The Last-Seat Hero Has Returned

9. The First Lesson (1)

After the meaningful(?) reunion with Juliet.

I focused on consolidating my inner strength during the remaining suspension period.

-Swish.

As soon as I woke up in the morning and opened my eyes, I cut my throat with the sword placed by my bedside.

Feeling the searing pain of the primordial fire scorching my chest, I immediately began to meditate.

Although my magical power would increase automatically even without meditation,

By concentrating through meditation, I could accumulate a larger amount of magical power than usual.

‘The duration of the pain is about 5 minutes.’

Only within this time could I feel the energy of the primordial fire and accumulate magical power.

“Sss, hoo.”

I took long breaths in and out, focusing on the imagery within my mind.

Whoosh!

What I envisioned was an immense flame, so vast that its end was unknowable.

Carefully, I moved forward, gazing at the fiercely burning fire that seemed to engulf the world.

In front of this boundless flame, my existence was nothing more than a handful of ashes.

‘Come.’

I reached out towards the flames.

Burning my flesh, incinerating my soul.

I grasped the fiercely burning flames.

The intensified agony savagely tore through my body.

For others, the moment they felt it, they would foam at the mouth and lose consciousness from the excruciating pain.

‘It’s okay.’

I can endure it.

I can withstand it.

Pain is familiar.

Agony is an old friend.

This much.

Compared to the countless deaths I have experienced, this is nothing but a speck of dust.

‘Move.’

I called out with all my will, but the massive flames didn’t budge.

As if shaking off an annoying bug clinging to my body.

Only a flame the size of a candle remained on my palm.

I carefully moved my arm so that the flame on my palm wouldn’t go out.

‘This is the flame I brought this time.’

It was a tiny amount compared to the excruciating pain of having my body and soul burned by the roaring flames.

But for now, I was grateful for even this.

I slowly brought the burning candle on my palm to my left chest.

And then.

“Hoo.”

I exhaled the breath I had been holding and opened my eyes.

The pain that had felt like my chest was being seared with a hot iron had completely disappeared.

“Oh, this time it increased quite a bit.”

By visualizing the image of bringing ‘fire’ through meditation, I could accumulate much more magic power than just enduring the pain for five minutes while sweating coldly.

‘This is similar to the principle of breathing techniques.’

I once heard from Yuren that even with the same breathing technique, the amount of magic power accumulated varies greatly depending on how the ‘image’ is implemented and visualized.

At that time, no matter what I did, I couldn’t accumulate magic power, so I just listened half-heartedly.

“So this is what it feels like.”

Thinking that the amount of magic power accumulated varies depending on my effort and skill made me feel motivated.

‘Even so, four times a day is the limit.’

I swallowed a bitter smile and put the sword that had beheaded me back into its sheath.

Gray ashes, left after ‘resurrection,’ were scattered on the bed sheet.

“Cleaning this up every time is a hassle.”

The blood that spurted out when I beheaded myself disappeared when my body regenerated, so there was no need to wash the bed sheet.

But the ashes left instead of blood were just as hard to clean up.

‘I need to think of another way.’

Beheading myself with a sword was simple and less painful.

But the blood spurting out and my head falling off were too messy (though they disappeared quickly), so I felt the need to change my method.

‘I need to find a cleaner, simpler way to end my life.’

For now, I didn’t have the luxury to ponder new suicide methods.

“Let’s wash up.”

Monday, the start of a new week.

It was the day to attend my first class after returning.

* * *

Early morning.

The hallway was filled with cadets moving to attend their morning classes.

“Hey, it’s Dale.”

“Is he the one from the rumors…?”

“I heard he even beat up Juliet this time?”

“But wasn’t he ranked last in the overall evaluation?”

“That’s why everyone’s in an uproar! They say he’s been hiding his strength all this time.”

“Is he some kind of play’s protagonist?”

On the way to the ‘Practical Combat Training’ classroom.

I could hear the murmurs of the cadets lined up in the hallway.

The incidents I caused last week seemed to have become quite the talk of the school, as every cadet I passed by was talking about me.

‘I didn’t expect it to become such a big deal.’

Well, I understand.

If I heard that the worst cadet in the school’s history, who was always considered a dunce, suddenly started beating everyone up as if he had become a different person overnight, I wouldn’t be able to help but be interested too.

‘I don’t want to stand out too much.’

But I had no intention of hiding my strength and skulking around.

The past.

No, should I call it the future at this point?

To pull up those I had been chasing, I couldn’t remain the ‘last-ranked cadet.’

-Creak.

Ignoring the murmurs around me, I opened the classroom door.

“……”

“……”

The cadets’ gazes focused on me, and an awkward silence fell.

“Sigh.”

Thinking that this atmosphere would continue for a while, I couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

‘What about Iris?’

