The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 232: The Spider and the Empress (9)

Fwoosh, fwoosh!

The blazing embers, which had been burning fiercely like a ravenous beast, softened into a gentle flame as they reached my fingertips.

The searing heat coursed through my fingers.

Like a salmon instinctively swimming upstream from the sea to the river, the primordial ember flowed into my body, settling within the Stigma.

Watching the embers obediently follow my command, I smirked.

"See? Wouldn't it have been better if you had behaved like this from the start?"

A lesson learned for the future?

Fwoosh, fwoosh!

The primordial flame trembled pitifully, like a subordinate frozen in fear under a superior's reprimand.

Suppressing a chuckle, I observed the flame.

"At least this one is rather obedient."

Or perhaps… my power had grown so much that it had no choice but to obey.

Either way, that wasn’t important.

What mattered was that the primordial flame had completely submitted to me.

"And…"

Because of that, unlike last time, I wouldn’t have to struggle in the mental realm to absorb it fully.

"Haa."

It flowed into me.

Hot, untamed energy.

A fragment of a demon god’s soul… Divinity.

"What in the world…?"

Melina’s voice trailed off in shock.

Her body trembled like an aspen tree.

Clenching her teeth, she gripped her mace tightly.

“…No, that’s impossible.”

She shook her head, as if trying to deny the reality before her.

"There’s no way you’re a descendant of ‘Destruction’!!!"

"I don’t even know who this ‘Destruction’ guy is."

I was a 100% pure orphan who didn’t even know my parents’ names.

"So if you go around claiming I’m someone’s descendant, it’s kind of awkward for me."

"Tsk!"

Melina’s face twisted in fury as she charged at me.

With her sword engulfed in flames, she leaped, aiming her mace straight at my head.

And then—

Thunk.

"What…?!"

I caught the mace effortlessly with one hand.

Melina’s face twisted in sheer disbelief.

Still gripping the mace, I spoke in a low voice.

"Devour."

Calamity Flame.

A ring of gray fire erupted from my body, spreading outward and engulfing the surrounding space.

A shiver of exhilaration ran down my spine.

A feeling of omnipotence, as if I could destroy the world with a mere gesture.

I understood it instinctively.

The power surging through me now was not of a human—it belonged to the domain of gods.

"So this is what Camellia feels like."

If that were the case, I could understand why she had such a personality.

A sensation of being detached from humanity.

Melina, standing before me, felt as fragile as a clay doll that would shatter with a single touch.

Crack, crunch!

As I tightened my grip, her mace crumbled to dust.

"H-Heup…!"

Melina gasped, stumbling backward in a panic.

Fwoosh!

From the empty air, gray flames suddenly ignited, wrapping around her body.

"Kyaaaah!"

A scream that could tear through the air.

I leisurely raised a hand and flicked my fingertip against her forehead.

Sssss…

That simple motion was enough.

The black flames surging from her body vanished without a trace.

"Y-You… What are you…?"

"Haven't we already introduced ourselves enough?"

Fwoosh!

With a mere flick of my hand, a sword formed from gray flames materialized in the air.

As I grasped the blade and swung it toward Melina—

"—Manifest."

A cascade of seven-colored light rained down, piercing through the gray flames.

My sword, formed of ash and fire, was repelled by the radiant light, dispersing into the air.

"This is…."

I turned my head toward the source of the light.

At the top of the stairs leading underground stood Empress Camellia.

As she took a single step forward, she seemed to float, gracefully descending into the underground chamber.

"Y-Your Majesty?! What are you doing here…?"

"……"

Melina looked flustered at the Empress’s sudden arrival.

But only for a moment.

Her eyes lit up with renewed desperation.

"Y-Your Majesty! It’s him! That candidate is plotting to assassinate you!"

"……"

"Think about who’s backing him! Thunder God Lionel! He’s the mastermind!"

She screamed, pleading.

Camellia simply watched her in silence.

"I saw it with my own eyes! That candidate was conjuring flames capable of nullifying Your Majesty’s divine protection in this underground space!"

"Enough."

"How can you not believe me, Your Majesty?! I’ve been by your side for over ten years—

"I said, enough."

Camellia shook her head bitterly.

"Y-Your Majesty…."

Gazing down at Melina, Camellia slowly turned her gaze to me.

"Step aside."

“…Are you planning to show mercy?”

"No."

Camellia bit her lip before continuing.

"I will finish this myself."

"…Your Majesty!"

Melina’s eyes filled with panic.

She dropped to her knees and bowed her head.

"I-It was the Demon’s magic! The Archbishop of Destruction… He must have been controlling me!"

"……"

"Your Majesty, do you remember? The day you rescued me from the wreckage…."

"I remember."

"How could I ever betray the one who saved my life?!"

"…Melina."

Camellia slowly approached the kneeling Melina.

Then, kneeling beside her, she pulled Melina into a gentle embrace.

"I'm sorry."

“…What?”

Woo-woo-woong!

From Camellia’s hand, a halo of seven-colored light began to bloom.

"Ugh! Let go! I said, let go!"

