The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honor Student

The refugee city of Reysar was one of the few cities that remained in relatively good condition during the Era of Calamity.

Its scale was the largest among the cities that had managed to survive at the time, and its circumstances were also better than most.

'It was a city abundant in supplies. And above all, the Azure Guardian was there.'

Agon, the Azure Guardian, Arron’s master.

Before the Great Heroes, led by Lysinas and Kyle, rose to prominence,

he was the man called the hope of the world.

Agon loved children.

That was why he took in the orphans of Reysar.

At least while the Azure Guardian Agon was still alive, children with nowhere to go could live in Reysar while hoping for tomorrow.

But after he drew his final breath,

the true tragedy began.

The lord of Reysar trained and brainwashed the countless orphans overflowing through the streets.

He reshaped them into beings that existed only to fight.

And then they were thrown into the war against Tartarus.

The training process was simple.

They were forced to compete endlessly.

Only the children who survived the brutal training were given food.

In order to win, they were allowed to trample over, and even kill, their opponents.

A literal living hell.

It might have been capable of producing strong warriors.

But it was hopeless as a way to create decent human beings.

'There were many children among them with extraordinary talent.'

There were definitely children with talent and power that could have genuinely benefited the world.

But the lord of Reysar used them only as expendables.

The children who were driven onto the battlefield as consumables died meaningless deaths.

Filled with hatred and resentment.

And that continued to repeat over and over.

Until Kyle executed the lord of Reysar.

'He had been colluding with the enemy.'

And while executing the lord of Reysar, he discovered who the mastermind was.

'Atkan, the Archduke of Funeral.'

The right-hand man of Death King Hell Kaiser.

The reason he went through the trouble of devising something like that was simple.

'It was to obtain corpses.'

The demon legion led by Death King Hell Kaiser, the Necromancers, specialized in Death Magic.

They were fiends who wielded immense power using corpses.

That was why they displayed their most terrifying power in the heart of the battlefield.

The experience of a fallen comrade rising as an Undead and attacking you was something no one could ever get used to.

'Their very existence destroys morale.'

And the more powerful the Necromancer, the more perfectly they could reproduce the appearance the dead had while they were alive.

'And corpses filled with resentment and hatred are the best weapons for them.'

A high-ranking Necromancer could even amplify the abilities of a Corpse that had been raised, pushing it beyond what it had been in life.

It was similar to how knights and warriors use Aura to strengthen their Artifacts.

Of course, if the corpse had been too powerful in life, it was impossible to fully restore all of its strength.

'And there was one more thing.'

If corpses filled with dark emotions such as resentment, hatred, despair, disgust, and envy were the best weapons for a Necromancer, then on the other hand, they could not properly handle corpses that contained nobility.

Even if they were raised as Corpses, they would not obey commands and would resist.

In a sense, they were like dull Artifacts.

Naturally, it was also difficult to draw out the corpse’s power.

'When Lysinas became the light and fought against Erebos and Tartarus, noble heroes were born.'

Drawn to the light and hope that Lysinas presented,

countless heroes were born.

That was what made Lysinas special.

She deceived people and lied to them, speaking of a light and hope that did not exist.

And in the end, Lysinas made it real.

She truly became the savior of the world itself.

If Brave Arron was the symbol of courage,

then the Wise King Lysinas was the symbol of salvation and hope.

'Well, that’s a kind of ability I could never imitate in my life.'

In any case, Lysinas’s very existence deprived the Death King’s legion of one of their greatest weapons.

So Atkan, the Archduke of Funeral, came up with a plan.

He intended to use Reysar to mass-produce corpses they could use.

That was how the Orphan Soldiers came to be.

'The resentment and hatred carried by the Orphan Soldiers were immense.'

Though they had to trample over one another just to survive,

the bond among the Orphan Soldiers was still strong.

There was no point in dying before becoming strong.

