How to Survive as the Academy’s Villain

Chapter 196

“…”

Step, step.

A young girl paced restlessly, unable to stay still for even a moment. It was Diana. With an anxious expression, she was biting her thumbnail, lost in thought, until she murmured as if reaching a decision.

“I have to find a way, no matter what.”

Her mind drifted back to the image of Duke Romanoff, who had recently asked her what she could offer him. His expression was cold, and his gaze distant as he looked down at her.

Clench.

Fear and frustration.

For Diana, who had always towered above others, manipulating them at will, these emotions were rare and unfamiliar.

“Alright, let’s consider this a lesson learned.”

It wasn’t simply because she feared him or felt intimidated by his power and influence. She realized she had been overwhelmed by his charisma, enough to act out of character and blunder.

‘I still have a long way to go, Diana Fren.’

Then, her mind turned to the one responsible for putting her in this position.

“Kamon Vade!”

Grit.

Diana clenched her teeth even harder than before.

“That damn bastard.”

Cursing with bitterness, she recalled the horrid nightmare she had seen.

In the nightmare, she had lost everything, reduced to a miserable beggar enduring the world’s scorn and misfortune. She saw herself losing her family and guild leadership to Elliot, who mocked her mercilessly. And then, at the end of the nightmare…

She found herself married to Kamon Vade, bearing children, and living as his wife.

“Tch, just a pointless illusion,” she spat, trying to shake the memory from her head. Yet, human minds have a peculiar way of fixating on things they’d rather forget. The images stubbornly resurfaced, refusing to fade.

More humiliating than being defeated in battle was the mortification of that vivid, twisted future.

“…”

Maybe that lingering shock was why she’d been so shaken by Duke Romanoff after waking from that nightmare.

Clench.

Diana bit her lip again, reliving the anger and frustration she felt toward Kamon Vade.

“I’ll never forgive you, Kamon Vade.”

Then—

BOOM!

“…?”

Startled by a loud crash from outside, Diana quickly rushed to the window.

Dark smoke was rising, and chaos seemed to fill the air.

“Time to move.”

Thud!

She wasted no time, charging through the door at full speed, sprinting alone with no guard or escort.

Finally, as she neared the source of the black smoke—

“Aaaargh!”

“S-someone, help me!”

Hearing screams and ghastly cries from all directions, her face grew tense.

Holding her breath, she crept closer.

BOOM!

Whoosh!

Massive waves of magic were pouring out in every direction, sweeping through knights, mages, and soldiers alike.

“…Kamon Vade.”

And with a single glance, Diana knew exactly who was behind this. No one else could unleash a torrent of magic like that.

‘This might actually work out.’

If she could take down Kamon in this chaotic situation, she would be able to stand on equal footing with Duke Romanoff without needing to repay or offer him anything. All she had to do was find an opening…

Boom!

“Aaagh!”

“Damn it, run!”

It was pure pandemonium. The morale of the Romanoff forces had already hit rock bottom.

She spotted Kamon Vade and Chelsea watching with a confident smile from the distance.

Clench.

“Just a little longer, Kamon Vade. I’ll kill you for sure…”

But suddenly, images of herself leading a happy married life with children flashed through her mind, and her face contorted in horror.

“What the hell did you do to my head?!”

Just as she was thrashing about in frustration, Markon, Captain of the Bellington Knights, and his elite squad arrived.

And following closely behind—

“…Vitell Romanoff.”

The ruler of this region and one of the Empire’s five Elector Lords, Duke Romanoff, began to demonstrate his true abilities.

“As I thought,” Diana muttered, her suspicions confirmed.

There were few stories circulating about Duke Romanoff’s strength. While the Marquess of Vade was known as a formidable mage and Grand Duke Axelion was infamous for his martial prowess, the abilities of the remaining three Elector Lords remained largely unknown.

‘None of them have ever publicly revealed their true power.’

But now, she had the chance to witness Duke Romanoff’s strength firsthand.

‘A true master. And an exceptional swordsman at that.’

To deflect or slice through incoming magic with a sword is something only someone with many years of training could accomplish.

However—

‘Only a master or higher could so effortlessly and cleanly cut through and neutralize a spell like that.’

Diana Fren, who was well-read and had witnessed many skilled fighters, could roughly gauge the Duke’s level despite not possessing similar strength herself.

Soon, Duke Romanoff and the elite knights of Bellington were closing in around Kamon Vade, reforming the encirclement.

“Damn it!”

For Diana, who had been waiting for her chance, the arrival of these powerful figures to subdue Kamon was an unwelcome complication.

‘Is there a single weak spot? Anything I can exploit?’

“…”

Diana crouched in the shadows, scanning the battlefield with keen eyes, determined to bring down Kamon Vade herself.

However, the tide of battle had already shifted firmly in House Romanoff’s favor.

“Come on, Kamon Vade, do something,” she muttered quietly, wishing for him to somehow escape the current predicament and fall into her hands.

