That Annoying Jerk

Greg blinked, genuine confusion spreading across his firelit face, as though he had no idea why Lilith had suddenly bristled.

"What's wrong?" he asked, sounding almost innocent. "Didn't you ask me how I thought they compared?"

"I meant their strength! Their strength!"

Lilith was practically shouting, her cheeks flushed crimson with anger and embarrassment. "Who asked for those, those... assessments of yours!"

Greg froze for a moment, then looked as though he finally understood. Realization dawned on his face, followed by a hint of... disappointment.

"Oh, so you were asking about their strength..."

His tone and expression made him look like someone who had just been told that the surprise party he had eagerly awaited was canceled.

As far as he understood, as "Background Character Lily" in this Galgame, she ought to be like every other background character: obsessed with gossiping about the heroines' romantic entanglements and secretly in love with the protagonist or one of the heroines.

So when Lily asked what he thought of Victoria and the other two, Greg had already scripted the rest of their conversation:

Step one was exactly what he had just done: give a precise assessment of the three heroines' physical features.

Step two: Lily would nod enthusiastically in agreement. "Exactly! That's what I think too!"

Step three: he would naturally steer the conversation deeper, smiling like an understanding older brother as he asked, "There's someone among those three you care about most, isn't there?"

Step four: Lily would blush and wave her hands in a panic like any lovestruck girl. "N-no! I don't think anything like that!"

Step five: he would offer timely reassurance, his tone sincere. "Don't worry, I definitely won't tell them. So... just an initial is fine. Tell me the first initial of the person you care about. I promise to keep it secret."

Step six: as though giving up her resistance, Lily would shyly confess in a small voice, "I really can't win with you... You absolutely can't tell anyone else, okay? The person I care about is..."

In his imagination, it should have been a friendly, harmonious atmosphere full of gossip and a young girl's romantic secrets.

He could even picture Lily's eyes sparkling as she excitedly told him things like, "Her Highness looked so cool on the training grounds today," or, "Senior Sylvia is so gentle."

But what had actually happened?

This background character wasn't following the script at all!

Instead of rosy romance, she cared about cold, hard comparisons of strength!

That was like watching China's World Cup Qualifiers not to vent your frustrations, but because you genuinely thought they would win!

This was heresy! A dereliction of duty!

A serious departure from a background character's core responsibilities!

But considering that she was a good girl at heart, Greg sighed. Like someone dealing with a younger acquaintance who had strayed down the wrong path but wasn't bad by nature, he patiently adopted a businesslike tone:

"Without question, Victoria will be the strongest of those three."

"Victoria is the strongest? How is that possible?!"

Lilith stood up almost instinctively, her voice rising in disbelief.

But she immediately realized she had lost her composure. With a light cough, she quickly sat back down, trying to restore her respectable image as a wealthy merchant's daughter, though her tone remained distinctly argumentative:

"Sorry, what I meant to say was that Her Highness Lilith is a genius who mastered Flame Explosion Level 1 at Level 10! That's one of the highest-tier fire spells. In a head-on fight, how could Victoria possibly be a match for Her Highness Lilith?"

She straightened her back and stared directly at Greg, her red eyes practically saying, "You have no idea what being a genius really means."

As Greg watched her, that subtle expression of "Young lady, you really don't understand at all" slowly appeared on his face.

Firelight danced in his amber eyes, lending that expression an infuriating air of knowing certainty.

Indeed, to most people, a genius who could reach the threshold of Flame Explosion at Level 10 would utterly outclass anyone her age.

In magical training, superiority of tier was an ironclad rule. Mastering high-tier magic above one's level required talent, resources, and effort, without exception.

Lilith Kahn, the Kingdom's second princess, undoubtedly possessed all three.

But having cleared the original game eighty-one times, Greg knew that Victoria also possessed some little-known yet extremely powerful talents.

So even though she had yet to learn the highest-tier spell of any element, the two were still evenly matched in combat power.

Where Victoria surpassed Lilith was practical combat experience.

As children, Victoria and Sylvia had both studied in their village under an archmage who had reached the Elder Hero Domain. This archmage's teaching style was thoroughly Spartan: ice lances to wash their faces, fireballs chasing their backsides, and lessons held beside Monster nests.

Victoria's combat experience, which far exceeded that of her peers, was the fruit of that hellish training.

It was experience accumulated through countless battles brushing against the edge of death, something a sheltered genius could scarcely imagine.

During her Class Placement Duel against Lilith in the original game, Victoria would use a feint to evade the Flame Explosion Lilith cast with all her remaining mana, securing victory.

That would also officially begin Lilith's Romance Route: "You actually defeated me, when I mastered Flame Explosion at Level 10. Hmph, what an interesting woman. You've successfully caught this princess's attention!"

At that thought, Greg said outright:

"Just wait and see. In tomorrow's Class Placement Duel, Victoria will use a feint at the end to bait out Her Highness Lilith's Flame Explosion and win."

"You make it sound like you can predict the future." Lilith was clearly still unconvinced. Deep down, she would always be proud, and she did not believe she would lose to a commoner like Victoria.

Seeing this, Greg had no intention of arguing further.

From the way she unconsciously puffed out her chest and her eyes shone whenever she mentioned "Her Highness Lilith," he could deduce one thing:

This fellow student, Lily Carlo, was most likely a member of the Lilith Fan Club.

Though the members of these fan clubs were almost obsessively devoted, they never stood in the way of the heroines finding happiness. They simply watched over them quietly from the sidelines.

So Greg didn't dislike them.

The meat skewers were ready. Their outer surfaces were golden brown and crisp, the perfectly controlled heat drawing out the fat until it glistened enticingly in the firelight. Mingled with the unusual aroma of a spice unique to the Dungeon, the scent kept wafting into their noses.

Greg took two skewers off the fire and offered one to Lilith.

"Want a taste?"

Lilith pressed her lips together, still sulking over that ridiculous prediction.

That annoying jerk! Not only did he judge me with that lecherous gaze, he even had the nerve to predict I'd lose!

As if anything he made could taste good!

It must be either burnt or bland, or full of some Dungeon plant that's impossible to swallow!

Despite those vicious thoughts, her hand moved faster than her mind, and she had already accepted the skewer.

The movement was swift, without the slightest hesitation.

... But once she had taken it, she stared at the meat with a complicated expression, as though locked in a fierce internal struggle.

To eat, or not to eat?

If I eat it, won't that mean giving in to this annoying jerk?

But if I don't... I'm really hungry.

She hadn't eaten a bite since the afternoon, and her terrifying tumble into the water had drained an enormous amount of her stamina.

In the end, physical need won out over her internal struggle.

With a disdainful expression and the critical attitude of Let's see just how awful your cooking is, she took a small bite.

The crisp outer layer broke between her teeth.

Then came the sensation of piping-hot, tender meat brimming with juices.

An indescribable aroma burst across her palate.

The texture... He controlled the heat perfectly.

The seasoning... Complex, with just the right amount of salt.

Even the texture of the meat itself was more tender and succulent than some of the specially supplied steaks she had eaten at palace banquets.

Lilith froze.

She chewed slowly, her red eyes widening little by little.

That proud, critical voice inside her fell silent in an instant, as though an invisible hand had seized it by the throat.

Only one thought remained, echoing clearly and loudly through her mind alongside the exquisite pleasure flowing from her taste buds:

... Mmm, this is delicious.