Chapter 74

【74】73.

“What is this thing?”

“This, this… is the Curse of the Dead!”

As Lunia and Eiran entered the heart of the forest, their faces grew pale at the powerful aura of the curse emanating from the center.

Even the elves, who were naturally resistant to curses, found it oppressive to the point where they felt suffocated.

Lunia gritted her teeth and looked at Leo.

‘Isn’t he affected at all?’

Having fought against Commander Hel Kaiser himself, the curse had little impact on Leo.

Turning his head, Leo noticed the deteriorating condition of the two elf girls and summoned mana.

“Be Artes.”

A light brimming with vitality emerged from Leo’s hands.

Lunia and Eiran’s expressions visibly relaxed.

“This should make you feel a little better.”

“Is this the Magic of the Stars?”

“Yes.”

“We don’t know this magic.”

“Don’t you?”

Leo wore an expression of surprise.

“It’s a spell that restores vitality. It’s not very difficult.”

“Is this your own spell, Leo?”

“No. It’s just something I implemented from a magic book.”

To be exact, it was a spell often used by Lady Luna, but he couldn’t directly admit that.

After hearing Leo’s words, Lunia asked.

“Leo, where did you find the magic book where you were studying the Magic of the Stars on your own?”

A mysterious magic book containing the Magic of the Stars, which even the students of Seirun couldn’t access.

‘Moreover, Leo decoded the primal magic, which has remained uninterpreted for a long time… could this be one of the few magic books directly left behind by the Primal One? Or, perhaps it contains the original Magic of the Stars used by the Primal One…!’

If that’s the case, it’s a significant discovery.

“It was in my family’s library.”

Lunia stroked her chin.

‘Lady Reina, Leo’s mother, is from the direct line of the Zerdinger family. Even though she separated from the family, it’s not strange for her to still have some of the family’s rare books.’

Lunia’s eyes sparkled.

“Can I take a look at that magic book?”

“It’s gone now.”

“What? What happened?”

“I accidentally burned it when I was practicing magic as a child.”

“How could you burn such a thing!”

Lunia covered her head and screamed.

Of course, it was all fabricated, but Lunia had no way of knowing that.

Eiran also wore an expression of regret.

“Judging from your yelling, it seems you’ve lost something valuable.”

Leo grinned and turned his gaze towards the heart of the forest.

“Well, let’s hurry up and remove this infernal curse.”

With that, Leo stepped inside.

A little while later.

Leo’s group arrived at the former entrance to Fairy Land.

And at the sight of the one standing there, a smirk crept onto their faces.

“What are you doing here at this late hour?”

“I, on the contrary, would like to ask you the same.”

Rauta folded his arms and frowned.

“You, first-years, weren’t permitted to leave your dorms, were you?”

“And isn’t that the same for you?”

“Huh? You’re being presumptuous. You’re treating me differently because we’re from different schools? You’re starting to understand the level of Lumeran.”

The smirk on Rauta’s face made Leo’s eyes narrow.

Lunia quickly interjected.

“Senior Rauta, you should know that undead creatures are appearing here!”

“I’m aware. Right now, I’m investigating the cause behind this.”

“The cause is the curse!”

“Curse? Are you saying there’s a curse spread over this place right now?”

“Yes?”

‘Even though such a dense aura of d*ath is spreading here… you didn’t sense it?’

Lunia looked perplexed.

Instinctively, she felt that Leo was right.

Rauta is clearly in league with Tartarus.

‘Can’t be… impossible! A student of Seirun wouldn’t do such a thing!’

But reason wasn’t allowing her to believe it.

A noble student from Seirun would never have turned into a necromancer.

More importantly, wasn’t Rauta in the advanced class?

Lunia’s eyes flickered.

“I’ll ask again.”

Leo’s voice dropped coldly.

“What exactly are you doing here?”

“I was exterminating the undead and investigating the anomalies of the Fairy Forest. Do you think it’s reasonable for a first-year whose bl**d hasn’t even dried up to berate a second-year like me?”

Rauta spoke irritably.

“I’m a student who inherits the will of Lady Luna, the illustrious founder of the Star Cloud. Would someone like me dirty the honor of Lady Luna….”

“Rauta Algraya.”

Startled, Lunia and Eiran instinctively took a step back.

Meeting Leo’s gaze head-on, Rauta felt a sudden wave of terror.

“Do not let Luna’s name come from your lips.”

“You b*stard…!”

“There are students in Lumeran’s first year who unintentionally came into contact with objects spread by Tartarus.”

