The Last Place Hero’s Return - Chapter 25

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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 25. Interlude – You Were That Kind of Woman
Inside the Demon God Church Hideout.
Among the thirty-nine corpses scattered across the hideout’s interior, I forced my battered body upright.
“Damn… this really hurts like hell.”
The aftereffects that arrived once the Sacred Mark Amplifier’s duration expired.
They said it was created without considering aftereffects at all, and the pain that came from my entire body’s vital energy twisting was beyond imagination.
‘Still, the performance is undeniably solid.’
This prototype could only increase my magical power to thirty percent of the theoretical maximum that the Sacred Mark Amplifier could achieve, yet the results were this impressive.
‘If thirty percent alone does this, what would happen once I complete the full hundred percent version?’
I smiled with satisfaction, recalling the Seven-Star Herb I’d packed in my bag.
“Let’s see what we have here…”
Now that the aftereffects had subsided, it was time to conduct a thorough investigation of this place.
‘Honestly, I don’t expect much.’
He was the type to place high-level information seals even on his lowest-ranking subordinates, meticulously preventing any leaks.
Even if I searched this hideout thoroughly, the chances of finding useful information were slim.
‘But it’s better than doing nothing.’
I navigated between the corpses littering the floor, investigating the interior of the Demon God Church Hideout.
After searching through every corner for quite some time.
I discovered a pile of black nails stacked in one corner of what appeared to be a storage room.
“So the ‘curse’ that blinded Iris’s eyes is embedded within these nails.”
The number of black nails piled there was easily several hundred or more.
While the amount of curse contained in a single nail wasn’t substantial, with numbers like this, the situation changed entirely.
‘But even with all this, it still wouldn’t be enough to curse the entire Academy.’
I had learned about large-scale rituals from Sophia before.
What mattered in large-scale rituals was how many materials were prepared and how precisely the ritual was constructed.
And.
‘Where the caster performed the ritual.’
For a large-scale ritual of this magnitude, it would be difficult for the primary caster to operate from ‘outside.’
Especially since this was a ritual that had to be sustained for months until all the power of the ‘Seven Eyes’ was completely drained.
Even if it were a ritual created directly by an Archbishop-level Demon Human, it would be impossible to maintain it with the caster positioned externally.
‘Which means.’
Ashtaroth, the Archbishop of Illusions, must have remained hidden within the Academy for those months while the ritual was active.
“No… that’s not right. Not just months.”
The Demon Humans had definitely said this was a plan they’d been preparing for years.
It was highly likely that the caster had disguised themselves and infiltrated the Academy long before the ritual was formally activated.
That would make it far more convenient to activate and maintain the ritual from within the Academy.
‘In other words.’
Ashtaroth, the Archbishop of Illusions, is currently hidden within the Academy, disguised as someone else.
‘Unless I know who he’s disguised as, it’ll be difficult to track him down.’
There were nearly a thousand Candidates enrolled in the Academy alone.
Beyond that, if you counted all the professors, the hired help who handled various odd jobs, and those who worked in the Laboratory after graduation, the numbers would be far greater.
I couldn’t possibly investigate each and every one of them.
Even if I did, there was doubt as to whether I could find an Archbishop-class Demon Human who had deliberately gone into hiding.
And more than anything else.
“There’s no reason for me to go looking for him.”
I turned my gaze across the blood-soaked interior of the Hideout and let out a soft chuckle.
That’s right.
Why would I need to expend effort searching for him?
He would come looking for me first.
The moment Ashtaroth learned that his carefully laid plans spanning years had been leaked to someone, he would have no choice but to hunt me down with desperate fervor.
I didn’t even need to leave evidence pointing to myself.
In fact, if I left evidence too obviously, he would grow suspicious.
All I had to do was wait quietly until he found me.
“So… it was someone inside the Academy.”
Before leaving the Hideout.
I flicked a small black nail I’d brought with me and gazed up at the moonlit night sky.
I don’t know who you’re disguised as.
I don’t know why you went to such lengths to target Iris’s “Seven Eyes,” or what you intended to do with the power you stole from her.
In my past life, you died at the hands of the Sword of Holy Nation before we ever even met.
But.
One thing.
I know for certain.
“Ashtaroth.”
This time.
“You’ll meet me before you meet the Sword of Holy Nation.”
* * *
On the path from the Demon God Church Hideout back to the Academy Dormitory.
Walking through streets already shrouded in darkness, I narrowed my eyes.
“Ugh… fighting that much really does wear you out.”
My wounds had all been healed through the blessing of resurrection, but that didn’t mean all my fatigue was recovered as well.
The aftereffects of using the stigma amplifier and the exhaustion from battling thirty Demon Humans crashed over me, and drowsiness began to set in.
I need to get back and sleep soon.
Just as I was quickening my pace toward the Dormitory.
“Huh?”
