The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

Arios gritted his teeth and supported his legs, struggling to move forward until he finally reached Tilissa's side and asked.

Although it exuded a terrifying aura, it didn't look like a living being at all.

“That’s one way to look at it. This is the source of the demon’s power, the Demon Blood Soul,” Tilisa explained. “To defeat the demon to this extent is already the limit of human capabilities.”

Even when in demon form, a demon possesses a magical barrier similar to that of a demonic beast, yet it will still bleed and get injured.

Unlike monsters, the magical barriers they create cannot be rewoven in a short period of time once they are broken.

However, the Demon's invincible barrier's defensive capabilities will continuously increase as the Demon suffers injuries.

Once the injuries reach their limit, the demon will transform into the demon blood soul state shown before, awaiting its next revival.

However, no matter what methods humans use, they cannot harm this demonic blood soul.

This is why humans can never kill the demons.

Tissa's long hair swayed gently with her light movements, the ends of which shimmered with a deep blue-purple luster.

Then she flicked her fingers, and the metal pieces hidden beneath her dark hair quickly intertwined, eventually forming a dark longsword.

Now Arios understood.

Tissa was never unarmed; she hid her weapons in her hair.

She took a deep breath as if gathering her strength, and then stabbed the red agate with her sword without any mercy.

It was described as a single sword strike, only because Arios could only clearly see this one strike.

With the acceleration of the Heavenly Pulse Emblem, only Tilisa herself could know exactly how many swords were thrust out.

The sharp edge formed by countless sword intents was concentrated and exploded at a single point.

But the moment it touched the red agate, it vanished without a trace, like a clay ox sinking into the sea. In the end, not even a scratch was left.

"Phew—it still doesn't work." Tilissa let out a soft breath, her forehead covered with fine beads of sweat.

This ultimate technique, which combines swordsmanship and emblem magic, abandons practical combat ability and purely pursues lethality, has been practiced by her for a year.

She was confident she could pierce through even a high-level magical beast's magical barrier with a single sword strike.

The blood of the demon remained unchanged upon landing on the demonic soul.

Does it mean that you can't be a hero?

"So, are you still thinking about killing the demon?"

Tilisa forced a smile and looked at Arios beside her.

His smile was filled with an indescribable bitterness and resentment.

How will you know if you don't try?

Arios resisted the suffocating and terrifying pressure emanating from the Demon Blood Soul, and stepped forward step by step.

He then drew his sword.

The sword light flashed like a cold star.

"Snapped!"

As expected, the longsword in Arios's hand broke in two the moment it touched the Demon Blood Soul.

Immediately afterwards, an irresistible force sent him flying.

Tilisa did not catch Arios, but watched him fall to the ground.

Having the courage to draw one's sword against a powerful enemy is certainly a good quality.

But recognizing reality is a moment that all Silver Wolf Class students must go through.

As a school that gathers the essence of the continent of Fodora, St. Freya Academy has never lacked the existence of outstanding talents throughout its history.

Even without her, Tilisa, there will be new successors to take her place.

Only the brave are different.

This has nothing to do with effort and sweat, nor with personal will.

Rather, it stems from a deeper, more fundamental difference in status.

Only after recognizing this point will one be willing to serve the brave.

Depending on how the hero uses it, the Silver Wolf is sometimes the hero's sword, and sometimes the hero's shield.

What remains unchanged is the determination to eradicate the Demon King's lineage.

Seeing Arios get up from the ground and limp towards the Blood Soul again, Tissa seemed to see a reflection of her past self.

"That's enough."

"Only a hero can truly kill a demon."

"Before a hero appears, you still have time to become stronger and another chance to try."

Just like she has never given up.

"You're too weak right now. If you keep pushing yourself, you'll only hurt yourself," Tissa said, unable to bear it.

"Brave warrior, brave warrior, brave warrior! I'm so tired of hearing it."

Arios took off his second sword, which he still couldn't use skillfully, and used it as a cane, practically dragging himself forward.

His usual weapon was destroyed, and his hand was bleeding from the shock.

My physical and mental strength had reached their limit, and the fatigue from before came rushing back all at once.

It wouldn't be surprising if he collapsed at any moment.

But Arios felt his mind was unusually clear, as if it were completely empty.

"Since this ghost world needs a hero, why can't I be that hero!"

Arios stood before the Blood Soul once again.

The blood flowing from the tiger's mouth had already run down the hilt of the sword, staining the blade.

