Chapter 538

538.

Berkiya glared at Leo with a distorted face.

Seeing his crimson eyes stirred something within her heart.

It was undoubtedly because she had once glimpsed her own gray eyes in them.

There was only one person who had ever looked at her that way.

And even though she had spent a long time with him, it had only happened for a fleeting moment.

Berkiya bit her lips tightly.

“Master Kyle.”

It was impossible.

It was absurd that the shadow of her master could arise from this young boy.

Leo closed his eyes as he looked at Berkiya.

“What message should I convey?”

There were so many things to say.

“Sorry for not coming back.”

It would have been the first thing to say among all the messages he had to deliver.

“Sorry for making you bear everything.”

Though it wouldn’t be accepted, it was a sincere apology he had to convey.

“You didn’t need to bear all of it.”

Sadness as a master.

“You must have suffered a lot.”

Though he had never understood the heart of a parent, if he had been in the same situation as Berkiya, it would have been the comfort that Deid and Reina would have offered him.

There were countless things to say.

But none of them could escape his mouth; they lingered within his lips.

Not a single one of them would offer Berkiya any solace.

Berkiya had prepared herself for the fact that her masters would not return.

She would have borne the burden even if her masters had told her not to.

She understood how difficult this path was and walked it knowing that.

No one understood better than her how Berkiya had carried the world.

Leo had wished Berkiya wouldn’t have to take this path.

He didn’t want her to chase after them.

But it was the path Berkiya had chosen.

Offering her meaningless words would have been a disrespectful act toward her resolve.

That was why, in some ways, Leo could also understand why Berkiya had become this way.

“You must hate the world.”

She would surely detest the world that had taken away those she loved.

“You could never tolerate those who live in such a world.”

She could never forgive those who trample on the sacrifices of those who mattered most to her.

Still, these were only a part of why Berkiya had become twisted.

Those feelings she should have let go of when she reached the end of her life.

Berkiya, who should have been able to let them go.

What had truly driven Berkiya insane was herself: her own being.

She could not forgive herself for burning with hatred for the very world her masters had saved.

She detested herself for harboring resentment towards the people her masters had sacrificed to protect.

She loathed herself even more for driving her friend to d*ath because of her own entrapment in those emotions.

“That’s why you wanted to destroy yourself, right?”

And because of that resentment, she had risen again as an Undead.

Only now, as they faced each other, could Leo finally understand Berkiya’s feelings.

Leo’s hand tightened.

“Don’t look at me.”

With eyes tinged with sorrow and pity, he seemed to understand her.

“Stop looking at me like that!”

Berkiya screamed furiously.

She couldn’t bear to be understood this way, it was unacceptable.

No one could understand her.

‘No, they shouldn’t understand me!’

The longer she met Leo’s gaze, trying to empathize with her, the more her sanity wavered.

Finally, closing and reopening his eyes, Leo spoke.

There was something he had to say right now.

The moment she hears these words, Leo felt intuitively that Berkiya would run wild.

But still, he knew he had to say it.

“Berkiya.”

“Ugh!”

Berkiya bit her lip.

The eyes that looked at her reminded her of someone.

That voice calling her name was so similar.

That’s why she couldn’t bear to look, couldn’t bear to hear.

Yet, she couldn’t shake off these feelings, as the person in front of her too much resembled someone she had once desperately longed for.

“Ah.”

As Leo looked at his disciple, who moaned, he delivered the message he had to convey.

“You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“…!”

“I won’t blame you. I understand. You… have done absolutely nothing wrong.”

“Ah!”

It was something Berkiya had longed to hear.

Berkiya clasped her head and violently shook it.

“No. No! That’s not true!”

And yet, it was also something she desperately did not want to hear.

“Don’t spout nonsense! I did wrong! The one who dishonored the names of the masters more than anyone else… that’s me!”

She didn’t want forgiveness even from her masters, let alone from someone she didn’t understand.

The sins she had committed weren’t so easily forgiven by someone she had never met.

“Ahhhhhhhhh!”

Kwang-!

Berkiya dashed towards Leo, kicking up dust from the ground.

The impact caused the building to collapse.

Kawagagang-!

Berkiya’s hatred and resentment were directed at Leo.

At that moment, Leo’s blade swung down toward her.

“Ah?”

The moment she saw it, Berkiya let out a stunned gasp.

A simple downward strike.

But…

That downward swing brought back memories from long ago.

“Om nom nom, our adorable disciple. Today was hard, huh? Ah~”

“A~”

Berkiya opened her mouth wide, giggling.

Luna pushed a forkful of food into her mouth.

Gulping, Berkiya asked.

“Today’s cooking is by…?”

“This is a special medicinal feast I made just for Berkiya! Isn’t it delicious?”

“It’s delicious.”

While answering with a smile, Berkiya’s eyes became increasingly hazy.

“Look at that squishy cheek. My disciple is truly adorable! She reminds me so much of myself at this age!”

Looking at her young disciple, Luna pranced around the table like a fool.

Upon hearing this, Aron, who was sitting next to her, widened her eyes.

“Wasn’t she completely different back when she was thirteen? That doesn’t seem to be the case though?”

“What do you mean by ‘that doesn’t seem to be the case’?”

“Heeiiiik?!”

Seeing Luna’s terrifying grin as she swung a frying pan, Aron yelped and fled.

Watching this, Berkiya diligently ate the food that Luna had prepared with her fork.

What was it called again? An ancient traditional Elven cuisine?

Berkiya knew.

That Luna disliked her own race.

More specifically, she hated the history and traditions of Elves and those who are bound by them.

Berkiya also disliked them.

