I Became a Dark Fantasy Villain

"You are practically a human cockatrice."

As Ian spoke, he twisted his waist with all his strength. The bright yellow streak that followed his left hand shot toward the knight’s head, who belatedly drew his sword.

Crash!

The thin blade of the shield lodged precisely between the visor shaped like a wolf’s head. He felt something crunch against his hand, but Ian tightened his grip on the hilt in his left hand and extended his arm fully.

Crack, smash!

The knight crashed through the wooden railing beside the stairs and fell to the floor, landing at Philip’s feet. His limbs, which had been twitching slightly, soon went limp.

"How... are you moving...?" Felix, who had been watching the scene with wide eyes, muttered in a daze.

Ian crouched down, and looked into his eyes. "Just well."

At that moment, he kicked off the stairs and leaped forward. Without his armor weighing him down, he felt incredibly light. Felix’s stunned face was rapidly approaching.

Thanks to his Concentration, Ian was able to perceive Felix’s eyes flashing with incredible speed, even in that chaotic moment.

Is he sending out some kind of wave through his eyes...?

Ian immediately realized that Felix was using his ability. He didn’t counter it right away because it had little effect on him. His senses had dulled slightly for a moment, only to return to normal almost immediately.

The waves that Felix emitted couldn’t penetrate Ian’s body and mostly bounced off harmlessly. To properly impair Ian, one would need at least a creature like the Beast of the Void.

And so Ian just watched the situation unfold. He thought Felix might reveal some useful information if he believed he had already won.

Well, there wasn’t anything particularly impressive, though.

In any case, it was the first time Ian had directly experienced one of the rumored powers of the royal family. The wave that Felix generated felt more like a psychic wave than a spell. A psychic wave that paralyzes the nerves. There could be other ways to use it, but in any case, one could only describe it as a supernatural ability.

Though it’s kind of ridiculous to try to draw a line between magic and supernatural abilities...

That was when Ian’s gaze shifted. The middle-aged servant was pushing Felix’s shoulder aside and throwing himself forward.

"Your Highness—get down—!"

Ian took in the scene of the yelling servant, his voice stretched out in slow motion. In the center of his grip was an angular jewel, different in appearance from Asme’s. A hidden spell circuit, infused with magical power, emerged between his collar and nape.

That’s exactly like Asme’s.

In one fluid motion, he twisted his body, altering the trajectory he had aimed at Felix. He used the momentum from his spin to drive his right hand straight into the servant’s face.

Crack!

In the instant he grabbed the servant’s face, Ian drove him onto the floor, lowering the stance. The back of the servant’s head dragged across the floorboards, which shattered under the force of Ian’s grip.

Ian landed like a four-legged beast, coming to a complete stop. In front of his right hand lay the shattered floor, stained with a pool of red.

The veins on the back of his hand bulged as he tightened his grip on the servant’s face. With a chilling sound, the servant’s trembling body went limp. The spell circuit flickering on the servant’s skin quickly lost its glow.

Just as Ian was about to release his hold. His movement to stand up halted abruptly. A much stronger wave surged toward him than anything he had felt before, giving him the fleeting sensation of being pushed back. It was a psychic wave, intense enough to make his body sway.

"Stop...! Stop right there...!" Felix’s strained shout echoed almost simultaneously. His bloodshot eyes bulged, and blood trickled down from his nose.

"Ugh...?"

Seras, wincing, held her head in her hands as she staggered. Meanwhile, Ian, narrowing his brows slightly, rose to his full height, looking down at Felix.

The storm of waves reflecting and reverberating through the hall only slightly dulled Ian’s movements.

As he took a step forward, Felix reflexively stepped back, muttering, "How can you... withstand this? How the hell...... No way!"

Felix momentarily stopped breathing. His eyes, already red, grew even redder as the blood vessels in his eyes burst one by one.

"Are you... are you of royal blood? Were all your accomplishments due to your inherited lineage—"

"I don’t think this is the time for that kind of nonsense."

Royal blood, my foot.

Ian’s voice was calm as he dispelled the Platinum Barrier.

Only then did terror replace the shock in Felix’s blood-red eyes. He seemed to have just realized how close Ian was—close enough to reach out and touch.

Ian, watching Felix hesitate and retreat, slowly revealed a sharp smile, baring his fangs.

