Editor : Amethyst00



While Carl was deep in conversation with Rian about Leo, he cautiously opened his mouth.

“Um… Sir Rian.”

“Yes, Sir Carl. Please command me.”

Carl didn’t know how to react to the god before him, who had even changed the way he addressed him.

‘His eyes aren’t sane.’

Though Carl hadn’t lived a long life, since entering Lumene, he had experienced many things.

And among them, he’d seen many who weren’t in their right mind.

But Rian’s madness was on a whole different level.

Just a moment ago, when Carl had mentioned Leo’s name and showed him a photo they took together, Rian had exclaimed, “To think you would bless me with the new name and visage of the Hero of Beginnings! Ah! What can I possibly do for you?! Please use this wretched body of mine as your footstool, Sir Carl!” as he crouched before him.

The god who had treated Carl as less than a pebble moments ago was nowhere to be found.

Now he looked more like a fanatical devotee worshiping a god.

And he regarded Carl as a proxy of that very god.

‘This isn’t just an act or joyful excitement.’

Carl felt cold sweat down his back.

To be honest, Carl was afraid of Rian’s behavior.

Not because he might harm him.

But because Carl was being overwhelmed by the madness of a transcendental being he could never truly understand.

Carl swallowed hard and said, “My friends are fighting the Flame of Calamity outside. I don’t know if I should remain here any longer.”

Rian knew how to defeat Erebos.

But that didn’t mean Carl could just reveal everything about Leo here.

If he did, it would all be over before anything began.

To Carl’s concern, Rian replied reassuringly.

“If that’s what troubles you, there’s no need to worry.”

Rian spread his arms.

“This place is a separate world, disconnected from the outside. Think of it as something similar to the Hero’s Realm. If I will it, time here flows more slowly than outside.”

He smiled gently.

“Even Lumene held off Erebos for an entire year from here.”

“A year? Alone?!”

“That’s Lumene for you.”

Carl looked shocked, and Rodia exclaimed in admiration.

“So, Sir Carl, please rest easy and tell me everything about the Hero of Beginnings!”

With Rian’s encouragement, Carl scratched his head and resumed his story.

Beside him, Rodia also listened attentively.

Eventually, Carl finished his tale.

Rian closed his eyes, savoring the afterglow.

Carl quickly urged him,

“Sir Rian, now please tell us how to defeat the Flame of Calamity.”

Rian opened his eyes.

“Yes. From what I’ve heard, you already have one card that can counter that abomination.”

Rian, from who-knows-where, took out a carving knife and gemstone and began sculpting.

“First: Lunia El Lunda. She’s the successor of the Poet of the Star.”

“Lunia?”

“Yes. The Chaser of the Star, right?”

Rian skillfully shaped a sculpture of Leo.

“The magic the Poet of the Star left behind for future generations, [Flame Emperor]. That magic alone can counter the unquenchable Flame of Calamity among all the forces that exist in this world.”

“It’s really that powerful?”

“Yes. It was created by the greatest magic genius since magic came into existence.”

After completing Leo’s sculpture, Rian examined it as he continued.

“Of course, unlike pure mana traits, it cannot completely erase Erebos. At best, it can ‘seal’ him.”

Rian’s expression turned slightly dissatisfied as he looked at the sculpture.

He would have made it with more care under normal circumstances.

But due to haste, the result didn’t satisfy him.

Setting that sculpture down, Rian pulled out another gem and began carving again.

Gem dust fell to the floor.

“But with Lunia’s current skills, it’s impossible. She’s still too inexperienced.”

Carl nodded at that.

“Second: force it back to where it came from. The world of Dawn. That’s the only real method available now.”

“And how do we do that?”

“From what I can see, that creature entered this world through a connected realm. So we find the hole it came through—its core—and destroy it. That thing isn’t its true form. Just a mass of power. Destroy the core, and it’ll disappear.”

“If it’s that simple, why didn’t you just tell Lumene?!”

“It’s not simple at all. You need divine power to do that. I would’ve had to sacrifice myself. If there had been a chance of victory, I wouldn’t have hesitated. But there was none.”

“What?”

“That’s Lumene’s limit.”

Rodia bit her lip hearing those words.

Carl wore a blank expression.

“Sir Carl. Do you know why Lumene told you all to ‘surpass your limits’? Because he couldn’t surpass his own.”

“……”

“He reached for something he could never grasp. And in the end, he fell into despair because of it.”

Rian rested his chin on his hand.

“Birds can fly through the sky, but they can’t reach its end. If they try too hard, they just end up falling. That’s how Lumene closed off his own potential.”

“…But I heard the gods liked Lumene.”

“They do. Gods love heroic tales, but they love even more the stories of heroes who fall.” Rian smiled brightly.

“The Hero of Dawn did change the world. But he didn’t go beyond that. He could never become a Great Hero. That kind of tragedy, gods relish it.”

Rodia clenched her fists tightly.

It was a truth that twisted her insides.

So she had nothing to say in return.

‘When we defeated the fragments of Erebos and ended the Return of Calamity, it felt like everything was going well.’

But then, those fragments flared up again.

Watching them endlessly burn, the Heroes of Dawn had no choice but to conclude:

They had failed.

They could never become Great Heroes.

According to Carl, they would eventually find a method in the near future.

But it wasn’t a solution.

It was just a desperate stalling tactic.

‘We ended up… doing nothing with our own hands.’

