A Villain's Will to Survive novel Chapter 158

Chapter 158: Forest (2)

“Hmm...”

Reylie sensed a chilling hostility lingering close by, murderous intent pressing down like a bitter fog against her skin. The intruders advanced in slow, deliberate approach, making no attempt to hide their intentions as they closed in, forming a silent circle around her.

“Knight Yulie,” Reylie said, casting a quick glance in her direction.

However, Yulie was unconscious, rendering it impossible to continue the fight. Her previous opponent had been a tiger, and with wounds this severe, even she would need time and rest to recover. Reylie now realized that whatever came next, she’d have to face it on her own.

Then, a band of figures emerged from the shade of the snowfield, radiating an unmistakable murderous intent. Reylie scanned their faces, but each one was concealed behind a mask, their identities shrouded in complete anonymity.

With a sigh, she gathered her mana, tested her circuits, and prepared her spell. And then, in the next instant, a barrage of attacks rained down.

Booooooom—!

The ground trembled as waves of mana surged forth, and flames from the attackers swept through the area with violent intensity. Reylie cast the Dukan Barrier to shield both herself and Yulie, but the dark flames pounded against it relentlessly. The rate at which her mana drained was staggering.

Crunch...

Battered by the onslaught of magic, the ground lay in complete ruin. Deep scars marred the surface, and thick smoke billowed from patches where the flames continued to smolder.

“You assholes, ever heard of common etiquettes?! A warning before you start blasting would be nice, you know!” Reylie shouted.

There was no reply, only the quiet, focused motions as they prepared their next spell.

Reylie bit her lip, muttering under her breath, "... No way out, huh?"

This was a defense destined to collapse. Lowering the barrier to strike back would only endanger Yulie, and even if she tried, taking them all down at once was impossible.

Yet maintaining the barrier was no solution either; a single shield couldn’t endure the relentless onslaught of their combined spells. Without limitless mana, it was only a matter of time before her barrier gave way.

“... No way.”

A sudden thought came to Reylie—Deculein was in the Northern Region on a business trip. Although it was officialy part of a mission from the Chairwoman, yet something didn’t sit right. There had to be a deeper reason he had chosen to come here willingly.

“Hey! Did Deculein send you here?!” Reylie demanded.

Her question was met with silence, as they wordlessly continued their preparations for the next wave of destructive magic.

“He really did, didn’t he?! That son of a bitch wasn’t satisfied with everything he’d already done?!”

Reylie's shouts reverberated through the forest, her curses fading only to echo back before finally vanishing into the vast, empty silence. The woods held their breath until, at last, a composed voice responded to her accusations.

“Enough with the vulgar suspicions.”

Vrooooom—!

The snowmobile thundered through the snow, scattering icy powder as it tore past the cloaked figures and came to a sudden halt beside Reylie. She looked up, her mouth dropping open in shock.

The man’s face was as hard and cold as stone, his very presence radiating the aura of a villain, as though he wore it like an emblem. It was Deculein, head of Yukline, sworn enemy to both her and Yulie—the one who had slaughtered hundreds, if not thousands, of Scarletborn.

"... Ah, my bad. Guess I got things mixed up for a second there..."

Deculein looked over at Reylie—or rather, at Yulie, unconscious beside her. Yulie’s face was pale, almost corpse-like, her faint breaths seeming to grow weaker with each moment.

“... Hello?”

Reylie couldn’t shake her confusion at the momentary flicker of pain in Deculein’s otherwise impassive expression, like a shadow passing briefly across a wall of ice.

“Take Yulie with you,” Deculein said.

“... Really?”

In silence, Deculein activated his Wood Steel.

Schwing—

A precise, sequential clang echoed through the air as nineteen steel blades took their aim, each targeting toward the cloaked figures across the field.

“Leave these vermin to me.”

Reylie found herself questioning the source of his unshakable confidence and, perhaps even more, his sudden decision to help and unexpected appearance.

Countless questions pressed at the edges of her mind, yet she held her silence, her attention riveted on the movement of his steel. Nineteen blades, each formed in precise geometric shapes, soared into the air before striking downward upon the cloaked figures with deadly accuracy.

Fwoooosh—

The blades tore through the air like falling meteors, bending the very atmosphere as they plunged. The cloaked figures scrambled to cast barriers, but Deculein’s swift interference shattered them effortlessly. What came next was a foregone conclusion.

