Chapter 245
Chaaang—!
The sound of clashing swords echoed in the darkness.
Kagagak—!
The struggle for dominance began.
Leo’s crimson eyes narrowed within the shadows.
Ka-chak—! Fwoosh—!
The tense balance of power shattered in an instant.
As Leo’s sword tilted toward him, Xian parried the blade and swiftly stepped back.
Kwaang—!
Leo’s sword smashed into the marble floor.
Tududuk—
Fragments of marble scattered everywhere.
Leo retrieved his blade and rose from the shattered floor.
‘That power… To generate such strength through sheer physical force…’
“So the title of ‘greatest hero candidate’ wasn’t a lie.”
Xian’s eyes gleamed as he pointed his sword at Leo.
“Now I’m even more convinced that taking you down is worthwhile.”
At that, Leo looked unimpressed.
There was no need to respond.
‘Still… His skills are real.’
One could tell a great deal from crossing swords.
Xian wasn’t just another upstart.
Whoooosh—!
Wind began to whip around Xian.
‘Wind Aura.’
Unlike Chen Xia, who used Water Aura.
‘The emperor of Shan used Fire Aura, didn’t he?’
The three of them must’ve inherited the same aura technique passed down through generations.
But their elemental affinity differed.
‘If they’re Bihar’s descendants… Then that explains it.’
Leo recalled the aura technique he had passed on to his disciple.
He smirked, having realized why each of them used a different element.
Seeing this, Xian spoke.
“I’d like to see the full power of an All-Class.”
Leo rested his sword on his shoulder.
“Not sure you’re worth the effort.”
“What?”
“I mean you’re not strong enough to warrant me using magic or summoning.”
“Cocky much? Doesn’t that count as arrogance?”
“Not really.”
Leo gave a cold smile in response to Xian’s smirk.
Xian’s eyes twitched.
‘This bastard…’
Xian was a genius.
He had the aptitude of both a Shadow and a hero.
Since childhood, his only rival had been his equally gifted twin, Chen Xia.
But even she had been surpassed.
‘She’s incomplete.’
Chen Xia was born with pure Shadow talent.
‘Fated to live in darkness. How pitiful.’
Xian didn’t resent his twin for trying to kill him.
He only pitied her.
‘Trapped in such a lowly fate.’
But he was different.
‘I refuse to waste my talent as a mere Shadow.’
He was destined to be a great hero.
Praised from a young age, his instructors had wept at his potential.
They claimed there had never been someone like him in the history of heroes or Shadows.
And they were right.
Xian had never experienced failure.
He shattered obstacles others called walls and claimed what others only dreamed of with ease.
After leaving Shan, Xian grew stronger.
He conquered multiple Hero Worlds using Tartarus’s power and inherited the strength of countless heroes.
The idea of becoming a hero thrilled him.
‘I was right.’
He had easily overcome the trials of “heroes.”
He was born for it.
‘To think I handled even their trials so easily… I truly am destined to be a legendary hero. I’m one of the chosen.’
Xian had never once denied that he was a genius.
He was meant to stand above others.
But now…
“I don’t like that look in your eyes.”
Leo’s gaze annoyed him.
He could tell—
The boy in front of him didn’t see him as a threat.
Xian, who had always looked down on others from above, was infuriated by that look.
“You’re looking at me like I’m nothing. What do you take me for?”
“Hm…”
Leo stroked his chin.
After a brief pause, he nodded and answered flatly.
“Trash I need to clean up?”
Xian’s eyes trembled.
“Am I wrong? You betrayed the world and sided with Tartarus.”
“I’m only using Tartarus to become a hero.”
Xian replied confidently.
“I wanted to enter Lumene proudly. But this country is broken. They tried to force someone like me to live as a Shadow.”
“I agree Shan’s system is flawed. But that’s no excuse for siding with Tartarus.”
A cold glint flashed in Leo’s eyes.
“And saying you’re using Tartarus to become a hero? That’s nonsense.”
“You wouldn’t understand. But I’ll grow stronger and destroy Tartarus myself.”
Leo halted at those words.
He shook with restrained laughter.
“What’s so funny?”
“Wouldn’t you laugh, too?”
Disdain filled Leo’s eyes.
“You people always say the same thing.”
“What?”
“I’ve seen plenty of idiots like you.”
Even in the Age of Calamity, there had been many with great talent.
And many of them sided with Tartarus.
Their excuse was always the same:
‘We’re using Tartarus to defeat Tartarus.’
“They’re all the same—incapable of accepting their limits, lacking the will or ability to overcome them, lost in self-delusion.”
Sssht—
Leo raised his sword.
“I’m sick of hearing that nonsense.”
He curled his lip into a sneer.
“And a genius, you say?”
There was a time Leo considered himself a genius.
Back when he was Kyle.
In martial arts, magic, or summoning—
He picked up everything with ease and was confident in his talent.
‘But the true geniuses were the friends around me.’
The ones now hailed as legendary heroes.
Each reached the pinnacle of their field.
Leo had only been able to defeat Erebos as the final legendary hero because he borrowed from what his comrades achieved.
‘And even that was nearly a miracle.’
Watching such companions up close, Leo no longer called himself a genius.
So hearing Xian boast about talent made Leo scoff.
Seeing Leo mock him, Xian’s eyes burned with fury.
At first, he wanted to defeat Leo to prove himself the best hero candidate.
Then it became annoyance at Leo behaving like a Shadow.
But now—
‘He’s denying my very existence.’
Whooooosh—!
Mana surged from Xian’s body.
It wasn’t the Wind Aura he had used earlier.
‘Hero Abilities?’
Leo narrowed his eyes.
