Chapter 2
A frontier kingdom. The capital city of Delard.
“Everyone! This is truly the era of Heroes!”
‘That story again?’
Leo, now fifteen years old, let out a deep sigh of boredom.
“It’s been 5,000 years since the Hero Record appeared in the world! In that time, the lower world has seen many changes. At the center of it all have always been those called Heroes!”
Jaden, the Hero Studies teacher at Delan Royal Academy, raised his voice.
“Who knows the definition of a Hero?”
Students raised their hands.
Professor Jaden pointed to one student.
“Gullivan, answer please.”
“A Hero is someone whose name is recorded in the Hero Record. Only those who achieve feats recognized by the gods are allowed to leave a record in the Hero Record.”
“That’s correct! As expected of you, Gullivan.”
Gullivan sat down, looking triumphant.
“Next… Leo?”
Though he hadn’t raised his hand, Leo stood up when called.
“Remember your homework from last time? What kind of ritual would have been required to be called a Hero 5,000 years ago?”
“Back then, if you made a bit of a name for yourself, people just automatically praised you.”
“Once again, you did your homework carelessly!”
Professor Jaden frowned.
“Our Delan Royal Academy is the best school in our country! Haven’t I told you repeatedly to show the proper decorum fitting of an elite school? And this year, our academy has even been chosen as one of the sites for the Lumene Academy entrance exams!”
Professor Jaden’s eyes widened.
“Many talented people will visit our school! As students of Delan, you should set an example, especially at a time like this!”
He looked displeased and spoke to Gullivan again.
“Would you like to answer this question, Gullivan?”
“In ancient times, there was no way to receive recognition from the gods! So, they selected Heroes through sacred rituals! The most famous was the Blood Ritual!”
“Yes, that’s exactly right!”
Leo looked unimpressed.
‘Back then, it was easy to meet gods. How could there be no way to get recognized?’
5,000 years ago, the gods freely descended to the lower world.
‘And sacred rituals? Did those even exist?’
Clicking his tongue, Leo looked at his textbook.
‘Hero Record.’
The origin of the record was the great catastrophe 5,000 years ago.
The primordial evil, Erebos, drove the world to the brink of destruction.
The five Heroes who stood against Erebos.
[The Poet of the Stars] Luna the Elf.
[The Divine Blacksmith] Dweno the Dwarf.
[Beastman Warrior] Arron.
[The Wise King] Lysinas.
And finally, [Hero of the Beginning] Kyle.
A miracle gifted to the lower world by the gods so that their names would be praised forever.
‘So why am I the only one who gets ignored?’
The records of his friends still remained, proof that they had existed and saved the world.
But only Kyle’s record could not be found!
How unfair could this be?
As Leo was lamenting his fate,
Ding—ding—
The bell signaling the end of class rang.
Professor Jaden closed his textbook and spoke.
“In a week, preparations for the Lumene Academy entrance exam will be complete. When that time comes, talented people from all over the world will visit our school.”
He surveyed the students.
“Exchange ideas with them and aim higher. That’s all.”
* * *
When class ended, Leo immediately headed home.
The Plov family.
A rather prestigious marquis family in the Delard Kingdom.
“Young master, the lady is waiting for you at the training grounds.”
“Ugh? Again?”
Leo frowned.
“I’m not going.”
“The lady said if you skip sword training one more time, she’ll stop your allowance…”
“Ha! Seriously.”
At the butler’s words, Leo let out a deep sigh.
He changed out of his school uniform and headed for the training grounds.
Normally, this would be the time when knights would be sweating and training hard.
But the only one on the training grounds was a beautiful woman.
Reina Plov.
The mistress of the house.
“Mother, I’m back from school.”
“Welcome home, my son. But why do you always act so formal and distant, calling me ‘Mother~ Mother~’ all the time?”
Reina, her red eyes the same as her son’s, gazed at him sleepily.
“I heard other kids just call their moms ‘mom.’ I feel like there’s a distance between us, and it makes me sad.”
Leo climbed onto the training platform with a wooden sword and spoke.
“I’m trying to keep some distance on purpose.”
“Oh my? Why? Are you a rebellious teenager now?”
Reina’s face filled with sadness.
Fwoosh—!
At that moment, she rushed at her son at an incredible speed.
Whack—!
“This is why.”
What kind of mother swings a wooden sword at her son with no warning?
Who wouldn’t want to keep their distance from a mom like that?
Reina grinned at her son’s answer.
“You just don’t understand your mother’s feelings… Guess I’ll have to go a bit harder today.”
Reina’s wooden sword moved rapidly.
Leo matched her ever-changing swordsmanship.
The knights watching burst into admiration.
