Editor : Amethyst00



Under the pale moonlight, Leo gently laid the unconscious Chelsea, Carl, and Eliana to one side.

He brushed Chelsea's hair aside with care.

Rian might have stepped down from the seat of godhood to become the administrator of the Hero Record, but their very existence was still divine.

And if these three had even been indirectly exposed to that divine wrath and hatred, it was entirely possible for their minds to have suffered damage.

'Good… it seems like they only lost consciousness for a while. No serious aftereffects.'

After checking over their condition, Leo let out a small sigh and stood.

He turned his gaze to where, just moments ago, the nearly-nude statue of Kyle had stood in glory.

Now, that spot was encircled in red lines by Rian, who was reverently kneeling before the shattered fragments of gemstone scattered across the floor.

"Destruction is the mother of creation! The shattering of my humble, lowly sculpture has brought forth a miraculous encounter with Lord Kyle…! Ah, I was such a fool! To engage in mere idolatry—when what I truly desired was always within reach! I must immortalize this moment… and make it my eternal lesson…"

As Rian babbled in a frenzy, Leo walked over and gave a light wave of his hand.

Whooooosh—

A gust of wind swept through the room, and the broken fragments swirled into a neat pile.

"Ahhh! Lord Kyle, so merciful! You forgive this sinner for my foolish devotion!"

Rian's eyes sparkled with awe.

Leo, already used to this kind of reaction, simply let out a deep sigh.

Seated again on the sofa, Leo spoke.

"I have a question."

"If my meager knowledge can be of use to Lord Kyle, it would be my eternal honor!"

"…Leo."

"Eh…?"

"My name is Leo. Leo."

"Ahh! A new divine name for the Hero of the Beginning…!"

Rian moaned in rapture, cradling their cheeks and collapsing to the floor.

Unfazed, Leo continued.

"You know the other Great Heroes were reincarnated in this world too, right?"

"Yes. I learned of it recently."

"Then you must also know that Lysinas and Luna have… changed."

Rian hesitated.

"Leo, may I… may I commit the sacrilege of correcting your words?"

"Go ahead."

"The Wise Queen and the Poet of the Star haven't changed. Not in their past lives, and not now. They've merely become trapped in the past."

Leo narrowed his eyes.

"And that's because I don't exist in this worldline?"

"Correct. Without you in this world, they became lost."

"They're not weak enough to lose themselves over something like that."

"No, they aren't. But even so… this is something I think you need to understand, Leo."

Rian met Leo's gaze with a rare seriousness.

"Just as the Hero of the Beginning was never perfect… neither were the Wise Queen nor the Poet of the Star. They're not flawless beings."

Rian took out miniature statues of Lysinas and Luna, placing them gently on the floor.

"And not just those two."

With care, they added figures of Aaron and Dweno beside them.

"The other Great Heroes are in a different position than you. While you bore the burdens of your friends and saved the world… they entrusted their burdens to you. And they never got them back."

Leo remained silent.

"That guilt must have lingered in their hearts—especially now, being the only ones reincarnated in this world without you. That's why they lost their way."

Rian took out the statue of Kyle—Leo's past self—and placed it in the center of the others.

"But now that you've appeared in this world, they'll surely return to who they once were. So don't worry too much."

"No."

"…What?"

"They're the ones who should return to who they were."

Rian fell silent.

"The Arhi party without you is incomplete. Without you, even the Great Heroes will only repeat the same disaster that happened with the Hero of Dawn. You would still let that happen?"

"That won't happen again."

"And how can you be so sure?"

"Because they're Great Heroes."

"…What?"

"I'm not the only one who's a Great Hero. They are too—every one of them, equal to me."

Leo reached out and picked up the statue of himself.

"Even if I'm not with them, they'll find the answer. They'll figure out a way to defeat Erebos. That's the kind of people they are—the ones I know."

"You… trust them."

"Of course I do. They trusted me first."

Rian gave a small smile.

"How envious… of the me in your worldline."

"Who knows? Maybe they'll like you more than they liked me."

"Perish the thought. I have only one supreme love. And that will never change."

Rian said it firmly, without hesitation.

Then, as if recalling something, they asked, "By the way… how did you end up here, Leo?"

"It's a long story."

Leo began explaining what had happened—how he'd come to this worldline.

Rian summoned a book and quill, furiously taking notes.

"Haaah… haaah… schlurp! A new tale of the Hero of the Beginning…! Aaah… my brain feels like it's melting… hnnnng! Haaah! Sluuuurp!"

As they buried their face in the notebook and trembled with ecstasy, Leo simply shook his head.

He thought he'd grown used to Rian's eccentricity by now, but clearly… he still had limits.

"Enough of that. Can you open the path to Lumene now?"

"Are you going to see Luna?"

"Yeah."

"Ohh, it'll be a touching reunion!"

Rian asked with sparkling eyes, "What will you say to her?"

Leo tilted his head slightly and gave a faint grin.

"Well… seeing how she still hasn't come to her senses… guess I'll have to kick her in the ass."

bl

Through the passage Rian opened, they arrived in front of the Hero's Tower, deep within Lumene.

Leo stood in the familiar yet somehow unfamiliar garden, glancing around his surroundings.

Then he gently laid the three unconscious companions onto a nearby bench.

"Huh? Just when I thought I'd seen everything."

A voice filled with admiration echoed behind him.

Leo turned toward the source of the voice.

The person standing there was someone Leo knew well. But never had he imagined he'd meet this person again.

Kalian Beidna.

Once known as the Sword Saint and headmaster of Lumene—he was a man who had once shouldered the weight of an entire era.

Stroking his white beard with a chuckle, Kalian tilted his head after checking Carl's face.

