Chapter 73

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Chapter 73: Villain Has Standard For Making Friends

After eating and drinking, Winnie quickly left the banquet and returned to his room with his few belongings.

The people gathered there were a bunch of young masters and young ladies. He felt out of place among them.

If more people paid attention to him, he would probably receive even more cold shoulders. It was better for him to leave early.

Looking at his current virtue points, he felt a little scared.

He eventually took advantage of Aesphyra’s relationship, making the already shaky connection between them even worse.

Oh, but it’s done now. What does it matter?

He doesn’t believe Aesphyra would hit him in public.

Kill him? Wouldn’t she be afraid of getting her hands dirty?

At most, she would target him during the Dungeon assessment.

But the Dungeon is vast, and it’s not like he would encounter only good things, right?

Even if she stepped on him to death, it would be like stepping on a cockroach.

She would have to consider whether it would dirty her shoes.

Besides, Aesphyra is quite the germaphobe.

However, Aesphyra’s cleanliness is very selective.

She is more obsessed with it than anyone else when it comes to contact with men.

This is why Aesphyra likes to wear silk gloves at banquets.

She won’t feel embarrassed when she can’t avoid shaking hands with others, as she can simply throw the gloves away afterward.

If she accidentally touches someone’s skin during contact, she will feel irritated for a long time and have to wash her hands at least ten times.

But when it comes to girls, especially pretty ones, Aesphyra’s cleanliness miraculously disappears.

After taking off her gloves, her hands are eager to hold theirs, which makes people sigh, “What a virtue!”

Therefore, it was a wise choice for Winnie to step back when Aesphyra approached him tonight.

If he had dared to go further, he would have truly offended her.

He could fight back when Aesphyra tried to disgust him, but he couldn’t test her bottom line too much.

Otherwise, Aesphyra might really humiliate him in front of everyone.

There are traces of this in the original game.

There was, a noble young man with a similar character to Winnie, ignorant of the consequences, tried to reach out and touch Aesphyra’s hair.

Before he could, Aesphyra smiled and chopped off one of his hands.

To sum up, although Winnie did take advantage of Aesphyra today, he remained calm and never crossed her bottom line.

“It’s a shame,” Winnie sighed softly.

He didn’t want to have anything to do with Aesphyra, but there was no other way.

His current life trajectory deviated so much from the original Winnie that it was inevitable Aesphyra would notice and investigate him.

He couldn’t help but wonder, what would happen if he explained to Aesphyra that he was a transmigrated person?

Could he tell her that he wasn’t the Winnie she remembered?

Not to mention that no one would believe such an incredible thing, even if Aesphyra, as a reborn person, could somewhat accept such fantastical statements, the level of trust between them wasn’t enough for him to confess.

Ultimately, Aesphyra didn’t trust him, and he didn’t trust her either.

In fact, Winnie has always been confused about one question: is he truly Winnie?

If you say he is, he’s a transmigrated person. If you say he isn’t, he possesses all of Winnie’s memories.

The difference between him and the original Winnie might just be that he has an extra lifetime of memories.

The memories and experiences of a lifetime are enough to completely change a person.

In other words, it seems perfectly fine to say that he is Winnie with an extra set of memories.

So, did he transmigrated and inherited Winnie’s memories, or is he Winnie with an extra lifetime of memories?

…Perhaps, there is no difference between these two possibilities.

A person’s character is shaped by their memories and experiences.

He who inherited Winnie’s memories is no longer himself, and Winnie is no longer Winnie with the memories and experiences of his previous life.

This is the best explanation.

After eating and taking a quick shower, Winnie felt a little tired, and it was time to go to bed.

He vaguely remembered that when he was leaving the banquet, it seemed like several eyes were staring at him, but he didn’t care.

Perhaps a few nobles who disliked me noticed me.

He threw the small bag to the ground with a heavy “bang!”

He didn’t carry much luggage, but it was very heavy. As for what was inside…

No words were spoken all night until dawn.

Winnie came to the restaurant yawning, his eyes still heavy with sleep.

It must be said that Carillian Academy is truly wealthy.

Even on the way, one can eat so well. In the morning, there was an unlimited supply of bacon, bread, eggs, and milk.

At home, Winnie could only eat a few slices of hard black bread in the morning.

The food here was better than at home, making him want to stay here forever.

It’s great to be the coachman of Carillian.

They can eat delicious meals every day and travel everywhere. They can do almost everything Winnie wanted to do in his previous life.

After all, it is the number kne academy, so it’s only natural that the food should be good, right?

So, with his mouth watering, Winnie asked the chef, “Mr. Chef, this breakfast is a bit vegetarian. How about abalone, lobster, steak, or salmon?”

