Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 267

Chapter 267

‘Why is Lady Seolrang behaving this way?’

This was the initial thought that entered Hidan’s mind as he watched the unfolding scenario with a vacant stare.

It was completely understandable.

Currently, Hidan was situated near Rosario, a considerable distance from the Colony.

In other words, under ordinary circumstances, he wouldn’t have run into Seolrang here.

Yet, there she stood, directly in his line of sight.

Why—

“Go back, wolf! I’ve told you repeatedly…!”

“No!”

…………Why was she forcefully gripping a man—whom he had never encountered—by the hair and confronting him?

‘No, simply labeling him as an unknown man doesn’t seem quite right. He’s unusual too.’

Hidan carefully observed the man’s appearance.

He radiated a presence similar to Seolrang’s.

He didn’t look particularly advanced in years.

More crucially, the same murderous intent that Seolrang displayed was emanating from him.

This fact alone made it obvious that this individual was not a common person.

‘Could it be that Lady Seolrang is matched with him in power? Or is she deliberately limiting her strength?’

There was no possible way for Hidan to accurately gauge their capabilities.

Gazing at the two dominating figures, Hidan returned to the fundamental question.

‘…….Why are they even engaged in a conflict?’

No matter how long he observed, he couldn’t grasp the reason.

For a brief second, the idea, ‘Should I assist Lady Seolrang?’ crossed his mind — but then—

He quietly turned around, deciding to retreat from the vicinity unnoticed.

He knew perfectly well that his meager capabilities wouldn’t offer the slightest assistance.

Furthermore, consider the nature of the confrontation.

Why were they tugging at each other’s hair in such a coarse and childlike manner, rather than utilizing their actual power?

Like children from the neighborhood playing roughly.

Regardless of the underlying cause, it was obvious that getting involved would only make the situation more complex.

The choice was clear.

Following his instincts, Hidan silently slipped away before the two formidable individuals had a chance to become aware of his presence.

---

Right up until the moment Alon stepped into the Saint’s chamber, Yuman had been wondering, ‘Is it possible…?’

To elaborate slightly, he harbored a suspicion he would typically never entertain: ‘Could it be that Marquis Palatio isn’t the Hidden Saint?’

Of course, Yuman had personally witnessed that Marquis Palatio—Alon—was indeed a Saint just like himself.

He had even confirmed that Alon was a Hidden Saint, one obligated to pursue an even more rigorous path than his own.

Even so, the seed of doubt had taken root because of the events of the day before.

‘Saint.’

‘I apologize, but I am not the Hidden Saint you are referring to.’

‘As I stated. Saint, I don’t know what led you to confuse me with someone else, but I am not the person you believe me to be.’

A total denial, devoid of the slightest pause.

Alon, by nature, rarely exhibited changes in expression, making it difficult to differentiate truth from falsehood.

But his eyes.

His gaze resonated in Yuman’s mind.

Those sincere eyes that appeared to genuinely convey that he didn’t comprehend what was being discussed.

Yuman wavered briefly in the face of those pure eyes.

Naturally, even that display—

Could have been a cunning tactic employed by the brother walking the arduous path, to avoid breaking his vow.

For a Hidden Saint is required to deny his own designation.

Still, a minor uncertainty had taken hold in Yuman’s heart.

That perhaps it was truly a mistake.

And even if Alon was, in fact, the Hidden Saint.

At this point, with all contact from Lady Sironia severed, he might not be vastly different from—

“Huh.”

But the instant Alon entered the Chamber of the Holy Spirit, all anxieties were rendered irrelevant and baseless.

Because the statue of Goddess Sironia began to shine with great intensity.

Standing before the radiant statue was Marquis Palatio.

Witnessing this spectacle, Yuman couldn’t help but feel admiration.

Despite traveling a painful and solitary road, and even under the pressure exerted by Yuman, he never revealed the slightest hint.

No, more than just concealing it—he had essentially misled Yuman—

And still upheld his pledge.

‘As I anticipated… Brother, you are remarkable.’

Yuman’s misconception intensified progressively.

And just as that peculiar conviction, born of misunderstanding, started to solidify—

Alon, behind his unreadable expression, was inwardly startled.

‘So abruptly?’

He considered for a moment, was it reacting to his sensing capability?

But Alon subtly shook his head.

If that were the case, the statue should have responded the moment he activated his senses, just like last time.

As he frantically analyzed the situation in his mind—

[……It has been a long time.]

He heard the voice of the Goddess Sironia, the one he had encountered years prior.

But one detail felt out of place.

‘Formal speech?’

The manner of address had shifted.

She had definitely spoken informally before, but now she was utilizing respectful language.

Perplexed for a moment, Alon quickly spoke.

“Great Goddess Sironia, I am Palatio, Marquis of Asteria.”

[Is that so.]

Short, blunt replies, as if something was troubling her.

Alon displayed his confusion at this, but—

[Sa… no, Marquis Palatio… Please rescue my most devoted servant. If you succeed, this entire catastrophe will naturally be resolved………… I am certain you can achieve this.]

“……What does that—”

[Let us conclude here for now. We shall resume our discussion after you have saved my great servant.]

Goddess Sironia finished saying only what she intended and then disappeared.

