Editor : Amethyst00



The Hero Hunters looked warily at the hero Aru who had appeared behind them.

'When did she…?'

Aru Tune, the Heiress of the Brave's Will.

A hero candidate who suddenly challenged the Brave's World at the time of admission to Azonia.

Because of that, she had been a high-priority watch target among the Hero Hunters since her enrollment.

In fact, Aru had achieved tremendous growth in a short period.

It wasn't just growth.

As the rightful successor of the Hero Aaron, she had even succeeded in inheriting the Brave's power.

She had unmistakably risen as a hero destined to lead the future of the beastkin.

'If left alone, she'll surely grow to become a great warrior like the former Hero Azonia, once said to be the reincarnation of the Brave.'

Watching Aru, who wore a savage smile and exuded a menacing aura, the leader of the Hero Hunters clenched and unclenched his fist.

'But she's still a hero in training.'

A bitter smile formed on the Hero Hunters' lips.

Aru narrowed her eyes.

'You're smiling even though your comrade's head just got blown off?'

Just as she sensed something off, Aru's ears twitched.

At the same time, Aru kicked the Hero Hunter she had just knocked down.

Crack—!

The corpse's body lifted into the air.

The flesh and bones of the shattered head that had scattered earlier were pulled back together as if sucked in, returning to their original position.

Tap—!

"Heh heh heh."

As the revived Hero Hunter landed back in place, Aru crossed her arms.

'Regeneration? No… it's a curse.'

[Negation] Curse.

A curse that nullifies attacks as if they never happened.

Seeing the Hero Hunters use a curse typically wielded only by the highest-ranking demons, Aru tilted her head slightly.

'And they seem like undead too. Are they mixed with demons? Or cursed by one?'

Though she briefly felt suspicious, she soon shrugged it off.

The Negation Curse was extremely powerful.

And if they were undead, having already died once, they could be revived repeatedly.

A threatening foe, no doubt, but it didn't matter.

Aru moved with a mindset that was unmistakably her own.

'No need to overthink it. Just beat them down until they stay dead!'

Whoosh—!

Aru stepped forward.

In an instant, she disappeared and reappeared right in front of a Hero Hunter.

By then, Aru had already transformed.

Crunch—!

"…!"

Aru's claws, like those of a wild beast, slashed the Hero Hunter's arm.

Blood and flesh splattered, and the Hero Hunter's eyes widened.

'What kind of power…?!'

"She's alone! Even if she's a hero, she's just a fledgling! Form ranks and pressure her!"

At the leader's command, the Hero Hunters began to move in unison.

At the same time, their bodies began to change.

"Did you think transformation was your exclusive ability?"

The leader of the Hero Hunters grinned as he spoke.

Aru silently watched them transform.

She had known for a long time that some Hero Hunters had gained transformation abilities using fragments of Brave, the sword of Aaron from the Hero's World.

So even as they transformed, Aru showed no sign of being disturbed.

However—

'Mocking Lord Aaron is another matter.'

Aru smiled coldly.

Voooom—!

The energy radiating from Aru's body surged with greater force.

Scratch—! Scratch—! Scritch-scratch—!

Marks resembling claw scratches began to appear in the sand around Aru.

"A formation? Go ahead and try. Either way…"

The Hero Hunters' faces stiffened.

"You'll be helpless in the face of overwhelming power."

'What is this?'

The atmosphere had changed completely.

'What is this monster…?'

Crunch—!

That was his last thought as his vision went black.

bl

"Wow. She's completely different from last year."

Kirin, the beastkin Shadow Lord, clicked her tongue as she watched Aru slaughtering the Hero Hunters in the distance.

"Didn't think she'd grow this much."

Impressed, Kirin glanced to the side.

"I feel embarrassed I even said we should help her."

Looking at Aru, Kirin thought to herself:

'She's like the embodiment of violence.'

A ferocious beast.

That intense, chilling yet beautiful presence gave Kirin goosebumps.

Eventually, the last Hero Hunter fell.

Standing among the corpses, Aru licked her fingertips.

Then Aru's gaze shifted to Leo and Kirin.

With her hyper-senses heightened, Aru could immediately sense that someone was watching her.

In a flash, Aru sprinted over to Leo and Kirin.

"Long time no see, Aru Tune."

"Hello."

Aru greeted Kirin.

She had once been indebted to Kirin at her underground casino, so she recognized her.

Seeing Aru up close, Kirin was almost moved to express awe.

In her transformed state, Aru radiated the aura of a true hero.

Her wild charisma clearly marked her as Aaron's successor.

"Black Rabbit! How was it?! I nailed both transformation and hyper-senses, right?!"

All of Aru's previous intensity vanished, replaced by a housecat-like demeanor, leaving Kirin speechless.

"You did great."

"Heheh! If you think I did well, you should pat my head."

Crossing her arms and closing her eyes, Aru leaned her head against Leo's chest.

Rub, rub—

As Aru rubbed the top of her head into Leo's chest, Leo patted her head.

In response, Aru rubbed her head and face against Leo's hand.

Even purring like a cat.

It was a side effect of transformation, which brought her instincts to the forefront.

Aru, clearly enjoying Leo's petting, suddenly pushed his hand away.

"It feels too good. Now I don't like it."

Showing classic cat-like fickleness, Aru turned away.

But at the same time, she curled her tail around Leo's wrist.

Leo spoke as he watched.

"Don't get too cocky. They were just small fry."

"I know. But hey, Black Rabbit—what are you doing here?"

"I came because I got a report about a Hero Hunter intrusion."

