A Third-Rate Villain’s Sweet Life Exploiting Academy Bugs – Chapter 79

—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
—————————————————————–

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

 
“Why… is he avoiding me?”

In the Hall of Struggle, the blonde knight, Aveline Valantes, was walking around the training ground with her thumb nail against her lips.

Raymond and Emma’s testimony that a man using a crossbow was heavily involved in defeating the Pleasure Lord.

-I’m telling you it’s him! That person!

Even with testimony, it was hard to believe.

The Pleasure Lord was an expedition-level boss, how could someone do it alone?

Nobody could easily accept it without witnessing the process of defeat with their own eyes.

In the end, she had followed Lev to confirm this, but he openly avoided Aveline.

No, he ignored her.

Lev Denec, just a rank B man.

Meanwhile, Aveline was the young lady of a prestigious family with the background of the highly regarded [Divine Valhalla].

Naturally, when such a woman showed interest, wasn’t it a man’s duty to respond?

But he left his seat as if he disliked even starting a conversation.

-Gnaw.

“Did he really defeat the Pleasure Lord alone…!”

Unless it was to that extent, there was no reason to act so high and mighty.

Aveline recalled Lev Denec from her memory.

‘Come to think of it, he wasn’t overwhelmingly outmatched by Kaelan either…’

Though the outcome was Lev Denec’s defeat, hadn’t he surrendered by his own mouth?

Truly, the thought that he might be hiding his true abilities excited Aveline.

And if it was true that he had defeated [Pleasure Lord] alone, if other guilds were to find out about this fact…

It was clear as day they would try to recruit him with burning enthusiasm.

‘Then I, I must hurry…!’

With Kaelan faltering, Aveline was feeling urgent.

When the second semester started, they would begin selecting hero candidates separately.

To belong to a hero party consisting of five people, capable companions were absolutely essential.

-Gnaw.

It was a natural truth to bet on the highest card if you had one.

She couldn’t stay still if she wanted to avoid tarnishing Divine Valhalla’s honor.

-Gnaw!

“…!”

When Aveline was driven to such psychological crisis, she saw a ray of light.

Where the male students’ sidelong glances were directed.

Yeriel Artina caught her eye.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

-Thump thump.

Several days after returning from the Imperial Capital, Yeriel’s heart wouldn’t calm down.

‘I told a lie…’

Actually, the private tutoring to teach magic was supposed to end today.

Given his limit as measured by the crystal ball that detected innate magic power, his growth potential was around 3rd circle.

Of course, his growth speed was amazingly fast, taking much less time than Yeriel had expected.

Originally, she should have seen his face for over two weeks…

-It’s until to-tomorrow, so you must come… read this first, same time, same place.

Was that why? Yeriel had unconsciously said there was a schedule tomorrow too.

“Really…”

Since vacation had started, Rev probably had his own schedule like returning to his family temporarily.

She had told an unwanted lie.

‘I have to go back this time too…’

Of course, she too had to return to the Artina family mansion located at the border before vacation ended.

That’s what being noble meant. One couldn’t invest all their time just in the Academy.

This wasn’t the end of the schedule.

If there was one thing Yeriel was looking forward to now,

-Yeriel… I might have to see those kids again… First years really don’t listen! Just because we’re the same age they think they can take it easy, what’s with that?

As her friend Daisy, who had skipped grades together, had grumbled,

after the Claris festival that would be held in a few days ended, there was a travel schedule for improving relationships between seniors and juniors.

Of course, since they would go as a group, she didn’t know what the detailed composition would be,

but if she was lucky, she could become part of Lev’s supervised group.

Also, since the one night two day journey to the Imperial Capital was fun, wouldn’t travel be even better than that?

‘And… I need to work harder in the second semester…!’

Yeriel clenched her fists.

With great difficulty… she had received permission to operate Black Tower in the second semester.

It was thanks to Lev not making things big.

‘…’

And Yeriel left a part of her heart empty.

Lev who had been with her throughout the first semester.

Now that he had cleared all his demerits, expecting him to choose Black Tower again would be greedy.

“Lady Yeriel.”

“?”

At that moment, a familiar shadow approached her.

“It has been a while since I saw you.”

The Academy’s unique way of speaking. It was Aveline.

“Aveline?”

“I am glad to see you look well.”

The two finished their friendly greetings.

And Yeriel asked with a peaceful smile.

“Did something happen?”

“Well, actually… I have a favor to ask…”

“You can speak comfortably…!”

To Aveline who was slightly trailing off, Yeriel answered with the intention of granting her request if possible.

After all, it was Aveline who had helped with Edwin’s training at Lev’s request last time.

“From my perspective, Lady Yeriel seems to maintain quite a close relationship with that man, Lev Denec…?”

“Le…v?”

When Lev’s name came from Aveline’s mouth, Yeriel was momentarily flustered but soon handled it calmly.

“…I… guess? So that’s how it looks… Ah, I suppose it’s because I’ve been teaching him various things these past few days…!”

“Then this will be quick. There has been talk of recruiting Lord Lev at my guild Divine Valhalla.”

“At Aveline’s guild…?!”

Divine Valhalla was generally known to the public as the Holy Knights Guild.

Of course, since they couldn’t fulfill all guild missions with just holy knights, they had built up some level of cooperative guilds and members.

Therefore, being directly under Divine Valhalla could be seen as an extremely exceptional offer even if not as a holy knight.

Above all, even more so because one could cooperate with experts comparable to the Imperial Knights in the Empire.

