The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned

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Chapter 73: In Search of the Demon Sword (5)

The blood-red mist had cleared from the cave. I stood at the center of the eerily silent cavern, pondering for a while before finally clicking my tongue.

“Well… I'll check how strong I've become later.”

For now, it was time to assess the performance of the loot I'd just acquired—though it had come easier than expected.

“Let’s see.”

I lifted the demon sword, which gleamed with a chilling, blood-red hue.

The overwhelming energy that had surged from it when it was unsealed was now gone.

‘Looks like it’s run out of blood.’

I lightly grazed the sword across the palm of my hand.

Blood trickled down the blade and soaked into the demon sword.

Rumble, rumble!

The demon sword began to seethe and quiver.

The energy emanating from the blood-soaked blade intensified significantly.

“That’s better.”

Although the consciousness of Vescal, which had been sealed inside the demon sword, had completely vanished, its power remained intact.

“Haah.”

As I gripped the blood-drenched sword, I felt an exhilarating surge of strength course through my entire body.

The power of the demon sword, Vescal, had a clear effect—it granted immense strength in exchange for its wielder's blood, invigorating my body.

‘It feels similar to when I received Iris’s blessing.’

I could feel my basic strength, stamina, and agility all rise dramatically.

‘Of course, maintaining this state continuously drains my blood.’

There was a reason it was called a demon sword.

If one became intoxicated by the power it bestowed and recklessly wielded it, it wouldn’t be long before all the blood in their body was drained, leading to death.

‘Not that it matters to me, though.’

“At this rate, I won’t need to worry about not being able to use the Stigma amplifier anymore.”

While the sword didn’t directly increase my mana capacity, enhancing my physical abilities meant I could conserve more mana.

In essence, it was like gaining free mana in a roundabout way.

In short, it wasn’t an artifact that boosted mana, but rather one that allowed me to use less of it.

‘And that’s not its only effect.’

With the demon sword in hand, I lifted my arm high and brought it down with full force, aiming horizontally.

Clang!

Without even infusing mana into it, the demon sword smashed into two pieces, scattering blood-red shards across the ground.

“The durability’s still lacking.”

Its toughness was no better than the standard issue iron swords given to trainees.

For something with the menacing title of “demon sword,” its durability left much to be desired.

Rumble, rumble.

As I felt the sensation of my blood draining from my body, the broken pieces of the sword rapidly regenerated, returning to their original form.

“That’s right.”

Another advantage of the demon sword, Vescal: no matter how broken or shattered it became, as long as it was supplied with blood, it would infinitely regenerate.

‘In a way, it’s a lot like me.’

I chuckled quietly, feeling an odd sense of kinship with the sword that had quickly restored itself to its original state.

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“Well, at least I don’t have to worry about my sword breaking during a fight now.”

For a hero, the durability of their weapon was more important than most people realized.

In battles where mountains crumbled and the ground split open, weapons shattering under the strain wasn’t uncommon.

‘Like when I fought that crocodile demonic beast, my sword broke midway through.’

Fortunately, I knew martial arts, but for anyone else, the moment their weapon broke, their combat effectiveness would plummet by half.

“It’s about time for a shift change, so I should head back.”

I reversed my grip on the sword and stabbed it into my palm.

Rather than piercing through my hand, the sword melted into my blood and was absorbed into my body.

“This is really convenient.”

One of the smaller advantages of the demon sword was the ability to store it inside my blood, eliminating the need to carry it around physically.

“……”

Just before I left the cave, I glanced around the wrecked secret chamber, its remains in shambles from the aftermath of the battle, and recalled memories of my previous life.

Specifically, memories of the comrades from my mercenary days who had died there.

—Damn it! I’ll hold them off here. Everyone, run!

The captain, whose temper was rough but would give his life for his squad.

—Hey! Rabbit bastard! Quit dawdling and move your ass, man!

The vice-captain who had given me the dishonorable nickname “Rabbit Han.”

—I… I don’t want to die… Please… Argh!

The squad leader, the only woman in our mercenary group, who had stolen the hearts of many of the members.

Even though their names were hard to remember now, I offered a brief moment of silence for them.

Though it had happened in a previous life, and though these were only faded memories that I alone carried—

“Thank you.”

Because of you all, I am here today.

* * *

Day 2 of the Ruins Expedition.

Following the previous day’s events, the party members continued to explore the ruins, deliberately avoiding the area with the secret passage, and hunted beasts.

Even though the ruins weren’t rated as particularly dangerous, after two consecutive days of camping and relentless combat, the party showed no signs of fatigue.

In fact, they seemed more energized than when they’d started.

‘They must have felt it too.’

That growing sense of synchronization that comes with each battle.

The unspoken communication through just a glance, and the thrill when every small movement aligns perfectly like the gears of a well-oiled machine.

The kind of feeling you can only experience when moving as a ‘party’—something you could never understand if you hadn’t felt it firsthand.

“Alright, let’s call it a day.”

“Hm? Already done? I was just getting warmed up!”

Berald grinned, clenching his fist as if ready for more.

“I could keep going, too.”

“Same here. This is my first time working with a party like this, and… it’s more fun than I thought.”

“Hmph. Well, it wasn’t such a bad experience.”

Yuren, Iris, and even Camilla expressed their desire to continue.

Suppressing a smile, I shook my head.

“This is enough. I think you’re all working together well enough now.”

