The Villain Bought the Female Lead - Ch. 77
The first-year students were bustling around.
Currently, aside from the professors, a few other officials and all the first years were gathered at the entrance of the nest, waiting.
Unable to hide their curiosity upon seeing the nest for the first time, some touched and pressed against its inner walls.
The sensation, reminiscent of a living organ, sank under pressure and then bounced back like pudding.
While some found this amusing and laughed, others engaged in deep study of its structure, and some students froze at the thought of their imminent encounter with Altife.
The entrance to the cave-like nest was protected by multiple magical devices, preventing it from attacking intruders. It couldn’t even extend tendrils from its walls, much less shoot them, and could barely twitch.
These measures were possible because the nest’s original owner, a third-class danger-level, bishop-tier creature, was no longer present.
I noticed a woman with white hair watching them. Her eyes were calm, neither firm nor wavering.
“You’re quite composed.”
Alicia’s feelings towards Altife were extremely hostile.
Given that they took everything from her, I expected her to show tension or hints of anger, even if the Altifes were now tamed. But her reaction was unexpectedly calm.
“Until I entered the nest, my mind was restless and hard to control, but oddly enough, once I was inside, I became calm.”
“Well, that’s good. It’s better to assess and analyze the situation calmly than to make mistakes driven by turbulent emotions.”
Alicia turned to look up at me, her eyes as blue as a lake.
“May I ask, do you still believe that the unusual situation you mentioned before has a 20% chance of occurring?”
“The probability remains the same. But… even if they move, it’s nearly impossible to predict their actions, so I can’t give a definite answer.”
She thanked me for answering and added.
“No matter what situation arises, I will follow your orders, Master.”
Her loyal stance reminded me of Bram, who was working separately.
While her words and attitude were indeed reassuring, Alicia wasn’t the main focus of this mission, and she didn’t need to be so resolute.
“The entrance to the nest is now open. As previously announced, please prepare in the order you’ve been assigned.”
A voice came from a magical device, like a speaker installed in the nest’s squishy wall. The students’ murmurs quieted down.
“The first group, Class 1, Group 3. <Liam, Haliana, Lucaiel, Ophelia Carol Laban, Nikela>, please step up to the starting line. I repeat, the first….”
Liam and his group began to move, captured in the scene. Many cheered them on or watched with interest.
Amidst this, my gaze met Liam’s.
He seemed determined, showing a firm resolve. Our eye contact was brief.
“Hm….”
I considered Liam’s mental state and emotions in light of his actions.
The probability of the expected situation occurring was much lower, but… perhaps Liam’s first awakening might happen now rather than during the early second-year tragedy at Academia.
Such a thought crossed my mind.
***
[Keeeeeeek???!!]
The nest was filled with the horrific cries of Altifes.
Hearing their chilling screams, Liam and his group continued their battle.
“Ophelia! One Altife at one o’clock, 100 meters!”
Shoot??!!
Ophelia’s arrow pierced the air, accurately targeting the legs of a priest-tier Altife that was about to leap. The creature lost its legs and fell to the ground.
“Lucaiel! One at three o’clock. Haliana, use elemental magic on the two at six o’clock!”
“I was going to do that without being told!”
“Yes, got it!”
Following Liam’s instructions, Lucaiel used his aura-coated claws to penetrate the thick hide of the Altife.
Haliana formed lightning in the shape of a thin wand in mid-air and struck them, charring them black.
However, one Altife, less affected by the attack, charged again.
Haliana tried to gather mana for another spell but was hindered by a sharp tendril suddenly emerging from the inner wall.
“Haliana!!”
Lucaiel shouted.
The Altife approached with a gruesome smile, and just as fear spread across Haliana’s face.
Thud?!
Nikela’s summoned wind spirit collided with the Altife, halting its movement. Liam seized the opportunity and swiftly decapitated the monster.
Sizzle.
Only the scorched neck and a faint current remained where Liam’s sword had passed. Belatedly, red blood spurted out.
With that, the battle ended.
Liam avoided the splashing blood and checked on everyone.
Lucaiel hurriedly checked Haliana’s condition, who, though startled, seemed okay and gave an awkward smile.
Lucaiel, who had been worried, was also unharmed.
Ophelia appeared a bit tired but still capable of continuing the fight, though using her bow in the cave-like structure had consumed a lot of mana.
“Liam… blood.”
“Oh.”
Nikela pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the Altife’s blood off Liam’s face.
Even though he tried to avoid it, blood splattering during battle was inevitable. Though it would soon get dirty again, it would be rude to reject Nikela’s kind gesture.
“All done….”
Nikela smiled satisfactorily after wiping off the blood, then, remembering her actions, pulled down her hood to hide her expression.
She resembled a hermit crab retreating into its shell.
“Liam, aren’t we almost at the area you mentioned?”
Lucaiel asked as he approached him with Haliana. His claws had shortened after the battle.
Liam pulled out a crumpled map he had drawn based on the original story’s information and compared it to their surroundings.
Most of the areas they had confirmed so far matched the map.
Though not every detail from the novel was included, excluding the blank sections, everything else aligned.
