Editor : Amethyst00



Lysinas looked down at Leo, who lay unconscious on the bed.

Beside him stood Celia, her face filled with worry.

"Is he still unconscious?"

At Celia's question, Melina, who had been checking Leo's condition, nodded.

"Yes."

"What could have caused this?"

Chloe asked, her voice laced with unease.

"I can't say for certain," Melina replied. "But there's nothing particularly wrong with his body."

"Nothing wrong?"

"Yes. His physical condition is perfectly fine."

Melina looked at Leo's face as she spoke.

"Could it be some kind of curse?"

Lyl offered cautiously, prompting Elena to tilt her head.

"Leo? I feel like even curses would get scared and run away from him."

"Pfft."

At Elena's remark, Lysinas burst into laughter before she could stop herself.

Everyone's eyes turned toward her.

Under their gaze, Lysinas spoke.

"Let me have a look. Could everyone leave the room for a moment, except Melina?"

The students glanced at each other, then quietly filed out of the room.

As Lysinas approached Leo, Melina stepped aside.

"Do you think it's a curse?"

"Didn't you hear what Elena said? Curses don't work on this guy—especially not ones that target the mind."

Curses were a unique power possessed by the demons of Tartaros, used to weaken or kill their targets.

High-level curses could even nullify supernatural abilities altogether.

They came in many forms, and among them, mental interference curses could steal a person's consciousness or drive them insane.

"Kyle's the one who even overcame Erebos's curse. No way something from a demon would work on him."

The defining effect of a mental curse was mental degradation.

Which meant they were useless against someone with an exceptionally strong will.

Among all the Great Heroes, the Hero of Beginnings had the strongest mental fortitude.

'Because he was someone who only ever lost.'

Lysinas looked at Leo with a faintly sorrowful gaze.

A man who never gave up, no matter how deep the despair.

That was the man named Kyle.

And because he never gave up, he had lived a life of only loss.

"Then… what is this?"

As Melina frowned in confusion, Lysinas gently brushed her hand over Leo's forehead.

"His soul is missing."

"What?"

"Kyle's soul isn't in his body right now."

As a spirit-evoker, Lysinas could clearly see that Leo's body lacked a soul.

Melina's face turned to one of bewilderment upon hearing this.

"How could that be?"

"Who knows."

Lysinas murmured as she lightly stroked Leo's cheek.

"Melina, could you bring me a pen?"

"Yes."

Melina retrieved a pen from the room and handed it over.

Taking it, Lysinas scribbled "idiot" across Leo's cheek.

She chuckled to herself, and Melina blinked blankly.

"Lady Lysinas?"

"He's such a light sleeper, I'd never get the chance otherwise. Wanna try too?"

"N-no thank you."

Melina's polite refusal made Lysinas smile.

"Don't worry too much."

"Huh?"

"A spirit-evoker who's trained their arts to the extreme can separate their soul temporarily."

Lysinas poked Leo's cheek and laughed to herself, looking oddly innocent.

"I don't know what he's up to, but Kyle seems to have used that technique."

"That's possible with spirit-evoking?"

"Mm-hm. Someone at my level can do it. And Kyle inherited my arts."

Still smiling, Lysinas flicked Leo's forehead with a light smack.

"He probably separated his soul from his body with a clear intention. So, there's no need to worry."

"Ah… I see."

Melina let out a small sigh of relief.

"Could you go reassure the others for me?"

"Yes."

Melina nodded and stepped out of the room.

Lysinas turned toward the window.

At some point, it had started snowing.

Staring at the falling snow, Lysinas muttered.

"Really… whether past or present, lying are just part of my daily life."

A bitter smile curved her lips.

There was no such thing as a spirit-evoker's ability to freely separate their soul.

It was a lie—told to keep Melina from panicking.

Right now, the one holding up the entire era was none other than Leo.

And Melina, along with a few others, already knew that Leo was the reincarnation of Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings.

If word got out that something had happened to him, it would inevitably impact morale.

'That must not happen.'

Lysinas analyzed the situation calmly as she watched the snow.

It was true that Leo's soul had vanished from his body.

'But the body is stable.'

Even in this unstable state, with the soul separated, there was no threat to his life.

