The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

(Raye's POV)

THUD!

I watched as the three burning bodies of the mini bosses fell to the ground with a loud crash.

"..."

My face winced as a sharp pain shot through my arms. I had gone too fast earlier, and the recoil from my last attack slammed through my body.

Though—

'It's not that bad.'

I just shrugged off the pain and ignored it.

"You can come out now, Zephyrus."

I said. Then right after that—

SWOOSH—

The wings made of wind behind me flared loudly. It was Zephyrus answering.

And just a second later...

WHOOSH—!

A bright orb shot out from my armor. And from there—

-Fwaaaah—!!

Zephyrus appeared.

-That was mana draining...

He mumbled weakly. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

And looking at him—

'You said it.'

I silently agreed, nodding slightly.

Fwip—

[Celestria] then shifted back into a normal white armor, the wings of wind vanishing. Its design turning a bit bland.

This was because the [Fuse] with Zephyrus had ended.

FWISH—

I dismissed the armor anyway, transforming [Celestria] back into a ring and slipping it onto my middle finger.

'Moving with it is too restraining.'

Even though it looked light, it had been pressing down on my body the whole fight.

Which would've been bad for me if I hadn't used [Fuse] with Zephyrus.

Just as I thought that—

-MEEP!

Zephyrus and I heard a loud chirp behind us. And without even looking—we already knew who it was.

-Meep!

Fwoosh—

Pyro appeared from behind and landed neatly on my left shoulder.

"Thanks for the help earlier."

I said, smiling and turning to him.

-Meep!

He replied cheerfully.

-What are we going to do now?

Zephyrus then asked me that.

"Oh."

I muttered dumbly. I looked at the three burning monsters on the ground. And opening my mouth—

"Let's set up our camp here and rest."

I just said that.

*****

Pyro and Zephyrus were pretty tired, so they immediately agreed to settle here.

I took out our tent from my spatial storage and set it up not far from the mini bosses.

Then after that—

"Let's eat, guys."

I made us some dinner and we started eating.

-Ugh, I'm hungry...

-Meep...

Zephyrus and Pyro muttered as we each took a bite of our food. We didn't have to worry much about monsters now because of the bodies of the mini bosses.

Their smell spread throughout the area, marking this place as their territory, and warding off the weaker monsters.

So finally, after a very long time—

"Haaaaa..."

-Fuuuuuu...

-Meeeeep...

Zephyrus, Pyro, and I got to relax and laze around.

...

...

...

After resting for a while—

"It's still burning, huh."

I checked the bodies of the mini bosses. The flames engulfing them had weakened, but they hadn't died down yet.

"Blow the fire off, Zephyrus."

I said, turning to my right.

And there—

-Hmm, sure.

Zephyrus nodded his fluffy head.

Fwoosh~

He flew above my head. Then, opening his small beak—

-[Gust]

He mumbled.

S W O O O S H—!!!

A violent wave of wind burst forth from Zephyrus. And with that—

SHHHH—!!

He killed off the fire from the mini bosses' bodies. Just like that.

"Thanks."

I told him.

-No biggie.

Fwish~

Zephyrus casually replied as he landed back onto my left shoulder.

-Meep meep!

Pyro chirped on my other shoulder, complimenting Zephyrus too.

-Hmm...

Zephyrus just smirked smugly and shrugged his wings.

Meanwhile, me—

Tap- tap- tap—

I ignored the two and started walking toward the burnt monsters' bodies.

I walked until I stood right on top of the Glittermaw Ape's burnt body.

-Hmm?

Zephyrus tilted his head from my shoulder.

-What are you looking for?

He asked, his voice curious.

On my other side, Pyro mimicked him, tilting his small round head too, clearly having the same question in mind.

I just smiled slightly and answered them without looking back—

"It's just something that'll help me."

I said casually.

Then without hesitation—

Tap- tap—

I stepped down from the ape's chest and made my way toward its stomach area.

Fwoosh—

Zephyrus and Pyro stayed perched on my shoulders, still curious, watching my every move.

And then—

Fwip—

I took out [Nyx] from my spatial storage ring.

Its black blade gleamed faintly under the dying light.

And without a moment's pause—

SLASH—!

I swung it down.

The blade of [Nyx] easily sliced through the burnt flesh of the Glittermaw Ape's stomach!

SHLICK—!!

A nasty squelch echoed out as the blade carved open a line across the ape's abdomen.

A foul, steamy stench immediately burst into the air, thick and heavy.

"..."

I squinted slightly, waving a hand to clear the smoke-like fumes. Smells like shit.

-MEEP—!!

Pyro squealed, his face scrunching up at the horrible smell.

-Ughh... what the hell is that...

Zephyrus complained, gagging a little and burying his head into the back of my neck.

I just let them be.

Fwoosh—

I knelt down slowly om one knee.

Squish—

I reached my hand into the cut.

Warm, sticky fluids clung to my hand, but I ignored the disgusting sensation and dug deeper.

Though, my frown is getting deeper and deeper.

-Tch... gross...

Zephyrus muttered from behind me, shivering.

Even Pyro puffed up in distress and looked away.

'Ugh, if only I can see it... I'll use telekinesis to avoid doing this.'

I grumbled internally. Then, not long after—

"Ah...!"

My hand felt something round.

"...Found it."

I murmured with a grin.

And in the next moment—

Fwish!

I pulled something out from inside the Glittermaw Ape's body.

It was—

A small, dark red crystal, about the size of my palm, pulsing faintly like a living heart.

-Huh?

-Meep?

Zephyrus and Pyro peeked over my shoulders, curious once again.

"This."

I said, holding it up to eye level.

"This is what I was looking for."

The faint heartbeat of mana thrummed from the crystal, vibrating against my palm.

It wasn't just any crystal.

It was a [Core].

A monster's crystallized mana heart.

Only named and strong monsters have them.

And the reason I was looking for it was because—

'In the game, after defeating the mini bosses and finding this, Leon later learned that he could absorb their essence. And after doing just that... his strength and mana skyrocketed.'

That's right. I'm planning to take this for myself.

And not just this—

"I need to get the other cores from the two mini bosses too."

I mumbled, shifting my gaze toward the Chromaworm and Verdant Maul lying on the ground.