The Strongest Villain, Who Had Secluded Himself Deep in the Mountains To Avoid the Destruction Flag, Is Forced Onto the Main Stage by the Heroine He Helped

‘Where is Al-kun…’

The school building is vast.

Perhaps because it’s a royal academy overseen by the royal family that gathers nobles from all over the kingdom, despite being located in the capital city, the campus is incredibly spacious.

And that’s precisely why it’s challenging to search for just one person.

After going through the classrooms and the floors of each grade, she couldn’t find her beloved.

Naturally, that was to be expected. Sheria doesn’t know, but Alba was currently searching in various places to find Mina.

If she searches only in the places she can think of, then she won’t find the person she was looking for earnestly

And then…

“I found you.”

—Thump.

A voice was heard from behind.

Why did someone show up at the worst timing when there’s no one around? Sheria regretted her actions.

If she had been where the teachers were, maybe she wouldn’t have shown up at all.

However, not making such a rational judgment… Maybe it’s because deep down, she wanted to be by the side of the person who made her feel most at ease in times of anxiety.

Sheria slowly turned around and took a deep breath to calm her heart.

“…Where’s Ireina-san?”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t kill her. She’s just asleep.”

“I see…”

The figure of Mina standing before her, when she turned around, was the same as when they had met at home.

She’s probably considering the students she might pass by on the way.

The only difference is… the expression on her face is so painful that it looks like it could break at any moment.

‘…In this situation, it will be difficult to find Al-kun.’

In terms of combat ability, Sheria is not that different from an ordinary girl.

The opponent who defeated Ireina would easily incapacitate her even if she resisted.

‘In that case…’

Switch your objective.

If you’re going to get caught anyway, do what you can.

“Take me with you, please.”

To save Mina’s sister, in order to save an innocent life….

Surely, Alba, the man she likes, would do something similar if he were in this situation.

And, she believes in him more than anyone else.

‘I’m sure Mina’s sister will be at the place where I will be kept after getting captured.’

This time she does not have overly optimistic and naive trust like if she willing let herself get caught here then Mina’s sister will be released immediately.

After all, they’re exploiting this gentle girl who shedded tears over hurting her friends.

She has to somehow find an opportunity to help Mina’s sister escape.

And… leave everything to Alba. Her hero would come to her rescue even if she were captured by the strongest force in this world.

So, she switched her objective and focused on whatever she could do.

Sheria firmly reaffirms her determination in her heart.

“…I’m really sorry.”

Immediately after, a heavy impact struck the back of Sheria’s head.

Despite her strong determination, Sheria’s consciousness faded to black.

☆☆☆☆☆☆

“Yuris, let’s go home soon~”

Behind the school building, in a place where nobody frequently visits, a girl was chatting along with her childhood friend but when she noticed that his attention was elsewhere, she pouted her cheeks.

It was a clearly recognizable cute show of displeasure.

However, ignoring this adorable show, Yuris was scanning the surroundings alone.

“Just wait a little bit longer. I want to look around a bit more…”

“Look around? For what…?”

“I felt the presence of a magical beast around this area.”

This was not a special ability granted to Yuris.

It was just an instinctive feeling which he gained from experience of fighting monsters.

However, whether it was due to the protagonist’s luck or not… that instinct tends to be uncannily accurate.

Being able to chase after Alice during the off-campus study was also because this instinct acted first.

Alice, Yuris’s childhood friend, is well aware of this fact and knows that this instinct tends to be accurate.

Nevertheless, being on the receiving end of such a baseless instinct is troublesome.

“Haah… During the field trip, it was a forest, but this is the academy, you know? There are teachers here, and it’s right in the middle of the capital city. There’s no way magical beasts would appear, right?”

The academy is surrounded by large grounds with a thick layer of outer wall protected with magical spells.

Even if magical beasts were to appear within the capital city, they would have to surpass the towering outer wall and there are guards stationed at the only entrance, the main gate.

Someone would definitely notice any anomaly if anything happened here. First of all, it’s hard to believe that a magical beast capable of overcoming the wall would appear and the knights overseeing the capital city would overlook it.

“Well… That’s true, but…”

Even though Yuris understood that Alice’s words made sense, he still seemed somewhat unconvinced.

At that moment…

“Hmm…?”

Under the sunlight, a shadow suddenly cast over, catching the attention of not just Yuris but also Alice.

And there, the form of a magical beast resembling a wolf was present.

“No way…? Are you serious?!”

“As I thought.”

“Ugh! Why does your intuition always have to be right at times like these, Yuris-kun! Seriously, you’ve never been wrong before, so congratulations!!”

“We should call a teacher right away.” Alice tried to move away from the scene.

However, just before that, Yuris grabbed Alice’s shoulder.

“Huh, you’re stopping me here? We need to call a teacher quickly, or everyone might be in danger…”

“…Hey, Alice. You had good eyesight, right?”

“Yeah… Well, I think my eyesight is pretty good.”

“Then, do you recognize the one who might be with that magical beast?”

Seeing the serious look on Yuris’s face, Alice quickly looked around.

Alice had the best eyesight in the village where they came from, indeed, there was the image of someone riding on the back of the magical beast, just as Yurus had said. The girl’s eyes soon identified the person on the back of the beast.

Her lustrous platinum blonde hair fluttered alongside the fur of the magical beast on the outer wall.

Her hair and build resembled that of the girl she had recently met…

“The Saintess?!”

“…I knew it.”

As both of them revealed their respective reactions, the magical beast crossed the outer wall and disappeared from the academy grounds.

Yuris checked the sword at his waist and immediately rushed away from the scene.

“Alice, get a teacher… No, bring Alba-kun! I’ll go after them! You still have that communication magic tool I gave you, right?”

“The one you gave me after the field trip for situations like this, right? I have it! I’ll use it if something happens!”

Without stopping Yuris from pursuing the magical beast, Alice also rushed away from the scene.

One moved towards the school building, the other towards outside the academy.

“What in the world is happening?” Yuris clenched his teeth as he ran swiftly.

It might have been a pure coincidence.