How Could the Villainous Young Master Be a Saintess?

After falling from the shattered man-eating flower, Shicodale twisted in midair and landed atop a tree. Dropping to one knee, he stared gravely at Vinny.

“You thought hiding among a bunch of flowers and weeds would let you trade blows with this young master?” Vinny cracked his knuckles. “If I felt like it, I could uproot this entire field in an instant.”

With that, Vinny plunged the crimson demonic sword into the ground.

Dark-red skeletons devoid of vitality crawled from the earth around [Blood-Debt]. Carrying a murky, corrupting force, they spread outward in a widening circle. Wherever they passed, flowers and grass withered, and trees shed their leaves.

[Nightfall Withering]

What is that??

Shicodale frowned.

The crimson skeletons released by [Blood-Debt] were plundering the plants’ vitality to nourish themselves.

Those horrifying crawling skeletons did not prey solely upon humans. Every living creature—anything possessing life—would have its vitality stolen away.

They were like a swarm of ravenous locusts.

Shicodale moved with remarkable agility, flipping backward to evade them. At the same time, several thick thorny vines erupted beneath him. They twisted together to form a wall of thorns in an attempt to block the skeletons.

It accomplished nothing.

The hunched, crawling skeletons passed straight through the wall, leaving behind nothing but shriveled fragments of dead thorns.

Shicodale gritted his teeth. Realizing that his magic would only provide more fuel for the enemy, he had no choice but to avoid the attack and keep retreating.

He could move extraordinarily fast inside a forest.

Even so, the skeletons grew increasingly exhilarated as they continued devouring vitality. Their crawling speed accelerated until it became grotesquely fast, their fleshless white claws frantically dragging them forward.

Shicodale cast the elven spell [Ranger’s Swiftness] upon his feet.

Yet even with the enhancement, the relentless army of skeletons was about to seize his hair.

A single silver strand drifted loose from the ends of the elf’s hair.

The next instant, the skeleton army swallowed it. The strand turned pale, shriveled, and lusterless, just like the dead trees and withered grass whose life had been drained away.

Shicodale had already reached his maximum speed, but the skeleton army was still accelerating.

He did not need to look back. He could feel them reaching for the ends of his hair and the collar of his clothes.

If those skeletons touched him, they would devour him until not even his bones remained.

At the last possible moment, just as the skeleton army reached the ends of his hair, it vanished without a trace, dissolving into insubstantial shadows.

Shicodale tumbled across the ground several times before landing in a rather undignified sitting position.

He pulled his hair around in front of him and examined it. A small lock at the very end had become dry and coarse like wheat beneath the blazing sun, standing in stark contrast to the smooth, lustrous hair above it.

From that alone, he could tell that the skeletons’ claws had already reached his hair at the most dangerous moment.

A leaf-shaped blade formed in Shicodale’s hand. Without hesitation, he cut off the withered section.

When he looked ahead again, the formerly lush park had been left with an enormous bald patch spreading outward from its center.

Shicodale glanced at the remaining forest around him.

There was no longer enough vegetation for him to fully unleash an elf’s power.

“My, my, little tagalong. You’re still alive?” Applause rang out.

A figure sauntered leisurely across the barren soil, which had been stripped of all vitality.

“I underestimated you. You run even faster than a wild rabbit. You almost managed to outrun my [Nightfall Withering].”

“Your strategy was to use this sprawling forest to fight a guerrilla battle against me, wasn’t it? You planned to rely on your elven racial talents—your agility in the forest and the various magical enhancements available to you—to keep dragging things out until you found an opportunity to escape.”

“What a pity. You still underestimated me.”

Resting [Blood-Debt] across his shoulder, Vinny approached the kneeling Shicodale with a cheerful smile.

“Now that the little rabbit’s forest is gone, where will you hide?” Vinny teased.

Shicodale said nothing.

He knew that a mere Junior Magus like himself was nowhere near enough to challenge this man.

Although he could not detect the impostor’s true level of strength at all, his exceptionally keen senses told him that the gulf between them was far from small.

Once the difference in realm became great enough, no amount of technique could overcome it.

Besides, even when it came to skill, strategy, and underhanded tricks, Shicodale was not certain he could defeat his opponent.