“…”

The chef was speechless. This kid would never miss any opportunity to eat for free, would he?

After being chased away by the chef, Winnie obediently found a seat and started eating breakfast.

“Oh, who is it? Isn’t this Lord Winnie?”

Winnie turned around when he heard someone calling him, a fried egg still in his mouth.

“Hmm?”

“Hey, it’s really you, Lord Winnie? I thought I had recognized the wrong person!” Seeing Winnie looking at him, the young man with slicked-back hair sat down next to Winnie and pretended to put his arm around Winnie’s shoulders.

Seeing this, Winnie subconsciously moved back and avoided the other person’s hand.

“Uh uh…” Seeing that his attempt to get closer was avoided, the young man with slicked-back hair felt embarrassed for a moment, but he regained his composure in less than half a second.

“Lord Winnie, long time no see. Do you still remember me?”

“You?” Winnie looked at the young man with slicked-back hair for a long time before he finally recalled his memory of this young man.

Originally, Winnie had no real friends, but he did have a few cronies.

No, he can’t even be called a crony.

Only those who get together all day to drink and do nothing serious can be called crony.

At most, he was Winnie’s former military advisor, who specifically gave Winnie some meaningless and bad advice.

The young man with slicked-back hair is named Malric, the second son of a baron.

The title of baron is the lowest level of hereditary nobility.

Additionally, since the second son has a high probability of not inheriting the title, it’s no exaggeration to say that Malric can barely reach the threshold of the aristocratic circle.

This kind of lowly noble is, in a sense, even worse off than Winnie.

After all, although Winnie is a nobody, at least he has some notoriety.

There’s no noble in the capital of Carmela who doesn’t know him.

However, the identity of a noble like Malric is very awkward.

Although he is a noble, he’s only the second son of a baron and has no magical talent.

His family is obscure, and few nobles even know his father, let alone him.

When he goes out, he doesn’t like to introduce himself with his last name, fearing others might ask, “Who is this? Is there such a noble family in the kingdom?”

Only a small noble like this, who is completely ignored by the aristocratic circle, would approach Winnie without any hesitation.

But having said that, it doesn’t mean he sincerely wants to be friends with Winnie.

Originally, Winnie didn’t have a correct understanding of himself and didn’t fully grasp how others perceived him.

He walked the streets with a proud and confident demeanor, feeling good about himself.

He seemed to think that his image as the descendant of a goddess couldn’t be too bad, no matter what.

It’s precisely because of this mindset that he actually believed he could make genuine friends.

In reality, if he took a third-party perspective, he’d realize that, given his circumstances, those who approached him couldn’t possibly be sincere friends but must have ulterior motives.

According to Winnie’s memories of Malric, this kid did have some clever ideas, but they were just petty tricks, unworthy of serious consideration.

The most astonishing thing is that every time Malric appeared, Winnie ended up in trouble.

All the advice Malric gave Winnie seemed to help solve his problems, but every time Winnie acted on it, unexpected accidents occurred, backfiring and deepening his notoriety.

Were these all coincidences?

How could they be?

Anyone with a brain could see there was something wrong with Malric, except Winnie, who remained oblivious.

He thought there was nothing wrong with Malric’s plans and blamed his own poor execution for the failures.

However, Winnie had no experience in dealing with people and didn’t even have a single friend, so it was normal that he couldn’t distinguish good from bad in others.

Looking through the memories related to Malric, it’s clear that this guy has serious issues, and his appearance here only makes things more suspicious.

Winnie looked meaningfully at the smiling and flattering Malric in front of him, who resembled the lackey of a villain in a novel.

It’s a pity this guy doesn’t have the loyalty of those lackeys.

“Hey, isn’t this Malric? Long time no see,” Winnie said, restraining his original expression and pretending to be pleasantly surprised.

“Hahaha, yes, how have you been, Lord Winnie?” Slightly surprised by Winnie’s change in demeanor, Malric quickly regained his composure.

“Very good, very good. Malric, you’re on this carriage too? How did you manage that? Tell me about it,” Winnie asked, feigning curiosity.

That’s right. Even if the entrance requirements for Carillian Academy aren’t excessively high, they’re definitely not for just anyone.

After all, Winnie has the title of a descendant of the goddess, so the king could issue him a certificate.

But what does Malric have?

How did he get on the carriage?

The first flaw was revealed.

“Ah, well, who am I? Of course, I have my own ways. Don’t you know me well, Lord Winnie? Don’t forget who helped you come up with those great ideas in the past.” Malric was momentarily speechless but quickly chose to evade the question.

After all, with Winnie’s character, he would never think too much or ask too many questions.

“Of course, I won’t forget it,” Winnie replied, his smile carrying a hint of meaning that Malric failed to notice.