Given their already impressive individual abilities, in just two days, the difference in their coordination was like night and day.

‘So this is what it feels like to teach.’

Watching them absorb every bit of instruction and exponentially improve, I finally understood the satisfaction that came with teaching others.

I even found myself tempted to push the expedition further.

I wanted to keep going with the intense pace since I was enjoying myself like never before, but...

"Right now, you're probably too fired up to realize how tired you are, but once you take a break, the fatigue will hit you all at once."

Berald had said something like that back when he was helping me build my body.

He used to say that just as hard work is important, so is resting properly.

Then he'd add one more thing.

“But, to be honest, bro, you recover so quickly that you probably don't need to rest much anyway.”

‘Now that I think about it, that bastard really pisses me off.’

How could he say that after making me do 500 pull-ups, 1,000 push-ups, and 1,000 squats daily?

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‘Sigh. Calm down, calm down.’

Forcing myself to push aside the nightmare memories of that time, I spoke up.

"This is as far as we go for this ruins exploration. Let’s head back."

"Hmm. If you say so, brother... understood."

"But didn't we file for leave until tomorrow? Are you planning to head back to school today?"

"No, we’ll go back to school tomorrow."

I lifted up my heavy pouch with a sly grin.

"On the way back, how about we stop by an inn and have a drink?"

Inside the pouch, puffed up like a piece of fruit in season, were the magic stones we'd collected from hunting monsters over the past two days.

Most of them were mass-produced, low-grade stones, so they wouldn’t fetch a high price.

Still, we’d earned enough to have a celebratory drink for a successful exploration.

“Hahaha! You’re the best, bro! You’ve got great taste!”

"Yeah... it’d be kind of a shame to head straight back to school after forming a party and finishing an expedition.”

“Dale! For snacks, I’d love some ramen that you cook!”

Both Yuren and Berald nodded enthusiastically at the idea of having a drink, while Iris’ eyes sparkled as she chimed in.

“Ha! Where did you get that half-baked idea from?”

In the lively atmosphere, a stern voice suddenly cut in.

Standing with her hands on her hips, the Sword of the Holy Nation (candidate) spoke confidently.

“Listen up! Mental discipline is physical discipline! Drinking a celebratory toast right after finishing an expedition will make your heart weak—”

"Ice-cold beer in a frosted mug."

“...”

“Freshly fried chicken and crispy, golden-brown sausages.”

"Urgh...!”

“Dried squid paired with peanuts…”

“Y-you! Shut that mouth right now!”

Camilla shouted, quickly turning her head to avoid eye contact, and cleared her throat.

"A-ahem. Well, I suppose... As the saint's protector, I can't just leave you all behind. I'll join you.”

"Wipe the drool from your mouth first."

“Gah!”

Anyway, after getting Camilla to agree, we left the "Cave of the Crimson Tears" and returned to Valhalla City.

We rented rooms at an inn in town (once again, Yuren got a private room), then gathered in the tavern on the first floor to share drinks.

“To victory!”

“Ahhh, nothing beats a cold beer after a fight!”

“Sniff... I really wanted to eat Dale’s ramen.”

“We’re in a tavern! I can’t cook ramen here.”

“But still!”

“Ugh...! I will not be tempted...!”

“She’s doing it again. Iris, put some chicken in Camilla’s mouth.”

“Hehe. Leave it to me, Dale.”

Iris shoved a chicken drumstick into Camilla’s mouth.

“Gulp...! S-so big, it can’t possibly fit...!”

“C’mon.”

“Gah... It’s soft... and salty... Ahh. What is this heavenly flavor...?”

“Excuse me? You’re eating chicken, right?”

“Grr... I said no, but... haah. I can't... I can’t hold back anymore.”

“Hey, watch what you’re saying while eating chicken.”

* * *

After the rowdy drinking session ended, we all stood up to head back to our rooms.

Just then, Berald snapped his fingers as if he’d just had a great idea.

“Oh, brother! I almost forgot! There’s a 24-hour bathhouse right next to this inn!”

“Really?”

We’d quickly showered after dropping off our gear at the inn, but nothing beats soaking in a hot bath.

“How about we head there for a soak before bed?”

“Haha, sounds good! And, of course, Yuren’s coming too.”

“Obviously.”

Berald and I both looked at Yuren.

“W-wait. I, I’m not really a fan of bathhouses...”

Yuren shook his head in a panic.

“What? You’re skipping out on this too?”

He had his own tent on the expedition, booked a private room at the inn, and now he was going to skip the bathhouse too?

‘No matter how much of a pampered noble he is, there’s a limit!’

If I didn’t nip this in the bud, Yuren would never learn to live in the real world!

“Trust me, once you’re soaking in that hot water, you’ll change your mind.”

“S-sorry! But I really can’t handle bathhouses...!”

“Hah! Yuren, my man! Ever heard that true male friendship blooms in the bathhouse?”

“That’s the first I’m hearing of it.”

“Just made it up.”

“...”

“Well, whatever!”

Thud!

Berald grabbed Yuren’s arm and began pulling him toward the bathhouse.

“It’s unforgivable to skip this as a man!”

“Exactly!!!”

“W-wait! Ahhh!”

I grabbed Yuren’s other arm, and together, Berald and I dragged him along.

“No, seriously, where are you two getting this strength from...! Stop! Noooo!”

And so, Yuren was hauled off into the bathhouse, kicking and screaming.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]