Chapter 256
Chapter Title: Preparing for the Final Chapter
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Wooooo-!
Melina stared at the monster before her with eyes full of despair.
The sky was turning black.
The world was burning.
The giant of despair, wreathed in black flames, roared at the heavens.
"This... is the primordial evil..."
Melina’s jaw trembled.
The Dragon Lord, the greatest hero of her era and one whose name would be recorded as a great hero in the pages of history, was as terrified as a frightened girl.
The final chapter of the Heroes of the Beginning.
A Hero Record that had devoured countless heroes over the past 3,000 years.
But it was a long-cherished wish of the world, something that had to be conquered someday.
Melina had thought it was possible.
Her companions were great.
They were hailed as some of the finest in the long history of the Age of Heroes.
She herself was no different.
She was determined to accomplish the world's task and restore true peace.
And so, she challenged the specter of a past calamity.
The result...
"Everyone..."
Melina’s face contorted.
"Please... please... open your eyes..."
She begged in a voice that was barely a whisper.
She desperately called out to her companions, who lay fallen on the ground or had vanished entirely.
But no one answered.
It was on a completely different level.
A fear and despair unlike anything she had ever experienced washed over Melina.
Oooooo-!
Fwoosh-!
Erebos raised its arm.
Black flames swirled.
The calamitous fire moved to incinerate the last one remaining—Melina.
Resigned, Melina hung her head low.
Kraka-BOOM-!
The flames raged.
Then, realizing someone had stopped Erebos, Melina looked up.
Behind her stood a woman with pure white hair.
Melina’s eyes widened.
The woman turned and gave Melina a gentle smile.
She was an incredibly famous figure.
Naturally, Melina knew of her as well.
Her distant predecessor.
"Rhodia...?"
Melina was shocked by the appearance of the Dragon of the Beginning.
Splash- Kraka-BOOM-!
Just then, a massive wave from the sky crashed down upon the land.
Sssss-!
The water evaporated against the black flames, sending up a thick cloud of steam.
Whoooosh!
The massive wave soon became a waterspout, driving back the black flames.
Seeing the face of the beastkin woman at its center, Melina muttered.
"Azonia."
Crunch-!
Far ahead, a dwarven hero bravely swung a giant axe, severing Erebos’s arm.
At the same time, a human wielding a longsword swung his blade, carving a massive gash across Erebos’s chest.
Damian and Lumerne.
Finally, the sky was embroidered with starlight.
Shards of starlight pierced Erebos's body.
Seirun.
At the appearance of the Heroes of the Beginning, Melina couldn't believe what was happening.
The final chapter of the Heroes of the Beginning was a possession-type World of Heroes.
So how could they have appeared?
"What is your name?"
"M-Melina."
"Melina."
Rhodia offered a gentle smile.
"A blessing upon this meeting... and thanks to the great King of Wisdom."
After offering the traditional dragon's greeting, Rhodia asked.
"Could you tell me how many years have passed since we sealed that damn ball of fire?"
"About 2,900 years..."
"I see."
Rhodia nodded.
She spoke with a soft smile.
"Leave the rest to us."
"I'll fight too!"
As Melina scrambled to her feet, Rhodia reached out a hand.
Swoosh-!
Melina’s eyes widened as she saw Rhodia’s arm pass right through her.
"You and your companions can fight no longer. You'll be sent outside soon."
Rhodia smiled faintly.
"B-But..."
Melina realized it then.
The reason the Heroes of the Beginning had appeared in this possession-type World of Heroes.
They had failed.
And... these heroes, who had repeated this battle endlessly for thousands of years, were starting the fight once more.
Seeing Melina's despairing expression, Rhodia’s eyes rounded slightly before she smiled warmly.
"You didn't fail."
"Pardon?"
"That's right. This is a strategic retreat. Just like we were, you are still inexperienced, which means you can still grow stronger."
Rhodia spoke as if to reassure her distant descendant.
"I believe. That one day, a future generation will appear to vanquish that damn ball of fire."
Even in this desperate situation, Rhodia did not let go of the thread of hope.
"That one day, people like the Great Heroes will appear and save the world once more. So, will you promise me?"
Rhodia said, turning her body toward her companions who were fighting Erebos.
"That you won't give up."
Melina couldn't answer.
Before she could, the world was engulfed in darkness.
She had barely survived, but her companions were either broken or had not even left a corpse behind.
All that appeared before Melina was the cold message: [Conquest Failed].
***
"They succeeded in trapping Erebos within their own Hero Record and weakening it by tearing the record, but... Erebos itself tried to break the seal and escape."
Erebos was the natural enemy of the gods.
It was clear that it would eventually burn through the Hero Record and return to the world.
"So to stop Erebos, they entered their own world?"
"Yes."
Mel nodded.
This meant the Erebos that appeared in the final chapter of the Heroes of the Beginning was the 'real' one.
"According to the records left by those who attempted to conquer the final chapter and barely made it back alive... it seems the Heroes of the Beginning are endlessly repeating the process of sealing Erebos within the Hero Record."
"A loop?"
Leo's eyes narrowed.
"Yes. And it seems they lose their memories of the previous attempt each time the world resets."
Leo's expression hardened.
The Hero Record was an object created by the gods.
And Erebos was the gods' natural enemy.
