I Became A Third-Rate Villain In The Hero Academy

8-11

Chapter 9: First Hidden Piece (1)

The clock read 4:25 PM. In just five minutes, the week's lessons would finally come to an end.

Understandably, most students were restless. During each break, they excitedly discussed their plans for the weekend.

Of course, their plans had nothing to do with me.

"...and that's why, as a hero, earning the trust of your aides is extremely important. The hero is the head, and the aides are the arms and legs. You must form such an organic relationship. In dire situations where everyone's strength must be combined, chaos would ensue if the head, arms, and legs were to act independently, wouldn't it?"

The last lecture of the week was Professor Mari's Introduction to Hero Studies.

As expected, it was all familiar material. Eager for the class to end, I stared intently at the clock.

Once class was over, I planned to head straight to the eastern forest of the academy to find the first hidden piece. I had already packed food and tools like a flashlight in my bag.

At 5 PM, there was a carriage to the entrance of the eastern forest. However, the hidden piece was located deep within the forest, so it would take an entire day to travel there and back.

If I hurried, I could still have dinner at the academy tomorrow evening.

As I reviewed my plan in my head,

"Before we end today's lecture, let's test how well you've been listening. Hmmm... Theo, would you like to answer?"

Professor Mari called on me.

I had anticipated it.

At this point, I'd be disappointed if she didn't.

Although she was going to call on me anyway, I wondered why she pretended to ponder her decision.

"Yes."

Lately, all the professors had been calling on me during their lectures to ask questions.

The culprit was undoubtedly Mari.

She probably wanted to catch me off guard.

But there was no chance of that.

So far, I had answered every question correctly. As a result, my classmates' opinions of me had softened considerably.

"Alright then, umm—"

However, Mari posed a rather challenging question. It required insight and analysis, not something that could be answered through memorization alone.

The students' gazes locked onto me. They seemed to think, 'This time, even Theo won't know the answer.'

Though their views of me had softened, my previous reputation was abysmal. Negative glances still far outnumbered the positive ones.

Nonetheless,

"...I believe that by following a conventional approach, we can reduce the mission's duration from approximately one month to about one week. Ultimately, this would mean we wouldn't have to confront the monster waves head-on."

I confidently delivered my response. There was no doubt it was correct.

That's because the answer to the question was a strategy I had personally devised—an approach even the game's developer had acknowledged as a solution they hadn't considered.

The full explanation was far too long, so I provided a summarized version.

"..."

A heavy silence fell over the classroom following my response. The students' gazes were tinged with boredom.