Chapter 476
Chapter Title: The Iron-Blooded Sorceress
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Whoooosh-!
A dry wind swept across the plains.
Flesh and blood, pulverized, were scattered everywhere, and broken armaments lay strewn about.
In the middle of the gruesome battlefield, an elven woman in a brown robe was on her knees, muttering.
“I can’t forgive them, I can’t forgive them, I can’t forgive them.”
Thud- Thud-
Figures clad in pure white armor and robes approached the elven woman.
“Quite the spectacular scene you’ve made.”
The mage at the forefront said, stroking his beard.
“Are you the Iron-Blooded Sorceress, Tiar?”
At the benevolent-looking old mage’s question, the elven woman, Tiar, didn’t even glance at him.
“I’ll take your silence as a yes. Well, now. This is a curious thing.”
The old mage chuckled as if he found it fascinating.
“The Iron-Blooded Sorceress is a hero from a thousand years ago. And yet, you suddenly appear in the present day.”
Even at his nonchalant words, Tiar didn’t stop muttering, clutching her head.
“Ah, I’m not saying you aren’t the Iron-Blooded Sorceress herself.”
At the old mage’s words, the knight standing beside him nodded in agreement.
“Because this is the era when the Brave Hero Ar-on, the Progenitor of the Nebula Luna, and the Sorcerer of the Comet Seirun have returned.”
At that moment.
Tiar, who had been blankly repeating the same words, froze.
“What… did you say?”
With a stunned expression, Tiar looked at the knight.
“That’s a lie. It can’t be. They… they wouldn’t… They can’t be like me… Not like me… They can’t be so… hideous…”
Watching Tiar begin to ramble again like a broken doll, a female spiritist in a pure white priest’s robe scoffed.
“Of course, you’re different from them. Their reappearance on this land is the will of the great gods.”
A look of disgust crossed the female spiritist’s face.
“You, who were revived by the evil black magic of Tartaros, are clearly different.”
But even at those words, Tiar only repeated, “It can’t be.”
Looking at her, the mage in the pure white robe spoke.
“I will let you rest in peace now, specter of the past.”
Fwoosh-
A massive flame erupted from the mage’s hand.
“In consideration of the great deeds you accomplished in the past, I will let you close your eyes peacefully. However… there is nothing I can do about your name being dragged through the mud.”
The old mage said gravely.
“Heroes are chosen beings who lead the world. A hero who has fallen into the clutches of the wicked Necro-King cannot be tolerated.”
Besides, among the elves, the Iron-Blooded Sorceress Tiar was already treated as a heretic.
“With this incident, I shall erase your name from the pages of history.”
Craaaash-!
Flames surged with a powerful explosion.
With the massive pillar of fire behind him, the old mage pulled his white hood over his head and muttered.
“All in the name of justice.”
“That ended more anticlimactically than I thought.”
The female spiritist, the hero known as White Inferno, Keleny, scoffed.
“Even if she was once a hero, she’s now just a pitiful soul in the Necro-King’s grasp. There’s no way she could be a match for us, the true heroes.”
“Sir Nergian is right.”
At the words of the hero, Nergian the Flash’s Awl, Nogern the Staff of Purification nodded.
All three were heroes registered in the Hero Record and members of the Justice Guild.
“Hmph, with the credit for defeating the Iron-Blooded Sorceress, I should be able to get promoted to Queen Class, right?”
“But Sir Nogern was the one who achieved the feat?”
“Ah, whatever, whatever. We dealt with her together, didn’t we?”
“I have no intention of taking all the credit. However, I wonder if we can get promoted for defeating a mere undead, even if she was a hero of the past.”
“Don’t you think this is enough to raise the guild’s prestige? Hohohoho!”
Nergian clicked his tongue as he watched Keleny burst into laughter.
Shaking his head at his two distracted comrades, Nogern froze, looked ahead, and muttered.
“Leo Flove.”
“What?!”
“Did you say Leo Flove?”
Keleny and Nergian stared ahead in shock.
There, Leo Flove was looking down on the three heroes.
“Ha, looks like the arrogant brat came here to die.”