Soon, the radiance faded from the statue.

A profound silence descended upon the Sanctuary of the Holy Spirit.

Standing alone in the center of it all—

“……What exactly was that?”

Alon remained motionless for a time, like a figure carved from stone.

---

Immediately following that.

Just to be completely sure, he utilized his sensing capability one more time—

The statue remained unresponsive.

Staring silently at it, Alon departed the room.

“Brother.”

“Marquis.”

He was immediately surrounded by cardinals.

Alon relayed Goddess Sironia’s exact words to the cardinals, including Yuman.

“……Those statements imply.”

“Surely… concerning His Holiness the Pope……………!?”

“Brother, did the Goddess genuinely utter such a thing?”

“She did.”

As Alon confirmed once more, the cardinals’ faces became grave.

Then—

“Marquis Palatio, no—Brother, we are immensely grateful. If not for you, we would not have even comprehended that something had happened to His Holiness the Pope.”

One cardinal bowed deeply to Alon.

He clenched his hands in frustration.

“I am truly embarrassed…………. To think I believed such ridiculous falsehoods about someone as devout as you.”

And then, the cardinals standing nearby began to speak in succession.

“Indeed.”

“Cardinal Yutia’s judgment was the correct one. I was still like a confined frog, unaware of the truth…”

“I now regret my own ignorance. Please pardon a person such as myself.”

The cardinals initiated a chain of apologies.

Alon noticed Yutia’s name being mentioned in the process, which piqued his interest.

“Brother, I sincerely apologize, but the situation is urgent, so I will express my thanks later.”

“……Don’t concern yourself with it.”

Alon allowed the hasty cardinals to depart without objection.

On their faces, a subtle feeling of hope had begun to emerge.

Once the commotion subsided, Yuman approached him.

“Brother.”

“Saint.”

“I am truly ashamed of myself.”

Without warning, he took hold of Alon’s hand.

“Eh……?”

“It’s simply that, after our conversation yesterday, I was momentarily confused, wondering if I had completely misunderstood—but it turns out it was an unnecessary doubt.”

Yuman offered an awkward smile.

“……But you truly did misunderstand.”

Alon instinctively stated the truth once more.

“Yes. I know, Brother.”

With the demeanor of someone who believed all uncertainties had now been resolved, Yuman nodded confidently.

At his intense conviction of “I now fully comprehend everything, truly,” Alon could only sigh inwardly, thinking, ‘You failed to grasp anything at all.’

“Well then, I will depart for now, Brother. I will return after I complete the urgent tasks…………!”

Yuman, too, soon vanished into the distance.

“My congratulations, My lord.”

Yutia, who had not followed the cardinals, approached him last.

With a smile that partially obscured her red eyes—

“……Is this something worthy of congratulations?”

“Isn’t it? You’ve won the favor of those difficult cardinals all at once.”

“That is not untrue.”

Although the situation was founded on a misinterpretation, he had indeed earned their goodwill in the end.

As Alon nodded, he suddenly recalled something the cardinals had said earlier.

“Yutia.”

“Yes, My lord.”

“I think I overheard something about ‘Cardinal Yutia’s decision’—was there something related to me?”

Then—

Cough—

“?”

“Ah, forgive me. I just choked a bit.”

The one who reacted to Alon’s question wasn’t Yutia, but Sergius.

He coughed uneasily, looking uncomfortable, and forced a smile.

Yutia swiftly moved in front of him.

“No, it was nothing significant, My lord.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes. It’s merely that when rumors circulated about your demise, there was a minor dispute alongside the old stories connected to you. I simply addressed those briefly, that is all.”

Alon could see Sergius’s shoulders twitching behind Yutia, but if Yutia claimed it wasn’t important, then perhaps it truly wasn’t.

“So it wasn’t anything serious.”

“No, truly nothing at all. So don’t be overly concerned. It quickly subsided anyway.”

A pleasant smile and a calm tone.

Alon nodded, but another question came to mind.

“Ah, come to think of it, I have one more inquiry.”

“What is it, My lord?”

“All the cardinals seem to have been replaced—did something occur in Rosario while I was absent?”

He had been curious about that from the very beginning.

Yutia slowly shook her head.

“No, nothing especially serious. Just a rather unfortunate event.”

“An event?”

Yutia raised her index finger to her cheek.

“Yes. The Cardinal Council room suddenly collapsed.”

“……Collapsed?”

“Yes. Because of that, all the other cardinals—except for me, who had temporarily left on an assignment—sadly perished.”

She delivered the news in a tone as if she were casually mentioning the abundance of fish in a nearby lake.

Alon, bewildered, echoed her words.

“That’s not… a big deal?”

“It is not. I am sure Goddess Sironia needed them and took them. They were all extremely devout in their faith.”

Alon briefly recalled the cardinals of Rosario from within the psychedelic space.

They had all been corrupt gluttons with no true faith.

Alon subtly shifted his gaze past Yutia to look at Sergius.

Sergius was now staring intently into the far distance, as if determined never to look in this direction again.

“My lord?”

At Yutia’s clear voice, Alon met her red eyes once more.

‘……The Apostle of Vengeance hasn’t made an appearance yet, has he?’

Alon suddenly felt a sense of unease.