Chapter 292
Chapter 292
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 292
Chapter Title: Hero Revealed
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Siron couldn’t open his mouth.
Hero.
At first, the word’s meaning hadn’t come to him easily.
But that only lasted a moment.
Once he understood what Seo Woo-jin meant, Siron’s eyes went wide.
The other holy knights were the same.
“Hero!”
“Why is a hero here?”
Was it because they’d run into him at a completely unexpected time and place?
Panic was clear on their faces.
“Wait, Seo Woo-jin...”
Suddenly, one of the holy knights furrowed his brow.
The name was all too familiar.
It had to be.
“The ‘Saintess’ killer.”
In Aier, Seo Woo-jin’s name was as infamous as Seong Yu-ra’s.
Siron composed his shocked expression and clamped his mouth shut.
‘Well, I expected as much.’
It was one of the reasons Seo Woo-jin had hidden his identity.
Now that he’d spoken his name aloud, friendly treatment was off the table.
In fact, the holy knights were glaring at him with stiff expressions.
They didn’t charge, but the emotion mixed into their gazes was unmistakably hostility.
Seo Woo-jin shrugged.
He’d known they wouldn’t like him.
But to avoid a fight, he’d had no choice but to reveal himself.
‘If it weren’t for this guy, we could’ve gotten through this without issue.’
Seo Woo-jin shot a glance at Diarok, who was watching with an amused look, then let out a sigh.
“I lied about being a free knight, but it’s true that I’m acting on Lady Freya’s request.”
Not an order—a request.
By changing his wording like that, he put pressure on them.
It meant he was handling something so important that Freya herself had asked him to do it, so they shouldn’t act rashly.
Fortunately, Siron got the message.
“Sheathe your swords.”
He bit his lip slightly and gave the order to his men.
The holy knights looked dissatisfied for a moment.
But they couldn’t disobey a direct command, so they withdrew the blades aimed at Seo Woo-jin.
‘Tch.’
Seo Woo-jin inwardly clicked his tongue at the sight.
How hard had he worked to save Aier?
He’d killed the deceiver Mardetain and shattered Baron to pieces, burying him.
Of course, it had all been for nothing in the end.
‘And I even held back the Leninstang army...’
Honestly, without Seo Woo-jin, Aier might have been doomed to destruction.
‘It wasn’t like I did it expecting repayment.’
If he had to wish for something, it was just that Aier would do its part in the Descent War.
Still, seeing them treat him like an enemy stung a little.
‘Well, can’t be helped?’
He’d just have to chalk it up as the price for killing Seong Yu-ra.
Seo Woo-jin shook off his thoughts and spoke to Siron.
“I’d like to hear the details of what happened.”
Their attitudes weren’t what mattered right now.
Baron’s corpse.
He needed to recover it and seal it properly.
...If possible.
* * *
“Uncle, Uncle, Uncle.”
Lee Ji-ah called out to Goo Dong-hwan.
“Why, why, why?”
With the look of a man who knew this was coming, Goo Dong-hwan replied soullessly.
“How many days has it been today?”
She didn’t need a subject—the question was obvious.
For the past few days, she’d asked the exact same thing without fail, every single day.
“Day 13.”
At Goo Dong-hwan’s answer, Lee Ji-ah jumped up from her spot.
“No way, already 13 days?”
Goo Dong-hwan sighed at the sight.
Yesterday, she’d jumped up saying, “No way, already 12 days?”
‘And the day before that.’
No matter how you looked at it, she planned to keep this up until Seo Woo-jin returned.
“Something must’ve come up. He’s not the type to break a promise lightly.”
“No, still! He promised to be back in a week, and it’s almost two weeks now? If there’s an unavoidable reason, shouldn’t he at least send word? So the people waiting don’t worry?”
Her words made his ears ring.
But Goo Dong-hwan nodded with a look of enlightenment.
This conversation had repeated countless times by now.
“Yeah, you’re right.”
At his utterly lifeless attitude, Lee Ji-ah narrowed her eyes and glared at him.
“Ji-ah, enough. You’re wearing poor Dong-hwan out.”
Just before the nagging barrage could erupt, Gae Su-ji stepped in from behind to stop her.
“No, Sis! Think about it. If he’s gone this long without a single update, something must’ve happened for sure!”
“There’s that saying—‘no news is good news.’ If Woo-jin were in real trouble, he’d have contacted us.”
Gae Su-ji smiled and countered Lee Ji-ah’s point.
She knew exactly why her little sister was going on like this.
“Still, I’m worried, so can’t we go look for him...?”
“Nope, no can do.”
She wouldn’t give up.
The moment the promised week was up, she’d started insisting they go find Seo Woo-jin—and she hadn’t let up since.
“You need to train. What if Woo-jin comes back and sees you lagging behind everyone else? Won’t he be disappointed?”
“It’s Uncle’s fault for being late!”
Had they overused that line?
