Chapter 59: Midterm Evaluation (4)

Eight years had passed since my brother died, yet I still thought of him every day. Every time, I was filled with regret. How I wish it had been me instead of him. If only I had died in his place, then maybe I wouldn’t be living each day crushed under the weight of this guilt. But wishes were just that—wishes. All I could do now was relive those irreversible days, scraping my heart raw over and over.

I had to become stronger, climb higher, and go farther until I became a blazing sun that shone high above the sky—until I was worthy of replacing the name Yuren Helios. I couldn’t stop and I couldn’t turn back, because this was the price I had to pay for my sin.

That was why I swung my sword every day until my palms bled. I trained until I collapsed, coughing up bile. No matter how painful, how agonizing, how unbearable it became, I never gave up.

Maybe the heavens took notice of my determination. My swordsmanship improved at a staggering pace, as if by the day. With each leap in skill, I began to dream that maybe I could become “Yuren Helios” instead of “Yurina Helios.”

Because then, maybe, Mother would love me again, like she used to.

Three years after I had wholeheartedly dedicated myself to the sword, that effort finally bore fruit. I took second place in a tournament where active heroes competed, despite not having even entered the Hero Academy yet. People everywhere praised me.

“Incredible! At just fifteen years old, you’ve bested veteran heroes to take second place in the Imperial Swordsmanship Tournament. Truly, you’re worthy of being the heir to the Knight of the Sun!”

Thinking Mother would surely acknowledge me now, I returned to the estate, practically skipping with excitement. Inside one of the mansion’s spacious rooms, I opened the door with anticipation, only for her cold voice to greet me.

“Second place, you say?”

I had replied, “Yes! I barely lost at the end, but still—”

With disappointment gleaming in her eyes, she clicked her tongue. “And you’re bragging over second place?”

“If it had been Yuren, he would’ve taken first.” She caressed my brother’s photo, her voice growing wistful. “If only he were still alive.”

Her soft murmur sent a jolt through my shoulders.

I clenched my trembling fists and bit down hard on my lip. “I’m… sorry.”

“No need to apologize. I never had any expectations for you anyway. You carry the Helios blood, yet you don’t even bear the Sun God’s stigmata. What could someone like you possibly achieve?”

Each word from her lips was a dagger, digging into my chest.

“If you’re done, leave.”

I slammed the door shut behind me, collapsing before it, broken sobs spilling from my cracked voice.

Only one thought lingered in my heart: I’m sorry! I’ll do better next time. I’ll keep working, and working, and working until I take first place. Until I’m second to none. So please, Mom. Please, just…

***

I was just looking at Dale when a blood-curdling shriek rang out. I moved my gaze and saw the unicorn, a demonic monster, charging straight toward me, nostrils flaring.

This was my chance. As if I were drawing back a bowstring, I pulled my sword arm back, channeling mana into the tip of the blade. A swirl of golden light gathered there. I used the Sun Sword Style Sixth Form: White Radiance, a long-range technique that fired concentrated sword energy. It was the highest-level and most powerful form of the Sun Sword Style I could currently use.

The golden light at the tip of my sword tore through the air with ferocious speed. It rocketed toward the unicorn’s neck, aiming to shatter the bell dangling there.

Suddenly, a figure chasing the unicorn, Dale, intercepted and deflected my attack. “Not so fast!”

The force flung him backward, and he groaned and gritted his teeth. The sheer power packed into my strike had torn the flesh of his palms as though he had slammed a blade into a steel boulder.

Blood dripped from his hands as he looked down, clicking his tongue. “Tch! Damn! You don’t hold back with your mana, do you?”

On a normal day, Dale would’ve adjusted the flow of his mana to absorb the blow, but probably having rushed here in such a hurry, he hadn’t had the luxury.

I looked at him. “Dale…”

“Told you, didn’t I? This wouldn’t be easy.” Wiping the blood on his pants, Dale pointed his sword at me.

“Move, Dale,” I said.

“What if I say no?”

I glared at him, lips pressed tightly together. “Then I guess there’s no choice.”

***

A storm of golden mana burst around him, swirling violently. Even from a distance, I could feel the sting of its intensity on my skin.

This. This is even stronger than when we sparred. I already thought his mana output was insane back then, but to think he could draw out even more. I let out a breathless laugh.

Yuren opened his mouth, voice low. “If you get hurt, that’s on you.”

He slammed his foot down and slashed. Thunder roared. Every time his sword, wrapped in a radiant golden aura, swept through the air, craters were gouged deep into the earth, and the ground quaked like a natural disaster. Trees, towering tens of meters high, were torn from their roots and sent tumbling. Boulders the size of carriages shattered into pebbles. Even the unicorn, which had charged him with ferocious snorts, skidded back in panic from the mythic-scale destruction.

