A Villain's Will to Survive novel Chapter 328

Chapter 328: Lighthouse (3)

"Everything okay?" Quay asked, walking over and chuckling as he glanced between Ria and Deculein.

Without a word, Ria stood up and faced Quay as if to protect Deculein, while mana flared up in her hands.

Quay smiled brightly.

"Desist from your foolish act," Deculein said.

"... But I haven't done anything yet," Ria replied, mumbling with her words as she looked back at Deculein.

Then, Deculein raised his upper body to a sitting position.

"No, you shouldn't be moving. You are not well enough—"

"I am well."

Deculein pushed away Ria, who was trying to stop him, then lightly stood up on his two legs, stretched his neck and wrists, and straightened his clothes.

What an amazing recovery, Ria thought.

"It’s been a while, the child who interpreted the Holy Language. I believe we’ve met before, haven’t we?" Quay said.

At Quay’s words, Ria swallowed hard.

"But why haven't you killed Deculein? You have a perfect chance to kill him right now," Quay added with a warm smile.

That question from Quay was quite impolite and thoughtless, and it made Ria feel uncomfortable.

But I can't hesitate in front of the final boss.

"No, I'm not going to fall for your tricks. We are not going to kill each other," Ria replied, her brow furrowed in a determined look.

"A trick? Oh, you must not know," Quay said. "The lighthouse is practically complete."

“... What?”

That's a bit of a shock. More than a bit, really, Ria thought.

"The only thing left is to wait for the right time," Quay replied.

“... Time?”

"Yes, time. The last ingredient needed for completion."

“What would that be?”

Even the last ingredient was unknown to Ria, which was unsurprising since the completion of the lighthouse meant game over—that is, the destruction of the world—and she had never reached the moment when the last ingredient was required.

"That part's a secret for now~" Quay replied with a bright smile on his face.

"... I mean, then why even bring it up—"

"The starlight, the moonlight, and the light of the comet."

The answer came from behind her, causing Ria’s ears to perk up as she quickly turned to look at Deculein.

As if he had already perfectly recovered, Deculein’s complexion was fine, and he must have used Cleanse in the meantime since there was not a single speck of dust on his clothes. This was indeed pathological—no, a cleanliness obsessive-compulsive disorder that transcended sickness.

"The light of the stars, the moon, and the comet will blend together, and that otherworldly mana will be used to temper the lighthouse for the final time," Deculein continued.

Ria remained silent.

"And that is how the lighthouse will be completed. There is no will in the world that can stop it."

Listening to what Deculein was saying and looking at him, Ria’s eyes narrowed and her brow wrinkled.

"What the end will bring, we'll all find out when the time comes," Deculein concluded, twisting his lips into a sneer.

"... I saved you for nothing," Ria muttered.

"I distinctly remember stating that this was your final opportunity. You're the one who let it go."

Deculein’s eyes swept sharply over Ria, and she felt as if a knife had slid from the crown of her head down to her ankle.

"Quay, what will you do with her?" Deculein inquired.

"What do you want to do with her?" Quay replied with a bright smile.

With her eyes blinking, Ria looked back and forth between Quay and Deculein.

What is going on? I feel like I’m stuck between a bunch of dangerous people, Ria thought.

"If she proves to be a hindrance, I shall kill her. After all, she claims she wishes to die," Deculein said.

"What did you just say?!" Ria barked.

"You were the one who said you would sacrifice your own life to prevent the destruction of the continent," Deculein said, a smile on his face.

"... I mean, that's..." Ria replied, scratching the back of her neck.

The game over ending, to be precise, was a victory in itself because it was a rare branch of the main quest called Hero’s Sacrifice.

"No," Quay said, shaking his head, his eyes on Ria with a strangely affectionate look. "I will not kill you. You are the child who can interpret the Holy Language. I have been watching you for a long time."

Ria remained silent.

"Instead, I would much rather have you by my side."

As such, the final boss was proving that Ria was a player.

"No, that's not going to happen, so just wake up from your dream," Ria replied.

"Hmm~ that's too bad. Deculein had planned to be with me," Quay replied.

Ria glanced at Deculein, whose expression remained exactly the same.

"Deculein, are you planning to return to the Empire?" Quay added.

“Indeed,” Deculein replied.

"It might be dangerous, you know?" Quay asked, a note of concern in his tone.

The final boss worrying about Deculein—this is not something you see every day, Ria thought.

"It is of no concern."

"Is that so? Then never mind," Quay said, immediately accepting Deculein’s words.

"Hmm? Then... Ria?" Quay continued, giving Ria a smile.

Ria gave no reply, and was rather curt.

“After ninety-seven days,” Quay added.

"... Ninety-seven days?" Ria repeated.=

"Yes, in ninety-seven days, a meteor is going to fall."

Only ninety-seven days? That's hundreds of days sooner than the main quest was supposed to happen. Is it because the lighthouse itself is pulling in the comet?

"Work hard until then. We'll see each other again later, then?" Quay concluded.

With those words as his last, Quay disappeared, and like sugar dissolving in water, he was gone in an instant.

"What did you say? You’re the one who said you’d kill me," Ria replied, her eyes narrowing as she looked up at Deculein with clear displeasure. "Go on. Try to kill me."

A moment ago, he said he'd kill me if I was a hindrance, and now he's talking as if he's worried about me. What is he really thinking? Ria thought.

Thud, thud.

What if, on the off chance, he already vaguely knew that I was Yoo Ah-Ra, and that’s why he could distinguish between Yuara, his former fiancée from the game’s setting, and who I am now? In other words, what if he was aware that this world was a game—if he somehow realized it while living in this world...

That can't be. No amount of insight or awareness could ever accept that it is merely a being inside a game.

No matter what, I think it's right to have Deculein stay close for now... Ria thought.

“... Because I am Yoo Ah-Ra.”

However, I soon thought that it could really be true if that was the setting, if Deculein’s former fiancée had died and been reincarnated as the current Ria, and if she had added this setting.

Chairman Deculein's Theory Found to be Plagiarized

Protégé Epherene's disrespectful research was supported in secret by the...

The mass disappearance incident intensifies... with reports pointing to Deculein's protégé, Epherene, as the one responsible.

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