A Third-Rate Villain’s Sweet Life Exploiting Academy Bugs – Chapter 46

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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There’s a saying: Tears are a woman’s best weapon. Especially when the opponent is a younger girl.

And on top of that…

“I-I don’t like you! Waaaah… I don’t like youuu! Sob… Why did you do that to meee?!”

Lily’s words were rife with potential misunderstandings.

“Don’t tell me… Lev, you…”

Yeriel stared at me, her expression grave.

“…”

Even Aria, usually indifferent to personal matters, shot me a cold glare.

Lily’s outburst implied that I had mistreated her…

I shut it down immediately.

“Sorry, but that’s not what happened.”

.

.

.

Clearing up the misunderstanding wasn’t difficult.

We took a break to regroup.

Even in the game, there was a certain charm in taking a breather by a campfire.

-Sniffle.

Yeriel crouched down, gently wiping Lily’s tears with a handkerchief.

“Lily, you were in the wrong this time.”

“…Yeah.”

“A party is meant for cooperation, and each member has their role to fulfill.”

“…I know…”

Yeriel smiled and whispered something in Lily’s ear.

“…”

Judging from Lily’s darting gaze, I could guess what she said.

Something along the lines of “Why don’t you apologize to Lev first?”

Lily hesitated, fidgeting with her feet.

But her expression showed she understood her mistake.

‘I never expected anything from her anyway.’

She was just a kid; there was no point in wasting energy on a power struggle.

If anything, Kaelan was the true villain for sending a child to spy on me.

I stood up, rummaged through the debris of the fallen golem, and stood before Lily.

“Hand.”

“Huh…?”

“Give me your hand.”

Lily hesitantly extended her small hand.

-Thump.

I placed two orbs in her palm.

The golem’s core, its heart.

“Use these to resummon them.”

“Huh? My golems… can come back…?”

She was speechless.

“You seriously didn’t know that…?”

“I’m a genius; I can just create new ones…”

Truly a self-proclaimed genius summoner.

Crafting golem cores required alchemy proficiency and a significant amount of mana.

No wonder she entered the academy at such a young age.

I explained some of the game mechanics I could recall.

“You don’t need to get attached to every single summon. Especially spirit-based summons; they don’t die, they just return to the spirit world.”

“Really…?”

“Yeah. And the moment you form a contract with a summon, they understand that and offer their assistance willingly.”

“…”

Lily averted her gaze, embarrassed, then whispered,

“…Th… thank you.”

-…

“And… I’m sorry, everyone. I was being stubborn… I’m sorry…”

It was entirely Kaelan’s fault that Lily would eventually specialize in dragon taming.

As revealed in the later parts of ‘Reincarnation Academy’,

Kaelan only used Lily because there was a location containing a hidden piece of equipment accessible only by riding a dragon.

And in the end, he would kill the dragon, extracting its scales, tendons, and essence.

Then, he’d tell Lily, now devoid of her summons, to prove her worth, turning her into his personal healing slave.

In short, to him, Lily was just…

‘A tool.’

Nothing more.

Lily clutched the golem cores I had given her, beaming with delight.

“Hehe… I’m so glad… so glad…”

She was such a child.

‘Well, I guess I’m raising her as a summoner now.’

I wouldn’t let Kaelan manipulate her.

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Lily, the vanguard, tugged at Lev’s sleeve and asked,

“Where should we go…?”

“Left.”

“Okay!”

Yeriel, the party leader, observed this heartwarming? scene, questioning her own leadership skills.

‘Am I… doing a good job as the party leader?’

Actions that hampered party morale or teamwork were definitely penalized in the evaluation,

but Lev had managed to unite the party by using Lily’s impulsiveness to his advantage.

As proof, Lily, who had been stubborn and dismissive of Lev, was now following his instructions like an obedient child.

‘Did he know this would happen…?’

It had been a while since Lily’s first golem fell.

And Lev had picked up its core back then.

His actions suggested he had anticipated this.

Yeriel, who had been sighing, wondering how she should even evaluate their teamwork,

now had nothing to critique.

But she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of… something.

‘It’s the first time… I’ve seen him…’

It was the first time she had seen Lev Denec interact with other students.

She had assumed he would keep everyone at arm’s length, just like he did with her.

But she was wrong.

“Hey, hey. Watch out for that trap ahead.”

“Uh… oh! I almost tripped… thanks.”

He gave Edwin a casual tip, which Edwin accepted readily.

“Aria, how are you holding up?”

“I’m fine. Let’s go.”

“Let me know if you have any problems.”

“Okay.”

