This time, I was genuinely running away. ‘Chris’ is in a hurry right now, so dealing with the likes of you is a hassle!

“You miserable bastard! I’ll grind you up and drink you if I catch you!”

The guy, regaining his senses a few beats too late, chased after me—

‘He’s just a pathetic loser who couldn’t say such things at the Demon Lord’s castle and is now trying to grab me too late. In that case.’

He wouldn’t have the resolve to cross the threshold out of the Demon Realm. Leaving the Demon Realm without the Demon Lord’s permission is a major crime, after all.

The steps of a hesitant man could never catch up to someone returning.

The skeletal horse, nothing but bones, practically flew across the vast wasteland.

By the time the people I missed came into view…….

There was no one behind me.

That was all he amounted to.

* * *

“……Phew.”

Michael caught his breath lightly and pulled his sword from the massive monster’s corpse.

He could have easily finished it with magic, but he wielded this weapon for one reason: a desire to be like his teacher.

‘I feel sorry for Nika, who was so happy asking if I’d developed an interest in knighthood.’

Michael had no interest in honor or duty.

He only wanted to hear certain words from Chris. From his teacher.

That was why he came here, and that was why he defeated the gatekeeper, Cerberus.

“Hey, that thing is really dead, right? Ugh, that was tough! I don’t think I can use my shield for a while!”

“How weak, my junior! If you whine over just this, you’ll never sit on the Emperor’s Throne like this senior—”

“Senior. Saying that while face-down on the ground lacks any persuasive power.”

“You all really did work hard, though…….”

The students, exhausted from fighting the monster, began to sit down one by one.

It was a worthy fight. The opponent was on a completely different level of strength than anything they had faced before. Proving it wasn’t a gatekeeper for nothing.

The only one with enough leeway to think about other things was Michael.

“But I’m starting to feel a bit slighted~ Everyone’s a mess, so why is he the only one perfectly fine?”

“He even exerted the most effort. He did the work of ten people.”

Just looking at the monster, which was practically a charred lump of coal, told the story. In this battle, Michael had put on a literally insane display of heroics.

“He even paid attention not to break his necklace to that extent. I wondered if he was really the Michael I knew.”

It would be a lie to say I didn’t feel a little disappointed. A friend who grows up too fast is bound to feel unfamiliar.

‘Besides, the reason he had to grow up so urgently—’

It was because he lost his teacher, making it even harder to bear. I couldn’t just be happy about him getting stronger.

Well, still.

“Ah, she’s here.”

‘At times like this, he’s exactly the Michael we knew.’

Michael’s face instantly brightened, enough to make onlookers let out a light chuckle.

Like a lost child who had finally found their guardian.

“Oh, professor? It’s the professor!”

“Where? Where’s the teacher!”

“Are you safe? How’s your body? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“I, I said it would be fine if the professor was here! You better start thinking up some excuses!”

Seeing Michael’s reaction, the others realized it late and rushed over in a swarm.

“Dolce, let’s go quickly. Quickly. Quickly. Quickly.”

“I got it, Gabana! Can you stop pulling my hair? I’m not a control stick~?”

Just when it seemed like a moving reunion, straight out of a scene from a novel, was taking place.

“Stop right there. What is everyone doing here?”

“…….”

“Don’t tell me you moved on your own without my orders?”

“……!”

The atmosphere reversed instantly with Chris’s murderous remark.

“To think you kids would consider coming to the Land of Death on your own, you’ve lost your minds. Brats whose blood hasn’t even dried in your heads…. Everyone. Fall in and follow me on foot.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Load the magic stones from the Cerberus onto the carriage.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

X-Class and one second-year had to walk back the way they came, completely terrified.

‘Crazy bastards. They actually killed the gatekeeper Cerberus. I should never act cocky.’

Though the most terrified of all was Chris.

* * *

Instead of the Monkey KeyRing at my waist, a new bone-shaped keyring had appeared.

Its true identity was the skeletal horse I had been riding until just now.

‘Actually, I couldn’t ride a monster in front of the kids, so I was going to just abandon it and go.’

But looking closely, this was also a reward, an item, and it felt like a waste to throw it away.

Just in case, I read the item description carefully, and in text as small as a mouse dropping, it said it could be stored in a keyring form normally.

Cheapskate bastard, what kind of insurance policy is this?

