I Am The Game's Villain

"Today is the second day of the exam, and by now, you should have at least found what type of mana beast you will have to fight. I hope you did find at least," Harvey announced.

But, no, I did not.

Despite skimming through dozens and dozens of books, I didn't find any mana beast resembling the one I had consumed.

"Did you guys find it?" I curiously asked the three of them.

"""Yeah.""" The three nodded.

What the hell?

John looked at me suspiciously. "Don't tell me-"

"Looks like we are all in advance," I cut him off with a smile.

Ignoring John's continued skeptical gaze, I focused on the teacher.

"Today will be the most important day for you. You have only today to find the hidden location of your assigned mana beast to get an idea of the field you will have to fight in. For that, you all have to retrieve the location from someone," Harvey said with a meaningful smile. "While we will give you the whereabouts of the person you will have to fight to retrieve the location, the identity of this person will not be given. But you are a student of Trinity Eden Academy. I'm sure you will find them. Also, you are not meant to harm or threaten people, or it's disqualification. Watch out and use your senses. You are the elites, after all," he added.

"The exam is a hide-and-seek?" I blurted out.

"...."

I slowly averted my face from the stares and sipped my drink.

Victor stifled a laugh while his brother lowered his gaze. John, as usual, was staring at me coldly as if he wasn't surprised.

[<I'm not surprised either.>]

'My tongue slipped.'

[<It slips often with you, Amael.>]

My bad.

Harvey glanced at me briefly before continuing. "You have today to obtain the location. Tomorrow is too late as it is the last day of the exam, and you have to prepare yourself to fight your assigned mana beast if you find it in the first place. That's all."

After he said that, some staff who had arrived with us went to each table and distributed a specific card to each of us—a raw sketch of the city of Zestel with a cross on a specific place.

I grimaced seeing this. "Is that really an exam?"

John stared at his card before abruptly standing up.

"John?" Victor gave him a questioning glance.

"We should just get over it now," John said curtly before leaving us.

"He's right," Sirius scratched his head and departed on his own, following suit like most of our classmates.

"Are they avoiding us?" Victor asked, chuckling lightly.

"Well, John is just a tsundere, psychopath, and shy, but your brother is clearly avoiding us for some reason…" I murmured.

Victor winced at my words. "It's clearly because of what you said, Amael."

"About that?" I raised a brow. "If Sephira and him don't end up together, then you would never be with Celeste."

"Oh, come on, she is just my best friend," Victor snorted, waving his hand.

Hmm, I expected a different reaction.

[<Zeus' disciple would have certainly blushed.>]

No doubt that Jayden would have stuttered.

In this aspect, Victor was adept at controlling his emotions very well.

"What about Sephira ending up with whom?"

"Crap." Victor let out a sigh as he felt a familiar presence behind him.

Celeste leaned closer to Victor's left, wearing a grin. "What are you hiding from me?"

"His love for yo-"

"N-Nothing!" Victor cut me off with a glare.

Well, if his crush isn't Celeste, then who could it be, honestly?

Tiring.

I'm exhausted from thinking about other people's love lives, but it's concerning Victor, so I'm inadvertently drawn into worrying about his romantic situation.

Celeste, having observed the brief exchange between Victor and me, opened her eyes slightly in surprise. "Since when did you two become close?"

"Well, we are roommates…" Victor answered, rubbing his cheeks with a hint of pride. He seemed pleased to have male companions he could consider friends.

I recognized that sentiment from the Game. Victor often expressed a desire to make friends he could truly connect with. He had typically been surrounded by Celeste and Selene, as the other male characters were mere Pretenders, not really friend material.

Friends, huh?

The last time I befriended the main heroine and protagonist, things ended quite disastrously.

Jayden left me alone against Leon, and I lost Mary.

As for Milleia, she hadn't exactly wronged me, but I couldn't trust someone so closely tied to Raphiel.

"I'm off," I stood up abruptly, leaving without another word, leaving both of them bewildered.

[<Your new friend seemed disappointed by the lack of response, Amael.>]

'What do you expect me to do, Cleenah? I know Victor is more likable and has better judgment than Jayden, but nobody knows what the future holds.'

[<And what about the main heroine, Celeste?>]

'I don't believe she's influenced by any gods like Milleia, but our personalities are worlds apart. We'll never be able to hold even a friendly conversation.'

[<Really? Remember that time when you shared your aim to become an Apostle? It was rather awkward!>]

Cleenah's giggle brought a faint smile to my face. 'If even a Goddess feels awkward, it's a lost cause, isn't it?'

[<You have high standards after all and the dynamic you have with the little Layla and Miranda are quite unique.>]

Absolutely.

It's mainly because I have known them for more than a decade now and had affection for both of them since childhood.

'Thanks doctor,' I thanked Cleenah for her analysis as I left the castle.

….

….

"They didn't even put any effort into this…" I grumbled as my eyes shifted down to my card. I had reached the approximate area where my target was supposed to be, but the search zone was vast and imprecise.

Adding to the frustration, I found myself in a bustling, popular street. The area was teeming with people chatting, playing, and merchants calling out to passersby. It was a vibrant, chaotic scene.

Somewhere in this crowd was my target, chosen by the academy for their skill. This meant I had to rely on intellect and precise mana control to identify them.

What a tedious task.

I'd prefer facing the mana beast head-on.

"Amael?"

I turned around to see a fellow member of my group. "Elizabeth?"