I’m the Main Villain but the Heroines Are Obsessed With Me

2 – 1. I have to become stronger (2)

He was surrounded in a hostile environment, and his life was threatened.

In such a situation, what should I do?

Some might try to persuade the enemy to join their side, while others might opt for evasion to escape the situation. However, Ian’s choice was different.

“First, I need enough strength to protect at least myself.”

There is no running away.

Instead of raising a shield, Ian decided to wield a weapon and face the challenge.

In fact, there was no other way.

“Will there be anyone in this family, or rather, in this empire, who thinks well of me?”

Unless they’re a fool, they would know. There’s no such person.

Not receiving any special treatment from the family and failing to even complete the task of defeating the Demon Lord despite being appointed to the Hero Party.

“At this point, Ian must have become a pariah externally. He was appointed as the party leader of the Hero Party by Your Majesty, thanks to his leadership and combat skills, even though he is disliked by the family. But I’m sure they consider it sending Ariel out just before the conquest of the Demon Lord due to his obsession with his reputation.”

From the beginning, there was intense debate about whether putting him in the Hero Party was the right decision. Ariel wields the Holy Sword and Ego Weapon, and Elysion said she was “the person who spent the longest time with Ariel,” so the royal officials included Ian Volkanov in the Hero Party just for that reason.

“There are far more people who have simply spent more time with her than I have. They just arbitrarily put me in…”

Would they help him, who had been controversial from his appointment to the party? Not a chance.

Rather than helping, Count Volkanov will likely attempt to politically attack him.

“There’s no point in running away… There’s no need to think about it. If I fail, it’s only death.”

Regrettably, he wasn’t dreaming right now.

He truly had become Ian Volkanov, and to survive, he had to uncover the secrets he had been hiding.

That was the reason.

“First, I need to assess my condition.”

With that determination, Ian approached the mirror.

His appearance was not particularly impressive, filled with scars and blemishes acquired from a tough life since childhood. However, what Ian was interested in wasn’t that. He gazed at the strange tattoo near his heart.

An image resembling a broken sword entwined with chains was engraved on his chest.

“I only wished this wasn’t here… But by this time, was ‘Blade’s Resentment’ already etched into me?”

The crimson tattoo on his chest, Blade’s Resentment, Ian knew very well what it was.

“The curse placed by Haley Millers, the Swordmaster who was Ian’s mentor, to prevent the use of the sword.”

As a member of the prestigious Volkanov family, Ian, the eldest son, also used a sword.

Of course, Ian had never received any formal training in the martial arts of his family, let alone a simple lesson.

Nevertheless, with the swordsmanship he had learned from a mentor beyond his years, he was known as the next Sword Saint at the academy, as befitting someone with an unparalleled talent.

“It was Haley Millers, a teacher at the academy ‘Ark,’ who became Ian’s master.”

From a long line of spellcasters, she had also struggled to master the sword. Knowing how difficult it was to do it alone, she pitied Ian and proposed that he learn the sword from her.

From that moment on, Haley taught Ian everything about the sword.

“It was the moment Ian, who had used mediocre swordsmanship all his life, finally learned proper swordsmanship.”

To say that she gave wings to a prodigy wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Unfortunately, she was also the one who broke those wings.

“She heard that Ian had banished Ariel from the party, blinded by his fame, and came to find Ian, breaking his sword and placing a curse on him.”

That curse was the “Hatred of the Blade.”

From the moment the curse was placed, Ian couldn’t hold a sword. His hand burned when he tried to pick it up.

“Now that I think about it, it’s absurd. Surviving in this condition under such a curse?”

At the time, the gaming company had applauded Ian for suppressing his talent in this way, but now, having experienced it, he wanted to slap the production team.

“What should I do? Should I learn a new weapon even now?”

“If it’s Ian’s talent, it might only take a few years… or even a few months if we consider Hidden Pieces.”

The problem is how to endure that period.

The academy is about to start in a few days.

“Since the academy focuses on practical training, sparring is inevitable.”

