The four of them returned silently to the Gryffindor common room.
The fire in the hearth blazed brightly, yet not a single person spoke.
Outside, the portrait of The Fat Lady was singing an off-key opera at a most inappropriate time.
Harry and Ron were still dazed from their narrow escape, stealing occasional glances at Rayleigh with deeply complicated expressions.
Hermione sat curled up in an armchair, hugging her knees with her face buried in her arms, her shoulders trembling with quiet sobs.
“Thanks, Rayleigh.” Harry was the first to break the silence.
“Seriously, if it hadn’t been for you…” Ron nodded in agreement.
The way he looked at Rayleigh now was no longer just as a classmate.
“No big deal.” Rayleigh waved a hand, leaning back in the armchair with forced nonchalance.
“Just don’t be so impulsive next time.
Especially you, Hermione—a troll isn’t a mere picture in a textbook.” Hermione’s shoulders shook even harder, but she lifted her head anyway, looking at Rayleigh with red, tear-brimmed eyes.
“I’m sorry…
and…
thank you.” “Alright, alright, we’re in the same house.
It’s only right.” Rayleigh waved it off, though inside he was screaming in silent outrage.
*Thank me my foot!
That old bumblebee Dumbledore nearly dissected me on the spot for research!* *That last look the old man gave me—he definitely suspects something!* *No way, I can’t stay idle!
Power!
I need more power!* That night, once Seamus’s snoring struck up its usual bugle-like fanfare, Rayleigh quietly pulled his bed curtains shut and opened the portal to the Diablo world.
The Rogue Encampment.
The moment Rayleigh appeared, he headed straight for the tent of Gheed the merchant.
He dumped all the gold coins he had amassed over the past few days from bashing cows and Fallen onto the counter with a loud clatter.
“All your Healing Potions, Mana Potions, and Stamina Potions—I’ll take the lot!” Gheed’s small, greedy eyes instantly lit up.
“Oh!
My dear friend, are you off to slay a dragon?” “Cut the chatter and hurry up!” Rayleigh pointed to a bottle at the top of the shelf that radiated a faint purple glow.
“That one too.” “A wise choice!
This Rejuvenation Potion is a true lifesaver!
It restores thirty percent of your life and mana in an instant!” Gheed boasted while nimbly packing a heap of bottles and jars into a cloth bag.
Looking at his inventory packed full of potions, Rayleigh felt a small sliver of security return to him.
Time to do this!
Tonight, he was going to wipe out that bastard Corpsefire once and for all!
After several hours of hard fighting, Rayleigh cleared away the lesser monsters along the path once again and reached the corner at the deepest part of the Den of Evil.
Corpsefire and his four elite zombie minions were wandering not far ahead.
Same old routine: first, drop a Town Portal scroll at the corner.
This was his ultimate retreat—if he couldn’t win, he’d have to use it to bolt.
Ready!
Rayleigh leaned half his body out, pointing his wand forward.
*Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!* Five Ice Bolts fired off like rapid-fire artillery, accurately striking Corpsefire and his four minions.
The monsters’ movement speed visibly slowed.
“Not done yet!” Rayleigh chuckled darkly as he chanted a vicious, somewhat stomach-turning spell.
“Bowel-Plucking Curse!” The bellies of the four elite zombies suddenly writhed in an uncanny fashion, and their health bars began dropping chunk by chunk.
In the blink of an eye, the minions’ health dropped by half.
However, the distance between them—along with Corpsefire—and Rayleigh had also been halved.
Rayleigh ignored the thick-skinned Corpsefire, instead pouring all his firepower onto the four minions.
Clear the minion trash first—that was basic etiquette when fighting a boss!
Finally, just a moment before Corpsefire’s sharp claws could swipe across his face, two of the elite zombies collapsed with agonizing wails.
Now!
Instead of retreating, Rayleigh stepped right into Corpsefire’s attack, his eyes gleaming with calculated excitement.
Grasping the exact timing he had rehearsed a thousand times in his head, he cast the intentionally mispronounced Levitation Charm he knew like the back of his hand.
“Wingardium Levio-saaaa!” The instant the spell left his mouth, he executed a hasty roll, tumbling backward onto the ground.
*BOOM!* A plump, burly bull crashed down from the sky, squashing Corpsefire and the remaining two elite zombies right underneath it!
“Moo!” The two low-health elite zombies couldn’t even squeal before their health bars were instantly wiped out; only a sliver of health remained barely hanging on.
Corpsefire was also hit for nearly half his health by the impact, his massive body pinned firmly to the ground, unable to move.
