Chapter 383

383.

At Leo’s question, Rodia’s eyes widened in surprise.

“The Dragon of the Cataclysm, Rodia.”

Rodia was undoubtedly her own name.

But the title “Dragon of the Cataclysm” did not refer to her present self.

It couldn’t be otherwise.

‘They called me the Dragon of the Cataclysm in the future.’

In the current timeline, not only was she not called the Dragon of the Cataclysm, but even her comrades-in-arms who had fought alongside her did not know the name.

It was the time when she had first discovered the infinite potential to stand against the Catastrophe.

And at that moment, she met a human boy who referred to her as the Dragon of the Cataclysm.

Rodia widened her orange eyes and examined Leo’s figure meticulously.

‘Snow-white hair and ruby-red eyes.’

“What is this?”

Rodia stood there with her mouth slightly agape.

An unbelievable miracle, relayed by her friends, amidst endless despair.

‘Hey, kids, just hang in there a little longer.’

At some point, her once blurred eyes sparkled again like stars in the night sky.

‘I’ve met hope.’

Seirun, who had smiled brightly like in the past, spoke.

Amazed by the story Seirun had shared, the Heroes of the Cataclysm regained their strength.

“Sir Kyle…?”

“It’s really you, Rodia.”

Leo nodded as he realized that this was the real Rodia, not a fake from the Hero Record.

Then, Rodia urgently shoved Leo from behind.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ll explain later! Humans shouldn’t be here.”

Rodia, understanding what was to happen very soon, chased Leo out the window.

The present Rodia was neither the Dragon of the Cataclysm nor the Dragon Lord.

She was still a young dragon at that time, and at that exact moment, she made some trouble.

This was a sacred place where outsiders couldn’t enter.

If they found out, the situation might get complicated.

Leo frowned.

Once Leo stepped out the window, Rodia quickly adjusted her attire.

Moments later,

“Rodia! What is the meaning of this? A huge surge of mana was felt here.”

“This is the sacred area where the Hero Record is kept! I’ve told you time and again not to cause problems!”

The dragons, who appeared to be of the dragon race, glared intimidatingly at Rodia.

Facing them, Rodia knelt down.

“I beg your forgiveness. Esteemed elders of our clan, it seems I have caused you distress due to my foolish curiosity.”

After apologizing numerous times with deep respect, Rodia left the room with the dragons.

Leo, who had been thrown out the window by Rodia unexpectedly, noticed that there was no longer any sign of anyone inside and stepped back into the room.

He then gazed at the landscape visible from the window.

‘Dragonia.’

The land of the dragons.

‘So it seems there is no sign of Erebus crossing over to reality through here, unlike in Seirun’s world.’

Indeed, Rodia’s Hero Record consisted of only a few remaining pieces, unlike the Hero Record fragment of Seirun.

The small fragment seemed to be a passage that even Erebus couldn’t use.

Alone now, Leo reflected.

‘The emergence of monsters in the Forest of Monsters has nothing to do with the Demon Queen’s curse.’

On the off chance he checked, the curse was no longer present.

There was no doubt that the abnormal situation in the Forest of Monsters was due to the Hero Dungeon intruding into reality.

‘And Rodia’s world.’

Rodia’s Hero Record was intact.

‘When I made the decision to open the Hero’s World, the world opened. So, if I decide to close it…’

[Would you like to close the world of the Dragon of the Cataclysm, Rodia?]

The instant Leo thought about it, a message appeared before his eyes.

Shaking his head after seeing it, he made the message vanish.

‘A complete Hero Record can be opened or closed at will according to my will.’

It was only natural that the Hero Record itself belonged to Leo, so unless it was due to a runaway situation, this was an obvious fact.

Leo looked at the center of the room with a look of amazement.

There was a book there.

A red-covered book with [Hero Record] inscribed on it, emanating divine power.

‘The Hero Record in pristine condition.’

The stories of himself and his comrades were recorded there.

After observing the Hero Record for a while, Leo settled down in one corner of the room.

‘I’ll wait until Rodia comes back, shall I?’

“To meet you is an honor, Lord Kyle, the Hero of Beginning. Though I may be unworthy, I am Rodia, leading the Heroes of the Cataclysm.”

Rodia bowed deeply, tapping her left chest three times in the traditional dragon etiquette as she greeted Kyle.

Seeing this, Leo said,

“In 3000 years ago, they were still using that greeting.”

“Of course. Do they not use it 3000 years in the future?”

“They make fun of it, saying it makes you look like an old man.”

“Huh? It’s a tradition passed down through generations, yet the later generations didn’t carry it forward? That’s not good.”

Rodia sighed in disappointment.

Looking at Rodia, Leo said,

“Is that so? But you’re doing it wrong.”

“Excuse me?”

“Your knee angle is off. Try again.”

“Yes, my lord!”

Leo corrected Rodia’s bowing etiquette, as he had learned it from Rissinas.

“You should bend more. Straighten your back. Who taught you this etiquette anyway?”

