Chapter 242

“He moved?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Interesting. How brazen.”

The moment Leo stepped out of the detached residence, his movements were relayed in real time to Emperor Shau.

Hearing the report, Shau curled the corner of his lips.

“What shall we do?”

Students from the four great Hero Academies are treated as honored guests no matter which nation they visit.

And Leo wasn’t just any hero candidate—he was the student council president of Lumene.

But even so, wandering the imperial palace without Shau’s permission was not acceptable.

It was a serious matter that could spark diplomatic issues.

However, Shau didn’t dislike Leo’s boldness.

Besides, he didn’t think Leo would be able to find Chen Xia.

‘Even the best Shadows struggle to locate someone hidden deep in the darkness like Xia.’

The royal family of Shan live in darkness from the moment they’re born in order to become perfect Shadows.

‘She once dreamed of becoming a hero and had the talent for it… but her talent as a Shadow was even more extraordinary.’

Shau was certain.

He was convinced that before long, his daughter would surpass not only him but also every emperor in Shan’s history.

And that she would fulfill Shan’s long-cherished wish.

‘To be recorded in the Hero Record.’

Long before the founding of Shan—

Even their most legendary ancestors who thrived in the Age of Calamity failed to achieve that feat.

Shau believed his daughter would succeed where they had failed.

‘She can accomplish what the First Shadow once did… that monumental feat.’

The reason Shan’s emperors were so obsessed with being recorded in the Hero Record as Shadows—

Was because such a Shadow did exist, hidden in the forgotten history.

Among the legacies left by the great Shadow Bihar, there was a Hero Record with a name erased.

A record dating back 5,000 years to when the Hero Record was first created.

It couldn’t be shared with the world due to an ancient curse placed upon it.

But the great Shadow who left that record undeniably existed.

That’s why the emperors of Shan could never abandon their obsession with the Hero Record.

His daughter—one of the most gifted individuals in Shan’s long history.

It was precisely because of her talent that Shau had repeatedly spoken words he knew would hurt.

‘You can never be a hero. Do you think the gods would acknowledge someone who’s stepped into the darkness as a hero?’

He engraved those words into her mind time and again.

And recently, his daughter gave up on becoming a hero.

But if she met Leo, she would waver.

So he prevented their meeting.

‘Even if it should be impossible to find her, I can’t be careless. Leo Plov has always turned the impossible into reality.’

Shau, closing one eye, recalled Leo’s accomplishments.

The world had begun to call Leo’s generation the Golden Generation of Lumene.

‘It’s rare to see so many talented individuals in a single generation.’

But it wasn’t just Lumene.

‘Seiren, Azonia, and Damienne as well.’

Shau’s gaze narrowed.

‘This generation has too many prodigies.’

If they all became heroes—

It could reshape the power dynamics of the continent.

Even the long-standing balance with Tartarus might collapse.

‘No, that balance has already begun to crack.’

The defeat of the Monster Queen—

One of the continent’s long-standing, seemingly impossible goals had already been achieved.

This was a time when legendary heroes and Legion Commanders of the past had begun to appear again.

An era where new functions of the Hero Record were being discovered.

Just as the Age of Calamity ended 5,000 years ago—

Just as another calamity struck 3,000 years ago—

Perhaps the world was entering another period of great upheaval.

‘And the one standing at the forefront, leading the hero candidates, is Leo Plov.’

Heroes are said to be those who make the impossible possible, but even heroes have limits.

Yet Leo showed no such limits.

Every time he hit a wall, he shattered it without fail.

‘If anyone could find Xia, it would be Leo Plov.’

That would be problematic.

‘After all, she finally gave up on being a hero and chose to become a Shadow.’

“Keep him wandering in the dark until morning.”

“Understood.”

At Shau’s command, the captain of the guards disappeared into the shadows.

‘Xia must not be allowed to develop unnecessary emotions.’

A chilling gleam flashed in Shau’s eyes.

‘She might end up turning traitor like *him*.’

—

A room faintly lit by moonlight.

Inside sat a small girl, prim and proper.

The room was filled with books.

All of them about heroes.

Tales of heroes Chen Xia had read since she was young and loved fairy tales.

Whenever training became too harsh, she drew strength from reading those stories.

