Chapter 482
Chapter Title: Not a Hero
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482.
Beneath a sky tinged with twilight.
A knight wielding a longsword faced off against another with a greatsword.
Tamus, the knight of the greatsword, clad in resplendent armor, spoke.
“So, you’ve come alone, Knight of Twilight.”
Tamus said in a cool voice.
“The ignorant masses of the world often chatter.”
Tamus aimed Nox, held in his hand, at Lumerne.
“That the Knight of Twilight is the successor to the Hero of the Beginning, Kyle.”
The Hero of the Beginning, Kyle.
2000 years ago.
The last Great Hero who saved the world from the brink of destruction.
He overcame countless hardships and trials, surpassing his limits time and again.
Kyle, who ultimately saved the world even in the most desperate of situations, is still revered as a paragon for all heroes, even after 2000 years.
The titles of heroes are bestowed by the gods.
Literally, Kyle was the beginning of a new era, acknowledged by the gods themselves.
That is why any hero would desire to be called Kyle's successor.
“I cannot accept it.”
Tamus narrowed his eyes.
“The Hero of the Beginning is the greatest, most noble, and strongest hero. It is absurd that a former slave like you would be his successor.”
At those words, Lumerne closed his eyes.
“Furthermore, you failed to obtain the completion reward even after conquering the world of the Hero of the Beginning. Do you think someone like that is fit to be his successor?”
“I know better than anyone that I am not fit to be the successor of the Hero of the Beginning.”
Lumerne replied calmly to Tamus’s words.
“Because I could not surpass my own limits.”
Lumerne said, looking down at his own hands.
“It’s ridiculous to call me Sir Kyle’s successor when I gave up, unable to overcome them.”
Even after conquering Kyle’s world, Lumerne did not receive the completion reward.
Lumerne believed he didn’t get the reward because he was unfit to be Kyle’s successor.
*‘I’ve admired and respected him since I was young. That’s why I wanted to carry on his will.’*
But even after reaching a position close to him, I ultimately couldn't reach him.
That was my limit.
My friends all did their part.
Befitting the successors of the Great Heroes, they each inherited their powers.
*‘But I, who failed to inherit Sir Kyle’s power, couldn’t fulfill my role. That’s why I nearly led my friends to their deaths.’*
No matter how much I reached out, I could not touch Kyle.
Our very foundations were different from the start.
Kyle was an All-Class, and I am a Magic Swordsman.
“You know your place.”
Tamus sneered at Lumerne.
“If I had been in your place, conquering Kyle’s world… I would have surely obtained his power.”
“No, you wouldn’t have been able to inherit Sir Kyle’s power either.”
“What?”
“Just because I’m not Sir Kyle’s successor, isn’t it ridiculous for you to think you are?”
“How dare a lowly former slave like you speak such nonsense in my presence?”
“Rodia waited for you until the very end. She believed you would come.”
Lumerne’s eyes turned cold.
“It wasn’t just Rodia. Seirun, Azonia, Damian too. Though we now walk completely different paths, as long as you were a hero, they believed without a doubt that you would surely come.”
“You…”
“The entire world waited for you.”
Until the very moment the Calamity's Advent was concluded.
The Knight of the Netherworld was hailed by the public as the strongest hero.
His fame surpassed that of the Hero of Genesis.
Moreover, many spoke of him as a hero stronger than the Hero of Genesis.
It wasn't just his individual might.
The forces he commanded were so powerful they not only shook the continent's hegemony but could even threaten Tartaros.
Even the Shadows, who hid from the world as objects of fear and contempt, revealed themselves on the battlefields of Tartaros, led by the Shan Empire.
“Everyone joined forces to fight against the returned Calamity. Because everyone knew why we were driven to the brink of destruction 2000 years ago.”
The reason the world faced the crisis of destruction during the Age of Calamity.
It wasn't just a problem of a catastrophic existence named Erebos.
The world, divided even more than that, was powerless before the advance of Tartaros.
They did not stop their squabbles even as the world hurtled toward destruction.
After the Age of Calamity ended and a new era dawned.
The world strove to never repeat such an event.
“There was division and conflict. Disputes between races and wars between factions were incessant. But the past was not forgotten. For the last 2000 years, whenever Tartaros stirred, the world sheathed its blades against each other and fought against evil.”
The conflict between the Heroes of Genesis and the Knight of the Netherworld was a famous tale.
But it was thought they would unite their strength in the face of a world crisis.
People had no doubt that the Knight of the Netherworld, called the strongest hero, would raise his sword to annihilate evil.
But what returned was a betrayal of that trust.
People despaired deeply.
Amidst that, the Heroes of Genesis vanquished the fragment of Erebos and saved the world.
The joy was fleeting.
People turned their anger toward the Knight of the Netherworld and his empire, Tarim.
The anger soon turned to mockery.
“Your crime isn’t merely standing by during the world’s crisis. You severed the bond that had been maintained for the last 2000 years.”
Fury rose on Lumerne’s face.
“You destroyed one of the greatest legacies the Great Heroes passed down to us with your own hands. And you dare claim to be Sir Kyle’s successor after that?”
“Hmph. Such a thought is befitting of a worthless slave.”
Tamus scoffed.
“In the end, wasn't the fragment of Erebos vanquished? The very fact that it was dealt with by your hands, without the greatest hero, this body, stepping in, means it wasn’t much of a threat.”
