Chapter 383
Chapter Title: The Beginning
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383.
Rhodia’s eyes widened at Leo’s question.
Rhodia, the Dragon of Genesis.
Rhodia was indeed her name.
But Dragon of Genesis was not a title that referred to her current self.
It couldn’t be.
‘I was only called the Dragon of Genesis in the future.’
In this time period, she wasn't called the Dragon of Genesis, and she hadn't even met the comrades she would fight alongside.
It was when she first discovered the infinite potential to fight against the disaster.
And at such a time, she met a human boy who called her the Dragon of Genesis.
Rhodia’s orange eyes widened as she carefully examined Leo.
‘Pure white hair and ruby-red eyes.’
“It can’t be.”
Rhodia’s mouth fell open, agape.
A story, like an unbelievable miracle, passed on by a friend amidst endlessly repeating despair.
‘Everyone. Let’s just hold on a little longer.’
Her eyes, which had grown dim at some point, were once again sparkling like stars in the night sky.
‘I’ve found hope.’
Seirun had said with a bright smile, just like in the old days.
Thanks to the incredible story Seirun shared, the Heroes of Genesis could find strength again.
“Sir… Kyle?”
“So you’re the real Rhodia.”
Realizing she was the real Rhodia, not a fake from a Hero Record like Seirun, Leo nodded.
At that, Rhodia urgently pushed Leo’s back.
“What are you doing?”
“I’ll explain later! A human shouldn’t be in here!”
Knowing what was about to happen, Rhodia chased Leo out the window.
The Rhodia of this time was not the Dragon of Genesis, nor was she even a Dragon Lord.
She was still a young dragon of her clan.
Moreover, this was a time when she had caused trouble.
This was a sanctuary where outsiders were forbidden.
If he were discovered, the situation would become difficult.
Leo frowned.
As Leo went out the window, Rhodia hurriedly straightened her clothes.
A moment later.
The door burst open.
“Rhodia! What in the world happened? I felt a massive wave of mana!”
“This is the sanctuary where the Hero Records are kept! Haven’t I told you time and again not to cause trouble like you usually do?!”
Beings who appeared to be dragons glared at Rhodia.
Facing them, Rhodia knelt.
“I offer my sincerest apologies, Elders of the clan. It seems my foolish curiosity has caused you worry.”
After apologizing politely several times, Rhodia left the room with the dragons.
Leo, who had been unceremoniously shoved out the window by Rhodia, sensed that the room was empty and came back inside.
He then took in the view from the window.
‘So this is Dragonia.’
The land of dragons.
‘Unlike Seirun’s world, it seems Erebos shows no signs of crossing over into reality through this place.’
Indeed, unlike the fragment of Seirun’s Hero Record, Rhodia’s Hero Record was merely a small remaining piece.
It appeared Erebos couldn’t use that small fragment as a gateway either.
Left alone, Leo was lost in thought.
‘The appearance of monsters in the Forest of Fiends has nothing to do with the Fiend Queen’s curse.’
He had checked just in case, and the curse was no longer present.
The abnormal events in the Forest of Fiends were clearly the result of a Hero Dungeon encroaching upon reality.
‘And then there’s Rhodia’s world.’
Rhodia’s Hero Record is in a complete state.
‘The moment I decided to open the World of Heroes, it opened. In that case, if I decide to close it….’
[Close the world of Rhodia, the Dragon of Genesis?]
The moment Leo thought it, a message appeared before his eyes.
Seeing it, Leo shook his head.
The message then disappeared.
‘So, a complete Hero Record can be opened and closed at will, according to my intentions.’
As long as it wasn’t a situation caused by a rampaging Hero Record, it was only natural, since the Hero Record itself belonged to Leo.
Leo looked toward the center of the room with an expression of wonder.
There was a single book there.
A book with a red cover, emanating divine power, with the words [Hero Record] engraved on it.
‘A Hero Record in its complete state.’
The stories of himself and his comrades were recorded in there.
After gazing at the Hero Record for a moment, Leo found a spot in the room.
‘Should I wait for Rhodia to come back?’
***
The Forest of Fiends.
Groooaaar!
A one-eyed fiend let out a roar.
Looking at the cyclops, Karl muttered.
“Duran.”
“What is it, Karl Thomas?”
“Didn’t you say that until yesterday, at most, only monsters like ogres were appearing?”
A higher-level being than a monster.
A fiend, which could be called a phantom beast of Tartaros.
And among such fiends, the cyclops, considered a high-level fiend, was in a different league from an ogre.
At Karl’s question, the corners of Duran’s mouth curled up.
“Isn’t this a good thing?”
*Crackle—!*
An aura of lightning crackled around Duran’s body.
“The day after we suspected a Hero Dungeon was here, that filthy fiend pops out. You know what this means, don’t you, Karl Thomas?”
“It means bingo.”
“That’s right.”
Duran’s eyes flashed.
“It means we can cut down all these filthy things and hold Elehem responsible.”
“You look like you’re enjoying this.”
“There’s nothing more entertaining than watching fools who fail to grasp their situation bring about their own ruin through their stupid actions.”
“You’ve got a nasty personality.”
This sudden anomaly of top-tier monsters and fiends appearing began to occur all over the Forest of Fiends.
The sudden, ominous rampage of the Hero Dungeon.
In the face of this crisis, the hero candidates began to take action.
***
“It’s an honor to meet you, Sir Kyle, the Hero of the Beginning. I am Rhodia, the one who, despite my shortcomings, leads the Heroes of Genesis.”
Rhodia greeted Kyle with the draconic custom of tapping her left chest three times and bowing her head.
