Editor : Amethyst00



“What’s the name of the competition, anyway?”

As they wrapped up the adjustments to the detailed schedule, Aru, arms crossed, tilted her head and asked.

“Come to think of it, we haven’t actually named the most important thing.”

Lunia agreed with Aru’s words.

Everyone’s gaze subtly shifted toward Leo.

Everyone present knew that Leo was the one who came up with the idea for this grand event.

With all eyes on him, Leo said nonchalantly,

“We can just pick something roughly.”

At that, Lunia gave him a dumbfounded look.

“Seriously? You think it’s okay to just pick something ‘roughly’?”

But Leo, the man himself, remained indifferent.

“Leo, aren’t you the student council president of Lumene? If you’re leading this event as the president, you’re telling us you didn’t even think of a name?”

Drianna asked, sounding somewhat amazed, and Leo replied, “Our school has a lot of capable students—whether seniors or juniors.”

“What do you mean by that?”

As Drianna gave him a puzzled look, Chelsea reached for a cookie on the refreshment table and answered, “He means he’s got plenty of people he can put to work.”

Crunch—Chelsea bit into the cookie and continued.

“Everyone’s been going crazy trying to follow Leo-oppa to Dragonia. Lumene is in total chaos right now, trying to prepare for the event.”

‘Leo! Take me with you!’

‘No! Take me!’

‘How can you leave me out!’

‘You’re one to talk!’

Chelsea shook her head, recalling how both juniors and seniors had swarmed the student council room, shouting over each other.

The students from the other academies shook their heads at her words.

‘Sure, we’re going to be busy preparing for the competition too, but Lumene must be absolute madness.’

After all, it was a public event. It was only natural to prepare in grand fashion to avoid embarrassment.

“Still, I’m surprised. I thought Elena Zeron would refuse to be involved because she’d find it all too bothersome.”

At Hardin’s remark, Chelsea shook her head.

“Elena-sunbae is actually the most aggressive when it comes to tormenting the students. Of course, she’s suffering from the heaviest workload herself.”

Elena’s main strategy for pushing students was basically: “If I’m working this hard, why aren’t you?”

“Amazing. That Elena?”

Hardin of Seiren was in the same year as Elena.

If Elena had reigned as the strongest of her generation at Lumene, then Hardin was her counterpart in Seiren.

They’d clashed many times at the Lumeiren Competition since their first year, so Hardin had a decent grasp of who Elena was.

‘That monster of a woman, working under someone else without protest?’

Though she was called the Queen or the Witch of Lumene, Hardin thought "tyrant" suited her better.

That’s how freely and selfishly Elena lived.

Even if she showed overwhelming power, it was hard to imagine her taking orders from someone else.

“Honestly, watching Elena-sunbae these days makes me kind of worried.”

Chelsea sighed.

She always wore a calm expression, but the workload she was handling was no joke.

“She’ll be fine. That much won’t kill her.”

Leo replied nonchalantly to Chelsea’s concern.

“You’re supposed to go through hard things while you’re young. That way, it becomes blood and flesh when you’re grown.”

“Black Rabbit. You’re young too.”

“Leo, Elena Zeron is older than you, remember?”

Aru and Dorberman gave him incredulous looks.

“How is it you sound exactly like some crusty old guy from High Smith?”

“Wow, Drianna, look at this. I’ve got goosebumps.”

Drianna and Marigold recoiled in distaste.

Leo laughed at their reactions.

“Wouldn’t it be nice if this competition helps students realize that life is real combat?”

“Lumene’s student council president, we know you’re incredible. No one can deny you’ve already reached the hero’s seat we all aim for. But still, I’ve spent five years at Damien.”

Marigold scratched her cheek, and Dorberman chuckled.

“Leo, it’s not that I’m dismissing your words, but we’ve been through a lot ourselves. We know well enough that life isn’t easy.”

Even with that, Leo just smiled.

But Lunia and Chelsea, who knew Leo’s true identity, turned pale.

‘What is he planning this time…?’

“But Black Rabbit, if you dumped all the student council work on them, what are you doing with your free time?”