He consistently checked on Aria, their sole healer, adjusting their pace accordingly.

To be honest, they didn’t seem particularly close or harmonious.

Their tone was casual, and their interactions felt somewhat detached.

Yet, everyone followed him.

It was here that she could sense it, faintly but clearly.

He was genuinely… acting for the good of the team.

And the others seemed to recognize this implicitly.

A question popped into Yeriel’s mind.

“But why… isn’t he this warm towards me…?”

At Clarice Academy, no one disliked Yeriel, not the professors, the students, or even the staff.

-Yeriel, you seem happy today!

-I am!

-Thank you again today!

-Come back again, dear! You’re such a pleasant young lady.

Yeriel believed that if she treated others sincerely, they would reciprocate, and it had always been true.

In fact, she had invited Lev to her party because she wanted to get to know him better.

That’s why she had made up a ridiculous excuse,

and when he accepted, she thought it was a chance to become closer.

-Please decide on a break time.

-Let me know beforehand when you need to measure the purification levels.

He only spoke to her regarding matters related to their practice.

‘It’s… a bit lonely…’

The fact that he occasionally addressed her as ‘senior’ and even used formal language added to her confusion.

‘Did I… do something wrong to Lev?’

As Yeriel reflected on her past actions, the party reached the heart of the dungeon.

“Wow… it’s huge.”

As Lily exclaimed, it was a vast chamber with a high ceiling, unusual for a cave.

This was the boss room.

A giant white crystal, tainted with black magic, was embedded in the center,

and the chamber branched off into three separate rooms.

The objective of the Dungeon Exploration Practice wasn’t to defeat the boss, but to measure the purification levels in these three rooms.

Yeriel calmly issued instructions.

“Let’s split into teams for perimeter security and purification level measurements.”

Although they had cleared all the monsters encountered so far, this was a practice run with real-world scenarios in mind.

Therefore, the proper protocol, as recommended by the academy, was for three members to measure the purification levels in each room,

while the remaining two guarded the entrance.

At that moment, Lev spoke up.

“Here’s how I think we should split up…”

“I want to be on perimeter duty!”

“Wait…!”

Just as Lily’s interjection threatened to disrupt the team formation,

“Can I… be on perimeter duty with Lev?”

Yeriel blurted out, her true intentions slipping through.

Perhaps she could glean his true feelings if they were alone.

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There was a change in plans.

Only Yeriel and I remained at the entrance.

The monster that would ambush the Dungeon Exploration Practice was a B-rank named monster, the [Blaze Fiend].

According to the original story, the [Blaze Fiend] would appear while they were measuring the purification levels in the three rooms,

and Edwin and Yeriel, the perimeter guards, would defeat it after a joint awakening.

However, this was a super-hell+++ difficulty setting, riddled with the author’s malicious schemes.

Therefore, my original plan was for Aria and me to be on perimeter duty.

We’d use her surveillance magic to track the [Blaze Fiend]’s location,

I’d head there in advance and exploit its weaknesses to weaken it,

and finally, Edwin, empowered by Yeriel’s enchantments, would finish it off with his [Execution Sword].

That was the plan.

‘Does it even matter anymore…?’

It was a shame that I couldn’t pinpoint the location in advance, but since I was still on perimeter duty, it would probably work out.

Yeriel, blissfully unaware of the imminent danger, spoke to me in a friendly tone,

though there was a slight tremor in her voice.

“Thank you, Lev. For granting my request.”

“No problem. It’s the party leader’s order.”

“…”

It pained me to maintain this distance.

But it couldn’t be helped.

This was a turning point where Yeriel was meant to connect with Edwin and experience further growth.

She persisted,

“Ever since Lev joined Black Dormitory… good things have been happening… I managed to communicate with a spirit, and we’ve been getting inquiries about the dormitory.”

“That’s great.”

“You know what? When those inquiries come in, the students often ask about you, Lev.”

“About me?”

“Yes! They ask if this is the dormitory with the handsome student.”

So that’s why people have been whispering behind my back…

“Lev, can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“Is there something… that I did to make you uncomfortable…?”

“Not at all.”

“Then… could you be… a little…”

-Cha-ching!

A status window popped up before my eyes.

‘…?’

… What the… This damn author!

The situation had taken an unexpected turn.

Originally, Edwin was supposed to be the target, but now it was the opposite.

Aria was our only healer,

and she was alone, taking measurements.

‘I have to go now.’

No, even running might be too late.

There was only one option.

“A little warmer to me…”

I stared into Yeriel’s innocent eyes and said,

“Yeriel, close your eyes for a moment.”

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