Chapter 481

Book 1 Chapter 481

“Get down from above!”

Bursting past the undergrowth, Lil made her sudden, urgent entrance.

Yet the moment she noticed Artkhan standing across from Leo, her features twisted in shock.

“A fiend?”

Whack—!

Closing the distance with breathtaking swiftness, Lil swung the war hammer she gripped tightly, aiming directly for Artkhan’s skull.

Crunch—!

The impact was deafening. The surrounding foliage and trees buckled and recoiled in opposite directions away from the two.

‘He didn’t even flinch?’

Despite absorbing a direct strike backed by such immense physical force, Artkhan’s expression remained perfectly unbothered. He hadn’t raised a defense or braced himself in the slightest. Lil’s assault had literally achieved nothing.

Artkhan slowly shifted his gaze toward her.

“It is quite impolite to barge in when adults are having a conversation.”

A cold shiver ran down Lil’s spine as she watched him speak with a mild, pleasant smile.

Thud—!

As Artkhan clamped his hand onto Lil’s weapon, deep crimson sparks erupted.

Sizzle—!

Snap—!

In that exact instant, Artkhan’s wrist was cleanly severed.

Swoosh—!

Watching his hand dissolve into drifting sand, Artkhan turned his attention to Leo.

“Do not lay a finger on her.”

Leo’s voice was laced with a profound, chilling bloodlust.

“Th-thank you, Master,” Lil stammered, sweating profusely as she hastily retreated to establish a safe distance.

“Master, is it…” Artkhan murmured, looking thoroughly amused. “Hehe! Hahaha! Splendid. Of course! That girl bears a striking resemblance to those two.”

“Those two?” Lil blinked in confusion, catching his words. “Master, do you recognize this demon?” she asked anxiously, unnerved by his tone of familiarity.

“Heh, our history runs quite deep. In a sense, you and I might share a connection as well.”

“Save your breath,” Leo growled, an aura of pure malice radiating from his form.

The sheer intensity of it caused Lil to take a step back instinctively.

Observing Leo’s volatile state, Artkhan bowed his head slightly.

“My apologies if my words have offended your ears.”

‘Pushing him further right now would be genuinely suicidal.’

Having served as the right hand to the Necromancer King for five millennia, Artkhan understood Leo all too well. With an immense variable like the Knight of Hades present on the battlefield, Leo wasn’t reckless enough to blindly rush forward just to settle an old score.

‘If I provoke him any more, he will prioritize killing me over everything else.’

The reason Artkhan had refrained from calling Leo a ‘surviving hero’ was simply to avoid agitating him needlessly.

‘He is entirely different from when we crossed paths in Shan six months ago.’

Leo was reclaiming the might of his previous life at a terrifying pace. That progression had only been accelerated by the divine rewards claimed from conquering the worlds of Dweno and Lisinas.

‘He hasn’t reached his absolute zenith yet… but he already possesses enough power to wipe me out.’

Furthermore, this was Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings.

‘The absolute master of slaying demons.’

The apex champion whom demonkind feared above all others was none other than Kyle. Five thousand years ago, Artkhan had clashed with every single Great Hero, but the most terrifying memory etched into his soul was his encounter with Kyle.

As an All-Class, Leo wielded an unpredictable array of abilities. Against other champions who mastered a single discipline, Artkhan might have found a window to slip away. Against Leo, escape was virtually impossible.

“Well, now that I have properly set the stage, I shall take my leave.”

Artkhan’s lips curled into a smirk before he vanished entirely into the shadows.

Lil watched the empty space where he had stood and asked, “Who exactly was that?”

It was glaringly obvious that he was an elite demon, far beyond ordinary strength.

“The Grand Duke of the Funeral.”

“Ah!”

Leo’s grip tightened around his hilt until his knuckles turned white.

It was Artkhan who had rendered Bihal an orphan in her past life. It was also Artkhan who had left Berkia orphaned while she was still a mere infant.

High-tier necromancers possessed the cruel ability to summon the souls of those they slaughtered. In the past, Artkhan had raised Bihal’s fallen comrades as undead to psychologically torture her. He had even resurrected Berkia’s parents—whom she had no memory of—as mindless corpses, utterly shattering her spirit.

‘I am deeply sorry for being such an inadequate master.’

Leo closed his eyes, exhaling a long, heavy breath.

“Lil.”

“Yes?”

“I want you to be the one to cut him down.”

The sudden command caught Lil off guard. However, looking at Leo’s profile as he stared into the dark void where Artkhan had fled, she could see a mixture of profound rage and deep sorrow.