[HP: 275/550] “Great chance!” Taking advantage of the few seconds before the bull vanished, Rayleigh thrust his right hand forward, spouting a thick pillar of fire from his palm.
Inferno!
The flames engulfed all three monsters in an instant.
A continuous sizzling and crackling filled the cavern.
The two elite zombies burned to ashes, bursting into a shower of potions and a piece of blue-glowing gear across the floor.
Rayleigh immediately ended Inferno and followed up with an Ice Bolt to slow Corpsefire down, knowing the bull was about to disappear.
Then, reaching into his inventory with his left hand, he fished out a Mana Potion and chugged it down.
Right then, thoroughly enraged, Corpsefire bellowed and ripped the bull on top of him to shreds by brute force!
The bull turned into starlight and vanished.
Corpsefire’s crimson eyes locked onto Rayleigh, and he charged forward with massive strides!
“Bring it on!” Rayleigh pulled the same trick again, summoning another bull while rolling to the side.
*BOOM!* Corpsefire was crushed once more, taking another massive hit to his health bar.
Seizing the opportunity, Rayleigh steadied his footing and pelted him with a barrage of small Fireballs as if they cost nothing.
Finally, before the second bull vanished, Corpsefire’s health was whittled down to a tiny sliver of red.
Victory was in sight!
Rayleigh raised his wand again, ready to send him off with a third bull.
“Wingardium Levio-saaaa!” The bull descended once more!
However, what happened next nearly caused Rayleigh’s eyes to pop out of his head.
Corpsefire actually sidestepped with uncanny agility that defied his bulky size, dodging the falling bull entirely!
The bull crashed onto the empty ground, let out a confused moo, and dissolved into starlight inside the cave a few seconds later.
“Holy crap!
This thing has intelligence now?” Rayleigh’s heart leaped, but he didn’t panic.
Through countless battles, his mindset had grown exceptionally resilient.
He immediately followed up with an Ice Bolt, then turned and sprinted backward without looking.
He had to create distance!
Looking at Corpsefire’s paper-thin health bar, Rayleigh decided to gamble!
This monster had intelligence now.
If he missed this chance and came back later, who knew if it would remember this move?
If it guarded against it right from the start next time, he’d be in deep trouble.
He began circling the cavern frantically, dodging Corpsefire’s wild attacks while firing off small Fireballs whenever he had an opening, whittling away the last bits of the creature’s life piece by piece.
Every time Corpsefire landed a hit, Rayleigh had to down a Healing Potion immediately.
Otherwise, he definitely wouldn’t survive a second hit.
Just as he reached into his bag for another potion, his hand caught nothing.
Damn it!
In just this short fight…
He was completely out of Healing Potions!
And right now, Corpsefire’s health bar was down to a speck barely visible to the naked eye.
At that exact moment, Corpsefire’s sharp claws swung toward him once more!
Unavoidable!
At the critical juncture, Rayleigh pulled out the purple potion and downed it without a second thought!
A surge of warmth instantly flooded his entire body!
[HP: 44/62] The heavy claws struck him squarely in the back!
[HP: 11/62] The tremendous force blasted Rayleigh into the air.
Mid-flight, enduring the excruciating pain, he gathered his last spark of mana and shot a small Fireball at Corpsefire.
The Fireball hit!
Corpsefire’s massive frame froze before collapsing with a heavy thud.
[Killed ‘Corpsefire’.
Obtained 320 EXP.
Level Up!] Dragging his exhausted body, Rayleigh stumbled over and swept all the gold and items dropped by Corpsefire and his minions into his spatial inventory.
Then, staggering forward, he stepped into the blue light of the Town Portal scroll.
Back at the encampment, he could no longer hold himself up and collapsed onto the grass beside the campfire.
Only now did the lingering terror of surviving near-death swell up in his heart.
Just a little more!
Just a tiny bit more, and he would have died in that hellhole!
But in the end, he succeeded!
He won!
Rayleigh suddenly burst into loud laughter, tears streaming down his face as he laughed.
After laughing for a long while, he leaped up abruptly and pointed at the sky, cursing at the top of his lungs.
“Why?!
Why does everyone else’s cheat come with a starter gift package?!
Getting godly gear off the bat and tearing up the universe!
I transmigrated over here with nothing!
I have to fight for my life with every single breath!
It’s not fair!” As he was railing against the heavens, a casual voice drifted over from the side.
“There is one.” Rayleigh froze.
Turning his head, he saw Akara holding a bowl of herbs, gazing at him calmly.
“You never asked me for it.”