“I will not forget the grudge of our guild members.”
“That’s odd. I’ve never killed a member of the Justice Guild.”
At Leo’s words, Nogern spoke.
“I do not believe you are unaware of the fact that we are aiding the Kingdom of Pettiman, Leo Flove.”
The old mage hero stepped forward and said.
“Leo Flove, the Guildmaster of Justice, Light Seeker, has expressed great regret over your hostile actions.”
“No need to express regret.”
Leo let out a short laugh.
“However, he also said that his desire to welcome you into the Justice Guild is great. He said that if you join the guild, he will guarantee you the rank of Queen Class. He also said he would overlook the matter of you killing our guild members.”
“Nogern, is that really true?! I can’t accept this! Queen Class for an outsider like him!”
“That’s right! The position of Queen is too much for someone who has done nothing for the guild!”
Keleny and Nergian protested with horrified expressions.
Queen Class.
It was the position of an executive.
The Justice Guild called its guildmaster the King and bestowed the title of Queen upon the executives who held sway over the guild.
Heroes who were knights received the title of Knight, mages Rook, and spiritists Bishop.
Regular guild members were given the title of Pawn.
The Queen Class was also for candidates to become the next King.
As such, it was a position one could only attain after joining the guild and proving their worth.
To bestow that position upon a brat who was hostile to the guild!
“This is not just the Guildmaster’s will. It is the will of all the executives. And Leo Flove is more than qualified.”
At Nogern’s words, Leo opened his mouth.
“Is that position of Queen so valuable?”
“It is. Depending on your rank, you will receive territory in the nation our guild will one day establish.”
“A nation?”
“That is correct. We, the Justice Guild, plan to create a new, ideal nation ruled by heroes.”
“Hero-nations founded by heroes have existed for a long time. What’s so new about it?”
“It is different. We plan to create a nation where the hero is the law.”
“…”
“A hero is akin to an agent of the gods. Only the special can become heroes. Is it not natural, then, that they should have the right to rule the world?”
Nogern said in a benevolent voice.
“We have the right and the duty to lead the utterly ignorant common folk into the light.”
“Do you feel no guilt for deliberately starting wars that didn’t need to happen, just to forcibly accumulate karma and become heroes?”
“None. Their sacrifice will become the stepping stone to creating a just world.”
Leo closed his eyes and sighed.
“That’s different from the heroes I have in mind.”
“And what is the hero you have in mind?”
“Someone who can risk everything to fight for others.”
“That sounds like something a child would say. It is a delusion one can only spout when they know too little of the world.”
“Delusion or not, at the very least, you are not heroes.”
Leo said coldly.
“You’re just a bunch of idiots who feel like you’re great and special.”
“Your personal opinion is not needed. The Hero Record, the gods themselves, prove that we are heroes.”
“Then those gods must be morons.”
Leo knew the true nature of the gods.
Just as there were gods who were righteous and sought order, there were also gods who pursued chaos.
Hedonists who purely sought entertainment.
If such gods were watching the mortal world…
‘Watching fools like them become heroes and act all high and mighty would be plenty of amusement for gods like that.’
At Leo’s words, Nogern replied coldly.
“Do not commit blasphemy. And if you do not accept our guild’s offer, the only path that awaits you is ruin. You could be hunted down and killed by us right here, right now.”
At Nogern’s words, Leo crossed his arms.
“Before you come at me, shouldn’t you worry about what’s behind you?”
“What…?”
Ruuuumble-!
The towering pillar of fire vanished, and a crimson-black magic circle appeared in the air.
The heroes of the Justice Guild wore expressions of shock at the terrifying magical power.
“N-No way!”
“How can a mere specter of the past possess such immense magical power!”
Keleny and Nergian wore horrified expressions.
Leo narrowed his brow as he watched the magic.
‘Is that Star Magic?’
It was a magic so distorted that even Leo felt a chill.
The magic left behind by the Iron-Blooded Sorceress remained as a Heroic Magic and was passed down in Lumerne.
However, its esoteric formula, which was as complex as its power was immense, made it one of the most avoided forms of magic.
‘The only one who uses it is Elena.’
