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Chapter 51: Interlude – The Moon Hidden by the Sun

It’s been three years.

Ever since I enrolled in the Hero Academy… no, even before I enrolled, my sword had stopped growing.

It was as if I had hit a massive wall.

I swung my sword day and night, trying to break through, but in the end, I made no progress.

My sword had stopped evolving or changing altogether.

The Sun Sword’s 6th Form, White Light.

That was the highest level of form I could achieve.

People who know about the Helios family might say something like this:

For someone just twenty years old to master up to the 6th Form of the Sun Sword, it’s amazing.

That no one aside from the creator of the Sun Sword, Reynald Helios, had accomplished as much at such a young age.

But.

‘This isn’t enough.’

I had a reason why I needed to get stronger.

To reach higher.

To reach further.

Until I become the “Sun” that shines high in the sky.

‘I… can’t stop here.’

Biting my lip until blood flowed, I swung my sword.

Every day. Every day.

Without missing a single day, I poured everything into my sword.

But the result was always the same.

The wall towering before me was impossibly high and dreadfully solid.

‘I have to get stronger. Stronger. Stronger.’

If I don’t get stronger, I—

I….

“If only you… if only you didn’t exist! Just youuu!!!”

Every night, the same scene replayed in my dreams.

The sound of a flower pot shattering.

Water spilling on the floor, and the sharp shards of the pot.

My mother’s hands choking me.

The suffocating pain.

My consciousness fading.

Her bloodshot eyes staring down at me.

‘I have to get stronger.’

If I don’t,

I don’t deserve to live.

—Yuren, have you heard of this?

One day.

A classmate sitting next to me (for some reason, they use honorifics with me) told me a rumor.

A rumor about someone named Dale Han, a mere bottom-rank cadet.

—No, really. Those C-class guys keep comparing you to that Dale guy. Aren’t they crazy?

At first, it was just simple curiosity.

They said he defeated Professor Lucas.

That he knocked out Camilla with one blow.

That he cut down dozens of beasts in the blink of an eye.

There were many rumors, but the one that caught my attention was this:

—That Dale guy, they say he cut through a training wooden sword with another wooden sword without using any mana.

To cut through a training wooden sword — which was essentially a wooden club — with another wooden sword was impossible without being exceptionally skilled in swordsmanship.

So I went to see for myself.

And I saw it.

What was far too one-sided to be called a spar between an instructor and a cadet.

When I saw Instructor Vincent collapsed, clutching his bloodied arm, and the gray-haired cadet standing tall before him—

For some reason, I felt a thrilling excitement in my chest.

Like the feeling of reuniting with a long-lost crush, perhaps.

I couldn’t understand why I felt that way.

But, as if something had possessed me, I sought him out the next day.

—After watching your match, I really wanted to spar with you, Dale.

To be honest, my desire to spar with him was half a lie.

More than wanting to spar, I just wanted to talk with him.

‘But.’

After being overwhelmingly defeated in our first sparring match,

my thoughts completely changed.

‘Maybe this person could teach me how to surpass the wall.’

Honestly, I thought the chances were slim.

But my desperation to overcome the “wall” was greater than anything else.

Thus, I clung to the faintest hope as I started learning from him.

—Don\'t think about where you want to aim the sword. Think about where the sword wants to go.

When I heard those words,

it felt like lightning had struck my mind.

‘Think not about where I want to aim, but where the sword itself wants to go.’

In other words,

he was telling me not to wield the sword with my will but to imbue my will into the sword and let it guide me.

‘Imbuing your heart into the sword.’

It was a radical concept I had never even considered.

But at that moment, I felt a tiny crack appear in the massive wall that had been blocking my way for the past three years.

Of course, Dale’s single statement didn’t completely demolish the wall.

But just finding a small clue on how to break it was enough to make my heart surge with joy.

“Thank you… thank you so much, Dale.”

Overcome with emotion, I impulsively hugged him tightly.

“Uh, yeah?”

Seeing Dale’s startled expression, I suddenly realized what I had done.

“Ah… s-sorry.”

I quickly pulled away, and an awkward silence settled between us.

‘What were you thinking, Yuren?!’

Even though it was too late to take back what had happened, I regretted it deeply.

I hastily spoke up.

“T-thank you so much for today. I’ll definitely repay this favor, no matter what.”

“It’s fine. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“No, I insist.”

How could I remain silent after receiving such a meaningful teaching without any compensation?

“Wait here for a moment.”

As I searched for a way to repay his kindness, I hurriedly rummaged through the locker in the private training room.

