Transmigrating as an Extra Third-Rate Villain

Staying silent for a moment, I continued checking the remaining leaves on the branch I was on before turning around.

Looking downwards at the four girls, I contemplated my options.

Considering that this a new situation, as I had no idea what to do with this damn tree, their perspective and insight would be useful. -chapter

Lily was already suspicious of me due to my behavior thus far, so would it even hurt me if I made her more suspicious?

On the other hand, I could simply take the easy way out and spout some nonsense, as they would soon realize what I had when Liam, Kevin, and Zach returned.

But then, unlike me with my crow, they would have to wait an hour every time they tested something.

They would need to send the three boys out to confirm whether the loop ended and then wait for their response.

The only reason I had allowed the three boys in the first place was because I wanted to confirm my suspicions about the tree in a less crowded environment.

But now my suspicions were confirmed, as I learned that despite this tree being the end condition, it had not yet terminated the loop.

...I had run out of excuses.

If I don't tell the main cast about the scenario now... every second from now on will be considered wasted in my head.

I wasn't all-knowing or the smartest person in the world; Lily or others could have opinions or insights that could unearth the problem behind this tree and its end condition.

However, what was stopping them was that they didn't have the same amount of resources as me.

Thirty seconds had passed since Lily had spoken her words about me... that was one more time that those children had been tormented by this loop and forced to collect buckets of water.

Reaching the top of the tree and where the last few branches and leaves stood, I examined them before swapping bodies with my crow.

The same result; my crow ended back up at the carriage.

The same flipped carriage is placed in the same area, next to the same waterfall, and beside the same village.

Nothing had changed.

Turning my head upwards to the sky, I broke the silence by simply shrugging my shoulders and replying.

"Thirty minutes from now, your other group will come back to you guys with the story that the loop is still alive. Then you'll test something; then the exact same scenario will occur... over and over again."

Still looking at the tree in front of me, I didn't bother to see their reactions but simply halted my search and allowed my crow to return to me.

Insanity.

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.

Searching this tree anymore was insanity.

Perhaps I was wrong when I said finding the end conditions was the hardest part of ending this loop...

At least then, all I had to do was search the forest for some physical object and make a map.

I could make a concrete plan and follow it, and no matter how unlucky I was or how much it took, I would eventually uncover the end condition.

While it was exhausting and difficult, it would only take a couple of weeks to search the entire forest,

However, triggering the end condition was more... abstract.

There were no guidelines, boundaries,... or any sort of logic that created the trigger.

It could be anything.

From touching a specific part of a tree's root to flying around the tree hundreds of times and then doing a backflip...it could quite literally be anything.

Unlike how the end condition had to be contained inside this forest, the trigger had no limits or confines.

How many things were there in this world again...?

Ah... this could take years, couldn't it?

In the book, all they had to do was touch the end condition, and like magic, the loop just ended...

After a moment, my pessimistic thoughts were finally interrupted as I heard Lily's voice respond from below me.

"Are you suggesting that this tree isn't the end condition?"

Holding in my natural response of "What is an end condition?" to avoid suspicion from Lily, I shook my head as I continued staring at the sky, which was slowly plunging into darkness as the sun began its descent.

"No, this tree is most definitely the end condition... after all, it is the only thing that remained the same in this forest."

Not expecting any response, I allowed the crow to land on my shoulders before turning my gaze to the forest below me.

Like me, Lily's knowledge was based on the book, so my words were a direct contradiction.

I was saying that despite all of us touching the tree, the end condition, the loop wouldn't end... directly negating the book.

As Lily's mind raced in circles trying to understand my words, Ruby asked.

"So then... how do we terminate this loop?"

Jumping off the tree and landing right next to Ruby, I replied.

"Now, that is a question I can't answer."

Even though I inwardly knew it was stupid and useless, I started searching the tree again... starting from the same roots and slowly making my way back up the top of the tree.

Every second I spent not doing something or at least trying to terminate this loop was wasted.

I had already died once... every second that I lived now was precious and not to be wasted.

You might say that I had already wasted plenty of time relaxing and training, but I don't consider those moments wasteful.

And that's all that matters to me.

Stopping her search of the tree, Lily simply gazed at me, presumably trying to see if I was lying or not, before turning to the other three girls.

"If what he says is true...then we might be stuck here for months... or even years... or forever."