The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

After taking all the weapons and armors from the dead Kobolds…

Raye stored them outside the middle room.

And there, he took his time selecting armors that fit him and were still in good condition to use...

"Hup."

Raye wore a leather breastplate, followed by leather vambraces on each of his forearms.

Then, after covering them with his cape…

"There."

He put leather pauldrons on top, protecting his shoulders.

Enjoy new tales from empire

"Hmm, this is good."

Raye mumbled to himself.

-Meep!

And Pyro agreed with his words.

-Meep! Meep!

He was saying that Raye looked cool.

"Haha, thanks."

Raye replied with a smile, patting Pyro’s head gently.

And then, out of curiosity…

’Status.’

He opened his status window.

Swoosh—

=====

Name: Raye Alvah

Age: 18

Year Level: 1

Race: Human

-----

Stamina: 28

Intellect: 31

Mana: 21

Strength: 25

Speed: 27

Talent: 28

Luck: 27

-----

Wind Element: Level 12 (67%)

Fire Element: Level 12 (9%)

Spirit Magic: Level 9 (99%)

Bow: Level 11 (19%)

Dagger: Level 11 (18%)

Cooking: Level 9 (86%)

...

...

-----

Overall Grade: F+

Growth Rate: S-

=====

"I knew it, I ranked up."

Raye mumbled to himself, seeing his overall grade increase by one rank.

He already had a hunch while fighting the Kobolds, but he was only able to confirm it now.

Raye had been wondering why his attacks were effective against monsters two ranks higher than him.

But now he could see why…

’I’m just a bit below them, huh.’

Turns out the gap between him and the monster became small.

It happened when Raye discovered this mansion was a dungeon and received +5 points to all his stats!

But still, even with all of this…

’I still don’t think I can defeat the giant boar in the last room.’

Raye thought to himself.

And so, he decided…

"I’ll farm these two rooms for a while first to get stronger."

-Meep!

Pyro wholeheartedly agreed with his decision.

*****

Bank in the academy... 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Six days had passed since Raye left.

"Huff..."

Old Man Rey was chopping logs to be used as firewood for the cabin.

He had just returned from hunting in the forest, bringing back a deer and three rabbits.

He was storing them, planning to cook them all for Raye when he came back.

"Hi, mister!"

Just then, Jerusha arrived.

"Oh, hello."

Old Man Rey greeted her with a smile.

Jerusha visited daily to check on the old man while Raye was away, figuring he might be lonely.

And since her training place was nearby anyway, it was convenient.

"Raye’s coming back tomorrow, right?"

Jerusha asked excitedly.

And with a slight smile on his face...

"Yeah."

Old Man Rey responded.

"I’ll finally have someone to do the chores, ha!"

Then he added with a laugh.

Jerusha just laughed along, she knows that the old man was a tsundere and can’t be honest with his feelings.

Anyway, as they were talking…

"Hello!"

"Good afternoon."

Devin and Kyle arrived, greeting them!

"Oh, you two are here again today."

Old Man Rey said, looking at them.

"Hello!"

While Jerusha greeted them back.

And after that…

"Here’s today’s delivery."

Kyle handed a container to the old man.

Old Man Rey took it casually, smiling at Kyle as if this were normal.

Then, looking at inside the container...

The old man saw a few roasted beef skewers!

Kyle and Devin came by daily to deliver food and help with chores, following Raye’s instructions before he left.

They’re using their free time here, that’s why they got close with Jerusha and the old man.

"Let me help you, old man!"

Devin exclaimed, taking the axe from Old Man Rey.

"Oh, thanks."

Watching Devin excitedly chop logs...

’Hmm, I can’t imagine that brat being friends with someone this energetic.’

The old man unconsciously thought of that.

’Anyway, that brat did something unnecessary...’

Then he glanced at the container in his hands, filled with roasted beef skewers.

And although he thought that…

"..."

There’s a slight smile resting on his face.

"I’m excited to see Brother Raye again."

Kyle said, smiling sweetly.

And with a loud voice…

"Me too!"

Devin added.

"Haha, let’s all wait for him tomorrow, then."

Jerusha suggested.

"Okay!"

"I’m in."

And the two of them responded immediately.

They quickly decided to welcome Raye back to the cabin.

"..."

The old man didn’t say anything, but he thought it was a good idea.

So with that...

"I’ll handle the food!"

The old man declared that.

""YEAAAAHHH!!!""

Then Jerusha, Kyle, and Devin responded in unison, excited to throw a small party for Raye!

...

...

...

Sunday then arrived—the day Raye was supposed to return!

Inside the cabin were five people.

Old Man Rey, Jerusha, Devin, Kyle, and Lena.

Jerusha invited Lena, thinking she was friends with Raye.

Lena couldn’t decline, as her senior practically dragged her here.

And so, here she was…

’Hmm, let’s just see what he achieved outside the academy.’

Lena thought, figuring it wouldn’t hurt to stay.

And so, the five waited excitedly for Raye.

They waited and waited…

Until the sun set.

Though...

Raye didn’t return.

*****

(Raye’s POV)

"Ugh, so tired."

I mumbled, having just killed three Kobolds in less than a minute.

I had been in the dungeon for about eight days now.

The academy staff was probably searching for me.

’But I shouldn’t rely on them.’

After all, Act II should be starting right now…

The C-Class and D-Class students would be rebelling, trying to overthrow the A-Class nobles.

They would expose the nobles’ unjust methods and demand a re-assignment of classes.

The academy wouldn’t comply at first, leading the students to destroy academy property as an act of rebellion.

Though, later on…

"The academy would eventually comply and do a proper re-assignment of classes."

This is the part where the other main characters will appear and shine.

I was sure that everything would go well this time, especially since I wasn’t there to cause a butterfly effect.

So, I have nothing to worry about.

Then, remember about the academy...

"I wonder how the old man and the others are doing back there."

I mumbled that under my breath.

-Meep...

Pyro chimed in, saying he missed them.

"I feel the same way."

I said to him.

"Let’s get out of here as quickly as possible."

I added, smiling at Pyro.

-Meep!

And Pyro replied enthusiastically, saying we could do it.

"..."

I patted his head with a smile as I sat on the ground to rest.

"I need to get stronger fast."

I said.

I’m really starting to miss my life in the academy.