Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 377 : A Birthday Without Memories (2)

Kwa-jik! 

A sharp sound pierced the air, and Yutia’s heart fractured, leaving her in a daze.

For a fleeting moment, her mind went blank, leading to a cascade of unbidden questions within Yutia.

Her senses soon returned, and she turned her trembling gaze towards Alon.

Alon appeared exactly as she recalled him.

His expression remained the same stoic facade he consistently wore.

On the surface, nothing seemed remiss.

Yet, an unsettling wrongness permeated the atmosphere.

Yutia’s eyes drifted downward, focusing on Alon’s hands.

The hands that gripped Penia’s chair radiated an undeniable tension.

The entire scenario defied logic.

However, Yutia Bloodia, possessing a mind known for its acuteness, effortlessly pinpointed the origin of the discord.

“Hiccup—”

The instant Yutia’s attention shifted to her, Penia emitted an involuntary hiccup, unable to tear her gaze away.

It was evident to anyone present that she was the one at fault.

A smile touched Yutia’s lips.

“Lady Penia?”

“Y-Yes?”

“Pray tell, how did this… transpire?”

Her voice fractured, unable to contain the tempest of emotions within.

In response, Penia’s eyes darted frantically, scanning her surroundings.

Her guilt was palpable.

Yutia prepared to press her further—

“E-Excuse me~”

Abruptly, Alon, who had remained silent, covered her mouth.

“I-I believe it would be best if you first regained your composure…”

Alon’s subsequent words caused Yutia’s smile to falter and vanish.

He wasn’t incorrect.

She had no intention of disputing his point.

Nonetheless, Yutia’s spirits plummeted instantly.

His statement resonated as though he were shielding Penia from her.

“Ha…?”

An unintentional, hollow laugh escaped Yutia’s lips.

A profound sense of emptiness washed over her.

She turned her head, her gaze falling upon the trembling Penia.

The very individual who had dared to provoke Alon into treating her as an adversary.

“It appears our bond has reached an impasse. What is your assessment?”

Penia let out a sharp gasp.

For a fleeting moment, she questioned if any genuine connection had ever existed between her and Yutia, but such thoughts were inconsequential now.

The threat to her life felt more potent than ever before.

Penia frantically pondered.

Where, oh where, could she possibly begin to offer an explanation?

“L-Lady Penia is entirely blameless—”

Before she could complete her sentence, Alon once again interjected, subtly siding with Penia.

Witnessing this, the defiant glint in Yutia’s eyes, which had been fixed on Penia with disdain, extinguished.

“Ah—”

No words were spoken.

Yet, Penia understood.

She comprehended the unspoken message conveyed by that vacant gaze.

The meaning was clear.

As Yutia’s stare bore into her, tears welled in Penia’s large eyes.

Even then, she desperately swiveled them, searching.

It was a natural reaction.

For she harbored an absolute dread of meeting her end.

Frantically searching for a solution, Penia blurted out,

“M-Marquis? You cannot speak of such things. T-This is Lady Yutia we are discussing!”

Her voice trembled with urgent appeal.

At that, Alon’s eyes widened slightly, a flicker of surprise momentarily breaking his usual composed demeanor.

Yutia, now emanating an aura of strange mana as if all emotion had been drained, fixed her glare upon him.

Alon regarded her for a moment before speaking,

“Um… I-I apologize.”

A simple, unadorned apology was offered.

However, Yutia’s anger proved resistant to such easy appeasement.

She had arrived at the Marquis household in high spirits today.

Yet, not only did Alon fail to recognize her, he had also displayed overt hostility.

Her anger was of a magnitude that could not be assuaged by a mere apology.

At the very least, Penia would have to endure considerable suffering before her rage began to subside—

“Sister Yutia…?”

…Would have to—?

“...What?”

“Yes?”

“W-What did you just say?”

“S-Sorry?”

“No, what came after that.”

“Sister Yutia …?”

Sister…

He had addressed her as Sister…

Hmm…

A familiar spark returned to Yutia’s eyes.

Simultaneously, a smile reappeared on her previously rigid lips.

“My Lord, would you be so kind as to repeat that?”

“S-Sister?”

Upon hearing that single word—

Yutia’s hand instinctively flew to her chest.

An inexplicable warmth, a tender sensation, bloomed within her.

After a brief pause,

“Mm— It appears that, as always, we can maintain our amiable friendship.”

“Huh?”

Yutia’s sudden, radiant smile left Penia, who had been on the verge of tears, frozen in bewildered astonishment.

“However, I still believe this situation warrants a thorough explanation.”

“Y-Yes, of course…!”

She nodded fervently.

Uncertain of the exact turn of events, she nevertheless felt a sense of relief, believing she had narrowly escaped peril.

***

A short interval later.

Having absorbed the entirety of the narrative, Yutia finally spoke.

“To reiterate briefly: you consumed a regression potion with the objective of identifying and rectifying magical flaws, correct?”

