The Last Place Hero’s Return - Chapter 17

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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 17. Mental Fortitude (2)
A few days had passed since I began researching the Stigma Amplifier alongside Professor Jade Bastian.
So absorbed in the research that the weekend slipped away unnoticed, and Monday arrived.
There was only one class on Monday.
It was the day of “Practical Combat Training”—the most crucial mandatory subject that all third-year Candidates, regardless of their department, had to take.
As the course with the greatest influence on overall Candidate rankings and the first step toward activities as a “Hero,” Practical Combat Training possessed several distinctive characteristics.
The first was that it held unconditional priority over other lectures.
In other words, if the schedule for Practical Combat Training changed or expanded, causing students to miss other classes, such absences were recognized as legitimate.
The second was that the instructing professor bore no responsibility for injuries or deaths among Candidates that occurred during the class.
Of course, minimal safety measures were in place, but even if casualties resulted from unforeseen accidents, the responsible professor faced no punishment.
This institution was not an educational facility for cultivating scholars or professionals, but rather a place for training “Heroes” who would venture to humanity’s frontlines after graduation.
The third characteristic was that the lecture time was extensive.
Unlike other lectures, which typically ran two to three hours per session, Practical Combat Training consumed the entire Monday, from start to finish.
Even lunch breaks and rest periods varied at the discretion of the instructor, so in the worst cases—like the outdoor training from before—students might not be given time to eat lunch at all.
In other words.
“Today’s lecture theme is ‘Mental Fortitude.’ If anyone fails the morning examination, they’ll continue straight through the afternoon without a lunch break. Keep that in mind.”
Even amid the relentless schedule of the past few days, I had been secretly anticipating it.
To spend an intimate lunch with Iris, I first had to overcome the obstacle named Professor Lucas Kane.
‘At least give us time to eat, you stubborn man.’
I sighed deeply while glaring at Professor Lucas Kane standing at the podium.
“No lunch break and full lectures from morning to afternoon….”
“That’s not something a person should do!”
“We already suffered through last week’s outdoor training!”
I wasn’t the only one who sighed at the prospect of no lunch break.
The Candidates shot resentful glances at Professor Lucas Kane, wondering why their section alone didn’t get frequent breaks like the other instructors apparently gave theirs.
“What, do you have complaints?”
“N-no, sir!”
“No complaints whatsoever!”
Of course.
It fell on deaf ears.
“Tsk, tsk. I have no intention of starving you brats while putting you through your paces.”
“Pardon? But during the outdoor training….”
“That wasn’t me starving you—you simply failed to bring food. What’s the difference?”
“….”
Faced with such a blunt fact, the Candidates pressed their lips together in silence.
In the ensuing quiet.
Albert raised his trembling hand.
“B-but didn’t you just say that if we fail the test, you won’t give us a lunch break?”
“I did.”
“Then isn’t that the same as starving us….”
“I said I wouldn’t give you lunch break. I never said anything about starving you.”
Lucas Kane’s lips curled into a grin as he pulled a transparent container from his pocket and set it on the desk.
Inside the transparent container was a mysterious green liquid of unknown origin.
“It’s a special juice I made myself. One of these should be enough to get you through lunch and dinner without eating.”
“….”
The green liquid emanated an ominous glow.
The Candidates’ faces drained of color as they watched the green liquid bubbling away—not even placed over heat, yet churning of its own accord.
“P-Professor… what is that?”
“Hmm? Didn’t I just say? A special juice I made myself.”
“No, I understand that, but… what’s it made from?”
“Hahaha.”
“No.”
Stop laughing and tell us, please.
“Candidate Albert. Are you curious what this juice is made from?”
“A-Yes. I’m… curious.”
“Then come here and taste it for yourself.”
“What?”
Albert’s expression hardened instantly.
“N-No! I’m not curious at all, Professor!”
“You just said you were curious.”
“I’m not! I’m not curious!”
“Very well then. Let’s settle this fairly with a vote. All Candidates who think Albert should taste it, raise your hands.”
Every Candidate in the classroom raised their hand.
Of course, I raised mine too.
“Y-You bastards…!”
Albert began trembling violently at the unanimous decision against him.
Lucas Kane approached Albert with heavy, deliberate steps.
“H-Hieek!”
“Don’t make a fuss. You won’t die from drinking this.”
“Ugh….”
“That’s right… you ‘won’t’ die. Probably.”
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
Lucas Kane seized Albert’s shoulder as he tried to flee with an undignified shriek, forcing the juice into his mouth.
“Gack, cough, kuhack!”
Albert’s eyes bulged wide as he was forced to drink the special juice.
“Uurgh! Ugh!”
“Ah-ah. Don’t vomit.”
“W-What the hell is… uurgh! What could possibly taste like this…!”
“Do you know what food ingredient is made entirely of protein, Candidate Albert?”
