Chapter 228
Celia entered the Imperial Palace’s Magic Archive with Leo’s knight order around evening.
The staff inside the archive wore surprised expressions at her appearance.
Celia was such a famous figure that everyone in the empire knew her.
However, the mages here also knew that she rarely entered the Imperial Archive, so they couldn’t help but look puzzled.
And then their gazes shifted to the Slayer Order escorting her.
“Zerdinger trainees?”
“Are those the new Lumene students?”
“What, did they come to show off?”
Complaints broke out all over.
The Slayer Order looked flustered by the reactions.
Within the Lordren Empire, not only Zerdinger and Lewellin but also knights and mages had a strong sense of rivalry.
Because five Zerdinger trainees were accepted into Lumene this year, all knights under the empire were celebrating.
In contrast, the mages were bitterly watching those knights.
“Lady Celia, is it okay for us to be here?”
Martina asked cautiously, and Celia chuckled softly, brushing back her hair.
“Yeah. We’re just here to see Leo. No need to shrink back. You should enjoy being the center of attention.”
‘Lady Celia really is something else.’
To enjoy all these glares…
As Martina clicked her tongue in amazement—
“What nerve you have, coming here like you own the place?”
Chelsea approached with heavy footsteps.
The Slayer Order immediately tensed up at the sight of her.
‘Chelsea Lewellin!’
A giant name even within the Zerdinger family.
“We’re here to pick up Leo.”
“Leo’s with my aunt right now.”
Chelsea replied bluntly, then glanced at the Slayer Order.
“So those are the knights who got into Lumene with Leo?”
“That’s right.”
“Then I’ll be seeing a lot of you.”
Abad walked up behind Chelsea.
‘Even Abad Lewellin!’
With these giants showing up one after another, the entire Slayer Order couldn’t help but tense up.
These were the core figures of Lumene’s golden generation.
As tension swirled—
“Well, this is unusual. Three of you here at the Imperial Archive.”
At the voice behind them, everyone turned their heads.
A girl with dazzling golden hair entered, flanked by Imperial knights and mages.
All mages present bowed and kneeled.
The Slayer Order also knelt and offered a knight’s salute.
Celia, Abad, and Chelsea didn’t kneel, but they bowed respectfully.
It was the arrival of Sasha, the imperial princess and future empress of Lordren.
“Welcome, Your Highness.”
Abad, the highest-ranking person present, stepped forward to greet her.
Celia, Abad, Chelsea, and Sasha had been close childhood friends.
While they spoke informally in private, they maintained formality in public.
As Abad kissed the back of Sasha’s hand, she smiled.
“Abad, you’re always so elegant.”
“You flatter me.”
“Ugh. That’s so cheesy.”
Sasha teased, and Abad replied playfully while Celia stuck out her tongue subtly.
Chelsea shot Celia a sharp glare.
They might be the empire’s future powerhouses, but they were still teenagers.
As the playful mood settled—
“Still, what brings you to the Imperial Archive, Your Highness?”
“I came to see Leo Plov. I want to invite him to my Lumene entrance celebration.”
“You came in person? That’s something you could’ve had someone else do…”
“I’ll be relying on all of you a lot for school life going forward, especially Leo Plov, the Phoenix Summoner.”
Sasha smiled bashfully as she asked,
“So, where is Leo Plov?”
“He’s currently speaking with the Deputy Lord of my family.”
“I see. Then we’ll wait.”
The archive buzzed with activity following the princess’s arrival.
Leo’s knights, nervous, began to line up beside Celia.
“You’re all new Lumene students, right?”
“Yes, Your Highness,” Martina answered on behalf of the group, bowing.
Sasha beamed at her.
“Let’s get along as classmates. Please make sure to come to the party too.”
“It would be an honor, Your Highness.”
Martina replied with a flawless bow—Zerdinger trainees were well-trained in etiquette.
At that moment, one of Sasha’s attendants approached and whispered to her.
After the report, Sasha’s eyes widened.
“Huh? A duel? With Azonia’s representative?”
—
“Hmph, Black Rabbit. So you’ve finally decided to spar with me.”
Ar stood proudly in the center of a large clearing.
Leo replied as he looked at her,
“Didn’t I just say? This spar is to see how well you’ve learned Arron’s transformation ability.”
“Of course!”
Ar puffed out her chest.
“I’ve mastered it perfectly!”
“We’ll see about that.”
Leo raised his wooden sword.
Ar crouched low, ready to spring at any moment, like a cat stalking prey.
‘Is this my first time sparring directly with the Black Rabbit?’
Ar’s eyes sparkled.
‘The skill he showed during Azonia’s entrance exam was amazing.’
Since then, Leo had become Lumene’s youngest student council president.
‘He was impressive even during his own exam.’
Her ears perked up and tail swayed.
The beastkin’s natural love for battle flared in Ar as she bent her knees.
Leo took a step forward.
Step— Whoosh—!
That was all Ar needed to launch her charge.
Vanishing from sight, she closed the gap with incredible speed.
Combining the natural physical abilities of beastkin with the power of [Aura].
Fwoosh—!