Seeing this, Leo commented.
“So you were using that form of greeting 3,000 years ago.”
“Of course. Do they not use it 3,000 years in the future?”
“They laughed their heads off, saying anyone who greets like that seems like an old fossil.”
“What? It’s a time-honored tradition passed down through generations. The children of the future didn’t carry it on? The younger generation is hopeless.”
Rhodia looked dismayed.
Looking at her, Leo said.
“Is that so? But you’re doing it wrong, too.”
“What?”
“The angle of your knees is off. Do it again.”
“Huh? Ah! Yes, sir!”
Leo corrected Rhodia’s greeting form, just as Lisinas had taught him.
“No, bend lower. Straighten your back. Who taught you your etiquette?”
Was she really in a position to be corrected on such things?
Receiving etiquette lessons like she had in her distant youth made her feel dizzy.
But she couldn’t protest.
Her counterpart was none other than the Great Hero from 2,000 years ago.
“S-Sir Kyle. E-etiquette isn’t that important, is it?”
“I learned this while losing sleep. The younger generation really is hopeless.”
Leo grumbled at Rhodia’s forced smile, then changed the subject.
“Seeing as you know about me, you must have heard the story from Seirun.”
“Yes. That’s why I’m so happy. Thanks to you entering my world, Sir Kyle, I was able to meet you like this.”
Rhodia, who was about to perform the draconic custom with an honored expression, froze and quickly bowed her head instead.
She was afraid she’d be corrected again if she tried to be formal.
“Can I not meet the other Heroes of Genesis in this world?”
“No. Even if you meet Seirun, Lumerne, Azonia, or Demian in my World of Heroes, they won’t be the real ones. They’re just past memories engraved in the Hero Record.”
It meant that in a World of Genesis, only the world’s owner was real.
“I see.”
“Fortunately, my world hasn’t been invaded by Erebos. That’s why we can talk so peacefully like this.”
Rhodia smiled.
“Yes, I wanted to have a deep conversation with you all, too. And I wanted to see a Hero Record in person like this.”
As he said that, Leo looked at the Hero Record.
At that, Rhodia spoke.
“Sir Kyle, this must be your first time seeing a complete Hero Record, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
“...I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. 3,000 years ago, that was the only way.”
Leo shook his head.
Watching Leo, Rhodia approached the Hero Record.
“Would you like to take a look? Of course, this Hero Record is a fake that exists within the World of Heroes, so it can’t open a World of Heroes like a real one.”
The stored Hero Record was protected by magic, so only those with permission could touch it.
Leo knew this, so he hadn’t touched it.
At this time, Rhodia was a scholar researching the Hero Record, so she was one of the permitted individuals.
‘That’s how she accidentally entered the World of Heroes.’
That was the beginning of Genesis.
*Step— Step—*
Rhodia opened the Hero Record and approached Leo.
“This is the first World of Heroes I ever entered.”
“The battle with the Gluttony King.”
“Yes. One of the greatest achievements of Sir Lisinas and you, Sir Kyle.”
Leo recalled old memories, reaching for Lisinas’s page with a bittersweet smile.
The story written on this page was, quite literally, the beginning of everything.
A truly terrible memory, and yet the most precious memory of when he and Lisinas met.
The moment Leo touched Lisinas’s page, reminiscing about the past.
[Hero Record Open. Lisinas’s World. Chapter: Prologue - The Beginning]
Leo’s and Rhodia’s faces stiffened at the message that appeared before them.
“What? Wait a minute. This is the World of Heroes, so why is another one opening inside it?”
Rhodia looked horrified at the completely unexpected situation.
On top of that, the message was distorted.
“A rampage?”
Leo also wore an urgent expression.
But the activated World of Heroes soon swallowed Leo and Rhodia.
*Fwoosh—!*
Once again, they were engulfed in a familiar light.
The moment their vision cleared.
Before them spread the scene of a battlefield.
A battlefield littered with the corpses of demons, monsters, and fiends after a battle had ended.
The stench of burning corpses filled the air.
Leo’s gaze naturally drifted to the sky.
An ashen sky.
Then he naturally turned his head.
‘Gardsrone.’
A familiar scene.
Leo looked down at his hands.
They were not the hands of a young boy.
The hands of a man, covered in scars and caked with blood.
But they weren’t unfamiliar.
In fact, they were familiar.
“You’re right, Kyle. My wish is a very foolish one.”
And then he heard a familiar voice.
Leo’s hands tensed.
“But Kyle. We will save the world.”
When he turned his head, a dear comrade was standing there.
Looking exactly as he remembered.
With the same, unchanging smile as always.
“Let’s go together. You won’t have to watch your comrades die before your eyes anymore. Because I’m strong, too.”
He stared blankly at the hand of his friend, offering a promise he now knew would become a lie.
Seeing him, Lisinas sighed softly, her expression seeming to say, ‘Are you refusing again?’
‘What did I say back then?’
Even while suddenly thinking he wanted to grant her wish.
As if it were a bother.
‘Fine. I’m sick and tired of you pestering me. I’ll tag along on that absurd journey of yours for once.’
That’s how he had answered.
He remembered how Lisinas had shaken her head at his blunt reply.
When Leo didn’t take her hand, Lisinas slowly lowered it.
*Grab—!*
“...!”
Lisinas’s eyes widened as Leo firmly grasped her hand.
“Alright. Let’s do it. You’re right. We will definitely….”
Leo looked his friend straight in the eyes and smiled.
“Save the world.”
Lisinas looked surprised at Leo’s words.
But soon, as if pleased by his words.
She broke into a radiant smile.