The Last Place Hero’s Return - Chapter 202

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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 202. Traitors (3)
“T-that can’t be….”
Yurina turned to look at Iris and Lanez, her eyes hollow as though her very soul had been drained away.
“So… I’m the only one who hasn’t kissed Dale…?”
Her vacant gaze slowly shifted toward me.
The emptiness in her eyes gradually gave way to a burning fury.
“Dale, you…!”
“Gack!”
Yurina seized my collar with a rough, violent grip.
Despite her masculine appearance, Yurina possessed hands so delicate that one might question whether she was truly a swordmaster—yet the raw power contained within them was formidable enough to crumple steel with bare hands.
“How could you! How could you do this to me!”
As Yurina’s anguished cry erupted, the eyes of nearby Candidates turned toward us.
“Hey, look over there.”
“That’s Yuren Helios… but who’s the gray-haired one?”
“Oh, you know. That third-year Candidate who deliberately keeps his grades low—the one at the bottom of the rankings.”
“Ah, right. His name was Dale, wasn’t it?”
Murmurs rippled through the gathered Candidates.
“I heard he’s been disciplined more than three times.”
“What? That’s insane… what kind of trouble has he caused?”
“Supposedly he beats up seniors without hesitation if they displease him.”
“You haven’t heard? There’s a rumor he set fire to the Dormitory because his neighbor was too loud.”
“Wow, at that point he’s just crazy, right?”
“Anyway, try not to make eye contact with him. Word is his actual power rivals Yuren Helios himself.”
Wait, what?
How did I become the subject of such vicious rumors?
All I’ve done is get suspended five times, set fire to the Academy Dormitory, and beat up a senior badly enough to hospitalize him at the Medical Facility….
‘Hmm.’
Now that I thought about it carefully, I supposed such rumors were inevitable.
But the real problem wasn’t these baseless rumors—it was Yurina right now, her head burning so hot I could practically see steam rising from her.
“I… I trusted you, Dale…! How could you…!”
Yurina’s lips trembled as she bit down hard, her shoulders quaking with emotion.
If it were just Iris, perhaps—but the fact that even Lanez had already experienced a kiss seemed to have dealt her a devastating blow.
At her outcry, the Candidates’ eyes gleamed with interest as they watched us intently.
“What, what? Is this a lovers’ quarrel?”
“Could it be that Yuren and Dale are fighting over the Saint?”
“Or maybe… could it be that the two of them…?”
“Nah, two guys, come on.”
“Oh my, how naive. These days are all about diversity! Two guys can totally—you know, as long as you’re careful!”
“Well, I mean… no, wait. Don’t answer that.”
“If they’re dating, who would be the top? Yuren or Dale?”
“Shut up, please.”
The misunderstanding seemed to be spiraling out of control.
“Yuren. Just calm down for a moment….”
“Calm down? Do I look calm to you right now?!”
I was still pondering how to soothe an agitated Yurina when it happened.
Zzzt.
The Hero Watch vibrated at a perfectly timed moment.
I glanced down at the screen and saw it was a call from Elisha.
“Sorry. I have a call from Elisha.”
“Ugh….”
Yurina released my collar with an expression that said we’d settle this later.
I exhaled in relief and channeled mana into the Hero Watch on my wrist.
Elisha’s voice came through the holographic display.
[Dale, can you come to my office right now?]
“What’s the matter?”
[I’ll explain when you get here.]
Elisha was summoning me to her office without preamble.
She’d occasionally called me like this before, claiming she didn’t have enough time to spend together since she was a professor, and we’d shared a few private moments—but this didn’t feel like one of those occasions.
‘This doesn’t feel right.’
Elisha’s voice through the Hero Watch was heavy and grave.
“Elisha says she has something urgent to discuss, so I should head to her office.”
“Yes. Go ahead.”
“C-can’t I come with you?”
“That might be difficult.”
“O-okay. I understand.”
I was about to leave for the Professor’s Office, leaving Iris, Lanez, and Yurina behind.
[Oh, right.]
Elisha’s voice continued.
[Bring Yuren with you as well.]
“Pardon?”
She was calling both me and Yuren?
I turned back to Yurina with a bewildered expression.
Yurina shook her head, equally confused about what was happening.
“Well, I’m not sure what this is about, but understood. We were just having lunch together anyway.”
[Good. We can discuss the details once you arrive.]
* * *
Yurina and I arrived at Elisha’s Professor’s Office.
After a light knock, I opened the door and saw Elisha sitting at her desk with a stern expression, reviewing documents.
“You’re here?”
“Yes. But what’s this about? Why did you call both me and Yurina?”
“A rather troublesome matter has arisen.”
Elisha set down the documents she’d been holding, clicking her tongue in disapproval.
“Demons have been spotted recently in Valhalla City.”
“…I see.”
Demons spotted in Valhalla City, then.
It was certainly problematic that they’d been sighted in the city right outside the Academy, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected.
“Surely this isn’t something that’s just started happening, is it?”
Right.
While the Hero Academy itself was secure, Valhalla City beyond its walls was sprawling enough that countless Demons had inevitably slipped into its shadows.
‘Previously, the Archbishop of Illusion’s minions were hiding in the Slums of Valhalla City as well.’
Only ordinary citizens ignorant of the deeper truth would claim that Valhalla City was safe from the Demons’ grasp.
