Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 148

Chapter 148
Alon, briefly taken aback by Seolrang’s gleaming eyes, released a quiet breath.

‘I did consider it, after all.’

He hadn’t forgotten the vow he made to Seolrang.

Back when he made that promise, he had also settled on a two-year timeline with the Dragonkin tribe to meet again.

Even so, his slight unease came from Seolrang appearing more serious than he had anticipated.

‘…No, I understood she was genuine then, too.’
The main reasons he had asked Seolrang to reconsider in two years were essentially two.

First, Alon was concerned for Seolrang’s emotional well-being and worried that setting too distant a date would let her down, so he proposed a provisional period of two years.

Second, he believed her affection (?) would fade with time.

The attachment Seolrang displayed felt closer to that of family than any romantic inclination.

Alon already recognized this.

To make a comparison, it was similar to a little girl proclaiming, “I’m going to marry Daddy when I’m older!”

Therefore, he anticipated that after around two years, her feelings would cool, and the agreement could be quietly forgotten.

No matter how much daughters love their fathers, they slowly become more self-reliant as they age.

Besides, although Seolrang was considered an adult in this fantasy realm, she still seemed quite young by Alon’s measure two years prior.

‘…To tell the truth, she doesn’t appear very different now.’
Alon looked over at Seolrang, who was beaming and locking her legs around his waist.

Her brilliant, carefree smile was reminiscent of a child’s.

It was an innocence that made people feel comfortable.

Put another way, it indicated she hadn’t grown much emotionally in the last two years.

Preoccupied with his thoughts, Alon was unsure how to respond.

“Seolrang.”

“Huh? Oh! Rine! You’re here?”

Surprised by the voice, Seolrang quickly perked up and grinned widely.

Rine answered her with a warm smile.

“I had some business to attend to, so I came after Godfather.”

“Ah, I see~”

“But Seolrang, from what the godfather said, it sounds like the two years aren’t completely over. Shouldn’t you wait a bit more?”

“Oh, is that right?”

Seolrang tilted her head, confused.

Seizing the opening, Alon added.

“Well, there are still a few months remaining.”

“…Hm.”

Seolrang’s face fell for a moment, but then swiftly turned cheerful again.

“That’s fine! It just means I’ll have my answer in a few months!”

Her tail wagged vigorously as her positive outlook returned.

Seeing her bounce back so quickly, Alon was briefly speechless, but finally gave a nod.

“…Alright, we’ll speak of this again in a few months.”

“Understood, Master!”

For the moment, he was content to postpone the matter.

***

A short while later.

Alon and his companions relocated to Seolrang’s guild.

“Wow! What’s this? It’s adorable!”

As soon as they stepped into the slightly cool guild office, a dark creature emerged from the pouch on Alon’s chest.

Seolrang’s eyes lit up at the sight of the black cat.

Thump~!

Before Alon could react, Seolrang swiftly scooped up the cat.

Alon began to speak, while Evan smirked, expecting what was to come.

Just as they predicted.

Swish!

The black creature’s body was suddenly covered in a multitude of crimson eyes.

However—

“Wow! So many eyes now!”

“?”

“?”

Instead of being frightened by the dozens of monstrous eyes that materialized, Seolrang seemed delighted and raised the creature higher.

Screeeeeech~!!!

The creature opened its mouth and released a distorted sound, as if refusing to be surpassed.

“Wow! It made a mouth, too! Incredible!!!”

Her eyes sparkled even more as she swung the creature around like a toy airplane.

“This… isn’t how this was supposed to happen,” Evan mumbled, astonished.

The black creature, equally confused, returned to its usual shape, tilting its head with eyes that quivered slightly.

Screeeeech~!

It let out another shriek.

“Ah! Just a moment!”

Seolrang ran off with the creature and soon came back with her arms loaded.

Before long—

“Wow! So awesome!”

The black creature was now wearing a cute knight doll costume and was being held up in Seolrang’s hands like a plaything.

[……Meow?]

The creature’s round eyes expressed complete disbelief at its circumstances.

It looked so stunned that it seemed to have lost any desire to frighten anyone.

“Do it again! Show me all those eyes like before!”

[Meow?]

“That was much more impressive!”

Her tail wagged excitedly as she applauded.

Watching this, Evan said quietly, “Seolrang seems to have… a different idea of what’s appealing than we do. Don’t you think?”

“…I agree.”

“Right?”

While the two were rendered silent, Rine looked on with a pleased smile.

But it wasn’t long before the black creature started to perspire.

[What’s all this racket!? …Huh? Pfft, hahahaha! Huh? What is that?!]

Basiliora, who had appeared irritated by the noise, burst into laughter when he saw the black creature in its knight outfit.

“A talking snake?!”

Seolrang immediately set down the black creature and grabbed Basiliora in his spirit form.

[Kek! Wh-what!?]

Basiliora gasped and sputtered, clearly startled.

But Seolrang, her face alive with curiosity, stared at him as if he were a new discovery.

“Should I dress you up, too? I still have some leftover clothes.”

[What foolishness is this!? This great one will not wear garments intended for childish games— Wait, stop!]

Ignoring his objections, Seolrang began to happily hum as she started to “accessorize” him.

Seeing the strange spectacle repeat itself, Alon, Evan, and even Rine were momentarily silenced.

