The Villain Wants to Live

Chapter 142: Words in the Letter (1)

I climbed the island’s lighthouse and looked around the entire lake. It was snowing; a mystical pure white paint splattered over the dark green. Primienne followed me in a hurry.

“If your reasoning is correct, it would be amazing.”

My thoughts were simple: this book interfered with reality.

“Is that possible?”

“It’s not impossible.”

Of course, this book alone couldn’t, but if countless people had read its contents, the story could become an origin and manifest as a magic equivalent to a miracle.

“Then the male wizard ‘Damian’ who was fishing here will be you. It’s the lead role, so congratulations.”

The only problem was the book’s ending.

[…She told the wizard everything she knew. And then, she pierced his heart with her blade.]

The end of Volume 1. It was almost a trailer for Volume 2, so the ending didn’t even go into much detail.

“Who ‘she’ might be is also a key factor.”

Here, ‘she’ was the main character. She had no name and was referred to only by identifying pronouns. Also, I didn’t know who this wizard she stabbed was.

“Primienne. Have you ever thought that this book was strangely popular?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Even Her bored Majesty has read this book.”

How a book of fewer than 150 pages became a bestseller. In terms of aesthetic sense, the book itself was not lacking, but to have been so widely read so quickly, it required more…

—I can feel the magic in this book.

What Sophien told me when she gave me this book was right. There was literal magic in the sentences on the page. It was that power that captivated the readers.

“This is the first time such a thing has happened.”

The story holds the magic, and the magic makes people read the story. With more people reading it, it gained a type of existential power and eventually could interfere with reality. It was a cycle of amplification.

“Is it a demon’s work?”

“No. If that were the case, my blood would have reacted.”

It wasn’t a demon. But who, why, and for what purpose remained unknown. At least, until now.

“I wonder what will happen.”

“Forget that. Watch the shores of the lake from here.”

“Yes.”

It was then a boat appeared from the other side of the lake. I looked out, and Primienne recited the contents of the book.

“…Damian looked out at the lake from the lighthouse. A boat carrying a wizard was approaching.”

Two people dismounted the moored boat: Epherene and Drent.

“It was two wizards. Among them, the more foolish of the two stumbled.”

─Ouch!

Epherene fell to the shore of the lake.

─Ugh… ptooey!

The girl spat out sand as she stood back up.

“So, they were both characters. One of them could be stabbed in the heart.”

“It’s not Drent.”

“Could you give me the reason why you think so?”

“Because he is not a Named.”

“…Does that mean that he’s not an outstanding enough wizard to be the main character?”

“Something like that.”

If this were a sudden event, the target would be Named. Therefore, the strong candidates were the mentors who came here, including Epherene or me.

“Shall I tell everyone about this?”

I shook my head.

“You don’t have to.”

“Why?”

“Because a mere story cannot control me. I’ll deal with it myself.”

“…You are very confident. Do you know where ‘she’ is?”

“It’s in here.”

I tapped the cover of the book. I didn’t know who ‘she’ was yet, but in time, she would crash-land on the island. I stood.

“Where are you going?”

“‘To her.”

“Well. If there is a sword in your heart, please let me know.”

“Okay.”

As soon as I left the lighthouse, I spread the wood steel around me.

* * *

…Sylvia crash-landed on the island inside the lake. Her whole body was drenched in sweat, and her mana had bottomed out. From her island around the Floating Island to the realm of Yukline, she had flown thousands of kilometers.

“…”

Sylvia shuffled over and sat down on a nearby boulder.

“…Haah.”

It would take some time to replenish her mana once used to the end, but her stamina was still sufficient. Sylvia, who didn’t neglect exercising, had physical abilities close to that of an average knight. She had a physique too good to be a wizard.

“…”

But as her sweat was drying off, her body became cold. Snowflakes began to fall around her.

“…”

Sylvia made a small fire with the drops of mana she had left. She basked in the warmth and waited for her mana to recover. A half-day would be enough. She would stay quiet until then and go to find Deculein when she was in perfect condition.

“…?”

However.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a gust of snow blew past, blowing out her fire and sending Sylvia panicking.

“Ah.”

She had no time to sigh. Immediately the blizzard hit her, and the ground was buried in snow in mere moments.

“…”

Sylvia tried to move away, but snow piled up around her. From her feet to her ankles, from her ankles to her knees, and from her knees to her waist…

In the end, she became a snowman. Her body was so cold that it felt warm.

‘Let me rest a little.’

‘I’ll rest a bit.’

‘And I’ll keep going…’