Chapter 484

484.

“Uaaaaaah!”

One of the wizard heroes was casting magic while screaming in terror.

Crack-!

However, before the magic was completed, he was killed by Tamus’s sword, which split his head in half.

Jerome’s face hardened.

‘What the hell went wrong?’

Light Seeker. Jerome.

He thought of himself as a chosen human.

Jerome was not born into a good family.

He came from a regular peasant farming household.

But since childhood, his talent was exceptional.

Before even learning letters, he contracted with a spirit.

And it was the most difficult spirit to contract with, the spirit of light.

Everyone around him praised him as a chosen human.

As he grew, he naturally entered Rumearn Academy.

The academy where the best talents gather.

Even among the countless aspiring heroes that gathered there, Jerome’s uniqueness stood out.

Numerous prestigious families and nobles.

Even among the renowned heroes’ descendants at Rumearn, Jerome was the best.

He became the representative of his grade and later rose to the position of Student Council President.

‘Jerome is special.’

Having heard that he was special in a place where special individuals gathered, Jerome became increasingly convinced that he was indeed special.

After graduating, he naturally joined the Justice Guild.

He quickly obtained the title of hero and also rose to become the guild master at a young age.

He was naturally evaluated as the hero who would succeed the Sword Saint.

After that, he researched Hero Records and discovered the concept of Karma.

He found out how to be chosen by the gods.

Jerome thought of himself as someone who would always shine.

He came to believe that his thoughts were the answers and justice.

He believed he was the human who would drive out the darkness of this world.

‘I will guide this world, filled with darkness, with light.’

If a hero is the agent of God.

He thought he could be the king of heroes leading that agent.

But…

Crackkk-!

“Cough?!”

Jerome, who summoned the supreme light spirit to block the overwhelming black aura that enveloped him, was sent flying.

‘Is this truly the power of a human?’

Jerome looked on in shock.

“Guild Master! Help me…!”

One of the other executives shouted desperately towards Jerome.

Crack-!

But his head was caught by Tamus’s hand and exploded helplessly.

It was a d*ath too pitiful to be considered the end of one who had reached the position of a hero.

And with that, all the heroes of the Justice Guild, except for Jerome, were annihilated.

Tamus and Jerome faced off.

“Indeed, did you gain such powerful strength through a contract with the Demon King?”

“It doesn’t seem that way at all.”

Jerome turned his head at the voice that came from behind.

There stood Leo, with Dwenno’s great sword resting on his shoulder.

“That’s probably the power he had while he was alive.”

“Foolish words. Do you think it’s possible for a human to have such power?”

At that, Leo looked at Jerome with disbelief.

“Aren’t you from Rumearn?”

“That’s true.”

“Then there’s something you’ve heard all your school days, hasn’t there?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Surpass your limits; that’s our school’s motto, isn’t it?”

“Nonsense. Are you preaching to me while spouting such dreamlike stories?”

Jerome cut him off.

“Even I cannot reach such a level.”

“That’s because your level is only that much.”

“What?!”

“How lucky you got to be a hero. How did you overcome your trials?”

“Trials? Ha. I overcame them all easily.”

“……”

At those words, Leo looked at Jerome and chuckled.

“Indeed. You’ve never experienced a trial, not even once.”

“What do you know about me? I overcame countless trials and achieved great feats.”

“Those may be trials and feats for others, but they wouldn’t have been for you.”

Trials are relative.

Just as the trials of first-year students are not a significant challenge for Leo.

Leo could tell that Jerome had lived his entire life in a greenhouse.

‘He must have avoided any dangerous situations.’

“Yet you have the audacity to call yourself a hero.”

“What did you say?”

“You’re not a hero.”

Just as Jerome was about to retaliate at Leo’s words.

“NenoOOOooooo!”

The furious voice of Tamus, who had discovered Leo, echoed, and a massive strike of jet-black energy descended upon Leo.

“Ugh!”

Jerome gasped and quickly summoned a spirit.

Then he activated Spirit Armor and fled.

‘Foolish child who doesn’t know how vast the world is. He braves the odds and invites d*ath.’

As Jerome sneered at Leo, who stood there without moving an inch.

Flash-!

Leo expanded his aura.

A gray aura coalesced around the great sword.

Fortifying his grip with both hands, Leo defended against the descending jet-black aura.

Boom-!

The clash of the enormous auras caused the surrounding space to twist for a moment.

A tingling sensation coursed through his fingertips.

Under the immense pressure, Leo smirked.

“Indeed, your skill is undeniable.”

Swish-!

Leo let the jet-black aura spill away.

He washed away the unimaginable strength with his technique.

Swash-!

In that moment, the lost jet-black aura fell to the ground.

“Hmm? Ugh?”

Jerome, who was frantically fleeing, turned his head at the overwhelming power he felt behind him.

Upon seeing the jet-black aura flying toward him, he widened his eyes.

He hurriedly drew up his energy and created a shield with the spirit of light.

Crash-!

“Gah?!”

But the jet-black aura ruthlessly pierced through Jerome’s light shield, severing his arm.

Swish-!

“Gaaah!”

It was merely a grazing blow.

But Jerome’s right arm was severed far too easily.

Jerome screamed in agony while clutching his shoulder as he fell to the ground.

[The qualification of a hero has been revoked.]

Jerome stared wide-eyed at the message that appeared before him, forgetting to scream.

*

“What have you done to me?”

Gooouuuuu-!

Tamus, enveloped in jet-black aura, asked with a chilling voice.

Seeing Tamus, Leo replied.

