The Villains I Taught Became Heroes

Ruins overflowing with monsters and traps.

Just dealing with them grants a considerable amount of experience.

No matter how much of a genius Lena is, without practical experience, she can’t fully utilize her talent.

But since Lena is quite timid and lacks confidence, I was pondering how to get her into actual combat; this could be a good opportunity.

“Um… but exploring ruins is very dangerous. I don’t know your abilities, and…”

He glanced at Lena, carefully observing her reaction.

He didn’t seem too pleased with Lena trembling and afraid of people’s gazes.

“Communication is crucial for adventurers. If one person acts unilaterally, the party can fall apart.”

That’s not untrue.

Most of the reasons why a party member from a hero party gets kicked out and ends up wallowing in regret is simply due to lack of communication.

Considering that, it’s understandable that it’s hard for him to accept Lena, who struggles to talk to others.

“Um. So, you don’t want the key to the ruins?”

But that’s the party leader’s job, not something for me or Lena to worry about.

Whether their party falls apart or not, what’s important is that Lena gains experience.

I spun the necklace I received from Luseia casually. Valtin frowned at it.

What are you going to do if you frown?

“S, S, Sensei. Is, is it really okay?”

Of course, it wouldn’t be a bad thing if the guys who couldn’t hold up to this provocation came charging in.

You don’t necessarily have to build experience just with monsters.

“…Valtin. What are you going to do?”

“You’re the leader, so you decide. I mean, I’m not that into it. We’ve been doing well on our own…”

“I’m against it. I don’t want an unknown girl joining our party.”

All of Valtin’s party members reacted negatively.

Valtin’s party was made up of three girls besides himself.

From what I could see, it seemed all three had a crush on Valtin.

He is definitely tall and good-looking.

And he looks pretty capable too.

It’s only natural that they would feel annoyed with pretty Lena trying to join Valtin’s side.

“Ugh… This seems tough. I’m sorry.”

“Then how about this? We’ll keep the key, and you’ll hold the information about the ruins, right? There’s no point in keeping them separate. Let’s have a duel, and the winner takes all.”

“Ooh!! That sounds good!!”

A muscular female warrior stepped forward. Seeing her, Valtin sighed and nodded his head, so I gave Lena a pat on the back.

“You can do it, right?”

“Y, yikes… M, me…?”

I feel like I could easily take down that pathetic warrior.

I held on tightly to the trembling Lena.

That warrior seemed to delight in how terrified Lena was, swinging her huge axe and putting on a show of bravado.

Seeing that, Lena looked even more scared.

“W, what happens if I lose…?”

What happens? I’ll just go with Plan B.

“Nothing much. Luseia will lose something precious from her husband, I guess?”

Instead of revealing my true intentions, I pointed behind me.

Surprised by my words, Lena turned to look at Luseia.

Her gaze was filled with trust.

Maybe that’s why Lena started trembling again.

“Alright! Let’s get started!!”

The warrior, seeming tired of waiting, swung her axe again and growled.

She hasn’t even tested her skills yet, but she’s already acting like she’s won.

According to my scans, no matter how you cut it, Lena is superior.

“So, cheer up.”

“U, ugh… Y, yeah…”

With her shoulders stiffened, Lena took a clumsy step forward.

As we were having a conversation, it suddenly turned into a duel atmosphere, causing the market crowd to gasp and start clearing out.

A wide arena was quickly formed. The warrior glanced back.

She met the eyes of Valtin, who was smirking, and said in a firm tone,

“If I win, you’ll grant me a wish!”

“Sure. Sure. Just don’t go too hard.”

“Haha! We’ll see about that!! Hoorah!!”

With a roar, she stomped down. Is that the warrior’s tech, War Cry? A technique that boosts her defense by unleashing a battle cry…

“S, Sensei. Wh, what should I… do?”

“Just do what you can.”

The only offensive magic Lena can currently use is Magic Arrow.

But she has perfectly mastered Shadow Spear and Multi-Shadow Spear, so that alone should be enough for her to win.

All that’s left is confidence…

“If you win…”

“…Huh?”

“I’ll take you to the big city.”

“B, b, big, big city…?”

“Let’s have an amazing day there. How’s that? A fine deal, right?”

Nodding eagerly, her eyes sparkling, Lena bobbed her head. I stepped back, giving her a light pat on the shoulder.

“Are you ready?! We’re starting now!”

“Let’s do it.”

As Valtin shouted and I agreed, the warrior charged ahead.

And.

“AAAAAAAAAAAH!!”

