Book 1 Chapter 764
764.
“It’s going to be tough.” Leo said, looking at Retin’s ruined government building in the distance.
The subjugation of Styx’s Second Saintess and the Knights of Rest was successful.
Fortunately, there were no casualties apart from the injured.
This was thanks to Sis Sigma, who led the Tusen Knights, responding quickly.
But even so, the scars of the invasion were not absent.
From the half-destroyed government building to the collapsed structures.
The damage Retin suffered could by no means be called small.
“On the contrary, for such powerful demons to have attacked and for the damage to have ended up being this much, it’s a miracle,” Sis said with a faint smile.
“All of this is thanks to the grace of the Great King of Wisdom, Lysinas-nim, and Your Majesty, who is braver and stronger than anyone else.”
“Still, the damage is considerable, isn’t it?”
Retin is a tourist city.
If safety issues arise due to this incident, a big problem could occur.
At Leo’s words, Sis replied.
“The hot springs have also returned to their original state… and crucially, thanks to the King of Wisdom personally gracing us with her presence, we will see significant promotional effects.”
Sis chuckled.
After the battle concluded.
Retin, thrown into chaos by the demon attack, was able to quickly regain stability entirely thanks to Lysinas.
She personally appeared before the people.
‘She must have intended it.’
Given Lysinas’s personality, moving with thorough calculation.
She must have figured out how to maximize her influence and appeared before the people of Retin.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have appeared so splendidly, emitting light.
Leo, recalling Lysinas’s goddess-like appearance, asked.
“Still, wouldn’t it be better to postpone the coronation?”
For the people of Lesentung, the sudden demon invasion would be disorienting enough; a coronation on top of that could cause confusion.
“The coronation must proceed. Even if the scale is small, it cannot be postponed. Lesentung needs Your Majesty.”
At those words, Leo scratched his head and said,
“Honestly, I’m not suited for the position of king.”
I’m not capable of taking responsibility for an entire country.
Leo knew that fact well.
“Celia would be more suited for that, actually. You, who have ruled here for a long time, could also ascend to the throne.”
“Perhaps.”
“But why are you so desperate to make me king? Even if I’m not the king here, I’ll help if this land is in crisis.”
“Undoubtedly, a king refers to one who stands above the populace, reigns, governs, and leads.”
From that perspective.
Leo was not that.
“However, I don’t believe those are the only virtues of a king.”
“Then?”
“One who can be trusted and relied upon. That, too, is a person possessing the virtues of a king. No. In fact, I believe that is the greatest virtue of a king.”
Sis bowed his head.
“You don’t need to lead. You don’t need to try to be a great king. Simply your ascent to the throne, Leo-nim, will surely allow the people of Lesentung to live in peace and security.”
The knight, who had dedicated his life to protecting Lesentung, spoke with a confident face.
Leo, sighing as he looked at Sis, replied, “Alright,” and headed towards the warp gate.
“He resembles Defeser.”
Lysinas, who was wearing a hood a little distance away, said.
Defeser. He was a gold dragon who had looked after Lysinas since childhood, one of the few dragons who continued to believe in and support Lysinas even after the Age of Calamity began.
“He does.”
At Leo’s words, Lysinas let out a small laugh and made a wistful expression.
He lost his life when the Giant King invaded Gadshron.
‘He gave me a lot of advice to think about what to do after peace was restored.’
Leo closed his eyes and tried to recall that nostalgic voice.
‘You must not forget about the succession issue, Lysinas-nim.’
“You must not forget about the succession issue, Leo-nim.”
Sis, who followed behind Leo, said naggingly.
At those words, Leo let out a deep sigh.
“Today I saw many who would be suitable as your partner, Leo-nim, please consider it seriously.”
At those words, Leo glanced at Lysinas, who smiled brightly.
Soon, they reached the entrance of the warp gate.
“By the way, Your Majesty. I’ve wanted to ask since earlier, your face…?”
“I got a bit injured fighting.”
“Oh dear. Shall I call a healer?”
“It’s fine.”
Leo clicked his tongue and entered the warp gate.
“Ahem!”
“Heeheehee!”
As soon as he entered the warp gate, he heard sounds of people trying to suppress laughter.
Looking towards the sound, Runia and Chloe were trembling, avoiding Leo’s gaze.