Gazing at him, Lil offered a firm, resolute vow.

“Understood! I will absolutely destroy him.”

A faint, soft smile touched Leo’s lips at her spirited reply.

Right then—

Growl—!

A bizarre, unsettling vibration rippled through the atmosphere above. An ocean of pitch-black energy began condensing violently into a single point.

‘Is he aiming a sword strike directly at the capital?’

Leo dropped his center of gravity. If a blow of that magnitude detonated within the capital, the casualties would be catastrophic.

Growl—!

Just as a pale gray aura began to coat Leo’s frame—

Flash! Boom, boom, boom!

A radiant, blinding white column of light plummeted from the heavens.

The Knight of Hades swung his massive greatsword in annoyance, swatting the brilliant pillar aside.

Crash!

The collision of the dark energy and the pure white light sent the residual shockwaves hurtling toward the capital’s outer defenses.

Rumble—!

The heavy stone fortifications of the capital crumbled like dust under the impact.

“A Light Spirit?” Lil muttered, her jaw dropping at the sight.

Leo narrowed his eyes, pivoting his gaze toward another vantage point. Standing there was a group of seven individuals, spearheaded by a man draped in immaculate white vestments.

Noticing the distinct crest stitched into the flowing fabric, Leo whispered, “The Justice Guild.”

“Oh?”

Tamus offered a low grunt of mild admiration as he evaluated the figures blocking his path.

“It seems this current era still manages to produce a few capable champions.”

“It is a privilege to cross paths with you, legendary Knight of Hades.”

“And who might you be?”

“I am Jerome, the Light Seeker. Though I still have much to learn, I serve as the commander of the Justice Guild.”

“A Guild. I assume that is what you call an alliance of heroes in this age?”

“You are remarkably well-informed,” Jerome replied with a polite smile. “Though, compared to the other ancient figures who began rising yesterday, you seem to be remarkably coherent.”

Jerome fixed Tamus with an analytical, knowing look.

“When fallen heroes suddenly began rising as mindless undead, it forced me to consider a few possibilities.”

“Such as?”

“The Necromancer King suddenly tapped into an unprecedented well of power, allowing him to raise historical champions as thralls. Those who lacked true heroic fortitude likely degenerated into mindless puppets. But beyond that…”

“Go on.”

“I figured undead who retained their absolute sanity, like yourself, would eventually surface. And that such individuals would choose to betray the living world for their own gain. That was my deduction.” Jerome gave a casual shrug. “In truth, aren’t you merely a coward who turned a blind eye to the world’s destruction?”

Crash—!

A tempest of dark energy surged aggressively toward Jerome.

However, the dark tide was abruptly halted by a brilliant blue barrier. A heavily armored knight wielding a bastard sword and a tower shield stood firmly in front of Jerome, holding the line.

“Impressive enough,” Tamus sneered, his lips twisting. “Jerome, was it? Watch your tongue. I am merely utilizing the Necromancer King for my own ends.”

“Utilizing him?”

“Indeed. He fondly believes his magic grants him absolute dominion over me, but…”

Tamus raised his arm.

Growl—!

A massive torrent of death energy erupted from his palm.

An instant later—

Roar—!

A deafening, collective howl shattered the air. Jerome’s gaze snapped past the ruined city walls. Legions of undead were bursting forth from the earth.

“Necromancy?”

“No, this is Spiritmancy,” Tamus corrected with a dark chuckle. “These are the elite legions who once conquered this continent alongside me. While the Necromancer King’s magic provided the spark to reanimate them, their fealty remains solely mine. He cannot command me. In truth, my consciousness is hijacking his power.”

Clank—

Tamus adjusted his grip on his massive blade.

“Bear this in mind, Jerome. Being inscribed upon the Hero Record does not make everyone equals.” Tamus’s eyes flared beneath the shadow of his cowl. “Those of you who casually attained the mantle of a hero by merely inheriting the leftover echoes of your predecessors through a record cannot be considered genuine. You are nothing more than mass-produced imitations.”

Tamus spat in derision.

“While weak-willed failures or cheap copies like yourselves might willingly bow to the Necromancer King, I exist on an entirely different plane.”

“I can certainly agree that not every name in the Hero Record carries the same weight, but…” Jerome let out a dry, mocking laugh. “…everything else you’ve spouted is absolute garbage. Tell me, what exactly is your goal now that you’ve been granted a second life?”

