The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned
Thud!
"You bastard...!"
Johann Basilio, the Sword of the Holy Kingdom, shot to his feet, violently kicking back the table.
Explosive mana burst from him as he glared at me with a fiercely twisted expression.
Having been born in the Holy Kingdom and taught the doctrine of the Seven-Star Church before he even learned to walk, the very existence of a "Demon God" was, to him, a heretical deity that must be eliminated at all costs.
So it was only natural for him to react this violently when I boldly declared myself to be the Demon God.
"Calm yourself."
"Do you really think this is a situation to stay calm in?!"
Despite Principal Lionel’s attempt to intervene, Johann did not quell his murderous intent.
A heavy tension settled in the room.
Pope Marianne looked at me with deeply sunken eyes.
"I think we need a more detailed explanation."
"Yes."
I nodded and continued.
"To be precise, I absorbed the remnants of power left behind when the Demon God perished."
"...The Demon God perished...?"
"W-what are you saying?"
The gathered Masters, who had all believed the Demon God had merely been "sealed," began to stir with unease.
"500 years ago, the Demon God wasn’t sealed. His soul was annihilated, and only fragments of his body remained, buried deep in the Abyss."
"Then the records left by the Five Great Heroes were falsified?"
"Not falsified—manipulated. By the Five Heroes themselves."
"...What?"
I went on to explain the Demon God's death and the existence of the "Sixth Hero."
As my explanation continued, the Masters gathered in the Principal's office grew more and more distraught, their faces painted with confusion, shock, and disbelief.
"Hoo..."
"The Sixth Hero, huh..."
Principal Lionel and Khalid Han sat in silence, their faces hardened as they fell into deep thought.
"......"
Pope Marianne also made the sign of the cross as she organized her thoughts.
In contrast—
Thud!
"Nonsense!"
Johann slammed the table again, his fierce eyes locked onto me.
"You’re saying the Demon God was destroyed 500 years ago, and the one who destroyed him was the leader of the Eternal Order? Hah. And we’re supposed to believe such nonsense with no proof?"
"Proof, huh..."
"If it’s proof you want, isn’t it right in front of you?"
Camellia, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke with a relaxed expression.
"What do you mean, right in front of us...?"
"Dale wasn’t the only one who entered the depths of the Abyss back then. I was there too."
"......"
"Even though we reached the deepest part of the Abyss, we didn’t see the Demon God who was supposedly sealed there. Just as Dale said, only the Primordial Flame left behind by the Demon God was burning in the depths."
Which means—
"I am the most certain proof and witness you could ask for."
"......"
At Camellia’s words, Johann flinched slightly.
If anyone else had said it, he could have denied it.
But this was Her Majesty the Empress stepping forward as a witness.
To deny her would be tantamount to distrusting the Empress herself.
Yet, even knowing that—
"...It’s still hard to believe."
That’s how shocking Dale’s claim was.
"Oh? Are you saying you cannot trust my testimony?"
"Even someone like you, Lady Camellia, can make mistakes."
"I do not make mistakes."
"Back then, the situation was so chaotic that one couldn’t even see a step ahead. You were seriously injured while fighting the Archbishop of Destruction. I don’t think you were in a state to make a clear judgment."
And then—
Johann narrowed his eyes and looked back and forth between Camellia and Dale.
"I’ve been sensing it for a while now... You seem to favor that candidate quite heavily. More than simple trust."
"What are you trying to say?"
"I heard a report recently. That Her Majesty Camellia remained in the infirmary for two weeks after the war, even setting aside national duties."
"So?"
"Emotion can sometimes blind a person. Even for an Empress hailed as the incarnation of the Seven Gods—your foundation is still human, and you’re not immune to..."
RUMMMMMBLE!!!
It was as if an earthquake had struck.
The entire office shook violently.
A radiant burst of seven-colored light exploded outward, filling the room with suffocating, intense killing intent.
"So what you’re saying is—"
Despite the turbulent mana swirling around the room, Camellia remained calm, crossing her legs leisurely as if sipping tea.
"You claim that I am blinded by love and giving false testimony?"
Her expression remained composed, but her voice carried a deep fury.
"......"
"......"
The tension in the room felt like a powder keg with a lit fuse, ready to blow at the slightest spark.
Tick, tick.
The ticking of a clock in the corner of the room echoed like thunder in the suffocating silence.
"Both of you, calm down."
Pope Marianne spoke in a low voice.
"There are many questions surrounding Candidate Dale’s story, but since Camellia has testified, we will choose to believe it—for now."
"B-but Your Holiness!"
