Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 205

Everyone halted their breathing.

This included the knights who had succumbed to hopelessness.

It also included Reinhardt, who had been desperately searching for a way out of the predicament.

It included Syrkal, whose mouth gaped open in astonishment.

And it included Deus, who had been straining to maintain his threads to repel the dark mana.

[-!]

It even included the Apostle of Sloth, who had been swinging downward to execute Alon.

In that very instant, as everyone’s breath caught, Alon, enveloped in azure lightning so brilliant it lit up the dreary world, calmly extended his hand and performed a subtle movement.

A tiny twitch, practically invisible unless one watched closely.

Nevertheless.

The electrical discharge unleashed by that slight action erupted immediately.

It commenced the slaughter of the smaller spiders.

BZZZZZT!!!

Disordered blue streaks began to cut across the desolate landscape.

Sometimes tracing straight lines, sometimes darting about unpredictably.

The electricity mercilessly tore through the spiders’ forms, and within seconds, it annihilated every single spider within the ruins.

The first to react to this spectacle was none other than the Apostle of Sloth.

‘I must deal with him right now!’

The Apostle of Sloth, fused with Krakscha.

Sensing an innate threat from the figure before him, he retracted his dissolving leg, and without a moment’s hesitation, immediately unleashed a wave of dark mana, launching himself at Alon to crush him.

Because he knew with absolute certainty.

This was the sole opportunity to eliminate the being in front of him.

No— even now, it was already past the point of no return.

[Diiiiie—!!!]

Uttering a monstrous scream to banish the overwhelming fear engulfing him, the Apostle of Sloth propelled his colossal body toward Alon.

Yet, confronting such a desperate attack, Alon’s gaze remained completely—

“……”

Tranquil.

As if everything unfolding before him held no significance whatsoever.

Simply, placidly.

He watched the enormous figure charging toward him.

And just as it was about to reach him— Marquis Palatio raised his hand toward the sky.

Concurrently—

BOOOOOOM—!!!!

A thundering sound shook the heavens as if the whole world had exploded.

And in his grasp—

BZZZZT~!!!!

—was lightning.

As though he had ripped it directly from the heavens.

Innumerable arcs of electricity flashed between the earth and the sky,

converging into Alon’s hand.

The lightning, twisting and writhing as if on the verge of bursting,

eventually settled within his palm.

And the precise moment the Apostle of Sloth lifted his remaining leg—

A voice echoed.

Heaven’s Wrath (天).

A quiet, yet profoundly clear voice.

And then—

What the Apostle of Sloth witnessed was—

[A—]

A pure white expanse blossoming within the ashen ruins.

BOOOOOOM!

Light.

It swept across the terrain.

A piercing, mechanical shriek, far exceeding its limits, consumed all sound.

The blinding brightness stole the sight of the knights.

Everything was utterly engulfed, and a sensory void took hold of the area.

And then.

The moment their senses returned— what was revealed before their eyes was— a gigantic spider, cleanly impaled from its head to its torso, completely still.

“……”

And standing before it, silently looking down, was Alon, enveloped in electrical energy.

“Ah—”

A soft gasp escaped the lips of one of the knights.

The undeniable reverence in his gaze rapidly spread to all those surrounding him.

Not just the knights.

But also Reinhardt.

To Deus.

And—

To Syrkal.

“……”

She stared blankly at the radiant man.

She had never for a moment doubted his existence.

Still, even so.

That did not imply she had been entirely without skepticism.

No matter the depth of her devotion, a tiny trace of uncertainty had always persisted.

Because Syrkal had never personally laid eyes on Kalannon.

There had been inherited accounts.

There had been nearly certain deductions.

There had been the unwavering conviction of the former chieftain, whose judgment had always been flawless.

Yet, there had been no concrete evidence.

That single missing component had sown a seed of doubt in Syrkal’s heart.

Perhaps.

Just perhaps, she had been mistaken all this time.

Perhaps the former chieftain, who had never once erred, had been wrong on this occasion.

A doubt, minute in scale.

Yet, at this exact moment—

“Ah……”

It vanished, as though it had never existed.

Because she understood.

The true nature of the blue lightning circulating through Marquis Palatio’s body.

What the antlers sprouting from his head symbolized.

And so, Syrkal— she bowed her head in adoration and faith to the great deity she worshipped.

---

“Whew—”

As Alon’s hair, which had been standing up, gradually settled, he felt the antlers on top of his head slowly dematerializing.

Emitting a soft sigh, he clenched his left hand.

Tremble—

His left hand shook uncontrollably, against his will.

A sharp numbness spread through it, as if circulation had ceased.

For a brief second, Alon worried—had his left hand sustained permanent damage?

But he couldn’t afford to linger on it.

‘My body feels like it’s breaking apart…’

Beyond his left hand, a scorching agony afflicted his entire body, as though he might shatter at any moment.

