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Just Leave The Minor Antagonist Alone!

A man finds himself mysteriously transported into the body of Theodore Garcia, a minor antagonist from the popular RPG game "The Conquest." Theodore is a half-blooded Asian European student at the prestigious Adventure Academy, notorious for his selfish, arrogant, and narcissistic behavior. Most notably, he incessantly harasses his fiancée, Hoshimi Akari, the game's first heroine. Now embodying Theodore Garcia, our protagonist is determined to carve out a new path. His objectives are simple: level up to achieve the strength of his former game character and keep a low profile for a while to avoid the fate that befell Theodore in the early of the game. Will he succeed in altering Theodore's destiny, or will he succumb to the same pitfalls? One thing's for sure: he just wants to be left alone. So leave him alone, would ya!?

AuctorExMachina · Fantasy
Not enough ratings
35 Chs

27 - Snarling Figure

After a brief struggle in the arena, I returned to the classroom to grab my bag and head home. Most of my classmates were still grieving in the arena, but I hoped they wouldn't give up. The real trouble was yet to come.

As I walked near the school gate, pondering the indescribable gloom of school life, a young man dressed casually approached me.

"Oh, you are!"

I didn't recognize him at first, but then he spoke again, and I saw the cast on his arm.

"You're the adventurer who helped me before, right? I wanted to thank you."

He introduced himself as Shunichi, the adventurer who had been attacked in the Orc Lord room while power leveling with his sister. He seemed injured, but I was glad he had managed to escape.

He explained that after escaping, he wanted to thank me but didn't know my name. He figured that since I was young and looked like a high school student, I might be a student at the adventurer's school, so he had been searching for me at the main gate.

"Thank you! Unfortunately, two of my companions were killed, but four lives, including mine, were saved thanks to you. Thank you so much!"

He bowed his head, tears in his eyes, expressing his gratitude. Despite his gratitude, the loss of two companions must have been hard to bear.

"No, no. How are your injuries?"

I remembered him as the tank with the battered shield, attacked by multiple orcs, which left his arm broken and in a cast. Since he wasn't a student at the school, the [Priest]'s procedure would have been expensive. Most people choose natural healing if it's just a broken bone.

"It's no big deal. It's nothing serious; my friends won't have any lasting effects. It's just an injury that will heal with time."

Shunichi showed his energy with a painful smile. I guess he needed to display some bravado to keep going. I had a question too. I asked him why he went to the dangerous Orc Lord room, and he said he had been tricked.

"What do you mean...?"

"He told me there was a treasure chest over there... I didn't know that was the Orclord's room."

Shunichi explained that a party had been relentlessly trying to pick up his friends on the fifth floor. The girls in his party were having a hard time refusing them. Shunichi intervened and managed to settle the matter, and one of the guys told him about a treasure chest as a way to make amends. Trusting them, he went to check the location without carefully consulting the map.

He didn't realize it was the Orclord's room.

"The Adventurer's Guild has warned about orc lords, but not many people have actually seen one, so they didn't know it was an orc lord. One of my companions was blown away by a single blow. I managed to get one of my companions out to ask for backup, but she was blocked and cornered by a group of orc soldiers."

There are no treasure chests on the fifth floor. I could feel the malice of the party that misled them by directing them to the Orclord's room as if it were a kind gesture.

"...Oh, wait, THOSE GUYS!"

Out of Shunichi's line of sight, I saw the D class students coming toward us. One of them was Kazami's crony. I remembered his face— that goddamned Fat–Pig.

"YOU! How dare you deceive me! Two of my friends are dead because of you!"

"Hmm? Oh, the little fish party from earlier. How did the Orc Lord taste?"

"You... YOU!!!"

Shunichi tries to hit him, but the guy easily dodges and then blasts him back. In this area, which is also inside the magic field, the difference in physical strength is obvious. The D class students sneer, "It's because you're a small fish and refused our invitation."

Oh, come on. You led them to the orc lord's room for such a trivial reason. What the hell do you think you're doing with human lives?

"There's no treasure chest on the fifth floor, you idiot."

"You're just an ordinary person. Ignorance can be deadly."

"I see you know someone from Class E. Is it a small fry connection?"

The D class guys walked away laughing, clearly enjoying themselves. Shunichi, overwhelmed with sadness and helplessness, crouched down and sobbed on the spot.

I wonder if the students of this school have quit being human. It's one thing to look down on Class E, but it's entirely different to look down on the general public and to engage in something like MPK¹ without hesitation because you're pissed off.

