Chapter 4
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Villainess (4)
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"Eric... are we still far...?"
"Almost there. Just up to that rock."
"You said that a while ago too..."
Scarlet had built up her stamina playing around with me since we were kids.
But climbing a tall mountain wasn't easy, and she was panting heavily.
"This time it's true. That rock was the goal."
"Hoo... You can see the academy at a glance from here? The view is nice."
"It'll be even cooler when the sun sets later."
"But why did we come so early?"
Scarlet tilted her head curiously.
"I've still got a lot to do."
I approached the rock I'd scouted beforehand.
It looked ordinary at first glance, with fine cracks scattered around forming a small circle.
I placed my hand on the center and gently pushed.
At that moment, the rock vibrated and vanished like a mirage.
"What?! How did you do that?!"
"I didn't do anything. It's just how it works—you learned about it in class."
"The entrance appears if you meet certain conditions... This is a dungeon?!"
Scarlet stared at the cave that had appeared beyond the vanished rock.
A translucent barrier shimmered at the cave entrance.
"Crossing that barrier means entering the dungeon, right?"
"Yeah. Doesn't it sound fun?"
"Isn't it dangerous?! We should tell the academy..."
"I already went in. Only low-grade monsters, and I confirmed I could get back out."
"Still, real combat is our first time..."
"Isn't it easy for genius mage Scarlet?"
Scarlet's lips twitched upward at my words.
"I'm no good at wide-area destructive spells. It's easy for you since you handle all four elements."
"Exactly! You're great at support magic!"
She tried to control her expression, but her lips quivered and her voice rose.
"If things get bad, we can escape with my magic..."
"Don't worry! Just trust me!"
Scarlet puffed out her chest and crossed the barrier.
In truth, her weakness with wide-area spells was before I recovered my past life's memories.
But I didn't bother telling the excited Scarlet.
The air felt different once we passed the barrier.
The dungeon inside carried a heavy, murky scent.
Mana stones emitting a blue glow illuminated the wide cave, like a large tunnel.
"These are mana stones that only come from dungeons, right?"
"Yeah, but they're too low purity for commercial use as light sources."
"How do dungeons even form? They have resources that don't exist in our world."
"One of the academy's mysteries. It's a straight tunnel, so no getting lost."
As we walked and chatted, monster shapes appeared in the distance.
Goblins started filling the tunnel passage from who-knows-where.
"Classic low-grade dungeon. Oh, more from behind too."
The path we'd come was definitely a single trail.
But goblins had appeared from somewhere to block the rear.
"Fire might not be great in a cave... Earth magic it is?"
Not expecting a reply, Scarlet cast her spell right away.
She finely shattered nearby rocks the size of adult men with precise mana control.
Countless stone fragments floated in the air.
Scarlet glanced front and back to pinpoint the goblins, then launched the fragments.
They scattered in all directions, piercing the goblins' fragile flesh.
A few went astray, but she'd launched so many that no goblins survived.
"Whoa, impressive as always? But isn't that telekinesis, not earth magic?"
"I used rocks, didn't I? Archmage Talent means I can do anything! Except space magic!"
Scarlet bragged, but she couldn't hide her ragged breathing from mana drain.
As Scarlet caught her breath with small shoulder heaves...
The goblin corpses glowed blue and vanished without a trace.
"What?! My loot!"
"Some dungeons don't leave bodies behind... This one's that type."
"I was gonna cut off an ear as a souvenir..."
"What would you even do with that? There's treasure at the end—let's go."
Normally I'd say to conserve mana for more monsters.
But this place was prepared for the original protagonist and crown prince's date.
It was a stage to show off the crown prince's prowess, not face real danger.
We walked a long way through the cave, but no more monsters appeared.
"How much farther...?"
"Was it this long?"
We'd walked quite a while, growing tired in the endless tunnel, when...
"Oh?! The end! There's a door!"
The cave ended, greeted by a plain wooden door.
"Treasure room at last!"
Scarlet dashed to the wooden door and opened it.
Expectant as she opened it, but she froze upon seeing the next room.
"What's wrong...? Whoa, I learned the theory, but seeing it in person is wild."
The next room held a deep chasm, shrouded in darkness below.
The opposite cliff was about 20 meters away.
Between them, large and small floating rocks hovered at 1-meter intervals.
"No magic, but... how are the rocks floating?!"
"Dungeon physics can differ sometimes."
"Ugh... Why heights of all things..."
Scarlet backed up slowly until her back hit the wall.
"Door on the other side. Guess we have to cross."
"How?! Oh! Eric's a space mage! Send me to the other side!"
"I can do it alone, but not with someone else yet."
Scarlet ignored her clothes getting dirty and crawled on the floor toward the cliff edge.
Peeking over, she paled and turned back to me.
"Right! You cross first! Then position swap! Then you cross back!"
"Think spatial teleport is easy? No catalyst on the other side either— it'd drain my mana completely."
"Ugh... there has to be a way..."
Scarlet stood behind me, pondering the chasm.
I watched her for a moment, then stepped forward.
Magic manifests through imagination.
I pictured a scene from an animated movie I'd seen as a kid, building an ice bridge.
Not ice, but an opaque white bridge formed, connecting the rocks.
A waist-high railing rose beside it to prevent falls.
Scarlet approached cautiously from afar.
"Is this... safe...?"
"You don't trust my magic?"
"Of course not! I mean, I do, but..."
I stepped onto the opaque bridge first to test its strength.