‘If I move even slightly, I might cry out.’

The pain was more severe than when he had been bleeding out after his conflict with Ulthultus—so intense it made his vision swim.

Yet Alon concealed it.

He had to.

Because every single person around him was observing.

Their faces were filled not just with amazement, but with something closer to religious devotion.

Their eyes were wide, their mouths slightly parted, as if they were witnessing a deity in human form.

‘……This level of attention is excessive.’

Alon was not the type to worry about how others looked at him.

At least, not under typical conditions.

But in this situation, where he was the sole recipient of such overt veneration—

‘I have no choice but to endure.’

He had no intention of collapsing from the pain in front of them.

……Even if, the expressions of “reverence” were to suddenly cool into mere “respect,”

That would be— A little humiliating, even for Alon.

But just then—

[Still, I’m pleased the first attempt went smoothly.]

“1”

Kalannon’s voice resonated in his mind, and before Alon could even respond, the voice continued.

[No need to reply. I wouldn’t hear you anyway right now. I’m just delivering my message, so simply listen.]

Straight to the point, as usual.

[I’ll keep it to three things. First—Even with my aid, you actually managed to manifest properly. That is remarkable. It’s not something that typically succeeds this easily.]

[Second—Your body is probably in agonizing pain right now, but if you intend to use divinity again, don’t bother healing yourself. I will explain why later.]

[Lastly, I need you to retrieve an item for me. There is a pair of deer antlers buried somewhere in these ruins. You absolutely must locate them. Without them, we will no longer be able to communicate, and I won’t be able to teach you anything concerning divinity.]

Understood? It’s truly vital! Truly! I’m depending on you~!

Kalannon reiterated the request multiple times, stressing its importance, and finally—

With a concluding, “Please, I’m begging you!”

The voice subsided.

“……Well, it appears that’s resolved for the time being.”

Alon sighed quietly, committing the girl’s words to his memory.

Then—

Boom!

A substantial tremor echoed from a distance.

Despite having just vanquished the Apostle of Sloth and the monstrous Krakscha, the sound made Alon turn his head.

“What…?”

His mouth dropped open before he even realized it.

It had barely been moments since he had breathed a sigh of relief— and yet, now, even from deep within the woods, he could see it clearly.

A colossal horde of monsters.

“What in the world is that?”

“They are mutated creatures from the Selvanus region! It seems they lost control of their territory to the black mana, but now that it’s gone, they are returning immediately!”

“Why can nothing ever be finished in one go?!”

The urgency in Reinhardt and Syrkal’s voices reached his ears.

Thud, thud, thud!

But even in that short timeframe, the mutated beings had already closed the distance.

Reinhardt swiftly unsheathed his sword, but his face was filled with dismay.

And with good reason.

If it were merely one or two monsters, Reinhardt would not have been so tense.

But unfortunately, there were at least eight of them.

Meaning, it was practically impossible for him to confront them alone.

Deus was already worn out, having surpassed his limits.

And even though Alon appeared unharmed on the surface, Reinhardt could tell that he was not in peak condition.

“It looks like I have no alternative…!”

Reinhardt braced himself.

He gripped his sword tightly and prepared to surge forward.

But just as he did—

Splurt—!

The head of the leading mutant exploded.

“?”

The unexpected, instantaneous event left everyone reeling in shock.

And before they could fully grasp what had occurred—

Thunk! Thudududu!

As if confirming the reality before them, the rolling, blood-soaked head of the fallen mutant skidded across the broken ground.

But it was not just one.

A moment later—

A snake’s head was split perfectly in two, showering blood into the air.

A wolf-like mutant’s skull was crushed beyond recognition, its brains spraying everywhere.

And a creature with dozens of tentacles had its torso ripped apart, staining the green forest red.

The massive mutants hadn’t even had a chance to strike before—

An immediate slaughter had taken place.

As everyone stood paralyzed, unable to understand what had transpired—

“Heh, man, it feels great to stretch out a little after such a long time.”

A girl emerged from the field of carnage, stepping over the defeated mutants.

Everyone stopped breathing at the sight.

Not because she was leading some peculiar group.

Not because of her beauty.

The reason every single person instinctively froze was—

“Well, I’m a little delayed, but.”

The overwhelming presence radiating from her.

A primal, suffocating pressure.

The kind that signaled—

If they moved even an inch, they would perish.

It wasn’t merely enough to make knights hesitate.

It—

“Kh—”

“Guh—”

Made them collapse.

One by one, knights began to faint, unable to withstand the sheer intensity of her aura.

But the girl—no, the King of a Hundred Ghosts—

Did not even glance at them.

As if their existence failed to register to her.

Instead—

“Anyway, long time no see!”

With an impossibly cheerful tone and an energetic wave, she greeted Alon.

“……???”

Those who barely managed to stay standing turned to stare at Alon simultaneously.

But—

“……????”

Alon was just as bewildered as they were.