Chapter 556

Leo received lavish hospitality at House Zeron.

It was not simply because he was Elena’s guest.

“You have no idea how many tears this old man shed when you recovered Lady Alia’s memento, Lord Plov.”

The elderly mage seated at the dinner table dabbed at his tears with a handkerchief and repeatedly bowed his head to Leo.

Elena, seated at the head of the table, sliced her steak with a knife and fork as she addressed him.

“You’re embarrassing yourself in front of our guest, Berewin.”

“I know, Young Lady. But whenever I think back on that day, this old man... this old man....”

Berewin Berak.

A hero whose name appeared in the Hero Record, he was also a great mage who had served as the magic teacher of Altech Zeron, the current head of House Zeron known as the Infinity Spellcaster; Albi, the Lumene professor known as the Mage of the Evil Eye; and Elena herself.

If he had taught generations of House Zeron’s direct line, then he must naturally have taught Alia Zeron, whom Leo had saved in the Hero’s World during his first-year midterms.

'Was his epithet Demonic Blood?'

Judging by the epithet alone, he was clearly a mage who wielded blood.

Leo recalled Fritz Edgon, a first-year student in the Magic Department.

A former shadow and one of Leo’s worshippers, Fritz also wielded blood magic.

“Lady Alia truly had a kind heart. When she was alive, both the Head of House and Lord Albi were much brighter. She was also exceptionally talented.”

“Yes, yes. I’ve heard more than enough about Aunt Alia.”

Elena rested her chin on one hand and sighed.

“Of course, when it comes to talent, Lady Elena is the finest.”

Berewin looked at Elena.

“Though your laziness is a problem.”

Elena looked utterly fed up.

“Don’t you agree, Lord Plov?”

At Berewin’s question, Leo looked at Elena.

“Elena Sunbae certainly is lazy.”

“Oh my. Is it really all right to speak to your sunbae like that?”

“It’s the truth.”

Leo sliced into his meat.

When it came to pure talent, Elena was among the greatest geniuses Leo had ever encountered.

That included both his past and present lives.

Throughout the history of heroes, there had been great figures who carried entire eras on their shoulders.

The most recent was none other than the Sword Saint, Kalian.

“Judging by talent alone, she has the potential to surpass the Sword Saint.”

“Oh?”

Berewin exclaimed in admiration.

He too was a hero from the Sword Saint’s era.

Naturally, his name had paled beside the Sword Saint’s renown.

Even so, Berewin had fought beside Kalian in countless battles. They were comrades-in-arms who had aided each other time and again.

That made Leo’s claim that Elena could surpass the Sword Saint all the more intriguing to him.

“What makes you think so?”

“I once had a friend who was an excellent judge of people.”

Leo thought of Lysinas.

“I learned a thing or two from her.”

“You seem confident in your own judgment.”

“I’m nowhere near as good as she was.”

Leo smiled faintly.

Elena stared intently at him.

Thus, dinner came to an end.

===

Late that night.

Leo was fast asleep in bed.

Tap, tap—

Soft footsteps approached.

Rustle—

Feeling someone climb onto the bed, Leo opened his eyes.

“You’re awake, Leo-gun?”

Elena smiled at him.

Leo looked at her and spoke.

“Sunbae, it’s very late.”

“I know.”

Elena shrugged.

“I just wanted to talk.”

Dressed in a nightgown, Elena sat on the edge of the bed and crossed her legs.

The Queen of Lumene.

Or the Witch.

Elena was an object of terror for Lumene’s students, but at that moment, she looked like an ordinary girl her age.

“Leo-gun, do you know why I willingly handed the position of Student Council President over to you?”

“Because it was a hassle.”

“Well, that too.”

Elena giggled.

“But more than that, I wanted to see a perfect hero.”

Elena turned her head toward Leo.

Her pink eyes shimmered.

A childlike innocence shone within them.

“Why did you want to see a perfect hero?”

“Do you remember what I said after we defeated Erebos in Lady Luna’s World?”

'I preferred the princess who got rescued to the hero in fairy tales when I was little. I found myself admiring her more.'

Recalling what had happened, Leo spoke.

“You mean what you said about preferring princesses to heroes?”

“Mm.”

Elena gave a faint laugh.

“I got sick of hearing it from the time I was little—that I would become a hero.”

There was no doubt that Elena possessed some of the greatest talent in the Age of Heroes.

She had an extraordinary background.

And even more extraordinary talent.

“Ever since I was little, I heard endlessly that I had to succeed Lord Lumene.”

Elena let out a dry chuckle.

“Did you know? Lord Lumene reached his limit and fell into despair.”

“Really?”

“Mm. It’s recorded in the first chairman’s memoir.”

“That’s interesting.”

“....”

Elena narrowed her eyes at Leo’s lukewarm response.

“That’s all?”

“Elena Sunbae, did you respect the Twilight Knight?”

“....”

Elena fell silent, then nodded.

“I did. I still do.”

She gave a faint laugh.

“I had a very harsh childhood, you know.”

From an early age, Elena had been hailed as the greatest genius in House Zeron’s history.

People expected her to surpass the Twilight Sage and perhaps even reach the Twilight Knight.

She was hailed as a successor to the Genesis Heroes.

Her childhood had been every bit as brutal as those expectations suggested.

“Whenever it became too much, I read storybooks about Lord Lumene.”