He recalled Elena Jer-on, the ill-tempered fourth-year student in Lumerne’s magic department.
‘I see why she was ostracized as a heretic among the elves.’
Tiar’s magic was filled with hatred.
‘With that level of hatred, she must have been the ideal undead material for that Necro-King bastard.’
Just as Leo was scowling.
“Sir Nergian! Keleny! Form up!”
Nogern readjusted his grip on his staff.
“We must eliminate that specter!”
At his words, Nergian raised his aura and Keleny summoned her spirits.
“We will show that specter, who sullies the name of heroes, what the power of a true hero is!”
***
The battle of heroes, a clash akin to a natural disaster, came to an end.
In the middle of the devastated battlefield.
“Damn it… How dare… how dare… a filthy undead…!”
Nogern, his lower body gone, was painstakingly trying to escape the battlefield.
Tiar approached to finish him off.
Thud-
Leo walked up and stood before Nogern.
“L-Leo Flove. H-Help me…!”
At those words, Leo looked down at Nogern with cold eyes.
“W-We are heroes registered in the Hero Record… Wouldn’t it be right to join forces to fight against the wicked undead of Tartaros?”
Leo, who had been looking down at Nogern, walked over to Tiar.
“Tch! You milk-smelling brat! Save…! Save me! I am not a being meant to die so futilely in a place like this… Keuk!”
Nogern, who had been begging for his life in a rage, coughed up blood and collapsed.
The fall of the three Justice Guild heroes happened in a literal instant.
The difference in power between the Iron-Blooded Sorceress and the three heroes was simply too great.
‘Well, I suppose that’s the limit of manufactured heroes.’
Unlike them, who were created by accumulating karma, the sorceress before him was a true hero.
Although she had been revived as an undead by the Necro-King’s schemes and was now burning with endless hatred for the world, the fact remained that the effort and achievements this hero had built were real.
Leo looked at Tiar’s face.
Her eyes were unfocused.
All he could feel was hatred for the world.
The undead revived by necromancy all harbor hatred for everything living.
Leo, having dealt with countless undead himself, knew this well.
‘But this one is fundamentally different.’
A mage can learn about a person by looking at their magic.
The Iron-Blooded Sorceress’s magic was, in itself, distorted by hatred.
As far as Leo knew, all elves revered Luna.
They cherished the Star Magic she left behind.
Because magic is the heart of the mage.
To carelessly defile the great legacy Luna left behind was considered an act of blasphemy against Luna herself.
‘She wouldn’t have been any different.’
Gwoooo-!
“Eisen un Blut.”
An incantation flowed from Tiar’s lips.
A cruel magic that tore the opponent apart with iron and blood.
Tiar had no reason left.
Only the hatred that sought to tear everything apart remained.
‘I can’t let this go on.’
An undead filled with hatred is a disaster in itself, a being that causes slaughter by its very existence.
It was clear she wouldn’t stop killing everything in sight until she herself was gone.
‘I have to take her down.’
The moment Leo began to raise his magical power.
Fwoosh-!
Suddenly, jet-black mana rose from Leo’s hand.
“What?”
Leo’s face hardened as he saw the mana that had escaped his control.
‘A rampage?’
For a second, that thought crossed his mind.
But the mana did not rampage.
Leo hastily dodged Tiar’s magic and landed on the ground.
He then looked down at the jet-black mana still flowing from his right hand.
‘Lisinas’s mana?’
The moment Leo was startled by the sudden manifestation of Lisinas’s mana.
The jet-black mana emitted a brilliant light.
Flash-!
“Ugh?”
Leo closed his eyes.
“May… your next life be a peaceful one.”
In the middle of a battlefield.
Lisinas was kneeling and praying.
Pure white spiritual power flowed around her.
It was the image of Lisinas, the spiritist, honoring the souls of the thousands of death knights controlled by the Necro-King after she had defeated them.
Flash-!
The light vanished.
And the jet-black mana had, at some point, turned into pure white spiritual power.
Leo asked with a dazed expression.
“You want me to… save her?”
Vwoom-!
As if in answer to Leo’s question.
Lisinas’s spiritual power resonated.