Chapter 149
Rumble—
Barharloon Castle collapsed.
The city, known as the sanctuary of the elves, was burning.
The horrors created by a fragment of the great calamity were pure terror and dread.
And that calamity was not only destroying Barharloon—it was even shattering the Hero’s World.
Whoosh—!
The world was on fire.
Step—step—
On the outskirts of Barharloon.
“Up we go.”
Pibua settled himself on the rooftop at the very top of the Tower of the Gods.
As a god, he could sense the world burning.
“The world is collapsing.”
With a relaxed look, Pibua swirled the liquor in his hand.
Even as his own existence was vanishing, he didn’t seem to care.
‘This body is a fake anyway.’
Whether his future self returned to the heavens or vanished—
There was no way to know.
But gods were not much concerned with such things.
They, more than anyone, understood that the most important thing was the present.
Pibua’s gaze turned toward one person.
‘Kyle. Show me why you are called a great hero…’
With a deep smile, Pibua downed his wine.
—
Whoosh—
Lunia looked up at the sky and pressed her lips together.
‘The world is collapsing.’
She didn’t have much experience yet, but she could clearly feel that Luna’s world was falling apart.
“What happens if the Hero’s World collapses before it’s cleared?”
“I don’t know. There’s nothing like that in the records.”
As Elena spoke, she glanced up at the sky.
“But I’m sure the conquerors won’t be unharmed.”
‘Wondering if it’s even possible… that would be a foolish question.’
There was no other choice.
Now was the time to defeat the legendary calamity.
Taking a deep breath, Lunia slapped her cheeks hard.
Slap—! At the sound, Elena’s eyes widened as she looked at Lunia.
The elf girl’s eyes were burning fiercely.
“Leo didn’t get scared! I can’t just sit here shaking!”
‘If I declared him my rival, it’d be humiliating to be the only one scared!’
The one she set as her goal to catch up to was already far ahead.
Sitting here and giving up didn’t suit her.
Watching Lunia steel her resolve, Elena asked,
“Doesn’t that hurt?”
“It doesn’t hurt.”
“Really?”
Poke—!
“…!”
Lunia’s eyes went wide as Elena mercilessly poked her cheek.
The teasing made Lunia defiant.
“It doesn’t hurt.”
“Wow. Tough girl.”
Pinch—!
“That hurts even if you’re totally fine!”
As Lunia shouted, eyes wide, Elena chuckled.
“You’re a pretty unusual elf, huh? Was the honors student act all fake?”
Lunia, with tears forming in her eyes, glared at Elena, clutching her cheek.
Just then—
“What is that monster?”
“You’re here, Haddin?”
Elena greeted Haddin warmly.
“Erebos.”
“Erebos?!”
“Strictly speaking, a fragment of Erebos.”
Elena smiled, her face tinged with a fierce determination.
“And we’re about to defeat it.”
At her words, Haddin tensed.
He wanted to hear the details, but there wasn’t time.
“What about Leo Plov?”
“If you mean Leo, he’s over there.”
Elena pointed ahead.
Haddin’s eyes widened.
“The Founder?”
A beautiful elf girl caught Haddin’s eye.
If this were any other time, he would have greeted her with all the etiquette of the elves and been moved by her presence.
But this was not the time.
Haddin gripped his sword.
Just then, Leo approached with Luna.
“Hm? One more? Are you an ally too?”
“Yes. Lady Luna, I am Haddin. Like a great and beautiful ray of starlight—”
“Yes, yes. Save the flattery for later.”
Elena cut off Haddin, who was about to shower Luna with compliments.
“So, Leo. We’re going to take that thing down—do you have a plan?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
“Luna and I will take the front. Lunia and Elena, please support us with magic from the rear. Haddin, your job is to protect them from any attacks that get through.”
“Shouldn’t we put Luna, the mage, in the rear and you and me at the front?”
When Haddin questioned it, Luna grinned.
“I hate hiding in the back just because I’m a mage. Besides, only me and this guy can block that monster’s attacks.”
“If Luna says so, then we follow.”
Elena smiled.
In fact, when Erebos swept away everything earlier, only Luna had a way to shield Lunia and Elena from the black flames.
‘But Leo managed to withstand those flames alone.’
It was odd.
‘In terms of magic power, both Lunia and I far surpass Leo. That means he has a way to counter those black flames.’
She didn’t know what it was, but for now, it was best to leave the front line to Leo and Luna.
Haddin nodded as well.
“Alright, then.”
Luna gripped the Polium.
With a sly smile, she glared at Erebos.
“Let’s smash that damned shadow to pieces.”
