How to Survive as the Academy’s Villain

Chapter 22

“……”

Only after noticing Lois looking at me with curious eyes did I manage to take a step. For a bridge connecting cliffs, it should be safely secured! You need to maintain balance by hanging ropes on huge pillars on both sides to keep the tension. What kind of floating magic bridge is this?!

‘No, it’s not because I’m scared. It’s just an incomprehensible situation, so it’s cognitive dissonance.’

Does it make sense for stones to float in the air without anything below them according to the laws of physics? Seriously, it’s not because I’m scared!

“Phew.”

Fortunately, once I took a step, the floating stone bridge quickly came to an end. I could feel my teammates looking at me with strange expressions, and I heard Mellin grumbling, but overall, they seemed to let it slide. It was an experience that made me realize I had fallen into a world different from the one I originally lived in.

After letting the other team members go ahead, I quietly focused on catching my breath.

‘I’m never crossing a bridge like this again.’

At that moment, I faintly heard the voices of my teammates who had gone ahead.

“We’ve come quite far in, so the dungeon should be almost over, right?”

“Maybe it’s nearly done? It doesn’t feel like we’ve been in here that long, but we’ve already defeated five boss monsters……”

Responding to Elaine’s words, Lois, as if realizing something, shouted excitedly.

“Wait a minute, then are we super fast? No, we must be fast. Then, maybe we can get the highest score? Awesome!”

“It’s not even over yet, what highest score. Focus on the strategy, Lois.”

“No, the highest score would be great. My grades in other classes are bad anyway. Dungeon Studies must be an A!”

At Mellin’s rebuke, Lois frowned and answered as if not to shatter his dream.

At that moment, Claire, the quietest of the group, nodded slightly.

“Yeah, at this rate, we’ll definitely get the highest score. It’s true that we’ve been progressing quickly thanks to Kamon.”

“Thanks? Thanks for what……”

“Ah, geez. Mellin, I’ve told you many times that jealousy is ugly. Ugh!”

Thud!

“Didn’t I warn you that if you said that again, you’d get hit, Lois?”

“No, did I say anything wrong? We wouldn’t have come this far this quickly without Kamon. Right, Elaine?”

“Y-yeah. Hehe.”

Elaine, laughing at the sight of Lois rubbing his hit back resentfully, nodded in agreement with his words.

Only Mellin seemed displeased with the atmosphere, pouting her lips, but she couldn’t refute it.

It was clear to anyone that the biggest contributor to this dungeon strategy was…

‘Yeah, it’s obviously me.’

I nodded lightly at the very obvious fact. Well, it didn’t make me particularly happy or proud.
It was something I had to do anyway to avoid getting expelled from the academy.

Still.

‘…Things will change a bit.’

I suddenly recalled how others treated me when I first came to the academy.

“……”

Due to Kamon Vade’s many notorious deeds and crimes, I couldn’t resolve or clear them all at once. But if I gradually cleared them one by one like this, wouldn’t the way people looked at me change a bit someday?

‘Well, honestly, it’s not my concern.’

As long as it doesn’t harm me, I don’t care if people ignore or curse me.

Right, I only need to try that much.

“Huh?”

At that moment, I heard something change among the teammates ahead.

“There’s a door over there.”

Everyone’s eyes turned toward Elaine’s words. And then…

“Wow, what is that?”

“It’s huge.”

“What’s with the sudden door?”

Lois asked, pointing at the massive door filled with all sorts of strange patterns and monster carvings, and Mellin shook her head.

“Isn’t it obvious? It’s the ‘final gate’.”

“I-I don’t want to go in just by looking at the door.”

The appearance of the huge black door, exuding a naturally dark and damp aura, made the team members’ expressions similar.

Then.

“…There’s a problem.”

Along with Claire’s short muttering.

“What? A problem? Did a monster appear?!”

Responding with a fuss again, Lois looked at Claire, who shook her head and opened her mouth again.

“No, there’s really a problem.”

“W-what problem, then?!”

“Stop talking nonsense and look over there. There’s a problem.”

“Eh?”

This time, Claire pointed towards the final gate, and Lois quickly shifted his gaze.

“It really is a problem.”

“What is that? It looks like there are a lot of letters.”

There were letters engraved on the huge door that seemed to be the final gate.

Those who seek the path.

Those who face complex labyrinths and hideous scenery without despair.

Those who move forward with courage, wisdom, and a steadfast heart.

Solve this problem to overcome the despair, darkness, and pain that appear before you.

“What is this, some kind of poetry or literature?”

“Hey, we’re solving a problem here. Be quiet, Lois!”

Eventually, everyone turned their eyes back to the remaining text.

The ancient, warm, and compassionate flame governed the hearts of all travelers and adventurers, bringing them calm and stability. However, as time passed, everyone forgot the warmth of that flame, and the master of the fire lowered her head. Those who seek the path. Those who face complex labyrinths and hideous scenery without despair. Those who move forward with courage, wisdom, and a steadfast heart. If you want to move forward, call out her name and ask to open the door.

“……”

“……”

Naturally, everyone fell silent, staring at the text.

“What…what does that mean? Her name?”

