The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

After meeting everyone again after being in ama—

Raye and the others talked.

They started catching up.

Most of them were just filling Raye in on what they had been doing for the past month.

Which Raye already knew some of it from Jerusha—

But hearing things directly from them was much more detailed.

And so—

Raye listened with a smile resting on his face.

At first, Jerusha was still quiet, still feeling the embarrassment from earlier.

But after a while—

She calmed down and joined thenversation.

And with that—

They all started talking, sharing stories, and updating each other.

Raye was happy.

Lycus. Devin. Lena. Jerusha. Kyle. Sofia. Leon. Allen—

They were having a good time too.

Catching up with Raye...

It wasmforting.

Because deep down—

They were really worried.

And now that they saw him awake, alive, and smiling—

It finally felt real.

And as thenversation went on—

Kyle suddenly unwrapped something.

Beef skewers.

"Alright! Enough talking, eat up!"

Kyle grinned, holding them out.

And when he did—

"Whoa, you brought all that?"

Devin blinked.

"Heh! I came prepared!"

Kyle smirked.

And like that—

Everyone started eating.

The room was filled with the scent of grilled meat, the sounds of chewing, and the occasional teasing.

For the first time in a while—

It felt... normal.

...

...

But as the afternoon arrived—

One by one—

They started leaving...

Kyle left first.

Heuldn’t leave the shop unattended for too long, especially since it was still being rebuilt.

"Don’t worry, I’ll drop by again later."

Kyle said, waving as he left.

Next was Allen, Leon, Lycus, and Devin.

They were heading to the woods—probably to spar.

"Rest up, Raye. We’ll be back later."

Leon said simply.

Devin smirked.

"Next time, you’re joining us."

Lycus chuckled.

"Yeah, no slacking off forever, you know."

"...Right, right."

Raye laughed, waving them off.

And not long after—

Sofia left too.

She needed to make more potions to help the injured.

"Take care, Raye. And don’t push yourself too hard."

She reminded him before leaving.

And finally—

Lena.

She returned to the library.

Studying more healing magic.

She didn’t say much—

But as she left, she gave one last glance at Raye before disappearing behind the door.

And just like that—

"..."

"..."

Raye and Jerusha were left alone again.

But soon—

"I need to go back to my dorm too."

Even Jerusha needs to leave.

"I need to clean myself up and take care of a few things."

She said.

Raye looked at her.

She had been with him since the moment he woke up.

She probably needed the break.

"Alright."

He weakly nodded his head.

But before leaving—

"I’llme back first thing in the morning, so don’t worry."

Jerusha said with a worried smile.

And smiling back at her—

A reassuring smile of his own—

"Rest well. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine."

Raye declared that.

"..."

Jerusha stared at him for a moment.

And then—

A real smile.

Genuine. Soft.

Compared to the last one—

This one felt lighter.

And with that—

Thud-

She turned and left, the door shutting behind her.

"..."

Raye was left alone in the room.

Fwish-

Fwoosh-

He looked around.

It was Quiet.

Empty.

The warmth, the noise, the laughter that filled the room just moments ago—

"Hmm..."

It was gone.

And now—

Only silence remained.

"..."

Raye’s gaze lowered.

His right hand—

The same one that had just been patting Jerusha’s head earlier.

The same one that had just been grabbing a beef skewer.

The same one that had just been waving goodbye to everyone.

Now—

It just rested on his lap.

Cold and still.

"...This is boring."

Raye mumbled.

His fingers twitched slightly.

He clenched them—

Then loosened them again.

"Haaaaaaa..."

A sigh escaped his lips.

For the past month, he had been unscious.

Not thinking.

Not feeling.

But now that he was awake—

Now that he had felt the warmth of his friends again—

Being alone like this felt...

Lonely.

"..."

He leaned back against the headboard.

He stared at the ceiling.

His mind started drifting—

Back to the battles.

Back to the flames.

Back to the moment hellapsed.

Back to the moment he almost didn’t wake up.

"..."

His eyes slowly shut.

And deep inside—

A thought crept in.

’What if I never woke up?’

A question that made his heart nervous.

’Would they have still been laughing like that?’

He asked, pertaining to Jerusha and the other.

’Would they have still eaten together like that?’

’Or would they have been—’

But then—

"...Tch."

Raye clicked his tongue, shaking his head.

’What was he even thinking?’

He said in his head, realizing how negative he was being.

Jerusha and the others...

They were here.

They were alive.

And so was he.

That should be enough.