If they had entered the world that imprisoned Erebos, it wouldn't be strange for the Hero Record to go berserk.
'So they're trapped.'
And the Heroes of the Beginning might have been prepared for that.
"And now you're saying that cracks are appearing in the Hero Record that is currently sealing Erebos..."
"Yes."
Leo heaved a deep sigh.
The more a fire burns, the stronger it becomes.
'The fragment of Erebos in the World of Heroes has been burning for 3,000 years, growing in power. It means it's becoming too strong for the Heroes of the Beginning to handle anymore.'
In that endless loop, there must have been countless times when the Heroes of the Beginning were defeated.
It wasn't because their power was insufficient.
Erebos was an immortal being.
The biggest reason the Great Heroes had been able to subjugate Erebos was because of Kyle, whose abilities were like a natural counter to it.
"At most, within 100 years, Erebos will defeat the Heroes of the Beginning and emerge into the world. That's why we need heroes who can conquer the final chapter before then."
After failing to conquer the final chapter, Mel had endlessly prepared to try again.
But a second attempt was never made by her generation.
The companions who had barely survived did not live long.
Later, the Sword Saint appeared, but he was only one person.
Even in Kalian's generation, five heroes worthy of the challenge were not born.
Having returned alive from the final chapter, Mel knew better than anyone.
'In the final chapter of the Heroes of the Beginning, there's no room for luck.'
What was needed was the power to subjugate Erebos.
To achieve that, Mel had worked tirelessly.
And now...
"The objective is set."
At Leo's words, Mel smiled faintly.
The person who would put an end to this unseen threat was right before her.
"Let's start now."
Leo's red eyes burned with determination.
"The preparations to conquer the final chapter of the Heroes of the Beginning."
"Yes."
The era was in motion.
***
Fwoosh!
Intermediate wind phantoms stirred up a gale.
Leo's white hair shot up toward the sky.
Seeing this, Leo waved his hand lightly.
Whooo-!
With a small whirlwind, a lesser wind spirit, a Sylph, appeared before Leo.
The Sylph circled around Leo, protecting him from Shasha's attack.
"Ugh!"
Having exhausted all her spiritual power, Shasha staggered and collapsed to the ground.
Gritting her teeth, Shasha turned her head.
"Senior Leo's friend! How much time is left?!"
"Jeez, I have a name, you know? It's Karl, junior."
Karl grumbled, then pulled a watch from his pocket to check before shrugging.
"About an hour left."
At Karl's words, Shasha pushed herself up on trembling legs.
'I see the problem clearly now.'
Shasha clenched her jaw.
'I can't counter Senior Leo's spirit arts.'
From the point when most of the challengers had dropped out, leaving only the five who had challenged him during the entrance exam, Leo had stopped using his various abilities.
Against Aina, Haviden, and Luke, he used only Aura.
Against Juen, he used magic, and against Shasha, he used only summoning.
Faced with such a Leo, what they felt was an insurmountable wall.
Shasha realized it.
With her current skills, she couldn't even lay a finger on Leo.
"Have you given up?"
Shasha flinched at Leo's question, then gritted her teeth.
"Yes."
"With this, three of you have given up."
At Leo's words, Shasha's shoulders slumped, and she walked over to where Karl was.
Haviden, Shasha, and Juen had declared their forfeiture.
"What about you two?"
Leo turned his head to look at Aina and Luke.
Luke looked at Aina and said.
"Aina. Would you like to go first?"
At his question, Aina clenched her fists tightly.
"No. With my current skills, I can't ever reach him."
Though she had challenged him relentlessly, Aina realized that further attempts were meaningless.
It wasn't just Aina.
The others felt the same way.
'There's no one among the first-years right now who can land a single blow on him.'
"Wow! He's really harsh! So harsh! The juniors are trying so hard, you'd think he'd go easy on them at least once~"
Karl chuckled at the mumble from Juen, who was lying spread-eagled on the ground.
"That's not in Leo's dictionary. Anyway, shouldn't you all hurry up and pick a mentee?"
At those words, Juen shot up and sat cross-legged.
"I can just grab any senior from the magic department and ask them."
Juen showed her confidence.
The foundation of her magic was from the Southern Magic Tower anyway.
She was certain that no matter which mage she had as a mentee, it wouldn't be of much help in developing her skills as a sorceress.
"Besides, I can get private tutoring from Torua-unni."
Torua, who graduated last year and immediately attained the rank of Archmage, was also from the Southern Magic Tower.
And as the daughter of the Southern Magic Tower's master, Juen had been very close with Torua since childhood.
If she could receive tutoring from her, it was no exaggeration to say she had nothing to learn from a second-year.
"How about you ask Chloe?"
"The Southern Magic Tower and the Northern Magic Tower are rivals, you know? I'm sure you're not unaware of that."
Juen narrowed her eyes at Karl's suggestion.
Just then, Luke approached Leo.
"Luke, stop. Don't waste your time. You should find a mentor quickly too. If you can't decide on one, you might be expelled."
Halind hadn't said what would happen if they failed to find a mentor.
But true to Lumerne's reputation as the Wailing Wall, expulsion was a possibility.
"I want to try just one more time."
Scratching his head with an awkward smile, Luke walked up to Leo.
He took a deep breath.
"I'm in your care."
At Luke's words, Leo drew his sword and said.
"Likewise."