The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honors Student - Chapter 248
Chapter 248
Whoooo—
A gust of wind swept in.
Leo turned his head to avoid the swirling storm of Aura.
He swung his arms.
Boooooom—!
With a thunderous clash of Aura against Aura, Xyan was hurled backward.
“Huek!”
Xyan glared incredulously at Leo with wide eyes.
There was only one entrance to the stone chamber.
Leo stood guard at the entrance.
Xyan had felt the overwhelming difference in strength earlier.
But…
‘He got past Artkan.’
It didn’t occur to him that Artkan had been fully defeated.
‘He probably let him go to deal with Father, but he didn’t let him go easily.’
Xyan knew Artkan’s abilities.
The power to gather a corpse and make it move with the abilities it had in its previous life.
‘Dirge.’
Every time he cleared the Hero’s World, he tested his new power using Artkan’s abilities.
That’s why he knew the extent of Artkan’s power well.
Indeed, Leo bore numerous wounds, his face looked worn, and his shoulders shook as if he were out of breath.
‘Compared to him, I’m fine.’
Artkan had fully restored his stamina.
‘Plus, I now wield the sword of the Hero of the Beginning.’
This sword wasn’t just particularly durable and sharp.
Xyan, just holding the sword, could tell.
The weapon crafted by the god’s blacksmith, Dweno, was known as a divine weapon.
Its power surpassed imagination.
‘I still don’t know how to wield its power.’
Xyan adjusted his grip on the sword.
‘If I can harness its power, I can defeat Leo Plov.’
With that thought, Xyan aimed his sword at Leo.
“It would have been better for my health if I hadn’t come here.”
Thump—Thump—
Leo stepped forward.
Xyan flinched and backed away.
Soon, though, his face reddened and he shouted angrily.
“You better be prepared. It’ll be different compared to before.”
“What’s different?”
“I have the sword of Kyle, the Hero of the Beginning.”
Leo glanced at the sword Xyan held.
It was an unusually shaped sword.
The blade was short, almost dagger-like, while the handle was as long as a regular longsword.
In fact, it was a peculiar sword with a blade-to-handle ratio close to 1:1.
Of course, it wasn’t a sword Leo had never seen before.
“That is not the sword of the Hero of the Beginning.”
“What?”
Xyan’s face twisted in confusion.
“The name of that sword is Erquint, the sword of Fairy Knight Velkia.”
Erquint was more closely associated with Luna than with Kyle.
Originally, Erquint was the sword Dweno gave to Luna.
Luna passed it to her disciple, Velkia.
While Velkia was Kyle’s disciple and not directly related to Luna, it was still not the weapon of the Hero of the Beginning.
‘By the way, you found it.’
Leo smiled bitterly.
Velkia lost Erquint in the Battle of Tarmetia.
It was the last battle the Great Heroes fought in before departing on their final attempt to subdue Erebos.
Bihar had promised Velkia, who was devastated by the loss of the sword given to her by her teacher, that she would find it.
‘It seems like she was never able to return it.’
After Erebos was defeated, the two must have been busy rebuilding the world according to their teachers’ wishes.
“That’s ridiculous. Why is our great ancestor in possession of the Fairy Knight’s sword?”
“There must have been a reason. Anyway, we learned during Lumene’s heroics class that the sword is Erquint, so we’re sure.”
Artianne, their heroics professor from last year, had taught a class about the weapons of heroes past.
One of them was Erquint.
“And you can’t handle that sword properly.”
Xyan’s face twisted in anger at Leo’s words.
“Don’t brag about how great you are!”
Xyan charged at Leo, seething with rage.
A powerful Aura erupted from his body.
Crash—Crash—Crash—!
Xyan moved at an incredible speed, faster than the eye could follow, while targeting Leo’s weak points.
“You’re exhausted! You won’t be able to keep up with my movements!”
Taunting Leo, Xyan accelerated even more.
Leo exhaled lightly and raised his sword.
Whoosh—! Thwack—!
Xyan smirked as he sliced Leo’s back.
Defeating him head-on was obviously futile.
‘This is how you inflict minor wounds.’
Xyan swiftly vanished into the darkness, evading Leo’s gaze.
The power of the Shadows.
He had used the power of the Shadows he so despised, but Xyan didn’t care.
What mattered now was defeating the monster before him.
However, Xyan’s offensive was short-lived.
