“Uh, Léonor. Did you perhaps think your father would be embarrassing to show to your juniors… or something like that?” Leon Lionel asked cautiously, watching Léonor’s reaction.

Léonor sighed at his completely deflated demeanor and replied.

“…It’s just a short holiday. You’ve worked hard, so I meant for you to rest without being disturbed.”

“Oh, so that’s it… Right, my good daughter wouldn’t think that. Ahaha, I was just worrying for no reason again…”

Leon’s face instantly brightened at Léonor’s words.

Seeing him react so dramatically to everything his daughter said made him look like an ordinary dad you could find in any household.

Anyone expecting him to be charismatic, being one of the greatest heroes, might be disappointed, but aside from their strength, heroes are just people.

No matter how strong a hero is, they become infinitely weak in front of their daughter; that’s just the nature of fathers.

“By the way… the juniors you mentioned are girls. We met once, didn’t we?”

While pondering over the conversation between father and daughter, Leon turned his head toward me and Mei as he said this.

“Yes! I’m Mei, and I’m doing club activities with Léonor-senpai. I couldn’t properly express my gratitude back then because of the chaos, but I’m really thankful.”

“I’m Scarlet Evande. I should have come to thank you sooner, but this is my first chance. Thanks to your timely help, we were able to save our lives.”

Had he not shown up at the gym at that crucial moment, neither Mei nor I might be here now.

As we bowed and introduced ourselves, expressing our gratitude, Leon responded in a flustered tone.

“…It’s a bit embarrassing to be thanked when I didn’t even arrive on time. You both can stop now…”

Lifting my head at his words, I saw Leon wore a bittersweet expression.

His gaze was directed at my left arm.

After staring at my arm for a moment, he spoke to me in a troubled voice.

“…Honestly, I wanted to apologize to you. I’m known as the fastest hero, yet I couldn’t protect you properly. If I had been faster… I could have protected you. And you… back then… If I had just been quicker, I could have kept you safe…”

Leon spoke with eyes full of sorrow.

Was he feeling guilty about my lost arm?

It seemed to be more than that; he appeared to be grappling with deep trauma, blaming himself for always being late.

It was as if he had lost something precious due to being late.

Looking at Léonor with pity, I could sense that there was another reason she had urged him not to come out.

Seeing him like that, I deliberately extended my left arm, the metallic prosthetic, toward Leon and said:

“Pretty cool, right? A friend made this for me, and I really love it. I don’t regret losing my arm at all.”

It wasn’t a lie.

If I hadn’t had this arm, I wouldn’t have been able to shoot fireworks into the sky to call for help from Sylvia, nor would I have regained my senses by seeing the name etched on my arm when I was about to be swallowed by the witch.

Losing my arm to save people allowed me to gain a new arm to save even more.

So how could I regret that?

Of course, there was another reason I said this, and perhaps aware of it, Leon smiled faintly and said:

“…Thank you for saying that. My daughter has made a wonderful junior.”

“Right? She’s so beautiful I could die from it!”

Léonor exclaimed with a deeply moved face, tightly hugging me from behind.

Due to our height difference, something big and soft kept brushing against the back of my head!

I panicked, struggling to escape from Léonor’s embrace that was causing me distress, but she didn’t seem like she would let go, so I decided to give up.

It’s so fluffy… Is this what paradise feels like…?

During this, Leon, who was watching us with warmth, finally spoke up.

“By the way, what’s the reason you called me?”

“Oh, right. She asked if you could teach her how to get stronger, and there aren’t many people as strong as you. I’m sorry to disturb your rest, but could you possibly help us?”

I started worrying whether asking him for help was an imposition, considering he was taking a break after working for several days.

I spoke cautiously, thinking it might not be right to take the time of a husband who had come home to rest.

“Um, I’m fine, so there’s really no need to go that far…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. You don’t need to refuse. Before being my daughter’s junior, you’re a student from the Aegis Academy, so you’re also my junior. Helping a junior is no trouble at all.”

“…Thank you.”

It would be strange to refuse such a cheerful acceptance, so I decided to quietly accept his help.

Leon nodded and took a step forward, saying,

“There’s a suitable place to get our bodies moving, so follow me. It looks like the lady next to you is interested too, so don’t worry, I’ll help you both.”

At his words, Mei’s face lit up.

Murmuring in a small voice, “I can’t believe I’m going to receive personal training from Leon Lionel…” she seemed genuinely thrilled, which suggested she had admired him for a long time.

“Think of it as luck for having such a great senior.”

“Thank you, Senpai… Ah, my past self who joined the cooking club! You really did well…”

Still holding onto me without any intention of letting go, Léonor’s words made Mei nod vigorously, muttering.

Given that he is one of the top five heroes, it made sense that Mei, who valued heroism, would be so delighted.

This was probably an opportunity she’d have wanted even if it cost a fortune.

Anyway, as we all followed Leon through the spacious house, we noticed family photos hanging everywhere.

In the pictures with Leon and Léonor was a beautiful woman with black hair and white skin.

That must be Léonor’s mother, who had passed away a few years ago.

