The Last-Seat Hero Has Returned

Chapter 5

5. Laying the Foundation (1)

Inside the old dormitory room.

I sat alone on the bed, absentmindedly rubbing my cheek that still felt a stinging pain.

“…What the hell just happened.”

Was this how Professor Lucas felt when he saw me return?

The enormous gap between the gentle and kind Iris in my memory and the Iris who grabbed my collar and spat out curses was overwhelming.

‘There’s no way my return could have affected Iris.’

There was only one possibility I could think of.

“We were together for so long… and yet I didn’t even know my own lover properly.”

I let out a self-deprecating sigh and clicked my tongue softly.

In hindsight, Iris always had a gentle and kind personality, but when dealing with demons or monsters, she showed a ruthless side that made onlookers flinch.

‘I thought it was because she was the saint of the Seven Stars Church.’

To the followers of the Seven Stars Church, who worship the seven gods, the minions of the demon god are unforgivable ‘enemies.’

So I thought her occasional fierce demeanor was just an expression of her faith.

‘Turns out she had quite a temper.’

Learning things I didn’t know when we were lovers… no, things I didn’t know because we were lovers, brought about complex emotions.

The joy of discovering a side of her I hadn’t realized in my previous life, and the bitterness of knowing that to her now, I was just a stranger not worth pretending for.

And the anxiety of how to face ‘other colleagues’ in the future.

“Come to think of it, I don’t really know what everyone was like during their cadet days, except for Berald.”

Yuren, Senior Sophia, and Iris too.

Although they all attended school around the same time, there was no one, except for Berald, who could be called a friend until graduation.

Even with Berald, it was more like they got to know each other through remedial classes as a bunch of misfits, rather than becoming ‘comrades’—that happened long after graduation.

‘Meeting the guys will have to wait for now.’

In his heart, he wanted to meet his comrades right away.

But if he lost control of his emotions like he did with Iris, he’d surely be labeled a lunatic from the first impression.

“Phew. I need to take care of myself first before I can face the others.”

He let out a deep sigh, shaking off his regretful feelings.

What was important now was not the reunion with his long-missed comrades.

‘First, I need to assess my own condition.’

He closed his eyes slowly and began to draw up his mana.

He felt a tiny amount of mana spreading throughout his body from the stigma.

“This is a mess.”

As he spread his mana to check his body’s condition, he frowned.

Still, as a hero candidate, his body was somewhat in shape.

But it was just at the level of ‘someone who worked hard without knowing anything.’

The balance of muscles in his upper and lower body was a mess, and his core muscles, crucial for combat, were also underdeveloped.

‘First, I’ll start with basic strength and stamina training again.’

Physical training wasn’t difficult for him, as he had learned it from Berald, literally dying and coming back to life (since he could revive quickly anyway).

‘The problem is this tiny amount of mana.’

In his previous life, he had suffered countless hardships due to a lack of mana, but now it was even less than before.

“Ugh.”

No matter how excellent his swordsmanship and martial arts were, there was a limit to what pure ‘technique’ could achieve.

Mana was like a weight class for heroes.

If the difference was extreme, there were times when attacks wouldn’t work at all.

Even if he struck a vital point, the blade would just bounce off—what use was technique then?

‘Well… it’s not like there’s no way at all.’

In his previous life, he had fought countless times against opponents with extreme mana differences, so he had a few last-ditch measures.

But.

A last-ditch measure is called that for a reason.

To avoid being cornered in the first place, he needed to secure at least a minimum amount of mana.

“In the end, it means I have to somehow increase my magical power.”

Haa.

A deep sigh escaped through my lips.

The way heroes increased their magical power was extremely simple.

It was the seven breathing techniques that existed according to the type of stigmata.

The way heroes increased their magical power was by accepting the breath of the gods into their bodies and accumulating it in their stigmata.

‘Sun, moon, stars, sky, earth, sea… and.’

Even the breath of the forest.

I knew all seven types of breathing techniques.

“Tsk, what’s the use of knowing them? No matter how much I try, I can’t accumulate magical power.”

Whether it was simply a lack of talent or for some other reason, I couldn’t tell.

Unlike others, I couldn’t accumulate magical power through the breathing techniques.

‘No matter how much the amount accumulated varies from person to person, isn’t it too much that I can’t accumulate any at all?’

Recalling the memories of my past life, where I struggled desperately to increase even a tiny bit of magical power, my head started to throb.

“Hmm… Still, just in case, should I try it once?”

Maybe something had changed since my regression.