Aru asked, but Leo only smiled in response.

Clap!

Melina clapped her hands to gather attention and said with a smile,

“Let’s cut off the chatter here. How about naming the competition the ‘Festival of Heroes’?”

The students let out sounds of admiration at her suggestion.

“I think it’s a wonderful name, Dragon Queen.”

Dorberman responded respectfully, and Melina smiled gently.

“Very well. Until the Festival of Heroes begins, let’s handle the remaining details through interschool cooperation. That concludes this meeting.”

bl

That night.

Leo stood in the training hall at the lodging assigned in Dragonia.

Under the starlit night sky, he silently drew his sword.

Ever since he took his first steps as a child, Leo had relentlessly driven himself forward.

As a child, to awaken the powers of All Class.

Later, to regain the power of his past life.

Because of that relentless drive, he was rapidly reclaiming his former strength.

Regaining the power of his previous life.

That was Leo’s primary goal.

But ever since he met Velkia, he had been pushing himself even harder.

Srrrng–! Wuum–!

A resonance rose from Leo’s sword, and gray aura swelled around it.

Seeing that, Leo closed his eyes.

Focus.

He concentrated all his senses on the tip of his blade.

It was a silent night.

But after a while, all sound vanished.

When he opened his eyes, everything was engulfed in pitch-black darkness—except for the gray-glowing sword in his hand.

It wasn’t a hallucination.

He had focused so completely on his blade that his senses shifted into this state.

Tap—

Leo raised the sword to his face, gripping it with both hands, blade pointing forward.

And in that moment, a figure appeared before him.

It was a beastman warrior holding a sword.

Aaron.

In that pitch-black space, only Leo and Aaron stood.

And before he realized it, Leo’s appearance had shifted—back into Kyle.

Aaron lowered into a battle stance.

Leo kicked off the ground toward him.

CRACKK–!

Aura exploded from Leo’s swinging blade.

The scattered fragments of aura sliced through the air, ready to shred Aaron apart.

But in that moment, Aaron’s sword moved smoothly.

CLANGCLANGCLANG—!

Golden aura clashed with gray, fragmenting it.

It didn’t work.

Leo had expected as much.

‘Of course not. He’s Aaron.’

In the current era, Leo was likely the strongest as a pure warrior.

Even after the Age of Calamity, no one surpassed him.

Not his disciples, Velkia and Bihar.

Not the legendary heroes Lumene and Azonia.

As pure warriors, none had exceeded Leo.

That made sense.

Leo mastered all types of weapons.

Which made him adept at unconventional tactics.

He hadn’t earned the title “The Surviving Hero” for nothing.

‘Then and now, the truest measure of a warrior’s skill is experience.’

He had fought in far more battlefields.

Gambled his life far more often.

The raw amount of experience he had was fundamentally different.

In that regard, Leo surpassed even Aaron as a warrior.

CLANG—!

Suddenly, Aaron’s sword deflected Leo’s.

Feeling the heavier weight of Aaron’s blade, Leo opened a subspace.

WHUMPH—!

Leo, now wielding a massive battle axe, spun his body and swung with weight.

BOOM—!

Aaron blocked the axe, was blown back, and landed on the ground.

Aaron muttered to himself.

‘But I’m still weaker than Aaron.’

Though Leo was superior as a warrior, Aaron was stronger as a martial artist.

It wasn’t just raw power.

Leo adapted to every situation, switching weapons in real time to optimize his combat ability.

Aaron had no such skill.

‘Or more accurately, he doesn’t need it like I do.’

Leo had to use many weapons because no single one could carry him beyond his limits.

It was a form of workaround.

Aaron wasn’t like that.

He surpassed his limits with a single weapon.

That’s why Aaron was stronger than Leo in that way.

Suddenly, Leo took hold of a sword again.

Gray aura surged like fire.

‘The essence of pure mana is its refusal to be bound by anything, right?’

That’s the reason Leo was All Class.

He could awaken countless abilities.

Leo’s unique magic, Bible, was born from that mana trait.

