Chapter 172

Chapter 172. Omen (1)

A mountain shrouded in deep darkness.

On a towering rock, like a spire, sat a young man with golden one-eyed glasses and white hair, and an old man covered in intricate tattoos.

The Grand Archbishop of Corruption, Mephisto, and the Grand Archbishop of Beasts, Jackal.

The two monsters standing at the pinnacle of the demon race gazed down at the distant Valhalla City and Reynaldo Hero School.

“Kukukuku!”

Jackal, seemingly unable to contain his joy, shrugged his shoulders and burst into laughter.

“This, this, this… The Grand Archbishop of Corruption’s dignity is truly in shambles, isn’t it?”

“……”

Mephisto remained silent, tightly sealing his lips in response to Jackal’s mockery.

Even for Mephisto, this failure seemed to sting deeply, as his usually composed expression had hardened.

“Well… I didn’t expect the ‘Blessing of Frost’ to be neutralized so easily.”

“Kukuku. It’s been decades since I last saw you make such a face… Quite amusing.”

Jackal laughed with a raspy voice.

“So, are you planning to give up like this?”

“Of course not.”

Mephisto shook his head firmly.

“The plan hasn’t completely failed yet.”

It may have been derailed, but it’s not over.

“Plan… you say.”

Jackal stroked his chin and narrowed his eyes.

“By the way… there’s something I’m curious about.”

“Go ahead.”

“What exactly is the purpose of this plan?”

“…Purpose?”

Mephisto let out a hollow laugh, as if the question was absurd.

“Obviously, it’s to free the Devil God from his seal…”

“Kukukukuku!”

Before Mephisto could finish, Jackal burst into a metallic laugh.

“How many years do you think I’ve known you?”

Jackal’s eyes pierced through Mephisto with a chilling glare.

“You never had any intention of breaking the Devil God’s seal from the beginning.”

“……”

“Quite the opposite, in fact.”

Jackal turned his gaze toward the direction of the Hero School.

“Trying to make Yuren Helios into the ‘Sun,’ creating the Artificial Holy Mark, and even trying to get your hands on that witch—all of it.”

His eyes glowed ominously.

Grrrr.

The sound of ferocious beasts echoed through the forest as hundreds, no, thousands of monsters surrounded Mephisto.

The tattoos on Jackal’s body flickered with a sinister light.

“Wasn’t it all to sabotage the seal-breaking plan?”

“……”

Jackal shrugged his shoulders and continued.

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice that you’ve been secretly meeting with the ‘Hero’?”

“Haha.”

Mephisto swallowed a bitter laugh and shook his head.

“Well… this is quite embarrassing.”

“Embarrassing? If anything, it’s me who should be embarrassed. Now, will you tell me why a demon like you is colluding with the Hero?”

“Hmm. The reason…”

Mephisto smiled faintly.

“It’s simple. He had what I needed, and I had what he needed.”

“So, what exactly is it that you need…?”

“And I also have something you need, Jackal.”

“…What?”

Mephisto adjusted his golden one-eyed glasses.

“Wouldn’t you like to know how to enter the ‘Abyss’?”

“……!!!”

Jackal’s eyes widened.

“H-how do you know about that…?”

“Haha. Didn’t you also notice what I’ve been hiding?”

Mephisto smirked.

Jackal’s wrinkled eyelids trembled.

“So, what do you say?”

Mephisto extended his hand toward Jackal.

“Shall we join hands, for our respective goals… even if just for a while?”

“……”

The forest was cloaked in darkness.

A heavy silence fell like a curtain.

* * *

After the… unfortunate(?) incident with Iris.

Iris, claiming to be unwell, locked herself in her room and refused to answer any messages.

‘Well… that’s to be expected.’

I sighed softly as I stared at the unresponsive message window.

“…I guess it’s a good thing there’s no class this week.”

Since the mentoring sessions for other classes weren’t over yet, there was no ‘Combat Training’ scheduled for this week.

“Sigh.”

I let out a sigh and flopped onto the bed.

Ding.

The Hero Watch’s message alert chimed.

‘Is it Lanes?’

It wasn’t hundreds of messages like on the first day, but she still contacted me at least three or four times a day.

“Huh? It’s not from Lanes.”

I turned on the Hero Watch and saw that the message was from Professor Elisha, not Lanes.

[Candidate Dale. Can you come to my office right now?]

Her office?

It was still early in the morning, and I couldn’t think of any reason why Professor Elisha would call me at this hour.

‘Well, I’ll just go.’

After replying that I’d be there soon, I left the dorm.

The autumn wind scattered yellow leaves across the ground.

“It’s getting chilly.”

Since I returned in early spring, over half a year had already passed.

Half a year.

A time that could be considered both short and long. In that time, my life had completely changed.

