Chapter 140

140.

After leaving the Tower of God, Leo strolled through Barharun, lost in thought.

‘Surely the division of the Hero Record wasn’t solely for the establishment of Hero Academy.’

3000 years ago.

When a fragment of Erebus was resurrected, the existence of the Hero’s World became known.

After suppressing that fragment of Erebus, the Hero Record was split into five parts.

Using the power from those Hero Records, Hero Academies were established to cultivate heroes among various races.

But Leo found this fact puzzling.

‘Was it really necessary to divide the Hero Record into five parts?’

Moreover, in the process of splitting the Hero Record, a significant number of pages were lost.

As a result, many pages that were meant to inherit the powers of Great Heroes were destroyed, and Kyle, in particular, became a forgotten hero.

Compounding this, the page Leo himself had discovered was almost beyond recognition in its damage.

The loss was nothing short of catastrophic.

Upon witnessing this, Leo instinctively understood that the Hero Record wasn’t split merely to establish the Hero Academy.

‘The founders of Hero Academy couldn’t possibly have been unaware that the Hero Record might be damaged.’

Even if they were unaware, they should have anticipated the side effects of dividing the complete Hero Record.

Despite this, they proceeded to divide it.

Leo sought to uncover the reason behind this by investigating the hidden history of the past through a grand library.

‘Something as divine as the Hero Record wouldn’t just be ruined by being torn. There’s definitely a group out there destroying and obliterating lost pages. It’s obvious—Tartarus.’

The reason his own page was almost entirely gone was likely because Tartarus specifically targeted Kyle’s page.

To them, Erebus was akin to a god, and Leo, the one who vanquished that god, was both a hated and terrifying figure in the eyes of Tartarus.

‘You can see this by observing Guardstron. The fact that the demons are trying to erase their own history of fighting back during the Era of Catastrophe becomes evident.’

The current races on earth can now only learn about that era through documentation.

‘Conversely, Tartarus has legion commanders who have lived since that time. So, they must know precisely where and what happened back then.’

Leo narrowed his eyes thinking about the legion commanders of Tartarus.

‘Another mystery here is… how exactly does Tartarus influence the Hero Record?’

The Hero Record is a divine creation.

Even if the legion commanders of Tartarus are exceedingly powerful, it’s something they wouldn’t be able to tamper with easily.

Leo paused in his steps.

‘Let’s set these doubts aside for now.’

Right now, the priority was to navigate Luna’s world.

Leo looked at the Polium clasped in his hand.

The powerful magical staff that had been used by his old friend Luna.

Created using divine knowledge, the Polium was incredibly difficult to wield—despite its immense power in amplifying magic, the staff itself possessed great magical energy.

It was a tough item to handle, even for the most accomplished mages.

‘But Luna used it without any issues.’

Recalling how Luna wielded the Polium, Leo channeled magic into the staff.

This was the city of High Elves.

And the Polium was a widely recognized symbol of the mighty Elf King in this city.

Even if the Polium wasn’t chosen, the fact that it belonged to the Elf King was undeniable.

Holding the Polium around this city was a surefire way to cause trouble.

‘Luna actually found it burdensome to carry and transformed it into a bracelet.’

Leo cast a transformation spell on the Polium.

Ke-eeeeng!

Reacting to Leo’s magic, the Polium transformed smoothly into a bracelet.

He wore it on his wrist.

‘Never in my wildest dreams would I think I’d end up using the Polium directly.’

Chuckling dryly, Leo headed to Akinte’s lab.

‘First, I need to get Hardin out of the dungeon and also find Lunia and Elena.’

One thought occurred to Leo regarding the conquest of Luna’s world.

The star magic, according to Leo, was completed in none other than Barharun before the Era of Catastrophes.

Elves back then weren’t known as the magical race they are today.

However, due to their inherent closeness to mana from birth, many elves were powerful wizards even during the Age of the Gods.

And Barharun was the place where centuries of elf’s magical history converged.