It was at that moment when Ian was wracking his brain.

“Just a moment. Didn’t Ian have the Dark Attribute?”

One of the Five Attributes that are considered difficult to obtain, and among them, the Dark Attribute, which is said to be the rarest, with the Holy Attribute.

“Heroic Academy has many Hidden Pieces and Scenarios for character growth. Some of them can only be used by those born with attributes.”

In the story, Arielle used a Light-Attribute character-exclusive artifact, Holy Sword Elysion.

An item that could instantly kill an enemy with a single blow.

There were also artifacts that only characters of other attributes could use, like Elysion.

Ian knew the locations of all these items, even those that could be used by characters with the Dark Attribute.

“Even though I knew the locations, it was like a pie in the sky, as there were no characters with the Dark Attribute.”

But now it’s different. Ian was the right person to use it.

“Yes, with that, the Hatred of the Blade is nothing. And the location of this Hidden Piece…”

Ian’s eyes turned to Ische, who was thinking about the location.

“Ashylan, one of the cities in the Volkanov Viscount’s realm…. To be precise, it is the tomb where the ancestors of Volkanov are buried.”

Currently, he was staying at Cheongwol Hall in Ashylan.

Ian quickly put on his coat and left the room.

***

The Volkanov family has always been the sword of Karlos, protecting the north.

They have always been at the forefront as the empire’s sword against the savage tribes of the north and fierce attacks from other countries.

For as long as 200 years.

For a long time, the ancestors of Volkanov protected the royal palace.

To not forget their sacrifice and glorious achievements, their descendants erected a space in Ashylan, a land with beautiful scenery, to commemorate them.

Therefore, Ashylan has a significant meaning to the people of Volkanov.

“It’s a place that means something to me. Of course, I have no interest in the ancestors.”

He only cared about Gi Yeon, and honestly, the nobles who were polite to his face didn’t know.

Entering the memorial park, Ian burst out laughing.

“I knew they treated me as an invisible person. But I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

Actually, he knew that the artifact was in the memorial park. But he wondered how he could go there.

Could he, who received the family’s hatred, go to the sacred space that honors the ancestors?

“I thought they would block me because I spread bad energy….”

However, contrary to Ian’s expectations, no one doubted his movements, not even the security guards guarding the entrance to the memorial park, who just stepped aside and let him in….

“It’s even better. I can retrieve the artifact without any interference.”

Taking a deep breath, Ian moved his feet. As he passed by one memorial stone after another, he began to count more than twenty. He arrived at his destination.

The memorial stone at the deepest part of the memorial park, had this written on it.

– Eleks Volkanov, the first sword of the empire, sleeps here.

Eleks Volkanov. He lived as the sword of the royal family from the beginning of the Karlos Empire, and his achievements are beyond words.

“There are many achievements. But the greatest achievement is…. being the ancient god’s assassin.”

That was the part that caught Ian’s attention.

Eleks Volkanov, who was just a common knight, beheaded the ancient god Neltalion during a sortie and was highly praised, obtaining the position of Viscount.

To not forget the emotions of that time, he always carried a part of the god’s body as a trophy.

“And Eleks left a will, asking to keep Neltalion’s trophy in the tomb if he dies.”

“I will never forget this glory, even in death,” they said.

So, the treasure, nearly as precious as a royal heirloom, lay buried in this land.

Ian was after it.

“It may seem like grave-robbing right after possession,” he thought.

What can he do? He had to do it to survive. Maybe even the ancestors would understand. Perhaps they would support a struggling eldest son trying to stay alive.

“Hoo!”

He shed all his guilt. All that remained was to put the plan into action.

Ian placed his hand on the gravestone.

At the same time, he recited, “I request an audience with our great ancestral spirits.”

That was the moment.

Kururung!

With a faint vibration, the ground beside the gravestone opened up, revealing a hidden chamber.

“Shall we go treasure hunting then?”

***

The hidden chamber inside the tomb was truly vast.

He knew about the secret chamber from the information, but seeing it in person was awe-inspiring.

