The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

After we finished our dinner—

The three of us began searching for a new place to set up camp.

And luckily—

We found a decent spot not too far away from where we were.

And just before the sun completely vanished from the horizon too.

Anyway—

Fwoosh~

I immediately pulled out one of the spare tents from my spatial ring and began setting it up.

It wasn't as big or sturdy as the first one we lost, but it would do.

Still—

'I can't believe we lost our main tent… and we've only been here for less than a day.'

I sighed inwardly.

'We really need to be more careful.'

And with that thought lingering in my mind—

"It's done, let's go rest."

Zephyrus, Pyro, and I huddled inside the tent and settled in for the night.

...

...

...

We took turns sleeping and keeping watch.

It was exhausting, sure—

But it was also necessary.

We couldn't afford to let our guard down. Not in a dungeon like this.

*****

The next day—

"Ugh..."

I sat up even before the sun had a chance to rise.

-Hmn...

-Meep...

Zephyrus and Pyro were already awake too.

None of us really slept well.

The entire night, we kept hearing unsettling noises—low growls, rustling from places where nothing should be moving.

'But every time we checked… nothing was there.'

Paranoia?

Maybe.

But in a forest-type rift dungeon like this, with monsters capable of ambushing from any direction at any time—

Can you blame us?

Every creature here could kill us the moment we slipped up.

They weren't just weak goblins or low-tier beasts.

No.

The average monsters lurking in this place were between [B-] and [B] ranks.

Just one and two step below my rank.

'Every damn thing here could kill me if I'm careless.'

Yeah, I've grown stronger over the last five months—

But still...

'It's not enough.'

"I'm still weaker than that bastard."

I muttered under my breath.

That demon—

The high-rank one I faced five months ago during the invasion.

The one that nearly destroyed everything.

"I'll kill that fucker..."

I whispered with anger, each word was filled with fury.

Fwish—

Then, turning my gaze to the right—

"Hm?"

I saw Zephyrus staring at me.

-...

He stood silently on the red grass, balancing on his two thin legs.

Just watching.

"...What is it?"

I asked, meeting his eyes.

-...

He didn't answer right away.

Just stood there.

But then, after a moment—

He opened his beak.

-You're talking about the demon that got us five months ago, right?

He asked, voice low.

"Hmm, yeah."

I answered simply, trying to keep my expression calm.

But—

Fwip!

My hands clenched into tight fists.

So tight, my knuckles cracked.

Anger flooded my chest like wildfire, burning behind my eyes.

That fucking demon…

What it did to Old Man Rey—

To Kyle—

To Zephyrus and Pyro—

The way it laughed. The way it toyed with me during our fight.

It made my blood boil.

My heart was thudding against my ribs like a war drum.

"What about him?"

I asked, more coldly now.

I wasn't expecting what Zephyrus said next.

-I just think you two deserve to know this.

He muttered, pertaining to me and Pyro.

"...?"

I tilted my head, confused.

-meep...?

Even Pyro, who was trying to sleep more, turned his head to Zephyrus after hearing that.

But before we could even try to speak—

-The demon that got us...

-It was the same demon that caused the downfall of the Wallace Family.

Zephyrus declared that with a weakening voice.

(The Wallace Family—Ivan Wallace's family, from the underground mansion dungeon.)

"...!"

My body froze.

"Huh?"

I muttered, my mind racing to catch up with what I'd just heard.

'What…?'

I stared at Zephyrus.

His expression—

Dead serious.

'He's not lying.'

The realization slammed into my chest like a hammer.

And with it—

"..."

My calm mask shattered.

"...!"

My eyes widened, trembling with rage.

FWIP—

My fingers curled so hard, my nails dug into my palms, drawing blood.

"Grgh...!"

A guttural sound escaped my throat as I tried to hold in a scream.

My whole body was shaking.

My heart was thundering now, screaming for vengeance.

My teeth gritted so hard it hurt.

And as my lips parted—

"I'll really kill that bitch..."

I whispered that, every syllable was laced with poison.

It wasn't just a goal anymore.

It was a promise.

-...

-...

Zephyrus and Pyro remained silent, looking at me.

They didn't need to say anything.

The three of us—

We knew Ivan..

He was my master in swordsmanship—he trained me.

He was a friend.

"..."

I remembered the underground mansion dungeon.

I remembered the Wallace Family's twisted fate—what the demon did to them.

I remembered what happened to the corpses of Ivan's dead families.

I remembered how Ivan had been cursed—doomed to slowly turn into a monster, not being able to leave the room that he was bound to.

He endured so much.

And that demon...

'That fucking demon was the one behind it all...!'

I thought my hatred had reached its limit that day, five months ago—

But now?

It had doubled. Tripled.

It felt like a firestorm inside my chest.

-----

.....

After a few deep breaths, I managed to calm slightly myself.

But my resolve?

It burned brighter than ever.

"I need to get stronger—"

"Strong enough to kill him."

I said.

No hesitation. No doubt.

Just cold, burning purpose.

It wasn't a matter of "if" anymore.

It was "when".

And so with that—

I continued with the plan that I had came up to last night.

What is it, you asked?

Well—

It is to hole up in our base and start training.

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"Meh."

Just like how I always do it back in the cabin.

Fighting the mini bosses?

It's not on my list right now.

'I'll be here for a year with Zephyrus and Pyro.'

I realized that I don't need to speed run this dungeon.

I can take it slow, progressing one at a time in clearing it.

And as I was pushing that aside—

"Let's start."

-Let us...

-Meep!

Zephyrus, Pyro, and I—

We'll be training all the time.