A Villain's Survival Guide

The knight’s statue stood blackened by fire, its stone surface charred beyond recognition. The sword, once driven deep into the earth, lay broken at its feet, shattered by the force of the blast that had torn through the city.

Beyond the ruined square, the scene felt strangely distorted. A vast barrier enclosed Raine and Charlotte, its translucent walls stretching so far that the Endbringer had been caught within its protection as well.

The mercenaries they had fought moments earlier were scattered across the cracked streets. The flames had consumed them completely, leaving behind little more than scorched remains among the rubble.

Above the city, beyond the drifting smoke and ash, a six-headed spirit hovered in the form of a white dragon. Its immense body cast a pale silhouette against the darkened sky.

Standing atop the creature was Alfred, balanced with casual confidence as the wind swept through his red hair. Beside him stood Warner. His broad frame was little more than a dark shape at this distance, partially obscured by the smoke still rising from the ancient ruins below.

When Leomaris saw them, the relief came out as a quiet sigh. He’d been worried about Raine and Charlotte getting caught in it, but Charlotte had put up a barrier powerful enough to hold against that. He hadn’t seen that coming.

’Well, this is what she lives for. She wants to win this more than anyone. To us, the title of ruler is just a formality, but to her, it determines her entire future.’

Another look around told him enough. Most of the buildings were already ablaze, his own among them, and with Alfred and Warner’s party seemingly about to have a go at Raine and Charlotte’s, things needed to end.

He turned to Lucius, who was already preparing himself to join the fight.

"With Charlotte’s barrier encircling the Endbringer, it will have no choice but to remain contained for a little longer. However, I recommend that we use the smokescreen to our advantage and proceed with our plan."

Lucius nodded, and they slipped out of their hideout without hesitation, sticking to the shadows and keeping themselves hidden from those above.

After hours of turning it over, Leomaris and Lucius had come to the same conclusion: their lack of long-range attacks put them in the worst position of the three parties.

Leomaris was fairly certain it was intentional. Lucius had brought it up and been shut down by Instructor Moon — though that hadn’t put a dent in Lucius’s desire to fight the Endbringer one bit.

Physical strength was where they had the other parties beat, and that was precisely what they planned to use to their advantage.

The plan was to create a field that played to their physical strength, one that could bridge the gap on long-range attacks.

They moved through the rubble, leaping from debris to debris, with only a few things on their minds. Stay hidden, find the right position, and get hold of something they could launch at range with precision.

Once the smoke covered them completely, Leomaris reached through the distance: broken pillars, heavy rocks, twisted metal, anything with enough heft to crush a praying mantis’s head.

He knew well enough that he couldn’t launch them with enough force to cause any real damage. Lucius, though, was another matter. His ability, Timeless, meant using them as weapons would be no bother at all.

’I am actually glad I did not have to fight him again. I can use Hyper Boost to match his strength, but even as a Sorcerer, I have my limits. Unlike him. I simply need to perform to the best of my ability. As long as he finds the fight satisfying, victory itself is irrelevant to him. That is my best chance of survival.’

—

Lucius’s POV:

At the far end of the ruined city, Charlotte’s barrier still stood. High above, Alfred’s dragon continued its assault, each blast striking the shimmering surface with enough force to shake the ground beneath them.

The attacks no longer carried the overwhelming power of the first strike, yet they were more than enough to worsen the devastation around them. Ancient walls collapsed into the streets, and clouds of dust rolled through the shattered remains of the city.

Thin cracks had begun to spread across the barrier. At first, they were barely noticeable, but with every impact they widened, creeping slowly across its surface like fractures in glass.

Inside, Charlotte and Raine remained poised amidst the destruction. Neither took their eyes from the sky. As the barrier weakened around them, both appeared to be waiting for the same moment, the instant it finally gave way.

’This plays right into our hands. As long as we stay hidden, the moment they turn on each other, we can move in and finish off the Endbringer. If everything goes perfectly, we might even leave without anyone realising we were there.’

No sooner had the thought landed than his eyes found Leomaris across the way. He was quietly going about the business of collecting their weapons.

Something about the enthusiasm and the determination Leomaris wore made Lucius unsure of himself. He was emotionless, he knew that. What unsettled him was knowing it hadn’t always been the case.

He was keeping something from Leomaris. He’d respected him long before now, but it was different up close. A few days in each other’s company and Lucius had already realized things about him he hadn’t anticipated. More layers than he’d given him credit for.

"I wouldn’t say we are just rivals or mere allies. If I had to put a name to it, I’d say we are friends. Yeah, that sounds right." Those words, spoken by Leomaris to Lucius just a few days ago, echoed in his mind.

For someone with so few people to his name, having Leomaris: strong, loaded, and not the type to hand out friendships to consider him one worth keeping should have been enough to smile about.

The expression he wore said as much. What was behind it said something else entirely. He felt nothing. Nothing at all.

It was why he’d been brushing off the gravity of it. Not out of ignorance, he knew well enough what he should be feeling. It simply wasn’t there.

’Well, I am a mercenary after all. A job is a job.’

Then, a sound, loud and sudden, from somewhere down the way. Lucius’s head snapped up before he’d even seen it.

Leomaris smirked. "It has broken. They’ve shattered the barrier at last."

A smile that wasn’t really a smile suffused. He shrugged. Another day gone without saying what needed saying. The truth would have a way of surfacing on its own.