The Last Place Hero's Return

Chapter 246: The Frost (1)

At a garden blanketed in snow-white flowers that made it look like a field of chrysanthemums, like a frozen plain stretched out beneath the sky, a black-haired man wearing a white mask strolled, humming to himself.

Mephisto glared at the white-masked man. “What exactly are you planning to do?”

“Hm? Do what, exactly?”

“You’re the one who said something about sprouts finally emerging, weren’t you?”

A faint smile appeared beneath the white half-mask, just below the nose. “Haha, I did say that.”

Lowering his gaze to the chrysanthemums, the white-masked man continued, “Do you know what the most important thing is when growing flowers?”

“No idea. I’ve never grown any myself.”

The white-masked man gently brushed his fingers across the fresh chrysanthemums. “Waiting. Waiting for the seed to grow, for buds to form, and for the flower to bloom in full.”

“So, you’re saying you plan to do absolutely nothing and just stand around like this?”

“Haha. That’s one way of doing it. But, if you want the flowers to grow strong and healthy, giving them some fertilizer certainly helps.”

With a pleasant smile, the white-masked man turned around. At the same time, a gaunt man entered the garden, casually carrying a large coffin over his shoulder. Wearing a bear mask, the thin man set the coffin down on the ground.

“We’ve brought the item you requested, Prophet,” he said.

Mephisto was intrigued. “That is?”

The white-masked man slowly approached the coffin and opened its lid. Inside lay the corpse of a woman with deep violet hair. “It’s a face you recognize, isn’t it?”

Mephisto’s eyes widened. “The Witch of Frost?”

“Yes. She used to be a fellow Archbishop, same as you, if I remember correctly?”

“Why do you have the corpse of the Witch of Frost?”

The Witch of Frost, Seria Maram, was a demon who had betrayed the demonkind over a decade ago and bound herself to a hero. She had gone on to live a happy life, even bearing a daughter, until one day she went berserk without warning, indiscriminately slaughtering her husband and everyone around her. Her rampage wiped a small city of the Holy Empire off the map, causing thousands of civilians to lose their lives.

Only after the arrival of the Order of the Seven Stars, along with its commander, Johan Basilio, the Sword of the Holy Empire, and even Pope Marianne, was the Witch of Frost finally put down.

I distinctly remember hearing that the Holy Empire recovered her body afterward. Why is it here now? Mephisto thought.

The white-masked man said, “Well, don’t worry about how I got my hands on the corpse.”

“Don’t tell me... You were the one who caused the Witch of Frost to go berserk?”

The white-masked shrugged with a chuckle. “Haha. Who knows?”

He didn’t give a straight answer, but that infuriatingly casual attitude alone made it easy to guess that he was the one behind the Witch of Frost’s rampage.

“Why?” Mephisto asked.

“Hm?”

“Why did you drive the Witch of Frost berserk?”

“Hmm? I don’t recall ever saying that I did.”

“Answer the question.”

“Oh dear, I can’t even joke around without you getting scary.” The white-masked man laughed softly. “I needed to awaken the Blessing of the Frost.”

“The Blessing of the Frost? You mean Laneige Maram?”

“Yes, exactly. Humans usually awaken when they suffer an overwhelming mental shock. Though, contrary to my expectations, Laneige Maram didn’t awaken her Blessing of the Frost back then. Tch. Don’t you think it’s a bit strange? Watching your mother tear your father apart right in front of you and still not awakening?”

Mephisto’s expression twisted. “For a reason like that, you let thousands of people die?”

“Haha. I never thought I’d hear something like that from a demon. Didn’t your kind kill people even without reasons like that?”

Mephisto ground his teeth, glaring savagely at the white-masked man. “You!”

“But really, you’re not in a position to criticize me, are you?” At that instant, the smile vanished from the white-masked man’s lips. “You’re the same, after all.”

He stepped closer to Mephisto, the corners of his mouth twisting upward. “You, too, for the sake of your goals, wouldn’t hesitate to crush thousands, tens of thousands, of lives underfoot, would you? We’re the same. You and me.”

The white-masked man turned back toward the coffin, a smile once again settling on his lips.

Mephisto, who looked as though he wanted to say something, ultimately let out a sigh and shook his head. “What do you intend to do with her corpse?”

“Dale Han and Laneige Maram seem quite close, don’t they? I’ve even heard rumors that she voluntarily became his exclusive maid.”

“And how would you know that?”

“My eyes and ears are everywhere on the continent.”

Mephisto frowned as he stared at the man in the white mask. Just as he claimed, the Church of Eternity’s intelligence network was so formidable that even Mephisto, who prided himself on his information-gathering, had to concede defeat. It was even more so, especially when it came to matters involving the Hero Academy.

“What does the close relationship between those two have to do with all this?” Mephisto asked.

