Chapter 528

The Weight of Darkness

The massive gateway to the labyrinth swung open.

“Lord Leo.”

Mel, who had been anxiously waiting outside, immediately sprinted toward him.

“Are you unharmed?”

“Do you honestly believe a few greenhorns could get the better of me?”

“Well, no, but still…”

Mel let out a soft sigh, watching Leo grin playfully. She was well aware that Leo’s present condition fell short of the absolute peak of his previous life. Strictly speaking, if it came down to a raw contest of magical and physical strength, the legendary Heroes of Creation would possess a clear advantage over him.

However…

‘The sheer depth of his combat experience belongs to an entirely different realm.’

The Heroes of Creation were undeniably legendary figures who had preserved the world from total annihilation. They were extraordinary champions who had stabilized a fractured reality, shattered the lingering remnants of Erebus, and banished the forces of Tartarus.

Yet, Leo was the monumental savior who had delivered existence from the very brink of complete erasure. He had endured an era far more brutal and unyielding than the Heroes of Creation, surviving countless desperate battlefields. It wasn’t that the experience of the Heroes of Creation was trivial; it was simply that Leo’s legendary deeds were so colossal they transcended normal imagination.

Therefore, despite the undeniable deficit in raw power, she maintained absolute faith that the current Leo could entirely bridge that gap.

“To be fair, if I had faced their actual living selves, it would have been a grueling fight. But against mere automated replicas like those…”

Mel felt a profound sense of awe. Even knowing that Leo’s true identity was Kyle, the sheer brilliance of his capabilities never ceased to amaze her.

“But what kind of legendary trial grounds would actually deploy mechanical dolls mimicking the Heroes of Creation?”

Mel’s expression shifted into one of deep apprehension. Because Leo had been present, they had managed to suppress the threat without catastrophic casualties. Had he been absent, the resulting devastation would have been unimaginable.

Observing her grim face, a wry thought crossed Leo’s mind.

‘I wonder what kind of look she would give me if I confessed that a deity literally engineered those dolls just to test my worth, only for the creations to malfunction and break out?’

“What exactly did you encounter in the depths?”

Prompted by Mel’s inquiry, Leo envisioned the bizarre scene within.

‘Oh, revered Great Hero of the Beginning! I beg of you, grant this humble servant a few more moments! This lowly follower desires nothing more than to continue serving your greatness! Let me gaze upon your magnificent countenance just a while longer! Do not abandon me! At least stay for one more cup of tea!’

He vividly remembered Lian, who had desperately wept and latched onto his leg even as Leo repeatedly kicked him away.

“A madman—no, a complete fanatic was dwelling down there.”

“Pardon?”

Even as the proud Dragon Lord and a direct bloodline descendant of Lisinas, the King of Wisdom, she found herself entirely unable to comprehend his words.

Amused by the utterly bewildered expression on the descendant of Lisinas, Leo simply shrugged.

“I will fill you in on the finer details of the interior later.”

Leo inhaled deeply, his demeanor shifting.

“It appears I must take matters into my own hands to track down Verkia.”

“Ah…”

Hearing that name, Mel’s eyes widened in surprise.

A Heavy Atmosphere

“Class president, something has felt incredibly off since yesterday.”

The following afternoon, during the scheduled Heroics lecture.

In the grand lecture hall where the entire second-year student body had assembled, Illiana leaned over and whispered softly, keeping her eyes fixed on Leo. She wasn’t the only one stealing glances at him. Virtually every student from the same residential hall, and indeed the entire second-year cohort, was surreptitiously monitoring Leo, whose face remained entirely rigid and devoid of emotion.

“He seems exceptionally displeased. Chloe, Shia, do either of you have any inkling as to why?”

Illiana directed her question toward Chloe and Chen Shia, who served as the student representatives for Leo’s dormitory. The two girls exchanged a brief, uncertain look before shaking their heads in unison.

‘Did some major incident occur yesterday evening?’

Chen Shia observed Leo with an increasingly grim expression. The version of Leo she knew was an unshakeable figure who never permitted his internal composure to falter.

‘Given his status as a Great Hero, it is only logical that typical hardships wouldn’t even register to him.’

Obstacles that Chen Shia might view as a devastating hurricane would likely feel like nothing more than a passing summer breeze to Leo. Because of this, the profound, suffocating aura radiating from him weighed heavily on her spirit.

