I Became the Villain’s Master - Chapter 131

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Chapter 131

* * *

Whoosh.

Noctis gazed at the light emanating from the sacred relic.

‘It’s familiar.’

Though he was certain he was seeing it for the first time, it felt strangely familiar, like a memory resurfacing. He couldn’t shake the feeling he had shown this relic to Rosette before…

‘Why does my heart ache?’

Lost in thought, Noctis finally noticed the shift. His eyes widened as he saw Rosette vanish along with the relic.

“Lady Rosette!”

He quickly channeled his divine power, attempting to trace her. The relic, a nexus of divine power, glowed even brighter than before.

‘She’s communing with the divine.’

Noctis breathed a sigh of relief and offered a prayer. The act felt foreign yet familiar. The light pouring from the relic was divine, yet it held a different energy.

‘Have I felt this energy before…?’

A sudden, sharp pain pierced his head. Noctis clutched his head.

“Ugh.”

Then, a memory surfaced.

* * *

‘Your Holiness! Monsters are attacking the temple!’

Priests, faces smeared with blood, cried out desperately. Lifeless bodies lay scattered around them, a gruesome tableau. If hell existed, it was surely here. The once pure and sacred temple now reeked of blood. Noctis was evacuating the priests, striving to minimize casualties, but the endless tide of monsters was overwhelming.

Kraagh!

A long-time companion was torn apart before his eyes. Warm blood splattered Noctis’s face. He fought to maintain his composure, clinging to the hope that there was still a chance. In that moment—

Kaboom!

A deafening roar ripped through the air as a section of the temple crumbled. Believing it was the end, Noctis resolved to buy time, even at the cost of his own life.

‘We will hold them back! Your Holiness, quickly, the sacred relic…!’

The priests formed a protective barrier around Noctis, fighting with the courage of desperation. But they were no match for the monstrous horde. A man with bloodshot, crimson eyes appeared, and the temple fell swiftly under his power. Noctis, tears welling in his eyes, fled to the underground chamber where the relic was kept.

‘Gasp…gasp…’

Driven by the divine message he had received the previous night, a premonition of the future, Noctis raced towards the relic.

[You have but one chance.]

To sacrifice a noble soul and restore balance to the world. That was Noctis’s burden to bear.

‘What are you planning?’

The silver-haired, crimson-eyed man who had followed him sneered.

‘Kiris.’

The Noctis in the memory spoke the name clearly. Kiris. The youngest Master of the Magic Tower, a devotee of evil. He slowly parted his red lips.

‘I don’t understand why you try to protect this world.’

Kiris’s sole desire was to destroy the world and usher in an era ruled by demons.

‘Humanity is finished.’

That was the world Kiris craved. Noctis, his gaze filled with pity, spoke resolutely.

‘A world ruled by demons, built upon the sacrifice of so many lives, has no right to exist.’

‘Is that so? Look around you. These weak humans can’t even handle a single monster.’

Menacing magical energy surged from Kiris’s hand.

‘Hahaha!’

Hearing the madness in his laughter, Noctis swiftly channeled his divine power into the relic, instinctively pouring every ounce of his being into it. Kiris’s laughter abruptly ceased. He quickly unleashed a spell towards Noctis, but—

Thud!

A protective barrier erupted from the relic, shielding Noctis. The magical attack dissipated harmlessly, the spell extinguished.

‘This world will rise again.’

Noctis coughed up blood, a faint smile playing on his lips. He winced at the agonizing pain that twisted his insides, but he squeezed out the last of his divine power.