“…!”

Rauta’s face froze stiff.

“Since they unintentionally touched those objects, the school only gave them a warning.”

Leo raised his hand.

A small bead of white light appeared at his fingertips and shot toward the sky.

Whoosh! Flash!

The glowing bead exploded, and the surrounding area lit up as if it were noon.

Lunia’s face filled with shock, and Eiran instinctively covered her mouth and took a step back.

Behind Rauta were scattered bodies of numerous monsters.

With their bl**d and entrails, a massive summoning circle had been drawn.

“The only uses for monster bl**d and intestines as catalysts are dark magic and necromancy. The school may have been unaware of the students’ involvement… but in your case…”

A killing intent surfaced in Leo’s eyes.

“You knew and collaborated.”

“You’re sharp.”

Rauta smirked.

“Must you dig your own grave?”

“Impossible… A student of Seirun turning into a necromancer…!”

“Watch your mouth, Lunia El Rundah. Do you think the disrespect towards a senior will be tolerated?”

“You call yourself a student of Seirun while practicing necromancy?! That’s garbage!”

Lunia shouted angrily.

“It’s not that I use necromancy. It’s that I just use Tartarus.”

“What?”

“Do you know what lies sleeping here? None other than a page from a Hero of the Primal One slumbers here! Do you get the meaning of this, Lunia?”

Rauta’s face brimmed with excitement.

“It’s as good as becoming a direct disciple of Lady Luna! It means becoming a great hero in Elven history!”

At this point, the pages of the great heroes have almost completely vanished from existence.

But if they discover a new Hero’s page and inherit its power, it’s not an unreasonable claim that this hero would be recorded in Elven history.

“What’s wrong with using Tartarus to restore our heritage?”

“Have you never considered that you’re the one being used?”

Leo laughed coldly.

“Hel Kaiser is a Legion Commander who fears heroes more than anyone else. Do you seriously think he would sit back and let someone inherit the power of Luna?”

“That’s not a problem. That foolish Hel Kaiser has already given me the power to control the undead!”

Rauta grinned wickedly, displaying a black ring.

“As long as I have this, the undead are no threat to me.”

“Communication is impossible.”

If Hel Kaiser could be controlled by a mere student, there would have been no reason for countless heroes to d*e during the Era of Catastrophe.

‘Emotional and cognitively impaired. Similar symptoms to when Sen Rio lost control during the Summoning Exam.’

Leo remembered the out-of-control Sen Rio during the Summoning Exam.

“Leo, let’s knock him down. We need to smash that disgusting face and drag him to the teacher!”

Lunia growled.

Eiran also showed hostility towards Rauta for defiling the school’s honor.

“Don’t fight recklessly.”

“What?”

“Think about the possibility you might have to k*ll him.”

Leo’s warning made Lunia’s eyes widen.

“A fight against Tartarus works that way.”

Leaving that statement, Leo advanced toward Rauta.

‘Killing a senior from the school?’

Before Lunia could process the situation,

“Huhuhuhu…”

Kargor appeared, enveloped in black smog.

“You seem to be in a tough spot.”

“Kargor! k*ll them!”

In response to Rauta’s cry, Kargor charged forward.

“Lunia! Eiran! Take care of this guy!”

Having entrusted Kargor to them, Leo immediately lunged toward Rauta.

“You fool! I’ll show you the authority of a second-year!”

Seeing Leo’s head-on charge, Rauta started reciting a spell.

Hearing it, Leo also quickly recited a spell in response.

“La Tiarra!”

“La Tiarra!”

Boom!

The same magic spells clashed and nullified each other simultaneously.

Rauta’s face twisted.

“How dare you use the Magic of the Stars so boldly?”

“You’re the one using the magic of Luna while being a lackey of Tartarus.”

“Shut up! I am an elf who inherits the power of the Primal One! I’m not like some rootless person like you!”

With bloodshot eyes, Rauta began casting magic.

Hearing it, Leo also started chanting a spell.

“Li Ezernia!”

“Li Ezernia!”

Flash!

Crackling!

Intense lightning raged on.

“…!”

The identical spells clashed again, nullifying each other, causing Rauta to stiffen.

‘This guy… no way!’

Rauta desperately began another chant.

Hearing it, Leo quickly followed suit, chanting the same spell.

Whoosh!

The flames surged violently.

Rauta’s body shook.

“Does this guy actually dare to—!”

It wasn’t a coincidence that the spells aligned.

As Rauta cast the spell, Leo simply followed along.

