Episode 3
The chirping of birds announced that morning had arrived.
"...Time to put you down, I suppose?"
After carefully picking up Kania, who was sleeping soundly in bed, and gently placing her on the floor where she had collapsed, I lay down on the bed she had been occupying and began shouting.
"Hey!! How long are you going to keep lying there!?"
"...Hah!"
Startled, she jumped up from the floor, then realizing she had been lying there the whole time, gritted her teeth and began glaring at me.
"...Why are you staring like that? Got a problem?"
"...No, sir."
"Then go prepare breakfast."
"...Yes."
"Ah, and if you're going to bring another pathetic meal like yesterday... just take your sister and leave the family."
"........"
"What? Don't want to take your sister? Then should I keep her here in the family? As my concubine, that is."
When I mentioned her sister, Kania finally failed to maintain her composure and tears began streaming from her eyes.
That's right. For her, her sister was her most precious existence—and her greatest weakness.
"Then... I will... prepare it..."
"Yeah, good work."
As she left the room sobbing, the system window inevitably appeared before my eyes.
[Villain Point 1pt acquired! (Words you don't mean)]
'...What's this message next to the points? Is it explaining the situation of the villainous act?'
I looked at the system window with a puzzled expression for a moment, then nodded and murmured.
"...True enough, those were words I didn't mean."
Kania's sister will become a precious key to curing her in the future. There's no way I would treat such a person carelessly.
Well, I do need to keep giving Kania the impression that I covet her sister, to make her hate me.
"...Here is your breakfast."
I rose from the bed and took my place at the table as Kania brought coffee and sandwiches.
"........"
As I silently looked down at the meal without saying a word, Kania began gritting her teeth. She probably thinks I'm going to flip the food over again.
However, I was simply checking whether 'Villain's Intuition' had activated. Seeing that 'Villain's Intuition,' which warns of life-threatening danger once a day, hadn't triggered, it seems there's no poison in the breakfast.
"...Fine, I'm tired of nitpicking anyway."
I put on an expression showing I was eating only because I couldn't be bothered, and began downing the coffee.
'...Damn, this is good.'
I've thought this since before, but Kania is really good at cooking. Even this coffee alone is enough to overpower the imperial baristas.
"...Why is this so bitter?"
"...I apologize."
Of course, I can't show that it tastes good. I am supposed to be a bad person, after all.
"Seriously... there's nothing about you that I like."
"...I will strive to improve further to meet your satisfaction, Young Master."
"Stop with the lip service and give me the academy invitation. I have something to show you."
"...Yes."
At my cold command, Kania pulled the academy invitation from her bosom.
[SUNRISE ACADEMY]
- To the first son of the great hero family Starlight, Frey Raon Starlight. We invite you to Sunrise Academy, the pride of the Sunrise Empire and the finest academy on the continent. We hope you will grace our academy and become the starlight that illuminates us.
[Headmaster Lionel]
"...See? They want me to become starlight."
I quietly read through the invitation, then sneered, crumpled it up, and threw it at Kania's head.
"So I'm different from a nobody orphan like you who barely got into the academy with my father's recommendation letter."
"........."
"So, I'm counting on you at the academy, Kania?"
"Yes, but Young Master... there's something you should know..."
"The rule that all academy students are equal? Bullshit. Only baron or frontier count families bother with that kind of thing. I'm from one of the few ducal houses in the Empire, and a direct bloodline of the hero family at that."
"........"
"So don't spout that kind of bullshit at the academy... if there are any commoner bastards invoking the rules, you take care of them yourself. Got it?"
"...Yes."
"Then, let's head to the academy. A prestigious hero family can't be late on the first day."
Saying that, I rose from my seat, deliberately leaving more than half of the coffee and sandwiches untouched. I wanted to devour everything since I couldn't even eat properly yesterday, but... to be hated, it can't be helped.
"Young Master, the carriage is ready."
"Greetings~! Young Master Frey! Our trading company has prepared the finest carriage to safely escort you to your destination!"
"...Sure."
Stepping outside the lodging, a magnificent golden carriage with the family crest was already waiting for me.
"Oh my, but... you're even more handsome than the rumors! Goodness... I've fallen in love at first sight...!"
"...Is that so?"
"Yes! If... you have time... *ahem*..."
I was about to enter after briefly observing the carriage, when suddenly a woman from the trading company started throwing herself at me.
'...I can see right through you, you witch.'
I am known to the public as quite the lecher. Yes, at this point, my reputation is at rock bottom. Of course, since I am the first son of a hero family that even the imperial family cannot easily ignore, I am constantly held in high regard by those around me despite my reputation.
Anyway, it seems the trading company deliberately selected a beautiful woman to seduce me... unfortunately, with my life hanging by a thread, I don't have time to play around with women like this.
"Puhaha! As expected, lowly things are so transparent!"
I burst into laughter, wrapped my arm around Kania's waist, and whispered coldly.
"But right now... I have someone of equally low status who's more useful."
"Ah, y-yes..."
".........!"
Suddenly having her waist wrapped, Kania gritted her teeth and began suppressing her killing intent.
"...And I'm a bit busy."
"I, I see... excuse me..."
At my frigid words, the woman's face turned pale blue as she hurriedly moved away from me.