He could tell that this impostor was highly intelligent. A single glance had been enough for the man to see through his intentions.

Put simply, the difference in their raw strength was so vast that every technique was meaningless.

“Out of moves already, little tagalong?”

The flickering crystal lamps nearby stretched Vinny’s shadow across the ground. An evil crimson light glimmered in his eyes, while a mass of dark energy composed of skulls hovered above his palm.

Shicodale could sense dark-element mana overflowing from the impostor’s body.

It was probably related to his Spirit Soul. His Spirit Soul must have possessed extraordinarily high compatibility with dark-element magic.

But...

Why?

Even though Shicodale was now utterly certain that this man was not the real Vinny, why did his face and presence still seem completely genuine?

“If you’ve run out of moves, then you already know what awaits you, don’t you? Don’t blame me for not giving you a chance.”

“Come now, don’t look at me like that. That isn’t the expression you should be making. Show me some fear. A little despair.” Vinny shook his head as he studied Shicodale’s gaze. “Looking at me like that is no fun at all.”

“No, this won’t do. Even eating you would be boring when you’re making that face. Oh, I understand now. You’ve never seen me eat a person before, so you aren’t afraid. You think it can’t be anything worse than dying, don’t you? Heh heh heh...”

Vinny let out a chilling laugh.

“You’ll soon discover that it isn’t merely death. It is something ten thousand times deeper and more terrifying than death!”

“Why don’t I give you a demonstration?”

Grinning, Vinny ran a hand along the blade of [Blood-Debt] while searching the streets for someone to use as an example.

Shicodale’s fingers tightened slightly.

All he could do was pray that no one happened to pass through this area.

Unfortunately, his wish went unanswered.

Not long after Vinny finished speaking, several sets of footsteps sounded from around the corner.

“Oh? Let’s see what our lucky winners look like.”

Vinny had naturally heard them as well. Smiling happily, he turned toward the intersection.

“Your Eminence! Your Eminence, wait for us!”

Several different voices came from around the corner, followed by a group of people.

“That dark-red light rising into the sky definitely came from this direction. There’s no mistaking it. The beam carried a decaying power capable of withering living things,” a cherry-haired girl murmured.

The instant she rounded the corner, she saw Shicodale and Vinny and froze.

“Upperclassman Dale? Is that you? And...?”

The cherry-haired girl looked toward the black-robed man confronting him. Her eyes immediately widened.

“U-Upperclassman Vinny??”

“Didn’t you disappear?” Margaret asked in astonishment.

“My, my. Of all people, it had to be you. What a coincidence.”

When Vinny saw Margaret, he casually hefted the demonic sword in his hand and smiled meaningfully.

“Judging by your tone, you seem surprised. Are you disappointed to discover that I’m still here and never disappeared?”

“No! Why would I be?” Margaret blinked several times. “Why would you say that, Upperclassman Vinny? More importantly, where have you been these past few days?”

“You want to know?” Vinny’s lips curved upward. “Come here, and I’ll tell you all about it.”

“Your Eminence, don’t go near him!”

Before Margaret could react, Mason, Mongel, and the others behind her hurriedly shouted.

“Well, well, Vinny. You always pretended to be such a good man, but you’ve finally shown your true colors!” Mongel stared vigilantly at Vinny, having noticed the crimson demonic sword in his hand. “You almost convinced everyone that you had actually turned over a new leaf.”

“Your Eminence, don’t go over there! Can’t you see what that bastard is holding?”

“That is...?” Margaret had naturally noticed the crimson sword and the living blood vessels pulsing across its surface.

“That is [Blood-Debt], the most evil of all evil Divine Armaments!” Mongel frowned. “So that’s how it is, Vinny. On the surface, you pretended to be harmless and good-natured, but behind everyone’s backs, you contracted [Blood-Debt] and used it to prey upon the others at the Academy!”

“I understand now. You staged your own disappearance to draw everyone’s attention away from you and remove yourself from suspicion. Then you would be free to attack the other students without restraint.”

“Kero and those two instructors who disappeared earlier—they all fell victim to you, didn’t they?” Mongel demanded.

“Oh?”

Vinny leaned against [Blood-Debt] and merely smiled without answering.

“Go on. Keep talking.”

