The Villain’s Cheat Code: When a Gamer Becomes the Evil God’s Sidekick

The door of the Royal Magic Academy's Arcane Hall swung open.

A figure with golden hair strode in with swift steps.

Although it was just the beginning of the semester, the Arcane Hall was already crowded with students eager to improve their magic.

When they saw Erica walk in, they all stopped their incantations and turned to look at her, their eyes gleaming with curiosity.

Erica... the most talented student had returned!

At this moment, however, Erica seemed somewhat distracted.

Indeed, she had been rattled by Henie.

The last time she saw Henie, she was only a second-tier mage.

How long had it been since Henie became a mage?

Including the academy's holiday break until the new semester, it had only been about three months!

Three months, from magic apprentice to third-tier mage...

Was this even humanly possible?

And her behavior towards Professor Viktor...

How... how could she be so bold!

This was the academy, for heaven's sake!

The more Erica thought about it, the more anxious she became, until finally she shook her head vigorously, trying to stop thinking about it.

Coming to the Arcane Hall was meant to clear her mind.

Erica noticed the welcoming gazes from the students, but paid them no mind.

After all, she was used to being the center of attention.

Erica wandered through the spacious Arcane Hall, trying to keep her distance from the practicing students.

As she looked around, she was surprised.

There were many mirrors placed here.

The mirrors were fixed to the walls around the Arcane Hall, with only a few yards between each pair, standing silently in place.

Erica had already learned about what these mirrors were.

They were called... Instances.

She walked up to a mirror with no queue, and after reading the usage instructions above it, was about to reach out and touch it.

However, the mirror unexpectedly began to vibrate, like ripples on a lake surface.

Erica paused slightly, her hand stopping in mid-air before slowly withdrawing it.

This wasn't right - she hadn't even touched the mirror yet.

Then, the entire mirror including its frame began to shake.

Erica instinctively stepped back a few paces, and saw a robust and towering figure step out from the mirror.

The person ejected from the mirror wore white short sleeves, with white hair and beard on his face, and weathered wrinkles sprawling across his cheeks.

The elder's muscular build was immediately apparent, incredibly strong.

Erica found the emerging person somewhat familiar.

Looking carefully, she was startled.

This was... Uncle Vladimir?

Vladimir patted off the barely visible dust from his body and laughed heartily.

Erica quickly stepped forward to greet him:

"Uncle!"

The surrounding students blinked when they heard Erica address the old man this way.

Uncle?

Who would have thought that this old man who played with them every day was Erica's relative?

Vladimir also turned his head at the voice calling him and was equally surprised to see Erica:

"Hmm? Erica's here too."

"Uncle, I'm a student at the Royal Magic Academy. I came to the academy with you all a while ago."

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Oh, oh, oh, I was wondering why you came along last time. That's right, with talent like yours, you definitely should study at the best academy."

"Uncle, you're too kind."

Erica was slightly puzzled, curious about Vladimir's presence in the Arcane Hall, especially the scene of him being ejected from the mirror.

Vladimir laughed heartily, scratching the back of his head as he cheerfully replied:

"I wanted to try out this new thing called 'Instance.'"

"I didn't expect Viktor's creation to be so interesting - even these old bones of mine have gotten somewhat addicted."

He chatted endlessly about how there was a Storm Dragon King inside the mirror, boasting about how long he had been challenging it.

Thus his fighting spirit was ignited, and he came here every day to challenge it.

Over time, Vladimir became increasingly adept at challenging the instances.

He even felt like he didn't want to return to the Northern Territories anymore.

Erica was confused.

She had tried Professor Viktor's 'Instance' before - she remembered it was the first version.

Used for the first practical combat assessment in the final exam.

Upon further understanding, Erica realized.

These mirrors in the Arcane Hall were just for practice.

The 'Instance' system hadn't been officially implemented yet.

This was why these mirrors were placed in the Arcane Hall.

It was said that in the future, the academy would establish a new area specifically for setting up 'Challenge Rooms' for in-depth practice.

Just then, countless students in the Arcane Hall had their attention drawn to the entrance.

At the door, a silver-haired girl had just walked in.

It was Aurelianne.

She walked into the Arcane Hall with composed steps, her gaze emanating an air of nobility.

Many students showed their respect upon seeing Aurelianne.

After all, most of them were from noble families.

Naturally, they would instinctively show respect when seeing the princess.

Some even fawned around Aurelianne, with a hint of flattery.

"The princess is so diligent, always practicing."