My gaze naturally turned towards the end of the window.

There, I saw Iris looking this way with a curious glint in her eyes, and next to her, Camilla glaring at me fiercely as if she would kill me at any moment.

‘I should apologize to Camilla.’

Seeing her like that, if I spoke to her now, it would only cause another commotion instead of an apology.

“Ugh.”

Ignoring their gazes, I sat down.

As I sat down, the awkward silence that had settled over the classroom began to buzz again.

Listening closely, most of the buzz was about me.

“Alright, rookies. Stop chatting and take your seats.”

Professor Lucas opened the door and entered the classroom.

His gaze, which had been scanning the classroom, turned towards me.

“If you fall asleep in my class one more time, you’ll be flying out of here. Got it?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good.”

As I bowed my head properly, Professor Lucas nodded without saying anything else.

Despite the rumors among the professors about how a candidate’s punch had sent him flying while he was off guard, he let it go with a simple apology.

It showed Professor Lucas’s character well.

‘It was thanks to Professor Lucas that I managed to graduate, even if just barely.’

As I recalled memories of my past life with a satisfied smile.

“Alright, before we start the class, let’s take attendance.”

Professor Lucas began calling names one by one, wandering around the classroom.

Just as I wondered why he was wandering around while taking attendance.

“Dale Han.”

“Yes.”

Swoosh.

Professor Lucas, who was passing by me, discreetly handed me a white note.

‘What is this?’

Tilting my head, I unfolded the note Professor Lucas had handed me.

[Remember! I only got hit because I was off guard! If I were serious, a rookie like you wouldn’t stand a chance!]

“…….”

I take back what I said about not holding grudges.

‘How narrow-minded can this guy be?’

When I looked back at Professor Lucas with an incredulous expression, he cleared his throat and deliberately avoided my gaze.

Yeah.

At least he knows how to be embarrassed.

‘He’s quite an amusing fellow, really.’

Suppressing a chuckle, I tucked the note into the left pocket of my chest.

“Alright. Everyone’s here.”

Professor Lucas, having taken attendance, stood on the podium and looked over the candidates.

“What’s the name of today’s lecture?”

“Practical Combat Training.”

“Right. The purpose of this class is to gain experience and knowledge for future real combat with demons or beasts.”

Professor Lucas nodded and continued his explanation.

“Candidate Albert.”

“Ah, yes!”

“What do you think is the most important thing in preparing for real combat?”

After a moment of contemplation, Albert stood up abruptly and clenched his fist.

“I think… it’s the ‘courage’ to face the enemy without fear.”

“Courage is something you use when packing your lunchbox.”

“Excuse me?”

“Hahaha! How about that? I heard this joke from Professor Bianca recently, isn’t it quite funny?”

“Ah… yes.”

Albert sat down with a bewildered expression.

Professor Lucas descended from the podium and placed a hand as large as a pot lid on Albert’s shoulder, beaming widely.

“Smile.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, smile.”

“Ahahaha!!! Comparing ‘courage’ to a lunchbox, Professor Bianca sure has a great sense of humor! Ahahaha! Oh, my stomach hurts from laughing too much!”

“Yes, yes. That’s the spirit.”

With a satisfied expression, Professor Lucas nodded his head, while Albert clutched his stomach (from nervousness) and trembled.

“Well, back to the main topic.”

Professor Lucas, who had walked up to the podium, continued with a rather serious expression.

“In actual combat, the most important thing is not useless courage, but ‘experience’.”

At first, even the candidates who tremble in fear just by looking at the eyes of the beasts will get used to it after slicing a few of them.

“And you can never gain real combat experience in this narrow classroom.”

Thud.

The professor lightly tapped the podium and pointed out the window.

“Come out. Today’s class will be held outdoors.”

At the mention of an outdoor class, low sighs erupted from all corners of the classroom.

“And for this class, you will form parties of three, so gather your party members freely. I’ll give you 15 minutes.”

At the mention of a party class, the classroom buzzed once again.

Some candidates smiled brightly as if they had no worries, while others looked around nervously with a worried expression.

‘A party class.’

A party class.

It was a word that made a sigh escape from my mouth.

Considering that most heroes form parties to operate after graduation, it is a good thing to create experiences of forming parties with others from the candidate days.

‘Every time, I couldn’t find party members until the last moment and ended up forming a party with the leftovers.’

The atmosphere of such a forcibly formed party was indescribably terrible.

‘This time…’

I looked around just in case.

“Ugh.”

As expected.

There was no way any candidate would want to form a party with me, who was already notorious for various rumors.

Just as I was sighing deeply at the thought of having to form a party with candidates whose names I didn’t even know until the last moment again.

“Mr. Dale.”

A familiar voice came from behind.

“Would you like to form a party with us?”

When I turned my head, I saw the saintess with a gentle smile on her lips.