Leo turned to Kirin, who gave a polite nod and took her leave.

"But what about you? Why are you here?"

In response to Leo's question, Aru released her transformation.

Her tail still curled around Leo's wrist.

"I was training!"

"Training?"

Leo tilted his head at Aru's snort.

He tugged at the tail wrapped around his wrist.

"Why are you pulling my tail all of a sudden?!"

"Who told you to wrap it around my wrist?"

"Treat it with care! With care!"

Aru snatched her tail back in a huff.

Leo asked, watching Aru's sulking expression:

"So? What kind of training?"

"Endurance training!"

"Huh?"

"Lady Azonia said the secret to her stamina was desert running!"

Aru clenched her fist, her eyes sparkling, and Leo let out a small sigh.

'She probably just said that offhand because she begged for special training. And this fool believed it literally.'

"Hmph! Lady Azonia was right! I even got valuable combat experience!"

Leo burst into laughter at Aru's genuine excitement.

"Is she just an idiot or innocently pure?"

"What did you say?!"

"So? Are you going to keep running?"

"Of course!"

If she's enjoying it, there's no reason to stop her.

Aru waved goodbye and ran off, kicking up sand.

Leo smirked as he headed toward the site of Aru's battle with the Hero Hunters.

Kirin, who had gone ahead, was just finishing her investigation.

She handed over the Hero Hunter leader to her subordinates and said:

"There's one survivor. Looks like the boss."

Aru had likely spared him to extract information.

"If they came here, it's probably because of the Hero Dungeon."

"Most likely. I'll confirm during interrogation and report back."

"Good work."

"Yes, sir."

Kirin bowed politely but hesitated as she looked at Leo.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing. I'll take my leave."

With that, Kirin disappeared.

Left alone, Leo glanced up at the moon.

Looking at his shadow cast by the moonlight, he muttered to himself.

'Was she going to ask what Xia asked me a while ago?'

But Leo didn't answer.

Rather—

'The truth is, I don't know the answer either.'

To Leo, there was no difference between a hero and a shadow.

'Anyone who sacrifices for the world is a hero to me.'

That's why, in Leo's eyes, heroes and shadows were the same.

'But that's just my perspective.'

Even if unintentional, it was Leo who pushed the shadows into the dark.

That's why he wanted to return the light to them.

But among them, there were those who preferred to remain in darkness.

Leo looked up at the moon.

'All I can do is show them that there's a path.'

The choice was theirs.

bl

"Oh my, looking at you closely, you really do look like a doll."

"U-Uh…"

"Just look at how smooth your skin is."

"S-So…"

"Why? Are you scared I'll eat you up?"

Azonia giggled as she poked Luke's cheek, sitting next to him.

"M-Mr. Luke, I'm so sorry."

Leah, looking like she was about to cry, apologized to Luke.

She had insisted Luke co-sign for her and borrowed money from Azonia.

And lost it all.

Deeming her unable to repay, Azonia took Luke as her errand boy.

"U-Um… Can I go now?"

"Hehehe. Nope. You can't."

"P-Please spare me!"

Azonia wrapped her arms around Luke's waist and lifted him up.

Luke screamed, but Azonia didn't let go.

"Just hang in there! I'll win back double in no time and set you free!"

"Just stop gambling already!"

Luke screamed at Leah's words.

Lunia pressed her temples in frustration.

"That idiot…"

Azonia burst out laughing at the sight and whispered in Luke's ear:

"Luke. Could you order a bottle of wine from the bartender?"

Shrinking his shoulders, Luke scurried off to place the order.

Leah followed, apologizing profusely.

"That girl's from House Tingel, right?"

"You can tell?"

"Just by the scent. She smells similar to Seiren. And like her, she sucks at gambling."

Azonia giggled, and Eiran's eyes widened.

"Lady Seiren was bad at gambling too?"

"Yup. Terrible. Elves are generally awful at gambling."

Azonia looked at Lunia and Eiran.

"I once cleaned Seiren out of even her underwear, you know?"

Slapping the table with laughter, she said:

"Well, not just Seiren—elves as a whole are kinda suckers."

At that, Lunia's face stiffened.

"Isn't that just because Lady Seiren was bad at it?"

"Nope. Elves are pushovers when it comes to gambling."

Azonia smiled sweetly at Lunia.

"Think I'm wrong? Want to bet?"

"Sure."

"L-Lunia!"

Eiran tried to stop her, flustered.

Just then, Duran and Abad entered the casino.

Scanning the place, they approached Azonia.

"Are you the loan shark who's holding Luke?"

At Duran's question, Azonia rested her chin on her hand and whistled.

"What handsome men. Luke was cute too, but all you Lumene boys are my type."

"Luke is Lumene's class representative. His public image matters. I'd like to repay his debt on his behalf."

"No thanks. I prefer playing with boys more than getting money."

Azonia smiled brightly.

"Well, if you beat me in a bet, I'll let him go."

"A bet?"

Azonia pointed to a table in the casino.

"Beat me at gambling, and I'll release him."

Duran and Abad exchanged glances and nodded.

"Fine."

Azonia grinned in satisfaction.

"What about our match?" Lunia asked.

"Later. I prefer pretty boys."

Humming a tune, Azonia headed to the gambling table.

"Will the Lumene guys be okay?"

"Why wouldn't they be? Gambling's all about odds."

Lunia pouted.

"Calling elves pushovers… there's no way that's true. Azonia's being too harsh."

Eiran gave an awkward smile watching her grumble.

'It… kinda feels like she's right though. But if I say that, she'll get mad, huh?'