Chapter 208
Leo raised his hand toward Zegdiac’s retreating back as he tried to pass through the rift into the present world.
BZZZZZ—!
A surge of immense gray magic swirled through the air.
A massive magic circle formed, and Leo completed his incantation.
“[Moon Light].”
A silver-green flash erupted, and a bombardment of light struck the defenseless Zegdiac.
FLASH—! KRAKOOOOOM—!
“…!”
But in that instant, a flame of the abyss rose from Zegdiac’s back and devoured Leo’s magic.
Leo’s face hardened.
‘Erebos’s flame!’
“Damn it!”
He cursed and bent his knees.
CRACK—! THUD—!
Launching from the ground like a bullet, Leo hurled himself at Zegdiac.
SHIIING—!
Gray [Aura] gathered on Leo’s blade.
CRACKLECRACKLECRACKLE—!
His sword strike targeted Zegdiac.
But once again, the rising flame blocked Leo’s blade.
‘There’s no doubt now—this flame clearly has a will of its own!’
And its intent was singular—
To resurrect its master’s subordinate into the present world.
‘This must be stopped!’
This era was called a time of peace.
But that peace was a fragile balance.
Thanks to the continued cultivation of many heroes, the balance had barely held.
One small crack could shatter it.
Erebos might be gone, but—
Tartarus’s forces were still intact.
The Necromancer King. The Giant King. The Monster Queen.
Each of these three Legion Commanders and their legions were powers comparable to an entire Hero Academy.
If another Legion Commander, one on par with those three, returned to the present?
This long peace would surely meet its end.
Leo’s red eyes gleamed.
Clenching his teeth, he burned his magic.
Pure white light burst from his hand.
Kyle’s unique magic—gifted by Luna, the Founder of the Nebula, to the Hero of the Beginning.
“[Innocence].”
FWOOSH—!
The power of purity enveloped Leo’s hand.
And he hurled it toward the abyssal flame.
FWOOSH—!
The black flame dispersed for a moment.
But then, it roared back with even greater ferocity.
‘Is this fragment stronger than the one I encountered in Luna’s world?’
Leo gritted his teeth.
He tried to muster even greater magic.
WHOOSH—!
The flame suddenly condensed.
Leo’s expression darkened.
‘It’s going to explode…!’
Realizing what was about to happen, Leo quickly deployed his magic and [Aura].
BOOOOOM—!
An eardrum-shattering explosion sent a massive shockwave over Leo.
THUD—!
“Damn it!”
Crashing into the ground, Leo cursed.
FWOOSH—!
As if mocking him, the black flame blazed brighter—
And then suddenly vanished.
CLINK—!
Along with the sound of something shattering, Zegdiac escaped into the present world.
A calamity from the past had crossed into the present.
Leo leapt to his feet.
Beyond the massive rift, he saw the view of Seiren.
‘Sillatna!’
From above, Seiren’s landscape was pure despair.
‘I have to stop them—!’
GRAB—!
Just as he moved to fly, he felt someone tug at his coat from behind.
Silver hair like smoke and golden eyes that shone like stars.
The beautiful elf stared into Leo’s red eyes.
“Where did Zegdiac go…?”
“Luna.”
Leo clenched his teeth.
A dearly beloved comrade.
A friend he hadn’t forgotten for even a single day.
How could he explain this?
That this was the past, and Zegdiac had just crossed into the present?
Leo knew all too well—
That this bright, innocent woman had always dreamed of a future where flowers would bloom across the world.
That she had firmly believed he would be in that radiant future alongside her.
And so, he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
‘That this world is fake… that you’re already dead.’
That she was a being who had already died and vanished long ago.
Leo couldn’t say it.
As Luna watched his expression distort, she gently released his coat—
And smiled.
“There it is again… that face.”
She took a step closer and reached out her hand.
“How strange.”
Her hand touched Leo’s cheek.
“Your face is different… and you’re not the Kyle I knew… but you still feel familiar.”
Leo’s red eyes widened.
Luna smiled as she looked at her reflection in his gaze.
