Chapter 479

As evening approached, Leo made his way back to the tomb of the losers.

Across the expansive training field, small clusters of orphan soldiers were scattered about, taking their evening meal.

Leo scanning the area to verify their presence before walking over to Lyl, who was sitting across from Crown Prince Jeremin near a crackling bonfire, sharing a meal.

“Wow, this tastes incredible. Did you use some kind of hidden culinary technique for this?”

“It’s just standard military rations, Your Highness. I didn’t expect Crown Prince Jeremin to find it so agreeable.”

“A future sovereign needs to adapt to everything. Hahahaha.”

“I have no doubt Prince Jeremin will rule wisely one day.”

Jeremin found himself momentarily captivated by Lyl’s kind expression. Clearing his throat nervously, he spoke up.

“Ahem. To achieve that, my immediate priority is to restore order to the realm and discover a suitable companion to help me govern properly.”

“I am certain a wonderful person will appear in your life. Oh! S—”

Lyl, who had been replying with a radiant smile, caught sight of Leo.

She froze mid-sentence, cutting off the enthusiastic greeting she had been about to give, and instead blurted out.

“Hyungnim!”

Leo halted in his tracks, staring at Lyl as she addressed him with that beaming expression.

He wasn’t the only one caught off guard; Jeremin’s shoulders slumped as he realized Lyl’s attention had instantly shifted away from him, and the surrounding retainers looked equally stunned.

Even the nearby orphan soldiers paused their eating, lifting their heads to look toward Lyl.

“Hyungnim, where did you disappear to?”

Because Lyl kept repeating the title “Hyungnim,” everyone’s attention naturally locked onto Leo.

‘So, that’s the form of address he settled on for public view?’

It certainly would have raised eyebrows if Lyl referred to Leo—his junior—as “master” in front of the troops.

Lyl had clearly racked his brains over this, searching for a title that wouldn’t disrespect someone who was fundamentally his liege.

This particular choice seemed to be his final solution.

-He certainly possesses a unique personality.

-Peep.

-Calling someone younger “oppa” feels a bit like admitting defeat… but “Hyungnim” doesn’t exactly sound thrilling either.

Kil’an, Fiora, and Ahti offered rather indifferent assessments.

-Why do you say that? I find it rather endearing.

-I’ve noticed this before, but Elsi’s aesthetic tastes are truly eccentric.

While Elsi offered a cheerful observation, Laruel reacted with visible bewilderment.

“Lyl-nim. That’s a highly… well, rather unusual way to address Leo-nim, isn’t it?”

When Jeremin inquired with an awkward look, Lyl gave a firm, serious nod.

“It is. As Your Royal Highness is well aware, Hyungnim may be a year younger than me, but his sheer capability and past exploits command immense respect. He is a celebrated figure who led the student council at Lumen and earned a place within the Hero Record!”

“I agree that Leo-nim is an exceptional individual, perhaps one of the most remarkable figures of our time… but wouldn’t terms like ‘oppa’ or ‘orabeoni’ be more conventional…?”

As Jeremin spoke hesitantly, Lyl’s face grew incredibly solemn.

“There is already a younger student who calls Hyungnim ‘oppa.’ She is remarkably charming. If someone like me, who is older and lacks that sort of charm, were to use that word, the public reaction would be entirely bizarre.”

“People are already giving you bizarre looks right now.”

Leo clicked his tongue as he sat down beside Lyl.

His gaze drifted back over to the orphan soldiers, who had returned to focusing on their food.

“It looks like you’ve completely brought the youngsters under your control.”

“Who are you calling youngsters! You! The age gap between us isn’t even that wide!”

Hearing Leo’s remark, Lou—a young girl sitting nearby who had been quickly chewing on a piece of bread—snapped angrily and barked back.

In response, Lyl immediately interjected.

“Lou. It is unacceptable to show such disrespect toward Hyungnim.”

“Ugh! U-understood, Captain.”

“Keep your replies brief and direct!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

As Lyl barked the order with wide eyes, Lou visibly recoiled, snapping into a rigid posture to deliver a sharp reply.

“Mm, very good. Carry on with your meal.”

Leo watched Lyl nod in approval before whispering under his breath.

“You’ve turned this into a proper military regiment, haven’t you?”

“I believed establishing a clear chain of command was the first step.”

“A smart move.”

“Not entirely. While I managed to enforce discipline among these youths, I haven’t been able to alter their core mindset.”

Lyl’s gaze grew somber.