So much so that my life before returning felt like a dream.

‘No.’

I closed my eyes.

A white snowy field unfolded in my mind.

The white frost settling on my skin and the raging blizzard.

The sight of my dying comrades and my own helpless cries.

‘It’s not a dream.’

Right.

It couldn’t be a dream.

That distant time, that endless nightmare, is what shaped me into who I am today.

‘I can’t let my guard down yet.’

I can’t keep indulging in the sweet happiness that this life offers.

No matter how much I’ve changed, there’s no guarantee that those changes will lead to a better future.

“…Let’s go.”

Pushing aside my complicated emotions, I made my way to Professor Elisha’s office.

Knock knock.

After a light knock, I entered the office to find Professor Elisha sitting with her legs crossed, smoking a cigarette.

“You’re here.”

“What’s the matter so early in the morning?”

“Hmm. That’s disappointing. Can’t I call Candidate Dale just because I want to see his face?”

“Well… I guess you can.”

“Fufu. Just kidding.”

Professor Elisha stubbed out her cigarette and stood up, walking over with a playful smile. She gently pinched my cheek.

“This week, there’s no class, so I just wanted to see Candidate Dale’s face… Is that not allowed?”

“Well… I guess it’s fine.”

“Fufu. Just kidding.”

She pinched my cheek lightly and laughed.

Perhaps because she rarely smiled, every time I saw Professor Elisha’s smile, my heart would race.

“By the way.”

But that was short-lived.

The smile on Professor Elisha’s lips disappeared, and her violet eyes flashed.

“There’s a strange woman’s scent on you.”

“Huh?”

“Hmm. It’s not Candidate Iris… or Candidate Yurina.”

Professor Elisha’s sharp eyes scanned every inch of my body.

“Have you been seeing another woman recently?”

“……”

Wait, what kind of Insight’s Blessing is this?

Can she really tell that from a scent?

As I stared at her in disbelief, Professor Elisha frowned and let out a deep sigh.

“Sigh. To think that in just a few days, you’ve already charmed another woman… Candidate Dale, you really can’t be left alone.”

“No, it’s not like I charmed her…”

“Sure, sure. You had absolutely no intention of charming her, right? Just like always.”

Professor Elisha pinched my cheek harder and narrowed her eyes.

“…So, why did you call me here?”

Realizing that there was no point in dragging this out, I forcefully changed the subject.

Professor Elisha, who had been giving me a disapproving look, turned and walked toward her desk.

She sat down and lit another cigarette.

“The reason I called you is because of something reported during the mentoring session.”

“What happened?”

“A tenth-grade monster was sighted near the school.”

“…Near the school?”

Not all mentoring sessions took place in the southern regions, where monster sightings were frequent, like Aaron’s party.

In fact, only a few went to the dangerous southern regions.

Most mentoring sessions were conducted in hunting grounds near the Hero School, where third or fourth-grade monsters appeared.

But a tenth-grade monster was sighted there?

“Of course, there’s no concrete evidence. The candidates who saw the monster were too busy running away to get a good look.”

“Hmm.”

“Personally, I think it’s more likely that the candidates misidentified it.”

Well.

If the candidates had gotten close enough to see a tenth-grade monster with their own eyes, they wouldn’t have been able to escape—they would’ve been wiped out in an instant.

“But just in case, I want to investigate. If a tenth-grade monster really did appear near the school… we can’t just let it be.”

A tenth-grade monster was a powerful creature that only top-tier ranker heroes could handle.

If such a monster appeared near the school, it could lead to massive casualties.

“So that’s why you called me?”

“Fufu. A delicate woman like me can’t go investigate alone, can she?”

Professor Elisha smiled playfully as she lit her cigarette.

‘Delicate woman.’

Professor Elisha and delicate woman.

The combination was so mismatched that I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

“Well, to be honest, I haven’t had much time to spend with Candidate Dale lately, so I was looking for an excuse to meet you. Then this came up, so I called you.”

“…Isn’t that a bit too honest?”

“Why? Don’t you like honest women?”

Professor Elisha smirked.

Her shamelessness was unmatched, and I shook my head in exasperation.

“Well, fine. I don’t have any classes anyway.”

“Candidate Dale, you’re at the bottom of the class, but you’re quite diligent about attendance.”

“……”

Hey.

What does that make me?

“Just kidding.”

As I clutched my chest from the heavy truth, Professor Elisha smiled mischievously.

But that was short-lived.

“Now then.”

The smile on Professor Elisha’s lips disappeared, and her violet eyes glowed fiercely.

“Let’s take this opportunity to find out exactly who this new woman in Candidate Dale’s life is… We’ll investigate together, calmly, thoroughly, and in great detail.”

“……”

It seems.

I’ve been caught in a spider’s web.