The Return Of The Exiled Villain
Chapter 22: The Three Virtues Of A Knight (IV)

Chapter 22: The Three Virtues Of A Knight (IV)

"Hey, HEY! That wasn’t cool, man!" Ronan’s voice cracked through the settling dust, louder than necessary.

"You used me as bait! You literally threw me in front of a monster!"

Gray didn’t respond at first.

He just kept walking, stepping over broken stone and blood-smeared floors, his rapier dangling low at his side.

His ribs ached with every breath, and Ronan’s voice only made it worse.

"You didn’t see the look in its eyes!" Ronan stumbled after him, his arms waving like some dramatic stage actor.

"It was gonna EAT ME! It was gonna—hrrk—bite my head off or something! You could’ve picked a rock. A stick. Literally anything else. But nooo, you looked me right in the eye and just shoved me!"

Gray stopped... now he was very annoyed.

He turned around, slowly.

Ronan gulped.

"You think I wanted you to live?" Gray’s voice came out cold.

"...H-Huh?"

"I didn’t use you as bait." His black, bottomless eyes stared deeply into his soul as he finished speaking.

"I wanted you to die."

"...Eh...?"

Ronan blinked.

Then blinked again.

Then went very, very quiet.

And as if the world had a cruel sense of humor...

[Fufufu~ That’s so mean, but I understand your thoughts...]

Jasmine’s voice purred inside Gray’s mind, velvet-smooth and laced with clearly wicked joy.

’That’s rich coming from the literal Goddess of Destruction...’

[You were just trying to get rid of him~ He is loud, and dumb, and annoying... but you must admit, he screams adorably. Like a baby rabbit getting stepped on~]

Gray’s eye twitched.

"Stop talking to me," he muttered under his breath.

[Oh? But I love talking to you~ Especially when you’re frustrated.]

He clenched his jaw, of Jasmine materialized in front of him right now, he would probably beat the shit out of her.

Ronan, oblivious to the internal conversation, was now shuffling behind them, muttering things like:

"I should report this to the instructors... attempted teammate murder... definitely against rules..."

And...

"I could’ve had trauma or something..."

Gray’s irritation was already past boiling.

And then... it only got worse.

But it wasn’t because of Ronan, but because of Lira.

She was quiet, silent like a shadow, walking beside him without a word... but not without looks.

She kept glancing at him.

Subtle at first, barely tilting of her head. The kind of glances that could be mistaken for checking the surroundings.

But he noticed.

Every few seconds, her eyes drifted towards him.

At his side, his shoulder, his face, his hands... she was practically scanning his entire body.

And she didn’t even try to hide the way her lips tugged into the slightest, intrigued smile.

He hated it.

His brow furrowed.

His fists clenched.

[Ooooh~ I didn’t expect my blessing to be so effective against mortals, even at the weakest level~]

[She’s looking at you like you’re a puzzle... or prey. You should smile at her. Maybe she’ll pounce next time you’re alone~』

"Don’t say another fucking word," Gray growled.

[Mmm... your voice is shaking~ I wonder if it’s because of her, or because you like when I whisper~?]

Jasmine cooed seductively.

[...Would you like me to do it more?~]

Gray gritted his teeth and kept walking.

The narrow corridor twisted ahead of them.

The air was damp, almost rotten, but somewhere up ahead, the sound of something skittering echoed through the stone halls.

But suddenly, the space opened into a vast underground cavern.

Gray stopped first, eyes narrowing as the stale scent of mold and wet stone grew heavier in the air.

A large, still lake spread out before them, its surface black and glossy, like glass that had never been touched by wind.

The ceiling above was high, veiled in thick hanging roots, and little drops of water echoed as they fell from above, one by one, plinking into the lake like ticking time.

But that wasn’t what caught their attention.

No.

It was the door.

Far across the lake, carved into the wall of the cavern, burning red like molten steel, stood a giant gate. Its surface pulsed faintly, almost like it had a heartbeat.

A strange warmth radiated from it despite the coolness of the cavern, and strange symbols glowed on its surface, etched deep into the metal.

"YESSS!!" Ronan practically screamed, throwing his arms into the air.

"There it is! The exit! We actually found it!!"

He started running, his legs splashing into the shallow edge of the lake without hesitation.

"We’re finally getting out of this cursed rat maze!"

"Idiot," Gray muttered.

There was no way it was that simple. Barely an hour had passed since they entered the labyrinth.

He could feel something was wrong.

The air was too still... really quiet, and the water... was too clean, meaning that someone was cleaning it on purpose.

After all, this was some kind of underground cave.

[...Stay back.]

