Transmigrated into a villain, I personally tore apart the shackles of fate.

Chapter 93 Joint Dungeon Exploration

Tap! Tap! Tap!

As the whispers continued to echo in the classroom, Professor Eleanor entered. She deliberately made noise with her high heels to attract everyone's attention, and gradually, the chatter subsided.

“Good morning,” she greeted in a stern tone. “Today marks the start of a crucial week for all of you. We will be conducting a joint dungeon exploration.”

Upon hearing this news, the classroom immediately filled with whispers, and the students' eyes instantly turned to their friends. The joint dungeon exploration was a rare opportunity—to collaborate with students from different classes, showcase their skills and knowledge, and also a chance to curry favor with some of the older students.

'Shall we explore the joint dungeon?'

This is a major event for Ethan in the game, as he will be ridiculed and despised by other older students.

Although the Hartley family is a prestigious family with a good reputation, they have many enemies, and many heirs of rival families are also in this academy.

One of the heirs from a rival family will be in the same group as Ethan, and he will be the group leader.

This was the first time Ethan had directly confronted someone who harbored hostility towards him.

However, it's not just about Ethan; there's another character involved.

Sylvie and Mason are in the same group.

Because he was also a member of the History and Art Club, and he was the one who would target Sylvie in the academy. He would try to sabotage Sylvie's performance, but he never succeeded.

However, each of his attempts nearly succeeded. Considering this, even a small butterfly effect can change the course of events, so it's best to be cautious from the start.

“We have arranged for students from different classes to be grouped together to provide an opportunity for collaborative learning. Remember, diversity fosters adaptability and teamwork,” Professor Eleanor emphasized.

She projected the group list onto the screen on the podium, and I glanced at it briefly. Our copy group hadn't changed, and I could see which class's students we would be paired with.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Class HA213: Irina Phoenix Group

Class HA219: Byron Ward Group

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

This is a class I don't know much about; apart from Byron Ward, I don't recognize the names of the other students.

He was a supporting character in the game, with almost no screen time, only appearing briefly as a background character.

Just as I was looking at the list, I suddenly felt a sharp gaze.

'Um? '

That gaze was sharp, clearly coming from someone with strong emotions.

I turned around and ran into Irina.

Her eyes were filled with intense emotion; she was clearly angry. I didn't understand why she was angry, because for me, a month had passed, while for others, only a day had gone by.

After a moment's thought, I understood why she was looking at me like that.

'It must be because of what happened in the last simulation instance.'

Considering what I said, it's understandable that the proud Irina would react that way.

'But I don't care.'

I turned back again, focusing on the lesson that was about to begin, ignoring her gaze.

“Make sure you understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” she continued, glancing around the classroom. “You will be forming a new group, and cooperation will still be crucial.”

The purpose of joint exploration is to simulate cooperation and coordination in the real world.

Students from different classes brought unique abilities, and this collaboration taught us how to complement each other effectively.

This is also a good way to test the teamwork ability of each group leader, but I have serious doubts about Irina's teamwork ability.

“Your expedition will begin this afternoon,” Eleanor concluded. “Be prepared and good luck. Remember, this is both a learning opportunity and an exploration.”

With that, the class resumed as usual, and Eleanor began explaining combat theory as usual...

......

“Alright, everyone,” Eleanor said, “now please proceed to the entrance of the instance. Your group members from HA219 will be waiting there.”

As Eleanor finished her lesson, the students immediately began packing up. Since the Arcadia Hunter Academy loves to surprise its students and catch them off guard, we were immediately taken to the dungeon entrance after the lesson.

To be honest, I'm really looking forward to testing my new skills in real combat. I tried it on a dummy this morning, but I'm still not very familiar with the skill.

As I approached the dungeon, I still felt many gazes, especially from my classmates. However, now, due to the upcoming dungeon exploration, the gazes have decreased.

When I arrived, everyone was already there.

Byron Ward, a man with neatly combed hair and a fawning smile, is doing his best to attract Irina's attention.

He was a notorious sycophant in the player community, always trying to curry favor with high-ranking students.

This was also his character design in the game, solely to make other characters stand out more.

