Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 278

C278. Something is strange. (3)

A few days passed since Alon set off towards Greynifra.

“Ah… is this loneliness?”

[Are you starting with your nonsense again?]

“Shut up a bit, snakehead.”

[If you stopped talking nonsense, I would be quiet already.]

[Kyuuu~]

While watching Evan and Basiliora start another one of their usual silly chats, Alon—

“My Lord Marquis?”

He suddenly looked at Penia, who was calling him.

“What is it?”

“No, it’s just that you had a very serious expression… I was wondering what is worrying you so much.”

He gently shook his head, as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“No, I was just recalling the information Evan told me earlier.”

“Ah, you mean that information.”

When Evan passed through the village, he brought news.

There were three pieces in total.

One of them was about the underworld.

It said that, due to the recent explosion in the number of Abyssal Cores, public order in the United Allied Kingdom was deteriorating rapidly.

Perhaps even more than in Psychedelia, the world Alon originally knew.

Of course, it was hard to compare properly, because he had only heard it from others, not lived it like in the game. Still, it was clear that it was a problem.

‘…Could it be that, like the previous time, someone is creating these Abyssal Cores?’

Alon kept deducing possible routes for the origin of the Abyssal Cores.

“Well— there was quite a bit of worrying information, yes. Especially… what was his name? Eliban? I heard he has become incredibly famous lately.”

Penia nodded and went along with Alon’s words.

Certainly, she was right.

Eliban was walking a heroic path just as players did in Psychedelia, gaining greater renown each time.

‘No, rather he is advancing faster than in the original.’

According to Alon’s memories, Eliban didn’t gain real fame until he defeated the first of the Five Sins, which happened mid-game.

In other words, based on the original timeline, there would still be about a year left.

But now, Eliban had gained fame quickly thanks to solving mysterious phenomena at a surprising speed, even without having faced any Sins.

“Hmm—”

Of course, this was a very good thing for Alon.

As long as Eliban kept working hard, the world would become more and more peaceful.

‘Thinking like this makes me feel like I’m some great hero worried about world safety.’

Despite his neutral expression, Alon felt a strange feeling.

If he thought about it, he just wanted to live in peace, without bothering anyone, relaxed, doing nothing… how did it end up like this…?

That thought suddenly crossed his mind.

Of course, Alon basically moved for his own safety.

His small yet huge goal was to live quietly, comfortably, without worries, eating and resting, and he was doing all this to achieve that dream.

…Well, it’s true that the amount of things he had to do was a lot for such a simple goal.

Still, he had no major complaints.

Most of it he did because he wanted to, not out of obligation.

“Still, what worries you the most is that… right?”

Penia, fiddling with her fingers, spoke carefully.

“Yes, that— the rumor that you will marry the Elf Queen.”

“I wanted to ask that too. Is it true?”

Evan, who was fighting with Basiliora, added the question. Alon looked at him coldly.

“Do you think that’s true?”

“Is it not?”

“Of course not. I told you before.”

Even when Evan brought the rumor earlier, Alon stated without hesitation that it was false.

Evan shrugged his shoulders.

“Yes, you said it… but you usually say no and then it turns out to be yes, that’s why I’m asking.”

“Has that happen—?”

Alon was about to retort, but stopped.

If he thought about it… it wasn’t totally false.

But he quickly discarded the idea.

“It doesn’t matter, it’s absolutely false. Some misunderstanding must have spread around.”

“……Then it’s strange. The United Allied Kingdom and the Interracial Alliance don’t get along very well, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then how did a rumor like that spread?”

“—Ah, that is true.”

Penia agreed with Evan’s doubt.

Alon also thought for a moment about where the rumor could have originated, and finally spoke.

“The only thing I can think of… is Ashtalon.”

“Ashtalon?”

“Yes, Kurak is there.”

“If it’s a false rumor, it will be a problem.”

“Well, a bit awkward, yes.”

The only person in Ashtalon capable of transmitting such delicate matters from the Interracial Alliance to the United Allied Kingdom was Kurak.

At that instant—

Boom!

As if they had expected it, a huge roar resonated deep in the silent forest.

“?”

Alon looked towards the direction of the sound.

“What was that?”

“Bah— surely monsters fighting and they knocked down a tree or two.”

Although it seemed too loud for that, Alon stopped paying attention to it.

It was a quiet afternoon, with leaves shining under the sun.

---

“So we arrived.”

