The Last-Seat Hero Has Returned

67. Elixir (3)

A silence fell in the room.

A silence so severe that even death would seem noisy.

Yuren spoke in a low voice.

“So….”

His cold, icy gaze turned towards me.

“You’re saying you were practicing a play to show the kids at the orphanage where you sometimes volunteer on weekends?”

“Exactly.”

“And you expect me to believe that?”

“No, it’s true! Right, Iris?!”

I looked at Iris with desperate eyes.

“Y-Yes! It was just a play, a play!”

Iris, standing next to me, nodded desperately.

Her face was so red it looked like it would burst if touched.

“Hmm.”

Yuren, still suspicious, narrowed his eyes at Iris and me.

“By the way, you seem to be quite close with the Saintess? Inviting her to your dorm room and all.”

Yuren made a sullen face, as if he didn’t like something.

“Well….”

“Of course. Dale and I are very close.”

Before I could answer, Iris spoke up with a bright smile.

“Dale even cooked ramen for me here before!”

“Ramen…?”

“It’s a popular food in the Republic. Dale is so good at cooking ramen… Ah~ Those who haven’t tried it wouldn’t know the taste.”

“…….”

As Iris continued to boast, Yuren’s expression hardened.

“…You’ve never made anything like that for me.”

Yuren muttered in a small voice, his head hanging low.

“Yuren, you said you were friends with Dale, right?”

“Ah… Yes, that’s right, Saintess.”

“Please, just call me by my name. We’re in the same grade, after all.”

“…Okay, got it.”

“By the way, how did you two become friends?”

Iris, with sparkling eyes, asked.

Yuren glanced at me and answered.

“I went to Dale first, wanting to spar with him.”

“…You went first, Yuren?”

“I saw Dale sparring with Instructor Vincent.”

“Ah.”

Iris nodded slightly, letting out a low exclamation.

“Well, Dale was really impressive back then. He took down the instructor, who no one else could handle, with a single strike!”

Iris exclaimed in an excited voice, like a proud mother boasting about her child.

“Yeah. So, I ended up sparring with Dale… and naturally, we became friends.”

“Ah, I see. I’ve heard that warrior candidates often become friends through sparring.”

“And well… Dale has such a good personality.”

“Oh, you know that too, Yuren! Hehe. Right, Dale might look a bit rough, but once you talk to him, he’s so kind and considerate.”

“Ah, that’s true. He’s completely different from his first impression.”

Hey.

What’s wrong with the way I look?

“Anyway, I’m glad to meet Dale’s friend like this. Dale… honestly, he doesn’t have many friends, does he?”

“Ah, no. I have friends, why do you say that?”

“Hmm. Besides Yuren, do you have any others?”

“Well, there’s… Juliet.”

Juliet.

Juliet.

Juliet… Damn it.

“See?”

Iris patted my back as if to comfort me.

“Hmm…”

Yuren, who had been quietly watching, narrowed his eyes and spoke.

“Dale doesn’t have many friends? I don’t think so.”

“What?”

“I’ve never heard of Juliet, but besides her and me, you have other friends, right?”

“Oh my, Mr. Dale had another friend?”

Iris widened her eyes as if hearing it for the first time.

Yuren nodded slightly and pointed at Iris with his hand.

“Iris, you are his friend.”

“…Yes?”

“I heard from Dale before that you two aren’t dating or anything, right?”

“Ah… Yes, that’s true.”

Iris’s face showed visible confusion.

Yuren continued, his eyes gleaming sharply like a predator that had found its prey’s weak spot.

“If you’re not dating, then you’re just ‘friends’ with Dale, right?”

“That is…”

“Ah, don’t worry. I’m not going to say something old-fashioned like ‘there can’t be friendship between a man and a woman.'”

Yuren finished with a bright smile.

“I believe that a pure ‘friendship’ without any romantic feelings can exist between a man and a woman. Just like the relationship between you and Dale.”

“……”

Silence fell again.

Yuren and Iris’s gazes crossed in the air.

“Oh my… It seems we have different opinions. I don’t believe in a pure friendship between a man and a woman.”

“Really? That’s surprising. To me, Dale and Iris seem like very good friends.”

“Hohoho.”

“Hahaha.”

The atmosphere in the room became tense, as if it would cut anyone who touched it.

‘What is this?’

Why did the atmosphere suddenly become like this?

‘Weren’t they meeting for the first time today?’

I wondered if there was a past between them that I didn’t know about, but as far as I knew, Iris and Yuren had no particular connection during their cadet days.

‘Then why are they so eager to tear each other apart as soon as they meet?’

While I was bewildered by the incomprehensible situation.

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“What do you think, Mr. Dale?”

“Yes. I’m curious too. What do you think, Dale?”

Suddenly, an arrow aimed at me.

“What, what…?”

“Do you think a pure friendship can exist between a man and a woman?”

“These days, people use the term ‘female friend’ a lot, right? Isn’t that exactly the relationship between Dale and Iris?”

“……”

Iris and Yuren’s gazes focused on my mouth.

Along with the chilling sensation spreading down my spine, a lightning-like premonition flashed in my mind.

‘If I answer, I’m screwed.’

Holding the purified magic stone in one hand, I turned around without hesitation.

“Sorry. I just remembered I had an appointment with Professor Jade.”

“What?”

“Wait a minute! Dale?!”

“I think I need to go right now, so let’s talk later!!!”

Leaving the two behind in the room, I fled the dormitory and sprinted towards Professor Jade’s lab.

* * *

The most secluded place on the vast grounds of Reynard Hero School.

In front of the entrance of a building that looked like a dilapidated ruin, there was an old sign that read ‘Stigmata Magic Lab.’

Bang!

The rusty lab door was roughly opened.

“Huff, huff.”

“…Dale? Is something wrong?”

