Chapter 534

Shring!

Drawing Vihar’s dagger, Leo gazed blankly at the blade.

After examining the weapon from various angles, Leo gave it an experimental swing through the air.

Swish!

The sound of the blade cutting through the air rang out sharply.

It was, after all, a masterpiece made by Dweno.

Despite thousands of years having passed, the dagger had not forgotten its essence as an artifact.

After swinging it a few more times, Leo looked down at the blade in his hand once more.

'It wasn’t an illusion.'

For a fleeting moment earlier...

Vihar’s dagger had definitely reacted to something.

At that same moment, he had felt Vihar’s presence.

But now, the dagger remained silent, as if nothing had ever happened.

It was while Leo was silently staring at the dagger.

Knock, knock—

“Leo-nim, may I come in?”

“Come in.”

Creak—

Chen Xia opened the door and stepped inside.

Finding Leo standing motionless in the middle of the room, she wore a peculiar expression.

“Aren’t you going to change?”

Leo was still wearing Lunia’s school uniform.

“I had some things to think about,” Leo said nonchalantly, crossing his arms.

As he lowered his head slightly while dressed in Seiren’s white uniform, his pure white hair cascaded over his face.

The hair he had grown using Magic for his disguise shimmered like snow.

Combined with his pale skin, his ruby-red eyes, which looked as though they might burst into flames at any moment, were even more striking than usual.

“I realize this every time, but since Leo-nim is such a handsome youth, you look quite graceful dressed like that.”

As she spoke, Chen Xia approached Leo from behind and began braiding his hair.

“What are you doing?”

“I thought braided hair would suit you well.”

At those words, Leo shook his head.

His hair immediately unraveled and scattered.

Opening his Subspace with Magic, Leo pulled out a pair of trousers and put them on.

After tying the drawstrings of the loose, long pants, he took off the skirt and tossed it onto the bed.

Next, he pulled off the uniform top and threw it onto the bed as well.

The firm muscles and abs hidden beneath the uniform were revealed.

Massaging his shoulders, Leo cracked his neck from side to side and circulated his Aura.

Crack! Snap! Crack! Crack!

The sound of bones popping echoed throughout his body.

Then Leo’s physique began to grow larger.

Eventually returning to his original size, Leo stretched his arms wide and muttered,

“That hurt like hell.”

Chen Xia marveled at Leo’s grumbling.

“I felt this earlier too, but it’s truly fascinating. To change your skeletal structure itself using Aura. Is that an Aura skill you created, Leo-nim?”

“Do I look like the type to make something so useless?”

“Then who?”

“Among us, there was only one person likely to create something like this.”

“Lord Dweno?”

“Bingo.”

—'True beauty must transcend the time of the physical body! There is no need for a past form created by Magic and illusions! That is why I created this technique to reverse the body’s time using Aura!'

“It was a technique born from that old man’s perverted philosophy. The problem is that it’s so difficult to learn that no one can pick it up carelessly.”

“Hmm.”

Leo had used Dweno’s Aura skill to return to his appearance from a few years ago.

Because he had reverted to a time when his physique was similar to Lunia’s, he had been able to borrow her uniform without any sense of incongruity.

Chen Xia, being skilled with her hands, had altered Eiran’s clothes to fit herself.

“Can I learn that too?”

“Of course. Someone like you could easily learn it. Why?”

“I think it would be quite convenient to know.”

“Is there a need? Even now, when you’re with the freshmen, you look younger than them.”

“Are you saying I look like a child right now?”

Chen Xia narrowed her eyes and poked Leo in the ribs with her finger.

Looking at her, Leo said flatly,

“I mean you have a youthful face.”

“Where can you find a teenager with a ‘youthful face’? A youthful face?”

For Chen Xia, who was often teased for looking the same age as Chelsea, those were not welcome words.

Leo flicked Chen Xia’s forehead with his finger.

Rubbing her forehead, Chen Xia snorted and turned her head away sharply.

“Are you pouting?”

“I don’t know.”

Looking at Chen Xia’s prickly reaction, Leo said,

“Don’t be like that and come here. I have something to consult with you about.”

“With me?”

Chen Xia wore a puzzled expression.

As Leo pulled over a chair and sat down, Chen Xia sat on the bed in his room.

Showing her Vihar’s dagger, Leo spoke.

“This is the dagger I once gave to Vihar as a gift.”

“Ah...”

Chen Xia’s eyes widened slightly at the mention of the dagger used by her ancestor.

“And the moment we entered Eldon, this dagger reacted. It was brief, but I also felt Vihar’s presence. What do you think about that?”