‘I used to think I wanted to become a Shadow who protects heroes like them.’

As Xia opened her eyes, she looked at her well-worn bookshelf and smiled faintly.

That thought had soon given rise to another desire.

She began to want to become a hero herself.

To save people and stand before them.

Eight years ago.

When she was ten.

The day she first had that dream—

She killed a man.

It was the day she executed a group of low-ranking mages who had formed contracts with demons and were researching dark magic.

‘Maybe that was when I crossed a river I could never return from.’

While other children still admired heroes with sparkling eyes—

She killed without hesitation.

At that moment, she didn’t even understand what was wrong with that.

Though she had taken another’s life at far too young an age to grasp the gravity of it, she felt no guilt.

Traitors must be executed.

That’s what she had been taught, and that’s how she had lived.

The day she eliminated dark mages corrupted by evil and protected the world’s peace.

Just like the heroes in her storybooks—she had rejoiced.

‘Tch. That’s not what a hero does!’

Her fraternal twin, who was always with her, had said that.

Those words struck Chen Xia hard.

Not what a hero does?

‘Heroes don’t kill people like that!’

Despite sharing the same life, her twin denied everything they had been taught.

‘Heroes destroy evil in the light!’

In the light?

‘Eliminating evil like this is meaningless!’

Meaningless?

‘This is nothing but slaughter! There’s nothing cool about it! No one will acknowledge you!’

Just… slaughter?

Ten-year-old Xia looked down at her bloodstained hands.

Only after returning to the palace did the young girl begin to feel the weight of taking a life.

Even if it was a traitor.

Someone knew that person.

Their family might never learn the truth.

Her twin had been right.

Heroes didn’t fight evil like that.

After that, her twin grew discontent with the life of a Shadow.

And began to sing of wanting to become a hero.

Whenever that happened, Shau would only give an awkward smile.

Even as her twin whined constantly, Xia never said a word.

Perhaps she had already given up on becoming a hero back then.

She quickly recovered from the shock of her first mission.

Perhaps due to her hardened mental strength, forged from a young age.

Or maybe her emotions had dulled over time.

Her days became filled with executing traitors and walking a path of blood.

Then a new mission was given.

“Betrayal…?”

“Yes.”

A new traitor had appeared.

It was her twin—her other half.

The news of Xian’s betrayal shocked Chen Xia more than anything.

She knew her twin hated being a Shadow.

And that she’d throw everything away if it meant becoming a hero.

But that she’d betray them? That was too much.

“Xia.”

Calling his daughter, Shau gave her a cold command.

“Eliminate Xian. And become the next Emperor of Shan.”

She was ordered to do it.

Chen Xia knew better than anyone how skilled and gifted her twin was.

If he became a traitor, he’d grow into a monster capable of killing countless heroes.

Xia pursued her twin to eliminate him.

And…

Throb—

As the memory returned, Chen Xia placed a hand over her right chest.

That was two years ago.

‘He must be dead.’

A bloody battle between siblings.

When both had exhausted their strength, she barely pushed her twin over a cliff.

Upon her return, Shau promised her the throne and a single wish.

And Xia said,

“I want to become a hero.”

Shau had looked surprised.

“I want to enroll in Lumene.”

“You can never be a hero. Do you think the gods will acknowledge someone who has walked in darkness?”

Shau endlessly denied her dream.

But maybe it was because he’d seen how her twisted dream had led her twin astray.

He gave her one chance.

She could enroll—but only if she became top of her grade.

And she could not use any of her Shadow abilities.

With those conditions, she was allowed to go to Lumene.

A year later.

Chen Xia entered the academy of her dreams.

Everything went smoothly.

She easily claimed top of the Eastern Division.

When the top students gathered—

She saw others who weren’t to be underestimated.

And then she met him.

The boy with stark white hair who stood in stark contrast to her.

‘Leo Plov.’

A seemingly unremarkable boy from a remote backwater kingdom.

Strangely familiar for some reason.

But on the first day of school, in the fight against the Kraken, he left a deep impression.

And he was the grade representative.

If she could surpass Leo—

She believed she’d be one step closer to becoming a hero.

But…

‘He was someone I couldn’t surpass.’

It didn’t take her long to realize it.

