The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

"I can probably grant you your second and third rewards by tomorrow."

Bryan said after thinking about it for a while.

And Raye—

"Sweet. I'll come back tomorrow then?"

He was happy to hear that.

"Yeah, do that."

Bryan mumbled.

"And your first reward, the one-month break, you can use it whenever, starting from now."

Then he added.

"Hmm... Can I ask when the academy will start again?"

Raye asked, resting his chin on his right hand as he calculated things in his head.

And without much thought about it—

"Probably in two weeks."

Bryan casually answered.

"The town's reconstruction is stable now—no more immediate fixes needed. It should be fully rebuilt in about a month. So, we plan to reopen the academy in two weeks."

He explained further.

And hearing that—

"I got it."

Raye nodded, finalizing his plans in his mind.

And with all his questions now answered—

"I'll be going now, Headmaster. Thank you."

Raye excused himself.

"Okay. Take care."

Bryan replied, already turning his focus back to the mountain of paperwork on his desk.

And without further ado—

Creak—

Thud-

Raye left the headmaster's office.

As he walked down the hall—

"Hmm... Hhmm—"

He hummed a tune, a big smile on his face.

-----

"..."

Bryan glanced up, silently looking at the door where Raye just left.

'That brat...'

He let out a tired sigh, leaning back on his chair.

A small frown appeared on his face as he recalled Raye's three requests—especially the second one.

"What is he going to do in the magic engineering lab anyway?"

He grumbled.

But even though he said that…

"Hah."

A small smile remained in his face.

Because, in truth—

Raye deserved all of the rewards he had requested.

Not just because of what he did in the friendly tournament and the monster hunt—

But purely because of what he had done during the invasion.

It was far beyond what any student—no, even most professors—had accomplished during that chaotic invasion.

Raye—

'He killed a High-Rank demon.'

Something that should have been impossible for most students.

'And not only that...'

Raye also fought a Noble Demon!

He stalled it in its place!

Yes it was toying with Raye and was not fighting seriously...

But Raye still faced it alone!

And in doing so—

'He prevented countless casualties... He saved a lot of lives.'

If that Noble Demon had been left free, if Raye hadn't kept it occupied, then—

'The entire town would've been wiped out, along with the citizens.'

Bryan clenched his fist as he thought of that.

The town—

It had all been on the verge of collapse because of the invasion.

It's destruction was stopped by Raye alone, when he realized for some reason that the demons' attack on the tournament was merely a diversion.

"If ever, his rewards are a bit lacking..."

Bryan muttered with a shrug.

He was shaking his head in amusement.

If it had been anyone else, they might've demanded something far greater—high-ranking artifacts, noble titles, even a recommendation for a direct position in the empire's forces.

But Raye?

All he wanted was time, resources, and a little money to get stronger.

And with those three...

Bryan could already tell.

"What is he even up to...?"

That Raye was preparing for something even bigger.

And somehow—

"Heh."

That just made him happy.

And with a smile on his face—

"I guess I'll add something in his rewards from me personally."

Bryan muttered that.

*****

After leaving Bryan's office—

"Hmm... Hnmmm... hmm...—"

Raye didn't head back to the cabin immediately.

Instead—

Tap- tap- tap—

His footsteps echoed as he walked down the halls, heading toward another destination.

An office that belonged to someone else.

Someone who he had recognized as the fastest person he had ever seen.

And that someone—

"I wonder if he's in his office."

It was Ramiel Hale.

The head professor of the [S CLASS].

A man known for his hellish training, casual and carefree actions—yet also feared for his insane battle prowess and speed!

Tap—

"I'm here."

Raye arrived at the door of Ramiel's office, and without hesitation—

Knock. Knock.

He knocked firmly.

"..."

Swoosh~

For a moment, silence filled the air.

This made Raye think that his professor was away.

'Too bad, I'll just come back tomorrow then.'

He declared in his head, about to walk away.

But then—

"…Enter."

A calm, yet commanding voice suddenly responded from inside!

"...?!"

And Raye quickly recognized who it was.

Ramiel.

Anyway...

Creak—

Tap-

Raye pushed the door open and stepped inside the room.

And there, sitting at his desk, reviewing a stack of documents—

"..."

Ramiel Hale looked at him.

