The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honors Student - Chapter 245
Chapter 245
Ching!
The clash of swords echoed in the darkness.
Clack—Clack—Clang!
The struggle began.
Leo’s red eyes narrowed as he focused on the fight.
Clash! Whoosh!
The balance of power shifted in an instant.
As Leo’s sword leaned toward him, Xyan deflected it and pulled away.
Crash!
Leo’s sword struck the marble floor with a forceful thud.
Shards of marble flew in all directions.
Leo picked up his sword, standing firm amidst the debris.
‘What incredible strength. To be able to wield such power with pure brute force.’
“The title ‘greatest hero candidate’ was no exaggeration.”
Xyan’s eyes gleamed as he aimed his sword at Leo.
“This way, defeating you will be even more satisfying.”
Leo remained calm, his expression unreadable.
To him, the comment wasn’t worth a response.
‘But his skills are genuine.’
He could learn much from a single clash of swords.
Xyan’s abilities were far from mediocre.
Whiioooooooooosh—!
Wind swirled around Xyan.
‘Wind Aura.’
It was different from Chen Xia’s Water Aura.
‘And the Emperor of Xian used Fire Aura.’
The three of them must have inherited separate ancient Aura methods.
Yet their chosen elements were entirely distinct.
‘If they’re the descendants of Bihar… Could it really be so?’
Leo recalled the Aura method he had taught his disciple.
A chuckle escaped Leo as he understood why the three used different Auras.
Seeing this, Xyan spoke.
“I want to see the power of an all-class.”
Leo rested his sword on his shoulder at Xyan’s words.
“Do you think that’s all I’m worth?”
“What?”
“I’m saying that you’re not someone who I need to bother using sorcery or summoning for.”
“How confident. Don’t you think you’re being a little too arrogant?”
“Not really.”
Leo smiled coldly at Xyan, who returned the smile.
Xyan’s eyes flickered as he studied Leo.
‘This kid.’
Xyan was a genius, both as a Shadow and as a hero.
Since childhood, his only rival had been his twin, Chen Xia, who was also considered a genius in her own right.
But Xyan had surpassed even her.
‘Chen Xia is half-baked.’
Chen Xia was born with only the talent of a Shadow.
‘Her pitiful fate is to live in complete darkness.’
Xyan didn’t resent the twin who had tried to kill him.
He merely pitied her.
‘It’s a miserable fate, living like that.’
But he was different.
‘I won’t waste my abilities by becoming a Shadow.’
He was born with the potential to surpass all others as a hero.
From childhood, Xyan was praised.
Many of his mentors were moved to tears by his talent.
It was said that throughout the history of heroes and Shadows, none had a gift like Xyan.
And it was true.
Xyan had never faced frustration.
He easily shattered obstacles that others viewed as insurmountable, achieving effortlessly what others only dreamed of.
Since leaving Xian, Xyan had only grown stronger.
With the power of Tartaros, he conquered countless Hero’s Worlds and inherited their abilities.
He trembled at the thought of becoming the hero he so desperately wanted to be.
‘I was right.’
He was truly worthy of heroism, having easily overcome the trials of those hailed as heroes.
Yet, he had a thought.
‘The trials of normal heroes are so easy. I must be capable of becoming a Great Hero. I am the chosen one.’
Xyan had never doubted his genius.
He was someone who naturally stood above others.
But…
“I don’t like you.”
Leo’s gaze, as if looking down on him from a great height, was jarring.
He could tell.
The boy didn’t even care about him.
Having always been the one to look down on everything, Xyan found that gaze truly infuriating.
“It’s as if you don’t care about me at all. Who do you think I am?”
“Hmm.”
Leo stroked his chin.
He thought for a moment, then nodded and answered calmly.
“Trash that needs to be cleaned up?”
Xyan’s eyes trembled.
“Am I wrong? You betrayed the world and joined Tartaros.”
“I’m just using Tartaros to become a hero.”
Xyan said confidently.
“I wanted to go pridefully to Lumene as well. But this country and its values wronged me by forcing a genius like me to be a Shadow.”
“I agree that this country’s methods are flawed. That’s still no excuse to join hands with Tartaros.”
A cold light gleamed in Leo’s eyes.
“Using Tartaros to become a hero is just nonsense.”
“You wouldn’t understand. But I will grow stronger and defeat Tartaros.”
Leo stopped at those words.
He shrugged and stifled a laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“Is there anything else to do but laugh?”
Leo’s gaze was filled with contempt.
“Do guys like you follow a script or something? In the past and in the present?”
“What?”
“I’ve seen fools like you more than once or twice.”
There were many with extraordinary talent in the Age of Disaster.
And many of them sided with Tartaros.
The reason was always the same.
‘Using Tartaros to defeat Tartaros.’
“There have been countless other narcissistic fools like you, blind to their own limitations and lacking the ability or will to overcome them.”
Swoosh—
Leo raised his sword.
“I’m sick of that nonsense.”
Leo curled the corners of his mouth.
“And, you think you’re a genius?”
