Traveling through the game world, starting out as a third-rate villain

"Ugh... my head..."

Irina opened her eyes and immediately felt a sharp pain. She felt her head throbbing violently and her whole body was in pain.

"Well!"

She tried to move, but it was too much to bear. Her limbs felt as if they were being held down by something.

Gradually, her vision began to become clear. She was lying on the snow, and the cold penetrated her body through her clothes.

"Oh, right… Snowman," she whispered to herself, memories of the battle coming flooding back.

"Are you awake?"

Just then, she heard a voice from the side. It was the annoying voice of the guy she wanted nothing to do with.

"What?" she whispered in surprise, turning to look at the source of the sound.

"What, what?"

It was that annoying guy. Those cold purple eyes were looking down at him from the rock where he sat.

"You...why are you here?"

Despite the unbearable pain, Irina forced herself to sit up and assess her injuries.

Her limbs were covered in bruises and wounds, the marks left by the fierce attack. Her clothes were torn, and blood could be seen seeping out in several places.

The surprise attack and collision probably left her injured both inside and outside.

"Can't you see?" he responded, pointing around. Countless wolves fell to the ground, each with an arrow stuck in its body.

Irina's eyes widened, as if she understood: "You did it?"

He didn't answer, but his calm, confident demeanor said it all. It was Morse, the guy she had been trying to avoid, the guy she thought was a jerk.

In her current pain and confusion, she still couldn't shake the uneasiness she felt every time she was near this man. The rumors and stories she had seen still lingered in her mind.

boom!

Just then, she felt a vibration beneath the ground, followed by the sound of an explosion.

"Snowman!" she cried, realizing that the creature was not dead. If the creature was not dead, that meant Julia was in danger, too.

"Well......"

She tried to stand up, but the pain made it almost impossible for her to stand.

"Why don't you go help?" she asked, looking at the jerk sitting leisurely on the rock.

"Even if I went over there, I wouldn't be able to help much." He just shrugged and replied.

"Ah... He's injured..."

Irina then took a closer look at him and found that his coat was covered with rips. His pants, shirt and other clothes were in tatters, and some of the wounds were still bleeding.

She also felt that his magic power was almost exhausted. She was born very sensitive to magic power and could feel the remaining magic around her.

Obviously, a very dangerous battle had just taken place here.

"Also, there are some violent monsters that need to be dealt with."

"A violent monster?"

"I thought you'd noticed it a long time ago." His tone was sarcastic, as if he was mocking her. But his expression remained unchanged.

When she recalled, the snowman should have died after her attack. There was no way a fourth-level monster could withstand her strongest attack.

"So, is this the reason?"

She also understood why the snow squirrel did not die at that time.

"You're so slow."

"..." She was speechless, realizing that she had no right to blame him. In fact, what he did was the most crucial.

He knew that he didn't have enough strength to face the boss head-on. Even the arrows he shot at the lava dragon lizard were not enough to damage the snowman's skin.

Therefore, he did not waste time trying to get the credit, but made the most correct choice. Stand by himself and protect the real main force of the team.

Not all students in the academy can make such a decision while others are striving for grades.

'How could someone so thoughtful do such a thing?'

She asked herself in her heart. Considering his thoughtful attitude, it was hard to imagine that he would be the kind of person who would force others to do things.

But now was not the time to think about these issues. The more she felt the shock from the boss, the more uneasy she felt.

"Well!"

She stood up, ignoring the sharp pain in her ribs.

"Where are you going?" he asked, looking at her clasped hands.

"I'm going to help."

"How do you think you can help in your current state?"

She felt very uncomfortable with the look in his eyes, as if he was saying, "Are you stupid?"

"…It's better than sitting in the back…"

“… Indeed, that is what you would say.”

When Irina heard him say this, she felt a chill on her back. When she tried to leave, she almost fell down.

She wasn't in the right state to throw herself into another fight. But the determination in her eyes pushed her forward. Julia was there, and from what she could see, the Yeti was pushing her back.

She is now in critical condition.

whoosh!

"Here."

Just then, a small bottle flew towards her.

Bang!

She caught the bottle and saw the liquid inside.

"Intermediate potion? How did he get such a thing?"

She knew very well that Morse was an orphan. Intermediate potions were very rare for him and very expensive. So when she saw the potion in her hand, her suspicion rose immediately.

"I won't take what you got with your dirty money." She frowned and threw the potion bottle back.

"What are you talking about?"

"Tsk... don't play dumb."

When she frowned, Morse understood what she meant.

"…You are so stupid."

"Ha! What did you say!"

"You think your pride is more important than your friends, don't you?"

“…”

"It doesn't matter if I got the potion with dirty money or not. Does it matter? In your current condition, do you really have a choice?"

"……but……"

"That's where you're naive... Listen, little princess... The world we live in is not always fair..." Morse's voice was cold, and his eyes reflected a cruel reality. There was obvious hatred in his tone, as if he was talking to another person.

