Editor : Amethyst00



Leo stared at the room key in his hand and thought,

‘No matter what, isn’t it a bit much to hand a strange man the key to your granddaughter’s bedroom?’

According to Rune, she had locked the door and shut herself in.

‘So, this is about rehabilitating a shut-in, huh.’

He scratched his head roughly.

‘Will seeing me be a spark she needed?’

Lumene and Seiren were rival academies.

But would confronting a gloomy elf who had already given up on competing with the freshman representative of Lumene actually have any effect?

‘Well, whatever. It’s not like I’ll be penalized if it doesn’t work.’

With that lighthearted thought, Leo arrived in front of the door Rune had pointed out.

He knocked.

Naturally, he couldn’t just barge into a girl’s room unannounced.

But, as expected, there was no response.

He tried the handle next, but of course, it was locked.

So Leo used the key he had been given and stepped inside.

The sight that greeted him was a spectacle.

Snack bags were scattered across the floor, and clothes were stuffed carelessly into the corners.

Among them, even underwear was lying openly about.

If Leo had been an ordinary teenage boy, it might have been quite a stimulating sight, but his mentality wasn’t that of a teenager.

To his eyes, the room was nothing more or less than a pigsty.

Only one spot stood out as clean.

It was the wall, completely covered with photographs.

‘Lysinas, Luna, Aaron, Dweno?’

They were photos of the comrades who were now celebrated as Great Heroes.

To each race, the Great Heroes were a source of pride and the most popular of legends.

Naturally, that meant there were countless related goods and memorabilia.

‘I knew there were collectors, but this borders on fanatical, isn't it?’

Narrowing his eyes, Leo spotted another neatly kept item.

A school uniform, hanging crisply in the closet.

‘That’s a Seiren uniform, huh?’

“Grandfather, isn’t it going too far to just waltz into your grown granddaughter’s room so brazenly?”

At that moment, something under the blanket on the bed wriggled, and a face peeked out.

Her eyes met Leo’s.

“Hiiiii! Wh–who are you!?”

The elf girl, startled by the stranger, tumbled off the bed still wrapped in the blanket.

Then her eyes widened at the sight of Leo’s ears.

“Hello. I’m Leo Plov.”

Despite his polite introduction, the girl remained frozen.

Watching her, Leo waited until she suddenly gasped, snapping out of it, and asked with a panicked face,

“H–how did a human even get here?”

It was no wonder she was shocked—this was the elf domain, and no human boy should be in her room.

It almost felt like she's dreaming.

Leo smiled gently.

“I came to talk with you, at your grandfather’s request.”

“M–my grandfather?”

Still flustered, Eiran slipped out from under the blanket and stood up.

“P–please, sit down.”

She gestured toward a guest sofa in the room.

Dressed in pajamas, the elf girl moved toward the tea set in the corner.

Serving guests tea personally was part of elven culture.

But as she began to prepare it, she noticed the messy clothes lying everywhere. Her face turned beet red.

She hastily shoved them into a corner, threw a blanket over them, and then returned with tea for Leo.

“M–my name is Eiran Ersar.”

The elf shut-in with long disheveled silver hair and clear blue eyes timidly introduced herself.

“You said you’re Grandfather’s guest, but… how could a human be in El-Salvekia?”

Watching her curious face, Leo sipped the tea before answering.

“I’m a student of Lumene. I came to El-Salvekia for a school trip.”

“Lumene?”

Eiran’s eyes widened.

“Rune-nim said you were a Seiren student, and that meeting might benefit both of us, so here I am.”

In truth, it was simply a plan to stimulate a shut-in like Eiran, but he couldn’t say that outright.

Eiran swallowed nervously, studying Leo.

‘A student of Lumene, the human Hero Academy.’

Not only was he a human she saw for the first time, but also someone her age who attended the same kind of hero academy.

That alone sparked strong curiosity in her.

‘A boy I’ve never seen before is in my room……!’

For a girl her age, that situation was already overwhelming.

More than anything, this was the first time a “friend” had ever visited her room.

The truth was, she had very few friends at all, being introverted.

‘Hair white as snow, eyes shining like rubies…’

As she studied his face, their eyes suddenly met, and her cheeks flushed.

Meanwhile, Leo wondered how best to start the conversation.

After a moment, he pointed to the wall.

“You seem to like the Great Heroes?”

“Yes! I–I love them so much!”

Eiran clasped her hands tightly.

“They’re the ones who saved the world! I was captivated ever since I read fairy tales about them as a child! Collecting things related to them became my hobby!”

The once-timid Eiran now sparkled with excitement.

“Do you have a favorite story about them, Leo?”

“The Battle of Darnos.”

“The one where they defeated Tiverka, the one of the Tartaros Legion commander? Their very first battle as comrades!”

It wasn’t preserved in the Hero Record, only in written accounts.

“Do you know where they defeated Legion Commander Zirga’s forces?”

“Edevelic. It was where Luna first tested her star sorcery.”