“Right. Anyone with real knowledge knows that a considerable number of Demons are already lurking within Valhalla City.”
Elisha nodded, but then added with a measured pause, “However…”
“The Demons spotted this time are different.”
“Different, you say?”
“They’re wearing suspicious animal masks and displaying remarkably organized movements, from what I’ve heard.”
“….”
Suspicious animal masks, then.
The story Lanez had told me naturally surfaced in my mind.
‘She said she was attacked by a hero wearing a wolf mask.’
Of course, the one who attacked Lanez was a ‘hero’, not a ‘Demon’.
‘But if Demons and heroes are working together…’
It wouldn’t be strange if both Demons and heroes were operating within this mysterious masked organization.
“So you’re asking me to go to Valhalla City and capture those Demons?”
“Precisely.”
Elisha nodded and continued.
“This is also a request that Raonel himself made directly, specifically naming Dale from the Candidate Program.”
“…The Headmaster himself?”
Raonel had personally singled me out for this.
‘He’s entrusting the task of rooting out a Demon organization that’s infiltrated Valhalla City to a mere Candidate?’
That would be madness unless there was something more to it.
“I’m not sure how he found out, but Raonel does seem to have some awareness of just how formidable your power is.”
So Raonel knows something about my strength, then.
“To what extent does he understand it?”
“From my direct conversation with the Headmaster, it became clear he doesn’t know that much. He’s unaware that you possess the blessing of the Savior, or that you wield the Primordial Flame.”
However.
Elisha continued in a low, measured voice.
“He does know that you’re a prodigy whose skill surpasses even most high-ranking heroes.”
“And he doesn’t know how he found that out?”
“After all, you’ve never really made much effort to conceal your power in the first place, have you?”
“Well… I suppose that’s true.”
I had been careful to keep certain techniques—like Resurrection Protection, Intensification, and Fear Manifestation—hidden as my trump cards, but I’d never tried to conceal my fundamental abilities.
If I had intended to hide my true strength from the start, I wouldn’t have beaten members of the Seven Star Knights or ranked first on the final evaluation.
Of course, my first-place finish on the final evaluation had been nullified due to disciplinary action.
Regardless.
Raonel had more than enough clues to make an educated guess about my capabilities.
“But even so, why would you assign such a task to a Candidate?”
“There are circumstances involved.”
Elisha let out a short sigh before continuing.
“I hate to admit it, but key personnel information about Hero Academy has already spread to the Demons. They’ve obtained data not just on professors, but on high-ranking Candidates as well.”
In other words.
“The moment we step outside the Academy, we become targets of interest?”
“Exactly. No matter what disguise they use, they somehow see through it like ghosts.”
“….”
I recalled what had happened with Lanez before.
She had been attacked the instant she left Valhalla City, as if they’d been waiting for her.
‘The moment I step outside the Academy, I’ll be tracked immediately.’
The fact that they’d located her faster than the Academy could, despite her unauthorized withdrawal, proved that their intelligence network—their eyes and ears—was thoroughly woven throughout Valhalla City.
“This situation is more serious than I thought.”
“That’s why I called you.”
Elisha nodded and continued.
“The Demons probably don’t know much about Dale.”
“But Jackal recognized me, didn’t he?”
“He recognized you, but he didn’t truly understand your capabilities. He doesn’t know exactly how much power you possess.”
“That’s….”
“And upon investigation, the Demons who have infiltrated Valhalla City have only shown immediate reactions to professors and top-ranking Candidates.”
Which meant right now….
“Because I’m ranked last, the Demons won’t pay attention to me?”
“Precisely.”
“….”
True enough.
While I might be somewhat known within the Academy, from an outsider’s perspective, I was just another fool ranked 472nd out of 472 Candidates.
“…Then why did you call Yuren?”
I turned to look at Yuren, who had been standing there unable to join our conversation.
“Isn’t it more efficient for two people to investigate than one? Besides, you’re both skilled enough to handle ordinary Demons with ease.”
“But you said top-ranking Candidates couldn’t be used?”
Yuren was among the very best of the top-ranking Candidates, having never lost the first-place position since enrollment.
“That’s right. ‘Yuren Helios’ certainly can’t be. However….”
Elisha wore a deep smile as she turned to look at Yurina.
Professor Elisha turned to look at Yurina, a deep smile playing at her lips.
“Surely the Demons aren’t unaware of ‘Yurina Helios’?”
“…I see.”
Indeed.
So that’s what you meant.
“Dale and Yurina from the Candidate Program can head to Valhalla City and investigate the Demons exhibiting suspicious activity. Consider it a sort of undercover operation.”
“An undercover operation, you say….”
“Besides, why not enjoy a date together while you’re at it?”
“A, a date?”
Yurina’s eyes sparkled like stars.
Elisha nodded and continued speaking.
“Rather than conducting a deliberate search, acting like an ordinary couple would actually lower the Demons’ guard.”
“S-so if we’re acting like a normal couple, it’s okay to just kiss openly on the street, right?!”
“…Don’t most couples refrain from such displays in public places?”
“No way! Just today I saw couples kissing brazenly in the Central Plaza!”
“Is that so?”
Well.
Young people these days….
Elisha clicked her tongue disapprovingly and shook her head in dismay.

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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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