"Don’t worry. I won’t kill you. That would be too merciful."

"W-Wait—"

Before Felix could reach out, Ian’s fist crashed into his face.

Smash!

Despite not using much force, Felix’s head snapped back violently. Maybe due to his dulled senses, his ability to control his strength wasn’t as precise as it should have been.

As Felix’s eyes rolled back, his body sagged backward, but before he could hit the ground, Ian’s hand shot out, grabbing him by the collar and yanking him forward.

Ian didn’t want him dying from something as merciful as cracking his skull on the floor or wall. That would be too quick, too painless. Felix’s limp form dangled from Ian’s grasp, his consciousness hanging by a thread as the psychic waves that filled the room suddenly ceased.

Crash—

Without delay, the individuals frozen in place all crumbled to the floor. They had been unconscious longer than expected due to the last burst of psychic waves that had overwhelmed them.

Ian looked down at Felix, who now hung like a broken puppet in his grip.

Drip...

Blood and broken teeth spilled from Felix’s gaping mouth, and blood flowed steadily from his eyes and nose.

... If he’s unlucky, he might suffocate or bleed out before anything else.

Ian thought dispassionately as he shook Felix’s limp body back and forth.

The desire to pry open this guy’s brain had, of course, long since faded. There was no proper way to extract any useful abilities from him, and the weaknesses seemed too obvious. Setting aside the direct strain it put on the body, it seemed impossible to move quickly while using the ability.

"Asme...! Sir...!" Seras’s gasping breath followed.

Ian finally looked up. Seras, who had been crouching, was now frantically checking on Asme and Phaden.

Ian spoke indifferently. "Are they dead?"

"N-no...! They’re alive and breathing. They just... They just seem to have lost consciousness. Thankfully...." Seras, rambling her response, finally slumped back to the ground with a sigh of relief—a sigh full of genuine relief.

"And I... I’m safe as well...."

The sound of clinking and a hesitant voice followed soon after.

"Thank you for... your concern... my lord...."

Philip, with faltering words, was barely standing. He wobbled like a drunken man, seemingly unable to put much strength into his body, and leaned back against the wall.

Ian nodded. "Yeah. You look fine enough to me."

"It felt like I couldn’t breathe... and at the end, everything went blurry...." Philip gave a somewhat resigned smile.

Ian let out a small laugh and then casually dropped the nearly unconscious Felix. He nudged the fallen man’s body with his foot, turning him over as he added, "Where’s Elie?"

"She’s safe... She’s in the dining hall, still there." Philip brought his fingers to his temple, leaning against the wall.

"She’s still connected... My mind was clear, so I’ve been roughly informing her of the situation."

"Just the situation?"

At Ian’s question, Philip averted his gaze slightly. "I also told her not to come out repeatedly... and, well, to be honest… Just in case, I left a farewell message as well."

I thought he was just whining.

Ian gave a short laugh before continuing, "The servants are probably trapped somewhere. Locate them and get them out. And gather anything that can be used as ropes or bindings."

His gaze swept over the soldiers sprawled across the hall.

"For now, we need to tie them all up."

***

About thirty minutes later, the soldiers, bound and slumped against the wall, regained their senses one by one.

"Trying to kill even us... damn it...."

"Your Highness, please... Please spare us...! If you give us another chance... we will serve you with unwavering loyalty...!"

They pleaded on their knees or while lying on the ground. They were the lucky ones; some never woke up and drew their last breath.

"We were also betrayed...! If only you give us a chance—"

"Everyone, shut your mouths."

The one who spoke while descending the stairs was Phaden. With bloodshot eyes from burst capillaries, he coldly looked over the soldiers and spat out his words.

"Her Highness will decide your fate, so wait quietly and accept it humbly. If anyone speaks nonsense from this moment on, I will behead them."

... Finally, some peace and quiet.

Ian snorted as he chewed on the meat in the dining hall. He had only just started eating, having been busy tying up Felix and the soldiers. He glanced over at Elia, who was sipping beer diagonally across from him, and gestured toward the dishes in front of her.

"Not eating? There’s a lot left."

"I’ve lost my appetite." Elia sighed, crossing her short arms as she put down her drink. "Honestly, the outside world is too dangerous. Even ten lives wouldn’t be enough."

Well, it’s mainly like that if you are around me.

Ian thought to himself with a shrug.

