Young Master's PoV: Woke Up As A Villain In A Game One Day

Chapter 283: We Don’t Use Cadets As Meat Shields

About thirty minutes had passed.

We remained hidden in the mud hut, which I had sealed off completely.

To say that everyone was bone-tired would be an understatement.

Michael used his x-ray vision to determine that the fog had engulfed the entire ancient village outside, meaning the Mist Monster was very close.

As a result, we decided to stay quiet and not make a sound.

This worked in my favor since I didn’t have to listen to Michael’s frazzled ramblings, Ray’s unfunny attempts at humor, or Vince’s self-deprecating whining anymore.

Ten more minutes passed.

We began to believe we might escape this nightmare alive. Maybe we had tricked the Mist Monster. Maybe we had lost it. Perhaps we could wait it out and then hopefully run away with our lives.

...But as is often the case, expectations only prolong disappointments.

And fate, like a bad joke, decided to remind us of that fact.

Because as soon as we started to relax a bit...

—Tok! Tok! Tok!

A series of sharp knocks snapped our attention.

It came from the wall that sealed off the entrance.

—TOK! TOK! TOK!!!

The sound was hard but dull, like someone bashing their knuckles against concrete.

We all froze.

”Damn it, it found us!” Vince whispered.

”No, no, let’s be optimistic,” Kang said, holding up a hand and shaking his head. ”It could just be the wind.”

—TOK!!

This time, the noise came from the wall behind us.

—TOK!!

Then another knock.

Ray’s camera — because of course, he still had it — tilted shakily toward the noise. ”Chat, we’re witnessing the world’s worst home rental experience. Please like and subscribe if we make it out alive.”

”Put that thing away!” Juliana hissed.

Then— BANG!

The front wall sealing off the entrance ruptured, chunks of dirt and stone splintering inward as a wave of white mist poured through the newly created opening.

”Fuck!” I cursed, activating my Origin Card.

And immediately, everything spiraled into chaos.

Ray dove sideways, firing a mini explosion into the mist as Vince leaped away in what could only be described as a panic-fueled swan dive.

Michael, bless his soul, still tried diplomacy. ”Wait! Please! We don’t mean you harm! We can help you if—”

KWAAAAAR—!!

The mist answered him with a screech that made the walls tremble.

Realizing the peace talk wasn’t going anywhere, Juliana grabbed Alexia by the collar, muttered a quick apology — or maybe it was ”nothing personal” — and literally threw her at the mist.

”WHAT THE—?!” Alexia yelped midair before landing with a heavy thud.

Even the Mist Monster paused its screeching, as if clearly startled — which, to be fair, was a valid reaction to a blind girl being used as a projectile.

”Diversion,” Juliana said simply, stepping behind a half-collapsed structure without looking guilty at all.

”Bad Juli!” I scolded while summoning my axe. ”We don’t use our fellow Cadets as meat shields!”

Michael stopped and gave me a side-eye, and if it weren’t for the intensity of the situation we were in, he would have surely called out my shameless hypocrisy.

But for now, the Scorched Oath blazed to life in my hand, sliced through the mist... and passed through harmlessly, dealing damage to nothing.

The fog recoiled, only to flood back in.

Meanwhile, Ray was already on his way to Alexia. ”I got her! I got her!”

Kang also skidded to a stop beside her and started helping her up. ”Don’t worry, Young Mistress! I’m here!”

That entire scene consisted of two boys pulling a blind girl’s arms in opposite directions.

Hanging in the middle, Alexia gritted her teeth. ”Yeah, well, could you both maybe stop playing tug of war with me—”

”Focus!” I shouted at them, slamming my hand against the nearest wall and creating a circular hole in it. ”Out! Everyone!”

No one needed to be told twice. They all bolted through the gap as another chilling screech rolled somewhere inside the fog.

But outside wasn’t any better.

The once-empty ancient village had turned into a swirling ocean of mist. The air churned like a living storm, with shapes moving inside it, making it seem like we could be attacked from anywhere at any time.

”Lily!” Michael yelled, all seriousness now. ”Give calls!”

Lily’s eyes glowed faintly violet through her sweat-streaked, disheveled bangs. ”Front, immediately followed by right. Two seconds delay, then behind!”

We heeded her warnings.

The ground was slick with mud, squelching underfoot. Our seer’s foresight, as usual, was extremely helpful.

”Duck, now!” she called out.

We all dropped as a sharp blade of fog scythed overhead, cleaving through the huts behind us like paper.

Ray threw out a small explosion to clear the path ahead. The fire didn’t hurt the monster, but it gave us visibility for a few precious seconds.

