The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]

Chapter 5 - Laying the Foundation (1)

Inside the old dormitory room.

I sat alone on the bed, absentmindedly rubbing my cheek, which still tingled with lingering pain.

“…What on earth just happened?”

Was this how Professor Lucas felt when he saw the changes in me after my return?

The massive gap between the gentle and warm-hearted Iris I remembered and the Iris who had grabbed me by the collar and cursed at me was hard to reconcile.

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

There was only one possibility I could think of.

“To think I spent so much time with her and didn’t even really know my own lover.”

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

Now that I thought about it, Iris had always been gentle and kind, but when dealing with demons or monsters, she could be ruthlessly efficient—enough to make anyone watching flinch.

‘I thought that was just because she was the Saint of the Seven Stars Church.’

To the followers of the Seven Gods, who belong to the Seven Stars Church, the minions of the Demon God were irredeemable “enemies.”

So, I had assumed her occasional ferocity was simply an expression of her religious devotion.

‘Turns out she’s always had a fiery temper.’

Realizing things I hadn’t known about her when we were lovers—or rather, things I hadn’t noticed because we were lovers—brought a mix of emotions.

There was the joy of discovering a side of her I hadn’t seen in my previous life, and the bitter realization that, to her now, I was just another stranger not even worth pretending for.

And then there was the unease about how I should deal with meeting “other comrades” in the future.

“Come to think of it, I barely know what they were like as cadets, except for Berald.”

Yuren, Senior Sophia, and Iris.

We all attended the academy around the same time, but the only one I had any real connection with before graduation was Berald.

And even with Berald, we only started talking because we were both stuck in remedial classes; it wasn’t until much later, after graduation, that we became “comrades.”

‘I guess I should put off meeting them for now.’

As much as I wanted to go see my comrades right away, if I let my emotions get the best of me like I did with Iris, I’d end up making a terrible first impression.

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

I took a deep breath and pushed aside my feelings of regret.

What mattered now wasn’t reuniting with my old comrades.

‘First, I need to assess my current state.’

I closed my eyes and slowly drew in my mana.

I could feel the tiny amount of mana spreading throughout my body, centered on the Stigmata.

“It’s a mess.”

After spreading my mana to check my body’s condition, I frowned.

For someone who was supposedly a Hero Cadet, my body was in poor shape.

Sure, I had the basics down to a certain extent, but it was just the level of someone who had been blindly working hard without really knowing what they were doing.

My upper and lower body muscles were imbalanced, and my core, the most crucial part for combat, was underdeveloped.

‘I’ll have to start with basic strength and endurance training again.’

Building up my physical body wouldn’t be too difficult, given that I had learned directly from Berald, who had put me through grueling (literally life-threatening) training, all because I’d quickly revive even if I died.

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‘The problem is this pathetic amount of mana.’

In my previous life, I had suffered endlessly because of my lack of mana, but now it was even worse—it was significantly lower than it had been before.

“Ugh.”

No matter how skilled I was in swordsmanship or martial arts, there was a limit to how far pure “technique” could take me.

For Heroes, mana was like a weight class.

When the difference in mana was extreme, there were situations where your attacks wouldn’t even land, no matter how precise your technique was.

What’s the point of skill if your blade bounces off an opponent’s vital point because of their superior mana?

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

In my previous life, I had fought countless battles against opponents with vastly superior mana, so I had a few last-resort strategies.

But.

A last resort is called a last resort for a reason.

To avoid getting into a desperate situation in the first place, I needed to secure at least a minimum amount of mana.

“So, in the end, I need to find a way to increase my mana.”

Hah.

A deep sigh escaped my lips.

For Heroes, increasing their mana was a straightforward process.

It was all about the seven different breathing techniques associated with the type of Stigmata they possessed.

By breathing in the Breath of the Gods and storing it in their Stigmata, Heroes gradually increased their mana.

‘Sun, Moon, Stars, Sky, Earth, Sea… and.’

Even the Breath of the Forest.

I knew all seven types of breathing techniques, but

“Ugh, what’s the point of knowing them? No matter how hard I try, my mana doesn’t accumulate.”

Whether it was due to sheer lack of talent or some other reason, I didn’t know.

But unlike others, I couldn’t accumulate mana through breathing techniques.

‘Sure, the amount of mana each person accumulates varies greatly, but not accumulating any at all is just too much.’

Thinking back to the countless ways I had struggled to increase my pitiful amount of mana in my previous life already gave me a headache.

“Hmm… Still, it’s worth a try, just in case something’s changed.”

Maybe something had changed after my return.

“Ssss.”

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

Since my Stigmata belonged to the “God of Forest,” I started with the Breath of the Forest, which was supposed to be the most effective for increasing my mana.

