THE PERFECT VILLAIN: Another chance with a system
Chapter 30: An Epic End

Chapter 30: An Epic End

Mira, Mia, and Anna had barely stepped out of the village hall when the sky split open.

A massive boulder came crashing down from above, far larger than the village itself, tearing through the air with terrifying speed.

For one frozen second, Mira and the girls could only stare.

Then Mira moved.

Without hesitation, she scooped both girls into her arms and rushed toward the village exit.

"Mira screamed, "Sir Lance!!"

All around them, villagers and adventurers were already scrambling toward the exit in blind panic, but it was hopeless. Even with two strong legs, the distance was too far to cross in time.

From afar, Sir Lance looked at them and gave a small wave, a smile still resting on his face.

Mia and Anna broke into tears, but Mira did not stop. Not even once.

Her mind raced as she kept glancing up at the falling death above them.

Damn it. We’re not going to make it. It’s too fast. It can’t end like this. It can’t!

Then Niel’s words returned to her, clear as if he were standing beside her.

"Whatever you do, survive. No matter how sad, or how much you lose, as long as you are alive—survive."

No. We can. I have to survive. No matter what.

She activated her elemental skill at once, drawing on the wind to push herself forward as the meteor descended behind them.

One last time, she looked back at Velroth.

Luna. Dan. The villagers. Every happy moment they had shared flashed through her mind in a rush of pain and light.

A tear slipped down her cheek.

Then she faced forward and forced herself on.

I must survive. For everyone’s sake, we must live!

***

On the mountain, Amira watched the meteor strike the village while Vael wore a smug look beside her.

The impact thundered through the ground.

A sound followed almost immediately, deep and violent, and then the explosion bloomed outward with such force that it swallowed the entire view from where they stood.

Amira’s body went still.

Just by estimating the distance between the meteor’s appearance and the point of impact, only a B-rank adventurer could have survived that. And even then, they would have come away scarred.

There had been no B-rank adventurers in the village at the time.

Tears streamed down her face as she stared at the ruin below, certain that no one had survived.

"It’s all my fault."

The words left her in a broken whisper.

"Yes, it is," Vael replied, fully aware the line was not meant for him.

"Why did they have to pay for my sins? This wasn’t you, Aurelian."

Her voice shook so badly it nearly collapsed on itself.

"Yes, it isn’t. I am Vael now."

Vael watched her in silence.

She met his gaze for a moment, then looked away again, still crying. Everything she had saved had been erased before her eyes. All that remained was the memory of what she had lost.

Vael lifted his hand toward her.

He was ready to end it.

"I would give you one last favor. I would leave your blade here for you. If you even get reborn into this world, or get a second chance at life, you could come for it and maybe—"

He paused, his gaze drifting to the sword once more.

"—and maybe this time, you would play the hero properly."

Amira looked up at him but said nothing.

Vael’s hand stayed pointed at her.

"Spatial Compaction."

The space around her tightened.

Slowly.

Painfully.

It compressed until she was nothing more than a smear of blood and flesh.

Vael stared at the cave for a while after that, then turned and walked out.

Below him, the village was gone.

Not a single trace remained of what had once stood there. No walls. No roofs. No roads.

Only a vast crater carved into the earth.

He looked down at the destruction for a long moment, and then a smile spread across his lips.

It widened.

Then it became laughter.

"Look at it, isn’t it magnificent, Claire?"

"Certainly it is, Lord Vael. An epic end."

"Soon, the whole world will be a layer of earth, dust, and debris. It will be filled with fire, smoke, and stone. Both the human world and the demon world."

He stepped closer to the cliff’s edge and spread his hands wide, just as before.

Then he drew in a deep breath while birds and small animals fled the disaster site in scattered panic.

Vael’s voice rang out across the ruin.

"IT’S TIME FOR A GRAND RUIN. LET THE WORLD LEARN MY NAME."

He walked to the side of the cave where he had left Aurelian’s blade, picked it up, and said nothing.

Then he struck.

The cave mouth shattered in a violent burst and collapsed inward, sealing Amira’s blade inside.

For a moment, he only stood there, staring at the ruined entrance.

Then he turned away.

The next kingdom would be larger.

More complex.

Warstone Kingdom.

He already knew it would be more difficult than Velroth, but he was ready for it.

And he would not stop until everything burned.

As he headed toward the kingdom, he slowly shifted back into Niel, his sword sliding into its sheath as he walked.

"Claire: Lord Vael, do you have a place in mind?"

"Certainly. Warstone Kingdom, of course. Luna is still alive, and it’s also where I’ll find information about the other heroes and the church. After all, it’s the kingdom I was murdered in."

"Claire: So it’s a revenge plan?"

Vael laughed for a while.

"No. It’s retribution."

***

Far from the village, somewhere in the debris, a small dome of earth cracked open.

Something forced its way out.

A girl’s blonde hair appeared first as she lifted her head, trying to understand what had happened.

Another hand broke through the broken soil beside her. Long black hair caught the light as Anna sat up slowly.

"Anna."

Mia’s voice came out barely above a whisper.

Anna turned toward her.

Mia was sitting up too, bruised and dazed, but alive. She looked down at herself, then back at Anna.

They were injured.

Bloodied.

But not broken.

Then, almost at once, they remembered.

"Mira!"

Panic rushed through them both.

They began clawing through the dome in a hurry, tearing the dirt apart until a body lay exposed beneath it.

Mira.

Her body was badly bruised, her arm twisted, part of her face burnt and bloodied. She was still bleeding heavily.

Mia and Anna fell to their knees beside her, shaking her and calling her name.

Only then did they realize the blood on them wasn’t theirs.

It was Mira’s.

Mia lifted Mira’s head and screamed.

"Mira, wake up. Mira. Wake up!!!"