The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned

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Chapter 44: Special Instructor (1)

Ah, now I finally understand, Berald.

How much you must have struggled to teach me in my previous life.

'How did you manage to teach me without swearing even once?'

Maybe it's because this is my first time teaching someone instead of learning from others, or maybe it's because my nature is just rotten.

Less than five minutes after I started teaching martial arts, the plan to 'teach diligently without using a single curse word' was immediately scrapped.

No.

It's more accurate to say that I had no choice but to scrap it.

"Micro-world! Huh? Do you think it's a micro-world, you crazy bastard!"

"Ack! Wait, are you implying that your preference is for young girls, sir?!"

"What kind of nonsense is that?"

"Laying hands on a minor is a crime!"

"No."

How could I not beat them senseless when they're spouting such nonsense?

"Sigh… Life is fucked."

After such a fun(?) martial arts lesson filled with swearing and violence, I arranged to meet Berald twice a week.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we agreed to spend two hours practicing martial arts.

'I'd like to train him every day if I could, but...'

I had my own mountain of things to do, so I couldn't afford to focus only on Berald.

'But even with this amount of training, Berald should be able to continue growing independently.'

Regarding martial arts, Berald is a genius on par with Yuren.

He's a genius who, once taught one thing, can figure out ten or a hundred more on his own. There's no reason to stick around and teach him every day.

'In fact, that might even hinder his growth.'

Anyway.

Berald is taken care of for now.

"Now, the remaining ones are Yuren and Senior Sophia…."

I plan to contact those two soon.

'But right now, it's difficult.'

For now, it's hard to approach Senior Sophia because we're in different years.

Even if I did, it would be tough for me to teach her magic.

'I've only got the theory down when it comes to magic; I haven't had much practice myself.'

While I could roughly mimic swordsmanship and martial arts without magic, magic is impossible to use without mana in the first place.

'I think it’s better to meet Senior Sophia after I become more familiar with magic.'

Next up is Yuren.

“With Yuren… the difference in rank is just too big.”

Imagine it.

The bottom-ranked student walking up to the top-ranked one and saying, "Want to learn swordsmanship from me?"

'If I’m lucky, I might just get cursed out.'

No matter how much rumors about me have spread throughout the school recently,

For Yuren, who has never missed the top rank since entering, those rumors must be nothing more than a joke.

“And if I wait until after the comprehensive rank evaluation to approach him, another semester will pass….”

As I continued to ponder what to do,

Ding!

A cheerful alarm rang from the Hero Watch placed by my bedside.

[Mr. Dale. You didn’t forget that classes start again today, did you?]

A message from Iris appeared on the Hero Watch screen.

“She’s been messaging a lot lately.”

We’ve always exchanged messages occasionally, but ever since the demonic beast incident, the amount of messages from Iris has increased noticeably.

'Messages, huh.'

In my previous life, even if we needed to contact each other, we could only talk on the phone.

"......"

Thinking back, just being able to exchange 'messages' with Iris now filled my heart with overwhelming emotion.

‘I protected her.’

Though it didn’t go as smoothly as I had hoped,

In the end, I defeated Astaroth and managed to protect her 'seven eyes.'

Yes.

I, Dale Han,

A mere half-hero, succeeded in changing destiny.

‘And I will continue to change it from now on.’

As I steeled my resolve with such thoughts,

Ding!

Another message arrived from Iris.

I quickly picked up the Hero Watch and replied to her.

[Ah, sorry. I was just getting ready to head out.]

[Then let’s meet before the lecture starts and go together.]

[Sure. Where should we meet?]

[Let’s meet by the cafeteria in the main building.]

[Got it.]

She wants to meet before class and go in together, huh.

'How sweet.'

Though this place is a Hero Academy where candidates with Stigma gather to train to become heroes,

At the end of the day, it’s still a place where grown men and women are gathered together.

Naturally, it wasn’t uncommon for some candidates to develop romantic relationships.

‘In my previous life, I used to pray fervently for those couples to get impaled by demonic claws whenever I saw them.’

I never imagined I’d end up in such a situation myself (though Iris and I aren’t a couple yet).

"Hehe."

As a smile crept onto my face at the thought,

Ding!

The Hero Watch chimed again.

[By the way, did you have breakfast?]

[No, I didn’t.]

[Then I’ll make a simple sandwich and bring it. Eat before we go.]

[Aww, you don’t have to do that.]

[Of course I do! Breakfast is essential for your health. I’ll bring a vegetable juice too, so don’t be late to the cafeteria.]

Hmm.

Looking at it again, this feels more like a parent taking care of a troublesome child rather than a lover.

"Ugh."

Anyway.

I obediently left the dorm earlier than usual and headed toward the main building’s cafeteria as per Iris’s stern command.

* * *

“Alright, today we’re resuming the ‘Practical Combat Training’ class that you’ve all been eagerly waiting for.”

As soon as the classroom door opened, Professor Lucas casually spouted nonsense.

"......"

"......"

Naturally, the candidates in the classroom looked at Professor Lucas with expressions as if they had just found a cockroach split in half inside their bread.