“C-Chicken breast… isn’t it?”
“Haha! There’s a high-protein ingredient far superior to chicken breast!”
“…?”
Professor Lucas Kane pulled another container from his robes.
Albert’s gaze fixed on the container as he barely suppressed his nausea by clamping his mouth shut.
Writhing inside that container were—
“Insects…?”
“Insects? No, no. These are edible mealworms cultivated using Republic farming techniques.”
“But that’s still insects, isn’t it?”
“Once they’re in your stomach, they’re all the same nutritional value.”
“…Ah.”
Thump.
Albert collapsed into his chair with the expression of someone who’d lost everything.
He’d managed to hold back actually vomiting, but from his ashen face, it wasn’t difficult to imagine just how horrific that “special juice” must have tasted.
“….”
“….”
Silence descended among the Candidates.
A fierce resolve filled the Classroom—an absolute determination never to drink that juice.
“Good. You all have excellent expressions now.”
Professor Lucas Kane grinned wickedly as he returned to stand behind the podium.
“As I said at the beginning, today’s lesson is ‘mental fortitude training.’ It’s an element even more crucial than physical conditioning in actual combat.”
He continued explaining how no matter how powerful one’s body might be, a broken spirit could never defeat an enemy, then turned toward the Classroom door.
“Today’s lecture will be conducted with the special invitation of Professor Morpheus from the Magic Department.”
“Professor Morpheus…?”
“The master of illusion magic?”
Morpheus.
A hero from the Holy Kingdom, renowned for wielding all manner of illusion magic with perfect mastery.
-Click.
The Classroom door opened, and a young man with deep brown hair stepped inside.
At first glance, he appeared scarcely older than the Candidates themselves, but heroes naturally aged slowly, making it difficult to judge their true age by appearance alone.
“Greetings, Candidates. I am Morpheus, here to assist with today’s mental fortitude training.”
Professor Morpheus bowed with graceful, almost painted elegance, a gentle smile playing at his lips.
From his very entrance, the Candidates’ expressions brightened considerably—he was nothing like that bastard standing beside him.
“The lesson is simple. Come forward one at a time and endure the illusion magic I cast for one minute.”
“…So we just have to endure it?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
The Candidates exchanged puzzled glances at the surprisingly straightforward conditions.
No matter how realistic an illusion might be, knowing in advance that it’s merely an illusion naturally diminishes its terror.
And beyond that, they weren’t even being asked to fight the illusion—merely to stand still and endure for one minute.
-This might be easier than expected, they thought.
Such thoughts inevitably flickered through the Candidates’ minds.
“Phew… thank goodness.”
“Oh man, I thought we’d have to drink beetle juice for lunch. You scared me half to death.”
The Candidates exhaled in relief, their hands pressed to their chests.
“Hehehehe.”
Watching the Candidates, Professor Lucas Kane twisted his lips into a thin, sinister smile.
“Morpheus, how about we demonstrate an illusion spell on one of them as an example?”
“Excellent idea. Is there a Candidate who would like to experience an illusion spell?”
“It seems Albert has expressed interest in trying one.”
“What? No, no! I never said anything like that… Ahhh!”
Professor Lucas Kane grabbed Albert by the scruff of his neck and dragged him toward the podium.
“There’s no need to be frightened. It’s merely an illusion, after all.”
Morpheus spoke in a gentle voice to the trembling Albert, who was quaking with fear.
“Now, sit in this chair, close your eyes, and relax your body.”
“Y-yes.”
Albert sat in the chair as instructed.
Morpheus placed his hand on Albert’s forehead.
And then.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”
Crash!
Albert screamed and toppled backward out of his chair.
It happened in less than ten seconds—not even a minute had passed.
“Huff… huff! This… this is….”
“Are you alright?”
Morpheus extended his hand toward the fallen Albert.
“G-get away! Get away from me!”
Still not fully conscious, Albert batted away the professor’s hand and curled himself into a tight ball.
“S-save me… I don’t… I don’t want to die.”
Albert whimpered, his body trembling violently.
Morpheus shrugged and stepped back a few paces, waiting for Albert to regain his senses.
About a minute passed.
Albert, who had been huddled on the floor sobbing, finally pushed himself up with a flushed face.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“I… I’m so sorry.”
“Haha, it’s quite alright. All Candidates experience a similar reaction when they encounter my illusion spell for the first time.”
“….”
The faces of the Candidates, who had just relaxed in relief, hardened once more.
“Well then, who would like to experience the illusion spell next?”
Morpheus smiled sweetly as he surveyed the Candidates.
His smile, which had seemed so kind at first, now resembled the grin of the Grim Reaper itself.
“Let me see… ah, you there with the gray hair.”
Professor Morpheus’s gaze swept across the Candidates before settling on me.
“Would you like to experience it firsthand?”

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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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