Chapter 401

Clang-!

Chloe looked momentarily startled by the unexpected arrival.

The other students were the same.

The one who had blocked the Dark Blade was none other than Luke Elda.

(T/N : YESSSSS! FINALLYYYYYY, LUKE ITS YOUR TIME TO SHINEEEEEE!!)

A magic circle floated around Luke’s body.

The Mana that had been suppressed by Leo’s magic stirred.

‘Swing your sword.’

Luke swung his sword.

This was a stage he was never meant to stand on.

He was the weakest student in Lumene.

One wrong move, and he could lose his life in the blink of an eye.

‘Don’t break. Stir your emotions.’

Luke’s Mana surged, amplified by the tremors of his feelings.

He couldn’t stand on the same stage as them.

But he could at least be of some help.

The magic circle drawn across Luke’s body glowed even brighter.

‘This could be useful.’

‘I agree with Leo.’

That had been Leo and Chelsea’s assessment after seeing his magic.

Luke had no talent as a mage who could weave complex formulas.

So he built a magic that suited him.

Physical enhancement.

Simple, but tailored—he designed the formula by referencing the nature of his own Mana.

What he completed was a magic that drew out power beyond his limits.

Strength, speed, reflexes, even his kinetic vision.

It forced everything past its threshold.

Of course, it wasn’t a cure-all.

It had side effects to match.

Overheating—an aftereffect of wringing his body dry beyond its limits.

And the more his emotions flared, the stronger the magic became.

If his emotions ever surged so violently that he lost control, his power could rampage and tear his body apart.

—

‘But creating magic like this means you’ve prepared for that, right?’

‘Yes. This is the only way I can become a hero.’

‘Why do you want to be a hero so badly?’

The day he showed the magic to Leo, Leo had asked.

‘You want to be a hero to help a lot of people, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘You could still help others without becoming a hero, couldn’t you?’

‘If I become a hero, I can help even more people. I want to make the world a slightly better place. A world where more people can be a little happier than they are now.’

‘What’s your reason for going that far?’

‘The heroes in the storybooks always looked happy when they saved people. I admired them and wanted to be like them.’

‘Storybooks are just storybooks.’

‘Yes, I know. But there are those who saved the world for no reason at all, aren’t there? Of course, I can’t be like the Great Heroes.’

Luke smiled faintly.

‘But if I can make the world they passed down even a little better and pass it on to the next generation, I think it would be truly rewarding.’

It was just as he said.

Lysinas, Luna, Arron, Dweno.

They hadn’t saved the world expecting a reward.

They had saved it simply because they wanted to protect the world they loved.

Luke was no different.

‘Alright. If that’s what you want, then whenever you use that magic, always think about what you want to do. Think about the person you want to become. If you do, that magic will bring you…’

Leo smiled.

‘One step closer to the ideal you envision.’

—

[Original Magic: Transcendence]

Fwoosh-!

Luke’s sword moved in a swift arc.

Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang-clang-clang!

A silver flash repeatedly intercepted the Dark Blade.

Everyone stared, stunned by the astonishing display from the weakest first-year.

Aina Beidna’s eyes widened as she watched Luke.

For a fleeting moment, Luke’s swordsmanship surpassed Aina’s.

“Excellent.”

Chloe Mueller smiled.

Her magic was complete.

[Original Magic: Fimbulvetr (Ice World)]

(T/N: I’m not sure whether this is a new spell she created or if the author just changed the name from “Ice World” to “Fimbulvetr” midway through, but that’s how it appears in the raws. So I’m keeping it like that to avoid confusion. We’ll probably get an explanation later—until then, I’ll be using that spell name.)

Absolute frost descended upon the darkness.

C-c-c-c-c-c-crack-!

The darkness was trapped in ice, frozen solid.

Crunch! Crumble! Clatter!

Soon, the darkness shattered and collapsed.

Fwoosh-!

The main body vanished, as if sinking into the floor.

—

“Damn it! Damn it! A bunch of brats!”

Delean Evern spat out a curse.

While the Shadow Lord was away, he had succeeded in infiltrating the Shadow Underground Labyrinth and usurping the power within.

He had obtained overwhelming Dragonkin Magic Power, but the fact that it was darkness-filled power left him seething.

When he realized it was Lysinas’s, a thrill ran through him.

He had inherited the power of the Wise King.

Soon after, he received word that something unusual had happened in Dovella and came here.

He hadn’t managed to refine Lysinas’s still-rampant Magic Power yet, but it didn’t matter.

He would use it to deal with all those snot-nosed brats first, then take his time bringing it under control.

And after that, he would use this power to eliminate the Demons of Tartarus he had made a deal with.

Then he would officially become the successor to a Great Hero.

He would make the world’s order—an order that had revolved around Lumene and the Hero Academy for ages—revolve around him instead.

That was the ambition he had nurtured.

And he had been beaten by mere second-years.

‘It’s because I can’t handle the power properly!’

Delean screamed inwardly.

To him, it was humiliating.

He was a Lumene graduate.

He had graduated long ago and spent years honing himself, yet he had retreated without subduing even upperclassmen—just first and second-years.

He had even obtained Lysinas’s power.

And still, he had lost.

‘No. I didn’t lose. It was just a strategic retreat.’

It was unacceptable.

‘Lumene is wrong. It’s not right. How does it make sense for me to lose to brats raised like that?’

He denied reality.

‘Yes. If I can just wield this power properly…’

“What a pathetic sight, running away.”