"Shh. I said calm down, Johann."
"Ugh..."
Johann bit his lip and sat back down.
"However... Even if everything he said is true, there are still many issues left unresolved."
Marianne continued calmly.
"In any case, it’s a fact that the remnants of the Demon God have taken root inside Cadet Dale, correct?"
"...Yes."
"What’s the current state of that power?"
"It’s stable."
"Stable, huh..."
Pope Marianne spoke with a bitter expression.
"But how long will it remain stable?"
"......."
"Everyone here knows how powerful and dangerous the Demon God’s power is. Even the Demonic Ones, who only inherited a small fragment of that power, have suffered from overwhelming urges to destroy, taking countless lives."
If that’s what the Demonic Ones are like with only a sliver of power, what kind of urges must someone suffer who’s absorbed the full remnants of the Demon God?
"If it's about urges, there’s no need to worry. Not once have I felt anything close to a destructive impulse."
"For now, that is."
"I can’t guarantee that I’ll never experience any destructive impulses, just like Pope Marianne said. But at the very least, right now, everything is perfectly under my control."
"Even so, we can’t just leave a ticking time bomb unattended."
"And yet, throwing away a powerful weapon capable of destroying the Order of Eternity—the enemy right in front of us—would be sheer folly."
My eyes met those of Pope Marianne.
"You’ll regret it if it explodes."
"You’ll regret it just as much if we lose."
A tense back-and-forth.
No matter how much we tried to persuade each other, our opinions didn’t narrow—like two parallel lines that would never meet.
"I know that, contrary to public opinion, Cadet Dale has made countless sacrifices for humanity."
Pope Marianne spoke in a voice devoid of her usual warmth and gentleness, instead cold and firm.
"That’s why I turned a blind eye to the fact that you and Iris are more than just classmates."
Normally, a person in the position of a Saint would have great difficulty finding a partner.
Of course, the doctrine of the Septarian Church doesn’t explicitly forbid clergy from marrying.
But public perception is another matter.
And her partner is none other than the most notorious troublemaker since the founding of the Hero Academy?
If Iris and Dale’s relationship became public, there would surely be an outcry throughout the Holy Kingdom.
Yet Pope Marianne had never once voiced a complaint about their relationship.
Because she knew better than anyone how much Dale Han, the candidate everyone scorned, had done for humanity.
"But now that I know the remnants of the Demon God dwell within your stigma, I can no longer turn a blind eye."
As the Pope of the Holy Kingdom—and more importantly, as a devout follower of the Septarian Church—
She could not allow the existence of the Demon God to persist.
She had read and heard enough records to know how dangerous and destructive it was.
The moment that power runs amok, every living human on this continent will be reduced to ashes.
The devout and the sinful.
The humble and the proud.
The diligent and the lazy.
The rich and the poor.
The brave and the cowardly.
Heroes and Demonic Ones alike.
They will die.
Every last one of them.
Without mercy, without exception.
All will be reduced to ash.
"I’m sorry."
Marianne rose from her seat and bowed her head deeply toward me.
"Please—for the sake of humanity, die."
"......."
A heavy silence descended on the room.
"Haa."
A deep sigh escaped me.
"You're asking me to die, huh..."
I let out a bitter chuckle and shook my head.
"Yeah, that’s not gonna happen."
"...I figured."
Pope Marianne nodded with a bitter expression, as if she had expected that answer.
"In that case... there’s no other choice."
She stood from her seat.
"I won’t cause a scene here."
However—
"From now on, Cadet Dale will be publicly declared a heretic and an enemy of the Holy Kingdom who must be eliminated."
"......."
"And I hope you won’t meet with Iris anymore."
Ha.
I let out a dry laugh and looked back at Pope Marianne.
She had already turned around, as if she’d said everything she needed to, and Johann Basilio stood to follow her, glaring at me with cold, murderous intent.
"......."
Seeing that murderous gaze, I chuckled again.
I had done my best to persuade them.
I had revealed the truth about the Demon God, shown that I could control its power, and made a compelling case for why that power was needed.
‘And this is the result, huh?’
Fine.
I did everything I could.
I won’t waste any more energy on tedious, academic arguments.
From now on—
I’ll do things the Berald way.
BOOM!!!
I stomped the ground violently.
"Ugh...!"
Before Johann could even draw his sword, I was already behind him, grabbing him by the back of the neck and slamming him onto the table.
CRASH!!
The solid table shattered, and all eyes of the Masters turned to me in shock.
"Wh-what in the world...!"
Marianne stammered, her face pale.
"You want me to stop seeing Iris?"
Then die.

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