus that had tried to escape the world of heroes.
‘This place can also be used as a passage, can’t it?’
Remembering Erebus, whom he had encountered during the summer training camp, sent shivers down his spine.
‘First, I need to figure out where this is and what time it is.’
Place and time.
Those were the clues to conquering the world of heroes.
‘By the way, why is it so dark that I can’t see anything? I think I’m lying on a bed, though.’
‘A prison? No, the feel of the bed is definitely luxurious.’
Moreover, there was none of the typical dampness and smell of a prison.
‘I think I smell a good fragrance somewhere.’
It was clearly some unknown room.
‘The middle of the night? No, even so, this lack of light is…’
Kal cautiously got up.
Just then, a faint presence was felt next to him.
Kal froze.
‘A person? An enemy?’
Since he had no idea what was happening, Kal felt all his senses sharpen.
Having decided that the opponent had no intention to attack, Kal softly cast a spell.
“Light.”
Flash-!
A small light ignited, chasing away the darkness.
At that moment, Kal’s eyes met those of a woman he had never seen before.
“……”
“……”
Kal, whose eyes met hers, froze in place.
The same went for the other person.
Kal’s mouth gaped open.
And the face of the naked woman lying in the same bed as Kal turned cold.
Whoosh-!
The woman, wrapped in a blanket, distanced herself from Kal like lightning and somehow picked up a rope strewn on the floor.
And she swung it like a whip.
Swish-swish-swish-! Snap!
“Cough!”
Kal, his neck ensnared, staggered.
The woman pulled Kal, dragging him off the bed.
Thud-! Thump-!
The woman pressed down on the back of Kal’s head with a soft foot, as he lay prone, and spoke.
“Kehek! You! E, Eliza, right? It’s me! Me! Kal Thomas! Calm down!”
At those words, the woman, Eliza, paused.
“Kal Thomas?”
At that, Eliza lifted her foot from the back of Kal’s head.
“Blonde hair…? I see. It’s a possession-type world. But how did you recognize me?”
“Your eyes and the way you wielded the whip, it was definitely you.”
As Kal answered slyly and tried to stand up, Eliza hastily stepped on Kal’s head again.
“Don’t lift your head!”
“Why?”
“Are you serious right now?!”
It was when Eliza, her face flushed, trembled slightly and growled.
Knock-knock-
“Clery. What are you doing making so much noise in the middle of the night!”
At the sound of a middle-aged woman’s voice from outside, Kal and Eliza froze.
Eliza removed her foot from Kal’s head.
Kal lifted his head and met Eliza’s eyes.
‘Clery? It sounds like a man’s name but also a woman’s?’
‘She said alone, so this room is used by only one person.’
Considering the size of the room and the furniture, it was indeed sized for one person.
“Did you perhaps lure another female student into your room? I warned you countless times that if you do that one more time, I’ll open a disciplinary committee, didn’t I?”
As soon as she finished speaking, Eliza ran to the wardrobe.
Kal fumbled, pushing the clothes strewn on the floor under the bed and quickly getting dressed.
Bang-!
“What’s all the noise about when I’m sleeping?”
Kal asked in a sleepy voice.
‘Wow, she’s the exact image of a dorm head.’
The bespectacled middle-aged woman standing at the door exuded the typical aura of a dormitory head.
Behind her, a male dorm head also stood with a stern face.
Step-step-
The dorm head walked into the room.
“Were you sleeping?”
“Then what else would I be doing at this hour?”
The other person had a suspicious expression.
‘Please leave. It would be troublesome if there’s a commotion for no reason!’
Currently, Kal had no information about the person he had possessed.
In such a situation, he couldn’t handle a commotion.
As soon as the surrounding people became suspicious of him acting strangely, the strategy would get complicated.
The dorm head looked at Kal suspiciously, then looked at the neat room again and snorted.
“Hmph, indeed. If it were you, who prides yourself on breaking school rules, you wouldn’t hide a female student but rather brazenly protest, asking what the problem was. Didn’t you say you weren’t scared of the disciplinary committee at all?”
‘How messed up is this person I possessed?’
Kal realized he had possessed the body of a complete scoundrel and let out a hollow laugh.
“But remember, Clery Jessian! Currently, not only students from other hero academies but also the Dragon of Creation, Lord Rodia, are visiting Lumerne! As student council president, if you have even a minimum sense of awareness, refrain from luring female students into your room during this period!”
“Yes, understood.”
“You’re obedient, have you gained awareness as student council president? Or do you have an ulterior motive?”
“Ulterior motive, me?”
Kal waved his hand, showing his characteristic sly attitude.
The dorm head snorted and closed the door.
As the door closed, Kal leaned against it and slumped to the floor.
“I thought I was going to get involved in something.”
As he let out a sigh of relief, the wardrobe door opened, and Eliza poked her head out.
“Just hand over this woman’s clothes quickly.”
“Alright.”
Kal pulled out the clothes he had pushed under the bed.
‘It’s a situation that would be plenty embarrassing, but she didn’t bat an eye.’