“However, could Lady Yeriel tell him to come visit Divine Valhalla for a tour? Of course, if both of you came together, I would welcome it even more.”

“Ah, that…”

Yeriel thought for a bit, then organized her position.

“Since it’s related to the guild, wouldn’t it be better for Aveline to tell Lev directly rather than me, an unrelated person…?”

“…Well…”

“?”

To Yeriel’s question, Aveline slightly turned her head and avoided her gaze.

Guild experiences, tours, or even recruitment tests were frequently seen at the Academy during vacation.

And it was quite exceptional for a large guild like Divine Valhalla to show interest in a first-year student first.

‘But why… ask me?’

“As Lady Yeriel knows! Since we’re not close, it’s difficult to make a separate occasion… that’s why.”

“I see….”

“That… didn’t I grant Lady Yeriel’s request last time?!”

“That’s true but…”

“So if you help just this once… I would be really grateful!”

At Aveline’s words, Yeriel suddenly remembered what Aria had told her in the Imperial Capital.

-Yes, Lev seemed uncomfortable somehow, so he said we should leave.

The story that Lev had avoided his seat when Aveline approached.

Of course, she would need to hear both sides, but Lev must have had his reasons for acting that way too.

‘Since I… decided to trust Lev.’

She apologized to Aveline in a polite tone.

“Sorry, Aveline, but this request seems difficult.”

“!!”

Though she was someone who had trouble refusing requests, she could be infinitely firm when it came to Lev.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Claris Academy, Evolution Chamber.

-You came.

Sinatis spoke as if she had known I would come.

After the Yeriel rescue incident, this was the first time properly facing Sinatis.

Of course it was awkward.

-Swoosh.

I held out the gift first without preamble.

“A gift for you that I brought from the Imperial Capital.”

Sinatis, who received the well-wrapped small box, looked at me in silence as if telling me to explain.

-…

“I’m grateful for flying me to Black Tower then. You’ll like it.”

Sinatis used most of her mana for operating this chamber.

Therefore, both flying me with the griffin then and bringing Edwin must have been quite burdensome for her.

-…

After receiving my gift, Sinatis looked at me briefly, then walked ahead.

It seemed like she was telling me to follow, so I followed behind her.

.

.

.

-When alone, here.

After passing through numerous rooms like that.

At the end of the chamber’s corridor. A place with few people.

What she led me to was what looked like a private training room…

A private room.

-As Spirit King Ariel said, helping you is my duty.

She seemed to have opened her heart to me a little like in the novel, no longer speaking in two syllables.

And what this implied was simple.

Due to the Fallen Angel Tobiel incident, Sinatis seemed to have noticed something about me.

At least about me using demon power.

So the reason for preparing a private room was… that she wouldn’t restrict the use of dark magic.

“You knew.”

-….

Sinatis didn’t deny it.

But I had already contracted with the Wind Spirit King,

and since she was a beast of the spirit realm, this was all there was to our relationship.

Sinatis would grow me with awakening glands,

and I would get awakening essence to strengthen wind archery.

She probably wouldn’t intervene with me beyond that.

It was Sinatis who had sworn not to get involved with humans anymore after losing the previous hero Kroon.

“I look forward to working with you.”

-…Don’t need, explanation?

“No.”

I answered briefly and entered the chamber.

.

.

.

What was tested in Evolution Chamber’s Trial 3 was simple.

If Trial 1 was strength and magic power,

Trial 2 was resonance and mental power, agility and vitality,

Trial 3 evaluated these comprehensively.

In other words, the wind avatar created by Sinatis…

Had to be overcome.

‘That means it’s an impossible difficulty…’

While curiosity might arise about how other year students at the Academy did it,

it was simple.

From Trial 3, the entry limit expanded to 5 people who had cleared Trial 2.

In other words, it was content meant to be cleared as a party.

What Sinatis had tried to explain to me was probably ‘this isn’t a place to go alone…’

But…!

There was a reason for ignoring that and coming in.

The super hell difficulty… was reflected in this Evolution Chamber’s trials too.

-Ding.

While saying it’s not recommended, they give differentiated rewards.

This is completely… tsundere isn’t it!

Anyway if asked whether I could resist this…

“Absolutely not.”

I chose the third option, ‘1-Person Clear’.

-Ding!

‘Doing it. 1-Person Clear.’

-Ding.

‘They’re really laying it on thick.’

When demons are about to invade and threaten lives soon, would I be scared of just this?

I shouted yes naturally, like shouting “dollar”.

-Ding.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

After Lev Denec disappeared into the chamber,

-Rip.

Sinatis unwrapped the gift he had given.

It was a music box.

Just an ordinary music box that the previous hero Kroon Darunhill used to carry.

Sinatis unknowingly began winding the music box’s spring.

-♪?♩~

A memento that Kroon had used to reassure her when first meeting her as a beast.

She had lost it a long time ago,

how did he know to bring this?

-♪?♩~

Lev Denec used demon power.

But as if asking her to believe that it wasn’t in a bad direction at all,

the familiar melody reassured Sinatis.

-……Kroon.

.

.

.

-If you understand, then apologize to my companion.

-Hey, what kind of attitude is that toward the professor?

Even suddenly standing up for himself.

-Given… time is running out. Must go.

-It’s urgent. Please give me a ride.

Not hesitating particularly in his actions either.

Above all, even though it was a trial made considering 5 people, not coming out… indeed…

-You, resemble him.

Though their personality and appearance were very different, why did he overlap with him?

While fiddling with the music box,

Sinatis showed a lonely smile.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