Lysinas reached into Leo's inner pocket.

Clink—

A moment later, she retrieved the pocket watch hidden within.

Click—

Opening the lid, she saw a watch that barely ticked at all.

Confirming the slow-moving second hand, Lysinas then grasped Leo's wrist.

'The mana flow is slow.'

And just like the sluggish time of the pocket watch, the mana flow within Leo's body matched it.

'The soul is still linked to the body. So it wasn't ejected externally.'

Lysinas quickly pieced the puzzle together.

'Kyle's body has slipped out of the normal flow of time.'

As she ran through theoretical scenarios in her mind—

'That would mean… his soul was cast into another dimension. And yet… the tether to his body hasn't been severed.'

The one hailed as the Wisest among the wise soon arrived at a conclusion.

'Another dimension, yet still bound to this one? A multiverse interpretation?!'

Having reached that answer, Lysinas looked down at Leo.

Had he crossed into a parallel world by his own power?

'No… It's more likely someone else sent him.'

And Lysinas knew of a being with such unknown authority.

'Nyx.'

The other evil god born alongside Erebos.

It was entirely possible this was her doing.

Letting out a deep sigh, Lysinas muttered:

'If she deemed Kyle a threat and neutralized him… then she'll make her move soon.'

With that thought, Lysinas stood up.

"Your absence… I'll cover it for a little while."

The lie to Melina had been necessary to prevent panic among the younger generation.

Lysinas could at least temporarily stand in for Leo—even if not perfectly.

Of course, he himself would soon disappear and couldn't shoulder the world forever.

'But a short time is enough.'

No matter what kind of method had been used, the Hero of Beginnings would return.

Lysinas believed in that with unwavering certainty.

'He's the hero I chose, after all.'

She stepped toward the window.

Outside, she could see the hero candidates.

Among them were the next-generation heroes chosen by Leo, with Lunia at the forefront, focused on her training.

'Someday, those children will support Kyle the way he once supported me—and the way I now support him.'

But not yet.

Right now, a fence was needed.

That's why Lysinas had lied to Melina.

But…

'Once again, I'll just turn that lie into truth.'

There's no serious issue.

As long as she could keep that one promise, everything would be fine.

Just as it had always been.

Lysinas looked up at the sky.

'Come. The world won't crumble just because the Hero of Beginnings is gone for a while.'

bl

"All of them managed to enter the realm of hypersensory perception in just a week! As expected, truly amazing!"

Kar exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with admiration.

Leo, in contrast, looked at him with a deadpan expression.

"That just means you're a bad teacher."

Even at Leo's blunt remark, Kar simply responded with a bright smile.

Dion rubbed his ears with a curious expression.

"So this is hypersensory perception… this is how it feels."

Borman, rubbing under his nose, spoke as well.

"I mean… You're incredible. I wasn't sure, but to think we'd step into HSP in just a week…"

"Unlike this guy who was basically born with HSP, I had to learn it from him."

Leo shot a glance at Kar.

"You know how tough it is to learn from him."

At those words, Ruwen nodded.

"Still, it's impressive how quickly you passed on your knowledge."

"Yeah. Ky—no, Leo teaches really well."

"It's also because their vessels were already prepared."

"Vessels?"

"Yeah. To survive, you had to dodge this guy's attacks, remember?"

In every sparring session with Kar, they had to constantly sharpen their senses.

That finely honed awareness served as the foundation for stepping into the realm of hypersensory perception.

They had only been lacking a final trigger.

All Leo had done was give them training that awakened their latent sensitivity.

"But still…"

Splaaash— Ruwen looked at Aru being swept along by the incoming tide.

Her limbs were slack; it was obvious to anyone that she had fainted.

"Is Aru okay?"

Leo approached her and gave her a few light taps.

She didn't budge.

Leo lifted the heavy iron ball chained to her ankle and spoke.

"Should I throw her back into the ocean?"

"You cruel bastard!"

Aru shot up, protesting loudly.

Leo gave a faint smirk and released the iron ball.

Thunk—!

The gravity-enhanced iron sphere hit the ground with a tremor.

Leo had been training Aru by tossing her into the sea.

The reason was simple.

