Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 250

Chapter 250

Chapter 250

A bewildered quiet descended upon Alon and Penia.

Penia instinctively averted her gaze.

Alon, too, remained mute, offering no words.

This wasn’t a calculated silence, but rather the result of genuinely not knowing what to say.

Even though they had just managed to escape from that bizarre gate, they weren’t entirely ignorant of their surroundings.

Alon could effortlessly deduce the situation at hand.

……No, to be honest, any observer would have realized it immediately.

Alon moved his eyes toward the row of caskets arranged behind Evan.

Three coffins stood there, each bearing a portrait: Alon, Penia, and Rine.

The air in the room was so heavy it was difficult to breathe, forcing them to remain speechless for a time.

“……Marquis???”

Hearing Evan’s voice, which was trembling with disbelief, Alon paused to consider his response.

“……It has been a while.”

He offered a greeting.

……His first utterance after finding his way back to the original timeline was nothing more than an awkward hello.

—

The mood within the funeral hall turned incredibly uncomfortable the moment everyone realized Alon and Penia had returned alive.

However, that awkwardness was fleeting.

“……Marquis, I am overjoyed, but we must depart at once.”

“I agree. What a relief. I was at a loss for a solution, but this will make managing Kalpha significantly simpler.”

“……I seem to have caused a disturbance.”

“Not in the least. The simple fact that you have returned is a blessing—had you truly died, matters would have deteriorated badly. ……Sincerely.”

“Then, let us discuss the particulars the next time we cross paths.”

Duke Altia and Count Zenonia wasted no time in leaving after voicing their relief.

“Brother…”

“It has been a long time, Saint.”

“Truly, truly, thank the heavens. Brother.”

Right on their heels, Saint Yuman of Rosario gazed at Alon with profound emotion.

Beneath his impassive mask, Alon scratched his head, looking uncomfortable.

“It seems I have worried you somehow.”

“That isn’t it. Just knowing you are back—really, it is such a massive relief.”

Yuman, bobbing his head repeatedly as if a great weight had been lifted, gripped Alon’s hand firmly.

Alon appeared slightly confused.

He was aware, certainly, that the Saint had gone out of his way to assist him previously.

Even so, he hadn’t anticipated that anyone would shed tears over his demise like this.

It was astonishing to him, even a bit baffling.

“Brother, you ought to rest for a moment. I have already tended to your most critical injuries.”

After healing Alon, Yuman stepped out of the tent for a moment.

A short while later.

“…?”

“Is that genuinely you, Marquis…?”

Evan, who had been staring blankly at Alon as though observing a specter, finally found his voice.

“Do I appear to be an imposter?”

“……No, it’s not that. I just can’t wrap my head around it. Didn’t you vanish alongside that monster? What in the world occurred?”

Alon considered how to frame his explanation before deciding to ask a question of his own first.

“I will explain everything later, when we are alone. This isn’t a conversation for a public setting. More importantly—how much time has elapsed?”

As he posed the question, Alon spotted Penia in the distance, engaged in a serious discussion with Celaime Mikardo.

Evan, despite his burning curiosity about where Alon had been, answered the question first.

“Three months have passed.”

“……Three months?”

“Yes.”

“……Three full months?”

“Correct. You were completely gone, without a single trace, for three months.”

An unforeseen gap in time.

Alon calmly computed the duration of his stay in the past.

‘If I make a rough estimate, that duration seems consistent. Did time flow at a nearly 1:1 ratio between this world and the past? No, that still feels somewhat odd.’

If Alon had interpreted Penia correctly—

He should have reappeared not in the present, but three months ago, at the exact instant he was swallowed by the beast.

That was the point in time Penia recalled from inside the strange gate.

‘Well, since I returned without a significant disparity, it isn’t a major issue.’

If he had reappeared two or three years later rather than just a few months, the situation would have been far more problematic.

Alon exhaled a brief sigh of relief.

‘In that case, my primary objective must be heading to Greynifra.’

With Rine on his mind, he began formulating his next move.

Right then, Evan asked a question, as if he had been holding it back.

“Incidentally, Marquis, where is Rine?”

“I was just planning to go and retrieve her.”

“……? You intend to retrieve her?”

“Yes.”

“Did you not enter together?”

“It is a complicated situation.”

Evan’s expression morphed from confusion to deep intrigue.

However, he eventually nodded, seemingly accepting that he had no other option.

“Regardless, I am glad you have returned, Marquis. To be honest, your timing is impeccable—it might be just enough to stop the world from collapsing.”

“……? Collapsing?”

“?”

“?”

“Ah, of course. I suppose you would be unaware, Marquis.”

Evan struck his fist into his open palm and nodded.

Alon arched an eyebrow, puzzled.

“During your three-month absence, a great many events have transpired.”

“……What sort of events?”

“Well, Colony and Ashtalon are on the very edge of war.”

“… …?”

“Oh, and Caliban and Ashtalon as well. They are also on the verge of open conflict.”

“….??”

“Furthermore, Raksas is making a scene, threatening to go to war with Ashtalon too…… though so far, Ashtalon has been the only one taking a beating.”

The report from Evan was entirely unforeseen.

……In Psychedelia, the allied kingdoms had never engaged in conflict with one another.

Alon, deep in contemplation, thought back to Evan’s earlier comment.

‘Regardless, I am glad you have returned, Marquis. To be honest, your timing is impeccable—it might be just enough to stop the world from collapsing.’

It sounded as if this entire situation had arisen because of him.