Leo grasped Xyan’s neck just before he could disappear into the shadows.
“Huh, how…?!”
“Clumsy.”
Leo’s voice was cold, his red eyes flashing.
“Do you have anything else to show?”
Rummmble—!
Zerdinger’s flames roared to life.
Xyan’s face went pale as he saw the flames swell, threatening to consume everything.
Crash—Crash—Crash—Crash—!
Leo’s flames burned Xyan mercilessly.
“Urgh…”
Xyan, barely escaping, muttered as he crawled on the floor.
“Impossible… This is ridiculous… I… I was chosen… I was born with the talent to become a Great Hero… Why…?!”
Leo’s feet blocked Xyan’s path as he struggled toward the entrance.
Xyan’s face turned pale.
“S-Spare me! You’re a hero candidate, right? I’m Chen Xia’s family! A hero candidate wouldn’t carelessly take the lives of his friends and family, would he?”
Fwish—
Leo extinguished the flames with an indifferent gesture.
Seeing this, Xyan shouted urgently.
“I-I’ll become a hero! You’ll become a hero too, right? We’ll fight Tartaros, right? If there’s even one more strong person on your side, it’ll be a great help in the future!”
“Of course.”
“Well, then…!”
Xyan’s face brightened at Leo’s affirmation.
“But I don’t know if you’re that great.”
Leo grinned.
Xyan instinctively felt that smile was a death sentence.
“I don’t know if it’s worth keeping you alive.”
Fwoooooosh!
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
Phoenix’s flames engulfed Xyan.
Xyan, who had been struggling and rolling around the room, stopped moving and soon turned into a pile of ash.
Leo picked up Erquint from the floor.
‘If possible, I want to give this to Eiran.’
Eiran, the second-year student of Seiren and a descendant of Velkia.
It would be best if Erquint were in Eiran’s hands.
‘Bihar would want that too.’
Although she couldn’t return it herself, it was clear that Bihar would want it to go back to Velkia’s descendant.
Leo surveyed the messy interior of the record room.
“What are these?”
“They are all… records of Shadows.”
Leo picked up a book from the floor at Chen Xia’s explanation.
Opening it, he found it detailed the actions of a certain Shadow.
“Indeed.”
Leo nodded and carefully placed the records on the bookshelf one by one.
As if in courtesy, for those who were essentially once heroes.
Chen Xia stared blankly at his back for a moment and then spoke.
“There was no need to dirty your hands, Leo.”
“Can you even call it dirtying my hands?”
Leo replied calmly.
“It’s only natural to punish traitors.”
“…”
“Let’s go back now. If you keep skipping school like this, you’ll have more to do than just a reflection paper.”
“Thank you for picking me up. It makes me really happy.”
Chen Xia smiled bitterly.
“But I’m a Shadow. I can’t be a hero.”
“Why?”
“Because the gods will never acknowledge me.”
Chen Xia spread out her hands.
“I’ve done more dirty work than you think I have. And I’m a cruel woman.”
Chen Xia smiled brightly.
“Even if Xyan is a traitor, he is my twin. I saw him die, but I can still smile like this.”
Even if he deserved to die.
He was her blood relative, someone who had been with her her whole life.
Despite the death of her blood relative, Chen Xia remained indifferent.
“Do hero candidates like me exist?”
“No.”
“See? I’m not fit to be a hero candidate.”
Chen Xia’s smile took on an eerie quality.
“Will the gods recognize me like this?”
“They won’t.”
“Yes, I will never be part of the Hero Records…”
“But is that important?”
“What?”
“Is the gods’ recognition that important?”
Chen Xia’s eyes wavered at the unexpected answer.
“Didn’t you come to Lumene because you wanted to be a hero? Why did you want to be a hero?”
“…Because I wanted to help many people.”
Chen Xia lowered her gaze as she answered.
“So? Now that you think you can’t be a proper hero, you don’t want to help people anymore?”
Chen Xia replied in confusion.
“Oh, no. But the way of the Shadows…”
“Is there only one way to help people?”
Leo snickered.
“If your heart hasn’t changed, then the fact is that you still want to be a hero.”
Chen Xia’s shoulders trembled.
“You will definitely become a hero loved by the people. It doesn’t matter whether you make it onto the Hero Record or not.”
Her heart fluttered.
She also affirmed her own dreams despite her doubts.
