Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 249

Chapter 249

“…Phew.”

The surrounding space had been completely severed by the power of the golden crown.

As the magic circle encircling her roared to life and darkness began to settle over the ashen sky, Rine suddenly found herself submerged in a memory from long ago.

The starting point of that recollection was always a humble cabin.

Whenever she stepped into that small wooden house, a warm family awaited her.

A mother preparing a meal.

A father sitting at his desk, sharing gentle conversation with the mother.

And three children, chattering and running around nearby.

Although more than a decade had passed since then, the memory had not faded in the slightest.

On the contrary, every time it surfaced, it only became more vivid within her mind.

What emerged next was a clear, ringing voice.

“Mom! Dad! A big sister told me there’s a secret only I’m allowed to know! Do you know what it is?”

Standing before the current Rine was a tiny girl who barely reached her waist, laughing gleefully.

The little girl chattered happily, her small lips moving quickly.

No—it was the Rine of the past, delivering the words of a strange woman to her parents.

And with that, the memory shifted to display the scene that haunted Rine’s nightmares without fail.

The corpse of a woman with her throat savagely torn out.

A father murdered, his limbs twisted in grotesque directions.

And the horrific vision of three children drained of all life, blood gushing from every opening in their bodies.

It was the sin she had committed with her own hands.

The hellscape created by her own ignorance was branded before her eyes.

What surfaced next was the memory of “that time.”

The moment she received power from the godfather and became unknowingly arrogant.

That encounter.

The confrontation with Emil that caused her to lose something precious to her—

In the end, Rine had been unable to do anything during that conflict.

Even in that battle, she had been nothing more than a burden who received help.

A being who couldn’t protect anything, only capable of accepting aid.

An existence that would lose everything if she failed to protect it.

A being utterly useless.

Worthless.

That was the evaluation Rine had assigned to herself.

And because of that, she was actually relieved by her current situation.

She, who had never once managed to protect someone, had finally succeeded in protecting something.

The person she cherished most.

The one who called her family, even though she had trampled on everything due to her ignorance.

Someone truly precious.

Rine shifted her gaze.

On the opposite side, she saw the form of Agu, sealed alongside her.

Not a shred of reason remained in the creature.

However, regardless of what anyone claimed, it possessed the distinct power of greed.

The power to make anything its own, spanning hundreds of years.

It was right there.

And that wasn’t the only thing.

Rine had gained something truly invaluable.

She had obtained the opportunity to become “a precious existence” to the person she held dear.

Some might call her foolish.

They might think she was merely being used and discarded.

But no matter what whispers drifted her way, the faint smile hovering on Rine’s lips did not vanish.

Because she knew the nature of the godfather well.

He was a gentle person.

He loathed seeing others get hurt.

Even in situations where acting selfishly would be natural, he simply couldn’t bring himself to do it.

He might believe he was acting out of self-interest, but to any observer, he was someone who moved for the sake of others.

Because he was that kind of person, Rine was certain.

She was certain that when she eventually escaped this space, she would become someone precious to Alon.

“…Seven hundred years.”

It was a long time.

Truly, an incredibly long duration.

And yet, she was fine with it.

Because this was the time needed to gain the strength to protect someone dear.

Time to carve out a place in the godfather’s heart.

It didn’t feel like such a long time after all.

Rine smiled and opened the books stored in her mental library.

There was still so much work to be done.

Alon—

No, to the elves, he was revered as the “Primordial Elf” who had revived the World Tree.

To other races, he was known as the “Celestial Being.”

It had been a month since his disappearance.

Since he had dealt with Baarma, an entity that could be described as the “Black Thing,” the world had begun to rapidly return to its original state.

The ashen sky that had stolen the sun was now bathed in warm sunlight, and the darkened earth smelled fresh and fertile again, as if the catastrophe had never happened.

Everything was gradually reverting to how it once was.

And in the center of the elven territory of Greynifra, which had regained its greenery faster than anywhere else, beneath the World Tree—

“……”

Four men and women of different races knelt in silence before a tombstone erected under the tree.

Sniffle—

One of them was crying.

Another remained silent.

“……”

Another wore an expression of deep pain.