Despite many high elves choosing the path of corruption, the true heritage of their noble ancestors hadn’t been defiled.

Leo stared at the towering tree at the center of Barharun.

A tree that no longer exists in the current world — the sacred World Tree the elves once nurtured and cherished.

Countless elves of the past continued the legacy they passed on, culminating in Luna achieving ‘Magic of the Stars.’

‘All this has been carried forward from ancient ages.’

The remarkable heritage of the ancient elves was passed on to Luna.

The developed ‘Magic of the Stars’ was then passed on to the present elves.

The will of generation after generation continued unbroken.

‘If the goal of this world is for Luna to achieve the completion of the Magic of the Stars, then the conquerors’ only role is to assist from the sidelines.’

Though appearing quite straightforward, in the “Introductory chapter” of any Hero’s World, the conditions for conquest are generally uncomplicated.

Arriving at Akinte’s lab, Leo looked curious.

He called out to the girl who hesitated in front of the lab.

“Luna.”

“Ah…!”

Luna turned back, startled.

“Professor Akinte.”

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s Erugen’s Royal Highness’s birthday today.”

Leo paused at this revelation.

Erugen, the Elf King’s birthday—a day celebrated like a festival by all elf races.

“There’s a party in the World Tree square… But… I wasn’t invited.”

Luna fiddled with her fingers.

Her expression was dim as she avoided Leo’s gaze.

“Would you… come with me? I really want to meet His Royal Highness.”

Leo felt a sense of incongruity.

‘What’s going on?’

In Barharun, Luna seemed like an alien among them.

A genius admitted not through family pedigree but solely due to her overwhelming talent and ability.

Because of this, she inevitably had her fair share of enemies within Barharun.

On the other hand, there were quite a few who admired Luna and supported her unreservedly.

The most notable figure among them was none other than Akinte, the person currently controlling this world’s body.

‘Right after entering Barharun, Luna boasted about receiving sponsorship from the Elf King.’

Even though her status was technically that of a student, she received treatment on par with the professors.

Free from the constraints of regular classes, Luna devoted herself entirely to magical research, laying the foundation for the magic of the stars here.

So why would she not receive an invitation for the Elf King’s birthday?

‘What’s going on? Did Luna lie to us?’

No, that was impossible.

Leo knew Luna well.

There’s no way she’d tell a lie out of pride.

Then what is it?

Could this mean Luna hasn’t received Erugen’s sponsorship yet?

‘No, Luna entered Barharun at the age of thirteen.’

Anyone looking at the present Luna would see a teenager.

‘So what is this?’

Leo felt a growing dissonance.

“Luna.”

“Yes?”

“Why haven’t you received an invitation if you have Erugen’s sponsorship?”

“My sponsorship from Erugen ended about a month ago.”

Luna sounded slightly flustered.

Looking listless, she slumped her shoulders.

Seeing this, Leo’s expression hardened.

‘The history of this world has changed.’

In the Hero’s World, history could change at any moment.

If the conquerors positively alter events, achieving even greater feats compared to historical ones, they could realize an “overachievement.”

Conversely, if they negatively influence events, the conquest would fail.

Thus, it’s not unusual for history within the Hero’s World to become altered.

‘But we have only entered Luna’s world a mere few hours ago.’

In that span, the only notable event influencing history could be how Hardin, entering Jera’s body, had wiped Hirkyan out completely.

Yet, there’s no way that could retroactively affect history from a month earlier.

‘Could it be that when the Hero’s Dungeon spirals out of control into a Hero Dungeon, the entire timeline gets warped? No, I’ve never heard of such a case before. So, what’s going on here?’

A voice suddenly came to his mind while deep in thought.

‘Leo. Darkness may have covered this world, or rather, the Hero Record.’

The divine revelation he had recently experienced.

Even if it was fake, its power was real.

‘Darkness… surely not?’

A sudden chill ran down his spine as he recalled something.

‘Could Tartarus have infiltrated the Hero Dungeon?’

