The Last Place Hero’s Return - Chapter 136

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 136. The Archbishop of Desire, Lactasia (2)
The Archbishop of Desire, Lactasia.
True to her name, she possessed magic capable of manipulating human ‘desire’.
A seduction spell that had transformed countless heroes into her puppets.
The condition for succumbing to seduction was simple.
To harbor sexual desire for her.
The moment even the slightest desire took root, she could amplify it tenfold, a hundredfold, transforming him into a puppet of his own lust.
But.
‘Why isn’t it working?’
While the puppets she’d brought clashed with Yuren’s Party, she had cast her seduction spell on Yuren first.
Yet for some inexplicable reason, Yuren not only resisted the seduction magic but swept through her puppets with the savage ferocity of a wolf among sheep.
‘Looking at me like that… and not harboring even a shred of desire?’
Lactasia narrowed her eyes, gazing down at her own form.
Breasts as luscious as ripe fruit, a slender waist and generous hips, legs smooth and sculpted.
Even a clergyman who had devoted his entire life to the faith would have his eyes roll back in desire at the sight of her—yet why did he resist her seduction magic?
“Hmph. How tedious.”
Lactasia turned away, irritably gnawing at her fingernails in displeasure.
‘Dale, wasn’t it?’
That impudent wretch who dared interrupt her.
‘Well… I suppose I’ll have to cast the seduction spell on him instead.’
From the atmosphere, he seemed to be the leader of that Party.
If she seduced him and made him her puppet, subduing Yuren would be effortless.
Lactasia exposed her chest slightly and cast a sultry gaze toward Dale.
“Come here, won’t you?”
“Didn’t you say you disliked me for being ugly?”
“….”
Once again, the seduction magic had failed to take hold.
‘I even showed him my chest, and still nothing?’
Lactasia’s eyes narrowed savagely as she ground her teeth.
Then, a woman with pale pink hair entered her field of vision.
Iris, if she recalled correctly.
From the way she had defended Dale’s appearance, they seemed to be lovers.
‘What gives her the right not to harbor desire for me…’
Lactasia squinted, scrutinizing Iris’s chest area.
“…!”
Her eyes widened in shock.
Hidden beneath the loose priestly robes, which had obscured it at first glance, the terrifying outline of a monster became faintly visible upon closer inspection.
If it were merely a matter of size, it would be one thing.
But judging by the contours of that silhouette, its form clearly surpassed her own by a considerable margin.
“Ugh…!”
Lactasia trembled as a wave of defeat washed over her, and she shifted her gaze.
The only man left was a single massive brute with a muscular frame.
‘Ugh. I absolutely despise that type.’
For someone who preferred slender, handsome men, Berald was completely outside her taste.
Normally, she wouldn’t have even bothered using seduction magic against such a lump.
‘But I have no choice.’
Tsk.
Lactasia clicked her tongue and cast her seduction magic toward Berald.
“Hm?”
Berald tilted his head as if sensing something amiss.
A thick smile spread across Lactasia’s lips as she watched him.
‘Yes, naturally he should react like this….’
“Dale! Do you have any jerky left in your pack?”
“Sure thing.”
Dale pulled dried jerky from his pack and tossed it to Berald.
“Hahaha! Thanks, brother! Looks like this Legacy of Iron Fist really drains the stamina!”
Berald chewed the jerky noisily and hurled his fists at the puppets once more.
“….”
Lactasia stood frozen, her expression blank.
She ground her teeth as she watched Berald, who hadn’t even spared her a glance.
‘What… what in the world is happening?!’
Could it be that her seduction magic didn’t work on any of the three?
Was this Party made up entirely of eunuchs?
“Damn it, damn it, damn it…!”
Faced with the unprecedented disaster of zero confessions and three rejections, her once-proud dignity shattered and crumbled.
Lactasia nervously bit her nails and spat out curses.
“Your seduction magic won’t work on Berald, you know?”
I let out a cold, biting chuckle toward Lactasia.
“That fool Berald… he’s only interested in ‘microcosms.'”
“…What?”
Lactasia narrowed her eyes, her expression asking what nonsense I was spouting.
I shrugged and continued.
“Simply put, he’s not interested in shallow women like you.”
“You…!”
Lactasia glared at me with murderous intent in her eyes.
She ground her teeth and drew up her magical power.
As Lactasia extended her hand, magical energy coalesced in the air, forming into the shape of a violet whip.
“How much longer do you think you can keep being so insolent?”
Crack!
The whip lashed out with an eerie sound of tearing air.
A speed so fast it was difficult to follow with the naked eye.
I reflexively swung my blade, deflecting the whip away.
Clang!
The heavy impact sent a sharp sting racing up my arm.
‘Even at the lowest tier of martial prowess, an Archbishop is still an Archbishop, it seems.’
I grimaced as I looked down at my blood-soaked palms, having barely managed to block a single strike.
