The Last Place Hero’s Return - Chapter 278

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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 278. War (2)
[I’m not sure why the Demons suddenly gathered under the Archbishop of Destruction.]
Just as Elisha trailed off with a troubled expression.
Camelia’s distinctive languid voice echoed through the room.
[If Elisha has deduced as much, then it would be wise to follow her reasoning.]
“…Your Majesty?”
I hadn’t expected Camelia to actually defend me.
Elisha turned to look at the Empress with a bewildered expression.
[Isn’t this the conjecture of the ‘Spider of Calamity’ herself? Far more credible than those desk-bound fools who merely gesture from their seats.]
Camelia turned to Raonel with an expression that seemed to ask: isn’t that right?
“…Surprising. I never thought I’d see the day you’d actually listen to someone else’s opinion.”
[Hmph. Did you think me such a foolish ruler that I wouldn’t even heed the counsel of my own subordinates?]
“That’s not quite what I meant….”
Raonel swallowed the words asking when Elisha had become her subordinate, then let out a deep sigh.
“War, then….”
Since the Sealing Festival last year, the Demons’ movements had grown increasingly active, and I’d anticipated this day would come soon enough.
But now that war loomed before us, my shoulders felt heavy.
“First, we need to evacuate the Candidates.”
If the Demons had truly gathered under the Archbishop of Destruction as Elisha suspected.
There was no need to ponder deeply about where they were headed.
The Hero Academy.
More precisely, the Abyss beneath the Hero Academy.
They would advance toward the place where the Great Five Heroes had sealed the Demon God five hundred years ago.
[I’ll prepare temples in the Holy Nation where the Candidates can shelter.]
[If needed, the Imperial Palace has plenty of vacant rooms as well.]
As everyone moved to evacuate the Candidates from what might soon become a battlefield.
“No.”
I shook my head quietly and continued speaking.
“If we evacuate the Candidates immediately, it could actually increase the casualties.”
Normally, a mere Candidate shouldn’t dare speak in a place where the leaders of nations had gathered, but this was no time for such formalities.
“What do you mean?”
“They’re not fools. If they learn all the Candidates have been evacuated, they won’t bother forcing a full-scale battle.”
“…And?”
“If the standoff drags on, they might target the Empire, the Holy Nation, or the Republic instead. They’re well aware that the Heroes’ forces are concentrated here at the Academy.”
[In other words, they could invade other nations first to disperse the Heroes’ strength?]
“Yes.”
If that happened, the Empire, Holy Nation, and Republic—left essentially undefended—would become sites of mass slaughter.
‘It’s the very tactic they employed in my previous life.’
The Three-Nation Alliance had gathered at the Hero Academy to face the Demon forces, only to have them exploit this by attacking other regions and dividing their strength.
The Heroes faced an impossible choice: abandon the Academy and allow the Demons to breach the Abyss, or stay and watch their own people be slaughtered.
‘Internal divisions had even occurred because of that.’
In any case.
I couldn’t repeat the same mistake this time.
“We must lure them into the Hero Academy and wipe them out in one fell swoop.”
To do that, we couldn’t let them know we were preparing for ‘war’.
“Which is why right now….”
Raonel’s eyes opened fiercely as he continued.
“Are you suggesting we use the Academy’s Candidates as bait?”
“…Yes, that’s correct.”
“You…!”
Crack, crackle!
Blue sparks erupted around Raonel’s body.
“Where in the world are you getting such nonsense…!”
[Calm yourself, Raonel.]
“How can I be calm now!”
[It’s not as though what was said is incorrect, is it?]
Camelia’s eyes narrowed as she continued.
[As Dale said, the more we prepare on our end, the more cautious they will become.]
“Ha. You’ve been showing interest in Dale lately, and now you’ve gone mad! How could you even think of sacrificing the Candidates?”
[Then does that mean it’s acceptable for people other than Candidates to be sacrificed?]
“That is….”
Hmm.
Raonel’s words faltered.
[What if we concentrate all our forces at the Hero Academy, and the Demons strike elsewhere? Could you sit idly by protecting the school while hundreds or thousands of Republic citizens are slaughtered?]
“….”
[For reference, I would not do such a thing. As the ruler of the Empire, I have a duty to protect my subjects.]
“Camelia, you….”
Raonel trailed off with a complicated expression.
[What about using a Warp Gate?]
Pope Marian, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
[The moment war begins, we evacuate the Candidates through the Warp Gate in Valhalla City.]
“The Warp Gate in Valhalla City….”
Raonel’s gaze grew heavy.
