The Last-Seat Hero Has Returned

Chapter 41

41. Consistent Brat (2)

Since leaving the treatment center.

During the remaining break, I had been honing my skills, moving between the dormitory and the training hall, when I glanced at the calendar hanging on one wall and clicked my tongue.

“Starting tomorrow, it’s back to classes….”

Who among the candidates likes the start of school? But the reason I felt this much regret wasn’t just because I had to attend classes again.

“Today is the last day I can rent this place.”

I sighed softly as I looked around the empty training hall.

There weren’t many candidates who came to the training hall during the break for personal training, so I could use the space freely, as if I had rented it.

‘That ends today.’

Once classes resumed, the training hall would be bustling with candidates again.

The hero school’s classes were no joke; if I slacked off on personal training, I wouldn’t be able to keep up.

“Well, sharing isn’t a problem, but I can’t help but feel the eyes on me….”

Especially with the recent events, attention on me had increased significantly, so using the public training hall meant I couldn’t escape the gazes directed my way.

‘Maybe I should apply for a private training hall this time.’

The issue was, just like with the personal recovery room, obtaining a private training hall required a certain amount of ‘donation.’

“Why does this school only think about squeezing money out of the cadets?”

Of course, if you were a cadet ranked within the top 50 in the comprehensive evaluation, you could apply for a personal training ground regardless of donations.

“Haha, damn it.”

What more can I say?

Ranked 472 out of 472 in the comprehensive evaluation.

For Dale Han, the lowest-ranked hero cadet, there was no way to apply for a personal training ground without a huge donation.

‘When is the comprehensive evaluation exam?’

Who would have thought that I would ever find myself hoping for the comprehensive evaluation exam to be held sooner?

“Donations, huh….”

Hmm.

As I thought about a ‘friend’ who naturally came to mind when it came to money-related matters, I moved out of the training ground.

“Huh?”

“Eek!”

They say even a tiger appears when you talk about it.

Well, in this case, it’s the opposite, as the tiger is running away.

Anyway.

As soon as she saw my face, my one and only friend, Juliet Kang, turned around and tried to run away.

“Where are you going in such a hurry?”

“Aah!”

Juliet, who was caught by the scruff of her neck in an instant.

I put my arm around my friend’s shoulder with a friendly smile.

“Hey, long time no see?”

“Y-yeah. L-long time no see.”

“What did you do during the school break?”

“J-just went back home for a bit….”

“Hmm. You went back home?”

As I narrowed my eyes, Juliet jumped up in surprise.

“O-of course, I didn’t say anything about you! I swear to the Seven Gods, never!”

“Hahaha! You were embarrassed to tell your parents that you made a friend, huh?”

“Huh? Ah… Y-yeah. Something like that.”

“Yeah, yeah. That can happen.”

At this age, it can be a bit embarrassing to talk to your parents about friends.

I get it.

“So… um, what’s going on?”

Juliet asked in a voice that was all curled up.

I grinned and tightened the arm I had around her shoulders.

“Do friends always need a reason to hang out?”

“Huh? Oh, no. It’s not that…”

“I just thought we could grab a bite together.”

“…Like usual, just bring some bread and milk?”

Leaving 5 gold behind… no, that’s not it.

“No. Let’s go to the cadet cafeteria today. My treat.”

“What…? You’re treating? Really?”

Juliet’s eyes widened at the thought of me paying.

I twisted my lips into a grin as I watched her blink in disbelief.

“I always get treated, so sometimes I should pay.”

“R-really?”

“Of course, of course.”

After all, soon enough, we’ll be borrowing a huge donation to apply for a private training ground.

Buying a meal before borrowing the donation wasn’t a big deal.

“Alright, let’s head to the cafeteria, friend!”

“Oh, okay.”

So, Juliet and I headed to the cadet cafeteria located in the annex.

Unlike the fancy restaurant in the main building, it was filled with affordable yet nutritious menu items.

“So this is the annex cafeteria…”

“Is this your first time here?”

“Y-yeah. I usually go to the main building’s restaurant.”

“Ah, I see.”

Juliet was the child of one of the top five conglomerates in the Republic.

Of course, she would only use the ridiculously expensive restaurant in the main building.

“Think of it as an experience and give it a try. There are many dishes here that aren’t available in the main building.”

I led Juliet to the entrance of the annex restaurant.

Beep.

[Hero candidate ‘Dale Han’. Identity confirmed.]

As I brought my Hero Watch to the recognition device installed at the entrance, the firmly locked restaurant door opened.

