Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 1
Within the borders of the Asteria Kingdom, situated to the east of the continental heartland.
There was a modest chamber tucked away on the second floor of Count Palatio’s manor, located in the southern province.
“……Was the mission executed successfully?”
“Yes, it was, Young Master.”
The knight remained standing, bowing his head toward the man resting upon the bed.
“Following your orders, I liberated the orphans from the small village in the eastern kingdom… or rather, the victims held within the human experimentation facility.”
“And did you ensure the orphanage’s future was secured?”
“Indeed. As you directed, I placed the management of the orphanage into the hands of a girl named Yutia.”
“…Have the negotiations with the baron’s family overseeing that village concluded?”
“Yes. The moment they were confronted with the evidence of their human experimentation, they surrendered to every demand, including the deed to the entire castle.”
With those words, the knight, Evan, retrieved a leather pouch from his tunic and set it atop Alon’s bedside table.
“Excellent.”
Alon peered into the pouch, a satisfied grin forming as he glimpsed the glint of gold coins.
“Young Master, if I might ask a question…?”
After a brief pause, Evan found his voice.
“What is it?”
“You claimed the objective of raiding Baron Alfon’s secret facility was to rescue that girl, Yutia, correct?”
Alon gave a slight nod, prompting him to continue. Evan complied.
“…She was truly remarkable. I have spent many years as a mercenary, yet she was unlike anyone I’ve seen.”
Evan hesitated, organizing his thoughts before speaking again.
“It is difficult to fathom why a girl possessing such terrifying power was being held captive in that place.”
“And?”
“…Why did you simply leave her at the orphanage instead of bringing her here?”
Alon stayed silent, absorbing the question that clearly stemmed from the knight's confusion.
From a logical standpoint, Evan was right. Rescuing someone as powerful as Yutia only to leave her idle seemed like a waste of resources.
However, that was merely the perspective of someone living in this world. Alon saw things through a much different lens.
Yutia.
Her full name was Yutia Bludia.
In a decade’s time, she would rise as the "Sin of Wrath," one of the Five Great Sins. She was destined to erase two of the five allied kingdoms from the map, leaving hundreds of thousands of corpses in her wake.
If anyone wondered how Alon knew the future, it was because he was a reincarnated soul. Furthermore, he knew this reality was destined for total annihilation in ten years—the setting of a dark fantasy RPG titled “Psychedelia.”
“Sigh.”
Alon massaged his aching forehead, letting out a heavy breath as he recalled the moment he woke up in this body two months ago.
At first, when Alon realized he had been reborn into a fantasy realm, he spent three days in a state of pure despair. Yet, as he settled in, the circumstances didn't seem entirely miserable.
Being a noble was, surprisingly, a very comfortable gig.
The aristocratic lifestyle was the epitome of ease. He could wake, sleep, and eat whenever he pleased, indulging in whatever whims struck him.
Even though he was merely the third son of a count with zero political influence, it was a position that allowed him to enjoy life’s luxuries without any of the burdens of leadership.
Initially, he was quite content.
For a man who had previously slaved away for 78 hours a week at a dead-end job, the life of a Young Master was an unimaginable paradise.
The lack of internet—the crown jewel of modern society—was a painful loss, but the perks of nobility were enough to soften the blow.
That peace, however, was fleeting.
Alon’s outlook turned grim the moment he realized the continent was called Ampelan.
…And the dread deepened when he remembered that his new family was the House of Count Palatio.
Ampelan was the setting of Psychedelia, the very game he had played to escape his miserable working life.
The Palatio family was nothing more than a footnote in one of the game's minor quests.
Worse yet, the realization that he had arrived ten years before the game’s official start date was as soul-crushing as the time his salary had been withheld for three months straight.
In the world of Psychedelia, every living soul—noble or peasant—was destined to be pulverized in ten years.
The Asteria Kingdom, where his family resided, was particularly cursed. No matter which story path the player took, the kingdom was always destroyed the moment one of the Five Great Sins manifested.
It was a guaranteed death sentence.
The kingdom would fall. The nobility would be slaughtered. The cities would burn.
Essentially, Alon’s cozy life as a count’s son was on a ten-year countdown to oblivion.