That was why Atkan, who had engineered the plan, brainwashed the Orphan Soldiers into relying on one another.

There were too many cases to count of children sharing their food with a starving comrade.

It was not unusual for them to sacrifice themselves during training to save an ally.

To the Orphan Soldiers, one another was the very reason they kept living.

'And the more comrades they lose, the stronger their resentment and hatred become.'

At first, the blade of their resentment and hatred was pointed at Tartarus.

'But the moment they were sent to war as expendables and died, the Orphan Soldiers realized it.'

That they had been beings raised only to die.

And when they saw the Necromancers collecting their bodies, their resentment and hatred exploded.

'It was horrifying.'

One of Kyle’s disciples.

That was why Vihar could not step into the light even after the Era of Calamity had come to an end.

'She had also been one of the Orphan Soldiers.'

Kyle had hoped that once everything was over, his disciple would live in the light.

He had told her not to walk the same path of darkness that he himself had once walked.

And yet, in the end, Vihar chose to remain in the darkness and became a shadow.

'In the end, she could never become like Velkia.'

Kyle’s two disciples, born beneath a gray sky.

Of them, Velkia went toward the light, and Vihar went toward the darkness.

Remembering Vihar, Leo felt bitterness rise in his mouth and tore his gaze away from the Orphan Soldiers.

“Why is Crown Prince Jeremin managing those children? At a glance, they don’t look ordinary.”

The aura they gave off was anything but ordinary.

“I forcibly took in these children, whom Duke Dotarn had been secretly raising.”

“Did he hand them over that easily?”

“No. But I couldn’t just stand by and let something that horrific continue.”

Looking at Jeremin, whose eyes were burning with anger, Leo spoke.

“How much do you know about those children?”

“I only know that they were raised as orphans to be sent to the battlefield.”

“Their very existence must be a secret within the kingdom, right?”

“That’s right. If I had known such an atrocity was being committed, I never would have left it alone.”

Watching the resolute Jeremin, Leo looked back at the Orphan Soldiers.

'Well, if that Duke Dotarn knew what kind of children they really were, he never would have handed them over to the crown prince.'

Neither the crown prince nor the duke had realized it because they were ordinary people.

'Each and every one of those Orphan Soldiers is stronger than an average knight. They’ve all already been initiated into Aura. Two or three of them are at a level where they could enroll in Lumene.'

In a small kingdom like Carnel, they were a force capable of staging a rebellion.

The northeastern part of the continent was a land of endless war.

So obtaining orphans must have been easy.

“How would Your Highness like those children to live?”

“It may be difficult, but I hope they can live lives far removed from war.”

The crown prince’s pity was genuine.

They had lost their parents to war, been captured, and then subjected to horrific training.

He sincerely grieved for them.

'At least the crown prince seems like a decent person.'

He was a prince who could not even be compared to the debauched king and ministers of this country.

“Are you really certain you want to hand the legacy left behind by the Nether Knight over to Lumene?”

“Of course. To be honest, even if it remained in our kingdom, we obviously wouldn’t be able to use it properly. No matter how great a legacy may be, it’s worthless if you can’t make use of it, isn’t it?”

Jeremin crossed his arms and grinned.

“It would be best if Lumene managed our kingdom’s artifact. Besides, I need to become king before I can hand you the key. Maintaining a cooperative relationship with Hero Leo Plov until then would be very helpful, wouldn’t it?”

“You’ve thought that far ahead.”

As Lily’s eyes widened, Jeremin smiled faintly.

“Those children know almost nothing about heroes or heroic tales. So I also wanted them to meet a real hero.”

Jeremin lowered his head before Leo with a serious expression.

“I’m asking you, Leo Plov. Please help those children live normal lives.”

No matter how small the kingdom was, it was not easy for someone of a crown prince’s station to bow his head.

Even if it was to someone who had risen to the rank of hero.

Looking at the crown prince, Leo said,

“I understand.”

