Rise Of The Villain : In a World Ruled By Anomalies

Chapter 159 - 158 : Resolve and the unexpected ending

Inside a grand, marble-pillared hall, every candidate who had participated in the exam stared up at the massive holographic screen.

The image showed the ruined forest-city... and at its center, a boy sprawled on the ground, arms spread, chest heaving, completely spent after his last clash.

Arthur.

He lay there laughing weakly, eyes half-closed, as if he could finally rest.

No one in the hall spoke.

They had just watched him carve apart monsters, prodigies, and nobles one after another. They had seen a city-sized battlefield get erased in a single strike. It was the kind of scene that would burn itself into their memories whether they wanted it to or not.

Away from the main crowd, near one of the shadowed pillars, a red-haired girl in a maid outfit stood quietly.

Elizabeth Crimson.

Her crimson eyes were fixed entirely on the screen.

"That was quite entertaining, if I do say so myself," Elizabeth murmured. "But how does he keep awakening these new abilities?"

She narrowed her eyes as the replay showed Arthur fighting Damian and then the others.

"He didn’t have those when I fought him," Elizabeth continued. "Or did he simply not show his full hand...?"

She folded her arms.

"There’s something I’m missing."

The hall vibrated with cheers and roars as the screen showed Arthur lying there, victorious.

Then, all at once, the noise cut off.

It took Elizabeth a second to realize why.

The cheering had died because something on the screen had changed.

She looked up again.

Her breath hitched.

On the projection, the collapsing forest-city did something no one expected.

It didn’t dissolve.

It shrank.

In the crowd, Isabella and Julia rubbed their eyes as if they couldn’t trust what they were seeing.

"Julia," Isabella said slowly, "he may not be the strongest out of everyone here, but that guy definitely has a good head on his shoulders."

Julia exhaled.

"I’m starting to realize that too," she said.

Back under the pillar, Elizabeth scoffed.

"That sneaky bastard," Elizabeth muttered.

Everyone in the hall had assumed the magical space was collapsing for good.

So had Arthur.

They were all wrong.

The forest-city wasn’t ending yet.

It was just getting smaller.

—

Inside the forest-city simulation.

Arthur lay on his back, watching the sky fracture.

He thought it was over.

The edges of the world were crumbling—buildings dissolving into light, trees breaking apart into glittering particles. The horizon curled inward as if reality itself were folding.

But then he realized something was wrong.

The cracks didn’t swallow the world.

They closed in.

The entire space shrank like a sphere tightening around him, the distant trees and ruins dragging closer instead of disappearing.

Arthur’s smile froze.

His face darkened.

"Oh, come on," he muttered. "You sneaky bastard."

He could feel a presence approaching.

A faint distortion in the air beside him.

A blue portal opened just to his right, rippling like a doorway made of liquid glass.

A light-blue-haired boy stepped out of it with a wide, satisfied smile on his face, hands in his pockets.

Aaron.

He glanced around once, taking in the shattered wasteland, then looked down at Arthur.

"So," Aaron said cheerfully, "I did good, right?"

Arthur stared at him for a second, then snorted.

"It’s the first time I’ve been outsmarted," Arthur said. "I underestimated you. It won’t happen again."

Aaron grinned even wider.

"That’s the biggest praise I’ve ever heard from someone, and it makes me even happier that it came from you," he said.

Arthur tried to move his arm and failed.

"So," Arthur asked, "how are you going to finish this? As you can see, I can’t move an inch."

Aaron tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"Well," he said, "I definitely can’t stab you... or beat you to death."

A chill raced down Arthur’s spine.

He slowly turned his head.

"You know," Arthur said, "when you say it like that—"

Aaron laughed and waved a hand.

"Relax, I’m joking."

He reached into his storage ring.

The next second, he pulled out a grenade—compact, metallic, and humming with condensed mana. He flicked the safety off with his thumb and set it gently on the ground between them.

"I don’t mind sharing first place with you," Aaron said. "After all, you’re like a brother to me. I really can’t bring myself to kill you in this helpless state."

Arthur let out a fatigued laugh.

"You’re really too kind-hearted, you bastard," he said. "It’ll hurt you in the future."

"Probably," Aaron agreed.

He pulled the pin.

They looked at each other one last time.

Then the grenade detonated.

BOOM.

Light swallowed the world between them as the shrinking magical space of the forest-city finally reached its limit and collapsed, folding in on the explosion and dissolving into nothingness.

—

Inside the grand hall, the students exploded into cheers.

They had expected Arthur to stand alone at the end.

Instead, they had watched him share the final elimination with someone who had waited until the very last moment to move—a hidden piece on the board that even Arthur had nearly forgotten.

A two-man ending.

On one of the front rows, Victor sat with his arms folded, eyes still fixed on the now-blank space where the screen had been.

"Arthur Celestian," Victor said quietly. "That name is engraved in my mind now."

His lips curved into a thin smile.