‘Could this be tied to the matter concerning Lord Verkia?’

She could fathom no other variable capable of eliciting such a severe reaction from him. Chen Shia squeezed her hand into a tight fist.

‘I am still far too helpless.’

At this very moment, the specialized operatives of Shan’s shadows were desperately tracing any signs of Verkia’s movements. Naturally, the horrifying suspicion that Verkia might have been reanimated as a member of the undead was being guarded with absolute secrecy. Even for an entity as formidable as the Empire of Shadows, it was an incredibly daunting objective.

‘I must find a way to offer him meaningful assistance.’

Chen Shia bit her lower lip anxiously.

She was far from the only one consumed by worry. Chloe, alongside Celia and Avad, kept casting apprehensive glances toward Leo. Even normally detached individuals like Duran, Eliza, and Warreden were covertly watching him, their concern apparent.

The air in the room felt stifling. Everyone present understood one core truth: Leo was a man who had never once flinched, regardless of the severity of the adversity placed before him. For him to project such a dark, heavy mood was more than enough to mentally paralyze the entire second-year class.

No matter the circumstances, Leo was their undisputed anchor.

Just as Lisinas had served as the anchor five millennia ago.

Breaking the tense silence, Chelsea slipped into the vacant seat beside him.

“Big brother Leo?”

Chelsea called out to him with uncharacteristic caution. However, Leo was so deeply immersed in his own thoughts that her voice failed to register.

The vivid memories of what transpired at the break of dawn were violently swirling through Leo’s mind. His own pupil, an individual who had ultimately succumbed to the devouring darkness.

‘It wasn’t the corruption of Tartarus that forced Verkia down this path.’

The initial catalyst had undoubtedly been the malice of the Demon Queen, who had mercilessly slaughtered everyone Verkia held dear. Yet, when traced back to its absolute origin, the ultimate source was the wicked nature of humanity, utterly distorted by insatiable greed.

Having lost her sanity, Verkia had succumbed to a frenzied madness. She had taken it upon herself to enforce absolute retribution upon every living soul who carried sin.

Leo himself possessed no desire to offer clemency to those who callously crushed others to fulfill their selfish ambitions. Even so, it was impossible to execute judgment upon every single individual who had committed a moral infraction.

‘Because imperfection is an inseparable aspect of reality.’

Yet Verkia sought to deliver unyielding punishment to all sinners, completely ignoring the context or the reasons behind their flaws.

‘That approach is fundamentally flawed.’

The moral alignment of the world is infinitely intricate. If one were to ask Kyle from his previous life whether the world was a purely radiant place before the devastating Age of Calamity descended, he would have answered with a resounding denial without a moment’s pause.

The reality of the present era was no different. The current world remained deeply corrupted in countless hidden corners. However, if one chose to violently amputate every single decayed fragment, absolutely nothing of the world would remain.

‘After all, I am hardly a saint myself.’

Virtuous individuals frequently perpetrate harmful acts, just as wicked individuals occasionally perform deeds of genuine kindness. Because existence is woven together by a chaotic web of conflicting motivations, it can never be cleanly categorized into absolute good and absolute evil.

There was no way Verkia was ignorant of this fundamental truth. She had simply lost the capacity to look toward the future.

‘The divine beings once proclaimed that the Age of Calamity manifested precisely because their epoch had become an excessively radiant world.’

In a desperate bid to purify existence, the deities had banished Erebus, the primordial manifestation of malice, far beyond the boundaries of the absolute dark. Because of that intervention, the mortal realm enjoyed an extended era free from the threat of entities of pure ruin. Yet, that very act of forced purification eventually triggered the apocalyptic catastrophe that reduced the entire world to ash.

Verkia was presently treading that identical path. The more desperately she yearned to guide existence toward absolute purity, the deeper and more oppressive the resulting shadows became, as if reacting in direct opposition.

And yet…

‘Her fundamental desire isn’t malicious.’

That was the exact reason why finding a solution was so agonizingly difficult. What words could he possibly offer to Verkia, a person who understood the nature of darkness better than anyone else, yet had chosen to plunge her gaze into an abyss deeper than any other? Would his voice even register to a disciple who had resolutely sealed away her senses?

Furthermore…

‘Can I truly bring a halt to Verkia’s destructive crusade—a rampage that has already cost Vihar his life?’

