The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned
Chapter 300

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Chapter 300: The End of the World (5)

“…Ha.”

A dry laugh slipped through my lips.

It hadn’t been some grand ambition.

Nor had there been some noble goal.

‘The first outsider.’

The outsider who fell into this world 500 years ago… all they had wanted was to return to the home they missed.

‘No.’

A strange sense of dissonance rose in my mind.

‘Something’s wrong.’

It wasn’t a logical deduction.

It was pure instinct.

Looking into Maurice’s trembling eyes, on the verge of collapsing, I couldn’t help but have a wild hunch.

‘But I probably won’t have time to confirm it.’

Rumble…

Thick tree roots surrounded me, encircling the area like a trap.

Was it because I had drawn too much power when I burned the tree earlier?

Though the Primordial Flame was still unstable, I had no choice in this situation.

“Burn.”

Whoooosh!

The embers wrapped around my body and flared violently.

“They said when the Primordial Flame and the Tree of Creation clash, the gate will open, right?”

I slowly raised my sword toward Maurice and continued speaking.

“That won’t happen.”

The Primordial Flame and the Tree of Creation.

A clash between those two forces would never occur.

“Because I’ll stop it.”

“Ha.”

Maurice grinned.

“Great, what a bold resolve. But…”

He chuckled, his shoulders shaking.

“You know how the world works—will alone doesn’t solve everything.”

Maurice opened his hand.

Fwoosh!

A crimson flame coiled around his palm.

A fierce, greedy fire radiating violent heat.

“That’s…”

Too familiar.

Far too familiar.

“That’s the Primordial Flame.”

“…!”

“Hahaha! I told you before, I can’t fully absorb the Primordial Flame with the power I possess.”

Which means—

In other words—

“I can absorb it… imperfectly.”

He twisted his lips into a smirk and thrust his flame-wreathed arm toward me.

Fwoooosh!

The embers around me began to respond violently to Maurice’s fire.

And then—

‘No way…!’

The embers began greedily absorbing Maurice’s flame.

I hurried to summon the Tree of Creation’s power to suppress them, but once the absorption had begun, it couldn’t be stopped.

“Kh…!”

“You absorbed Amon’s flame from the Abyss before, didn’t you?”

Imperfect flame and perfect flame.

When both exist in the same space, the fire will flow toward the one that’s more ‘complete.’

“Come on, now—try controlling this.”

“Guh… gah!”

FWOOSH!

The massive blaze pouring from Maurice began flooding into my stigma.

The Primordial Flame I had gained in a past life.

The sparks absorbed from the Holy Kingdom and the Empire.

The remnants of the Demon God devoured in the Abyss and now, Maurice’s fire as well.

The delicate balance I had barely maintained began to crack and tip.

“Krrghhh…!”

Grit!

Grinding my teeth, I summoned the power of the Tree of Creation.

‘I have to control this…!’

If the Primordial Flame rampaged here, everything would be lost.

“Uaaaaaaaahhh!!!”

I fought to suppress the wildly surging fire that threatened to devour the world.

The flame, raging like a starving beast, briefly lost a bit of its momentum.

“…Ha. You’re trying to suppress it again?”

Maurice let out a laugh of disbelief.

As he reached into the air, a sword made of branches formed in his hand.

“Well then.”

“I’ll just have to… shake your focus a little.”

Thud!

Maurice stomped the ground hard and swung the wooden sword.

“—Dale!”

A silver arc tore through the air.

Clang!

The wooden sword flew back violently.

“Hm. Yuren… or should I say, Yurina Helios now?”

Maurice glanced at Yurina and smirked.

“Looks like Reynald’s blood runs strong. Even after 500 years, I can still see traces of his face.”

“…I’ll protect Dale.”

Yurina pointed her sword at Maurice, biting her lip hard.

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“D-Dale! A-Are you okay?!”

“…It looks like something’s gone wrong with Candidate Dale’s body.”

“A-Iris! Hurry, heal Dale…!”

“I under—”

“Wait. Both of you, stop.”

Just as Iris and Lanez tried to run to Dale, webs wrapped around their bodies.

Professor Elisha, her violet evil eye glowing ominously, spoke coldly.

“Candidate Dale’s condition is beyond what healing magic can resolve. Iris, you should know that better than anyone.”

“B-But…!”

“Calm down. What we must do now is…”

Professor Elisha glared sharply at Maurice.

“…buy time until Candidate Dale overcomes this on his own.”

“…Ugh.”

Iris gritted her teeth, clutching the pendant around her neck.

“You… you’re the one who did this to Dale?”

Lanez glared at Maurice, her eyes blazing.

A chilling wind surged, freezing the ground beneath her feet with a cracking sound.

