In the world where 'good' people exist, there was also bound 'bad' people.

Villain.

That word alone embeds the stigma of the individual that bore malicious and evil intentions.

The good people, or those referred to as 'Heroes', embodied courage, nobility, fighting for justice, and upholding the values that define humanity.

Villains, on the other hand, were the epitome of malice and malevolence. They were the enemies of society, driven by greed, power, and revenge, and will at nothing to achieve their goals.

Though, that was not always the case.

Even among the heroes, there were tends bad people disguising themselves as a person of justice and virtue.

And among the villains, there were still good people and intentions left behind them.

For example, corrupt heroes were still roaming around society, hiding behind their 'Hero' title to do inappropriate acts, saying that it was for the good sake, which was not true.

Contrary to the corrupt heroes, there existed the good villain. Their heart was in the right place but not their mind and body.

This might break the system and concept of good and evil, but these things existed.

In the case of the unknown group in front of the D-Point ruin's gate. They were the real villains, they brought evil intentions with them as they waited for the group of students to approach the ruin.

They did not expect that the group would have high-ranking heroes guarding them, which lead them to a conflict.

"Hey! State yourself! This area is restricted to other visitors than the Octagram students!"

The unknown group whispered among themselves while the heroes were approaching them.

"What the— they have an A-rank hero among them?"

"You said this will be an easy task."

"Shut up! I'm just bad at math!"

Crunch–!

As they were bickering, the heroes finally arrived in front of their group. Leading them was the A-rank hero, a man with stretched scar started from his eyebrow to his mouth.

"Identify yourself, what are you doing here? This area is restricted to visitors for today."

Someone from the unknown group stepped forward as they pulled out the black hood covering their face.

"Sorry, sir. We don't know about that. Can you inform us why is it restricted?"

"Pretty.." The hero was dumbfounded the moment he saw the person's face.

She was a woman, with a stunning appearance often referred to as a hot girl. Her long, silky black hair cascaded down her back, framing her exquisite features perfectly. Her almond-shaped eyes were a deep shade of brown, and her full lips were painted with a bright red lipstick that contrasted sharply with her flawless, porcelain skin.

The way she carried herself with confidence and poise only added to her already captivating presence.

The hero couldn't help but stare at her, completely mesmerized by her beauty.

It took him a few moments to compose himself before he finally spoke.

"Um, excuse me.. miss. We are conducting a special occasion, a ruin exploration activity exclusively for Octagram students, which means that this area is not accessible to visitors today. I'm afraid you'll have to leave."

Upon hearing this, the woman responded with a charming smile and said.

"Oh, I wasn't aware that a ruin could be reserved. That's quite interesting."

Her smile caused the hero's heart to skip a beat.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and tried to focus on the task at hand, but it was difficult with such distraction in front of him.

"Oy!" His B-rank hero companion patted his shoulder and whispered. "Can't you act a bit more professional here? You're A-rank, dude."

"I can't help it. She's too hot.."

"Well, you're right.." His companion gulped and nodded.

The A-rank hero cleared his throat.

"Typically, ruins cannot be reserved. However, since Octagram is involved, special arrangements were made."

"I see. So even a public and non-owner area like this ruin can become a private space when Octagram is involved."

The heroes frowned.

"Miss, with much–"

"Do you realize that ruins are perfect locations for attacking and pointing swords at each other's throats? People, regardless of whether they are on the same side or not, become overcome by greed and even betray their companions."

"Sorry?"

"The ruin is a lawless zone that belongs to no one. It's stated in the agreement pact that neither your association, Omega nor my organization, Dystopia, has a right to claim the ruins and the land around them."

As they heard the woman mention 'Dystopia', the four heroes suddenly tensed up. Their eyes slightly widened as they raised their guard, preparing a fighting stance.historical

"Dystopia?! Then—"

"You guessed it right. We are what you 'heroes' called the 'villains', we are the bad guys from the evil organization, Dystopia."

The heroes were now on full alert, ready to fight against any potential threat.

The woman didn't seem to be intimidated by their reaction, though. Instead, she continued to speak with a sly smile on her face.

"Don't worry, we're not here to cause trouble. I'm just passing through."

"Passing through? In a place like this?"

One of the heroes questioned, clearly skeptical of her intentions.

"Yes. You see, we are also interested in the ruins, specifically this one. Though, we only have an interest in research instead of an exploration of this already empty ruin."

The heroes exchanged a look of disbelief as they whispered among their group.

"Don't let them fool you, villains are all like that," said the B-rank hero.

"I know but, they look harmless, especially that woman," the A-rank hero replied, his eyes exploring the woman from the top to the bottom.

His companion put a hand on her face, clearly lost in words by her companion's behavior.

'How come is he an A-rank with this kind of attitude.'

Those were what the three B-rank heroes thought about their one and only A-rank hero in the group.

"But, competition is good, isn't it?" the woman continued, still smiling. "It keeps things interesting."

Then her eyes briefly shifted toward the group of students a few hundred meters away from her.

No one noticed her gaze on the students.

"..."

At the same time, the heroes didn't respond, they were still wary of her and her group's motives in this place.

However, the woman simply shrugged and began to walk away, regrouping with the rest of her group.

"Well, it was nice meeting you all. Good luck with your exploration with those kids."

As she left, the heroes watched her talk to her group, still unsure of what to make of the situation.

They didn't put their guard down yet until they were sure the villains won't bite them as soon as they put their guard down.

"What are we going to do? It's risky to leave them be. I think it's better to capture them once and for all."

The A-rank hero never took his eyes off the woman, either he was completely captivated by her beauty or he was thinking about what to do to her and her group.

"Capture.. Yes. that's it. Capture! We shall capture them here so they won't make any trouble in the future, especially the woman, I have a bad feeling that she will create a lot of problems if we let her go," said the A-rank hero while his tongue licking his own lips.

"Though I know what your real intentions are but, whatever. Let's capture them."

"I'm speechless," said the female hero as she massaged her temple.

As the A-rank hero was done with his fantasy, he smirked.

"Hey–"

When he was about to shout, he felt a chill run down his spine.

Then, in a split second, two people in black robes suddenly appeared in front of him each with swords pointed at him.

Luckily, he was able to block them in time.

"What the fvck?!"

The two people didn't stop just there, they kept pressing the attack with perfect combination.

The three other heroes looked confused at first but then regained their senses as killing intents were directed at them.

Another six robed men dashed, they were all the eight people from the woman's group.

As for the woman herself, she was smiling from afar and disappeared like snow being blown by the wind.

"Happy hunting, boys!" That was the last word she spoke before disappeared from the scene.

..

"Senior! They are villains!!"

Lux shouted as he ran toward Jihan.

"Junior? What do you mean?"

As Lux was about to speak, the 80 students had already witnessed the turmoil of the distant snowfield.

The cacophony of clashing metal, shouts, and intermittent explosions blended together into a horrific symphony that surpassed even the most dreadful compositions.

"Oh, darn,' Jihan cursed, not knowing what to do with the situation.

"We don't know if there will be more of them, I'm afraid that if we return to the base camp, the villains might have intercepted our way back. I think it'd be best if we help the heroes fight those eight villains," said Lux, his eyes determined.