Inside, I saw candidates bustling around the restaurant.

‘There wasn’t a single mouse in the training ground, but they were all gathered here.’

Well, even during the break period, one must eat.

“Let’s see, today’s recommended menu is… Oh, there’s stir-fried pork!”

Stir-fried pork is one of the soul foods of the Republic, along with ramen.

“…Stir-fried pork?”

“What? Don’t tell me you don’t know stir-fried pork?”

“I’ve heard of it… but I’ve never tried it.”

“You’ve never tried stir-fried pork?”

I turned to Juliet, my mouth agape.

“Are you really from the Republic? How have you never tried stir-fried pork?”

“My father told me not to eat such low-class food…”

“Well, well.”

How impressive.

“Come with me. I’ll show you the taste of stir-fried pork this time.”

“O-okay.”

Juliet hesitated as she followed me.

I placed two servings of stir-fried pork set meals on a tray and headed to a table.

“…So this is stir-fried pork.”

Juliet looked down at the stir-fried pork with sparkling eyes.

She carefully picked up a piece of the glistening red pork with her chopsticks.

She placed it on the white rice and took a bite.

“……!”

Juliet’s eyes widened as she stomped her feet in surprise.

“How is it, delicious?”

“Uh, yeah! It’s really delicious!”

Juliet nodded vigorously and devoured the stir-fried pork.

“Wow. That was the best….”

“Did you finish it all?”

“Ah, yeah. I ate well.”

“You can take the dishes to the return area over there.”

“Huh? I thought the staff would clean it up if we just left it?”

“There’s no such thing in the annex cafeteria, you idiot.”

Seriously, this is why you can’t communicate with rich people.

“If you’re done eating, let’s head out.”

Just as Juliet was being led out of the cadet cafeteria.

“Huh?”

“What?”

They saw cadets huddled together in front of the exit door.

“Why is everyone gathered here instead of leaving?”

As they approached the entrance, it wasn’t hard to find out why.

“What is this? Why isn’t the Hero Watch recognizing it?”

“Isn’t your Hero Watch broken?”

“Move aside. I’ll try to open it.”

One cadet stepped forward and brought his Hero Watch to the recognition device installed at the entrance of the cafeteria.

Normally, the door should have opened automatically just by bringing the Hero Watch close to it.

For some reason, the recognition device that had been working fine when they entered was now unresponsive.

“Is it broken?”

“Seems like it.”

“Could it be that the demons attacked again like during the sealing ceremony? Or maybe it’s the demons….”

A cadet stepped back with a pale face.

Other cadets clicked their tongues, telling him not to say such ridiculous things.

“Hey, don’t say such nonsense.”

“Would the demons be crazy enough to invade the school?”

“Ha, but no one expected a monster incident during the sealing ceremony, right?”

“Yeah. Come to think of it, we never caught the culprit back then either….”

Could it be because it hasn’t been long since the monster incident?

Even for trivial matters that would normally be dismissed as simple malfunctions, the cadets reacted sensitively, their expressions stiffening.

“It’s just a malfunction….”

“Someone contact the professors quickly!”

“Step away from the door!”

Fear spread like a disease, quickly engulfing the cadets.

As the commotion gradually grew louder.

“Hahaha! Don’t worry, everyone! I’ll open the door with my ‘Unlock’ magic!”

A booming voice echoed as if it had swallowed a whole bell.

The cadets’ gazes instantly focused.

At the end of their gaze was a massive, muscular cadet, whose uniform seemed ready to burst at any moment, walking steadily towards the entrance.

“…Isn’t that the Magic Department’s emblem?”

“No way, with that build, he’s in the Magic Department?”

“That’s ridiculous….”

“Could he be the delinquent from the ‘Ryu’ family?”

“Oh, I’ve heard rumors too. He’s definitely a second-year….”

Short black hair and a beard.

Broad shoulders and nearly two meters tall.

The emblem on the left chest of the cadet, who looked like he could swing an axe or a mace at any moment, surprisingly indicated that he belonged to the Magic Department, not the Warrior Department.

“…You.”

My eyes widened as I spotted the cadet who stepped forward.

“Everyone, step aside!”

The massive cadet pushed through the gathered cadets and stepped forward, grabbing the firmly locked door handle.

“Haaa!”

The massive cadet let out a rough shout and pulled the door handle with all his might.

Creak! Crash! Crack!

The wall cracked, and the steel door crumpled like a piece of paper.

“Unlooock!!!”

With a roar-like shout.

Crack!

The firmly closed door opened.