“You must be Irina Phoenix… It’s nice to meet you.” He immediately struck up a conversation, scratching his head. “We’ve heard a lot about you.”

The first thing he did was praise Irina.

"Okay." However, Irina didn't seem interested in him, which was expected. After all, this was the Irina I knew—a hot-tempered girl.

“You truly live up to the Phoenix family name. I heard you defeated the final boss single-handedly during your first dungeon raid,” Byron continued excitedly, clearly trying to win her favor.

However, his flattering words only made Irina even angrier.

"Correct."

She nodded briefly, frowned, and remained silent, her gaze fixed on me, which made Byron very uneasy.

In fact, she had been looking at me with obvious hostility the whole time, but I didn't understand why.

I turned to look at Nora and George, wanting to ask them if they knew anything, but just as I was about to approach them, they turned away.

'Um? '

This struck me as odd.

'I thought I had made peace with them.'

At first, I thought it was from the previous dungeon exploration, but then the reason came to light.

'rumor.'

It's a rumor. Given the mystery surrounding my abilities and actions, even my teammates are easily swayed by these rumors.

Understanding this, I also understood why Irina viewed me that way. If it were Irina, it would be understandable that she would believe these rumors.

Byron seemed to realize that simply trying to please wouldn't win him any favor, so he decided to change tactics. He introduced his team members and tried to showcase their abilities.

“These are my teammates,” he said, pointing to each of them. “This is Erica, a mage; Leon, a skilled archer; and Jack, a powerful tank.”

Erica waved slightly and smiled amicably, Leon nodded in agreement, and Jack extended his hand to shake mine, showing genuine interest in establishing a good working relationship. Their team seemed fairly balanced, but this was the first time I'd heard those names today.

Despite her earlier annoyance, Irina maintained her professionalism and began introducing her team. "This is Nora, our swordsman; George, our tank. And this is our archer."

'Looks like our conversation back then had some effect, right?'

Although she might deny it, Irina's attitude had begun to change, and for the better. However, when she pointed at me, she didn't mention my name at all. This was clearly a sign of displeasure, and Byron didn't miss it.

"What's your name?" he asked immediately as he walked up to me, his eyes indifferent.

"Morse."

When they heard my name, all four of them seemed to recognize me immediately.

"Are you the guy who ranked last in the academy?"

Byron spoke with obvious sarcasm. His eyes seemed to say, "How dare you steal her attention from me." It seemed Irina's gaze was irritating him.

"Correct."

He was telling the truth. I didn't intend to bother with someone who wasn't worth my time, so I just gave him a perfunctory reply.

"I never expected someone to be last," the person introduced as the archer interjected, looking at him like he was a pig.

"If I'm not last, someone else will be. Are you an idiot? Don't you even understand such a simple truth?"

"what?"

“Ignore him, Leon. He’s not worth your attention.”

Byron, a typical opportunist who fawns over the powerful and belittles the weak, immediately interjected again.

He clearly enjoyed the opportunity to belittle others and continued his sarcasm. He had already noticed Irina's hostility towards me, and he immediately changed tactics.

“You’re just a burden. You should thank Irina. If it weren’t for her, who could share this burden with you?”

Irina remained silent, offering no rebuttal to Byron's words. Nora and George, too, seemed unconcerned, as if it were none of their business. The reason was likely related to rumors, but even so, the ease with which others' opinions were swayed by a few unpleasant rumors reminded me once again of how this world works.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, and I could feel the heavy pressure from their scrutinizing gazes.

“Morse,” Byron continued provocatively, trying to provoke a reaction from me. “If I were you, I would have dropped out of school long ago.”

I remained calm and refused to let his words affect me. "I'm here to complete a mission, not to engage in pointless arguments."

"Heh heh," Byron sneered, "Playing the victim, trying to evade your own problems?"

Just as I was about to respond, Irina spoke up, her tone clearly irritated. "Enough. This isn't the time for this nonsense. We should focus on the task at hand."

She glanced at Byron and me, clearly displeased with both of us.

"You may enter."

Just as the situation was about to escalate further, the instructor's voice reached our ears, and our squad entered the instance.