Two people lost their lives, and yet these guys are still walking around, talking happily with no remorse whatsoever. Clearly, they've gone too far. The future of this school and this country is bleak if we allow them to continue to exist.

"That's enough, Shunichi. You're going to get yourself dirty."

"Ugh... right, I'm sorry..."

I helped the crying Shunichi stand up and brushed off the dirt. When Renji Daisuke was defeated, I didn't feel much passion to fight against Class D. I also thought that if this was how the school worked, there wasn't much choice.

But after what happened to Shunichi, I felt a rage building up, making me want to punish those responsible if given the chance.

"I can't promise, but one day, I'll make sure to knock their heads into the ground for you. For now, just leave it."

"You'll do that? But they're too strong... you could get hurt too..."

It's true that if I tried now, I wouldn't stand a chance. I'm also not in great shape, and I understand why he'd be worried. But I can work on myself, get in shape, train, level up, change jobs, and learn new skills to become stronger.

"I'm going to work out for real. Besides, I'm actually pretty awesome, right?"

"Ugh...sorry... thanks."

Shunichi crumpled up his face and thanked me. He even went out of his way to find me, a younger man whose name he didn't even know, to thank me. He must be a polite and kind person.

Meanwhile, the people in Class D continued talking and laughing as if nothing had happened. Even though people had died, they were still smiling and laughing.

What's wrong with being weak? What is so great about being strong? If you are strong, what right do you have over the weak?

I'm not asking this as an adventurer. I want to teach them what is right and what is wrong as a human being.

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The minimum requirement to take on the D class guys, including Kazami, is to be at least level 10 and visit Obaba's store on the 10th floor for a job change. Considering the mastermind behind this, I'd like to gain even more levels.

I want to level up quickly, but at level 8, dropping a bridge once an hour isn't efficient. Lately, I've been focusing on dieting and building core strength, which means there have been days when I haven't entered dungeons. This is slowing down my level-up progress.

So, what should I do?

"So, brother, where are we going today?"

My sister, shadow boxing in a rhythmic flow, is wearing the demon wolf gear she recently bought. She has on a black werewolf jacket over a white blouse, with culottes and werewolf knee-high boots. She asks my opinion, and I respond, "You look like a seasoned adventurer."

The high-level members on the 90th floor are all equipped with artifact armor like the Demon God series and the Dragon King series. I'd like to have one of those, but I can't handle that gear at my current level, and it's too heavy for me to wear. That's okay.

First, we'll go to the fifth floor and get Sophia to level seven. Then, we'll head down to the seventh floor and raise her to level nine. From there, we'll aim to conquer the tenth floor.

"Tenth floor? Can we go that deep?"

The tenth floor is challenging for most adventurers. The required level is in the double digits, and combat power begins to exceed the realm of normal human capabilities due to physical enhancements. Reaching this level might attract offers from one or two clans.

"We can do it. But first, let's talk weapons. I've prepared two small swords for you. Handling two long weapons right from the start would be too difficult."

"Wow, thank you!"

She accepted the small swords with a twinkle in her eye, wielding them with dexterity.

"Alright, let's head to the gate room."

"Yes."

I recall Shunichi crouching at my feet, clinging to me.

He'll likely always blame himself for his inadequacies. But that could be me tomorrow.

In both school and the dungeon, there are plenty of fools drunk on their own power, just like the guys in D class. No matter how much I try to convince them of what's right or good, they'll always paint me in a bad light. To resist them, protect the people I care about, and succeed in this world, I need power.

If I just focus on the main storyline and move at my own pace, I might not be able to cope with unexpected, unreasonable, or malicious intentions. You never know when unidentified players will turn against you. Speed in gaining strength is crucial.

"Let's give it our all, shall we?"

For the sake of my adorable little sister who follows behind me, humming a cheerful tune.

[Duel Event Complete - External Stimulus Detected]

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MPK¹

MPK, or Monster Player Kill, refers to the act of intentionally causing a player's death by leading monsters to them or using monsters to attack them.

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[Author's Note]

Hi dear readers,

I wanted to let you all know that starting now and from here on out, I will be uploading chapters every weekend, on both Saturday and Sunday, with one chapter each day. This is because I have entered university and my schedule has become quite busy.

Thank you for your understanding and support. Stay tuned for more chapters and see you next weekend!

Warm regards,

[AuctorExMachina]

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