Chapter 488

488.

Chloe, who was regarded as the top student in the Department of Magic, and Kal with his remarkable creativity and originality in alchemy.

And then Chen Sia, who was trained in the art of using poison as a Shadow since childhood.

Their team setup was optimal for the request received from the northern mage tower. As a result, they were able to complete the request earlier than other students.

After completing the request, Chloe and Kal from the Department of Magic decided to stay a few more days at the northern mage tower. There were no classes left at Lumeran during the remaining request period, giving students who finished early some free time. Thus, Chloe and Kal decided to stay back at the northern mage tower to conduct various magical experiments.

Unlike them, Chen Sia returned to Lumeran immediately. Partly because she had nothing specific to do at the mage tower as a student from the Department of Knights, but more importantly, she had heard stories about Leo from the Shadows, and that was pivotal.

‘How could I not help Lord Leo when something so significant happened?’

Blaming herself, Chen Sia thought she should help Leo relax, who she assumed was alone in the dormitory.

Of course, there was a slightly selfish thought behind it too.

‘It’s also a chance to be alone with him.’

Since Lumeran emphasized communal living, Chen Sia rarely got the opportunity to spend time alone with Leo.

Nevertheless, she wasn’t complaining. In truth, she found school life enjoyable.

‘Everything is thanks to Lord Leo.’

Until her 1st year, Chen Sia hadn’t been able to fully enjoy Lumeran due to the burden she carried, thinking herself unworthy of becoming a hero despite wanting to.

After gaining Leo’s affirmation and casting off that burden, she now found pure joy in simply mingling with friends. It was the first time in her life she truly spent pleasurable time with peers.

Still, she wanted more intimate moments with Leo.

On an early morning after her return to Lumeran, Chen Sia straightened her uniform at the dormitory entrance before heading inside. Considering that Leo would be asleep, she naturally tiptoed.

‘Hmm?’

Detecting some movement from the lounge, she headed over.

And the moment she opened the door, she froze at the sight of an elf girl named Eiran resting on the sofa, resting her head on Leo’s lap.

“What is this?”

“Uh, I’m sorry! Y-yes?!”

Startled, Eiran moved only to plop back onto Leo awkwardly.

Watching the scene, Chen Sia paused, trying to make sense of the situation.

‘Why is Miss Eiran here at Lumeran?’

Eiran, a second-year student at Seirun ranked second, being in Lumeran’s second-year dormitory seemed strange from the get-go.

Chen Sia subtly glanced towards the lounge table where she noticed empty wine bottles and the smell of alcohol lingering in the air. Combined with the situation with Eiran on top of Leo.

‘Hmm, I have no idea what’s happening here.’

Ultimately, Chen Sia failed to grasp the whole situation.

“I’m so sorry! Lord Leo, I’m so sorry!”

Eiran panicking and apologizing, Leo sat up trying to understand the commotion himself.

“Ah?!”

As Leo noticed they were uncomfortably close, Eiran inhaled sharply.

Placing his hands under Eiran’s armpits, Leo gently lifted her off him and placed her on the floor.

Once up, Leo turned to Chen Sia and asked, “You’re back early? Where’s Chloe and Kal?”

“Kal and Chloe decided to stay a bit longer in the northern mage’s tower. However, why exactly is Miss Eiran here? And… what exactly were you doing?”

When Chen Sia asked, a hint of suspicion in her voice, Eiran quickly tried to defend herself.

“Ah, I’m here as an exchange student to study at Lumeran for a while.”

“An exchange student?”

“Yes.”

“And what about the situation just now?”

“Ahh! That’s because I kept Lord Leo awake all night, so I wanted to cover him with a blanket as a gesture of gratitude.”

“What? What did you do all night?”

Chen Sia’s gaze flickered as she looked at Eiran. Eiran, who had just beautifully complicated an already tangled situation, made Leo sigh and explain.

“Stop assuming weird things. All we did was talk a bit about the old Heroes throughout the night.”

“Ah.”

“What were you imagining?”

“Given how intimate the two of you looked, I couldn’t help but suspect.”

As Chen Sia spoke, Eiran’s ears turned red and she bowed her head.

Giggling at this sight, Chen Sia extended her welcome, “Welcome to Lumeran, Miss Eiran.”

Eiran and Chen Sia.

After Leo left, an uncomfortable silence enveloped the two.

They knew each other by face but weren’t particularly close friends.

Chen Sia rested her chin and waited for the meal and Leo’s return.

Eiran, however, kept sneaking glances at Chen Sia.

Upon noticing, Chen Sia asked curiously,

“Is there something on my face?”

