Chapter 455
Chapter Title: I Shall Return
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455.
The hero cadets erupted in cheers at the legendary hero's feat unfolding before their very eyes.
The colossal threat that sought to destroy the world had just vanished before them.
They had literally witnessed a page of legend being written.
Ar-on smiled as he watched the cheering hero cadets.
“You’re amazing, Lord Ar-on!”
Ar shouted as she ran over.
Seeing Ar's beaming face, filled with joy, Ar-on reached out his hand.
“Thank you.”
“Huh?”
“I was able to wake up because I heard your voice.”
At his words, Ar grew shy, not knowing what to do.
“Lord Ar-on. What you said a moment ago.”
As Chelsea asked hesitantly, Ar-on turned back and gave her a wink.
At that, Chelsea silently nodded.
“Ar, Chelsea. Let’s go tend to the injured now.”
“Yes!”
Answering energetically, Ar and Chelsea returned to the castle.
It had been a fierce battle that had lasted through the night.
While Ar-on had fought ferociously with Erebos, the hero cadets, despite their small numbers, had to withstand an onslaught of monsters comparable to a legion.
As such, there were many injured.
The hero cadets, who had been cheering in the joy of victory, came to their senses and quickly began treating the wounded.
Following Ar as she ran to the castle, Chelsea glanced back slightly.
She saw Ar-on following, with Leo walking by his side.
Ar-on held out his right fist toward Leo, who was walking on his right.
Leo smirked and lightly bumped it with his left fist.
They looked like old best friends and comrades.
‘So Leo really is… the Hero of the Beginning.’
Seeing them, she finally understood what Ar-on had said earlier.
*Step, step.*
“Kyle, I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“I couldn’t repay your faith in me.”
Ar-on said, looking at the sun slowly rising as it pushed back the darkness.
“I acted brave in the final battle, but honestly, I was trembling. I had seen the future.”
“The future?”
“Yeah. I knew we would lose that battle. So I was going to suggest we run. But then I saw a future where you and Luna would die if we fled.”
“…So you died in our place?”
“Yes. And I gave up.”
“You never gave up.”
“…”
“You weren’t a burden. We never once stopped believing in you.”
At Leo’s words, Ar-on smiled.
“I know that now. Don’t worry so much.”
“Does this look like I’m worried? I’m scolding you for only just realizing it, you idiot.”
Ar-on scratched his head as Leo spoke with a deep scowl.
“If Luna were here, would she have hit me?”
“Would it have ended with just one hit?”
“Definitely not.”
Shaking his head, Ar-on burst into laughter and looked down at Brave, which he held in his hand.
Brave had returned to its original, broken form.
“Dweno’s flame flickered just now.”
“I know.”
He recalled Dweno’s flame reacting to Ar-on’s aura.
“Dweno’s will responded to help you.”
Leo hadn’t done anything.
Yet, Dweno’s flame had ignited on its own.
Perhaps when Ar-on found the courage to move forward, Brave had sought to aid its master.
Though it was a broken sword, it had used its creator’s power to briefly return to its original form to fulfill its duty.
“That’s the kind of weapon Dweno makes.”
“Yeah.”
A weapon that responds to its user’s will.
That was why Dweno was called the Divine Blacksmith, and why Leo and Ar-on had trusted his work until the very end.
*Step, step.*
The two had neared the castle walls.
Seeing Ar-on, Leo stopped walking.
“By the way, how did you come back?”
Leo had used up nearly all his divine power to pull Ar-on from the World of Heroes.
But it wasn’t completely depleted, so he had never doubted that Ar-on would return.
Still, he was curious about how.
At Leo’s question, Ar-on smiled.
“I read the future.”
“The future?”
“Yeah. Thanks to reading the future so clearly, I reached the realm of the gods, if only for a moment. I think I gained divine power in return.”
Leo clicked his tongue at Ar-on’s words.
He knew Ar-on was incredible.
In all of history, there was likely no one who possessed such mythical martial prowess.
But even so, he had never imagined Ar-on would go a step further and reach the divine realm of precognition.
“That’s amazing. So, what was the future you saw like?”
“The future I saw didn't hold much meaning.”
“What?”
“Because the future could be changed in any number of ways depending on what I did.”
Ar-on looked at Leo and spoke firmly.
“So, Kyle. You just need to find your strength and keep moving forward.”
“Is that so? That’s the hardest part.”
At Leo’s words, Ar-on gave a wry smile.
They had now arrived right in front of the castle.
Leo stopped in his tracks.
“Ar-on, while subjugating the fragment of Erebos this time…”
“Kyle, your fragment of my Hero Record. Can I see it for a moment?”
Ar-on said, cutting Leo off.
