Editor : Amethyst00



FWOOOSH—!

The towering pillar of black flame that had soared into the sky split apart and began to rain down like a storm.

“AAAAAAHHHH!”

“Kyaaaah?!”

Screams erupted throughout the spectator stands at the sudden turn of events, as if witnessing the end of the world.

FLASH—!

In that moment, a barrier of light formed in the sky.

WHOOSH—!

The black flames were blocked by the barrier.

[Esteemed guests visiting Lumene, please remain calm and pay attention.]

A soft voice echoed from the center of the training ground.

A beautiful female student, Elena, who could dazzle anyone into silence just by her presence, gracefully held the hem of her skirt and gave a polite curtsy.

[Gathered here today are numerous cadets and heroes of Lumene. Please rest assured.]

Thanks to Elena’s words, the panic in the crowd quickly subsided.

Fear still clung to their faces, but no one completely lost their senses.

Everyone swallowed hard.

And then…

FLASH—!

FWOOSH—!

A crimson sword aura sliced cleanly through the black pillar of flame.

The blade aura, having cut through the inferno, continued to shoot upward into the sky without losing its momentum.

The spectators were all left speechless at the awe-inspiring sight.

“That was a sword strike?!”

“I’ve heard that some knights can unleash power comparable to archmages, but… that was far beyond the scale of magic!”

All eyes turned toward the one who had unleashed the blade aura.

There stood a handsome young man, just at the cusp of adulthood.

“Hark-sunbae! You’re amazing!”

Lyl cheered, swinging her battle hammer.

“Is that really the Knight Department?”

“Are all Lumene knight student monsters?”

Students from Azonia stared at Hark in disbelief.

“Hmph, don’t be so shocked. That guy’s mana trait is ‘Accumulation,’” Dorberman said, clenching and unclenching his fists as he stepped forward.

“Thanks to that, even with his pretty-boy face, he can release ridiculous sword auras.”

Of course, even with immense aura, there’s a limit to how much can be released at once.

And if you unleash that much power in one go, your body suffers from overload.

Only through rigorous training can someone endure it.

With his sword resting on his shoulder, Hark stood proudly, drawing every gaze.

There was an overwhelming charisma radiating from him.

Even the Lumene juniors, used to seeing him nodding off in class or screaming as Leo tormented him, swallowed nervously at this unfamiliar sight of Hark.

Just then, Elena approached Lyl and whispered something.

“What? T-That’s too much!”

“It’ll help a lot. Go on.”

“B-But still…”

“Oh my, who do you think you’ll spend more time with at school?”

Smiling sweetly but with a threatening undertone, Elena nudged Lyl, who trudged toward Hark with a tearful expression.

“What now?” Hark asked, slightly irritated.

Lyl, screwing her eyes shut, summoned a water elemental and doused Hark with water.

SPLASH—! HSSSSSS—!

As soon as the water touched Hark’s body, steam erupted.

Now soaking wet, Hark grabbed Lyl by the collar.

“Oh? So now that I’m graduating, I’m not your sunbae anymore?”

“Eek! I-It was Elena-sunbae’s idea!”

‘Most people wouldn’t do it even if told to…’

Everyone stared blankly at the scene, having momentarily forgotten the situation.

“All right, all right. Calm down.”

Elena intervened cheerfully between the two.

“You needed cooling off anyway.”

“And that’s a reason to dump water on me?”

Hark scowled.

“Well, let’s save scolding Lyl for later.”

“Why am I taking all the blame?!”

“You’re acting like you did nothing wrong?”

Elena, ignoring both the senior and junior’s protests, said,

“First-years, evacuate with the spectators.”

“Sunbae! We can fight too!”

“Your spirit is admirable,” Elena smiled gently at Juen’s protest.

“But people like you would only get in the way here. Don’t drag down your seniors.”

Juen flinched at Elena’s firm words.

“Lumene will now organize a team to stop that thing. Those called forward, step up. Others, follow your professors’ instructions.”

She glanced briefly at the other schools.

“I hope you’ll organize teams as well.”

At her suggestion, the other schools also began forming teams.

“By the way, where’s Leo?”

“Right here.”

“…?”

Elena turned around and saw Leo standing behind her, tilting her head.

“Leo?”

“Yes.”

“Hmmm…”

She narrowed her eyes, then smiled slightly.

“Can you command long-range attacks from the rear?”

“Understood.”

“Wouldn’t he be better at the front?”

“There aren’t just students here.”

Elena looked toward the heroes now fighting back the returning catastrophe of flames.

“At this moment, Leo is best suited to lead the mages and summoners.”

bl

People were evacuating in a hurry.

Amidst it all, Leo issued instructions to Melina.

["Melina. Have the dragons search Lumene for any suspicious individuals. That thing at the center of the flames—whatever it is—it's a fragment of the Hero Record of Dawn. Someone smuggled it into Lumene."]

["Yes, but… why would someone do that? The Hero Record of Dawn is something even Tartaros needs…"]

The Hero Record of Dawn could act as a passageway for Erebos, trapped in the Dawn world, to escape.

And yet, someone had triggered it right in the middle of Lumene?

Just like with Seiren, Leo could seal the passage if needed.

