Chapter 523
Chapter Title: The Divine Test
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523.
While investigating the Hero Dungeon, Mel looked bewildered as Damian appeared before her.
‘How is Lord Damian in the present? No, more importantly, why is he attacking us?’
The world believed that the Heroes of the Beginning had perished 3000 years ago.
But Mel knew well that they were still fighting, continuing their struggle in the World of Heroes for the past three millennia.
Melina had even met Damian in person in the World of the Beginning.
Though they had never spoken directly, Damian had certainly seen Mel.
And there was no way a man of Damian’s caliber would fail to recognize her.
Mel hurriedly stepped forward.
“Lord Damian! You have no reason to fight us…!”
Squeeze—!
As she spoke urgently, Mel saw the veins bulge on the hand Damian used to grip his massive axe.
‘He’s coming…!’
Mel hastily deployed her magic.
CRRRRAAAAAASSSSH—!
The battle axe swung.
An ink-black aura surged like a tidal wave, crashing down upon Mel and the other heroes.
The earth split and trembled.
As the heroes stared in horror at the hair-raising spectacle.
CRACK—!
A barrier of black magic blocked Damian’s attack.
All eyes turned to Mel.
“That’s the power of the King of Wisdom…!”
“Incredible.”
The fact that Mel was a Dragon Lord was already an open secret.
Everyone’s jaws dropped.
Normally, Mel would have quipped back, asking what they were talking about, but she had no time for that now.
A cold sweat trickled down Mel’s forehead.
‘He’s as strong as I thought.’
Taking a deep breath, Mel raised her hand.
Flash—!
Shadows shot up from the ground and coiled around Damian.
Rumble—! Thud!
His limbs bound, Damian was forced to his knees.
As Mel clenched her fist, the pressure on Damian intensified.
‘I’m sorry, Lord Damian.’
The moment she apologized to him in her mind.
Glint—!
A golden light flashed in Damian’s eyes.
Whoooosh—!
The ink-black aura transformed into a golden one that seemed to burn.
Seeing Damian’s entire body radiate a golden light, Mel gritted her teeth.
‘Lord Dweno’s power!’
Damian was the one who had conquered Dweno’s world.
As such, he was also the inheritor of Dweno’s power.
Crack—!
Damian grabbed hold of Mel’s magic that bound him.
Then, an unsettling sound came from Mel’s hand.
Mel gritted her teeth and pushed more power into her spell.
Squeeze—!
The force seeking to restrain Damian grew stronger.
In response, Damian’s strength surged as well.
Creak—! Crack—!
Ominous sounds emanated from Mel’s hand, which was connected to the spell.
Mel was a dragon specialized in magic and could not wield aura.
Even so, she was a dragon.
As the most powerful race in the world, their physical strength far transcended that of ordinary people.
And among them, Mel was a Dragon Lord, possessing the greatest power.
There were few beings in this world who could surpass Mel in sheer physical strength.
The magic Mel had used was Shadow Prison.
A spell created by Lisinas, its power was influenced not only by magic but also by physical strength.
In other words, the stronger the user, the more its power increased exponentially.
Despite her overwhelming magic and physical strength as a Dragon Lord, Damian broke through Mel’s spell with pure physical force.
Snap—!
“Ugh?!”
Mel clutched her hand and retreated.
The backlash from the destruction of her Shadow Prison had shattered the bones in her fingers.
Mel once again prepared to cast a spell.
Damian charged toward her.
At that moment.
Flash—! CRRRRAAAAAASSSSH—!
A bolt of white lightning struck from the sky.
Crackle—! Sizzle—!
There, mounted on a Pegasus, was Leo.
Leo let Karl and Eliza, who were riding behind him, down to the ground.
Then he looked at Mel.
Meeting Leo’s gaze, Mel gave a slight nod and said.
“Everyone, fall back. I will seal off this area to prevent any further damage.”
“Trying to stop Lord Damian by yourself is too reckless!”
