Surviving as the Second Main Lead: Second Lead's POV

“You should stop hiding now and come out. Despite having plant-based abilities, even you are not immortal, you know.”

Horas spoke to the unnamed villainess that was hiding around in this dungeon, looking for a chance to attack him and Howard. She had never been given a name in the original either, only a title.

Poison Ivy, the villainess who could control plants. She was a C-Ranked villainess whose mission was to kidnap a promising first-year student. And she had set her eyes on Howard Spencer, the first-ranked student.

As expected, the villainess did not come out even after being taunted by Horas but she had given a small but audible reaction.

Horas immediately aimed his gun and shot a few shots.

A few of them connected with the plant-based villainess and blood dropped on the ground. But her wounds would not stick around for long.

Since Horas had not used his special mana bullets, any wound made by his gun was superficial. Any effective healing skill would heal the wound in a matter of seconds.

“Howard, stay behind me if you want to live. Don’t face the villainess head-on, alright?”

Horas knew Howard was more than capable of looking after himself but the less exposure he had to the other side, the better it would be for his future encounters.

As of now, Howard was the only known key, the ultimate cheat of this world. And his survival would be Horas’s only key back home. (That did not mean that Horas had to get closer to the protagonist. He just needed the protagonist until the end fight.)

“Will you be alright? I can help you out and -”

“Kid, stay out of this fight. No matter how well you fight, you have never faced a sealed environment before. You will not be able to handle it. Just keep yourself alive.”

Howard might be powerful but a sealed environment caused one’s skills to drop at a fixed level. That was how dungeons worked and the problem strong people found in these dungeons.

Flexibility was often the key to conquering them.

“Don’t ignore me. I might have lost to you and your pet yesterday but your abilities are limited in a dungeon. I wonder how well you will be able to perform in here.”

Poison Ivy finally came out of her hiding spot. Her body was covered by a protective cocoon of veins with thorns and her green skin looked sickly.

[[[Scanning available data.

Name: Marita Zuzue, Poison Ivy

Affiliation: Villains organization, C-ranked.

Danger level: caution]]]

Horas stood on alert and fired a few shots at Poison Ivy, but the villainess split her body into smaller parts, avoiding the attack.

“A few small balls of lead are not going to hurt me anymore. You see, I have you all figured out now, ‘Mr. Grim Reaper’.”

Horas stopped shooting once he noticed that it was of no use. Normal bullets would not work at all. He needed something new if he wanted to capture this villainess again.

“A C-rank villainess? What are you doing in the Esper’s academy? How did you even get in here?”

Howard questioned, forgetting everything Horas had asked him to do. He was advertising his existence freely even when he was asked not to interfere.

The villainess turned her attention toward Howard with a greedy look in her eyes but Howard missed it. Horas was mortified as well as embarrassed to have written such a dense character and he could not help but sigh in pain.

Horas raised his gun and shot the veins reaching out toward Howard. That caused Howard to jump, suddenly realizing that he was not as safe as he had believed himself to be.

“Well, you know how it is. When you see someone talented, you just gotta have them. Don’t tell me you never had this feeling before in your life.”

Poison Ivy’s voice was smooth and interesting. Her attention did not move away from Howard even when he tried to move out of her line of sight.

“I’m thirteen. How about you take your interest somewhere else?”

Howard replied, finally realizing that Poison Ivy was talking about him when she spoke. His face was a shade greener as Horas shot a few more veins that were coming far too close to Howard.

He even brought his sword out to defend himself from the veins nearing his body.

“Awww, don’t be like that kid. I swear that you won’t feel anything but pleasure once you join us.”

Horas decided that it was enough talking and he had bought the academy more than enough time to act around.

He had sent a signal for ‘help’ as soon as he had noticed Poison Ivy and Principal Marbel were on the move now.

///WARNING: INTERUDER ALERT.///

‘Finally. What took the academy so long to start an alert like this?’

Horas could not believe the delay time. It was something he would have to fix once he got a chance to and he would drag Mark into his reforms as well.

“You! When did you have the time to— NO, never mind. Hand over the kid to me right now.”

Poison Ivy reached out behind Horas’s back using his blind spot. Horas was taken aback by the sudden speed the villainess showed.

Horas turned around, ready to shoot the attacking veins when Howard brought his sword out and blocked the attack. It hit the veins, cleaving right through them easily.

Poison Ivy hissed as the sword cut through her attacks. She had taken some damage as a result of the incoming attack as well but she collected her wits and smiled.

“See, I was right. You are the right fit for our side. Your mercilessness shall be known throughout the world once you join us.”

“As if I want to join you guys. Just leave me alone.”

Howard was getting creeped out by this weird lady as well. Howard needed to put an end to Poison Ivy’s obsession.

‘Well, looks like I have no other choice but to use force.’

Horas finally took out his mana bullets and loaded them. A single shot caused Poison Ivy to fall and clutch her bleeding arm.

“Is that it? A small wound like this would not-”

Poison Ivy never finished her words because her arm crystallized. And then the rest of her body followed suit until only her head was left.

She tried to escape but the more Poison Ivy tried to resist, the more her body solidifies until she was not even able to move anymore.

“You! What the hell did you do to me?”

Poison Ivy questioned, trying to break free from her binds. But the more she tried, the harder the crystal sucked her energy out.

“It would be better for you to stay put and go back to your cell like a good girl. I don’t have the patience to play with you.”

Horas made his way to Poison Ivy, now looming over her and positioning his gun directly in her face. He would kill her if he needed to do so.

Poison Ivy looked terrified for a second before understanding flashed across her eyes. Her cold gaze had a sliness to it and it unnerved Horas.

“You are as cold as people say. No wonder you drove your only friend into a mad frenzy. It was all your fault., right? The incident with the bloodhound. It was all your fault that-”

Poison Ivy’s face was gleeful when she started speaking. But the more she spoke, the more unaffected Horas looked.

Howard looked interested in the talk but Horas decided to put a stop to the villainess’s babbling. A single shot knocked Poison Ivy out cold before she could say anything else.

There was no blood and no wound when Horas shot Poison Ivy but Howard still jumped in shock and approached the unconscious Poison Ivy.

“Don’t worry, I have not killed her yet. There is still much that we need to get out of a villainess like her.”

Horas assured Howard but he seemed not to believe him. He had to check for himself that the villainess was breathing all right.

Horas let him do what he needed to feel reassured. And Howard had a sheepish and embarrassed look on his face once he pulled back from the unconscious body of the villainess.

“Horas, are you alright? I saw your message but you said you had everything under control so I did not interfere. Do you have the prisoner with you?”

Instructor Harris entered the dungeon in a flash. He looked worried but understanding flashed across his face as soon as he saw the unconscious body of the villainess at Howard’s feet.

“I knocked her out for now. Make sure she is not able to escape this time at least.”

A little aggression slipped into Horas’s voice. He had not meant to become snappy but his agitation had shown up on his face. Instructor Harris laughed it off in a good mood as he picked up the unconscious Poison Ivy.

“Got it, kid. We will take care of the prisoner this time and keep an eye on her. And about Howard-”

“I know the protocol so you can go. I will get him checked by Lady Heals before I send him back.”

"Sure, you do that. And maybe, also make a friend along the way."