The Lowest-Ranked Hero Has Returned

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Chapter 149: The Cadet Disappearance Case (3)

Before officially investigating the series of cadet disappearances, I found an excuse to leave Sophia and Berald behind and head toward a certain place.

This place was tucked away in the most secluded corner of the Hero Academy's expansive campus—a building that seemed on the verge of collapse with the slightest touch, an old, dilapidated research facility.

I looked at Professor Jade’s lab and clicked my tongue softly.

‘I should have come sooner.’

Ever since my relationship with Senior Sophia soured, I’d thought I should pay a visit eventually, but a lot happened, and I only made it here now.

‘Come to think of it, I haven’t contacted Professor Jade in months.’

Even when we did occasionally keep in touch, it was only through brief greetings on the Hero Watch.

This was the first time in a long while that I was coming to his lab in person.

“Professor Jade, are you inside?”

Knock, knock.

As I gently tapped on the lab door—

Thud!

“Ouch!”

I heard a crash and Professor Jade’s scream from inside.

It sounded like he’d gotten up in surprise and bumped into something.

“Are you alright?”

I opened the door quickly upon hearing his scream.

“Y-Yes, I’m fine!”

Professor Jade, flustered, was hastily tidying up the research materials piled high on his table.

He rubbed the back of his head where he’d hit the bookshelf, groaning in pain.

“What brings you here?”

“I just came to see how you were doing, Professor.”

I glanced around the messy lab, not bringing up anything about Senior Sophia yet.

With a sigh, I shook my head slowly.

“It’s become quite a mess again, I see.”

“Ahem. Well, it may look messy, but everything is thoroughly organized and categorized with—”

“Looks like we need to clean up first.”

I was about to start cleaning the cluttered lab, ignoring Professor Jade’s weak excuses, when—

“No! No, it's fine! I’ll tidy it up later!”

Like a teenager caught hiding something inappropriate, Professor Jade urgently grabbed my arm.

I paused my cleaning, tilting my head in curiosity.

“What’s got you so worked up?”

“Haha, it’s nothing.”

“…”

It was obvious he was hiding something.

‘Well, it’s not important right now anyway.’

Deciding not to press him further, I pulled up a chair nearby and sat down.

“Professor, if that's alright, I wanted to ask you something.”

“Hmm? What do you want to ask?”

“Do you happen to know a cadet named Sophia Evergreen?”

Since we were here, I went straight to the point.

“…”

As soon as I mentioned her name, Professor Jade’s expression hardened.

His gaze wavered, trembling.

“H-How do you know that name…?”

Professor Jade’s voice shook as he trailed off.

I shrugged casually in response.

“We happened to cross paths. When I talked to her briefly, it seemed like she knew you. I was just curious about your connection.”

“…”

Professor Jade remained silent, lowering his head.

His lips pressed tightly together, and he finally spoke in a strained voice.

“Do you… know what they call me among the cadets?”

“…”

At Hero Academy, he was known by a nickname more infamous than “Heir of the Great Sage.”

The nickname was “Student Killer, Jade Bastion.”

It was given after an incident two years ago, when a cadet died in one of Professor Jade’s research experiments.

“Yeah… I’m aware.”

I gave a small nod without uttering the nickname.

With a weary sigh, Professor Jade rubbed his wrinkled face with his hands.

“The cadet who died back then, Oscar Khalif… was Sophia’s older brother.”

“…!”

I widened my eyes at the bombshell revelation from Professor Jade.

‘Senior Sophia had an older brother?’

I had spent a decade in the same party with her in my previous life and never heard about it.

“Wait a minute. They don’t share the same last name, do they?”

“Sophia’s parents separated, which is why her surname changed. They both originally had the surname ‘Khalif.’”

“…”

So Sophia’s old surname was Khalif, too.

This was news to me as well.

“…Ha.”

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

‘So there really was so much I didn’t know.’

Iris, Yuren, Berald… I thought we knew everything about each other after spending ten years together.

But looking back now, I was beginning to see that what I knew was only the tip of the iceberg.

“So that’s why Senior Sophia started to resent you, Professor.”

“…”

Professor Jade nodded heavily.