He refused to entertain the notion of abandoning Verkia. He was determined to tear her away from her delusions, regardless of the toll it might take on him.

And yet…

‘In the absolute worst-case scenario, I might be forced to grant her the peace of death.’

Even a warrior of Leo’s caliber felt a chill of terror at that specific realization. He had spoken with absolute certainty when reassuring Lian, but the underlying dread that he might prove incapable of pulling his fallen student out of the abyss continued to haunt him.

‘What if saving Verkia is beyond my power?’

Right as Leo’s anxiety caused him to bite down on his lip—

Grab!

A sudden, forceful pressure snapped him forward.

A pair of brilliant, sky-blue eyes filled his entire field of vision. Several nearby students frantically clamped their hands over their mouths, letting out muffled gasps of shock.

Leo, thoroughly startled, stared directly at the girl who had aggressively cupped his face in both of her hands and yanked him close. Chelsea, maintaining direct eye contact, blinked her wide eyes in rapid succession. They were positioned so closely that they could feel the warmth of each other’s breath. Their eyes locked and shifted over several quiet moments in extreme proximity.

Slowly, Chelsea relaxed her grip and slid her hands away. Leo, recovering from the forced confrontation, awkwardly massaged his strained neck.

“You nearly gave me whiplash.”

“That is entirely your fault for completely ignoring me after I called your name three separate times.”

Chelsea crossed her arms, her lips forming a disgruntled pout. It was an undeniably childish display, yet for a girl of her developmental age, it was an entirely natural reaction.

Glaring around the lecture hall, Chelsea snapped at the onlookers.

“What are all of you gaping at? Do you think this is some sort of public performance?!”

In an instant, the sea of staring eyes snapped away, scattering in every direction to avoid her wrath. The only individuals toward whom Chelsea ever displayed a gentle disposition were Leo and her biological sibling, Avad. She transformed into a harmless cherub exclusively in their presence; to the rest of mankind, she was a terrifying little demon.

‘Even when she behaves herself, it has nothing to do with genuine submissiveness.’

At her core, Chelsea possessed an incredibly fiery temperament. There had been numerous instances during their private sparring sessions where she had launched furious, unbridled assaults against him out of pure frustration.

‘Yet she can pivot instantly back to a bright smile as if the anger never existed.’

She possessed a nature as unpredictable as a shifting gale.

“What could you possibly be brooding over for this long?”

Chelsea tilted her head to the side inquisitively.

Celia, Chloe, Duran, Avad, Eliza, and Warreden—those who remained entirely ignorant of Leo’s primordial background—wore incredibly somber expressions due to his dark mood. Meanwhile, Chen Shia and Kal, who possessed full knowledge of his identity as a Great Hero, looked exponentially more distressed.

Yet Chelsea remained entirely unbothered by any of it. She simply swept in like a refreshing breeze, demanding to know what was wrong. Her total lack of pretense brought an unexpected sense of comfort to his troubled mind.

‘Now that I think about it, Chelsea is the singular individual whose conduct hasn’t shifted in the slightest after learning who I truly am.’

Lunia, Eiran, and Chen Shia had all altered their behavior. Even the normally unceremonious Kal now treated him with a subtle, underlying shift in demeanor. They still maintained a casual, friendly rapport on the surface, but a distinct element had slipped into their interactions.

‘A sense of profound reverence, perhaps.’

It was a natural consequence of his revealed past, and there was little he could do to alter it. But Chelsea stood apart from that trend. Her dynamic remained entirely unchanged. It mattered naught to her whether Leo was a legendary savior of mankind or whether he had salvaged existence from ruin. To her, he remained the ultimate icon of her personal aspirations. She viewed him simply as the leader she intended to follow until the day she was strong enough to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

Chelsea idly tapped her foot against the floor, lost in her own thoughts.

‘I merely pursue the path I desire.’

‘Kyle has always shouldered far too many crushing obligations by himself. He is the type of man who will never willingly distribute those burdens to others. Therefore, I implore you. As someone akin to a younger sister, find a way to become a source of strength for Kyle… for Leo. Help establish a sanctuary where he can let down his guard and truly smile.’

Chelsea reflected deeply on the parting words Arion had impressed upon her before his departure. If it were within her power, she desired nothing more than to help bear the immense weight Leo carried. But if his stubborn nature prevented him from sharing that load, she could at least ensure he had a firm foundation.

