Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 222

Chapter 222

The day following his exploration of the cave altar with Yutia, Alon returned to the forward base and received a rather intriguing report from Deus.

“…You’re saying you didn’t engage the barbarians in combat?”

“No. For some unknown reason, the barbarians were completely absent. Furthermore, there were signs indicating that an Outer God had suddenly manifested.”

“An Outer God appeared?”

“Yes.”

Deus recounted the scene he had observed while holding his position, initially fearing the enemy’s absence was a trap. Just like the previous incident when Ulthultus descended, the sky had turned a deep crimson for a brief moment.

“But then, at a certain point, it simply vanished.”

“…It vanished?”

“Correct. Similar to when you defeated Ulthultus, the red sky lingered for a moment before returning to its natural state.”

“…Hmm.”

Alon stroked his chin, deep in thought.

Based on Deus’s description, it appeared that an Outer God had indeed manifested but was subsequently eliminated. The pressing questions were: who was responsible, and how did they achieve it?

As he contemplated the situation, a hypothesis formed in Alon’s mind.

‘Is it possible that the barbarians themselves took care of the Outer God?’

When Ulthultus appeared, the barbarians had revered him. However, although known generally as a monstrous deity, he had specifically manifested as a god of the wilds at that time. If the Outer God appearing in the north this time was not Ulthultus…

It was entirely plausible that the barbarians clashed with it violently.

‘Even if the Outer God hadn’t fully materialized due to time constraints, it wouldn’t have been an easy opponent for the barbarians. Unless, of course, they possessed Thousand-Year Ice.’

Thousand-Year Ice.

A formidable warrior who, upon becoming an ally, would incessantly speak of the Horizon.

Recalling this specific individual, Alon nodded, feeling his theory held weight. There was a reason this character was considered a powerhouse—Thousand-Year Ice was devastatingly strong.

This was especially true regarding the ability to create and infinitely regenerate Ice Root. To anyone else, the material was useless as a weapon, but in the hands of Thousand-Year Ice, it became overwhelmingly dangerous.

‘When that character joined my party and we tackled the labyrinth together, everything became significantly easier.’

Since the character’s basic attacks were area-of-effect, Thousand-Year Ice had been an invaluable companion during gameplay.

Lost in these memories for a moment, Alon realized Deus was waiting for a response and spoke up.

“Thank you for the intelligence.”

“It was nothing. What are your immediate plans, Marquis?”

“Since my business here is concluded, I intend to stop at one location before heading back down.”

“I understand.”

Deus looked slightly disappointed but quickly composed himself and stepped back. After exchanging brief farewells, Alon exited the command tent.

Immediately, he witnessed a bizarre spectacle.

“Is this the correct way?”

“It’s a little off, but close enough. Now, you must pray three times a day.”

“…Will this truly grant me power?”

“You must not doubt! Prayer harboring doubt is meaningless!”

Reinhardt was awkwardly forming hand seals while Silli was… teaching him?

“…Is that really how it works?”

“Yes! The Lord only bestows power upon those who believe in Him with their whole hearts!”

“But the god you keep referring to is actually Marquis Palatio—”

“That is blasphemy! You must not speak His name so lightly!”

Silli shouted with such intensity that the air seemed to tremble, causing Reinhardt to flinch instinctively.

“But I’ve always addressed him that way…”

“That is irrelevant now! You have decided to believe, have you not?!”

“Well, deciding to believe and calling Marquis Pal—”

“You have decided to believe, haven’t you?”

“I’m just trying to say that belief is one thing, but Pal—”

“You have decided to believe, haven’t you?”

Silli leaned in close to Reinhardt, her eyes flashing with a menacing glint.

As Alon watched this absurd scene, his view was suddenly blocked by another figure. It was Marc, the Fifth Sword of Caliban.

“…Right. I’ve decided to believe.”

“Then you should be careful with your words, shouldn’t you?”

Marc, who had stepped out of the barracks for his routine, spotted Silli and immediately, silently moonwalked back inside.

Alon felt a wave of second-hand embarrassment at the smooth retreat.