A knight who never gave up.

The epic of Lumene, who had risen from slavery to become a hero who saved the world, was an unending succession of challenges.

“I drew strength from the way he never gave up. To me as a child, Lord Lumene was a perfect hero.”

Then she read the account of how Lumene had ultimately fallen into despair.

“Were you disappointed?”

“Hmm... I wouldn’t say disappointed. I was devastated.”

Elena’s eyes darkened.

“The memoir vividly described Lord Lumene screaming in despair.”

It had been a terrible shock to the young Elena.

“Learning that even the person I had made my goal wasn’t a perfect hero left me not knowing what to do.”

What others called rigorous and demanding had, in truth, been a horrific life.

Of course, House Zeron had not forced such a life upon Elena to torment her.

They had simply believed in her potential.

Elena herself had believed in that potential and spent her childhood relying on Lumene’s story.

“When Uncle Albi returned to the family, that grueling training finally stopped. I’m truly grateful to him for that.”

Elena smiled.

“But afterward, I grew completely twisted. I turned into an arrogant brat who looked down on everyone.”

“You certainly did.”

“Aren’t you supposed to deny that at times like this?”

Elena furrowed her brow and glared at Leo for a moment.

She soon sighed and continued.

“I only recently learned why he despaired.”

“....”

“In the end, Lord Lumene fell into despair because he realized he could never defeat Erebos.”

Uncrossing her legs, Elena gazed at the ceiling and lamented.

“It all feels so hollow. What did I even want to become a hero for?”

Flop—

Elena fell back onto the bed and turned her gaze toward Leo.

“I made you Student Council President because I wanted to help you become the perfect hero I could never be. Though you became one even without my help.”

Elena gave a faint laugh.

“My motivation is completely gone. Should I just quit school?”

“That would be a problem. You need to be my Vice President.”

“Hmm? Does that mean you need me, Leo-gun?”

A strangely twisted smile appeared on Elena’s face as she sat up and approached Leo.

“What do you think of me, Leo-gun?”

“In what way?”

“I’m exceptionally beautiful, aren’t I? I have House Zeron behind me, and I’m highly capable. That’s why you want me as Vice President.”

Elena had crawled all the way over to Leo and climbed on top of him.

“A princess marries the hero who saved her and devotes herself to supporting him. It’s a common story, isn’t it?”

Elena’s pink eyes gleamed.

Her cascading hair tickled Leo’s cheeks.

“What do you think?”

Leo reached out from where he lay.

His fingertips touched Elena’s abdomen.

Her stomach flinched inward.

His fingers traveled across her stomach toward her side, and her body trembled slightly with each movement.

And then....

Pinch—!

“Aaagh?!”

“Stop messing around. You’re still a little brat with baby fuzz, so why are you pretending to be an adult?”

Leo mercilessly pinched Elena’s side.

“Is this insubordination? This is insubordination!”

“At school, the Student Council President outranks everyone, you know.”

After easily subduing Elena, Leo clicked his tongue and climbed out of bed.

Left alone on the mattress, Elena clutched her side and trembled.

“Is this how roughly you tamed Lily too?”

“Don’t say things others could misunderstand.”

Leo folded his arms.

“If you pull something like this again, you might genuinely get hurt next time, so don’t.”

“Ah, this is no fun. What kind of hubae acts like some world-weary old man? I can’t even tease you.”

Elena scoffed.

'I am a world-weary old man, you impertinent brat.'

Leo laughed inwardly before speaking.

“The Twilight Knight undoubtedly despaired and gave up.”

“....”

Elena smiled bitterly.

“But he probably got back up.”

“What?”

“Who goes through life without ever despairing or giving up? If someone like that exists, he’s truly insane.”

Leo clicked his tongue.

During the Era of Calamity, no one had despaired and given up more often than he had as the Surviving Hero.

But....

In the end, he had always gotten back up.

“What matters is whether you can get back up.”

To Leo, not giving up did not mean clinging to something impossible until the bitter end.

Getting back up and running down another path around an insurmountable wall was also a form of not giving up.

“He gave up on defeating Erebos himself, but he never gave up on Erebos being defeated. That is why the Twilight Knight has held Erebos at bay within the Hero’s World for 3,000 years.”

'She probably thinks she gave up.'

Leo thought of the successor he had never met or spoken with.

'Don’t think so little of yourself, Kyle. The reason you’re called the Surviving Hero is... even though you despaired and gave up in that moment, you still rose again and again and ran down another path. That isn’t giving up.'

Lysinas’s words resurfaced in his mind.

'If he admired me... he didn’t have to imitate even that.'

Leo smiled bitterly and looked at the dazed Elena.

“If you truly respect the Twilight Knight, you don’t need to give up just because Lumene did. So....”

Leo met Elena’s gaze.

“Get back up, no matter how many times it takes, spoiled princess. Get up.”

“Get up and?”

“Become a true queen. How long are you going to keep whining just because your childhood was a little harsh?”

Elena stared at him blankly.

Then she let out a hollow laugh and asked,

“Are you sure you don’t just need a new slave?”

“A new slave is always welcome.”

Elena laughed incredulously.

“Honestly... I ended up with one outrageous hubae-nim.”

Letting out a short sigh, Elena climbed out of bed and folded her arms.

“In return, I’ll run things however I want.”

Leo nodded.

“As you wish.”