A Third-Rate Villain’s Sweet Life Exploiting Academy Bugs – Chapter 26

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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The circulation train stopped at the platform with the magic tower.

Dusk Valley was a place that took at least an hour by carriage from the big city of Evenbaugh.

Of course, even though my schedule was packed with afternoon classes tomorrow, if I went there quickly, I could return by dawn.

Therefore, to save as much time as possible, I had no choice but to use the portal in the magic tower to teleport to Evenbaugh.

By the way…

A woman with light purple hair and a hat pressed down.

Aria.

She seemed to have been watching me from inside the train.

I asked Aria, who still couldn’t move because she was watching me.

“Aren’t you getting off?”

“…!”

At my words, she was startled for a moment, but soon she got off the train while maintaining a expressionless face.

I intentionally mumbled with a bent intonation.

“I didn’t expect there to be another freshman using the magic tower from the new semester.”

“…”

“What a coincidence.”

“…Ha.”

As I kept dropping hints, Aria let out a small sigh and answered.

“Let’s go together.”

In fact, her company was also something I had induced.

Because without Aria, it would be difficult to detect the final reward.

But even considering that, I needed to pretend.

It would be safer for both of us to always give her the feeling that she was in control.

“…”

Regardless, Aria passed by me and headed towards the magic tower.

.

.

.

“Thank you. Have a safe trip!”

Leaving behind the words of the magic tower staff, we were able to easily arrive at the clock tower of Evenbaugh.

The fee to Evenbaugh was a whopping 2000 gems.

In Korean won, that would be 200,000 won.

Using the portal was so simple that I could really feel the money vanishing into thin air.

Honestly, considering the convenience since it was teleportation, it was ridiculously better than other means of transportation,

and since the researchers living in the magic tower use this money as funds to research magic, using the magic tower must definitely contribute to the development of the academy.

But the problem was that my wallet situation wasn’t so favorable…

Aria also seemed a bit flustered by the considerable amount of money, but she paid without hesitation.

‘Cool.’

Is monitoring me that important to her…

Anyway, Evenbaugh, which we arrived at early in the evening, was noisy as expected of a big city.

-Come on, everyone, take a look at the goods!

-There will be a free performance at the clock tower square!

Although less so than the academy, the city itself felt like it had surpassed medieval civilization, and if I had to say, it felt like visiting a European country from Earth.

Except for the breed of horses, it wasn’t a particularly famous city, but since it was the first village I encountered in the game, it evoked a hometown-like longing.

I shook off my sentimentality and started looking for a carriage first.

.

.

.

“To Dusk Valley, please.”

“Oh my, you startled me… Were you standing there…?”

The coachman responded with surprise only after hearing my voice as he found the freight carriage on the outskirts of the city.

“Where are you headed?”

“Dusk Valley.”

“Well, I don’t usually recommend it as a place for couples to go…”

“It’s fine.”

The coachman, who looked kind, started driving the carriage with an expression that seemed to say “young people’s tastes”.

In “Reincarnated Hero”, Dusk Valley wasn’t particularly an area inhabited by demons, but there were dark rumors circulating, so now it was a setting where people didn’t reside.

That’s probably why the named goblin mob called the Thief used this place as his own treasure vault as he pleased.

If I had to give an impression of the surrounding scenery, it would be a place with a dreamy atmosphere and moderately good scenery no matter what time you went.

After an hour had passed and it had become completely dark, we were finally able to arrive.

“There probably won’t be any carriages going back to nearby villages from here. This road hasn’t been traveled by a single peddler or even an ant for quite a long time. And…”

The coachman, who had received his fare, gave Aria earnest advice as if she was special to him.

“Young lady, be careful. Men are all wolves, wolves…”

“That young master over there, he looks quite nasty too.”

Watching this, I took the lead and started walking.

“It’s okay. Thank you for your concern.”

And Aria also followed me after answering with a slightly considerate tone.

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“Young people these days don’t know the value of their own lives. Tsk.”

The man shook his head and clicked his tongue as he watched the young man and woman walking far away.

Then, he suddenly stopped and started whistling.

“It’s such a pity~!”

His name was Dovrek.

Current coachman,

former thief of the Valacas mercenary corps,

and his main job was an intelligent goblin skilled in disguise.

He had to quit the mercenary corps job in a dishonorable way because his hands were too dirty,

but being a coachman was perfect for his personality of liking to wander around.

And when the situation was right, sneakily stealing the luggage of the passengers was also a profitable source of income that could make use of his specialty.

“They look quite well-off, don’t they?”