“The Warp Gate in Valhalla City will become the Demons’ top priority target the moment war breaks out.”
Just because Demons suffer from the destructive impulse caused by the Demon God’s stigma doesn’t mean their intelligence vanishes like beasts.
The Warp Gate in Valhalla City, connected to each nation’s capital, would certainly be seized by the Demons the instant war began.
“And to use the Warp Gate in Valhalla City, we’d first have to lead the Candidates out of the school, wouldn’t we?”
There was considerable distance between the Hero Academy and Valhalla City.
We’d have to break through the Demon forces and lead the Candidates to the location of the Warp Gate—it would cause less damage to conduct a defensive battle within the school instead.
And if we stationed the Candidates near Valhalla City, the entire operation of using them as ‘bait’ would fall apart from the start.
“Wouldn’t there be a Warp Gate within the Academy itself?”
“Within the Academy?”
Raonel squinted and let out a hollow laugh.
“You’re not talking about that proposal from the Summit Meeting before, are you?”
“Yes. I heard construction has already begun.”
“Construction may have started, but completion will take several more months.”
The pinnacle of magical engineering—capable of transporting users across any distance in an instant.
A Warp Gate couldn’t be constructed overnight, not with such absurdly powerful capabilities.
At minimum, several months.
At maximum, it could take years to complete a Warp Gate.
“Completion isn’t necessary. We only need it to work once—just to evacuate the Candidates within the Academy.”
“You’re suggesting we create a single-use Warp Gate?”
“Yes.”
“…Now that I think about it, you were from the Warrior Department.”
Sigh.
Raonel exhaled deeply and shook his head.
“A Warp Gate is essentially a corridor connecting two spaces. Whether it’s single-use or sustainable, the effort required is fundamentally the same.”
“But it’s not impossible to create, is it?”
“True, it can be made. ‘Theoretically.'”
For example, imagine boring a tunnel through a massive mountain.
To bypass months of excavation, tunnel-boring, and reinforcement work—to punch through a tunnel in one go—how incomprehensibly vast would the required energy be?
“To create a Warp Gate capable of transporting thousands of Candidates, not just one or two, would require literally astronomical amounts of magical power.”
Warp Gates weren’t built everywhere—only in the capitals and major cities of each nation for good reason.
Constructing even a single Warp Gate demanded staggering quantities of manpower and magical energy.
“Astronomical amounts of magical power… Specifically, what level are we talking about?”
“Even if the Empress poured out all her magical power, it wouldn’t come close.”
Raonel sighed and shook his head slowly.
[How dare he compare it to my magical power. Such audacity.]
Camelia, watching through the holographic projection, frowned with displeasure, but offered no rebuttal.
She understood all too well how absurdly impossible the magical requirements would be to construct a Warp Gate in such a short timeframe.
“Even if we began construction now by scraping together every magic stone across the entire Continent, it would take at least a month.”
Warp Gate construction required magical power that increased exponentially—not linearly—with each day saved.
With war looming on the horizon.
Completing a Warp Gate within the timeframe was impossible.
“Unless magical power were infinite, we cannot use a Warp Gate within the Academy.”
“Infinite, you say.”
I smiled slightly.
Whoosh!
Ash-gray flames engulfed my body, swirling around me.
Magical power flowing from the stigma filled the entire room.
“…What exactly are you doing?”
“I wanted to confirm how much magical power would be necessary.”
“Ha.”
Raonel let out an incredulous laugh, his expression one of utter disbelief.
“For a Candidate, your magical power is impressive… but it’s nowhere near enough.”
“Is that so?”
Then there was no choice.
Whoooosh!
Ashen flames erupted across my entire body, burning with savage intensity.
Gray smoke poured from every pore, filling the room in a thick haze.
“Is this not sufficient either?”
“You’re actually….”
Raonel’s eyes widened in disbelief.
He had long known that Dale possessed abilities far beyond those of an ordinary Candidate, but he had never imagined such an absurdly vast reserve of magical power.
And yet.
“…Activating a warp gate requires even more magical power than this.”
“Is that so?”
Then I had no choice.
Whoooooosh!
“No.”
WHOOOOOOOOSH!!!
“Wait, wait! The ceiling’s going to collapse!”
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!
Endless torrents of magical power surged forth.
The School Main Building housing the Headmaster’s Office—no, the entire School Grounds trembled as if an earthquake had struck.
“What in the…”
Raonel’s eyes filled with shock and awe.
“Is this sufficient?”
My entire body—no, I myself had become ashen flame, and I turned to face Raonel with a grin.
“Will this be enough?”
“….”
Silence descended upon the room.

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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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