Inside was a mana-enhancing elixir that had been gifted to me as the top cadet of my year.

The elixir was of little use to me now, as it wasn’t potent enough to increase my mana anymore.

But for Dale, who had little mana, it should be quite helpful.

“This is… no way, is this an elixir?”

“Yes. It may not have a huge effect, but it will help increase your mana.”

Dale chuckled as he looked at the elixir in his hand.

“You’re really giving me this? Mana-enhancing elixirs are incredibly rare.”

“What you taught me means far more than this.”

At my words, Dale chuckled lightly.

"Well, alright. With your level of mana, this elixir probably doesn\'t mean much anyway."

"..."

For some reason, when he said that, I felt guilty, as if I was trying to repay his kindness with something useless.

"N-no, it\'s not like I think this makes us even. I\'ll give you something else later..."

"Enough, man. Between friends, who cares about keeping score like that?"

"...Friends?"

"Ah."

Dale\'s expression stiffened.

"Ah... I mean, ahem. After crossing swords once, aren’t we friends? Right?"

"Y-yeah. Right, friends."

Friends...

Friends, huh.

Why was it?

When I heard that word, a strange surge of anger twisted inside me.

\'What is this feeling?\'

Whenever I was with Dale, I sometimes felt emotions rising that I couldn’t understand.

"Anyway. How about we meet every Wednesday and Friday from now on, and I\'ll teach you swordsmanship for two hours each time?"

"...You\'ll keep teaching me?"

I opened my eyes wide at the unexpected offer.

"Well, what, you thought I\'d teach you once and be done? You think swordsmanship is that easy?"

"N-no. I just... I\'m really grateful."

Why is he being so good to me, someone he barely knows?

Before I could even try to figure that out, Dale turned to leave.

"Well, it\'s getting late, so I’ll head off."

"Y-yeah."

The urge to ask him not to go rose to my throat, but I barely managed to hold it back.

"Uh, hey."

I cautiously called out to Dale, who was walking away.

"Hm?"

"Can I... add your Hero Watch contact?"

"Oh, right. I forgot about that."

He nodded and extended his wrist with the Hero Watch on it.

[Would you like to register ‘Dale Han’s’ contact? (YES / NO)]

A hologram popped up over my Hero Watch.

I quickly moved my hand and pressed the \'YES\' button.

[\'Dale Han\'s\' contact has been successfully registered.]

"Then I’ll see you around. Looks like we’ll meet tomorrow since it\'s Wednesday. Let’s talk about the time later via message."

With that, Dale left the training hall.

"......"

Left alone in the hall, I touched my Hero Watch, which now stored Dale\'s contact, and thought of his face.

Dark gray hair, reminiscent of burnt ashes.

Slightly sharp eyes and mysterious green irises.

A strong, masculine jaw and a delicate nose bridge falling between his brows.

He wasn\'t what you\'d call a typical handsome man.

But his face had a strange, captivating charm.

\'...Dale.\'

Why was it?

Just thinking of his face made my heart race as if it were broken.

Even though we had just parted, I couldn\'t help but want to meet him again.

It didn\'t have to be for swordsmanship training.

I just wanted to talk to him, even about trivial things.

A little longer, just a little longer.

I wanted to be with him.

"Should I message him and ask if he wants to grab dinner later?"

I swallowed hard and moved my hand toward his contact on the Hero Watch, but after hesitating several times, I lowered it again.

"...I\'m being ridiculous."

No one knew better than me that I wasn’t in a position to be swept away by such personal feelings.

"Time to shower."

I stripped off my sweat-drenched training clothes and entered the shower room.

The reflection in the large mirror.

A handsome man with blonde hair and golden eyes stared back at me.

"......"

I stood in front of the mirror and slowly raised my hand to touch my left chest.

My fingertips brushed against the ‘Stigma of the Moon God\' engraved there.

Grit.

A sound escaped through my clenched teeth.

"Sigh."

With a deep sigh, I removed the pendant hanging around my neck.

And then.

Wooong!

A radiant glow emanated from the pendant, enveloping my body.

After the light that filled the shower room had faded.

The figure reflected in the mirror was.

"......"

A beautiful woman with silver hair, as if woven from moonlight.

I stroked my now prominent chest and turned on the shower.

Ssssshhhh.

Warm water cascaded down my body.

"...Don\'t forget."

I clenched my fist and reminded myself.

The vow I had repeated hundreds, no, thousands of times.

"I am Yuren Helios."

Because eight years ago, Yurina Helios died.