“You created those chaotic black clouds in the sky too, didn’t you? Your goal was to divide us into countless isolated groups and eliminate us one by one.”

“And you’re also responsible for the invisible wall surrounding the Academy and preventing everyone from leaving!” Mongel accused heatedly.

“Why not just say this young master is responsible for every bad thing in the entire world?” Vinny spread his hands. “I’ll admit to all of it anyway.”

“You’re still refusing to admit it? Wasn’t all of this your doing? Without you, this world would be peaceful! You’re an impostor and a destabilizing element, and your existence is what led to this situation!”

Mongel’s voice rose further.

“One rat turd ruined the entire pot! You should bear full responsibility for everyone who has died!”

“My, my. Why are Church people so fond of piling accusations onto others in every world?” Vinny joked. “One charge after another, all dumped onto this young master’s head. Who could endure that?”

“You are the culprit. Are you denying it?” Mongel demanded.

“Of course I admit it. You’re absolutely right.” Vinny smiled. “In the eyes of brain-dead fools like you, who possess neither intelligence nor judgment and turn right and wrong on their heads, this young master is naturally black to the core.”

“But even if I am, does that make you spotless?”

Vinny’s gaze then settled upon Margaret.

“No matter how black I may be, I’m still better than certain treasonous scum who manufactured a Saintess to deceive the public.”

“Stop trying to confuse the issue.”

“Confuse the issue?” Vinny chuckled. “Do you truly have no idea where that ‘Dawn Saintess’ beside you came from?”

“What an eye-opening spectacle. The Church of the Dawn took an impostor with no connection whatsoever to any Dawn Saintess of past generations, no virtue, no ability, and not a single drop of Facilis blood, then tried to pass her off as the genuine article.”

“Did you think everyone else was as stupid as you and incapable of recognizing a fake?”

“Hahaha! Vinny, you’ve become so desperate that you’re lashing out at anyone you can!” Mongel mocked him. “You actually dare call our Saintess a fake? Then who is the real one? Go on, tell us!”

“Who could it be? You?”

Mongel laughed contemptuously.

“Did I hear that correctly? A monstrous fiend who secretly colluded with an evil Divine Armament and slaughtered his own kind is claiming to be the true descendant of Facilis?”

“Does the Goddess know? Do all the Dawn Saintesses throughout history know that you’re supposedly their descendant?”

“Now we have conclusive evidence that you attacked other students. Once we confirm the truth of your murders, do you really think you’ll be able to escape?”

“Vinny, you’ll be hunted throughout all of human society, just like the evil Divine Armament in your hand.”

“You’re finished.”

Mongel pronounced every word distinctly.

“Wow! This young master is going to be hunted by all of human society! How terrifying!”

Vinny put on an exaggerated performance of fear.

“Was that convincing enough? Should I cooperate with you by acting like this?”

“Enjoy your arrogance while you can, Vinny. Honestly, after going to such lengths to maintain your act for so long, you might as well never have bothered.”

“Fabricating a Saintess’s identity to seize power and profit is practically your family business—an ancestral trade. That alone proves you were born rotten. You’re the kind of filth that can never change.”

“Even if you had been sent to kneel at the Goddess’s feet and repent from childhood, she still couldn’t have cleansed the malice and depravity buried in your bones—”

Before Mongel could finish, something struck his left cheek and whipped his face to the right.

A moment later, another blow landed on his right cheek and snapped his head back to the left.

“You!”

Mongel stood stunned after being slapped twice, both cheeks burning painfully.

He glared furiously at Vinny.

“What are you staring at?” Vinny sneered. “This young master wasn’t the one who hit you. Had I done it, your head would already be flying somewhere in the distance.”

He then turned in mild surprise toward Shicodale.

The elf stood some distance away, staring coldly at Mongel as though looking at a piece of garbage.

“Human, watch your mouth. Insult him again, and it won’t stop at two slaps next time,” Shicodale said coldly.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

Seeing the vine that had erupted beneath his feet, Mongel realized who had struck him. His fury was joined by utter incomprehension.

“Oh! I understand now! You Moon Elf are actually that bastard’s accomplice, aren’t you?” Mongel shouted.

“Don’t lump me together with him. Are you blind?” Shicodale demanded with overwhelming force. “Can’t you see that he isn’t the real Vinny?”