When, after some time passed, Alon approached Greynifra—

In the capital of the Kingdom of Ashtalon—

“Phew…”

Stallian V exhaled a deep sigh.

It wasn’t that something serious had happened.

Everything was going well.

Even the recent campaign against the sudden wave of bandits was going better than expected, and the secret project regarding the portals with the Lizardmen was advancing without issues.

Even so, the reason his face showed worry was because of something strange that had been happening to him lately.

‘What the hell…?’

Stallian V was having bad luck. Not in a big way, but constantly.

Several times a day, small accidents occurred.

For example: walking on flat marble floor and tripping out of nowhere, or waking up from a blow as if something had attacked him while he slept.

They were small things.

But if that happens every day for almost two weeks, it’s natural to get exhausted.

‘Why… is this happening…?’

Stallian V looked at his reflection in the mirror.

Anyone could see he looked bad.

For a week he had dark circles under his eyes from nightmares, and his body was full of bruises.

‘Something is definitely going on.’

After almost two weeks like this, Stallian V already knew instinctively that there was something here.

But since he didn’t know why it was happening to him, he felt more stress.

“Haa…”

He took a deep breath to calm down.

Despite his bad streak, an important day was approaching.

‘It’s today.’

Kurak would return today with the results he was waiting for so much.

Remembering that, Stallian V went to his office with lighter steps.

And then—

“Your Majesty.”

“What is it?”

“A letter… has arrived.”

“…A letter?”

“Yes.”

The doubt barely lasted a moment.

When he received the letter from the servant’s hands—

“What…?”

He trembled involuntarily.

And it was understandable.

Because the letter was nothing less than—

“A-a letter of admonition?”

It was a letter of admonition.

Stallian V looked at it without opening it, stunned, and immediately understood that something was very wrong here.

It made no sense.

He hadn’t done anything wrong, and his relationship with Rosario wasn’t bad.

Furthermore—

When the recent crisis occurred in Rosario, he, like other kingdoms, donated a huge sum for reconstruction.

In short: there was no reason for Rosario to be on bad terms with him.

The messenger was sweating cold with his head bowed.

Stallian V opened the letter with a trembling hand.

And saw its content.

Or rather—

He saw what remained of the paper.

“W-what is this…?”

The paper was completely shredded, as if someone had torn every part with text to pieces.

Also, in the corner of the paper, a small pen nib was embedded, shining in the light.

The only possible conclusion was clear:

Whoever wrote this letter… was furious.

Stallian V swallowed hard.

Then he understood.

Who the sender was.

“……Cardinal Yutia?”

Cardinal Yutia Bloodia.

The person who currently managed everything in Rosario, with even more power than a Saint now that the Pope had disappeared.

His confusion only lasted a moment. His brow furrowed sharply.

The United Allied Kingdom respected Rosario.

But this was something else.

A cardinal of Rosario sending an illegible letter of admonition, practically a threat, to a king… was crossing the line.

“Bring paper to respond immediately.”

Stallian V called his servants to return the letter in writing, but—

“No need.”

A female voice interrupted.

He turned his head reflexively.

“I really wanted to see you. So I came myself.”

Their gazes met.

With a soft smile on her lips, and red eyes like jewels—

…no, frozen eyes that pierced him.

It was Yutia Bloodia.

“So… do you have time, Your Majesty?”

Just seeing her made the air turn heavy, suffocating, charged with a chilling killing intent.

Anyone could see that this was a total lack of protocol.

She had entered the King’s office without permission and, as if it were nothing, demanded an audience disguised as courtesy.

And this was what Stallian V detested the most.

Normally he would have reprimanded her immediately, raising his voice, for he was the king.

He inhaled deeply.

It didn’t matter how strong the woman before him was, he was a king and had to maintain his honor.

“Cardinal Yutia, even if it is you—”

But.

Crunch—

As soon as he opened his mouth, he saw it.

The huge iron door, engraved with symbols, through which Yutia had entered, was bent as if it were paper.

Stallian V was a king.

And because of that, his judgment was fast.

“Even if it is me—”

“—Of course you can do whatever you wish.”

At Yutia’s counter-question, he responded immediately.

She smiled broadly, satisfied, and took a step further.

“How good, Your Majesty. I am glad I do not have to feel disappointed.”

“…I am glad too.”

With more than twenty years of reign, Stallian V executed a marvelous political turn that avoided tragedy.

‘I’m… alive… right…?’

He congratulated himself internally for surviving.