With a puzzled expression, Leo handed over the Hero Record fragment.
Ar-on looked down at his fragment and took a deep breath.
Then he approached the castle.
“It’s Lord Ar-on!”
“Lord Ar-on!”
“Brave Hero!”
The hero cadets sent up cheers for Ar-on.
Ar-on entered the castle Melina had created.
Leo followed behind him.
The hero cadets swarmed around Ar-on.
The students from Azonia, in particular, were so moved that many began to cry.
“Everyone.”
Ar-on began to speak.
“Thank you for fighting so well, for not losing your courage even in a desperate situation.”
“It would have been impossible without you, Lord Ar-on.”
“We were able to fight because you gave us courage!”
Ar-on shook his head at the hero cadets’ replies.
“Courage isn’t something you receive from someone else. It’s something you all have right here.”
Ar-on said with a smile, tapping his chest.
“Even if I hadn’t been here, you would have fought against Erebos without yielding.”
His words brought expressions of deep emotion to the students' faces.
“So, thank you. Truly.”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean by that…”
“For letting me rest easy.”
Ar-on smiled gently.
“Just like the heroes who fought alongside us in that era 5,000 years ago. Just like the Heroes of the Apocalypse and the heroes who protected that era 3,000 years ago. I know now that you are all here.”
“Lord Ar-on…”
“Now, it’s your turn.”
At the Great Hero’s words, the hero cadets held their breath.
Everyone instinctively sensed it.
The end of this miraculous moment was approaching.
“Can we do it?”
At that moment, Vanir, the former student council president of Azonia, asked.
“Can we truly be like the heroes of the Age of Calamity and the heroes during the Calamity's Return… Can we do it?”
The hero cadets, having faced a terrifying calamity today, couldn’t shake off the overwhelming sense of despair.
Moreover, Ar-on, who had defeated the fragment of Erebos, would soon be gone.
It wasn’t just Vanir.
Most of the hero cadets present likely felt the same way.
Pondering Vanir’s question, Ar-on turned to look at Leo.
Then, meeting Leo’s eyes, he spoke.
“It will certainly be very difficult from now on. There will be people you can’t protect, and you’ll face despair from constant trials.”
Ar-on smiled at Leo, then turned back to the hero cadets.
“But you will still succeed. Because you are all courageous people.”
He passed on the words Leo had once told his younger self to these young hero cadets.
Ar-on said forcefully.
“I guarantee it.”
At his words, everyone clenched their fists.
*Fwoosh!*
As he finished speaking, a golden light poured out from Ar-on’s body.
“Ugh!”
“Lord Ar-on?!”
Everyone squeezed their eyes shut against the brilliant light.
“Ugh?!”
Just as Ar shielded her eyes.
“Ar.”
“Lord Ar-on?!”
Ar’s eyes flew open.
Ar-on patted Ar on the head and handed her the broken Brave.
“This sword always gave me courage. Though it’s broken… I want you to have it.”
“Are you… leaving?”
“Yes.”
Ar-on wiped away the tears welling in Ar’s eyes and murmured.
“So this is how my friends felt.”
“Huh?”
“Reliable… but also worrying. They must have been so anxious.”
“What…?”
“It just means you’re like a little sister to me.”
Smiling brightly, Ar-on took a step back.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Ar-on said to Ar.
“For the day we stand on the same stage.”
After offering his encouragement, Ar-on turned away without any lingering attachment.
No more words were needed.
“Yes!”
Because that determined girl would charge forward without hesitation.
The last place Ar-on headed was to where Leo and Melina were.
The two stood unaffected by the light emanating from Ar-on.
Seeing Ar-on approach, Leo spoke.
“Ar-on. You can stay in this time.”
Leo said with a worried look on his face.
His expression was similar to the one Ar-on had when looking at Ar just moments ago.
“You gained divine power by subjugating the fragment of Erebos. You could find something you want to do here…”
“I’ve already found what I want to do, Kyle.”
Ar-on shook his head.
“If I continue to remain in this era, that power will be wasted.”
Leo clenched his fist at Ar-on’s firm words.
“Besides, as you know, my Hero Record fragment is already at its limit.”
Ar-on glanced at the Hero Record fragment he had received from Leo earlier.
A fragment that was almost completely burned away.
It looked as if it could crumble to dust at any moment.
If Ar-on disappeared, the fragment would likely burn away completely as well.
“Forcing me to stay in this era in this state would consume a great deal of divine power. Please use that power for when you finally subjugate Erebos.”
“…”
“Kyle, you know as well as I do that there are things neither of us can do alone. When the time comes that you need the power of Lisinas, Luna, and Dweno, that power will pave the way. So you must not waste it carelessly.”