The current atmosphere suggested the orphan soldiers were genuinely loyal to Lyl.

Yet, their underlying nature remained untouched.

They submitted to Lyl solely because they respected her overwhelming power.

Their primary motivation was to utilize Lyl to increase their own strength.

The underlying reason was plain.

‘To slaughter their adversaries on the field of battle.’

They were military assets forged specifically by the designs of Arthkan, the Grand Duke of Funerals.

‘In some ways, these youngsters resemble the souls who endured the dark age of calamity five millennia ago.’

Five thousand years in the past, an untold number of individuals—including his own pupils—suffered through identical horrors.

It was an impossible task for Vihar to instantly cleanse the profound darkness settled within his spirit.

‘It is a burden they will likely carry for the rest of their days.’

“Hyungnim.”

“Speak.”

“Would it be alright if I continued to supervise these children a while longer?”

“The terms of our agreement state that you must reform their hearts, after all.”

Leo cast a brief look toward Jeremin before answering.

“If you wish to oversee them, you have my permission.”

“Thank you!”

“And since we’re on the subject, perhaps we should engage in some training together?”

“A training session? I would love that!”

Lyl’s eyes gleamed with sudden excitement.

‘My very first session under Master’s guidance!’

In the quietest hours of the night.

Lyl stood positioned in the center of the training area.

Standing opposite her was Leo, flanked by a diminutive girl with pale white hair, while a tiny elemental creature and a small bird perched upon her shoulders.

‘Master’s contracted spirit beasts.’

It was common knowledge across the lands that Leo held pacts with a phoenix, a fairy, and a pegasus.

“Are we conducting tonight’s exercises alongside Master’s spirit beasts?”

-What? Absolutely not, we are merely spectators.

-Peep. Peep.

-Make sure to put on an impressive display, Lyl.

Kil’an, Fiora, and Ahti spoke up in quick succession.

The moment Ahti finished speaking, she retrieved a small pouch of treats from her clothing, prompting Kil’an and Fiora to instantly scramble for them.

Lyl felt completely bewildered by the chaotic display.

As entities representing the three great spirit beasts, one would expect a certain level of majesty, but any semblance of dignity was entirely absent.

-Hey! That piece belongs to me!

-Peck! Peck! Peck!

Kil’an and Fiora began actively squabbling over a single morsel sitting right atop Ahti’s head.

Right then, Laruel—who had shrunk down to the size of a human hand—materialized and delivered a swift slap to the back of both Kil’an and Fiora’s heads.

-Ouch!

-Beep?

-Uphold the proper decorum of the three great spirit beasts. Do not ruin the romantic ideals of a young summoner filled with aspirations.

Laruel admonished them with an icy tone.

-Look who’s talking! You’re easily the most cynical and hopeless entity among us! You absolute fossil!

-Peep! Peep! Peep!

-Are you seeking your own demise?

Maintaining an entirely neutral expression, Laruel began aggressively striking Kil’an and Fiora with a localized lash of radiant energy.

Observing the spectacle, Ahti’s jaw dropped in absolute awe, her eyes shining with sudden delight as she cheered.

“Ki-Kil’an! Call me an absolute fossil too! Laruel! Please strike me with that lash as well!”

‘…Am I trapped in a bizarre dream?’

Lyl murmured to herself in utter disbelief as she watched the madness unfold.

Ssshh—!

In an instant, thick tendrils of darkness erupted from the earth, pinning Fiora and Kil’an in place.

Even Laruel, suddenly swathed in the dark energy, let out a sharp gasp and instantly fell quiet.

“Elsi! I demand to be restrained like that too!”

-Right, right.

“Eeeek~”

Ahti expressed pure delight as she was pulled down into the shadowy morass.

Once the chaos subsided, Elsi offered a gentle smile toward Leo.

With order restored, Leo stepped directly in front of Lyl.

“Quite a revelation, isn’t it?”

“It certainly is.”

“Since you will be interacting with them frequently moving forward, I preferred to display their actual personalities immediately, rather than letting you harbor false expectations.”

Leo explained with total composure.

“It is far more efficient to shatter illusions early on.”

“Haha… ha.”

Lyl offered a strained laugh, rubbing the side of her face in embarrassment.

Focusing on Lyl, Leo extended his hands, allowing Elsi and Laruel to rest upon his palms.

“Allow me to introduce them properly. This is Elsi, the Great Spirit of Darkness. And beside her is Laruel, the Great Spirit of Light.”

