The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

When Raye woke up, it was already night.

The room was dimly lit by a soft glow from the lantern outside the window.

And when he glanced at the clock on the wall—

It was already 9 PM.

And so, after eating his fill and talking with Jerusha a little more—

Raye decided to go back to sleep.

His body was still sluggish.

His strength hadn’t fully returned.

On the other hand—

Jerusha remained in Raye’s room.

She wanted to keep watch over his condition.

After all—

He had just woken up from a month-long coma.

Complications could still appear.

At first—

"I’ll be fine, you don’t have to stay."

Raye said that.

But—

"Nope."

Jerusha crossed her arms.

"I’m staying."

And she didn’t budge no matter how much Raye tried to refuse.

So in the end—

"Haaa... Fine."

Raye just let out a sigh in defeat.

And opening his mouth again—

"...I’m going to sleep now."

"Thanks again for doing this."

He muttered that.

"It’s nothing big."

Jerusha smiled.

"Sleep well. The faster you recover, the sooner you can get back on your feet."

She said.

"..."

Raye stared at her for a moment—

Then—

Puff—

He sank into the bed.

His exhaustion took over instantly.

And within seconds—

"..."

He fell asleep.

"Haha..."

Jerusha chuckled softly.

"That was fast."

She mumbled, a small smile forming on her lips.

She could sense the mana in Raye’s body settling.

That meant—

He was already in a deep sleep.

Jerusha sat in silence, watching Raye’s peaceful, sleeping face.

And for some reason—

Thump— Thump— Thump—

Her heart was racing.

"Hmmm...?"

Her face felt unusually warm.

And the longer she stared—

The faster her heart beat.

"...?"

She blinked, confused.

’Why am I feeling this way?’

Jerusha asked internally.

She shook her head lightly, trying to dismiss the strange warmth spreading through her chest.

And after that—

Tap—

Fwip-

She stood up from the chair.

Her footsteps were soft as she approached the side of the bed—

Where Raye lay, deep in sleep.

"..."

Jerusha just stared at him for a few seconds.

Then slowly—

Fwish—

She reached out her hand—

Tap-

And gently brushed through his white hair.

’His hair is so smooth...’

She thought absentmindedly.

Her fingers ran through the soft strands, ruffling his hair ever so lightly.

"heh..."

A small smile formed on her lips.

And then—

Pat- pat-

She started patting him.

Soft, gentle pats on his head.

Thump— Thump— Thump—

Her heartbeat grew even louder.

Her cheeks were getting redder.

Her whole body warmer.

"..."

And as she gazed at Raye’s sleeping face—

So calm.

So handsome.

So peaceful.

A deep warmth bloomed in her chest.

And softly—

"Sweet dreams."

Jerusha whispered that with a tender smile.

*****

The next day…

"Ughh... Haaaaaa..."

Raye slowly woke up, his eyelids fluttering open.

"Oof..."

His body still felt sluggish, but at least his senses were much clearer than yesterday.

Then as he adjusted to the dim morning light, his gaze wandered—

And—

"Hm...?"

His eyes landed on Jerusha.

She was sitting beside his bed, her head resting on the mattress, her arms tucked under it like a makeshift pillow.

Her steady, rhythmic breathing told him that she was fast asleep.

It didn’t take much for Raye to understand what had happened.

’She must’ve stayed up all night watching over me…’

Raye thought to himself.

A quiet, gentle warmth spread through his chest.

And then—

"..."

A soft smile appeared on his face.

Pat—

His right hand slowly reached out to her.

Swish~

His fingers brushed against Jerusha’s silky purple hair, stroking it carefully, gently.

Her soft, peaceful expression made him relax as well.

And opening his mouth—

"Rest well."

Raye whispered that, his voice low and warm.

His expression was soft. His eyes tender.

"..."

For a moment, Raye simply watched her sleep, his fingers moving carefully so as not to wake her.

But then, suddenly—

BAM—!!

The door to the room was violently thrown open!

"HUH??"

FWISH—

Raye’s head immediately snapped toward the doorway.

And there—

He saw a group of people stood!

Devin.

Kyle.

Lycus.

Lena.

Leon.

Sofia.

Allen.

All of them stood at the entrance, staring at Raye.

Their faces were brimming with excitement.

They had heard from the elder healer (Raphael) that Raye had finally woken up—

And rushed to his room immediately!

However—

What greeted them was—

"..."

Raye.

Sitting upright in bed.

His right hand gently caressing the sleeping Jerusha’s hair.

And his expression?

It was soft.

Tender.

Affectionate.

And seeing that—

""Huh…?""

The seven froze on the entrance of the room, shocked and speechless.

Their excited expressions shifted.

Confusion.

Shock.

And in some cases—

A knowing smirk!

A heavy silence fell upon the room.

Raye, still half-awake, stared back at them.

"...?"

He blinked.

Then blinked again.

"...Huh?"

And when his brain finally caught up—

"Wait...!!"

His entire body flinched!

FWISH—!!

His hand immediately shot away from Jerusha’s hair!

His eyes wide, frantic as he looked back at them.

"W-Wait, this isn’t—"

But before he could even explain—

"OOOOHHHHHH~"

Devin and Lycus grinned.

Grinned like devils.

"Heh, well, well, well~ What do we have here?"

Lycus smirked, folding his arms.

