Struggling as a Villain

The Wisdom Face-Off allows an academy to participate in a competition that is held globally and showcases their brilliant minds.

The inventions which are brought in that contest are introduced to the general masses as well, and the profit earned by the product is given to the inventors as well. So, in the eyes of those students who come from a commoner's background, winning the Wisdom Face-off so they could participate in the second round is quite important.

Apart from Richard and one other person in the group, the other three were commoners, which is why it could be seen in their eyes how determined they were as they walked down the gallery that led them to the stage.

Richard's mind was clustered with so many thoughts that he couldn't feel the nervousness about the contest. In the first place, he knew this whole thing wasn't going to conclude.

"Let's do our best!" Ruby pumped her fist and encouraged him.

Richard helplessly smiled, "Yes, let's do our best."

As they exited the small gallery, the booming voice of the audience reached them. They were singing the name of the academy and the students they were supporting.

Richard looked at the other side and found the students of the Luminary Order standing on the other side of the stage

Their uniform was bright and intimidating. Crimson red blaze over a black shirt and a pair of formal black trousers gave them an aggressive appearance.

They were glaring at the students of Obsidian Citadel, and in return, the latter was doing the same.

One of the ten students from the other side, the one with broad shoulders and flaming red hair just like Richard, was looking at the Scarlette heir with an eye full of disdain.

Richard knew his identity; the Prince of the Emberclad Empire—Aston Emberclad.

Although Richard had never visited that Empire and not even once met the people from there, somehow he was being hated by the Prince.

'Strange creature...' Richard heaved a weary sigh and waited for the announcer to step on the stage.

Looking around, he found that Lucy, along with several others from the security department, were patrolling around the premises, and there were mages stationed at the top of the buildings as well, just in case.

The view from a higher point would allow them to see the danger arriving from afar—Richard thought.

The higher ups from both empires were sitting at the front along with the Headmasters of the two academies.

A man wearing a black three-piece suit stepped up on the stage, and with a voice-enhancing spell, he voiced, "Silence, everyone."

Instantly, the voices from the audience died down as they heard the man continuing, "Greetings to everyone; I am Austin Willson, the host of the contest."

The man held a certain aura around him which made him look imposing even though he wasn't releasing his ether to intimidate others. His tired eyes didn't match his clear and fluent voice.

Looking at the audience, he voiced, "There are three rules all the participants should be away: First, you would be given time before you need to answer the question. The team that gives the correct answer gains five points. If you pressed the buzzer first and answered the question correctly, you got an additional point. And providing the wrong answer would take three points away from you."

Understandable. There were buzzers provided for every member, but they couldn't just press it on a whim. After all the negative marking would feel like a stab in the eye during the contest.

"Second, you cannot interrupt a speaker until he has given his answer completely. Once the buzzer is rang, the one who pressed it has to answer the question immediately without wasting time discussing it with your teammates. Interrupting or delaying can cause you negative points."

"Third, you got only two chances to answer a question. One, when you sound the buzzer first, and second, if after failing to answer the question for the first time, and the opponent team also fails."

"Any questions?" Since the rules never change unless some unprecedented occasion occurs, the students have already explained the rules before the contest. As such, no one asked anything.

Austin nodded before he took out several small envelopes from his pocket, each one of them having a number printed on them.

The students held their breath and so did the audience.

Under the growing silence, the clear voice of the quizmaster echoed,

"First question: The first person to unlock a seven-circle spell faced several failures. However, among one of those failures, a new invention was brought to light, which we use even in today's world. Who is the one who discovered the first seven-circle spell? What was the spell? And what mistake did they make?"

Students began to discuss among themselves, and the substitute was a part of it as well.

The group of nine from the Citadel side was also abuzz,

"I think I know the name but a mistake? What was the mistake?" The girl with the glasses asked.

"I think it's related to space-time theory. One of the three biggest failures in history." The vice president of the council fixed his glasses and spoke.

The others also began to give their opinion, when suddenly Richard asked, "Why are we discussing things?"

Every eye sharply turned toward Richard, and the one who asked him was Ruby, "What do you mean, Richard? We need to answer-"

"But I know the correct answer of all the three parts. Remember? I am in charge of the history and civilisation. Surely I know about that incident."

The others looked unsure, but that single silver-haired fan of Richard beamed, "If Sir Richard is sure, then I fully support him!" She pumped her fist and showed sincerity in her claim.

Ruby then nodded, "Okay Richard, go for it."

*BZZZ*

The one who was about to ring the buzzer from the Emberclad side, stopped himself as Richard beat them to it and stood up to deliver the answer.

"The magic experiments of Thalia Winchester. Year 349 AW, her experiment with the seven-star circle continued for two years and seven hundred sixty-seven failures she faced during that period." Richard confidently spoke, his fluency defined how certain he was about his answer.

He continued, "During her three hundred fifty-third attempt, she distributed the particles of a stool and in haste, she rearranged those particles....but a few inches away from the initial spot."

Many of the students made their expression of realization as they understood the nature of the accident.

"Teleportation. Something which Thalia started as a mistake is still used by us in recent times. Teleportation portals are spread across the world and follow the same fundamentals which Madame Thalia Winchester defined in her diary. That's all."

Austin didn't take time to announce, "Six points."

Richard smiled before sitting back down. The audience applauded and cheered for the correct answer. Considering it was the first question of the morning, the roar was quite high.

Austin raised his hand and everyone quieted down before he asked another question, "The basic factor that determines the..."

After that, a series of questions were asked, and the two sides seemed competent enough to keep the score going.

Richard didn't participate in any other questions, both because they didn't need his help and also because his focus was diverted to his surroundings and all the activities happening around him.

His senses have magnified, and his Observation range was quite wider in area compared to the time when he entered the academy. And just to be on the safe side, he had activated his 'Perceptive Burst' to pick on the finer details of everything happening around him

Although the cries from the crowd were causing him a headache, Richard didn't lower his guard.

Hours passed by, and finally, the contest came down to the last question.

Richard glanced at the scoreboard and found Obsidian Citadel to be four points behind the Luminary Order.

He focused on the host for the final question, wanting his school to win so that Rose wouldn't cry once she woke up.

Everyone held their breath for the last time as the man finally revealed the final question,

"The immortal wound inflicted on the Death God during its battle against the greatest Hero, what was the nature behind that spell and what curse was inflicted on the Evil deity?"

A round of gasps echoed across the crowd as no one imagined the question would be directed towards the God of Death.

One from the Luminary Order raised his hand and said, "But sir, nothing is mentioned in the books regarding that battle."

Austin remained indifferent, "If you don't know the answer, don't speak. Minus one from the Luminary Order."

The gap between the two academies was reduced to three, thanks to a certain someone's idiocy.

Even Richard didn't know the answer, and looking at the others from his team, he could tell that they were the same.

'Well, can't be helped...'He closed his eyes, intending to reach his mindscape and search the books stored in it, to find the possible answer to that question.

However, the moment Richard closed his eyes....he was not in the white space where he was supposed to be.

....rather, in front of his eyes, he could see a battlefield. And the two entities standing on the battlefield were familiar(?).

Richard was witnessing the battle between the Monarch of Death and the strongest warrior among the seven heroes.

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A/N:- Thanks for reading.