“……”

"Damn it, damn it, damn iiiit!!!"

Melina glared fiercely at Camellia with wild eyes.

"Even if I die here, you will be ruined! When he arrives, he will definitely…!"

Before Melina could finish her sentence—

Woo-woo-woooong!

The seven-colored light completely enveloped her body.

It blazed so brightly that it illuminated the underground cavern, but soon, it gradually began to fade.

And when the light finally disappeared—

Melina was nowhere to be seen.

As if she had never existed there in the first place.

“……”

“……”

A heavy silence settled over the cavern.

Still in the same posture as when she had been holding Melina, Camellia remained frozen.

I turned to her and asked,

“Did you know?”

“…What do you mean?”

“That maid held a grudge against Your Majesty.”

“……”

Camellia slowly rose to her feet and gave an almost imperceptible nod.

“Then why did you keep her by your side?”

“…I wonder.”

Even though she had known this day would come.

Even though she had sensed the inevitable ruin.

"I don’t know."

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Was it a clumsy attempt at atonement?

A pitiful sense of sympathy?

Or perhaps—

—Your Majesty, how could you make such a mess of your room?!

—Ah! You spent the whole day lying in your chair again, didn’t you? Even if you have divine protection, the court physician said you must move for at least thirty minutes a day!

—Why do I train so hard? Well… t-that’s because… one day, I want to protect Your Majesty.

—Your Majesty Camellia.

—You… are my savior.

Maybe it was just a futile hope—

That time would eventually heal everything.

“…I… don’t… know.”

Camellia bowed her head deeply.

After a long silence, she slowly turned her gaze toward me and Professor Elisha.

“…Thank you. Thanks to you, I was able to uncover the traitor’s scheme.”

“……”

“This matter will be reported to Principal Lionel, and you shall receive an appropriate reward.”

Her face bore the same leisurely smile as always.

“…Is that it?”

“Hmm? Do you need something more?”

Camellia chuckled softly and shook her head.

“If there’s anything else, we can discuss it later. I’m exhausted for now.”

She waved her hand dismissively.

“Go ahead and head up first. If you ask the knight at the door, they will guide you to your rooms.”

“What about Your Majesty?”

“I shall clean up here before going up. Just how fiercely did you all fight to turn this place into such a disaster?”

The Empress herself, cleaning up a ruined cavern?

Well, considering her abilities, tidying up this place would be a trivial task.

“…Haah.”

I let out a deep sigh and nodded.

“Understood. I’ll head up first.”

“Do so.”

Leaving Empress Camellia behind, I climbed the stairs with Professor Elisha.

By the time we returned to the Empress’s chambers—

“Professor.”

"You've done well today. You must be tired too, Cadet Dale. Go to your room and rest."

“…Professor.”

"It’s already gotten dark outside. Ah, would you like to have a drink later? We did just resolve a major incident, after all."

"……."

Avoiding my gaze, Professor Elisha was obviously changing the subject.

I spoke firmly.

“I’ll go back down for a moment.”

“…Do you really have to?”

“If you tell me not to, I won’t go.”

“…Haah.”

With a deep sigh, as if dealing with a headache, Professor Elisha rubbed her forehead.

"Wait here for a moment."

She walked off somewhere, then returned with a bottle of liquor in her hand.

“This is…?”

“Sake from the kitchen. Take it with you.”

“……”

"Haah. Honestly… You’re too kind for your own good, Cadet Dale."

With a grumpy expression, she pinched my cheek.

"Well, I suppose that’s part of why I’ve come to like you."

“…Ahem.”

Hearing such words right to my face made my cheeks burn.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Alright.”

Leaving Professor Elisha behind, I descended once more into the underground cavern.

“…Hic.”

There, sitting on the ground with her knees drawn to her chest, was Empress Camellia—

Quietly sobbing.

Noticing my presence, she flinched and turned to me in surprise.

“W-why are you here…?”

“I thought you might be like this.”

I sighed and sat down beside her.

“…Have you come to comfort me?”

“Well, something like that.”

"How insolent."

Camellia twisted her expression bitterly before speaking again.

“I am the Empress of the Empire. I do not waver over such personal matters.”

“But you were crying just now.”

"That was…"

She flinched, her shoulders trembling slightly.

I swallowed a bitter smile and continued.

“When you lose someone important to you, it’s only natural to grieve.”

Even for an Empress who ruled over hundreds of thousands, even millions of people.

“And in my experience, when you're sad, having someone by your side helps.”

I had learned that lesson the hard way—

When no one had been there for me.

“You…”

“I brought a bottle of sake.”

I pulled out the bottle Professor Elisha had given me.

“Would you like a drink?”

“……”

“Oh, but I forgot to bring glasses.”

Would we have to drink straight from the bottle?

“…Ha.”

Camellia let out a small, incredulous laugh before lightly snapping her fingers.

Two crystal glasses materialized in the air.

“To offer me a drink without even bringing glasses.”

She handed me one of the crystal goblets.

"How truly insolent."

Yet as she said so, a faint smile lingered at the corners of her lips.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]