Lumene couldn’t surpass his limits. Seiren didn’t trust herself.

Azonia couldn’t move forward. Damien never pursued his potential.

‘I’m no different.’

If the Wise Queen left behind the seed of hope for future generations— Then what Rodia left was massive despair.

They had simply passed the burden onto the next generation.

“Heroes are those who achieve what seems impossible. I do like Lumene, but I’m not sure if it’s worth sacrificing myself for someone who ran away from their limits…”

“Sir Lumene.”

Carl interrupted Rian’s words.

“Will surpass his limits and drive Erebos out of this world.”

Rian tilted his head.

“Did you not understand what I just said?”

“I did. Perfectly.”

Carl smiled.

“I know. I know he despaired because he couldn’t become like Leo. I know he never actually overcame his limits. I know he ran from them by locking Erebos in the Dawn world.”

“And yet you say he will overcome them?”

“Yes.”

Carl answered without hesitation.

“Why?”

“Because he didn’t give up.”

Rian’s expression went blank at the unexpected answer.

“If he’d truly given up, he wouldn’t have continued fighting Erebos endlessly in the Hero’s Realm.”

Carl looked at the sculpture of Leo that Rian had made.

“You can fall into despair when you can’t find a path. You might collapse when you hit a wall. You might flee from hardship by passing the burden onto future generations.”

Carl smiled as he spoke.

“But if he’d truly given up, he wouldn’t have done anything. If he hasn’t given up, he can start again.”

As long as one hasn’t given up, they can challenge their limits once more.

They can believe in themselves again, and rise to move forward.

Even reclaim their lost potential.

As long as they haven’t given up, they can always start again.

“The Heroes of Dawn didn’t fail.”

“……”

“Their sacrifice, believing in the potential of the future… will save the world.”

Rodia stared blankly.

“So Lumene will surpass his limits. For the future.”

It was the conclusion of Carl, who had endured without giving up, carrying on the educational spirit of Lumene Academy.

“It’s almost foolish how naive that is.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“It is a compliment.”

Rian pulled a gemstone from his robe.

He held it close to his eye.

Carl’s reflection appeared inside the gem.

“Carl Thomas. In this era, you won’t be able to become a hero.”

“I know that better than anyone.”

Rian smiled in satisfaction as he looked at Carl’s image in the gem.

Then he said, “The Flame of Calamity’s core is the hole in this world. That it crossed over into this world means there’s a crack in it. If we close that crack, the creature can no longer exist here.”

Rian smiled benevolently.

“Just embed me into the core.”

“…Excuse me?”

Rian approached Carl and took his hand.

His body began to radiate a bright light.

“Sir Carl—no. Carl Thomas.”

“…?”

“Meeting you might have been a great fortune. Please, continue seeking new beginnings.”

“Sir Rian?”

Carl called out in confusion.

As the light vanished, he found a staff in his hand.

Seeing the staff radiating divine energy like a Hero Record, Rodia said,

“Looks like I’ve reached my limit too.”

“Lady Rodia?”

She smiled gently.

At some point, the library was gone.

Carl and Rodia now stood in an underground shrine.

Fwoooosh—!

“The Flame of Calamity?!”

Carl shouted in alarm.

Rummmmmble—!

A brilliant light radiated from Rodia’s body.

Then she transformed into her dragon form.

Returning to her true body, Rodia reached out and grabbed Carl.

Then she opened her mouth toward the ceiling.

Ruuuuuumble! FLASH! BOOOOM—!

A pure white breath burst from her mouth, creating a massive hole stretching all the way to the surface.

“Th-This is insane…!”

Carl gaped.

Flaaap—!

Rodia spread her wings and soared toward the surface at incredible speed.

“GAAAHHHHH?!”

["Carl Thomas."]

“YEEESSS?!”

["You know dragons choose their heroes, right?"]

“YEAH, SO?!”

Carl barely managed to respond against the intense wind pressure.

["You will become a hero."]

“…Huh?”

Carl looked stunned as his eyes met Rodia’s.

WHOOSH—!

Now high in the sky, Carl saw the burning world below.

“Rian said I couldn’t become a hero though?”

["In this era, yes."]

Rodia’s voice sounded delighted.

Carl’s face turned blank.

To him, Rodia said,

["The me you’ll meet again won’t remember you."]

HSSSSHHH—!

Rodia’s body turned to ash and vanished.

["But I’ll be waiting. For you—who will have become a hero."]

The future version of her would surely smile upon seeing Carl.

Proud that a new era’s hero was born from someone who found the Hero’s Realm.

Those with potential doomed to fade now—

Would bloom in the future, becoming heroes.

["Help Lumene, Carl Thomas."]

HSSSSHH—!

Rodia’s body vanished completely.

WHUMP—!

Just as Carl began to plummet—

WHOOSH—!

“Carl!”

Eliza, flying in on a wyvern, caught him midair.

“Where the hell have you been?! And what was that dragon just now?!”

“Didn’t you say you’d stop talking formally with me?”

“Does that matter right now?!”

Ignoring her scolding, Carl looked at the staff in his hand.

“That was Lady Rodia.”

He then looked down at the burning Flame of Calamity on the surface.

“How’s the battle going?”

“Thanks to Sir Lumene suddenly appearing, we’re holding on… but it’s not good!”

“Right.”

Carl took a deep breath.

“Then let’s start the counterattack.”