”Go left!” Lily called again, her voice had started to tremble.

We turned around a towering tree.

Juliana was at the rear, limping badly now. The cloth around her thigh was dark with blood. Her face was much paler than usual, and her breath was shallow.

Even then, she didn’t slow down... until she did.

Her injured leg gave way mid-step.

She stumbled forward, one knee sinking deep into the mud with a wet squelch. Her hands hit the ground as she tried to push herself up, but her leg refused to move fast enough.

”Juli!” I noticed her immediately and spun around.

For a second — one, single, brutal second — panic broke through my chest.

There she was on the ground, just a sitting duck.

I thought about rushing over to her... however, that would mean leaving the frontlines wide open.

Thankfully, before I could even take a step, Lily grabbed Juliana’s arm and hauled her up with a grunt. ”Come on! Don’t stop now!”

Alexia snapped her lasso like a whip. The little sonic boom it produced rippled through the air, dispersing the nearest tendrils of fog and keeping it at bay, if only for a moment.

Ray threw himself to their flank and quickly detonated another short-range blast, clearing their immediate surroundings. ”Go, go, go! I’m not dying for character development!”

Juliana blinked.

And just for a short second, amidst all the shouting, chaos, and the roaring of the Mist Monster... I saw her looking visibly surprised.

Surprised that they hadn’t left her behind.

Surprised that anyone had reached for her at all.

Then her expression hardened again — her cold, impassive mask settled back into place like an armor she had learned to wear at all times.

She forced her weight off Lily, straightened her leg despite the tremor in it, and pushed forward.

”Move,” she hissed, her voice pained yet steady.

We did.

We ran past the village square, continuing to dodge unseen attacks based on Lily’s instructions as the mist howled all around us, shredding trees and mud huts like an invisible storm of knives.

Juliana was half-running, half-dragging her leg now. Her usual calm was cracking every now and then.

But maybe because her full focus wasn’t just on herself anymore, she noticed what I didn’t — what none of us didn’t.

Lily’s movements had slowed somewhat.

The glow in her eyes flickered weakly, fading in and out like a dying flame.

She winced and clutched her head every few steps.

Apparently, the constant strain of precognition was eating away at her. It happens when you try to see the future and the present at once, without sufficient breaks in between for hours upon hours.

Her head had started to ache.

Finally, after almost a full day of using her powers in crucial situations, she faltered.

Her focus broke, and she couldn’t keep her Origin Card activated for just a heartbeat.

And in that heartbeat of vulnerability, Juliana saw the mist coiling to Lily’s left, slithering low until it took the shape of something tall, skeletal, and inky black.

Something with too many eyes and too many mouths — all stretched into distorted grins.

Something that had claws as sharp as blades and as long as a fully grown man.

The Mist Monster...

It was going for Lily.

Juliana acted before her mind could fully process the situation.

She twirled on her heel, drew a kunai from somewhere in her outfit, and threw it at the monster in a single fluid motion with surgical precision.

The blade whistled in the air and turned into a silver streak that cut through the fog as the time around it accelerated.

She knew it wouldn’t work.

Of course she did.

None of our previous attacks had worked.

The creature could turn itself incorporeal at will, and it was always too fast to react to our moves, making it a truly untouchable threat.

But even a useless strike could buy a second of time.

And right now, that would mean everything.

Except...

Hisss—!!

The kunai... hit.

It hit.

The blade sank into the creature’s intangible torso, and the air filled with the sound of a sharp, burning hiss.

The Mist Monster reeled backward and let out a shriek so high-pitched and ringing from its many mouths that I had to cover my ears.

The monster clutched at its chest — or whatever passed for one. The spot where the kunai had struck was seething like it was struck with acid. Its body warped and flickered violently, pieces of its form dissolving into vapor.

Juliana’s eyes widened.

As did all of ours.

Without thinking, she drew out several more kunai.

Seeing that, the creature stepped back in what could only be described as incomprehensible fear and wailed so loud it could’ve shattered glass.

Its body convulsed and twisted before turning into mist and dissipating like smoke in the wind.

The rest of the fog followed and started retreating fast, like a tidal wave ebbing away from the shore.

The air quickly cleared.

The trees came back into view, as did the bleeding moon and the shattered sky above.

And then, just like that, everything turned quiet. So, so... quiet.

Sure, there was the chirping of excessively large insects in the distance and the rustling of giant leaves around us...

But we were quiet, save for the sound of our hoarse breathing and the thumping of our hearts in our chests.

Finally, after I don’t know how many hours, we all crumpled to the ground in exhaustion.

And we lay there for a long, long while.