Jasmine suddenly warned him, causing Gray to take a few steps back. And since Jasmine had warned him, it meant that something dangerous was on the water.

So, he scanned the lake with a hardened glare...

But then, Lira’s voice rang out sharp like a whipcrack.

"WATCH OUT! THAT’S THE DEN OF A WATER LESSER DRAKE!!"

The words hit the cavern walls like a bolt of lightning.

Ronan froze mid-run, one foot already deep in the shallows.

"W-Wait, what?!"

A low rumble echoed from beneath the lake.

The black water began to tremble.

"...Fuck," Gray hissed, his hand tightening around the hilt of his rapier..

From the depths of the lake, something stirred.

A shadow... and it was massive.

It moved with unnatural speed, circling beneath the surface like a predator that had been waiting, hungering, and now, finally, saw prey.

FWOOSH!!

A towering geyser of water exploded up right in front of Ronan, knocking him backward and sending him crashing onto the muddy shore.

Then it rose.

The Water Lesser Drake.

Its scales were the color of dark sapphire, each one slick and jagged like sharpened glass.

Long fins flared out from its back like wings made of rippling water, and glowing blue slits for eyes locked onto the three intruders with savage hunger.

Its body stretched long and coiled like a serpent, part amphibian, part dragon, with webbed claws and a long, barbed tail that lashed the surface of the lake like a whip.

Its mouth opened, showing rows of teeth before...

KRAAAAAAAAAAAAHGHHHHHHH!

A loud growl escaped its lips.

[Be careful...]

Jasmine warned, not teasing him, which meant that this could actually be a life and death situation

But still, Gray stepped forward slowly, sheathing his rapier.

He didn’t answer Jasmine, and instead, just glared at the monster.

Behind him, Lira rushed to his side, already unsheathing her curved blade. Her eyes narrowed with focused sharpness.

"I’ve seen these things before," she muttered quickly, staying low. "They’re fast in water, slower on land. But that one’s massive. Maybe mutated."

"...What about that idiot?" Gray asked in hope.

He was thinking of using Ronan as a bait again.

Ronan groaned behind them, crawling backward and drenched in lake water.

"I think I swallowed mud... or fish poop... or both..."

Gray didn’t even glance at him.

"Useless," he muttered, eyes locked on the monster ahead.

The water beneath the drake churned wildly, waves splashing up the walls.

"KRAAAGHHH!"

Then, with a sudden roar, the beast lunged forward, a powerful burst of its muscular body sending a wave crashing toward them.

Its mouth opened wide, jagged teeth snapping through the air like a guillotine.

But before it could reach either of them...

CLANG!

Lira appeared, meeting the charge head-on, her blade raised, shimmering with a faint, blue aura.

FWIP!

Sparks flew as steel clashed against scale.

The drake’s fangs scraped against her sword as she grunted, digging her boots into the wet stone to hold her ground.

"Gray!" she shouted over the crash of water.

"Its underbelly, aim for its underbelly! That’s the only weakne—"

She didn’t get to finish.

From the lake, just behind the first...

CRASH!!

Another one erupted.

A second Water Lesser Drake, just as massive, with its long tail already arcing through the air.

CRACK!

It slammed into Lira’s side, the sound echoing like a thunderclap through the underground cavern.

"—GHHH!!"

Her body lifted off the ground, spinning like a ragdoll as she was thrown across the cavern.

BOOM!!

Her back slammed against the stone wall.

The impact was violent as her head snapped back, her eyes went completely wide, then dulled instantly.

Blood sprayed from her mouth as her sword dropped from her hand and clattered across the ground.

Then... silence.

She slid down the wall slowly... limp... unmoving.

"...Did she die?"

Gray’s eyes didn’t widen in surprise or anything; instead, they narrowed.

The drakes hissed, the water boiling with their anger.

One slithered toward the unconscious girl’s body while the other watched Gray and Ronan with gleaming, slitted eyes.

"I-I think I peed. I really think I peed myself this time—" Behind him, Ronan decided that it was a good time to whimper again.

CRACK!!

Without even turning, Gray struck the side of Ronan’s head with the back of his wrist.

Thud!

The boy collapsed immediately, unconscious, face-first into the mud.

"Finally... peace..." Gray let out a sigh of relief.

His shoulders slowly rose and fell as he stood alone now. His fingers flexed, then tightened into a fist.

Then, he stepped forward, bent down, and grabbed Ronan by the leg like a sack of potatoes.

And whispered coldly under his breath...

"...Let’s fish some big fishes."

He dragged the unconscious boy across the stone and toward the water’s edge, eyes locked on the two drakes.

"Come on then... let’s see which one of you bites first."