Chapter 278 | Survival Guide for a Doomed Villain in the Academy Dungeon

As the two stepped out of the deep, gloomy passage, the view before them suddenly opened up.

While the second layer only featured scattered ruins of buildings here and there, the scene on the third layer was entirely different.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but crumbling walls and ruined structures.

Collapsed stone pillars lay across the middle of the road, and half-buried foundations of houses peeked through the grayish-white dust. Broken street cobblestones wound crookedly into the distance, flanked on both sides by dense ruins of buildings. Some still retained the outlines of doors and windows, while others were reduced to single, precariously tilting walls.

The overall architectural style was similar to the ruins of the second layer, featuring the same hourglass and gear-themed decorative style. However, the scale here was much larger and far denser, clearly indicating that this place had once been a prosperous human settlement—perhaps a town of some kind.

“So this is the third layer...”

Greg stood at the exit of the passage, looking around at the sight before him as a strange feeling welled up in his heart.

Back in his past life, when he was playing the original game, he had only fully conquered the first two layers of the Academy Dungeon. After that, the novelty had worn off, and he had never bothered to venture any deeper.

Now, he had set foot in an area that even his past self had never reached, giving him a strange sense of accomplishment.

“Heh, the changes here really are quite drastic.”

Nightmare's voice suddenly echoed in Greg's mind. Her tone carried an elusive complexity, making it hard to tell if it was nostalgia, lamentation, or something else entirely.

Greg was slightly taken aback and asked in his heart, You seem quite familiar with the dungeons. Have you been to all of them before?

Nightmare fell silent for a moment before replying, “Perhaps. At the very least, I do have some impressions of this place in my memories, but at the same time, it looks completely different from what I remember.”

In stark contrast to Nightmare's somewhat somber tone, Allie was currently standing in front of a relatively open stretch of ruins. Her eyes were sparkling, and her face was filled with a nearly blissful sense of anticipation.

“Wow! I feel like there's going to be so much treasure! Look at those jars, those statues, and that stone sarcophagus that looks super expensive! If we carry all these antiques out and sell them, won't we be filthy rich?”

Greg could actually understand Allie's greed for money—after all, like master, like maid. Still, he couldn't help but pour cold water on her enthusiasm.

“You want to haul all of this out? How long do you think that would take? Besides, it's hard to say if these things are even worth anything. If we carry them all the way out only to find they're just common junk, wouldn't that be a waste of effort?”

Allie's face fell, and she pouted as she glared at him.

“But when we head back up, we don't need to carry these heavy things of uncertain value. We can just pick up the gems dropped along the way and find someone to sell them for us. That income will be much more stable than dealing in antiques.”

From the first layer to this third layer, the monsters Allie had slain had indeed dropped some basic and low-tier gems.

It was only because they didn't want to carry extra weight during their conquest that they had temporarily left them behind.

Once they returned to the surface, gathering all those gems and selling them would easily bring in a handsome sum.

Allie tilted her head and thought about it. Although she would miss the thrill of personally unearthing hidden treasures, adding a chunk of money to her savings was still a very good deal.

She nodded. “Alright.”

After that, the two began to venture deeper into the third layer.

Since Nightmare was familiar with the dungeon's layout, Greg simply had her act as their navigator from within his shadow.

There weren't many monsters in the shallow section. Occasionally, a few would leap out from the collapsed buildings, but before they could even screech, Allie would slice them in two with a single strike, without being able to pose any real obstacle to the two.

After walking for a while, the two arrived in front of a half-closed stone door. Greg tried pushing it to the left, but it didn't budge at all.

“Damn it. I know the difficulty of this dungeon is pretty Soulslike, but having a 'does not open from this side' mechanic is just ridiculous!”

Standing behind him, Allie looked at the door, then stepped up to Greg's side. She reached out and gave the stone door a push to the right, and the door that had blocked Greg swung right open.

Greg: “...?”

Allie patted the dust off her hands. “Since it won't open from that side, you just have to push it from the other side. You really are a silly master.”

Greg opened his mouth to retort, but realized that while her logic wasn't entirely correct, it did seem to make a strange kind of sense.

He fell silent for a moment and ultimately chose to shut his mouth, silently walking through the stone door that had just wounded his pride.

After entering the middle section, the ruins became denser, and the paths grew significantly more intricate. Yet Greg, walking in the lead, moved as if he knew exactly where to go, never pausing for a single step.

Allie asked in confusion, “By the way, Young Master Greg, how do you know the way? Have you been here before?”

“Uh, that's because...”

Naturally, Greg couldn't say, Because a Hajimi goddess is living in my shadow and guiding me. Instead, he came up with a different excuse:

“The Goddess of Night, Nightmare, once gave me guidance in my dreams. That's how I'm able to find the right path.”

“That Goddess of Night again.”

Allie didn't doubt his words.

Back during the clock tower incident, Greg had told her that he had been chosen by the Goddess of Night and tasked with a certain mission. It was also because of this that she had ended up becoming the Vice Bishop of the Dark Night Order.

Even so, she still found it a bit strange in her heart.

Why did that Goddess of Night take a liking to my silly master of all people?

Could it also be because of his face?

Allie stole a glance at Greg's profile. Well, he certainly was handsome, at least.

Although the number and strength of the monsters in the middle section of the third layer had increased significantly, they still posed absolutely no threat to Allie.

The smooth journey along the way allowed Greg to truly experience what it felt like to be escorted by a Demon King-level powerhouse.

After the two crossed the middle section, the path began to grow increasingly narrow and winding.

The ruins on both sides gradually towered higher, with some walls reaching several dozen feet, casting massive shadows that shrouded the passage in darkness.

“We've reached the deep section. It's best to be careful here,” Greg said in a low voice. “We might encounter powerful elite monsters, or more of those bizarre traps like before.”