“I told you already.” The white-masked man walked forward, wearing a bright smile. “Humans awaken when they receive a tremendous mental shock.”

As Mephisto quietly pondered those words, the white-masked man stopped and plucked a chrysanthemum flower from the garden. Its petals gleamed pure white, like freshly fallen snow. Holding the flower, he approached the coffin. After placing the chrysanthemum atop the corpse, he laid his hand on the corpse’s forehead.

Suddenly, the soul stigmata of the white-masked man flared with a deep green light. Then, something unbelievable happened. Exhaling softly, the Witch of Frost opened her eyes.

Mephisto stared wide-eyed at this sight. “W-wait. What is this supposed to... H-how is this even possible?”

The white-masked man had just revived a dead person. Witnessing a divine miracle unfold right before his eyes, Mephisto trembled with awe and terror.

The Witch of Frost, Seria, slowly sat up inside the coffin, her gaze drifting blankly across her surroundings, her eyes hollow, as if her soul had yet to return. “T-this place... W-where?”

“This is my garden,” replied the white-masked man.

“And you are?” she asked.

“The one who brought you back to life.”

“I... why am I here? Ugh!” Seria frowned and clutched her head. Suddenly, despair flooded into her empty eyes. “A-ah! Ahh! N-no! L-Laneige. I, what did I... What have I done?”

“You’re a bit disoriented since you’ve just been revived.” The man in the white mask grinned and placed a hand on Seria’s shoulder. “It’s fine. You’ll forget everything.”

“F-forget everything?”

He patted Seria’s shoulder and back. “Yes.”

The despair that had filled Seria’s eyes drained away, replaced once more by emptiness.

The white-masked man looked straight into those vacant eyes and smiled brightly. “Oh, right. Come to think of it. Don’t you want to see her?”

“W-who?”

“Laneige. Your daughter.”

“L-Laneige....” Seria slowly nodded, her eyes still hollow. “I want... to see her.”

The white-masked man gently stroked Seria’s cheek and nodded. “Mm. I understand. I’ll let you meet her soon.”

* * *

Winter break began, and the Hero Academy became empty as the cadets streamed out like a receding tide. The dormitory hallways, once noisy from early morning, with cadets heading to classes, were now so silent it felt like walking through an abandoned, haunted building.

Even though my life at the academy wasn’t all that different during breaks, there was indeed something strangely magical about the word vacation. I would sleep in later than usual and stretch lazily while lying in bed.

Opening my eyes on that day, I muttered, “Ahh, I finally slept properly for once— Huh?”

I felt a soft, warm sensation against my chest, and a pleasant weight pressing down on me. I flipped back the blanket, and there she was, Laneige, her head resting on my chest, breathing softly in her sleep.

“Laneige.”

Laneige blinked awake, yawned, and smiled brightly. “You’re up, Dale?”

Letting out a deep sigh, I gently tapped her waist where she was straddling me. “You’re awake now, so you should get up too.”

“Hehe. Before that...” Laneige leaned down and pressed her lips to mine. “Mmm.”

I could feel the soft, supple feel of her tongue brushing against mine. After a long, lingering kiss, she finally pulled back and rose, smiling bashfully. Maybe it was because we could spend the entire winter break alone together, Laneige looked like she was floating on clouds, humming happily as she headed into the kitchen.

“I’ll make breakfast right away, so just wait a little!” she said.

Well, at least she was not completely moving in. Honestly, when it turned out we two would be the only ones left at the academy, I was worried about just how far Laneige would go. However, when it got late at night, she usually returned to her room and came back again early in the morning. Whether that was a good thing or not, I wasn’t sure. Either way, contrary to my worries, I was spending a fairly peaceful winter break with Laneige.

A while later, she said, “Breakfast’s ready, Dale!”

“Thanks.”

After a light breakfast of freshly toasted bread and salad, I immediately changed into my training clothes.

“Heading straight to the party house again today?” Laneige asked.

Lately, I had been pushing my training so hard that I spent most of each day at the party house’s training grounds.

“Yeah. I think I’ve finally figured out how to handle the power of the Tree of Creation,” I replied.

“U-um, can I come with you?”

“You too, Laneige?”

Just moments ago, she had been glowing like a newlywed bride, but now she shrank back in an instant. “I-I won’t come if I’ll get in the way!”

I stifled a chuckle and shook my head. “Who said you’d be in the way? If anything, it’d be great if you helped me train.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah.”

Clearly worried about becoming a burden, Laneige let out a sigh of relief and smiled brightly. “Hehe. That’s a relief. We’ll be there until evening, right?”

“Yeah. That’s the plan.”

“Then wait just a moment! I’ll make a lunchbox!”

“It’s fine, we can just buy something at the campus store.”

Even during vacation, the campus store was still open.

“No! You need a lunchbox to keep your stamina, I mean, your n-nutrition!”

Laneige, just what exactly are you planning to put in that lunchbox?