“Other heroes and professors will be here soon. If we stop Lord Damian together…”
“We can’t fight him when we don’t know his exact condition. What’s certain is that he’s fighting us right now.”
Mel said calmly.
“He is not only the successor to the Godly Blacksmith, Lord Dweno, but also the one who defeated a fragment of Erebos that was resurrected 3000 years ago. It’s impossible for the heroes currently in Lumerne to face someone who possesses power that can overwhelm even a Legion Commander. The casualties could be immense. So I will stop him.”
“But alone…”
“I’m not alone. Student Leo will help me. As the contractor of Pegasus, he will be a great help.”
The other heroes couldn’t argue with Mel’s words.
“Student Leo. I’m counting on you.”
“Yes.”
After hearing Leo’s reply, Mel smiled faintly and raised her hand.
Hiss—!
Black magic erupted from her body.
It was none other than the power of Lisinas.
The black magic flowing from Mel shot high into the air, forming a massive dome-shaped sphere.
It was a spell to sever the connection between the inside and the outside.
From the outside, it became impossible to know what was happening within.
Inside, only Leo, Mel, and Damian were left in a standoff.
“Well then.”
Leo turned his gaze toward Damian.
“Let me ask you one thing. What are you?”
In response to Leo’s question, Damian lowered his stance, preparing to charge.
Watching Damian, Leo narrowed his eyes.
He sensed a certain power emanating from Damian.
‘Divine power?’
Previously, when Leo had briefly brought Seirun into the present world, he hadn’t needed divine power.
Unlike Luna and Ar-on, the Heroes of the Beginning were living beings.
In other words, they weren’t records from the World of Heroes.
As such, opening an entrance and bringing them out was something Leo could do with his own authority.
But now, he could feel divine power from Damian.
‘It’s strange to think he came to the present world using divine power. The Heroes of the Beginning currently have no way to obtain divine power. And even if they did, they wouldn't be able to use it.’
“Hmm.”
Leo let out a light breath.
Meanwhile, Damian crouched low.
Watching Damian, Leo opened a subspace.
‘Shall I test it out?’
Grip—!
Damian readjusted his grip on his battle axe and charged.
Leo plunged his hand into the subspace and pulled out a massive battle axe.
SCCCCRRRAAAAPE—!
He swung the battle axe he held in both hands in an upward arc.
A tyrannical attack that scraped along the ground as it was swung.
Crack—!
The axe blades met.
A collision of immense power.
For a moment, the space where their weapons clashed distorted.
And…
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The ground where Leo and Damian stood caved in as if a meteor had struck.
Crackle—! Splinter—!
Cracks began to form on both axe blades.
Shatter—!
Unable to withstand the force of the two, the weapons shattered into pieces.
The compressed aura exploded, sending Leo flying.
Thud! Thud! Flump—! Scraaaape!
Leo’s body tumbled across the ground several times as if thrown.
Breaking his fall to disperse the impact, Leo landed on his feet.
Unable to withstand the force, he was pushed back even while standing.
Looking down at his tingling hands, Leo burst into laughter.
“So, you’re the successor to Dweno, are you?”
As Leo shook out his hands, Mel asked urgently.
“Lord Leo, are you alright?”
“I’m fine. It seems that guy is stronger than me in terms of pure physical strength.”
Leo said, clenching and unclenching his hands.
“The ‘real’ one is probably much stronger than this.”
“So he isn’t the real one, after all?”
“That’s right.”
Mel had also vaguely suspected it.
“He’s a fake created from the records of the Hero Record. He has no reason. Only the instinct to fight.”
“How is something like that possible?”
“Who knows. It might be the Hero Record going rampant. In any case, he’s a disaster if left alone. We have to take him down now.”
Leo approached the Damian that was created from divine power.
‘Why did something like this suddenly pop up? Could it be that something has gone wrong with the Hero Record?’
Despite his questions, Leo focused on Damian.
‘If I let my guard down, I’ll be done for.’
