LHAHS Chapter 343
"Summon the Fairy King again?"
"Yeah."
Lea's eyes widened.
Summoning the Fairy King had been the elves' long-cherished dream for thousands of years. In history, only one person had ever formed a pact with the last Fairy King—Luna.
The Fairy King had traditionally been the mythical spirit beast that formed a covenant with the elven kings for generations. But when the Age of Calamity began, the elven king vanished.
The previous Fairy King, Grawin, lost his power in the battle against Tartaros, leaving Sylord to take on the responsibilities of the Fairy King. And Sylord's first and last pact-maker had been Luna.
Just as Lysinas had the Phoenix King, the Flame Emperor Katariou, as her partner, Luna had Sylord, the heir to the Fairy King.
But Katariou perished.
Sylord, on the other hand, survived the final battle.
Leo still remembered Sylord's last expression—a deep despair and overwhelming guilt over Luna's death. His gaze darkened as he recalled the past. He lowered his eyes to the back of his hand.
During the entrance exam, he had received the [Pact of the Fairy King] as a conquest reward. Through this pact, he had formed a contract with Kiran, who had been sealed and exiled from Fairyland by Sylord.
Though Leo had successfully contracted Kiran, the pact itself still belonged to Sylord.
Up until last year, Leo had lacked the spiritual energy to summon him.
But even now, after his vessel had grown and his energy had reached the necessary threshold, he still couldn't summon Sylord.
It's probably because this pact was obtained through a Hero Record.
Even though he had acquired the Fairy King's pact as a conquest reward, Leo wasn't suited to summoning fairies. His spiritual energy didn't align with them.
Back then, my Zerdinger blood made me compatible with the Phoenix. And now, my pegasus responds to my original mana affinity for purity. But fairies? Never. Not in my past life, not in this one.
Leo had only been able to contract Kiran because of the conquest reward from Albi's world.
So despite obtaining the Fairy King's pact, he had no means of summoning Sylord. Even if it was a pact, it was one Sylord himself wasn't even aware of.
But if someone else opens the path, that's a different story.
If Sylord became aware of the pact's existence, then summoning him would be possible.
Hearing Leo's words, Lea hesitated.
"Senior Plov, it's true that I heard Sylord's voice, but… that was only because I borrowed Cometes' power. There's no way I can summon the Fairy King again with my current abilities. That was just… pure luck."
"Luck?"
"Yes."
Cautiously, Lea explained what had happened.
"When the first-year advanced class had a lesson at the Comet Sanctum, I was given permission to hold Cometes."
She smiled sheepishly.
"I wasn't even trying to summon the Fairy King. The teacher leading the lesson just encouraged me to try summoning a fairy. They even drew the summoning circle for me. Then suddenly, I heard Sylord's voice."
As if embarrassed, Lea scratched her head.
Leo tilted his head.
"But among the lower-class students, the rumor was that you drew the summoning circle."
"That's impossible."
Lea waved her hands in denial.
Leo continued.
"Who was leading the lesson?"
"Acting Principal Lehagen."
Leo stroked his chin.
This kid really does have talent as a summoner.
She was still just a first-year. But even so, her skills and potential were remarkable—more than enough to be considered a promising hero candidate.
A bit eccentric, perhaps, but undeniably talented.
Still, she was nowhere near ready to summon the Fairy King. She lacked both the foundation and the knowledge.
"Cometes only works when held by someone from the Tingel family, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
Cometes had been obtained by Seiren as a conquest reward from the Hero's World. A powerful staff imbued with the mana of both Luna and Seiren, it could only be wielded to its full potential by someone from the Tingel family.
So she summoned the Fairy King like it was a staged performance. Did someone set this up?
Leo frowned at the possibility, then spoke.
"Whatever the case, just the fact that you heard the Fairy King's voice means you have talent."
He raised his spiritual energy.
"I'll take Cometes' place."
At his words, Lea took off her socks.
She stepped onto the summoning circle Leo had drawn, taking a deep breath.
For generations, elves had conducted summoning rituals with fairies at lakes. That tradition had faded, and summoning rituals could now be performed anywhere, but the act of exposing one's bare legs before summoning remained a custom.
"I'll give it a try."
Lea's voice trembled as she forced a smile and reached out to Leo.
He grasped her hand and released his spiritual energy.
A low hum filled the room.
The summoning circle lit up.
Golden light flooded the dormitory, radiating outward.
Lea staggered.
Summoning the Fairy King without Cometes required an immense amount of mana.
And it was only natural.
The Fairy King was officially recognized as the strongest spirit beast of this era.
The Phoenix King and the Thunder Lord of the pegasus lineage had both been lost to time. Among the remaining summons, the Fairy King reigned supreme.
Even with Leo's support, Lea, as a mere first-year, could not handle it.
It was impossible for her to activate the summoning circle on her own.
However…
There's always a workaround.
Leo glanced down at the golden glow on the back of his hand.
He already had the Fairy King's pact, so all he needed was a pathway to reach Sylord.
And Lea—she just had to open that path.
Fwoosh!
The summoning circle activated.
The moment the gateway opened, Lea collapsed, overwhelmed by mana exhaustion.