“Wow, is it because he’s my son? He’s got quite the fan club.”

Maurice chuckled, looking at the four women standing protectively around Dale.

After a moment of cackling, his expression hardened as he gripped his wooden sword.

“Back off, you bitches. You really think the likes of you can stop me?”

Craaaaack!

Tree roots surged violently from the ground.

At the same time, the Apostles of Eternity, who had been lying in wait behind their masks, rushed in en masse.

“Cadet Yurina! Lanez and I will hold off the Apostles! Please take care of Maurice!”

“Understood!”

Yurina stepped in front of Maurice.

A brilliant silver radiance flared around her sword.

Silver blade and wooden sword clashed in midair.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANGCLANGCLANG!

A flurry of rapid strikes.

After exchanging a few blows, Yurina’s eyes narrowed with sharp insight.

‘His swordsmanship isn’t that great.’

The power in Maurice’s strikes was immense, but the technique itself was only slightly above average.

‘If that’s all…!’

Just as she thought she could win—

“See? Swinging a sword really doesn’t suit me.”

Tch.

Maurice clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“You know why my swordsmanship is just mediocre?”

CRACKLE—!!

In the blink of an eye, tree roots erupted from the ground beneath her.

“Because I don’t need to swing a sword.”

WHOOSH!

The roots clashed with Yurina’s sword.

And then—

CRASH!!

“Kyaaa!”

Her sword shattered into pieces.

Fragments of the broken blade sliced into Yurina’s body.

“Urgh…!”

She collapsed, bleeding.

“Now get out of the way. We’re busy.”

Just as Maurice began to walk past her—

“Yurina—!”

Iris’s shout rang out, and a rainbow-hued light washed over Yurina’s body.

“Please… don’t fall…!”

Her shattered body rapidly healed under the spell.

Shaking, Yurina got to her feet, clutching the broken hilt of her sword.

“…Yeah.”

HUMMMMM—!

A brilliant stigma blazed to life.

Like moonlight shining in the night sky, a beautiful silver blade formed atop the hilt.

“Dale.”

Yurina looked over her shoulder at Dale, curled up in flames, and quietly spoke.

“I’ll protect you.”

To guard the setting sun, the moon chose to shine on her own.

WHOOOOOSH—!!

Silver radiance exploded from Yurina’s body like a violent storm of magic.

A maelstrom of mana tore through the surroundings.

“…You.”

Maurice’s face twisted with a snarl.

“What a pain…!”

He thrust his hand toward her.

Dozens of tree roots shot out, all aiming straight at Yurina.

“Haah!”

Like an acrobat, Yurina stepped on the rapidly flying roots and launched herself toward Maurice.

“What the—?!”

“HYAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

Silver arcs blazed through the air, cutting down the world-creating tree roots.

The radiant moonlight sliced through Maurice’s body.

Thunk. Thud.

His head, arms, and legs—

Maurice’s body fell to the ground in dozens of severed pieces.

“Hah… Hah…!”

As Yurina exhaled ragged breaths and began to lower her bloodstained sword—

Whoosh.

White petals fluttered before her eyes.

And then—

STAB.

“-Ah.”

A sharp branch pierced through Yurina’s abdomen.

The Maurice who had been cut to pieces now stood whole again, calmly rising to his feet as if nothing had happened.

“…Hah.”

He let out a dry, mocking laugh.

“You let your guard down, huh? Didn’t think I’d be this strong?”

Clicking his tongue, he looked up into the air.

“This is why I tried to take care of it in advance… whatever. Regretting it now won’t change anything.”

Shaking his head, Maurice walked toward her.

“You’ll pay the price for getting in our way.”

A blade formed from wooden branches pointed at Yurina’s neck.

“Y-Yurina!”

Iris tried to run to her, panicked.

“Haaah, haaah! Agh!”

Thud.

Was it because she overexerted her divine power?

Iris collapsed to the ground, unable to stay upright.

“Cadet Yurina!”

“Y-Yurina!”

Professor Elisha and Lanez tried to push toward her as well, but the relentless Apostles of Eternity blocked their path.

“…Ah.”

Yurina let out a soft breath and stared at the wooden blade aimed at her throat.

As the fluttering petals parted and the blade began to swing—

FWOOOOSH!!

Flames burst forth and consumed the wooden sword.

“Gah!”

Maurice stumbled back in a panic, retreating from the blaze.

His trembling eyes stared at the source of the flames in disbelief.

“You’ve gotta be shitting me.”

A curse slipped from his lips.

“You’ve already… mastered the Primordial Flame?”

At the end of his shocked gaze—

FWOOOOOSH!!

Through the raging embers, a pair of green eyes flashed with a fierce glow.

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