The Villain Bought the Heroine

Chapter 10

“Again, the concentration is too weak.”

“Yes, understood!”

“Again, the flow is unstable.”

“Again… Yes, I understand!”

“Again.”

“…Yes!”

“Again.”

“……”

Alicia was panting without responding. How annoying. She’s wasting her precious time here, just watching her struggle with the sword!

“Sir… I’m sorry, but… I can’t summon any more mana.”

“Nonsense. I’ve told you multiple times, your talent is not at this level. If it were, I wouldn’t have bothered to bring you out of that rural corner.”

“I appreciate such praise…”

“I’m not saying it to make you feel good. Just stating a fact.”

Alicia, feeling like she might collapse at any moment, leaned heavily on her body turned to lead against a giant iron sword, barely managing to hold on. Her breath was heavy, her clothes soaked with sweat.

“…I will try again.”

“Go ahead.”

Alicia gathered the strength in her wobbly legs, pushed the dirt floor, and maintained her balance. Thud. Traces of her exertion on the dirt floor remained.

Once again, she gathered all the mana within her body into the sword. A layer of blue mana formed around the sharp sword’s edge.

“Good, now make its concentration denser and thinner.”

“Yes, yes! Denser… and thinner…”

As Alicia furrowed her brow as if concentrating, the form of mana within the sword transformed convincingly.

“I did it, sir!”

Alicia exclaimed with joy. The concentration and thinness of the mana were remarkably well done.

“Well done. While you have been managing mana for months and paved the way in advance, you managed to acquire the Ora in just a few days. Truly, you are the genius I acknowledge.”

“I’m honored, sir!”

Gone is the tired look from moments ago; Alicia’s response is filled with renewed energy. Maybe it’s due to her mood, or perhaps it’s because she looks much better now compared to when she first met Alicia. Did she eat well-nourished food?

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you, Master Bram. It’s all thanks to you and Sir.”

Bram congratulated stoically, and Alicia expressed gratitude by bowing respectfully. Upon closer inspection, a faint smile appeared on Bram’s usually expressionless face. It’s so subtle that one must look closely, but it’s undoubtedly his own smile.

After savoring the joy for a moment, Alicia put it behind her and looked at me with a hesitant expression.

“Sir, may I make one request?”

“Hmm? Sure, as long as it’s not something troublesome, go ahead.”

A request from Alicia. This is unexpected. Showing such rapid progress, it should be fine to reward her to some extent.

“Um… Sir, while you mentioned that the three of you would go somewhere during my training here, and since the training ended earlier than planned, may I also join you?”

So, what you’re saying is.

Take me with you instead of leaving me here. That’s what you mean.

“Oh, that’s what you mean.”

I said to Alicia, who seemed tense, with tightly pressed lips.

***

Paula’s mouth protruded like a duck, maintaining that expression since she caught on to what I was up to last time. Unbelievable.

“Not worth a penny.”

“Excuse me? What did you just say?”

“He said if we don’t restore his mouth to normal, he’ll cut it off with Bram’s sword.”

It was the fifth day in Rubid Village. Leaving only Alicia in the village, I, Paula, and Bram were moving around the outskirts of this filthy small village.

The reason for coming here is related to three things. If even a day passes, they will be drowned.

Fortunately, Alicia’s abilities were progressing faster than expected, so there was no delay in transitioning to the next story.

“….”

Paula, who had kept her mouth shut, looked up at the sky. Something fluttered down towards the ground like flower petals.

“Snow… It’s snowing!”

Paula tilted her head completely upwards. The depression she had been suppressing seemed to lessen. The clouds covered the sun, forming a thick layer and sprinkling white ashes.

The particles are thick and abundant. Perhaps, by the time they achieve their goal and come out, it will be piled up to ankle height.

The snowflakes that touched her hand couldn’t withstand her body heat and withered immediately. Paula took a deep breath, her eyes fixed firmly. It seemed like she had made a firm resolution.

In her usual high-toned voice, she asked, “Milord, is there really a secret dungeon here?”

A secret dungeon.

A dungeon hidden as the name suggests.

“It is. And in a very appetizing form, I might add.”

“If it’s in an appetizing form… does that mean the dungeon is weakened or has a way to be breached? That’s why only a few dare to challenge it, right?”

There’s no need for a challenge, Paula. Just bring back a simple artifact from the already collapsing dungeon. The grandiose notion of a challenge doesn’t really fit.

“I guess we’ll have to see for ourselves, but if it’s true, it’s quite remarkable, isn’t it? You must have obtained such information with great effort.”

“When you’re up high, everything is clearly visible.”

In fact, this dungeon was originally a place unrelated to Bargan. It would be more appropriate to say that it’s an unpleasant place for Bargan.