Ar swung her fist.
Leo met it with a swing of his [Aura]-infused sword.
Clang—!
It rang like clashing steel.
Crackle—!
Sparks flew from Ar’s hand gripping Leo’s blade.
Clench—!
“…!”
Ar’s eyes widened as Leo pushed her back.
It wasn’t [Aura] that overpowered her.
‘He beat me with sheer strength.’
Ar blew out a puff of air from her nose.
‘Amazing!’
By nature, humans were physically weaker than beastkin.
But Leo had overturned that basic truth.
‘Exciting!’
Her eyes lit up.
Even if she lost in power, it didn’t matter.
There were stronger students in Azonia too.
But Ar became year representative because of her flexibility and speed.
Whoosh—!
She jumped and aimed her heel at Leo’s arm.
Smack—!
Wobble—
Leo blocked it, but his knee buckled.
As he tried to counter, Ar’s opposite hand glinted with sharp claws.
Fwoosh—!
Leo deflected the strike with his other hand.
Whoosh— Tap—!
Ar flipped mid-air and landed smoothly.
“Yap!”
She readied another attack stance.
Leo tilted his head slightly at the sting on his cheek.
Ar licked the blood on her clawed fingertip with a cat-like grin.
“Hm.”
Leo chuckled.
“Impressive.”
“You too, Black Rabbit. You haven’t even gone all out yet.”
“Same to you, isn’t it?”
Fwoosh—
[Flame Aura] burst from Leo’s body.
Seeing that, Ar clenched her fists and trembled slightly.
‘So you’re serious now. Then I’ll…’
Fwoosh—
Golden [Aura] surged from Ar.
Leo narrowed his eyes.
That aura—he knew it too well.
A friend who stood on the front lines of impossible battles.
‘Arron’s aura.’
Ar’s body began to change.
Her eyes sharpened like a cat’s, her claws extended.
Though it’s called transformation, the external change is minor.
Her beast traits became more prominent, and her physical ability skyrocketed.
“Grrrr—!”
A low feline growl came from Ar.
‘Here it comes.’
The moment Leo thought that—
Crack—!
The ground beneath Ar collapsed as she launched forward.
Leo’s transcendent vision followed her movement.
But before his body could react, Ar’s kick struck his shoulder.
Crash—!
Leo flew back, slammed into a wall.
This was the magic testing field attached to the archive.
Spacious and unused at this hour.
‘Still, with that noise, someone might come.’
Crack—!
Leo burst out of the wall and ducked.
Slam—! Crackle! Boom—!
Ar’s fist landed where he had just been, shattering the wall.
‘She’s a monster, alright.’
Leo clicked his tongue.
Overwhelming physical ability.
‘This really is Arron’s transformation ability.’
Seeing Ar charge like a berserker with claws bared, Leo closed his eyes.
‘She hasn’t mastered it yet, though.’
Ssshhh—
Leo’s eyes opened.
Startled, Ar leapt back instinctively.
She bristled and eyed Leo warily, sweat trickling down.
‘Just now, I saw… Hero Arron’s shadow in him.’
The image of Arron she’d seen in the Hero’s World flashed in her mind.
Ar shook her head.
‘No, no, just my imagination.’
She was overwhelmed by his presence.
Trying to shake it off, Ar pushed out even more [Aura].
A golden glint shimmered in her power.
‘I’ll end this with the next attack!’
She was dominating the fight.
‘I need to finish him before he uses magic or summoning!’
Fwoosh—!
Ar dashed toward Leo.
In that moment—
Crack—!
Veins bulged on Leo’s hand.
Fwoosh—!
As Ar closed the distance—
Grab—!
“Nyaak?”
Leo’s palm covered Ar’s face.
Crash—!
In one fluid motion, Leo slammed her into the ground.
“Sorry.”
Under the moonlit sky, Leo apologized to the dazed Ar.
“This is my first time using this ability too. Couldn’t control the power.”
Having subdued Ar in a single blow, Leo stood up and looked at his mangled right hand.
“If I mess this up, I’ll destroy myself.”
His arm was swollen from the [Aura] he couldn’t contain.
As he sighed, Ar muttered,
“Black Rabbit…”
“What?”
“You’re not a rabbit. You’re a wolf?”
What she saw in Leo’s golden glowing right eye reminded her of a transformed wolf beastkin.
And of someone she knew very well.
‘Hero Arron.’
Leo smiled faintly at the dazed Ar.
“Wolf, my ass. I’m human. Just mimicking a friend. Not even close to his level.”
The three rewards Leo gained from clearing Arron’s world:
Elci, Arron’s breathing technique, and Agon’s Book.
Agon’s Book was the original manual for Arron’s [Aura] technique.
Through long research, Leo learned to use part of Arron’s awakening ability.
‘Just like in my past life, I’ve learned to use some of his power. Just a piece of it, and look at the state I’m in.’
Leo stared at his battered right hand.
‘Still, I can finally imitate him.’
His eyes returned to their normal color.
Then he said,
“Looks like I’m not the one transferring schools—you are.”
“Huh?”
“You’re being controlled by the Hero’s transformation ability.”