The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

36. Recruiting Party Members for Hell (3)

Edel de Bison came to his senses five minutes later.

“What’s with the sudden feeding?”

“I had no choice. If I just left you, you would’ve gotten drunk again.”

“It looks like you’re not that weak against alcohol.”

The water bottle Edel had drunk was now half empty. He must have been really thirsty.

I put the remaining hangover remedies back in the box. It was indeed a product that showed its effects in real-life situations.

Edel let out a few dry heaves, then sat down at the table, hitting his face.

I placed the green bottle of liquor neatly on the side, worried that he might try to drink again. Then, I carefully brought up the main topic.

“How did you end up being a fifth-year student for five years?”

It was a provocative question for a freshman to ask a third-year student, so I tried to ask it as calmly as possible. But Edel just sat there, quiet and still.

“It’s not that I didn’t graduate. It’s that I couldn’t.”

Instead, Edel began to open up about his situation.

“I’m not not graduating because I don’t want to. It’s because I can’t.”

“Didn’t you graduate?”

“Yes. I kept failing the final exams every semester. It happened every year. For the last two years, I didn’t even take the exams, and I got held back—”

Edel said, waving her hand in the air. There was a green liquor bottle on the table. I handed her a water bottle instead.

“I heard you didn’t attend classes at all.”

“Everyone knows that already, so there’s no need to bring it up. I have enough credits, but I couldn’t pass the final exam, so I couldn’t graduate. Oh, where’s the glass…?”

There was no glass, only a small cup the size of a shot glass.

Edel poured the remaining water into the small cup and downed it in one gulp. The sight was familiar yet strange.

“Since I didn’t attend classes, everyone looks at me like I’m some kind of monster. Do you know how that feels?”

“I don’t know.”

“You can’t imagine it.”

From noble mtl dot com

I pretended not to know, even though I had a rough idea. It was better for the conversation to flow smoothly.

“Every time I go to class, there are only strangers, and no one talks to me. I do all the assignments by myself, and I eat alone.”

“…….”

“There were even people who called me ‘ajumma’ [a derogatory term for an older woman]. I’m still wearing my school uniform.”

Her hair was a mess, and it was hard to guess her age. In reality, she was still young, just entering her mid-twenties.

Now, she looked ruined in many ways, but I remembered that Edel De Bison, the idol, was quite beautiful. To be exact, it was her appearance after graduation that I remembered.

The real problem was that Edel De Bison’s self-esteem had hit rock bottom. No matter how talented someone is, if they’re always slacking off, they lose their charm.

In times like these, it’s better to listen than to offer words of comfort. It reminded me of Camille Esperanza, who was also like this during our training days.

“You don’t know how this feels? You shouldn’t know. Not knowing is strength.”

It wasn’t something I would normally say, but anyway.

“I’m sorry to hear that, senior.”

Edel De Bison had become a fossil at Arsene. She was being treated like a returning student who had been away for years.

She would be avoided by her peers, and it would be difficult for her to fit in with any group.

Attending classes with her juniors would be stressful, and it would create a vicious cycle.

I knew because I had seen it firsthand. A friend of mine who had taken a break and returned to school was exactly like that.

“…I’m weak in real combat. I wasn’t like this before, but somehow I became like this.”

Edel’s emotions flared up, and she hung her head.

“Anyway, I knew everything, so I didn’t attend classes, and I just reviewed here… or rather, at home. So, I always got full marks on theory. But I failed in practical combat, which is the problem.”

“When I go into real combat, my hands shake, and I can’t use even half of my strength. That’s why everyone thinks I’m intentionally not graduating.”

“I’m not. I’m really trying.”

It wasn’t that Edel De Bison was wrong, but Arsene was the problem.

Arsene’s curriculum was divided into 50% theory and 50% practical, so if you didn’t satisfy both, you couldn’t graduate.

If you did well in one area, you got bonus points, but that only applied to freshmen and sophomores.

For seniors, the curriculum was focused solely on practical combat. No matter how well you did in theory, if you couldn’t use your strength in combat, it was useless. And Edel De Bison was in the combat department, which made it even more problematic.

Changing majors was only possible until sophomore year, and after that, it was impossible to switch unless you dropped out and reapplied.

Giving up everything she had worked for was not an easy decision. That’s why Edel De Bison had become Arsene’s outcast. If left alone, she might really become an outcast.

“Anyway… I’ve talked too much. That’s my situation. Do you need help with something?”

“I was wondering if you could join our team for the group project this time.”

Edel looked like she had heard something absurd and froze in place.

“Me? Me?!”

“Yes, I need a senior.”

On the contrary, I decided to be straightforward.

“You didn’t listen to what I said? I told you. I’m perfect in theory, but weak in practice.”

“Yes, I heard everything. That’s why I’m saying this.”

“You’re saying that despite hearing it? I’m weak in practice, and you’re asking how I can be a team member?”

He rejected me with firm words, but I could see it in his eyes. Edel’s lips trembled, and his expression wavered.

“I’ll be of no help even if I go. Is that okay? Will I be of any use?”

Edel De Bison was desperately suppressing his expectant expression. It seemed like he was hoping for something.

I thought I’d fulfill that expectation a little. At Esperand, they not only teach skills to catch people but also the skills to deal with people. This was exactly the time for it.

“You just said it, senior.”

“What did I say?”

“That you’re perfect in theory.”

Instead of Edel, who couldn’t continue speaking, I calmly continued.

“Please be in charge of our team’s brain, senior. You may be weak in practice, but you’re good at magic interpretation and the like.”

“That’s true, but……”

“If it’s not you, then who else can do it? Our team members are all 1st or 2nd years, so they lack experience.”

“That’s a big problem, isn’t it? If I’m not around, it could be a real disaster.”

