I Became a Dark Fantasy Villain

Chapter 241

Ian sprinted down the corridor strewn with debris from collapsed walls. The spell circuits connecting the ceiling and floor shimmered in a deep purple hue, continuously channeling magic power from beyond.

It feels like the end is getting farther away.

It wasn’t an illusion. The corridor stretched and twisted like a strip of taffy, and the same was true for the intermittently crumbling walls.

—...The Order leads the exploitation of the people, while the royal house is fixated only on greater power and the Emperor’s achievements. Those who oppose are all sent beyond the Black Wall.

The condensed chaos energy in the distance was likely related. The magic flowing through the spell circuits was also directed there. At the end of it all, the Duke was probably being reborn as a new entity.

This meant that a demon’s domain was in the process of forming. Once the Duke opened his eyes, the domain would be complete. From that point on, not even the touch of the gods would be able to reach inside. Until the power of the void’s mark that the Duke had obtained was fully exhausted.

If they could reconnect the mark to the void before that happened, a permanent domain would be established. This process should have been completed before he fully transformed into a demon, but Ian’s sudden arrival had simply reversed the sequence.

—...Neither the royal house nor the Order truly believes that the imperial legion and the former Crown Prince still survive beyond the wall. They claim this to maintain control over the vassals and subject nations. The Empire is fundamentally corrupt.

Even so, the Duke’s voice continued relentlessly. It wasn’t surprising; he was probably enveloped in a tremendous sense of liberation and exhilaration. Ian was listening, just in case, but most of it was unwanted nonsense.

"...!" That’s when Ian suddenly tightened his eyes and slid to a stop, with Mev stopping abruptly, confused.

Crash!

A few meters ahead, Charlotte burst through a wall, her back smashing it to pieces. Her face was smeared with blood, marked by a vicious cut from above her eye to her chin, likely inflicted by Palmer as he clutched her neck.

Rumble—

Ian’s frown deepened, and it wasn’t just because Charlotte was being overpowered.

As Palmer pushed Charlotte across his path, gray mists swirled around his body like afterimages. His raised left fist seemed poised for a strike, and even the tip of his tail mirrored this readiness.

This was a harsh and brutal type of chaos power Ian had never seen before. Palmer’s eyes, tainted gray, showed no trace of reason—only sheer wildness.

"----!"

With a roar akin to that of a beast, Palmer pushed Charlotte to the opposite wall. The wall crumbled, and they disappeared beyond it. The ground thundered loudly, and it wasn’t hard to infer that Charlotte had been brutally slammed into the floor.

... She’ll die if I leave her.

Ian hesitated just as he was about to follow.

"...?!" His gaze involuntarily shifted to his left arm, which had grown searingly hot as though scorched by an iron. Red divine power began to spread over Ian’s arm, with the heat swiftly climbing up to his shoulder.

What do you want, you motherfucker?

"Krrr..."

"Ugh... ah...."

As Ian gritted his teeth, horrific creatures began to crawl out from beyond the corridor. They were mutated ghouls, appearing as if two or three had been grotesquely fused together. Not only were there the mutated forms of the mansion’s servants and maids, but also those who had been transformed so long ago that they were now desiccated.

These were likely byproducts of the ritual that granted control through the mark, or perhaps familiars secretly prepared in advance. Regardless, it didn’t really matter.

What a perfect timing.

The important thing was that these creatures were incredibly fast. The familiars crawled with astonishing speed, not just on the floor but also upside down on the ceiling.

Tap-tap—

It was then that Mev squeezed past Ian. Recognizing something was wrong with him, she immediately took action.

"I’ll handle this. You go to Charlotte."

Leaving only her words behind, she dashed off, scattering a red streak behind her. Ian didn’t respond. In fact, he wasn’t in a state to respond as the heat had already surged up to his throat.

"Oh— Ohhhh!"

Fuck.

Ian internally cursed at Karha as he roared, his divine shout resonating through the air. The pain and heat quickly subsided. No more divine power surged.

Crack! Snap.

Observing Mev cutting down and striking the familiars like a human tank, Ian gasped for breath. Soon, with a smirk curling at one corner of his mouth, he moved forward. Beyond the collapsed wall, he saw the ash-covered back of Palmer.

The moment he spotted Charlotte pinned beneath Palmer, Ian’s expression twisted even more. Charlotte’s hand, which had caught and blocked Palmer’s descending fist, was smeared with crimson holy power. Her trembling grip slowly pushed Palmer’s arm back.