“What did you say? The legendary Laruel, the Great Spirit of Light?!”

Lyl’s face twisted in pure astonishment.

Ever since the era of Lodhia, the Dragon of Creation, no practitioner had successfully forged a bond with the Great Spirit of Light for three millennia.

Yet here she was, manifested right before her eyes.

For any spirit summoner, the Great Spirit of Light represented the ultimate mythical ideal.

“As expected of Master!”

Then again, considering it was Leo, such an impossible feat seemed oddly fitting.

‘I suppose I shouldn’t be startled by anything Master accomplishes at this point.’

Lyl, gazing at Leo with profound admiration, suddenly blinked in confusion.

“Hold on a moment… if she is here, what about the Great Spirit of Darkness? Isn’t the sovereign of darkness supposed to be Ignit, the Spirit of the Abyss?”

Lyl felt utterly perplexed, remembering the specific Great Spirit of Darkness that Leo had encountered during the previous year.

-Elsi is an ancient entity who fought alongside the legendary figures of old during the cataclysm five thousand years ago. Comparing her to a reclusive runaway is an absolute affront to her status.

Laruel’s freezing voice sent a literal shiver down Lyl’s spine.

-If we are using that standard, aren’t you a reclusive runaway yourself, Laruel?

Elsi inquired with a look of genuine confusion, causing Laruel to swiftly avert her gaze.

“Elsi joined me as a specific compensation earned from clearing the Hero’s World.”

“Incredible! I suppose such miracles are possible!”

Lyl clapped her hands together in realization.

Leo kept his eyes on Lyl as he spoke.

“Lyl, in your own estimation, what do you consider to be your greatest flaw?”

“Let’s see… perhaps the fact that I am entirely unremarkable?”

“I could debate your definition of unremarkable, but let’s bypass that for now.”

Leo crossed his arms over his chest.

“Your core issue is that you possess no distinct vulnerabilities. Consequently, that means you also lack any defining, overwhelming strengths.”

“Yes, that is an assessment I agree with.”

“In that particular regard, your nature mirrors my own.”

As an All-Class practitioner, Leo excelled across every discipline.

However, he found himself unable to attain the absolute pinnacle of a single trait like his peers.

“For individuals like us, the training regimen is straightforward. We must expand the capacity of our spiritual vessel itself.”

“Is it truly possible for a summoner to widen their vessel within a compressed timeframe?”

“A single method exists. Though it will demand an immense amount of physical agony.”

“Tell me.”

“You must endure channeling the raw essence of a higher-tier spirit.”

“What?”

Lyl was caught completely off guard by a theory she had never once encountered in her studies.

Leo maintained a steady gaze as he instructed her.

“I am going to implement a forced Spirit Armored state upon your body.”

Spirit Armored.

An elite spiritual discipline where an elemental entity inhabits the summoner’s physical form to serve as a living weapon.

Lyl was already fully capable of utilizing this technique.

However, that process traditionally required one’s own contracted entity to enter their form.

Using someone else’s contracted spirit to possess another human being was an entirely unprecedented concept.

“Is such a thing even achievable?”

“It can be done. However, keeping the Spirit Armored state stable will rest entirely upon your personal endurance. Furthermore, because this is an artificial synchronization, simply enduring the connection will inflict excruciating pain.”

Laruel, who had been resting on Leo’s palm, compressed her form into a radiant sphere of illumination.

“If you falter midway through, the entire effort is wasted. Knowing this, do you still wish to proceed?”

“…It represents a direct path to rapid growth, does it not?”

“Correct.”

“Then I am prepared to face it.”

Lyl stated, her hands squeezing into tight fists.

Acknowledging her determination with a small smirk, Leo moved closer to her and issued a command.

“Present your back to me.”

Lyl promptly turned around, showing her back to Leo.

“Very well, let us commence.”

Leo placed his hand firmly against Lyl’s spine.

A sudden tremor rocked Lyl’s frame as the staggering, monumental weight of the great spirit flooded into her body via Leo’s palm.

“Aaargh?!”

A sharp gasp escaped Lyl’s throat as she forced her jaws shut against the pain.

In that exact instant, the Spirit Armored state surged to life.

And immediately after.

“Gah!”

The spiritual armor shattered into fragments, and Lyl, gripping her throat, sprinted toward the edge of the training grounds.

“Bleeegh!”

Her mind spun violently, and her stomach felt as though it were being torn apart.