Recalling the situation just now, Kal clicked his tongue.
She was lying naked in bed with a man she didn't know, but instead of panicking, she subdued him first.
‘Well, all the female students at our school are terrifying anyway.’
It would be rare to find a Lumerne student who would scream and sound weak there.
‘They’d probably try to crush the opponent first. They’re scary, our school kids are.’
Kal let out a hollow laugh.
“School uniform? It must be Lumerne Academy.”
Kal recognized the place by looking at the female student uniform, identical to those of his own era, and handed the clothes to Eliza while turning his head away.
“There’s something useful here.”
From behind the wardrobe door, Eliza threw something to Kal.
Kal, who caught it, let out a hollow laugh.
“An eye patch?”
“Wear it. If you take it off, I’ll kill you.”
“Yes~ Yes~”
Kal put on the eye patch.
Rustle-thud-rustle-rustle-
The sound of clothes being put on was heard.
Feeling awkwardly embarrassed, Kal tried to change the mood playfully.
“A rope and an eye patch. It’s making me feel unnecessarily self-conscious.”
“What is?”
“It just is. Eliza, do you happen to have any rope marks on your body?”
“How did you know?”
“……”
Kal fell silent at Eliza’s calm reply.
“Hmph! Did you examine my body thoroughly in that short time?”
“No, I didn’t! I immediately turned my head away!”
“Then how did you know there were rope marks?”
“……”
“How crude.”
Kal felt wronged but couldn’t answer, so he had to keep silent.
“Anyway, I’m all dressed.”
At that, Kal took off his eye patch.
“This female student’s name is Megin Shell. She’s a 5th-year Summoning major.”
Eliza, having checked the name tag and the grade and department emblem, clicked her tongue.
“And she seems to be the lover of Clery Jessian, whom you possessed.”
“Right.”
Kal scratched his head.
“So what kind of person is this ‘Clery’ anyway? I know he’s a wild scoundrel, but beyond that.”
“Clery Jessian. He’s a Magic major and was Lumerne’s first student council president. You must have learned that in your first-year classes, no?”
“You skip a lot, but you know quite a bit, don’t you?”
“Hmph. That’s just common knowledge. By the way, you’ve possessed a famous honor student who doesn’t suit you at all.”
“I seem to be incredibly far from an honor student.”
Kal scratched his cheek.
“Anyway, let’s get the situation straight. Before that.”
Eliza crossed her arms and lifted her chin.
Seeing Eliza’s arrogant expression, Kal looked puzzled.
“What happened just now.”
“Huh?”
“If you utter a single word to anyone, I’ll chase you to the ends of hell.”
Eliza growled fiercely, her face slightly flushed.
It wasn't his body, but it was certainly an awkward situation for both of them.
“Even if I’m endlessly loose-lipped, I’m not the type to blab about such things.”
Kal shrugged his shoulders, as if to say not to worry.
Eliza nodded at that.
Then she frowned and rubbed her wrist.
“By the way, I don’t know why it hurts, what did you do with the rope?”
Seeing Eliza’s puzzled expression, Kal smiled slyly.
“Your usual behavior is like a delinquent thug, but you’re definitely a young lady from a prestigious family.”
“Do you mean you want to die?”
“I mean you’re pure! Pure, I tell you!”
Kal screamed in terror as Eliza tried to tie his neck with the rope.
***
“What on earth is going on?”
“Why did the world of heroes suddenly activate?!”
“It wasn’t scheduled! It’s a hero dungeon!”
A commotion arose at the Erek training ground.
Professors preparing for the match rushed to assess the situation.
Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-!
The spectators, unaware of the situation, cheered, thinking the match had begun.
Leo, watching them, narrowed his eyes and brought his index and middle fingers to his temple.
-Melina.
-Yes, Lord Leo.
-Cut the video magic being live-streamed externally.
-Understood.
Leo, having contacted Melina far away, looked at the center of the Erek training ground.
As he activated his super senses, he felt a strange chill below his neck.
It was as if a knife was being held to his throat.
He had felt this sensation countless times.
‘A hero dungeon has appeared right in the center of Lumerne.’
That was absurd.
Lumerne’s purpose was to conquer hero dungeons and retrieve Hero Records.
If a Hero Record had been in the middle of the Erek training ground, it would have been discovered long ago.
Leo, who had overcome countless life-and-death situations, quickly deduced the situation.
‘Tartarus? Why would they do this?’
Even if a hero dungeon is activated, it poses no significant threat to Lumerne.
They can conquer it whenever they want.
Normally, additional entry into the world of heroes is impossible.
But Leo had confirmed through experiments that it was possible to enter a hero dungeon that was already being conquered.
The privilege of the owner of a Hero Record.
‘Whose Hero Record is this? What are they after?’
It was when Leo narrowed his brows.
Whoosh-!
Flames erupted in the center of the Erek training ground.
Leo’s eyes twitched at the sight.
‘Flames of calamity?’
CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-!
A black pillar of fire shot up.