"Sometimes, paths that seem evil or questionable are the only options. Survival is not about abiding by moral standards, but about doing what you must do to stay alive. Not everyone in this world has the luxury and privilege of justice."

His eyes looked a little sad for a moment, but then they immediately returned to their coldness.

She could feel that he meant what he said, which confused her even more. What kind of life had this bastard been through to speak with such hatred?

'What happened in his past?'

Just then, he threw the potion over again.

whoosh!

"Here, go help Julia. You're the only one who can deal with that monster now."

Bang!

She caught the potion again and looked at the clear liquid in the bottle.

"...I'll return the favor."

She said, trying to hold onto the last bit of pride.

“It’s not meant to be free, I’ll get paid what I want.”

“Tsk.”

Gurgle!

She drank the potion, feeling irritated. She didn't bring any potion with her, so she could only blame herself for being too arrogant and thinking she wouldn't need it.

Now, she had to bow her head and ask this bastard for help and swallow the words she wanted to say.

'Next time, I will never make such a mistake again.'

She swore in her heart, feeling her strength gradually returning. Her magic power had been restored to its maximum, her wounds were healing, and now nothing could restrain her anymore.

boom!

She burst out with great force and rushed towards where the monster was.

......

After Irina's arrival, the battle takes a drastic turn.

The Snowman is a monster that is highly resistant to Ice Magic and Cold, which also means that it is weak to Fire Magic.

Thanks to this, the battle was over in a few minutes after Irina's arrival, and now the students were being evacuated by the instructors.

"Everyone follow me. This dungeon will be closed for a while."

Since the dungeon did not operate completely as expected, it would be monitored for a while. After the arrival of the instructors, the crazy monsters were immediately suppressed and the students were taken to the infirmary for examination.

"Sylvie, are you okay?" Mason asked, his eyes full of "concern" as he walked towards her after the fierce battle with the snowman.

He made sure to protect her during battle whenever danger approached, and Sylvie had come to regard him as a reliable friend.

Sylvie nodded, and even though she was still frightened, she managed a smile. "It's okay, thanks to your help. You performed very well in the battle."

Mason smiled shyly. "Yeah, we're a good team."

She nodded again, feeling the camaraderie with her teammates.

The bond they had developed during the battle was something she had never expected before entering the dungeon.

Julia came over, her face showing both relief and fatigue. "We did it, everyone worked hard. Now go back and rest." Her clothes were tattered and her injuries were the most serious.

Thanks to the prompt treatment by the college staff, her wound has been bandaged. She still feels pain occasionally, but she is recovering quickly.

"But without you, we might not survive." Julia turned to look at Irina, whose eyes were wandering.

"Yeah...if it weren't for Miss Irina, the situation would have been much worse." Barry said gratefully. Their team was in trouble because of the avalanche, but thanks to Irina's power, they were saved.

"Nothing." She just muttered quietly, her eyes still fixed on something. Julia followed her gaze.

Morse was talking to Professor Eleanor. No, strictly speaking, it was more like a one-sided questioning.

"What are they talking about?" Julia asked.

"Professor Eleanor called him as soon as she came in."

"Is it that urgent?"

"I don't know. But she looked very angry."

Everyone knew that Professor Eleanor would get angry whenever she mentioned Morse, so they didn't take it too seriously. However, students in other classes didn't think so.

"I guess it's because of the rumors." Mason said as he looked at the two men.

"Perhaps."

"What rumors?" Sylvie asked. She didn't follow the campus forum, so she didn't know what was happening on the forum.

"You didn't know?" said Mason, in mock surprise. He saw an opportunity to further his own purpose.

"Well," he continued, leaning in close to her as if he was about to share a secret, "there have been all kinds of rumors circulating about him lately. Some say he's a criminal, involved in all sorts of crimes, like thefts, assaults, and even worse."

However, Sylvie's response was totally unexpected. She didn't believe it, but frowned. "No, that's impossible. Morse is not that kind of person."

She defended him seriously. To her, Morse could not possibly be a bad man.

Barry interjected, trying to add fuel to the fire, "You can't judge a person by their appearance. People can hide their true colors very well."

Julia looked at the group, her presence ending the argument. "If you can't judge a person by appearance, why do you think you can judge by rumors you hear?" She fixed Barry with a fierce look.

"I……"

"As hunters, we shouldn't jump to conclusions without solid evidence. Rumors can be extremely harmful."

"You're right." Finally, in front of the heir of the Middleton family, Barry shut up and said nothing.

But Mason still didn't give up and continued to make up darker stories. "Oh, that's not all. The article also said that he was a manipulator and a womanizer... The relevant departments have been investigating him for some time."

Even so, Sylvie shook her head. "I don't believe this."

She watched him from the beginning, and if he was a criminal she could tell by his emotions, and if he was a womanizer she could sense it by his desire.

However, apart from anger, sadness and hatred, she had never seen these emotions in him. Therefore, she did not believe that Morse was a criminal, and she was confident in her abilities.