Casually glancing at the photos, I noticed Leon, who was walking ahead, murmur quietly in a voice filled with nostalgia.

“She’s my wife. Doesn’t she resemble Léonor?”

At his words, Mei made a subtle expression.

It was understandable; to be honest, aside from chest size, there weren’t many similarities.

Both the skin and hair color of Léonor were just like Leon’s, and unlike her mother, who looked completely innocent, Léonor had a somewhat fierce appearance, the kind that seemed like she would play around a lot.

A stranger would never guess that she was Léonor’s mother.

But Leon continued, wearing a goofy smile.

“Absolutely identical. Kind and thoughtful just like her. She grew up really well. Léonor is my pride and joy.”

“Eek! What are you saying in front of the kids?!”

Seemingly embarrassed, Léonor blushed, ran up to Leon, and smacked him on the back.

Even being hit by his daughter, Leon was smiling brightly.

As Mei watched them, she seemed to smile gently. The scene was so warm that it could make anyone watching smile, conveying a deep love for their child.

Having lost his wife, Léonor was probably the only family Leon had left in this world.

For Leon, Léonor was likely everything to him.

That’s why I couldn’t sit back and simply smile at this scene.

I recalled that in the original story, when Léonor died fighting a monster, Leon had cried out bitterly and slaughtered monsters until his last breath, disregarding being infected by the miasma.

Those who fail to protect what they truly want end up forgetting how to protect themselves altogether.

In the original story, most heroes died in such a manner.

I didn’t want such things to happen here.

I hoped that those who became heroes to protect people would not come to regret the path they chose.

That’s why I wanted to become a little stronger.

*

Upon arriving at a relatively spacious area in Léonor’s backyard, Leon walked over to a weapons rack set up at one side of the clearing, took out a long wooden staff that seemed meant for training, and said:

“First, I need to see your level, so we’re going to do a simple test.”

He stood about 10 meters away, swinging the staff with one hand while keeping the other hand behind his back. Then, he slowly raised the staff toward me and muttered,

“So, try to dodge it as best you can.”

As those words reached me, I felt a sharp sensation and turned my head to the left with all my might.

The staff pierced through the spot where my head had just been, like a beam of light.

“Whoa, you dodged that? You’re pretty good!” Leon’s voice, slightly surprised, rang out right in front of me.

The one who had stabbed the staff while saying that was already back in their original position, poised as if nothing had happened.

Leon grinned slightly, moving one step forward as he said,

“Well then, I’ll go a bit faster this time.”

I quickly bent my knees and crouched down.

I felt the ends of my hair fluttering as they were pierced by the air.

Yet before I could regain my posture, Leon had already moved from his original position, taking one step forward.

“Well done. I’ll go again.”

Clenching my teeth, I threw my body sideways, staying in the crouched position.

The wind ripped as the descending staff narrowly missed me, hitting the ground with a thud.

I could see Leon taking his stance one step ahead from where he was a moment ago.

“Again.”

Since I was still airborne, I reached out with my arm to touch the ground and changed direction to dodge the incoming attack.

But instinctively, I felt it.

Crap, I can’t dodge this one.

I briefly glimpsed the staff swinging before me like a flash of lightning.

And then,

“Yow…”

I felt a mild jolt against my forehead.

C’mon, he managed to control his strength even though I could barely see!

Stunned, I looked ahead and saw Leon, a mischievous grin on his face, casually flicking my forehead.

…Honestly, saying this to my friend’s dad might be a bit much, but that expression was truly infuriating.

“Wow, you dodged quite a bit! You’re no average girl.”

“…Is that so?”

As I picked myself up, brushing off dirt, Leon said that.

I felt like I was observing adults cooing over a child taking a couple of shaky steps.

I shot him a glare as if to say “that’s not how it works,” and with his same goofy smile, Leon opened his mouth again.

“You seem to have a competitive spirit too. Now, it’s your turn to attack since I’ve already gone!”

“…But my attack won’t even hit…”

How am I supposed to hit someone that fast?

When I said that bluntly, Leon burst out laughing heartily and said,

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. I said it was just a test, right? I won’t dodge; I’ll only block, so give it everything you have.”

“…So you won’t dodge, right?”

Hearing that, I unbuttoned and threw off the coat I was wearing.

Well, that doesn’t mean I’m shedding all my clothes. I was wearing a tank top underneath.

Having long sleeves during a scuffle can be annoying since I have to make sure not to burn my clothes, so I’ve gotten into the habit of wearing sleeveless shirts just in case.

With an easy-going smile, Leon stood there with one hand casually behind his back, staff in hand.

I glared fiercely at him.

“…Okay, then I’m coming at you for real.”

And with that, I lunged at Leon.

With no cumbersome clothes, I engulfed my fist with fierce flames and swung with full force.

The sudden blaze emanating from my fist seemed to catch Leon off-guard.

But no matter how senior he is, I’m showing no mercy with my punches!

Take that! Finishing Move: Fire Punch of Doom!

The punch from a girl without parents raged against my friend’s father.