Hero, Go To School! - Chapter 10 - The Revived Madman 2

Ares Balthazar.

A peerless hero born in troubled times.

In an era of intense power struggles, he earned an unbroken record of victories thanks to his unwavering determination, devotion as an advisor, and exceptional tactics.

Even when hundreds of enemies came just to claim Ares Balthazar’s head, his will never faltered.

He commanded the battlefield with calm, rational judgment in the midst of war’s chaos, and the world remembered his valor and his noble self-sacrifice for his country.

“Mmmp! Mmmph!”

But now, that very hero was bound in ropes and causing a ruckus on a bed. Even tied up hand and foot, he writhed with such raw energy that he looked like a freshly caught fish, flopping around with wild strength.

He was struggling so much I wondered if he was going to exorcise himself right off the bed. The ropes strained tight with each violent movement, and the bed frame shook under the force of it.

The Duke and Duchess of Zenor could only watch their son with sighs and tears, spending each day in misery.

“Ian, our son… What in the world has happened to you…”

Josefina’s hoarse voice cracked as she sobbed. Her tears had not dried for four days.

“He won’t eat, he won’t sleep, he just thrashes around like this…”

Helith couldn’t even finish his sentence.

Thanks to Ian, there wasn’t a single piece of furniture or decoration in the room that was still intact. Everything had been snapped, torn, or smashed to pieces, and the wreckage filled the space completely.

“Mmmp! Mmmph!”

Ian, his mouth tightly gagged, seemed to be shouting something, but I didn’t need to hear it to know it was probably a string of curses.

“What are you all just standing around for? Bring a doctor, now!”

Helith’s urgent voice rang through the room.

Teddy, who had nearly died after getting kicked in the head by Ian’s heel, was sweating profusely, his head wrapped tightly in bandages. Hair poked out from under the bandages, slick and wet with sweat, and exhaustion was etched into every line of his face.

Teddy flinched and took a step back.

“Your Grace, there’s no one left who will come.”

His voice was barely holding back a tremor.

“What do you mean? If there’s no doctor, who’s going to heal Ian?”

“Ian doesn’t even recognize us anymore… For him to change like this… What kind of test is God putting us through…”

“We sent word to every nearby physician, but it seems there’s no one left who’s willing to come.”

“Offer them ten times, no, twenty times the pay! Tell them we’ll get them a government post in the palace if they want it!”

“Ha… the thing is…”

Teddy glanced around the room nervously. Every physician, who wanted to make a connection to the Duchy from this, was now lying unconscious on the floor, their medical bags abandoned beside them. The servants were carrying them one by one into the hallway because there was no more room inside.

The one responsible for turning the mansion into this hellscape was none other than Ian.

Four days ago, no one had been able to stop him when he first went berserk. It seemed like it would take a cannon shell to calm him down, but the duke and duchess were too afraid of their precious only son getting so much as a scratch to even think of using force.

In the end, it was up to me.

<Helpers> cannot attack <Players>.

Even though Ian glared at me with bloodshot eyes as if he would kill me, I calmly tied him up with the ropes.

‘Ah, just try it. Ah—’
‘You wicked sorcerer—mmph!’

It was only after I had put a soft, cloth gag in Ian’s mouth that the situation finally calmed down a little.

If I told them that this crazed beast was not their precious son, but the hero Ares, would the duke and duchess be happy or crushed?

I let out a complicated sigh and opened my mouth.

“It would be best to put off any tests for now.”

“What do you mean by that, Lilian?”

“It’s clear his mind is affected as an aftereffect of his heart stopping and then starting again. But continuing to provoke Ian in this extremely unstable state won’t help. Let’s wait until he’s fully calmed down and then do the tests again.”

“But what if something happens to our son in the meantime…!”

“Pushing Ian any further right now will only make things worse. Ian, you agree with me, don’t you?”

“Mmmph, mmph! Mmph!!”

“Ian says he agrees.”

“Mmph! Mmmph!”

“Mhm. I should’ve realized it sooner, huh? All right, all right. Good boy.”

I gently patted Ian’s hair. The sight of him, who had been lashing out like a mad dog at the very sight of anyone, now completely subdued, left the duke and duchess stunned. Eventually, they exchanged glances and reluctantly nodded.