"Isn't that Carl Thomas over there, passed out?"

"That's right."

"And isn't that Chelsea and Eliana, both currently absent without notice…"

Looking intrigued, Kalian turned his eyes toward Leo.

"So, how did you sneak into Lumene?"

"That's a trade secret."

"Haha!"

Kalian let out a hearty laugh.

"Did you come to visit your friend, Leah?"

"How did you know I'm friends with her?"

Leo asked, genuinely curious. Kalian smiled serenely.

"You develop a nose for these things when you've lived long enough. You and Miss Leah share one clear thing in common."

"A common trait?"

"You both give off a vibe like you're older than I'll ever be."

Kallian chuckled playfully.

Leo also let out a laugh at that.

"So? Leah's not in Lumene at the moment…"

"But that pointy-eared brat Rune is, isn't she?"

"You're friends with Rune as well? You sure have many pretty friends."

"She's not pretty at all, though."

"You must have bad eyes."

Kalian chuckled in a low voice.

Leo replied with a smile.

"And I've got another reason for being here."

"Another reason?"

"Yes."

"What would that be?"

"I'd like to test the limits of Lumene's students."

"…"

Kalian smiled knowingly at that.

"And you're telling me this because…?"

"I wanted your permission."

"Permission, hmm…"

Kalian stroked his beard in thought.

He could see it clearly—an unknown depth within this boy he was meeting for the first time.

An overwhelming presence, not unlike the current student council presidents of each academy.

"What's your name, young man?"

"Leo Plov."

"Any other names?"

The question implied Are you Kyle?—Leo looked surprised.

"Did Leah tell you?"

"No. Like I said, with age comes unnecessary insight."

Kalian chuckled heartily.

"I'll inform the professors. Go ahead—test them as much as you like."

"The school might get wrecked."

"All the better. That would make it a truly valuable lesson."

'…Now that I think about it, Headmaster Kalian was always unusually lenient about students causing trouble, wasn't he?'

Leo let out a short, helpless laugh as he recalled his first year.

Plop—

"Ugh… five more minutes…"

"Eliana the Lightning Swiftblade… charging out…!"

Leo had just laid the three down, and Chelsea was whining while Eliana babbled in her sleep.

"Ugh. My head…"

Carl sat up, clutching his temples. He blinked, looking around.

"Wha—?! Where are we?"

"You're awake?"

"Wow, we really made it into Lumene?"

Carl gasped in awe.

"But how'd we even get in here?"

His memory was hazy from being exposed to Rian's presence.

Frowning in confusion, Carl nudged the sleeping Chelsea and Eliana awake.

"Hey. Wake up."

The two girls slowly opened their eyes, rubbing them.

"This place is…"

"Huh? This is… in front of the dormitory?"

Realizing where they were, their eyes widened.

Leo handed cloaks to the three of them.

"Put these on."

The three looked puzzled but wrapped the cloaks around themselves anyway.

Chelsea pulled the hood up, her face skeptical.

"This outfit… it's like something someone trying to hide their identity would wear."

Carl also pulled up his hood.

"Yeah, it feels like we're going on a secret mission."

When Eliana finished pulling hers up too, Leo nodded.

"Good. Now no one can tell who you are at a glance."

Chelsea cocked her head at him.

"So? What now?"

"I'll show you just how much stronger you've gotten."

"How?"

Chelsea tilted her head.

Leo smiled faintly and opened his palm.

Fwoooosh—

"P-Peep?!"

A heavy weight suddenly settled in his hand with a burst of flame.

"…?"

Leo looked down at the creature in his palm with a dumbfounded expression.

The small, bright-red feathery ball blinked back at him, confused.

"Isn't that Lunia El Lunda's overweight phoenix?"

"What? But she's contracted with Lunia El Lunda. How did Leo summon her?"

"Still… there's no way there's another phoenix that fat…"

Eliana and Chelsea were just as flustered.

"Whoa… look at how chubby she is."

Carl poked her plump side with a finger in awe.

PEEEEYAAAAAH—!

The fiery shriek startled Carl, who quickly hid behind Leo.

'So the pact with Lunia remained intact in this world too.'

The phoenix's original summoner was none other than Lunia.

Leo clicked his tongue and spoke to the phoenix.

"Fiora."

Pee?

"Lend me your strength."

Peep-peep-peep!

Fiora flapped her wings wildly, as if to say, Who are you to summon me?!

Ignoring her entirely, Leo forcefully completed the pact.

FWOOOOSH—!

Flames engulfed Fiora.

"Wait, Leo, don't tell me…"

Carl's jaw dropped.

"Don't worry. I got permission from the headmaster."

Using Fiora's flames, Leo conjured a massive sphere of fire.

Then he hurled it toward the dormitory.

BOOOOOOM—! FWOOSH—

The fireball exploded in the center of the dormitory garden, flames raging wildly.

The three gawked, mouths agape.

"From the looks of it," Leo said calmly, "thanks to Leah, I'm guessing every Lumene student is busy imitating someone else right now?"

He cracked his knuckles.

"And when someone tells you that's not the right path, you won't listen."

After all, it was the Wise Queen herself who taught them that path.

And yes, it would make them stronger—quickly, even.

'But there's a clear ceiling. Because in the end, it's not them.'

If they suppress their individuality and all start mimicking one person, then sooner or later, they'll hit a wall.

And when that happens, they'll break.

Leo had seen it happen before.

'Lumene.'

Its founder knew that pain better than anyone.

"The fastest way to show someone they've taken the wrong path… is to break them."

'Lysinas. This time, you're the one who's wrong.'

Seeing Leo narrow his eyes and smirk wickedly, the three trembled.

With a pale face, Chelsea whispered:

"He… he looks like a final boss from a storybook…"