So, are you saying that fight looks more interesting to you? What about me? You asshole.

Even as he thought this, Ian adjusted his grip on the sword.

"I’m fine...! Ian...!" Charlotte’s muffled shout burst out as she pushed back Palmer’s fist, quickly adding, "I’ll handle him! So go...!"

You’re telling me not to interfere, right?

Swallowing a smirk, Ian shrugged his shoulders and started running again. Having received the Blessing of Battle, she wasn’t going to be overwhelmed easily. Though feeling oddly like a buff bot was still present.

—You really are amazing, Dragon Slayer. To be a mage and yet a Great Warrior of that Barbaric God... But it will be futile. The age of light has ended. Did you know that was one of the reasons the Round Table Parliament was formed? The senators all hope for a new era to begin, each with their own utopia to paint...

I don’t feel his gaze. How is he looking at me? What, is he a bat?

Thinking, Ian continued his sprint.

Before long, chopped and crushed body parts formed a path.

Even amidst the slaughter, Mev’s advance hardly slowed. Her continuously swinging sword was redder than ever, symbolizing her will to achieve vengeance.

The redness of Mev’s silhouette was not just from wearing the blood of the familiars.

—... I already knew that the balance of the Round Table would eventually collapse. Everyone probably knew. That’s why the Guide also used you to control me. In truth, the outcome wouldn’t have been different even without you. The age of chaos and darkness has already begun... and I have been waiting for this era to open...

Without pausing, Mev’s sword suddenly stopped. Not because Ian had reached her side, but because no more enemies were blocking the path. She had single-handedly sliced through over twenty familiars.

Once again, the end of the corridor came into view.

"Sir!"

The spell circuits on the ceiling flickered as if they had been waiting for this moment.

Swoosh—

As Ian shouted, Mev quickly halted and crouched down, kneeling on one knee, much like Ian. The cloaks they wore unfurled and sprang up, each generating three layers of golden force fields.

Boom-boom-boom.

A purple shockwave swept through the corridor, blasting the remains of the familiars to pieces. However, only one layer of the golden hexagonal field had been broken. Beneath it, Ian was just slightly deafened. Mev was probably the same.

Judging by the roars and rumbles echoing from behind, it seemed Charlotte and Palmer had not been swept away by the shockwave.

This thing’s really something.

Ian couldn’t help but admire the robe fluttering above him. The platinum blessing engraved on this cloak was a Mantra that could create up to three shields simultaneously. It could be layered like now or extended to widen the range.

Of course, their performance was incomparably better than ordinary force fields. While the robes couldn’t be moved during the deployment of the fields and there was a limit on the number of uses, the uses would automatically replenish over time.

It was clear that the Mantra absorbed and refined magic on its own. The fact that it couldn’t be recharged if placed in a pocket dimension was proof of this.

It’s a pity it doesn’t have a durability recovery option and that it is ridiculously conspicuous.

With a crack, another layer of the force field shattered, but the shockwave was already noticeably subsiding.

—The influence of the gods will continue to diminish. The dawn you hope for will not come either, because I will make it so. In the world I create, there will be no hunger, no pain, and not even death...

And no free will either, you dumbass.

Ian chuckled inwardly and looked at Mev.

Her breathing was becoming rough, and her entire body was increasingly tinged with red, as divine power softly swirled around her like blood. It was a phenomenon Ian had seen before, just before stepping into the demonic realm.

"Follow me slowly." Ian retracted the force fields and lunged forward. His ashen gaze focused beyond the corridor, which ended in ruins.

The distance seemed unnaturally far, likely due to spatial distortion—probably the heart of the domain.

Has the height changed too?

Even as he thought this, Ian didn’t hesitate and leaped forward. His body arced over the corridor.

Whoosh—

The Wind Blade he cast while running supported his leap.

With his sword raised above his head, Ian took in the unfolded scene. Thanks to his heightened Concentration and Intuition, everything was perceived slowly and clearly.

The center of the mansion had collapsed as if someone had dug it out. The space was vast enough to be considered the interior of a castle. The passageways of the four collapsed floors revealed their cross-sections, and below them, the debris of the ruined building was piled up.

...No wonder there was such sensory disruption.

However, Ian, with his Magic Detection activated, first noticed the stagnant void magic power below. The spell circuits connected from all the hallways formed a huge geometric pattern under the debris.

The magic power contained within had become almost motionless, as if it had pooled. The magic power at the center of the pattern surged upward like veins, shimmering. In reality, the center of the debris protruded like a trophy, resembling an altar for a very sacrilegious ritual.