For once, it didn’t land.
“Sis, I’m really worried.”
Gae Su-ji sighed as Lee Ji-ah clung to her arm.
‘It’s not like I don’t get it.’
Truth be told, she was starting to worry herself.
She trusted Seo Woo-jin’s strength, but he’d left to stop a war this time.
No matter how strong he was, could one person really halt a war?
‘If it’s Woo-jin, he’s probably handling it just fine...’
Gae Su-ji patted Lee Ji-ah’s head.
“Alright, alright, I get how you feel. Let’s look into it.”
They couldn’t leave Massive Guardian and head to Aier on their own.
It was time to focus on training for growth.
But finding someone to check on Seo Woo-jin for them? That much they could manage.
With that in mind, Gae Su-ji opened her mouth.
“For now, let’s focus on training today. The elder’s about to come out.”
“Ah, al, already?”
Lee Ji-ah’s body went rigid.
The others felt it too.
Those stretching in one corner of the training ground swallowed dryly at Gae Su-ji’s words.
“We’re not exactly in a position to worry about Woo-jin.”
“Yeah. Who’s worrying about who...”
Kang Byung-gyu muttered, and Yu Hong-seol chimed in beside him.
They had no idea what situation Seo Woo-jin was in.
But one thing was clear: they had a brutal future ahead too.
Training with Ban Slaine.
Over the past ten-plus days, they’d felt the terror of possibly dying.
“Even fighting ancient orcs on the Zarban Plains wasn’t this scary.”
It was ridiculous to feel this fear from training, not actual combat.
Ban Slaine’s methods were that harsh.
“But the results are undeniable.”
No one argued with Yu Hong-seol’s words.
They couldn’t.
Their skills were improving by leaps and bounds, matching the hardship.
“It’s amazing how much stronger we’re getting without even leveling up.”
Ban Slaine’s training focused on honing their innate abilities over levels, and it was nothing short of miraculous.
“With a year of this training, no wonder Woo-jin’s so strong.”
Seo Woo-jin’s ‘Demon King’ class was the main factor, but Ban Slaine’s regimen had undeniably helped tremendously.
“No, the real miracle is surviving a full year of it.”
Goo Dong-hwan chuckled dryly as he loosened his muscles.
Even he, with the best physical stats of the group, found every day hellish.
He had nothing but respect for Seo Woo-jin enduring it for a year.
“Enough chit-chat—let’s get ready.”
It was time for Ban Slaine to appear on the training ground.
Showing a lax attitude could mean even harsher training.
The heroes clamped their mouths shut at Gae Su-ji’s words and began warming up.
And soon after,
“Good morning.”
Ban Slaine entered the training ground with a greeting.
Everyone froze.
His voice alone sent tension rippling through them.
“You all look like you didn’t rest well last night.”
“Haha...”
They managed awkward smiles.
‘At least give us proper rest before asking.’
Yesterday’s training had ended at 3 a.m.
It was 6 a.m. now—they’d gotten less than three hours of sleep.
If they weren’t heroes whose physical abilities surpassed humans, it would’ve been impossible.
But they couldn’t let it show.
Any hint of fatigue would mean a “lacking stamina” lecture and an even tougher day.
“Alright, let’s work hard again today.”
Ban Slaine smiled in satisfaction.
Then, as if remembering something, he went, “Oh!” and continued.
“By the way, good news arrived this morning—the kind you’ve all been waiting for.”
“News?”
Lee Ji-ah’s eyes sparkled.
They had only one thing they were curious about.
“It’s about Seo Woo-jin.”
As expected, it was news of Seo Woo-jin.
“Is Uncle okay? Why hasn’t he come back? Do we know when he’ll return?”
Questions poured out like a waterfall.
Ban Slaine chuckled fondly at the sight and nodded.
“Fortunately, he’s fine. Something came up in Aier, so his return’s delayed a bit.”
“What happened? Nothing dangerous, right?”
That’s what everyone wanted to know.
“It’s dangerous, sure... but he handled it well, so no need to worry.”
At Ban Slaine’s words, they all sighed in relief.
They hadn’t been too concerned.
Seo Woo-jin could probably survive even if the world collapsed.
Still, hearing he was safe put their minds at ease.
“He also sent word he’ll be back soon, with a nice gift, so look forward to it.”
A gift?
What could he be bringing that warranted “look forward to it”?
“When? When’s he coming?”
Lee Ji-ah shot her hand up and asked again.
“Hmm, let’s see...”
Ban Slaine did a quick calculation and nodded.
“At latest, within three days. If he hurries, even sooner.”
It was great news.
It’d only been two weeks since they’d last seen Seo Woo-jin, but it felt like forever.
That’s how fully they’d been living each day.
“Shouldn’t we show him how much we’ve grown by the time he gets back?”
Ban Slaine’s smiling words made the air grow chill.
“So how about we ramp up the training intensity starting today?”
The heroes’ faces fell.