Elia continued in a low voice. "... It’ll probably get worse from now on. The erosion will begin. As long as the Black Wall exists, there won’t be a truly safe place."

She reached out for her glass again, giving Ian a meaningful look. "Even in the capital."

Ian chewed thoughtfully, meeting her gaze. Her mismatched eyes reflected a clear sense of duty. She probably had it before, but it seemed to have grown stronger during her time with Ian.

To Ian, this journey felt relatively peaceful, but apparently, that wasn’t the case for Elia. Well, she had spent her entire life in the safety of the Platinum Dragon’s nest, the most secure place in the world. On the outside, her dwarven resilience hid it well, but Ian wondered if she was feeling something similar to what he had when he first arrived in this world.

"... So, keep studying and researching hard. In the capital."

Ian resumed cutting his pork as he added this, and Elia nodded vigorously. At that moment, the sound of footsteps approached from outside. Shortly after, Philip and Seras entered the dining hall.

Philip looked the same, but Seras was much more presentable than before. She had changed into a dress made of fine fabric and had even lightly powdered her face.

"Are you going somewhere?" Ian asked while popping a piece of meat into his mouth.

Philip sat across from Elia while Seras, standing before the table, nodded.

"There’s a noble in the city who has a close tie to my brother. I’m going to visit him immediately and send a letter to my brother. We need to decide where to imprison Felix and how to deal with the others."

"Is Felix properly secured?"

"Of course. Even if left alone, he won’t be able to move for quite some time. But to be sure, I restrained him again and locked him in the farthest room on the second floor. Just so you know."

Seras then gracefully knelt down, bowing her head. "Thank you sincerely, Sir. You saved our lives. Again."

Ian chewed his meat, looking at Seras with an indifferent gaze.

Seras continued speaking as she was used to his gaze. "Thank you also for handing over the prince. Of course, our gratitude won’t just end with words."

Having gained control over one of their enemies, she would surely use Felix to her advantage, no matter what condition he ended up in. Her character wouldn’t flinch at whatever state Felix might be in.

Standing up again, Seras smiled. "As I mentioned before, the Empire—"

"Forget the gold."Ian cut her off. He glanced at Elia, who was sipping beer, and Philip, who was nibbling on plain bread, before continuing, "Instead, look after these two. At least while they’re in the capital. Be a reliable ally and protector for them."

As Elia and Philip watched in slight surprise, Seras wore a strangely satisfied smile.

"If that’s the case, I’ll do it for as many years as necessary. I’ll take care of them as if they were my own. But..."

Seras suddenly lowered her voice. "Really… How did you do it? Is it possible, as the prince suggested, that you have royal blood? Perhaps you’re a hidden illegitimate child...?"

"An illegitimate child, seriously...."

Ian gave her a dry laugh, looking directly at her. "When you fight monsters, both your body and mind naturally become stronger than those of others. That’s all there is to it. I’d rather avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings."

"... So, you’re really just a superhuman, nothing more. I understand." Seras nodded, looking at Ian with an expression that suggested she found that even more impressive.

It was at that moment that Philip, who had been munching on bread, turned to her.

"What will you do with the soldiers? Sir Phaden is quite firm in his stance, but I feel a bit differently."

"I’m still considering it. They indeed were betrayed, but it’s not like I can fully trust them and wield them as my own. I’d like to give them another chance, but what my brother will decide is out of my control."

"I see...." Philip murmured with a hint of bitterness as Seras turned her gaze back to Ian.

"I’ll try to ensure that there are no delays in our departure tomorrow. If the aftermath takes longer to handle, our departure might be delayed by a few hours. I hope you can be understanding about that."

"Do whatever you need to do. As long as it doesn’t cause me any trouble, I don’t care."

"It won’t be an issue. The three of you should rest easy without any worries. We’ll handle the remaining cleanup."

Seras confidently declared, then blinked as if she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, and all the belongings from the knight and servant that you dealt with will be brought to your room separately. They’re your spoils, after all. If you’d prefer to sell them for money, I can handle that for you."

"I’ll look and let you know tomorrow." Ian gave a casual nod, focusing on his meal.

Seras, watching his indifferent demeanor, spoke again in a noticeably cautious voice.

"... Sir."

"...?"

"Do you truly believe that the First Prince is behind the assassins?"