Liam nodded.
“We’re almost there. The sixth fork in the path will appear soon.”
Liam reviewed the situation.
The deeper they went; the more traps hindered them.
Basic tendrils emerging from walls, walls themselves attacking, and even the ground rising to slam them against the ceiling.
Combining these traps with attacks from priest-tier Altife made it a tough challenge.
“Shall we take a short break?”
“What nonsense is that? Isn’t this urgent?”
“The intervals between groups are long. We still have time.”
There was still time before Alicia’s group would depart.
The Academia also needed time to deal with the Altife’s corpses and restocked supplies.
Liam tossed a water bottle to Lucaiel, who caught it in mid-air and handed it to Haliana.
Having already fought Altife three times, the group needed a break to ensure smooth progress.
Each member rested in their own way.
Liam moistened his mouth with a suitable amount of water and swallowed a small amount to avoid any issues.
His thoughts deepened as he did so.
In the original test, there was no sixth fork in the path. It was a straight course with no other routes, or rather… none that could be perceived.
The secret passage hidden by multiple magic spells couldn’t be found by normal means.
The actual altar was located at the end, designed to confuse students taking the test or to prevent external intruders.
But Liam’s goal was not to pass the test but to destroy it.
He knew the sixth fork existed, its location, and the type of magic involved. Knowing how to break the spell, its concealment posed no problem.
Everything had gone smoothly so far, like sailing on a day when the wind favors the ship.
“Let’s get going again.”
At Liam’s words, everyone moved quickly.
A surge of confidence welled up, believing they could overcome any obstacle with these companions.
These friends, except for his childhood friend Emily, were the first close relationships Liam had formed since his possession.
With his comrades, he ventured deeper into the nest.
***
Outside the nest, where professors and officials had gathered.
Unfortunately, with current magic and technology, direct communication inside the nest, beyond the entrance, was impossible. Unlike class battles, they couldn’t monitor all students.
Even with the nest modified for testing, the abnormal flow of magic within prevented comprehensive monitoring by familiars or magic.
Therefore, officials inside the nest used their familiars to relay messages directly to the gathering point outside.
“Something’s off.”
“Why suddenly? Got a stomachache? If it’s the bathroom, there’s one on the airship… ouch”
Louisa pinched Paula’s mouth, leaving a fingerprint-like red mark where her fingers had touched. Paula’s mouth stretched out.
“Hey…! Ow, ow, ow! Ow, that hurts, you bitch…”
Finally free from Louisa’s pinch, Paula teared up and couldn’t take her hands off her sore cheek.
Ignoring Paula’s reaction, Louisa rubbed her chin while looking at the scheduled report.
“What’s wrong? Why are you so serious?”
“There’s a missing report from the actual altar guards today. Reports should come every six hours… it should have arrived two minutes ago.”
“Isn’t it too strict to worry about a two-minute delay? They could be busy with something.”
“These are people who repeat this task every day. Looking at previous records, there hasn’t been a single second of deviation from the scheduled time. Now, it’s over two minutes late…”
“Huh… yeah, sounds weird now that you mention it. Like?”
“Like something went wrong. I think so too.”
A man interrupted Louisa and Paula’s conversation. He was Lucien, the professor in charge of Class 2.
He always looked haggard, as if he hadn’t slept for days, with dark circles under his eyes. He yawned widely and continued without hesitation.
“The familiars of the altar observers have a time-stamping system. In the absence of special circumstances, they automatically upload pre-designated reports. For it not to arrive means… a sudden change occurred, or…”
A grim expression crossed his face.
“The owner of the familiars are dead.”
“Uh, hey… that doesn’t make any sense. No matter how off guard they were, they wouldn’t fall to a Third Risk threat… right, Louisa?”
“……”
Louisa’s expression changed.
Her sharply torn and fierce eyes suddenly become engraved with a strange pattern.
And in that inexplicable, chilling moment…
[Whoa, there’s a feast of prey.]
An alien voice mimicking human speech.
Louisa’s pupils dilate as she quickly drew out her internal magic. In an instant, she was ready for battle.
Crash!
“Louisa????!!”
Suddenly, an unidentified entity rushed in, crashing into Louisa and flying off with her.
Paula raised her staff and cast a spell. Russell and the two professors nearby quickly grabbed their weapons and aimed at the enemy.
Counting the entity that flew off with Louisa, there were five enemies identified.
[That one is always too hasty. I don’t like that it took the strongest looking one.]
[Leave it. It’s not the first time.]
Although they appeared human, these beings were far too corrupt to be called living creatures.
The one standing in the middle, wearing a high-top hat like an English gentleman from a movie, spoke.
[Nice to meet you, professors of Academia. We are followers dispatched by the Goddess Church to deal with you this time.]
He demonstrated human manners.
Lifting his hat, he revealed a third eye on his forehead.
[I apologize for saying this upon our first meeting… but this too is the will of the Goddess. To atone for your sins, and for the prosperity of the Goddess Church.]
The man, in his human form, had eyes shaped like crescents.
[Offer your filthy blood to the altar.]