“H-Holy Power!?” Luna couldn’t believe her eyes. Holy power, a force only heroes were supposed to wield, had suddenly appeared, causing her heart to race.
Aside from herself and Valen, no one else should be capable of wielding holy power—except for one: Leon, the person she cared for and loved most.
Without realizing it, Luna’s breath caught, and a wave of overwhelming happiness spread across her face.
Beside her, Valen wore an equally stunned expression, his grip on the Holy Spear of Soaring Dragon tightening ever so slightly.
“Is that Leon? But how is that possible? Isn’t he already dead?” Valen wondered inwardly, his face twisted with confusion and turmoil.
If Leon was truly alive, Valen didn’t know whether to feel anger or relief. He despised Leon for constantly overshadowing and surpassing him in every way. Yet, at the same time, he saw Leon as the rival he needed to surpass.
Caught between these conflicting emotions, Valen found himself in a dilemma he couldn’t resolve.
At that moment, the light of the holy power slowly dimmed until it vanished completely. Moments later, a man in white armor appeared in the sky, his indifferent gaze sweeping across the entire battlefield.
He was tall and handsome, with striking golden hair that accentuated his domineering presence.
In his right hand, he held a stunning white sword, its blade adorned with gold patterns. The man’s mere presence shattered the reality Luna and Valen had envisioned.
The figure they had mistaken for Leon was, in fact, someone entirely unexpected—Guren Leywn.
“Guren!? How is that possible!?” Luna exclaimed in disbelief, rising to her feet.
Her eyes fluttered, and her body stiffened, revealing just how shocked she was by his sudden appearance.
She had thought it was Leon—the one she had longed for day and night—but it was someone entirely different. And that someone was Guren—someone she never could have imagined appearing in this situation.
A flood of unanswered questions swirled in Luna’s mind, leaving her so confused that a headache began to form.
Hovering in the sky, Guren slowly descended, landing a few meters away from Valen and Luna. He gazed at their miserable state with a playful look, showing no sign of pity.
“Tsk tsk… I didn’t expect you two to end up like this. It seems the glory of heroes has truly been tarnished by your actions,” Guren taunted, a faint smile curling on his lips.
Valen and Luna gasped in shock at Guren’s words. They hadn’t expected him to mock them like this.
After all, Guren had always been humble with them, especially in front of Luna. Thus, his sudden change in demeanor left them momentarily dazed.
“Guren! What are you talking about!?” Valen snapped, breaking free from his daze, his expression instantly hardening with anger.
Despite the lingering pain in his body, he slowly rose to his feet and fixed Guren with a cold, piercing stare.
As the Spear Hero, Valen held a deep sense of pride, and Guren’s words were a direct insult to him.
Yet, facing Valen’s fury, Guren showed no sign of fear. In the past, he would never have dared to insult Valen and Luna so openly.
After all, Valen and Luna were heroes who wielded holy weapons, and their strength far exceeded his own.
But now, everything had changed. He was no longer the coward without a holy weapon; he was the Sword Hero Guren, a revered figure of humanity.
With his newfound status, he stood on equal footing with them, and there was no longer any reason to cower like a mouse in their presence.
“If you choose to take it as an insult, that’s your problem,” Guren said nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.
Guren’s words and demeanor fueled Valen’s anger, and just as he was about to speak, Guren quickly cut him off.
“Valen, don’t think for a second that I’ll be afraid of you now,” Guren snarled coldly, raising the Holy Sword of Zenith high. “The man I am today is no longer the coward I once was. I am the sword hero, Guren Leywn!”
*Buzz!*
As soon as the words left his mouth, the Holy Sword of Zenith blazed with a blinding, dazzling light.
Moments later, an overwhelming pressure descended upon Valen and Luna, pinning them in place.
“Pufft!” Valen gasped as if a hundred-kilogram stone had been dropped on him. His wounds, which had begun to heal, reopened and bled anew.
Luna felt the same crushing pressure, but with her condition not as dire as Valen’s, she managed to resist it slightly.
Her eyes reddened as she looked up at Guren, standing encased in a barrier of holy power that shielded him from the falling rain.
“Guren, the Holy Sword of Zenith belongs to Leon! How could you possibly possess it!? And you call yourself a sword hero? Don’t make me laugh! There are only three heroes in this era! So, who are you really!?” Luna demanded hoarsely, her anger and disbelief impossible to conceal.
Though she refused to believe Guren could possess the Holy Sword of Zenith, the sight before her left her with no room to argue.
Yet she couldn’t comprehend how Guren had acquired the Holy Sword, as such a thing had never occurred before.
Guren smiled casually, lowering the Holy Sword of Zenith and driving it into the sand.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he met Luna’s gaze with a nonchalant look.
“I’m too lazy to explain, but since it’s already happened, I’ll give you a brief explanation,” Guren said indifferently.