In front of my Dormitory room, I spotted someone crouched down, nodding off repeatedly.
Pale pink hair visible between the folds of a pulled-down robe.
“…Iris?”
When I called out her name cautiously, the woman who had been dozing suddenly sprang to her feet.
“You bastard…! Ah, no, I mean, Dale! Where on earth have you been all this time?!”
Iris approached with an expression full of anger, her strides purposeful.
“I called you so many times!”
“Oh.”
I belatedly turned on my Hero Watch and checked—my inbox was flooded with messages from Iris.
“When you didn’t reply, I heard you’d gotten a permit from Jade Bastian and gone to the Outdoor Training Grounds, and you have no idea how shocked I was?!”
Fair enough.
If anyone had gotten a permit from Jade Bastian—the professor infamous as the “student killer”—and then suddenly gone silent, they’d have been just as terrified as she was.
“I’m fine. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened? Then what’s with your clothes?”
“That’s….”
I glanced down at my garments and noticed tears scattered across them.
‘The blessing of rebirth only regenerates the flesh, not fabric.’
I’d managed to wipe off most of the Demon Human blood before returning to the Dormitory, but there was nothing I could do about the rips.
“I… rolled around a bit on the mountain.”
What came out was a pathetically weak excuse.
“…Rolled around?”
“Yeah. The item Jade Bastian asked me to retrieve was in some rough terrain.”
“Hmm.”
Iris gave me a skeptical once-over, then grabbed my hand and pointed toward the door.
“Open it.”
“…Won’t it be a problem if someone finds out you went into a guy’s dorm room at this hour?”
“That’s why we need to get inside before anyone sees us. Do you know how much trouble I went through sneaking away from Camilla?”
Urged on by Iris, I opened the door.
The interior that revealed itself was so shabby I doubted it was even part of the same Academy Dormitory as hers.
“Now, take off your clothes and come over here.”
“…Take off my clothes?”
I stared at her in confusion, and Iris’s face flushed crimson as she let out a squeak.
“Y-your wounds! I need to check your wounds!”
“Oh, right. But I’m really fine.”
“Tsk. If you don’t take them off soon, I’ll do it for you.”
That would actually be a reward… no, wait, that’s not right.
“Fine.”
I removed my shirt and approached her.
Iris examined my body with a serious gaze.
“Hmm. I don’t see any visible wounds.”
“See? I told you I’m fine.”
“No. Heroes’ bodies are usually so resilient that external wounds often don’t show.”
Iris carefully reached out and touched my body.
“You said you rolled around on the mountain?”
“Yeah.”
“Given the state of your clothes, it looks like you rolled pretty hard… you might have internal bleeding.”
As she spoke, Iris carefully drew up her magical power.
The luminous aura flowing from her sacred mark seeped into my body.
Warmth spread through me as if I’d drunk a cup of hot soup.
“…Your internal bleeding should be gone now.”
“You didn’t need to do this. I would’ve healed on my own.”
“Tsk! I told you not to say things like that.”
With a stern expression, she flicked my forehead lightly.
“Do you understand? No matter how much of a hero you are, you can’t just abuse your body like that. Heroes feel pain just the same when they’re injured.”
“….”
Suddenly.
A faded page from memory flickered through my mind.
-You can’t just abuse your body like that.
-It doesn’t matter if I die anyway—I’ll just come back to life soon enough.
-But you still feel the same pain!
Ah, yes.
You were always that kind of woman.
In my past life, and now.
Unchanging.
Always.
Always.
“Dale?”
“….”
“…Are you crying?”
I wiped the corner of my eye and shook my head quietly.
“No, it’s nothing.”
“….”
An awkward silence settled over the room.
“Ahem, ahem!”
Unable to bear the awkwardness, Iris cleared her throat and stood up from her seat.
“Anyway! The real reason I contacted you today is something else!”
Now that I thought about it, I still hadn’t found out why she’d messaged me today.
“Dale, do you have time this coming weekend?”
“I should have some free time… Why?”
“Would you like to go out with me?”
So that’s why she’d contacted me—she wanted to go somewhere together this weekend.
‘A date with Iris.’
Of course, our relationship hadn’t progressed far enough to truly call it a date yet.
But the prospect of spending time alone with her was an irresistibly sweet proposition.
“Where would we go?”
“That’s….”
Watching her hesitate slightly, I broke into a satisfied smile.
‘Where could she possibly want to go?’
A theater somewhere in Valhalla City? Or perhaps a café with a nice atmosphere?
Given her love of food, it could very well be some renowned restaurant.
‘Anywhere is fine with me.’
As long as I could be with her, even if that place were a slum, it wouldn’t matter to me.
‘Though surely she wouldn’t suggest the Ant Nest of all places.’
I waited for her answer with a wry smile playing at my lips.
“Dale… have you perhaps heard of the Ant Nest?”
“…What?”
She actually wanted to go to the Ant Nest?

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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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