Chapter 406: When I Was Your Age…
Leone had a soulbound artifact called the Worldcaller’s Whistle.
This whistle allowed Leone to summon an Elemental appropriate to the immediate terrain.
But its true merit lay on its function to summon an Elemental two ranks ahead of Leone.
Although he was currently a Rank 2 Hero King, three stat points were all he needed to become a Rank 3 Hero King.
In other words, after gaining three points, Leone could summon a Rank 5 Elemental with the Worldcaller’s Whistle!
Like all powerful artifacts, it had a downside. It was up to luck whether the Elemental he summoned would be hostile to him or not.
A Rank 5 summon was quite powerful. Fortunately, he had plenty of people on his side who could deal with it if it ever turned hostile.
The ancient summoning scroll Lugh had given him was similar in nature but was more dangerous.
It could summon a Rank 9 Elemental King that could destroy an entire empire in a single day! Fortunately, this particular summon could only last for an hour.
However, an hour was enough for an overpowered being to unleash irreversible calamity.
If the Elemental King Leone summoned happened to be hostile, his chances of surviving the encounter would be very slim.
"Gramps, don’t you have a better trump card?" Leone now called his no-good great-grandfather ’Gramps’ instead of Great Grandpa. "I’m not someone who likes thrills, you know? I have no intention of living life dangerously."
"So you say, but you always find yourself in a dangerous situation," Lugh replied back with a smirk. "That scroll can bring ruin to the capital city of any kingdom or empire. Although the Elemental King only lasts for an hour, that’s more than enough time to destroy everything in its path."
"Yes, including its summoner," Leone added.
"Indeed," Lugh agreed. "That’s why it can only be used as a last resort. I always carry it with me, but I never had the chance to use it. So, rather than letting it rot inside my storage ring, I’ve decided to put it to good use by giving it to you."
Leone pinched the bridge of his nose, understanding his no-good great-grandpa had no intention of giving him a less dangerous trump card for a last resort.
Knowing it was better than nothing, he could only accept it and store it carefully inside his storage ring.
"So, has the Aurelion Empire made its move yet?" Lugh asked.
He had been monitoring the movements of the Britannian Army along his borders. According to his spies, a quarter of their defenders had already left the fortress to head southward.
"The barbarian tribes have sent out their scouts to observe the borders of the Aurelion Empire," Leone replied. "I have a feeling they will make their move within a week."
"Be careful, Leone," Lugh said in a serious tone. "The Aurelion Empire has two Heroic Guardians. I don’t know how strong that great shaman, Gundar, is, but tell him to be careful. Given their strength, I believe they are as strong, if not stronger than the Monster King you have faced. After all, both of them are also Dragon Slayers."
This time, Leone’s expression turned serious. The Dragon Race was among the Apex Monsters of the world. No ordinary person could slay them and gain the title of Dragon Slayers.
"I’ll ask Great Uncle about them later." Leone lightly tapped the armrest of his chair, already thinking of ways to counter the two powerhouses from the Aurelion Empire.
Lugh sighed at the sight of his great-grandson’s expression. "Leone, how old are you?"
"Me? I just turned eighteen this year, Great Grandpa."
"Then why do you look like someone who needs to carry the weight of this entire war on their shoulders?"
"Huh?" Leone blinked. "What do you mean?"
"Leone, you are now the chieftain of a tribe," Lugh stated. "I understand you are now starting to learn about your responsibilities, but also keep in mind that the Borderlands have other tribes aside from yours. This is not a battle you need to fight alone. Besides, don’t you need to focus on fighting against the Kingdom of Britannia? Why are you worrying about the Aurelion Empire?"
Conall nodded from the side. He had been with Leone for only a few days, but he had seen how seriously the young man treated this upcoming war from the north as well as the south of the Borderlands.
He acted nothing like the chieftain of a tribe.
More like a King responsible for the entirety of the barbarian lands.
Leone fell silent.
Ever since he became the chieftain of his tribe, he had been constantly thinking about how to protect his people.
But as the other tribes began to recognize him as their ally, that responsibility had gradually expanded.
First, it was his own tribe.
Then the neighboring tribes.
Then the entire Borderlands.
Even now, he couldn’t help but worry about the war in the south when he should be putting all his focus on the war in the north.
"Maybe I’m just being too cautious," Leone muttered.
"Cautiousness is good," Lugh commented. "But there is a difference between being cautious and bearing the weight of an entire land on your shoulders. Sometimes, you need to put your trust in others and let them share your burden."
"Gramps, what were you doing when you were my age?" Leone inquired. He was very curious on what the Hero of the Radiant Empire did during his teenage years.
"When I was your age, I was traveling the land, fighting monsters and spending the nights with women—errr, friends," Lugh answered. "I was a vagabond who dreamed of traveling the entire continent, so that was what I did. Um... and I might have accidentally left some seeds along the way."
Jeeves, who was serving them with refreshments, pretended to not hear his Master’s words.
The fact that the Barbarian King of the West was his great grandson was already giving the current patriarch, Andreas, a headache.
If other famous people in the continent also happened to have Lugh’s blood flowing in their veins, the old man might just find himself sleeping on the floor. At that point, there was no way his wife wouldn’t find out about his irresponsible escapades.
By then, that would be the least of their worries.
After all, if those neglected descendants came to settle accounts, the scandal would spread far and wide, and be talked about within the Radiant Empire for generations to come.
"So, Leone, you should enjoy life a little more," Lugh said with a mischievous smile. "Those two ladies, Yuni and Aria, are very fine young ladies. Make sure to always water the fields so they don’t dry up."
Leone wanted to tell his great-grandfather that he was always watering his fields.
However, that would be a lie. Sure, his relationship with Yuni and Aria had become much closer than before, but they had yet to take that final step to truly take their relationship to the next level.
"Gramps, if there’s nothing else, I’m going back." Leone stood up because he was really busy right now.
"Fine." Lugh nodded. "Don’t worry, Leone. You are never alone. You have us, your family, on your side. We will not let you down."
"Thank you, Great Grandpa." Leone returned to calling Lugh his great-grandpa because he wanted to part ways with him on a good note.
"Conall, do you have a moment?" Lugh asked. "There are a few things I would like to discuss with you in private."
"Understood, Master," Conall replied.
Leone walked toward the entrance of the cave and stayed put. After waiting for a few minutes, Conall finally returned.
He had no intention of asking what the mercenary captain and his great-grandpa had talked about.
Had his grandfather deemed he should know of it, the discussion would have been public, not private.
A minute later, Leone and Conall returned to the Forgotten Temple and parted ways.
The young man then returned to his house before once again shifting his consciousness back to his clone, who fortunately behaved himself within his villa in Eden.