Editor : Amethyst00



"Do you know me?"

Leo nodded as he looked at Dweno, who was staring intently at him.

"I do. You're famous, after all."

“That’s true. Even I myself am aware of my own fame.”

Dweno rested his battle hammer on his shoulder and gazed sharply at Leo.

"What bothers me the most right now is your attitude, like you know me personally."

Suspicion clouded Dweno's eyes.

"I don't know anyone like you. Besides—"

He glanced over the group with a skeptical look.

"You all seem quite relaxed for having made it through such a dangerous zone."

"But we look like beggars…"

"Shut it."

Chelsea frowned and covered Eliana's mouth.

"I suspect you were sent by Tartaros as spies."

"No! We—"

"Whether that's true or not, I'll be the one to decide."

Dweno slammed his battle hammer on the ground, cutting off Aru's words.

Rumble—!

"First, I'll take out the most dangerous one."

Dweno's eyes locked onto Leo.

Leo used aura to reinforce the muscles of his shattered left shoulder. The reinforced muscles held the shoulder bone in place and allowed it to move.

His shoulder began moving naturally again.

Of course, the pain from the injury remained intense, but now wasn't the time to worry about that.

Whoosh—!

As the battle hammer swung close to his face, Leo clicked his tongue and launched a kick.

Boom—!

Leo's kick collided head-on with Dweno's hammer.

Leo flew backward, ricocheting from the impact.

He hadn't attacked to block, just to reduce the blow's force and use the recoil to create distance from Dweno.

He grimaced from the dull pain in his foot.

‘I still can’t get used to… this brute strength.’

Dweno had overwhelmed Kyle with sheer brute strength.

Landing on the ground, Leo shouted, "Attack!"

The group flinched.

"But it's Lord Dweno!"

"And that same Lord Dweno looks ready to flatten us all! We need to calm him down and then we can talk!"

"But! To calm him down, we'd have to go all out! What if we hurt him—?"

"Huh?! Hurt him?"

Leo looked exasperated.

“That old man won’t get a single scratch from any of our attacks!”

Smack—!

Leo slammed his palm on the ground.

Crack-crack-crack—!

Steel spikes shot up from the ground, aiming for Dweno.

Smash—!

They were all destroyed as they clashed with Dweno's charge.

Leo clicked his tongue as he saw it.

"Hah!"

Eliana dashed toward Dweno's flank at incredible speed.

"Did she land a hit?"

Thud—!

"Huh?"

Eliana froze, startled that her attack had gone in so easily—until she saw her blade stopped at Dweno's shoulder.

It felt like stabbing solid steel.

Eyes wide, Eliana locked eyes with Dweno.

Thunk—!

"Kyah?!"

Dweno's sweeping arm sent her flying into the air, slamming her into the ground.

Seeing her foaming at the mouth and unconscious, Carl’s face went pale.

"He really didn't get a scratch from her attack?"

Crackle—!

"You going in too?"

"Hmph. We're dealing with someone once called the strongest vanguard."

Duran drew his sword and faced Dweno.

"A good chance to see how effective my attacks really are."

"You think we'll let you just do that easily?"

The woman who had first attacked the group smirked.

"Hah? Try lay a finger on my students and see what happens!"

Artienne, standing at the woman's feet, yelled with a fierce expression and stood up.

The woman looked surprised at the strength pushing her back.

"Small but strong!"

"Who are you calling small?!"

Artienne charged at her with a murderous look.

Meanwhile, Duran unleashed a lightning strike toward Dweno.

Flash! Crackle—!

Dweno was engulfed in lightning.

Whoosh—!

But he charged straight through the lightning strike and swung his hammer at Leo.

Boom—!

Eliza blocked with summoned beasts.

But Dweno ignored their attacks and continued pursuing Leo.

Chelsea's wind magic blew over him, yet he didn't even flinch as he closed in on Leo.

Luke looked flustered.

"Why is he only after Leo-sunbae?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

Carl scratched his head.

“It means our attacks aren’t even worth worrying about! If Leo has time, he’ll build up a massive strike! In other words—we’re not even in his sight!”

Everyone's faces turned grim.

"Isn't there some way to stop Lord Dweno, even for a bit?"

"If we were truly ready to kill him… maybe."

Carl frowned at Drianna's comment.

Leo had told them to fight seriously.

But how could they? This was the Great Hero who saved the world.

As hero candidates, they couldn’t bring themselves to put their full killing intent into it.

"You damn old geezers! Cut it out already!"

Crack-crack-crack—!

“Hmph! Whether you’re spies or not! Your face irritates me! For some reason, I just want to punch you! Come here!”

Leo shouted, his voice filled with killing intent, then struck with a powerful slash.