“But one thing—never, ever touch those flames.”
Everyone nodded at Leo’s words.
Leo set his sights on Erebos.
“Let’s begin.”
With that, Leo and Luna charged at Erebos.
Elena and Lunia gathered their magic, and Haddin used [Aura] and magic to protect them.
Luna hesitated as she watched Leo running ahead, then asked,
“Hey.”
“What?”
“When this is over, can I come with you?”
Leo paused at her words.
He turned to Luna and said,
“Don’t you have things you need to do here? I’m just a suspicious outsider, after all.”
Luna nodded.
“Of course, there are things I want to do. But I feel like I’d gain something much more valuable by following you than by staying here.”
Luna stared directly into Leo’s red eyes.
“I’m sure you’ll show me things I could never imagine.”
“What, are you in love with me or something?”
Leo teased, and Luna smiled brightly.
“Maybe.”
“…”
Something about that bright, almost shy smile left Leo momentarily speechless.
But he quickly regained his composure and said,
“Let’s talk about that after we beat that thing.”
“Alright!”
Luna energetically raised her staff.
Her magic flared to life.
Whoosh—
“Hell Fire.”
Crimson flames burst from the end of the Polium.
It was a hellfire spell—one of the most powerful fire spells—feared by elves past and present for its utter destructiveness.
It was so destructive, it didn’t fit with elven sensibilities.
But Luna didn’t care about that at all.
Whooosh—!
Erebos reacted to Luna’s magic, spewing black flames.
“Go!”
Boom—!
Luna’s spell shot toward Erebos.
Erebos swung its arm.
Crash—!
A mass of black flames broke off Erebos’s body and collided with Luna’s spell.
Boom! Whoosh—!
The black flames devoured the hellfire.
Boom—
But when the hellfire exploded, the black flames scattered in every direction.
Leo watched and lowered his sword.
Fwoooooosh—
A gray [Aura] erupted from Leo’s blade.
The [Aura] enveloped the black flames spreading in every direction like a wall of glass.
Whoosh—!
The black flames bounced off Leo’s [Aura].
‘Erebos’s fire is the undying, immortal flame.’
The ever-burning hellfire can consume anything made of [Mana].
That the source of such destructive power was immortal was a despair for all the world’s races.
Leo didn’t have the overwhelming power of his past life as Kyle.
Nor did he possess Luna’s exceptional talent, magical sense, or overwhelming magic power.
On the surface, taking the front seemed reckless.
But Leo was confident he could defeat the fragment of Erebos.
Because Leo was special.
– ‘We’re all special. But Kyle, among us, you’re the most special. Your mana trait is Erebos’s natural enemy.’
– ‘Natural enemy? What do you mean?’
– ‘Your gray mana looks like it has no attribute, right?’
– ‘It’s not just how it looks—it is attribute-less. It’s not special at all. Besides being all-class, how could I compare to you guys?’
Whether it was [Aura], magic, or summoning—
Unlike his companions, Kyle had no talent for bringing any ability to its peak on his own.
– ‘But your lack of attribute is different from others.’
Lysinas had once grinned at the sight of Kyle’s dull gray power.
– ‘It seems like ordinary attribute-less mana, but… your mana is purer than anyone else’s. If I had to define your trait, it would be ‘purity’.’
It was the Wise King who had given Kyle that trait.
He’d felt a little pleased with the title she gave him.
Of course, there were those who immediately spoiled the mood because they hated seeing a friend happy.
– ‘Purity! Purity! That’s the last thing anyone would associate with Kyle!’
– ‘Lysinas, purity is the symbol of beauty. Your words are an insult to the name of purity!’
– ‘…Yeah. Purity and I don’t mix. You annoying elf, and you perverted dwarf.’
Leo put both of them in a headlock and yelled.
Luna mercilessly pinched Kyle’s arm while Dweno smacked him with hands as big as pot lids.
Watching them, Lysinas spoke.
– ‘Arron, what do you think of Leo?’
– ‘He’s not really that pure, is he?’
Arron replied, scratching his cheek with an awkward smile.
Remembering the past, Leo burst out laughing.
– ‘Lysinas once said that purity means you can become anything. That’s why I’m all-class.’
Fwoooooosh—flash—!
Leo’s gray magic turned pure white.
It was the spell that had saved his life time and time again in the final battle.
The one that had dealt fatal blows to the immortal.
It was [Star Magic] created by Luna, the Founder of the Nebula—but a unique spell completed solely for Kyle.
“Innocence.”
Fwoosh—!
A pure white sphere formed above Leo’s head.