It felt like she was reaching out to herself, hesitant to move forward with her feet stuck in the darkness.
The darkness seemed to fade away in front of the dazzling light.
‘That’s why… I didn’t want you to come.’
She had finally made up her mind.
However, seeing Leo affirm her doubts, her resolve crumbled instantly.
She unconsciously reached out her hand toward the light.
“Come on. Let’s go back to Lumene.”
“…Okay!”
Chen Xia responded without thinking.
‘Even if I don’t make it onto the Hero Records… I’ll go.’
The important thing wasn’t the Hero Records.
Realizing this, Chen Xia burst into laughter unexpectedly.
Leo, who had been smiling faintly at Chen Xia, suddenly stopped.
‘Is that… Divine power…?’
He turned with surprise in his eyes.
In a corner of the record room, a bookshelf held an old leather-bound book.
Leo approached and took out the book.
‘Aura’s Seal?’
Aura’s Seal.
An ability that leaves one’s will in the Aura, allowing only the chosen to open it.
‘Bihar’s Aura.’
Leo felt his disciple’s Aura and summoned his own grey Aura.
The seal naturally responded to Leo’s Aura and released its hold.
Inside…
“A Hero Record…?”
Chen Xia looked astonished as she saw the page glowing with divine power.
Leo felt a twinge of embarrassment.
[Would you like to open your Hero’s World?]
A message appeared before his eyes.
Leo was taken aback.
This was unlike any Hero Record he had encountered before.
He had entered Hero’s Worlds many times, but this was the first time he had seen such a message.
‘And it’s my world?’
Leo answered with resolve despite being flustered.
‘No.’
The message vanished with his response.
Leo looked down at the Hero Record.
The bundle of Hero Pages before him radiated a powerful divine energy.
It was as if he was viewing a complete Hero Record.
Chen Xia, rushing over to Leo, examined the contents of the Hero Record and spoke up.
“This is… a record of a Shadow?”
The actions detailed in the Hero Record before them were about punishing traitors.
Though names were erased, the content was clear.
Chen Xia was shocked but recognized the Hero Record as genuine.
“What the…”
Leo tightened his grip as he observed Chen Xia’s reaction.
‘My… Hero Record.’
The contents of the page detailed everything Leo had done during his time as Kyle.
‘I see…’
Leo began to understand.
‘Did Bihar take all of my Records from when I was a Shadow?’
Kyle was the only Great Hero known for punishing traitors.
While it was a grim task, someone had to do it.
Even so, not everyone would understand or appreciate it.
Had this Record been preserved and passed down, he might have been remembered as a hero who performed difficult deeds compared to his peers.
Bihar didn’t want her master’s legacy tainted in that way.
‘So that’s why she hid it.’
Leo smiled bitterly.
‘I wish she had just left it alone.’
Perhaps then, the Shadows would not have been dismissed.
If it had been known that even Great Heroes worked in the darkness for the world.
If their achievements as Shadows had been recognized by the gods.
The current treatment of Shadows might have been different.
‘Bihar might not have faded into history either.’
Leo sighed deeply.
Flip—Flip—Flip—
Suddenly, the pages began turning on their own.
At the end, a blank page appeared.
‘What is this…?’
[Would you like to record the hero’s achievements?]
Leo narrowed his eyes at the message that materialized before him.
Chen Xia stared at the blank page, bewildered by the unfamiliar scene.
‘Record.’
As soon as Leo thought this.
Bihar’s name appeared at the top of the page, and her achievements began to be recorded.
Whoosh—
The hero record glowed and floated into the air.
Whooooooosh—!
The Shadow records stuck on the shelf began to tremble and were pulled out all at once.
They swirled around the Hero Record.
Fwish—
Flip—Flip—Flip—
A pure white light emanated from the Hero Record.
The shadow records were drawn into it.
Whiiiing—!
A blinding light filled the space and then vanished.
The Shadow records that once filled the shelf were gone.
“What… What is this?”
Chen Xia was stunned.
A large book fell from the air.
Thud—
A black-covered book landed in Leo’s hand.
Chen Xia’s eyes widened at the sight.
Leo examined the cover.
‘I see.’
Leo chuckled, remembering Fiva’s words.
The Hero Record belonged to Kyle.
That is…
‘Do I have the authority to record what I want?’
[Hero Record—Book of Shadows]
It was the moment when the achievements of those who had labored in the darkness were finally