Wasn’t this the kind of education he had only received during his distant childhood? He felt a dizzying confusion at being critiqued on something like this.

Still, he couldn’t resist.

Wasn’t his opponent the great hero of two thousand years ago?

“Sir Kyle, isn’t such etiquette not that important?”

“I couldn’t sleep and studied this. The later ones just won’t do.”

Seeing Rodia forcing a smile, Leo muttered and changed the subject.

“Seems like you’ve heard stories from Seirun, seeing what you know about me.”

“Yes, I am very pleased. Thanks to Sir Kyle coming into my world, I’ve had the chance to meet you.”

Wearing an expression of honor, Rodia was about to raise the dragon’s greetings again, but quickly bowed her head.

She didn’t want to be corrected again just for bowing.

“Can’t you meet the other Heroes of the Cataclysm in this world?”

“Yes. Even if I meet them in my Hero’s World, such as Seirun, Lumeran, Azonia, and Demian, they are not the real ones. They are past memories etched in the Hero Record.”

Only the owners of the world of the Cataclysm are real.

“I see.”

“Fortunately, my world has not been invaded by Erebus. That’s why we can talk peacefully.”

Rodia smiled.

“Right, I wanted to have deep conversations with you guys, and I wanted to see the Hero Record once like this.”

Saying that, Leo looked at the Hero Record.

At that, Rodia said,

“Sir Kyle, is this the first time you are seeing an intact Hero Record?”

“That’s right.”

“…I apologize.”

“It’s not necessarily your fault. Back in 3000 years ago, there was no other way.”

Leo shook his head.

Looking at Leo, Rodia approached the Hero Record.

“Would you like to see it once? Of course, this Hero Record is a fake in the Hero’s World, so it won’t open the Hero’s World like a real one.”

The kept Hero Record was protected by magic, and only those authorized could touch it.

Leo also knew this and refrained from touching it.

Rodia was one of those authorized individuals as she was studying the Hero Record as a scholar back then.

‘That’s how I accidentally entered the Hero’s World.’

It was the beginning of the Cataclysm.

Tub-tub-tub,

Rodia approached Leo with the opened Hero Record.

“This is the Hero’s World I entered for the first time.”

“The battle against the King of Greed.”

“Yes. One of the greatest achievements of Master Rissinas and Lord Kyle.”

Recalling the old days, Leo smiled wistfully as he stretched his hand toward Rissinas’ page.

The story written on this page was literally the start of everything.

A terrible memory it was, but it was also the most precious memory of when he and Rissinas first met.

As Leo reminisced about the past and touched Rissinas’ page,

[Hero Record Open. Rissinas’s World. Chapter: Prelude – The Beginning.]

The message that floated in front of their eyes made both Leo and Rodia stiffen.

“What? Wait. If this is the Hero’s World, why inside the Hero’s World?”

Surprisingly, Rodia’s face was filled with shock from an unpredicted situation.

And more worryingly, the message was distorted.

“Runaway?”

Leo also wore an urgent expression.

However, the triggered Hero’s World swallowed Leo and Rodia shortly after.

Hoo-wack!

Again, they were enveloped by a familiar light.

The moment their vision cleared,

What opened to them was the scene of the battlefield right in the middle of a battle.

A battlefield filled with the corpses of demons, monsters, and beasts after the battle.

The stench of burning corpses filled the air.

Leo’s gaze naturally turned upward to the sky.

Gray sky.

Naturally turning his head,

It was ‘Guardstron.’

A familiar sight.

Leo glanced down at his hands.

It wasn’t a young boy’s hand.

It was a man’s hand full of scars with bl**d caked on it.

But it wasn’t unfamiliar.

Rather, it felt familiar.

“That’s correct, Kyle. My wish was foolish and wrong.”

Then, a familiar voice echoed.

“But Kyle, we will save the world.”

Turning his head, he saw a beloved friend standing there.

Exactly the same as in his memories, with that ever-consistent smile.

“Let’s go together. You won’t have to see your comrades dying in front of your eyes anymore because I’ve become strong too.”

He stared at the hand of his friend who offered him a promise that was about to become a lie.

Seeing that, Rissinas let out a sigh, as if thinking, ‘Is it another rejection?’

Suddenly, Leo thought of what he had said back then.

‘To fulfill her wish, no matter how bothersome…’

‘Then I will follow your absurd journey this one time.’

He had given that brusque response.

He remembered Rissinas shaking his head at that curt reply.

Swoosh–

Rissinas slowly dropped her hand, as Leo didn’t hold hers.

Thud!

“…!”

Seeing Leo firmly grabbing her hand, Rissinas’ eyes widened in surprise.

“Yeah. Let’s give it a try. You’re right. We will undoubtedly…”

Leo smiled, staring directly into her eyes.

“Save the world.”

On hearing those words from Leo, Rissinas initially wore a look of surprise.

However, soon her face brightened with joy at the message,

and she broke into a radiant smile.