But still—

Fwip-

Raye clenched his fist again.

The silence of the room pressed against his chest.

It felt... heavy.

And for the first time since waking up—

He realized something.

Lying in bed like this...

Doing nothing...

Being alone in an empty room...

Remembering about Old Man Rey...

"Fuuu..."

Raye realized that being weak in this world can make you lose something or someone important.

And so with a resolute expression on his face—

"I need to rver fast and get out of this damn room."

Raye declared that.

And with that—

Puff—

He laid down on the bed and rested instead.

...

...

...

*****

Four days had passed since Raye woke up.

And finally—

"You’re good to go now. We hope to not see you here so often."

Raphael said that with a smirk on his face.

He was being discharged!

"...Hah."

Raye exhaled, a small, relieved smile forming on his lips.

He was healed enough to leave the hospital.

Heuld finally go back to normal.

And hearing that news—

"Finally..."

He muttered that under his breath.

And then—

"Yay! You’re out now!"

Jerusha’s voice rang out, full of excitement.

Fwish—

"..."

Raye turned to her.

She was beaming.

Her violet eyes glowed with warmth.

Her hands were clasped together, and her smile—

It was genuine, bright, and happy.

Thump—

A strange, yet familiar warmth pounded in Raye’s chest.

And at that moment—

’Ah...’

A realization dawned on him.

From the moment he had opened his eyes—

Jerusha was there.

She had been watching over him when he was still in ama.

She had been the first person he saw when he woke up.

And even after that—

She had stayed.

Through the past few days—

She was there.

"..."

Raye’s gaze softened.

His mind recalled even more.

She even kept her promise.

She brought Pyro and Zephyrus yesterday.

And just remembering how excited the two spirits had been—

How they nuzzled into him, full of joy and relief—

Raye’s smile widened.

Hentinued remembering.

Not just these past few days.

Not just this time.

But before too.

Throughout the time he knew her.

Every single time she had helped him.

Every single time she cared for him.

And at the end of all those thoughts—

Something clicked inside Raye.

’I see...’

He realized something himself.

A truth he had never acknowledged before.

"..."

His lips almost curled up even more.

His face threatened to heat up.

And looking at Jerusha again—

The way she smiled.

The way she cheered for his rvery.

The way she looked so happy just because he was okay.

Thump— Thump— Thump—

His heart pounded faster.

His breath hitched.

And finally—

A single thought entered his mind.

’I like her.’

Thump—

His heartnfirmed it. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Thump—

Even more.

Thump—

And even more than that.

"..."

Raye’s face heated up.

His heart was pounding so fast, he almost thought it would burst out of his chest.

And then—

A thought entered his mind.

’I want to tell her.’

Right here.

Right now.

’I want to tell Jerusha how I feel...’

Raye declared internally.

(Bruh... That’s bold...)

But then—

"..."

’No.’

Fwip—

He suddenly shook his head, forcing himself to calm down.

The old man.

The demons.

The situation.

Everything.

It all came crashing back down on him.

’Not now.’

Raye thought.

This wasn’t the time.

Not when things were still uncertain.

Not when there was still so much ahead of them.

And so—

After finally calming himself down—

’Once everything has settled… that’s when I’ll tell her.’

Raye declared that to himself.

So instead—

"..."

He just stayed silent.

He looked at Jerusha.

She was still smiling.

Still cheering for him.

Still happy.

A bright, genuine smile on her face.

And seeing that—

"...?"

Jerusha blinked, tilting her head innfusion.

She had noticed the way Raye was staring at her.

But she didn’t question it.

She just kept smiling.

She just kept being Jerusha.

And looking at her like that—

’God, she’s so cute.’

Raye thought of that.

Thump- thump- thump—

His heart was beating faster.

But—

"Fuuu..."

Raye took a quiet breath, steadying himself.

He wasn’t flustered. He wasn’t panicking.

He had already made up his mind.

Not now.

His feelings were clear, but he would wait.

He was calm.

"...Raye?"

Jerusha called out, tilting her head slightly.

He had been staring at her for a while now.

"Ah... It’s nothing."

Raye simply smiled, his gaze warm and unwavering.

Jerusha blinked but then just shrugged it off, still smiling brightly.

"Well,me on! You just got discharged, right? Let’s get out of here!"

She stretched her arms and turned toward the door.

And watching her—

Raye let out a small chuckle.

"Yeah."

He followed after her, his steps light.

Even if he wasn’t saying it yet—

He already knew.

And that was enough for now.