The sheer magnitude of the great spirit’s essence, far surpassing what her body could naturally accommodate, instantly drained every ounce of her vitality.

“Haa… haa… haa…”

Drawing ragged breaths, Lyl attempted to steady herself on trembling limbs, only to collapse directly onto the ground.

The sheer strain had pushed both her physical body and her mental faculties past their breaking points.

“Are you ready to abandon this?”

Lyl forced her head up at the sound of Leo’s voice.

Her lips twisted into a strained smile as she replied.

“Absolutely not.”

Forcing her uncooperative legs to move, she dragged herself back upright.

“Please, Master… let us try again.”

Clank— clank—

A figure shrouded beneath a heavy, dark cowl walked steadily across a scarred landscape of war.

Boom—! Crash—!

The thunderous echo of a massive detonation reverberated from the horizon.

With each stride the figure took, the heavy grinding of metallic armor filled the air.

Presently, the traveler arrived at the center of the conflict.

In that location, a reanimated hero was locked in fierce combat against a detachment of living warriors.

Catching sight of the arriving, armored figure, the combatants from the Justice Guild raised a collective shout.

“Yet another undead abomination.”

“What a disgusting mockery. We shall purge anyone who brings shame to the title of hero.”

Listening to the self-righteous declarations of the warriors, the shrouded figure reached back and grasped the massive hilt mounted to his spine.

Schwing—!

Accompanied by an ominous, grating sound, a massive sword as dark as the void emerged, appearing capable of dragging souls into its depths.

The lethal weapon was crafted with exquisite precision, exuding an aura of dark majesty.

“I bring shame to the title of hero?”

Amused by the irony, the figure tightened his grip on the weapon and muttered in a low tone.

“Pathetic insects who would never have achieved renown without the artificial blessings of the Hero Record dare to speak down to…”

Swoosh—!

The dark warrior unleashed a sweeping strike with the massive blade.

A sharp, abyssal crescent cleaved through the atmosphere.

The advancing forces of the Justice Guild froze mid-stride, their expressions locking in place.

“What just happened?”

“Something feels…”

Thud—!

In a split second, severed heads tumbled to the earth.

With a singular, fluid motion of his blade, the bodies of the celebrated warriors collapsed lifelessly into the dirt.

Clank— clank—

The dark figure walked over to the reanimated entity that had been pinned down by the guild’s forces.

“…The champions of this era are utterly pathetic. Is there truly not a single soul capable of withstanding a solitary blow?”

“You simply possess unfathomable power, Knight of the Netherworld.”

“Grand Duke of Funerals.”

“Were you not once a champion who stood on equal footing with the primal heroes of creation?”

“Once… even if only for a brief moment?”

The Knight of the Netherworld lowered his pitch.

Slash—!

A clean, violent strike parted Arthkan’s head from his neck.

“Mind your tongue, Grand Duke of Funerals.”

“A poor choice of words on my part.”

Despite his head resting on the blood-soaked ground, Arthkan remained completely conscious.

His headless torso stepped forward and retrieved his skull.

Gust—!

A sudden, violent gale swept across the clearing.

The force of the wind ripped the heavy cowl from the dark warrior’s head.

Beneath the iron helm, there was nothing but an empty void where a face should have been.

Observing the hollow space, Arthkan remarked dryly.

“Is your compulsion to decapitate these champions driven by the lack of your own visage?”

“Precisely. The Knight of Twilight took it upon himself to sever my head long ago.”

Tamuz gestured toward the empty space beneath his gorget.

“Did you assert earlier that the majority of modern champions emerge from the institutional academy founded by those miserable cowards?”

“That is indeed the case.”

“In that case, I shall harvest every single one of their heads. Anyone who aligns themselves with the figure who opposed my path shall face my bloody retribution.”

Intrigued by Tamuz’s murderous declaration, Arthkan inquired further.

“Should I locate the hidden sepulcher where your missing features and ancient inheritance lie dormant, is it your purpose to assimilate them into your personal ‘Legion’?”

“Such fragile entities are unworthy of being designated as heroes.”

Tamuz’s hollow, chilling voice echoed across the barren battlefield.

“Only those who meet my personal standards deserve that title.”

“There is an individual currently active whom I am quite eager to present to you.”

Tamuz turned his attention back to Arthkan.

“I harbor zero curiosity regarding the mediocre figures of this generation.”

“In a manner of speaking, this person could be considered a legendary figure from your own era.”

“Oh? Inform me of their identity.”

“The Great Hero, Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings.”