'Habika?'

Viktor was slightly startled as memories from the game began to surface in his mind.

This was one of the many deities in the game's background.

It only appeared in the game's lore, mentioned only in story books for collection quests.

No one had ever seen its true form.

According to the records in the game's story, Habika's appearances always brought either natural disasters or human calamities.

The most severe recorded incident was when Habika's appearance once reduced the world's human population by half!

This was a very sinister and terrifying deity.

"Of course, you can also call me by my current name, Vega."

The crow, which called itself Vega, politely placed its wings on its chest and bowed.

Unable to grasp the other's intentions, Viktor didn't respond.

Seeing Viktor's silence, Vega flapped its wings once and straightened its posture.

"Interesting. It seems you've heard of me."

Viktor: "I don't know you."

He understood very well that being entangled with a god was no good thing, a fact universally acknowledged among players.

Especially this kind of evil god existing in the background story, it looked very dangerous.

But why would an evil god that had never appeared in the game's plot seek out Viktor in advance?

Vega opened its beak, and a hoarse voice like a crow's spoke before him:

"You're not Viktor. Your soul isn't filthy enough."

Its single eye stared at Viktor, trying to see a trace of 'panic' on his face, but Viktor's ever-present poker face disappointed it.

"Gods can see through souls," it said.

"But it doesn't matter. I came here for you."

Vega shook its feathers, and a long black feather fell onto the table. Black mist condensed, turning into a black paper. White streaks began to twist and form a bunch of words, like a demonic contract.

Viktor looked at the contents on the paper, feeling a bit of a headache.

He had just arrived in this world, hadn't done anything, and ended up being handed two contracts in one day.

I'm a professional game booster! Not some poor wage slave.

He took the paper, reading while mockingly saying:

"Aren't you a god? Fallen on hard times?"

He hadn't thought that even gods would have to go out and sign clients.

This contract stipulated that if he signed his name, he would have to provide food, clothing, and shelter for the crow, and even help it establish a church to cultivate followers for this evil god.

The contract said that the more followers, the stronger its power would become.

And then, nothing else.

Viktor: "......"

Even a slave contract isn't this outrageous. You provide food, shelter, and find followers for you, and after you gain all the benefits, I get nothing?

He silently looked at this crow, which was elegantly pecking at its own feathers, like a noble bird.

If one could ignore its single eye.

"Most of my power is sealed, I can only seek the shelter of others. If you take this deal, you'll gain the friendship of a deity."

"It's worth it."

Vega called out while continuing to peck at its feathers.

Viktor was speechless. The friendship of a god? What use is that?

The crow glanced at him with its single eye, seemingly seeing through his thoughts, and said flatly: "It can save your life."

"Deal!"

Viktor promptly signed his name on the contract.

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He wasn't too worried about being tricked, because deities were known to always keep their word.

Even evil gods.

After being handed the contract, he felt a very subtle connection form between them.

It seemed that with just a thought, he could find where this crow was.

The crow flew to Viktor's shoulder and pecked at its feathers again.

Just as Lia said, keeping a crow as a pet really wasn't a sign of good taste.

But he was new here, and the contract was already signed, so he might as well treat it as keeping a pet with no taste.

After all, he only had to provide food and shelter.

As for the church, he could just spend money to build one later.

He turned his head to look at the other contract nearby, which also needed his signature.

This was a contract from the Advanced Magic Academy, sincerely inviting the protagonist to become a teacher at the academy, promising him the title of professor.

He suddenly remembered that although Viktor was a villain, he was also a magical prodigy.

Countless aged wizards were stuck at the second tier, but Viktor had already reached the third tier at the age of twenty.

And in terms of the game...

Viktor silently recited in his mind, and a game panel appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Viktor Kravina]

LV: 39

HP: 1000/1000

MP: 4900/4900

A standard glass cannon mage.

This confirmed his guess – he had indeed transmigrated into the game.

A third-tier mage corresponded to levels 30-39 in the game, and so on afterwards.

According to the background story, Viktor hadn't progressed in nine years, and his reputation as a genius had long been forgotten by the world.