Kabooooom—! _{frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓}

The nineteen blades struck the earth with tremendous force, sending shockwaves rippling through the ground and clouds of dust billowing into the air. The forest trembled from the onslaught, and the enemies were obliterated, leaving no trace behind.

Reylie stood still in silence, frozen in shock, yet her mind, almost out of habit, instinctively analyzed the layers of magic that had just unfolded before her.

Deculein’s approach to eliminating the mages relied solely on brute, unrestrained force. There were no intricate spells—just the raw power of Telekinesis propelling steel forward, each strike charged with kinetic and magical energy in a relentless barrage.

Though deceptively simple in its execution, the technique left any mage completely exposed. Deculein’s precision came from a mind sharpened by absolute mastery, his theories rooted in flawless logic. With just a sidelong glance, he could break down their barriers, dissecting and interfering with their spell’s structure as though it were instinct.

“... Hmm.”

Deculein turned, and Reylie took a startled step back. But his focus lay elsewhere—on Yulie, who was completely spent, her form motionless and still locked in the depths of her unconsciousness.

Deculein looked at Yulie as he quietly murmured, "As pathetic as ever."

A vein pulsed in Reylie’s forehead as she snapped, “Excuse me? It’s all because of you, you know?!”

Deculein cast a fleeting, dismissive look her way, his expression laced with quiet disdain, as if to say she was even more pathetic than he thought.

“Leave. We’ll take care of cleaning,” Deculein commanded.

“... We?” Reylie echoed.

At that moment, Allen popped out from under the snowmobile, offering a polite smile as he introduced himself, “Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Assistant Professor Allen—”

Deculein interjected, “And make sure Yulie remains unaware of this.”

As Reylie took in the aftermath—the charred ground and the ruin left in the wake of Deculein’s steel—she realized that without his intervention, it would have been her and Yulie lying shattered amid the wreckage.

Reylie nodded and muttered, “I will. And... Thanks for the help, I guess. Though I still don’t see why you’d even bother...”

***

I gathered up the intruders’ remains alongside Allen—torn robes, broken bones, and crushed flesh. Just as I’d thought, they were members of the Altar.

[Main Quest: Named Hunt]

This was a main quest. As the name implied, the Altar had already begun their mission to eliminate named characters—heroic figures capable of interfering with their plans. One by one, they’d target anyone who posed a threat, even players, in a classic random encounter. With so many named characters likely to fall victim to this quest, it was about time I took action.

"The Altar?" Allen asked, his eyes widening in surprise.

I turned to look at him, suspecting he already knew about the Altar. At this point, I could tell when he was genuinely unaware versus when he was just pretending to be ignorant.

“They’re a fanatical cult entrenched in the depths of the unexplored Northern Region,” I replied.

“Oh... I see. But can people even survive in the unexplored region?” Allen asked, his surprise exaggerated to a theatrical degree. The kid was quite the actor.

"Although the unexplored region is barren, unsuitable for agriculture or livestock, and overrun with beasts and monsters, it remains part of the continent. Entering may not guarantee instant death, but it is not a place for long-term survival."

The Altar’s sanctuary was there, in a place shrouded in shadows, where they dedicated themselves to the resurrection of their so-called god. But whatever they hoped to revive wasn’t a god—only another fanatic. The full story would come to light as the main quest progressed.

"I see... But, Professor, how could you tell these bodies... were from the Altar?"

“Their bodies still hold traces of demonic energy, and along with clear signs of unnatural vascular transplantation.”

Allen gasped and echoed, “Vascular transplantation?”

Allen stayed silent, none of his usual praise like, “Wow, Professor, you really do know everything!” since it was likely he hadn’t known about this either. After all, details about vascular transplants and human modification only come to light in the later parts of the main quest.

Yulie—a woman who can shake my very heart with a single glance. I want her love, yet I pray she’ll never forgive me. I want her to walk away without ever looking back. Let her hate me and despise everything I am, but I hope she survives it all and finds her way back to me, I thought.

It seems I can’t deny this selfish heart of mine. Wishing her well, hoping she’ll go on living—even if she resents me—is a rare sentiment. Wanting her happiness, even if it means a life without me, isn’t something just anyone could feel. Maybe I love her too deeply; now, I can’t even tell if it’s Deculein’s heart that holds this love, or if it’s mine alone.

Vroooom—!

“... Oh.”