Chapter 451

451.

“What the hell is happening inside?”

Rienia shouted in frustration.

The towering wall of black flames in front of her made it impossible to see what was going on beyond.

Seeing this, Toluah raised her staff.

Wuuuu-!

A giant spear of light was conjured by Toluah’s magic.

Kwaaaak-!

Toluah sent the magic flying toward the wall.

Hwaak-!

But the black flames engulfed Toluah’s power.

Toluah’s eyes twitched at the sight.

“I’ll give it a try.”

Lunia chanted a spell.

Flarrrr-!

White flames flared up all over her body.

Kwaaaah-!

The white flames surrounding Lunia intensified even more.

“Lunia?!”

Eiran called out to Lunia urgently.

Hwaak-!

Lunia, with her fiery red hair now turned pure white, gritted her teeth.

The flame of the Flame Emperor, purging all impurities by burning herself.

The last Phoenix King, Katariu, had bestowed upon Lunia a flame that was the purest in the world.

Burning herself, Lunia completed her spell.

“Flame Emperor!”

Hwaak-!

As if a white sun had appeared.

A massive sphere of flame manifested above Lunia’s palm, stretching out towards the sky.

Lunia threw the sphere of flames toward the black flame wall.

Pajiziziz-!

The black and white flames intertwined.

But soon after, there was a tremendous repulsion, pushing each other away.

It was a blaze that roared fiercely, as if the opposing forces had collided.

Hwaak-!

However, the black flames soon devoured Lunia’s flames.

Kwaaaaaaaaaak-!

An explosion occurred that was incomparable to any before.

“Cough?!”

Everyone shielded their eyes and bowed their heads at the blinding flash and the aftershock of the explosion.

KuoOOOOOooong-!

The sound of the explosion echoed, resonating in the air.

Yet despite all this, the wall of black flames remained intact.

“d*mn it!”

Returning to her original fiery red hair, Lunia clenched her fist and shouted harshly.

She gripped her fist so tightly that her nails dug into her palm, causing bl**d to spill out.

She felt a burning pain all over her body from the burns.

Yet Lunia glared at the wall of flames, as if exuding her frustration.

‘What do they mean by the next Student Council President?! What do they mean by Luna’s successor?!’

Lunia had been feeling overly excited lately.

As a member of the Lundua family, who had contracted with the Phoenix for generations, she had inherited the power of the long-lost Phoenix King.

On top of that, she was evaluated as the forerunner of the Star Cloud after the Comet Wizard, and even received recognition from the Dragon Lord Melina.

So she thought she had drawn a little closer.

But that wasn’t the case.

‘Far.’

The gap between her and Leo was still vast.

‘No, I already knew that much!’

No matter how strong she had become, she understood that there was a difference she could not bridge.

That’s why she had come running, doing her best to chase after Leo.

What angered Lunia was not the distance between herself and Leo.

‘I am incompetent!’

She knew what Leo’s goal was.

It was none other than to subdue Erebus.

An enormous goal that she could hardly imagine.

Yet she had been brimming with confidence as she had been celebrated around her.

In the upcoming battles, she was sure she would be able to help Leo.

In fact, Lunia had experienced three battles against Erebus so far.

The first was in Luna’s world.

The second was in Dwenno’s world.

The third was in Seirun.

And by obtaining the Purifying Flame in the second and third, she thought she had gained the strength to fight against Erebus.

‘It was an illusion…!’

What she had faced was merely a fragment of Erebus.

Now, she realized that truth painfully.

Seeing Lunia’s trembling fist, Eiran desperately grabbed her hand.

“Lunia, take care of your body! You’ll ruin yourself like this…!”

“Now is not the time to worry about my body…!”

“Please listen to Eiran, Lunia.”

Melina appeared before Lunia.

“If you push yourself too hard and ruin your body, you won’t be able to help. Instead, you’ll become a burden.”

Upon hearing Melina’s words, Lunia deeply lowered her head.

Watching her, Melina forced a smile.

“I’m not expecting anything grand from you right now. Just lend a little strength to Aron’s fight, and that goes for all of you graduates as well.”

“Does that mean we’re still not qualified to stand on this battlefield?”

At Toluah’s question, Melina nodded.

“To put it bluntly, yes. The reason I recommended you to Aron was simply to ask for a little support.”

Everyone lowered their heads at Melina’s words.

Seeing that, Melina said, “Don’t be disheartened. If anyone should apologize, it’s me.”

“Yes?”

“You are all still young.”

Melina spoke firmly.

“Even if you graduate. Even if you are the best students. You are still bound to be inexperienced. You are not heroes yet, but hero candidates.”

Melina took a deep breath.

“It is entirely my responsibility for putting unprepared students like you on the battlefield, hoping to raise the chances of victory even slightly.”

Melina spun around gracefully.

“So it’s not your fault. In fact, you did very well. From now on, leave it to me, the adult.”

Melina brought her hands together.

Silver magic began to ripple from Melina’s body.

At this sight, the Hero Candidates shuddered.

Her hair, mixed with silver and black, flowed gently.

Soon, the silver magic transformed into black.

Melina recited an incantation.

“Niil.”

Hwaak-!

In an instant, the wall of black flames vanished.

“Awesome.”

Toluah gasped.

The magic of Lissinas.

Currently, there were only two people in this world who could use this spell.

The Hero of Beginning, Leo, was the first, and Melina, who inherited her magic, was the second.

The black flames disappeared.

Erebus, who had been confronting Leo and Aron, turned his gaze toward Melina.

– It seems that you aren’t just a puny creature after all. Have you inherited the power of a fool through the Record System?

Kugung-!

Erebus’s gaze shifted to Melina and the Hero Candidates, along with the other candidates far away, holding back the onslaught of his minions.