She was blasted away by a flurry of twenty Magic Arrows and fell unconscious.

“E, ehhh?!”

Everyone was shocked.

Among them, the most surprised was Lena, who was astonished and flustered by her own result.

“I… couldn’t even… stop that…?”

Lena turned to me with a puzzled expression.

It was understandable.

Up until now, my training partner had been me.

Of course, she thought she could easily stop something like a barrage of Magic Arrows, and thus thought of it as merely a control technique.

But the reality was different.

With her barrage of Magic Arrows, she could take down a pathetic warrior like that in one hit.

“So, what’s next?”

Valtin’s expression stiffened.

It seemed he finally realized that Lena was not ordinary.

He understood that his party members wouldn’t even be able to touch Lena, let alone beat her, and stepped forward.

Lena too seemed to sense that Valtin was on another level compared to the previous warrior.

Startled by his sharp gaze, she darted behind me.

“S, S, S, Sensei….”

“Big city.”

“…Whaaaaa?”

“An amazing day.”

“…Waaah…”

“And a nice outfit.”

“B, but…”

“And one more artifact.”

“Awwww…”

Oh, this girl knows how to negotiate.

“And even tickets to a play.”

“I’ll, I’ll do my best!!”

Finally gaining courage, Lena stumbled forward.

The tense atmosphere began to build.

No one could move. With her throat dry, Lena stared at Valtin and raised her hand.

“I-I’ll…”

“Yip!!”

“…Feed!!”

With a sparkle in his eye, Valtin leaped forward.

Oh. He managed to achieve Sword-Knight Fusion. Not bad for a young lad.

But it won’t work against Lena.

-Wiiiiiing!!!

The summoning of Sylphid was complete.

Powerful winds battered around Lena, nullifying Valtin’s strike.

“Magic Arrow!!”

As Valtin was deflected, before he could brace himself, another twenty Magic Arrows rained down on him.

Just as he swung his sword to deflect the arrows and attempt another attack…

“Create Water!!”

-Splash!!

A torrent of water poured down on top of Valtin as he tried to run.

Soaked and trying to swing at Lena, she raised her hand.

“Freezing!!”

-Crackle!!

A chill enveloped his drenched body.

The moisture in his arms and legs froze, slowing his movements.

Seizing the opportunity, Lena used the wind from Sylphid to increase the distance before raising her hand again.

“Lightning Shock!!”

-Fried!!!

Electricity coursed through the moisture-laden Valtin’s body.

Basic electric magic like Lightning usually has the power of mere static shock, but this is Lena we’re talking about.

With her overflowing magical power and talent, her maximized Lightning had the potency of a mid-level spell, and he couldn’t help but take some damage.

“Ugh, argh!! Isn’t this too much!!”

Whoa. He’s holding out.

Lena seemed to be shocked he could endure it, and taking that chance, Valtin broke free from the encasing ice.

– Don’t. Touch. My friend!!

– Wiiiiiing!!

A powerful whirlwind suddenly enveloped Valtin.

Sylphid, the spirit bonded to Lena, used its strength to protect her.

Lena seized the opening created by that.

“Magic Arrow!!”

The light arrows began to pour. After being hit, Valtin finally went down.

“Don’t get up… don’t get up… don’t get up…”

Wow, she’s desperate.

Even though she could still fight, Lena pitifully murmured to the fallen Valtin.

Did he get tired of disappointing her?

Stumbling, Valtin finally slumped down.

“Wow, wow!! I w-won. I won!!”

“Yeah. Good job.”

.

.

.

He seemed unable to accept his defeat, dazed even after regaining consciousness, but he sighed and handed over a map.

It was a map marking the location of the ruins.

“This ruins is presumed to be mid-level.”

“Is that so? Thanks. You must’ve worked hard to find this location.”

“Hah…”

Valtin let out a heavy sigh and turned away.

The shoulders of the defeated party slumped.

“I will never forget this defeat. If we ever have a chance to compete again, I will definitely win.”

I nodded at him and his companions, who were boosting their spirits.

“Did you hear that?”

“…Eek… C-could you… please… forget about it?”

Lena, with a pout, trembling, spoke up, and Valtin stared at her for a moment before turning and walking away.

His companions followed him as they distanced themselves.

At least he left coolly. If he had clung pitifully, I might have had to finish him off.

“S, S, Sensei. Wh-what do we do? Y-yes? Y-yes?!”

What do you mean, what to do?

“You’ve gotta train hard, right?”

I gently ruffled the head of the teary-eyed Lena.

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