“Hmm. You blocked it, did you? It seems you have enough skill to be somewhat audacious.”
Lactasia’s eyes gleamed with intrigue as she regarded me, the one who had withstood her blow.
She bared her teeth in a savage grin and swung the whip in her hand once more.
“Let’s see if you can block this one too!”
Crack!
A barrage of whip strikes lashing out from all directions, as if the whip had split into multiple strands.
I ignited ash-fire and swung my blade toward the whips converging from every angle.
Ash-Fire Blade Form First, Diffraction.
Clang clang clang clang clang!
A terrifying cacophony erupted—one that could hardly be called the mere collision of blade and whip.
“You blocked all of that…?”
After a brief exchange, Lactasia stared at me with widened eyes.
She narrowed her gaze and scrutinized me from head to toe.
“Strange… I’ve never seen this face among the Republic’s rankers.”
How could a hero—not even a ranker—possibly withstand an Archbishop’s onslaught head-on?
“This is becoming quite interesting, isn’t it?”
Lactasia’s eyes sparkled like a beast that had discovered delectable prey.
“Hehe. I think I’ll make you my pet too.”
At first, I thought he was lacking compared to that man called Yuren, but upon closer inspection, a face like that seemed more than adequate.
“You’ve been slashed three times and your mouth still works just fine.”
“Tch…!”
Lactasia’s expression twisted at my mockery.
Her lips twitched as her hand gripping the whip trembled slightly.
“First, I’ll need to educate you on your manners.”
“Sorry, but that’s not my preference.”
I kicked off the ground and rushed toward Lactasia at high speed.
Recalling the battle between Yuren and Lactasia from before, her weakness was close-quarters combat.
“Don’t you dare!”
Lactasia swung her whip savagely, refusing to allow my approach.
The whip surged forward with a sound like tearing fabric.
Clang! Clang clang clang!
Blade and whip crossed in rapid succession.
To an ordinary observer, the exchange would have been nothing but a blur—visible only as sparks scattering through the air.
“Ugh….”
The longer the exchange of blows continued, the more groans escaped between my lips.
Each time I deflected her whip, my body grew heavier, as though I were wearing weighted sandbags.
“Why? You seem to be losing strength.”
Lactasia smiled with a bitter, bloodthirsty edge as she observed my condition.
I narrowed my eyes, watching the violet energy rippling across her whip.
‘Blessing of Exploitation.’
Her blessing, which drained the life force of its target, was the cause of my body’s growing heaviness.
“What do you say? Won’t you simply surrender now?”
Lactasia wielded her whip with an air of leisure, her expression composed.
“The longer this battle drags on, the more disadvantaged you’ll become, won’t you?”
“….”
As she said, a prolonged battle against her, who possessed the Blessing of Exploitation, would place the opposing side at an overwhelming disadvantage.
“Heh.”
Of course.
That would be true for an ‘ordinary’ opponent.
“How amusing.”
I relaxed my grip on my sword slightly and turned my head toward where Yuren stood.
Yuren had just finished dealing with the puppets and was now looking back toward me.
“Hah, hah! Dale! I’ll join you shortly, so hold on just a bit longer!”
Yuren called out, his breathing ragged and labored.
“No.”
I shook my head slightly toward Yuren.
“Yuren. Take the Party members and leave the Ruins.”
“What? Surely you don’t intend to fight alone, Dale?!”
I nodded slightly and glanced around at Berald, Camilla, and Iris.
All of my Party members were breathing heavily, having exhausted nearly all their mana in the battle against the puppets.
Only Yuren remained in reasonably good condition.
“In that state, you can’t fight alongside me anyway.”
“But….”
“I’m asking you, Yuren.”
“Tch.”
Yuren bit his lip firmly and nodded.
“Understood, Dale.”
He moved toward the exit, supporting the other Party members.
“My, you’re letting them escape so readily?”
Lactasia swung her whip toward the fleeing Party members, but—
Whoooosh!
Ashfall Blade, Second Form: Flame Edge.
A blade engulfed in flames deflected her whip away.
“You….”
Lactasia glares at me fiercely, irritated by the constant interruptions.
She turns her body toward me, leaving the fleeing Party members in her wake.
“I think it’s time I taught you a lesson.”
“By all means.”
I stifle a smirk and slowly raise the sword I’d been dragging along the ground.
“If you can.”
The reason I had the Party members evacuate outside the Ruins before my true battle with Lactasia begins.
Of course, part of it was to get them to safety quickly, exhausted as they were from the previous fight.
“But I’m still not very good at controlling it, you see.”
“…What?”
“If there’s no one around…”
I can burn everything freely, can’t I?
I place my hand over my left chest and twist my lips into a savage grin.
A sizzling sound.
The sound of flesh burning away.
“Ignite.”
Ashen flames erupt and engulf my body.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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