A week ago, Leonhardt’s answer was this.

“I’m sorry, but can you give me some time?”

“…!?”

Surprisingly, Leon did not accept the offer right away.

Instead, he asked for some time to think with a complicated expression.

“I respect your wishes if that’s what you want.”

“But the hand of the evil god is reaching out, so please make your decision as soon as possible.”

The popes gave him some space to rest with regretful faces.

Leon sat on the bed and sighed.

“Huh… They’re offering me the emperor’s throne?”

According to the popes, they had already succeeded in taking over the imperial palace and all he had to do was accept their offer and ascend to the throne.

Of course, that was the place he had dreamed of.

But why did he refuse?

‘I don’t know either. Is it because I find them suspicious?’

Leon grumbled inwardly as he sank into his thoughts.

‘It’s definitely suspicious, but it’s also an opportunity of a lifetime.’

The Holy Kingdom was the spiritual pillar of all the people on the continent.

If all the popes recognized his legitimacy, it would not be difficult for him to surpass Eurius and become the emperor.

He was worried about Eurius’ resistance, who had many supporters, but he also saw that the Holy Kingdom had some mysterious power.

‘Should I just accept it?’

A temptation came to his mind. But strangely enough, his hesitation did not last long.

“No.”

Leon shook his head and brushed off that thought.

He had been thinking a lot for a week. But at this decisive moment, his answer was always ‘no’.

He should have dreamed of becoming an emperor, so why couldn’t he make up his mind?

“…”

Leon finally came to a difficult conclusion. It was a hard decision for him, who had been praised as a genius since childhood and had a great pride.

‘I’m not fit to be an emperor. My brother is more suitable.’

He had seen how Eurius won the hearts of the people in the Eastern Continent. Amazingly, Eurius had many followers who were loyal to him.

And even those who were not his confidants acknowledged him and followed him. Leon could not understand why he was inferior to Eurius.

A solid background as a Grand duke! And he was better than Eurius in every talent except for martial arts.

But Eurius had surpassed him before he knew it and defeated the duke.

And finally, he took the position of crown prince.

Leon made a bitter face and had no choice but to admit that fact.

“I had no one. I was alone in the world.”

That’s right!

Leon had a good starting point and many talented people around him, but there was no one left by his side.

It was because he did not win their hearts.

As a result, he had no friends or subordinates he could trust.

‘I thought he was nosy when he went around everywhere.’

From his perspective, such actions were meaningless.

He thought it was better to build up his power in the center with a strong backing than to accumulate merits with force.

But every time Eurius went somewhere, his power grew like a snowball.

Even now, everyone in other continents knew his name.

A ruler who has people following him and one who does not.

Leon was not stupid enough to not know this difference.

Even if he became an emperor, there would not be many ministers who would sincerely like him.

He wanted to be a great ruler like his father if he became an emperor, as he thought when he was young.

He did not want to play the role of an emperor under someone’s protection.

Crunch!

He clenched his fist so hard that his hand broke. It was hard to spit out what he should have admitted long ago.

“I… lost… to my brother.”

Leon muttered to himself and settled his mind with that.

And as usual, it was hard to solve the problem, but once he solved it, he felt relieved.

A little later.

“Phew…”

He let out a light sigh and felt his mind lighten up. He thought he should tell the popes his decision.

‘I don’t know if he’s a god or what, but it’s meaningless if I don’t accept the throne.’

Bang!

But before he could get up from his seat, the door opened with a loud noise.

“Who is it?”“Excuse us.”

The ones who entered with hurried steps were two popes.

They asked him with an urgent expression.

“Have you made your decision?”

“I have, but what’s the matter?”

“I’m sorry, but we don’t have time! Just tell us the result!”

‘What kind of bastards are these…’

Leon frowned.

They showed their true colors when they were in a hurry.

As expected, they didn’t need him, they had some other intention.

“My answer is no.”

“…”

For a moment, the room was filled with a quiet silence.

The two popes exchanged glances quietly.

‘Then let’s begin.’

‘Understood.’

The two of them approached Leon with stern faces.

***

Meanwhile, Eurius, who was running through the corridor like a madman, finally encountered an obstacle.

“We meet again.”

“Today you’re not calling me a Chosen One (Godly One).”

Eurius smiled and looked at the person who blocked his way.

It was Galus, the archbishop of the Holy Kingdom and a superhuman.

“My mistake. But, today I won’t make that mistake.”

Galus lifted his huge battle hammer with a stiff face.

He didn’t need to talk to Eurius anymore since he saw him breaking into this place.

‘He must be one of the apostles of the evil god.’

He was disgusted by the fact that he had been deceived by him so easily.

‘I don’t care if he’s on the same level as me.’

He had seen Eurius reach the same stage as him with his own eyes. But Galus was already a warrior who had reached the fifth stage decades ago.

To him, Eurius was still nothing but a chick.