“It’s been a while, Kyle… no, Leo.”
“You… remember what happened back then?”
“No. I had forgotten. But the moment I saw you, I remembered. You gave me courage when I was in despair. You gave me strength to go on.”
She smiled warmly.
“You told me that someday, I’d be called the Founder of the Nebula.”
She closed her eyes softly.
“Looking at your face, I understand. In the future… I die, don’t I?”
Leo swallowed hard.
Luna opened her eyes and looked at him with those golden irises.
“Just tell me one thing.”
“What?”
“Erebos… was defeated, right?”
“…Yeah.”
“So my death wasn’t in vain, right?”
“It wasn’t.”
Leo answered with a face on the verge of tears, and Luna smiled brightly.
“Then that’s good enough.”
The great hero of the past calmly accepted her unchanging fate.
As if simply being able to contribute had been enough.
And she smiled—a truly beautiful smile.
“But the danger isn’t completely over, is it? Kyle?”
“No.”
“Where did he go?”
“…To the future. Five thousand years ahead.”
“Five thousand…”
Luna blinked wide-eyed and scratched her head.
“That’s so far off, I can’t even picture it. What kind of era is it?”
“…A peaceful one. Erebos has been sealed.”
“Really? Then how did you end up here? And those people we met earlier, they were from the future too, right?”
“…There’s something called the [Hero Record] in the future.”
Leo briefly explained it to her.
“Ooh, I see! The gods actually left something useful for once?”
Nodding in admiration, Luna grinned slyly.
“But still, to think that not only all the elves, but even other mages revere me as some great figure. I knew it. I’m awesome!”
Crossing her arms and tilting her chin proudly, Luna burst into laughter.
Then she suddenly clamped her mouth shut with a giggle.
“And you, you say you were forgotten? Pfft! Just you? Even though you saved the world? That’s hilarious! Puhuhuhu!”
“…You really find this funny?”
Leo snorted.
So boastful. So smug.
What would people think if they saw her like this?
“Well, this isn’t the time for jokes, is it?”
Luna nodded.
“Let’s go, Kyle.”
“…Go where?”
Luna gave him a look of disbelief.
“Where else? To the future, obviously.”
“…You can’t.”
Leo looked up at the rift.
Zegdiac had crossed over using Erebos’s power.
But Luna couldn’t.
She was strictly a being of the [Hero’s World].
And her world hadn’t even been cleared yet.
She couldn’t go outside.
Leo was sure of it.
Because… Luna couldn’t see the massive rift in the sky.
She couldn’t see the present world beyond it.
That was proof she was a being of the past—bound to the story.
Luna looked up at the sky.
“Yeah… All I see is a gloomy sky.”
CRACK—
A crack appeared in Luna’s body.
Leo’s expression hardened.
Not just her body—
Cracks were forming in the world itself.
FWOOSH—!
Black flame flickered through the fissures.
“But this world doesn’t have much time left.”
As the world’s owner, Luna felt it.
That her world was nearing its end.
‘The shock… is causing the [Hero Record] to collapse.’
Leo gritted his teeth.
“Kyle.”
Luna looked straight into his eyes.
“I can’t let my sacrifice be for nothing. It’d be such a waste. So unfair.”
“…”
“If a ghost of the past has gone to the future, I’ll chase it down and kick its ugly butt.”
Her golden eyes sparkled.
“I’ll save my adorable descendants who worship me in the future! I am the Founder of the Nebula, after all!”
“…They’re not that adorable.”
“Whatever!”
“…Do you have an idea?”
At that, Luna clapped her hands.
“I’ll pray really hard to the gods.”
“…You spent your whole life badmouthing them, and now you’re going to pray?”
“Oh divine ones, I beg you. Please let me cross into the future so I can rip that ugly Zegdiac apart.”
Ignoring Leo, Luna began praying.
With a deadly serious face, she pleaded over and over.
“Let me through! Send me 5000 years ahead, you useless divine jerks!”
Leo sighed deeply at her blasphemous words—likely enough to make any god cancel their blessing on the spot—then looked down at his wrist.