“Yes…! Up to that juncture, no anomalies were detected. There were no discrepancies in magical recollection, and the inscriptions were applied flawlessly. But—”

“It has yet to dissipate, even after two weeks?”

Yutia shifted her gaze slightly, her question carrying a pointed edge.

“Y-Yes.”

“Typically, after a fortnight, it should naturally wear off, should it not?”

“Indeed. Th-The potion itself was definitively sound. I even conducted supplementary experiments as a precaution.”

“Experiments?”

“Yes, by chance, a mage from the Blue Tower was present at the Marquis estate around that time. I had him ingest it concurrently with the Marquis. I surmised there might be some unforeseen complication.”

“…And that mage reverted to his normal state after the two-week period?”

“Yes. For some strange reason, only the Marquis—

Letting out a weary sigh, Penia glanced nervously at Yutia.

“B-But you don’t need to worry too much.”

“And why is that?”

“Of course I found it strange too, so I checked a few things… and it seems this is caused by the Marquis’s subconscious.”

“Subconscious?”

“Yes.”

Penia continued explaining to Yutia at length.

“So… in conclusion, it means the Marquis himself is intentionally preventing his return?”

“Yes, it looks like he’s found some way to voluntarily maintain this state for a longer period.”

“But is it even possible to subconsciously stop the effects from wearing off?”

“Normally it would be almost impossible… but this is the Marquis we’re talking about.”

Yutia nodded as if she understood.

At the very least, she now grasped the overall situation.

“So right now, the Marquis is essentially the version of himself from before he ever met us.”

“…That’s correct.”

“Who else knows about this?”

“For now, Evan and Blackie… and maybe Basiliora? Other than that, no one else. It’s not exactly something we want the public finding out.”

At those words, Yutia briefly turned her gaze to Alon.

She confirmed that the green badge on his chest was clearly glowing.

“I believe there’s at least one more person who knows.”

“Huh?”

“Well, it doesn’t matter now, even if they realized it.”

She spoke—not to the room—but to whoever might be secretly watching through that green badge.

After a moment of thought, she smiled slightly, a smile that looked just a bit dangerous.

***

Alon, the third son of the Count of Palatio.

Or rather—Alon, head of the Marquis of Palatio.

Even though nearly a month had passed, he still found the current situation extremely awkward.

And why wouldn’t he?

From Alon’s perspective, it was as follows—

He had only just realized this was the world of Psychedelia a few months ago, and after closing his eyes for what felt like a moment, he woke up to this situation, as if he had stepped into a hidden camera prank.

And that wasn’t all.

He had planned to live peacefully in Rodmil, yet here he was: the ruthless head of the Palatio Marquisate.

And living in that estate with him was none other than the absolute queen of hysteria herself, Penia Crysinne.

Not only that—she was now positioned as something like his right arm.

Moreover, Alon had heard from Penia about what had happened to lead to this state.

As if to show she wasn’t lying, even though Alon had lost about thirteen years of memory, his knowledge of magic remained completely intact.

What had disappeared was solely his personal memories.

And—

His memories of Psychedelia.

To be precise, all records and battle memories related to the magic originating from Psychedelia had been entirely erased.

As though that section alone had been deliberately carved out.

…Even though he had heard the overall situation from Penia, this still felt unbearably strange to him.

For example, the fact that the Palatio County had become a Marquisate.

The fact that he was perhaps on the brink of being crowned king.

The fact that he had become a god…

To Alon as he was thirteen years ago, none of this was within the realm of imagination.

He could not comprehend how any series of events could have led to such an absurd outcome.

Even seeing Yutia Bloodia today had shocked him.

Though Penia had given him a prior explanation about Yutia and the others, Alon still found himself startled internally.

That was only natural—because face-to-face, Yutia Bloodia was even more beautiful than he had imagined.

Of course, he had seen her in Psychedelia too.

But back then, most of the Sins had already partially fused with their sins, so he had never clearly seen her face.

That was why, despite Penia’s explanations, he hadn’t recognized Yutia right away.

“Haa…”

Alon let out a quiet sigh.

Today had already been more than enough confusion.

And yet instinct told him that tomorrow would be even worse.

Because tomorrow was Marquis Palatio’s birthday.

It was only natural.

If the one who could declare a kingdom—no, who could even become a god—suddenly lost his memories overnight, there would undoubtedly be consequences.

That was why Alon intended to keep his memory loss a secret from everyone except Yutia.

While Alon was deep in thought—

On the hill outside the Marquis estate—

“I’m busy. I need to bring a new sculpture.”

“…So? Why did you suddenly summon us all here for something urgent?”

“What’s going on? You said it was about Master?”

“Indeed.”

“I’ve already prepared my gift for Brother, so I don’t really mind.”

“I’m busy.”

“Hmm~ well, I don’t mind since I’m free.”

Everyone except Yutia and Rine had gathered in one place.

After confirming this, Magrina took a breath and spoke.

“Marquis Palatio’s memories have returned to his childhood.”

“...What?”

It was Rine’s desperate move to stop Yutia’s solo rampage.