At Leo’s question, Chen Xia thought for a moment before speaking.

“Lady Vihar’s passing was due to the fight with Lady Velkia, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

Normally, it would not have been strange for the Shan Empire and the Ersar family to become mortal enemies.

However, due to the nature of the Shan Empire, they had no choice but to hide everything about themselves.

“...Do you think Lady Vihar held a grudge against Lady Velkia?”

“If it’s the Vihar I know, she wouldn’t.”

Leo’s eyes dimmed slightly.

“Instead, she would have felt pity.”

“That is also a form of lingering attachment.”

Chen Xia closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“Assuming Lady Velkia is here... could it be that Leo-nim’s Spirit Magic was triggered?”

“You think so too?”

“Yes.”

Leo did not have profound knowledge of Spirit Magic either.

Of course, he knew more than most Summoners, but since he lacked the innate talent of a Necromancer, he had not delved deeply into it.

However, the situation had changed after Lysinas’s Spirit Magic abilities awakened.

He began studying Spirit Magic, and Chen Xia, who could handle spirits, also studied Spirit Magic alongside him.

The reason was simple.

It was to be of at least some help to Leo.

“After all, you have summoned Lady Luna before.”

Hearing Chen Xia’s words, Leo nodded and held up the dagger.

“Are you going to try calling her now?”

“Yeah.”

Nodding, Leo stirred his Spirit Power.

Wrooom!

Absorbing Leo’s Spirit Power, Vihar’s dagger began to emit a resonant hum.

'...If Vihar manifests as a Spirit, what should I say to her?'

Should he scold the disciple who could never step out of the shadows?

Or should he praise the disciple who sacrificed her entire life for the world?

'Or... should I comfort her, knowing she likely blamed herself for failing to stop Velkia?'

Leo gazed at Vihar’s dagger with somber eyes.

A moment later.

Flash!

Vihar’s dagger erupted in a brilliant light.

As Leo released it, the dagger floated in the air.

A Contract Seal drawn with Leo’s Spirit Power formed around it.

The Contract Seal was soon sucked into the dagger.

And then...

Thud!

Vihar’s dagger fell helplessly to the floor.

“...”

“...”

Leo and Chen Xia stared at the dagger in silence.

“Nothing happened?”

Chen Xia approached the dagger, crouched down, and poked it with her finger.

As expected, there was no reaction.

Seeing this, Leo knitted his brows.

“That’s strange. It was definitely Vihar’s energy.”

Chen Xia carefully picked up the dagger.

The dagger remained unresponsive.

“Leo-nim, here.”

Chen Xia scurried over to Leo and handed him the dagger.

Gazing blankly at the weapon, Leo spoke.

“That’s yours now.”

“Pardon?”

“It belonged to your ancestor, didn’t it?”

Leo said as he pulled on his coat.

“You can use dagger techniques, can’t you?”

“I can. Though the problem is that my killing intent becomes too thick.”

“Then train to control it.”

“Yes.”

Answering vigorously, Chen Xia carefully put away Vihar’s dagger.

Having finished dressing, Leo asked,

“Where are Lunia and Eiran?”

“The two of them went to the Eldon Council. They said that as prominent figures of Seiren, they felt they needed to make an appearance.”

“Don’t we need to go?”

“Miss Lunia said it should be enough if just the two of them went. She asked us to handle the investigation of the city.”

“I see.”

Donning his coat, Leo looked out the window.

Snow had begun to fall before he knew it.

“Then shall we go investigate?”

“Yes!”

Leo and Chen Xia stepped out of the lodging.

===

Whooooosh.

“Achoo!”

Late at night.

A fierce, biting wind was blowing.

Exiting the building, Lunia looked back with her red eyes narrowed.

The building Lunia and Eiran had just left was a palace that embodied the height of extravagance.

To any other race, they might have marveled at its splendor.

However, Elves were a race that considered grace and simplicity to be their aesthetic.

Therefore, any Elf who valued tradition would have frowned at the sight of such a lavish palace.

And this building was the center of the Pureblood Society, those who shouted loudest about tradition.

'They badmouthed other races’ palaces for being vulgar, yet look at them!'

Lunia’s face crumpled.

“Why do we have to cater to the whims of Eldon’s geezers as soon as we arrive?!”

As Lunia fumed, Eiran spoke in a weary voice.

“I don’t think we had a choice. Not if we want to investigate this city freely.”

“Seriously! I feel like I’m back in the first semester of my second year!”

Lunia huffed.

“We’ll have to attend the party too, won’t we?”

“...Probably.”

Just as Lunia buried her face in her hands...