“It’s nothing much.”

Leo, casually resting the axe of Dwenno over his shoulder, responded.

“I happened to talk with the gods once. They said that the Hero Record is a gift given to Kyle.”

“A gift to Kyle?”

“Yeah. But by the time the Hero Record was created, I was already dead. So it became a gift to the world.”

Leo smirked.

“The original owner is me. The gods recorded history in the Hero Record according to their whims, but the authority to record was originally mine. That means I naturally have the power to delete it too, right?”

At Leo’s words, Tamus’s body trembled.

“You… you really are the Hero of Beginning, Kyle.”

“Have I ever denied that?”

“Then why won’t you acknowledge me!”

Tamus shouted.

“I exterminated countless demons from Tartarus in my lifetime! I defeated the Legion Commander! And I reigned over heroes! I am the greatest hero! So why! Why! Why don’t you acknowledge me! Why do you revoke my hero title! I am a chosen human!”

“If you think so highly of yourself, why are you so obsessed with my heir position? Why are you so fixated on the position of a hero in the first place?”

“Because heroes are chosen humans! And you are the strongest among those chosen! You are a unique existence!”

“Seriously. You and that guy both love superiority complexes.”

Leo clicked his tongue.

“If you covet my heir position so much, I’ll tell you what to do.”

“What is it?”

Leo pointed down with his finger.

“Save it.”

“What?”

“Save the world like I did.”

“……”

“Oh, but Rumearn already saved the world once before, right? Besides, weren’t you the one who turned a blind eye to the world’s crisis back then?”

Leo smirked.

“Honestly speaking, you used Rodia as an excuse, didn’t you? You were scared, weren’t you?”

“What… what?”

“You probably knew you couldn’t save the world. You must have thought it was a useless d*ath.”

Tamus’s body trembled.

“That hit too close to home.”

“I don’t need your heir position anymore.”

Gooouuuuu-!

Jet-black aura spilled out from Tamus’s body.

“I have no interest in the hero title either. I will k*ll you and use your spirit as my puppet.”

Whoosh-!

Tamus raised his great sword.

Seeing that, Kiran said, -If we’re just talking about raw power, he’s on par with Dragon Lord, isn’t he?

“Indeed.”

-Can you win?

At Kiran’s question, Leo smirked and stretched out his hand.

Then Cometes was summoned.

“End.”

As Leo uttered the incantation, powerful magic of the stars surged.

Then Leo raised his hand gripping the great sword.

He steadied his breath.

Activating the aura with Aron’s breath.

Flames of golden aura surged from Nox.

In an instant, Tamus’s body trembled.

‘Azonia and Seirun?’

It was reminiscent of the great warrior Azonia and the Comet Wizard Seirun, who were once his companions.

‘No, in this case, is it the power of Aron and Luna!’

No matter how one looks at it, the person before him is the Hero of Beginning.

Tamus, who had attempted to breach the Great Hero’s World multiple times, knew.

Kyle’s potential.

“Humph! No matter how impressive you are, you haven’t yet fully regained the power of your past life! Then my strength is superior!”

At Tamus’s shout, Leo chuckled.

“Rael.”

The moment Leo called, the great spirit of light, Rael, appeared.

Tamus’s complexion changed drastically.

Rael glared at Tamus with eyes full of disgust.

“Rael… why are you still alive…?”

[Don’t talk to me, trash.]

At the sight of Rodia’s Vow Keeper, Tamus’s pupils quivered.

In that instant.

Leo crossed Nox and Cometes.

The weapon created by Dwenno resonated against one another.

“Enchant.”

Leo cast the end incantation on Nox.

Gooouuuuu-!

The fusion of magic and aura rapidly increased its power.

Moreover, the fused force was not just any power; it was the power of the Star Cloud’s progenitor and the Dragon’s strength.

And that was not the end.

Leo fused Rael into Nox with Spirit Armor.

“What…!”

Tamus’s face turned pale at the absurdity of fusing the strongest magic with a great spirit.

An unimaginable power surged.

Leo lifted Nox.

“I need to clarify something. I’m not really the strongest or anything.”

Leo smiled.

“I just borrowed their powers for a moment.”

The fusion of aura, magic, and spiritual energy.

That was the combined force of three great heroes.

Under that overwhelming force, Tamus’s body trembled.

‘Now that I think about it, the abilities of the Hero Record are quite similar to mine.’

As an all-classer who lived in that era, Leo.

He had one request from Lissinas.

“Kyle, you learn and master everything well, so how about conveying the abilities of your deceased comrades to others?”

What the dead leave behind is not just corpses and heirlooms.

The skills they honed during their lifetimes remain.

Kyle passed on what those who stood in the battlefield with him couldn’t leave behind to future generations.

For martial arts, he learned it visually.

For magic, he recorded it in the Bible.

For spirits and familiars, he made temporary contracts with surviving spirits and familiars and succeeded those contracts to those who were qualified.

The record system that Pibua explained earlier was just a simple recording.

“Pibua had no idea about the rewards for invading.”

Various gods collaborated to implement a new system.

That was the conquest reward.

After Leo chuckled, his red eyes gleamed.

“Shall we bring this to an end?

“Your story will never be passed on to future generations, Tamus.”

– I can’t d*e like this!

Tamus desperately tried to escape the battlefield.

Seeing that, Leo reversed his grip on Nox and took a throwing stance.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Coolly, Leo threw Nox.

Swish-!

Flash!

“Gaaahhhhhhh!”

Nox, embedded in Tamus’s back, erupted into a tremendous flash.