In the ocean, all five senses—touch, sight, smell, hearing—are dulled.

It was the perfect environment for forcing sensory activation to its limits.

"Why are you especially vicious to me?!"

"Because you're the boss cat."

"Boss?"

"Yeah. Out of all of you, you're the one closest to Kar."

"Hmph. That's true."

Aru puffed up with pride.

Her classmates looked at her with tired expressions.

'That idiot fell for it instantly.'

'Too easy. Just too easy.'

While everyone was clicking their tongues—

"Anyway, you've stepped into HSP too, right?"

"Of course."

"Then let's run a little test. Everyone, gather up."

At Leo's words, the third-year Azonia students gathered with puzzled expressions.

With a tilt of his chin, Leo signaled Kar, who awkwardly pulled something out from his coat.

It was a finely crafted box.

When the lid opened, a Hero Record emerged.

It was none other than the first volume of the Hero Record of Aaron the Brave.

Kar had brought it from Azonia using his authority as student council president.

It was the very same world Leo had first conquered with Aru when he was a first-year in his original world.

As Kar approached Aru, he spoke.

"Hey…"

"Yeah?"

"Don't be disappointed when you see the Brave."

"What do you mean…?"

Aru tilted her head, confused, as she accepted the Hero Record fragment Kar handed over.

The moment she read the message before her eyes, her eyes widened.

The same reaction spread across the faces of the other third-years.

Flash—!

With a brilliant light, the Azonia students vanished.

Watching them disappear, Kar muttered.

"Kyle."

"What."

"You told me I was the one who was going to kill these kids."

"Yeah."

"But the more I think about it, the more it seems like you're the more evil one."

"What now?"

"I only torment them physically. You go for the mind."

"That's just because they're mentally weak. Back in my day…"

"Do you know Velkia and Bihar used to shudder whenever you said that?"

At Kar's words, Leo chuckled.

bl

Kaang—! Kaang—!

The crisp sound of pickaxes striking stone rang through the air.

The dwarves were not only the finest warriors and craftsmen, but also the greatest miners.

Their mining capabilities were unmatched among all races.

At the entrance to such a mine, a dwarf stood in front of a large marble slab, clenching a pipe between his teeth and glaring at the stone.

In his hands were a chisel and hammer.

Just then—

A hand reached out and snatched the pipe from the dwarf.

"Senior, smoking is against school regulations."

"Do you really think I should still be following school rules at my age?"

"Senior, I've told you to stop talking like some old geezer. You're still a teenager with a bright future ahead of you."

With a pitiful expression, Drianna looked at Valhar, the student council president of Damien.

Valhar clicked his tongue, set down the chisel and hammer, snatched the pipe back from Drainna, and puffed at it.

Then, as he approached the mine entrance, he spoke.

"How's the mine development coming along?"

"Smoothly. But… do we really need to develop the mine from scratch ourselves?"

Normally, Damien students might extract ore from an existing mine, but they rarely undertake the entire mine development process.

At her question, Valhar widened his eyes.

"Mine development has been the duty of the dwarf race since ancient times! Even as students, we must never forget the basics!"

"…But Senior Valhar, you only draw up the development plans. You don't actually do the mining yourself."

"And do you expect someone my age to smear soot all over their face and dig a mine?!"

"…Again, Senior Valhar, you're still a teenager. Don't talk like you're on your deathbed—"

"You're talking back to your elder again? Want me to crack your skull open?"

As Valhar swung his hammer wildly, Drainna let out a squeal and ran off.

Clicking his tongue at her retreating figure, Valhar turned back to peer into the mine.

Moments later—

Screams began to echo from deep within.

Valhar's eyes twitched.

The Damien students came scrambling out of the tunnel in a panic.

"What's going on?"

Valhar grabbed one of the students and asked.

The student, breathless and frantic, replied, "P-Prez! Black flame… Black flame!"

"Black flame?"

As Valhar furrowed his brow—

Fwoooosh—!

From the mine entrance that the students had fled, black flames erupted.

Valhar—no, Dweno—stared at it, his face turning grim.

It was a flame far too familiar to him.

Impossible to forget.

He had lost his life to those black flames.

Valhar—Dweno—muttered the name.

"The Flame of Calamity…!"