Book 1 Chapter 680

680.

Leo looked ahead with his arms crossed.

Currently, Leo and his party had formed a group to scout the area around the fortress and had exited it.

This was the heart of Tartarus's domain.

Soon after, an attack by monstrous beasts began.

"All three of them are full of spirit."

"Yeah. They seem to have been greatly influenced by the duel between Cal and Canea."

At Leo's words, Chelsea recalled the events of two days prior.

It was a duel that made the hero candidates feel many things.

Chelsea, who was watching the trio from the Knight Department's second year, glanced up at the sky.

Leo asked without taking his eyes off the second-years.

"Can you defeat them?"

Above in the sky, a demon had appeared.

Chelsea pulled out her magic staff and smiled sweetly.

"Of course. What do you take me for?"

Chelsea soared high into the sky.

Seeing her, Leo chuckled.

'Chelsea has also grown in ways I wouldn't have recognized.'

She was now at a level where it was hard to treat her like a kid.

She felt like a full-fledged mage, pulling her own weight.

Uwoooorrr!

The roar of the monstrous beasts echoed.

Leo looked straight ahead.

He saw a flash of golden light.

Ssssh!

A chilling sound of flesh and bone being severed.

A giant bull-headed human.

The Minotaur's body was sliced and diced.

Thud!

In the blink of an eye, Ainah, who had severed three Minotaurs, landed on the ground.

Ainah, armed with minimal armor for ease of movement, was covered in blood all over her body.

Watching her, Leo muttered.

"Your fighting style is still fearsome."

When fighting, Ainah doesn't care for herself.

She slaughters enemies as if revealing the blade she holds within.

With eyes gleaming with killing intent, Ainah surveyed her surroundings.

'Where are the others?'

Habiden moved like the wind, piercing the Minotaur's heart with his spear.

Luke, in the form of a silver flash, had severed the Minotaur's neck.

Confirming this, Ainah was about to move to cut down a fourth Minotaur.

Grrrroooaar!

With a roar, a black shadow fell over her head.

A Minotaur with grey skin was swinging a massive hammer.

'Lord Minotaur!'

Contrary to its grand name, it looked no different from an ordinary Minotaur.

The difference was its grey skin instead of brown.

However, if it were just a different color, it wouldn't have the title of Lord.

'As expected, there was a Lord.'

Ordinary Minotaurs do not live in groups unless controlled by a beast mage.

However, the number of Minotaurs currently attacking the group was close to fifty.

Beasts with the title of Lord can not only dominate lesser species like beast mages but also enhance them.

Furthermore, their individual power as a Lord-class beast was overwhelmingly strong.

A Lord Minotaur is comparable to a Rank 3 demon in terms of pure strength.

Upon seeing the Lord Minotaur, a golden light flashed in Ainah's eyes.

CRACKLE!

The Lord Minotaur's hammer struck the ground.

Terrifying dark magic surged outwards from the Lord Minotaur.

Everything touched by the dark magic turned to dust.

The Lord Minotaur, having shattered the earth, grinned menacingly.

High-class beasts, while driven by instinct, are intelligent.

The Lord Minotaur suppresses its instincts with its intelligence.

It becomes more cautious and more malicious.

The Lord Minotaur knew that the human girl fighting it was strong.

It was astonishing.

It had hunted countless humans on the battlefield, but never had it encountered a human this young with such power.

It wasn't just this human.

The other humans also possessed strength unbecoming of their age.

However, the Lord Minotaur did not care.

This land was no longer human territory, but theirs.

No matter how great the humans were, it was certain that they would ultimately be victorious.

And it would devour the strong.

The first was the human girl before its eyes.

Feeling exhilaration, the Lord Minotaur's eyes followed Ainah.

Fast human.

As expected, she dodged this attack, but it was futile.

Its attack possessed the power to destroy the entire surrounding area.

And speed was useless.

The human girl before its eyes emanated immense killing intent towards it, a beast.

The Lord Minotaur's senses were acutely attuned to that killing intent.

Huuugh-!

As it exhaled, its entire body's muscles twitched.

At that moment—

Ainah, stepping on the clods of earth scattering in all directions from the shock, lightly landed on them.

WHOOSH-!

And with immense speed, she charged towards the Lord Minotaur.

The Minotaur swung its hammer at Ainah.

At that moment—

Sharp sword energy appeared at the tip of Ainah's sword.

The sword moved smoothly.

As if dancing.

Beautiful swordsmanship adorned the air.

The sword of the Sword Saint, a hero who carried an era, unfolded at the tip of Ainah's sword.

The sword's movements were beautiful.

