The Villainous Me Turned the Losers into Blackened Bosses-Chapter 4 - Mr. S

The mysterious “S” was someone Will had come to know a year ago through a help request he posted at the Adventurer’s Guild.

At the time, Eir was just beginning to learn her Ice Armor technique. Will had calculated the theoretical values and determined it should be able to withstand 200°C of steam. Yet, Eir kept getting burned. Frustrated, he posted a request for advice from someone with practical experience.

That’s when he received a letter signed anonymously as “S.”

The letter provided a detailed explanation of the principles behind steam and Ice Armor, concluding with several possible causes for the burns. One theory suggested that Eir’s burns were caused by the zero-distance contact between her body and the Ice Armor. Ice Armor functioned through a dynamic cycle of melting and reforming to provide defense. However, at extremely high temperatures, the steam caused the Ice Armor to vaporize instantly, and since steam is hotter than liquid water, it led to burns.

The simplest solution, S explained, was to maintain a small air gap between the body and the Ice Armor. This would allow the dynamic Ice Armor cycle to cool the steam into liquid or even solid form before it could reach the skin, effectively preventing burns.

Will revisited his Ice Armor data. In the game, the dynamic cycle of Ice Armor might correspond to the shortest damage interval. Using this, he calculated the optimal gap distance and had Eir follow his instructions. Sure enough, she didn’t get burned the next time.

This was the first time Will realized that the numerical systems he had designed as a game planner could be applied to real-world combat in this world. The formulas were ingrained in his mind, allowing him to derive solutions without much effort—one of his rare advantages in this new life.

Afterward, S was astonished by Will’s ability to calculate such precise data, while Will was equally impressed by S’s solid theoretical knowledge and extensive practical experience. Over the years, they exchanged frequent letters, discussing dungeon monster strategies, magical composition details, and weapon usage techniques.

Three years later, their correspondence had filled several cabinets. The letters were packed with so much valuable information that one could probably write dozens of MCI-level research papers from them if submitted to a magical academy.

Will’s way of addressing this person had evolved over time, from “that S” to just “S,” and finally to “Mr. S.”

Why “Mr.” S, though?

S had never disclosed their gender, but their logical and concise writing style, devoid of any unnecessary words, gave off a mature and decisive vibe. Such rationality and clarity could only belong to a man, Will thought.

Moreover, S’s tone was far too composed and experienced—definitely the demeanor of a reliable, battle-hardened adult male.

But more important than S’s gender was another question:

Who was S?

Since this was a novel world, someone as skilled as S might have appeared in the original story.

However…

In the original work, most of the professors from the magical academy lacked practical experience. They were all about theory and academic papers, making it unlikely for any of them to be someone like S, who was rich in both theory and practice.

If not a professor, then perhaps a skilled adventurer?

But adventurers rarely had academic backgrounds. Most only mastered their own professions. Even top-tier adventuring party leaders would only have a general understanding of their team members’ roles. Someone like S, who was well-versed in various magical and technical details, was exceedingly rare.

Could it be…

The protagonist himself?

In the original story, the protagonist, Hugh, had theoretical knowledge that surpassed most professors at the academy. After graduation, he joined an adventuring party as a support member and was highly skilled in all professions.

Such an obvious guess wouldn’t escape someone as sharp as Will.

According to the original story—the unchangeable fate of the original story—at this point in time, Hugh was still at the academy studying theory. He hadn’t even started dungeon adventuring yet, and it would be another two years before he set foot in a dungeon.

Will immediately wrote a probing letter.

S replied, stating that they did odd jobs for adventurers, occasionally working as support staff in shallow dungeon layers. Their extensive practical experience came from these activities. S also encouraged Will to ask for help whenever needed, even offering to gather materials if possible.

This response dispelled Will’s suspicion that S was the protagonist.

The timeline and actions didn’t match. It couldn’t possibly be Hugh.

It couldn’t… right?

Well… in any novel, it’s normal to have unnamed, off-screen experts. It’s definitely not the protagonist.

With that thought, Will sighed.

If S were the protagonist, they would undoubtedly serve as the protagonist’s mentor—providing endless cheats, helping them level up, and acting as a spiritual pillar during tough times.

Unfortunately, Will wasn’t the protagonist.

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So, S would remain an anonymous figure, someone he might never meet in person.

“Let’s see what Mr. S’s letter says. If he’s writing back now, he must have discovered something.”

It was after dinner, and under the soft glow of a lamp, Will opened the package sent by Mr. S. This time, it wasn’t just a letter but a small wooden box and a tattered, yellowed book.

Will opened the letter first.

—

To: W,

Last time, we discussed restoring the ancient magic “Extreme Flame Meteor.” To be honest, ancient magic isn’t my area of expertise, so I can offer limited help. Fortunately, I found some related texts in a dungeon. One passage mentioned a catalyst—a substance found in the abdomen of a creature called the Explosive Firefly. I killed over a hundred of them and refined a small vial of the substance, which I’ve included with this letter. Please use it sparingly.

If your tests yield more accurate explosion and damage data, please let me know in your next letter. Thank you.

—S

—

Will opened the wooden box. It was packed with shock-absorbing paper, and inside was a small vial of powder.

Presumably extracted from the fireflies’ abdomens, the powder emitted a faint pink glow under the moonlight when Will extinguished the lamp to observe it.

“This is definitely high-quality stuff. Let’s see if it works.”

He flipped open his red-covered “Task System” notebook.

“Alright, Extreme Flame Meteor… here it is.”

Turning to the next page, he found the task entry:

—

[Important Task: Have Eir block an assassin’s Extreme Flame Meteor! Must succeed, absolutely critical! For safety, conduct preliminary experiments first.]

—

Reading this, his expression grew serious.

The task reminded him of a brief but critical plot point in the original story.

The assassin…

He remembered now. According to the original story, “Young Master Will” would later encounter a witch who used the ancient magic Extreme Flame Meteor.

The story described how Will, after receiving an acceptance letter from Entark’s First Academy (the empire’s top academy), was ambushed by the witch on his way to the capital. The attack left him lightly injured, causing him to miss the practical entrance exam. This incident was the catalyst for his bullying, the root of his later psychological issues, the deterioration of his relationship with his father, and… his ill-fated connection with the highly popular half-elf princess.

While it was amusing to read about the villain’s misfortune in the original story, now that he had to live through it, it was anything but funny!

This critical task… its reward was…

He turned to the next page to check the reward.

—

[Reward: Unlock Task 38. Completing the series will grant Eir’s exclusive ancient magic tome: Frozen Ice Array.]

—

Will’s game design instincts hadn’t dulled—he even wrote the rewards as part of a chain quest to torment players.

Frozen Ice Array.

This was incredibly important. To use a metaphor, Eir’s current Ice Armor was like a basic skill from a newly launched game. It might suffice for now, but four years later, when the protagonist joined the party, it would be rendered obsolete by power creep.

Frozen Ice Array, on the other hand, was a major upgrade that could elevate her to top-tier status!

But…

In the original story, Eir only learned this skill after being rejected and reduced to a loser. What good is being a top-tier loser?!

If she could block the Extreme Flame Meteor—something the original Eir couldn’t do—then perhaps she could learn this top-tier skill early… right?

Will rubbed his temples, turned the lamp back on, and opened the tattered book. Taking out a sheet of scrap paper and a pen, he began to study.

If he could figure it out tonight, they could conduct a preliminary experiment with Eir tomorrow—the sooner, the better.

Knock, knock.

A knock came at the door.

“Eir?”

“Young Master… um… are you still awake?”

—