Professor Jade looked at me, panting heavily, with a puzzled expression.

I shook my head while catching my breath.

“No, nothing’s wrong. I just came from training, so I’m a bit out of breath.”

“Hmm.”

Professor Jade stroked his beard with a doubtful expression.

I looked around the lab, which I hadn’t visited in a long time.

Matching its exterior that looked like a ruin, the inside of the lab was like a haunted house, with all sorts of research materials and reagents scattered around, covered in musty dust.

“Didn’t you just clean up recently? How did it get so messy again?”

“Ah… ahem. I’ve been busy with research lately, so I haven’t had time to clean.”

Professor Jade avoided my gaze with an awkward expression.

I let out a deep sigh and started cleaning the lab.

“By the way, it’s been a while.”

“I’ve been busy with this and that.”

“Haha. Well, it was midterm evaluation period until recently.”

“…….”

“Did you do well on the exams?”

“Ugh.”

At the mention of exams, a groan escaped my lips.

“…Hmm?”

Did he think my reaction was strange?

Professor Jade turned on his Hero Watch to check the midterm evaluation report.

“Huh. You got a zero?”

“…There were circumstances.”

“Hmm. I don’t know what those circumstances were, but why would someone with such incredible skills deliberately fail the exam?”

“…….”

If I had failed on purpose, I wouldn’t feel so wronged.

I was seriously aiming for first place.

“…Let’s talk about that later.”

I didn’t have the luxury to explain my long story.

“By the way, what brings you to the lab?”

“I came to ask for a favor.”

I took out a pill the size of two finger joints from my pocket.

“This is….”

“It’s an elixir that increases magical power.”

“Hmm. I know that, but isn’t this the elixir that was given to the top candidate last year?”

His eyes were filled with doubt, wondering how someone at the bottom of the class could have it.

“I received it as a gift from a friend.”

“…A friend?”

Professor Jade’s eyes widened in surprise.

“You’re not talking about… Yuren Helios, are you?”

“Yes, Yuren.”

“Huh.”

Professor Jade let out a hollow laugh, looking incredulous.

“The top student and the bottom student are friends…”

“Is there a rule that says friends must be made based on grades?”

“Heh heh heh. No, but it’s a bit surprising. Honestly, you and Cadet Yuren together don’t exactly make a fitting picture.”

“Well… that’s true.”

Even if the authority of the Helios family isn’t what it used to be, no one could deny that it was still one of the top three prestigious families in the empire.

Yuren, who grew up as an elite from such a prestigious family, and I, who grew up in a republic orphanage without even knowing my parents’ names.

Even without the labels of top and bottom students, we didn’t make a fitting pair.

“But don’t worry.”

“What do you mean, don’t worry?”

“As long as you have a professor’s recommendation, you can become an assistant regardless of your background or grades!”

“……”

This man still hasn’t given up.

“Sigh. Well, let’s talk about that later.”

I took out the magic stone I had carefully kept in my pocket and placed it on the table, following the elixir.

“This is… a magic stone?”

“Yes.”

“Huh. The amount of magic and purity… This must be a high-grade… no, a top-grade magic stone.”

Professor Jade identified the grade of the magic stone at a glance without even touching it.

‘He’s not called the descendant of the great sage for nothing.’

Accurately identifying the grade of a magic stone just by its appearance without infusing it with magic was not an easy task, even for a skilled appraiser.

“I would like you to mix this elixir and magic stone to amplify the effect of the existing elixir.”

“An effect that increases magic power?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.”

Professor Jade stroked his beard as he looked at the elixir and magic stone on the table.

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After a moment of contemplation, Professor Jade nodded slightly.

“Alright. Let’s give it a try.”

“If it’s about the reward, later….”

“No, no need for a reward.”

Professor Jade gulped as he handled the elixir and the magic stone.

“Mixing such a fine elixir with a top-grade magic stone is a rare opportunity even for a royal alchemist.”

Professor Jade’s eyes sparkled like stars as he chuckled.

‘…I guess all wizards are the same.’

In my previous life, Senior Sophia would also swallow her saliva and her eyes would shine whenever she discovered rare magical materials.

“Well, well. Shall we show off our skills after a long time?”

Jade Bastian.

A descendant of Julius Bastian, one of the five great heroes from 500 years ago, known as the ‘Great Sage,’ was about to show his true abilities.

* * *

Three days after entrusting Professor Jade with the elixir preparation.

I headed to his laboratory upon receiving his message.

“Huff, huff. Wow, it’s done. Hehehe. It’s done.”

As I opened the lab door, I saw Professor Jade with dark circles under his eyes, giving a sinister laugh.

“…Did you really not sleep for three days straight?”

“Hehehe. How could I sleep during such a delightful task?”

“…….”

This made my resolve even firmer.

‘I will never become Professor Jade’s assistant.’

With a firm resolution engraved in my heart, I accepted the elixir handed over by Professor Jade.

The elixir, emitting a soft blue light, exuded a mystical aura even at a glance.

“Well then, I shall go get some sleep.”

As soon as he handed over the elixir, Professor Jade, overwhelmed by the fatigue of three sleepless nights, went straight into his lab.

I took the elixir given by Professor Jade and returned to my dorm room.

“Phew.”

I placed the elixir on my palm and calmed my pounding heart.

“…I don’t think I’ve ever had such a potent elixir even in my previous life.”

A precious elixir given only to the top student of the year.

The holy stone purified by the Saintess of the Holy Kingdom, even borrowing the power of the ‘Seven Eyes’.

And the alchemy of the descendant of the ‘Great Sage’ used to combine the two into one.

Even I, who returned from the future, could not predict what kind of result this harmony of three would produce.

“Well, we’ll know once we taste it.”

I gulped down the elixir that was placed on my palm.