*

Hardin, imprisoned in the dungeon, was chastising himself.

‘How foolish.’

Seeing someone insult the greatness of Luna, who could be called the epitome of Elven history, was too much, pushing him into action emotionally instead of strategically.

In a Hero Dungeon, every action must be taken with extreme prudence.

Emotions led to this.

‘Tsk. Embarrassing. Causing such a scene in front of a first-year, albeit from a different academy.’

Taking a deep breath and looking around, Hardin assessed his surroundings.

‘A dungeon for prisoners, yet it’s disgustingly dirty.’

It’s disgraceful to house members of the same race like this.

‘Is the distant past really so different from today?’

Hardin experienced a cultural shock.

‘I will have a lot to report back when I return to Seirun.’

As this thought crossed his mind,

Kiik-! Bang-!

The dungeon’s door opened, and someone entered.

Thud—Thud—

As two girls emerged with weak, listless steps, Hardin looked at them curiously.

They were visibly half-elves.

However, their clothing was shabby.

“Who… What are you?”

“Uh, what do you mean… I am a slave, am I not?”

“Slave? How come?”

Hardin questioned, clearly confused.

“Are you asking a strange question? Aren’t all mixed-bl**d elves slaves?”

The half-elf girl responded in a lackadaisical tone, devoid of any liveliness.

Seeing her response, Hardin’s face froze in shock.

‘Slaves… Could such a lowly practice truly exist? Could elves truly have treated their own bl**d in such a manner?’

Though there may still be contempt towards mixed-race individuals in the present era, it doesn’t mean that half-elves, with half of their bl**d being elf, are treated as slaves.

In this era, however, elves of mixed racial origins were treated not as people, but as objects of slavery.

It was seen as a matter of fact.

Trembling in revulsion due to this absurd revelation, Hardin looked at the world he now knew with growing dismay.

‘Such history… is it truly real? Did elves really enslave others?’

Shaken by the implications, Hardin was observed with bewilderment by another elf-slave girl.

At this point, someone else entered the dungeon.

Thud—Thud—

The owner of the footsteps approached the cell Hardin was imprisoned in.

The slave girl who had been bringing Hardin his meals quickly moved aside, but the other girl reacted too slowly and didn’t manage to make way.

Thud!

The man stopped.

The elegant high elf with striking white hair and blue eyes glanced at the slave girl standing in his way.

Then…

BOOM!

“Kuh…?”

Without hesitation, he kicked the girl.

She collided with the bars, breathing hard.

The other girl’s face turned deathly pale.

“E… En!”

The other girl hurriedly approached her unresponsive friend, worried.

“The education of these slaves is lacking.”

BOOM!

“Kuh!”

The white-haired elf, Sarman, idly exhaled and kicked the girl again.

At this sight, Hardin’s eyes flared with indignation.

“What is the meaning of this?”

At Hardin’s shout, Sarman’s lips curled upward in a smirk.

“A mere slave—is that all?”

CRASH!

“Keeh…!”

Sarman stepped on the head of the slave he had just kicked, sneering.

“Or is it that you can’t accept the fact that your ancestors once engaged in such vile deeds?”

“What did you say?”

Sarman’s words stiffened Hardin’s features.

“I don’t know how you came here… but you are Seirun’s dog.”

Whooooooosh!

Sarman’s hand radiated ominous black magic.

Crack!

His raised arm transformed into a monstrous one.

“You will d*e here.”

“Tartarus?”

Hardin, alarmed, attempted to summon his aura.

But the binding orb tethered to his arm restricted his aura manifestation.

Destruction of the orb wouldn’t be difficult, but doing so might put him in danger momentarily.

‘I must somehow defend myself and escape…’

Crack!

“Kuh?”

bl**d spurted and a pained groan escaped.

“It’s you, Hardin, isn’t it?”

The slave girl who had been kicked by Sarman stood up, smiling.

Smiling, the girl began to emanate pink magical energy, startling Hardin.

“Elena?”

“What’s with that pitiful sight of yours?”