Thud.
Leo caught her before she hit the floor, then turned his gaze toward the gateway.
[So it is you again, descendant of Seiren.]
A familiar voice echoed, stirring something deep inside Leo.
[Descendant of Seiren, you are still unworthy.]
Sylord, assuming Lea had summoned him, spoke in a guiding tone.
[Once you have matured…]
"Sylord."
[…Who are you? How can you interfere in this conversation?]
Hearing a summon's voice was proof of a partial contract. Normally, only the one who initiated the summoning could communicate with the summoned entity.
Yet now, an unexpected voice had joined the exchange, shocking Sylord.
"It's me, Kyle."
[What…?]
A brief silence followed.
Then, the sealed contract gate swung open, and a fairy emerged.
Bathed in golden mana, Sylord stared up at Leo, his face filled with disbelief.
Their eyes met.
Leo's appearance was different.
But the look in his crimson eyes—it was the same.
The same as the one Sylord had known five thousand years ago.
[You… are Kyle?]
Sylord's voice trembled.
Seeing the doubt in his expression, Leo extended his hand.
A brilliant white light erupted from his palm.
Sylord's hands shook.
That light—he knew it.
Five thousand years ago.
It was the same radiant glow left behind by his first and last pact-maker.
The only miracle that had vanquished the calamity.
[Innocence…]
The undeniable proof before him shattered all doubt.
Sylord shot toward Leo, latching onto his white hair, his small body trembling as he wailed.
[You promised! You said you would defeat Erebos! That Lysinas and Luna would return! That you… would come back! But why now… why only now… after five thousand years…!]
Leo's expression twisted into a wry smile as he looked at the sobbing fairy clinging to him.
"…A Fairy King over five thousand years old, crying like this—don't you have any dignity?"
But even at Leo's words, Sylord did not stop wailing.
After five thousand years of waiting, the long-held sorrow burst forth.
Like the young fairy he once was, Sylord wept without restraint.
[Sniff! I see. I did think it was strange… The infamous Leo Plov turned out to be you, Kyle.]
Seated before Leo, Sylord blew his nose into a tissue and nodded.
Though he was still sniffling, he had regained some composure.
Watching him, Leo rested his chin on his hand.
[Why are you looking at me like that?]
"Out of everyone who knows my identity, you're the only one who actually remembers what happened five thousand years ago. That's pretty incredible."
[Incredible? Please. The fact that you returned from the dead after five thousand years is far more shocking.]
Sylord let out a dry laugh.
His tone—exactly the same as back then.
Leo chuckled.
"You've heard all about me, then?"
[Yes. Even in Fairyland, stories of Leo Plov have reached our ears. At first, I thought most of them were exaggerated. But now… it all makes sense.]
Sylord gave a wry smile.
[Luna appearing from the Hero Record—that was because of you, wasn't it?]
"Yeah."
[…I've always missed Luna. But seeing you now… I miss her even more.]
As he thought of his long-gone pact-maker, Sylord's expression darkened.
Leo watched him for a moment before asking, "I've been wondering. You haven't formed a single pact in these five thousand years, have you?"
[Officially, no.]
"But unofficially, there was one?"
At Leo's words, Sylord glanced toward Lea.
[Yes. As you guessed, Comet Mage Seiren was my second pact-maker.]
Leo tilted his head. "Then why was that kept secret?"
[It was something Seiren and I decided together. We even erased all traces of the summoning ritual, except for Cometes.]
"Why?"
[If it became known that I had a pact-maker, summoners from all over would try to form contracts with me.]
Fairy Kings had long been regarded as a nearly mythical existence—an impossible summon in modern times.
With no known catalysts left in the world, summoning a Fairy King was considered unattainable.
According to Sylord, he had deliberately avoided forming new pacts.
"Why refuse contracts? During the era of the Heroes of Dawn, your power would have been invaluable. Why didn't you lend your strength?"
As someone who had experienced the Age of Calamity firsthand, Sylord feared and despised Erebos more than anyone.
If he had contracted with Seiren, he would have lent his power to the Heroes of Dawn.
Yet, even when disaster struck three thousand years ago, Sylord had never left Fairyland.
Leo narrowed his eyes as Sylord responded in a heavy tone.
[I couldn't lend my power.]
Leo's expression hardened.
"…Is that why Fairyland was relocated?"
When the Age of Calamity ended, the northern lands where Fairyland had once stood turned into a frozen wasteland.
Fairies disliked the cold, but that alone wasn't enough reason to abandon their ancestral homeland after eons of existence. Fairies were powerful magic users. They could have easily maintained a lush, warm sanctuary within the frozen lands.
Yet, Sylord had chosen to abandon Fairyland without hesitation.
Leo's voice was grim. "As I thought… The reason you haven't taken a pact-maker all this time… is because you can't leave Fairyland for too long."
[You've guessed correctly.]
Leo exhaled sharply and ran a hand down his face.
Five thousand years ago, during the final battle, Kyle had split the primordial evil into six fragments and sealed them away.
The first fragment had resurfaced three thousand years ago, and the Heroes of Dawn had fought to stop its revival.
And the second fragment…
"…It's in Fairyland, isn't it?"