RUMBLE! BOOM! CRASH!

No one witnessing this would believe it was just swordplay. The very land was being upended, clouds of dust blotting out the surroundings.

I used Wind Step to evade Yuren’s strike, narrowing my eyes. Sure, he had a ridiculous amount of mana, but this was going too far. At this point, it was like he was summoning a natural disaster with a sword. Nevertheless, as I dodged the golden sword energy raining down from all sides, I squinted slightly.

He was in a rush, I could tell. The attacks were powerful, but that was it. His strikes were frantic, as if he were being chased by a ghost. The elegance that used to leave people speechless was gone. The subtlety that once pierced through defenses had been buried beneath brute force.

It had become easier to fight him. I didn’t know what had made Yuren so desperate, but it was making him sloppy. Facing him now wasn’t as difficult as it used to be.

Maybe he was getting frustrated by how easily I kept dodging, like a fly buzzing out of reach, Yuren cursed between ragged breaths. “Hah! Hah! Damn it! How long do you plan to just keep running?”

“Until you come to your senses,” I replied.

“Are you saying I’m not in my right mind?”

“Anyone looking at you right now would think the same.”

As if the words had hit a nerve, Yuren faltered. “I can’t help it…”

His voice dropped to a whisper, eyes lowered.

***

Of course, there was no way I could stay composed. First place wasn’t something I could afford to lose. I clenched my sword tighter, my jaw tightening. I had never felt this anxious during an exam before. Since I had entered the hero academy as the top cadet, being first had always felt like a given. For two years, no one had come close to threatening my spot at the top.

But if it’s Dale…

Training twice a week with him, I had realized Dale wasn’t just skilled in swordsmanship. His movements were far too experienced for a cadet. His tactics were too bold, as if he had multiple lives to gamble. His decisions were sharp, and his execution even sharper. It made me wonder how he had hidden his strength so well all this time. Everything about Dale was astonishing. The only thing I had over him was my mana. That was why, when he said he was aiming for first place this time, my heart sank.

If our fight went on like this, I knew I’d lose. The tension turned into desperation. The desperation twisted into fear.

If I lose even once…

The nightmare returned. The memory of that day, eight years ago, when the sun named Yuren Helios fell from the sky. Screams, like something tearing apart, the sound of a flowerpot shattering and my mother’s hands around my throat.

“If only you hadn’t existed! YOU!”

The pain of being unable to breathe and those bloodshot eyes staring down at me.

“No.” I clutched my sword, voice breaking. “I-I can’t lose! Not ever!”

Not a single defeat was allowed. Not one mistake could be forgiven. That was what it meant to be Yuren Helios, the sun shining high above.

A violent surge of mana shook the ground around me. The only advantage I had over Dale was my overwhelming mana. If so, I had no choice but to crush him with that power.

So, with a fierce shout, I swung my sword and used the Sun Sword Style Sixth Form—Modified: White Radiance Wave. The golden sword energy concentrated at the tip of my blade erupted like a tidal wave, sweeping across the land.

Watching me with solemn eyes, Dale narrowed his brows as the golden wave thundered toward him. “Yuren…”

After hesitating for a moment, he let out a quiet sigh and made his move. He kicked off the ground, not backward, but sideways, toward the unicorn, which had been trying to dodge the oncoming golden wave. Before it could react, Dale sliced through the creature’s leg and used it as a shield.

The unicorn let out a pained scream as the golden wave tore through its body, and then, the bell tied around its neck shattered.

[Ding!]

[Cadet Yuren Helios has completed the bonus objective.]

[Regardless of total score, the cadet who achieves the bonus objective is ranked first in the midterm evaluation.]

***

Yuren’s eyes widened as he stared at the message on his Hero Watch. “Ah! I did it.”

Whether it was because he had burned through too much mana or because the tension had finally broken, Yuren collapsed to the ground. Lying on the ground, before his eyes fluttered shut, he uttered, “Mom, I… I did it!”

I slowly walked over to where he had fallen. Gently lifting him, I laid him down on a nearby rock and clicked my tongue.

“Yuren…”

I thought I knew Yuren better than anyone. He was a precious comrade and a one-of-a-kind friend. That was why I thought Yuren would be fine. Even if someone else took first place, Yuren would laugh it off. I believed it would be a healthy challenge and something that would inspire him.

“I didn’t know a damn thing!”

I had made assumptions and judgments on my own accord. I pretended to understand when in truth, I knew nothing.

“You weren’t shining on your own. You were clawing your way up, just trying to shine.”

Was he having a nightmare? I wondered.

Looking down at my friend, who had muttered “I can’t lose,” in a voice so faint it could vanish any second, I let out a deep, heavy sigh.

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