“That’s right! Most people don’t know that since it’s only in old texts!”

‘Of course I know—I experienced it myself.’

Leo smiled faintly.

Delighted to find someone she could talk with, Eiran grew even more animated.

But suddenly, she caught herself.

“O–oh no, I’ve just been asking you pointless questions, haven’t I?”

“Not at all. The Great Heroes would be thrilled to know someone like you exists.”

‘Well, except Aron. The others all loved being admired.’

Eiran brightened at his words.

She eagerly began showing him her collection.

Since depictions of the Heroes were based on the Hero Record, her collection reflected his old comrades as vividly as they had been in life.

Seeing them, Leo’s mind filled with memories.

“This one’s especially precious. It shows them right before they set off on their final expedition!”

“Yeah. It’s exactly the same.”

“Exactly the same?”

Eiran blinked.

“You speak as though you’ve seen them yourself.”

At her sharp question, Leo replied smoothly.

“There are similar records in human society. I meant it looked the same as those.”

“I see!”

The innocent girl accepted it without doubt.

Looking at the portraits of his old friends, Leo smiled bitterly.

“I’ve never shown my collection to anyone before. This is really fun.”

Beaming brightly, Eiran carefully ventured,

“This is just my opinion, but… though history confirms there were four Heroes, I think maybe there was a fifth. What do you think, Leo-nim?”

“You mean Kyle?”

“Yes. People laugh and call it delusion, but… even if the Hero Record doesn’t include him, there are so many written records about him.”

Her face reddened.

“I’m sorry, I got carried away and said something weird…”

“I think the same.”

“Huh?”

“I believe Kyle really existed too. I don’t collect things, but I’m planning to create a school club that researches his traces.”

He hadn’t had time yet, but he intended to when he returned.

“O–oh! That explains why you know so much about the Heroes!”

Clasping her hands, Eiran was impressed.

She was thrilled to think she had met someone with the same interest.

Leo, however, found it strange how quickly her wariness had vanished.

‘She doesn’t seem like the type to refuse to go to school.’

Seiren, like Lumene, was a boarding school.

For her to leave mid-semester was serious.

Rune had explained that if she didn’t return soon, she risked expulsion.

‘At first, I thought she might be completely incapable of speaking with others. But while she’s introverted and timid, she seems fine now.’

And she even believed in Kyle’s existence—quite admirable.

‘It is hard to believe she’s a descendant of that arrogant Velkia. She’s actually cute and likable.’

“Truth is, Rune-nim’s really worried about you not going to school.”

“Ah…”

Eiran’s face darkened instantly.

“He said you’re an excellent student… so why don’t you go?”

Rune had suggested it was because of a rival she couldn’t surpass.

But Leo wasn’t convinced.

As soon as school came up, Eiran’s expression clouded.

“I–I just don’t think Seiren is the right place for me…”

“Why not?”

“Because everyone there works so hard… They all have incredible drive to rise higher. They’re seriously determined to become heroes. But there wasn’t a single person like me—dreaming of being a hero lightly, without such intensity.”

Her long ears drooped. Leo folded his arms.

“So, you want to become a hero with a light heart, huh…”

‘Elves really do feel things differently from humans.’

Elves valued order above all.

They planned their futures with meticulous care.

‘Humans can be like that too, but for elves, it’s practically a racial trait. Still, skipping school entirely over that seems strange.’

Watching her shadowed face, Leo tilted his head.

‘Did someone say something cruel to her?’

Perhaps a harsh comment had crushed her spirit.

His gaze flicked to her carefully kept school uniform.

‘If she treasures her uniform like that, doesn’t it mean she hasn’t given up yet?’

Leo smiled.

“Right now, my whole class is here in Velkia too.”

“What?”

“I told you, it’s a school trip. If they heard about you, they’d definitely want to meet you.”

Eiran panicked and ducked behind the sofa.

“Y–you’re not going to drag me out, are you!? I–I don’t want to leave my room!”

“I’m not that rude.”

“A–at school, they say all humans are rude…! Ah, n–not you, Leo-nim! I didn’t mean you!”

Flustered, Eiran waved her hands wildly.

Leo chuckled and stood.

“We’ll be in Velkia for ten days. If you’re interested, our teachers are at the mansion—we’d be glad if you visited our lodging.”

“….”

Eiran averted her eyes. Clearly, she wasn’t planning on it.

“There’s a classmate of mine, Chelsea, who collects Hero memorabilia too. She has a lot you don’t.”

“…! A–a human-made Great Heroes collection!”

Eiran’s eyes went wide, clearly tempted.

“You two might get along well.”

Leo glanced at the window.

The sun had already set.

They had talked about the Great Heroes for quite a while.

“I should go. It’s getting late.”

“Ah! W–well then… Leo-nim…”

“Yeah?”

“G–goodbye.”

“See you again.”

Leo smiled and left the room.

“Ah…”

Eiran let out a sigh of longing as she stared at the door he’d gone through.