“The ancient warm and compassionate flame?”

Among the team’s confused voices, Chelsea’s deeply submerged voice was heard.

“The ancient deity ‘Birgetta’. The name of the goddess who governs fire.”

“Oh, Chelsea. What’s this?”

“…Amazing. You knew about the ancient deity?”

“Wow, then we’ve solved this problem too? Let’s open it quickly!”

Lois, muttering excitedly, raised his voice and shouted.

“Lady Birgetta, please open the door.”

But.

“……”

With the huge door showing no change, Chelsea opened her mouth again.

“You can’t do it in the current continental common language. The ancient deities only used the ancient rune language.”

“What? The ancient rune language?”

“Then we just have to shout it in the ancient rune language. What’s the problem?”

Lois tilted his head and asked, prompting Chelsea to reply with a bitter smile.

“We don’t know.”

“Huh?”

“We don’t know how to say it in Ancient Rune.”

“…Oh, then what do we do?”

Everyone’s faces froze at Chelsea’s unexpected answer.

“If we don’t know Ancient Rune, we can’t go inside at all?”

“But how did the princess’s team clear it?”

As Melin and Elaine voiced their concerns, I recalled the original story in my head.

‘Because Princess Francia personally recited the incantation.’

Having read almost all the books in the royal library, she was fluent in Ancient Rune and various other languages, histories, and traditions.

‘Should I be thankful for this?’

For a moment, I pondered this before shaking my head vigorously.

No, would I thank such a lunatic? I’ve memorized the original novel thoroughly too. So, here…

Clang!

Approaching the final gate, I recited the incantation from the original story, the one Princess Francia had proudly uttered alone.

“Birgetta, Aperi Portaum.”

Simultaneously…

Thunk!

The firmly closed massive door began to tremble slightly.

Bang!

Slowly, it started to reveal the interior…

“Huh?”

For a moment, a deep purple object flickered through the gap of the wide-open door.

“Purple…?”

And then,

Thunk.

Something seemed to push against my body.

Boom!

“Ugh!”

A powerful shockwave swept over me.

* * *

Bzzzzz!

A beam of light started gathering at the center of the gymnasium.

“It’s an eliminated team.”

“Then, only Kyle’s team passed?”

And then,

“One, two, three… Four people? What, it’s not a complete elimination?”

As the other students were talking, familiar faces appeared where the light had gathered.

“What, what happened?”

“Oh, it seems we were summoned outside?”

Lois, who was next to me, answered ambiguously.

“I remember the door opening, but after that…”

“Something came out from the door and attacked us. Then we were all summoned here in an instant.”

Claire, who was at the back, murmured with a determined voice.

“Could it be that we were eliminated?”

“Yeah, this is the gymnasium where we started, so we must be eliminated.”

Lois, looking around, nodded with a regretful expression.

Elaine hurriedly asked again.

“Then what about Chelsea? And Kamon? Are they still inside?”

“Uh, yeah… Why aren’t they here?”

“Phew, thank goodness. At least it’s not a total elimination.”

Elaine sighed deeply in relief, patting her chest.

At that moment,

Grit!

“Damn it, Kamon Vade…!”

“Me-Mellin?”

Everyone’s attention turned to Mellin’s sudden angry outburst.

“Damn it. Kamon Vade, that bastard knew it all along and did it on purpose!”

“What? What do you mean? He opened the door.”

“No, that bastard knew everything about the dungeon strategy up until now.”

Indeed, Kamon Vade moved as if he knew almost everything about the dungeon’s internal affairs.

“But this time, he just opened the door without any explanation, and the boss monster jumped out. There was no warning or anything.”

Melin spoke with unwavering conviction.

“He did it on purpose. I’m sure of it.”

“Nothing is confirmed yet. Calm down, Mellin.”

Despite Claire’s calm voice, Mellin was fuming with frustration.

“Claire, don’t you get it? That bastard did it on purpose to betray us! Damn, we should never have trusted him. Damn it!”

“Hey, no matter what, that’s a bit of a stretch…”

Glaring!

“What?”

“N-nothing.”

“……”

Lois, feeling Melin’s intense glare, couldn’t say anything further. The others exchanged awkward glances.

Watching all this from a distance, Princess Francia had a faint smile on her lips.

“It has come to this. It’s a pity they were eliminated.”

“But the test isn’t over yet. Chelsea and Kamon are still…”

“Yes, those two are still in. But that means only two are left. What can those two do?”

Princess Francia’s resolute tone left Fabian nodding in agreement.

“Indeed, considering the final boss…”

But then, Kyle shrugged and muttered.

“Huh? Why are you all acting like it’s over? It’s not over yet.”

“Kyle, you know better than anyone. The final boss is unbeatable.”

“Well, I’m not sure about that.”

“What do you mean? Sometimes you focus on strange things.”

“It’s not strange…”

Kyle scratched his forehead with one hand and mumbled.

“Chelsea and Kamon might be able to do it together.”

“What?”

“Honestly, I think if the two of them work together, they might overcome it. Maybe even the final boss.”

“……”

Kyle’s confident words brought sudden silence.