Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 553: A Flash (2)

“What is...... this......?”

Reber blankly stared ahead.

What he saw was a mountain of corpses.

A mountain made from Black Flesh creatures.

And beneath it, blood flowed like a river.

At the horrifying sight that looked as though every flesh creature stretching beyond the horizon had been piled together as the price for this landscape, the suicide squad that had returned under Sia’s orders could only stare blankly.

Every single one of them carried awe and shock in their eyes.

And above all—

Reverence.

How much time passed like that?

Like the others, Reber had been silently staring at the bizarrely contradictory scene when he noticed someone standing in the distance.

Ash-gray hair fluttering softly.

Standing beneath sunlight that could properly be seen again after so long.

The sage.

The moment he spotted her, Reber immediately started walking toward her.

And as he approached, Sia looked at him as though she had expected him to come.

“You’ve arrived.”

“Yes. You ordered me to come, so I did, but...... this—”

At Reber’s mutter, Sia gave a small smile before turning her gaze away and speaking.

“He did all of this alone.”

Naturally, Reber’s gaze followed hers.

And then—

“!”

He could not help but stare in shock.

Because the person Sia pointed toward—

Was Evan.

His condition did not look good.

His entire body was drenched in red blood.

And beneath the river of blood, a black sword hilt—nothing more than the remains of the blade—was lodged among the flowing crimson stream.

Severe wounds covered his body.

“This person...... did all of this?”

“Yes.”

Sia nodded with a smile.

And Reber blankly looked at Evan.

Honestly speaking, he found it difficult to believe.

‘I knew he was strong, but......’

Of course, Reber knew Evan was powerful.

Not only himself, but many people skilled with swords had received considerable help from Evan before.

But even so, he had never imagined Evan was capable of fighting this overwhelming number of flesh creatures alone.

And while he still reeled from that shock—

“......But is this person even alive?”

Reber asked cautiously.

Evan’s condition was horrific.

But at Reber’s concern, Sia merely smiled faintly.

“Of course. Did you think he was dead?”

“Well...... huh?”

Reber answered while looking toward Evan, only to abruptly trail off.

‘......His wounds?’

Because Evan’s catastrophic injuries—

Though only little by little—

Were healing.

“This is—”

Reber could not understand what kind of situation this was.

He could only mutter in confusion.

But Sia fully turned toward him instead.

“Listen carefully from now on, Reber. From this point onward, you are to become his subordinate.”

“His...... subordinate?”

“Yes. Follow him, gather the scattered survivors, and rebuild the world once more. He’ll be absolutely necessary.”

Because Al-Akulakka and the flesh creatures are still alive.

At Sia’s whispered words, Reber’s eyes widened.

“They’re...... still alive?”

“Yes. So make sure to continue the fight alongside him. Your people will absolutely need him.”

At Sia’s request, Reber looked toward Evan.

Just moments ago, Evan had seemed no different from a corpse.

Yet in that short span of time, his body had recovered considerably.

‘How in the world......?’

Before he could even process the question—

“Then I’ll be leaving now.”

At Sia’s farewell, Reber hurriedly opened his mouth.

“You mean you’re leaving?”

“Yes. I have things I need to do as well.”

“And by things you need to do—?”

But Sia did not answer his question.

She merely smiled quietly.

And seeing that reaction, Reber suddenly realized something.

The sage would never return again.

“......You must have many things to take care of.”

As expected, Sia still said nothing.

She only looked at him with a small smile.

How much time passed like that?

“Then, I’ll leave him in your care.”

With those final words, Sia gave Reber a small farewell greeting.

“And serving him probably won’t be very difficult.”

“Is... that so?”

“Yes. Because that person—”

She left behind a quiet murmur.

“—was deeply influenced by someone he admired.”

And quietly departed.

####

Al-Akulakka had failed to ascend.

As a result, all the divine power he had gathered until now scattered into nothingness and disappeared.

Yet despite that, the Black Flesh creatures Al-Akulakka created did not vanish.

There were two reasons for this.

First—

Black Flesh Al-Akulakka had not actually died.

Though he had failed to ascend, he had not lost his life.

In the end, even after the body maintained by his dwindling divine power was severed by Evan, he survived disgracefully by parasitizing flesh creatures.

That was the first reason the Black Flesh creatures still moved without dying.

And the second reason—

Was the children Al-Akulakka had created.

The sons and daughters of Al-Akulakka.

The four children who obeyed only his commands and existed solely to lead Al-Akulakka toward ascension still maintained the Black Flesh creatures.

And so the Black Flesh remained active.

At the far eastern edge—

Within the black and grotesque temple where countless Black Flesh creatures still filled the horizon—

[Fucking—!!!]

Black Flesh Al-Akulakka screamed madly.

Raging over his failed ascension.

And beyond that, raging over the fact that he had failed to capture the human who ruined it.

