'System, do you think she's fine? She kinda looks angsty.'

[Eh _ I don't know host. They're both girls, you know. So maybe some show off thing.]

'If you say so.'

A month had passed since the fresher's party and everything was back to normal now. The classes, the training, spar matches and stupid VR games - everything exactly like before. At least for Rio that is.

Cause currently he was sitting in the crowd lanes watching a match between Saisha and Rebecca, which had long crossed the time limits allowed for a spar and this game, but both girls seemed hellbent on not stopping before defeating the next one. And the professor enjoyed it so here we are.

Rio watched as the two different properties of mana water and nature battled against each other. Both considered gentle on first glance, yet showing their most deadly side for this match.

As soon as the match had started 15 minutes ago, Saisha had been into attack mode, surprising everyone. Which forced Becca to go serious if she didn't want to lose against anyone.

'Huh maybe it is about their pride.' Rio said, handing the popcorn bucket to Amy who was sitting around, cheering happily for her best friend. On the other end were some elves and other students cheering for Saisha.

"Brother, 50 on Becca."

Hearing the sudden words from Amy as she sat down near him, Rio joked. "Feeling confident, are we?"

"Of course. Now, deal up, or are you scared?"

"Fine, she's slowly losing by the way." Rio replied watching the match and guessing the result.

"Tsk tsk tsk betting on your girlfriend's loss, brother. Bad thing. Becca would be sooo sad." Amelia teased and shook her head in disappointment.

".... If you blackmail me later and use this to not pay up, I'm gonna take away all your sweets that Tanya sent." Rio looked at her for two seconds before replying again, his words causing his pretty sister to stutter.

"What… .that's cheating." she said, already thinking she should place all her sweets in Becca's or better Rubina's storage ring so her brother doesn't steal them.

"So is not paying when you lose." Rio replied with a smile.

"Humph, whatever, I'm sure Becca would beat that sharpe looking pointy." Amy snorted and replied.

"Are you _ making fun of her elven lineage? That's racist you know." Rio said, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Shut up." Amelia ignored her brother and stood up from her seat and started shouting again, "Come on Becca, you can do it."

Rio just shook his head and turned his attention away from the match, he glanced at one side and watched Katherine training with Rubina and Vanessa, while on the other end were Zirrix, Leon, Heathe and Moksh fighting each other in a four way match.

Valtor was sitting on the chair ahead, his eyes closed and meditating, trying to recover his mana, after losing to Rio. While Qingyue just snorted and glared at Amelia who simply gave up on her training and accepted defeat so she can watch Becca's match easily.

Amaya was fighting against Levi and Kevin in a three way match, enjoying her time accessing their relationship and trying to understand their thoughts.The effects of Rio's tricks had beginning to show signs of fruition as Levi started feeling of admiration for Leon and even took the chance to apologize to him once few days ago, while Kevin could just glare at everything.

He did call Loki about what was happening, or why wasn't she falling in love with him, but instead increased her distance.

But alas neither loki nor the masked man ever appeared in front of him again.

Every main character was beginning to interract with each other and learn more about each other's strength and weaknesses. The plot was progressing smoothly and signs of different arcs had already started appearing in the background.

The bullying arc from noble bloods, which had been gathering the highest momentum is like a powder keg at this time, waiting for a spark to go kaboom. The commoners in first years were getting suppressed and bullied on a regular basis, as seniors joined the fray too. So unless someone had some backup, they could only act as a cow and monkey, and keep their heads low trying to act blind and survive the day.

As always teachers seemed to ignore the bullying, same as idiots did on earth.

Leon had made an enemy out of couple of villains with his righteous interruption and heroic entrance to save his fellow students many times. He also got a few followers and friends too, but well, as novels go, they're the most pitiful, since a partner of protagonist is just a tool for fate to torture..

Aside from bullying and blood discrimination arc, which Rio didn't plan to interfere, another event was happening which actually included him.

Quinlan Tempus, Rebecca's childhood professor, who had been obsessed with her from as early as when she was 12 years old.lightsnovel

"A fucking pedophile." Rio couldn't help but curse again, as he remembered this disgusting villain.

[Ahem humm]

???

'Fuck you system.'

lightsΝοvel Rio cursed this bitch laying in his head and ignored the shameless laughter he heard back.

Quinlan, who held the research from his mentor in his hands, and according to fate is being groomed to hand it all over to Leon, is going bonkers ever since the rumors of Rio and Rebecca being together caught fire again.

(Read Ch 201 "A dead man's chances" to jog your memory about this professor and his plotline)Ohhh, yeah they were officially together now. Like proper boyfriend and girlfriend.

Rumors spread in whole academy and that picture became the best proof, so their was no denying it.

Plus Becca's been on cloud 9 since that day and after their 'talk' about what she wants and how she feels, Rio agreed to give this a chance.

Obviously not as blindly and believing in promises of love as he was two or twenty years ago. What he looked for now were things he could get and profits he could exploit. He would never, NEVER, be in any helpless situation like that ever again.

Lisa had left the Zenith and went on the mission to find a cure for her mother's curse. She tried meeting him one last time, but Rio simply didn't want to visit another trip down memory lane and see signs of how foolish he was and why he failed because of friendship, so he ignored her.

Only a protagonist can win by relying on power of love and friendship,, cause when a villain believes in those things, he gets betrayed and left to suffer.

Lesson fucking learned.

Since the council president left, the whole student council fell into Alfred's hands, who had been happily enjoying the thrill of power and control he has now.

Under Alfred's orders most of the fourth years didn't come to trouble him again, except one or two idiots now and then, who either got insulted by him, or suffered what we call a proper faceslap moment, and then left being broken and battered.

(Their bodies filled with the poison specially brewed by system shop under Hell's personal guidance, undetectable and uncurable. Their death nearly awaiting them just around the cornet.)

Aside from them, second year students had been bugging him for a while now, just yesterday an idiot heir of some stupid guild dared to interrupt his research in the library and ended up being burned alive as he 'lost control' over a spell he was trying to combine and create..

Poor fellow didn't even have a handful of ashes left to finish his resting rites.

Rio knew which fellow villain was behind these minions, but he didn't care. After all killing these idiots was also a good thing that gave him lots of points, since every idiot he killed was supposedly an experience package manufactured for protagonist.

"From now on, no more games, no more drama and no more build up, now we start business. Serious fking business." Rio thought in his heart as he planned to end all these plotlines before the first holidays coming in three weeks later.

He had ton of other things to do and steal in that free time, so solving these petty backdrops would have to be fasttracked.

"Saisha wins."

A background announcement broke his thoughts, and as he looked up he found Rebecca lying on the ground, thrown out the stage, while Saisha standing there, looking down upon her.

'She really does seem angsty.' He thought again, as she turned around and left. Their eyes locking on each other for the flash of a moment, and he saw a smile.

'There's definitely something wrong with her.' He thought with a frown, as he stepped forward to help Becca.

[.....]

(Fuck this bullshit man. When will I get a break. It's been a month.

Can't she just take a break and chill, it was just a kiss anyway.) System cursed and directly decided that the next time something like this happens and this mentally possessive princess is around, it would just chug it's host's points and create a fucking barrier to block her sight.

(Urgh, let's hope she gets sane soon.)