Dweno dodged, roaring with equal fury.

"How can Leo-sunbae fight like that?"

Aina muttered through gritted teeth, and Carl smirked bitterly to himself.

'Maybe in their past lives, Leo and Dweno fought like this all the time…'

It didn't seem too different from their usual selves.

Just on a much larger scale.

"Anyway, we need to stop Lord Dweno somehow…"

Chelsea murmured anxiously, and Carl took a deep breath.

"I didn't want to use this… but there's no choice."

"You have some secret weapon?"

At Drianna’s question, Carl nodded heavily.

"It might cost me my life, but…"

"Carl…"

"A man's gotta risk his life sometimes."

Carl stepped forward with heavy steps.

As tension built, he pulled something from his coat.

"Lord Dweno! This is a sculpture of the most beautiful person in the world! Isn't it stunning?"

Dweno, who had been chasing Leo, stopped and looked at Carl.

Then his eyes twitched as he looked at what was in Carl’s hand.

It was none other than a sculpture made by Drianna.

Dweno stared at Carl for a moment, then with an indifferent face resumed chasing Leo.

"Huh? That's weird. I thought calling this monstrosity an art would definitely provoke him…"

“What do you mean, beautiful?!”

Smack—!

"Ugh?!"

Just then, the hooded woman fighting Artienne ran in and dropkicked Carl.

“You’re insulting art! You call this thing art?! Apologize to art right now! Apologize!”

Rustle—

Her hood fell, revealing her pointed elf ears.

"What are you doing to my student?!"

Whoosh—!

Artienne's kick flew at her back, but the elf dodged swiftly.

"You okay, Carl?"

"I'm fine… But that elf… She's similar to Lord Dweno."

"What? They're not even the same race."

“No, I mean… just a moment ago, she was calm, and then she suddenly flipped out. Just like Lord Dweno did when he saw Drianna’s work.”

The once-calm Dweno had lost it completely after seeing Drianna’s so-called art piece.

"Anyway… she's not normal."

Artienne clenched her fists, frowning.

Meanwhile, Leo, still facing off with Dweno, mumbled as he saw the elf that fought Artienne.

"…An elf I've never seen before."

In the Age of Calamity, Leo would known anyone of that caliber.

But no elf with that kind of martial skill existed in his memory.

"You wouldn't know her. She's an nameless painter."

"A painter?"

"Yes."

There was affection in Dweno’s eyes as he looked at the painter.

“A painter who captures the beauty of this world.”

Leo laughed quietly at that.

"…Why are you laughing like that?"

"Because now you sound like the Dweno I know."

"You're saying strange things."

Rumble—!

Dweno furrowed his brow and turned.

There stood Aru, surrounded by golden aura, crouched and ready.

"…Beast transformation?"

Dweno's eyes widened.

'Even Dweno won't come out unscathed from that.'

No matter how tough Dweno was, he couldn't ignore that attack.

As Leo prepared himself—

Crack—!

"…?"

Leo's eyes widened in surprise.

Aru, now in front of Dweno in an instant, let out a roar.

"Haaaaaaaah!"

Boom—!

Aru's kick hit Dweno directly.

Though he blocked with crossed arms, Dweno was knocked away.

"…He took it head-on?"

Dweno wasn't just tough.

He was a seasoned warrior who had fought countless battles.

He wasn’t the type to take a hit like that deliberately.

Yet he’d taken Aru’s attack directly.

"Why?"

Leo watched him get up, confused.

“I see now. You’re not spies.”

Dweno dusted himself off.

"I've heard stories. A party with a beastman capable of beast transformation."

He looked at Leo.

"Are you the hero Kyle—the Surviving Hero?"

'Are you the hero Kyle—the Surviving Hero?'

The same question from 5,000 years ago.

Leo clenched his fist.

He couldn't say 'yes' now.

'As I thought…this Dweno… is the one from before he met me.'

"…No."

Dweno tilted his head at Leo's answer.

"Then she's not the beastman from the rumors either?"

“Hm? Curious indeed. Then again, impossible miracles have already happened.”

"Miracles?"

"Yes! That there's still a starry sky in this world! Isn't that a wondrous miracle?"

Dweno laughed heartily. Leo looked up at the sky.

A gloomy sky of the age of calamity.

But…

'The stars shine at night, huh.'

Perhaps this place was a borderland of the false world encroaching upon the real one.

And…

'This Dweno has no memories of me or Aru.'

Aaron and Luna had retained past memories from previous heroes.

But not Dweno.

Was it because this was an earlier point in time?

'No… that's not it.'

Leo's thoughts gathered.

'The Legion's World.'

He looked up at the gloomy sky.

‘The world of the Legion is encroaching upon the real one, just like the hero dungeons did.’