She wasn’t alone.

In this age, quite a number of young elves who had lost their families felt the same.

Most of these orphans who survived disliked the history and traditions of elves.

It is said that even if a wealthy family falls, their wealth can sustain them for three years.

The same was true for High Elves.

Valuing their long history and traditions above all else, they were, generally speaking, in better conditions than ordinary elves.

Though there are none such in Guardstron, cities that have managed to preserve their lineage surely abound with such individuals.

Berkiya had encountered them numerous times.

They looked down upon and regarded orphaned elves as filthy and of lesser worth.

And yet, they never extended a helping hand.

Simply because those orphans did not fit their high and mighty standards.

Berkiya looked at the traditional Elven cuisine placed before her.

The only reason Luna cooked this for her must have been because she, Berkiya, was an elf.

Tradition and history in the end were roots, after all.

Even if the ones who carry them have decayed, the essence itself could not have rotted yet.

‘Or maybe she just wanted to inform me that traditional Elven cuisine tastes bad.’

With a face hazier than just a moment ago, Berkiya gobbled up her food.

The meal wasn’t necessarily tasteless.

The problem, if any, lay clearly with the chef, no doubt.

But Berkiya didn’t hold any grudges.

Until just a year ago, starvation or eating food scraps had been her daily routine.

Compared to that, this felt like being in Heaven.

“By the way, when can we teach Berkiya again?”

Aron, who had fled from Luna, muttered softly as she returned to the table.

Upon hearing these words, Berkiya’s ears perked up.

The deadened look in her eyes disappeared, and they sparkled like a live fish’s.

“I want to learn new swordsmanship from Master Aron!”

With a bright smile, Berkiya exclaimed.

“I want to learn new magical incantations from Master Luna!”

Looking at the exhilarated Berkiya, whose eyes shone brightly, both Luna and Aron exchanged glances and looked troubled.

“Not yet.”

“Yeah. Continue your training with Kyle for a little longer.”

“Why?”

“Kyle isn’t teaching you nothing. I can teach you swordsmanship, and Luna can teach you magic, but we have our limits in teaching you.”

“Why?”

“Because you are a Sword-Mage.”

From behind where Kyle had silently been observing the situation, Luna bluntly chimed in after Aron’s explanation.

“Using aura and magic simultaneously. Neither Luna nor I can teach that combination. We can teach you the basics of magic and the sword, but the only one who can teach you the foundation of a Sword-Mage is Kyle.”

Certainly, Luna and Lissinas were dual-class users of magic and summoning.

Dwenno also used aura but was a warrior and a wizard.

Still, their mastery as dual-class was worlds apart.

Since dual-class users inevitably end up being mediocre hybrids, they needed to transcend that by fusing their abilities to achieve greater power than the sum of their parts.

In this regard, there was no one who could reach the levels of Kyle, who was an all-class user.

That’s why, slightly later than Luna and Aron,

Kyle became Berkiya’s final mentor.

But hearing this made Berkiya’s spirits drop slightly.

She understood.

Even if it took longer to grow strong, she understood that properly building a foundation was important.

Luna and Aron had emphasized this even more than Kyle.

But…

“I want to grow strong quickly so that I can fight alongside you Masters.”

To this, Aron smiled gently and caressed her head.

“You don’t need to do that.”

“Huh?”

“We will create a peaceful world where you won’t have to risk your life on the battlefield. You don’t have to.”

Berkiya blinked her eyes.

Seeing this, Luna chuckled bitterly.

‘Aron’s words are sincere.’

Of course, Luna also wished to provide such an environment.

But…

‘It’s difficult.’

Luna looked out the window.

The crimson night sky was spread out, making one feel nauseous merely by looking at it.

‘Even if we end the Age of Catastrophe with our own hands, Berkiya will have to fight.’

Even Aron, who was born in the Age of Catastrophe like Berkiya, could not fully understand.

But…

‘I still don’t want Berkiya to stand on the battlefield.’

Luna looked at Berkiya, who was confused about the situation, with an expression similar to Aron.

That was why they asked Kyle to teach her.

Luna and Aron, as well as Kyle, evidently approached life and teaching with markedly different attitudes.

‘That d*mn guy doesn’t dream of the future.’

That was why his attitude toward teaching fundamentally differed from theirs.

They would become the shadow to protect Berkiya.

Naturally, Berkiya would follow their backs as they led ahead.

But Kyle was different.

“I may be wrong, or maybe your way is, Aron.”

“Uh?”

Aron’s eyes opened wide, and Berkiya looked at Luna as if she was strange.

“Berkiya, who do you want to become?”

To Luna’s question, Berkiya opened her chest wide.

“I want to become a hero like the Great Heroes.”

“Our way of life might not be the absolute answer. Especially in a new era.”

Luna crossed her arms and looked at the ceiling.

“You life will likely get more complicated. You will need to become more self-reliant, whether it’s the ideal you long for or the future you will live.”

Kyle must certainly be the one who thinks about Berkiya even after they are gone.

“Perhaps that’s what might be more necessary for you, Berkiya.”

‘The brighter the light blinds you, the more you may lose your way.’

Luna held her tongue with the last part.

*

Kwang-!

Berkiya, who had been struck on the head by a simple downward strike, slammed into the ground.

The surrounding buildings were now a wasteland.

Screams echoed from all directions.

Trot-trot-

Pushing through the dust, Leo walked toward Berkiya lying face down on the ground.

And he simply said.

“Get up.”

Plop-plop-

“Time to learn what you haven’t finished, you d*mn disciple.”

“Huh?”

Berkiya stared blankly at Leo as she tried to stand up.