“Thank you. Thank you very much!”

Jeremin smiled brightly.

Looking at him, Leo said,

“Now that I know they exist, I can’t just leave them alone anyway.”

===

The Orphan Soldiers were lined up in neat rows, waiting for Leo and Lily.

Their gazes turned toward Leo.

Scars were scattered across their faces.

Their eyes were all sharp.

The Orphan Soldiers were carefully observing Leo.

'Their average age is around thirteen to fourteen.'

They were still very young.

Among them were a few who, just barely, were at a level that would allow them to enter Lumene.

'The others could reach that level too, depending on what they do from here on out. Of course, their disposition is completely unsuited for Lumene.'

Strength alone was not enough to enter Lumene.

“You want to go to the battlefield?”

At Leo’s question, the boy standing at the front answered.

“Yes. Are you the one who’s going to send us there?”

The boy’s question made Leo smirk.

“No.”

At those words, the boy’s eyes twitched.

“Why do you want to go to the battlefield so badly?”

“To get revenge on the bastards who made us like this!”

“They told us the ones who killed our parents are on the battlefield!”

“I killed my friends to get this far because of those bastards!”

“I’m going to kill them all!”

Voices full of hatred burst out from every side.

Seeing that, Lily raised her hand.

“Now, now, everyone, please calm down.”

“This isn’t something for a pampered noble lady like you to meddle in, is it?”

A girl standing beside the boy shouted viciously.

“Wouldn’t it be better for us to just snap the enemies’ necks?”

That girl, who spoke especially roughly, even directed killing intent toward Leo and Lily.

At that, Lily was just about to show a troubled expression.

Then Leo let out a smirk.

“Fine. If you want it that badly, I’ll send you.”

“Master!”

Lily called out to Leo in surprise.

Leo pulled Lily in front of him, pushed her toward the Orphan Soldiers, and said,

“On one condition. I’ll send you if you can beat this kid.”

At Leo’s words, the murderous gazes of the Orphan Soldiers all turned toward Lily.

Lily wore a bewildered expression.

“M-Master. Why are you suddenly telling me to fight?”

“It’s my first order as your master.”

“Gah?!”

“Subdue these kids.”

At Leo’s words, Lily nodded.

With a determined expression, Lily stepped forward to face the Orphan Soldiers.

“Come at me.”

At her words, the boy and girl in front exchanged glances and nodded.

The first to step forward was the girl.

She spun the dagger in her hand with a whirl, showed off a flashy trick, and spoke in a murderous voice.

“You’d better be prepared, noble Unni.”

Looking at the girl, Lily said,

“Who told you to come at me one at a time?”

“What, are you saying you’re going to take both of us on by yourse—”

“All of you here, come at me at once.”

“What?”

The Orphan Soldiers all stared in disbelief.

Lily said flatly,

“I’ll show you just how powerless you are.”

===

'I told her to subdue them, but to think she’d take them all on at once. She looks timid, but her scale is unexpectedly large.'

Smirking as he watched Lily, Leo turned around.

The reason Leo had entrusted the Orphan Soldiers to Lily was simple.

'It’s better for someone only a few years older than them to deal with them.'

No matter how young Leo looked, the gap between his mental age and the Orphan Soldiers was far too wide.

'It’s better to leave forming a bond to someone closer to them in age. Besides, in a way, Lily’s values are the exact opposite of the Orphan Soldiers’ values.'

Someone who knows darkness can understand darkness.

But someone who has lived in the light finds it difficult to understand darkness.

'For children like them, it’s better to clash head-on with a different ideology and be shattered by it.'

More importantly, Leo had something else to do.

Leo’s red eyes flashed.

'If Orphan Soldiers like these are being raised in this country, then that bastard, the Archduke of Funeral, must be hiding somewhere in this kingdom.'

A chilling killing intent filled Leo’s eyes.

'Shall we begin the hunt?'

***

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