The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

61. Extreme Cold Survival Training (1)

Early in the morning, at Arsen’s dormitory.

Among the students still lying in their hospital beds, Arsen’s doctor was having a private consultation with a patient who was scheduled to be discharged.

“Is everything okay?”

“…I think so.”

“Have you experienced anything strange, like hearing voices or seeing things, or having an episode where you unknowingly cast a spell in the middle of the night?”

“No, not recently.”

“Then…”

A line was drawn next to the name. It was a symbol indicating complete recovery.

“Then you can go now.”

“Is this really the end?”

“Yes. However, you’ll need to come back for check-ups for about a week. Once you’ve been possessed, the chances of being possessed again are high. We’ll keep an eye on your condition, and if anything strange happens, come back right away.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

Lara Steelhyden bowed her head in gratitude. Her long treatment was finally over.

However, even though she had just been discharged, she couldn’t relax.

Arsen had offered to give her special consideration, but she had already missed too many classes. If she continued like this, the gap between her and the other students would only grow wider.

Fortunately, Arsen had promised to provide separate guidance for the students who had been affected by the recent dormitory incident.

But that didn’t mean she could let her guard down.

“Let’s see, the class schedule…”

First, she needed to focus on Professor Vien’s lecture, “Basic Understanding of Magic”, which gave the highest grades.

To graduate from Arsen, she had to complete all of Professor Vien’s lectures. And if she received a recommendation, she would have a smooth path ahead of her after graduation.

She could become a mage of the Magic Tower, join the Hunter Association, or even have her own research lab. In her later years, she could become a lecturer or run a magic tool shop.

But Lara Steelhyden shook her head. Her goal was somewhere else.

“…The White Tower.”

Just as Arsen was one of the top three academies on the continent, the White Tower was considered one of the top Magic Towers on the continent.

Many mages would be thrilled just to visit the White Tower, and would boast about it as their greatest achievement.

But Lara’s goal wasn’t just to visit the White Tower.

If she was going to set a goal, it would be to reach the top of the White Tower, and even further, to become the Master of the Magic Tower.

The White Tower was currently storing ancient magic and various sealed spells. Just the thought of it was enough to make her want to climb to the top.

“No way.”

Many thoughts were rising, but Lara swallowed her saliva and tried to ignore them.

This isn’t something to discuss right now. For now, we need to focus on catching up with our grades.

As she was about to leave Arsen’s dormitory, Lara Stillhaiden saw a blue bird perched on her shoulder.

“What… is this?”

The being made entirely of water was one of the spirits she had contracted with before. Lara carefully took the spirit in her hand.

Elfin, the water spirit.

Previously, it had taken the form of a small water droplet, but now it resembled a majestic peacock. After formally completing the contract, it began to receive magical energy and could manifest physically.

“Say something.”

-…….

However, no matter how much she tried to talk to it, there was no response. The peacock Elfin simply shook its head and folded its wings.

Well… maybe it’ll get better with time.

She looked at the watch on her left hand. Alerts from Arsen were flooding in. She checked the latest message first.

[Arsen A.C: The extreme cold survival training is scheduled.]

[Arsen A.C: We encourage all students to participate. Please check the attached file for detailed information.]

[Attached file 1: Arsen_First Semester_Education Plan_Extreme Cold Survival Training_Preliminary Notice]

***

“Today, as previously announced, we will discuss the extreme cold survival training plan, which is the highlight of this semester’s course.”

Unlike Isabella, who spoke calmly, murmurs of discontent erupted from all corners of the classroom.

The atmosphere was not positive, but rather negative.

Professor Isabella, as always, responded with a stoic expression.

Getting caught up in such petty reactions would make it impossible to be a instructor. Sometimes, one had to be gentle and guide the students, while other times, one had to be firm and push them.

Of course, there were students who didn’t respond to either approach. Representative of this was Kyle Ivanstein, who raised his hand enthusiastically.

“I’m Kyle Ivanstein from Class A! If the extreme cold survival training is the highlight of this semester, I’d like to ask what the highlight of the second semester is!”

“The second semester education plan will be announced in due time.”

“Then, does that mean we won’t have any more training after completing this extreme cold survival training in the first semester?”

“…….”

Professor Isabella sighed. Only Kyle Ivanstein from Class A could do something like this.

However, this time, the reactions from the other students weren’t bad. Maybe they had similar questions to Kyle’s.

Since Kyle had taken the initiative to ask, it was hard not to feel a sense of camaraderie.

The students who exchanged glances and whispered to each other were trying to hide their curiosity, but it was evident.

…Unfortunately, my [Celestial Eyes] couldn’t avoid being affected.

Trying to ignore what I saw was also a considerable effort.

“Unfortunately, that’s not the case.”

“Ah…….”

“Hmm…….”

The expectations that had been building up were slowly fading away.

It was only natural, of course.

Arsen’s education course was harsh and strict. Only the strong would survive, and even if one wasn’t strong, they would naturally become so by the time they graduated.

Most students would come to realize this later on and think, “Ah, Arsen was right.”

But for the students who were just starting to adapt, it was only natural to feel overwhelmed.

In reality, this harsh winter training would throw us into the midst of a ‘ountain of obstacles.’ Although it’s not real combat, it’s still just a training, so we could call it a ‘everse summon’ if we wanted to.

However, as the training continues and we’re repeatedly eliminated, Arsen’s graduation grows further away. The path might be different, but like Edel Di Bison, we might end up stuck in school for several years.

In the original story, not filling out our grades wouldn’t result in a penalty, but now it’s not a game – it’s reality. If we don’t fill out our grades, we can’t graduate.