"A tender, intimate morning scene? Damn, we really interrupted something good, huh?"

Devin added, his smirk stretching wider.

And Raye’s face?

"Ugh..."

He was frowning, embarrassed.

His cheeks becoming rosy as time passes by.

Raye opened his mouth again—

"It’s not—"

But before he could even deny it—

"Jerusha stayed with you all night, huh~?"

Lena went and teased that, rubbing her chin.

"How sweet."

Sofia giggled, looking between Raye and Jerusha while smiling cheerfully. M

"..."

"..."

Allen and Leon just stared.

Their expressions were too unreadable.

"...Should we leave? Let you two continue?"

Leon seriously asked.

And hearing his words...

"Urgh..."

Raye just massaged the temple of his head

"No, you don’t need to leave..."

He said.

Kyle was about to say something this time too.

But at that moment—

BAM—!!

A strong, loud sound echoed through the area!

And following that—

"shut up... please..."

They heard a voice.

It was coming from Jerusha!

"...!"

Everyone froze.

And then—

Fwish~

Jerusha lifted her head.

Her drowsy, half-asleep face turning into one of realization.

"Huh?"

Her mind finally registering the situation.

The way she fell asleep beside Raye.

The way Raye’s hand had been stroking her hair.

And the way EVERYONE was watching them.

"..."

A deep.

Terrible.

Silence.

And then—

"—HAAAAAAAAAAAAAH?!?!?!"

Her entire face exploded in red!

*****

The room was in absolute chaos.

Jerusha’s face was burning.

Raye was frantically trying to explain himself.

And the others—

Devin and Lycus?

Grinning like wolves.

Kyle and Sofia?

Teasing with playful smiles.

Leon?

Still seriously considering if they should leave.

Allen?

Watching with mild amusement.

Lena?

Just silently staring, a smile rested on her face.

"Y-YOU GUYS—!!"

Jerusha stammered, her hands clenching into fists.

"Wow, you two look so close."

Lena giggled, tilting her head.

"Yeah, yeah~ So tell us, when did it start becoming like this?"

Lycus smirked.

BAM—!!

Jerusha immediately threw a pillow at his face.

"Shut up...!"

She exclaimed in embarrassment.

"Oof?! Violence first thing in the morning? Damn..."

Lycus jokingly complained, rubbing his face.

Raye, still flustered, covered his face with one hand.

"Why are you guys even here this early…"

He asked.

It was just barely 6 AM.

"Obviously ’cause we heard you were awake! Do you know how worried everyone was?"

Devin grinned, throwing an arm around Raye’s shoulder.

And at that, the mood finally shifted.

The teasing died down.

And one by one—

Their expressions softened.

The excitement was still there, but now—

It was genuine relief.

Sofia was the first to step forward, reaching into a small satchel on her hip.

"You still look weak, here—"

Clink-

She pulled out a small glass bottle, filled with a shimmering golden liquid.

A high-grade healing potion.

"Drink this, it’ll help with your recovery."

She held it out to Raye with a gentle smile.

Raye blinked, before accepting it.

"Thanks, Sofia."

He said.

Pop-

He uncorked it and took a sip—

A warm, soothing energy immediately spread through his body.

His fatigue, his sluggishness—

It wasn’t completely gone, but it eased.

Meanwhile, Kyle grinned and reached into a wrapped cloth.

"Here, eat this too."

Plop—

He placed a stick of beef skewers in Raye’s hand.

"..."

Raye looked at it.

Then at Kyle.

Then at the entire bag of skewers he was holding.

"...Did you seriously bring an entire meal?"

Kyle smirked.

"Of course! You just woke up after a whole month. You must be starving."

He said warmly.

Raye saw that his left arm was really gone.

It made him feel guilty.

But he knows that Kyle doesn’t want that to break this moment.

So instead, with a smile on his face—

"...Fair enough."

Raye took a bite from the beef skewers in his hand.

The juicy, seasoned beef melted in his mouth.

"...hmm, that’s good."

"Hah! I knew it!"

Kyle grinned, hearing his words.

The mood in the room gradually lightened.

The teasing faded into warm conversation.

Devin crossed his arms.

"You really had us worried, Raye."

Lycus nodded, grinning.

"Yeah, I thought you’d be out for another month. Are you good now?"

And at his question, Raye exhaled.

"Still kinda sluggish… but I’ll manage."

He stated.

Allen leaned against the wall.

"Well, considering that it’s you... You’ll just need a little rest."

He muttered, trying to act cool.

Then Leon, who had been quiet—

"... I’m glad you survived."

Finally spoke.

"...Hmm?"

Leon’s fierce black eyes met his.

"You fought the demons. You held out. And even if you collapsed—"

After a short pause—

"You survived."

He declared that.

"..."

For a moment—

Raye just stared.

Then—

He smiled.

"Yeah… I did."

Everyone was relieved.

The weight of the past month—

The worry, the exhaustion, the uncertainty—

It didn’t disappear.

But for now—

They could breathe.

They could talk.

They could laugh.

Jerusha, still flustered, sat beside Raye, quietly listening to the conversation.

She wasn’t talking much.

But when she glanced at him—

And saw him eating, smiling, talking with everyone—

A small, relieved smile appeared on her lips.

’I’m glad…’

She thought to herself.

And as the day went on—

They all talked and talked, catching up on everything they had missed.