***

The day after reaching the colony.

“Godfather, I’ll be going out for a while.”

“I understand. How long will you be?”

“Hmm… perhaps a day or two. Why?”

“If you aren’t back by then, I’ll assume something is amiss and come looking for you.”

Rine halted her movements.

With a gentle smile, she showed her thanks before departing.

Soon after, Alon also left for the ruins early in the morning.

‘…I suppose I need to inquire about what Linisius mentioned and the rituals.’
As he sorted through his thoughts—

“Seolrang.”

“Yes?”

Evan, looking intrigued, motioned toward the small snake.

“How are you even able to touch Basiliora?”

“What do you mean, how?”

“Well, Basiliora is in a spirit form.”

Seolrang, as if it were obvious, snapped her fingers and answered, “Well, by completing the Trial of Essence?”

“The Trial of Essence?”

“Yes, with this.”

She displayed the gauntlet on her hand and added, “Passing the Trial of Essence grants you abilities, one after another. Only members of our race can use them, though.”

“That’s quite a remarkable item,” Evan said, impressed.

Hearing the discussion, Alon also felt a sense of admiration internally.

While he knew mysteries were concealed within Seolrang’s essence, he hadn’t imagined anything like this.

“So, you unlock a new ability each time you pass a trial?”

“Mh-hm.”

“How many abilities have you gained so far?”

“…Five?”

“How many trials are there in total?”

Seolrang counted on her fingers before announcing, “Oh, eight!”

“Eight?”

“Yes! But I haven’t cleared the sixth trial yet.”

“Why not?”

“Well, the requirement is… anger? But I haven’t really had a reason to be angry. According to the essence, this trial is a pivotal one.”

“A pivotal one?”

“Yes, like deciding if I’m fit to be a ruler or not… something along those lines?”

Evan nodded thoughtfully and shrugged.

“Well, even so, you’re living comfortably now, aren’t you? You’re plenty strong as it is.”

“No.”

“Huh?”

“Why not? I need to become stronger to get revenge and protect Master, of course.”

“…The marquis?”

“Yes!”

When Evan glanced at Alon in puzzlement, he muttered, “But isn’t the marquis already powerful enough that he doesn’t require protection?”

“Even so, I want to protect him!”

Seolrang proudly lifted the black creature high as she announced her resolve.

Alon allowed himself a faint smile.

It was a rather nice feeling to be the recipient of such devotion.

As they continued this light-hearted conversation, they kept moving across the desert.

After some time—

“We’re here!”

With Seolrang’s joyful exclamation, they finally stepped into the ruins.

***

Right after arriving at the ruins.

As was his habit, Alon went directly to the central tower.

[It has been a while.]

Noticing the Dragonkin tribe, who had been waiting and watching him, Alon spoke without thinking.

“…Blue?”

[Ah, so you are beginning to perceive more.]

Unlike earlier, when he could only make out shadows and white outlines, this time Alon could distinguish the blue in the Dragonkin’s eyes.

He stared in amazement at the Dragonkin’s eyes before quickly composing himself and addressing the matter at hand.

“…There is much to talk about after two years. Do we have sufficient time?”

[Do not be concerned. I did use some energy refining what you left behind, but we have ample time to speak.]

With that reassurance, Alon arranged his thoughts and started his account from two years ago, beginning with the observer’s story.

Finally—

[Wait a moment. You are saying you never saw the past in the end?]

“That is right. Instead, I saw an eye.”

[…That is not possible.]
The Dragonkin tilted its head, perplexed.

[Describe the situation in detail.]

Alon explained the events more thoroughly, from gazing into the mirror to the gigantic eye speaking in a place that looked like the cosmos.

After listening quietly for some time, the Dragonkin tapped its chin in thought and summarized Alon’s account.

[So, in short, you are saying that just as you were about to witness the past, a massive eye prevented it. An eye so vast it is beyond comprehension.]

“Correct.”

The Dragonkin went silent, deeply considering the issue.

After a lengthy pause, just as Alon started to grow curious, the Dragonkin spoke again.

[Do you recall what I told you before about the “black thing”?]

“…The black thing?”

[Yes, when you asked about it, I said something about gaining the favor of a higher god.]

Alon nodded.

“You said something to that effect, yes.”

The Dragonkin nodded in return.

[At the time, I supposed the black and blue things I referenced aligned roughly with that concept.]

“…So, why mention it now?”

The Dragonkin’s face became grave.

[To state it simply, I think I was mistaken in my earlier assumptions.]

“…You misjudged the details?”

[Correct. The Bronze Mirror’s power to document history is absolute, as you may have heard from the observer. Meddling with the mirror, even for the “black” or “blue” entities I previously considered, should be an impossibility.]

“…Is altering the mirror truly that challenging?]

[The black and blue beings I originally had in mind were entities who, despite having lost their names, managed to seal away more than half the power of the black ones in their conflict. They rank among the top five gods.]

After a brief pause, the Dragonkin continued, [Yet even they cannot tamper with the Bronze Mirror’s power.]

“Why is that?”

[Because the Bronze Mirror is older than even us. For anyone to interfere with an artifact from that age without consequence…]

The Dragonkin let out a bleak chuckle.

[…would mean they are beings far superior to the five gods of ancient times.]

The statement hung in the air with a foreboding heaviness.