Even though he was a fake, he was incomparably stronger than the Knight of the Netherworld he had defeated before.
Leo clenched his fist.
“Successor to Dweno, you said?”
Golden flames erupted around Leo’s body.
It was Dweno’s aura.
“Let’s see just how tough you are.”
Reacting to Leo’s power, Damian also unleashed Dweno’s power and took a fighting stance.
If you have no weapon, use your fists.
That was Dweno’s way of fighting.
Wham—!
Leo charged at Damian, swinging his fist.
Thwack—!
Struck by Leo’s fist, Damian’s head snapped to the side.
But without hesitation, he returned the favor, landing a solid blow on Leo’s face.
Leo casually cracked his neck.
“Indeed. You’re tough. Whose ‘defense’ is tougher, I wonder?”
Thwack—!
A terrifying fistfight between the Great Hero and the Hero of the Beginning commenced.
BOOM! BAAAM—!
Fearsome roars echoed through the air.
Each punch carried enough force to obliterate any other hero who might have been hit.
Crack—!
As their fists flew back and forth, a crack appeared in Damian’s aura.
At that moment, Damian’s movements froze.
Leo didn’t hesitate, driving his fist straight into Damian’s abdomen.
BOOOOOOM—!
Damian’s body was launched into the air before crashing back down to the ground.
“This kind of brutish fight isn’t really my style.”
Leo wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.
It was Dweno who enjoyed this kind of hand-to-hand combat.
In terms of pure physical combat, Ar-on was the strongest among the Great Heroes.
But in a fistfight like this, no one could match Dweno.
“That old geezer. He was unnecessarily tough.”
‘A clash of physiques! A conversation of the flesh! A brawl is its own form of art!’
Of course, that toughness was also a part of his unpredictable artistic soul.
As Leo reminisced about Dweno, he remained wary of Damian.
‘He’s not down yet.’
What made this kind of fight difficult was that it was hard for either side to land a decisive blow.
Especially someone like Damian, who would surely get up and attack again soon.
‘He’s that tough. If this becomes a battle of attrition, I might be at a disadvantage.’
If Leo used weapons, magic, or summoning, the fight would be over sooner.
And he would have a much more advantageous position.
Yet, Leo insisted on fighting in a way that Damian seemed confident in.
This was also the fighting style Dweno enjoyed the most.
‘He’s testing him.’
Watching Leo, Mel realized.
Although he was a fake, Damian’s power was not.
Perhaps one day, he might meet the other Great Heroes again.
And it was highly likely that he would meet the Heroes of the Beginning in the not-too-distant future.
In preparation for that time, Leo wanted to know what kind of people the Heroes of the Beginning, known as the successors to his old friends, were.
To tell the Great Heroes about their successors when they met again.
To acknowledge the Heroes of the Beginning as successors on behalf of his friends.
‘Rodia and Seirun were worthy enough. Lisinas and Luna would be happy to see them. Damian, I feel you’ll be the same.’
Just as Leo smiled and clenched his fist.
Fizz—! Bzzzt—!
For a moment, Damian’s body began to flicker.
Seeing this, Leo paused.
Soon, Damian’s form, which had been flickering in and out of existence, changed.
Damian’s figure was gone.
Standing there was a female beastkin wearing the pelt of a silver wolf.
Jingle— Jangle—
Short leather pants that left her legs bare.
Her top was an equally revealing piece of leather armor, exposing her shoulders, midriff, and waist.
Ring-shaped bracelets and anklets chimed with her every move.
It was an outfit ill-suited for combat.
But she wore a murderous fighting spirit like armor.
Her attire seemed to reflect a will to charge through a battlefield bare-bodied.
Leo narrowed his eyes.
“The Great Warrior.”
Azonia curled her lip at Leo.
Seeing this, Leo realized.
“I see. So I’m not the only one conducting a test.”
Leo knew of a certain kind who enjoyed testing people in this manner.
He had read about them in ancient texts long ago.
Not in life, but before death.
“A god.”