I stomped and jumped, but it didn't budge.
Scarlet watched from a distance, still anxious.
"Um... hand... please..."
"Huh?"
Scarlet clasped her hands in front of her chest, fidgeting.
Her pale face flushed red.
"N-no! Forget it!"
She squeezed her eyes shut, as if steeling herself.
I quietly approached and grabbed her hand.
"Eek?!"
"You use wind magic but fear heights?"
"I can't do levitation yet!"
Scarlet yelled at me, head down staring at the floor.
Though her face was hidden, her flushed ears gave her away.
Halfway across, mischief struck, and I said casually,
"Huh? Might run out of mana at this rate."
"What?!"
Scarlet screamed and lunged at me.
She froze, clinging to me on the mana bridge.
Face buried in my chest, eyes squeezed shut, her body trembled violently.
Feeling bad for her intense reaction, I told the truth.
"J-just kidding. Once-activated spatial magic barely uses mana."
"Huh?"
Caught off guard, Scarlet opened her eyes and looked up.
Her innocent gaze lingered, uncomprehending.
Realizing it was a prank from my awkward smile, her face turned an even deeper red.
She quietly let go and took a step forward, then stopped.
Still scared of heights, she gripped the railing with trembling hands.
I approached, grabbed her hand again, and led us across the rest of the bridge.
"Hey... sorry about earlier. I won't do it again."
Still mad, Scarlet crossed her arms, puffed her cheeks, and avoided my eyes.
She'd sulk more if I said it, but her expression was kinda cute, drawing a chuckle from me.
The next passage wasn't long and soon ended.
At the end, like a school hallway, sat a small treasure chest.
"Treasure chest!"
Scarlet ran to it and opened the chest.
Normally I'd check for traps or monsters, but knowing the original plot, I didn't stop her.
"Wow... so pretty..."
Inside were a pair of necklaces with red mana stones and a blue mana stone the size of two fingers.
Scarlet ignored the blue stone and lifted the red-mana-stone necklace.
I watched her for a moment, took out the other necklace, and said,
"Lemme see it for a sec?"
"Huh? Here."
She handed it over readily.
I gathered both necklaces in my hands, infused mana, and engraved a magic circle.
After a short time, I finished and showed them to Scarlet.
"What magic did you put on them?"
"Magic to know where you are, anywhere."
"Huh? Is that possible?"
"I'm a space mage. Not tracking you—tracking the necklace."
"That's totally stalker-ish?"
She said that, but her upturned lips wouldn't come down.
"Sorry about earlier. Won't happen again."
"I'll forgive you once! Don't do it again, seriously?"
"Promise."
The magic circle on the gems had two effects.
One truly tracked location, the other enabled position swap.
"Take this mana stone! The necklace is enough for me!"
"This is high-grade. Super rare in a dungeon this low-level."
"It's just big and ugly!"
I'd planned to take it anyway, but she gave it up easily.
"But! This necklace is your gift, right? Can't half-ass a gift!"
Scarlet stood tall before me, shoulders back.
I opened the necklace and placed it around her neck.
As my hand brushed her ear, her pupils shook.
Her face flushed like her red hair.
"Huh? Not this?"
"No, I meant... on my hand..."
Only then did I notice her hand reaching for my waist.
I'd thought she was unusually bold—turns out I misunderstood.
Pondering what to say, I just spoke honestly.
"Necklace suits you. Matches your hair perfectly."
"Yeah... thanks..."
Scarlet bowed her head, mumbling softly.
Realizing we'd spent more time than expected, I turned back and said,
"We should head out now, or we'll miss curfew."
"Ah! W-we have to go back that way...?"
"Dungeons usually have exits near the final treasure chest. You learned that in class."
"Right! Yeah!"
I turned and scanned around.
A wall with faint cracks forming a door shape.
I placed my hand on it and spread mana; the solid rock turned into a wooden door.
"How is that even possible? The entrance didn't need mana, but the exit does?"
"Dungeons are easy to enter, hard to leave."
Opening the door revealed the original entrance.
The cave mouth had vanished completely, leaving an empty clearing.
Scarlet stared at the clearing briefly, then looked up at the sky.
"Whoa... the stars look pretty from here..."
"Check the academy—doesn't it sparkle nice with the mana lamps?"
"Yeah... never noticed on the usual paths..."
Scarlet's eyes sparkled as she gazed at the sky and academy.
Honestly, I'm still torn.
Scarlet gets kidnapped by the Archdemon but returns alive.
If I go, I'll definitely die.
No—even a small mistake might make death the lucky outcome.
I didn't finish the original story, but from my brother's spoilers, the ending is world destruction.
Wouldn't more people be saved if I stay alive?
"Thanks for bringing me today."
"No problem. I'm more grateful you came."
I looked at Scarlet, who was stargazing beside me.
I didn't notice before regaining past life memories, but now I see.
Scarlet's only 16 this year. Too young even by this world's standards.
If I can't save a girl this young right in front of me, who can I save?
I won't worry about consequences.
I steeled my resolve once more.
And who knows?
The Magic Department Head might reach 7th Circle and buy time.
Or the Great Sword Department Head might be stronger than expected and hold out.
Maybe the Papal Court sends powerhouses for the terrorist student.
Lost in silly thoughts, I chuckled.
"Huh? Something on my face?"
"Nah, let's go before it's too late."
We made it back to the dorms before curfew.
I never told Scarlet about the dirt on her face.