Book 1 Chapter 835

835.

Thud- Thud-

Leo walked down the hallway, thinking.

He had expected that there would be heroes who wouldn't acknowledge him.

Therefore, he didn't feel particularly wronged or anything.

In a way, it was natural.

No matter how famous he became or what great deeds he accomplished, they had never seen him in person.

'Besides, since I've suddenly risen to the top of the heroes, they're even less likely to accept it.'

The fact that Leo, as an all-class hero, was the successor to the Hero of Beginning was already a well-known story.

There were no heroes who didn't know that he was the natural enemy of Erebus chosen by the gods.

But that was it.

The existing heroes saw Leo as a leader for the next generation, not as a hero who would stand above them.

From their perspective, he was merely a distant junior.

Therefore, there would be various types of people.

Some would want to test if he was truly someone they could follow, while others would want to defeat Leo and gain greater fame.

But regardless of their intentions, they all wanted one thing.

'Proof.'

It was to prove whether he had the right to bear the title of King of the World or not.

'Some people just can't accept the fact that someone is above them.'

If it were before, he would have ignored such voices.

It was bothersome, and there was no need to prove anything.

To Leo, the recognition of others was worthless.

On any battlefield, he would stand at the forefront, and people would follow him.

Then they would have no choice but to acknowledge him.

However, after returning from the parallel world, he realized something.

'Someday, Lunia and Ar… Driadna will play the roles of Luna and Arion, Dweino.'

Just as Melina was taking on the role of Lisinas.

'It will be the same for the others.'

In the not-too-distant future.

The people he had formed bonds with in this life would become his most reliable comrades.

'The complete subjugation of Erebus, which I longed for so much, is not just a dream.'

Kyle's life was not a happy one.

It was a life where everything was taken away.

In the end, he achieved the goal of saving the world, but it didn't bring him happiness.

'I have no intention of getting angry about having lived an unfortunate life all of a sudden.'

He wouldn't be plunged into grief over what he had lost.

'Because I've become too accustomed to losing things.'

Even from the deaths of his closest friends, who were more precious than his own life.

Leo didn't hesitate to move forward.

From the parallel world.

Even though he could live the life he had dreamed of, Leo returned, leaving everything behind.

'Perhaps they would have made the same choice if they were in the same situation.'

Thud-

Leo stopped walking and looked ahead.

He saw the entrance to the royal palace.

He had returned here after abandoning everything he had wanted because of his sense of responsibility.

The responsibility of someone born in this world and bearing its weight.

The many things he received from his friends in this world through the miracle of the Hero Record.

And…

'The bonds I've built in this life.'

Leo's life is shorter compared to Kyle's life.

But that didn't mean the weight of that life was light.

The weight of the bonds he had shared was by no means light.

However, Leo had never once vowed, 'I will not lose.'

Because in his past life, he had only lost until the end.

Having become too accustomed to surviving and moving forward alone.

He had always lived with the resolve to lose.

'I might lose… I've lived thinking that it's natural.'

The battles ahead would by no means be easy.

A difficult fight where victory was not guaranteed.

But even so, losing should not be considered natural.

'That's why the people in the parallel world, bound to me, remained stuck in the past.'

It must have been the difference between him, who considered loss natural, and his friends, who did not.

Leo looked down at his palm.

'I am not the Hero of Beginning.'

Nor was he the King of Beginning.

'I am still a surviving hero.'

Defeating Erebus alone is meaningless.

"Young Master Leo?"

Behind Leo, who had stopped, Chen Xia had a puzzled expression.

At that, Leo turned around.

Elena crossed her arms and smiled brightly.

"If you find it troublesome, shall I deal with them? I think I can handle most heroes."

Although she was still a student, her words were by no means arrogance.

"I need some fame too."

At Elena's words, Leo opened his mouth.

"No. I'll do it."

"Young Master Leo isn't someone who cares about others' opinions. I don't think you need to deal with heroes who annoyingly challenge you."

"That's right."

Leo looked ahead.

"But Lisinas passed down the position of King of the World to me."

The right to officially stand at the pinnacle of the world, depending on how Leo handles it.

A position where he could build a powerful force that gathered the world's power.

This was impossible 5,000 years ago.

At that time, there were no symbolic figures like Great Heroes.

That's why the world's power could only be gathered in one place after the world had almost collapsed.

But now, it's different.

There are Great Heroes, and there are their successors.

Now that I am the King of the World.

How much of the world's power can be gathered depends on me.

'Lisinas also knows. That I am not fit to be a king.'

Gathering the world's power in one place is already possible with the title of Hero of Beginning.

Even if the cohesion is somewhat weak, it would be a powerful force enough to enable a battle with Erebus.

Even knowing this, Lisinas placed Leo in the unfitting position of king.

Leo knew very well what that meant.

'Don't lose anymore.'

Unlike his past life, where he lost relentlessly.

He probably thrust the position of king onto him with the wish that he wouldn't lose anything in this life.

Not individual 'power.'

He gave him the means to form an unprecedentedly powerful 'force.'

'In this life, I will definitely protect the people I cherish and move forward.'

Leo opened the gate of the royal palace wide.

'Not surviving alone…'

Thud- Thud-

'I will become someone who lives together.'

***

As he stepped out of the royal palace entrance, the first thing he saw was a crowd of people who had gathered.

The next thing he saw was a female knight standing under the gaze of so many people.