As if sensing its master's will, the longsword vibrated continuously, emitting a low hum, and its body turned red and hot.

Having emptied his mind of everything, Arios had no concept of "nurturing the sword" left his mind, and he even forgot that he was not yet able to unleash the sword's power.

Why all this nonsense? As long as it's a sword, that's fine.

It was under these unfavorable conditions that Arios managed to deliver this weak, unskilled sword strike.

"Crack!"

Broken pieces of agate were scattered all over the ground.

Chapter 144 Only He Can't Do It

The seemingly indestructible Demon Blood Soul suddenly crumbled at this moment, turning into countless fragments scattered all over the ground.

The shattered Demon Blood Soul exuded a bloody aura, which was absorbed into the sword tip, eventually losing its bewitching crimson color and becoming clear and transparent.

"See? Is it that hard?" Arios looked at Tilisa with a contemptuous smile.

Before he could finish speaking, his body seemed to have all its strength drained away, and he collapsed straight down, still clutching his sword.

Tilisa stood there, her heart churning with turmoil.

"He really is a hero," Tilisa murmured to herself.

Shock, joy, and relief.

Tissa's emotions were like a rollercoaster.

"Now I'll have to find a successor again."

To date, there has been no precedent for a hero to serve as the Silver Wolf Class Guardian.

After all, St. Freya Academy is just a stopover point in the hero's growth process; once he has grown strong enough, he will eventually leave.

However, reality didn't allow her time to think things through.

The moment the Demon Blood Soul suddenly shattered, all the remaining demons in the dungeon were affected by an invisible wave of empathy.

"Iqbi is dead?"

"Impossible! How could a demon be killed by a human!"

"A hero! A hero has appeared!"

We can't let him leave here!

All the demons within the dungeon who had not yet succumbed to the Demon Blood Soul state sprang into action, rushing toward the location where Ichibi had disappeared.

Tissa naturally sensed the threats coming from all directions.

Without hesitation, he hoisted Arios onto his shoulder, and activated the Heavenly Pulse Emblem without reservation, moving swiftly even while carrying one person.

Not long after the two left, the demon who was closer arrived at the scene.

"Indeed, a hero has appeared."

"What's the use of saying all this now? They still got away!"

"The hero has appeared, does that mean the Demon King is about to...?"

"Then why aren't you chasing after them?"

-----------------

"...This is the story of how Arios became a hero."

Perhaps they were thirsty from telling the story for so long. Jessica picked up the teacup on the table and poured herself and Lisette a fresh cup of tea each.

Viner glanced at Lisette's teacup, then at Jessica, and coughed twice. It was as if she were questioning why she was being treated differently.

Jessica then took a cup of pre-brewed tea from the heating base and placed it in front of Vina.

Without thinking twice, Viner drank it down.

Why does it smell so sour? Viner frowned slightly.

“Now it’s my turn to ask.” Jessica took a sip of tea to moisten her throat.

"Why is my junior so eager to know about the hero?"

“Because… a dream.” Of course, Venere didn’t dare to tell the truth, so he answered by avoiding the main point.

"A dream?" Jessica fiddled with the empty teacup in her hand. "Would you like to know what kind of dream it was?"

"I dreamt that I went back to Lumiel Village, back to five years ago. I met that little swordsman, oops, I met the young hero who hadn't even left the village yet."

After a moment's thought, Wiener explained the slightly modified environment of the Evil Eye.

Anyway, illusions are all fake; they're just dreams.

“I can’t remember exactly what he said to me. But I do remember him constantly reminding me to be careful,” Viner continued.

"And then what?" Jessica pressed, clearly having caught Vina's attention with her description.

Omens, precognitive dreams, lucid dreams.

Dreams are also a form of intuition.

The more powerful the emblem, the more it trusts its intuition and the more likely it is to accept the unfounded nature of dreams.

After all, there's no harm in being careful.

“Then he died,” Viner said, changing the subject.

"Hey, who are you cursing!" Lisette kicked Venus hard in the shin.

With just one disrespectful remark, Wiener went from being more than a friend to being reduced to a single word, "Hey."

"Could you be more specific?" Jessica asked earnestly.

“I can’t be specific.” Wiener shook his head. “Every time I dream of him, he dies in a different way.”

He knew he had successfully piqued Jessica's curiosity.

With just a little more guidance, she will naturally begin to pay attention to the hero's whereabouts.

Information gathered through one's own investigation is more convincing than information relayed by others.