– Indeed, it appears that many have come to harbor useless hopes, entrapped by the sweet words left by the fool for 5000 years.

“Lissinas is not a fool, Erebus.”

Melina said in a cold voice.

It was a demeanor she had never shown before, like that of an icy blade.

“Lissinas is the great King of Wisdom who guided the world to salvation.”

– Just a grandiose title that serves no purpose. The King of Wisdom and the Hero of Beginning.

Erebus replied in an emotionless tone.

– They are merely fools and surviving heroes.

Gooouuuuu-!

A terrifying flame flickered at Erebus’s hand.

As if the previous attacks had merely been a game.

A mass of flame containing unimaginable destructive power writhed.

– Hero, if those worthless creatures are the hope you speak of, let me remind you just how insignificant that hope is.

Kwaaaaah-!

Erebus slammed the burning mass against the ground.

Kugugugugu-!

With it, an earthquake occurred.

The ground shook violently.

Drip- Drip-!

The ground cracked open.

Kuhwaaaak-!

Kroooooooooo!

From the split ground, monsters poured out endlessly.

The grotesque monsters, whose eyes held only the intent to k*ll, let out furious cries as they charged toward the castle.

Seeing the relentless march of the monsters emerging through the cracks, Ulta’s face contorted in shock.

“What is this?”

“That’s almost a legion-level attack!”

Rienia shouted with a pale face.

The current assault of the monsters was similar in scale to the army of the Demon Queen they had seen last year in Seirun.

“It seems they have created a legion-level force.”

Melina stated nonchalantly.

The Hero Candidates’ expressions reflected their shock at the extraordinary sight.

The scale of the monsters that had now appeared was comparable to that of Silatuna’s legion.

Of course, Silatuna’s legion had a majority of high-level demons deployed, so they wouldn’t surpass it in terms of quality.

But creating a legion-level force, led by a commander, on the spot was a chilling feat.

Moreover, the number of monsters was still increasing.

Watching this spectacle, Melina pondered for a moment and then looked at Leo.

When their eyes met, Leo nodded, and Melina said,

“Everyone, prepare to return to the castle and hold back the monster’s advance.”

“Yes!”

“Then what about Erebus…?!”

“Let’s leave that to Aron and Leo Flove.”

Melina answered with a smile to the Hero Candidates’ question.

As the Hero Candidates nodded and prepared to return, Erebus sneered.

– Worthless creatures without qualifications, pay the price!

Kwaaaak-!

As Erebus swung his arm, the air split apart.

Countless black hands reached out from there and overwhelmed the candidates.

Seeing this, Melina waved her hand.

Twinkle-!

The light generated from the silver magic circle sent Erebus’s summoned black hands flying.

But she couldn’t block all of Erebus’s attacks.

The black hands that survived and evaded the attacks relentlessly targeted the candidates.

Ulta used the power of the Pegasus to eliminate all those hands.

Toluah blew them away with magic, while Eiran and Lunia managed to fend off Erebus’s attacks with Animos’s sword.

Erebus’s eyes twitched at this sight.

“Don’t underestimate them too much.”

Leo laughed mockingly at Erebus.

“I’m the one who chose these kids to tear you apart into six pieces.”

Hwaak-!

Leo widened the distance between himself and Erebus.

“Do you really think your shabby attacks will work?”

– Dare you call my power shabby?

“Yeah. I’ve learned quite a bit about you through our brief fight.”

Leo’s red eyes shone brightly.

“First. You’ve been resurrected, but you’re not in perfect condition. In fact, you’re cut off from the first fragment you resurrected. You don’t know anything about the memories of the first fragment at all.”

This is significant.

Erebus was sealed and 5000 years had passed.

And the first fragment was sealed for 3000 years.

During these years, the world continued to cultivate power capable of opposing Erebus.

That did not merely mean the advancements in aura, magic, and summoning arts.

Erebus was ignorant of the potential hidden within the world.

“If you had any memories from 3000 years ago, you wouldn’t recklessly charge in like this.”

Leo laughed at Erebus.

“Second. You possess the power specialized in creating demons and monsters.”

He had been convinced after seeing him create a legion a moment ago.

That ability was nearly on par with the complete state of Erebus.

What it signified was singular.

“You’re weaker in combat compared to other fragments.”

Of course, it was only weaker compared to the other fragments.

As a fragment of primordial evil, its combat power was of a formidable level.

‘If it weren’t for Aron, I would have struggled to handle my current strength.’

Therefore, this fragment had to be subdued by any means necessary right here and now.

The moment the fragment in front of him secured dominion over Tartarus.

Powerful commanders would be created.

“Third. Your power is not in its complete state.”

Flames grow stronger the longer they burn.

And the Erebus in front of them was like a flame just beginning to ignite.

As such, its firepower was weak.

For Erebus, this world was akin to fuel.

The more it burned the world, the stronger Erebus’s power would rise.

‘The fragment that resurrected 3000 years ago has been burning for a long time.’

And it continues to burn even now.

Leo narrowed his eyes.

As he did, Erebus laughed.

– Don’t worry, it’s enough to obliterate you.

“Is that so?”

– Yes, had your companion summoned by the Record System been someone else, you would have been dealt with again. But as a hero, you will d*e.

“Bullshit.”

Leo replied coldly.

– You overestimate heroes. Don’t you think so, hero?

“Don’t make me laugh! Kyle won’t d*e. I’ll definitely take you down!”

– Well then, try to struggle a bit!

Gooouuuuu-!

Black flames erupted from Erebus’s body.

Aron gritted his teeth as he watched the flames approach him and activated his extrasensory perception.

In that moment.

Kwaagaaga-!

Erebus’s black flames engulfed Aron.

Aron’s face turned pale within the black flames.

‘… Extrasensory perception…!’