“But…”
“Don’t worry about me.”
Ar-on grinned.
That grin somehow resembled Leo’s.
“I can’t be the little brother who only ever causes worry, can I?”
At Ar-on's words, Leo gave a bittersweet smile.
“We’ll meet again.”
“Yeah.”
Leo nodded.
Ar-on looked at Melina and said.
“Melina, please help Leo a lot.”
“Yes, Lord Ar-on. I will do my utmost to assist Lord Leo.”
“Good.”
After patting Melina’s head as well, Ar-on climbed onto the castle wall.
*Fwoosh!*
Soon, the golden light vanished.
Everyone looked around, searching for Ar-on.
“Ah! There he is!”
Then they spotted Ar-on’s back as he stood on the castle wall, facing away from them.
As everyone watched him.
Ar-on, without turning around, raised his right hand and gave a thumbs-up.
Then he turned back, a confident smile on his face, and declared.
“I shall return!”
With those words, Ar-on vanished in a brilliant flash of light.
Everyone stared blankly at the spot where Ar-on had disappeared.
And then…
*Waaaaaaaaah!*
A mighty roar erupted from the crowd.
Leaning against the castle wall with his arms crossed, Leo wore a look of disbelief.
“He’s finally putting what he learned to use.”
“Pardon?”
“Just talking to myself.”
Closing his eyes, Leo recalled a memory from long ago.
***
“You want to know how to always give others confidence, like me?”
With her arms crossed, Luna held her head high with a triumphant expression.
Looking at her, a still-young Ar-on said.
“You’re not always reliable, Luna. Usually, you’re not. Only during battle…”
“What?!”
Luna’s eyes flashed at Ar-on, who was stating the facts coldly.
Wincing, Ar-on hunched his shoulders and said.
“…You’re always reliable.”
“Of course, of course!”
Regaining her triumphant expression, Luna announced.
“Lady Luna’s special lecture on inspiring confidence! First! Maintain a confident expression no matter the situation!”
“A confident expression?”
“A prime example is that signature smug, insolent smile of Kyle’s.”
“Kyle has a smug, insolent smile?”
“You know the one, right? It’s this expression.”
Luna grinned.
“Ah! I think I know what you mean!”
“Right? Smug, isn’t it? Insolent, right!?”
“Who are you calling smug and insolent?”
“You.”
At Luna’s words, Kyle tried to flick her forehead.
But Luna was not one to be caught so easily.
Scowling as he watched Luna dodge with a mischievous grin, Kyle asked.
“What are you two doing?”
“I’m learning from Luna how to give others confidence.”
“From her? You’d be better off learning from Dweno.”
“Are you saying I’m worse than that pervert?”
Luna snapped and lunged at Leo.
Kyle pushed her face away with his palm and said.
“So, let’s say I learn how to smile like that. What’s next?”
“Once you’ve mastered the confident expression, posing is important. You dazzle people with a flashy display, strike a cool pose, and deliver a plausible line. I’ll show you.”
Luna put on a cool expression, swept her hair back, and said.
“Prepare yourself, for I have arrived.”
Then she gazed at Kyle with a profound look.
At that, Kyle said to Ar-on.
“You know what that’s called?”
“What is it called?”
“Striking a lame pose.”
“You little brat!”
Luna’s eyes widened as she tried to hit Kyle with her staff.
Kyle quickly ran away.
Luna chased after Kyle, swinging her staff and shrieking.
Watching them, Ar-on took out a mirror and tried to make a solemn face or strike a cool, plausible pose.
To the young Ar-on, Kyle’s and Luna’s expressions and poses looked quite cool.
“What are you doing, Ar-on?”
Just then, Lisinas approached and asked. Ar-on smiled brightly.
“I was imitating Kyle and Luna. I want to become someone who gives people confidence, just like them.”
“You’re already a very reliable person, Ar-on.”
Lisinas said with a gentle smile.
“But…”
As Ar-on was about to say something, Dweno spoke up.
“Let me give you a piece of advice, Ar-on.”
“Okay.”
As Ar-on nodded, Dweno gestured with his chin.
By now, Luna was choking Kyle, and Kyle was pulling Luna’s ear.
“If you imitate those fools, you’ll become a fool yourself.”
“Who are you calling a fool? You pervert.”
“Who’s the fool! You perverted old man!”
Leo and Luna ran over and hit Dweno on the head.
“The fools have sharp ears, I see.”
Staring blankly at the bickering trio, Lisinas said.
“Ar-on.”
“Yes.”
“You must never become like them. Understand?”
Seeing Lisinas’s somewhat sorrowful expression, Ar-on nodded his head.