“In the game, it said it could accommodate about twenty people, but…”

Twenty people? Seriously?

Ian was dumbfounded.

Where does this place look like it can accommodate only twenty people?

“Isn’t it just a room, really? The decorations are incredibly over the top.”

The walls of the room were inscribed with writings about Alex Volkano’s achievements and drawings depicting him in battle.

Although he wanted to explore for a while, Ian continued walking.

“I didn’t come here to play.”

His intentions were not noble, so it was best to finish the job and leave as soon as possible.

As he continued walking, Ian’s sought-after items came into view.

A coffin covered with cloth embroidered with the Volkano family crest, and a small box placed next to it.

He didn’t pay much attention to the coffin. Ian immediately approached the box.

After lightly brushing away the dust that had accumulated, Ian grabbed the lock with a distinct eagle emblem engraved in relief.

A lock with the family crest.

There was no keyhole to be found. The only way to open it was with blood.

“To be precise, it only responds to the blood of the Volkhanov family.”

Once blood was poured into the relief, the seal would be broken.

Without hesitation, Ian sharply bit the tip of his index finger.

Snap!

As a sharp pain began to tingle in his mouth along with the taste of blood, Ian withdrew his hand from his mouth and slowly dripped the blood into the relief.

The red blood gradually filled the relief, and at last, the pattern drawn with blood appeared.

Thud!

As the seal was released, the chains that had encircled the box fell to the ground.

Ian lightly dusted off his bloodied hand and stepped back slowly.

It was about ten steps away from the box.

Roar!

Kurrung!

A powerful force surged from the box. Simultaneously, something emerged from the center of the storm.

-Krur!

What appeared was a monster with thousands of arms.

“Neltallion, the Emperor of a Thousand Arms.”

Once, the only surviving ancient god who had driven the empire to the brink of destruction.

He stood before Ian.

***

With his gaze fixed on Ian, Neltallion grinned strangely and extended one arm straight out.

Kwaaa!

A massive hand tore through the air and rushed forward. However, Ian showed no reaction whatsoever.

There was no reason to.

“Neltallion doesn’t attack those with the dark attribute.”

His targets were humans with different attributes.

There was no way he would attack Ian, who had been born with the dark attribute.

As if to prove the truth of those words, he stopped his outstretched arm right in front of Ian’s face.

– Kruruk?

The one who had stopped the attack slowly approached. It was that moment when he had been staring at Ian for a while.

Thud!

Until just now, Nathalion, who had been showing his aggressiveness, looked at Ian as if to say, “When did this happen?”

And then he reached out his hand.

Ian knew what it meant.

“This guy is the only heir of the ancient god. And he wants to make a contract with me.”

In the world, it was known that Alex had killed the last ancient god. But that wasn’t the exact truth.

He did kill him. He just couldn’t kill him perfectly.

“When Nathalion feels a threat to his life, he gathers all his life force and prepares for resurrection by storing power within his body. In other words, as long as there is a part of his body and enough time.”

He could resurrect at any time. He was an ancient god, and that was the reason he had survived so far.

Not knowing this habit, Alex had killed Nathalion and kept his finger as a trophy, burying it with him.

Thanks to this absurdity, Nathalion had survived until now, and Ian had just released his seal.

Since the situation was resolved more easily than expected, Ian smiled cunningly.

“Obtaining the power of the monster that once overwhelmed the empire on the brink of destruction.”

Nathalion’s value was limitless. He could absorb it into his body, making his skin as tough as steel.

He could use mana to create the guy’s arm and make use of it, and he could easily handle simple treatments.

There might be other things he could do, but right now, right after resurrection, this was probably the best option.

“But still, he’s a guy with such powerful force that he can rival Arieh’s Elysion.”

To make my body healthy, I need power.

So, he decided to accept it.

As Ian gazed at Nathalion’s outstretched hand, he clasped his hand over the guy’s hand.

“Let’s make a contract.”

-Krurur!

As Ian agreed, Nathalion absorbed him with a pleasant smile.