Elena was gently twisting her hair, wearing her characteristic sneering, annoying expression.
“Ah! Leo-senpai’s face…!”
Rea held her head, flustered, while Wareden had his usual indifferent, bored expression.
Luca scratched his cheek, looking troubled.
Finally…
“Brother looks cool no matter what!”
Lil’s innocent words, devoid of any malice, grated on his nerves.
Leo, clicking his tongue, stepped onto the warp gate.
“Ahem!”
“Mmhmm!”
Runia and Chloe followed him, suppressing their laughter.
Sis smiled faintly at the sight.
“Go well, Your Majesty. We will await your return.”
Flash-!
The warp gate activated, and Leo’s party disappeared.
***
Debian’s capital, Deang.
The hot springs where Lumen and Seirun students were staying.
This place had long since transformed into a venue for exchange between the two schools.
Celia was sparring with Garin, a male student from Seirun.
Flash-! Clang-!
Garin defended against Celia’s swift thrust.
Falling snowflakes scattered, and their eyes met in the air.
A moment later, Celia, having put away her weapon, said.
“That was a good match. Thanks for sparring with me.”
“Sparring with you is also a great help to me.”
Garin said in a slightly solemn voice.
Eiran, who was watching them, said.
“How should I put it? I always feel it, but Celia-yang’s swordsmanship is like a flame.”
“It’s a characteristic of the Zerdinger family.”
Chen Xia, sipping warm tea beside them, smiled faintly.
Celia brushed off the melted snow accumulated on her head and approached the two.
Thanks to her vigorous movements, her cheeks were flushed despite the cold weather, and her breathing was slightly uneven.
“Phew! Seirun’s spellblades have peculiar movements. Usually, spellblades, like Illiana, tend to lean towards one side. But Seirun’s spellblades feel well-balanced in both swordsmanship and magic.”
Celia said, impressed.
“That’s because Seirun has prioritized star magic until now. They developed swordsmanship a lot by integrating magic into their sword techniques.”
“Yeah. So, how should I put it, it’s different from the swordsmanship I usually encounter, so it helps a lot.”
Chen Xia, smiling faintly as she saw Celia’s sparkling eyes and eagerness to improve, handed her a towel.
“First, wipe yourself off. You’ll catch a cold if your sweat cools down on a day like this.”
“Thanks to Lysinas-nim’s ice water training recently, I usually don’t feel cold.”
“Even so.”
At Chen Xia’s words, Lysinas wiped away her sweat.
“Ahem! Er, Eiran.”
Just then, Garin called Eiran from a distance.
“What is it, Garin?”
Eiran tilted her head and approached Garin.
Around Garin, other male Seirun students gathered with tense expressions.
Garin whispered softly to Eiran.
Eiran, tilting her head at the question, approached.
“Celia-yang.”
“Hm? Why?”
“Do you have a romantic partner, Celia-yang?”
“No, I don’t.”
“What? Someone as wonderful as Celia-yang doesn’t have a partner?”
“Yeah.”
Having said that much, Celia furrowed her brows.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never even received a confession or a letter, let alone had a boyfriend, have I?”
“Considering Celia-yang’s usual image… it can’t be helped, I suppose.”
“What about my image? You get a lot of them, don’t you?”
“What do I get a lot of? Among our classmates, Nella-yang is the most popular. After her comes Chloe-yang, then Eliza-yang. And then me.”
“…That I’m at the same level as Illiana.”
As Celia spoke with a devastated expression, Chen Xia said curtly.
“Illiana-yang is also very popular.”
“What?! Why!”
Celia bristled.
“Ask the male students.”
“Ugh!”
Celia felt indignant at the fact that she had lost to Illiana.
In truth, she was very popular, a fact only Celia herself didn’t know.
‘She was confessed to a few times in her first year, but she herself rejected them.’
Of course, she herself didn’t even realize that the other person had confessed.
‘When asked who her ideal type was, her naming Leo-doryeong specifically was decisive.’
Celia had simply, without much thought, named Leo, the male student she was most familiar with in her first year and her cousin, as her ideal type.
However, Leo’s subsequent actions became so legendary that she became a female student whom male students couldn’t even look at.
Eiran, who was listening to their conversation, tilted her head.