“What exactly happened that led to Oscar’s accident?”

“…”

At that moment, Professor Jade’s expression hardened.

His lips pressed together, and he clenched his fist as if trying to contain his boiling anger.

“Oscar was… a terrible cadet.”

“…”

“He was arrogant, selfish, reckless, and cared only for himself.”

With suppressed bitterness, Professor Jade unleashed a torrent of resentment.

“…So, was it because of Oscar that the accident happened?”

“Yes!”

Professor Jade nodded firmly, his face stiff.

“He wouldn’t follow my instructions and recklessly pursued dangerous experiments! And then… and then!”

Thud!

Professor Jade slammed his fist down onto the table.

Papers scattered like snowflakes in the air.

The words "Artificial Stigma" caught my eye on one of the pages.

"Because of that idiot, I lost everything in an instant! My life's work! My honor! My accomplishments, all gone!"

Tears ran down his wrinkled cheeks.

His long-suppressed anger erupted like a volcano.

"I... I... couldn't do anything..."

Professor Jade, head hanging, sobbed quietly.

Suddenly, a memory surfaced.

It was something Professor Lucas had told me.

- Do you know what that bastard did at Candidate Oscar’s grave? Huh? I saw him with my own eyes, insulting his dead student, calling him an ‘idiot.’

‘So, that’s how it happened.’

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If Professor Jade had lost everything in an instant due to one student's mistake, his reaction was understandable.

I put a hand on Professor Jade's trembling shoulder.

"Please, calm down, Professor."

"Haa... sorry for getting so worked up."

He sighed and shook his head.

"I hate to send you off when you've come by after so long... but would you mind leaving for today?"

Looking exhausted, Professor Jade made his request.

“…Yes, understood.”

There was no way these long-standing emotions could be resolved in one conversation anyway.

I nodded and rose from my seat.

Click.

When I opened the door to his office and stepped outside, I saw the cloudy, ash-gray sky.

“Ugh.”

I swallowed a sigh and clicked my tongue.

‘For now, it’ll be hard to get Senior Sophia and Professor Jade to reconcile.’

If some misunderstanding had caused their rift, I’d thought of trying to help them mend things, but seeing the state of things, that seemed premature.

‘If I try to force it, it’ll only make things worse.’

For now, finding the culprit behind the "Candidate Disappearance Case" took priority.

* * *

The next day.

I, Berald, and Senior Sophia gathered to discuss a plan to catch the culprit behind the candidate disappearances.

"So, did you think of a way to catch the culprit?"

"I looked over the details of the case again."

I handed Senior Sophia a sheet listing the victims of the recent incidents.

The paper was filled with information about the victims' identities, the circumstances, and witness statements.

"...How did you get all this?"

Senior Sophia looked at the neatly organized document with surprise.

"I have a friend who's quite skilled in this area."

"What’s his name?"

"His name’s Albert Hoover."

"The Hoover family... the Empire’s largest information guild?"

"Yes, that’s right."

I contacted Albert last night to see if he could help, and by morning, he had gathered and organized all this information.

‘I knew the Hoover family was competent, but I didn’t expect Albert to be this much help.’

It was hard to imagine this level of skill from Albert’s usual goofy demeanor, his face twisted in disgust as he drank Professor Lucas’s “special health juice” under duress.

“Huh. You’ve got a wider network than I thought.”

Sophia looked at me, her eyes shining with mild surprise.

But it was only for a moment.

Her gaze quickly turned icy.

“Of course, you've managed to get mixed up with some rather untrustworthy people, too.”

"……."

Ignoring her sharp words, I looked around at my party members.

“For now, let's go over the documents and come up with a plan to catch the culprit.”

“Got it.”

“Leave it to me, hoho!”

Each of us flipped through the files, reviewing the information on the missing candidates.

As we sifted through the details on each of the victims—

“What the...! Impossible!”

Berald suddenly shot up, eyes wide.

“Brother! Look at this!”

“Did you find something?”

“Amanda, a senior candidate known as the 'Iron-Willed Nun,' turns out to be married!”

“You idiot.”

What the hell is he even looking at?

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