As originally planned, Liam, the protagonist in the novel. That guy uses the artifact wisely. It’s a relic that holds no good memories for me, who immersed myself in Bargan and read the novel.

“We’re almost there. Once we pass this area… Ah, there, I see the entrance.”

“Excuse me? Where… Oh? There’s a lake! Bram, do you see that? It’s a tremendously huge lake!”

“Yes, it’s a lake.”

“How dull. Can’t you be more surprised? …Well, I guess Bram, with his silent demeanor, is charming in its own way.”

“….”

The vast, refreshing lake, almost mistaken for the sea, sparkled under the sunlight. The trees surrounding it were so immense that they looked like toothpicks.

We arrived.

At this moment, he’s still struggling for his life inside.

When Liam obtained it, too much time had passed, so the artifact couldn’t exert its full power since the guy had died. Even so, it tormented me with considerable output. If he’s still alive, how powerful would it be?

The image of the immature protagonist comes to mind.

Liam, not you, the protagonist, but I arrived here first. And it happens to be this villain, Bargan, from your story.

Isn’t it interesting?

Everything is deviating greatly from the development you knew. This is one of them.

If the pet you intended to raise as a weapon ends up choosing someone else as its owner and bites you.

What expression will you show?

“I’m looking forward to it.”

Thinking of that mischievous expression, my smile at the corner of my mouth doesn’t fade.

“Oh… Thank you, lovely lady. Thanks to you, things have become much easier.”

The village chief straightened his stiff spine, which had been hunched over for a long time, and assumed a proud posture. Moving busily after a long time worsened the pain in his back.

The old shed of the village chief’s house. This place, filled with dust, was full of all sorts of miscellaneous items.

“But… Is it really okay for you to help us like this? You might not want to meddle in our affairs for no reason.”

“No need to worry. The young master I serve has instructed me to do as I please while he is out.”

“Oh, then I might have taken away the young lady’s rest time. I apologize…”

“No, I did it because I wanted to help.”

Alicia reassured the village chief with a bright smile. The village chief, momentarily touched, paused as if moved, then took Alicia’s delicate hand with his wrinkled one.

“If our grandson… ends up marrying someone like you… I would have no more wishes left.”

“Pardon?”

“Truly, beautiful. Where could such a lady like you have come from?”

“Um, well…!”

“Can I arrange a meeting with your master?”

Alicia couldn’t pull her hand away from the village chief’s grip and hesitantly pursed her lips. His sudden and unexpected words caught her off guard, and she hesitated to reject him, fearing it might hurt his feelings.

“How about it…? Is it okay?”

Although, in reality, she had to express her own intentions in this situation. Responding evasively here would be considered impolite.

Alicia corrected her wandering eyes and focused them directly.

“I appreciate your offer, but I must decline. I’m sorry.”

The village chief, observing Alicia, who had clasped her hands somewhat tightly, made a sound of distress but did not insist further. A faint smile lingered on his lips.

“The more I see you, the more I regret it. That young master is a difficult man. Oh, right. I won’t make any more unreasonable requests, so would you come here for a moment? It’s also a form of fate, wanting to give you something at least.”

The village chief smiled wearily, indicating he would give up, and then took a step back. He then continued speaking as he headed out of the shed. Alicia followed closely behind him.

“One of the pride of our village is the fresh cheese made from freshly squeezed milk. I really want you to try it, so come this way–“

Crack!

The village chief didn’t speak any further. More accurately, he couldn’t.

“…Huh?”

A sound escaped Alicia’s mouth as she failed to comprehend the sudden change in the situation. Her body stiffened, and her mind struggled to process.

The situation from a moment ago. The village chief, who was about to leave the shed, had disappeared. …Disappeared? What? What disappeared?

A crack and a burst of liquid.

What had detached from his body as if pierced by a large thorn-like object was stuck to the wooden wall of the shed.

Thud. The headless body, unable to maintain balance, collapsed. A thick liquid sprayed from the object resembling a nail in the wooden wall, coloring everything around in its own hue.

Alicia’s breathing became irregular. Not completely drained of mana, not completely exhausted, yet her body felt increasingly heavy as if weighed down by something heavy.

Memories made up of that lump of flesh tied with a cord in her mind began to subtly dominate her body.

She knows.

Facing this current situation is not something new to her.

Alicia knows.

What does this bursting crimson blood signify?

【Crackle?】

Beyond the door, that red creature revealing itself as if waiting, is certainly not something seen before. Those pumpkin-colored eyes are not new either.

Could this be a dream?

A memory so unwanted to dream about. A cursed nightmare. The curse of that day.

Is this an extension of the torment that once engulfed oneself? Is it the continuation of that agonizing aftermath?

Yet, fervently praying.

Please, let this be just a usual nightmare.