“Sss.”

Sitting on the bed, I slowly took a deep breath.

First, since the stigmata I had was that of the ‘God of the Forest’, I started with the forest’s breath, which was the most effective in accumulating magical power.

Then, in order, the breaths of the sun, moon, stars, sky, earth, and sea.

“Huuu.”

After finishing the seven types of breathing, I slowly opened my eyes.

And the amount of magical power accumulated in my stigmata… remained unchanged.

“Sigh, damn it.”

Yeah.

I should have known better.

‘I have to give up on accumulating magical power through the breathing techniques.’

Then, the only thing left is the ‘unconventional’ methods.

Elixirs, mystical creatures, artifacts that increase magical power.

There were a few candidates that came to mind.

“It’s difficult to obtain these things right now.”

As a cadet, there were many restrictions on moving around, and even if I could go, I wasn’t sure if I could get my hands on them.

“Ugh.”

While I was racking my brain in thought.

Suddenly, a record I had found in ancient ruins came to mind.

“Wasn’t the reason magic was created the primordial fire?”

To be precise, it goes like this.

In the distant past.

The Tree of Creation grew and formed the world, and eight gods were born.

The eight gods, born from the Tree of Creation, began to shape the world according to their own rules.

The first god created the sun.

The second god created the moon.

The third god created the stars.

The fourth god created the sky.

The fifth god created the earth.

The sixth god created the sea.

The seventh god created the forest.

And the last, the eighth god…

Broke the rules of creation and made the first ‘fire’.

“That is the primordial fire.”

The eighth god, who broke the rules and betrayed the seven gods, later known as the ‘Demon God’, burned the Tree of Creation with the primordial fire.

Thus, the burning of the Tree of Creation created magic.

A miraculous power also known as the breath of the gods.

“…The primordial fire.”

I had confirmed last time that the primordial fire I had absorbed in my previous life hadn’t disappeared.

But I had no idea how to handle the ‘primordial fire’.

“In my current state, I can’t even feel the spark of the primordial fire.”

At least I need to feel something to even attempt to handle it.

“Let’s see… When I felt the energy of the primordial fire yesterday, it was definitely…”

As I sat on the bed, continuing my thoughts, my gaze naturally turned to the sword placed by the bedside.

Damn it.

A low curse slipped through my lips.

I sighed and drew my sword from its sheath.

The blade that had once severed my neck touched the nape of my neck.

‘Well, it’s not like it’s the first or second time.’

I was no longer afraid of death.

-Slash!

I gripped the sword tighter with a familiar motion.

The sharp, honed blade pierced my neck, sending a chilling sensation through my entire body.

Though I had experienced ‘death’ countless times.

The sensation of the blade cutting into my flesh never became familiar.

Thud, roll.

My severed head rolled on the floor.

With the sensation of blood spurting from the cut surface of my neck, my vision went black.

How many seconds had passed?

Buzz!

The stigma engraved on my left chest emitted light, and my vision, which had gone black, returned to normal.

“Whew.”

I let out a low sigh and rubbed the nape of my neck.

The head that had been severed and rolling on the floor was now perfectly attached to my neck as if time had reversed.

As I tried to erase the lingering sensation of the blade on my neck.

“Ugh!”

Sizzle!

A faint flame flared up around the stigma with a pain that felt like a hot iron branding my left chest.

A phenomenon I had never experienced in my previous life.

‘If this is due to the influence of the primordial fire.’

Then the faint flame burning around the stigma now must be the primordial fire itself.

“Hiss.”

I sat on the bed and closed my eyes gently.

Recalling the meditation technique taught by Senior Sophia, I slowly calmed my breathing.

With a sensation as if my body was floating, I focused all my attention on my left chest.

‘I can feel it.’

Faintly, but.

The ember fiercely exuding its presence.

‘I managed to sense the energy of the primordial fire.’

But I had no idea what to do next.

‘It doesn’t seem to want to move.’

I poured all my concentration into trying to move the energy of the primordial fire at my will, but it didn’t budge, like trying to grasp a blazing flame with my hand.

Did I focus for about five minutes, sweating profusely?

The pain I felt in my left chest vanished as if it had been washed away, and I could no longer feel the energy of the primordial fire.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue lightly and stopped meditating.

‘As expected, I can’t control the primordial fire at my will.’

I succeeded in sensing the energy, but there was nothing more I could do.

“Ugh.”

As I let out a groan with a disappointed expression.

“…Huh?”

Something.

A different sensation was felt from the stigma.

‘What is this?’