Leo once thought of himself as a genius.
Back in Kyle’s days.
There was a time when, whether it was martial arts, sorcery, or summoning, he had no doubt he was a genius because he excelled at learning.
But then he met real geniuses—his friends who were now praised as Great Heroes, real geniuses who reached the pinnacle of their respective fields.
Leo was able to defeat Erebos as the last Great Hero because he borrowed from the many things his comrades had accomplished.
Even doing that was close to a miracle.
Because he had watched those friends from the sidelines, Leo did not call himself a genius.
In comparison, Xyan, who boasted about his talents as if he were great, was just laughable to Leo.
Looking at Leo, who was laughing to himself, a glimmer of life flickered in Xyan’s eyes.
At first, the reason he wanted to defeat Leo was simple.
He wanted to defeat him and prove that he was the best hero candidate.
After that, the reason he tried to kill Leo was because he was annoyed by Leo’s Shadow-like behavior.
But now it was different.
‘This guy is denying my very existence.’
Whiooooooo—!
Mana swirled around Xyan’s body.
It wasn’t the Wind Aura Xyan usually wielded.
‘Are these abilities gained through the Hero’s Worlds?’
Leo’s eyes narrowed.
He could clearly sense the origin of these abilities.
And that wasn’t all.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
Accessories and armor, infused with mana, materialized all over his body.
‘Hero Weapons. It’s only natural to think he also possesses many Hero Skills.’
Hero candidates typically began to seriously conquer the Hero’s Worlds in their second year.
However, the fact that even a traitor like Xyan had amassed this many attack rewards…
‘Is Tartaros collecting Hero Records?’
Of course, even with Hero Records alone, one could not open the Hero’s World.
However, there were fragments of Erebos sealed within Hero Records, and they could use them.
Like bringing pieces of Erebos that slumbered in Luna’s Hero’s World into the real world, or summoning the past legion commander, Zerdiac, into the present.
Tartaros was definitely exploiting the power of Hero Records.
But even if the demons were the ones conquering the Worlds, they wouldn’t receive attack rewards.
However, hero killers…
‘Did they open Hero Records influenced by pieces of Erebos to help hero killers become stronger? Who would orchestrate such a thing…? Must be the Commander-in-Chief of Tartaros.’
The Commander-in-Chief of Tartaros.
Hell Kaiser, known as the strongest and most malevolent commander.
Flutter—!
Xyan, holding a red curved sword that spewed a massive flame, muttered softly.
“Let’s go.”
Leo, seeing Xyan like that, smirked and raised his Aura.
Flutter—Flutter—!
The flames blazed fiercely.
Whoosh—! Crash—Crash—Crash—!
The two charged simultaneously.
In that moment, a colossal flame engulfed the surroundings.
Fwooooooooooosh—! Crash—Crash—Crash—!
The flames filled the entire hallway, exploding in a chain reaction and completely obliterating the darkness.
Boom—!
Xyan’s right arm cut through the air.
Thud—!
Xyan barely landed on the ground.
“This can’t be happening… I… I’m meant to be a Great Hero!”
Xyan muttered, his voice bordering on madness.
He couldn’t believe that Leo’s presence had overwhelmed him.
Leo approached Xyan, preparing to sever his neck.
“It’s not fair! You gained great power by conquering Luna’s Hero’s World! That’s why you’re stronger than me!”
“I didn’t use any sorcery when I fought you, though?”
Leo laughed at Xyan’s denial of reality.
“If I inherit the power of the Great Hero, I’ll become a Great Hero! If I obtain Kyle’s sword, held in this country, and conquer that Hero’s World… If I gain the power of the Great Hero, I can become strong!”
Leo’s eyes twitched as he listened to Xyan’s ramblings.
‘My sword?’
The Xian Empire’s history stretched back four thousand years.
Considering that Bihar was the founder, Xian’s history must have extended at least five thousand years.
‘It wouldn’t be surprising if there was something related to me kept here.’
“If I can just inherit the power of the Hero of the Beginning instead of these insignificant heroes!”
“Haven’t you ever considered that it’s not the power of the heroes that’s insignificant, but your own incompetence?”
“You fool!”
Sparks flew from Xyan’s eyes.
Leo raised his sword, ready to end Xyan’s life.
Rumble—
At that moment, something stirred in Xyan’s shadow.
Whoosh—!
Leo’s eyes widened at the giant bone blade that emerged from the shadow.
‘Hell Kaiser’s necromancy.’
Clackle—Clack—
The skeleton that had pierced through the shadow snapped its jaw.
Then it looked at Leo with bloodshot eyes and bowed its head politely.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Leo Plov.”
Leo’s eyes flickered at the familiar voice.
Flesh began to sprout from the white bones.
Soon, the fierce-looking giant, now resembling a living human and standing about two meters tall, was smiling gently despite his fearsome appearance.
“It is an honor to meet you, the greatest hero candidate of our time. I am…”
The man with white teeth introduced himself.
“I am Artkan, the Grand Duke of the Dead.”