“Let’s put these trivial matters aside, Lord Winnie. This time, we’re a duo, and when we work together, it’s like fish in water!”

More like Crouching Dragon and Hidden Chicken, Winnie thought to himself.

“The goddess truly favors us. It’s destined that both of us will accomplish great things!”

“Oh! Indeed, indeed, brother. I’ve missed you very much these days. Now, with your clever ideas to help me, it’s like adding wings to a tiger!”

“That’s right, Lord Winnie. I have a big plan this time!” Malric smiled cunningly and leaned in closer to whisper to Winnie.

“…What big plan?” Winnie feigned curiosity, though he subtly shifted his body back.

Even while acting, he didn’t want to get too close to Malric.

He always felt the other man had bad breath and found it repulsive.

“Ah, ah? Did my previous words go in vain? Lord Winnie, we’re both candidates for Carriman Academy now. Although forming a team is expressly prohibited in the Dungeon, isn’t it completely feasible for us to help each other?”

“Lord Winnie, to be honest, even if you’re a genius, you’re not entirely sure you’ll be successfully admitted, right?”

“Well, you’re right. Even though I’m intelligent and capable in both literature and fighting, I still have to guard against hidden arrows that could hurt me. After all, there are many in the royal capital who are jealous of talented people. Many resent my outstanding talent and handsome appearance. Too many want to target me.” Winnie frowned, as if seriously considering Malric’ words.

When Malric heard this, a look of contempt and disgust flashed across his face.

Tsk, I give you an inch, and you take a mile? Why don’t you look in the mirror and see what you really look like?

But it’s normal for him to say such things. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be Winnie.

Only a fool like Winnie could be so easily manipulated.

“That’s right! What I mean is, if we work together in the Dungeon, I’ll handle the strategy, and you’ll handle the action. Together, we’ll be invincible!”

“Well, that’s true, but I’d like to modify it a little,” Winnie corrected with a snort.

“It sounds like I can’t handle strategy. You should focus on strategy, and I’ll handle both strategy and action.”

Tsk, this guy is still as self-righteous and thick-skinned as ever.

Malric cursed Winnie in his heart but didn’t let it show on his face.

If Winnie hadn’t been a stepping stone for him, he would have cut ties with this universally disliked fool long ago.

Did Winnie really think of himself as some big shot?

“Tell me, what’s your plan this time?”

If you’re putting on a show, you might as well go all in.

“Hehe, as usual, we’ll meet in the Dungeon, and then we can discuss the details!”

“Oh, we’ll talk about it in detail then,”

“But the question is, how will I find you?”

“Don’t worry, Lord Winnie. If I didn’t have a plan, would I have come to you? What kind of relationship do we have? Would I let you suffer?”

“Oh? What do you mean?”

“It’s like this, Lord Winnie. I’ve got some inside information. There’s a rule in the Dungeon assessment, everyone will be given a map.”

“Oh?” Winnie looked genuinely surprised.

“But this map is incomplete. It only contains a small part. We need to steal other students’ maps to piece together a complete map.”

“Oh, does this have anything to do with our reunion?”

“Yes, think about it. If we gather a team of people and everyone shares the maps they’ve obtained, we can piece together a complete map, right?” Malric explained persuasively.

“Oh, so you’ve already called on other people to join besides the two of us?”

“That’s right! There’s strength in numbers.”

“But isn’t it forbidden to form a team?”

“This isn’t a team, it’s just cooperation. After all, once the map is pieced together, everyone will have a general understanding of it, which benefits everyone, doesn’t it?”

“Don’t worry, I’m only recruiting people I know, and we’ve all agreed not to attack each other.”

“Yeah… that makes sense,” Winnie nodded.

“Alright, let me tell you how to identify our people. They’ll all have dark blue scarves wrapped around their right arms. These are our allies. Once you’re inside, look for people with this marking. Understand?” Malric explained seriously, as if sharing a critical secret.

“So that’s how it is. I understand,” Winnie replied, feeling a flicker of amusement.

“Good! I’ll also be wearing this blue armband when the time comes. Here’s yours.” As he spoke, Malric handed Winnie a blue scarf.

“Keep it. This is how we’ll recognize each other!”

“But I’m still worried…”

“Are you worried we’ll be seen as a team? Don’t be. I’ve got it all figured out. Trust me, by then, we won’t have anything to do with those two words.”

Because when these guys meet him, they’ll fight, right? Winnie thought sarcastically.

“Okay, I believe in you. I hope you won’t let me down.”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. When have I ever let you down, Lord Winnie?” Malric patted his chest confidently.

“When the time comes, I guarantee we’ll all pass and be admitted to Carillian Academy together!”

“Okay!”