The Virgin Hero Who Fought in the Dungeon for 20 Years Returned to the Surface Only to Find the Population of the World Has Dropped Drastically, with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:1000 - 97

Chapter 97: Hand-to-Hand Combat

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“A-Ah… Ah…”

Ryuuto’s homeroom teacher, Koyomi Suzuka, could do nothing more than tremble like a small animal where she stood. She had evacuated her precious students, and, mustering all the courage she could, had returned to the scene thinking that, at the very least, as a recovery-class teacher, there might be something she could do to help.

But only a hundred meters ahead, a legion of sinister armored knights, brimming with murderous fighting spirit, had begun their advance, kicking up clouds of dust as they marched.

She could not understand the reasons behind it all, but the strength of the strange being who suddenly appeared, claiming to be a subordinate of the True Demon Lord, was on a level beyond anything Koyomi had ever known. The strength of Loria Himejima, an A-rank explorer who had stood against him, was also beyond ordinary limits—but in the end, she had fallen.

And now, before Koyomi’s very eyes, her precious student Ryuuto Sakazaki was standing alone, resolutely challenging the army of demons.

He can’t win. Absolutely not.

As far as Koyomi knew, Ryuuto was an ordinary boy. True, he was the hero who had defeated the Demon Lord, but plastering him with such a legendary title seemed ill-fitting. He was a completely ordinary boy, the kind you might find anywhere. Even if, by some chance, he had been deeply involved in that great feat of slaying the Demon Lord, nothing about the Ryuuto she knew gave off any sense of something special. 

He was kind, cheerful, always smiling—a bright boy who had simply gotten caught up in trouble and was now trying to start his life over. Koyomi had made it her top priority to support him so that he could enjoy a bright, happy school life.

She thought to herself.

I have to do something. 

But the truth was, even back when she had been an active explorer, she had only ever reached C-rank. She excelled at healing magic, but only within the limits of a C-rank framework. She had no exceptional combat skills.  Nor did she possess the means, like a fairy-tale magician, to suddenly change this hopeless situation with a wave of her hand.

Who should she pray to? Koyomi stood frozen in place, staring straight ahead—and then, in desperation, she broke into a run. She couldn’t do anything. But at the very least, she could die with him. She could make sure that the brave boy would not have to die alone.

But in the next instant, something happened that made her doubt her very eyes.

“Magic—Frozen Hell”

Ryuuto thrust the plastic bottle forward and chanted a spell toward the army of Destruction Troops that was surging toward him like a black tsunami.

In that instant, the dungeon was swallowed by a frigid chill. In the dimness, a giant hexagonal snowflake was drawn across the air, and from the plastic bottle in Ryuuto’s hand an enormous torrent of water gushed forth. 

In the blink of an eye, it filled the cavern with a raging flood, swallowing the army of Destruction Troops whole. At the same time, the water transformed into silver ice, freezing solid every last one of Chiriat’s proud troops in an instant.

“Here we go.”

Ryuuto clapped his hands together with a sharp pat. Immediately, a violent tremor resounded through the cavern, and the frozen army of Destruction Troops shattered into fine white dust, scattering in every direction.

“W-What!?”

Chiriat roared, his face twisted in astonishment. But Ryuuto ignored the enemy’s emotions. Instead, he crouched before the barely conscious Loria and spoke.

“Yo, long time no see. You’re safe now.”

“A-Ah… I-I……Why? Huh?”

“Can you stand? Come on.”

“Ah, thank you.”

When Ryuuto offered his hand, Loria managed to stand. She then stared at him with a dazed, feverish expression before, realizing something felt odd about her body, began patting herself down in confusion.

“I healed your injuries for now, so you should be fine. But I need to take care of that idiot over there, so could you move away for a bit?”

“Y-Yes.”

Loria staggered aside while Ryuuto crushed the plastic bottle in his hand and tossed it into the air. With a whoosh, it ignited and crumbled into dust.

“Ugh, I’m feeling dizzy…”

As expected, healing spells were not his strong point. He had never been good at regulating the right amount of magic power to pour in. In his haste to treat Loria, he had ended up pouring in nearly half of his total magic power. This method was unsuitable for a long battle. There were far too many things he needed to improve. Ryuuto pressed his hand to his forehead, furrowing his brow. He should have prepared some aspirin.

Good grief. Whatever this is, it sure turned into one hell of an extracurricular lesson.

After all, it had been his stomach trouble that kept him holed up in the restroom and delayed his arrival this much. It was, in a sense, an accident—something he hoped others would forgive. From what he had heard from the teachers who managed to escape, these demons before him were undoubtedly remnants of the Demon Lord’s army, the very ones he had failed to completely wipe out. In any case, he needed to deal with them quickly.

“Hey, you big guy. So if I got this right, you’re the enemy of humanity and one of the Demon Lord’s leftover troops? I’d prefer to avoid killing each other before I even know the reason why.”

“Leftover? Don’t mock me! I am a loyal servant of the True Demon Lord! I’m one of the Five Divine Kings, Chiriat of Earth!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. True Demon Lord, Absolute Demon Lord, doesn’t matter. But if you’re gonna show up, could you give me a little heads-up first? That way I can clear my schedule and give you the proper welcome you deserve.”

“You insolent wretch. Very well. Ryuuto Sakazaki, you have finally managed to anger me for real. The order was to capture you alive if possible, but I’ll kill you here and now and offer only your soul to the True Demon Lord!”

Chiriat’s eyes split wide open, and he poured his full strength into his arms. His massive body swelled to nearly twice its size, towering over ten meters in an instant. Furthermore, the rock-like scales covering his body glowed with a red-black light, pulsing with magical energy far more powerful than before.

“Ryuuto Sakazaki…! You’ll regret drawing out my true power!”

“Whatever. Just hurry up and come at me.”

Chiriat bared his long fangs and stomped forward. Cracks like fissures split across the ground in every direction—a testament to how much force he was putting into it.

His right fist. It split the air with a roar. Yet, Ryuuto remained standing still. The fist slammed directly into his face.

“Haaah!”

Chiriat’s massive body leapt into the air, then both his hands formed blades and swung down at Ryuuto. Like a guillotine seeking to reap his neck, the enormous hand strike struck at his throat.

A deafening blast rang out, like a cannon being fired. Without pause, Chiriat spun and unleashed a roundhouse kick at Ryuuto. His leg, like a massive boulder or giant tree trunk, smashed into Ryuuto’s right side.

“Hahaha! What’s the matter!? Can’t you dodge at all, so-called legendary Hero!?”

Then came a storm of blows.Chiriat showed not the slightest shred of mercy as he unleashed a relentless barrage of his fists upon Ryuuto. The cavern rang with the sound, like a rock drill boring through stone. Dust rose in thick clouds, kicked up by the overwhelming force of the strikes, and soon the two figures vanished from sight within the haze.

“Hyeaaaaahhh!”

As if to finish it once and for all, Chiriat leapt high and crossed both arms, slamming down a cross chop from above. A thunderous sound rang out, as though splitting apart a mountain. Chiriat quickly leapt back, eyes fixed on the settling dust before him. He waited, confident. But then, his smug grin twisted in shock.

“I-It can’t be. Impossible…!”

There stood Ryuuto, his clothes a little torn but otherwise completely unscathed. He was calmly standing there, brushing his left cheek with a look of irritation.

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