The SSS Ranked Villain's Return - Chapter 270

Chapter 270: Heading Into The Rift
[Alice’s POV]

Today’s the day, Alice thought in excitement.

She had done all her assignments in advance, and now, the only thing left was to meet up with her group in a couple of hours.

It was some group she’d found on a raiding website, and while their descriptions said they were powerful, Alice had her doubts.

After all, she didn’t even know a single one of those people, despite them being in her academy.

I’ll have to bring my sword just in case…

Nonetheless, class soon finished, and without even a moment to spare, she ran out.

The academy was pretty spacious, but it was only natural considering it was one of the top academies on the entire continent.

She wasn’t the most talented, but she was pretty damn good at healing. Definitely good enough to consider joining rift-raiding parties like she was doing now.

The surroundings were still dreary because of what had happened in one of the other academies the other day. Apparently, someone attacked and killed a majority of the students there, leading to closure.

But Alice could only inwardly pray for them as she took the bus and headed toward the rift, which was in the neighboring city.

However, she couldn’t help but notice the many people staring at her.

I guess curly hair was definitely worth it, she thought with a smug smile.

She didn’t need validation, but it was still nice to see the jealous and envious gazes.

Alice didn’t make it a habit. Instead, she merely scrolled through her phone. Eventually, the bus stopped, and Alice stepped out, pushing her curly white hair back to receive the final envious glances.

But no one stared at her with envy. After all, their gazes only lingered for less than a second before simply going back into their phones.

“…?” Alice tilted her head, stunned.

Nonetheless, despite her confusion, she continued walking. Finally, she saw the outline of people gathered beside an alleyway.

There was a redhead woman who looked like any ordinary delinquent.

Then there was the golden-haired man who was using the puddle of water below him as a mirror.

And lastly, some gloomy gray-haired guy.

They should be from her academy, or at least, most of them, so she walked up to them with a smile and waved.

“Hey, are you guys the raiding party?”

The golden-haired man took his gaze away from the puddle and nodded before introducing them.

“This is Zaria, gray head is Asher, and I’m Lar. I assume you’re Alice, yes?”

“Yeah, haha.” Alice scratched her cheek. “I’m going to be the healer, if that’s alright with you.”

“Of course,” Lar replied. “Zaria uses a bow, and Asher is the one with daggers. I’m a swordsman, and I’d like to think I’m pretty capable.”

Noticing the glances Lar was shooting her, Alice maintained her poker face. However, deep down, she felt a little uncomfortable.

Is it because he reminds me of myself? Alice thought and took out her staff from her dimensional ring.

She had saved up most of her money to buy it, and since her parents didn’t approve of her being out on the field, they didn’t even bother to give her an allowance.

Nonetheless, Alice and the group exchanged a bit of small talk, and now, it was finally time to head inside the rift.

“It’s just down that way,” Zaria said, pointing to the forest in the distance. “Though hot stuff, are you sure you’re up for it? You seem pretty scrawny to be in dungeons.”

“I’m B- ranked. And my mana capacity is A-, so I believe I have what it takes to be here,” Alice shot back calmly and glanced at Zaria’s back. “On the other hand, those arrows seem pretty dull. Are you sure they’ll even pierce anything?”

Zaria scoffed and took out an arrow. In the very next moment, that arrow multiplied, and surprisingly, the duplicated arrow seemed to have been sharpened, looking good as new.

“As you can see, I’m prepared,” Zaria remarked. “But you, princess? What’s your cup size?”

“…?” Alice shot her a disgusted look. “I’m sorry, Zaria. But don’t come close to me while we’re inside the rift, okay?”

It wasn’t really a threat; she just didn’t want to get groped by a fellow group member.

What a weirdo… Alice thought, walking past Zaria and following after Lar.

Unlike these two, Asher seemed a little reserved.

“Excuse me…?” Alice called out, tapping Asher on the shoulder and startling him. “How long have you guys been at the Skryder Academy?”

However, just as Asher opened his mouth to answer, Lar spoke up instead. “Two years. We were laying low since there were too many talented individuals the previous years. If we tried standing out, then we’d look like idiots.”

“Okay?” Alice tilted her head. “But I wasn’t talking to you, though?”

Silence ensued for a short moment, and it was broken by Asher’s stammering.

“Y-You don’t need to talk to me… everything I know, Lar knows too.”

An obedient pet? That’s not a good sign, Alice thought, flashing a glance toward Zaria, who merely shrugged in response.

“Don’t look at me. I’ve never met these guys before either.”

“Uh-huh.” Alice nodded skeptically, and finally, they arrived in front of the rift.

It seemed like a jungle-type rift, judging by the location and the color of the portal.

Usually, blue meant aquatic, and green meant land. Depending on the shade of the green or blue, she’d find herself in completely different areas.

This was a light green shade, and from what she learned inside the academy, it was 80% guaranteed to be a jungle rift.

Therefore, without wasting even a single moment, she took a step forward.

The group followed right after, and just as she guessed, there were tall jungle trees extending upwards and coiling around each other, not letting even a bit of the sun shine through.

Alice bent down, touching the red soil in case it was blood, and thankfully, it wasn’t.

The climate checks out. It means the rift has been active for a while… but there’s going to be a whole ecosystem here now. Alice sighed and turned toward her groupmates, who were all inspecting different areas.

However, there was one person in particular who wasn’t doing anything.

Zaria.

She was staring off into the distance, her expression shocked.

Nonetheless, she whistled, getting their attention. And finally, she pointed in the direction she was staring.

“…What’s that?”