Professor Lucas’s eyes gleamed like a hunting dog catching the scent of blood as he grinned.

“Hmm, you don’t seem too pleased… Could it be that some of you don’t want to take my class?”

“No, sir!”

“As if. It’s written all over your faces.”

Professor Lucas descended from the podium and strode toward the seated candidates.

He placed his hand gently on the shoulder of one cadet sitting in a corner, avoiding eye contact.

"Cadet Albert."

"..."

Even though his name was called, Albert stubbornly kept his head turned.

Looking down at Albert with concern, Professor Lucas asked,

"Hmm. Your eyes look tired. Haven't been sleeping well? If that's the case, I could give you a special health juice that's great for fatigue..."

"In the two weeks that I couldn't see you, Professor,"

Albert, who had been looking away, turned toward Professor Lucas with teary eyes.

"Do you have any idea how sad I was not being able to attend your lectures?!"

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Albert's voice was a mix of a wail and a shout.

"Oh, my."

"Wow, Albert finally..."

"I knew this would happen someday."

"Hang in there, Albert!"

The classroom buzzed with murmurs.

"Hmm."

Professor Lucas, looking amused, let out a small chuckle.

"Good try, Cadet Albert."

"Th-Then...!"

"In that case, how about a glass of juice?"

"Why is it always me?!"

Albert cried out in frustration, clutching his head in despair.

"Because your reactions are entertaining,"

Professor Lucas responded with a laugh.

"Aaaargh!"

Albert, overwhelmed by frustration, grabbed his head and let out a scream, while Professor Lucas chuckled and walked back to the podium.

"Alright. Now that I've heard Cadet Albert's loud voice, it feels like we're finally back to normal,"

Professor Lucas said as he looked around at the students seated in the classroom.

"As you all know, our school was attacked by a demon two weeks ago."

"...."

"The mastermind behind the attack had disguised themselves as a professor and fled the moment the incident occurred."

His voice grew heavy.

"Fortunately, there were no fatalities. However, as a fellow professor, I deeply apologize for not identifying the demon earlier and preventing the incident."

Professor Lucas bowed his head respectfully toward the cadets.

"Uh..."

"Ahem."

The cadets, surprised by the unexpected humility of Professor Lucas, who had a reputation for being as fierce as a "bloodthirsty hound," exchanged awkward glances.

Raising his head again, Professor Lucas continued,

"To prevent future incidents like this, the school has decided to appoint a special professor."

"A special professor?"

"The special professor will observe the lectures of the current faculty and ensure that the cadets are being properly trained and that security measures are in place in case of emergencies."

Professor Lucas's gaze shifted to the classroom door.

Click.

The door opened, and a woman in a black suit entered with the sharp sound of her heels echoing through the room.

A scar ran across her left eye, and her short black hair barely reached her neck.

She was taller than most men.

"Please welcome Professor Elisha Baldwin, our special professor. You may have heard of her by her nickname, 'The Spider with the Scarred Eye.'"

As she was introduced by Professor Lucas, Professor Elisha Baldwin stepped up to the podium and scanned the cadets with a cold gaze.

"Tsk."

A faint clicking sound escaped her lips.

"I'm Elisha Baldwin, and I'll be serving as the special professor starting today."

It was a simple introduction, but the atmosphere in the classroom became tense, as if the cadets had been thrown into the middle of a battlefield.

Of course, no one had expected that Elisha Baldwin, ranked 9th among the continent's heroes, would come to their school as a special professor.

And, naturally, that included me.

‘Who would have thought Elisha Baldwin would become a professor here?’

It was something I had never experienced in my previous life.

‘Has the future started to change?’

I had expected something like this ever since I killed Astaroth, but I never thought the changes would happen so quickly.

‘The Butterfly Effect.’

The theory that a small flap of a butterfly's wings could cause a massive storm on the other side of the continent.

‘In that sense, what I did was far more than just a flap of the wings.’

I killed Astaroth, the Archbishop of Illusions, no less.

How much the future would change because of that was beyond my ability to predict.

"But one thing is clear."

A major figure ranked 9th among the continent's heroes had arrived as a special professor.

"Hmm."

Elisha, who had been calmly examining each cadet's face, turned to Professor Lucas and said, "Professor Lucas."

"Yes, ma'am."

The cadets' eyes widened at the unfamiliar term of address, "ma'am," coming from Professor Lucas.

‘Now that I think about it, they were seniors and juniors back when they were cadets, weren't they?’

Despite looking much older, Lucas was, in fact, younger than Elisha Baldwin.

"I'd like to evaluate the level of your cadets."

"...Their level?"

"Yes."

"Ah, of course. How would you like to evaluate them...?"

"I intend to have them spar with my assistant."

Elisha said as she directed her gaze to the classroom door.

"Vincent, come in."

The door slid open at her command, and a handsome young man with silver hair tied into a ponytail walked into the classroom.

"Now, let's see... This cadet seems fitting,"

Elisha said as she checked the cadets' roster on her Hero Watch, her eyes settling on a cadet sitting in the corner of the classroom.

"Cadet Albert, come forward."

As Elisha called out, all the cadets' eyes turned to Albert.

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