The brown-haired woman, heavily armed in full plate mail, had her eyes closed quietly.

The people who had been murmuring while looking at the female knight began to cheer at Leo's appearance.

"Ooh! The King of Beginning!"

"Long live the King of Beginning!"

"Waaaaah!"

Enthusiastic cheers poured out.

With the sound, the female knight's closed eyes opened.

Straight green eyes.

Leo tilted his head, looking at those eyes filled with silent, strong, and resolute will.

Although not as much as Lisinas, Leo had also seen countless people.

Therefore, he could somewhat understand the other person's disposition just by looking into their eyes.

Sis, who had been waiting, approached Leo, who was silently looking at the female knight.

"Your Majesty. You have arrived."

"Is that the person? The one who challenged me to a duel?"

"Yes."

"Is she quite reputable?"

At Leo's words, Sis wore a puzzled expression.

"Do you know of Sir Nezerin, the Knight of the Sand Castle?"

Leo often didn't know the names of famous heroes.

Therefore, Sis knew that Leo wasn't interested in the fame of heroes.

The Knight of the Sand Castle, Nezerin, had a reputation comparable to that of a hero, but she was not a hero.

Her fame was not from her exploits in a great war or her contributions on the Tartarus front.

She was not affiliated with any particular country or faction.

Nor was she from Rumern, a prestigious knight academy, or Ikot.

She was simply an ordinary wandering knight from the southern continent.

Nezerin gained fame due to an incident five years ago.

It was the Monster Parade.

The phenomenon of countless monsters suddenly appearing and moving in large numbers is called the Monster Parade.

The culprit was clear.

Tartarus.

But it was a phenomenon close to a natural disaster with no prior warning.

The area where the Monster Parade occurred at that time was the farthest edge of the southern continent.

The Monster Parade, which occurred on the border of the countries there, swept through the surrounding area in an instant.

As it was a border region, the countries concerned chose to defend their borders by locking down their walls rather than undertaking large-scale subjugation.

However, small villages located in the border regions were inevitably exposed to the Monster Parade.

Therefore, originally, the small villages were destined to be trampled and disappear by the advance of the monsters.

But there was one person who single-handedly stopped the Monster Parade in that area.

That was the Knight of the Sand Castle, Nezerin.

Through this incident, Nezerin gained great fame and became a knight praised as someone who would soon rise to the rank of hero.

Many factions came forward to recruit Nezerin, but she ultimately remained a wandering knight, vowing to help the weak all over the world.

Of course, Leo had no idea of this.

"It's the first time I've heard that name."

"Then how did you know her reputation was good?"

Leo said to Sis, who had a puzzled expression.

"Because if it weren't for your refusal, it would have been reported to me."

"As expected of Your Majesty."

Sis smiled faintly.

In fact, duel requests had been continuously coming in for several days, even if they weren't reported to Leo.

Leo didn't know because Sis had been refusing their duels.

"There's no need to deal with peddlers one by one."

As Sis spoke, Leo let out a light sigh.

"Your Majesty. My name is Nezerin. I am a humble wandering knight who earned the epithet Knight of the Sand Castle."

Nezerin stepped forward.

She respectfully bowed to Leo in the manner of a knight.

"Since childhood, I have admired the King of Wisdom, Lisinas. Wanting to follow his will, I have tried to solve problems around the world as a wandering knight, protecting world peace with my limited skills."

"So? Why did you challenge me to a duel?"

"That Lisinas descended to this land and chose you as king. I have come here to become your knight."

"Then why are you challenging me to a duel?"

"Before becoming your knight, I want to prove my skills to you."

"Hmm."

It was when Leo stroked his chin without a word.

"Wow! Can I even live like this? Someone gets their duel request accepted, and someone else doesn't?"

At that moment, a man with a somewhat rough tone walked out from among the crowd.

Seeing him, Sis frowned.

"That rabid dog."

"Hey, Flame Wave. Isn't 'rabid dog' a bit much? I mean, my epithet is Hellhound."

The man, called Hellhound, looked at Leo and smirked.

"Hello, Your Majesty, King of Beginning. My name is Jeswan Turek. I'm a traveling knight. I'm a hero with the epithet Hellhound. You've heard of me, right?"

"Never heard of you."

"Wow, you really are the one called 'King,' so arrogant."

Hellhound looked at Leo with a roguish gaze.

"I requested a duel to see Your Majesty's skills, but it was refused?"

"Why do you want to see my skills?"

"Well, you're the one who received the grand title of King, aren't you? If you have skills befitting such a grand title, I was thinking of settling down and getting a salary."

He looked at Leo with belligerent eyes.

"But you came to see this woman's duel, who isn't even a hero… Isn't this discrimination? Or, are you afraid of fighting a hero? Then I'm disappointed."

"How dare you speak such nonsense before His Majesty…"

"Your Majesty. I will drive away this rabid dog."

As Sis and Nezerin got serious and were about to draw their swords, Leo pointed his index finger at Jeswan.

Jeswan, thinking it was an attack, tensed up.

"Interview passed."

"……?"

Next, Leo pointed at Nezerin.

"You passed too."

While everyone was dumbfounded, Leo snapped his fingers.

*Clack-*

*Rumble-rumble-rumble-*

With that, the ground at the entrance of the royal palace began to shake, and the ground began to rise.

The rising ground transformed into a training ground.

"Then, from now on, we will have a practical test."

Leo stood on the training ground and crossed his arms.

"Both of you, come at me."