He then revealed the truth—that he was the fourth hero, a position that should never have existed. He also explained that this was all part of Velix’s plan to make him the sword hero and replace Leon.
Of course, he left out the fact that Leon’s death was part of a larger conspiracy orchestrated by Velix and his subordinates.
Everything he said had been carefully crafted by Jim, leaving no room for doubt or contradiction.
Listening intently to his explanation, Luna’s beautiful face grew even paler, as if everything around her was starting to crumble.
“The fourth hero? Does that mean Leon is truly dead?” The thought struck her like a sharp blow, and Luna’s heart began to race as her breath grew labored.
Earlier, Arshley had suggested that Leon was most likely still alive and had asked for her help in searching for him in the Desert of Chaos.
Despite her efforts, she had found no trace of Leon during her time here.
A few days ago, the Holy Bow of Celestial Frost had detected a faint presence of holy power from a distance of 1000 kilometers, but she couldn’t confirm whether it had truly been Leon.
Now, with Guren’s emergence as the sword hero and the Holy Sword of Zenith in his hand, all hope she had left that Leon was still alive was shattered.
Subconsciously, the spark in Luna’s eyes faded, and she stood frozen, like a doll, unable to move.
“The fourth hero? What nonsense! You don’t deserve that title!” Valen suddenly roared, his gaze fixed on Guren with murderous intent.
During their battle in the throne room, Valen had been taken aback by Guren’s unusual technique, which closely resembled his own hero’s power.
Moreover, after Guren had fallen unconscious from the fight and been brought in for treatment, Valen had sensed a faint trace of holy power at the spot where Guren had collapsed.
At first, he was confused and wondered if he had imagined it. But now he realized that Guren had indeed possessed holy power all along—and had hidden it from them.
Feeling deceived and betrayed, Valen’s anger flared, especially at Velix and the others. He felt like a fool, mocked and played by them.
With rage coursing through him, Valen immediately summoned his holy power and teleported directly in front of Guren.
“Sword Hero? You’re delusional!” Valen spat, thrusting the Holy Spear of Soaring Dragon toward Guren’s chest.
Unfazed by the attack, Guren showed no fear, as if he had anticipated it. He swiftly raised the Holy Sword of Zenith and deflected the strike.
*Clang!*
The clash of the two holy weapons sent a shockwave through the air, shaking the surroundings.
Valen glared coldly at Guren, and just as he was about to twist his body for a decisive strike, a burst of holy power erupted from Guren, sending him flying tens of meters away.
“Pufft!” Valen coughed up blood, pain wracking his body.
The wounds from his previous battle with Heidel still throbbed, and Guren’s holy power only worsened his condition.
“Valen, you’re no match for me now. Don’t push your luck,” Guren said coldly.
If not for Jim’s prohibition against attacking other heroes, Guren would have killed Valen, who had tormented him earlier.
Valen only gritted his teeth in anger, but the pain coursing through his body left him too weak to speak.
Guren took a deep breath, calming himself. Undeniably, after becoming a sword hero, his mindset had begun to shift.
*Whoosh!*
A blinding red light suddenly illuminated the battlefield. Moments later, a massive magic circle materialized beneath the feet of everyone present, including Guren.
Startled by the unexpected event, Guren turned toward the source of the light and saw a beautiful silver-haired woman raising a magic staff high above her head.
Guren’s expression shifted. He recognized her—a Demon General and the Sovereign Mage of the Demon Race.
“What is she doing?” Guren asked warily.
Before he could react, an overwhelming pressure descended, forcing the entire human army to the ground and rendering them immobile.
“Ancient Magic: Singularity Crush!” Lilith muttered coldly.
The light grew brighter, and the previously immobilized Demon army suddenly regained their ability to move.
“I’m free!” one of the Demon soldiers exclaimed joyfully, and the others quickly followed suit.
“Everyone, retreat!” Garan’s commanding voice rang out, reaching their ears.
Despite the confusion, the Demon soldiers obeyed without hesitation and began to retreat.
“Retreat! Retreat!” Their voices echoed across the battlefield.
Valen and Luna’s expressions shifted instantly as they readied to pursue, but the weight of Lilith’s ancient magic left their bodies too weak to move.
Guren’s expression darkened as he fixed his gaze on Lilith.
“How could she use ancient magic on the battlefield?” Guren muttered, his brow furrowing in confusion.
But there was no time to dwell on it. He quickly summoned the holy power within him, and the pressure on his body began to weaken.
With his eyes flashing with murderous intent, Guren tightened his grip on the Holy Sword of Zenith and appeared just a few meters before Lilith.
“Die!” Guren shouted, slashing his sword toward Lilith’s neck.
Lilith’s expression remained unchanged, as though she felt no fear at all.
“Sorry, Arch-demon Heidel, I might be joining you soon,” she murmured, her eyes slowly closing.
Just as Lilith thought her end had come, a calm, indifferent voice echoed from above.
“Kill her? Are you worthy?”