K-boom!

At the sudden sound of an explosion, Lunia and Eiran’s eyes flew wide.

Even amid the blizzard, flames were roaring from a collapsed section of the city wall.

Seeing this, both Lunia and Eiran’s faces hardened.

“An attack?”

“Could it be an assault from Tartarus?”

A ruthless attack bordering on sudden terrorism.

The thought that this was the work of Demons naturally surfaced in both girls’ minds.

Without hesitation, the two of them dashed toward the site of the explosion.

And then...

“Hurry! Hurry!”

“Move fast before the Pureblood Society bastards swarm us!”

Lunia and Eiran stood agape as they watched people jumping over the ruined wall to loot a warehouse.

“E-Elves?”

Watching the Elves committing robbery while wearing masks, Lunia thought:

'What the hell is wrong with this city?'

Elves robbing Elves. It was something she had not even imagined.

As Lunia stood there in shock...

“Who goes there?!”

“Are you lackeys of the Pureblood Society?!”

The sword-wielding Elves who had been guarding the perimeter quickly surrounded Lunia and Eiran.

“Miss Lunia. What should we do?”

“What do you think?”

Lunia’s expression turned stern.

“We can’t just let them take us. Subdue them!”

“Yes!”

===

Leo and Chen Xia continued their investigation in the streets late into the night.

And they were able to discover several facts.

“It’s an incredibly wealthy city.”

It was just as Chen Xia said.

The Elves passing through the streets looked affluent even at a glance.

Despite the freezing weather, they were all dressed lightly.

It was not simply because they were Mages.

The clothes they wore were made of Mana Cloth, a fabric woven with Mana.

High-grade Mana Cloth was the same material used for uniforms at the Hero Academy.

Everyone walking the streets was wearing clothes made of such Mana Cloth.

That was why they were perfectly fine in the cold despite their thin attire.

In human society, high-grade Mana Cloth was an item that even most nobles found difficult to obtain.

Considering that the area Leo’s group was in was not even the district where the wealthy lived, one could tell just how rich this city was.

“Furthermore, it’s incredibly decadent. It’s a bit different from the Elves I know.”

She looked at the streets with a bewildered expression.

On the surface, this city looked perfectly respectable.

The streets were remarkably clean.

As the entire populace consisted of Stellar Mages, the streets were lined with shops related to Magic.

Those passing by also carried the air of Mages.

However, every single Elf was adorned with jewels to show themselves off.

Their faces were filled with the awareness that they belonged to a privileged class.

Moreover, when night fell, the entire street transformed.

The street of seekers who had been exploring Magic until daytime was nowhere to be found, replaced entirely by bars.

The entire district was sinking into luxury and pleasure.

Seeing this, Leo realized.

'This city is essentially the same as Barharun.'

Grand on the outside, rotten within.

Leo crinkled his nose.

For some reason, he felt as though he could smell a foul stench.

'If it were the current Velkia, she would have burned this city to the ground the moment she saw it.'

Yet this city remained intact.

While Leo was lost in thought...

“Shall we investigate a bit more for now?”

“Yeah. Should we split up for a bit?”

“Yes. We’ve been moving together all day, so let’s investigate the city separately now.”

During the day, they had mainly stopped people on the street to ask if anything strange was happening in the city.

To those questions, every Elf had replied with a smile that Eldon was peaceful.

But what about at night?

'People tend to change a bit once they’ve had some alcohol.'

Chen Xia muttered to herself as she walked down the street after parting with Leo.

K-boom!

She came to an abrupt halt at the faint sound of an explosion in the distance.

'The sound of an explosion?'

The moment Chen Xia instinctively turned her head toward the source of the sound...

“What beautiful black hair.”

“...!”

At the dry, hollow voice coming from behind her, Chen Xia felt goosebumps erupt all over her body.

Rustle—

A cold hand began to toy with Chen Xia’s hair.

Even so, Chen Xia could only stand there frozen, unable to move an inch.

There was no life in the hand touching her hair.

Chen Xia’s body trembled violently.

The hand that had been touching her hair soon reached her pointed ears.

Ssh—

At that moment, Leo’s Magic dispelled.

The owner of the hand placed it on Chen Xia’s shoulder.

Then they turned her body around to face them.

With a face turned pale as a sheet, Chen Xia looked up at the figure standing beneath the snowy night sky.

“Vihar’s descendant is the same as ever.”

A voice tinged with nostalgia.

The eyes held profound sadness and apology.

Chen Xia spoke the name of the Elf who was more beautiful than anyone else.

“Lady... Velkia.”

***