Though they each displayed different emotions, they shared a common grief.

Among them, the boy with heterochromatic eyes, who had remained silent until now, stood up and turned around.

“Where are you going?”

The girl—no, the dragonkin—who had been sniffling asked.

The boy opened his mouth, speaking with a maturity that did not match his physical age.

“To get stronger.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m going to take revenge.”

“…On whom?”

“That white one.”

With eyes burning with deep fury, the boy declared—

“I know Brother could have survived back then. I saw it with my own eyes, at the bottom of that underground place. If that white one hadn’t suddenly appeared out of nowhere…”

He ground his teeth together.

“That’s why I’ll find that bastard who disappeared to who-knows-where, and I’ll kill him along with my sister. I will avenge Brother who saved me… no matter how long it takes.”

With that resolve, Nangwon spoke his final piece.

“Even if I have to break the promise Brother made me keep.”

He turned and walked toward the place where his sister was waiting.

After Nangwon had completely vanished from sight, the remaining mourners began to rise, one by one.

“…The god said that if someone named Eliban ever asks for help, I must be good to him. That means I need to become stronger. And when that time comes…”

Ria muttered to herself as she departed.

“I’m uuh~”

The black dragon, still sobbing, had eyes brimming with tears, but eventually walked away weakly.

And the last one remaining—

“……”

Was Ryanga.

In the place now fallen silent as everyone else departed.

However, Ryanga did not move a single step from in front of the World Tree and simply stared fixedly at the tombstone.

And then.

“…I don’t believe it.”

She muttered.

Very quietly.

So faintly that no one else could have heard it.

But—

“Chief isn’t dead.”

Her voice was filled with certainty.

Even if the others hadn’t seen it, she had.

In that final moment.

Chief hadn’t been consumed by the abyss that devoured all of Baarma.

Purple.

Enveloped in something purple, he hadn’t died; he had disappeared.

The others hadn’t believed it, but Ryanga believed in what she saw.

That was why—

Ryanga recalled the final words Alon had spoken.

The voice that had suddenly echoed in her mind as he fell.

‘Live righteously.’

Ryanga clenched her fists tightly.

From now on, that would be the goal of her life.

It would become her justification.

Because—

Chief was alive.

He would return to her someday.

So until that time—

“……”

To be acknowledged by Chief, to be told she had lived righteously.

…To see that face once more.

She would keep on living.

……The noble-kin who devoured her own kind left Greynifra in the late hours of dawn.

And at that moment—

“………”

In the kingdom of Greynifra.

Now the only remaining high elf, an elf untainted by any curse, Magrina stared blankly at the ring placed beneath her desk.

It was a ring of simple design, lacking any special patterns.

And yet, the reason Magrina kept staring at it endlessly was because she knew it was the ring worn by Alon—no, her older brother.

‘Why is this here…’

Magrina dazedly recalled the events from earlier.

The moment the ring had suddenly bounced into her carriage as she returned to the capital.

‘A man with blue eyes.’

When she had hurriedly looked outside the carriage, the crowd was so dense it was overwhelming.

Even so, amidst the throng, Magrina had immediately recognized him.

The one who had tossed the ring inside the carriage.

……Who in the world was he?

Though his entire body was thoroughly concealed, she had seen it clearly.

Those vivid blue eyes stared straight at her before vanishing.

Who could it be?

No matter how much she pondered, she couldn’t find an answer.

Because she couldn’t recall anyone with such deep blue eyes.

Magrina quietly lifted the ring.

No matter how many times she inspected it, it was indeed the ring her brother had worn.

‘Could Brother still be alive…?’

A hope rose within her without her realizing it.

But soon, she buried that hope deep within her heart.

Because she had seen it.

The Primordial Elf—her older brother—deep within the underground, saving the allied forces and meeting his end.

With a somber expression, Magrina grasped the ring on her desk and recalled the last words her brother had spoken.

[You’ll be able to lead the elves well.]

Words meant for her, delivered even in his final moments.

Recalling that voice, Magrina made a quiet vow.

To follow his words.

To follow them and lead the elves.

To become a queen.

The resolve she had engraved in her heart countless times was etched there once more.