‘I can act as his pillar so he never collapses.’

She could offer unyielding support from behind. They were far from equals; the vast span of their lived experiences and the nature of the paths they had traveled were completely incomparable. He was an existence she would spend her entire life looking up to and chasing after, destined to exist within his shadow for the rest of her days.

Yet, it was precisely because of that dynamic that she found her purpose.

‘I am capable of supporting him.’

Had anyone else been privy to her internal resolve, they would have likely ridiculed her, questioning what possible assistance a young girl could offer to a monumental Great Hero. But Chelsea remained completely indifferent to the opinions of others.

Offering a bright, unblemished smile, Chelsea looked up at Leo.

‘Because Big brother Leo will always simply be Big brother Leo.’

He was her very first hero, the one who had captured her absolute admiration.

Her pure, radiant smile suddenly mirrored the image of Verkia from his memories.

Extending his hand, Leo gently ruffled her vibrant, sky-blue hair.

“Ehehe~”

Pleased by the affectionate gesture, Chelsea closed her eyes and smiled contentedly, looking very much like a pampered cat.

“Chelsea, if you were to ever stray down a catastrophic path and completely lose your way, what action do you think I should take to force you to listen to reason?”

“Huh?”

Startled by the sudden, solemn hypothetical, Chelsea’s eyes widened. She paused, her gaze darting around as she contemplated the scenario before responding.

“Am I in a state where words are completely useless against me?”

“Correct.”

“My, that sounds incredibly troublesome!”

Chelsea locked her arms across her chest and knitted her brows together, diving deep into thought.

“To begin with, knowing your character, Big brother Leo, you would probably start by delivering a violent smack to my head, wouldn’t you?”

“Undeniably.”

“And you would absolutely give me a harsh kick as well, right?”

“Naturally.”

“Please cease targeting my backside.”

“When have I ever deliberately targeted it?”

“During the practical entrance examination, you openly attempted to incinerate it in front of a massive audience! My marital prospects are utterly ruined because of you, so you had better take full accountability.”

“If that bothered you, you should have simply complied with my instructions back then.”

That specific period had been the absolute peak of Chelsea’s rebellious phase against Leo.

Watching Leo dismiss her complaints without a hint of remorse, Chelsea let out a dramatic sigh and resumed her contemplation.

“Jokes aside, if I truly reached a point where I lost my mind entirely, it would be genuinely terrifying.”

“In what way?”

“Because even after I finally snapped out of it, you would definitely find some deeply unpleasant way to penalize me, wouldn’t you?”

“You understand my methods well.”

“Honestly, I think I would force myself back to reality just to avoid the sheer misery of whatever punishment you had lined up for me.”

Hearing her blunt rationale, Leo propped his chin in his hand and let out a genuine laugh.

“Is that so?”

The suffocating weight that had been pressing down on his chest suddenly began to evaporate.

‘Of course. I simply need to continuously beat sense into her until she finally wakes up.’

Why had he allowed his mind to become so twisted up in convoluted theories? The laughter fading from his lips, Leo’s expression softened into a composed, serene smile.

‘I should be focusing my anxieties on how to physically overpower that troublesome disciple if she boasts about her superior strength.’

The sheer magnitude of Verkia’s power, as documented within the sacred Akasha Records, was far too overwhelming for his current physical vessel to comfortably oppose.

‘Indeed. My priority shouldn’t be brainstorming methods of diplomatic persuasion. I need to figure out exactly how to beat her in a fight.’

Just as Leo began idly stroking his chin—

Slam!

The heavy entrance to the lecture hall was violently thrown open, and Eiran sprinted into the room.

Her abrupt, chaotic entrance caused every second-year student to stare in utter shock. As a visiting foreign exchange student, she was widely recognized as a flawless, exceptionally disciplined model student. Arriving well ahead of schedule for any academic lecture was standard behavior for her. For her to burst through the doors at the absolute final second before instruction commenced was entirely unprecedented. Furthermore, all of her close companions were already seated inside.

As a wave of confusion swept through the room, Eiran ignored the staring eyes and rushed straight toward Leo, her face completely drained of color.

With an expression of absolute despair, as if she were on the verge of collapsing into tears, she cried out.

“Lord Leo! Grandfather… my grandfather!”

The moment the words left her lips, Leo’s expression turned deathly serious.