‘Still, I guess I got a storable means of transportation, so let’s think positively.’

It’s perfect, except for the fact that I can’t use it in front of others. It might even be more useful than Bead.

[Bead: Aren’t you treating me too lightly? I’ll sulk? I’ll seriously sulk?]

Yeah, yeah, I got it, so try naming the horse. I can’t just keep calling it ‘bone horse’.

[Bead: Hmm…. How about Sagol?]

That’s too savory. Where did you learn a word like that?

[Bead: You told me while talking about Korean food in the maze.]

To think it remembered that. I won’t even be able to drink cold water in front of Bead.

I fiddled with the Sagol keyring with one hand and thought.

‘Anyway, if I return to the Academy like this, it’ll be wrapped up.’

The unauthorized desertion of the X-Class kids would be easily overlooked if I gave the Principal information about the Demon Lord’s army’s movements. The intel that they would invade again soon was valuable.

When I asked the kids what kind of nerve they had, they said the Protagonist had caught a few of the Principal’s weaknesses and was trying to negotiate with them.

That’s clearly blackmail and a crime. Lock that away. I’ll use it later….

‘Did his hidden nerve awaken along with his Awakening, or what?’

It felt like just yesterday he was flailing about like a puppy, but the guy who finished his Awakening was an overpowered protagonist through and through.

‘He even took down the gatekeeper of the Demon Realm, so his abilities are guaranteed.’

It’s a tiny bit disappointing that I couldn’t see it with my own eyes, but oh well. There will be chances in the future.

That’s what I thought, but….

‘I didn’t expect someone with a death wish to show up this quickly.’

“Hey, you there! Let’s see what’s in that carriage!”

Robbers encountered right before leaving the Land of Death. In other words, the appearance of extra villains.

They’re currently licking axes held menacingly, but they’ll soon be shattered. Let’s pray for their eternal rest in advance.

“What’s in the carriage?”

Uh, but that’s a bit….

“I’ll make you regret asking that question in the afterlife.”

Seems like this guy’s gotten a lot angrier?

Well, the result was obvious without even saying it.

The robbers were utterly destroyed.

“Ugh, aaagh! We’re sorry! Please, stop at this point!”

“You prepared thoroughly with axes, swords, and even a grimoire. Looks like you’ve killed a lot of people.”

As the robber with his lower half frozen begged, the Princess spoke coldly.

“Kill you? We were just going to scare you a little, take your valuables, and send you off without a scratch. It’s true!”

“Then what are these things hanging on this necklace~? They look like human molars to me. Did you keep them as trophies one by one?”

“…….”

The robber, who had been whining until just now, instantly changed his expression at Twin-braid’s sharp remark. Was it a tear tactic?

“Damn it, everyone rush them at once! If we take the woman in that carriage they’re protecting as a hostage…!”

‘Wow, he had to go and step on a landmine of all things.’

“Urk, urk!”

Even the attempt was bad. Because his neck was immediately grabbed by the Protagonist. He was clearly beating up the remnants over there just a moment ago, did he teleport or something.

“It seems you still haven’t grasped the situation. What you need to do right now is something else.”

As expected from the upright-living boy. He doesn’t forget to use polite speech even when the opponents are middle-aged men.

“You should shut your traps and quietly follow my lead.”

Although the content is murderous.

‘That rude way of speaking, did he learn it from me?’

[Bead: You only realized that now? The upper water must be clear for the lower water to be clear, tch tch.]

No, but my upper water roleplay was scooped from a sewer, not just dirty water. It’s force majeure.

Instead, his friends, who were the same lower water, stepped up.

“Michael, calm down. They’re heinous criminals, but they’re civilians!”

“…….”

“Let’s let go of him first and talk, okay? We can guide them in a perfectly gentlemanly way!”

“T-The young master with glasses is right. Oh, noble one with red eyes! Please, at least spare our boss’s life!”

Despite the combined efforts of the Model Student and the robbers, the Protagonist didn’t budge an inch.

Eventually, the Princess sighed and opened his mouth.

“Michael.”

“…….”

“The professor is watching. What kind of disgraceful behavior is this in front of someone who must be tired from visiting a rough place.”

“Ah.”

The Protagonist’s expression, blinking as if he finally snapped out of it, relaxed completely. It was a completely different story from the murderous look he had just moments ago.