“Me!? No, no! It’s just that… Chen Sia is so doll-like and beautiful. You’re like a princess doll I once received as a gift. Though you’re a real princess of course, Chen Sia.”

“Thank you, but I think Miss Eiran is even more doll-like than me.”

Chen Sia laughed in response.

At that, Eiran carefully inquired,

“Chen Sia. Would you be willing to become friends with me?”

“Of course, I’d be happy to.”

“Wow!”

Eiran beamed with joy, and Chen Sia couldn’t help but smile at her pureness.

“By the way, Miss Eiran seems to follow Lord Leo quite closely?”

“Yes, from the very first moment I saw him, I lost my breath. Lord Leo was like a hero straight out of a fairy tale.”

Eiran smiled, reminiscing the first time she met Leo.

“Same with me.”

“Indeed, Chancellor Chen Sia also likes Lord Leo very much, doesn’t she?”

“Yes, I like him a lot.”

“Indeed, it seems Chancellor Chen Sia and I share many similarities.”

Eiran genuinely seemed delighted.

“Similarities?”

Chen Sia, who believed the two belonged to vastly different types of people, found Eiran’s words somewhat strange.

“Yes, both our admiration for Lord Leo, and the fact that our ancestors were students of the Hero of Beginning, Kyle.”

“…I never mentioned that my ancestor was a student of Kyle?”

Chen Sia tilted her head in thought.

At this, Eiran hesitated briefly before hurriedly saying,

“Lord Leo mentioned it to me. He apparently saw a reference in the Book of Shadows about Lady Bihar. How she, much like Berkiya, was also a student of Kyle.”

“Ah, I see.”

Chen Sia nodded with a smile.

‘Indeed, Eiran and I have a deep connection.’

She nodded again.

This was no ordinary connection.

After 5000 years had passed, the descendants of the only remaining Great Heroes left in this world were bound together.

But…

‘Leo isn’t the type to freely give personal matters to others, especially without consulting me first.’

Chen Sia knew Leo wouldn’t casually share such personal details about her family, regardless of how special the relationship or bond.

Thus, after pondering, Chen Sia drew a conclusion.

‘It seems Miss Eiran knows more about Lord Leo than I do.’

Chen Sia keenly deduced the relationship between Leo and Eiran.

‘She must know some critical secrets about Lord Leo that I’m unaware of.’

*

“Is something the matter? Did anything happen?”

“Not exactly. Nothing dire has occurred. But.”

Mel hesitated briefly before cautiously explaining.

“There are some unusual incidents happening in the eastern continent.”

“Unusual incidents?”

Leo raised a curious eyebrow.

“Yes. Sudden weather anomalies have been reported. Despite it being late autumn, some areas have experienced harsh cold and heavy snowfall.”

Hearing this, Leo furrowed his brow.

“Additionally, there are reports mentioning that entire forests’ trees and grass have withered.”

“The Demon King, perhaps?”

“It’s not them. No traces of the unique d*ath aura emitted by the Demon King and their followers have been detected. It’s as if the areas have simply lost their life force and withered.”

Mel continued in a worried voice,

“And lastly… there are places where the entire forest has blossomed, resembling the arrival of spring.”

“Blossoms?”

The word “blossoms” made Leo look completely baffled.

‘Blossoms? Did someone use magic to make flowers bloom?’

Leo had reconstructed the formula of flower-growing magic originally created by Luna.

‘Yet, there shouldn’t be anyone capable of properly using that magic now.’

With a perplexed expression, Leo suddenly asked,

“East?”

“Yes.”

“Could you show me the world map?”

Upon Leo’s request, Mel pulled out a world map from the aether space and unfurled it.

“Where exactly did the flowers bloom?”

“Right here.”

Mel pointed to the central eastern part of the continent.

This region was part of the Shan Empire’s territory, surrounded by vast wilderness without any nearby cities.

Leo stared at the area intently.

‘…Probably around here.’

5000 years ago, before the Great Heroes set out on their final expedition to eradicate Erebus, no map was needed.

The world on the brink of destruction had a towering black pillar of fire that pierced the sky. Visible from anywhere on earth, this ominous pillar symbolized the world’s downfall.

The Great Heroes set out on their final journey towards the pillar.

Thus, Leo knew the general area of his companions’ graves but had no precise location. He could only estimate based on the movement patterns and time taken.

‘5000 years have passed; their graves couldn’t have possibly survived all the way to now.’

Even for someone of Leo’s caliber, locating graves from 5000 years ago based solely on loose estimates was impossible.

But the location of the strange incidents aligning with the element “flowers” caught his attention.

‘Around here is where Luna passed.’