But the slashes the sword created were chilling.

CRACKLE! THUMP!

WOOOOORRRRR!

The Lord Minotaur let out a beastly roar.

Severed pieces of metal and chunks of meat, unrecognizable in shape, fell to the ground.

Seeing this, Leo narrowed his eyes.

'She's become even sharper.'

There are many ways to use a sword.

'Cutting, thrusting, striking, blocking.'

None is unimportant.

But cutting, of course, is what maximizes the sword's potential.

And Ainah's talent for cutting was unparalleled.

'When it comes to cutting, Ainah's talent is comparable to Arion's.'

Of course, Arion was a monster who maximized the potential of the sword itself, not just cutting with it.

'Well, he handles all weapons like that, not just swords.'

Leo shook his head, recalling a friend born with different circumstances.

Arion, despite hating fighting, was ironically a genius in combat.

Shaking off thoughts of Arion, Leo looked back at Ainah.

'Purely based on talent, she's beyond her great-grandfather, the Sword Saint.'

Kalian, who carried an era on his shoulders and made great contributions to defeating the Demon Queen before closing his eyes.

Of course, superior talent doesn't automatically mean surpassing the Sword Saint.

Talent is merely potential.

'Still, she'll surpass him.'

If it were Ainah from last year, perhaps. But the current Ainah would surpass her great-grandfather.

'When I first saw her, she was so unstable.'

Ainah, who was always filled with killing intent, was like an unsheathed sword.

A sword without a sheath.

A sheath is an object that prevents others from being hurt by the sword, but it also protects the sword from external forces.

A sword swung indiscriminately becomes dull and eventually broken.

But Ainah didn't care about that.

She was simply consumed by the emotion of anger and couldn't see her surroundings properly.

She had no intention of taking care of herself, only interested in taking revenge on Tartarus for taking her family.

'Didn't Kalian's will have a condition that she had to be recognized by me to inherit everything of the Sword Saint?'

The Sword Saint, knowing Leo's identity at his final moments, had closed his eyes in relief.

However, before writing the will, he did not know Leo's identity.

'He probably thought Ainah would enroll in Lumen.'

It was likely his intention to have her learn many things from Leo during that process.

As a hero who carried an era, Kalian had an excellent eye for people.

Of course, Leo didn't teach Ainah.

He merely guided her in the right direction so she wouldn't stray.

But that alone changed Ainah.

'It's not that her ultimate goal has changed.'

She is still a sharp blade, harboring hatred and killing intent towards Tartarus.

However, the misfortune of her own destruction due to her inability to control her emotions would no longer occur.

WOOOOORRRRR!

The Lord Minotaur roared.

Hands sprouted from the severed stump.

A grotesquely powerful regenerative ability.

But that was it.

The Lord Minotaur's pure strength was indeed comparable to a Rank 3 demon.

'But its danger level is lower compared to Rank 3 demons.'

Demons' most dangerous ability is curses.

A mere Minotaur cannot use such curses.

Seeing the recovered Minotaur, Ainah lightly landed on the ground.

From her calm face, terrifying killing intent emanated.

The suffocating killing intent grew denser.

And…….

GURGLE?

The Lord Minotaur's eyes widened.

The space within Ainah's sword's reach was filled with killing intent.

The Minotaur's senses, which had been tracking Ainah's movements by sensing her killing intent, were disrupted.

She infused her own killing intent with her own malice.

Before anyone realized it, Ainah had grown to the point where she could use her emotions as a weapon.

SCRAPE-!

The Lord Minotaur's head flew into the sky.

Ainah, cleanly severing its neck, landed on the ground.

Ainah sheathed her sword and walked away with light steps.

Blood gushed like a fountain from the severed stump.

The trembling Lord Minotaur raised its hands.

The Lord Minotaur does not die from having its head severed.

Its body moved by instinct, still displaying powerful combat ability.

WHOOSH-!

The Minotaur's giant hand swung as if to crush Ainah.

At that moment.

Ainah, with a blank expression, looked back.

At that moment.

Silver aura descended from the sky.

WHOOSH-!

The hard and tough Minotaur's body was brutally split open.

"Ainah, are you okay?"

"Yes."

"What happened? Letting your guard down. That's not like you."

Seeing the flustered Luke, she said with a poker face.

"Because I knew you would come to help."

A Minotaur with only its neck severed and only instinct remaining is a rampaging monster.

It will attack until it kills the one who severed its neck.

As such, it creates numerous openings.

Ainah knew this principle well.

The moment Luke saw Ainah engage the Lord Minotaur, he moved to help her.