“First, I shall forge a spectral vanguard to trample Tartarus. Once I have brought the entire continent under my banner, I will govern this world as an undying sovereign. Directing worthless masses onto the correct path is the true obligation of a supreme hero. In doing so, I will finally prove that the foolish primordial dragon was utterly mistaken to select the Knight of Twilight over me.”

“Haha, so that is the petty reason you abandoned the world to its fate? How incredibly small-minded,” Jerome mocked.

Tamus unleashed a vicious swing of his blade.

Rumble—!

A colossal, pitch-black crescent of energy tore through the air, aiming to cleave Jerome cleanly in half.

Flash—!

Suddenly, an immense, radiant white barrier materialized, absorbing the full brunt of the cataclysmic strike. It was the work of Chain, the vice-leader of the Justice Guild, who had quietly stepped up beside Jerome to cast the spell.

The dark energy that had been drawn into the ward was instantly redirected back toward its source.

“Hmph, Seyrun’s signature magic, Counter Shield?”

Recognizing the spell, Tamus smirked and thrust his blade forward. The reflected dark slash was cleanly re-absorbed back into the metal of his sword.

Chain’s eyes narrowed heavily at the sight.

“Commander, that weapon…”

“Yes… it is the divine blade, Nox, forged by Lord Dweno himself.”

Nox. During the Age of Calamity, it was the mythical greatsword crafted by the legendary blacksmith Dweno, inspired by the majesty of the midnight sky.

“An authentic Hero Weapon?” Greed flashed brightly in the eyes of a knight commander standing among the Justice Guild executives.

“While you lot rely on cheap imitations pulled from the Hero Record, my armaments harbor no flaws,” Tamus jeered. “This blade is a genuine masterpiece left behind by a god-tier blacksmith.”

“It certainly seems you possess quite the collection of relics, as expected of the man who established the most dominant empire in history,” Jerome said, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “Defeating you will prove quite lucrative.”

“You lack the strength to achieve such a feat.”

“Our vanguard has successfully put down Legion Commanders within the hero’s realm. Do you genuinely believe you can overcome us?”

Jerome unlocked his spiritual energy, causing countless light spirits to manifest in the surrounding air. His expression hardened into a mask of righteous fury.

“Tamus, the grand traitor of history. As a hero representing this current era, I shall execute you in the name of absolute justice.”

“Shepherding civilization is the burden of a true sovereign. Synthetic heroes manufactured by a magical record have no place in this world.”

Just as a titanic vortex of energy began to violently churn around Tamus’s body—

Hum—!

Nox, which had been radiating a dense, abyssal darkness, suddenly vibrated violently.

“What?” Tamus’s eyes widened in surprise.

Swoosh—!

Out of nowhere, brilliant golden flames erupted along the hilt.

“Argh?!”

Shocked by the blistering heat searing through his palm, Tamus instinctively released his grip.

Swoosh—! Clank—!

Before the legendary sword could hit the dirt, a hand shot out and caught it firmly by the hilt. At that exact moment, a brilliant cascade of starlight began to shimmer across the obsidian steel.

Leo let out a sharp click of his tongue, casually resting Nox—which had reverted to its breathtaking midnight aesthetic—over his shoulder.

“A bunch of identical fools talking absolute nonsense.”

“Leo Flobe,” Jerome muttered, narrowing his eyes. “Aren’t you arriving on this stage a bit too early?”

Ignoring the comment entirely, Leo levitated up to match their height.

“Does my commentary sound like nonsense to you?” Leo asked, bypassing Jerome’s gaze completely.

Jerome let out a sharp, empty laugh. “Your conduct toward a senior is remarkably insolent.”

“I don’t recall ever having an incompetent senior like you,” Leo replied coldly before fixing his gaze directly on Tamus. “Are you the Knight of Hades?”

“……”

Faced with the question, Tamus stared intensely at the youth. A long moment passed before he finally spoke.

“Those eyes, that condescending tone. Indeed… his claims were entirely accurate. You are identical to the image I witnessed within the hero’s realm.” Tamus’s lips split into a wide grin. “I have eagerly anticipated this meeting, Hero of Beginnings. I am Tamus.”

The ancient emperor, who had maintained nothing but absolute arrogance until now, suddenly offered a formal, respectful bow.

“Your rightful successor.”

At those shocking words, the members of the Justice Guild stared in absolute bewilderment. To them, the statement was completely incomprehensible.

Leo dug his pinky finger into his ear, cleaned it out absentmindedly, and asked, “What? Care to run that by me again?”

“I said, I am your true successor.”

Leo stared back, his face completely devoid of emotion, and delivered a flat reply.

“You absolute lunatic.”