"Kania, let's get in the carriage together."
"I'll... ride a horse..."
"I said let's get in the carriage together, Kania?"
"........Yes."
Meanwhile, I smiled with my eyes and boarded the carriage with Kania, then threw a word at the woman from the trading company who was standing blankly behind us.
"...You, I'll remember your face."
"Y-yes! Thank you!"
In society, when the first son of the Starlight family says 'I'll remember your face,' it's understood as marking someone for a night together.
"..........."
Because of that, the trading company woman had a triumphant smile, and Kania was barely holding back an expression of disgust.
[Villain Point 1pt acquired! (Repelling a gold-digger)]
'...Actually, I meant I remembered her for my mental blacklist.'
That woman is probably someone the trading company hired from some brothel. Later I should write to my father and investigate the connection between that trading company and the underworld.
"...Young Master."
"Hm?"
"I'm worried your arm might go numb. So, could you please remove your arm from my waist?"
After boarding the carriage, when I sat next to Kania instead of across from her and kept my arm wrapped around her, she began speaking with a trembling voice.
"...I don't want to."
"...I'm asking you."
"Hmm, thinking about it, wrapping around the waist is a bit much. Then... how about this?"
Ignoring her reaction, I placed my hand on her thigh instead.
"Young Master... please... don't do this..."
Then Kania squeezed her eyes shut and began sobbing.
"...What the hell, how unpleasant. Tch."
Only then did I pull away from her, sit in the seat across from her, and look out the window while carefully wiping the blood seeping from between my lips, muttering inwardly.
'Seriously... I still can't get used to this...'
Except when Kania is sleeping, I have no choice but to infuse life force into her like this. Of course, infusing life force this way puts several times more strain on the body than doing it while she sleeps, and I get treated like a sexual harasser.
Well, if it means extending Kania's life, I'm willing to be treated like a sexual harasser.
"...I'm going to sleep for a bit, so stop whining and shut up, Kania."
"......Yes."
".........."
I tried to rest my eyes before entering the academy, but then remembered the fact that the woman right in front of me was hellbent on killing me.
'...Fuck.'
I gave up on sleeping and, with my eyes closed, began examining the Villain Points I had gained again through self-sacrifice.
[Accumulated Villain Points: 100pt]
'...Oh, quite a lot built up?'
Less than a day has passed since my regression, but perhaps because I've been constantly committing various villainous acts, I've already gathered 100pt.
"...Shop."
I muttered 'Shop' in a voice as small as an ant to open the window, then with my eyes closed, moved my pupils around to examine the shop.
'Let's see... stat distribution... item shop... and skill shop too? There's a lot.'
Just as written in the prophetic book, the shop seems to provide me with results in exchange for consuming Villain Points.
I'd like to investigate in detail right now, but with Kania radiating killing intent in front of me... I'll have to look more carefully later when I'm in my quarters.
"Mmm... mmm... Kania... stay still... hehe..."
".........!"
Having made that judgment, I pretended to sleep-talk, calling Kania's name throughout the journey to the academy.
Thanks to that, the killing intent I felt from in front of me grew even stronger, but the accumulated Villain Points grew as well.
This seems like something I should use often.
.
"...Young Master, please wake up."
"Kania... hehe... that position looks good... keep staying like that..."
"Young Master, please..."
"...Yaaawn, what? What's wrong?"
After pretending to sleep-talk for a while, suddenly Kania started shaking me awake.
Rubbing my eyes roughly and putting on the appearance of someone who just woke up, Kania sighed and said.
"...We've arrived at the academy. You need to get off soon."
"Already? Carriages these days are really fast..."
Stretching and looking out the window, Sunrise Academy began to come into view.
To think I'd see that academy standing intact on the ground again, it's truly overwhelming. Originally, that academy would crumble from the Demon King's attack.
- Entering now is the first son of the great hero family, Starlight Ducal House, Lord Frey Raon Starlight!
"See? Kania? They recognize me before I've even entered the academy?"
"...I think they saw the family crest on the carriage."
"...What a tactless woman. In moments like that, you just play along."
"...I apologize."
Deliberately being petty toward Kania, I looked at the accumulating Villain Points and muttered inwardly.
'...Equality my ass, with such formalities still remaining... like hell the rule of equality will be upheld.'
Despite the rule that 'everyone is equal at the academy' existing clearly, why does the tradition of loudly announcing when children of influential families enter on entrance ceremony day still remain? This is a place of learning, not a banquet hall.
Because of such evil practices, corruption, and misconduct, the Empire is gradually rotting away. Although in the previous cycle, I was the one who destroyed the Empire... even without the Demon King or me, if things continue like this, the Empire's downfall is certain.
So I must defeat the Demon King, survive the heroines, and to some extent clean up the Empire's stains. After all, once I defeat the Demon King, I won't exist in this world anymore.
Well, using the knowledge from the prophetic book and what I learned in the previous cycle, it's not impossible... but the heroines are still the problem...
[Villain's Intuition: Powerful killing intents are felt nearby!]
"...Sigh, speak of the devil."
Reciting a proverb my ancestor frequently used from the prophetic book, I let out a deep sigh.
Not just 'killing intent,' but 'killing intents' plural.
It seems our main heroines are quite angry.