‘…Perhaps I should grant Reinhardt a little power, just in case.’

Thinking it might actually be necessary, Alon began preparations to leave.

***

A few hours later.

Alon boarded a carriage bound for Caliban. When he first arrived, he had been accompanied by a large retinue, but on the return trip, it was just his immediate party.

‘Yutia stayed behind to manage some unexpected issues for Rosario, and Eliban remained to complete a dungeon raid… or so I assume.’

He recalled Eliban’s regretful expression and Yutia’s warm smile as she waved goodbye.

And then there was Silli.

“I still have souls to save! I will finish my evangelism and follow you later!”

She had declared her resolve with terrifying enthusiasm.

Reflecting on this, Alon closed his eyes and slipped into a meditative trance. Thanks to his consistent practice, he could now enter a state of contemplation at will.

Familiar with the sensation, he checked the divinity of Kalannon.

Was it due to Silli’s tireless efforts? The divinity was shining far brighter than before.

Scanning the connections, Alon noticed one of the many stars linked to Silli. It was very faint, but it was unmistakably a star within the divinity of Kalannon—Reinhardt’s faith.

He had marked it earlier while Reinhardt was being aggressively recruited, intending to reward him for his unexpected struggles.

‘However, considering how dim this star is, even if I grant him power, he might not be able to utilize it effectively.’

According to Kalannon, while Alon had the authority to bestow power, the ability to wield it depended entirely on the recipient.

For instance, even if Alon transferred 100 units of divine power, if the recipient did not truly believe in him, the power would remain inaccessible. Furthermore, even if they could access it, they couldn’t simply draw power freely from Alon. They had to expend the divine power generated by their own faith.

In other words, once Alon provided the spark, the recipient had to fuel the fire with their own belief.

‘And a portion of the divine power they generate returns to me… The more I understand this faith system, the more it resembles a pyramid scheme.’

“Ahem.”

Regardless, the point remained: even if Alon bestowed power, Reinhardt wouldn’t be able to use it without genuine belief.

After a moment of deliberation, he decided.

‘Well, I already resolved to give it to him.’

He firmly mentally grasped Reinhardt’s star. At that moment, acting on Alon’s will, the divinity of Kalannon began to flow into the star.

But then, a minor issue occurred.

‘Oh no, I poured in too much.’

Since it was his first time performing a direct transfer like this, Alon inadvertently gave Reinhardt slightly more divine power than intended.

Alon sighed. He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of regret. Reinhardt’s star, previously faint, was now blazing brightly.

Clicking his tongue as he observed it, Alon turned his attention to Silli and infused divine power into her as well. She had been working incredibly hard for him, after all. Even if her service was voluntary, it felt wrong not to reward her.

Besides, although Silli already possessed an abundance of divine power, he figured he should at least ensure she had more than Reinhardt.

Finally—

“Hoo—”

The moment Alon opened his eyes after completing the transfer, Evan spoke up.

“Marquis, are we truly heading east instead of returning directly to Caliban?”

“Yes. We won’t be leaving the northern region, and the detour shouldn’t take more than a few days.”

As he answered, Alon mentally cataloged the items he needed to acquire.

After traveling for about two days—

“Wow—Marquis, you have an uncanny talent for discovering places like this.”

“Do I?”

“Yes, I haven’t the faintest idea how you even hear about these locations.”

[…Interesting.]

[Meow?]

Alon’s group had arrived at a colossal cave, hidden beneath a towering cliff within the oppressive, snow-laden mountains.

***

Although Silli had been diligent, the faith in Alon among the Eclipse Knights had naturally been declining of late.

Most of them had witnessed Alon’s power firsthand, and due to his proclamation that he would empower the devout, many had begun to worship him. Furthermore, the existence of a living proof of his power—Silli—had initially strengthened their conviction.

However, that fervor had started to cool over time.

The reason was simple: nothing was changing.

It didn’t help that other knight orders viewed the Eclipse Knights with skepticism. But the core issue was that, no matter how fervently they prayed, none of them could manifest miracles like Silli. Consequently, their belief was eroding.