His appearance as he destroyed every nearby structure in blind fury was beyond pathetic.

And yet—

“......”

“......”

“......”

The one son and two daughters seated before him said nothing at all.

[Why were you not there!? Why did none of you help me!!!]

Al-Akulakka’s roar dripped with resentment.

But his anger was unreasonable from the start.

After all, it had been Al-Akulakka himself who deliberately stationed them too far away to assist him.

And yet despite such treatment, none of them dared raise their heads.

Was it because they were weaker than Al-Akulakka?

No.

In truth, those gathered here were stronger than he was.

Their powers had originally been fragments of authority granted to them back when Al-Akulakka wielded absolute dominion.

Each possessed power capable of twisting the laws of the world.

And yet despite wielding such abilities, none of them displayed even the slightest dissatisfaction before Al-Akulakka.

Because to them, Al-Akulakka was their creator.

The creator who had made them.

A creator they could never oppose.

And because they could never rebel against such a creator, they merely kept their heads lowered despite Al-Akulakka’s irrational fury.

And just as his rage finally reached its limit—

“Hello, Father—”

Someone entered the temple.

A young girl with ash-gray hair and crimson eyes like the others.

The sage, Sia.

And the moment she appeared—

[Sia—!!!!!]

Al-Akulakka’s scream-like roar echoed through the room.

[Do you understand what you’ve done!?]

He shouted the instant she entered.

But despite that horrifying scream, Sia merely kept her calm smile as she replied:

“Yes, Father. I do.”

[You understand!?]

“Yes. Just as you instructed, I infiltrated humanity and offered them to you as the final nourishment.”

[Are you spewing nonsense just because you have a mouth!?]

Al-Akulakka screamed furiously.

At that, the bodies of the sons and daughters who had been bowing their heads until now trembled faintly.

Naturally so.

They had been born that way from the beginning.

And yet—

“Mmm— but it’s true, though?”

Unlike the others who had been born the same way, Sia calmly answered despite Al-Akulakka’s monstrous rage.

The difference in reaction was overwhelming.

And at that moment, Al-Akulakka finally sensed that something was wrong.

But—

“Besides, I came today because I have something to do, Father.”

Sia smiled as though she did not care in the slightest how Al-Akulakka reacted.

And at that instant—

Crunch—

Al-Akulakka felt something strange.

A hollow sensation.

And the moment he slowly lowered his gaze—

He realized it.

A massive hole had opened through the center of his body.

And then—

“I’m here to kill you, Father.”

Along with Sia’s words—

The siblings who had been bowing their heads until moments ago moved.

To protect Al-Akulakka.

And to kill Sia.

KRAAAASH—!

The eldest vanished.

Twisted laws flowed from the third’s hand.

The fourth’s eyes sealed “space” itself.

Each miracle they unleashed distorted principles that even ordinary gods were forbidden from touching.

And then, the next moment—

Within that tiny instant before even a fraction of a second passed—

Their movements stopped.

The eldest appeared before Sia.

The third’s hand froze mid-motion as it released twisted laws.

The fourth’s gaze halted in empty space.

And then—

Crunch—

They exploded.

Far too easily.

......Far too meaninglessly.

And—

[W- what—!]

Al-Akulakka, horrified by what had just happened, suddenly coughed up blood violently as he slowly dragged himself backward.

Countless questions and disbelief filled his face.

And above all—

[Even if you kill me, there is nothing left— nothing left at all!!]

Desperation.

He did not understand how Sia, who should have remained trapped, could do this—

But more important than that was survival.

Yet despite his desperate cries, Sia calmly walked forward until she stood before him.

“Mmm— yes, I know that, Father. Even if I consume you now after you’ve already lost everything, there would be nothing left to gain.”

[That’s right! Exactly! So instead of me, consume your siblings! Then you would gain—]

“But unfortunately, there’s a reason I have to kill you.”

She said that.

And then—

“You hurt someone I love.”

The next instant—

Al-Akulakka’s head exploded.

His body trembled violently as though seized by rigor.

Yet even while looking at the body of her creator, Sia remained completely calm.

“Ah, don’t worry too much. I’ll consume the siblings eventually as well. During the ‘previous’ time, problems happened because I consumed them too quickly.”

After all, fruit is supposed to be eaten once it ripens, right?

Sia added with a smile.

“And I’ve decided to change my name too. Rather than the one Father gave me, I have a name given to me by someone I love. So from now on, when you refer to me—”

She smiled.

“Please call me Yutia.”

Yutia Bloodia.

Looking at the disappearing Al-Akulakka—

She spoke calmly.

And Sia—

No—

“Well, you won’t have any chance to call me that anymore anyway.”

Yutia—

Watched the ascender, Al-Akulakka, disappear.

Watched what had once been her creator.

......Watched her father.

And smiled.