Chapter 25: Demon Lord – 3

Therese pursed her lips, her brows furrowing to a deep brown. “A summoned Hero before Stefania? But I donʼt seem to remember such a human existing…?” 

Seraphine threw a knowing look at Angelica, who was still huddled in a corner of the hall muttering to herself. 

“Hey, sheʼs looking at you,” Liam whispered in her ear. 

“Huh…?” Angelica gazed up and met Seraphineʼs eyes before frowning. “W-what?” 

She smiled and asked, “do you still remember the name ‘Analise’?” 

“Analise…” A look of recognition flashed in her eyes and she gasped. “Y-you are that Hero who betrayed Eltshion?!!” 

“Thatʼs a little harsh, donʼt you think?” Seraphine crossed her arms and nodded at us. “Angelica, or Anthia as I knew her then, is the Goddess responsible for summoning me to the world of Eltshion as a Hero so, yeah, she can probably explain better than me.” 

“Whatʼs there to explain?” Angelica said, disgusted. “I bestowed upon you a great many powers, and what did you do with my heavenly gifts? You went ahead and surrendered to the demons on the condition that they leave you alone??” 

Therese and Miss Faye exchanged surprised looks with each other before staring at Seraphine. “You surrendered?” 

“One, I didnʼt ask to be summoned. Two, I don’t like being in the spotlight, that’s all,” she replied with a shrug. “Besides, if I had defeated the Demon Lord, Stefania—I mean, Avery—wouldn't be here with us right now.” 

Liam raised his eyebrow and murmured, “she has a point, you know…” 

Angelica opened her mouth to protest, but the chime of a bell suddenly cut her off. Miss Faye tilted her head up at the sound and glanced at Therese. “That’s the bell signalling the end of recess, Your Excellency.”

“We didnʼt even manage to have our dry run, what a waste of time,” Seraphine grumbled, not forgetting to give Angelica a sidelong look. 

“Letʼs go back to class before the teacher comes,” Liam suggested, sensing that they would be staying in the hall all day if he remained quiet. 

“Mm, letʼs go, Angelica,” I said, holding her hand in an effort to calm her down. 

“See you guys tomorrow!!” Therese waved her hands at us happily before walking off with Miss Faye. 

“Tch, this is so messed up.” Angelica bitterly trailed after Liam and I as we exited the hall, with Seraphine following a distance away. “And thereʼs still so many boring lessons to listen to…” 

“Actually, Iʼm pretty sure the next period is GP, so it wonʼt be too boring,” I said with a laugh. 

“GP?” 

“General Paper,” Liam added. “You basically learn about current affairs in the world and do research on them in class. Itʼs kinda like a free period.”

She wrinkled up her nose. “Like hell I care about the issues of this shitty world…” 

 

---

 

“The previous slides serves as an introduction to the current key trends in Singapore,” Mr. Larie, the GP teacher, clicked a button on his laptop to present the next slide. “I would like to pose a question to the class now. Will anyone like to volunteer?” 

Everyone instantly became quiet and averted their eyes from Mr. Larie.

“If there are no volunteers, I will have to ask someone to come up to the front of the board,” he declared, scanning the silent classroom. “Who is the new student?” 

Angelica gave a resigned sigh and raised her hand reluctantly. “Here…” 

“Call a name for me, Angelica.” 

“Oh?” She blinked in surprise, then turned to me with a devilish grin. 

You are reading story The Hero died, now what? at novel35.com

“Please donʼt—” 

“Avery!” 

“I knew it…” Forcing a smile at the smirking Goddess, I stood up from my seat and walked to the front of the classroom.

“Avery, this is my question,” Mr. Larie said. “Do you still remember what is Section 377A of the Penal Code?” 

I frowned, trying to recall the content covered in the first half of the lesson. “Uhh, section 377A is a law criminalising sex between consenting male adults, Mr. Larie.” 

“Correct. So, I want you to now suppose that you are a gay individual.” 

“O-okay…?” 

Angelica barely suppressed her snort, while Liam cheerfully gave two thumbs up in the air. Even Seraphine looked up from her notebook to watch me with anticipation. 

Unfazed, Mr. Larie continued, “if you and your partner want to settle down right after graduating from school, what do you need first and foremost?” 

I thought for a bit before answering, “a house.” 

“Yes, a house.” Mr. Larie moved on to the next slide. “Over 80% of the population lives in public apartments known as HDB flats, and assuming you are also looking for a HDB flat, do you think you can buy one?” 

“If we have the money to, I guess,” I said. 

Mr. Larie simply smiled. “Unfortunately, LGBT individuals and couples are not eligible to purchase public housing under the current law. Your only choice is to buy a private property, which most people wonʼt be able to afford at a young age.”

I tilted my head to the side. “Huh…”

“Mr. Larie, doesnʼt this mean that the law is discriminatory towards the LGBT community?” Liam quizzed, raising his hand. 

“From an outsiderʼs viewpoint, most likely so,” Mr. Larie answered while switching to the next slide. “This is a quote from the Prime Minister saying that the government does not harass the LGBT community or discriminate against them, but Singapore will not change its law to legalise same-sex marriages. Avery, why do you think the government is taking such a stance?”

I could feel everyoneʼs stares on me as I struggled to read the slide and come up with an answer immediately. “Uh…um…itʼs too troublesome to change the law?” 

“That is one valid point of view,” Mr. Larie said with a smile. “Thank you, you can go back to your seat now. Does anyone else have a different answer?” 

Seraphine raised her hand up politely. “Mr. Larie, is it because thereʼs a silent majority that may turn against those that speak up in favour of liberalisation, such as Gen X and Boomers? Since the government pander to such groups, they may not want to anger their voter base by repealing Section 377A?”

“Wow…” Angelica muttered sarcastically. “I donʼt understand a single word she said.” 

I poked her back with my pen. “Write down notes, or else you wonʼt remember a single thing after this lesson.” 

“A very good analysis, Seraphine. Conservatism is indeed one of the main factors behind a resistance to change.” Mr. Larie glanced at the wall clock and turned to address the class. “Iʼll dismiss you guys early today. Go back home and research about the controversy surrounding LGBT rights in Singapore, and I will pick some people out to present their findings next lesson. Thank you, Class 42S03A.”

“Thank you, Mr. Larie~” 

Angelica let out a relieved sigh and stretched her arms out lazily. “Avery, I wanna go homeeee…” 

“There’s still about three more lessons, hang in there.” I gave her a wry smile. “And actually, you know, Iʼm quite surprised you are so calm about what we just talked about. As someone from up there, donʼt you have any opinions about the topic?” 

“Huh? What did we even talk about just now?” she asked in a deadpan voice. “I was totally lost because everyone was using such complicated words…” 

 

You can find story with these keywords: The Hero died, now what?, Read The Hero died, now what?, The Hero died, now what? novel, The Hero died, now what? book, The Hero died, now what? story, The Hero died, now what? full, The Hero died, now what? Latest Chapter