It increased the number of powers he could wield.

He built his strength on that foundation.

It was the same method he’d used as Kyle.

That’s why Leo’s power was as vast as the sea.

But…

‘It’s not deep. Just wide.’

To others, it might seem deep.

But his friends knew better.

‘To be bound by nothing means being infinite, too.’

Which meant Leo could become infinitely strong.

And in the final moments of his previous life, that was proven.

With the powers he inherited from his comrades, Leo surpassed Erebos—the immortal being.

But that was still borrowed power. Not truly his own.

‘So I won an incomplete victory… and closed my eyes.’

Clench—!

Leo’s grip tightened.

In this life, Leo planned to win again.

He had no intention of losing, not even a little.

‘But there’s no guarantee it won’t end like before.’

There’s no assurance he won’t have to sacrifice someone else to overcome Erebos again.

‘I won’t allow that.’

Leo charged toward Aaron.

Aaron charged back.

‘That’s why I must surpass him. This bastard!’

The pinnacle of martial skill Leo knew.

Not just Aaron.

Luna, Lysinas too.

He had to surpass each of his comrades—magicians, summoners—those who stood at the summit of their fields.

CLINK—!

Suddenly, Leo’s sword was cut and flew into the air.

Aaron’s sword was already at his throat.

Their eyes met. Aaron’s mouth moved.

‘Amazing. You really are Kyle!’

Leo gave a bitter smile at those words.

“You’re amazing! As expected of Black Rabbit!”

An excited voice rang out.

The pitch-black world vanished, replaced by a starlit night once more.

Aru came running up to Leo, her eyes sparkling.

“You’ve gotten even more amazing! Black Rabbit! Let’s spar right now—nyaaagh?!”

“Don’t interrupt someone’s training, stupid cat.”

Lunia yanked Aru’s tail roughly.

Aru crouched down, clutching her backside, tears welling up.

Leo smiled and patted her head, almost pressing down on it.

“It’s fine. I was just about to finish.”

Aru purred like a sleepy kitten.

Watching her, Lunia murmured internally,

‘That… That was definitely Lord Kyle just now.’

From the first time she saw him, Lunia felt something was off.

There were moments he seemed far too mature, with unfathomable depth.

Now she knew why.

That was Leo’s true nature, the face behind the mask of this life.

Leo chuckled as Aru dozed in his arms and rubbed under her chin.

She let out a long purrr– purrr– from her throat.

Then—

“Don’t treat me like a cat!”

Her face flushed red as she suddenly yelled.

“You’re totally a cat.”

“Literally a kitten, through and through.”

Lunia and Drianna spoke mercilessly.

“Grrr!”

Aru rolled on the ground in frustration.

Thud! Thud! But sadly, no one here was fazed by such antics.

“Anyway! Let’s fight!”

To that, Leo replied, “I’ve got somewhere to be tonight. Training’s done for now.”

He smiled softly and looked down at his aura.

The gray aura shimmered gently.

‘First, I need to gain the power to kill Erebos with my sword.’

Leo’s power was clearly Erebos’s natural enemy.

But even in his past life, he couldn’t fully kill Erebos.

Because even then, there was only one way Leo could destroy Erebos completely.

Innocent.

The unique magic Luna left behind.

The essence of pure mana.

‘If it’s a power that can be realized through magic… then maybe aura can express that purity too.’

If that happened, Leo’s aura would become a blade that could slay the primal evil.

But to achieve that, he had to break past his limits as a martial artist.

And Leo knew exactly what those limits were.

He glanced to the side.

Though the mental realm had faded, Aaron’s image still lingered.

Seeing Aaron smiling at him gently, Leo muttered inwardly,

‘Don’t make that “I believe in you” face. I’ll surpass you soon, so stop acting like Lysinas.’

Clicking his tongue, Leo shook his sword.

FWOOOSH—!

The gray aura scattered.

“…Hm?”

Aru blinked in surprise.

“What?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

She shook her head.

‘Just now… when Black Rabbit’s aura scattered, it looked pure white for a moment. Did I imagine it?’