Only after transmigrating into Viktor's body did he realize that he had been hiding his true abilities.

The experience bar for leveling up had accumulated who knows how much, and he could easily cross the threshold of the third tier and leap to the level of a fourth-tier human saint mage.

But Viktor had never done so; he had always been planning a scheme.

Although his character wasn't good, his reputation as a genius was well-deserved.

This contract needed to be signed.

Not to mention that this professorship was obtained through the efforts of his sister and fiancée.

Having a professor title was equivalent to having the protection of a magic academy, so the duke's side couldn't easily cause trouble for him.

At least, on the surface, he needed a reasonable pretext.

An underage daughter being confessed to by a scumbag? That reason wouldn't hold water.

The desire for beauty is common to all. Was your daughter never going to marry?

Viktor picked up the pen and signed his name on the contract, then had a servant send it to the magic academy. He stood up and walked towards the mansion's backyard.

Vega finally stopped pecking at its feathers and asked him what he was going to do.

Without turning his head, Viktor told it:

"I'm going to teach at the school tomorrow. I need to practice some magic so I'm not out of practice."

"Take me with you."

Vega stood on his shoulder, chattering incessantly.

In the blink of an eye, they arrived at the training ground where several huge stone targets stood.

Viktor looked up at these towering stone statues, somewhat surprised.

In the game, players' backyards also had such magic stones for improving skill proficiency.

The giant stones would display damage numbers, and based on the different damage numbers, one could distinguish the skill proficiency and attribute levels.

Now seeing the same thing in Viktor's mansion's backyard, he couldn't help but feel emotional.

Vega saw him pause for a moment and thought he was intimidated by the targets after not practicing for so long.

Then it really started chattering like a crow.

"Magic, you know, requires a lot of skill..."

It went on and on, telling Viktor many things, such as how to cast efficiently and how to increase power.

The crow shook its well-groomed feathers: "If I had my power, I'd show you some powerful high-level magic."

Viktor didn't say anything, letting it continue to ramble.

He glanced at his skill list, and the result was quite satisfying.

Some of the magic Viktor could use, he was already proficient in.

As the final boss of the second chapter [Kingdom Chaos] in the game, he was a hurdle all players had to overcome.

As a former top-level game booster, he was well aware of Viktor's skills.

When the boss raised his hand, he knew exactly what move was coming.

Vega was still chattering: "There are many things to pay attention to with magic! Drawing magic circles, chanting speed..."

Before it could finish speaking, Viktor raised his hand, and with a bang, a black lightning bolt burst forth.

[First Tier Spell: Black Lightning Spear]

Viktor's face didn't change at all, as if casting magic was as simple as eating, drinking, or using the bathroom for him.

Then, various second and third-tier skills bloomed like fireworks, constantly leaving marks on the giant stones.

It was like a wild bombardment, the entire backyard dazzlingly bright.

Vega stood on Viktor's shoulder and fell silent.

Viktor looked at his now depleted MP, feeling unsatisfied.

The current boss's constitution was just too weak, running out of mana after casting just a few skills.

If a player wore a bunch of equipment, their mana would easily exceed ten thousand. Who would worry about conserving mana then?

"You cast spells without drawing magic circles?"

Viktor ignored it.

The mage class was known among players as a spell machine gun.

Because in the game's settings, players didn't need to operate the magic circles at all.

They just needed to click a hotkey, read a short incantation, and the skill would shoot out in an instant.

And for someone like him who had played all classes as a booster, he was proficient in the skills of any class.

Casting a spell? That was child's play.

Seeing that he could now perfectly control the release of skills, Viktor prepared to leave.

Vega suddenly spoke up: "Don't be in such a hurry to leave. Your method of casting spells interests me. Can you cast a few more?"

Viktor didn't want to entertain it.

You think this is fireworks? Cast whenever you want?

Just as this thought crossed his mind, he glanced over and saw Vega's single eye light up with a dazzling blue, enveloping his body.

He felt as if a rope had been tied between himself and the crow.

Viktor brought up the panel and looked again.

MP: 995099/999999

He looked down at Vega.

I want to report this! This guy is cheating!