Alon asked to confirm.

“Just to clarify, Evan. All these things you just listed……”

“Yes, exactly as you surmised, it all occurred because you vanished, Marquis.”

“???”

The statement made no logical sense.

Alon instinctively pointed a finger at himself and asked once more.

“……Because of me?”

“Yes, because of you, Marquis.”

“……Truly?”

“Yes. Had you not returned, we would likely be in a state of war by now……”

Evan declared this with near 100%, no—150% conviction.

Alon raised the finger he was pointing and silently gripped his forehead.

No matter how hard he tried to process it, he couldn’t fathom how affairs had escalated to such a degree.

And to make matters worse—

“Ah, and I believe you should go check on Seolrang’s status immediately. Currently… something appears to be terribly wrong with her.”

With that additional piece of information—

‘……What on earth is happening????’

Alon’s thoughts became even more knotted.

***

The ‘dragon’ gradually raised its head, sensing that the finale was approaching.

What entered its vision was Suin.

The beastkin with golden hair—given just a little more time, she would be entirely consumed, becoming a small sacrifice for the greater objective.

It hadn’t anticipated that events would unfold in this manner.

From the profound, murky abyss where Suin could not see, it pondered.

To be honest, when the Apostle first fell, it had planned to discard Suin’s body without a second thought.

There was no denying her body was highly covetable—perfect for a descent, and unquestionably well-suited to handle its power.

In short, she was an ideal vessel to be sacrificed for the cause.

However, the reason it had attempted to abandon Suin’s body was—

Because there was no vacancy within her ‘heart’ for it to invade.

Entities like itself typically needed to feed on fractured minds, gnawing at them to gradually seize control.

Yet Suin’s mind, which by all rights should have shattered under the Apostle’s influence, had remained perfectly intact.

……So intact, in fact, that even arrogance found no crevice to slip through.

Furthermore, it had lost the Apostle by that point.

Thus, it had resolved to give up on Suin and search for a different vessel.

That was—until very recently.

From within the boundless abyss, it began to monitor Suin’s mental state once more.

It was now infinitely unstable—teetering just a few whispers away from total collapse.

The dragon could not understand why Suin’s condition had altered so drastically.

Previously, her willpower had been so formidable that not a single crack existed.

But now, even without its interference, her mind was steadily disintegrating.

Like a flower withering with the passage of time, she was naturally falling apart.

So, the dragon observed the girl’s body it had previously discarded for just a little while longer.

And eventually, recently, it yielded results.

It had already succeeded in sharing a portion of its power with Suin.

This meant—she was becoming increasingly ideal for a descent.

Elated, the dragon calmly watched her mind as it continued to be stained by the abyss.

And finally, today—

[Child, do you not crave more power?]

It addressed Suin.

To the dragon’s eyes, her mind was now in prime condition for possession.

Broken beyond repair, to the extent that it no longer needed to conceal itself.

“……I do not need it.”

[Why do you say such a thing? Do you not desire revenge?]

“……Revenge?”

[Yes, against the world that reduced you to this state. Do you not wish to strike back at those who killed what was precious to you?]

Suin’s pupils quivered violently.

Witnessing this, the dragon smirked wickedly.

It knew.

Whenever the girl heard any mention of her ‘precious one’, her mind would waver terribly.

It had even transferred power to her once before by exploiting that specific memory.

Recalling the weakness that could manipulate her, it continued to whisper persistently.

“……I already achieved my revenge.”

[The revenge is not complete.]

“……Why not?”

[To begin with, if the others had not allowed your precious one to die, none of this would have transpired.]

“Other people?”

[Yes, other people. You ought to take revenge on them as well. It is their fault for failing to safeguard what was dear to you.]

Such a sweet temptation.

……………Such a malicious whisper.

Now, even the corners of Suin’s eyes began to tremble.

Seeing this, the dragon crawled out of the abyss without hesitation and

Materialized directly in front of Suin—Seolrang.

It had to be careful, as manifesting again would require a great deal of time.

But the dragon was certain.

This was the singular moment when possession would succeed.

[Come. Let me aid you. Accept me, and you can slaughter them all—those who failed to protect what was dear to you—]

So, without a second thought, it revealed itself, grinning viciously as it opened its maw—

“Lady Seolrang!!”

—But it could not complete its sentence.

[······.]

The abrupt interruption made the dragon uneasy, but it soon resumed its smile.

Even with the interference, Seolrang’s gaze remained locked on it.

So the dragon attempted to speak once more—

“The Marquis, the Marquis is alive!!!”

“!”

At the shout of the girl who burst through the entrance,

The dull, lifeless eyes that had been staring at the dragon as though she were dead—began to reclaim their light.

Her dim golden irises started to shine with brilliance.

Her drooping tail swayed, and her limp ears shot up toward the sky.

“R-Really?”

“Yes! He is on his way here right this moment!”

As the girl confirmed the news, Seolrang’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief.

And in that instant, the dragon witnessed it.

The spirit that had been buried deep in the abyss—was being restored at a ludicrous speed.

[W-Wait! That is a lie! It is merely a falsehood meant to deceive you—]

The dragon tried to scream in panic,

“Masterrrrrrr~!!!!”

But before it could utter another word—

Crash!

Seolrang shattered the window and bolted outside.

[······.]

Left completely alone, the dragon stared dumbfoundedly at the broken window.

[······????]

Its expression was one of utter disbelief.

[……What the hell. Was that.]

Only its bizarrely pitiful voice echoed through the empty space.