Halt-!

Moving through the alleys of Dovella, Delean froze at the voice ahead.

Thump- Thump-

Leo stepped out from around a corner.

Seeing him, Delean’s lips curled.

“Well, well. If it isn’t the great hubae, Lumene’s youngest student council president. No. Are you even a hubae?”

Disgust filled Delean’s eyes.

“Just a filthy shadow playing hero.”

At his words, Leo smirked.

“I don’t think that’s something a dirty traitor who sided with Tartarus should be saying.”

“Hmph. I am merely using that utterly foolish Tartarus.”

Leo sighed.

“I’m so sick of that pathetic excuse.”

“You speak as if you’ve heard it many times.”

“Yeah. I’ve been hearing it for an annoyingly long 5,000 years.”

“I don’t know what nonsense you’re spouting… but I am different.”

Delean’s eyes flashed.

“I! I was supposed to become a hero! After graduating from Lumene! I was supposed to conquer many Hero Record worlds and have my name inscribed in the Hero Record!”

He shouted, agitation spilling over.

“But Lumene never gave me the chance to conquer a Hero Record!”

“Lumene gives graduates a chance to conquer the Hero Record.”

“I have no interest in the records of low-class heroes! What I want is the record of a top-tier hero!”

At that, Leo’s eyes narrowed.

“You don’t know your place.”

“What did you say?”

“Just because you conquer a Hero Record and inherit a hero’s power doesn’t mean your name gets inscribed in the Hero Record.”

Thud- Thud-

Leo walked closer.

“And just because you inherit the power of a mighty hero doesn’t mean you become as strong as them. That’s the most basic truth there is.”

A murderous aura poured from Leo.

“You’re someone who can’t overcome your own limits. A failure who blames everyone else for it.”

Leo’s gaze turned icy.

“Who are you to insult the heroes whose feats were acknowledged by the gods?”

“Shut up! Didn’t even a dirty shadow like you enjoy the glory of conquering a Great Hero’s world? What youngest student council president? What great hero? You just got lucky and conquered the Great Heroes’ worlds!”

Fwoosh-!

The Dark Blade erupted from Delean’s body.

It was the Black Dragon’s Original Magic that Lysinas had sealed.

Ferocious, cruel magic.

So dangerous it had never been passed down.

Even Rodia, upon encountering it, had deemed it too dangerous and chose to seal it away.

Stab-!

The Dark Blade pierced Leo’s body.

Delean scoffed.

“You lose your life early for being arrogant. You should have known your place.”

“You’re right about that.”

“……!”

Delean’s eyes flew open.

Leo—stabbed straight through—kept walking toward him.

“If you’d known your place, you wouldn’t have met such a grim end.”

Swoosh-!

The Dark Blade seeped into Leo’s body.

Watching that, Delean’s face twisted in horror.

“H-how! How did you block it!”

Cra-a-a-a-a-ack-!

Once again, blades rained down on Leo.

Stab! Stab! S-s-stab!

From every direction, the blades struck.

But not a single scratch appeared.

Swoosh-

They were pulled into Leo and absorbed.

“What trick did you use!”

“You can’t harm me with Lysinas’s power.”

Lysinas’s power belonged to Lysinas.

And as long as she no longer existed, that power belonged to Leo—the one who had accepted everything about her.

Trying to kill Leo with Lysinas’s power was the same as trying to kill Leo with Leo’s own power.

“So? Is that all you’ve got?”

“Grr!”

Delean reached out, trying to draw forth more Mana.

Slice-! Splat-!

“Gyaaaaaaaah!”

The Dark Blade that erupted from Delean sliced off his own wrist.

His severed hand hit the ground, blood spraying out.

Clutching the stump and screaming, Delean saw Leo closing in and turned to flee.

‘If I stay here, I’ll die.’

The moment he tried to run—

Crunch-!

“Kraaack!”

The very power of Lysinas—power Delean believed he controlled—crushed his leg.

Thud-!

He collapsed, writhing.

Leo approached at an unhurried pace.

Swoosh-!

Leo imposed his will on Lysinas’s magic that lingered within Delean.

Delean’s body was forced upright.

“S-save me! Please!”

Fear drowned his face.

Leo looked at him and spoke calmly.

“Stop your pathetic struggling and die.”

“I’m your sunbae! A sunbae from the Hero Academy! You’re going to kill a sunbae this brutally, and you still call yourself a hero candidate who dreams of being a hero!”

Delean shrieked.

Leo burst out laughing.

“Sorry, but.”

He flicked his hand.

The darkness wrapped around Delean began to tighten.

“You called me a shadow a moment ago.”

“Mmph! Mmph mmph!”

Squeeze! Crunch-!

The shadow gagged his mouth and squeezed harder.

“A shadow’s job is to kill traitors.”

Leo smiled nonchalantly and turned his back.

“And I’ve never had a sunbae like you.”

“Mmmph!”

Splat-!

The sound of a body being crushed and bursting echoed through the alley.

Splat-splat-splat-

Bones, flesh, and blood rained down.

Lysinas’s magic—power Delean had mistaken for his own—was pulled into Leo’s shadow.

Leo leaped up to a vantage point overlooking all of Dovella.

Below, he could see the hero candidates holding their ground against danger without backing down.

Watching them, Leo smiled.

‘These kids are the future of the world.’

The legacy Lysinas had left behind was still shining.

‘Don’t worry too much, Lysinas.’