Raff, Hayato and Sonia emerged from the dungeon on the fifth day. All the adventurers and miners who saw them looked shocked. Hayato was proudly holding the Electro Skullix Monster Crystal.

"Aren't they students of the Elexia Academy?" whispered some adventurers.

"Not only that, look at the emblems on their clothes," said another adventurer.

"No way, they're only rank F," muttered some incredulous adventurers.

"Go ahead and praise us, your job as NPCs is to praise main characters like me," Hayato thought, striding proudly.

"What a strange thing. They probably got help from A-rank adventurers, it's impossible for an F-rank adventurer to defeat Electro Skullix," an adventurer argued.

"You're right, Electro Skullix is even equal to five S-rank adventurers. There's no way they can defeat him, there must be a lot of rank A adventurers helping them, they must just be errand boys assigned to do quests at the academy," another adventurer chimed in.

"Tch. It turns out there are still NPCs who bring bad influence," Hayato grumbled.

"We'll part ways here. I don't want to attract too much attention," Sonia said before they entered the dungeon guard building.

"Yes. Thank you for your help, I'll bring you your share of the quest rewards later," Raff replied.

"No need Raff, the materials I'm carrying are already worth fifty gold coins or maybe more. Besides, my quarters are not decent enough to receive guests," Sonia said with a smile.

"Are you sure, Sonia? We wanted to give you a hundred coins in return," Hayato asked.

"Tch. What a face-saver," Raff grumbled under his breath.

"No need. Raff beat him by himself anyway, I don't think I deserve it," Sonia refused.

"You don't have to think about Raff, he's just a fighting maniac. He won't care about the reward, without your existence, Raff won't be able to defeat the monster," Hayato persuaded.

"Yeah, I would have died protecting Hayato if you hadn't come with us," Raff interrupted, taunting Hayato.

"Tch. You better shut up," Hayato grumbled.

"There's no need. I'm the one who's happy to be invited to explore the dungeon with you," Sonia denied.

"Well then, maybe I will come to you later if I have time. Maybe I'll take you on another quest," Hayato said in a soft voice.

"Yes. I look forward to it," Sonia replied and left the two of them.

"Sonia, I'll give you one hundred gold coins. How nice!" grumbled Raff as he hit Hayato on the head with his hand.

"Ouch! I'm just being nice, Raff," Hayato said while holding his head.

"I was going to give him twenty-five coins and you twenty-five gold coins, the rest is my money!" said Raff as he continued on his way.

"Tch. You can't even trust your brain when it comes to money," Hayato grumbled.

"How stupid do you think I am? You attention-seeking bastard," Raff taunted.

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"Remember, you still owe me," Hayato said.

"Yeah, I'm paying it now," Raff said.

Raff and Hayato arrived at the Guild Academy in the afternoon. There were only a few students who seemed to be still in the academy area. Most of them had already returned to their respective dormitories.

"Tch. Why is it so quiet today," Hayato grumbled as he entered the guild.

"Hehehe... looks like you're always unlucky. You can't show off," Raff taunted as he sat in front of the guild building.

"You're the one who gave me this bad luck!" grumbled Hayato.

"I'll just wait here," Raff said without answering Hayato's words.

Hayato was in the guild room for quite some time. A proud smile graced Hayato's face as he left the guild building. In his hand was a cloth bag containing the guild's rewards for completing the quest.

"Looks like he just got a commendation from the guild staff," Raff muttered when he saw Hayato's face.

"Here's your share Raff, I've deducted your debt," Hayato said.

"Be careful if you take more. I'm not smart, but I can still count the money correctly," Raff threatened as he picked up a cloth bag filled with gold coins.

"I don't need to commit such a crime, the main character will always set a good example for others," Hayato replied as he walked away smiling. Raff left with Hayato in tow. The two of them went straight to the dormitory to rest.

The atmosphere in the Rank F dormitory area seemed quite lively. Some students who saw Raff and Hayato's arrival looked surprised.

"Raff and Hayato are back!" shouted one student.

"Eh? They survived?" several students shouted from inside the dormitory.

"Hahaha... welcome back, NPCs!" shouted Hayato, laughing proudly.

"How did you survive Raff?" asked Nlo, running over.

"We heard that you did a dangerous Tier S quest in the dungeon," Pine said.

"Rumor has it that you both died in the dungeon," said another student. By now, almost all of the first-year Rank F students had gathered around Raff and Hayato.

"That noble boy named Mace even came to class. They said that you two won't be coming back to the Academy because you were killed by the Electro Skullix monster," another student said, looking at Raff and Hayato.

"We're fine, we also managed to complete the quest," Raff said.

"They both seem fine," said Elena, watching from her bedroom window.

"Are you worried about them?" asked Nova, who was reading a book in Elena's room.

"Why would I be worried about them? It's just that I was annoyed when the nobleman's son said that they were dead, as if he had seen it himself," Elena replied with a deep sigh.

"Do you have a problem with the nobleman's son?" asked Nova, looking at Elena.

"Not only with his son. I hate all the nobles in the Ruttera Kingdom!" said Elena with a serious look on her face.

"Raff, how did you defeat Electro Skullix?" a student asked enthusiastically.

"Yes, we want to hear the story. We heard that the monster was the equivalent of five S-rank adventurers," another student said as he approached Raff.

"Tch. Again, even NPCs like him are in the limelight," Hayato thought with an annoyed look on his face. "Wait a minute! I wonder how many first year Rank F students are here," Hayato interrupted loudly.

The F rank students immediately turned their attention to Hayato. At that moment, Hayato raised the cloth bag containing his gold coins with his left hand.

"It just so happens that this mission was very well rewarded, I thought I could give each of you twenty silver coins for tomorrow's meal at the academy," Hayato said while wiping his fringe with his right hand.

"Let me tell you about the exciting journey inside the dungeon. If you want to hear it, let's go to the back of the dormitory, where it will be more comfortable to talk," Hayato continued with a smile.

"I'm coming with you Hayato!" two students shouted at the same time.

"Please tell us the story Mr. Hayato," some female students shouted happily.

"Hahaha... Come with me, NPCs," Hayato said as he proudly walked away. "Tch. It's all about money in the end," Hayato thought happily.

"Tch. He's going to tell them all some weird story," Raff grumbled as he looked at Nlo and Pine who were still there.

"Aren't you going with the others?" asked Raff.

"Won't you tell us straight?" asked Nlo.

"I'm sorry. But I'm still tired today, maybe you'd better hear it from Hayato," Raff replied with a smile.

"Alright then. Make sure you get enough rest," Pine said as he hurried away with Nlo.

"That seems to be my limit. Using my ultimate for such a short period of time is already excruciating," Raff muttered while staring at his right palm, which was still shaking from the fight with Electro Skullix.

"It turns out that Hayato's existence is also useful, this way I can rest in peace," Raff said while stretching his body muscles.

Raff's gaze fell on Elena's open window. Their eyes met, but Elena immediately turned away. Elena even closed the curtains on her window.

"What a grumpy girl, she's so weird," Raff muttered as he walked toward the dormitory entrance.

Continued...