Having perceived this, Ainah drew the Lord Minotaur's attention to create an opening for a surprise attack.

"I trusted you."

"I see."

Luke was a little surprised.

After the end of the second semester of the first year, Ainah had opened her heart to her classmates.

But even then, she had fought alone until the first-year final exams.

Ainah's fighting style, accustomed to solo combat, was pointed out as her biggest weakness.

But it was different now.

'She's become able to perfectly coordinate with her teammates.'

Leo smiled wryly.

Ainah's strategy just now was one that could not have been executed without fully trusting Luke or Habiden.

'As expected, kids grow fast.'

Luke's growth was also noticeable.

Even if Ainah created a perfect opening, Luke's power to finish off the Lord Minotaur in one blow was astonishing.

"You're amazing, Ainah."

As Luke exclaimed, Ainah's eyes widened.

Then she smiled brightly.

"You're amazing too, Luke."

"Huh?"

"You were cool."

Seeing Ainah smile brightly like a girl her age, Luke blushed and stammered, scratching his head.

"You were cool too."

"Yes."

Ainah was still a sharp sword.

But…

'She found a good sheath.'

Leo turned his head towards Habiden.

Habiden, with his spear slung over his shoulder, was walking towards them, looking at the sky.

Luke said.

"Habiden, are you hurt anywhere?"

"Do I look like I would get hurt?"

"Wow! Amazing!"

Ainah, returning with a blank expression, said.

"Luke, why are you worried about Habiden?"

"Are you picking a fight? Ainah Vaydna."

When Habiden scowled, Ainah said.

"He wouldn't get hurt that much."

"Hmph. That's true."

"It would be embarrassing if he got hurt. I would have cut faster. You can do it too. In fact, fighting the Lord Minotaur was more impressive. So what Habiden did isn't that amazing."

It seemed she was displeased that Luke's attention had been diverted.

Seeing Ainah like that, a vein bulged on Habiden's forehead.

"You are indeed picking a fight."

'Trust.'

They achieved results beyond their individual strength based on mutual trust.

"Heave ho! Arrived! Are they fighting again?"

At that moment, Chelsea returned from the sky.

"Fast."

"Rank 4 demons are easy now!"

Rank 4 is a high-ranking demon.

But considering Chelsea's skills, it's not a difficult enemy.

'And they're demons from a bygone era.'

The tactics for demons from 5000 years ago are already widely known.

Unless it's a large-scale battle with many variables, they were merely prey in a one-on-one fight.

"Those guys are pretty good too?"

"The third-years will have to be vigilant."

"Huh?"

Seeing Chelsea with a bewildered expression, Leo smiled.

She would soon find out.

That there were juniors chasing them relentlessly.

Ainah and Habiden bickering.

Luke, mediating between the two.

Watching them, Leo spoke.

"Ainah Vaydna."

"Yes, Leo-senpai."

Stopping her bickering and approaching him, Leo said to Ainah.

"Cresis's seal should be broken."

"……!"

Ainah's eyes widened.

Cresis.

The divine sword named Demon Slayer, created by Deweno.

In this era, it was the symbol of the Sword Saint and the legacy of the Sword Saint that Ainah had not inherited.

It was a sword that could only be used with Leo's recognition.

Ainah, with trembling hands, opened a spatial rift and summoned Cresis.

Shing-

The blade of Cresis, old but possessing great power, appeared.

'I can draw it.'

My great-grandfather's legacy.

"Thank you."

Ainah, sheathing the sword, smiled brightly and showed the sword to her classmates.

"Look at this. This is the sword my grandfather used. Cresis."

"It's an amazing sword."

"Yes. I've finally been recognized by Leo-senpai, like you, Luke."

And then she glanced at Habiden and said.

"Only Habiden hasn't been recognized by Leo-senpai."

"Luke, don't get close to Ainah Vaydna."

"Huh? Why?"

"I've thought so before, but she's a sinister woman."

Watching the bickering second-years, Chelsea crossed her arms.

"You guys get along well. I can feel the trust between you."

"I know, right? You're like you and Celia."

"Huh? What are you talking about? How are Celia Zedinger and I getting along? I don't trust her at all. She's an enemy! An enemy!"

Chelsea scowled.

Leo pinched Chelsea's cheek.

Watching Chelsea flail, Leo smiled.

Whether they were second-years or third-years.

Seeing them bicker childishly, Leo was reminded of his past.

Recalling Lissinas, Luna, Arion… and finally Deweno, Leo closed his eyes.

'Trust.'

After a moment of silence, Leo released Chelsea and said.

"Let's get going now."

Leo moved for the reconnaissance.