“As expected of the lady! Her skills are truly those of a Heroic House Zerdinger!”
“But the young master is impressive too!”
Usually, sword lessons for noble children are handled by the family’s knights.
But in the Plov family, the lady herself taught directly.
No one complained about it.
On the border with the Delard Kingdom stood the great nation of the Lordren Empire.
Within it was the Heroic House, Zerdinger.
Reina was a member of that very Zerdinger family.
Clack—! Clatter—! Whack—!
As she watched her son block her attacks, Reina’s eyes sparkled.
‘Leo really is a genius.’
Although retired, Reina had once been a great knight.
She wasn’t even using Aura, and she wore bracelets that put weight Magic on her arms and legs.
Even so, it was a match with an insurmountable difference in skill.
But Leo was keeping up with Reina’s swordsmanship.
‘He learns my techniques quickly with every spar.’
She couldn’t help but feel proud, seeing her son grow day by day.
The exchange lasted ten minutes.
Reina became immersed in the spar.
Without realizing it, she twisted her wrist instinctively as she saw Leo reading her sword path and reacting to it.
‘Ah!’
Reina was flustered.
She had used an unorthodox move without realizing it!
It was a technique far too difficult for her son to counter.
Reina hurried to withdraw her sword.
‘Too late…’
Clack—!
“!”
Reina’s eyes widened.
Leo, who had deflected the sword aimed at his neck, quickly closed in on Reina.
The tip of the wooden sword pointed at Reina’s neck.
Reina looked dazed.
Leo withdrew his sword and sighed.
“Isn’t this a bit much for your own son?”
“For someone saying that, you handled it pretty well.”
Though she said it with a smile, Reina felt chills run down her spine.
‘This child… is beyond what I can handle.’
That unorthodox move just now was so dangerous that even a skilled knight would have struggled to survive had it been a real sword.
It’s not something you can counter with talent alone.
But Leo dealt with it well.
Of course, she did withdraw her sword midway.
But still, it was impressive.
‘Ugh, maybe I should’ve just taken the hit?’
Leo sighed as he watched his mother’s eyes shine.
Leo wasn’t just any fifteen-year-old.
He was once a great Hero who saved the world.
Responding to an unorthodox technique wasn’t difficult for him.
As Leo scratched his head, Reina asked,
“Leo, are you still determined to go to Lumene?”
“Yes.”
Lumene Academy.
One of only four Hero academies in the world.
And the place where the [Hero Record] was kept.
‘I need to find out what happened after I died.’
After defeating Erebos, Kyle died from exhaustion.
But Erebos was an immortal being.
They had succeeded in subjugating him, but failed to destroy him completely.
On top of that, Erebos’s army, Tartarus, still remained.
5,000 years had passed since then.
In that distant time, the story remained only as legend. Nothing was properly recorded about what happened after Kyle’s death.
If he could access the Hero Record, maybe he’d learn what happened after that time.
That was Leo’s reason for wanting to enter the world’s most prestigious Lumene Academy.
“I see.”
Reina smiled.
“Alright. Let me see what I can do. Leave it to me.”
“Do what?”
“People from the Zerdinger family will be visiting Delan tomorrow. They’re going to stay at our estate.”
“My mother’s side?”
The Heroic House Zerdinger was Leo’s maternal family.
But he’d never been in touch with them.
That was because Reina had cut ties with her family when she married.
‘So it really wasn’t a bad parting after all.’
Normally, anyone would be excited if their maternal family was a Heroic House.
But Leo had no interest in Heroic Houses.
‘There’s no one greater in this world than me anyway.’
“Yes. Your uncle, Gis Zerdinger, will be leading them. I plan to ask him for a favor.”
Reina spoke seriously.
“I’ll ask him to let you learn the Zerdinger Aura Technique. If you do, you’ll be strong enough to enter Lumene next year.”
Although Reina taught Leo swordsmanship, she hadn’t taught him the Aura Technique.
The Aura Technique she practiced couldn’t be taught to anyone without her family’s permission.
To learn the Heroic House’s Aura Technique—every aspiring knight’s dream!
But Leo was indifferent.
‘So I’ll finally get to learn the Aura Technique.’
Reina had postponed teaching it to Leo, hoping he’d master the advanced technique.
Of course, Leo could have learned the Aura Technique long ago.
But he decided to follow his mother’s lessons for now.
It was frustrating, but he enjoyed training together like this.
Still, now that Reina was set on it, the frustration would end today.
Leo didn’t care if it wasn’t the Zerdinger Technique.
As long as he could learn the Aura Technique, that was enough.
‘Mother is probably thinking about next year.’
Leo grinned.
‘But I’m planning to enroll this year.’