And completed the magic at the exact same time.

For a magician, there could be no greater disgrace.

Watching the agitated Rauta, Leo said,

“You’re pretty bad at handling magic.”

Whoosh!

In an instant, Leo’s body disappeared.

Rauta barely managed to find Leo only to realize he was already behind him.

“As if you’re skilled enough to manage your own power.”

Punch! Crash!

“Guh?”

Leo swept Rauta’s ankle with a mana-infused kick.

A bone-cracking sound echoed as Rauta fell to the ground.

“Of course, you couldn’t handle it properly since it’s not even your own power.”

Leo’s gaze fell on the black ring.

‘Demon tool.’

Swoosh!

Leo unsheathed his sword.

Rauta’s face turned pale.

“P-p-lease spare me! I’m a student of Seirun! If you k*ll me, it will affect the relationship between Lumeran and Seirun…!”

Crash!

“Guh?”

Leo’s sword pierced Rauta’s throat without hesitation.

If Rauta had been an actual upper-level second-year student from Seirun, even Leo might have struggled.

But compared to Leo, experienced in battles through numerous hardships, Rauta was nothing more than a strong but foolish idiot.

Whoosh!

“Huhuhuhu.”

At that moment, Kargor appeared in front of Leo.

Lunia and Eiran, who had been fiercely battling Kargor, froze upon seeing him and noticing Leo nearby.

Their breath caught as they saw Rauta’s cut throat.

“Did you k*ll him? Huhuhu! To think you’ve killed a fellow dreamer of heroism! Cold-blooded! Cruel! And yet, are you still one who dreams of heroism? Huhuhuhu!”

Kargor mocked Leo, his eyes flashing with amusement.

Lunia and Eiran’s eyes wavered suddenly.

They had anticipated something like this might happen.

But now that it was in front of their eyes, they couldn’t help but feel blank and lost.

Kargor, laughing maniacally, suddenly made eye contact with Leo.

For the first time, Kargor felt an unsettling chill.

‘Even though he’s fallen, he killed an aspiring hero. The elf girls would have reacted the same way.’

But from Leo’s eyes, Kargor sensed no emotions.

‘What kind of eyes are those?’

They were calm and serene.

‘These aren’t the eyes of someone who dreams of heroism nor the eyes of a hero. These are…’

The eyes of a hunter.

“You’re next.”

Leo’s voice lacked any hostility, rage, or ambition.

The knight, who transcended even d*ath, felt genuine fear at this utterly dry tone.

As if facing his true master, Demon King Hel Kaiser, Kargor felt the same dread.

‘This guy must d*e right here in this place!’

This instinct screamed loudly within him.

Deciding that, Kargor plunged his great sword into the ground.

Whoosh!

The scarlet crimson energy flowing from the great sword seeped into the ground.

The black ring on Rauta’s finger resonated at the same moment.

Rauta’s body began swelling up.

Seeing this, Leo urgently sprang away.

Boom! Crack!

Rauta’s body exploded, scattering bone fragments and flesh in every direction like shrapnel.

Leo protected himself by activating his Aura Armor.

‘Self-destruction!’

Leo’s expression twisted.

The only part that remained intact was Rauta’s hand with the ring.

Whoosh!

Bone fragments and pieces of flesh started clustering together.

“Ugh!”

Lunia and Eiran covered their mouths.

The mangled bone pieces and flesh melded together like clay, eventually reforming into Rauta.

Upon opening his eyes, Rauta looked down at his hands as if he couldn’t believe it.

“You’re alive?”

“Huhuhu. Your experience with d*ath has allowed you to form a contract with the great Demon King.”

Kargor’s eyes gleamed.

“Rauta Algraya! Would you not desire to become a great hero surpassing even d*ath?”

“Great hero… surpassing d*ath!”

Rauta’s eyes brimmed with desire.

“Accept it! The power of the dead!”

Whoosh!

Dark magical energy flowed from Rauta’s body.

Whoom!

Simultaneously, the summoning circles that Rauta had drawn began emitting ominous light.

The entire ground trembled violently.

Lunia and Eiran lost their balance and fell to the ground.

Leo’s face stiffened as he looked at the gigantic skeleton emerging from the ground.

‘It seems like the summoning circle activated due to the increase in Rauta’s magical power. This d*ath Knight… It was probably there to k*ll Rauta from the start.’

Wooohhhhh!

“What is that thing?”

Kirran screamed in shock.

“Skeleton King.”

Leo responded grimly.

“One of the strongest undead creatures.”