“Celia-yang is a young lady from a great family, so you must have a fiancé arranged by your family, right?”
“I don’t have anyone like that either.”
“That’s surprising.”
Eiran, feeling genuinely surprised, trotted over to Garin.
“Oooooh!”
Then, exclamations erupted from among the male Seirun students gathered around Garin.
His classmates patted Garin on the shoulder.
“Why are they like that?”
When Celia asked with a puzzled expression, Eiran shook her head.
“They’re like that because Celia-yang said she doesn’t have a partner, you see.”
“Why?”
“Well… Ah, perhaps Garin sees Celia-yang as a good rival?”
“Huh? Is he worried that my skills will decline if I get involved in romance?”
“I think so. Garin is also very serious about swordsmanship.”
“It seems I’ve found a good sparring partner.”
“Oh, Garin. Celia-yang isn’t the kind of person whose skills would drop just by having a partner, so he’s worrying for nothing.”
Celia and Eiran thought as they pleased.
Chen Xia, watching them, thought seriously.
‘Are these two idiots?’
Their minds didn’t work at all when it came to romance.
Especially Eiran, who normally read a lot of strange novels but was completely clueless in this regard, was surprising.
Chen Xia, who was contemplating whether to give them a hint, let out a chuckle.
‘It seems it will be interesting, so let’s leave them be.’
Saying that, the three people left the garden.
And Celia, seeing a certain scene, froze solid.
There, Aris Trina, Garin’s twin sister, was pushing Avad’s back.
“You promised to grant my wish if I taught you magic, right? Let’s go to the city. To the city.”
“Ah. Aris. If you’re going to the city, can’t we come too?”
“No. You can’t.”
At Eiran’s words, Aris shook her head decisively.
Avad said with an awkward smile.
“Going to the city just the two of us is…”
“Why? Avad. You said you don’t have a girlfriend, right?”
“I don’t.”
“Then it’s fine, isn’t it?”
Aris tilted her head.
“Hmph!”
Celia snorted and went in another direction.
Eiran, seeing Celia, followed her with a flustered expression.
Chen Xia waved lightly at Avad, then followed behind Celia.
“Why, why are you like this, Celia-yang?”
“I don’t know!”
“Don’t be like that and just admit it, Celia-yang. That you have feelings for Avad-goon.”
“Who likes that butter-face! Besides, that guy is the heir of Lwallyn!”
Celia flared up.
“Who likes whom?”
Just then, a familiar voice was heard.
“Ah! Leo-nim! You’ve arrived…”
“Listen, Leo-doryeong. Celia-yang is…”
Eiran, who was smiling brightly, and Chen Xia, who was sighing, froze upon seeing Leo’s face.
Celia also gaped, staring at Leo’s face.
And then… “Pfft…! K-kick! Heeheehee! Ahahahahahahahahahahaha!”
Celia pointed and burst into laughter at Leo’s face.
“You! You! Why did you come back speckled? Did someone hit you?!”
Celia, laughing so hard that she clutched her stomach and shed tears.
Watching her, Runia and Chloe, who were trying their best to hold back their laughter behind them, thought.
‘So you can just laugh out loud like that.’
‘At times like this, it’s good to be cousins. You can do things like that.’
Everyone who saw Leo’s face was thinking the same thing.
‘She shouldn’t laugh like that.’
Lysinas, the one who had made Leo speckled, clicked her tongue inwardly.
Sure enough. “Do you want to be made like this too?”
“Ack! Let go of me!”
Celia, caught by Leo, screamed.
***
“What is it, First Saint?”
A man wearing a pure white robe, white as snow, asked the man who was praying.
The First Saint, stopping his prayer, said.
“The Second Saintess, Ameriol, has been annihilated.”
“Is it Tartarus’s doing?”
The man who spoke, the Third Saint, showed his anger.
“No. It is the work of humans.”
“Humans? How can that lowly slave race annihilate a Saintess?”
The Third Saint wore an expression of disbelief.
“Times have changed, Third Saint.”
The First Saint, having stood up, turned his body.
In his palm was a small fragment.
“What is that?”
“It is called a Hero Record.”
“Hero Record?”
“An artifact made by the detestable Heavenly Gods.”
The First Saint said, looking at the fragment of the Hero Record.
“It seems that in this era, there are beings called heroes.”