‘The Lich King wouldn’t be unaware of that. What’s the real plan?’

As Leo narrowed his eyes—

“Not every Hero Record of Dawn can act as a gateway.”

Leo turned around.

Walking calmly through the evacuating crowd was Rian.

People instinctively avoided his, yet no one was aware of his presence.

Cradling a wide, flat box in his arms, Rian approached Leo.

Then even Leo became undetectable to the crowd.

In the chaos, only silence surrounded Rian.

“The Hero Records were made with divine power. To monsters, they’re an opposing force.”

Rian came closer.

“When the monsters were trapped in Dawn, the pages of the Hero Records began turning black—like ink spilled on paper.”

“They were being corrupted.”

“Yes,” Rian nodded.

“Before all the pages were tainted, the records were torn apart.”

Many records were lost or scattered across the world.

“So only the corrupted pages can act as gateways?”

“Correct. But even then, remnants of the monsters can leak out through them. That’s what’s happening now.”

Her face grew dim.

“The Record system is severely damaged. This is a glitch.”

“…The Lich King knew and caused this rampage inside Lumene.”

“That’s likely. The demon’s intention…”

“Probably to discard something useless during the Festival of Heroes—using the explosion to eliminate potential hero candidates.”

Leo clenched his teeth.

“Solution?”

“Enter the Hero Realm and extinguish the lingering remnants.”

“Then first, we must put out the flames spilling out here.”

“Yes. That’s why I make this request.”

“…?”

“Stand before the people, not as Leo Plov, but as Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings.”

“What?”

“People of the lower world have already become accustomed to the miracle of a great hero’s return. It won’t cause much disruption.”

Rian stared at the black flame pillar.

“Of course, no name can sustain the world forever. I know you’ve prepared for that day.”

Even if the great hero’s name fades, those who inherit his will shall pass it on.

And eventually, their names will be forgotten too.

But the will itself never vanishes.

Just as Leo… no, Kyle… received it from Lysinas and Luna.

Just as Lysinas received it from an unknown hero.

“In this age without gods, your rebirth—one who achieved greater feats than any god—is a miracle beyond divine imagination.”

Rian smiled radiantly.

“I don’t believe it’s mere coincidence. The world needed you, so you were reborn.”

She looked at the people trembling in fear.

“They're terrified. The name ‘Leo Plov’ alone isn’t enough to banish that fear.”

Rian knelt, offering the box to Leo with reverence.

“The Hero of Beginnings—Kyle—must return to the world once again.”

“This is…?”

“A gift from me to you.”

Leo’s eyes widened as he opened the box.

Inside was a black cloak.

A cloak deeply familiar to him.

Before Aaron joined them—when he fought at the front lines to protect Lysinas and Luna, day after day, covered in wounds.

Kyle never minded, but they did.

One day, while healing his injuries, Lysinas handed him the cloak.

“Here. Take it.”

“Why’s it so dark and gloomy?”

“It’s made from my original body’s hide.”

“Plus, I enchanted it with protective magic,” Luna added, arms crossed.

“You’re always getting hurt. We made it so you’ll stop bleeding all over the place.”

She clicked her tongue.

“Your face is the only redeeming feature. If that gets scarred, we’ll be heartbroken.”

“Don’t fall for me.”

“As if. Your face isn’t even my type. And like I said—your face is the only good thing. Your personality’s garbage.”

Luna scrunched up her face in disgust.

Sighing softly, Lysinas added,

“It’s tough and will protect you. And even if it breaks, I can repair it with my magic. You’ll get hurt less now.”

And that cloak had stayed with Kyle to the very end.

“How is this here…?”

It should’ve vanished with him at the end.

But this was unmistakably his cloak.

“The heroes of Dawn acquired it as a conquest reward long ago, after challenging your world. Before Erebos was sealed, Lumene entrusted it to me.”

Leo silently reached out.

["Melina."]

["Yes?"]

["Tell En to take my place."]

["Huh? Ah, understood."]

Melina, startled, gave the command for En to take on Leo’s appearance.

En slipped into the group of Lumene students, acting as Leo.

SWOOSH—!

Leo wrapped the cloak around himself.

For a moment, the fluttering cloak obscured Rian’s vision.

And then—

Standing there was a young man with gray hair, wearing black leather armor and the black cloak.

“Ah…”

Even the voice of the gods trembled at his silhouette.

STEP— STEP—

Leo walked toward the black flames.

“Wait! Civilians must evacua—”

Nella, who was preparing for battle, stepped in from the evacuation route to stop him.

“…Please evacuate… huh?”

“Nella? What’s wrong? Hey! Civilian! Evacuate immediately! What are you doing here?!”

Eliana, trying to push Leo away in concern, paused, then squinted at him.

“Wait a sec, this handsome guy… I’ve seen him somewhere… huh? Ehh? EEEEHHH?!”

Eliana screamed, her mouth agape.

At her shriek, everyone turned toward Leo.

Leo—no, Kyle—chuckled and ruffled Nella and Eliana’s hair roughly before walking past.

“Don’t be nervous, rookies.”

Everyone’s stunned eyes fixed on him.

“I’m here now.”