Judging from their clothing, they seemed to be quite wealthy.

Unfortunately, the only luggage was the backpack the man was carrying, so there was no intention to steal it.

Anyway, those foolish guys told him with their own mouths to go to Dusk Valley.

‘If they’re from a noble family, they should be able to use some magic.’

They probably came to dig for the rumored treasure, trusting their own skills.

Dovrek’s method was simple.

Spread the rumor that an enormous amount of treasure was buried in Dusk Valley,

hire a group of thieves to ambush the adventurers or mercenaries who come looking for it.

But there was a saying that if the tail is long, it will get caught.

It was said that the knights would soon be dispatched because it was suspected to be the work of demons.

He had already taken out all the treasure to wash his hands of it, but in order to lessen the suspicion, he had to pretend to maintain a temporary blockade.

“Keh-heh-heh!”

Of course, as a coachman, he ended up guiding them to a place he shouldn’t have.

This was the last time, really the last time.

Seeing a pretty woman for the first time in a while, his body naturally got heated up.

A scent he could never smell in the brothels, the gap between her beautiful facial features and her expressionless face that didn’t change much made him unable to restrain himself.

‘I hope she’s a virgin… Heh.’

In the end, Dovrek swallowed his saliva ominously and even started flicking his tongue.

They were properly caught by him, who was like the grim reaper of this place.

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-Crackle!

A lot of time had passed and the surroundings had become completely dark, so I started a campfire in front of the cave first.

-Click!

And after confirming that the carriage had disappeared, I turned off the lantern.

Watching this, Aria asked me.

“Weren’t you going to go in?”

“Shh! This way.”

“…?”

I grabbed Aria’s white wrist and entrusted my body to the darkness, heading not into the cave but down a secluded downhill path behind it.

And slowly, as if whispering, I said,

“Are you still suspicious of me?”

“…Of course…”

“But don’t you think it’s dangerous to follow me like this?”

“…”

I didn’t intend to worry about her, but seeing her struggling to keep up with her frail body, I let it out without realizing it.

“I’m not at the level to be worried about.”

“Yeah, but since the situation is what it is, let’s trust each other for now.”

“What?”

“Originally, I was planning to come here to catch a demon.”

“A demon? Are you saying a demon appears here?”

At the word demon, Aria looked around.

“Yeah, but the situation has changed.”

“?”

“Just now, that coachman who gave us a ride, he’s suspicious.”

According to the original game setting, the horses in Evenbaugh are very sensitive and irritable.

So I also had a hard time taming them, and it was even more difficult when going on rough roads.

But those horses moved as naturally as if they were running on a path they always took.

-This road hasn’t been traveled by a single peddler or even an ant for quite a long time.

It was also questionable that he knew the way skillfully even though he said there were no peddlers or returning carriages.

Well, he might be a veteran and have been a coachman for a long time,

but if I recalled my memories of the “Reincarnated Hero” game,

the quests that appeared in this kind of situation usually had the premise of being betrayed by an NPC as the basic ending.

In other words, the coachman might be the mastermind or the thief.

As my thoughts were organized like this, a status window popped up in front of my eyes.

-Ching!

That makes sense.

If my prediction is correct, the moment we put out the campfire and enter the cave, the group of thieves who were waiting will receive a signal and ambush us.

In fact, the group of thieves wouldn’t be very strong,

but since it’s ultra-hell difficulty, the number of them is unpredictable, and they are experts at fighting dirty.

Fighting while taking Aria along would be too risky.

The most important thing is that my Recluse trait only applies to demons.

Therefore, it means that I can’t guarantee the sneak effect or the critical hit confirmation effect against actual humans.

Instead, the Thief will definitely be a demon.

Unfortunately, since Demon’s Eye is only level 1, I couldn’t see through his unique skill of disguise,

-Oh my, you startled me… Were you standing there…?

But seeing how he noticed my presence belatedly, it’s sufficiently possible to have a reasonable suspicion.

In the end, the best option is to catch only the demon, seize his carriage, and make a strategic retreat.

-Rustle. Rustle.

“…I feel a shadow from over there.”

Aria also seemed to have felt this, as she muttered while looking towards the campfire.

They had already started their work.

She wasn’t the type to easily trust people,

so unlike other heroines,

she would never create a sweet potato development like

‘The coachman uncle wouldn’t do that!’

Instead,

the problem was that she couldn’t trust me either.

“There’s no time this time either.”

I looked straight into Aria’s eyes and said,

“If you trust me, nod your head.”

At these words, her eyes holding the color of lapis lazuli began to waver.

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[i think my brain died]