"Princess, are you going to challenge the Instance today too?"

Aurelianne completely ignored the students following beside her.

Like Erica, she also seemed somewhat emotionally drained.

Coincidentally, she saw Erica with an elderly man.

She recognized Vladimir at a glance and walked forward to bow.

"General Vladimir."

At this name, all the students' eyes widened.

General!?

The title of General couldn't be used casually - there were only a few generals in the entire empire.

Especially when such a title was called out by a royal family member like the princess.

This meant that this general's title carried extreme weight.

Some more knowledgeable students paid even more attention to the name Aurelianne called out.

Vladimir?

In the entire empire, there was only one general with this name.

That was the legend of the Northern Territories, Vladimir Lebedev.

Realizing that the old man who had been challenging the Instance with them every day was actually a general.

Many students felt chills run down their spines, their skin breaking out in goosebumps.

This was enough to prove how successful Viktor's 'Instance' was.

Not only did it attract many students to engage in practice, even a general like Vladimir was thoroughly enjoying it.

Vladimir laughed heartily and responded:

"Your Highness, you've come too?"

Aurelianne nodded, replying:

"General, I'm here to practice as well."

As she spoke, she walked towards Erica, also approaching the mirror that had just ejected Vladimir.

Erica watched Aurelianne, naturally unwilling to back down.

Since her relationship with the princess had become increasingly tense, Erica had no desire for further words, only wanting to compete with Aurelianne.

However, all the Instances in the Arcane Hall were already in use.

Waiting for others would take who knows how long.

This meant that only the mirror Vladimir had just emerged from was available.

Between the two of them, only one could use it.

Aurelianne merely glanced at Erica, showing no intention of yielding, as her body released powerful magical energy.

That magical power, clearly at the second-tier level, yet mysteriously comparable to a third-tier mage in its intensity, made them feel slightly suffocated.

The students felt dizzy from the magical power Aurelianne was emanating.

This couldn't be right?

A second-tier mage?

How young was the princess? And she was already a second-tier mage?

Seeing this, Erica also smiled slightly.

The magic array behind her began rapidly constructing itself, flowing magical power rotating in space, intricate and complex patterns interweaving between the runes, constantly shuttling back and forth.

Seeing the exquisite magic before them, the other students were even more shocked.

An excited clamor erupted from the crowd, like a bomb dropped into a lake, the sound waves seeming almost enough to blow off the roof.

A third-tier mage!

Erica had actually become a third-tier mage!

"How... how is this possible!?"

The students' minds were shattered like they'd been struck by lightning, completely stopping their thought processes.

If this was true, then...

Erica had become the youngest third-tier mage in history!

At this moment, Erica's prominence completely overshadowed Aurelianne.

Countless students went wild, even running about to spread this news to everyone else.

Aurelianne narrowed her eyes, looking at Erica.

A third-tier mage...

The third-tier mage fluctuations from her body were obviously unmistakable.

Yet before this, Erica was only a second-tier mage.

What had happened in these few short days to make her advance to the third tier in one go?

In the entire Arcane Hall, almost only Erica and Aurelianne remained as the focus of attention.

Countless gazes were directed at the two of them; at this moment, everyone else seemed to become mere background characters to these two geniuses.

Then, Erica's slightly provocative voice rang out.

"Thanks to Professor Viktor, I was able to cross this threshold in such a short time."

Aurelianne's gaze held several degrees of disbelief.

Erica continued calmly:

"I'm grateful to the professor for giving me several unforgettable nights."

Swoosh--

The moment these words fell, suddenly, a bright white light flashed at the entrance of the Arcane Hall.

A silver-white longsword instantly flew hundreds of yards, landing directly in front of Erica.

The sword pierced the floor, its hilt swaying and continuously trembling.

Everyone was startled by this sudden development, including Erica.

Aurelianne couldn't help but look toward the Arcane Hall's entrance.

Upon seeing that silver-white figure wearing beast-faced armor, Aurelianne slightly started.

"Professor... Professor Gwen?"

The knight's silver-white hair seemed to flutter slightly with her imposing presence.

She raised her hand, and that longsword standing before Erica seemed to return to her palm along with the air currents.

With a voice cold to the point of emotionlessness, her frigid gaze stared at Erica from afar:

"You just said, several unforgettable nights."

"What did you mean by that?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
patreon.com/BZDXG - Unlock a HUGE stash of advance chapters now!
Dive deeper into the story ahead of everyone else!