He saw the [Polium] that had granted him power.
‘A miracle of the gods…’
The gods had allowed him to reclaim the power of the past.
Leo returned the Polium to its original form.
Luna’s eyes widened as she noticed the second Polium.
He handed it to her.
Luna accepted it—
And in that moment, her eyes shone like stars.
The cracks in her body began to fade.
“Ah…”
She looked up at the sky in awe.
“So that’s the future.”
A look of wonder crossed her face, and she grinned.
“With this… I can shred that ugly lizard to pieces.”
Flashing a fierce smile, Luna turned to Kyle.
“Let’s go, Kyle! Let’s blow those Tartarus bastards to hell!”
“You’re really fired up.”
Leo laughed at her sparkling eyes.
“Before that!”
Luna pointed the Polium at Leo.
Her magic surged over him.
As the light faded, Leo looked down at himself.
“Hm. Now it feels a bit more natural.”
Luna nodded.
Leo now looked like Kyle.
The version Luna remembered.
“Honestly, the pretty-boy version was more my type… but this look suits you best, Kyle.”
She smiled brightly and poked him in the side.
“Don’t go acting all handsome, you punk!”
Then she floated into the air.
“Here comes Luna, Founder of the Nebula!”
“…You sure like that title.”
Leo chuckled and followed her with [Fly Magic].
“Oh, by the way.”
“Hm?”
“I heard Lysinas had a crush on me.”
“…What?”
Luna’s eyes widened.
“Really? I had no idea!”
Seeing her disbelief, Leo nodded.
‘So it’s not just me. That woman really didn’t show it at all.’
He stared at her.
“…What?”
“It’s not you, right?”
“You’ve gone insane after living peacefully in the future, huh?”
“So it’s not you?”
“Of course not.”
Leo laughed, and Luna nodded.
“Good. Let’s go.”
Leaving her behind, Leo flew toward the hole Zegdiac had created.
Watching him go, Luna muttered—
“Even after coming back from the dead, he’s still the same damn idiot.” (T/N: Holy fking shiiiiiittttt! LEt’s gooooo!)
—
KIIIIIIII!
Benette’s spell struck Zegdiac’s neck.
Benette, Albi, Allan, and Chade were pouring everything they had into stopping the rampaging Zegdiac.
Against a mindless foe, the four heroes fought valiantly.
But they hadn’t inflicted enough damage to defeat him.
Lunia clenched her teeth as she watched.
‘Father… Headmaster…’
FWOOSH—
Phoenix flames erupted around her body.
Flames that consumed even herself.
She caught sight of another rampaging demon.
‘I need to take down at least one more—to ease the burden on the others.’
Despite her body covered in burns, Lunia didn’t stop.
“Miss Lunia!”
Eiran rushed toward her.
“This is too dangerous! You need to retreat and get those burns treated—!”
“I can still fight!”
“No! Your life’s at risk!”
Eiran begged her, on the verge of tears.
Lunia truly looked like she might burn herself to ash.
“I can still—”
“You should listen to your friend, don’t you think?”
A familiar voice spoke from behind.
Lunia froze.
That voice—impossible to forget.
‘No… it can’t be… it’s impossible.’
Her body trembled.
“You’ve always been so reckless, haven’t you?”
If Leo had been here, he would’ve scoffed, “Look who’s talking.”
But Leo wasn’t here right now.
Lunia turned her head.
Eiran also stared in shock.
A beautiful elf stood there, holding two [Poliums].
Eiran rubbed her eyes.
But the figure before them didn’t disappear.
“Lady… Luna?”
“Yes.”
Luna smiled gently.
“You’ve done well.”
Letting go of the Poliums, Luna reached out and patted Lunia and Eiran on the head.
“Leave the rest to your big sister.”
Luna looked toward Zegdiac.
“A ghost of the past… should be handled by someone from the past.”
And thus, the sleeping legend appeared once more before them.
(T/N: OOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH MYYYYYYYY SHHIIIIIIIIIIITT. This is FIREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!)