Even Reinhardt, stationed at the northern front with Deus, was no exception.

In fact, he had struggled to worship Marquis Palatio as a god from the very start. The reason was undeniable: Marquis Palatio was still alive and very human.

Of course, Reinhardt had seen it. He had personally witnessed the Marquis descend as a deity. He was one of the first to see the awakening. At that moment, he had felt profound awe.

But it remained just that—awe, never transforming into true faith.

He had interacted with the human Marquis Palatio too many times. That familiarity made it impossible to sincerely worship him. Moreover, while Reinhardt understood the principles of sword mastery, he couldn’t wrap his head around divine power.

No matter how much Silli forced him to pray, he never felt divine power accumulating. With each failure, his faith withered.

‘I should never have let myself be tempted.’

There were moments he wanted to punch himself for listening to Silli’s seductive whisper: *“If you use divine power, you might be able to defeat my brother.”*

He had also found a comrade in misery. Before this campaign, he had rarely spoken to Marc, the Fifth Sword, outside of official duties. But now, they shared a strange spiritual kinship, as Marc was also being subjected to forced prayer.

Regardless, Reinhardt, who had been enduring a tormenting daily routine, had finally received a “lesson” on using divine power from Silli.

To be precise, it was less a lesson and more of a vague hint.

“Believe in Him, visualize lightning, and focus on how you wish to use it. It will come forth. If that is too difficult, just believe in Him and visualize lightning—it will work out somehow.”

It was hardly advice at all. Reinhardt could have come up with something equally ambiguous. Naturally, he failed to manifest any power.

He wasn’t particularly disappointed; he never truly believed, so failure was expected.

So, when he was deployed to the front lines again to face the returning barbarians, and Silli urged him to try using divine power once more, Reinhardt initially dismissed it.

Even as hundreds of barbarians charged, he drew his sword without any special expectation—until he suddenly recalled Silli’s words. Just for the sake of experimentation, he closed his eyes.

He had already accepted that he couldn’t use divine power.

Yet, the thought of “what if?” surfaced, driving him to attempt it one last time. If nothing else, his desire to surpass Deus was genuine.

Reinhardt closed his eyes and visualized Marquis Palatio.

But this time, he took a different approach. He didn’t picture the Marquis he knew personally. Instead, he recalled the figure he had seen in the Lonovellia Forest.

Marquis Palatio, with two horns rising from his head, his body wreathed in lightning—a true god.

Next, he envisioned lightning. The massive bolt in the god’s grasp connecting heaven and earth.

And then—

*Meteor Sword.*

As always, he activated the technique without expecting success.

And at that moment—

“!”

Reinhardt saw it.

*Crackle—!*

Lightning.

*BZZZZZT—!!*

The flow of nature reversed.

A force from the heavens struck downward, trapping hundreds of barbarians within its gravitational field. Simultaneously, from the ground below…

*Dozens—no,*

*KA-KA-KA-KA-KRACK—!!!!*

Hundreds of lightning bolts erupted, ravaging the barbarian horde.

When the dust settled, the overwhelming spectacle left both enemies and allies frozen in stunned silence. Reinhardt’s shocked voice echoed across the quiet battlefield.

“W-what… That actually worked?”

A short distance away, Marc blurted out in disbelief, as if mirroring him.

“That actually worked?”

And then, like a chorus, the Eclipse Knights gasped.

“The Second Sword… just wielded Kalannon’s lightning…?”

But the realization didn’t stop there.

“What… what was that just now…?”

“That power… isn’t that the same one? I’ve seen Sir Reinhardt with the Saint of Kalannon lately, so that means—”

“Wait, you’re telling me the Eclipse Knights weren’t just spouting nonsense? I thought it was all a joke—”

“…Ha—”

The lightning Reinhardt had manifested—all because of Alon’s momentary guilt—had consequences.

“…So if you just sincerely believe, you really can wield lightning?”

It had now spread like a plague across the northern knights.

A plague of faith.