That was likely the case, as a large, purple-glowing mass lay on top of it like an egg. The surface of the purple egg writhed with a fibrous texture, reminiscent of Ian’s skin when he had once merged with chaos.

Thump—

As the fragment of the void cried out, Ian took in the silhouette being reborn within it. The purple magic power vividly traced the shape of the nervous system and blood vessels.

Though it resembled a human’s, there were clear differences. The horn-like protrusions on either side of the head and the elongated sections from each shoulder were particularly distinct.

Still, he probably looks better than when I saw him in the game.

However, it wasn’t yet fully grown. The nerve and blood vessel endings writhed like leeches, and the spell circuit below began to flicker as if about to release magic power.

Shwaa!

It was clear it was about to unleash another shockwave, but Ian didn’t retreat. Instead, the wind seemed to propel him forward.

Ian’s eyes, now a deep red, were filled with the rapidly approaching purple egg. Purifier’s Truesilver Steel Sword traced a white arc through the air.

Crack!

The blade lodged into the surface of the egg, feeling like it was cutting through tough leather. Ian completed his spell almost simultaneously. The white blade quickly turned red hot.

Kaboom!

Flames erupted from the blade, an unnaturally vivid crimson. Not only did the flames engulf the egg’s surface, but they also boiled within where the blade was embedded.

Ian placed a foot on the blade’s surface and leaped backward.

Sizzle, crackle—

Just before hitting the rubble, two layers of shields unfurled behind Ian’s back, forming a slanted surface. Landing on his back and head, Ian winced slightly.

However, he wasn’t thrown back like before. The shield’s surface had slightly flexed, dispersing the impact.

Despite feeling a slight dizziness from the immense magic consumption, Ian observed the egg’s surface. The crimson flames atop it were burning in a crown-like shape.

Even with chaos power mixed in, it’s unexpectedly plain considering the immense magic it consumed.

Of course, its firepower wouldn’t be plain. It was the fiercest Hellfire, which wouldn’t extinguish until its power was completely spent.

Well, maybe it’s for the best.

Red magic was harder to use effectively the wider its range. High-level spells like Hellfire Barrage or Fire Shower, though powerful, were rarely practical.

Not that I could avoid learning them.

With that thought, Ian extended his left hand toward the flames.

Whoosh—

The Hellfire, which had been rising upward, flowed like lava, enveloping the entire egg. He had used the Flame Backlash. The altar, now engulfed in the unquenchable crimson flames, began to melt.

The inside of the egg was boiling as well. It would be enough to roast the Duke within.

—Red magic...?

The Duke’s voice echoed just as the magic within the egg flickered out.

Kaboom—

The egg exploded into fragments, scattering purple light everywhere. The condensed magic inside spread like mist, and the flaming egg shards burst out like fireworks.

Crackle—

As another layer of the shield unfurled in front of Ian, it blocked the shockwave and sparks. The Hellfire didn’t scatter but rather clung to the spreading magic. The influence of the Flame Backlash seemed to be reversing the wave. Sparks rained down like a storm between the gaps.

Rumble.

Amidst the shimmering cloud of fire in the air, a silhouette became clear in the dense mist.

Kralen, reborn as a demon, stood atop the half-melted rubble. His size wasn’t much different from when he was human. However, he now had ram-like horns protruding from both temples, and his body was covered in a purple exoskeleton-like carapace. Long wing bones extended from either side of his back, revealing finger-like joints.

The membranes that should have enveloped the wings had not yet formed. His skin was so thin that his purple veins were clearly visible.

It was clear that he had awoken in an imperfect state. Yet, he looked down at Ian as if it didn’t matter at all. His horizontally slit pupils flickered.

—You are a much more interesting existence than I thought….

Amidst the rain of fire, his lips moved. His voice still echoed throughout the mansion.

—Not only are you a mage, but you have mastered various types of magic. I can even sense the power of chaos within you. Do the gods know of this? No…. There is no need for you to answer.

Kralen smiled, revealing his serrated teeth.

—I will capture you and find out for myself.

"Typical spellcasters, always the same…." Ian muttered.

The force field supporting his back dissipated. Landing on the debris below, he continued speaking.

"They lose their minds over anything curious."

His lips curled into a slight smirk as he looked back up at Kralen.

"And their field of vision narrows."

—-That’s only natural......?!

Kralen’s gaze suddenly shot upward. He had finally sensed the presence concealed by the heat and magic of hellfire. A red streak, even more vivid than the fiery clouds, filled his vision.