The boy who seemed ordinary at first glance was an unprecedented All-Class.

And before she knew it, he had overtaken her—then reached heights she couldn’t even grasp.

An overwhelming gap.

But Chen Xia didn’t despair.

There was no time to feel such things.

Her heart simply pounded.

It felt like meeting a character out of a childhood fairy tale.

Leo was a blinding light to Chen Xia.

A light so bright she felt it would blind her just to look.

And so she couldn’t look away.

Just watching was enough.

But others weren’t satisfied with just watching.

They gritted their teeth and chased after Leo.

And when she realized just how impossible that was—

Chen Xia understood.

She was the kind who simply stood still and watched the light from afar.

While others reached toward it.

She, trapped in the darkness, couldn’t even think of approaching that light.

‘I’m different from them.’

She still wanted to become a hero.

That hadn’t changed.

But the more she wanted it, the more she realized she was someone who belonged to the shadows.

As she interacted with other hero candidates, she came to understand.

They were fundamentally different.

Their mindsets, their upbringings—

The darkness of her past clung to her like chains.

‘Father was right. I can never be a hero.’

Then even if it meant doing every dirty deed imaginable—

‘If it’s something a hero must never do, then I should be the one to do it.’

Even if she had to live in the dark—

‘Someone has to do it.’

Even if it was meaningless slaughter—

‘If it’s for Leo Plov… if it’s for the heroes… wouldn’t that give it meaning?’

She admired heroes.

But she had to stop at admiration.

‘Because I can never become one.’

Just as Shau had said.

The gods would never acknowledge someone like her who had committed such terrible deeds.

“Lady Xia.”

“What is it?”

“I’ve come to deliver a message from His Majesty.”

“From Father?”

Xia looked puzzled.

“Is it a new mission?”

“Yes. He’s ordered you to hide deep in the shadows.”

“Why?”

Xia frowned at the unusual order.

The Shadow replied,

“Currently, Lumene’s student council president, Leo Plov, is visiting the palace.”

Hearing that, Chen Xia felt her heart stir.

She hadn’t said goodbye because she feared her resolve would waver the moment they met.

But now he was here.

“He’s come to take you back to Lumene.”

Chen Xia’s eyes wavered.

Her heart raced.

“His Majesty’s order is that you are not to meet him.”

“What action is being taken against Leo Plov?”

“He is to be trapped in darkness until morning.”

No one could find someone hiding in Shan’s shadows.

All manner of elite Shadows would obstruct Leo.

So there was no chance they’d meet.

‘But… if it’s Leo Plov…’

He might just find her in this darkness.

If they met now, her carefully made decision would surely waver.

She was a Shadow. She couldn’t be a hero.

If she clung to that fleeting dream, she would become neither here nor there—useless.

Better than that—

‘Becoming a Shadow who supports Leo Plov would be far more meaningful.’

Rather than clinging to a worthless dream—

Helping the boy she admired would be much more worthwhile, Chen Xia thought.

“Understood.”

Chen Xia rose from her seat.

Then she opened the door and stepped out.

A pitch-black darkness stretched before her.

The interior of Shan’s palace, shrouded in night, was a maze of shadows so dark you couldn’t see an inch ahead.

But to Shadows, this darkness was familiar.

Chen Xia melted into the shadows.

So did the Shadow attending her.

No presence, no sound, no vision.

In that utter darkness, Chen Xia moved with ease.

The Shadow following her marveled inwardly.

‘As expected of Lady Xia—she’s on another level.’

He was sure.

‘Leo Plov could never possibly find her—’

“This is a bit much.”

Chen Xia suddenly stopped.

Fwoosh—

Behind her, the area lit up from a Light Magic spell.

“I thought we were playing hide and seek, but it’s actually tag? No wonder you were so confident I wouldn’t find you.”

The Shadow turned around in shock.

“How…?”

Someone who had lived only in the light could find a Shadow in this darkness?

Chen Xia’s fingertips trembled.

The familiar voice made her heart tremble.

The voice that once made her dream—yet also forced her to abandon it—spoke to her warmly.

“Chen Xia, come back to Lumene.”

Her heart responded.

“I’ve come to take you home.”

If she turned back now… she’d find herself reaching endlessly for a dream she could never grasp.