Transmigrating as an Extra Third-Rate Villain

Accepting loss before even starting.

A loser's mindset.

Maybe it was during his first real loss with Ren that he realized... or maybe even earlier.

Looking up at the incoming Bertus and his electric sword, Liam realized something.

He didn't want to lose.

He never wanted to lose again.

"Losing makes you stronger!"

No, it doesn't.

The words are right... but the mindset that comes with those words is wrong.

Sure, if you lose, you're bound to get stronger as you'll realize what you did wrong and improve on those things.

But by saying those words, you're already accepting the fact that losing is a possibility.

If you've done that, you've already lost.

In this hopeless situation, with his clothes tattered and all muddy, facing inevitable defeat by an electric sword, Liam said one thing.

"I guess I'll win."

It was easy to say that... but it was hard to carry it out.

Not caring for the state of his clothes anymore, Liam immediately rolled to the right, using the mud to gather momentum.

Just as Liam rolled, Bertus's lightning sword struck Liam's previous spot, missing Liam barely and stabbing him into the mud.

Using the moment to stand up, Liam glanced at Bertus's sword... which was starting to lose some of its electric power.

Not wasting more time, Bertus struggled for a second before yanking his sword out of the mud and pointing it at Liam.

However, as Liam gazed at the electric sword, now partially covered by mud, he noticed something interesting.

Mud is an insulator.

Electric currents cannot pass through mud, which is a barrier to electricity.

And proving that logic, the spots of Bertus's electricity covered by mud were visible instead of being covered by the electric current like every other part of the sword.

Not having his sword as he had dropped it earlier, Liam alternated gazes between his two dirty hands and the mud below.

At the same time, Bertus charged at Liam with his sword, causing bright lights to appear as she and blind nearby students.

Still having his light-blue mask on, Liam paid no attention to the flashing lights and instead leaned down.

In the face of Bertus's daunting charge, Liam threw his hands at the mud, covering them completely with the disgusting substance.

Not paying any attention to the electricity sword, Liam pretended to slip, falling back-first onto the mud below.

However, instead of simply getting back up and dodging the incoming attack, Liam rolled around in the mud like a pre-schooler.

As his white clothes and academy uniform gradually turned brown as a result of the mud, Liam finally looked up.

Right in front of him stood the fearless Bertus, his electric sword already swinging straight down at Liam's head.

Instead of rolling away like last time, Liam simply raised his hand, acting as if it were a sword and attempting to use it to parry the electric sword.

As the electric sword neared Liam's completely muddy hand, Liam suddenly moved his hand forward.

Passing right through the electricity current surrounding the sword like it was nothing, Liam grasped Bertus's physical sword.

Feeling the metal of the sword hit his hand, Liam flinched, feeling a stinging sensation as blood began to flow out.

However, his goal had been achieved.

With his muddy hand on the sword, Liam did not hesitate a moment before using all his awakened strength to yank the sword.

Bertus, surprised by the sudden change of events, could not do anything as his sword slowly fell out of his grasp.

After all, Bertus was a D-rank, while Liam was a C-rank, so their basic and non-boosted strength couldn't compare.

As the sword fell to the muddly floor, the electric current surrounding it disappeared, leaving the normal metal blade on the muddy floor.

If it could even be called that... considering it was completely brown and blended in with the mud.

Ignoring the stinging sensation, Liam jumped upwards before tackling the motionless Bertus, who was still surrounded by an electric current, and dragged him to the floor.

As Bertus became increasingly muddy, both from Liam's clothes and the floor below him, the electric current surrounding him also disappeared, revealing his physical body.

Thus, the scene of the two students, one the top-ranked out of all the first-years and the other the prince of the entire empire, completely covered in mud and on the floor, was revealed.

As the two furiously fought for control, wrestling and rolling around on the dirty mud ground, Liam finally gained the advantage with his greater power from his higher rank.

Sitting on top of Bertus's body, Liam gasped for air while Bertus did the same, panting and exhausted.

Dragging over his sword, which was nearby, Liam made sure Bertus remained completely still.

Gripping the hilt of his sword, which was also covered by mud and colored brown, Liam managed to gasp out.

"Winning is pretty fun, you know. I don't think I'll ever lose again."

Looking at Liam like a madman, Bertus pointed at a nearby drone, which had captured their entire muddy brawl.

"Was it worth it? Seriously?"

Their entire bodies were covered in mud, and their hair, clothes, and faces were colored brown.

Feeling a bit of mud enter his mouth, Bertus hissed before giving up on escaping and staring at Liam.

Bertus could already imagine the headlines.

"PRINCE FIGHTS IN MUD WITH FELLOW CLASSMATE!"

"PRINCE COVERED IN MUD DURING SCHOOL!"

All the admiration he had gained during the battle royale could be gone, depending on how his classmates perceived it!

Paying no attention to the drone, Liam stabbed the sword downwards, piercing right through Bertus's heart.

The next second, Liam was no longer on Bertus's body but instead back on the muddy ground.

Groaning, Liam removed the light-blue mask from his eyes before standing back up.

Beside his eyes and the small area around them, the rest of him was covered by mud, making Liam practically unrecognizable.

Looking around the battlefield, Liam realized that besides a few stragglers, it was completely empty.