And at that very moment—

Beside the shattered World Tree where Baarma had met his end, a lone figure silently stared at the spot where Baarma’s corpse had once been.

With jet-black, pitch-dark eyes, the figure stared into the massive crater where Baarma had perished.

No—

The man who had once been a disciple of Baarma.

Grinned—

Unconsciously, he let out a chuckle.

Even though the god he had believed in, the one with overwhelming power, was now dead.

Even though countless believers had fallen into despair.

He did not.

No—there was no need to despair.

Because someone even more worthy of his faith than Baarma had appeared.

The man recalled the god who had turned the world into ice and painted the Milky Way across the ashen sky.

The god who, for someone like him who worshipped strength, was worth devoting his faith to.

The great god who had made him forsake his faith in Baarma—he slowly raised his head.

“…Worship.”

He offered his worship quietly.

Soon, the half-remaining black horn faintly revealed its form against the night sky.

“I think… it’s finally complete now…”

“Hoo…”

In response to Penia’s oddly hesitant voice, Alon, who had collapsed powerlessly, looked out at the violet world.

That world was recreated exactly as it had been before Alon fell long ago.

“Should we go out right away?”

“No, since it’s properly stabilized now, it won’t shake as long as we don’t interfere with it.”

“…Then let’s rest a little.”

Alon let out a deep sigh.

His thoughts grew complicated, and he roughly scratched at his scalp.

It was because of Rine.

Alon recalled what he had seen previously in Greynifra.

When he discovered the Mother of Greed, who should not have been there, and felt something was amiss.

‘…So that was why.’

Thinking to take a short rest, Alon soon stood back up.

Because he had to undo Rine’s seal.

Then, he suddenly made a strange face.

The reason was—

…Where did the ring go?

The oath ring that should have been on his finger had vanished.

‘I’m sure I never took it off…’

But for now, getting out of here came first.

Alon turned his gaze to Penia.

“Let’s go for now.”

“Ah, yes!”

Perhaps sensing Alon’s foul mood, Penia quickly responded.

As Alon began moving with her toward the exit, he calmly recalled those final moments.

The moment when he blocked the children who tried to save him,

And left his final words through magic.

‘I hope the message got through…’

As he remembered each of the children’s faces, he thought of Ria.

He hadn’t recognized her at first, but as they spent more time together, he came to know her name was Historia.

And so, he realized her identity immediately,

And left a message for her as well.

Recalling the final moment lasted only briefly.

Then Alon turned to Penia and asked, “When we were flung away, did we return to that point in time?”

“Mm—if my calculations are correct, yes.”

Eventually, as they stepped outside, what came into view was—

“…Seriously, you didn’t say a single proper goodbye, and now you leave like this… What does that make me?”

It was Evan’s very familiar back.

He was wearing black armor.

He stood before a very antique coffin, radiating deep sorrow.

Surrounding him were many others, mourning silently.

The Duke of Altia and Count Zenonia, along with other nobles, were lined up and quietly paying their respects.

Even right beside the coffin, Yuman was murmuring a prayer while radiating divine power in all directions.

“……”

Somehow, it felt like an atmosphere too solemn to disturb.

Because of that, Alon froze where he stood.

Penia, who followed after, also quickly grasped the situation and merely rolled her eyes.

And then—

“…Still, I must live on. It was a pleasure, Marquis… The money you left me… I’ll use it well.”

As Evan said that with a sorrowful smile, referring to money Alon had never actually left to him, the moment he turned around—Alon met his eyes.

“???”

Evan’s pupils instantly dilated.

But before he could react—

“…Penia. She was a rude bastard, but she was still a good friend.”

“She was really rude… but yeah, a good friend…”

“Right.”

“…A good… friend… me?”

As they talked, looking at the other coffin placed next to Alon’s.

“What the hell did you just say?”

Penia suddenly muttered as she rolled her eyes and let out a hard ‘crack’ sound.

And in an instant, all eyes turned in one direction.

““???””

The heavy, solemn, sorrowful atmosphere was suddenly filled with—

“?????”

Utter confusion and stunned silence.

Alon, for the first time, truly felt what a suffocating atmosphere was.