"You’ve just been added to my list of targets."

A hand landed on his shoulder.

Damian dropped into the seat beside him, grinning despite the heavy atmosphere.

"I know, right?" Damian said. "I’m going to beat that bastard one of these days."

Victor shrugged his arm off, annoyance flashing in his eyes.

"You too, asshole," Victor said. "Just wait. I’ll bury both of you alive."

He stood up without another word and walked out of the hall.

Damian clicked his tongue.

"Cold bastard," he muttered.

Beside him, Diana was grinding her teeth, anger tightening her jaw.

"Relax," Damian said. "Getting angry won’t change the outcome."

Diana let out a long breath.

"You’re right," she admitted. "It’s just... seeing that guy fills me with rage."

Damian leaned back in his chair, finally noticing something.

"Where are Jasmine, Arina, and Liana?" he asked. "I haven’t seen them anywhere."

Diana shook her head.

"I haven’t seen Jasmine or Liana since earlier," she said. "And Arina said she had someone she needed to talk to."

"Is that so?" Damian rubbed his stomach. "Well, whatever. Let’s eat something. I’m hungry as hell."

Diana sighed.

"You’re always hungry," she said.

But she stood up with him anyway.

The two of them left the hall together while the rest of the candidates kept talking excitedly about two names that would not leave their minds anytime soon.

Arthur Celestian.

And Aaron Vale Valmont.

----------

On one side of the hall, away from the main crowd and their noise, two girls stood facing each other.

One with hair like spun gold.

One with hair like a waterfall of blood.

Arina Evan Imperius and Elizabeth Crimson.

Amber eyes met blood-red ones.

Elizabeth’s gaze sharpened as she noticed the way Arina was staring at her.

"What do you want, kid?" Elizabeth asked flatly. "I don’t like people blocking my way."

Arina’s eyebrow twitched.

"Why are you calling me ’kid’ when we’re both the same age?" Arina shot back. "Are you crazy or something?"

Elizabeth sighed and glanced down at herself—at the body of a teenager in a slightly tattered maid outfit. For someone who had lived far longer than she looked, being treated as a kid was grating in its own way.

"All right, fine," Elizabeth said. "Let’s not beat around the bush. Just tell me what you want."

Arina met her eyes head-on.

"Tell me the price," Arina said.

Elizabeth blinked once.

"The price of what?" she asked.

Arina’s lips curved into a cold smile.

"Your price," she said. "You’re a servant, right? Someone who works for money?"

She tilted her head slightly.

"Instead of serving that broke-ass brother of mine," Arina continued, "serve me. I’ve never seen someone as impressive and useful as a servant. Come work under me—I’ll treat you a thousand times better than he does."

Her eyes gleamed.

"Hell, I’ll even pay you a thousand times more than him," Arina said. "So just tell me the number... and I’ll change your whole life."

Elizabeth studied her.

For a moment, she said nothing.

Then a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

’Bold kid,’ Elizabeth thought. ’Maybe I can use her.’

"That’s an enticing offer," Elizabeth said aloud. "You want to know the number?"

"Yes," Arina said immediately. "Tell me."

Elizabeth looked her dead in the eye.

"He doesn’t pay me a single coin," Elizabeth said. "Hell, he even takes what I earn for myself if he finds out about it. That’s why I never tell him how much money I actually have."

Arina’s eyes widened.

"Then why—"

"Because he enslaved me," Elizabeth interrupted calmly, though her voice tightened on the last words, "using a slave seal."

Her gaze dropped for a brief second.

"And he killed all of my family members."

For the first time since the conversation started, sorrow flickered openly across her face.

"So I have no choice but to serve him," Elizabeth said quietly. "I’m sorry, but even if I wanted to, I can’t serve you. I’m his slave. He can abuse and discard me anytime he wants. But I cannot defy him that’s my destiny."

She took a slow breath.

"There is one way to free me," Elizabeth added. "Get rid of him."

A chill ran down Arina’s spine.

Her fingers curled into fists.

"I knew it," Arina said, anger coloring her voice. "That bastard has become scum beyond anything I imagined."

She looked back at Elizabeth, eyes blazing.

"Don’t worry," Arina said. "I’ll help you."

The slave symbol on Elizabeth’s back suddenly burned.

A sharp, searing pain shot through her spine, making her wince. It felt like someone had pressed a brand of molten iron directly onto her skin.

’Looks like that’s the limit,’ Elizabeth thought through gritted teeth. ’It must’ve reacted to my emotions... or to what I just said.’

She straightened, forcing her expression back to neutral.

"Sorry," Elizabeth said. "I have to go. My master is calling me."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked away from the hall, the faint scent of iron and smoke following her like a shadow only she could feel.

Arina watched her retreating back.

"Don’t worry," Arina murmured under her breath. "I’ll free you from that scum."

She turned as well and left the hall in the opposite direction, her resolve hardening with every step.