Then I moved on to the Breath of the Sun, Moon, Stars, Sky, Earth, and Sea, in that order.

“Haaaah.”

After finishing all seven breathing techniques, I slowly opened my eyes.

And the amount of mana stored in my Stigmata… remained unchanged.

“Damn it.”

Yeah, I should know better than to get my hopes up.

‘So, I guess I have to give up on increasing my mana through breathing techniques.’

That left only “unconventional” methods.

There were a few options that came to mind, like special elixirs, rare mystical creatures, or artifacts that could increase mana.

But.

‘Those are hard to get right now.’

As a cadet, there were too many restrictions on where I could go, and even if I did go, there was no guarantee I’d actually obtain any of those things.

“Ugh.”

As I racked my brain, trying to figure out what to do next, I suddenly remembered something from an ancient record I had found in a ruin long ago.

“The reason mana was created was the Primordial Flame, wasn’t it?”

Here’s how the story goes.

In the distant past. The Tree of Creation grew and created the world, and Eight Gods were born.

The Eight Gods, born from the Tree of Creation, each began to shape the world according to their 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.

But the last, the eighth god…

Broke the rules of creation and created the first “Flame.”

‘That was the Primordial Flame.’

The Eighth God, who broke the rules and betrayed the other Seven Gods, and burned the Tree of Creation to ashes with the Primordial Flame—later became known as the “Demon God”.

And from the ashes of the Tree of Creation, mana was born.

Mana, also called the Breath of the Gods, is the miraculous power we know today.

“…The Primordial Flame.”

I had confirmed earlier that the Primordial Flame I absorbed in my previous life hadn’t disappeared with my return.

But I had no idea how to actually “control” the Primordial Flame.

‘Right now, I can’t even sense the spark of the Primordial Flame.’

I couldn’t attempt to control it if I couldn’t even sense it.

“Let’s see… Yesterday, when I could feel the presence of the Primordial Flame…”

As I sat on the bed, thinking, my gaze naturally drifted to the sword lying beside it.

Damn it.

A low curse slipped out from between my lips.

I sighed and drew the sword from its sheath.

The blade that had so cleanly severed my neck the other day touched the nape of my neck once again.

‘Well, it’s not like I haven’t done this before.’

At this point, death didn’t scare me anymore.

-Slash!

With a familiar motion, I tightened my grip on the sword.

The cold sensation of the sharp blade slicing through my neck spread through my body.

No matter how many times I experienced “death,”

I could never get used to the feeling of the blade cutting into my flesh.

Thud, roll.

My severed head rolled to the floor.

As blood spurted from the stump of my neck, my vision went black.

A few seconds passed.

Woooong!

The Stigmata on my left chest began to glow, and my blacked-out vision returned to normal.

“Huuu.”

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

The head that had been rolling on the floor was now back on my shoulders, as if time had been reversed.

As I was trying to erase the lingering sensation of the blade on my neck like an echo.

“Ugh!”

Ssssss!

With a pain that felt like branding iron searing into my left chest and faint flames flickering around the Stigmata,

It was a phenomenon I hadn’t experienced in my previous life.

‘If this is the effect of the Primordial Flame.’

The faint flames flickering around the Stigmata must be the Primordial Flame itself.

“Hmm.”

Sitting on the bed, I closed my eyes and slowly regulated my breathing, recalling the meditation techniques taught by Senior Sophia.

With the sensation of my body floating, I focused all my attention on my left chest.

‘I can feel it.’

Faint, but.

A wild flame emitting its presence.

‘How is it that I managed to sense the Primordial Flame’s energy, but…’

I had no idea what to do next.

‘It won’t move.’

I poured all my mental effort into trying to move the Primordial Flame’s energy with my will, but it didn’t even twitch, as if trying to grasp the blazing flame with my hands.

After about 5 minutes of sweating profusely while concentrating,

The pain in my left chest vanished as if washed away, and I could no longer feel the Primordial Flame’s energy.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue lightly and stopped the meditation.

‘I guess I still can’t control the Primordial Flame with my will.’

Though I managed to sense the energy, I couldn’t do anything beyond that.

“Ugh.”

As I sat there with a dejected expression,

“…Huh?”

Something.

A sensation different from before was felt at the Stigmata.

‘What is this?’

I spread the mana contained within the Stigmata throughout my body again to check.

Though it was so small a quantity that it could have been overlooked if I hadn’t focused,

“Mana has increased?”

Before and after I severed my own neck, there was a subtle difference, but the total amount of mana itself felt like it had increased.

“Ha.”

A hollow laugh escaped between my lips.

“So now…”

My mana automatically increases every time I die?

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]