Tamus wore an arrogant expression.
“If you fall by my hand, people will soon realize. That the greatest hero is still this body.”
Goooooo-!
A jet-black aura poured out from Tamus’s body.
“That the deeds you all accomplished were nothing special. If that happens… Rodia. That wench will realize it too! That her choice was wrong!”
Flash-!
His eyes gleamed.
Spiritual power erupted from his body.
“O glorious heroic spirits who follow my will! Arise! Teach this arrogant one who dares challenge my majesty the true height of the heavens!”
With Tamus’s roar, a subspace rift opened, and the armaments of heroes poured out.
The heroic spirits summoned from the armaments revealed themselves.
The legion of heroes that was Tamus’s pride.
Heroes who had fallen by his hand, or those who had followed him and lost their lives on the battlefield.
Tamus had made contracts with such heroes, commanding them as heroic spirits.
A technique possible only for him, known as the strongest spiritmancer in the 2000-year history since the Age of Heroes.
This was the reason he was called the strongest hero.
However, the heroic spirits did not move, despite Tamus’s command.
“Insolent! Why do you not obey my command!”
Tamus wore a flustered expression.
“I told you, you betrayed the world’s trust.”
Lumerne pointed his sword at Tamus.
“Did you really think the heroic spirits would follow someone like you?”
At Lumerne’s cold words, Tamus’s face contorted.
“Pathetic fools. To dare betray me.”
Fwoosh-!
Dismissing the heroic spirits, Tamus curled his lips into a smirk.
“It matters not. The reason I am called the strongest hero is not because of my spiritmancy.”
Tamus lowered his stance and readjusted his grip on Nox.
“What can you possibly do alone? Your achievements are merely deeds accomplished by relying on my former companions.”
It had only been five years since Lumerne joined Rodia.
Tamus remembered when he first met Lumerne.
Lumerne had indeed conquered a Great Hero’s world on his own.
But it was only the [Prologue].
Thinking back to that time, Lumerne was a weakling who hadn't even earned the title of hero.
Just five years.
How much stronger could a weakling who couldn't even properly block one of his strikes have become?
Kwaak-!
Tamus charged toward Lumerne.
Slice-!
And his vision flipped upside down.
“What?”
Tamus uttered in a daze.
Tamus did not know.
That when all the Heroes of Genesis had fallen.
The one who never gave up and finally severed the head of Erebos’s fragment was the Knight of Twilight, Lumerne.
That Lumerne’s power had long since surpassed Tamus’s.
And Lumerne’s swordsmanship…
*‘…The Hero of the Beginning… Kyle?’*
Tamus had never entered Kyle’s world.
But he had met him in the worlds of other Great Heroes.
That was why he could recognize at a glance that the trajectory of Lumerne's sword just now was identical to Kyle's.
From his inverted vision, he could see Lumerne’s back.
The figure somehow overlapped with that of Kyle.
*‘To mock me with lies! You did inherit Kyle’s power!’*
Tamus’s eyes became bloodshot.
*‘How could he have become so strong in such a short time?’*
Tamus was consumed by the question swirling in his mind.
*‘I see! You grew stronger not through your own power, but with the completion rewards of the Hero Record! Unforgivable! You fake hero!’*
Reaching his own conclusion, Tamus spewed hatred.
*‘This is all your fault! That I was betrayed by the heroic spirits! That Rodia abandoned me! That I couldn't inherit the power of the Great Heroes! That I couldn't inherit Kyle's power! It’s all your fault!’*
His consciousness faded.
*‘If only you hadn’t existed! That place would have been mine…!’*
***
“Crazy bastard.”
“What… did you say?”
“Why are you my successor? I’ve never had a successor like you.”
“Do you also think Lumerne is your successor?! He is a mere former slave! He is not a successor worthy of your great name!”
Tamus shouted in an agitated voice.
“I, of noble birth! Tamus is the one worthy of being your successor…”
“I never really thought of that Lumerne fellow as my successor either. What’s so important about being a successor? Anyone who tries to save the world is one who follows in our footsteps.”
Leo said nonchalantly.
“In that sense, you’re not even a hero, let alone my successor.”
“What?”
At Leo’s declaration, Tamus’s body trembled with rage.
“Right, I see. You are not the Hero of the Beginning, Kyle.”
“Just a moment ago, you were calling me Kyle.”
“The Hero of the Beginning would never fail to acknowledge me.”
“You really are a crazy bastard.”
Leo knew he was dealing with someone unreasonable, but he hadn't expected it to be this bad. He could only let out a hollow laugh.
From within the hood, his eyes flashed.
“I rose to the position of hero with the acknowledgment of the gods. How dare someone like you question the qualifications of me, who has been recognized by the gods.”
“If you put it that way, I have nothing to say, but.”
Leo’s lips curled into a smirk.
“Still, you are not a hero.”
“How arrogant.”
Killing intent poured from Tamus’s body.
“For a fake hero born from the power of the Hero Record to dare judge me…!”
The moment Tamus flew into a rage.
His movements stopped.
And soon, his body began to tremble like an aspen leaf.
“Th-this… is impossible…!”
Tamus stared at the message before him with a look of astonishment.
[Your qualification as a Hero has been revoked.]