Eurius noticed his thoughts and chuckled.

“Before we fight, I have one thing to ask you.”

“What is your question?”

Galus was wary of what trick Eurius was trying to pull, but the question that came out of his mouth was unexpected.

“Why did you spare the knight who was guarding Leon when you went to get him?”

‘Hmm?’

Galus recalled Beatrice.

He had some acquaintance with her father, Dios, the duke and guardian of the Holy Kingdom, and he felt awkward to kill a girl. So he subdued her without causing any serious injury.

“You seem to know her.”

“She’s one of my most precious people.”

“…”

Galus looked at Eurius with a surprised expression as he grinned and answered honestly.

“I didn’t feel like killing a girl who was like my granddaughter.”

“I see…”

Eurius nodded his head.

Seeing him, Galus asked without knowing it.

“But why did you bother to ask me that before we fight?”

“Hmm?”

Eurius looked at him with wide eyes as if he didn’t understand what he was saying.

“Since you showed me kindness and recognition, I naturally wanted to spare your life too.”

“…!?”

And the sword was much faster than Galeus’s reaction.

Clang!

First, the giant hammer he was holding shattered into pieces.

As he saw the metal fragments scatter, Galeus widened his eyes. He also felt a burning pain in his chest.

“How can this be…”

At the same time, a stream of blood spurted from his heart.

The blade had made a hole about a finger’s length away from his heart.

If Eurius had wanted, he could have killed him in an instant.

“…”

Galeus looked at Eurius with a dismayed expression. He could not understand it with his common sense. But before he could ask, Eurius answered him.

“I trained under a different master. Is that a satisfactory answer?”

“…!?”

It was too easy to end, but the outcome of the duel was inevitable.

The reason was the difference in learning!

The combat simulator of the player world that Eurius trained in was much more systematic and faster in helping him develop his abilities than this place.

The fifth stage was a realm that few people had reached in this world for decades!

They had a difference of decades in training time, but Eurius had a much better environment than Galeus, who only did sparring or personal training, because he found a more efficient way of training and added the player’s ability.

Thud!

Galeus dropped the handle of the hammer he was holding.

“I lost. You have made an amazing progress while I wasn’t looking.”

“Hmm? You’re not going to attack me anymore?”

Eurius tilted his head. Judging by the example of the cult, those who serve the transcendent do not fear losing their lives. But Galeus admitted defeat too easily.

“I achieved my purpose of holding you back. You spared me mercy, so I have no reason to throw away my life in vain.”

“Purpose?”

Eurius tried to ask more details. But at that moment.

Swoosh

“Huh?”

A shadow of a person appeared between Galeus and him.

‘An ambush?’

Eurius quickly aimed his sword at the suspicious shadow. But the shadow quickly took on a human shape.

“Huh?”

Eurius was greatly surprised to see the shape of the shadow that turned into a person. It was because it was someone he knew well.

“Leon… no, you’re not. Who are you?”

Blonde hair, a young appearance that looked no older than twenty, he was undoubtedly Leonhardt, but something about him was different.

But what was strange was that Eurius felt something familiar from that someone who looked like Leon.

‘Could it be someone I’ve seen before?’

“Hmm…”

Finally, the man who looked like Leon opened his mouth.

The first thing he did was to look at Eurius up and down as if to evaluate him.

“You’re decent, but not my match. If this is all you have, he will be disappointed.”

‘Match? Disappointed?’

Hearing that, Eurius also became interested in him. Why did he look exactly like Leonhardt? And what did he mean by match?

“Do you know me?”

“…”

The man clenched his fist instead of answering.

“…!?”

As Eurius looked at him with a bewildered expression, the man smiled faintly.

“It’s been a long time since I wore a human body, so I might not be able to control it well.”

“Body?”

Eurius felt a very ominous feeling for a moment.

The man who looked like Leon’s fist was not that big. But as soon as he lightly extended his fist forward!

Eurius felt his fist grow as big as a mountain.

“No!”

It was useless to fling his body backwards.

Eurius was instantly swept away by the force of the fist. It was so fast and powerful that he didn’t feel any pain until the sound came.

Boom!

The outer wall of the palace shattered.

The layers of defense that Eurius quickly deployed were of no use.

The invisible armor that covered his body also lost its strength and shrunk under the immense pressure.

“Cough!”

Crash!

Eurius spat out blood and flew out of the palace wall.

His body didn’t stop easily. He plowed through walls and trees and slammed into the ground.

“Ugh!”

Eurius groaned in pain and checked if he was still alive. He couldn’t die like this, could he?

[You’re fine. You’re not dead yet. Recover!]

“Ugh…”

The Yellow Dragon checked his body condition for him, but Eurius was already losing consciousness.

He was completely incapacitated by a single blow.

He never imagined that he would be in such a state after finishing his training.

The last thing he saw in his blurred vision was a blue crack.

He passed out.

***