Therefore, if Alon wanted to keep living his life of leisure, he had to neutralize the Five Great Sins before they could become unstoppable engines of destruction.
His current actions were the first steps of that survival strategy.
“Well… it is what it is.”
There was no way to explain the truth of the game to Evan.
“The timing simply isn't right yet.”
“…The timing?”
“Yes. Regardless, ensure this operation remains a secret and maintain the support for the orphanage as I requested. Oh, and one more thing.”
Alon produced a letter from his robe and held it out.
“Deliver this to her.”
“…This letter?”
Evan looked at it with curiosity, and Alon nodded.
“Yes.”
In truth, that letter was of vital importance.
It contained a specific phrase that always triggered a mandatory event when the player encountered the Sin of Wrath in Psychedelia.
In the game, a shady archbishop from a certain holy nation would utter these words to the protagonist while trying to pacify the Sin of Wrath. However, the moment the words were spoken, the archbishop would be reduced to a bloody mist. The Sin of Wrath would then mutter, “It’s too late,” with an annoyed look, and the boss battle would commence.
Alon was using the phrase now because this era was what the Sin of Wrath considered her "past."
He had seen the phrase countless times during his play-throughs, described by the archbishop NPC as a “spell to earn the favor of the Bloodline.”
It was impossible to guess what went through the minds of those driven by such fanaticism.
As Alon watched the knight bow and exit the room, he gave a small shrug and kept his thoughts to himself.
***
Several days passed.
“I have a letter for you.”
Evan, acting on Alon’s commands, returned to the orphanage. He handed the envelope to the girl, unable to mask his discomfort.
It was understandable; the girl before him, Yutia, radiated an unsettling aura.
Her crimson eyes, contrasting sharply with her snowy hair, were devoid of any feeling.
There wasn't even a flicker of emotion to be found.
She was the embodiment of apathy.
The girl looked at the world as if everything in it were a mere inanimate object. She reached out and took the letter with the same blank expression she had worn when Evan first pulled her from the facility.
Rustle, rustle—
Yutia began to open the parchment in silence.
Evan watched her, still baffled as to why she had been a prisoner in the first place.
Though he hadn't reached the pinnacle of mastery, Evan was a user of mana, and with that came the sensitivity to feel the strength of others.
Furthermore, Evan’s ability to detect mana was far more refined than that of an average knight, giving him a much clearer picture of a person's power.
That was why he knew the truth.
The girl in front of him was far too powerful to have ever been held against her will in such a place.
As Evan pondered this, another mystery nagged at him.
It concerned the third son of Count Palatio, the man who had recruited him at a tavern months ago.
Back in his mercenary days, Evan had heard rumors that Alon was a social pariah—a talentless extra in a noble house.
There were stories of him being a coward, constantly tormented by his older brothers, who were infamous for their cruelty.
How did a man like that know about a secret experimentation lab hidden in a baron's remote territory?
Evan’s train of thought was suddenly derailed, his eyes widening in shock.
The reason was simple…
Yutia, who had been an emotionless statue just moments ago, was now wearing a wide, radiant smile.
No, it was more than a mere smile.
She was radiating an aura that only those of a certain level of mastery could project, and she was doing it without the slightest effort.
And then she spoke.
“The sender of this letter… was it Sir Alon?”
As Yutia asked the question, her pupils—the vertical, reptilian slits unique to the Bloodline—locked onto Evan.
That single look sent an instinctive alarm through Evan’s body. Despite being an Expert-ranked knight, he felt a surge of fear. He swallowed hard, quickly regaining his composure before answering.
“Yes.”
“Why did he not summon me?”
Evan didn't know the answer, but his instincts warned him against saying "I don't know."
That felt like a dangerous path to take.
Instead, Evan repeated the offhand comment Alon had made earlier.
“…He stated that the time was not yet right.”
“I see.”
Her response was brief.
But it was clearly the answer she wanted, as evidenced by the deep, lingering smile on her face.
She…
Yutia Bludia—no.
“…I understand now.”
The eldest daughter of the Bloodline, Yutia Bloody Queen, parted her beautiful red lips.
“I understand his will perfectly.”
Cradling the letter that held a secret known only to her Master, her lips twisted into a strange, haunting grin.