‘Wait…’

As I thought that far, some unthinkable ideas started to emerge.

The first name that came to mind was Airi De Sugamon.

And then, Rian Von Hildegarde.

These two are targets of the Esperanza. As soon as Arsen graduates, Esperanza’s assassins will come for them.

Airi has three years left until graduation. Assuming she accumulates her grades without any issues…

But what if we assume this situation?

‘What if Airi doesn’t graduate from Arsen and stays like Edel Di Bison?’

Maybe we could avoid Esperanza’s assassins. Such thoughts emerged.

Theoretically, it’s possible. If we only consider the ‘condition’ where Esperanza’s assassins appear, it’s feasible.

‘No way.’

I shook my head, rejecting the idea. It’s ridiculous.

I didn’t want to put Airi in a hopeless situation, and there’s a risk of things getting out of hand.

And if that’s the case, I’d have to stay in Arsen without graduating, wasting even more time. There’s no point in wasting that much time.

It’s better to focus on the main quest and increase my stats. The stats I get from quest rewards aren’t lies, after all.

“Huh…?”

“……”

As I turned my head, our eyes met by chance.

It was a strange eye contact.

***

Before the intense survival training, a preliminary guide was distributed, and each class’s instructor provided additional explanations.

That day, Arsen’s classes only ran in the morning and ended early. It wasn’t that there was a hole in the schedule, but rather they were giving us time to prepare for the survival training.

The preparation time was originally just one day, which was already too short.

But what can you do? Arsen’s educational policy is to foster strong hunters who can handle real combat.

There are only two things students can do during this period.

Either adapt to this education course or not.

Those who adapt will ride on Arsen’s prestige and leap to even greater heights.

Those who don’t adapt… well, they’ll either become slaves to their grades until graduation or have to quit Arsen voluntarily.

“Where is it? Here.”

“It’s not the dorm, is it? The B-dorm, Titania Hall.”

The noisy voices filled this place, Titania Hall in the B-dorm.

This time, we didn’t gather at Geord’s Hall. Due to the last mock dungeon incident, Geord’s Hall was temporarily closed, and the Hunter Association was busy investigating.

So, this time, we were at a place located beyond the grand hall on the first floor of Titania Hall.

The Grand Saint Gate was set up.

“Then, let’s have the students called out to enter the gate.”

This time, unlike the last mock dungeon, everyone was carrying a lot of luggage. Everyone looked flustered due to the sudden training.

The students, with their backpacks full and carrying bundles in both hands, looked like they were about to move out.

From experience, it’s better to pack light. The fewer items you bring, the better.

After all, we’re heading to the Snowy Mountain Range, where survival depends on constant movement and finding shelter.

To do that, it’s best to have fewer belongings.

Carrying too much will only weigh you down, and if you encounter a demon, you’ll end up abandoning everything and running for your life.

As Professor Izabella called out, the students entered the gate one by one. Some of them exchanged greetings, but in reality, the biggest rule of this extreme survival training was “every man for himself.”

The student who survives the longest and safest will receive the highest score.

“Let’s survive, friends.”

“I’ll catch up soon, don’t talk like you’ll never see me again.”

“Alright, alright. See you.”

Kyle, on the other hand, wasn’t worried at all.

He was fundamentally strong, and there were others like Serin Anett and Eshily Silver who shared the same goal, scattered around.

Especially that unyielding [Willpower] of his was something even I couldn’t easily follow. No matter the situation, he would ultimately come out on top, which made him seem like the protagonist.

“Next student, Sion Illeayonhart.”

“Yes, Professor.”

I closed my eyes and stepped beyond the gate. The light luggage I had packed didn’t bother me much.

With the support items provided by Arsene, I took a deep breath and stepped into the gate.

…….

And when I opened my eyes again, I was in the Snowy Mountain Range.

The sky was gloomy, and in the distance, the mountains were covered in thick snow, a true snowy wilderness.

I, along with the other Arsene students, would spend a week in this snowy region.

We would encounter demons, and unlike the recorded dungeon contents from before, these demons were real, so we had to be extremely cautious.

‘With the Watch’s teleportation function, I won’t be in a life-or-death situation.’

Even considering that, the sudden situation was still overwhelming.

It was different from playing the game; experiencing it firsthand was a different level of shock.

I looked up at the snowy mountain.

The steep cliff, like a blade, was awe-inspiring.

‘Just for a moment.’

No, a bit longer.

‘…Where is this?’

I felt a sense of déjà vu. My sense of déjà vu was connected to my [Intuition], so it wasn’t just a simple feeling.

The familiar snowy landscape, as if I had seen it somewhere before.

I had been here before. I had memories of struggling to survive here.

From noble mtl dot com

‘Just for a moment, maybe…….’

I looked at my Watch.

The Watch had a basic location tracking function, which would allow me to pinpoint my location in real-time, no matter where I was.

But when I saw the location displayed on the Watch, my head spun as if I had been hit with a hammer.

[Current Location: Forgotten Archipelago. North. Nilvania Mountain]

Yes, it wasn’t just my imagination.

I had been to this mountain before. Not alone, but with the Esperand people a long time ago, when I climbed this snowy mountain.

In the original work, it was only marked as a snowy mountain, but I never thought it was a gate connected to the Nillvania Mountains—

-This is the Nillvania Mountains, where the snow has piled up for years. If you want to survive here for a week, you need to find winter clothing or gather materials to build a house. The head office trusts your judgment.

A memory that flashes by like a swift current.

Instinct is always right, and there’s a reason for the ominous feeling.

“…….”

I lost my words, staring blankly at the snowy mountain.

…Is this real?