“That’s right.”

Even if I had the [Observer’s Eye], it couldn’t compare to Edel De Bison. Instead, my abilities were far inferior. While my versatility might be superior, it was still close to being a lower version of Edel’s.

Strictly speaking, Edel wasn’t a combat member. Even after graduating with the player’s help, she appeared as a non-combat member in the story.

“I thought I had no talent……”

“That can’t be. You have talent, senior.”

Edel De Bison’s talent was [Interpretation and Exploration].

It was a talent optimized for interpreting magic and collecting information.

That’s why Edel De Bison received a love call from the Hunter Association after graduating and took a position. She overcame her past hardships and grew to become the center of the Hunter Association.

“But I’m really weak in practice. I might not be able to do anything when I go out.”

“It’s okay. Everything will be fine.”

“But I was held back for 5 years because of that……?”

I nodded.

Edel didn’t know the reason why she was held back for 5 years, but as a player, I couldn’t help but know.

“Senior.”

“Yes?”

“Can you turn around for a moment? Just for a moment.”

“Huh? Like this?”

Edel De Bison turned around without any suspicion.

“Wha?!”

I combed my disheveled hair with my hand and slapped Edel’s back of the head, knocking her out. I carefully carried the unconscious Edel and laid her down on the bed. This was faster than explaining.

And I got up and swept the floor with [Observer’s Eye].

The evil aura in Edel’s room. And the eerie atmosphere that lingered in the 3rd-grade dormitory.

Edel De Bison must have been unaware. She had spent a long time in this cursed room, which had dulled her senses.

However, as an outsider, I felt a sense of discomfort as soon as I entered. The environment in this room was not good at all. If I stayed in this room, I would likely develop a new illness.

In the original story, it was indicated that Edel Di Bison had a debuff. It was up to the player to find the cause of that debuff.

I picked up the small, intricately carved box from the floor, which was emitting a strong aura. I opened it, and inside, I found a tiny, ornate key. I then put the box back in its original place.

Edel Di Bison had said that this dormitory might be haunted, and indeed, there was a ghost here. Originally, this was a side episode in the “Library of the Dead” where you could get a hint.

“What’s going on?”

But unlike in the original story, the aura in this room had become even stronger, to the point where I could feel it physically.

This was likely due to the previous incident involving the dormitory’s ghost. If I left Edel alone, she might really become the second Vanisher.

I checked my watch, which was beeping, and found a message from Airi.

[Airi: Si-on, do you want to be on the same team as me? It seems safer to team up with you.]

Airi had also successfully avoided being eliminated, just like in the original story. She must have received many love calls from various people, but she had ultimately decided to team up with me.

It was good that a close-range dealer had joined us. There were still many empty slots on our team.

The time displayed on my watch had already passed midnight. Another timer was counting down to zero.

Time remaining until the event – 00:00:00

The event will begin.

[Main Quest: Underground Town Everd]

The massive underground shopping mall, Everd, designated as a mock dungeon experience site, is filled with numerous obstacles that can hinder your progress.

You cannot clear this place alone. You must have a team.

Work with your teammates to conquer the dungeon. The journey will be arduous, but the reward at the end will be worth all the hardship.

May good luck be with you.

***

A few hours ago, in the student council room.

Rebecca, who was leaning on the chair, opened her eyes. The sound of Silvia’s laughter seemed louder than expected.

“What’s so funny? It sounds like you’re in love or something.”

“Ah, it’s not love. Not yet.”

“…Not yet?”

“Yes, not yet. It’s not yet.”

Silvia’s eyes, which seemed to be sparkling with amusement, looked as if they might be sucked into her watch at any moment.

Had she found someone she liked? Rebecca was taken aback by Silvia’s unfamiliar expression and momentarily froze before sensing someone’s presence behind the student council room door.

Kuung—!

The door was roughly pushed open, and a 2nd-year male student, Lian von Hildegarde, stood there. Rebecca calmly dealt with the unexpected visitor.

“What brings you here, Lian von Hildegarde?”

“I know everything. Rebecca, I heard you’re getting close to the 1st-year students and even received a proposal to help them. Is that true?”

Rebecca’s eyes narrowed momentarily. How did this man know about something that only the student council members knew?

“This has nothing to do with you. You’re no longer affiliated with the student council, are you?”

“What do you mean it has nothing to do with me?”

Silvia, who was sitting in an uncomfortable atmosphere, stood up from the sofa. Lian glanced at her before turning back to Rebecca.

“I’m Hildegarde, and you’re Grandeur.”

“It’s already over. Your family never acknowledged you in the first place.”

“That’s in the past, so it doesn’t matter.”

Lian von Hildegarde approached Rebecca, his footsteps heavy. He roughly slapped Rebecca’s desk.

“Are you really going to participate? It’s just a game for first-year students.”

Before speaking, Rebecca glanced at Silvia. Silvia quietly stepped aside.

The student council room door closed silently.

Rian, who had been holding back, suddenly blurted out what he had been wanting to say.

“What’s with your obsession with the first-year students? Are you getting paid or something?”

“Please refrain from making unfounded and rude remarks.”

“Are you going to participate or not?”

Bang!

Rebecca’s fist came down again.

The ink bottle on the desk fell over, and Rebecca spoke emotionlessly.

“Yes, I’ll participate.”

“Ha, really.”

Rian seemed to be about to explode, then stormed out of the student council room. Silvia, who was outside, cautiously approached.

“What’s going on, Rebecca?”

“It’s nothing. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“Then that’s a relief…”

Rebecca cleaned up the spilled ink and sat down in her chair. It had been three months since she was kicked out of the student council, but that stubborn stalker still wouldn’t leave her alone.

Her headache was getting worse, and her mood was deteriorating.