And then, as if her silent wish had reached him—

“Huh?”

She noticed a sly grin spread across Kamon Vade’s face as he stood beside Chelsea.

Vrrrooom.

An immense rumbling sound filled the air as a colossal, radiant sword materialized in the sky, bright enough to light up the entire battlefield.

***

‘The Sword that Splits the Sky.’

The strongest offensive spell, a hallmark creation of Jamie, the Yellow Mage. Previously, Kamon had been forced to weaken this spell due to mana limitations and his own skill restraints.

But this time was different.

‘I’ll put everything I have into this.’

Not only were Markon and the formidable Bellington Knights here, but so was Vitell Romanoff, who had just demonstrated terrifying power.

Taking down opponents of this caliber required an overwhelming, single strike.

Of course, there was no guarantee this would work, but…

‘There’s no other option left right now.’

With that, I poured everything I had into the spell, focusing all my power into its creation.

And soon, a massive white blade glowed in the clear blue sky above.

“…”

For a moment, everyone’s gaze turned skyward.

‘Airsya, Frilla.’

I urgently called out to my two spirits in secret.

‘The moment the magic hits, activate the spirit formation.’

[Understood.]

[Yes, Master.]

I instructed them to prepare a formation that could transport us elsewhere immediately if things went wrong, while I began channeling every ounce of power stored in the Orb.

The aura surrounding the sword shifted to a bright teal, and finally, the ultimate magic inherited from Grand Mage Katryzin was complete.

“Chelsea, when I give the signal, get close immediately.”

“What?”

“Just do as I say.”

With a firm tone, I directed her gaze to Duke Romanoff. He met my eyes, his cold stare shifting between me and the completed magic.

The Bellington knights, clearly uneasy, hesitated as they looked up in confusion.

“What are you waiting for? Capture him now!” Markon’s thundering command snapped them back, and with determined expressions, they charged forward.

At that moment, I spoke softly.

“Go, sword.”

With that command, the enormous sword in the sky began its slow descent.

Vroooom.

As it fell with a fearsome sound, the knights charging toward me froze in place, staring up at the sky in shock.

“It’s moving.”

“Is that thing… actually falling?”

They stood there, transfixed, their attention entirely on the overwhelming sight above.

Then—

“Tch, I’ll stop it! Haaah!” Markon, captain of the Bellington Knights, shouted bravely, lifting his massive greatsword and leaping high.

In the blink of an eye, the distance between him and the sword closed.

“Haah!”

With a fierce yell, he swung his blade at the falling sword with all his might.

Vwoooosh!

As his powerful strike collided with the sword of light—

Shhhhhh.

“…What?”

Nothing happened. His attack was simply absorbed into the massive blade.

“Did it… absorb my strike?”

Stunned, Markon murmured to himself, his expression baffled. He swung his sword several more times, frustration clear on his face.

“Haaah!”

Vwoosh, vwoosh, swoosh!

But each strike failed, disappearing harmlessly into the sword of light as it drew closer and closer.

“Damn it! What kind of magic is this?!”

Realizing the situation was dire, Markon changed his orders.

“All knights, direct your sword aura at the spell! Don’t let it reach the Duke!”

“Yes, sir!”

The knights raised their swords to the sky.

“Haaah!”

Dozens of sword auras shot toward the giant sword of light.

Vrooom, thunk!

“…!”

For the first time, the sword’s descent halted.

“It stopped! It’s working!”

“Keep attacking! Destroy it entirely if you can!” Markon shouted in triumph as the knights continued firing their auras, determined to shatter the spell.

Watching this, I couldn’t help but frown.

“Damn it. Even this isn’t working?”

This was supposed to be my ultimate spell, crafted with every ounce of power I had… yet all it took was a coordinated attack from the knight order.

Vitell Romanoff, the real threat, hadn’t even made a move yet. He was simply watching impassively.

If he decided to get involved too?

‘Damn it. This is a failure.’

Even if The Sword that Splits the Sky broke through the interference from the Bellington Knights, its power would be greatly diminished, likely insufficient to turn the tide.

‘Airsya, Frilla. Are you ready?’

[We need a little more time.]

[…We’ll finish as quickly as possible.]

With the spirit formation not yet ready to transport us, I looked at Chelsea and sighed deeply.

“Hah… Maybe I should’ve just used a Meteor Scroll instead?”

Chelsea shook her head slowly with a faint smile.

“No, that won’t be necessary.”

“But at this rate, we’ll get captured by them. Damn it, I wanted to give them a real beating.”

“Is that so? Hmm, maybe it’s still possible?” Chelsea shrugged her shoulders, a strange smile on her face.

“What?” I asked, caught off guard by her sudden shift in attitude.

I stared at her, puzzled, when suddenly—

“Ah!”

A burning sensation flared up at the nape of my neck.

And then—

Rip!

With a sound like tearing through space, an all-too-familiar voice rang out.

“Which bastard dared lay a hand on my test subject?”