His messy hair, tired expression, and the dark bags under his eyes from lack of sleep made him look lifeless and pale.

His sharp, onyx-black eyes flicked up, locking onto Raye's figure.

"…Well, this is a surprise. Glad to see that you're still alive, kid."

Ramiel leaned back slightly in his chair, placing the documents aside and taking a breather.

"I didn't think you'd come looking for me, what do you want?"

He asked.

His tone was unreadable.

"Wait... Are you even okay, Professor Ramiel?"

Raye suddenly asked, seeing his appearance.

Ramiel blinked, tilting his head slightly.

Then after that—

"Haaah..."

He let out a long, exhausted sigh.

And opening his mouth—

"I'm just bored doing all these damn paperworks."

He grumbled that.

"I don't want this. I'm being forced to do this... Ugh..."

He leaned back, rubbing his temples in frustration.

Then, like a dam breaking—

He started complaining nonstop.

"I mean, seriously! What kind of combat instructor spends hours sitting at a desk doing nothing but processing documents?!"

His eyes twitched in annoyance.

"I should be outside, training students, testing out new techniques—doing something actually useful!"

He ranted, gesturing at the mountain of papers in front of him.

"But nooo, that bastard headmaster of ours dumped all this garbage on me just because I 'have leadership qualities.' What bullshit! I don't have a single ounce of talent in leadership!"

Fwip—

Ramiel aggressively flicked a paper aside, his expression twisted in pure frustration.

Meanwhile, Raye—

"..."

He just stared at him.

Watching this grown man lose his mind over office work.

It was... kind of amusing.

Especially considering the fact that this same man had once dragged him through hellish training sessions without a single ounce of mercy.

And now?

Now, here he was, whining like a child because of paperwork.

'Heh...'

A smirk slowly formed on Raye's face.

"...Wow."

That was all he said.

And upon hearing that—

"Tsk."

Ramiel clicked his tongue and crossed his arms.

"You're judging me, aren't you?"

Raye didn't even hesitate.

"A little."

He went and replied with that.

Ramiel groaned, rubbing his temples.

"Shut up. What do you want?"

Then he asked that again.

And this time—

With more confidence—

"I'm here to cure your boredom, actually."

Raye declared that.

His voice carried an undeniable weight.

And hearing those words—

"...?"

Ramiel frowned, his frustration momentarily replaced by curiosity.

And before he could even attempt to speak or respond—

"I want you to train me."

Raye stated that.

His voice was firm. His gaze resolute.

And hearing him—

"..."

Ramiel fell completely silent.

His brain seemed to pause for a moment, trying to comprehend what he just heard.

Then, as if that wasn't enough—

"To be exact... I want you to teach me your lightning technique."

Raye suddenly went and added that.

"And also... I want you to make me faster."

Ramiel—

"Huh? What?... Huh?"

He was so shocked that he actually stuttered.

It wasn't every day that someone came to him, not just asking for training, but specifically requesting his lightning technique—one of the most advanced techniques in existence, and his unique, signature technique!

And on top of that, Raye was even asking him to make him faster!

"..."

Ramiel blinked.

Once.

Twice.

And then—

"...Are you insane?"

He just blurted that out.

And without hesitation—

"Yeah, kinda."

Raye replied that to him with a smirk on his face!

And hearing his response—

"..."

Ramiel became silent again.

But just seconds after—

"HAHAHAHA—!!!"

He started laughing loudly, he was amused!

Fwish-

He looked at Raye—

His face was still serious.

His eyes were still brimming with resolution.

And seeing that he was not joking—

BAM—!

F W O O S H~

Ramiel slammed his hands on his table, cracking it and scattering the documents on top of it!

And with a wide grin on his face—

"Follow me, you crazy bastard."

Ramiel instructed that to Raye.

Without missing a beat—

Tap—

Raye stepped forward.

The two of them left the room without hesitation.

"Just so you know, I haven't accepted your request yet."

Ramiel said, stretching his arms and rolling his shoulders, shaking off the stiffness from sitting for hours.

And already predicting this—

"I know."

Raye replied, a casual smile on his face.

He was already preparing himself for what was about to happen.

"Good."

Ramiel smirked, cracking his knuckles.

"We'll have to see first if you're worthy of my techniques and training first."

Then he proclaimed that with confidence.