He could feel that these were powers obtained from conquering Hero Worlds.
And not just that—
Clack—Fwoosh—!
Magical artifacts and armor formed around Xian.
‘Hero Weapon. No doubt he has multiple Hero Skills as well.’
Hero candidates usually start exploring Hero Worlds in their second year.
Yet this traitor possessed as many conquest rewards as a third-year.
‘So Tartarus is collecting Hero Records too?’
Of course, just having Hero Records doesn’t unlock Hero Worlds.
‘But Hero Records contain sealed fragments of Erebos. And they know how to use them.’
Like summoning Erebos’s shard from Luna’s world or bringing the former Legion Commander Zerdiach into the real world—
Tartarus had learned how to exploit Hero Record powers.
Demons couldn’t claim conquest rewards—
But Hero Killers could.
‘They must be opening Hero Records influenced by Erebos’s fragments to empower Hero Killers. The one behind this is likely… the Necromancer King.’
The supreme commander of Tartarus.
The strongest and most terrifying Legion Commander—Hell Kaiser.
Fwoooosh—!
Xian gripped a crimson scimitar engulfed in flames and muttered lowly,
“Here I come.”
Leo smiled coldly and flared his Aura.
Whooosh—
Flames roared to life.
Fwoooosh—KWAGAGANG—!
The two charged at once.
A massive burst of fire consumed the area.
KWAGAGANG—!
Like a chain of explosions, the fire engulfed the corridor, obliterating the darkness.
Crack—!
Xian’s Hero Weapon cracked.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
“No way…!”
He shoved Leo back in panic.
Then thrust out his hand.
Fwoosh—!
Blades of wind burst from his palm.
A Hero Skill.
Powerful, as expected from a hero’s technique.
Whoosh—!
Leo responded with Wind Aura from his hand.
BOOM—!
The attacks canceled each other out, unleashing a blast of wind.
All the corridor windows shattered.
Xian was swept up and thrown back.
Tap—
He landed lightly and narrowed his eyes at Leo.
‘Wind Aura… and Earth Aura?’
He was using multiple elemental Auras simultaneously.
“Hero Ability, then?”
“Wrong.”
Leo smirked.
Ssssh—Fzzzz—
Water Aura poured from his hand, extinguishing the flames.
“The core is the same as the Aura technique you learned.”
It was the technique he gifted to Bihar.
‘The base was created by Arron. I just refined it.’
Born from two legendary heroes, the technique was tailored for Bihar.
She had a unique mana trait allowing her to control all four elemental attributes.
‘Over generations, the technique must’ve evolved.’
Now it likely adapted to suit one’s inherent element.
So even if they learned the same technique, the manifestation differed.
Though Leo could use multiple elements as a temporary solution—
It couldn’t compare to Bihar’s mastery.
Leo readied his sword again.
“So…”
“…?”
“Is this all you’ve got?”
Xian’s expression hardened.
“After all that talk, borrowing someone else’s power is all you’ve got?”
“How arrogant…”
BOOM—Fwoosh—!
Leo’s sword slashed toward Xian’s neck.
Xian barely blocked it, eyes wide in shock.
Crack—CHAAANG—!
His already damaged Hero Weapon shattered.
Xian quickly ducked.
Whoosh—!
Leo’s blade sliced through where his neck had just been.
WHAM—!
“Guh?!”
Leo’s knee crashed into Xian’s face.
As Xian was launched into the air, Leo bent his knees.
Crack—
He leapt, the floor cratering beneath him.
Shhk—SLASH—!
“Guh?!”
Leo’s sword tore through Xian’s side.
From there, he sprang through the narrow corridor, slashing Xian from all angles.
Blood burst from Xian’s airborne body.
He instinctively avoided fatal blows, but Leo’s strikes left him helpless.
Leo’s glowing eyes pierced through the darkness.
Splat—!
Xian’s right arm was severed midair.
Thud—Splurt—!
He crash-landed on the floor.
“This… can’t be… I… I’m meant to become a legendary hero…”
Xian mumbled in disbelief.
He couldn’t accept being utterly overpowered by Leo.
Leo approached, sword in hand, ready to finish it.
“It’s not fair! You’re only strong because you conquered Luna’s world! That’s the only reason!”
“I haven’t used any magic since this fight started.”
Leo sneered at Xian’s delusions.
“If I inherit a legendary hero’s power, I’ll become one too! If I can just get the sword related to Kyle that’s kept in this country and conquer that world…! I’ll be strong too!”
Leo’s eyes twitched at those words.
‘My sword?’
The known history of Shan spanned 4,000 years.
If Bihar was their ancestor, then Shan’s legacy stretched back 5,000 years.
‘It wouldn’t be strange if something tied to me remained.’
“If I inherit not these pathetic heroes’ powers, but the power of the first hero!”
“Maybe it’s not their powers that are pathetic. Maybe it’s just you.”
“You bastard!”
Xian’s eyes sparked with rage.
Leo raised his sword to finish him.
Gooooo—
Suddenly.
Something writhed from Xian’s shadow.
Fwoosh—!
A massive skeletal blade shot out, and Leo’s eyes narrowed.
‘Hell Kaiser’s necromancy.’
Click—Clack—
The skeleton emerged from the shadow, clacking its jaw.
Its blood-red eyes glowed as it bowed politely to Leo.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Leo Plov.”
Leo’s eyes twitched at the familiar voice.
Flesh began to form over the white bones.
Soon, a towering man with a fearsome face—but a gentle smile—took shape.
“It’s an honor to meet the one called this era’s greatest hero candidate. I am…”
The man bared his white teeth and introduced himself.
“Archduke of Mourning, Artkan.”